51. Onora
Chapter 51
Onora
B oot tracks littered their path the next day, many of them fresh and most likely from soldiers. They marched on through the woods, waiting for any sign of their enemies from before, but the forest was quiet, their travel easy. Three days through the Harrow Wood, and the easiness of it put them all on edge more than an attack would.
Onora’s skin buzzed, her senses on high alert the whole time. She had the distinct feeling they were being watched, but other than some uncanny sense, she couldn’t find proof of it. So when she heard the twig snap, she was the first to pull out her bow, nocking an arrow. As the rest followed suit, a host of arrow tips appeared out of the woods, sun glinting on their tips, coming from all directions.
She swallowed, waiting for the first arrow to fly, for the first hint that anyone would break the silent agreement they currently held.
“Who goes there?” Dryston called.
“I’d like to ask you the same question,” a male voice cried out.
“I’m the Lord of Shadows,” he responded.
“Oh, what a lucky day for me,” the voice called back, humor lining his tone. “You’re the most wanted male in all of Nemus.”
“Lucky indeed,” Dryston responded. “To have so many arrows pointed at you.”
“Likewise, brother.”
“Tell me your name.”
The bushes rustled, then a male elf stepped out, long wavy hair falling over a dark green tunic. He held a bow in his hand, but it relaxed at his side and he looked them over carefully.
“Well, I’m going to safely assume you aren’t here to rescue our prisoner—as he keeps threatening.”
“Who is your prisoner?”
“King Leeth, of the elves.”
Dryston’s face hardened, and she could see his long-simmering rage coming to the surface, ready to boil over at the mention of the name.
The elf chuckled. “I see you share a similar regard for the old male.” He gestured. “Follow me.”
They wove through the woods on a trail that had been hidden by magic, the scene shifting and changing with a wave of his hand. Other elves lined the pathway here and there, keeping watch, but no longer threatening. Then they came to a settlement of treehouses, some carved in the bases, bridges connecting others. He brought them to a structure in the middle, the only one that wasn’t a tree house and when they entered, they descended into a dungeon, cold and dark save for the flickering mage lights.
The stairs wound down and around until they came to the base, and in the back was a cell, cold and musty, holding King Leeth. He stood swiftly as the elf arrived, his eyes going wide in shock when he saw them.
Dryston crossed his arms. “Don’t try to tell me that you’ve been here for the last so many months and that’s why you ignored my missives.”
Leeth pursed his lips. He’d always been gregarious, kind—affable. She’d been charmed by him on their first meeting, and she was not easily beguiled. But now, looking at him in this state, it was as if the mask slipped. A sneer graced his lips, his eyes narrowing on Dryston as a cold laugh echoed from him.
“You served your purpose, Lord of Shadows. I had no need of you anymore. Sorry I couldn’t spare the time to tell you,” he said.
Onora could see the hurt in Dryston’s eyes, the anger. Leeth had been his first real ally; after years and years of trying, he’d finally thought he’d broken through and won over Leeth. Now it seems he was only using him. But for what?
“Why did you offer to help Kaemon?”
Leeth gathered his long robes, taking a seat on the stone bench and leaning against the wall, drawing in a deep sigh. “Because I needed you. I needed you and Enid. Imagine my luck when I’d been searching for a female demon to come on a quest. Imagine my luck when I thought I’d have to scheme and lie and manipulate and then, suddenly, one winds up on my front door, begging for my help, saying she’ll do anything if I save her brother and his mate.”
Onora’s skin prickled. He’d been planning this for so long. “You wanted to revive Evoleen.”
He gave her a dull look. “Well, of course. But we had to find Evolis first. And we had to open the first portal. Everything has fallen so nicely after that first hurdle. But really, it’s always been the Erebus family that has made this possible.”
Dryston shifted on his feet uncomfortably. “What do you mean by that?”
“The Cruel Lord was very misunderstood,” Leeth said, examining his nails. “People thought he only wanted Nemus, that he only wanted to oppress and kill and wreak havoc here. On the contrary, he was a bit of a visionary. You see, he had the grimoire of Evonin and he’d learned, by some dark means, surely, that in it contained the spell to revive Evoleen. And he learned that there were portals that needed to be opened in order to do it.
“So he came here with force, taking over the land, enslaving and killing and pillaging, all in an attempt to find the portals. He was a fool, though. He placed temples on ley lines, assuming they were the portals. He never thought to follow the lines and find an even bigger source.
“Then your father kills him and takes over and tries to amend things, but when he comes to remove the temple off the ley line, your colony is slaughtered, as were many, many Hunters. And that sacrifice, coupled with the ritual, sent a shockwave through the portals.
“For the first time in centuries, our elves were able to sense Evolis and where it might be. We were able to sense Evoleen, and she spoke to many, beckoning them to find her.
“I’ve dedicated my life to reviving her. She first spoke to me a decade ago, and I’ve never forgotten her sweet voice.” He stared into the distance, a religious fervor in his eyes. “It’s all coming together now. Things are in motion you can’t stop, no matter how hard you try, no matter what you do. She will be revived and she will bless her followers, destroying those who would challenge and imprison us.”
Silence fell, an eerie feeling snaking through the dungeon.
“He’s quite mad, as you can see,” the elf said.
Leeth looked as if he were about to speak, but Dryston beat him to it. “I’ve seen quite enough.”
The elf nodded. “Come with me. We’ll get you provisions for your journey.”
They followed the elf up the stairs and out into the open air. He greeted others along the way, many clapping him on the shoulder in a brotherly way.
“What is your name?” Dryston asked.
“Elgin,” he said, and they both gasped. He raised his brows.
“You’re Tannin’s friend?” Onora said.
Elgin’s face softened. “Yes, yes I am.”
“He sent us to look for you.”
“Many bad things have happened of late. I wanted to leave him with more information, but I couldn’t spare any time. A great evil is upon us, and I had to speak to my friend in Orc Haven.” Elgin frowned, squinting as he looked at Onora. “You wouldn’t happen to be Onora?”
“How did you know?”
“I’ve been subjected to many poems describing your beauty.”
She groaned, and he laughed.
Looking around at the encampment, she saw elves milling about, along with goblins, satyrs, and humans. She wondered where they had all come from. Had they seen an attack? Had they lost loved ones to that horror? A flash of a dusty blue cape grabbed her attention, and she caught her breath, breaking into a sprint, following it through the mass of people.
She was suddenly overcome with a sudden and wild hope. She weaved around others, bursting through the crowd. Humans stood in a circle, outfitted with a variety of weapons, listening to their leader talk to an elf in the center. They all wore dusty blue capes and the armor of Hunters.
She couldn’t find the words, she couldn’t form any thought as she stared in shock. The other humans noticed her first, some gasping, finally getting the attention of the man in the middle. He stopped talking and turned.
Jackson.
His jet-black hair was pulled back at the nape of his neck, those familiar half-moon eyes taking her in then blinking, slowly, very slowly registering what he saw.
Onora swallowed the sob that suddenly caught in her throat. Jackson, Jackson was here.
He ran forward, pulling her into a bone-crushing hug. She returned it, and they both laughed, the sound of his wet from tears, and she didn’t want to let him go, couldn’t stand it. But a hand rested on her shoulder and she looked to see Andrea, and she repeated the scene with her, then Jin and Avery.
“Where have you been? What has happened?” she asked Jackson.
He shook his head in sorrow. “They overhead me telling other Hunters that I felt there was a misunderstanding, that I didn’t think Dryston had done the attacks and that I didn’t think you had done anything wrong. Instead of a reprimand, Brayden commanded my death. And that turned into Hunters defending me and others fighting them. There was a clear split, and we ran, picking up villagers and mercenaries along the way that saw the truth in what we were saying.”
“I’m glad you’re safe.”
He pressed his forehead to hers. “I’ve been so worried about you. I barely dared hope I’d ever see you again. They have the king, Onora. He found out their lies and schemes and they’ve imprisoned him, saying they will only spare him if Evoleen grants it.”
She could barely make sense of it all.
“What are you doing here?” he asked.
“There’s so much to tell you.”
They made camp there that night, Elgin enchanting the area to protect them from outsiders. They enjoyed a meal of venison and stew, sitting around the fire, catching up. They had learned that Jackson was leading the band of ex-Hunters, gathering more humans along the way, and had teamed up with Elgin’s rebellion against Leeth. After hearing what Onora and Dryston had to say, what all they explained to them about what was happening, they decided to join them on the morrow to fight. Halst had introduced Onora’s old squad to the spare gryphons, saying that if they would have them, then they were theirs.
Onora wasn’t surprised when the gryphons took to all of them quickly, spending a little more time getting used to Avery and his gruffness. It felt nice that she would be fighting next to them again, able to have them have her back.
If she went with the others.
She took a large gulp of the wine and stared at the fire as Jackson joined her, having gotten another plate of food.
“You’re lost in thought.”
She looked around, ensuring Dryston was nowhere near. “Jackson, I might need your help.”
“You have it.”
She smiled, her heart warming as it always did at his eagerness to assist her. “The fighting will be terrible. I need to leave tonight and go to the temple by myself. I can take care of it, I know I can because of the goddess. But I need your help getting out discreetly.”
“You’re certain this is the wisest move?”
She nodded. “I feel the threat growing every day. If we wait too much longer, she will be revived fully and we won’t be able to stop her. She will be too strong. I have to try.”
“I’ll help you.”
She squeezed his hand as Dryston walked over, his gaze snagging on her in the way it always did, full of love and adoration, and a lump caught in her throat. She didn’t want to keep this from him, didn’t want to lie. But he would try to stop her. And she had to do this. To protect him and everyone else.
“Ready for bed?” he asked her.
She stood, taking his hand in hers and waving a small goodbye to Jackson as they went to their tent. They curled around each other under the covers, and she laid on his chest, breathing in the scent of him deeply, memorizing every note of it.
“What are you thinking about?” he asked softly. He knew, always knew, when her mind was tumbling.
“How much I love you.”
He tilted her face up, his gaze piercing into her, and she could almost cry from the love there. “I love you so, so much, Onora.”
There were so many words to say, so many things she wanted to express to him and didn’t know how to. She could spend a lifetime trying to explain the depth of her feelings for him and she’d always fall short. So instead, she kissed him, long and hard and slowly. His tongue slipped into her mouth, and she let out a breathy moan. Their lips moved faster, followed by hands, slipping and desperate for more, more, more.
He removed her clothes, then his. She climbed on top of him, her body moving in tandem with his—with a desperate fervor that spoke of a bitter finality, of a sweet eternity contained to a singular moment. Something about it felt too final, and she almost stopped, almost telling him her plan, but instead she devoured his mouth, and he pulled her tighter to him, making love to him late into the night.
Because when dawn rose over the horizon, and they marched on the human lands as she flew to the temple, she had no idea if she would ever hold him again in this life.