I had killed High King Edgar, and I wouldn’t stop until I had righted all his wrongs. That was my fight. My fuel. It was that rage that burned in me as I fell into a dance of death. Shoving everything else aside, I moved as one with Xander. He swung his sword, and I pulled on my powers. Our movements were a synchronized waltz, set to the dying tune of the deadly spiders.
Minutes dragged on, and we engaged in battle.
Screams and battle-cries intermingled with the high-pitched wails of the spider-skulls as they died. I fought and fought until, finally, the skittering slowed. The horrible screeches were more spread out.
We were winning.
Still, we fought.
My limbs burned, and my feet ached. The well within me was dangerously low. Lower than it ever had been before.
And then, a strange sound came from above me. A high-pitched trill, like a bird in distress, rang out three times before stopping.
It must have been a signal. The terrible mist dissipated. The remaining skull-spiders ran into the walls and under rocks, leaving black blood and the bodies of their dead companions behind.
“They’re retreating,” I breathed.
Relief coursed through my body, and I sagged against the nearest building. I was so tired, so depleted, I didn’t even think about why the strange creatures had left. Dropping my pack, I found my water and drank the entire bottle dry. Xander leaned against the wall opposite me. Grey dust and black blood covered him in equal measure, but it seemed to escape his notice as he breathed in heavily.
“Are you alright, Aileana?” he asked.
Drawing in a deep breath, I ran a mental check over myself. Everything seemed in place. “I’ll live. You?”
“I’m fine,” he grunted. “Let’s go find the others.”
The last thing I wanted to do was pick up my bag again, but we couldn’t stay here and risk another attack. Sighing, I pulled it on and wearily followed Xander.
It wasn’t hard to find our path. Death marked it on all sides. Shards of bone and bits of spider legs were everywhere. Black blood oozed over the stones. Vines crawled up buildings, pinning some creatures to the structures in their last resting place, while others were nothing more than singed spots on the stone. My heart quickened at the sight of red blood. I had a few cuts on me, as did Xander, but both of us were healing quickly. Who did it belong to?
He turned a corner.I hear someone, he said through our connection. Extending his hand, he waited until I slipped my fingers through his before continuing down a cobblestone alley.This way.
Soon, Maiela and Kysha came into view. The couple leaned against the side of an abandoned building, their chests heaving. Their tunics were ripped, and blood and dust covered them from head to toe, but they were alive.
I called out to them, and they turned. The moment Maiela saw us, her brows furrowed.
“Where’s Daegal?” she asked.
The question slammed into me like a rock falling from above. My lungs squeezed, and I could barely breathe. Where were Daegal and Ryllae?
“We thought they were with you,” Xander said quickly.
“No.” Kysha shook her head, her eyes widening. “They were with you.”
For a long moment, no one spoke. My feet carried me in a slow circle as I willed the pair to appear from between the stone buildings.
They did not.
Maiela cried out. The sound was like a dagger to my chest. Her eyes gave into the silver so fast that her legs buckled beneath her, and she slumped to the ground. Kysha darted forward, grabbing her wife before her head slammed into the cobblestones.
The eerie silence was back, and this time, it was heavier than before. My heart thundered in my chest and every single breath I took was too loud.
Where were they? In this silent metropolis, without those creatures coming at us, we should have been able to hear them. But there was no sound at all. Nothing except for Kysha’s whispers as her wife remained in that place where Fortune Elf magic reigned.
My head was light, and my hands slickened as I stepped toward Xander. He looked at me with wide eyes. His mouth was pinched, his nostrils were flared, and dread came through the bond.
The horrible, deafening silence continued, echoing through the city. The walls of this courtyard were closing in. Breathing was difficult.
Why had the compass led us here?