Brightly Woven

“No poison this time. Wizard’s honor.”
    I accepted the glass and downed its contents in one large gulp, though a part of me wished it were poison.
    “That’s better,” he said.
    I turned my head away again, looking around the small room. The fire crackled and hissed, but I could still feel the coldness radiating from Dorwan.
    “Do you know where you are?” he asked.
    “In hell?”
    Dorwan let out a burst of laughter. “Close. You’re in Auster. The king’s summer palace on the coast.”
    “If I’m in Auster, what are you doing here?”
    “I’m just a messenger,” he said, “who brought wonderful news to the king.” Dorwan inched closer to me, and I drew my knees up to my chest for protection. “Tell me, Sydelle, do you know anything about Auster’s faith?”
    I took a deep breath, humoring him. “They believe that Salvala’s gift of the sword to man was better than Astraea’s gift of magic.”
    “And they expect their goddess to return and reclaim the throne of the heavens,” Dorwan finished.
    “What does this have to do with me?” I asked.
    “It has everything to do with you, and that’s why findingyou was so delightful,” he said. “When poison and duels didn’t work, I had to figure out a different way to take you from Wayland. He wasn’t ever going to let you go unless I put a sea—or a lake—between the two of you. Luckily for me, I caught the king’s ear, and he was willing to listen to the word of a wizard.”
    “What did you tell these people?”
    Dorwan’s face pulled back into another uneven smirk. “That I had found his goddess, of course. Their legends said that one of their most hated enemies would bring her to them. There are a lot of strange similarities between the two of you: a beautiful girl with the ability to control the magic of the world, to harness the power of storms and other terrible calamities. Crimson hair and a vengeful temper, too, of course.”
    “You lied to them?” I said. “What will they do to you when they discover I’m not a goddess?”
    “They won’t ever know,” Dorwan hissed. His eyes narrowed, and the splotchy pink of his scarred skin went white with anger. “Because if the king were to find out, he would kill us both—rather horribly, I’m afraid—and then move on to slaughter everyone in Palmarta.”
    “They’ll just use me!” I said. “I’ll be the one to kill everyone! Don’t you have any kind of loyalty—to Palmarta, to the other wizards? They’ll be the first to die in the war!”
    “Settle yourself,” he said dismissively. “I have far more self-preservation than that. My plan all along has been to useyou against them. When the other wizards are dead, I’ll have your blood for myself. I’ll be the only wizard, too powerful for any human army to stop.”
    I moved away from him. “I may be a jinx, but at least I’m not a heartless snake!”
    Instead of being incensed, Dorwan’s mouth parted in surprise. It was only for a moment, but his one good eye widened with wonder.
    “He told you, then? Finally told you?”
    “I figured it out myself,” I said.
    Dorwan let out a laugh. “It really is a sad story, you know. I think he did mean to save you from all of this. He needed you most of all, but now he’ll never see you again.”
    “Leave me alone!” I couldn’t get my voice above a whisper.
    “Don’t cry, Sydelle,” he said with a mocking smile. “You’re finally home.”
    I squeezed my eyes shut, willing myself to wake up from this nightmare, too.

    I pretended to sleep through the rest of the day, opening my eyes only to reassure Beatrice that I was still alive. The moment she left the room, I swung my legs out from beneath the covers and stood on weak legs. The dark red silk of the sleeping gown they had dressed me in felt like scales against my skin. Red—I hated red.
    My favorite color , North had said. The memory was enough to stop me for a moment.
    I rummaged through the small wardrobe and chest at the foot of the bed; my dress was nowhere to be found and neither were my shoes. There was only a single brown cloak—the old woman’s, which meant that she would be back soon. I would have only so much time to find a way out.
    I had seen flashes of the guards outside my door when Dorwan finally left. I wouldn’t make it a step past the threshold without being stopped. The only option was the small window that Beatrice had left ajar. I stuck my head outside, taking in the faint salty scent