Chapter 13
MARLAK
The stars are still shining outside, their subtle glow the only light coming in through the thin curtains. I move quietly out of bed, then pick the clothes I left aside.
Astra’s sound asleep, her face so peaceful as she breathes in and out slowly, her hands clinging to the sheet wrapped around her naked body.
As I get dressed, I take my time observing her, engraving the image in my memory; her hair framing her face, her lashes against her skin, the uplifted corner of her mouth.
Peace. Perfection. Calm.
It’s the reason I won’t falter. Won’t fail.
I grab my bag and approach the door with gentle steps, but before I open it, I hear Astra stirring.
“Marlak?”
I turn around and sit on the bed. “I’m leaving. I need to get to the Shadow Lands when the sun is rising.”
“Without saying goodbye?”
I run a hand through her hair. “I didn’t want to awaken you.”
In reality, I wanted to avoid a tearful goodbye, or perhaps avoid seeing any doubt, any fear in her eyes.
She smiles at me. “You’ll do great. I trust you.”
Unsure what to say, I kiss her lips briefly. “I’ll be back.”
“I know.”
Strangely, her certainty does little to soothe the ache in my chest. Perhaps deep down, I’m the one who still has doubts. The thought makes my heart heavy, but one more look at her face gives me the courage I need.
I leave the bedroom and meet Ferer and Nelsin in the kitchen.
Based on their stoic expressions, I assume they still haven’t made up.
To be fair, Nelsin’s face still irks me with the reminder of what Astra went through, when he defied me, took her out of the island, then they were attacked by bloodpuppets.
His irresponsible act almost got her killed. The thought chills my blood.
Still, he owes a life debt to her, he’s trying to help, and the support of the giants will be welcome.
Leaving Astra without anyone assigned for her protection makes my heart ache, but I should be back soon, and she has Ziven, Lidiane, and Azur. And Renel, I guess. Not to mention the nymphs. She’ll be fine—if she stays put. And she promised to stay.
We approach the edge of the island, then I glide over the river using air magic while Ferer swims and Nelsin uses an ice disk to cross. On the other side, we reach the faerie ring, and soon we’re in the north of the Fae Lands, from where we walk towards our destination.
The sun makes an appearance in the horizon right when we reach the Charmed River, which is just a creek in this area.
We jump over it, then take slow steps into the Shadow Lands.
Monsters don’t usually roam its southern borders, and the dim sunlight should be enough to scare them, but it doesn’t hurt to be extra attentive.
We walk faster as daylight floods the sky, gaining distance from the border. Once we’re fairly far from the river, at a distance where the giants can reach, we stop and Nelsin whistles. The giants don’t respond or show up immediately, so we keep walking.
From time to time, Nelsin whistles again, and the only response we get is the soft murmur of the wind.
No sign of the giants.
If they don’t help us, getting to the north and back again will be impossible. I want to slap myself for not only trusting Nelsin, of all fae, but for concocting a plan that hinged on his assumption.
“Perhaps we should run,” Ferer finally suggests, as if reading my thoughts.
Nesin shakes his head. “We’ll get tired for no reason. The giants want to help. They’ll come.”
An annoyed huff escapes my lips. “You can’t know that. You never even discussed this with them.”
“I did.” Nelsin waves his hands. “They told me to find a way to stop this magic, this shaking, as they call it. They told me they’d do anything to help, if it was within their means. They told me to whistle and that they’d come.”
“So where are they?” I ask.
Nelsin inhales a shaky breath. “Late? Taking a little longer? I’m not sure.”
I stare at the distance ahead of us, the sea of desert stretching for miles and miles.
Is it a good idea to run, then risk being stuck here at night?
Should we go back and redo our plan, then consider a boat to the Northern Tip?
But one more day means more time for the Witch King to get stronger, perhaps even to escape his prison.
We might not have one more day. I’m about to combust with desperation.
And shame, even if it’s not my fault. I don’t want to let Astra down. Let everyone down.
“I’ll run,” I say, surprising myself with my decision. “There will be no time to get back, but I’ll go north and try my luck at the sea. You two can wait or go back.”
“I’ll run with you,” Ferer says.
“No need. It will be easier if I don’t have to worry about anyone else getting hurt.”
The two knights exchange a look as if trying to come up with another solution or else decide if they agree with my suggestion.
“Wait,” Nelsin says.
I click my tongue, annoyed that I’m even entertaining this treasonous fae. “If the giants decide to help, they can catch me further north.”
“No.” Nelsin shakes his head, his top ears flapping with the movement. “They avoid this area, and further north, even worse.”
I huff. “Yeah. I’ve noticed that.”
Each second debating is a wasted second.
I turn away from them and bolt. I know I won’t be able to keep this speed, but I want to get rid of my anger, my anxiety, want to give a distance between me and the cat-eared fae.
While it might not be his fault that the giants didn’t show up, I trusted his knowledge, trusted that he was acting as their emissary.
And then maybe it was my fault for being so dim.
Trust Nelsin! I want to reach out to past Marlak and smack his head. Maybe then it will work properly.
My boots hit the arid, hard ground as my breathing gets heavier. I’ll need to push my limits if I want to reach the Witch King long nightfall, and yet I need to make sure I won’t get there too exhausted to fight.
The sound of steps to my right catches my attention. I stop and see a giant approaching me. As my chest sags with relief, something grabs me from the left side. A huge hand. The giant places me on his shoulder and runs back south to meet Nelsin and Ferer, who are surrounded by ten more giants.
The blond fae is gesticulating, grunting, and talking.
When we approach them, the largest giant turns and points at me.
“Broke deal!” he yells. “Broke deal.”
“No broke,” Nelsin says. “Bad magic difficult to stop. He working.”
Nelsin keeps arguing in overly simplified sentences, claiming that I’m about to stop the bad magic. I’m not sure that counts as speaking Giant. I mean, I could also speak like that. But to be fair, Nelsin also grunts. I’m not sure if that’s for emphasis and style or part of their language.
From what I understand, the giants are quite upset, and some of them are blaming me. For a moment, I fear that they’ll put me in some kind of prison, but it’s true that they need help. They need the Witch King dead more than anything right now, so it makes sense that they’ll help me.
In the end, they agree to help me go faster to the north, not all the way to where the Witch King is, but most of the way.
They’ll even wait for me and help me go back at night, if necessary.
In return, they want Ferer to stay as an additional hostage.
As much as Nelsin protests, there’s no way to sway the giants.
Perhaps on another day I would try to negotiate better terms, but right now every second is precious, so both Ferer and I agree with their terms.
Soon I’m on a giant’s shoulders, running across the shadow lands desert at least ten times faster than my own legs would take me
Begrudgingly, I’m forced to admit that Nelsin had the right idea and the right plan.
There’s hope. I’ll make it.
Today will be the Witch King’s last day.
RENEL
As much as I chased it, sleep evaded me. I’ve been awake since the early hours before dawn, early enough to hear my brother leaving. How can I find any rest when my mind is so disturbed, when my heart is crunched by the weight of my guilt?
Tarlia gave her life for me—and I couldn’t stop her.
And now she’s in the heart of danger while I’m here.
My patience is gone, and I’ll no longer make excuses for myself.
I have to do something, and the only reason I’m not gone yet is that I don’t want to be chased like a fugitive, don’t want anyone thinking I’ll betray them.
I’m pacing back and forth in the kitchen when I finally hear steps in the hallway. Too light to be Azur, or maybe I don’t know how to recognize him anymore.
Ziven walks into the kitchen and smiles at me. “Hey, there.”
I spare him a quick glance. “Good morning.”
He approaches the counter and grabs an apple. “Sounds like an awful morning.”
“Is it not? Tarlia’s gone. And nobody cares.”
“Not true. I care.”
I scoff. “Care? You haven’t lifted a finger for her!”
He raises an eyebrow and stares at me with a punch-me face. “Have you?”
“After she made a deal with Zorwal? No. I waited. I was patient. I listened to my brother. For what? Enough of this. I’m going to the castle.”
“You might have a point.”
“About what?” Astra steps in the kitchen.
“Tarlia,” I say. “I’m going to rescue her.”
She sighs. “Once the Witch King is dead, Zorwal will be weaker.”
“I thought about it,” I say, making an effort to sound mildly reasonable and not desperate and furious. “You don’t know that. Nobody knows what will happen. And regardless, if Marlak wants to face Zorwal next, the best thing we can do is get Tarlia out of there, so he won’t hide behind her.”
Astra frowns while Ziven bites his apple.
Azur’s voice then comes from the hallway. “How exactly are you planning on defeating Zorwal, Renel? With your magic?” His words sound sharp like a blade, but it no longer cuts me.
“I know that castle better than anyone. And Zorwal wants me, for some reason. I can trade places with Tarlia. It’s more than fair.”