Swallowing his terror, Jassyn nearly choked on relief when silvery hair bobbed above the waves.
Until he noticed Vesryn was floating. Facedown.
Jassyn dashed into the ocean, snatching the prince’s leathers before another wave could claim him. With a burst of panicked energy, he dragged his cousin past the breaking water, cursing Vesryn for his bulk. Hauling the prince all the way to the grassy dunes so the sea wouldn’t reach them, Jassyn collapsed next to him.
Vesryn didn’t stir.
Floundering, Jassyn fumbled with his depleted Well. I can’t heal without Essence! Eyes riveted to Vesryn’s still chest, Jassyn’s hand quivered as he searched for a pulse. Human lore insists that shamans healed with the earth.
Slamming his palm to the ground, Jassyn seized the power humming under him. Fingers curling into the grasses, he heaved at the earth’s magic.
A ripple streaked out from underneath his touch, beginning with the plants snared in his grip. The circle expanded, racing out in every direction. Seagrass wilted and then shriveled, crumbling into ash. The earth’s power rushed into Jassyn, blazing behind his ribs.
Uncertainty churned in Jassyn’s gut as he contemplated how to transform the green light spilling from his palms into something he could use to mend. Focusing on the prince, he reached out, resting his fingertips on Vesryn’s chest. I hope this works.
The prince’s eyes popped open. He spit a mouthful of water at Jassyn’s face. Before the stream hit his cheek, Jassyn jerked away. Wheezing, Vesryn burst into a cackling fit, choking on water and air.
“I had you there for a minute, didn’t I?” Vesryn coughed, sitting up to ruffle Jassyn’s soaked curls.
Shoving the prince off, Jassyn scoffed, vacillating between relief and irritation. He slapped his cousin’s back harder than necessary, helping him clear his throat.
“I didn’t mean it,” Vesryn hacked out, rushing through the words. “You’re stronger than anyone I know for enduring what you did.” An assortment of emotions rotated over the prince’s face before guilt anchored in his features. “I just wanted you to believe it for yourself. To prove it to yourself.” Vesryn directed his attention to the storm drifting further out to sea, a break in the clouds lightening the sky. “I…only meant to help you.”
“I’m not like you,” Jassyn bit out. His body quivered from too many warring feelings pulling him in every direction. A rope frayed, ready to snap. “Expelling anger in a magical tantrum doesn’t exactly help me.” Pinching the bridge of his nose, Jassyn inhaled deep breaths to calm himself, dispelling the darkness of his mood. “You have no reason to be vicious with cruelty to break me—to get the reaction you want.” Adding less forcefully, he added, “I’m already broken enough.”
Vesryn averted his eyes, guilt woven into his features. “I’m…sorry. I shouldn’t have taken it so far.”
Turbulent thoughts settling, Jassyn offered his side of the truce. “We’ll find Serenna. She’s going to be okay.”
A companionable silence unfurled alongside the gentle breeze. Jassyn studied the radius of ash spread out beyond them before drawing his hands to his face. Glowing green light still shimmered from his palms.
The cuts he’d received from skidding in the sand had somehow disappeared, revealing smooth skin. Jassyn’s mind raced for any plausible explanation. I didn’t do anything with this power. He glanced at the prince. Vesryn had his fair share of scrapes from his tumble in the ocean.
Wringing his hair out, Vesryn eyed the foreign magic warily when Jassyn gripped his arm. “Do you know what you’re doing with that?” The slight tightness in the prince’s voice provided Jassyn with a tinge of twisted satisfaction.
With an honest shrug, Jassyn spooled the earthen magic into his cousin. “You didn’t seem to be concerned about that five minutes ago.”
“That was before you created this”—Vesryn waved around the sandy dunes—“ring of death.”
“I’m not sure it’s quite ‘death.’ It feels more like a tipping of scales,” Jassyn added after Vesryn’s brows rose skeptically. “Or a balance disrupted. I think.”
Pursing his lips, Jassyn threaded the strange filaments of light, stitching his cousin like he would with Essence. He couldn’t put a finger on the sensation, but something felt unnatural—off in some fundamental way—with stealing energy from the earth.
Driven by instinct more so than intuition, Jassyn hesitantly touched the ground after healing the prince. He sent his awareness tunneling below, attuning himself to the roots of the withered plants. Chest heated with ancient magic that had no place to go, Jassyn shifted the excess power to his fingertips. Dispatching the energy he hadn’t used for mending, green light ignited the veins of his arms, the pressure under his ribs flowing back into the earth.
Vesryn’s eyes popped along with Jassyn’s as tufts of grass broke through the sandy soil, reclaiming the dunes. Redistributing the life he’d borrowed, Jassyn ran his fingers through the scattered blades, comforted by the unexpected equilibrium. The blooming beauty of renewal.
For the first time, he almost felt like something was right.
CHAPTER 36
SERENNA
Three weeks blurred in the search for the Heart of Stars. Serenna and Fenn had explored tunnels darker than pitch, ransacked ancient storerooms, and rummaged through uninhabited dwellings in what felt like every corner of the Frostvault Keep.
They’d managed to avoid entanglements with the reavers while they’d scoured the districts Fenn had deemed safer territory. But more than once, a contingent of his clan’s warriors had accompanied them when they’d ventured where the restless wraith had a heavier presence.
A dracovae patrol had been spotted by a scouting group two days prior, stirring the reavers into a frenzied hunt, the bloodthirsty warriors determined to fell the beasts and elves. After the sighting, Kal had surrendered to Lykor’s plans of abandoning the fortress, organizing supplies and mobilizing the clans for departure.
Serenna spun the golden tether on her wrist. I need Vesryn to find me before the reavers harm his rangers. Or before Lykor drags me too far across the Wastes. The key dangling around Fenn’s neck was her best chance at freedom.
But she was well aware Fenn would “file his fangs” before he disobeyed an order and removed her manacle—especially for no apparent reason. Except… Serenna studied the lieutenant in his spiked armor. Today he seems to be toeing a line.
Fenn had brought her to one of the crossbow firing ranges after they’d spent yet another fruitless morning and afternoon hunting for the Heart. The open caverns at the base of the volcano crawled upwards, the crevices outlined by jagged stone. A sluggish stream of magma bubbled and churned a winding perimeter, shrouding the chamber in a comfortable warmth. Glowing light from hissing flames scrawled shadows across the rocky walls.
Sore from the endless walking in a new pair of wraithling boots provided by Fenn, Serenna shifted her weight. She was tempted to sit on the ground and rub her feet while enduring his long-winded demonstration.
Obviously, fiddling with these contraptions was his favorite hobby. Well, aside from mingling. And Serenna was past tired of hearing about that Lagoon, so she’d suffer through this. Oddly enough, Fenn’s infectious excitement sparked her interest as he explained the function of every single pin and gear.
“And you crank this lever,” Fenn said, his claw working in a circular motion, winding the cords back until it locked with a click. He strummed the string with a talon before nodding. “The druids left behind schematics of their weapons and we were able to replicate their craftsmanship to create our own.” He placed a gold-tipped bolt into the grooved center channel, aligning the indents in the shaft with the posterior string before offering it to Serenna.
She hesitantly took the loaded mechanism, eyeing the wicked gilded end warily. This tiny arrow really brought Vesryn down?
Turning to Fenn, Serenna asked, “What do I do now?”
Fenn yelped. “Don’t point it at me!” He shoved the front of the weapon toward the wooden targets.
“That’s how you handed it over!” Serenna readjusted her grip. “You’re the one who insisted that I learn how to fire it today.”
