Chapter 50

Tristan's body undulated beneath me as we shot into the sky while I kept the worst of the black ash off us, trying not to slide off his back and plummet to my death.

Raz had left a minute ago carrying Tavion and Bex. I'd used my magic to protect them until they'd vanished, but if Ravenswood was destroyed when they arrived, they'd be hard-pressed to find cover until we got there.

In any case, we'd be lucky to escape Varitus unscathed.

From up here, the destruction knocked the air from my lungs.

Black ash swirled around us, filling the air so it was hard to see even a short distance. I didn't know where this came from. Whether I'd churned up the blight by dropping the ward or if Corvus had been lying in wait for just this opportunity.

However this disaster occurred, now the blight was carried on the wind, faster than Corvus could have ever hoped to spread it himself. Varitus would be lost in a matter of days, not weeks, and once the wind changed and began blowing east into Caladrius, we could write off that entire realm as well.

As far as I could see, the earth was ruined, like giant claws had ripped and shredded at the ground. Bloodwood Forest was a splintered wreck of ancient trees, the road leading to Ravenswood blocked by fallen debris.

Even from up here, I watched three tiny figures fleeing north, heading straight toward the castle.

"Drop lower, Tristan." My fingers tensed against his hard scales, smooth and slippery as water as he drifted downward in a graceful spiral, the frozen wind ripping tears from my eyes. "Let's see if we can help them."

Gods, we'd only made it to six of the royal houses, of course we'd missed people. Of course we'd…

Tristan let out a panicked bellow the same time I recognized that determined, staggering run. The short hair matted with blood was new, but Zorander's unmistakable black armor was so cleaved apart, all I saw was reddened, burned skin.

"Fuck, that's Zor." I tightened my grip on Tristan's scales. "Get us down there. Right the fuck now."

What the fuck was Zor doing here and why hadn't he teleported in? Why was he running down the road with two strangers? They were being burned alive by this falling black ash which was coating everything like poisoned snow.

"I'm going to try to put a shield around them." I yanked up my magic. "But our shield might fail in the process."

While Tristan's diamond-hard scales were impervious to the burning ash, my skin was not.

So the warning was really more for me than him. The ground rushed up to meet us as I cast my magic around them, Zor looking up at the last possible moment as our shadow eclipsed them.

The two males' mouths fell open when we landed. I was already sliding off Tristan's back, my boots hitting the ground hard, causing me to lose a step before I got moving again. "You idiot, why didn't you fly in your usual way? And what happened to your hair?" I tipped his head to the side to get a better look at the wound.

"This is deep. You're not healing at all. Why aren't you healing?"

"Hello to you, too, princess." Even his smile was utterly exhausted. "Let's just say I got sidetracked on my way here and am running a little late."

My shield was keeping us protected, but they were covered in dust.

I wiped as much off Zor as I could. The older males were still standing there frozen, mouths hanging open. "Get to work and wipe this stuff off," I snapped. "Raz can heal you, but not if the blight takes you over."

Because there was no doubt in my mind that's what would happen. Anyone caught out in this for too long would be burned alive then engulfed by the rot, and what a fucking shite way to go.

I tied my cloak over Zor's shoulders, running my hands over him to wipe every last bit of dust off before I brushed my fingers over his jaw. He looked like he hadn't slept in a week. "Come on. We're almost there. I'll keep everyone protected until we reach the castle."

"Is Ravenswood still standing?" Zor asked softly, shaking hands pulling the cloak tighter as I slid my arm around his waist and braced my shoulder against his. "Everything we've seen has been flattened."

"Tristan, get to the castle and tell Raz we're coming. Tell him to be ready."

I couldn't get a breath down. This was a fucking disaster. Zor could barely walk, his back a mass of blistered, ruined flesh, blight falling from the sky like heavy snow.

With a sibilant hiss, the wyvern took off, the deep booms of his wings echoing against my bleeding eardrums.

I reached out and squeezed Zor's hand, praying my smile looked sincere. "The palace is intact. Hang on just a few more minutes and everything will be fine."

As a testamentto money can buy you quality workmanship, most of Ravenswood still stood.

One wing had collapsed—the eastern end, closest to the wall—and some windows were missing, but the structure had fared surprisingly well.

"We'll get out of this mess and get you fed and healed up. Then we decide what comes next." I carefully avoided touching Zor's ravaged back. "Some sleep wouldn't hurt either, if we can find the time."

"What about us?" the older male asked warily. "Where are we supposed to go?"

Zor managed a lopsided grin. "Anaria, meet Finnian and Kael. Like the princess suggested, let's get ourselves under roof, then we can decide logistics."

"Princess?" Finnian asked sharply. "Or queen?"

"Just a figure of speech." I peered closer at the blood running down Zor's face. Some of the ash was trapped in the drying blood, tiny tendrils of black twining through the crusted blood, and I used my nail to scrape it off. "We're there. This is the back of the formal gardens." I steered them to the left. "You are one gravel walkway from getting out of this shitestorm."

"You don't speak like a princess," Kael said curiously. "And that's no dragon. That's a wyvern."

Both Zor and Finnian stared at him before shaking their heads. "That's the most words I've heard you speak in a row to a stranger in the twenty godsdamned years I've known you."

Kael shrugged. "Never met a princess before."

"I'm not a princess," I repeated. "Keep going. A bit further."

I wasn't sure Zor would make it inside. His feet were dragging, the pungent stench of rot filling up the bubble of magic I projected around us. He was in bad shape. Worse than I'd ever seen him, but Tavion and Raziel had seen our approach. They rushed out the door and met us, heaving Zor over their shoulders and carrying him inside.

I fucking despised this place for about a million reasons, and yet, I'd never been so glad to see a castle still standing.

"Come in," I told Finnian and Kael. "We'll get you both fed and healed up, and then we can decide where you go too."

Kael blinked up at the ash still falling from the sky. "How are we supposed to get anywhere in this? We'd die before we walked a single mile."

"There are a couple of choices." I was too tired to do more than offer them a tired smile. "But I have to tell you now, you won't like either of them. Still, I'd take the wyvern option, if I were you. The view from up there is amazing despite the destruction."

I pointed at the sky and they both blanched.