Chapter 6

CHAPTER 6

Spirit of the moon… Ancient. Primordial. One of the oldest and most powerful spirits in legend. And, if the stories are to be believed, the spirit that fuels the powers of both the lykin and the vampir with her shifting shape and constant pull.

I look to Aurora in shock, and awe. Her eyes are drawn to mine as if she senses my attention.

"Sorry I didn't have a moment to tell you yet," she says softly. There's genuine apology in her voice. "At first I wasn't sure about…" You . The word is left hanging as pain and guilt flash through her eyes. "I vowed I was going to tell you everything while you were gone."

"There wasn't time," I say, mostly in a daze still. I've hardly known her for a day. I can't rightly be cross.

"Sorry, again, that I wrapped you into my mess."

"It's all right," I murmur. Shock compounds in me. The spirit of the moon… I should have known that with the wolf king hunting her, she was someone incredibly important. I suppose I did…I just didn't care. It didn't matter. Aurora needed help and help was something I could give. It was a reason to keep moving, a good one—she was wronged by a man who should have handled their relationship with care. I know that hurt all too well.

"Let's move." Bardulf pushes the middle of my back and I stumble forward. I let out a soft cry at the pain in my thighs and shoulders, my whole body nearly giving out from the agony.

Evander seizes my elbow and pulls, keeping me upright. I clench my jaw and suppress a pained whimper. I've little doubt my agony would be triumph for these men. As if to test me, his grip tightens further as our gazes collide. Noses nearly touching.

Silver eyes. Razor-edged. They gleam as brilliantly as the moonlight the lykin swear themselves to. For a moment that stretches on and on, I find myself ensnared by an almost hypnotic allure of them. The crushing grip of his fist is a mere shadow compared to the intensity by which his gaze threatens to devour me.

"We should bind her." Bardulf's words break our focus on each other.

"She's a human. What can she do? Run? Let her try and see how well that works out." Evander releases me with a slight push, as if he's suddenly disgusted he touched me at all. As if that moment—whatever it was—hadn't happened. "We're faster and stronger. If she tries to run, then we kill her." He glances over his shoulder as he walks away from me. A shudder runs down my spine. He has the eyes of a predator and they are focused on me, and me alone. "And if we do hunt her down, her end will not be merciful."

"I understand," I say. But even as my insides are turning to jelly, I'm already trying to plan Aurora's and my escape. I am not allowing her to go back with these men.

"Good, let's carry on, then." Evander starts onward.

I don't move. "If you're not binding me, then Aurora shouldn't be either."

"You dare to—" Bardulf begins.

"If you can hunt me down with such ease then you can track and stop her without issue, too," I interrupt. "And we're both equally valuable, each with half her power, aren't we?"

The veins in Bardulf's neck bulge, a flush creeping up toward his cheeks.

But, before he says anything, Evander interjects with a heavy sigh. "Just do it so we can be gone. The night is wearing thin."

Grumbling, Bardulf unknots Aurora's wrists as I collect the boots that fell from my person when he tackled me.

"Here." I hold them out to her. "I noticed you were barefoot and I thought that…" I trail off, not wanting to mention our plans of the journey. "That you might need them. The cobbler in town is excellent, so they're of good make—I've had mine for years." I stick out my foot for emphasis.

Aurora's expression crumples a bit at the mention of our grand plan to escape, but she recovers quickly. She accepts the boots with both hands, as if they're a precious token and not leather bound and stitched. "Thank you, Faelyn. That is deeply thoughtful of you."

As Aurora pulls on the boots, I go and collect my torch. Fortunately, Folost is resilient—he still sparks at the top of it. Mary wasn't utterly crushed by Bardulf, either.

"What's that?" Bardulf narrows his focus on Folost. "Think you can fight us with that puny little fire spirit at your side?"

"His name is Folost," I correct, and start to walk, ignoring the pain in my shoulders and thighs. I'll have to tend to my wounds, but I don't think they're going to take kindly to me asking for a reprieve and I'm determined to stay on their good side. Or, at least have them continue to see me as a pathetic human. The more they underestimate me, the better my chances are for getting away with Aurora. "And, unfortunately, I do not possess eyes with as keen of sight as yours. I need a way to light my path, or I'm going to slow you down further."

My submissiveness works perfectly. Bardulf snorts and nods approvingly. Evander doesn't even look my way; he's already charging ahead into the underbrush.

"I'm sorry I got you both into this mess," I say under my breath for Mary and Folost alone.

The marigold shudders, as if swept by a chill.

Folost blinks twice. What he says is, No . But what I understand it to mean is, Don't blame yourself.

I smile at both of them as we begin to walk, Aurora at my side. My little family.

"If anyone is to blame, it's me." Aurora massages her wrists. The lykin can probably hear us, but for once they don't interrupt. Perhaps they want to overhear whatever our conversation is to see if there's any information to glean from it. "I was the one who?—"

"It's all right." I touch her elbow lightly. There's so much guilt in her voice. So much pain. I've only begun to gather enough information to spin together an idea of her story. But what I've heard, seen, and surmised is more than enough to weave a picture of a desperate woman—spirit—who was trying to do anything to secure her freedom. "I'm not upset. You had your reasons and my involvement wasn't intentional on your part by any measure. Magic can be unpredictable at times, that's just the way of it."

Aurora's eyes meet mine and they hold so many unsaid words it's amazing they don't overflow as tears. I wish I could offer her reassurance. Even though I don't think I have nearly as much experience with love, and men, and romance as an immortal spirit does. Still, what little experience I do have, was one of the most painful times of my life.

"Yes, but—" She stops short. "You're bleeding a lot."

"I'm all right. It looks worse than it is," I lie.

"No, you need to stop. We must attend these."

I grab Aurora's elbow, giving it a reassuring squeeze. "I said, it looks worse than it is, I'm all right."

"We should?—"

I shake my head firmly and give her a pointed look. Aurora purses her lips and turns back to the lykin. I can almost feel her holding herself back from calling out on my behalf. It's as if Evander senses it.

He glances over his shoulder. "Is there a problem?"

"None," I say for us both.

"Good."

And that is where the conversation dies.

We trudge through the forest in painful silence. Painful because it is awkward and tense being around these men. And painful because the blood has seeped down to my socks. I hold Folost tighter, ignoring the ache it causes in my shoulder. It'd be easier if I set him down, but that's the furthest thing from my mind as an option right now.

At long last, when the moon hangs low in the heavens, we arrive at a barrier forged of undulating darkness. It writhes and pulses, infused with otherworldly magics. Contorting incessantly, its form refuses to remain constant even for a second, as though it is living, breathing.

"Is this…" I gasp.

"The Fade," Aurora finishes for me.

I knew it. The Fade is a magical barrier between our world and the world of magic—Midscape. My grandmother told me stories of this protective barrier, the only thing keeping our world and nonmagical humans from being overrun by those with powers beyond our comprehension. She always said the line between worlds was closer than we thought—close enough that the roots of the great redwood tree could stretch across the barrier, enough for our spirits, and us in turn, to leech magic.

But I never really thought it was this close. Close enough for me to walk to it in a single night. For me to touch it.

"Rhave," Evander calls at the edge of the magical black mist. Nothing happens. He sighs and presses his fingers into the black leather band on his wrist. "Rhave." A little more annoyed and impatient this time.

From the corners of my eyes, I see Aurora quirk her lips into the slightest little smirk.

"Would you like me to give it a try, Sir Evander?" she says sweetly.

He shoots her a glare and tries again. "Rhave, you are commanded by a knight of the wolf king to grant us passage."

"Ooh…‘a knight of the wolf king,' he says. Best not keep the honorable knight waiting," a voice whispers, as soft as the rustling trees. It comes distinctly from the wall of fog ahead of us, but from no particular spot. Rather, it is as if the shadow itself speaks. This is the second talking spirit I have met in two days and, despite my current predicament, I cannot believe my luck. Perhaps, magic isn't as dead and gone as we once feared. Rhave's tone shifts, becoming heavy with concern. "Aurora? I did not expect to see you again so soon."

"I hoped to never see you again," she remarks dryly. "No offense, Rhave."

"None taken." There is a camaraderie among spirits, it'd seem. A fact that draws a smile to my face. No wonder Folost took so quickly to Aurora last night. "Should I not let them through?"

Aurora seems to consider it.

"What are you going on about?" Bardulf demands to know. I tilt my head at him, confused. The words have been clear enough to me. "If the Fade doesn't open, we'll kill the girl." He thrusts a finger in my direction.

"I take offense to being called girl," I say. "I'm twenty-two years grown." Not that I expect him to listen at all.

Bardulf snorts and proves himself to be the example of my expectations.

"Need I remind you the risks of killing her?" Aurora folds her arms.

"Risks be damned. If I can't get what I need with words, I'll get it with blood." Bardulf walks toward me. Aurora half steps in front of him.

"Let us pass, Rhave. Conri would come anyway to force your hand if we delayed enough. And I'll have no more blood on my account." The way Aurora speaks leaves me to wonder if she has seen blood spilled for her before. Was it in her name? Or because of her? Either way, she doesn't strike me as a woman who relishes violence.

The shadows ahead condense into the vague figure of a man. It's a hazy outline. I blink and I can't be sure I saw it at all. From moment to moment, the man becomes a deer, then a wolf, then back again.

"If only I could swallow these noble knights whole…" The way Rhave speaks it makes it clear that he does not find the knights noble at all. A sentiment I'm inclined to agree with given what limited knowledge I have of them.

I glance at the two men. They don't react to Rhave's comments, despite my thinking they would. Evander stares off at nothing. Bardulf paces restlessly.

"Ah," Aurora hums softly, drawing my attention. "They can't understand us."

"What? But…"

"The tongue of spirits. With a part of my magic, you can understand them now," she explains.

"I can't understand Folost and Mary."

"Well, that's because?—"

"Stop stalling." Bardulf stops his pacing and returns to exhausting his energy on us. "Open the Fade, now, or I'll be led to believe that you're conspiring against us."

If only he knew…

"Rhave, if you please." Aurora's shoulders slump slightly with the weight of resignation.

"I'd rather not, but if you insist." Rhave moves to the side, absorbing back into the living shadow that is the wall of the Fade. I'm not sure if he is some kind of spirit of safe passage, or of shadow. Either seems a safe bet. Were I a more powerful witch, I would probably be able to tell at a glance. Grandma told me stories of how her mother's mother could sense a spirit's presence without even having to see them.

A narrow tunnel splits the Fade, the swirling mist pushing to the sides enough to give passage. It is still a world of complete darkness, the grasses blackened, shadowed trees punching through the walls of the tunnel.

Evander starts in first, leading the charge. He motions to Aurora, who follows a step behind. Bardulf thrusts his finger toward me and then the tunnel, as though I might have somehow been confused as to what was expected of me.

Refraining from giving him a smart remark, I step forward. Though, I pause at the entrance of the Fade. I can feel Mary quivering at my hip. Folost smolders, hanging on the side of the stone closest to me. I hold him a little lower, wishing I could wrap an arm around him to help him feel safer.

"Go," Bardulf barks.

I ignore him, instead staring into the shadow and stating my intention. "Thank you, Rhave, for this passage you've offered us. I will accept your graciousness with gratitude. I will not take anything from your domain which is not offered nor leave my mark upon it."

There is no response. I wait, worried that somehow Aurora is misinformed and I do not actually speak his language.

"Enough mumbling. Go!" Bardulf pushes me between my shoulders again, causing me to stumble. Pain shoots down to my ankles, causing my knees to buckle.

I tip forward, trying to catch my balance. But the ground of the Fade doesn't feel quite solid under my feet. I clutch Folost, trying to hold him aloft. I twist my body, reaching out on instinct to stabilize myself so I don't land on Mary. My fingers close around something warm and solid and I'm able to quickly right myself.

The shadows slowly pull away from me. I release what I held onto and meet the eyes that carve hollows into the Fade. Rhave hovers there and, for a second, neither of us moves.

"Look after her, please," he whispers.

"I will," I vow with ease.

"Enough talking." A hand closes around the back of my neck, shoving me forward again.

I stumble, but am able to keep myself mostly upright this time. "You don't have to manhandle me."

Bardulf leans in and snarls. "I can do to you whatever I please."

A shiver runs down my spine, and not from the chill that lives in this strange barrier between worlds. He means it. And there is so much left unspoken around those words.

"Bardulf, Faelyn, enough delay," Evander barks. "We need to keep moving; the wolf king is expecting us to return with haste, and you know he does not take kindly to being kept waiting."

There's enough ominous undertones to those words as well that I only feel colder.

What will this "wolf king" be like?

I have to get Aurora and myself back across the Fade as soon as I can. But, to get home, we must venture farther past this unnatural barrier and into the magical world beyond: Midscape.

We traverse the void that is the Fade along the pathway made for us by Rhave. Within it, I see the shadows of beasts and creatures just beyond my scope of comprehension. They pass alongside us. There one moment and gone the next. They leap across our path as wisps of smoke, gaining form once they're back in the safe embrace of the magic that they were born into.

Briefly, a shadowy wolf walks alongside me, more solid than the rest. One of his ears is hooked unnaturally, as if a chunk is missing. With a flash of gold eyes, he's gone.

The Fade is a wondrous place…and a cold one. I find myself shivering more and more with every step. My feet feel heavy and my vision grows as tunneled as the path ahead. The streak of white that is Aurora's hair and the broad, scarred swath of Evander's back are my targets, the only things keeping me going on the right path.

We trudge through shadowed forest and thick marsh, across rocky bluff and into smooth grassland before pale moonlight can be seen once more in the distance. The far opening of the tunnel is like a beacon, shining from a lighthouse on a distant shore.

As easily as we entered the Fade, we leave it. No sooner have I stepped foot into the land of Midscape, than the pot containing Mary at my hip explodes, sending shards of clay into my flesh and dirt showering everywhere. The torch in my hand bursts into flame, and, for a moment, I am blinded by light.