Chapter Sixteen

Adark chaos bloomed before them, a shocking contrast to the golden glow of the sun orchids and their delicate petals. Soaring through the air, the trio of wraiths unleashed vicious tendrils of shadow, lashing at the figures defending the crops below. The crops that were vital to the defence of the midrealms, that gave their allies an edge against the darkness.

Thea surged forward, instantly spotting Drue and Talemir at the heart of the madness. Talemir was wielding his own blasts of obsidian power, while Drue cleaved through any whips of shadow that came for her husband. Talemir wasn't attacking the wraiths, Thea realised; he was trying to patch the fractures in the shield.

‘He needs help!' Thea shouted. ‘Someone get Anya, and the other shadow-touched!'

‘She's leading the defence for the northern perimeter. It's under attack too,' Cal called, making for the high ground. ‘It's just us!'

‘Then we have to bring down these wraiths so Tal can mend the tears.' Thea threw herself into the fray, severing those dark arms of power that threatened to stir nightmares into reality before them. Wilder and Dratos joined her, their great swords carving through any pulse of magic that came for them.

‘Cal!' Thea yelled. ‘Hurry!'

The creak of a bow answered, and a flaming arrow speared through the sky, right through the skull of one of the wraiths. The creature screamed, the noise high-pitched enough to shatter the glass of a nearby greenhouse.

Its grotesque form fell from the clouds, limbs and wings flailing, its sinewy frame convulsing. Bone cracked as it hit the ground hard, and Thea leapt upon it in an instant, her dagger at the ready, Cal's arrow still protruding from its monstrous face. She had lost count of how many wraiths she'd killed, but each time her Naarvian steel pierced one of their chest cavities, she relished the screams as though it were her first. As the others fought around her, she sawed through flesh and bone, reaching into the monster's torso with her bare hand, her fist closing around its still-beating heart, warm and wet. With a few flicks of her dagger, the final tendons and arteries were severed, and she tore the organ from the wraith's body, casting it onto the scorched earth beside them.

With the creature's foul scent in her nose, she was on her feet again, her steel dripping with black blood, scanning the mayhem for her next victim. She had energy to burn, debts to repay. She'd slay wraiths all fucking night if she had to.

An eye-watering screech sounded and the second wraith fell through the air in Thea's peripheral vision, but Drue was there in an instant, delivering the same justice. Her blades deflected clumsy slashes from the wraith's talons as two more arrows shot through the creature's wings, pinning it to the ground while Drue leapt upon its torso and carved out its heart.

All the while, Talemir stood in the centre of the orchids, defending everything they had fought so hard to protect over the years. His large hands moved skilfully before him as he wove an intricate pattern of shadow and sent it skyward, attempting to mend the tears in his shield. Beads of sweat trickled down his furrowed brow as he braced himself against the relentless assault of the third wraith. Wilder and Dratos guarded him against the onslaught of shadow magic as he worked, the pair of warriors slicing through every strike of shadow, the wraith above hissing and shrieking with every blow.

Thea whirled around, trying to spot Cal once more amid the surge of black tendrils as she fought back the lashes of power that came for her. They struck like vipers from a nest, vicious and determined to inflict as much pain as possible. But her steel cut clean through them, like severing a head from a snake's body.

There!She spotted Cal on the next ridge over, his chest expanding as he took aim, his eyes narrowed in concentration. With a swift release of the bowstring, another flaming arrow streaked through the shadow-filled air. It found its mark, engulfing the leathery flesh in flames. Like its brethren, the monster fell from the sky with an agonised shriek, smoke trailing in its wake as it hurtled towards the earth.

‘This one's mine,' Wilder's voice boomed across the field.

He has debts to repay too. Thea watched him move with predatory grace. Before the wraith hit the ground, Wilder's bare knuckles punched through its chest, tearing its heart from its flaming body. The rest of its corpse collided against the dirt with a crash, splattering black blood all over Wilder and the sun orchids at his feet.

Thea watched in fascination as the flowers shifted, seeming to recoil at the contact, before burning the blood from their petals.

‘Is it over?' Cal called from the ridge, shouldering his quiver and bow, making his way down to them to retrieve his arrows from the wraith corpses.

‘For now,' Dratos replied, surveying the largely untouched crops.

‘Those were some fine shots,' Talemir told Cal hoarsely, shifting the last piece of shadow patchwork into place in the shield.

Cal flushed. ‘Thank you, sir.'

‘Just Talemir,' Tal replied, wiping the perspiration from his brow. ‘Has anyone found Ryland yet?'

Thea turned on her heel to see Drue already running back towards the main building. She didn't hesitate to follow.

The quadrangle was packed with shadow-touched folk, some from the war camp, others from elsewhere in the stronghold. All of them had come together to defend the university, and now, to find Ryland.

‘Is the perimeter secure?' Dratos demanded, scanning the crowd.

Anya pushed her way towards him. ‘Yes. We slayed four wraiths on the outer grounds. No damage to the crops.'

‘How'd they breach the shield?' Thea asked.

‘An accident. They didn't know we were here —'

‘We can deal with that later,' Talemir's voice cut in. ‘We need to find Ryland. Now.'

The dread was palpable. For even if the wraith attack had been won, what would happen to the rebellion's fearless leaders if their son wasn't found?

Drue's face was a mask of cold calm as she scoured the grounds, but Talemir… Thea had seen Talemir take on the brunt of an entire airborne wraith force at the Scarlet Tower, had seen him patch a magical shield that covered an entire territory. He was unshakeable, a force of his own to be reckoned with. Only now, he wasn't a Warsword or a Shadow Prince. Now, he was a father. A father who was panicking.

‘Have you checked the kitchens?' he was saying. ‘What about under the —'

Drue silenced him with a squeeze of his hand and continued to search. Wraiths momentarily forgotten, the university bustled with movement, punctuated by shouts of Ryland's name.

Kipp, ever the strategist, organised everyone into teams, each assigned to comb through a specific area – old lecture halls, the libraries and greenhouses, the outer grounds. Every search party was on high alert, more concerned with every passing moment. Time was of the essence.

After giving out his instructions, Kipp appeared at Thea's side, looking pale. ‘What if they've taken him? What if the attack just now was a diversion so they could snatch him —'

‘Keep that thought to yourself,' Thea warned. ‘At least for now.'

Still shaken from the attack, they combed the grounds together, working to find any sign of the little winged boy who'd stolen all their hearts.

As the hours passed and the light filtering through Talemir's shield took on the orange glow of dusk, the sense of panic reached new heights. The exhaustive search bled out into the surrounding fields once more. Quiet conversations ground to a halt and Thea found herself retracing her previous steps to no avail —

A shout sounded. Thea and Kipp rushed towards it.

Talemir was kneeling in the dirt, clutching the lumpy knitted hat Ryland had been wearing since their arrival.

Drue fell to her knees beside him. ‘Where is he, Tal?' she whispered, her voice breaking. ‘What are we going to do?'

Talemir simply stared at the woollen cap. ‘I…'

Thea's heart broke for them. She could only imagine what might be going through their heads, and the longer Ryland was gone, the worse the potential outcomes became. Both parents were hunched over the cap together, Drue's shoulders shaking with silent sobs, Talemir's arm wrapped around her back.

A flurry of movement across the grass caught her eye and Wilder appeared, cresting a ridge in the land, something bundled in his arms.

‘He's here!' Wilder called. ‘I've got him.'

He strode across the grounds, the little boy safe in his arms, Dratos' cousin Gus at his side.

‘Oh, thank the Furies,' Drue cried, leaping to her feet and surging towards them.

Wilder dropped Ryland in her arms and stepped back as Talemir engulfed his wife and son in a powerful embrace, his wings closing around them.

‘He's alright,' Wilder told them. ‘He's safe.'

A unified sigh of relief sounded, matching the rush of lightness that flooded through Thea at the sight of the reunited family. She passed a hand over her face, shaking her head. ‘Thank fuck for that,' she muttered.

Kipp made a noise of agreement beside her, making to follow the rest of the search party heading back to the main building. Thea remained, waiting for Wilder, who in turn watched as Talemir's wings finally unfolded, revealing the trio within.

‘He and Gus were playing in the western field when the wraiths attacked,' Wilder explained. ‘Gus kept them out there until they knew it was safe to return.'

‘He was crying at first, but I thought… I thought it might be safer to distract him, to play a game, so he wouldn't draw attention…' Gus' cheeks flushed.

Talemir at last released his wife and son, turning to face the shadow-touched teenager. ‘Thank you,' he croaked. ‘You did the right thing.'

‘Sorry to have scared you,' Gus replied.

But Talemir shook his head. ‘You protected my son,' he told him. ‘Never apologise for that.' Then he glanced at Wilder. ‘Thank you for finding them.'

‘Always,' Wilder said.

Visibly uncomfortable in the swell of emotion surrounding him, Gus bolted towards the quadrangle. Thea laced her fingers through her Warsword's and tugged him in the same direction, trying to give the family some privacy.

But they weren't out of earshot when Talemir spoke to Drue, his voice still laced with panic. ‘You need to take him to safety. That place beyond the Veil. I couldn't… I couldn't handle it if something happened to him, to you —'

‘I don't fucking think so,' came Drue's sharp reply.

‘Please, Wildfire —'

Thea didn't like to eavesdrop, but Drue's words carried in the wind. ‘I told you who I was before we had him. I will change for no man, no child. He's the son of a shadow-touched Warsword and a law-breaking Naarvian ranger. He will know this world for what it is, and he'll be stronger for it. We've been through this, Tal – we know that Ry will be safe with Gus and Malik. There is no one I trust more. You know that Malik will protect him with his life. The war efforts need us, and we need to end the war for him, so he has a future. I will fight at your side, as always.' There was not a hint of compromise in Drue's voice, only pure steel.

Thea glanced at Wilder, who grimaced as they heard Talemir's stammering apologies.

‘You're right,' he said. ‘I know. I'm not going back on our agreement. I was – I was terrified, Drue.'

‘As was I,' Drue replied. ‘But we cannot fall apart in the face of adversity.'

‘I'm sorry,' the Shadow Prince said.

Drue huffed a tired laugh. ‘You'll make it up to me later.'

Thea hid her own smile at that.

The attack and the search for Ryland had rattled the Naarvian forces to the core. According to Dratos, there had never been a full breach of the shield before, not to that extent. As night fell, he set out with several other prominent shadow-touched leaders to reinforce Talemir's magic with their own.

Thea turned to Anya. ‘How does it work? The shield? The protection?'

Anya gave a heavy sigh. ‘In a similar way to the wraiths' shadows. But instead of using our power to maim and hurt, we weave it together like a net, to cast outward, over the university and its grounds. Over the years we worked out that because it's the same essence as their own magic, the wraiths don't question it, don't try to push past it. They assume it's just the territory of other wraiths and move on.'

‘So how did the breach happen?' Thea asked.

‘On occasion, it happens by mistake. A squabble breaks out among one of their units and one gets thrown through our defences.'

‘But not today?' Thea couldn't help but press. ‘There were too many for it to have been an accident.'

Anya shrugged. ‘We suspect they believed a wraith swarm was here and they wanted to assert their dominance. They don't know we're here. And we mean to keep it that way.'

Thea and Wilder returned to the Scholar's Lounge for the evening meal, finding the atmosphere within sombre and strained. Nearly everyone was there: Malik by the fire, as usual; Wren and Farissa, mixing potions on a table in the far corner; Anya in an armchair, her legs dangling over the side; Adrienne cleaning her fingernails with a dagger by the window; and Gus sitting on the floor, his knitting needles clicking between his hands as he crafted something that looked like it would match Ryland's slouchy hat.

Audra pulled Thea aside and spoke in a low voice. ‘That thing you asked me to look into. About transferring magic.'

‘Did you find something?' Thea asked eagerly, glancing around the room to make sure no one was listening.

Audra shook her head. ‘It can't be done. Thought you should know that it's impossible, so don't go doing anything stupid.'

Thea's heart sank, but she plastered on an offended expression. ‘When do I ever —'

Audra was already walking away, making a beeline for Cal.

‘You killed them all, correct?' the former librarian demanded bluntly, seating herself at the Guardian's table by the hearth.

‘Yes, ma'am,' he replied. ‘Well, not me, exactly. But they're dead all the same.'

‘Nothing escaped? That's good.' Audra nodded to herself. ‘Let us hope this means we can keep our secrets a while longer,' she said, with a meaningful glance at Talemir.

Talemir dipped his head in acknowledgement, but returned his attention to Drue, who was tucked tightly under his arm, and Ryland, who was sleeping soundly against her chest. Thea watched them a little more closely than before, her heart aching for the shadow-touched Warsword who was clearly still reeling from the events of the day.

It was Kipp who came forward and pressed a large glass of amber liquid into the Shadow Prince's hands. ‘You look like you could use this.'

An exhausted laugh broke from Talemir's lips. ‘Forever the Son of the Fox, eh?'

Kipp sketched a bow. ‘At your service,' he quipped, raising his own glass.

‘If you're handing them out, Fox Boy, I wouldn't say no,' Anya declared.

‘Make it two more,' Adrienne chimed in.

‘Three,' Thea said, sinking into one of the worn lounges, the cushion beside her dipping beneath Wilder's weight as he joined her.

‘Four,' he added gruffly.

Kipp shook his head in disbelief. ‘If everyone wants a drink, why didn't you just say so?'

‘We're saying so now,' Thea told him. She smiled to herself as he went about fixing everyone's drinks without further complaint. Kipp was always happiest when everyone had a beverage in hand.

Just as he handed Wilder a goblet of wine and offered Thea a tankard of ale, Wren stood up so suddenly that she knocked over the concoction she was mixing.

Farissa leapt back. ‘Elwren, what's got into you —'

A second later, the doors to the lounge flew open, and the Bear Slayer, Torj Elderbrock, strode inside, his mighty war hammer resting on his broad shoulder.

‘Esyllt's been taken prisoner,' he declared to the room as soon as the doors clicked closed behind him. ‘Osiris has him confined to Thezmarr's dungeons, where he's awaiting execution.'

Kipp dropped the drink he was holding, the glass shattering across the wooden floor. ‘On what charges?' he exclaimed loudly, not even glancing at the shards by his feet.

Ryland stirred against Drue's chest with a whimper, but miraculously did not wake. The rest of the company fixed their eyes on the Bear Slayer.

‘Treason,' Torj replied, sweeping the loose golden hair from his eyes. Thea didn't fail to notice how his ice-blue gaze lingered on her younger sister at the back of the room.

‘We have to get him out,' Kipp said at once. He was unofficially apprenticed to the weapons master, and Thea knew he held Esyllt in high regard.

Torj grimaced. ‘We'll get to that. But there's more you should hear first.' He lowered his hammer and rested it against the wall. ‘King Artos' army has grown – man and monster alike fill his ranks. He's using his empath powers to take what little free will is left and bend it to his cause. At his bidding, Tver has declared war on Aveum. Its army marches on the winter kingdom as we speak.'

Thea's blood went cold.

‘War on Aveum?' Wilder slid his goblet of wine onto the side table and stood. Talemir was on his feet as well, fists clenched at his sides.

Torj gave them a grave nod. ‘All of Artos' chess pieces are moving into place. Our time of plotting in the shadows is at an end.' He stepped forward then, allowing a grin to spread across his face as he offered Talemir a hand. ‘It's good to see you, Prince of Hearts.'

Talemir gripped his arm and then pulled him into a hard embrace. ‘You too, Bear Slayer.'

It was Anya who spoke next, reluctantly rising. ‘I think it's time we took this to the war room.'