The Third Sun (Daughter of the Phoenix Book One) Read online

  “Yield and I will spare you,” Noor snarled, pushing her weight into the blade.

  The Makya woman spat in her face. “Foolish witch, you’ll be dead in moments.”

  “You’re alone. Why?” Noor twisted her blade, and the Makya’s hands pressed against her pooling blood.

  “One of us is all it takes.” The woman grimaced. She reached a bloodied hand to Noor’s glider beside her in the grass, and it fell away into cinders between her fingertips. Her hands ignited, ready to attack.

  “No,” Alexander cried.

  Noor did not hesitate as she plunged a second blade deep into the Makya’s chest. She left it there until the flames ceased, and the Makya lay motionless.

  “Why did you do that? You could have spared her.” Alexander said, pulling the blade from the Makya’s chest.

  “Spared her? You saw her hands. She was about to incinerate us both.” Noor snatched her blade from Alexander and wiped it on the soil. “There was no time to hesitate.”

  “Perhaps.”

  He was well known for being fair—a little too fair on occasion. Not everyone can be saved. She fought back a memory, one she had been trying to hide from for too long. Hands covered in blood, too much blood, and a body lying still.

  “I know you think I am too soft, but Ohinyan will need a little softness after what’s ahead.” Alexander surveyed the camp as he spoke. They retraced their steps, checking each tent and structure again for any sign of Makya.

  “I think you have played the hand you have been given with grace.” Noor truly believed it. When Alexander’s father had died, news spread quickly that his sister did not want to take her rightful seat as leader. She was the eldest, and it was her birthright. But she had chosen to put her children first and handed leadership to Alexander, the youngest angel to lead in the known history of Ohinyan. A role I do not envy.

  Noor watched him as he searched the tents. He’d grown on her. She had not expected him to help when she’d approached him, all those months ago. But he had grasped what was coming and despite being so young, he seemed to understand. She stifled a laugh. She was barely older than Alexander. And yet somehow, the fate of Ohinyan was in their hands.

  Silla would have liked him. They might have even been friends, in another life, perhaps. Noor had to redeem herself, and Alexander was key to that redemption. The witches might just welcome her back to the coven if Fia was the girl that could change the fate of the world.

  That she wanted to redeem herself in Silla’s name she would keep to herself. Noor would keep his memory alive and honour him as long as she lived and breathed.

  They left the camp, returning through the forest on foot.

  “What if we’ve made a mistake?” Alexander asked, as they walked back to the caves.

  Her glider was beyond repair. She’d have to make a new one. “A mistake? You mean, if she isn’t the girl?”

  “All of it. I didn’t tell her anything. I changed my mind and left Earth without her, and she still followed me here, anyway. We’ve deceived her,” he said, pulling his fingers through his hair.

  “Deceived her?” Noor laughed. “We know nothing of what will happen between this sun and the next, and your concern is that you’ve deceived her?”

  Alexander didn’t seem to notice the humour. “I should have told her everything. I should tell her everything, the moment we’re back.”

  “We must get her to a coven—”

  “She’s not just some prophecy, Noor. She’s a real person. We can’t just play with her life because we have something to prove.”

  Alexander paced back and forth, a hand rubbing at his neck. What had happened between the two of them on Earth? “What do you wish to prove, Alexander?”

  He ceased his fidgeting and stood tall. “My only wish is to honour my father.”

  She knew there was more but didn’t press him further. As young as he was, he was the leader of angels, and she had too much respect for his position to argue. “Of course.”

  The trees gave way to rocks as they ascended, the forest bed turning to sparse stones beneath their feet. The scent of spices drifted from the caves above, and they returned to find Altair preparing food.

  Noor delivered their report quickly. “There is much for you to salvage.”

  “Very well,” Altair said, brushing spices from the front of his cloak. “Then it is as we have agreed. The Lady Noor and Fia are to venture to the nearest coven, hopefully, no more than a few days travel on foot. Alexander will return to his soldiers, and I shall lead the Navarii west, to find anyone who might stand beside us. Fly carefully, brother,” Altair said, grabbing Alexander’s hand in his for a moment.

  “Look after her, Noor.” Alexander glanced over at Fia, still asleep in her blanket. He stepped forwards a few paces, leapt into the air, and was away.

  Noor watched Fia stir, her chest rising and falling in a steady rhythm, and she hoped they were doing the right thing. All of them.

  Chapter Four

  Alexander

  Scenarios played over in Alexander’s head as he patrolled the forest floor with Malachai, his right hand. There was every chance Makya scouts were still in the area, and capturing one for questioning could prove useful. He wondered if he should’ve sent a soldier instead, but he’d decided against it. A hands-on approach might not have been the traditional way of doing things, but it was his way.

  “You’re sure she’s the one?” Malachai asked, as they walked. There was only so much they could see from above, and there was much to discuss.

  Rain had fallen, their bare feet disturbing wet earth, as they made their way through the trees. It was peaceful here outside of the cities, the noise and the commotion always pressing in on him. He breathed in the scent of earth and moss.

  “The one?” Alexander hadn’t been listening, and Malachai’s question took him off guard. He pushed back at the urge to fold his arms across his chest.

  “From the witches’ prophecy?”

  “Oh, the prophecy. Yes, I do. I think so.” Alexander dragged his fingers through his hair, and stopped as soon as he caught himself doing it. “She’s been able to understand Earth animals for some time now.” Why hadn’t he just told her everything when he had the chance? He knew precisely why. He’d felt something, more than he should. More than it was right to. He had responsibilities, a duty to Ohinyan, and he had to honour them.

  “Then you should be satisfied, Sire, your mission was a success.”

  Sire. Such an old-fashioned tradition. “I wish you wouldn’t call me that,” Alexander said.

  Malachai pushed aside a broken tree branch with his right hand, his left holding his bow. “It’s better I practice saying it, otherwise, some may think I’m undermining you.”

  Succinct as always, Mal. “Practice. I see.”

  “You’ve nothing to prove, you know. It’s a noble thing you’ve done, stepping in for Mira. No one expects it of you. You’re twenty-one… Alexander, your parents had been together seventy-five years before your sister was born. What you’re doing for the angels, for Ohinyan is…” Malachai waved his free hand around as he spoke. He’d always talked with his hands, for as long as Alexander could remember. “Well, it’s noble,” Malachai finished.

  “Noble. I see.”

  Malachai flexed a wing to nudge Alexander’s shoulder. “Are you going to repeat everything I say for the rest of the day?”

  “No, of course not. I’m sorry. There is much to do, and little time to do it. The windows are becoming more and more unstable. Has there been any evidence of this during my absence?” Dead leaves crumbled under Alexander’s feet as they passed more blackened, smouldering tree trunks.

  Malachai reached for the gold cuff on his wrist, twisting it as he spoke. “There has been one report.” He paused by a stream and knelt beside it, letting the water pass through his fingers. “Part of a wing was recovered—cleanly removed, like a very fine blade had been taken to it. We think a window closed on the angel
as they passed through to Earth.”

  Alexander crouched beside Malachai and splashed his face with cold water. An angel was wandering around on Earth with half a wing missing, probably too afraid of what might happen if they tried to come back for help. Could they be dead already? He scooped a handful of cold water and gulped it down. What if Fia had died, following you through? “When did this happen?”

  “Days ago. A week, perhaps.”

  “And there have been no further reports?”

  “None.” Malachai was on his feet, his eyes scanning the trees for any signs of unwelcome visitors.

  Learning to trust others was proving difficult. Delegating was difficult, but it was his General’s duty to manage which angels travelled to and from Earth. Alexander knew he had to trust that the situation was in hand. Still, an angel was wounded, and they were his responsibility, all of them. He let out a breath. “I fear I am falling short of my father’s leadership, Malachai.”

  Malachai turned slowly, continuing his search of the trees. “Your alliance with the witches, Sire?”

  “The alliance was the right thing to do. I should not have agreed to look for Fia. We don’t just take people from Earth. It goes against everything we know.” Alexander rested his bow beside his blades as he spoke. “Ohinyan…it isn’t safe for her here.”

  “It isn’t safe in Ohinyan for anyone, Sire. Ohinyan, Earth, it doesn’t matter where she is. You said it yourself. A coven was in the cemetery before you left. If she was still on Earth, perhaps they might have intervened.”

  “She was only in that cemetery at night because of me. How would an Earth coven know who she was? They were already in the cemetery, pursuing me, as far as I know. The fact remains, there are far fewer dangers on Earth.” He filled his container with cool water from the stream. What were you thinking?

  Malachai rubbed his chin between finger and thumb. “I’m sure your father made many decisions. Some right, some wrong. The alliance with the witches, electing to go to Earth instead of sending another, that Fia is here—however she got here—is all leading towards the greater good. The angels know that. Ohinyan will know that, soon enough, when the third sun shines bright in the sky.”

  Alexander replaced his weapons. He’d tried to keep her safe on Earth, and instead she’d fallen through the window to Ohinyan. “This prophecy, something about it doesn’t feel right.”

  “You doubt the witches?” Malachai asked.

  Alexander flexed his wings to shake off the rain. “No, I don’t. I believe them—I believe Noor. What I don’t understand is how we didn’t know about it already. How could something like this be concealed from the angels. Did my father know?”

  Leaves rustled in the wind, and rain dripped through the canopy. The forest was eerily quiet.

  “I don’t know, Sire. But you’re right. It does seem strange to not know such a thing.”

  Fia had been through so much, and Alexander had witnessed it all, even her breakup with Henry. There was no doubting she had a gift—a spark of understanding of the Earth animals.

  But then he’d seen her, the night of her birthday, alone in the park talking to the sister he’d watched die before his eyes, and something in him crumbled. He couldn’t take Fia from all she had left. He couldn’t do that to her. He hadn’t even allowed himself to think about what he’d felt for her since leaving Earth.

  And yet, she followed him, anyway. What a mess he’d made. How could one girl change the fate of an entire world?

  Malachai was silent beside him as they walked. The rain had eased, and the canopy brightened as sunlight broke through the trees.

  A low hum carried its way to them on the breeze.

  “Did you hear that? It sounded like an engine.” Alexander pushed himself off from the forest floor and up through the trees. He hovered for a moment, scanning left and right, until Malachai emerged beside him.

  “There,” Alexander cried out. “An airship.”

  Only the Makya would have access to such a vessel, loaded with weapons they could launch deadly attacks from the air, with a far greater range.

  But why now? Alexander couldn’t make sense of it. One thing he knew for certain. Every person and creature in the forest below the airship was in danger—Fia and Noor included.

  Chapter Five

  Fia

  Not long after dawn, Fia found herself stumbling and feeling her way through the forest, struggling to keep up with the Lady Noor, whose long legs took strides three times the length of hers. She told herself it was the right decision to go with Noor. Altair had just saved her life, so trusting him didn’t feel like a mistake.

  But mostly, she’d agreed to go because it might have been her only chance of getting back to London. That little flat was her only connection to Sophie, to her parents. And what other choice did she have? Run off into a strange world, alone, with the risk of getting killed by shapeshifting fire people, or whatever they were?

  She soon lost pace with Noor, replaying what had happened since she’d fallen through the…window? Yeah, that’s what they’d called it. She thought of Alexander, holding her hand in his, and her cheeks flushed at the memory. Had it been him all along, back in London?

  The Lady Noor laughed up ahead. She flicked her long braid over a shoulder as she looked back.

  “What?” Fia asked, her cheeks burning.

  “Nothing.” Noor’s voice was edged with amusement. “You must have many questions.”

  Fia whistled through tight lips. She waved her hands and gestured at the landscape around them. “Where do I begin?” she asked, as she pointed. “I’m marching through a forest in another world with a seven-foot-tall wonder woman.”

  Their surroundings had become strange, almost unrecognisable as a forest. Some of the trees were lush with thick, green leaves, but others were black, bare, and almost spine-like in their twisting, gnarling qualities, and they oozed a sticky black tar. The forest was damp, the air mixed with the aroma of pine needles and morning dew on grass. When the wind blew, the scent of jasmine cascaded across their path, covering the moss in tiny white petals and reminding Fia of long summer days back in Hampstead Heath with Sophie. She reached for the little bracelet on her wrist. It was still there. She counted her breaths to calm her racing heart.

  “At the beginning,” Noor finally replied. “The coven will tell you all you need to know. Although you fell into this world, it is not entirely by chance that you are here.” Noor waited for Fia to catch up with her, climbing through entwined branches and ducking under fallen logs. “As for Alexander…”

  Fia held her breath as she waited for Noor to tell her more about the angel.

  “You know someone who has passed on?”

  Fia felt all the air leave her lungs, and she could do nothing but nod.

  “He remained…much longer than they normally do. It is a sad coincidence that he found you in such a way.” Noor pushed on through fallen branches without looking back.

  “Wait!” Fia was out of breath, tripping and fumbling her way towards Noor. “Is he my guardian angel?”

  “Angels are guardians in both this world and yours, but in different ways. In your world, they help free the spirits of the dead, and in ours they protect us. They protect the spirits of our world and maintain peace here in Ohinyan. In that sense, all angels are guardians, for everyone.”

  All angels are guardians. Fia let the words echo in her thoughts as the sun rose and dipped in the sky. She couldn’t help but feel a little thud of disappointment in her chest that Alexander wasn’t just her guardian angel. Her feet ached but she didn’t complain. It had been hours since Noor had last spoken, but it was a comfortable silence.

  Noor stopped, looking down. Fia followed her gaze. They’d reached a clearing exposing the land far around them; the haggard shapes of rocky hills jutted out in the distance. She could see from this great height that the centre of the forest behind them was thick and lush, and then its edges became bare and barren, like the twis
ting trees they’d walked through earlier. They were at the summit of a small peak, but Noor had picked out a spot well sheltered from the elements. Scattered below them throughout the woods were more ruined patches; burnt, blackened areas with barely any foliage remaining.

  “Did the Makya do all of this?” Fia asked.

  Noor crouched down near the crag, sifting a handful of fresh soil through her fingertips. She held her palm open and let the last of the soil blow away in the wind. “Ohinyan is at its weakest when the sun is dying, many of its inhabitants, too. That vulnerability has made many become fearful. For the Makya, it has encouraged all you see here.” Sunlight shimmered off the cuffs on Noor’s arms, and the stone on her circlet glittered.

  Fia took in the trees reaching to the horizon, the patches of black, of nothing, and the pillars of smoke. Another item in the long list of reasons to get back to Earth as soon as possible. How long until the sun died—what then? How were they all so calm about it? She rubbed at her neck as she peeled her gaze away from the horizon, pushing down the rising panic. It always started in her hands, so she needed to keep busy.

  Fia settled into the rhythm of helping Noor clear a place to sleep, removing loose rocks and pulling at large plants to make bedding. She twirled an enormous leaf in her hand: thick, hairy, and veined, it was larger than her head. She layered them up as Noor had shown her, until she’d made a small bed for each of them. She’d spent time camping with Sophie—it was all they could afford during the summer holidays, and they’d slept under the stars on more than one occasion. Fia bit down on her lip as she thought of her sister. She needed a distraction. The angel.

  Alexander…He’d been the angel, all along. A real angel, not just one she’d made up. Satisfied with the beds, Fia began collecting firewood, working her way through her thoughts. Maybe he’d set Sophie’s spirit free. But why did he stay? The sun disappeared behind the tallest peak, and Fia watched carefully as Noor kindled a fire. It was more complicated than using a lighter, but Noor made it look easy as she struck two flints together.