Page 51 of To Kill a King
She raised her eyebrow and tilted her head to the side, her entire countenance perking up. “Really? I did?”
Elessan nodded, one corner of his mouth turning up in a smile. One day, she’d be a force to be reckoned with. “Remind me to not make you angry.”
Freezing, she paled. “Did I hurt anyone?”
He shook his head and glared at Zadé in a silent warning. Telling Aliya she killed one of the bandits in self-defense would accomplish nothing.
A voice called, “Hey! That’s her—the girl on the posters!”
Elessan tightened his grip on Aliya’s upper arm and increased their pace. “Time to go. Can you run?”
“Of course I can.”
Praise Abaddon for healers and their thoroughness. “Then come on!”
The yelling behind them intensified and forged ever closer. Aliya’s side cramped, and while she ran as quickly as her legs allowed, the townspeople still gained on them.
Elessan glanced back and frowned.
“Keep going!” He pushed her forward. Turning to face the crowd, he drew his swords.
No way was she going to let him commit suicide to save her. Spinning around, she reached deep into the core of her magic. Imagining a brick wall, she pulled out a fist-sized chunk and threw it in front of the villagers.
Pink sparkly lights erupted in the air between them and the mob. Heat blasted back, washing over her as the land groaned and trembled. As the last of the glittering sparks faded from her vision, the earth gave way with a mighty crack.
Elessan scrambled toward her, herding her further from the rapidly widening fissure. The ground shook, knocking her off her feet. On the far side, the townsfolk froze. One by one, they broke off and fled back to Westcliff.
The world stilled, leaving behind a crevasse at least twenty paces across, stretching into the distance in both directions.
“Damn, Princess.” Zadé stepped up next to her. “Why’d we run, if’n yeh could do that the whole time?”
“I didn’t mean to,” Aliya said. “I was just trying to erect a wall between us.”
She searched Elessan’s face for any sign of fear or disgust. His eyes were clear of judgment. Her shoulders dropped and she fought the urge to throw her arms around him in a big hug.
He checked her bandage, nodding when he found no new blood. “I think it’s safe to say no one will be coming after us for quite some time. Regardless, we shouldn’t linger.”
Aliya focused on the deep gouge her magic carved. “Do you think the town’s in danger?”
Elessan frowned, following her line of sight. “From the fissure? No. It’s at least a hundred paces from the nearest building, so if the crack did expand, I don’t think it would do any damage. It looks like they’ll be cut off from trade for a few days until they build a bridge. It could’ve been much worse, I think.”
He turned away from Westcliff and headed down the road. “You’ve conjured lightning before? I’d love to hear the story of how that happened.”
Aliya shrugged and frowned at the ground. She should’ve known better than to mention that particular misadventure, even in passing. It was just her luck that he’d be curious enough to ask about it.
She kicked a small rock into the bushes. “The tale isn’t that exciting. When my power first manifested, my father hired a tutor to show me enough to keep my magic under wraps.” He hadn’t actually taught her anything, though, beyond how to expertly stare at someone and make them feel like an utter failure. “After a few weeks of trying to help me control it, he told me I was a menace to society and disappeared.”
Zadé spoke up. “Yeh mean, magical-like?”
“No. One day I showed up for my lesson, and he was nowhere to be found. Father said he quit.” She shrugged one shoulder. “Honestly, I wasn’t upset to see the old man go. But afterward, as the days passed and I thought about what he said, about my lack of skill being so dangerous. I decided to never call on my powers again.”
Elessan raised an eyebrow.
She rolled her eyes. “Yeah, I know it was stupid. Turns out, if you don’t use magic, it builds up. Eventually the pressure got to be too much, and I just knew the power would explode the next time I reached for it.”
Zadé stopped walking and stared at Aliya. “Even I realize how foolish that was, Princess. And I’m not smart like you.”
Aliya slouched and shook her head.