Chapter 59
—Kienna—
Kienna fell behind the group, walking near Danek, their hands brushing gently as they went. Ruva kept near, pushing Broan away. The Viking grunted and took his own path.
“We’re here.” Connak’s eyes glowed brightly as they entered the Lost Elvish City. “This is M’Ran.”
Nestled against the towering embrace of the green mountains, the ruins of M’Ran were a beautifully haunting testament to the war that shattered its people.
The intricate stone archways crumbled. Great Halls were overtaken by the creeping embrace of nature.
Vibrant foliage draped over the remnants of its past, while crystal-clear streams trickled through the ruins, whispering the echoes of a once-glorious civilization.
Though M’Ran lacked the raw elemental magic of Trinity, there was an undeniable glow that lingered.
It was a place frozen in time, untouched by the ever-moving and expanding world around them.
Connak called this place home, looked at it with a somber fondness, but no home remained.
The people of M’Ran, the warriors who stood on the front lines of the great war, were wiped from existence, leaving behind only phantoms of memory.
“It’s a fucking ghost town,” Broan admitted.
A bright ray of sun poked through the mountains and trees, shedding light on the sparkling stream as the group walked through the giant trees. Kienna dipped her hand into the cool water, compelled to take a drink. The soft, rushing torrent tickled her fingers.
Ruva leaned forward and licked the water, droplets falling from her mouth. She lay next to the brook. A breeze carried the smell of lavender and ivy. Patches of purple flowers grew in the corners of the brick walkways.
Nature was the true victor in the war that destroyed M’Ran.
Connak rubbed the back of his neck. “There’s not much left. I’d love to rebuild someday.”
“This is the kind of world I envisioned.” Kienna squeezed his shoulder, a solemn rush passing between them. “Can we explore?”
“Of course.”
I’m staying put. Ruva rested her head between her paws and closed her eyes.
Still so domesticated.
I must be when I’m tethered to such a wild thing.
Kienna smiled and wandered up a set of stairs through perfectly standing arches. She followed the path of the stream through the city, stepping carefully over branches and vines. Her fingers laced through the ivy encompassing the walls, the weight of history meeting her grasp.
The spark of Danek’s presence trailed her.
“This was your home.” She said it softly, turning her head to peek at him.
Danek nodded. “It would appear so.”
Kienna reached for his hand. He looked impossibly far away, his jaw clenched. “Do you think about it? What your life could have been like here?”
He exhaled. “This is the kind of place that would have been worth having a family in.”
Silence crept between them. It was encouraging that Danek was on the same wavelength as her. She’d never allowed herself to think about family, certainly not one she could make.
The wind carried the ghost of lost voices, echoes of laughter and life that once thrived.
Life returned to Danek as he faced her. “When this is over, I want to be the person to remember it all. Remember the ones we lose and make sure no one forgets why we fought.” He fixated on the rubble of the ancient city.
Danek the Storyholder.
Kienna tightened her fingers around his. He traced the beads of her rings, then pulled her hand to his lips and kissed each one. Chills ran through her body. Kienna brushed his chin, clinging to the stubble on his jaw. “I think that is a worthy future. It suits you.”
“Maybe one day, I’ll have others to tell our story to.”
Children would have sent her running in River Storm. Children with Danek was a peaceful idea. She smiled. “One day.”
“I love you,” he said. “From the first light of the morning to the last of the moon. I am madly in love with you.”
Kienna resisted the urge to step back. The words were real. Three syllables meant to carry such vastness. But what lived in her chest reached far beyond language, and she didn’t know how to fit it into sound.
You can tell him you love him, too, Little Flame. It will always be enough for him.
Kienna grabbed his hand and placed it on her chest. “My heart is there. It’s beating for you—”
A sharp crack echoed through the ruins. She alerted, scanning the trees, and then looked at Danek. Her stomach turned. There was a wrongness in the air screaming at her to run. Something she felt her whole life crept into her bones like a leechbug. Ruva whimpered, too far away to help.
The air shimmered, a bright red light exploding out.
Kienna held up her arm to shield her blue eyes from the strobes.
Out of the flashes, King Vaerin stepped through, his dark figure twisting in an eerie translucence.
His black cloak matched his black leather pants, and his shirt was a cream linen.
He didn’t intend to be in any danger amongst them.
Vaerin smirked, the scar above his lip rising.
His dark brown hair brushed his shoulders in strict, orderly lines.
Kienna was certain now. He looked like Ash, but the darkness within him would never match the old man in Dove Port.
Baila stepped out behind him, armored. The sight of her had Kienna boiling more than the King of River Storm. Kienna wanted her and feared she wouldn’t get the chance. King Vaerin was not here for Broan or Danek. In the end, he never truly cared about them. He only needed their magic.
Danek pulled his sword. From the strobes, Umbrin slipped out of the shadows, their blades catching sharp flashes of light. In the distance, Connak and Broan’s shouts carried through the chaos, threaded with the harsh clang of steel on steel.
Baila lunged for Kienna with her sword aimed with ruthless precision. Danek intercepted, his blade meeting Baila’s with a sharp clash. A sinister smile tugged at her lips. “Looking for a rematch?”
Kienna stepped back and drew her dagger.
She’d have to rely on speed, considerably outmatched in the weapon department.
King Vaerin stalked around her in slow, deliberate circles as Baila pushed Danek out of the way, swinging at him again.
The image of the king flickered like a phantom. A mocking dance.
“I’m glad you finally made it here,” he said, but his usual hiss slipped into a smooth warmth, like a worried father greeting his child after a harsh night apart. Kienna gripped her dagger tightly, her knuckles turning white.
I’m coming! Connak’s voice slammed into her mind, Ruva’s competing. She pushed them out. She needed to focus.
“You think you can fight me?” Vaerin’s voice slithered through the air, amusement twisting in his eyes. “I implore you to give up this facade, my child. I’ve come to take you home.”
“You’ll have to kill me first.” Kienna spat at his feet. She lunged forward.
King Vaerin conjured a weapon from the void, blocking her strike with effortless ease.
Metal hissed against the air. Kienna lunged again.
Vaerin’s smirk deepened as he twisted his blade, deflecting her with a bored flick of his wrist. A powerful force slammed into her chest, knocking her backward.
She crashed into Danek, and they tumbled to the ground in a tangled heap.
Kienna gritted her teeth, rolling to her feet at the sound of Vaerin’s laughter. “Still eager to fight battles you cannot win. Haven’t you learned anything by now?”
She ignored him, rushing forward. Her blade sliced through the air. Vaerin sidestepped, catching her wrist mid-swing and wrenching it back. Pain shot through her arm, but she refused to let go. She twisted, her foot hooking behind his knee to knock him off balance.
He didn’t budge.
“You’re predictable,” he whispered before flicking his fingers. A pulse of energy blasted Kienna back again, sending her skidding across the stone. Her vision blurred before she could force herself up once more, chest heaving.
Her eyes widened. King Vaerin held her shimmering charm in the air before tossing it into the corner of the ruins.
Kienna’s heart leapt, panic surging inside her.
She could feel him slithering inside her mind, the pinches and purple haze clouding her.
Kienna fought against it, straining every muscle in her body.
“Ah, I see you’ve met my father.” A sly grin crinkled his eyes. It disappeared as quickly as it formed. “You were never meant to be this. You were never meant to fight me. It’s the Elvish. They are the tyrants.”
“You’re a liar.” Kienna’s teeth clenched as she growled. Broan and Connak grunted in the distance, fighting as the Umbrin continued pouring through Vaerin’s portals. “Get out of my fucking head!”
She pushed against the magic inside her, giving everything she had to keep it at bay. She could already feel the twinge of twisted power flaring. Her muscles cramped, twitching to hold it all in.
Vaerin opened his arms to embrace her. Kienna flinched back, slapping his chest to keep him away. She looked for Danek in the fray. They were behind a sea of Umbrin, he and Baila slashing at each other. Ruva was nowhere in sight.
The king had managed to get her alone. He didn’t falter. “I told you everything you need to know.”
“You held us captive and beat us.”
Vaerin tilted his head, watching her movements like a predator studying a cornered animal. “You always fought me,” he said, voice low and almost fond. “Especially in River Storm, before you knew you were anything. Always throwing yourself against a world you didn’t understand.”
Kienna tightened her grip on her knife, blood roaring in her ears. “I understand enough. You were never saving us. You put us in cages because you’re scared.”
“Caging you?” Vaerin chuckled darkly, circling her again. The sky above darkened with him. “No, Little Flame, I shaped you, tempering you in the only fire strong enough to make you survive. They would have devoured you out here with your power. I helped you control it.”