Lightbringer (Empirium #3) - Claire Legrand Page 0,96

a bitter pang of longing. What she wouldn’t have given to hear the wraith’s voice suddenly drift down from the sky.

The masked person called out a command in a Vesperian dialect Navi did not know. The soldiers in the nearby boats relaxed, lowering their spears. The rowers resumed their work, pushing the boats toward a small black island on the horizon.

Navi’s attacker untied their mask and unwrapped the scarf from their head, revealing a slim, ruddy-faced young woman, her skin marked with freckles and one rather large white scar. She shook out her shaggy, chin-length hair, bleached white from the sun, and shrugged off her layers of shawls. Beneath it she wore snug brown trousers over slim shapely legs and battered knee-high boots. The collar of her white tunic gaped open to reveal two knotted cords of leather tied around her neck.

“Apologies for the dramatics,” she said, gesturing noncommittally with a lazy flick of her hand. “And for the knife. But I don’t trust anyone until I’ve looked them in the eye and held a blightblade to their throat. You understand.”

Navi, shocked into speech, said, “I do, actually.” Then she paused, wondering. This was a much younger woman than she had been expecting, perhaps only a year or two older than Navi herself. “You are Ysabet?”

Ysabet raised an eyebrow. “And you are Navana, princess of Astavar.”

“My name is Jatana.” Navi wrinkled her brow, feigning confusion, but her heart lurched with sudden fear. “You know this.”

“What I know,” said Ysabet, looking out to sea as the island grew larger and nearer, “are the stories I’ve heard from the north. A princess working in Lord Arkelion’s maidensfold as a spy for Red Crown. A death-defying escape. An alliance with the notorious Wolf. Rumors too of a girl with miraculous powers. Some say she is the Sun Queen. A fleet of imperial warships sunk by a freak storm in Karajak Bay. An army of monsters. Astavar invaded at last and fallen. The kings dead, but no royal children found. And now, a girl named Jatana and her brother arrive on my islands, wanting to meet me. Wanting to build an army.”

Ysabet paused, then turned to look back over her shoulder.

Navi’s chest ached with fresh sorrow, but she held Ysabet’s curious gaze and did not flinch.

“We may be scattered, here in the Vespers,” Ysabet continued, “and our number much smaller than I would like. Red Crown is weak in these islands, but it still lives, and my crows fly far.” Ysabet hesitated. Her voice was hard, but there was something soft to the bow of her mouth. “I know what it is to lose your family, Navana. The unfairness of it. The agony of grief. This is why I fight. You are among friends here. I simply had to see you for myself before I could be sure.”

“And my brother?” Navi asked, raising her chin. She would hide her astonishment and her heartbreak. This Red Crown queen would not rattle her. “His companions?”

“They are probably resting, like the reasonable people they are. He is no doubt pacing lines into my floor as he awaits your arrival. Not sure we’ll ever be true friends, he and I. Don’t think he’ll want to forgive me for frightening you as I’ve done. Ah, well.” She flashed a little grin at Navi. “You and I can be friends instead.”

Navi was not sure how to respond, so she chose not to. They sat in silence as their small fleet of boats approached the island that was no longer so distant. As the waves brought them closer, she noticed how comfortably Ysabet sat in the prow, patiently watching the island near.

Then there was a rumble deep in the water. Even the air seemed to tremble. Navi noticed one of the island’s black peaks spewing steam.

Ysabet caught her staring. Her lips quirked. “Not to worry, princess. Raratari is not set to erupt for another three months. I have two Saterketa scholars in my employ, and they have never been wrong in their readings of the earth.”

“Hopefully this will not be their first mistake,” Navi said, irritated that her alarm was so obvious.

Ysabet laughed, then stood in the prow and called out commands to the other boats. They passed through a wide mouth of rock and into a black cove, and Navi’s jaw dropped, for the cliffs ahead of them began to open—two massive doors tugged apart by some hidden mechanism Navi’s mind burned to inspect. The doors moved slowly but quietly