Chapter 33 Ariana
ARIANA
Iver slipped a hand around mine and closed his eyes. Seconds passed, leaving the rest of us standing in tense silence. Nothing happened, and then my vision went splotchy, energy leaving me.
Kole came around to my side, keeping me upright. “You’re making it worse, Iver.” His words were a growl in my ear.
Suddenly, my vision returned, and my legs stabilized beneath me.
“That’s it,” Iver whispered, and my eyes widened as I watched him standing there with my hand in his. Somehow, he manipulated the thread of Clause’s influence, figuring it out in mere seconds.
With every beat of my heart, I felt stronger. “You are remarkable,” I murmured in awe of him.
Iver’s lip twitched before his eyes opened. “You hear that, little Sparrow? Your leader finds me remarkable!” He called out to her while keeping his sights on me.
Kiora snorted. “She has clearly spent too much time in the Sidhe lands or has hit her head.”
Ivers smile widened at her reply before he addressed me. “I cannot undo what Clause did, but I altered it, allowing ample room for you to feel well enough to move on your own and conjure.”
“Thank you.” I smiled at him before turning my attention to Kole, who gently released me so I could test out my ability to stand without support.
The world felt firm beneath my feet. Every pulse of my heart sent strength through me, no longer limited by the Sidhe King’s conjuring.
Surprise touched nearly everyone except for Iver, who shrugged a carefree shoulder, not the least bit astonished by what he accomplished.
“Well, you certainly look better,” Kole observed.
“What of him?” Eislyn nodded towards Soren, monitoring him. Suddenly, the awe of Iver’s gift evaporated, leaving behind a tension that had always been.
I turned to the Dune’s Clan leader. “Well? What is it you would like to do at this point?”
Brown eyes settled on me. “The choice you give me is to side with you or be killed here and now?” He asked, his voice calm, as though not at all troubled by what he said.
I shook my head. “That is the choice the Sidhe King gave you. I am asking you to stand with us. It is a request, but not your only option.”
His head tilted while he viewed me. “What other options are there?”
“You can leave if you prefer. There is no need to involve yourself in a war you do not wish to take part in.” I ensured that the next words spoken were clear.
“However, you must know that if you try to stop us or harm us, then I cannot ensure your safety. We will fight for what we believe is right.”
Soren looked out over the world, beyond the balcony. When he turned back, there was an edge to his eyes. “I am Soren, leader of the Dunes Clan. I bow to no one.”
Iver tensed. “Then I imagine your neck is sore from the strain of bending to Clause’s rule.”
“Indeed, it is.” Soren’s gaze cut to me. “If I stand with you, then I stand at your side, not beneath you.”
Kole chuckled, the sound void of humor. “You have some gall, talking as if you are not standing at the edge of a balcony with an awfully far drop to the ground and are not extraordinarily outnumbered.”
“It’s okay Kole. The Dunes Clan has always been free. I think it is time that they return home.” I took a step towards Soren. “I will uphold our old ways. You and your people will remain free, and in good faith, we will help one another whenever we can.”
Soren nodded. “I accept your terms.”
“Lovely,” Kiora muttered from the other balcony. Her bow and arrow relaxed in her hands. “I’m going to head over to you.” She then vanished within the castle.
“You certain we can trust him?” Eislyn asked, her voice low as she glanced at the Dune’s Clan leader.
“Yes.”
“And if we learn we can’t, then we kill him,” Kole stated.
Soren peered at him. “You can try, but I need only to land one good blow with a blade to end your life. You, on the other hand, would likely need several before you can even hope of cutting my skin.”
New tension coiled around us.
“Our Ariana can simply steal your breath away,” Iver smirked.
“We are on the same side and wasting time,” I said, all eyes turning to me.
“What’s next?” Eislyn asked.
“We need to find Clause and end this,” I stated, already moving towards the balcony door and into the room.
Iver’s hand reached for my wrist, stilling me. “Things are… a bit messy out there. Erik asked that I find you and bring you back.”
“We may not get another chance like this,” I said, knowing full well he could just move me if he wished. That I could not stand against him, especially while he touched me.
Iver released me, nodding in thought. “I will help you, but if it seems futile, then I am removing you from this situation.”
“Okay,” I agreed and we began moving again.
“You wish to kill the King?” Soren followed us through the space and into the hall, where we met with Kiora.
No. I did not wish for Clause’s death. And I hated myself for it. For wanting for a different outcome. Despite everything he did, what he forced me to do… maybe my soul was tied to his after all. And some part of it felt sorrow for the man who surrounded his tiny black heart with ice.
“If he does not back down, then I doubt there will be much of a choice,” I replied, turning to my friend in time to welcome her arms as she hugged me.
“You are never leaving like this again.” Kiora nearly crushed me in her embrace. I felt her heart hammering against my chest.
“Never again.” I agreed, and she released me. We shared a brief smile, and that was all we had time for.
“Where to now?” Iver scanned the halls, turning from one side to the other before focusing on me. His body remained strained with tension. It clung to him - to all of us. Though I don’t think I ever saw him as anything but casually calm before this.
I glanced at Soren. “Any idea where Clause is?”
“No. But his castle guards may, and I know of one stationed nearby who would likely help us.”
I nodded. “Lead the way.”
Soren took us down the hall, and then down several more.
We followed him, making no sound other than that of soft footsteps rushing down thankfully empty corridors.
The atmosphere shifted, colder when surrounded by stone, and warmer when surrounded by that of wood and candlelight.
All of it, however, cold or warm, remained grand.
“This place is incredible,” Kiora whispered, taking in the sheer size of the castle we rushed down to no end.
Soren slowed, speaking over his shoulder to us. “The guard’s post is just around this corner. Do not threaten him and all should go well.” He briefly hesitated before adding, “Also, do not lie to him.” He did not wait for a reply before continuing.
When we turned the corner, there was a man standing at a post in the hallway.
“Gregory!” Soren called out a name as though they were friends.
The guard’s eyes were already trained, watching us as we rushed toward him. He was tall, broad-shouldered, with a stern set to his face. His hand drifted to the hilt of his sword, fingers wrapping around it, yet he did not pull the blade free. At least not yet.
“I do not recognize most of your friends here, Soren.” The man stated and held up his palm. “That is close enough.”
Soren came to a stop, and we followed suit just a step behind him. “We are looking for Clause,” he said.
“He is busy,” Gregory replied curtly. There was a strange clarity and sharpness to his eyes as they passed over me before moving toward our entire party.
A feeling of judgment embraced the stranger, directing a cold harsh sensation towards the rest of us.
No one ever gave me such a sensation before.
“I am sure he will want to see Ariana,” Soren said. “Just show us the way, and we will leave you be.”
Silence spilled through the halls. It was as if we stood on a ledge and the guard had the power of lowering a draw bridge needed for crossing. Yet he had not decided yet whether to let us cross. And we needed him to help us or we faced a cliff with no way back.
Why did one guard seem to harbor such power? What was so special about him?
Do not lie to him, Soren had said.
“What is your conjuring gift?” I asked, earning those sharp eyes to pin me. He did not move to respond and so I tried to give him an answer to a question he never asked. “I can control mist.” I lifted my hand and showed him my fingers as they turned to mist.
“And everyone else?” He inquired.
“Kiora, is a Sparrow Archer and controls airflow. Iver, well, we are still figuring him out.” Not exactly a lie, but I certainly was skirting the truth there. “Kole and Eislyn do not conjure, and you already know Soren.”
Gregory’s brows pulled together, and he looked at Kole and Eislyn. “You are not conjurors?”
“Doesn’t mean we aren’t dangerous,” Kole grumbled, not enjoying being singled out in a way that made him seem less than the rest of us.
Iver snorted. “Alright, dangerous.”
“Shut up, Iver.” Kiora sent an elbow into his side, which he caught, wrapping a hand around her arm and pulling her into him.
“Now, now, little Sparrow. No need to pretend to not like me in an attempt to get closer. You should know, when the condition we find ourselves in is more amicable, I’ll let you get as close as you like.
” He was completely unbothered by the entire situation we found ourselves in.
That alertness and calculated gaze from before seemed to have vanished.
However, I did not miss how that move placed him between her and Gregory. Was he actually trying to shield her?
“Now is not the time,” Kole snapped, anger rolling off him in waves directed at Iver, though his eyes remained trained on Gregory, searching for any sign of threat from the guard.
“Ugh. I hate you.” Kiora shoved herself away and out of Iver’s hold.
“Lie,” Gregory stated simply, though his attention pinned Kiora, who looked at a loss for words with a face turning more into a tomato by the second.
“You can tell when someone tells a lie?” Iver viewed him with interest.
Gregory turned to him. Seconds ticked by until he finally nodded.
Iver chuckled, though said nothing more. Instead, his gaze wandered to Kiora, who seemed to wish to disappear. Clenching her jaw she refused to meet his eye.
I took a step forward, moving to Soren’s side.
“There is a war that has broken out, and we hope to end it before more lives are lost. If you can decipher lies, then you know I speak the truth when I say I do not wish to control the people here. But, I do wish for my freedom and the freedom of the people who live here. Non-conjurors do not deserve to be kept separated from the rest. Life does not have to be as dark as it has been in the Sidhe lands.”
Gregory viewed me, yet did not reply.
“Well, does she speak the truth?” Soren asked. And I wondered whether he truly wished for the guard to tell him. After everything, did the Dunes Clan leader harbor doubts my words were not true?
“She does,” Gregory answered, and pulled his sword from its sheath.