Shadow Heir

Brilliant sunlight and a blue, blue sky nearly made me wince after spending so much time in the stark landscape of the blight. Chilling silence had been replaced by birdsong and the chatter of other animals. Trees—with leaves—spread out as far as we could see, radiantly green and alive. And the temperature ... that was the most amazing thing of all. Probably, it was only around seventy, but after being in the blight, we might as well have stepped into the tropics.

“There’s no blight here,” exclaimed Jasmine, her gray eyes wide. “It’s like—plums! Holy shit! Plums!”

She was off her horse in a flash, running toward the nearest tree. With dexterity I hadn’t known she possessed, she scurried up the trunk and began picking purple and gold fruit as soon as she could reach the branches. She tossed several of the plums to the ground and then hopped down holding a huge one for herself. She bit into it, juice running down her chin, and looked as though she would faint in ecstasy.

The rest of us wasted no time. We dismounted too and joined in the plum feast. The crazy thing was, I don’t even like plums, but in that moment, they were the most delicious things I’d ever tasted. Our rations had consisted mostly of dried, salty goods that would travel well. Eating something so sweet and so fresh was exquisite. Plus, there were no limits here. We could eat as much as we wanted—and we did. I didn’t doubt I’d regret it later, but for now, it was glorious to have a full stomach. I stretched out in the grass when I was finished, marveling in the warmth. Others joined me, also basking in the moment. It took Dorian to point out the obvious.

“You realize, of course, why there’s no blight here?” he asked. No one responded. “This is one of Varia’s subject kingdoms. If not the Yew Land itself.”

That revelation certainly dampened the mood. I summoned Volusian, though it seemed like a shame on such a beautiful day. The only positive part was that this sort of cheery, bright location obviously bothered him.

“My mistress calls.”

“Where are we?” I asked. “We’re not in the Yew Land already, are we?”

“No, mistress. We are in the Beech Land.”

“Are you sure?” asked Jasmine with a mouthful of fruit. “Seems like the Plum Land to me.”

Volusian regarded her with narrowed eyes. “I am quite sure. This kingdom lies near the Yew Land, however.”

“You were right,” I said to Dorian. “One of Varia’s subjects.”

Dorian was sprawled on the grass, eyes closed and face tilted toward the sun. “Of course I was right.”

Kiyo tossed aside a plum pit. “I checked where the road led. It crosses back to the blight in a few miles, then back to this land. Not sure after that.”

“Still,” I said. “It’s a good sign that we’re on the right track. We should stay here for a little while. Stock up, wash up ...”

A number of us had begun peeling off our layered clothing, and the effects of not having bathed in a while were kind of obvious.

Jasmine sat up and peered around us. She pointed off to her right. “There’s a body of fresh water over—”

The sound of hooves on the road startled all of us. The impromptu plum picnic had made me feel lazy and content, but we’d spent too much time on edge recently to go totally lax. We were all on our feet as a group of riders came into view. Just like the scenery, these gentry were a sharp contrast to those we’d seen in the blight. This group was clean, well dressed, and obviously eating well. They looked strong and healthy—and had weapons drawn. We followed suit, though I hoped an altercation wouldn’t be necessary.

I also figured this probably wasn’t the most ideal situation for Rurik to negotiate, so I stepped forward before he could attempt to take control. Dorian joined me, and I tried to look pleasant and nonthreatening as I faced the riders.

“We don’t want any trouble,” I called. “We just want to pass through peacefully.”

“We can pay for the plums, if that’s the problem,” added Dorian helpfully.

“We know who you are,” snapped one of the riders. She was a woman with graying, curly hair and bore the air and authority of a leader. “And we know why you’re here.”

That caught me by surprise, and I wondered what had given us away. Had someone leaked our plan to Varia? Had our descriptions been spread around? Did she have all of her kingdoms on high alert?

“So just turn back now,” the rider continued. “We don’t want your kind here.”

I blinked in confusion. If Varia was on alert for us to attempt some ploy, she would hardly have her people simply send us away. “I ... I don’t understand,” I said.

“You’re like all the others,” she said in disgust. “Dragging yourselves in from your wretched lands, trying to steal our food. Go back to where you came from and reap what you’ve sown for not acknowledging our queen as your mistress.”