The Four Kingdoms Read online

  ALSO BY MARYAM DURRANI

  Assassin: The Battle for Astodia

  ASCENDANT

  Ascendant

  Visit www.maryamdurrani.com

  Cover design by Raquel Neira

  Copyright © 2016 by Maryam Durrani

  All rights reserved.

  ISBN: 1516863003

  ISBN-13: 978-1516863006

  To my brother and sister.

  ONE

  There was a special moment in everyone’s lives, a moment where you took a deep breath and told yourself, this is where I start. This is the moment I become someone.

  Unfortunately for me, I’d never felt the excitement of that special moment. I’d never had a chance to become someone, I had just been downgraded to a mere shadow that floated from place to place. Silent. Unseen.

  So I did things that would help me become a person.

  Someone new.

  I took a deep breath, reaching up to make sure my mask was in place. Then, I brought up my sword and waited.

  A large man stood in front of me. He wore a cloak, holding his ground as if his life depended on it. Although my rule was never to attack first, he was boring me. I tightened my grip around the cold hilt and smirked.

  I charged. He kept his ground, trying to intimidate me. My sword clanged against his and he pushed me back. I didn’t budge, pushing harder. He grunted as I whirled to the side and slammed the hilt against his shoulder.

  He leaned forward but just slightly, giving me an opening to slice at his legs. He blocked, whipping around to face me. I brought down my sword but he parried the blow, spinning as if we were dancing. This was a dance. An art.

  It was the only time I could think. My mind was free. For

  once, I knew what I was doing.

  His dark eyes were fixed on mine. I nodded at him. He surveyed my gloved hands to my legs, then up to my eyes again. He was assessing me, trying to know me—to read my mind and find an opening.

  With a cry, I ran towards him and pummeled him to the ground. I smashed the hilt against his forehead and he kicked me off, staggering to his feet. I wouldn’t give him a chance to get up, landing blows wherever I could. I smashed my boot against his chest, the sharp blade of my sword against his throat. I flicked back his hood and looked him in the eyes.

  “Would you like to go again?”

  Isabel met me at the Sleeping Drakon’s Tavern at a small table in the corner. I grinned as she took her seat, pulling back her hood. Blond hair tumbled over her shoulders, brushing the table as she leaned over, her bright, undying blue eyes trained on me. “You’d think he would be harder to beat judging from his size.”

  I laughed, pulling off my hood as well. “He didn’t seem very into it.”

  “I think he just wanted to get to know you,” she winked. I rolled my eyes. Isabel grinned. “They all put their bets on him. I won a lot of money.” She pulled out a coin filled purse, giving it a little shake. Metal clinked inside. “Always go for the rich-looking guys. They come to watch for fun. They don’t know who you really are, so it helps.”

  “But do you even know who I really am?” I took a sip from my mug and grinned at my friend.

  “I despise you.”

  “The feeling is mutual.”

  “Good. I’m glad we’re on the same page.” She rolled her eyes. “Who are you up against next?”

  Isabel waved a young boy over. “Buy me a drink.”

  I stared at her. The boy waddled away, dazed by her beauty. Moments later, he appeared with her drink.

  “Thanks. You may leave,” she said. I let out a deep sigh. I waited until her crystal blue eyes were fixed on mine again. “So. Tell me. Who’s next?”

  “Some man who calls himself ‘Dark Wind’ or something of the sort.”

  Isabel snorted, spurting out whatever concoction she was drinking. “Dark Wind? What the hell is that?”

  I shook my head, pulling up my cloak. I got to my feet, pushing my chair in as I turned away from her. “Aella!” she said. “Where are you going?”

  “Away from you.”

  She grinned, getting to her feet. “You will never be rid of me. You and I are one. Now, let’s go meet this ‘Dark Wind’ character.”

  “I hope he can hold his ground this time and not put on a show to try to intimidate me.”

  “No one can hold their ground against you,” Isabel smirked, “no matter how hard they try.”

  TWO

  The crowd erupted into cheers as Dark Wind landed on the floor, all the wind knocked out of him. I raised my fist in the air triumphantly, scanning the crowds as bags of coins were exchanged.

  “This is a scam!” someone shouted from the sidelines.

  “Why don’t you come down here and see for yourself!” I shouted back. The man shrunk into the crowd. I sheathed my sword, grinning triumphantly.

  I switched places with Isabel and watched her take down a fast opponent. He was smaller than the rest and younger-looking, but eventually she had her knife at his throat.

  “Good work,” I said as she climbed up to take her seat next to me. We looked down at the ring as I took a bite of a sandwich Isabel dropped into my lap.

  “Thanks.” She shook a bag of coins in my face. “We’re rich.”

  I pulled out a bag of my own, one which was heavier than hers. “Richer.”

  She grinned. “Have you destroyed all your opponents for today?”

  I shook my head. “It’s just getting too easy now.”

  “Well, don’t be too humble.” Next to us, an older boy plopped down on the seat, wrapping his arm around Isabel’s shoulders.

  “Isabel!” he said loudly. “You did terrible today.”

  “Get your hands off me, Jax,” she pushed him away.

  “Hello, Jax,” I greeted over the loud shouting and cheering.

  “Now, now, Isabel, is that any way to treat your brother?”

  He pulled back his hood, shaking his blond head to fix his hair. His blue eyes landed on me. “How did you do today?”

  “Wonderful.” I took another bite of the sandwich as my stomach rumbled. “You?”

  “Four out of five,” he sighed. “I did try. That last woman was like a snake,” he said, crystal blue eyes wide.

  “I bet you did,” I agreed. Jax and Isabel were twins, five minutes apart—Jax being the older one. I’d known them for a few months now, but they were close, and I was happy to say that I was close with them too.

  Around us, onlookers squished us together. I pulled down my hood as we got all types of stares. An older man leaned over to Jax and whispered something in his ear. He looked over at me and flashed a grin, full of missing and old teeth. Jax scowled, turning back to me. Then he turned around and punched the old man in the face.

  “That’s my sister and her friend you’re talking about,” he said, shaking his hand in the air as if it would shake off the pain. “Damn. Ow. That hurts.” The man fell backward, clutching a bloody nose, and I got to my feet.

  “Jax.” I scowled, getting to my feet. He was going to start a fight. I had to leave before I was disqualified from the Rings for eternity.

  “Wait. Aella!” Isabel called after me.

  “Handle your brother, Isabel. I’ll be back.”

  I made my way through the hot, sweaty crowd to the back of the room, pushing my way through the exit. I took a deep breath of air and grabbed the doorknob as I shut it behind me. Jax was always like this. He’d pick fights where he wasn’t supposed to.

  Before I’d known them, I never knew we would end up like this. I wouldn’t have been here. I wouldn’t have thought of joining the Rings.

  The day I met the twins was a long one.

  It started off in a carriage. I was on my way to Crea,
desperate to get as far as I could from Astodia—Crea being the closest choice. I sat in front of them wrapped up like an old box waiting to be opened. It was the three of us and someone else, another girl whose face I only managed to catch a glimpse of—wide, chocolate eyes with a hue of red around the irises. Then, she’d went to sleep, leaning her head against the door.

  Isabel, Jax and I never spoke, but I noticed something different about the twins. They sat close to each other, holding arms tight as if they were afraid to let go. And then the bandits attacked.

  I was the first one out of the carriage. I ripped out my sword and took down four of them single handedly. There were four left, but then the twins stood up and followed out to help me. Although I didn’t need help, I waited to see what they would do.

  They looked so small and weak I was surprised when Isabel’s hood came off. She became another being. A mystical creature with beautiful features and deadly cold, blue eyes. Jax was like a lion hiding in the body of a stag; lean, slim and tall on the outside, but fierce and loud on the inside. I was surprised, but I took a step back to let them deal with our attackers.

  I was ready to kill the bandits until Isabel put her hand on my shoulder.

  “Their deaths won’t tame your grief.”

  And then it was as if the three of us had been glued together by fate. After scaring away the bandits with her brother, she took me to the Rings––the place where I could fight out the fire within me. I owed her.

  Suddenly, the door swung open, knocking me in the fore-

  head and snapping me out of my thoughts.

  “Ow!” I cried out, rubbing the bump that was starting to form.

  “Oh. I’m sorry,” Isabel said. Her hood was up again but her blue eyes were worried. “Are you alright?”

  “I’m fine,” I assured her.

  “I’m sorry if Jax keeps annoying you. He’s just really protective. He’s been that way since we were kids. After our parents died, he’s always tried to take their role.” She smiled sadly. “But you know that. So don’t mind him.”

  “You know I don’t mind him,” I shook my head, putting a hand on her shoulder. “It’s not that. It’s just that I can take care of myself. I don’t want to lose that part of me, and I definitely don’t want him to get into any trouble.”

  “Aye,” Isabel waved her hand in front of my face. “Look at me. You’re the strongest person I’ve met. And that’s saying something, because I always thought I was the strongest person I’d ever met.” She grinned. “I just want to know what got you so dark and twisted.”

  I swallowed. Dark and twisted. Maybe that’s all that was left of me.

  THREE

  Crea was busy—busier than Astodia ever was. Astodia had always been a silent kingdom. Everyone kept to themselves, quiet and afraid for reasons I never understood, whereas Crea was loud. Something new was always happening.

  Today, there was a parade for the princess’s birthday. There was dancing and clapping and singing and the entire kingdom was out on the streets celebrating.

  “It’s so loud!” Jax said, but he wasn’t complaining. Isabel, on the other hand, had her hands over her ears.

  “Can we please go back inside?” she pleaded. “I strongly dislike events that make my ears bleed.”

  I needed this; a distraction. “You may go back alone if you wish,” I said with a sly smile. “Jax, come along now.”

  He grinned back at his sister. “At least one of us can have some fun.”

  Her mouth fell open. “I can have fun!” Isabel protested. She yanked both of us onto the streets.

  Music played in our ears and the smell of fresh pastries wafted through the air. A girl in front of me twirled, shaking her hips in a way I thought was embarrassing. Maybe Crea was too liberal for my taste. A strong kingdom was one with rules, not extreme freedom.

  Colorful, winding decorations hung from every house.

  Girls stood outside, throwing flower petals as the crowd cheered.

  I felt myself loosen just a little. My chest lightened from the pain I’d been feeling for the past few months; the continuous, aching feeling that burdened me.

  Jax nudged my shoulder. “Should I ask her to dance with me?” He motioned towards a pretty brown haired girl who was smiling at him from afar.

  “Do what you wish, Jax.”

  He grinned, looking down at my hand. I was surprised to see it tight around his arm.

  “Sorry.” I pulled away quickly, but he laughed.

  “I know it’s different. That’s why Isabel and I came to Crea; it’s alright to do almost anything as long as you’re not harming someone. We needed to be free for a while.”

  I nodded. “Go ahead.”

  “Let’s get something to eat,” Isabel said loudly as she walked towards me, pulling her hood lower to cover her eyes. “I’m starving,” she patted her stomach. I groaned. They were always hungry. They could eat a cow and be dying of hunger an hour later.

  I fixed my hood as well, weaving through the warm bodies that danced and celebrated.

  I waited outside as she grabbed a few things from the bakery. As I stood there, a young man approached me.

  “Hello,” he greeted with a big smile. I froze completely, unable to think. The music drowned out and I could see only him.

  His teeth were perfect; pearly white and as straight as they could get. His eyes were green and bright, his hair brown and even lighter as the sun’s rays caught them.

  I nodded as a reply, pulling my hood lower. He reminded me so much of him. My breath caught in my throat. For a second, I almost reached out to grab his shoulders and take a closer look at his face, but then I stopped myself.

  This isn’t Lance. He’s far, far away now. You left him behind.

  “Would you care to dance?”

  I forgot all about hiding my face. I looked up at him, trying to make sense of what I was seeing. I left him behind. I had left so abruptly. I opened my mouth to reply, but the words wouldn’t form. I pressed my hand against a wall.

  “Lance?”

  “Aiden,” he corrected. “Are you feeling alright?” His smile wavered. He reached out to steady me.

  Don’t touch me.

  Before I could move out of the way, Isabel was standing between us, a knife in her hand. The point pressed into the base of his neck.

  “What do you think you’re doing?” Isabel growled at the boy, Aiden, with a scowl on her face.

  “Isabel, let him go,” I put a hand on her outstretched arm, pushing it down gently. “I told you, I can take care of myself.”

  She turned on me. “Well, it didn’t look like it a second ago,” she glowered. She tucked her knife away, squinting at me.

  “I’m sorry,” I apologized to Aiden over her shoulder. He raised an eyebrow, confused.

  “Is that a no?” he asked, his voice just a little hopeful.

  “I’m sorry,” I repeated, and he nodded as if he understood.

  “There’s someone else, I think,” he said with a small smile.

  I swallowed, nodding. “Yes.”

  “It was worth a try.” I watched him disappear into the crowd, and then leaned against the wall of the bakery.

  Isabel eyed me warily.

  “Have you two met before? You look as if you’ve seen a ghost.”

  I shook my head. “He reminded me of someone I knew.”

  “I know you, Aella,” Isabel said with a sigh. “I know you, but then I don’t know you at all.”

  She never broke eye contact. “Where did you come from?” She paused as if she wanted me to answer. My name was Aella now—or that’s who they knew me as. She didn’t need to know that I had murdered innocent people for a living. That part of me was something I never wanted anyone to know for as long as I lived. “I know you’re a very secluded, quiet person. You’re strong. You’re talented. I don’t know a lot about you, but I do know that you needed our help. I know you trust me, and I trust you. But I need you to open up more.”
>
  Her blue eyes were questioning, her eyebrows furrowed together. “I told you about my family and where I came from,” she said softly. Jax and Isabel were from Dystalphi, trying to start over in Crea. They were planning to use their talent for money by fighting in the Rings, and dragged me along when they bumped into me after fighting away the bandits.

  “Anyway,” she gave a huff of annoyance, “here’s your strawberry tart.”

  I stared at her, unable to say anything but, “strawberry tart?”

  “Yes. Would you rather eat blackberry? Because that’s what Jax likes, but I prefer blueberry, which I brought. Would you like to trade?”

  “I . . . I’m fine,” I said, staring at the tart.

  “Do you like strawberries?”

  I shook my head. “Not really.”

  FOUR

  I sat in the tub, making ripples in the water with my fingers. I’d been sitting in there for a while now and the water was starting to turn cold. I sighed, letting my head roll back over the edge. Suddenly, a knock came at the door.

  I jerked up.

  “Yes?” I called.

  “How long will you take?” Jax’s voice came through the wood.

  “I’ll be out in a few minutes,” I replied.

  Silence. Then, “Are you alright?”

  “I’m fine.” I had said those words so many times, even I was starting to believe them.

  “Don’t drown yourself in there,” he warned. “If you leave me alone with Isabel, I will fight Hades to bring you back, and then kill you again.”

  I smiled weakly, looking down at my hands. My fingers were beginning to wrinkle from being in the water so long. I stood up, wrapping a towel around myself to dry up.

  “I’ll be out in a moment,” I said. There was no reply, only the sound of his boots against the floor as he walked away.

  I leaned against the tub, shivering.

  I had left him. Lance. The day of Lorelle’s coronation, I had left them all behind without letting anyone know.