City of Towers_ The Dreaming Dark - Keith Baker [66]
“Lei. Daine, Jode. Have no fear. Come in peace, and you will be safe. Come forward, Pierce. I am Flamewind, and I have been expecting you.”
Struggling to find his voice, Daine said, “How could you know we were coming?”
“Calm yourself.” Her voice was so hypnotic that this was almost a command. “Destiny is like a flame.”
“It consumes and destroys anything it touches?” Jode said. Unlike Daine and the others, Jode was not affected by the majesty of the sphinx.
“Be careful what you suggest,” the sphinx said. “Your fate can certainly consume you, and bring about great destruction. But the greater the flame, the more light it sheds, and the farther away it can be seen. I saw your fires burning in the Mournland. I watched as you approached, and I arranged for you to be here today.”
“And if we’d decided not to come?” Daine said.
Flamewind smiled and said nothing.
“So, we didn’t have a choice. Is that what you’re trying to say?”
“No. You have choice. You have power. But you do not always see the forces that move you. Why did you come this morning?”
“Well, we tried to visit you yesterday, but the watch showed up.”
“Why?”
“An old friend wanted to see me.”
“Why?”
“I don’t know. To warn me, I suppose.”
“And how did he know to find you here, in a place the watch does not watch?”
“I don’t know! Are you going to answer any questions, or do you just ask them?”
Flamewind turned her head, her golden eyes catching the light of the pool. “You will find out the answers in time. For now, you must ask yourself the questions. I am not the only one who can see your flames. Others are watching, and they are shaping your path. The death of Hadran d’Cannith, the presence of your friend Alina … these are not accidents. Beware coincidence.”
Lei stepped forward, and now it was her eyes that burned in the darkness. “You know who killed Hadran? Tell me!”
Flamewind reared up and spread her wings. Golden feathers were hidden within the black, and for a moment she seemed to be surrounded by flame. “You killed him, Lei. Those watching you have plans for you, and a life with Hadran was not what they wished.”
“They? They who?”
The sphinx settled onto her haunches, folding her wings again. “I cannot say. I see your fires, but we who watch are hidden in the shadows. I will tell you this. All of your troubles are tied to your past, to who you are, and those who have come before. Your fate is linked to your family—your parents and your brothers.”
“My parents are dead,” Lei said, “and I have no brothers.”
“You carry the legacy of your line, and you have already met one of your brothers. You must forget your house and focus on your family.”
“Stop! Stop!” Lei cried. “Take your stick and leave us alone!” She hurled the darkwood staff at Flamewind. The staff froze in mid-air, then slowly drifted back to Lei and fell at her feet.
“The staff was never mine,” Flamewind said. “I simply arranged for it to come to you. There is little I can do for you. Accept this gift.”
Pierce walked up behind Lei. He picked up the staff and put his other hand on her shoulder. Flamewind smiled slightly. “Your friends will rely on your strength in days to come, Pierce,” she said. “But even you do not know your true strength.”
“What do you mean?” Pierce said. Even Lei looked puzzled.
“Do you know what your purpose is, Pierce?”
“I was designed to serve as a light infantry scout and support unit, specializing in stealth and reconnaissance.”
“That is what you were told. That is what you have done. But it is far from the truth. You too must learn about your family.”
Pierce’s metal faceplate was incapable of expression. “I have no family. I was forged in the workshops of Cyre.”
“By whom?”
“I do not know.”
“If you wish to know your purpose, that