Six Rulers

7

Chapter 7

Syric

Unsurprisingly, I found Olivin on a balcony, her short legs dangling between the slats into the open air above Rythos' capital city. Her dark red hair had taken on the properties of the picturesque sunset, turning it to the colour of burning rubies.

For some strange reason, I had always envied Liv's hair. It was such a strange colour; it walked the fine line between natural and unnatural, but it also had this strange effect to it: the ends were always black.

Even when she chopped all her hair off her first year at the Academy, the ends were still coal black. (Our friend Clowance thought it was dyed, but I wasn't so sure. I wouldn't be surprised if her hair, like the rest of her, was magic too.)

"Hey loser," she tilted her head back so she was looking at me upside down. "How was the drive?"

"Fine. The rush hour traffic is mostly over." I sat down next to her and handed her the paper bag I had brought. "Here."

She quirked an eyebrow and muttered something about paper bags and how she hated them. Then she let out a little gasp. "Oh, Syric, you just scored BIG friend points."

Olivin pulled the half gallon container of strawberry ice cream out of the bag. She dug around in the bag for the spoons I'd also brought, and ripped the top off the carton.

"I know you. Five minutes into this, you'd be like 'I want ice cream,' and you would make me go get it, so I just beat you to the punch." I took a spoon.

"Thaaank youuu," Liv singsonged around a bite of ice cream.

"Dude, you opened it before I got here?"
Sage Kaan strolled out onto the balcony, wearing...actually, I'm not sure what she was wearing. It was a cross between an army uniform and a dress, red faux silk with weird black thorns embroidered on the front and cuffs.

"It was going to melt," Liv garbled. "What in Death's name are you wearing?"

Sage looked down at her outfit. "Oh this. I was helping Jay with a costume."
"And that required you to wear said costume?" I raised an eyebrow.

She frowned. "The costume's for me, idiot. I'm going to EliCon with my brother Jay and his girlfriend in a few weeks."

"LUCKY," Olivin's intensely blue eyes went as wide as dinner plates. "I wanted to go, but Aelyn wouldn't let me buy passes."

"Good thing I already bought them for you and Syric." Sage plopped down next to Liv and stole her spoonful of ice cream.

"I knew it was a good idea to be friends with you, Sagey," Liv gave Sage a side hug.

"Who are you going as?" I asked, mouth full.

Sage smiled slyly. "Nina Zenik, at your service."

"YES," Olivin exclaimed. "I've got to get moving on a costume-"

She was cut off by the sound of an explosion. The force of the blow shattered the windows on either side of the balcony we were seated on, showering the three of us with broken glass. The whole castle shuddered.

"Gods, not again!" Olivin vaulted back inside the castle, abandoning the ice cream and the sunset. Sage and I followed her, and just in time. A fireball came hurtling at the balcony we were just sitting on. The stone exploded, spraying chunks of the demolished balcony in through the French doors at us. Sage jumped to avoid a sizeable piece heading for her shins.

"Holy cheese wedges," she spat. "Someone's trying to kill us."

Olivin looked at me, her blue eyes practically on fire with rage. A silvery line of tears sat against the lower lid of her eye. "He went too far," she whispered. "Way too far."

"Whoa whoa whoa," Sage jolted back. "Are you saying my brother did this?"

I nodded. "He sent Rohr here earlier to ambush her."

Sage's face remained blank for a moment, then shifted to understanding. "Yep, that sounds like something he would do. Not to one of his friends, though.."

The door to the random sitting room we were in flew open. A big silver haired soldier burst into the room. "Your Majesty, the castle is being attacked."

"YEAH NO DUH, BRADDOCK," Olivin shouted. She stalked towards the door, shoving Braddock out of the way. "Go find Aelyn and tell her to start evacuating the castle."
"Already begun evacuations, my queen."

"Peachy. Then go help."

Braddock bowed, then ran down the shaking hallway to the foyer.

"We've got to go find the attackers," I said, grabbing Sage's skinny wrist and tugging her along beside me as I followed Olivin.

"It'll be a magic user, down on the streets," she said, moving faster than I'd ever seen. "Judging by the angle of that fireball. And since there was another hit on the other side of the castle just a few seconds before, there's more than one."

Another attack jarred the building, sending potted plants toppling over on their sides. Portraits and framed pictures fell from their wall hooks and thudded to the floor. The corner of a gilded portrait frame cracked off and flew towards Sage's face. She summoned a curl of wind to bat it away just before it connected with her cheek.

"Syric, take the left side of the castle." Olivin said, skidding to a halt in front of her room. "Sage and I will take the front and right. If you see the jerkwad who's doing this, attack him. Don't hesitate to roast him." She tore into the room and grabbed her sword belt and her bandolier of little Inej-style knives.

"You forget I'm not the magician you are. I have feeble control over my magic."

She sighed and swore. "Then steal someone's sword."

"Can't I just take yours?"
She recoiled. "Uh, hells no!"

I shook my head. Sometimes she was a child. I left with a "I'm gonna go kill a guy, brb" and ran off.

As I ran, I heard Sage say, "He really though you'd let him take Eldrin?"
Liv's response: "If I name something, ain't no one touching it but me."