Chapter 26
Aella
Stepping out of the portal, I entered a spacious courtyard lined with trees of varying colors.
The sun shone brightly onto the red and gray stones placed in a wide circle on the ground around the city ring.
Two gnomes sat on a bench, speaking in hushed whispers to each other, but otherwise, it was oddly quiet.
I’d always come at night before, when the details were cast in shadows, so I'd never seen the place in full daylight.
Returning to Siggaya brought back poignant memories that it was hard to believe it had been over five months since I first came here.
This time, I could walk the streets of the old trade city without fear of being recognized and attacked.
Darrow stayed at my side, glowering at anyone who came near us.
I looked up at him as we moved down the main street that cut through town. “Is it necessary to frighten everyone you see?”
“Here? Yes. Long ago, I learned that if my expression is remotely friendly,” he paused to scowl at a blond elf in a black doublet and matching pants who headed straight for us with a desperate expression.
“…they will ask for favors and expect me to intercede for them with my father. I’m rarely in the mood for it. ”
The streets weren’t as crowded as on my last two visits.
Some fae moved about, but fear lurked in their gazes, and they seemed intent on hurrying to their destinations.
On either side of the street, the quaint two-story houses we passed had their windows shuttered, and doors closed despite the perfect temperature.
It was typical fall weather that should have been ideal to enjoy.
Instead, tension filled the air, and no one smiled.
As we moved closer to the city walls, though, I noticed booming and whizzing sounds that sent a chill down my spine.
There was an active battle taking place, and we’d arrived just in time for it.
No wonder almost everyone chose to stay cloistered in their homes.
The last report I’d heard on the city mentioned attacks nearly every day.
I supposed I was fortunate I’d only needed to participate in two battles since I’d arrived in Veronna a week and a half ago.
Aside from opening portals a couple of times a day, I’d been free to work on my garden.
I’d already cleared about a third of the dead and unwanted vegetation and prepared the soil.
The work was challenging, but at least it gave me time to reflect on everything that had happened recently.
I’d desperately needed the peace and solitude, though I felt guilty that so many others didn’t have that luxury right now.
The closer we walked to the city perimeter, the thicker the smoke and acidic taste of spent magic.
That was a new development since Karganoth invaded, worsening in recent days.
Anywhere that numerous spells were cast, a toxic atmosphere began to form, with the air turning hazy.
It coated my nose and tongue, burning them.
I glanced at Darrow, but he appeared fine.
Full fae didn’t seem as affected until it became especially awful, but my druid half was apparently strong enough to make me physically ill now that I approached an active battle zone.
The Frostdar and other native races I’d transported to various locations recently complained about it, but today was my first time to get full exposure to it.
Most of the time, I stayed near the rings, which were usually some distance from the battles.
“Is something wrong?” Darrow asked, stopping in the street and turning to face me.
I nodded. “It’s the spent magic, making me feel sick.”
“I’ve hardly noticed it.” His brows knitted, concern pulsing through our bond. “If there’s anything I can do, let me know.”
“I’ll be alright,” I reassured him, swallowing down my rising bile.
So far, it hadn’t gone past making me feel queasy, but I could live with that since my magic continued to work fine, and it didn’t affect my ability to think clearly. That was what mattered. I only worried that the problem would continue to worsen if the war lasted for long.
“If you’re certain,” he said skeptically, making me wonder how much he sensed through our mating bond. I could tell he felt perfectly fine, other than worrying about me.
“Where is your father, exactly?” I wanted to hurry and get out of here.
“In that building there,” Darrow said, pointing up the street through the smoky haze to a large, single-floor structure constructed of gray stones with a matching slate roof. It didn’t appear remarkable in any way except for a ward so strong that it shimmered in the daylight.
I grimaced at the realization we’d reached our destination already.
One block beyond that stood a twenty-foot wall with soldiers firing arrows and magic spells from it.
Since this city was one of the oldest, it had been part of the war between the fae and the natives millennia ago.
For a while, after the battles ended, it had fallen into poor condition, but once Veronna began fighting the dark elves on one side and Therress on the other, they decided to restore it.
Apparently, one of the lords from a few generations ago had some foresight into future events and saw there’d be a need for it. That decision had paid off now.
Attempting to ignore the sounds of battle and the smoke burning my eyes, I followed my husband up to a nondescript wooden door, where he made a rhythmic knock. A Veronnian soldier answered it a moment later and gestured us inside. I hesitated at the ward, but it allowed me to pass.
Darrow gave me an amused look. “They keyed the protection spells to military leadership and my family. As my mate, the magic recognized you.”
“Oh, right.” I would eventually get used to that—not being their enemy anymore.
We entered the dim interior filled with maps and tables as military officers held discussions around them.
They barely noticed us as we passed by and headed toward a rear office.
Darrow’s father was inside, staring out the window at the battle raging beyond the wall.
The sounds were muffled but still audible.
I winced as a soldier took a flaming ball to the chest and tumbled toward the ground.
How many had died defending this city? I tried hard not to think of the many daily losses happening all over Zadrya while I mostly stayed in relative comfort and safety. It seemed wrong, even if there was a good reason.
Lord Gannon glanced at his son, frowned at me, and then returned his attention outside. “What is she doing here?”
“The prince tasked her with bringing you and Loden back to Darynia for a meeting this evening,” Darrow replied tersely.
“We have a channeler here. If you’d sent a sebeska, I could have gone home without your assistance.” His voice was so cold that it practically left a chill in the room.
My husband gave me an apologetic look before taking a step closer to his father. “She doesn’t want to be here either, but we thought it best that the city channeler reserve their power to assist others when needed.”
“All civilians who wished to depart the city have already done so. I’ve ordered that no one else may come or go without my permission, except obviously your wife, who does as she pleases,” he said, turning his furious gaze on me.
I straightened my shoulders and glared at him. “Be glad I’m on your side this time, my lord.”
“Aella hasn’t simply done as she pleases.
” Darrow’s expression darkened. “She has been transporting our troops and leaders all over Veronna and the rest of the world as required every day. When we need seven hundred soldiers relocated quickly, she does it in record time. It would take two other channelers, combined, a full day to do what she can accomplish in an hour. Lives are being saved as a result—because of her.”
He put a protective arm around me. Reflex made me want to shrug it off, but this time I didn’t mind. Darrow had defended me against his father. While I could handle the arrogant elf before us myself, I preferred to speak to Lord Gannon as little as possible.
I was already struggling with the desire to practice my deadly light powers on him.
The look on his face if I severed his body in half would console me, but we needed him for this war, like it or not.
Also, it would damage this building and anything beyond it for hundreds of feet.
I could inadvertently harm innocent city residents, which I didn’t want to do, even for revenge.
Lord Gannon ground his jaw, silent as he began pacing the floor.
Finally, he stopped and met our gazes with a shocking look of defeat.
“My apologies, you’re both right. We’ve taken quite a few losses in recent days, and while we are successfully repelling them, they keep sending more reinforcements.
For every one dark elf we kill, two more replace them.
I’m at my wits’ end for how to counter them if this continues. ”
I noted the stress lines around his eyes and mouth now that he no longer glared at me.
He appeared to have aged ten years since I last saw him.
The Lord of Veronna took his job at protecting his land and people even more seriously than I realized.
I supposed I could be generous and stop imagining his painful death in my head for a few minutes.
“Has it become more than we can handle?” Darrow asked, gesturing toward the ongoing skirmish outside the window. A healer worked on the injured soldier who’d been burned and had fallen, to my relief.
“Not yet, but their forces seem to grow by the day, no matter how many we defeat. I believe they’re bringing more into Zadrya somehow.
We have scouts posted near all the main roads, rings, and waterways, yet they’ve seen nothing of them.
” He shook his head. “They don’t have channelers who can do what Lady Aella can at such a distance. ”
Darrow raked a hand through his brown-black hair. “I’m afraid I’ve found a reason for that. I’ve just finished interrogating a couple of dark elves we apprehended at Radoumar.”
Lord Gannon’s brows knitted. “What did they say?”
He went on to tell his father everything we’d learned, and that the prince wants us all to meet at Crystal Castle and discuss revising our battle strategy in light of the new information. I almost felt sorry for him as he heard how much worse the situation might be for our side.
“Very well,” he said, nodding. “I’ll be there, but I’m not leaving the city until dinnertime. They need me here. I’ll use my channeler to get me to Darynia, and if Lady Aella would be so kind, I’ll return to Siggaya directly after the meeting.”
“As you wish,” I said. Lord Gannon was trying to save lives, so I couldn’t argue with that plan. Plus, I’d rather he got back here quickly, too.
“Very well.” Darrow looked at me. “I suppose we could go straight to Alavaar from here once you’re ready.”
I checked myself internally. “If we stop at that bakery I spotted and get lunch, I’ll be strong enough by the time we finish eating.”
“If it’s the one two blocks from here, I highly recommend it,” Lord Gannon said in the nicest tone he’d ever used in my presence. “I specifically requested they stay open to feed the soldiers on this side of town, and they make the best chicken sandwiches.”
I almost smiled at him until I remembered my father’s charred body. Instead, I dipped my chin. “Thank you. That sounds good.”