CHAPTER TEN
DRAGAN
Geldingstock
Fae Realm
“My liege,” Thoradin says, worry in his voice. I’ve noticed it, too—the tendrils of gray creeping up from my fingertips with a hardness that numbs my extremities. Early in my exile, we tested the limits of our imprisonment and, long story short, it’s not a limit I care to test again.
I reach down and haul Cambion over my shoulder. The asshole isn’t exactly light. “I’m fucking aware we need to leave!”
Turn into stone now and who knows how long it would take us to make it back to the Shadow Realm. Yes, all Cambion would have to do is return us once he awoke, but after knocking him out with my Arcane Magic, I imagine he’ll be a sore loser.
“I’m comin’ with you,” the sprite says, flapping obnoxiously in front of my face until I wish I had a fly swatter. “Wherever the hell’s you’re goin’ to.”
“I don’t care what you do,” I respond as I turn to face Thoradin. “The angel.”
He nods and strides up to her, leaning down as he gingerly places one arm beneath her legs and the other beneath her back, hauling her into his chest. I notice she’s too exhausted to hold on, but rests her head against him as her eyelids flutter closed and she breathes deeply. Yes, she’s still wearing only a sheet, but we don’t have time to find her anything else right now. Time is no longer at our disposal.
I don’t like seeing her in Thoradin’s arms, and I suddenly regret going for Cambion when I could be holding her. But no matter. I have more important problems to worry about.
Thoradin leads the way out of Cambion’s house, back into the natural world. I am quick behind him. Once outside, he stalls and glances back at me.
“Where are we going, liege?”
I clear my throat as I consider the options before us. Of course, the only place Thoradin and I can return to now is the Shadow Realm, otherwise we will very shortly become gargoyles. But if we return to the Gorge, I have no doubt Variant or his men will be awaiting us. Thus, it’s out of the question.
But the Gorge isn’t the only place within the Shadow Realm where one can hide. Shadowland is vast and one could very easily lose oneself there, which will provide the exact cover we require. My mind returns to our previous conversation with Cambion. Just as Thoradin and I will soon be turning to stone where we stand, Cambion won’t be able to enter the Shadow Realm without consequence. Even if Variant didn’t plan a punishment for Cambion like he did for me and my kind, everyone knows beings of light suffer in the shadow plane. Their power and life forces are leeched from them—slowly at first, but, over time, remaining in darkness can be fatal. The same goes for the angel and sprite.
“Grimreap,” I respond with more confidence than I feel.
Thoradin’s harsh eyebrows arch in surprise, but he says nothing; instead, he recites the necessary enchantment to create a portal back to our world. Leaving our realm requires creative solutions, but returning necessitates only a simple incantation. Thoradin vanishes from sight with a quick spin. Leaves kick up around him, the only trace marking where he once stood.
I feel my expression begin to harden involuntarily, my muscles seizing as my now gray arm stiffens against Cambion. On my last breath, I step into the portal, eager to have my body returned to me but worried about what enemies will meet us at our new destination.
***
DRAGAN
The Raven Forest,
Shadow Realm
We arrive in a dimly lit grove, blessedly free from interlopers. For now.
I find it interesting and equally annoying that it appears Variant didn’t bother to place any limitations on Cambion with respect to leaving his realm. Whereas I turn to stone when leaving mine, Cambion doesn’t appear to have suffered any ill effects for leaving his. And it’s been over an hour since we passed through the portal.
I always assumed Variant liked me least of the three of us but now I’m convinced.
We’re on the outskirts of Grimreap, in the Raven Forest. The stench of the city wafts over us, riding the coattails of a sluggish breeze. I watch as the stony gray bleeds away from my skin and feeling returns to my arms and legs. That was close. Closer than I’d like.
I assess our weak crew. Thoradin has placed Eilish, still slumped, against a tree. He clenches and unclenches his fists, likely feeling the same uncomfortable sensation I do as the blood returns to his previously lifeless limbs.
Eilish, Cambion, and the blasted sprite all look worse for wear. The natural luminosity of their skin has already waned in the dim that surrounds us in the shadow plane. Eilish, still arrestingly beautiful, emits a light of her own, but her skin has taken on a gray hue, here—devoid of color in the dismal gloom. Her face is still clammy from her recent ordeal, and her long eyelashes flutter against her cheeks as if she’s dreaming. Her white hair stands in stark contrast against the dull black of the skeletal tree behind her. If it weren’t for the slight movement of her eyelids and the gentle rise and fall of her chest, I’d think she was dead. I force my eyes away from the sheet still draped loosely around her delicate body.
Flumph has, for once, stopped his incessant chatter and seems to be in a daze of sorts. He sits, swaying slightly, beside the angel, his waxy skin looking greenish. I turn as I hear a small burp precede his retching.
I set Cambion against another nearby tree before turning my attention back to Eilish. I have more than one issue with her current outfit. Not only does it arouse something dark and slumbering within me, but my attention isn’t the only one she’ll attract. Men will want her as soon as they lay eyes on her. And if she’s clothed in nothing but a sheet, that want could make them act against their own better judgement. An angel in the shadow plane will be hard to miss, regardless. But a half-naked angel? Variant would be on us before we even knew we’d been spotted.
Furthermore, I don’t trust Cambion. I’ve seen the way he looks at her—like he’s hungry. And I don’t know what to make of the vision she had of the two of them… having sex. Apparently, Cambion witnessed it, too. I can’t explain why, but the visual disturbs me. Deeply. I don’t want him to possess her. I don’t even want him to touch her.
Cambion doesn’t deserve her. None of us do. She’s the epitome of light and beauty and each one of us is flawed. Me, especially.
“Shall I create the Glyph of Warding , liege?” Thoradin asks, pulling me from my deep thoughts. I’m grateful for the distraction.
“Yes.”
The Glyph of Warding is a way of protecting everyone within a designated area from anything or anyone outside that boundary. I watch as Thoradin inscribes the glyph on six of the closest trees surrounding us, creating a squarish pattern. He uses his fingers to draw his mark on each of them and his shadows sink into the glyph, making it glow red.
Even though the wards that now protect the perimeter of our camp are invisible, they radiate dark energy that warns beasts, sentient and otherwise, as well as the dead, to stay away. If something is brave enough to touch the wards, a blast of Shadow Magic will cause them to regret their decision. But the Glyph of Warding will allow the five of us to freely travel back and forth without consequence.
My senses are sharp and I don’t detect anyone near the small clearing, but it’s only a matter of time before something emerges from behind the swirling, dark fog around the city. What’s more, the cold mist that hangs around us has saturated the ground and surrounding trees.
“That should protect us for the time being,” I say.
Thoradin nods soberly. “Even so, we must keep sentry over the camp at all times.”
“And we must build a fire,” I add.
The fire is important not only for heat—the light will also encourage the less-than-friendly inhabitants of the Raven Forest to keep away. Light is the antidote to darkness, and the creatures that occupy this forest are of the shadows.
I glance at the three beings of the light and sigh. It’s only a matter of time before they become as icy and damp as their surroundings. As if to confirm this thought, I see Flumph shiver.
While I have no concern over the little winged devil, I know Eilish and Cambion will be following suit shortly. I approach the angel cautiously, as if my footsteps will wake her. Placing my hand atop hers, I use the Gaze Of Two Minds charm to meld my senses to hers. At once, I feel a flood of pain and exhaustion. A shiver racks my body so violently, I nearly bite my tongue. Quickly, I remove my hand, and my senses become my own again.
Thoradin doesn’t make any move toward starting the fire. It’s customary for him to do my bidding without question, but I see the lines of his mouth harden in protest.
“You’re worried a fire will attract attention?” I ask.
He hesitates. “We’ve come to a very dangerous place, liege.”
The high-pitched hum of Flumph’s wings informs me he’s hovering directly over my shoulder. I fight the urge to swat him.
“Yeah, I wasn’t gonna say nothin’, but since he did, I’ll second it. You got some shitty taste in ‘commodations, Lord Night Prince.”
As he speaks, it becomes harder to not hit him; I growl a low warning instead and the whirring of his wings grows quieter as he flies out of reach.
“We didn’t have a choice,” I say darkly. “Thoradin and I were in the process of taking our stone form. We had to return to the Shadow Realm.” I breathe in deeply.
“An’ what’s gonna happen to us?” the sprite asks, motioning to Cambion and the angel.
“Yes, this isn’t the best place for you, but it’s the only place where we have a chance to hide and not be found.”
“Then, what? You jist gonna let the Shadow Realm kill us lil by lil?” asks the annoying sprite.
“No, because we won’t be in the Shadow Realm for much longer.”
“Where we goin’?”
“Grimreap.”
The sprite appears confused. “Ain’t Grimreap in the Shadow Realm?”
“Grimreap isn’t fully shadow,” I respond.
“What?” the sprite frowns. “I thought we was in the Shadow Realm ‘cause you ain’t turnin’ to stone no more.”
“The Raven Forest is the Shadow Realm, yes.” I nod. “But Grimreap isn’t so easily explained. The divisions between the Fae, Mortal, and the Shadow Realm aren’t always clear. And in some locations, those lines are fully blurred.”
“What you talkin’ ‘bout?” Flumph demands, plopping his hands on his round hips.
In general, I don’t enjoy explaining myself. Especially not to nosy and irksome sprites. But there’s a time for explanations, and that time is now. “There are areas that exist in more than one plane at the same time—the Tree of Shadows is one such location. These are places where the edges separating the planes become blurred. Edges where each of us can exist simultaneously. Grimreap is one such edge.”
“What’s he goin’ on about?” Flumph asks Thoradin.
“Long ago, before the humans were expunged from the world, hundreds of mortals, fae, and shadow-folk alike lived and died in Grimreap,” Thoradin tells him. “Those spirits continue on, allowing each of us to coexist where, ordinarily, your kind would perish.”
The sprite frowns as though he still doesn’t understand. I curse the bloody imbecile but clarify anyway. “The land is shared by ghosts of all three realms. Essentially, this is the spirit world. There are aspects of Fae, Mortal, and Shadow, all coexisting together. The city is so haunted, it’s taken on a life its own.”
“Quaint,” says Flumph, his small eyes rolling in his head. I hear a weak moan from behind me and turn to see Eilish’s limp head droop forward, her pearly skin coated in a sheen of sweat and gooseflesh.
“Quaint, it’s not. Thoradin’s right; we’ve come to a dangerous place. Grimreap is foul, and, as such, it’s home to some of the foulest. None of us are safe here.”
“Ain’t your Shadow Magic ‘nough ta protect us?” the sprite asks.
“My shadows will cloak us, but the chill of this world will kill you and the others before any Shadar-kai or Banderhobb can,” I say, turning to Thoradin. “Thus, we need to warm them with fire.” He nods solemnly and sets off in search of dry wood.
“What’s a Shitter-cat an’ a Corn-cob?” Flumph asks, looking frightened.
“ Shadar-kai and Banderhobb ,” I correct. “And what did I say about asking questions when you won’t understand the answers?”