Chapter 26
Rayna
Onyx was restless as she adjusted his bridle and reins. Rayna had let him roam free on Galadon’s land, but she’d told him not to wander too far until he’d been shown all the dangers. Today, they were going on their first ride together since bringing him here a few days ago. He was ready for it.
She leaped onto his bare back, feeling at home as she sat.
“Take this,” Ujala said, handing her a sizeable pack that she could pull over her shoulders. “There is food in there, so you can eat the midday meal with my son while you’re out.”
Rayna smiled at her. “You are too kind.”
“Well, you did a good job fishing yesterday and brought us plenty to eat. This is the least I can do.” She patted Onyx. “There is a treat for this one in there as well.”
Galadon took up most of her time since she’d come here, but whenever he was out patrolling or busy tending his land, she tried to spend time with his mother. It had to be lonely without friends or a place to socialize. Ujala kept herself busy with a long list of tasks, though, and never complained. After Rayna found out there was a pond that was only a twenty-minute walk to the northwest, filled with fish, she’d jumped at the chance to do something useful while Galadon was out patrolling. Thankfully, he had all the supplies since she’d lost hers.
“I was only trying to contribute since you and Galadon do almost everything around here,” Rayna said, settling the pack on her back and taking Onyx’s reins. “If you need me to help with anything, let me know.”
She dipped her chin. “Of course.”
Ujala wouldn’t ask, though. She seemed intent on giving Rayna and her son as much time together as possible. She didn’t understand why, except his mother probably wanted him to be happy. He hadn’t had much of that in his life.
Last night, he’d looked thoughtful when she went through her photo album and explained every picture. Oddly, one was missing of her and her ex-boyfriend, but she decided it was okay if that one got sacrificed to the fire gods. She had no doubt the shifter had something to do with its disappearance.
“See you later tonight?” Rayna asked.
Ujala nodded. “Now, you go, or he’ll worry. Head west until you feel the magic, then follow it in a southwesterly direction.”
She already knew that, but she appreciated Galadon’s mother telling her again to be sure. “I’ve got it.”
“What you’ll see today…it’s part of your destiny with him. It’s important,” she said, giving Rayna a solemn look.
She frowned. “What do you mean?”
“You’ll learn more when the time is right. Galadon will tell you what he knows for now, and that is enough.”
Great. She hated being kept in the dark about something that could be life-altering. One only had to go through annoying prophecies a time or two to know they’d never learn more than they were supposed to ahead of time.
With a wave, Rayna and Onyx were on their way. Galadon had promised to show her the special place on his land, so they’d agreed to meet there after he finished his patrol. It would take about forty-five minutes on horseback to reach it if their estimates were correct. She was curious to see what could possibly be worth keeping a secret for so many centuries and why Ujala thought Rayna was part of it.
She had to take a winding approach to get there. Galadon’s land showed no signs of human habitation whatsoever, as if his land had transferred intact to Earth and shoved what was there before aside. Since he usually flew, there wasn’t a distinct trail, but the deer had created some she could use now and then.
After about half an hour, Rayna began feeling the steady pulse of magic Ujala had described. The closer she came, the more it throbbed through her veins, foreign yet comfortable. She didn’t sense it as a threat.
Galadon met her when he saw her getting close. He pulled her from Onyx and gave her a passionate kiss. It only took a couple of hours away from each other before it felt like ages, but it reassured her that he reacted the same way. His greetings always involved pulling her close and kissing her like he couldn’t get enough of her. She hoped that response never stopped. Her deepest fear was that something would break them apart, and she’d lose him forever. She clung to every moment she could get with him, always fearful that what they had wouldn’t last.
Rayna was breathless when they finally broke apart. “Did your patrol go okay?”
“Mostly.” He grimaced. “Several Takaran were tampering with my wards, but I scared them away.”
That was concerning. “Does it happen often?”
“They used to do it occasionally before I joined the Faegud, but then they stopped until recently. Now, it seems like they try once every week or so.”
She had an idea but hesitated to say it aloud. This had been his land for a long time, and he was used to caring for it himself. Was he ready to share that responsibility, or would she be pushing him too soon to ask? The last time she had tried volunteering to strengthen his wards, he’d immediately shot her down.
Then again, when had Rayna ever kept her thoughts to herself? It was only because things were going so well that she didn’t want to ruin it, especially when Galadon was about to reveal something he hadn’t for others.
“I can see you’re thinking hard. What is it?” he asked, giving her a questioning look.
She drew in a deep breath. “Would you consider letting me add my power to the wards so I can feel the intruders, too? Then, if you must go away somewhere, or there are too many attacking at once, I can help deal with them.”
Galadon was silent for a moment as she stood there nervously waiting for his response.
“I will consider it,” he finally said, giving her an appreciative smile. “It’s not a bad idea, but I want you to know the land and become comfortable with it before accepting that kind of responsibility.”
She supposed that was fair enough. “Alright.”
Galadon took her hand. “Come. It’s time to see what you came here for.”
He led her through the trees until they came to a clearing where a silver metal and stone circle lay. It was large enough that any size dragon could have fit as long as their wings were folded. At least a dozen adult humans could have fit inside with room to spare, but she couldn’t fathom its purpose.
Galadon said nothing as Rayna walked around the stones, studying them. Each had a unique symbol carved into it. Then she knelt and rubbed her fingers over one. “They’re warm.”
“Yes, even during the coldest winter.”
She tried to pull the stone up but had no better luck than him. “They’re stuck?”
“By some magical force, yes. I’ve tried everything I could think of to no avail.” He shook his head. “Until my mother returned and finally explained it to me a couple of weeks ago, I had no idea of its purpose.”
The repercussions of this place floored her. Galadon had guarded this place for centuries without knowing why it was even there. “So, what is it?”
“We believe it’s a fairy circle,” he said.
Rayna mulled that over. She’d read her fair share of fairytales as a child and plenty of fantasy books as a teen and adult. Then, there were those months with her mother studying ancient texts before things went badly, and they parted ways. Of course, who knew if any of it was accurate, but looking at the circle, she had a good idea what it might do.
“It’s a portal for travel to other worlds,” she surmised.
Galadon’s eyes lit with surprise. “How did you know?”
“I read a lot.”
He grunted. “I should have known.”
Rayna sighed. “I mean, a lot of fiction has some basis in old lore, but after magic returned, my mother somehow got hold of some ancient spell books. I think they came over from Kederrawien. Before we became estranged, we practiced our magic together.”
“You don’t see or speak to your mother any longer?” he asked.
“No.” She looked away from his concerned gaze. “She wanted me to focus on my sorceress powers and not go through with the slayer rite. I always tried to please her, especially back then, but she was so rigid that living up to her standards seemed impossible. All the while, I kept seeing innocent people die all around us. Everything in me screamed to protect them, so I killed twenty dragons with lightning bolts before finding out I needed to eat one of their hearts to complete my transition. When I did find out, mom forbade me from doing it.”
“What about your father?” he asked, frowning.
Rayna smiled fondly at her memories of him. “He’s the one who ran into the Straegud while out searching for food for us. They figured out what he was, and being a lot more open to slayers, they told him what he needed to do. He’d just killed a green dragon, so he finished the rite of passage right there. When he got home, Mom had to watch him go through the transition.”
Galadon cocked his head. “What is that like?”
She supposed he’d never had a reason to hear about it. The slayer from his childhood had passed her rite decades before she met him and likely didn’t think it was relevant to discuss. Most of the ones he’d met after Amari attacked him right away. Only Bailey might have told him, but maybe by that point he didn’t care to ask. Only with Rayna did he have a reason to bother.
“Horrible.” She shuddered. “It’s complete and total agony as your body changes on a molecular level from the inside out. It lasts for three days. All you can do is lie in bed and suffer through it. Mom was horrified. Dad said it was awful at the time, but he didn’t have much memory afterward. Like your mind blacks most of it out, or it does for most slayers.”
He took a step closer to me. “And you?”
Rayna shook her head. “I think it went differently for me because of my sorceress powers. I remember every moment in vivid detail. In a way, that helped me endure the torture with the Kandoran, but I wish I could have forgotten like the others.”
“I’d erase those memories for you if I could,” Galadon said, caressing her cheek. It touched her to hear him say that. “What made you defy your mother?”
As if sensing Rayna’s answer wouldn’t be easy, he pulled her against him. It helped as she recalled that time long ago that felt like a different life now. She absorbed the strength he was giving her with his embrace.
“I really tried to make my mom happy. Went to the college she picked, got a history degree, and even began law school because she wanted me to be a lawyer like her. It wasn’t for me, though, and I dropped out during the second year. I worked odd jobs after that, traveled to Europe, and did what I wanted before finally coming home two weeks before dragons arrived.”
Rayna rested her cheek against his chest. “I was planning to get my own place, but everything went to hell before that happened. We were trying to survive and figure out what was happening to us. Three days into it, dragons chased us down. My nineteen-year-old brother was in the car while my father and I loaded some supplies into the back. We were all hit by the flames, but only Jace died. He was my mother’s favorite and could do no wrong.”
“I’m sorry,” he said, running his hand soothingly through her hair.
When was the last time anyone had comforted her? Titan had tried, but she hated letting go entirely for anyone, fearing it would make her appear too fragile. She’d been alone for so long and didn’t dare show weakness in front of others. If she needed to cry or just be depressed, she found a quiet place where no one could see her breakdown.
She took a deep, steadying breath. “So I tried to be what Mom wanted because losing my brother tore her apart. She had a knack for making me feel guilty, like it was my fault. I studied magic with her, but she excelled at potions and elixirs, which were complicated and bored me to tears.”
He laughed. “I never would have guessed you lacked the patience for it.”
“Honestly.” She lifted her head. “The only thing I could impress her with was building wards, but she hated my lightning. I think it was because it was too useful to my slayer side. She didn’t want me fighting dragons.”
“Probably because she didn’t want to lose you like your brother,” Galadon said quietly.
Rayna shrugged. “Maybe. She didn’t try to stop my father from hunting, but she never attempted to control him like she did me. I was always closer to Dad. When it became obvious that I’d never make my mom happy, I stopped. The next time a dragon attacked us, I completed the ritual. Mom told me she never wanted to see me again. That was about four months or so after my brother died. I stayed with the Straegud for about eight months until their seer sent me out.”
“Why?” he asked, brows drawn.
“She told me I needed to leave and gain as much experience as possible fighting the green dragons and gave me a place and date for meeting Bailey and her group. So, I roamed the countryside alone until then.”
He studied her face, still holding her closely. “You must have been lonely.”
“I made friends here and there, stuck around some places longer than others, but it helped that I had an end goal. It was a matter of passing the time until then,” she replied, giving him a faint smile.
“You knew a war was coming since back then?”
“Yes, though not many details about it,” she said, hesitating. “The seer told me I’d meet you when I got here, and that you would hate me at first.”
Galadon stiffened. “She knew about us?”
“I thought about telling you, but…” Rayna started to pull away, but his arms around her only tightened.
“No.” He shook his head. “I didn’t make it easy, and I know that.”
His words helped her relax a little. “She told me it would be hard, like really hard, but she told me to keep trying because we are soulmates, and it would work out in time. That’s why I didn’t give up until you made it clear that day. Then I decided the seer must have been wrong.”
“If I didn’t have some seer abilities myself, I’d never understand why they have to be so manipulative and cryptic,” he said, then cupped her cheeks. “Don’t be afraid to tell me things like this anymore—even if you think it will make me angry.”
“I used to enjoy making you angry,” she admitted with a quirk of her lips.
He laughed. “I’m aware. But let me guess, now you’re afraid to do it for fear you’ll lose me?”
“Yes,” she said, swallowing. “I’m not sure I could survive you rejecting me again—not after the last week and how great it’s been.”
Galadon kissed her. It wasn’t sexual, but rather him showing how much she meant to him. She clutched at his tunic and reveled in the closeness between them. Every moment with him felt better than the last. His kiss was sweet and reassuring in a way she’d never experienced with him before.
He pulled away, expression gentle. “If you truly believe I’m wrong, say it. Do not spare my feelings or worry about me getting angry. Maybe I will, but I can’t live without you again. This is your home now, as much as it’s mine. Stay and keep fighting, no matter how disgruntled I may get, and know that I won’t give up on you, either.”
Tears filled her eyes. “You mean that?”
One fell down her cheek, and Galadon gently wiped it away. “Yes. Don’t be afraid to cry in front of me, either. I’m the one person with whom you should feel safe when expressing your feelings. No matter what, I won’t think less of you. Your tears here and now don’t make you any less ruthless against your enemies. They only show that you still have your heart and soul. I thank Zorya for that.”
All the tension and fears she’d felt over the past week came pouring out of her. Galadon brought her down to the ground next to the fairy ring and held her while she cried. Rayna sobbed for the loss of her family, all those years alone, the torture from the Kandoran, and the constant rejection she faced in her life. She’d bottled so much inside, afraid to let more than a little out at a time. She hadn’t even realized how much it weighed her down.
He rubbed her back and murmured that it would be okay. How he understood to say that, she didn’t know, but his comfort allowed her a measure of healing she hadn’t realized she desperately needed.
Finally, the pain inside abated, and Rayna caught her breath. “I can’t believe I just did that.”
“I sensed you needed it,” he said.
It was then that she noticed his eyes were moist, too. The flames in them were banked. He’d cried for her, and maybe for some of his own suffering as well. The famous lone-shifter who never showed his deeper feelings or a moment of weakness had given her the gift of seeing this vulnerable and intimate side of him. It was incredibly humbling.
She rested her head on his shoulder, and they sat in silence for a little longer. Two people with different—yet—shared pain. It meant so much that he didn’t hide his from her either. Now that they were together, they’d find a way to heal all their past trauma. It wouldn’t be in a day or week, but they’d get there with time. Something told her it would all work out. For the first time in a long while, she dared to hope for a brighter future.
“Isn’t there something else you’re supposed to show me?” she asked, looking up at him.
Galadon cleared his throat. “Yes, though I don’t have a name for it. It’s probably best you see it soon because the sun will set in another hour.”
That’s when Rayna remembered Onyx and the meal she’d brought. She turned her gaze toward the woods and found the horse had pilfered through the bag, and the contents were spilled across the ground. Whatever treat was inside for him was long gone.
“Really, Onyx?”
I was bored and hungry, he said into her mind. You were busy.
Galadon chuckled, staring at her horse. “He gets more interesting by the day. Now he’s speaking into our minds simultaneously.”
“You heard him, too?” she asked, shocked.
“Yes.” He nodded. “That is no ordinary stallion.”
“I think we’ve already established that, and everyone who has met him would agree.”
Galadon rose to his feet, pulling her up with him. “And they’d be right.”
“Okay, so what are we looking at next?”
Galadon pointed to a spot off in the distance that she could barely make out with the sun low in the sky. “That way.”
He took her hand and led her in that direction. As they came closer, she sensed the difference in the magic. It wasn’t bad exactly, but it felt so foreign. Then she frowned as she saw how the vegetation in this area was very different.
“Is that blue-green grass?” she asked, frowning.
“Yes. I take it you haven’t seen that shade anywhere in your travels.”
She shook her head rapidly. “Definitely not. Those flowers are weird, too.”
“I learned the hard way not to get close to them. They come every spring for about six weeks, and then go away,” he said, stopping once they were about ten feet from the edge of the grass. “They spray anyone who gets too close with poison.”
“Why are they here?”
Galadon gestured toward the middle. “There is something buried down there that seems to encourage the growth since it expands a little each year. I tried digging for it during the summer when there are no threatening flowers, but it’s impossible and causes intense pain to try.”
Her mind turned at the new information. She glanced back at the fairy ring a few hundred feet away and then to the land with the buried artifact. “Someone left a powerful object of some sort down there and went to a lot of trouble to protect it, but they have a way back with the ring.”
“That’s what I think, and my mother has confirmed that’s why she brought me to this place as another layer of protection. The seers impressed upon her that I must guard it, though now she has added that you are part of the plan, too.”
A shiver ran down Rayna’s spine. “The Kandoran were creepy enough, but this is even weirder. People from another world may come back here someday. We’re supposed to just guard it until then and hope the right ones show up?”
“As I said, I am only guessing at that part.”
“Thank you for showing me this,” Rayna said, surprisingly fine with the idea of joining him for this duty. He’d done it alone for long enough.
He gave her a self-deprecating smile. “You probably shouldn’t thank me, considering we have no idea what will happen.”
She jumped a little as she felt the gentle touch of a spell settle onto her skin, compelling her to protect and defend this place. She wondered if Galadon had even been old or wise enough yet to recognize the spell when he first came here.
Rayna squeezed his hand. “We’ll handle it together, and that’s all that matters.”
“You’re too good for me,” he said, kissing her forehead.
She laughed. “I know, but I love you anyway. Can we go eat now?
“Yes. I’m starving.”
“And I’m ready to get away from the hostile plants,” she said as they walked back to the edge of the woods where Onyx had left their food scattered in wrapped cloth across the ground.