Gates of Ruin (Magelands Eternal Siege, #6) by Christopher Mitchell (ebook reader for surface pro txt) 📕

‘What Sable did,’ she said, choosing her words carefully, ‘has caused hundreds of deaths in Alea Tanton. The teams are fighting each other; each side thinks that the other was responsible for stealing Blackrose from the arena. The Ascendants will be coming; they want to find Blackrose and Sable. You know that Sable and I hate each other, but I don’t want any harm to come to you, Maddie.’

‘You didn’t really answer my question.’

‘Your mind might be read; I must act accordingly.’

‘Oh. Well, thanks for the warning, I guess.’

‘I should go. Which way did Blackrose fly?’

‘Towards the Fordian Wastes.’

‘Take care, Maddie.’

Belinda withdrew from her mind, as frustration surged through her. She hadn’t said half of what she had wanted to say, but she had still said enough to arouse Arete’s suspicions further. She cursed herself again, feeling the burden of her secrets weigh upon her. She sent her vision out of the tomb, and turned south.

She searched for half an hour, and was about to give up when she saw a speck soaring through the sky. Blackrose. She decided not to attempt to make contact, aware that Arete would also discover that, and instead carried onward in the direction the black dragon had come from. She sped over the barren wastes, scanning the ground as she went, until finally, she spotted a lone figure trudging across the sands.

Sable.

Belinda longed to make contact with her, to gloat at the woman’s plight. She was stranded in the middle of an enormous desert, alone and without supplies. Belinda watched for a long moment as Sable struggled along, her boots trailing through the sand. She had a fresh wound on her arm, and it was bleeding, leaving drops of blood behind her on the broken ground. Blackrose had abandoned her to die. It was no more than she deserved, Belinda thought, but her attention was drawn to Sable’s eyes, and she discerned a grim determination on the Holdfast’s woman’s face. Belinda’s gloating ceased, and she began to feel pity for her. Sable had risked everything to save Blackrose, and this was how she was being repaid. Was it possible that Sable had been misunderstood? After all, many people suspected Belinda of colluding with the Ascendants, and they were wrong. Could she have been wrong about Sable?

She cut the connection, and her vision leapt back to her body. She got to her feet, knowing what she had to do next. It was a short walk to Arete’s quarters, and the courtiers allowed her to enter.

Arete was sitting with a few of her demigod assistants, and she frowned as Belinda walked into her rooms.

‘Third Ascendant,’ she said; ‘can I help you?’

‘No,’ said Belinda. ‘I am here to inform you of something. Alone.’

Arete nodded to the demigods, and they left the chamber.

‘Well?’ she said.

‘I ignored your instructions and sent my vision to the Catacombs.’

‘Why?’

‘There is a mortal living in the Catacombs that I am fond of, and I went to warn her that you will be searching there.’

Arete sprang to her feet, rage lighting up her features. ‘You warned them? You brazenly display your treachery, and then you tell me about it?’

‘Blackrose has killed Sable Holdfast.’

Arete paused for a moment. ‘Are you lying to me? Are you trying to stop me from doing my job?’

‘I am telling you the truth. Go to the Catacombs, and you will see for yourself. The dragon feels that Sable betrayed her, and has punished her for it. The mortal I warned is a friend; her name is Maddie. Whatever else happens, I do not wish her to be harmed.’

Confusion clouded Arete’s face, though the rage remained. ‘I will do what needs to be done.’

‘If you harm Maddie, I will kill you.’

‘The mask slips at last,’ said Arete. ‘Your heart isn’t with us; it’s with our enemies, where it has always been. One day, soon, you’re going to make a mistake that you will not be able to hide.’ She pointed to the door. ‘Get out of my quarters, most blessed and noble Third Ascendant.’

Belinda stared at her, then turned and walked back out onto the landing of the tower. What had she done? What else did Maddie know? Had the Blade girl discovered that Corthie was still alive? Belinda had to assume that Arete would read everything that was held within Maddie’s memories. She walked back into her own rooms and sat, holding her head in her hands.

Time was running out. Leksandr and Arete were too powerful for her to handle alone, and the threat of Lord Bastion would only go so far. If only Sable hadn’t behaved so recklessly; her actions in the Northern Pits had endangered everything. Belinda’s earlier doubts evaporated, and her loathing of the Holdfast woman returned.

It was Sable’s fault. Her meddling had ruined everything.

Chapter 14

Making Allowances

N orthern Kinell – 21st Luddinch 5252

Aila watched as Kelsey cleaned out Frostback’s lair. The young silver dragon had insisted that the ‘insects’ make themselves useful as a condition for her letting them stay, and Aila and Kelsey had been taking it in turns. As well as allowing them to sleep close to the dragon each night, Frostback had also been bringing them back food from her hunting trips, and Kelsey had recovered from the arduous journey across Northern Kinell.

Frostback’s lair consisted of a shallow dip in the forest, a hollow surrounded by dense undergrowth and trees with a rocky slope on one side. It had been in a mess when Aila and Kelsey had first arrived, littered with gnawed bones and scraps of dead animals, while the bedding of moss and branches had been imbued with a dragon stench that had made them both nauseous. Several days of cleaning and tidying had followed, until they had got the daily routine down to an hour or so.

The dragon was keeping a close eye on Kelsey as she carried armfuls of fresh moss over to the base of