Little Sister

“Espa!” Ophia shouted. “What are—you followed us?”

“Not…exactly?” Espa said hesitantly, her excitement dimming under her sisters’ combined consternation. “You two aren’t very subtle. After the third group of castle servants I heard gossiping about seeing the two of you walking together, I asked which way you’d gone… And then when I got into the castle cellar there was a whole group of guards arguing about whether two Princesses going into the catacombs was something they needed to act on. And then, well… The door was unlocked. And there’s only one path, it just leads straight to here.”

“I can’t believe I let you sneak up on me,” Morenna hissed, clenching her fists.

“Well, we both did,” Ophia pointed out.

“That’s different! I’m… You can’t sneak up on a shadow mage unless she’s not paying attention.”

The Black Princess turned her back, quivering with anger.

“D-did…I’m sorry?” Espa offered weakly.

“It’s all right, sister, she’s upset at herself, not you,” Ophia assured her.

“Oh! Well, then…it could happen to anyone? But Ophia!” Espa brightened again and clasped her hands before her face. “You’re a fire mage, now, too? You have two magical talents! Just like Father! Oh, he’s going to be so thrilled!”

Morenna made a feral noise in the back of her throat.

“Sister, don’t grind your teeth,” Ophia admonished.

“That wasn’t my teeth.”

“Good. Continue not grinding them. And Espa…” Ophia hesitated. “Ah…look, this matter is…sensitive. There are potential dangers even to the likes of us if—”

“She doesn’t need to know,” Morenna interrupted, turning back around.

“Morenna, my mother consulted every expert she could about my condition,” Ophia said evenly. “Father brought in every shaman and seer he could find. Based on what you told me, at least some of them had to have known what was wrong with me, and decided they’d rather let a young girl die than share knowledge that might weaken their power if it spread. I’m not inclined to indulge them further.”

“That’s exactly the point,” Morenna insisted. “It’s not just that enemy factions would let a young girl die, they will actively cause it to happen, and we know they can get into this castle and strike at a Princess.”

“We…do?” Espa said plaintively. “Do you mean that guy who tried to poison the Queen?”

“Wait—” Morenna frowned. “Have neither of you ever had an assassination attempt?”

“Of course not!” Ophia exclaimed. “You mean you have?”

“Well…not since I was twelve.”

“Twelve!” Ophia narrowed her eyes, visibly doing the math. “Morenna… Do you happen to know anything about why the Silent Brotherhood withdrew from Kourvald?”

“Did they?” Morenna said flatly. “I’m surprised a well-bred young lady such as yourself has even heard of such business.”

“Everyone has!” Ophia said. “Half the reason Mother’s diplomatic efforts have succeeded so well is that nobody in Kourvald has access to assassins anymore.”

“Then it sounds like whoever is responsible for that did us all a favor,” Morenna said, “and should not be pestered with intrusive questions.”

Ophia and Espa exchanged a wide-eyed glance, then Ophia cleared her throat.

“Yes, well, in any case… She already knows enough to be dangerous, Morenna. At this point she needs to know enough to avoid more danger.”

“What in the world are you two involved in?” Espa asked with a nervous quaver in her voice.

Morenna heaved a sigh. “Fine, I see your point. All right, Espa, to begin with…there are only two kinds of magic.”

* * *

A brief round of explanations later, Espa looked more excited than ever, literally hopping in place and clapping her hands.

“But that’s incredible! Morenna! Is it possible I have some secret power too?”

“You’re already a healer, what more do you want?” Ophia exclaimed.

“I’m…not aware of anything in particular about life magic that you don’t already know,” Morenna said more warily, “except the detail that what you’re controlling is the chemical energy of living bodies, which…I don’t think should affect your technique too much. The basic principles of magic still apply. You can only affect an entire body at once, not any one piece at a time.”

“And you’re already a healer!” Ophia repeated.

“Yes, that’s still a very rare gift,” Morenna agreed. “You were already a highly special mage, Espa. Ophia’s talent was trying to kill her.”

“You’re right, sisters, I’m sorry,” Espa said, looking genuinely contrite. “It’s unbecoming of me to be so greedy. I just…got excited, I suppose. But Ophia! Does this mean no more fevers? That’s wonderful! I was always so frustrated that my power could never help with them!”

“Yes, that was the frustrating part,” Ophia said gravely. “And…this does mean my fevers are over, right, Morenna?”

“As long as you continue to cast fire spells about as much as you do ice…theoretically, that should resolve the problem that causes ice mages to suffer fevers. If they come back, it means something else is wrong.”

“You are just…constitutionally unwilling to believe something good can happen, aren’t you?” Ophia asked, amused.

“Get yourself locked in a tower and see how chipper you feel after a decade or so.”

“But…you were never actually locked in, right?” Espa said tremulously. “I…I always heard that you’d been seen here and there around the castle…”

“Oh, sure,” Morenna said bitterly. “I had the freedom to wander all over the castle where I was wanted by no one, where servants and guards were terrified of me and courtiers dared to insult me to my face, and my father refused to acknowledge my presence or allow me near my siblings. Not all locks are attached to doors, little sister.”

Silently, Ophia reached over take Morenna’s hand. The Black Princess looked at her in pure surprise; Ophia’s two-toned eyes held only warmth and sadness. She squeezed Morenna’s fingers gently, and Morenna belatedly pulled back.

“Right, well. Remember, Ophia, not a word about fundamental versus energy magic; as far as the court needs to know, you’re a special double-talent like our father, so—”

Suddenly Morenna broke off, her black eyes going wide, and she whipped out her sword.

“Girls,” she said quietly, “we need to get out of here. Right now.”

Espa and Ophia instinctively moved closer to her, shifting to form a circle looking out in all directions at the dark room and silent clockwork soldiers.

“What is it?” Ophia asked.

“I can’t feel inside those machines anymore,” Morenna hissed.

“What do you mean, feel inside them?!” Espa demanded.

“It’s…shadow magic. I can sense the shapes of anything where it’s dark. Including in those things—I could sense the place of every gear and tube and the dead crystal cores. But suddenly they just feel solid to me.”

Ophia drew in a sharp hiss of breath. “Because magic doesn’t work on parts of a living body, only on the whole.”

“Wait, that can’t be it,” Espa protested. “These things have been dead for centuries—and even before they were dead, they weren’t alive. That rule shouldn’t—”

“I don’t care,” Morenna growled. “I don’t know what’s happened, but something just changed, and I no longer want to be down in this cave with these things. Move, girls.”

They all three set off toward the door through which they’d come at a brisk trot which faltered when Espa slipped on a patch of Ophia’s ice and Morenna had to catch her by the arm.

And suddenly, with a grating rasp that echoed loudly in the ancient stone chamber, every clockwork soldier turned in unison to face the three of them directly.

“Oh, fuck me up a tree,” Morenna cursed, causing both her sisters to stare at her in shock, which she ignored. “Run!”