Chapter 20
My enemies knock at my gates, threatening my peace. They roar like beasts, demanding their pound of flesh. They believe me weak, easy to succumb to their blades. But I will bring blades of light and wipe their dark stain from the realm.
Personal Journal of Queen Virtus, Ruler of the Celestial Court, Queen of Astradeon in the fortieth-year post Shattering
ASTRAIA WAS CERTAIN HER MUSCLES would simply implode on their way to Volpes. Her Sacrifice bond was still not at even half strength after her flare with the wraith, and the residual soreness from her battle and injuries echoed with every step Orion made along the road.
She tried to distract herself from the pain by identifying each of the trees and shrubs that lined the road as they traveled.
The closer they got to Volpes, the lusher and thicker the flora became.
She used to be able to name every native plant in Volpes, but now she struggled to recall them as if the five years had erased them from her memory.
For several hours, only hoofbeats and the distant trill of a meadowlark filled the air. Then Draven cleared his throat.
His voice was smooth, low enough to rattle her spine. “So, Starborne—what’s your plan once we reach Volpes? In case I need to save you from certain death again.”
Astraia flinched and brought Orion to an abrupt halt. Draven’s mount skidded beside her.
“Ah, I see. So you get to know my agenda, but I can’t know anything about you, where you came from, who sent you, why you’re insistent on following me, and why you keep aiding me? That’s what you consider fair? Well, that’s not how this works, bounty hunter,” she quipped.
Her voice wavered with rage as her Power bond flickered to life—ivory light pulsing beneath her skin.
“I’ve been sharpened into a weapon by the very people who claimed me as blood.
They lied. And it cost me my brother.” Heat roiled under her cloak, her hands clenched white around Orion’s reins.
“Don’t mistake my gratitude for blind trust.”
For a heartbeat, she toyed with her tether, the promise of total abandon calling to her. But she remembered the feeling of near burnout and pulled back.
She let out a small gasp as she realized her tether had completely transformed.
No longer did her brother’s carefree face flash before her eyes, unlocked from the safe box she stored within the crevice of her mind.
Instead, she was holding a tiny thread of gold.
The thread was smooth, but incredibly strong.
Curious, Astraia gently tugged on the thread, only to find it did not budge.
She traced the thread in her mind, seeking the origin.
Gazing across the calm surface, she could see the thread extending beyond the horizon of her mind, pulled taut and aimed toward the heavens.
There, in the middle of the expanse, was the faint glittering light that had blinked to life during her burnout.
It was the Stars. Sacrifice and Power. They formed her tether.
And it was stronger than any anchor she had tried before.
The sound of Orion’s hooves broke the silence, bringing her focus back to the road ahead.
“I told you once before, Starborne, you shouldn’t trust me,” Draven said bluntly. His gaze was focused ahead as he rode.
“Even the Stars couldn’t make me trust you,” she snipped. Exasperated did not begin to scratch the surface of her feelings. People were never as they seemed.
No, she thought, they are worse.
For once, Draven said nothing, only watched her with an unreadable expression. No snide retort. No easy dismissal.
Astraia pulled Orion into a walk again, turning her head toward the bounty hunter in confusion.
He sighed loudly, running a hand through his hair—his unspoken ritual of frustration. What she said had actually struck a chord.
“Stars, Traia. Would you stop moving away from me?” he called after her. “Traia, stop!”
Astraia whipped her head around as he moved his horse closer to her.
“Look, I was sent—”
A loud thump silenced him.
Draven stopped, peering down at his chest, at the arrow sticking out from his left side just inches from his heart. Bright red blood already began to flow from the wound.
His gaze flitted back up to meet Astraia’s.
Time stilled.
His body went limp and fell sideways off his horse, hitting the ground beneath with a deafening crunch.
“Draven!” Astraia screamed.
Her bonds flashed through her body in seconds. Power flooded her senses, making her acutely aware of her surroundings as Sacrifice ached to attend to the fallen bounty hunter.
Blue and white light, blinding and fearsome, burst from every curve and angle of her body.
Astraia dismounted Orion, pulling her Starwood bow from her back, and aimed an arrow into the woods across from their position.
Another arrow whistled by her ear, coming from further into the woods.
She dove into her bond, grasping her new tether to the Stars, allowing Power to flow from her fingertips to the sharpened end of the arrow. Senses sharp, she could sense the attackers were moving amongst the trees, attempting to get closer to their target.
On an exhale, Astraia released her arrow, pushing her bond from the nock to the deadly tip.
She could see deeper in the woods as her arrow flew, as if she had become part of her weapon, a beacon for revenge.
An attacker stepped out from behind a tree, readying his own arrow—but the hunter became the prey.
Arrow pierced flesh.
The man flew backward at the force of the endued arrow, leaves fluttering around his now lifeless body.
As soon as the first arrow flew, Astraia nocked another in its place, her breathing slow and steady as she searched for her next victim.
Pain erupted from her right thigh, and she let out a cry.
An arrow had grazed her thigh, cutting through her pants and ripping her skin open.
Breathing heavily, she stood her ground. Power surged from her spine, demanding to be unleashed.
With her amplified sight, she could just make out the cloak of the other ambusher, behind a tree several yards away. Hearing augmented, his quivering breath echoed in her ears, the smell of fear in the wind.
Good, she thought. Let him fear me.
A frightening twang resounded from her bow as she released her fueled arrow, followed by a cry from the downed man.
Astraia waited a moment more, feeling with her bond for any hint of more attackers, before limping to where Draven fell.
His chest was barely moving, blood oozing from his wound, coating his armor.
She knelt beside him, inspecting the injury. The arrow had managed to wedge between two flaps of his leathers.
She cursed as she pulled back his chest piece. “Draven, you have to stay with me, okay? I have to pull the arrow out so I can heal you,” she said sternly, attempting to hide the fear in her voice.
He blinked several times, choking out a laugh. “If I had known this would be my prize for saving you, I would have left you to the wraith.”
Astraia rolled her eyes. “Stars, you’re insufferable.”
“Yet you’re still here,” he said, softly this time, his breaths becoming more labored.
“Just hold still. This will hurt.” She grabbed the end of the arrow closest to his chest firmly with her hand, steeling herself.
Sacrifice flickered beneath her palms, eager and ready. Allowing her bond to flare, she prepared to heal him as soon as the arrow was free.
Taking a deep breath, she wrenched the arrow free in one smooth motion.
Draven moaned in pain through clenched teeth.
Astraia pressed her hands to the wound now gushing blood. Opening the gates to her bond, Sacrifice flared. A soft blue light webbed its way through her fingers, intertwining with the broken skin.
Warmth replaced the sticky coolness of blood on her fingers as the gash mended. Tissue knitted together, blood clotted, and scars vanished with her touch.
She dared a glance at the bounty hunter.
He was blinking slowly, awe in those amber pools.
“You’re incredible,” he said, voice low and reverent, before closing his eyes.