Awakened by Magic (The Four Kings Book 1) by Katy Haye (4)

Chapter Four

I grabbed Essa’s arm, wrenching her away from the guard. Crowded together, we took a step back – straight into a solid object. Whirling round, we found another guard. Two more stepped out of the trees. Six of them against two of us. We were trapped, the lake on one side, the guards filling the path, and the trees on the other.

But you didn’t always have to run. You could hide. I stood straighter. “Magic? You must be mistaken, sirs. We don’t have magic.”

The guard grinned, not fooled for a moment. “We saw you. A pretty conjuring. A butterfly that vanished into nothing.”

I filled my voice with scorn. “It didn’t vanish into nothing, it flew into the trees. That’s what they do.”

He scowled. “Do you think us simpletons?”

My heart crashed against my ribs. I’d hoped they might be: strong and stupid, and easily fooled. I glanced past them to the path towards Myledene. It might as well be a thousand leagues away. If we escaped them now, the guards would only follow us. I wouldn’t care about carrying trouble back to the village, if I thought the villagers could protect us. But what could they do against half a dozen guards? We were on our own. Protect Essa.

I faced the grinning guard and stepped away from Essa, pleased when his eyes followed me. “Very well. I see you are not to be fooled. I will go with you. But let my sister go. The enchantment was mine; she’s no use to you.”

The guard narrowed his eyes.

“She’s lying!” Essa glared, a proud expression on her face. “I’m the one with magic.”

“No! She’s lying. She’s jealous of my abilities.” I took a step towards the guard, filling his vision. “I’m the one the Emperor wants.”

Essa began to protest, but the guard spoke over her. “Take them both,” he commanded, dismissing our protests with a jerk of his head. “The Emperor can pick.”

“No!” Essa and I spoke in unison.

The guards ignored us, advancing on Essa. The one I’d tried to reason with grabbed my arm. I struggled.

A cloud of birds exploded from Essa, plain, black crows, cawing in alarm, birds that belonged here. The guards threw up their arms to protect their faces as the crows scattered towards them, wings flapping noisily.

“Essa, run!”

But my sister hadn’t intended the spell as a distraction. She was determined to meet trouble head-on. “She doesn’t have magic. The Emperor will be angry if you waste his time with her.”

I looked straight at my sister, ignoring the crows and the hunched guards. “Don’t do this, Essa.” She shook her head.

I swung to the guard holding me. “Leave her alone. Let the child go back to the village.”

“I’m not a child,” Essa replied. She clicked her fingers and the crows vanished, proving that she was the one with magic.

I hung my head. This wasn’t a defeat, it was a setback. So long as I was with Essa there was still hope. We could escape on our way to the capital. “Very well. Take us both.”

“That’s better. The Emperor won’t hurt you. He just needs your magic to protect the land.” I shuddered. I wondered if the guard knew it was nothing but lies spilling out of his mouth.

“She’s not precious at all,” Essa called. “Make her prove her magic if she thinks she’s so special.”

My vision blurred. I’d worked so hard to protect her, for years. But how could you protect someone who insisted on putting themselves in danger? “Don’t do this, Essa. Please.”

“Make her prove it.” Essa’s voice was harder than I’d ever heard.

“Go on, then.” The guard loosened his grip on my arm, as though that might make a difference.

I looked at Essa, willing her to understand. We needed to stick together. She must know that. Hadn’t we just been talking about how our flight from home was bearable because we’d been together?

Essa shook her head in clear refusal. She wouldn’t let me protect her. She planned to sacrifice herself to the Emperor. She really thought I would let that happen.

I gritted my teeth. No chance. I reached inside me. Perhaps Essa was right, and my magic was simply hiding. A butterfly. Once, I’d been able to conjure those with a click of my fingers, as easy as breathing.

There should be a spark of blue. As a child, whether my eyes were open or closed I’d been able to see the magic inside me. Now, all I found behind my eyelids was blackness. I pushed harder, trying to reach something that was no longer there.

Sweat beaded my forehead and trickled down my spine. I couldn’t fail Essa. I closed my eyes, picturing what I wanted. But there was no answering spark inside me. My magic was dead.

Blinking back tears, I faced Essa. “Please.” She could fool them. She could conjure something for me and then they’d take me, too. “Don’t do this, Essa.”

My little sister faced me, her expression calm, eyes shining. She looked just how I remembered Ma, facing the Emperor’s guards as though she didn’t know her life was at risk. She even smiled. “You protected me, Kyann. Let me return the favour. I’m not scared of the Emperor.”

I shook my head. The Stalwart Emperor would take her magic, and then he’d kill her, like he’d done our mother.

I had no magic. I didn’t even have a stick to defend myself with, but I charged towards the guards holding Essa, screaming all my fury and fear. I bent and hunched my arms forward, elbows bent. It was futile, me against six guards, but I couldn’t give her up. She was my sister. Protecting her was a habit I couldn’t shake off like I’d shaken off the lake water.

“Run, Essa!” I bellowed.

I crashed into the belly of the first guard. He staggered backwards. I swung, digging an elbow into what should have been soft flesh but was protected by a leather jerkin. The guard moved from under me. Abruptly, I slammed to the ground, winded and dazed.

“She’s no use. And she’ll only be trouble.” The voice spoke overhead. “Leave her. We’ve got what we wanted.”

I struggled up. A fist swung into my vision. I tried to move. Too slowly. Pain exploded over my face. I fell back to the ground and into darkness.