Chapter 18
Casyl
He was screaming internally, trying to make his body listen. It was no use, he knew, but he couldn’t just watch as his body attacked her. He’d known, as soon as the words had come from his mouth, what he was about to do.
He watched as his hands drew his sword. They shook as he fought the action. She tried valiantly to defend herself against his onslaught. The force of his blow broke her weapon in two.
The hopelessness in her eyes broke him. She was going to die, and he knew it; she knew it, and she’d die thinking that he had been the one to kill her.
He was trapped in a nightmare, unable to escape. Only sleep offered oblivion, though he was sure now that his dreams would be haunted by this moment.
Then, in her last moment of desperation, she launched herself at him physically and mentally.
He felt her power wash over him like a wave, leaving him numb in its wake.
His hand dropped the sword, and he sank to his knees.
His father’s control was diminishing. Casyl fought to keep him out of his mind.
“Run, Amelia!” he shouted. She needed to go now whilst she could. He would resist his father for as long as possible to buy her time, but he could feel Tiryn regaining control the farther she moved away.
A roar tore through his throat.
His mind snapped back into its prison as he moved against his will. He stood up and raced in the direction that she’d gone. He hoped that she’d have enough time to get away, but then he remembered the guards stationed outside. If she’d got that far, they’d stop her.
He exited the mine. The guards were shackled together, unconscious, their horses, including his own, missing.
In the distance, he could see dust kicked up from galloping horses and hoped that she was safe.
His body went and unshackled the guards as they regained consciousness, confused about what had happened. Casyl had his suspicions of what had happened and hoped he was right.
The king had sent men with extra horses to retrieve them.
When he returned to the camp, his body went straight to his father.
“She got away then. I could always send men to hunt her down. Ah, well, I suppose it doesn’t matter. We have the mine and the Lifesource. It’s just a shame that you didn’t get to kill her.” The king smiled cruelly at him.
Casyl swore in his mind that if he ever got control of his body back, the first thing he would do was kill him. He’d kill him slowly. He’d fantasised about it. He’d show him just how much pain he could cause.
The king was enjoying his punishment. He continued to talk to him about his plans, knowing that he could hear and couldn’t react.
A scout entered the king’s tent with news. A human army was approaching the capital from the west.
“This should be interesting,” the king said. “Casyl, ready the army. We’ll go and meet them and fetch Tharos. I think we’ll play a little game with them.”
*
Casyl led his men to meet the approaching human army. The further west they travelled, the hotter and drier it became. The land cracked under the heat of the blazing sun.
The human army came into view as the dust cleared. A wave of iron shimmered under the sun. It was an army of cavalry. They must have received word from the capital before it had been attacked and come to aid their allies.
Unfortunately for them, they were too late and would all end up either dead or enslaved.
The shadows deepened around Casyl as he watched his father destroy a world, annihilating an entire people so that he could have their land and resources. He’d waited centuries for the opportunity to return to their ancestral lands.
He’d never realised how dark his father’s ambitions were. He would have tried to stop him. He was sure that they all would have.
The fae came to a halt and readied themselves as the human army came closer, jolting him from his thoughts. He could make out human faces in the distance. The smooth skin signalled the youth of some of them.
Tharos revealed the army as if it had appeared from nowhere.
The human army stopped abruptly, and Casyl signalled for the fae to charge.
There was no chance to prepare and fight with honour. It was a dirty tactic, but nothing was beneath them now, with no one to stop them.
To give them credit, the humans reacted as fast as they could, pulling out their weapons and fighting viciously for their lives. Their shock was replaced by desperation.
He watched the inevitable downfall of one soldier. His moves were expert, explosive. He danced and parried, his sword shining in the sun. He struck a fae warrior with deadly force, the blood splashing back into his face. The blow he dealt the fae warrior should have been devastating.
The human was cut down a moment later. There would be no honour for him. They were outnumbered. They never had a chance.
The sour stench of sweat and human waste lingered in the air, turning his stomach.
The fae archers stood to one side and rained down arrows upon the humans while the warriors in the melee slashed their way through their ranks.
Horses and men screamed alike as they fell one by one. It was a bloodbath. Most of the human soldiers had been killed, and those who survived would soon regret it.
They rounded up the prisoners. They had captured the human army’s leader. He was brought before the king and pushed onto his knees before him.
“Where did you come from?” the king asked. The man remained silent and spat on the ground in defiance.
The king gave the signal, and Casyl brought his sword across the man’s neck. His head fell to the ground and rolled towards the king’s feet.
Yet another person killed unfairly. Casyl pushed back his feelings. He was hardened to battle, but injustice still bothered him.
The king shrugged.
They dragged the remaining prisoners back to the capital. The fae would occupy the city, and the palace would become the king’s new residence.
As he rode through the ranks, Casyl wondered where Ruven was. His friend was being kept under guard until the king decided what to do with him. Ruven was valuable to the army, and Tiryn disliked disposing of anything useful. Had the king decided to kill him whilst he’d been gone?
The thought sank into the pit of his stomach.
He hadn’t seen Danae either. He hoped that she’d been the one to help Amelia escape. Those guards hadn’t shackled themselves. If Casyl realised that, then the king surely would too. Danae was the only female in the army, and a powerful one at that. Her absence wouldn’t go unnoticed.
They marched into the city, where the king had left part of the army under the charge of one of the generals, Salkin.
He had been with the king for as long as Casyl could remember. He was the king’s most trusted adviser. Casyl had always thought he was a snake. He would have known all about his father’s plans.
The bulk of the army stayed camped outside the city gates. The prisoners would be kept out there under guard until they could be moved to the mine and put to work retrieving the Lifesource.
If it was so powerful it could power cities and make bombs, and it was the source of the fae’s powers, what would his father do with it? The thought haunted him.
They walked through the streets towards the palace. The remaining buildings were scorched black. Most had been destroyed by Danae’s fire. The palace had been left untouched deliberately, he now realised.
Upon entering the palace, Salkin came to greet them. He’d made himself at home.
“That was quick!” Salkin joked with the king.
Casyl’s blood boiled.
“We have some new recruits for the mine,” the king said, smiling. He turned to one of his personal guards. “Bring me Danae.”
Oh, curses. He would discover that she was missing.
Tharos appeared before them.
“My lord.” He bowed.
“Where’s Danae?” the king asked the guard.
“She couldn’t be found,” the guard said.
“No matter. Tharos, we need to secure the mine. Send a unit of men to guard it.”
“My lord, we have a problem,” Tharos said.
He was tense. “Scouts have just come in. King Elthar and his army have followed us. They’ve come through the rift, and most of his army is heading straight for the mine.
They must have captured our guards. Their army isn’t as depleted as we’d thought.
Elthar has made a camp at the rift entrance and remains there with some of his men. ”
The king’s face turned red. “He’s done what?” he spat.
“If they reach the mine, they’ll control that and the rift entrance,” Tharos said.
“I’ll deal with them, my lord,” Salkin said.
Tharos flinched. It was subtle, but Casyl noticed.
“No!” the king said. “You stay here and guard the city. Tharos will take half of the army and secure the mine. Casyl and I will see what my brother is up to. He thinks he can take this from me?” The veins on the king’s forehead stood out as his face tightened.
What was Tharos up to? He’d known him long enough to know when he was planning something.
They readied the army, Tharos marching off towards the mine as Casyl and the king travelled towards Mount Ryjul.
Evening neared, and they’d already fought one battle today.
As they approached the mountain, they sent scouts to verify the information. There was a small force camped outside the rift at the base of the mountain. Roughly five hundred men.
The king laughed at Elthar’s folly. “We’ll force them back through where they belong. Have the archers positioned to rain down arrows on the rift. We’ll push them back and kill them as they go through.”
They advanced on the small army, Casyl leading the charge as his father stayed back to watch and fight through Casyl. He preferred using him to his pet beast. Maybe it made him feel more involved, vicariously experiencing the battle through Casyl. The beast was a beast after all.
He wondered for a moment what it would be like to be in its mind.
Elthar’s banner waved in the distance. His soldiers stood ready to fight them. They were either brave or foolish to stand against such overwhelming numbers rather than flee.
They charged. The front line of infantry crashed into the enemy like a tsunami.
All they had to do was push them up the mountain, back through the rift, and watch as the archers finished them.
That was when Casyl realised it was a trap.
His body continued to fight, oblivious, swinging his sword from his horse, as he danced around enemies.
They were avoiding him. No one engaged him unless he pursued them.
Then his view of the battle changed. The full extent of Elthar’s army was revealed as hidden troops appeared from either side of the battlefield, closing around Tiryn’s men. The small army had been a decoy.
It took a moment for the king to realise what was happening, but when he did, his body froze. He could feel the king’s panic as it squeezed his mind.
Only Tharos could have concocted such an illusion. Had he planned all of this?
A thrown axe struck his armour and buried itself in his chest. The impact knocked him from his horse. He had no control over his body, but he could still feel every consequence.
He stood and tore the axe from his armour, leaving a gaping hole behind. Then he was running towards his father.
Elthar’s army consumed them. There was no space to run or fight as they crowded in. The ground became a bog. Men were slipping in the mud, fighting more with their fists than weapons, as there was no room to swing them.
His body tried to push through the men, desperately trying to reach the king, but he couldn’t get through the mob.
He slipped and went down into the mud, his face buried.
There was a weight on top of him as others fell.
He scrambled up onto his knees and tried to get his footing, and then he saw it was too late.
The king was mobbed and dragged through the battle towards the rift, his men powerless to stop it. Ruven had him; his strength and speed were unmatched.
Casyl followed, pushing his way through the fighting men. The king was desperately trying to save himself.
By the time Casyl reached the rift, Ruven had dragged his father through and pinned him to the ground. He thrashed and raged but could not free himself. Amelia stood to the side.
Amelia.
Awareness flooded back as Casyl regained control of his body. His skin tingled, and warmth rushed through his veins. Even his breath felt more natural. He stretched his fingers as his hands and limbs became his own again.
“Casyl?” she whispered.
He gazed at her. Her eyes searched his face.
“It’s me.”
He knew what he had to do.
He walked over to his father and stood looking down at him. The king became still in Ruven’s grip.
“Casyl, kill him!” his father ordered.
Did Tiryn honestly believe that, after everything he had done, Casyl would help him?
He looked down at his father lying on the floor. One man had caused so much suffering.
“Casyl?”
The king’s face changed when he realised that he’d lost his control. He looked old for the first time. Casyl almost pitied him. He was his father, but the image of all those innocent people, murdered, lying in the streets, made him, a hardened warrior, feel sick.
“Everything I did was for our people,” the king snarled.
“Everything you did was for you.”
“They inherited everything we lost,” Tiryn said. He turned to Amelia. “You have never watched children born without the gifts their ancestors possessed. The humans live above our Lifesource, burn it for power and call us monsters for wanting back what made us whole.”
Casyl looked at Amelia.
This was for her and for everyone who had died needlessly because of Tiryn’s greed. Finally, this was for him.
“Don’t send me to the Shadowlands,” he begged.
He lifted his sword into the air and brought it down across his father’s neck, slicing his head clean off.
He sank to his knees, staring at the severed head as blood seeped into the earth, staining the forest floor.
It was over. He was free. The relief struck him so violently it almost felt like grief.
His hands trembled as he brought them to his face. He recoiled at them, at what they’d done.
A warm hand squeezed his shoulder as Ruven walked past him, leaving them alone. He looked up into Amelia’s eyes. She had been the reason he’d been able to do it.
Amelia. Everything he’d done to her.
“Amelia, it wasn’t… I never—”
“I know now,” she interrupted him and sank down next to him. “I thought you were going to kill me,” she whispered.
“I would have. He would have used my hands to do it.” He exhaled sharply.
“What I did to you…” he paused, flexing his fingers.
“I can only blame him for so much of it. Before the rift… I was the one in control. I kept you in that cell. I put a dagger to your throat. I understand if you can never forgive me.”
Her hand hovered above his before closing around it, stilling the tremor in his fingers. If that was all she could offer, it was still more than he deserved.
“I can try.”