6. Chapter Five
Chapter Five
I jolted awake to the sound of the front door creaking on its hinges before it blew off them. Turning over, I watched my father leap down from his loft wearing only his trousers with a sword in hand, landing gracefully on steady feet, his knees bent to absorb the impact.
He raised his sword, ready to strike, until he heard the figure in the shadows release a shuddering breath.
My father paused. He lowered his sword as he scrambled to find a lantern, lighting it.
We were all met with Hallan’s soot-covered face.
His eyes leaked with tears as he tried to catch his breath.
“Damn,” my father cursed as Hallan fell forward.
My father lunged, catching his body before he collapsed on the ground.
I leapt down from my loft as my father hauled his limp body onto the wooden table.
My mother rushed over, her hands illuminating with a faint glow.
A thin sheen of water coated her hands as she wielded it to heal his injuries.
“Hallan, what happened?” My mother’s voice was soft and soothing as Hallan choked on a sob.
I walked over to him, peering down. His body was covered in minor burns, and they had singed his wings. Some of his feathers drifted onto the floor. The smell of burnt feathers wafted through our home. It reminded me of the smell of burnt hair.
“She killed them,” Hallan whispered. “She killed all of them,” he cried out as he rolled his head back, squeezing his eyes shut as if trying to forget the memory of what he saw.
“Hallan.” My father grabbed his shoulders. “Talk to me. What happened?”
“Valla, the Princess of Ember…” He paused, lifting his glossy eyes to my father’s.
“She killed the women and children in the cave.” He choked on his words as tears streamed down his face again.
“Kali—” His voice broke on the name of his beloved mate.
My mother gasped, knowing her dear friend met her end.
Her eyes welled with tears as her shoulders sagged forward.
“She fought so hard…”
I could feel his pain. It was palpable. The grief of losing his love and so many others radiated through his words.
“The men posted along her side tried to fight them off but they didn’t make it either.
The Princess is leading her father’s armies.
No one saw them until it was too late…” He wailed as he told us about losing the women and children of Heavensreach, his mate, wife, and mother to his child perishing along with them, leaving nothing but stained ashes against the stone walls in the shapes of wings of those lost to the flames and smoke while trying to flee.
“I was too late…” A few moments passed as he tried to compose himself again.
“They knew…They knew where they were as if they had been watching us the entire time.” He trembled as my mother continued healing the worst of his wounds.
Her shoulders quaked as she listened to him confess the tragedy.
She and my father had known so many that were lost. My father’s face was grave.
The planes of it were hard in the faint lantern light of our cottage. His jaw ticked as his anger spiked.
He grabbed for his leathers and weapons. He gripped Hallan by his forearm and pulled him up from the table. My mother had healed him up nicely, but he would need more sessions if he wanted to get rid of the scars left behind.
“ Mai lao kahi. ” My father placed his forehead against Hallan’s in a comforting embrace. “We will fight for those we’ve lost, brother.”
Hallan ran a hand down his stained face.
“Wait.” I finally spoke. “Where is Ace?” My eyes searched Hallan’s, and I pleaded with my stare to find that Ace had not met the same fate.
“He’s gathering the rest of the men on the mountain. They’ll be down here any minute.”
“Where is Valla?” my father asked.
“She retreated after the battle. Both sides suffered losses.”
“She had to have had someone watching us, gathering intel on our movements as we made decisions.” My father ran a hand through his hair.
“Damn the Mother, damn it all!” he shouted.
Turning, he rushed to the counter and swiped his hand down it; the food canisters flew and clanked loudly as their contents leaked onto the floor.
My mother jerked from the sudden sound. She wrapped her arms around herself as the chill of death lingered in the air. She cupped her hands around her face as she cried, and my father’s features softened.
“Ivy,” my father whispered as he approached, gently wrapping her in his strong arms. “It’ll be alright, love.
” He tightened his embrace but we could all feel the tension in the room.
Nothing was okay. Women and children, Sky Elves and fae were here one moment and gone the next.
Letting that thought sink into my mind and claw at the depths of my heart made tears swell and stream down my face.
What being could close their eyes every night knowing what they had done to those innocent women and children and feel any kind of peace?
From the rumors over the years, we had heard about the Princess of Ember being a villainous creature.
But this was beyond that. She was the type of person our people told scary stories about around the campfire.
The ones that stuck with you in your nightmares.
The type of person who had no regard for the pain of others.
She took pleasure in every wound she inflicted.
“I’m scared,” my mother finally said, “for all of us.” She peered over the three of us in the room with cloudy eyes.
I walked over to them and my father welcomed me into their embrace.
He held us for what felt like an eternity, and I did everything in my power to memorize the moment, burning it into my mind and engraving it into my heart and soul.
What lay ahead was unknown. The only thing I knew for certain was that whatever we faced, we would do it together.