House of Winter

Chapter 42

SANNA

"Well, there we have it," Queen Lisbet said, clapping her hands together. The fur around her neck was covered in snow, but it seemed like the snowstorm didn't reach her. "Matthias, so nice of you to join us. I'm happy to present you Tomas Wilder, your heir. I'm sure the two of us have plenty of treaties to draw up, so let's all go inside and have a nice cup of tea. Guards, secure the perimeters and seize Osvald and Virani."

Two of the wolfguards grabbed Sanna's father. His wolf let out a growl, but then two more wolves were on top of him, and then Lisbet's own wolf piled on top.

Osvald fell to his knees in the snow, and Lisbet stood in front of him. "Your betrayal has wounded me deeply," she said, but her voice and face remained completely cold and expressionless.

"Lisbet," Osvald said weakly.

It was strange, for Sanna to hear him call out the queen's name. She felt a surge of pity for him, on his knees on the snow. She remembered him as she had when she was a child - his clothes were always tattered, but he had always towered over her. She remembered him being the tallest person in the world. Now, he was on his knees before his queen.

"Now, Virani," Lisbet called out. "You know I hate fighting. Will you back down peacefully, or will you insist upon a show of these new powers of yours?"

"Give me the saltrock, and I won't hurt anyone," Virani said calmly.

Sanna's mother was standing in a circle of cleared ground, like a dark mark against the white snow. Her white hair was tangling more around her face, and the red of her long cloak slapped against her ankles. Behind her, her white tiger had its head bent low, watching everyone.

"You know I won't do that, Virani," Tom said. He put the saltrock back into a deep pocket of his cloak and swung himself neatly onto the back of his black wolf.

Sanna sighed, realising what was about to happen.

She'd never been a fighter. She had no interest in battle, the way Tom did. She had no interest in clashing jaws and the impact of magic against magic. To her, it was boring. And terrifying. She didn't want anyone here to get hurt.

"Tai, surge me again!" Virani yelled, and Tai did as he was told.

Sanna could see Tai's effort as he poured his magic towards his aunt.

Lumi on Jinni, Tom on Kobuk, Ari on Warrah and Katja on Helvig joined the line of wolfguards who stood against Virani.

Sanna felt a tremor of panic. Was she expected to fight against her own mother? She couldn't. She wasn't a fighter, let alone someone who could battle her own mother.

Virani lashed out with a torrent of fire power, which was met easily by Tom's ice. But then Virani matched again with a blast of water. This time, it was Warrah who caught the water attack with his own blast of water.

"Tai, more power!" Virani yelled.

Lumi seemed to be quelling at the same time as Tai was surging, but their powers were matched.

"Fire, advance!" Virani ordered, and the line of fire soldiers marched forward.

"Tomas!" Matthias yelled. "You are my heir! You are too important to risk in this fight! Let the wolfguard defend their palace. You'll be safe on my ship."

Tom was momentarily distracted by the Lombardian king - his father, Sanna thought sourly - and in that moment, his ice defences dropped. There was a surge of fire through the defensive wall the wolfguard had set up, and Sanna felt the heat of it in her face.

It forced her to take a step back in the snow and she almost stumbled, realising her father was still kneeling in the snow. Someone had tied his hands behind his back, but the wolguard who had been holding him had stepped forward to defend the palace and their queen. Sanna stared at the ties, feeling a stab of anger. She looked back toward the wolfguard and her friends, who had regained their strength of force against the oncoming fire army.

Sanna whirled around, staring at Lisbet and Matthias, who were now retreating through the snowstorm, back towards the safety of the palace.

"Sanna," Osvald said. "It's not too late. I know this is what you believe in, too. You know that those born in power are not deserving. Look at them. Lisbet and Matthias, running back into the palace so that their people - their children - can fight this war for them. They will never know what it's like. But you do. You can take this power, the way Virani has always believed. You are far more deserving than any of those born into it."

Sanna stared at her father, shocked at his words. But then she remembered long evenings in the library in the summer palace, where her father would read her pages of philosophy from old Norrlish texts. Had he always been trying to tell her that this is what he wanted for her? He had seized his own power, by marrying Lisbet, and now he was trying to thrust it upon his daughter.

Sanna spun around, watching the way Ari fought on Warrah.

Ari fought for what she believed in. The right of people - the common people. The Vastiens who had never seen a palace, and just wanted safety and security. The people who just wanted to live their lives, and love their families. They didn't want to claw onto power like Tai did, or Virani, or Osvald, clawing ever higher, ever dissatisfied by the heights they had achieved.

Sanna bent down to her father. "I will not stand on someone's shoulders to be taller," she said. "You made a mistake. I never wanted this. I don't want any of it."

But with a slice of ice magic, she slit the rope holding her father's hands.

"She doesn't love you," Sanna said, her voice not trembling, but clear and cold. "She doesn't love me, either. She doesn't love anyone. And she won't. She can't. The only thing she loves is power. You will be happier, far happier, without her. But I won't see you rot in a dungeon for the rest of your life. Run."

Osvald stood, and in one quick move he pulled Sanna into a hug. She froze, uncomfortable with the display of affection from him, and then in another moment he was gone, pulling himself onto the back of his wolf, and disappearing into the snowstorm.

Sanna turned towards the battle.

"I'm not a fighter," Sanna told Sigrun, as she pulled herself onto her wolf's back. "But my friends need me."