Chapter 111
CHAPTER 111
Ezryn
I dash through the narrow streets of Hadria, the sound of rushing water echoing off the stone walls. My boots are drenched from the rising tide, heart pounding as I work to get as many people to safety as I can.
Up ahead, a man huddles between two barrels, arms wrapped around two children. Each of them having sprouted the fin-like ears of a siren, their skin glinting with a metallic glow.
“Hurry!” I scream to them. “Get to the ocean! You’ll be safe there.”
Rosalina’s magic has worked; the citizens of Hadria will be able to breathe underwater, to grow tails like the sirens who live in these seas. The sirens themselves wait at the ocean’s edge, ushering the Hadrians out and bringing them to safety in their underwater city.
I place my hand on the man’s shoulder, holding his fearful gaze steady. “The water is your friend. Be brave, now.”
“What of the skeletons? Some have survived the flood,” the man says, voice quivering.
I lift my mother’s blade up to catch the light. “I’ll deal with them.”
The man nods, then takes his young children by the hand and sprints toward the south.
I look around, searching for any more citizens to urge forward or any skeletons to dismantle. A shadow passes overhead, and I look up to see a winged horse flying above, its rider shooting arrows down into the city, striking enemies from above.
My heart thunders. We may not claim victory this day, but neither will Sira. That in itself is a triumph. Though they will need to rebuild their city, the people of Hadria remain free. That is more than I can say for my own realm.
A rush of water sounds, and I run forward to see the canal has finally fully flooded. Water breaches the banks, spilling into the alleyways. Before I get swept away, I leap straight into the canal, landing on a barrel. The churning water makes the barrel spin, and I barely keep upright. Spotting a sturdier-looking wooden plank, I jump and land upon it. Briny water sprays up at me, blurring my vision. The plank starts to sink with my weight, and I jump again. Each leap is a gamble as I make my way down the canal, using pieces of debris as my stepping stones.
I land upon a broken door, barely keeping balance. A terracotta awning hangs from a stone wall overhead; above it is the upper quadrant of the city. A scream cuts over the rushing water. Propelling off the door, I grab hold of the awning and pull myself up. Tiles slide under my feet. Using brute force, I scramble up the stone wall and heave myself over onto dry pavement. It won’t be long before this section of the city is flooded too.
The scream punctures the air again, and I run toward it. A young fae woman sprints down the alley in my direction, a skeleton only steps behind her. I charge forward, sword at the ready, taking the skull of the skeleton with a single swing. The green fire within the monster’s chest wanes. I know it won’t be long before it reanimates, but at least this will give the woman a chance to escape.
She looks to me, her wide eyes shining. “Th-thank you.”
“Get to the sea! There will be people there waiting to help you.”
Her eyes widen even more. “I saw it. When we go into the water, we’re changing. What’s happened to us?”
“You have been blessed by the Queen’s magic,” I say assuredly. “She has given you a great gift.”
The woman looks up, a sense of awe on her face. “She has returned.”
“Go! The water is safer than the land now. Tell everyone you see. Get to the water!”
The woman runs off, and I allow a moment to catch my breath. My own gaze drifts to the sky. Somewhere up there, Delphia and Nori are both on winged horseback, scouting for survivors. Rosalina and Dayton have completed the first part of their plan.
Dayton’s power … It’s incredible. He brought the entire ocean to his beck and call. The awe apparent on the woman’s face from a moment ago—it is nothing if not warranted. Just as the Queen performed miracles an age ago, now so does her daughter.
I suck in another deep breath. I must do my part. I will clear this city and save as many as I can.
The marketplace is on this level of the city. There may be scared citizens hiding there. I take off at a run, cutting through a backstreet passage—
There’s a figure at the end of the alley, turning in a circle as if he’s lost or unsure what to do with himself. He’s a fae, not a siren, and entirely too well-dressed for a battle.
Caspian.
My reaction surprises myself. Gone is the white-hot rage from the last time I saw him. Instead, it’s as if my whole body has been plunged into freezing water. My muscles tense. My eyes narrow. Caspian … here. In the city.
Farron says they worked together to try and free the Queen. But I know better. So many people I love have been led astray by his charm and guile.
If he helped us once, it’s only to lead us into a greater betrayal.
I understand now. This is fate. Everything between me and the Prince of Thorns has led to this moment. Everything I have learned from giving up my Blessing, from losing Florendel, and from traveling through the desert … it has led to this.
I feel the weight and strength of my blade. It is my duty to protect my family. To protect those I love.
And Caspian has always been a threat to that.
The son of Sira killed my father. He torments my mate. He destroyed the life of my best friend. Now, he helps his mother take over a city and slaughter innocents.
I will do what I must.
My feet have wings as I surge toward him.
Caspian turns and catches sight of me. His lavender eyes shimmer with mirth. “Ah, Ezryn! What a sight for sore eyes. Still gracing us with the helmet-less look, I see, and how fine it is! Now, it appears I’ve missed something important. Turning all of Hadria’s citizens into sirens is certainly a bold move, but what else could I expect fro—”
I don’t let him finish. The moment I reach him, I swing my sword down in a cleaving arc. He ducks out of the way with the agility of a cat.
He stumbles out of the alley to the open street. “Not exactly the greeting I was hoping for.”
A growl sounds in my throat. “I told you that the next time I saw you, I would kill you. For all my evils, I do not break promises.”
Caspian ducks under my next swing and smiles up at me with that smarmy grin. “I don’t suppose you want to hear my side of things?”
I respond by slashing at him again.
He leans back so far, my blade skims over his chest. “I’ll take that as a no.”
I punctuate each word with a swing of my sword: “You. Killed. My. Father!”
Caspian lets loose a sigh, one of his thorns erupting out of the ground to whip him over my head and away from my attack. “I know, Ez, but trust me, it was the merciful choice. He’d been poisoned for months! Another moment and he’d have been one of Perth Quellos’s monsters. Would it have been better if you’d killed him yourself?”
Rosalina told me the same thing. But she has yet to realize every word from the Prince of Thorns’ forked tongue is twisted. “Liar.”
Caspian lands and dusts off the shoulders of his coat. “I saved you from the fate of murdering both your parents.”
The icy frost taming my rage begins to melt. An inhuman sound erupts from my throat, and I charge at him, sending Caspian skittering back and falling across the sandstone. Water splashes up around him, and only now do I realize this street is beginning to flood.
“It’s the truth,” Cas spits, touching a scrape along his cheek. “I did it, so you wouldn’t have to.”
My mind races. “And who poisoned him in the first place? One of your minions? The acolyte who pretended to serve him?”
If I didn’t know better, I would say a look of remorse crosses his face. “I am genuinely sorry for your loss, and what my sister helped do to your people.”
My shadow spills over Caspian. He still hasn’t stood. Instead, he’s crouched on all fours, water sloshing at his boots.
“I will kill you for everything you’ve done to me and those I love,” I say and place the point of my sword at his neck.
Caspian rolls his eyes. “Really, Ezryn? Kairyn takes over two realms, banished and mutilated you, and you find forgiveness for him, but for me? Nothing?”
“I do not forgive Kairyn,” I snarl. “I spared his life because he is my brother!” I whip my sword up in the air, preparing to strike.
Caspian gives a weak smile. “Weren’t we also, Ez? Once upon a time?”
I freeze. No, no, it was never like that between us. I loved Kel, and because of that, I tolerated Caspian. But I always knew, in the depths of my heart, there was something wicked inside of him. “Never. I always knew you would betray Keldarion.”
I swing my sword down. In a single movement, Caspian stands, drawing up a thick briar to block my attack. I growl and push harder, my blade slowly cutting through the wood.
“Kel betrayed me first,” Caspian hisses. “He brought his army to Cryptgarden. He rampaged my city. His soldiers hurt people I cared about. I may have stabbed him in the back, but he drew the blade.”
I push harder until Caspian’s face is right in front of mine, only a breath away. In a moment, my sword will cleave through this briar and take his head from his shoulders. As he is to die, I tell him the truth. “It was never Kel. I ordered the attack on Cryptgarden.”
Caspian blinks. “No. Keldarion said—”
“Keldarion lied ,” I growl. “I would have gladly admitted the truth, but Kel refused to let me say anything. He was worried you would kill me. But here we are, all the same. I knew you were plotting with Sira. I knew you’d strike Keldarion down at the first convenient moment. I had to strike first. If only Kel had told you the truth, we could have had this battle out in the open a long time ago.”
My sword cracks through the briar, but Caspian leaps back. He bows his head, hair shading his eyes.
The air around us grows cold, and my shadow seeps out from in front of me to form a sword in Caspian’s hand. A blade of pure darkness.
Caspian looks up at me, eyes glinting. “Then this has been a long time coming.”