Page 7 of A Sword of Ice
When she woke up, it was to an aching, tender back, brand new scars in the shape of stars, and a human staring at her with kindness in his eyes. That in and of itself was cathartic.
The start of a new life. One she’d been living for almost seventy-five years now.
Iona bent her arm at an awkward angle to reach the scars against her lower back, fingering the smooth edges, as if they’d been carved by an expert hand. She hadn’t realized then what the scars meant. Not until later after the pain was gone and she’d looked into a mirror for the first time to see the crusting, healing flesh.
A gift and a warning from Mana.
That she was the last of her kind.
She knew it as innately as she knew the pattern of her ceiling, the shape of her ears, and the brilliance of her own magic.
That she was the last ice Elemental Fae of her kind. She wasn’t sure what it meant beyond that. Fae Elementals were important to Mana. The favored in the whole pool of gifted Fae, the Elementals were special. What it meant to be the last, Iona wasn’t sure. But she knew there was a purpose for her yet. Something that would come in her future. A sign gifted from Mana.
When it did, she would be ready.
She was sure of it.
5
Something Cold and… Familiar
The next morning Iona left her house to find Rey in the hall again. This time, they didn’t speak to one another, and Iona couldn’t meet his eyes. If only because if she did, she was afraid she’d give away Belinda’s secrets, and that was no business of hers. Everyone paid their tithe in their own way, and she wouldn’t fault her neighbor for doing what she had to do.
So she started forward and left to work, arriving early only to find that Petey wasn’t in his office.
Odd, she thought. He was always there. Then she remembered the animal that was supposed to have arrived, and she all but ran across the zoo to the domed cage. Only workers had access to the back rooms that led into the cages, and Iona took it eagerly, opening it and stopping short when the roars of rage reached her ears.
Rage and pain, things she was harrowingly familiar with, fragmenting through her heart. A sound borne of her very own soul. That’s what it felt like. Beyond that, Petey’s rapid cursing, the snap of a whip, and laughter.
It was a cruel song that made her fingers dance against her thighs as she stepped into the cage and gaped.
The last animal they’d held in this cage had been a black bear. A small creature with big eyes that had been taken away after a month of suffering. The creature before her now was a bear, too. Not black or brown, but white.
She’d read about this kind of animal, all but extinct in what was now their world.
Polar bear.
White fur was stained with blood and grime, giving it both a grayish and reddish tinge, but there was no mistaking what the creature was. A black muzzle was opened in a roar as it made an attempt to snap at its jailors with thick, vicious teeth.
Human men surrounded it. A thick, barbed wire net covered the bear’s body. They pulled, digging the wire into the animal’s skin. Blood pooled out with every hard yank. The bear cried louder each time while the humans laughed and their leader snapped this whip, flaying the fur from its back.
“I thought you said the beast was docile!” Petey yelled over the commotion at another human man.
The one wielding the whip.
The man’s words were drowned out as he snapped it against the bear’s back again. The agonized sound echoed through the dome, and the bear turned, black eyes meeting Iona’s. For a split second, she felt a whisper of something magical flow through her. Of recognition.
In the creature’s eyes, she saw suffering and she recognized it as her own. Like all the other animals here, shefeltfor them. Because sometimes, she was as caged, as trapped, as they were. Starving, shivering, waiting formore.As she stared into the bear’s eyes, she recognized it like never before.
Iona swore it was a whisper of magic.
Of Mana.
The whip came up again, ready to fly through the air. Her feet moved of their own accord, pushing her forward until she got between the bear and the weapon. Her arms came up, her mouth opened.
“Stop!”
The whip came crashing down against her hands. Strikes of pain crippled through her fingers. She gasped, stepping backwards. Her body bumped into the bear and it growled, but Iona didn’t move. Even if it mauled her, she wouldn’t let them hurt it again.
