Chapter 4
ARIEL
W e arrived moments later at what I could only assume was the Anemosian border.
Hemming had somehow regained his normal form during that short time. Shayfer appeared as composed as ever, despite all that had just happened. And I stood there looking at the two of them, wondering if we’d just caused irreparable damage. Deep in my heart, I knew Kaplyn loved me. I just wondered if that love would be enough to forgive me—and the others, too.
Given the silence among us, it seemed they were likely contemplating the same.
Wanting to avoid a discussion about it, I turned my attention to the land beyond the border. And though I hadn’t really known what to expect, nothing I’d imagined had prepared me for what I saw. Sand and rock stretched across the horizon in a barren wasteland that appeared almost uninhabitable. Everything I’d ever heard as a child about the lands of Archigi had always stated that Daglaar was the harshest of them all. But looking through the forest’s edge into an expanse of dust and desolation had me questioning that truth—among all the others. One look at Hemming told me he was clearly thinking the same.
But it was Shayfer who looked the most stunned of all.
“What is this strange illusion?” His quiet voice seemed to drift off on the wind as he stepped across the border and bent down to run his hand through the sand. “This is not at all how I remember it.” Genuine confusion tainted his words, increasing my unease about the situation.
“When were you here last?” I asked.
He slowly stood, letting the sand in his hand slip through his fingers. “When I was a boy. I remember it being so beautiful and full of life—different from the Midlands, but lush all the same. This…” he said, gesturing to the desert before us, “this is a corpse of the land I remember.”
“Maybe you never came to this part?” I offered, but Shayfer immediately shook his head.
“We traveled far and wide. I saw nothing like this.”
“But how could an entire land just die?” Hemming asked as he walked over to the shocked fae.
“An excellent question, Hemming. One I’m not sure we’ll enjoy the answer to.”
“Do you think this has to do with why they’re so desperate for me to return?” I asked. The two of them looked back at me with wary expressions.
“Perhaps,” Shayfer replied, his voice as tight as his shoulders. “Or it has to do with Kaplyn’s reservations about us coming here.”
“Except a country can’t hunt me,” I countered, but my confidence was waning.
“But maybe whatever caused this can.” Hemming drew his sword and palmed the pommel tightly at the thought. “Are you sure you still want to do this, Ariel?”
I watched as the warm winds blew the sand across the vastness before us and wondered if I truly did. But I also knew that, without answers, I would know no peace.
“I have to.”
His expression tightened. “Then we go.” He turned to lead the way, but I caught his arm to stop him. If we were about to walk into something perilous, I needed to apologize first.
“Hemming, about earlier. I want to?—”
“It’s fine, Ariel. You don’t need to apologize.”
“I wasn’t going to leave without you?—”
“We should go,” he said, cutting me off. “It’s already hot, and the sun isn’t even up yet. Now isn’t the time for this.” Without another word, he marched right into Anemosia.
Shayfer gave me a weary sideward glance. “I think it’s going to be a long day,” he said, gesturing for me to follow. So I drew my staff, gripped the blessing stone Delphyne had gifted me—the one that would help me find what I wanted most—tightly in my hand, and crossed into the land of my mother. And whatever consequences might come.
S hayfer’s ability to transport us magically helped us cover ground quickly, but it limited us to places he’d either been before or could see ahead of him, directed by the generic pull of the stone. The drain on his system, combined with my inability to fly while carrying both him and Hemming, eventually forced us to walk through the unforgiving lands of Anemosia in search of any signs of life.
For the hours we’d been traveling, we had seen none at all.
By the time the sun began to rise on the horizon, I wondered if the reason we hadn’t encountered a single soul was due to some strange magic—a deception worthy of the Black Forest—used to lure unsuspecting foreigners into a trap. Foreigners like us. Because how could a country the size of Daglaar, and supposedly more favored by the gods, be so unforgiving? So uninhabited?
I rubbed my head in a futile attempt to erase the tension growing inside.
Not far in the distance, a large stone jutted out of the ground in the middle of the sea of sand. “Can we sit for a little while?” I asked, heading for the jagged rock like it was the most inviting thing I’d seen in ages. “I think I need to drink something. My head is spinning.”
“Is it magic?” Shayfer asked. I couldn’t ignore the concern brimming in his tone.
“I don’t think so. My mind keeps racing over what Kaplyn said—and what he didn’t say. It’s making me tired, as is the confusing condition of this place.”
“Here,” Hemming said, drawing a water pouch from the pack Shayfer had brought. When I pressed it to my lips, I realized just how dry they were. The sun in Anemosia was punishing, and with little to no shelter to escape it, it was taking a toll on us all. “I feel like I’m being roasted on a spit out here.”
My gaze shifted to Shayfer, who’d taken off his heavy brocade coat and slung it over his arm. But even in his thin white shirt, it was clear the heat was getting to him too. His shirt clung to the sweat covering his body and his cheeks were flushed. I reached the leather bladder toward him, and he sucked down the contents so fast he nearly choked.
“So much for your impeccable manners,” I muttered as I slapped him on the back. “Never been this thirsty before, I take it?”
He managed to squeak out a rather inelegant ‘ no ’ before dropping down onto a flat shelf of stone. Seconds later, he shot right back up, brushing off the back of his pants.
Hemming roared with laughter. “That’s the best payback I could have ever asked for. Did you only burn your ass, or did more important parts get roasted too?”
“That seems a touch lowbrow, Hemming, even for you,” Shayfer replied, cutting him a scathing look. “I would never wish ill on your manhood.”
“Only because you want it for yourself,” I countered with a wink.
“I want it for you , Ariel dear, but I most certainly wouldn’t turn it down if he offered.” His sly smile returned, easing my worry a bit.
“Which he won’t,” Hemming added quickly.
At that, I laughed. “Glad to see you two getting along,” I said, searching the rock for a shaded spot to perch upon.
“I’m not sure I’d go that far, given the stunt you two pulled back at the mansion, but neither I nor my beast is going to kill Shayfer, in case you were worried.”
The fae spy’s smile fell. “How positively charitable of you both.”
Hemming ignored Shayfer’s dry response and met my eyes instead, and I could see the hint of sadness buried under all his bravado. The hurt from finding himself abandoned yet again that he’d tried to brush off earlier.
“I promise you, there was no way I was going to leave without you.”
“Your promises leave a lot to be desired lately?—”
“You cannot hold that against her,” Shayfer said, interrupting. “Kaplyn was grilling her about you, and once he finished, I stole her away to my room to try to convince her to leave without you?—”
“Not helpful, Shayf?—”
“—but I was afraid we’d been found out when someone knocked on the door, so I got us out of there.”
“And I was giving him a piece of my mind when we heard that bone-shaking howl of yours, and I came running.” I reached my hand out to Hemming, inviting him to come sit by me. After a moment’s hesitation, he took it. “I didn’t mean to break my promise, Hemmy… truly .”
Instead of sitting beside me, he pulled me to my feet and cupped my face in his hand. “You’re forgiven,” he said as he toyed with the pendant he’d given me years ago hanging around my neck, “but I wouldn't suggest doing it again.” I gasped as his mouth captured my own, possessing it in a way that had me weak in the knees. And just as I thought they might give out, he caught my bottom lip with his teeth and tugged as he pulled away. “However, I can’t promise the beast will be as forgiving as I am.” He grinned at me for a heartbeat before his lips crashed to mine again.
“As much as I hate to interrupt this delightful show of affection,” Shayfer called out, “which, might I add, I've been dying to witness for some time now, I think it’s worth noting that we should heed Kaplyn’s concerns about this journey. It would be prudent to exercise caution regarding how we present ourselves to anyone we encounter.” I broke away from Hemming to find Shayfer staring at us intently. “For example, our respective feelings for Ariel could be weaponized by someone looking to isolate or harm her, so from here on, it might be best if we appear to be her escorts and allies—and nothing more .”
“So no more kissing,” I said, doing all I could to keep a straight face.
Shayfer didn’t take the bait. “No kissing, touching, staring at one another like your clothing is an obstacle you’d like to incinerate, or anything else of the sort.” His uncharacteristically sober tone had me stepping back from Hemming. “He can be used against you, and you against him, if someone so chooses. The same goes for me. We need to appear as neutral as possible; like we are in your confidence but dispensable, understand?”
“I understand.”
“Good. So get whatever you need to out of your systems now, because there’s no telling how long it will be before you’ll get another chance.”
“She will never be out of my system,” Hemming said in a rumbling tenor before he claimed my mouth once more. The way his tongue played inside it had my hands wandering lower down his sides, as though I’d forgotten where we were and who was watching. Just before they could grab hold of his ass, he caught my wrists and pulled away. “But I can refrain from this moment on…for her sake.” He stepped back from me, and his absence felt like a blade to my racing heart.
I turned to Shayfer and found his stare filled with amusement. My cheeks flushed instantly. “Do you have any idea where the stone is leading us?” I asked, my voice husky with desire. I coughed in a feeble attempt to clear it. “Or how much further we need to travel?”
His brows furrowed. “I wish that I did, Ariel, but nothing here is as I remember it. If I had to guess, I’d say we should be nearing the eastern coastline soon. Surely we will find some sign of the Minyades’ existence there.”
“Then we should get moving,” Hemming said, taking the water pouch from Shayfer to stash it away.
“I’m afraid exhaustion is still affecting my magic,” the fae replied. “Our walk may have to continue for the time being.”
“I could fly ahead and see if I can find any?—”
“ NO !” the male duo shouted in unison, cutting my idea off at the knees. Hemming grabbed my forearm gently, as if to tether me to the ground just in case I should feel the need to forgo their input.
“I only want to go scout a bit, then come right back,” I explained.
“Which would be an excellent plan, Ariel dear, were it not for the fact that we’re in a land of beings who also can fly, and who may or may not want to abduct or harm you, if Kaplyn is to be believed.”
“I really hate saying this,” Hemming sighed, “but Shayfer is right.”
“Why Hemming, how you flatter me.”
“It’s the truth. Also, Ariel, have you forgotten the ‘no splitting up’ concept? Because it feels as though it’s been lost on you lately.”
I let out a frustrated growl. “We have no idea where we are, how far we’ve gone, or where we’re going, and we’ve seen no signs of life anywhere. What if…what if none exists?” I asked as the morbid thought flashed in my mind. “Is that even possible?”
“Anything is possible,” Shayfer replied, “but it seems wildly unlikely.”
“So does traveling this far without encountering a soul,” Hemming argued.
“Seriously, I’ll just fly east for a bit and see how far we are from the sea. Or a town.”
“And if you’re attacked in the air?” Hemming asked, his grip tightening. “What then, Ariel? If Shayfer can’t see you, he can’t help, which he might not have the power to do anyway. And I can’t—” He cut himself off, the pain of the words he needed to say next stealing his voice. “I can’t go with you.”
I leaned in close enough for my chest to graze his bare flesh. “I can do this, Hemmy.”
“It’s not your ability I question. It’s this land and its people.”
“My people,” I replied, pulling away. “Minyades, who, in my experience, have done nothing to harm me?—”
“Except attack the eclipse celebration and use Sophitiya as leverage to make you go with them.”
I swallowed down my retort because, though the circumstances of the situation were far more complicated than they had appeared at the time, he was right. “Those three were used as cover by Kade’s usurpers,” I said, forcing calm into my tone. “They fought and died trying to find me.”
“But for what purpose, we still don’t know. Kade feared the threat they posed to you enough to lock them in the wine cellar under the mountain,” he countered. “Even if you eventually learn his reasons and disagree with them, we cannot ignore the potential risk. And I cannot let you endanger yourself to find out.”
My body stiffened at his words. ”I don't need your permission.”
He closed the small space between us and took my other arm in his hand, his grip stiff but gentle, as though barely holding back his emotions. “You never have nor ever will, Ariel, but I’m asking you…please do not go where I cannot follow. Please. ”
The anguish in his pale grey eyes haunted me, and I realized just how terrorizing it was for him to be unable to stay by my side. To protect me. He had always been without limitations when it came to my welfare, but now he was weighed down by his wingless reality. It wasn’t that he wanted to forbid me—to be yet another overbearing male in my life—it was that his love and undying sense of duty would not allow him to physically let me go.
And that point was only further proven when I tried to gently extricate myself from his hold.
His grip on me tightened. “Ariel…” he said, his voice a low, desperate warning, “ please .”
“I won’t go without you.” I leaned my head against his chest and took a deep breath.The steady beat of his heart seemed to calm my own. “But we can’t continue like this, either. Surely there’s a better way.”
“Perhaps there is, Ariel dear.” I looked over my shoulder to find Shayfer grinning like a cat in the cream. “But it depends solely on Hemming.”
“On me? How?”
“Can you call your beast—and control him?”
Hemming’s hands fell away and he stepped closer to Shayfer. “Yes, for the most part. Why?”
“Because Ariel does not need to be high in the clouds to fly, and I can only imagine you are much faster in beast form?—”
“—so I can carry Shayfer and you can run just below us,” I said, completing his thought. “That way, if we’re attacked, we’re together. Shayfer gets the time he needs to restore his power, and we can cover more ground. I can pop up for just a bit to scout, then drop back down.”
“And if somehow she were to be attacked in that minute timeframe, I would be able to at least get us out of harm’s reach without issue.”
Hemming’s sharp gaze drifted from Shayfer back to me. “This could work?—”
“But only if you can call and control your beast,” the fae spy repeated. “I have seen him in action. The latter point concerns me without your father here to influence him.”
“I’ll be fine.” Somehow, Hemming’s response did little to erase the incredulity from Shayfer’s expression.
“Then it’s settled.” He strapped on the pack he’d brought so it rested against his chest, then turned to me and winked. “I’ve never been carried by a beautiful woman before…I think I might like it.” A low growl escaped Hemming as Shayfer positioned himself dangerously close to me. “Shall we, my dear?”
“You’d better behave yourself, or Hemming will figure out a way to jump high enough to rip you from my arms.”
I cast a wary glance at the grinning fae, then over at Hemming. His muscles trembled beneath his stony skin, and I knew he was about to shift. Not certain I was ready to see that, I wrapped my arms around Shayfer’s waist, snapped my wings wide, then shot into the sky.
A raucous roar chased us into the air, and I looked back to find the massive monster pounding a thundering beat into the packed sand. Narrowed grey eyes met mine, and he shook his head as if to tell me not to climb any higher. Shayfer laughed in my arms as though he’d come to the same conclusion. “I think you may have gotten more than you bargained for with that one, Ariel.”
“Maybe, but somehow he’s exactly what I need.”
“I’m concerned that Hemming won’t be able to sell the lie that he is just an escort.”
“He’ll be fine,” I replied, but my lack of conviction wasn’t lost on my companion. Or me, for that matter.
“But will his beast?” he asked in a tone that set me on edge.
“Hemming said he has it under control, and I trust him.”
“Let us hope that trust is not mislaid.”
As doubt began to creep in, a warm breeze caressed my skin. The sensation made my wings itch to go higher, and I instinctively angled them in a way that launched us higher into the sky—high enough for the horizon to stretch out far in the distance.
“Is that blue out there the sky or the sea?” I asked as I squinted against the hot, dry wind.
“That is most definitely the sea.”
“I can’t make anything else out. What’s that black ridge?”
“That is the shoreline,” he explained. “I remember that from when I visited the eastern coast. I was fascinated by the craggy rocks that edged the waterline. They are tall and vast, lining the entire shore, according to my father.”
“Are there cities on the coast?”
“Only one that I visited, and my recollections are vague at best.”
The stone flared in my pocket, which was all the confirmation I needed. “I should tell Hemming. We can’t be more than ten miles or so.”
I swooped toward the ground where a rather agitated creature stood waiting. The second my feet hit the ground, he ran over. Shayfer, clever one that he was, casually stepped behind me, putting me between him and the angry beast.
“I know,” I said, throwing my hands up in defense, “I went too high for too long, but—” Sharp teeth nipped my bare shoulder as Hemming’s beast demonstrated exactly how he felt about me breaking protocol. “Ouch!” I shoved at his damp muzzle but he didn’t budge. Instead, he leveled his inhuman stare on mine and snorted. “Seriously, Hemming? I can’t believe you bit me!”
“You still think he’ll be fine?” Shayfer whispered in my ear. Suddenly, his concerns felt far more valid.
No . No, I didn’t.
“Do you think you can jump us to the shore now that you’ve seen it?”
“I believe I can get us close, yes.”
“Good.” I turned my attention to the glaring beast in my face. “You need to change back. Now .” Another contentious snort. “And this," I said, waving at the mark on my shoulder, “isn’t going to work.” His muzzle lightly bumped the spot he’d bitten, as if to apologize. I cupped his powerful jaw in my hand. “I’m sorry I worried you, but we do not have time for this. You need to change back.” The tension in his body melted away at my softer tone.
Shayfer took me by the arm and pulled me away lightly. “We should let him shift in peace,” he said as he walked slowly in the direction of the shore. This time, the beast didn’t protest.
Moments later, the muffled sound of heavy boots on sand announced Hemming’s arrival.
“Here,” Shayfer said, pulling a plain white shirt from his pack. “It won’t fit well, but you need to cover your scars.” To my surprise, Hemming didn’t argue. Instead, he squeezed the thin silken fabric over his head and managed to pull it down over his broad shoulders in silence. To my surprise, the seams held, though his corded muscles did all they could to test them. Delphyne’s talents truly knew no bounds. “Better. Now, from this moment on, our story must remain as basic and fluid as possible. The Minyades will undoubtedly recognize Ariel by her blood-red wings, but until we know their intentions, we are her escorts.” His sharp honey-colored eyes bored holes through Hemming. “When in doubt, let me do the talking.”
In a blink, we went from endless rock and sand to a salt-kissed breeze rolling off the nearby sea. The smell was as welcome as the cool mist washing over us, but the harsh sound of waves crashing upon rock assaulted my ears. We’d been traveling in such stark silence for so long that the noise felt deafening.
We stood on top of the craggy shore, staring out over the vast ocean to the east; then we turned our gazes inland to a surprising sight. There, carved into the jagged rocks and outcroppings, were small, stone homes with wooden doors. Hundreds of them stretched out as far as the eye could see.
My heart lodged in my throat.
“What do we do?” I whispered as loudly as I could to be heard over the crashing waves.
“We find your people,” Shayfer said, “and pray they don’t try to kill us.” He took my hand in his, and I looked at him like he’d lost his mind. “We can’t have the princess hurting herself on the rocks, now can we?” Before I could reply, he elegantly navigated his way down the rocks with me trailing behind. Hemming fell in behind me so close I could feel his borrowed shirt brush against my wings as we walked. “Hello?” Shayfer called out as we walked past humble wooden doors and smokeless chimneys. “ Hello !”
“Where could they all be?” I asked as we continued on.
“I don’t like this,” was all Hemming said, but I easily recognized the soft ring of his sword slipping from its sheath.
And not a moment too soon.
The howling sea had covered their approach, so that by the time we heard the beating of wings, it was only to announce their arrival. I looked up to see a rainbow-colored circle on the rocky roofs above, hood-shadowed faces staring down at us.
I drew my staff and prepared for what might come.
“So it’s true,” a male voice called out before cerulean wings snapped wide, allowing him to drop down in front of us, blocking our way. “The Aima Kori lives.”
“And if you wish to continue doing so,” Hemming said as he leveled his blade at the shrouded figure, “I suggest you back away… now .”
But the male before us appeared undaunted by Hemming’s threat.
Instead, he took a step closer.
I heard others land behind us and felt Hemming’s shirt brush against my back as he spun to face them. In that moment, I wondered if Kaplyn had been right—if we’d made a horrible mistake.
“We have been searching for you for years .”
As he spoke, more tall males dropped in behind him, further filling the narrow pass. Shayfer reached his hand back for me, prepared to whisk me away if need be, but I couldn't leave Hemming behind. With no wings, he would be trapped, and though I knew just how lethal he could be, fear overtook me.
As Shayfer’s fingers grazed my wrist, I stepped back.
The hooded man drew closer still. “Many have died trying to find you.”
“Ariel…” Shayfer said in a warning tone, his hand still reaching for me.
“As did the ones who found me,” I replied to the Minyade male looming before us. “If you don’t want to meet that fate, you’ll tell me who you are and what you want.”
At that, he stilled.
With one slow, fluid movement, he reached up and lowered the hood from his head as the others behind him did the same, exposing faces far younger than I’d expected; no older than Hemming or Shayfer. But their expressions held a familiar, hard edge, one of those far beyond their years—those who’d both seen and survived things that had aged them well before their time.
His piercing blue eyes held my gaze with intensity.
“Today, we sound the bell,” he said as he and the others slowly lowered themselves to the ground. Kneeling, they bowed their heads. “The Aima Kori has returned to save us.” His fierce stare lifted and held me in place with his final word. “ Finally .”