9. Chapter 9 #2
Not war. Not smoke. But sky . A ship rocking beneath her feet, the wind salty-sweet and tangled in her hair. New lands, maybe a quiet life by the sea – far from courts and the bullshit of the fae.
Sure, she had enough coin now to leave Lytharien. But what then? She’d have to start over at a new town, earn more coin, and find somewhere to stay. It would take a while to save enough to find somewhere permanent.
On the other hand, if Ren played her cards right, she could finally settle down and start something of her own – a flat or a cottage – a place where she wasn’t constantly looking over her shoulder.
The thought lodged deep in her chest, sharp enough to feel real .
Ren glanced over her shoulder, jaw tight. “If I say yes, I’m not following you, I’m not bowing, I’m not swearing some royal oath, I sure as hell won’t be anyone’s puppet, and you won’t ever do those mind tricks on me. If you do, I’ll leave.” Ren thought for a moment, then added, “ With my payment.”
Talen’s mouth curved into a grin that was equal parts amused and impressed.
“Smart girl. Drawing the rules out before the deal’s even struck.
” He tilted his head, thumb brushing his lower lip, studying her like she was both a challenge and a puzzle he intended to solve.
“Fine. If I break any of those, our bargain’s forfeit.
” He straightened, resolve settling in his shoulders.
“At court, you’ll have my protection. You’ll be an honored guest. And if by some cruel twist, you die facing those monsters, I’ll make sure a talented bard writes an epic ballad about your bravery.
Tragic ending, soaring chorus – all the works. ”
Ren closed the space between them, offering her hand to seal the deal. “I’ll come. But not for you, and especially not for this kingdom. For the coin, and,” her voice softened, “for the ones who’ll be defenseless when those creatures strike.”
After he gripped her hand with a firm a shake, she added, “I’m not afraid of monsters.”
As she shoved past him, clipping his shoulder to deliver her point, she swore she caught the smallest flicker of relief in his eyes.
“I didn’t think you were,” Talen drawled.
Together, all three of them walked. Elira yawned. Ren’s stomach twisted on itself, too hollow to growl. When was the last time she ate – yesterday morning? She vaguely recalled eating a stale loaf of bread yesterday morning that was hard enough to chip a tooth.
Talen fell in step beside Ren. “You fight like someone trained.”
Ren didn’t look at him. “Maybe I’ve been in a few brawls.”
“A few brawls don’t teach that kind of fire. Even for our kind, using that level of magic can take years to master.”
Ren’s expression didn't waver, but her tone was sweet enough to sting. “You don’t know squat about me, and what does it matter if I use magic so long as I can slay your monsters?”
“Just curious where your fire comes from. It’s… rare for a human.”
“Mm.” Ren gave a dismissive wave, taking longer strides to saunter ahead of him. “I’m starving, so unless you want to find out how cranky I can get, let’s save the questions until we reach Pyraelia and I get a bite to eat. Then, maybe we can talk.”
Talen muttered under his breath, “Saints forbid the monsters face you on an empty stomach.”
Ren chuckled low. “Guess that makes me the real danger out here, doesn’t it?”
She didn’t know what Talen had seen.
While Talen was freeing the prisoners from their chains in the wagon ahead, he’d felt the heat rising like a living, breathing thing. In an instant, he’d vanished back into his own wagon, its wards repelling magic with ruthless precision.
There, Talen watched the human woman turn the forest into a living inferno.
He had seen it all from behind the smoldering wreckage of the carriage, eyes slitted against the searing light, breath held as fire swept like a tidal wave.
And he’d seen the wings.
Not crafted of feathers, nor conjured in illusion, but raw, radiant fire – arching from her back with terrifying majesty. With each of her movements, the flames had curled and pulsed, echoing her rage .
And in that single heartbeat, when she’d turned, face rimmed in flame, eyes glowing with wrath, they looked like judgment made into flesh.
Talen caught the fear on the ogress’s face before she’d been turned to cinder. A creature of brutality, bred for slaughter, and yet she’d frozen when she, too, noticed the wings.
And now the forest feared her, too. He noticed how the trees no longer creaked when she walked beneath their branches, how birds quieted – how even the insects avoided her steps as if they sensed something amiss.
Ren hadn’t seemed to notice. But Talen did.
She walked like someone used to surviving. There was recklessness in her, too. The kind born not from ignorance, but from someone who knew what power lived beneath her skin and hadn’t yet learned what it could cost.
Talen watched her sidelong during their conversations, her silence too deliberate, her deflections too smooth.
She was clearly hiding something, but hunger gnawed at her all the same.
He knew what that kind of hunger did to a person.
The prisoners meant for execution were supposed to be fed sparingly, a final comfort before the end.
But he’d seen how the fae soldiers perverted the mercy, dangling food within reach, laughing as the condemned could only watch with their moldy, stale bread and crumbles of whatever resembled cheese.
He’d already decided that would end the moment he returned to Pyraelia.
One thing he knew for certain. Ren was a weapon.
Among the fae, magic was almost second nature, a birthright that revealed itself when they were still younglings, wild and untempered.
But humans weren’t meant to wield magic.
At best, they spent their brief lives studying spells and tracing runes, learning fragments of power borrowed from older tongues.
Most never managed more than sparks or whispers.
Yet Ren commanded fire. The flames didn’t just obey her; they knew her. Perhaps recognizing something ancient in her bones.
He watched her now, laughing at something the blacksmith woman had said, her breath fogging in the cold morning air.
Ren smiled easily, unguarded. But Talen had seen the way her eyes sharpened and how her stance shifted when sensing a movement from the corner of her eye, quickly assessing whether it was dangerous or harmless.
Yes, surely the game had already begun.
And Ren had just stepped onto the board.