It did not surprise me that the Fortune Elf sought me out. He had remained by Ryllae’s side earlier, not seeming to want to stray far from the Death Elf princess we had rescued from Nightstone Prison, but when we first arrived, I noted a glint in Daegal’s eye. I knew it would only be a matter of time before he found me.
I supposed that was now.
Pulling out a pair of breeches and heavy boots from the bag, I put them on before drawing a tunic over my head and matching Daegal’s position. Leaning against the trunk of a nearby tree, I settled in for what could be a long wait. It was a side-effect of dealing with Fortune Elves. They operated on their own timeline.
Luckily for Daegal, I was great at waiting. A few minutes passed, neither of us speaking. I took the time to steady my old friend. He looked different from before we’d left for the Queen’s Tower. That felt like a lifetime ago. He was older, somehow. More worn. But that wasn’t all. There was a spark of life about him I had never seen.
It wasn’t a bad thing. If anything, he seemed… happy. I wondered at the cause of that feeling. Maybe Aileana was right, and there was something going on between Daegal and Ryllae.
Eventually, he stepped forward. He hugged me, and I returned the gesture.
“It’s been far too long, brother,” I said.
He nodded; his expression grim as lines of worry etched across his face. “I’m glad the two of you came back, Xander. There isn’t much time.”
The tone of his voice was dark, and a pit yawned in my stomach. “What’s wrong?”
He stepped forward, clasping my arm in his. “Everything.”
Silver took over Daegal’s eyes as he fell into his magic. We remained unmoving, and I gripped his arm, waiting for him to come out of the future. Extending my senses, I listened to the forest. A fox stirred in a burrow nearby; a wolf howled; and somewhere in the distance, an owl hooted.
The forest itself was different from before. It was more overgrown, and there was an air of danger about it. Aileana was convinced the darkness had to do with the broken balance. I believed her—nothing we were seeing was normal. High King Edgar had started something, but the state of Ithenmyr was getting much worse since he died.
Just last week, we’d crossed the dried-up bed of what used to be the Criwyn River.
Thoughts of the broken balance and my sister’s hand in it occupied me until the silver magic cleared from Daegal’s eyes. The Fortune Elf’s mouth pressed into a firm line, and he shook his head.
“What did you See?” I asked.
His gaze met mine. Though the silver was gone, a haunted look remained. When he spoke, his voice was much deeper than normal.
“Time is short. The balance is broken. Evil is no longer lurking in the shadows, waiting for the day it can rise.” His grip tightened on my arm, his nails digging into my skin, and his eyes widened. “Heed my warning, son of Aranuil, bonded mate of the High Lady of Life. Evil is here, among us all. No one can be trusted. Nothing is safe. You must journey to the hidden mountain and find the amulet of old. Darkness has arrived and it will claim us all. Make haste. Travel light. Trials will come your way, but you must persevere. Life and Death hang in the balance. Soon it will be too late, and all will be lost.”
As the last words left Daegal’s lips, thunder roared in the distance. Goosebumps erupted on my skin, and I shivered as the Fortune Elf withdrew his hand.
“Is that all?” I asked dryly. “Perhaps you’d like to tell me the sun is about to explode?”
That seemed like it would be in line with everything else.
Daegal blinked. “No, that’s not going to happen.”
Clearly, my friend had left his sense of humor behind at the cottage. Still, his words were dark, and they awakened the dragon within me. It stirred, watching and waiting, as I stared at my old friend. I ran a hand through my hair. “And here I thought having a draken on the throne of Ithenmyr was bad enough.”
Aileana and I hadn’t wasted any time yesterday in telling Nonna and the others about the Southern Queen’s true identity. It wouldn’t have been right to keep that kind of information to ourselves. Though Nonna, Ryllae, and Kysha had worn expressions ranging from shocked to horrified, Daegal and Maiela simply exchanged a knowing look. Fortune Elves were irritating to work with at the best of times. And this was not that.
My friend’s eyes darkened as his fingernails dug into my arm. “Xander, your sister is the least of our worries.” His voice was low, carrying a hint of fear. “The world is crumbling. Edgar used black magic, and it’s tainting everything. Darkness is spreading all over the Four Kingdoms, and soon it will go beyond our continent. The merfolk in the Indigo Ocean will fall, and then the fae will be next. Evil is coming for us all.”
I frowned, a pit forming in my stomach. Even for Daegal, whose abilities to See the future always skewed dark, this was grim. “Any other dire news, brother? Something else you want to share?”
Daegal snorted. “Do you wish to hear about the strange happenings with the vampires in Eleyta?”
A shudder ran through me. “No. I’m good.”
I’d had enough dealings with vampires to last a lifetime. When I was working as the White Death, I fell into a dalliance with Valeria. The vampire had wanted to Bind herself to me and keep me as her Source. She’d become rather volatile when I turned her down.
As if he knew where my thoughts had gone, Daegal smiled. “Not to worry.” Releasing my arm, he rolled his shoulders before asking, “How was the flight?”
The air between us eased, and I grinned. “Restorative.” Clapping Daegal on the back, we turned and returned to the cottage. “Let me tell you, there is nothing like flying…”