Page 28 of The Ashborn

Talon took a step backward. “The Elvish have always been more than okay under the Belok reign.”

Tristian eyed him carefully. “And the rest of the world?”

His Shardborn Commander paused. Talon’s eyes shifted from one place to another until defeat took over, and he slumped his shoulders once again. “No, the rest of the world has not had a fair share.”

“And how do you feel about that?”

Another wave of silence passed through the air.

Talon shook his head. “I feel that our conversation could get us thrown under the trees.”

“Do you trust me, Commander?”

He straightened. “I wouldn’t follow you into battle if I didn’t feel the Elvish council actually made a good decision for once.”

Tristian nodded, slow but sure. It was exactly what he needed to hear, whether Talon intended to be so revealing. “Good.” He placed his hand on Talon’s shoulder. “Commander Talon, you are under my protection as High Commander of the Trinity army and of Trinity itself under the pretenses of the Accords. You will be granted full immunity for any actions that you and I take. Will you stand with me?”

Talon exhaled and peeked behind him as his recruits neared. “Are you looking to take over the throne?” he whispered.

“I am only looking to help those who can’t help themselves. People like my mother.” He twirled the flower in his hands again as the breeze carried the sweet scent into the air. “And those in Dalelry. I have no intention of being a king, but we are going to save our world.”

“Well, I’ve lived a long enough life, I suppose. Yes, High Commander, I will stand with you. Tell me where to go.”

—Kienna—

Kienna watched the gentle waves of the Lysiria lap over each other onto the rocky shore of the beach. Her mind drifted to Connak. She wanted to call him. Despite her conflicting feelings about Danek, Connak reserved more than enough space in her head. He hadn’t reached out since he and Danek left for the Malintale. She worried he’d seen the near kiss she and Danek almost shared. Or worse—perhaps the threats were growing, and he was too busy.

She sighed. Timing was never right for her and Connak, and now served as another reminder. Her thoughts wandered to the present, and other worries took Connak’s place, like how she should be taking measurements for Master Calder to plan the new ship. She knew nothing about shipbuilding, but it was better than sweeping the workshop.

With one more glance at the sea, Kienna returned to mapping the distance between the points Calder indicated would be the start and the end. He required the number of planks it would take to get started, and the grunt work fell to her to complete.

“You can’t call a man and then yank yourself away like that.” Connak appeared in front of her, sitting on the rocky shore. His forest-green eyes glinted in the sun, and the wind swept his hair. He picked up some seaweed, observed it, and tossed it into the water. Kienna glanced at the shipyard workers, but they couldn’t see it. In fact, the seaweed hadn’t even truly moved.

“Sorry.” She smiled. “I didn’t want to bother you.”

“Bother me?” Connak pressed his hand to his chest as if he’d received a fatal wound. “You can call me, Kienna. You should know that by now, and I mean it. Because you haven’t.”

He was referring to yet another string of nightmares. The last one took her back to River Storm to watch the woman die in front of her. It ended nearly as soon as it started, so she didn’t bother calling Connak afterwards. She wanted to stare into nothing and forget anything about River Storm.

“Some nightmares I need to process on my own,” she said. With the news that King Vaerin held power over her, anything regarding him was its own nightmare, one that Connak couldn’t help her with.

Connak’s shoulders slumped. “If you don’t call me next time, I’m shoving my way in.”

Kienna moved the rods down and noted the length. Her hair drifted over her face, and Connak brushed it behind her ears. The gleam in his eyes brightened at the subtle change to them. “Danek’s doing well, by the way.”

Kienna blew air from her mouth as her skin blared with warmth. “Oh, I wasn’t asking about—I think—Connak…”

Connak placed his hand on hers while she continued to move the measuring rods. His hand was warm in her mind, and she nuzzled into it. He only smiled. “Never with me.”

“But Danek⁠—”

“You can kiss whomever you want, Kienna. That’s not going to push me away.”

Her ears burned as she continued to count the measurements, but she couldn’t help smiling. “I don’t have time for any of that.”

Connak brushed her cheek. “Kienna.” His voice turned serious. She studied his expression, the way he didn’t blink. “I should tell you… Before you think about connections…what we share mentally, it’s not exactly ordinary. It’s⁠—”

“I’m tellin’ ya, Ashfell. The ship’s gotta be bigger. Boss said it plain,” Fenlo said, pulling Kienna from Connak. He disappeared from her mind, and she readjusted to the sea breeze and crashing waves. Master Calder appeared wild. His lips were pursed, and he would have hit Fenlo if Harn hadn’t stepped up.