Chapter 32

CHAPTER THIRTY TWO

T here's a legend carved into the walls of the Astral Sanctuary in Wrathbane. A place perched on a flying island all of its own, hidden in the sky surrounded by clouds and placed as close to the stars as any Fae can get. It whispers of a love so powerful it broke the world. Cracked it in two and then two again until the four continents of The Waning Lands were forged from the forgotten remnants of what came before.

It says that Layetaa, a cunning and beautiful fire born girl was due to marry Rishan, the prince of the earth lands. But one day, a foul wind caused a ship captained by the water warrior, Alrier, to wreck upon the shores of Layetaa's home.

Alrier was betrothed to Kiana, the heir of the air nation, a Fae beloved by her people for both her bravery and the sacrifices she had made for the welfare of her nation which had led to her face becoming scarred beyond recognition. Though the purity of her soul shone through all the brighter for her scars.

Layetaa took Alrier into her home under the pretence of nursing him back to health, but while she held him in her castle, she seduced and bewitched him with the treacherous nature of her fire magic. Alrier was a vain and wet minded male, easily tempted from his duty and the love of his betrothed by the cunning fire wielder, and so the two broke their betrothals and forged an alliance which defied the will of the stars themselves.

They ran from their responsibilities, stealing precious treasures from both the air and earth folk.

Rishan was a prideful man and his embarrassment over his betrothed's betrayal sparked a Great War between Avanis and Cascada. At first, those born of fire were uncertain of where to lay their alliance - should they support the selfish whims of Layetaa or hold to the promise made for her union and aid the Stonebreakers in their hunt for her?

Their procrastination cost the world more than a simple union of bloodlines. For a while they hesitated, Kiana, the heart of Stormfell urged her people of the air not to fight, but to hold true to peace and love. And in that strength of character, Layetaa and Alrier chose to see weakness which was never there.

They led an armada to attack the kingdom of the air wielders, claiming to be making the first strike in anticipation of one in return.

But they had been fooled into that belief. For there was no threat from Stormfell who believed in the teachings of their star signs and wished to follow in the ways of fairness and justice which Libra preached.

The Pyros warriors were predictably volatile, first backing the water born in their attack on air, then turning on them when Kiana tore the earth apart to save her people and launched the first of us into the sky, claiming a dominion beyond the reach of those of the inferior elements.

And so, the Skyforgers fled to save their people and The Waning Lands were changed for the first time. The Flamebringers took brutal damage at the wrath of the Stonebreakers and they sent an assassin to buy back peace with Layetaa's death.

But all that the head of the seductress bought them was war with Alrier who swore that every Raincarver born from that day forth would go without rest until they saw both Avanis and Pyros destroyed for the death of his beloved.

Earth blamed Fire for this response and Fire called Earth ungrateful. All while the people of Stormfell watched the world tear itself apart and created a sanctuary in the sky, coming to realise that peace would only ever return if they themselves won the war which would one day become known as Endless.

Eventually, the laws came to pass. No wielder of earth, sky, flame or flood should ever merge their blood with one who wasn't born of their element.And with the rise of the Reapers came the Elysium Prophecy, speaking of the day when peace might come at last on the wings of the Skyforgers who fought so valiantly to return the world to order.

I'd never understood why a story of love and betrayal could be so devastating as to start a war, but with the secret of my own duplicity hanging over me, I was starting to understand the weight such actions carried. And perhaps even realise why Fae fell into the trap of them anyway.

I just needed to make sure that Cayde and I remained secret. Though from the pointed looks and muttered jibes I was enduring, I was fairly certain Moraine and Dalia knew. But the suspicions couldn't go beyond them.

The Sinfair were marked for war in a way that none of the other conscripts in this place were. Only the air kingdom doled out this label to the children born to shame, offering a chance at redemption through acts of valour and bloodshed.

That being the case, only the sixty or so of us from the Vault of Sky who had been branded Sinfair for the crimes of our bloodlines were actual soldiers in the war already. Every other conscript in this place had only been subjected to battle training of whatever variety their nation required during their lives so far.

None of them had actually seen war unless it happened to fall upon their doorsteps and had forced them into action. Regardless, they were never deployed, never spent years travelling away from their homeland, never slipped into the countries of their enemies and hunted prey in unfamiliar lands. I'd done all of that and more in the seven years since my service had started at fourteen years of age.

So when the call came for the Sinfair to join the warring forces at Rifarn where reinforcements were required to bolster our army, I wasn't surprised by it. I wasn't fool enough to believe that our training at Never Keep would shield us from being called out. But the looks on the faces of every Raincarver, Flamebringer and Stonebreaker we passed as we marched through the Heliacal Courtyard said they sure as shit were surprised.

I led the line with Dalia and Moraine on my left, Cayde on my right, his wings casting me in shadow, and making a chill cling to my skin. We were armed to the teeth, swords strapped at our waists, bows on our backs, lines of daggers hanging from belts. The other conscripts openly gawped at us as we strode through the ambling groups who had been enjoying an hour of free time before elemental training began.

The Night Gate loomed ahead of us, darkness clinging to it, bathing the space around it in shadow.

A Flamebringer lurched free of his group, moving into our way and spitting on the stones before us.

We fell still as one and I arched a brow at him, my fingers coiling around the hilt of my sword, but I didn't draw it.

"Move," I drawled. "Or you'll be as dead as those who come at me on the field today."

"My family fight at Rifarn," he growled.

"I'll be certain to send them your regards," I taunted, drawing a snigger from Dalia's lips.

More of the Flamebringers moved to join the first, a ripple of tension rolling through the ranks at my back, but I only sneered at the rabble of unarmed novices who thought to face us.

I didn't recognise any of them, meaning that none of them had done a single thing to take note of in the time I'd spent with them here. These were the grunts of Pyros's army, not the generals, and I wouldn't need a sword to strike a path through them.

"Enough," Reaper Tessa appeared from the Reapers' Quarters, a line of six more hooded servants of the stars following behind her as she strode into the tense space dividing us. "Never Keep is a place of learning, of devotion to the stars and sanctuary from war. The loyalties and commitments you hold outside of this place are your own business, but within the confines of the Keep, we will see no blood spilled nor battles fought. The Sinfair have made oaths to fight when called upon to do so, meaning that in times of need they are duty bound to leave the Keep and join the forces at play in the world beyond. The Flamebringers have no such arrangements with us and so have no need to be out here while they leave. Return to your Vault if you cannot control yourselves."

The Flamebringers continued to glare at us around the wall of Reapers and I took no small pleasure in watching as Reaper Tessa blasted them with air magic and sent them tumbling back towards the passage to their Vault.

I bowed my head in thanks to the Reapers as they turned to look at us and Tessa nodded her assessment of us before waving us towards the gate.

I didn't look back, though a prickling along my spine made me certain Tessa was watching us all the way to the exit. Watching me.

Could she suspect me? Memories of that chamber Everest and I had discovered rolled through me, of the iron bars and magical chains. What the fuck had we witnessed? Did Dragor know there were Dragons being held captive somewhere in his kingdom? Did the king know? Or had I stumbled upon a secret the Reapers were keeping even from the rulers of the elemental lands themselves?

I glanced at Dalia and Moraine to my left, once again wondering whether I should tell them. But there was danger to this secret, not least because we had stumbled across something we clearly weren't supposed to know about. But also because if the rest of those archways opened gateways to the other nations as I suspected, it meant that any of us could make use of them to launch an army directly into the stronghold of our enemies without a moment's notice for them to prepare.

If we marched into the hearts of their lands using those portals then the war might be won in a matter of days. It was a terrifying, exhilarating prospect and yet, if the king and the prince knew of it already, they hadn't acted. But if they didn't know then that meant the Reapers had constructed that potentially catastrophic pathway between the nations and it was only a matter of time before one of the warring lands discovered it. Whichever land that was would make use of it and very likely win this Endless War.

Could I risk holding my tongue in the hopes that the king and Dragor knew of it already and had it under control? Or should I bring this news to them immediately so that we could act upon it?

Hesitation cost lives. That was one of the first lessons I'd learned about this bloody carnage we lived among and since that day I had never waited to act upon anything. Every moment that slipped into days made a writhing knot grow in my gut, but I didn't know how to take action on this knowledge.

Worse was that Everest held it too. What if she had already written to the Raincarvers and told them about that place? What if the weapon of that knowledge had already passed on to our enemies and they were readying to use it against us?

We strode through the huge Night Gate and out onto the barren spit of land beyond it, Rackmere docked and waiting for us as before, though this time, our destination was far grimmer than the last.

A shimmer of movement caught my eye close to the summit of the Escalade which led down to Obsidian Cove, there, then gone again. Likely the wind shifting the snow across the boulders which were stacked on the beach. Then again…

I slipped out of formation, ignoring the curious looks my sisters in arms shot me as I moved away from Rackmere, leaving them to lead the rabble aboard. No one questioned me as I moved to stand at the summit of the cliff, my eyes roaming across the water below which was as petulant and grey as ever.

Air magic coiled through my fingers as I kept my gaze on the view and the sound of a low growl turned into a sharp curse as it snapped from my fingers and snared whoever had chosen to spy on us.

"Kaské."

I recognised that voice.

I released the hilt of my sword and stalked around the mound of boulders, finding a naked Everest pinned there by the cage of air magic I'd sent to snare her.

"I take it you were in your shifted form and not just out here for a nude stroll?" I mused, though honestly, I wouldn't put such habits past a Raincarver.

"And I take it you didn't know it was me before you attacked?" she hissed back.

I shrugged, releasing her from my magic and allowing her to stand. We were concealed for the most part, but I wasn't going to linger in her company while so many Fae lurked close at hand.

"Were you here for a reason or is this simply a twist of fate?" I asked.

"I needed to speak to you," she confirmed, her eyes moving warily over the many weapons I carried.

"Relax. I'm hunting Flamebringers today," I told her.

"And how long will that last?" she questioned.

"However long it takes for us to kill all of them."

"Or for you to die," she pointed out and I barked a laugh.

"You never know."

"Have you always been this…" She waved a hand at me as if uncertain of the correct word to choose.

"Confident?" I suggested.

"Arrogant," she corrected and I grinned.

"I've earned the right to be."

"Well, oh great and not-so-humble, Vikram, you can't leave. We have work to do here."

"Vikram?" I deadpanned. "You're clutching at straws now."

"Then tell me your real name or I'll settle on any V name I like. And Vageena is moving up the list."

I gave her a cool look and she offered me one right back.

"If your king called you to action would you deny him in favour of scurrying through the shadows with a Skyforger?" I asked.

"We don't have a king. We have a-"

"Semantics," I dismissed and though her jaw ticked, she dropped it.

"When will you be back?" she demanded. "I need to find-"

Everest cut herself off but there it was, the desperate need of her poor, lonely heart.

"I'm a creature who feasts on desire," I reminded her. "I see the face of your sweetheart every time you speak of discovering the secrets we chase. No need to try and hide him from me. I'm sure he's very…nice."

The word wasn't a compliment and Everest clearly didn't take it as one.

"Just don't die," she growled in command as if her will alone could prevent such a thing. "And hurry back."

She shifted into a white Leopard as if that was the final word to be had on the subject and my smile grew as I turned away from her.

"Careful, Everest. It's starting to sound like you care about me."

A feline growl came in reply, but I left her to her foray through the snow and boarded Rackmere without looking back again. Though I was sure to stay on the edge of its cliff face until we had moved far enough from Never Keep for me to know that no Leopards could have leapt aboard. It seemed wildly unlikely that she would attempt it – what point would there be for a Raincarver to head into a battle between Fire and Air anyway – but Everest was nothing if not unpredictable. Yet another thing for me to fret over.

Rackmere set a fast pace towards Rifarn. It would have been five hours on a battle island like Ironwraith, but we were set to do it in two.

The incredible velocity had some of the Sinfair puking into buckets at the rear of the underground cabin. But I felt nothing but exhilaration as I stood by the window hidden within the underside of the island, looking out at the landscape of fire beneath us as we hurtled over it.

"Ten minutes to arrival," General Imona called from behind me but I didn't turn – I'd just spotted a riot of fire in the distance which marked the point of the battlefield. "We're close to victory already. You have been called to bolster numbers and nothing else. Prince Dragor's unit is closing in around the Tower of Nor where a prominent military target has gone to ground. Your only objective is to assist in the conquest of that tower. You are bodies in this battle. Not brains. So don't deviate from your commands."

I knew her eyes were on me, but I continued to watch the view ahead of us, movement on the wide and endless plains capturing my attention from below. The land of Pyros was lush with greenery thanks to the rich soil that was fed by the volcanic ash which was regularly scattered across the earth from the eruptions to the north.

The mounts of the deadliest volcanos in Pyros ringed the horizon in that direction, marking a barrier to the hollow basin where The Matriarch resided in her city of corruption. I wondered if she would be present on the battlefield today, her reputation a thing of savagery that sparked a curiosity in me which I couldn't deny.

An illusion fell apart beneath us, ten catapults already loaded with enormous flaming projectiles all firing at once, their target the small spit of land we all rode towards the battle and nothing more.

"Brace!" I bellowed, whirling around and knocking Moraine and Dalia away from the window, the three of us tumbling across the floor and grabbing hold of the metal bedframe bolted to the floor closest to us.

There was a flurry of movement as the Fae filling the belly of the island all dove to do the same, but the impact came almost instantly.

The world erupted around us, an explosion of noise ripping through the island, flames heating the space so violently that it felt like the whole world was on fire. I couldn't breathe for the intensity of it, my world narrowing to the place where I clutched the bedframe with a death grip.

Everything pitched wildly to the left, my legs swinging across the ground as Rackmere tumbled from the sky.

"Bail!" I roared as the flames stuttered out, revealing huge holes torn through the underbelly of the island, gaping patches of nothing where there had been bunks and warriors before.

I had no attention to spare beyond hunting for the three people closest to me aboard this doomed projectile and my heart raced in panic for several seconds before I spotted them.

Dalia and Moraine were scrambling upright beside me. Cayde was clinging to the wall next to one of the enormous holes through which the wind was now billowing relentlessly.

"Jump!" I ordered, grabbing Moraine's arm and shoving her ahead of me.

She sprinted for the closest hole where the ground outside was rushing closer with every passing heartbeat. We had to get outside and out from beneath the falling island before it hit the ground too.

Moraine shifted as she ran, her stunning silver wings erupting from her spine before she dove out into the air beyond our doomed island.

Dalia was at my side, the two of us sprinting for the jagged hole as one. Cayde met my eyes, nodding once before throwing himself out and taking to the sky on his wings too.

I cursed myself for not having brought my Windrider, knowing I could have moved thorough the sky more seamlessly on it but having expected to fight with my boots on the ground for the most part in this battle. I knew better than to rely on plans coming together.

Dalia whooped like a banshee as we leapt out of the hole in Rackmere's belly, hand in hand, wind tearing through our hair, adrenaline coursing through our veins.

My magic snatched us in its grasp, launching us out from beneath the falling island at a ferocious speed, our momentum forcing us to close in on the grassy plain below. My toes brushed the grass, Rackmere's shadow consuming us, but with a final jolt of motion, we were launched free of the crash site.

The resounding boom of our island hitting the ground made my skull rattle. A great wave of dust and debris exploded out from it and launched us even further away as we rode the wave of power back up into the sky.

I lost my grip on Dalia, her own magic taking hold of her as we were tossed aside by the blast, lost in a cloud of dirt.

I twisted my wrists, launching myself skyward on a plume of air magic, needing to get above the dirt and regain my view of the landscape and the enemies who were no doubt closing in.

I threw myself over the wreckage of Rackmere, speeding towards my best estimate of where those catapults had been and drawing my sword.

Flames blazed within the cloud of dust below and I dropped from the sky like a stone, catching myself at the last moment before landing lightly on the ground.

I dove towards the flames, casting air around me so that I opened passageways of sight through the cloud of dust.

A Flamebringer was revealed, fire blasting from him as he saw me, but my sword sailed straight through it, catching him in the chest and sending him to the ground.

I ran for him, snatching my sword from his corpse and lunging towards the Fae who stood around him. Four came at me at once and I threw the cloud of dust at them, blinding them while using an enhancing spell on my sense of hearing so I could track their movements in the dark.

I twisted between them, lurching from the dust and striking savagely with my sword, cutting them apart with violent swings of my blade then sinking into the cloud again before any of them could get a lock on me. Their screams soon gave way to silence and I launched myself into the sky once more.

Around fifty warriors had survived the crash – General Imona among them to my displeasure and she barked an order for us to advance on the distant battlefield.

Those with lower power levels broke into a race across the ground, conserving their magic for the fight ahead but I launched myself through the sky, bolstering my magic with the desire for bloodshed and glory pouring from the Fae surrounding me and hurtling towards the battle ahead of everyone else.

I spotted the Tower of Nor up ahead, its pale grey stone matching with the rest of the buildings in this small town, but its height rising far above the rest, a flat roof at its peak. I took in the scope of the battle surrounding the tower, seeing where our ranks were thinning beneath the forces of the Flamebringers where they battled for the upper hand.

Cayde raced after me, making it to my side with the power of his wings and grinning darkly at me before we threw ourselves into the dance of war.

Cries went up as we landed in the midst of the mele, Flamebringers screaming about the Sky Witch and begging for reinforcements.

The Sinfair were brutal in our attack, most of us all too familiar with the cost of our place in this war and all of us more than willing to pay it. We fought not just for the glory for our kingdom but for the right to claim our positions within our superior nation whether that be by reclaiming titles or simply carving out a place for our own like I planned to do.

I caught sight of Prince Dragor closing in on the tower door, his imposing figure impossible to miss in his white battle leathers, even amidst the chaos of the fight.

Fire blasted all around us, battles with the Flamebringers always so volatile though when air collided with their flames we could both bolster and extinguish them as suited our needs.

Cayde fell into place beside me, the two of us fighting seamlessly together, Fae falling all around us, blood splattering our clothes, our skin, our blades.

I lost myself in the fury of the fight, the rush of death surrounding me on all sides and the powerful movements of the man who battled beside me.

The crash of the tower door falling to our assault hailed like a victory, the screams of those inside ringing out over my own opponents' as they fell to the wrath of our prince.

When the last of our opponents fell before us, I had to shake the rush of battle from my limbs, my chest rising and falling to a ragged crescendo, my body alight with feral energy.

Cayde met my gaze, the lust in his expression clear and I took a single step towards him before remembering where we were.

I turned to face the tower as Prince Dragor stepped out of its broken doors, the head of his target clutched in his fist, blood spattering his white leathers and his feral gaze falling straight on me.

He said nothing as the cries of victory echoed out across the battlefield and the remainder of our enemy turned to retreat. He still said nothing as he tossed the head of his kill to the ground and strode away to board Ironwraith as though he hadn't seen me at all. But as he passed by close enough to touch me, I felt a stirring in the air, the sensation of a hand curling around my throat and the illusion of his breath against my ear.

"Do not forget your promise, Vesper."

And then he was gone.