Chapter 26

Marai

A tremor crossed the field, causing soldiers on both sides to stumble. The air shifted again. This time, Marai caught the unmistakable scent and sensation of dark magic: pungent sulfur, decay, icy darkness, and burning logs. Gray clouds above darkened. The sun all but disappeared from the sky. Fog swirled as magic rumbled through the ground.

Rayghast had unleashed.

“Kadi,” Marai shouted. In an instant, Kadiatu appeared at her side, hands clenching the thick fabric of her pants. “See what you can do.”

Kadiatu’s chin dipped once as she steeled herself. She dropped to her knees and placed her hands on the brittle grass. Fingers became claws as they dug into the earth. Kadiatu closed her eyes.

White and viridescent light seeped from her hands. It burrowed into the dirt and grass. The shockwaves under Marai’s feet suddenly stalled; the earth had been frozen. Green bloomed around Kadiatu. Sprigs of purple heather popped open, flaxen gorse burst to life, and broom flowers blossomed.

Across the moor, a wave of earth rose like an ocean from the ground, knocking Varanese soldiers off their feet. It rushed, plowing through people, as if coming ashore, spewing gravel in its wake.

Kadiatu met the swell with a burst of her own power. The ground before her rose up and crashed into Rayghast’s attack. Rocks and dirt went flying. Keshel’s shield protected Marai and the others from the debris, but several soldiers to the right were struck and injured.

Kadiatu’s body shook, covered in sweat.

“Excellent, Kadi,” Marai urged, breathlessly, putting a hand on her shoulder.

“I’m not sure how long I can do this,” said Kadiatu, turning her round, anxious face towards Marai. “He’s strong . . . so much stronger than me!”

Marai squeezed her shoulder. “You’re stronger than you think. Stop for nothing.”

A dutiful soldier, Kadiatu nodded, focusing once again on her magic beneath the ground. The ground shuddered as Kadiatu pushed against the darkness. Marai felt the verdant magic shove the darkness back and back across the moor. With a massive thrust, Kadiatu let out a yell, as her pure magic ran down Rayghast’s. The ground went still.

“I knocked him down,” Kadiatu said with an air of surprise. She stared down at her dirty hands, a smile growing across her face. “I overpowered him. I pummeled him with rocks, Marai. I hit him in the face!”

Marai clapped Kadiatu on the shoulder. “Great work!”

But the compliment was short-lived. Kadiatu’s magic had weakened with such a strong attack, and Rayghast would be on his feet again in moments. His supply of dark magic was seemingly endless.

“Back to work now,” Marai said as the earth began to rumble again.

Kadiatu laced her fingers in the grass, and submerged herself in the battle.

Marai caught the snippets of an argument from behind. She glanced over her shoulder.

“But people are dying over there!” Thora twisted out of Raife’s grasp. “Let me tend to the nearest ones—”

“It isn’t safe—”

“Then why am I here, Raife?” Thora snapped, backing farther away from him and closer to the barrier’s edge. “What’s the point of standing here watching all those men suffer? I can hear them screaming, Raife! They need me.”

“You can’t heal them all,” said Raife, voice softening. He stepped towards her. “You’ll run empty of magic too quickly. There are other healers in the encampment and on the field. We need you for the end.”

“But none of them have magic,” pressed Thora. Silver lined her eyes.

“Let her go,” Marai said, causing both of them to halt. “But stay close by, Thora. We’re going to need you soon.”

Marai’s eyes flashed between Keshel and Kadiatu on their knees, bodies trembling with the effort to sustain their magic.

Thora tugged on the strap of her bag, and stepped straight through the barrier. Marai tried not to linger on the sight of Thora rushing towards a bleeding man on the ground, feet away from Varanese soldiers.

Marai turned in time to watch soldiers in black swarm around Ruenen and Commander Filitto at the front. Ruenen hacked at the enemy forces with his sword, but Filitto was pushed backwards, away from his prince, by the Tacornians.

In one horrifying moment, Ruenen’s horse reared up on its hindlegs, and he toppled backwards from his saddle.

He was lost in a sea of black.

Chapter 27

Ruenen

The impact knocked the breath from his lungs. His teeth slammed together. His helm toppled from his head.

Ruenen lay on his back, too stunned to move. A jagged rock underneath him broke one of his ribs. He’d narrowly missed the hooves of his horse. Two combating soldiers tripped over him, stepping on his arm.

Ruenen was surrounded by Tacorn soldiers. Panic flooded through him. He saw no light, no gold. He reached for his fallen sword, inches away.

“Kill him,” shouted a gruff voice.

One of the black-armored men who’d stepped on him raised his sword. “Nevandian scum!”

“Protect the prince,” shouted another, someone not so hostile.

Ruenen’s fingers grasped his sword. Arms linked under his own and yanked him to his feet. Two men dressed in rags pulled Ruenen to safety as others blocked the Tacornians with their longshields.

“Thank you, friends,” Ruenen said in breathless relief.

The men spun, raising their pitchforks into the air. Soon enough, a wave of gold swept the cluster of Tacornians back, led by Commander Filitto.

Sharp pain shot through his side as Ruenen tried to breathe. He lifted his sword, ignoring the rib the best he could before he sliced into Tacornian flesh. Blood spurted across his golden chest plate. The soldier keeled over, and Ruenen moved on to the next.

There were too many. When one trained killer fell, three more took his place. The ground was covered in bloody viscera. Bodies stacked on top of bodies from both sides.

And the screaming . . .

The sounds brought Ruenen back to the day Chiojan collapsed. The screams he’d heard then, cowering in that alley . . .

Well, Ruenen wasn’t cowering now.

As his men began to lose steam, as black soldiers battered down the line, Ruenen kept his courage. He kept swinging and tried to rally his exhausted army.

“Come on, men! Push forward!” He thrust his sword high into the air. “For Nevandia!”

His soldiers released a mighty yell, gathering their strength. Ruenen led the charge back into the fray, but it didn’t last long.