Chapter 7
Briar
My breath caught. The room spun for just a second, but it was enough.
Ember.
My older sister was strong, brave, and an amazing leader. And if she was even remotely in danger because of me…
A growl rumbled deep in my chest. “Tell me she’s safe. Tell me they don’t know about her.”
Many-Greats didn’t flinch, but the seriousness in his expression twisted something in me.
“If they overheard you speak of her, they know. But beyond that…” His voice was grave.
“They know you are from Earth. It will not take long for them to connect the threads. The descendants of the Aureline who fled carried unusual magic. And if certain members of the Aureline Council believe those individuals or their descendants threaten their cause, they’ll want that threat eliminated.
She’s fine for now, but this is… complicated. ”
My nails bit into my palms. Ember hadn’t asked for this. She was just trying to get the supernatural world back in order. She didn’t need yet another entity to target her.
“The portals aren’t working, right?” My voice trembled. I hated the sign of weakness, but I couldn’t help it. “If the magic’s gone, then they wouldn’t be able to use them to get to her.”
I was desperate for logic to smother the panic spiraling through my chest.
The winged guards who’d dragged me to this realm in the first place hadn’t seemed hindered at all. Ember and Ryker had gotten to my room as the portal was closing—they’d seen me disappear in front of their eyes.
Many-Greats shook his head, but Vyraetos answered louder and more firmly.
“The magic was taken at the crowning. Fate acted through the Stag. And though our magic was taken, that interaction did not suggest judgment, but charge. A transformation. Fate doesn’t speak in words but through actions and symbols. This was one.”
He nodded at Vad and glanced at me. “Most of our magic is gone. But the innate abilities like sight, speed, and senses remain. The portals may hold trace magic. Enough for travel, perhaps, but limited. Not with an army or even a team.”
“But one assassin?” I rasped, my throat tight.
Many-Greats stilled as well, his arms hanging at his sides. His jaw muscle ticked.
The worst kind of threat was the one that could sneak through. That no one would see coming until it was too late.
Vyraetos cleared his throat. “I cannot say. I would assume that no more than one or two people could make it through a portal and back. Perhaps three if it were one of the older portals. In past magical disruptions, those locations retained the most remnants.”
One was all it would take.
I swallowed hard as dread weighed me down.
Rhielle moved beside me and pulled me a few steps away. “You’d better come back, Briar.” Her voice was gruff but steady.
She adjusted the scarf around her neck, revealing a sliver of the deep, jagged red scar beneath. The mark of survival. Of betrayal. “I don’t like getting attached to people just to lose them. There’s been enough of that. And I’m not about to let those bastards win another inch.”
I reached out and squeezed her hands, burying my fear. “Watch over them. All of them.”
Rhielle nodded once, sharp and sure.
I didn’t let myself look back at Thalira. If I did, I wouldn’t be able to walk away. She had too many fractures, too many wounds that hadn’t healed.
“Are you ready, Briar?” Vad’s voice came from behind me.
As I started to nod, Thalen interrupted, clapping his hands together as he crossed over to us. “Ready? Great. I’m going with you.”
Vad shook his head. “We aren’t taking a full party. This must be swift. And I won’t be alone. Briar is going with me.”
I smiled inwardly. He hadn’t asked, he’d just known there wasn’t a chance in hell or Fate’s plan that I’d let him go without me.
“Like I said, you’re not going alone,” Thalen replied, unbothered.
“You two basically count as one, and if one of you gets the bright idea to sacrifice yourself in some grand gesture, someone’s got to be there to make sure you don’t both go down.
” He folded his arms and flashed his crooked smile, but the weight in his tone said he meant every word.
“Won’t it be hard for you to see?” I asked. Even with a little light filtering into the castle, it was dark.
“The servants will be relighting the torches and lamps in the main areas. Tradition and common sense.” He lifted his hands with a smirk.
“Besides, if we have to split up, you need someone else who knows the palace like the back of his hand. That’s me.
I’ll get flint and steel to take as well in case. ”
Myantha placed a hand on his arm, and he brushed his fingers over hers.
Vad sighed and dragged a hand through his hair. “All right.”
Veralt grunted from the center of the room, a box tucked under one thick arm and dried fruit in one hand. “Rhielle and I will come as far as the exit. We should leave—”
“We aren’t leaving until this is settled.” Rhielle returned to his side and swatted his forearm. Her brow lifted in a sharp arch. "I’m not leaving my girl.”
Veralt lifted his shoulders in a dramatic sigh and popped a piece of fruit into his mouth. “As the light of my life commands, we wouldn’t dream of leaving. Where do you need us?” When he glanced down at her, she gave him a subtle smile.
“Here. Protecting the injured and preparing for departure.” Vad gestured around the room and toward the hall. “If the guards find this place, everyone will need to move fast and deeper into the tunnels.
“Elara and Thalira will both need to be carried. The rocks get coarser and sharper the further down you go. There won’t be any light unless you’re carrying it.
” He motioned a right turn with a hook of his hand.
“Take the larder path. Use light if you need to. It’s the same way we’re heading initially, but once you reach the sealed door, go left.
Then keep one hand on the wall and go right every time the tunnel opens again. ”
He waited until Rhielle and Veralt nodded before continuing, “Keep tight against the wall at all times. Eventually, you'll reach the vesting chamber. There is fresh water and only two entry points, and plenty of crevices and cracks for cover. That path will let you avoid the most dangerous sections by the river. We’ll meet you there.”
Veralt’s eyes sharpened beneath the lazy smirk. “What about supplies?”
“Prepare bags to take if we need to run. Essentials only. Put them near the door so we can grab them if needed.” Vad rubbed the bandage on his hand. “We don’t know how long we’ll be underground. But if something happens to us above or we don't come back, you move. Don’t wait. You protect them.”
Vad turned to Silus. “Set the tripwires after we leave. Start with the top of the staircase. You know where the key is, right?”
Silus nodded, expressionless. “Yes, I’ll mark the larder path last. Wire set with ball bearings and cups three inches off the ground, or razor wire and no sound?”
“Razor wire at the top of the staircase, but hidden. Wire with ball bearings everywhere else. Have the razor wire prepped to put up across our escape path if needed.” Vad’s jaw flexed.
“Gather all the weapons we’ve got, including whatever we brought with us.
Check the smaller storerooms for supplies.
Clothes, gear, anything can help. Once we retrieve the medicine, we’ll make another supply run before we move out. ”
Rhielle rubbed her arms, and one of her hands moved to her throat. Her fingers brushed the edge of her scar. “How likely is it that the guards will find us? How certain are you that none of the servants or guards know of this place?”
Exhaling, Vad scratched the back of his neck.
“My family kept this secret with great care. But you’re correct; no secret is perfect.
As long as no one has access to magic, the wards and sigils set in the walls and door frames will not work either for protection or location.
We left a false trail in the royal quarters.
That will hopefully occupy them for a while. ”
His gaze went to me and then Thalen, and he waved a hand. “Let’s go.”
Vad took the lead, slipping into the hall. Thalen fell in beside me, one hand trailing the damp wall, the other resting on my shoulder as he prepared for the darkness.
We padded past two sharp turns. The tunnel narrowed and tilted downward. The air grew damper with each step, and Vad ducked under a crumbling overhang. We followed him into a chamber with a metal door.
Vad pulled a key from his pocket and twisted it in the dust-clogged keyhole. The tumblers groaned, then shifted, and with a muted click, the door opened on squealing hinges.
Vad slipped through first, scanning both sides before waving us in. I ducked into the darkness with Thalen behind me. The metal door slid shut with a soft snick, leaving us in silence.
A tunnel stretched before us, long and low, arching wide. The corridor’s chill bit through my bloody, torn dress and sank right into my bones, and the humid and stale air smelled of stone and mildew.
My wolf vision sharpened, and I could see the branching passageways, every jagged edge, every patch of slick stone, and how the floor tilted upward now. Vad’s eyes glimmered with shadow sight too, but Thalen’s hand squeezed my shoulder tighter. I slowed so he wouldn’t trip.
“Don’t worry about me, Chaos,” Thalen murmured. “I can keep up.”
“You better,” I whispered back. I wanted to say something funny back, something normal, but nothing came to mind.
After a hundred paces, the passage leveled off. Vad led us through another set of branching passages, and I tried to remember each one in case something happened and I had to navigate back alone.
We climbed a winding staircase carved from the rough black basalt. The stairs were narrow, uneven, and slick in some spots while jagged in others.