RUIN

I don't know how to tell them because I don't know where to start.

I do feel the necromancy now—it's soaked into the land around us and I'm certain without the strongest glamour I've ever seen then we would be seeing the desolation and disease that has overtaken these lands. It's as obvious to me as the sun—rot is everywhere, and it gets worse because…

… because I can sense that a dragon rider had a hand in this. The ghostly presence of another dragon and dragon rider permeates everything, and, in some ways, it is stronger than the glamour. Their magical fingerprints hum in my chest and echo in my mind.

A dragon rider was here. A dragon rider was the necromancer. I'm sure of it. Necromancy is a uniquely human magic and I can feel that powerful human here, in the air and the earth. I didn't know there could be necromancer dragon riders and I have questions, but I'm worried whoever it is might still be around, so instead, I move forward, hairs raised.

"Ruin?" Shatterjaw comes up beside me. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," I manage, and she raises an eyebrow.

"Then why do you have a ball of fire in hand?"

I look down, surprised at myself. Godsdamned dragon rider senses are strange. I really don't want to distract everyone with the thought of another rider, but… maybe they need to be warned.

I look helplessly at Shatterjaw and blurt out my next words like they're poisoning me .

"The necromancer is a dragon rider."

Everyone freezes and Yaris turns slowly, shock written across all his features.

"How do you know?" Bandit asks, pale. I shrug helplessly.

"I… just do," I say weakly. "I'm sorry. I really can't explain it, but I just… know."

"Great," Magnum says and nods. "Cool, cool. Guess we'll have to kick more ass."

"Yes," Yaris' frown deepens. "Guess we will. If you feel anything else, tell us, alright?"

I nod.

"Yeah. Sure."

Then we're moving again and I'm even more on edge, feeling out everything as we hurry forward.

The strange thing about the glamour is that everything looks beautiful and healthy. The flowers look vibrant, the grass full, and the sky so stunning that it's hard not to stare. But underneath it all, I sense the death and the decay that grips this land with a vengeance. It causes a shiver to travel up my spine and I hate it. This pure fictitiousness constructed by a charlatan makes me want to kill Bacchus all over again. It's not the first time I've had the thought, though part of me wonders if it's more Sparks than it is me.

Something to sort out later.

It smells sickly sweet, like a rotting body, as we move forward. Magnum wrinkles his nose, and I worry it's especially unpleasant for him. But he doesn't complain, just pulls out his dagger and starts tossing it with an anxious tick.

The stone table is across the field and the unnatural stillness is unnerving all of us. I'm at the front and decide to hurry forward, forcing them to move. Somehow I know that lingering here is a mistake. As we approach the silent stone, something in my stomach drops and twists, making me nauseous. This feels… wrong in every sense of the word. The glamour is wrong, the table is wrong, the sky is wrong, and the magic is so very wrong, so incredibly twisted, that I feel it deep in my bones.

Abomination, Sparks whispers in my ear. Vile, vile, being.

I shiver, eyes wide.

"Well," Magnum says and reaches into his pack. "I'll just get out—"

"Hello, birdie," a deep, beautiful, charismatic voice says behind me, and we all turn, my heart beating too loudly for comfort. This is what I've been feeling—this overwhelmingly powerful, evil, corrupted presence.

There, behind us, stands a Fae that can only be Oleander. His dead eyes sparkle blue, and his pale golden hair is limp and lifeless. His skin was probably Yaris' tone at some point, but now it's too pale to even resemble him or Bandit. His horns are curved in a loop, unlike his siblings, and they shine black with no runes at all. They're just empty of protection and love. His feet are placed firmly on the ground, his hands shoved into his pockets with ease, and he's obviously looking for a fight, but I can't stop staring at the break in his beautiful armor—a dark, broken crimson splotch telling of his death and unwilling sacrifice. I count ten Fae behind him, all in various states of decay with marks of death on their chests, necks, or heads. Oleander seems the best preserved. It makes sense in a twisted way—the necromancer likely raised him first, guaranteeing that he received the most magic.

Bandit pales entirely and takes a step towards him.

"Lee," she gasps. "Oh, great goddess."

He grins, his tooth rotting.

"I knew it would be you, birdie," he says, almost fondly. "Though I don't know who that is, but he kind of looks like Father."

He looks at Yaris and I have to resist the urge to put myself between them. I thrum with energy just waiting to be released upon him and his dead guard.

Bandit is doing a poor job hiding her shaking.

"He is our brother," she says quietly. "The youngest, in fact."

He snorts.

"Of course, that bitch couldn't keep her legs closed. Of course they had more. What, was a few failed children not enough for the great Sunbeam empire?"

Bandit's jaw works for a moment before she speaks.

"Lee, so… you agree? They're bad? You're still in there?"

He throws his head back and a horrible cackling fills the air. That wrongness I've been feeling amplifies and Bandit somehow pales more. To my horror, I realize that her eyes are watering, and I'm worried she's about to start crying and… while that is understandable, this really isn't the time.

"You're cute, birdie," Oleander taunts. "But I haven't been myself since I fucking died. Do you remember that? Me dying while you stood by and did nothing?"

Malice fills his voice as Bandit sobs, a gut-wrenching sound that makes my eyes burn. This needs to stop.

"Bandit, it isn't him," I blurt, gathering my green fire. "He's a walking corpse. None of him is left. He's been hallowed out and is maddened by the centuries of isolation. This isn't your fault."

"Oh, how adorable," Oleander turns his morbid attention towards me. "The little dragon rider thinks he knows a thing or two. But this…" he gestures at his rotting body, death where beauty once stood. "… this is all you. If it wasn't for your fucking kind, none of this would've happened."

He rushes me and I barely, barely see it before his spotless blade is reaching for my throat and I stumble back, trying to gather myself. If it wasn't for Yaris suddenly blocking him and pushing him back with the force of a thousand angry men, I would be stabbed and bleeding on the ground. I've never seen him move so fast before and I gape in awe as Oleander is thrown back and Yaris pounces on him like a cat after its prey.

Fighting erupts wildly. Magnum, who's always playing with his damn daggers, suddenly releases one at the closest Fae and yells, quite clearly ,

"Aim for the head!"

Fuck.

I get my shit together and set one of the corpses on fire as they rush me. They're frightfully fast as Bandit and Yaris are, but just slightly behind them which means they're easier to hit. Magnum disappears in the crowd, slashing and stabbing as he goes and Bandit is weeping as she tries to give Yaris some backup, but he obviously doesn't need help.

And that's really hot.

And maybe beside the point at the moment.

Shatterjaw, in all of her extraordinary ability, somehow keeps up with the creatures and cuts off a few heads with the ease of a butcher slaughtering a goat. Yaris dances with Oleander, more concentrated than I've ever seen him. He strikes, leaps away, draws him to him, and then hits him again. Oleander somehow keeps up with him, despite being undead, but the fact is, Yaris is faster, likely due to the fact that he actually has blood in his limbs. It's still close and my heart is in my chest as Yaris dodges and goes low, cutting his ankles. Oleander doesn't have any blood left to bleed but his limbs don't quite work as Yaris slices into tendons and muscles, disabling him further. I think it's only due to my rider senses that I can track them at all and Yaris is brilliant—an artist, a warrior, a beautiful being of light and grace as he moves. Oleander attempts to cripple him, but despite having a fatter blade, Yaris manages to use his rapier as leverage, dodging and cutting nimbly. The crown prince looks furious and becomes more and more angry as Yaris continues to best him. He protects his head so Yaris can't quite kill him, but I think it's only a matter of time before Oleander falls.

Yaris has a few wounds but nothing significant though I hate to see him bleed. I should be the one defeating Oleander so he doesn't have to. He doesn't seem put off by it, but he always seems fine until he's suddenly not. Killing an undead sibling must be rough, even if you don't really know that sibling.

Gods, this whole thing is fucked .

I burn three of the Fae to ash and hurry to where Yaris and Oleander are locked in battle. Bandit is currently fending off a corpse but she seems to have it in hand, so I move past her and throw my green dragon fire at the crown prince. Yaris whips around and his lips thin.

"I have this!" He shouts as Oleander stumbles back.

"I'm the fucking dragon rider!" I snap at him, determined to help. He groans and shakes his head.

"We really do not—"

My world narrows to one single moment. I've been in many battles and can tell when someone is wounded severely. As Oleander manages to stab Yaris in the stomach and as Yaris gasps in pain, I can tell the blade has hit part of his spine. He sags on the sword, Oleander laughing as I seize up in utter horror. I shouldn't have distracted him. Oh, gods, I only wanted to help. Oh, fuck. I just wanted to help.

Yaris' legs give out as his older brother—his brother, for fucks' sake! —yanks out his weapon and turns his sights to me. I'm too frozen to really notice. My love, my life, my everything is bleeding to death before me and his killer is stalking towards me like I'm prey.

"Y-Yar…" I gasp, everything locking up inside of me.

No, no, no, no.

NO.

I scream as Oleander swings at me and a burst of energy from me or Sparks—both? —ripples across the battlefield, knocking everyone but me on the ass. I don't have words. I only have fury. Oleander, the snake, is the only thing that matters. He looks genuinely surprised as he ends up on his back, his body broken and unable to move very much. Nothing else matters. Nothing but ending him and then getting to Yaris before he fucking dies. I think he's moving but I'm not sure.

"You are nothing but an empty creature of madness and fury," I spit at the prince, my heel on his chest. "And I'm going to burn you until you are ash, like you should've been all those years ago. "

I'm shaking from terror and hurt, glaring at him with venom. He blinks a few times, and his eyes suddenly look clear.

"Please," he gasps. "I… hate it here. Please. I want to rest."

"Gladly," I snarl and light up the animated corpse. The dragon fire burns so bright and full that he's gone in seconds. Maybe one day, I'll tell Yaris and Bandit how he was smiling at the end, how he was peaceful and grateful, but I can't think of that right now.

I stumble away from the pile of ash and towards Yaris, who's on his back, utterly unconscious. Shaking, I pull him into my arms.

"Bandit!" I gasp, watching his life blood drain from him. "Bandit!"

A moment later, she joins me.

"I'm here, dragon rider," she murmurs, her cheeks damp with tears of grief and pain. "I'm here."

She starts to gently heal him and quickly, he stops bleeding. He doesn't look as pale anymore and I nearly collapse with relief. I realize I'm crying too.

"Is he okay?" I gasp. "Bandit."

She nods.

"Yes. But I can't heal him fully here. We need to do the ritual and leave, Ruin."

I gather myself, nodding and trying to stop fucking crying.

"Right. Right. But he's… I can't… we can't…"

Bandit smiles hesitantly.

"It's good you have me then," she says softly, and I nod, feeling a bit stupid.

"Right. Right."

I look around and Magnum is collecting his daggers as Shatterjaw cleans her sword.

"Magnum!"

His head snaps up and he hurries over a moment later, stashing his daggers away. His eyes flicker to Yaris in my lap .

"Is he…?"

"He's fine," I snap, because he has to be. "We have to do the ritual."

"Right," he nods and pulls the scroll out of his pockets. "We have to write this down… and then, uh, you both say this and bleed all over everything and it should… do something."

"Great. Super specific." I croak. "Fuck."

"That's all I can do for now," Bandit says softly. "We need to go soon, Ruin. He needs more healing."

"Yeah. Okay," I nod. I really don't want to let him go. I want to apologize for being an idiot, for letting him get stabbed. Fuck.

"I'll set it up," Bandit says steadily and gets up, moving to the stone table. I take a deep breath and look around me cautiously. The glamour is glitching and twitching now that Oleander and his guard are… deader. The meadow flashes black dirt and shriveled grass in some parts and the sky is red and then blue and then red and then blue again. I feel like everything is collapsing all at once and I just want to protect Yaris and take him somewhere gentle, kind, and good so he can recover from my utter stupidity.

"I'll take him," Shatterjaw says, near my elbow, covered in blood and dirt and whatever fluid comes from corpses. I look at her, haunted.

"He's…"

"He'll be fine, Ruin," she says gently. "Now hand him over so you can end this, and we can leave."

I swallow and kiss his forehead before tenderly handing him over. Shatterjaw holds him as if he's the most precious thing in the world and, to me, he is.

I shake myself and stand, trying to pull myself together enough to get this done.

I'll be able to hear you clearer in a moment, Sparks, I think quietly to myself. You'll be here soon.

I approach the stone table, which keeps shifting into a boring, blood spattered rock under Bandit's gaze. The glamor will collapse entirely when we lift the spell on the pillar. Bandit doesn't seem to care that the table moves beneath her. She stays focused, her tears now dry, as she writes down a series of Ogham sentences in chalk on the surface. She murmurs to herself, over and over again, worrying her lip occasionally. I don't want to interrupt her, and she seems to know that I'm here. After a moment of me standing there like a useless weight, she speaks.

"It's fascinating, really," she says quietly. "The whole thing is utterly undone because my father didn't account for what his control would do."

I cock my head.

"What do you mean?"

She frowns at something and shakes her head.

"I can't get into it now, but, basically, blood magic is strongest when the participants are willing. If they're unwilling, it's easier to break, like a shoddily made bridge."

I consider that and remember Magnum saying that it was neutral. Maybe it really is. I'm about to respond when she speaks again.

"Regardless," she pulls out a knife. "You ready, dragon rider?"

I offer a hand and she shakes her head.

"Better blood flow on the inner elbow. Now, say it with me—"

She opens her mouth and says something with a lot of vowels and accented consonants. If I had been smarter, I would have figured out this part already. I would have studied so I'd know what I was saying. But I didn't, because I'm not smart.

I got Yaris stabbed after all.

"Ruin," Bandit says firmly. "Focus. Again."

I shake myself, trying desperately to clear my mind. It sounds like a bunch of nonsense to me, but I swallow and try again, and get it right the fourth or fifth time. My blood drips on the stone and a moment later, Bandit's blood mixes with mine. I watch, fascinated, as the droplets stir together and start to shine a stunning silver, filling the chalk markings and making them glow brilliantly. I can feel how powerful this magic is—the magic of a royal Fae and a dragon rider singing in tune with each other. It's so completely intimidating l that I step back, awed beyond words.I feel the earth beneath me shift and dread fills me.

"Oh, fuck," I utter as a loud crack fills the air, the stone snapping in half and the earth opening as a red energy fills the air and rushes out towards us. Bandit grabs me just as it hits me and the glamour is wiped away entirely. A grotesque earth and solemn red skies snap into being, replacing the false paradise that we stood in moments before. It smells like death and pain and I hear Magnum gagging, heaving, trying to control his stomach. My stomach turns as well as Bandit shoves us away from the gaping wound between us and the others. It's hard to orient myself and my head spins as something reaches for me. I try to untangle myself from Bandit, but it's too late. Sparks screams as energy grabs hold of us and we are pulled into oblivion.