33. The Battle
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
THE BATTLE
Despite her ferocious speed, Oyanni somehow picked up the pace as we burst through the edge of the forest and into the open. In an instant, my senses were overwhelmed.
The road had become a battleground. Some fought with lightning and fire, while others had become nightmarish beasts, tearing into their enemies with teeth and claws created through changing magic. Arrows whistled through the air above our heads, and flashes of colored light chased the last remnants of night from the sky. Voices mingled together; shouted orders, howled battle cries, the wailing of the fallen and their comrades. Bodies littered the ground. My eyes squeezed shut in an attempt to ward away the horrific sight.
Luckily, Oyanni didn’t hesitate. She skirted around the fighting as best she could, hooves tearing up the ground where they fell. I could only cling to her, bent close to her neck in an effort to make myself as small a target as possible. The scent of fur and sweat filled my nose.
It occurred to me at that point that this was a terrible idea. I could have headed back through The Rift with Luenki and come back with reinforcements instead of leaving her to explain the situation alone. Well, they probably wouldn’t have listened to me, but I could have tried. At least then, I would have been flying in with an army, and not just a terrified me.
Someone galloped across the path in front of us, and Oyanni was forced to dodge. A jolt of pain shot through the wrist that was wrapped in the rein strap as I was thrown to one side, the breath knocked out of me. The ground loomed below, and for an instant, I thought I was about to be squashed in a rain of hooves. The world spun above me. At the last second, Oyanni managed to shift her body, getting herself back underneath me before I truly fell.
“Oh my God, oh my God,” I screeched into her neck.
We careened around a few perplexed soldiers toward the entrance to the palace, but nobody tried to stop us. Once we passed underneath the portcullis, Oyanni came to an abrupt halt, sending me sprawling against her shoulder. I shimmied back into an upright position right away, fighting to catch my breath. Every part of me hurt, my hair was a mess, and I was coated with sweat, but I knew this was only the beginning. The courtyard was covered in mats for the wounded. A handful of menders were spread out among the occupied mats, tending to the most urgent injuries first. There weren’t enough healers to go around.
Gritting my teeth in determination, I tilted myself to one side and half-slid, half-fell in what had to be the world’s sloppiest dismount. Pain shot through both knees when my feet hit the hard ground, and I swayed on the spot. Somehow, perhaps through sheer force of will, I stayed standing. They need me , a little voice said in the back of my head, reminding me why I was here. Riel needs me. I won’t lose him.
Please be okay, I begged him silently, though I knew he couldn’t hear me.
Once I’d recovered from the jarring landing, I tottered across the courtyard, making my way to the injured. The one nearest me was a young woman who held her body tight with pain. An enemy’s arrow protruded from the meat of her thigh .
She jumped in surprise as I dropped to my knees beside her.
“Let me help,” I implored, reaching out. My hand hesitated over her wound. She looked at me with wide eyes but made no attempt to pull away. Could I heal around the arrow? No, I probably have to take it out first. Oh, God.
I sat frozen and trembling while my internal voice screamed at me to get it together. Sensing my internal conflict, the woman warrior reached down and gripped one end of the arrow. She breathed in, breathed out, set her jaw, and snapped the shaft into two clean pieces. The end that was lodged in her leg came out with a quick tug, accompanied by a fresh gush of too-bright blood. Bile roiled in my empty stomach. I forced down the nausea and grasped her knee. Immediately, I could sense her pain as if it were my own. The fresh wound was demanding in a way old injuries and illnesses never had been—it took my breath away.
I can’t afford to get distracted. I ducked my head and focused, closing my eyes tightly against the vision of gore. Underneath my hand, the flesh twitched and spasmed in response to my magic, and muscle and skin proceeded to knit themselves back together from the inside out.
When I drew away, even her armor no longer bore a mark. She examined the area and gave me a single, firm nod before surging to her feet. I leapt back, startled, and landed hard on my hands. Pain shot through both wrists before being soothed by the residual magic that still flowed through me. My eyes followed my patient as she raced for the exit.
I did it. I can do this .
A labored moan drew my attention. I whirled around to see another bedridden fighter, this one with both arms bent at unnatural angles. My hand went to my mouth in horror. He caught my gaze and held it, and my feet moved automatically.
Several minutes and two more patients later, I realized what I was doing. Shit, I got sidetracked. The warriors all needed my help, but so did Riel. Is he still inside ?
As I stumbled toward the front door, my eyes landed on someone in my path. The older man noticed me, his jaw slackening in recognition. It was Farisen, the castle’s head mender. He crouched by the side of another fallen soldier. Beads of perspiration trailed down his temples, and his hands shook with effort where they applied pressure to an appalling wound. It was like the patient’s armor and skin had melted away underneath one set of ribs, leaving a mess of red tissue and white bone behind. I had to look away and control my breathing.
When the nausea passed, I doggedly moved forward to join them.
“I got it,” I whispered, bringing my shaking hands down around Farisen’s. He hesitated before withdrawing. I got to work without delay. Everything turned gold as I channeled the largest amount of mana yet, forcing everything I could at the devastating trauma before me. I heard a sharp intake of breath—from the patient or from Farisen, I wasn’t sure. I hoped to God it was the patient, because I wasn’t sure that he was breathing at all. Please be okay .
Then I felt it: a life force rising to my demand to heal the shell that housed it. Relief flooded me, and I redoubled my efforts, tackling the wound in pieces from the inside out. It was a delicate process—there was more than just skin and muscle that needed rebuilding.
I wasn’t sure how long it took before the gold faded from my vision, but a headache was forming behind my eyeballs. My hands shook violently as I retracted them.
“Have you seen Riel?” I asked, my voice coming out a little breathless.
Farisen just stared at me, his mouth drawn in a stubborn line. My confusion turned to anger, and then to fury. What the hell? I just helped him. Did I not do enough? Maybe Riel told him to protect me also, and he didn’t want to say? This whole thing was infuriating.
Still shaking, I raised a threatening finger and put as much menace as I could into my words. “If you don’t tell me where he is right now, for the love of all things holy, I will figure out how to unheal, and I will use your toes for practice. Then I will heal them and do it again.”
The mender’s eyes widened. A wary look came over his visage, telling me that the message had gotten across as intended. He finally inclined his head toward the castle.
So, Riel was still there? My brain conjured images of a bloody, vaguely man-shaped lump on the palace floor. No. I pushed the images away. Without wasting another moment, I jumped to my feet and bolted for the front door. It was closed, and without knowing the secret to getting it to open, all I could do was throw all my body against it. I tried twice, not sparing a thought for how it was sure to leave a bruise. Luckily, it gave way. Shoving past the half-opened door, I stumbled onto a scene not too far from what I had imagined. My heart seized in my chest.
Solois stood to one side of the room, looming over a prone form at his feet. There was no question who it was. While there was no noticeable pool of blood underneath Riel’s body, and all four limbs looked intact from here, that was no comfort—he didn’t seem to be moving.
“Leave him alone!” The words burst out of me in a broken cry.
Solois turned slightly. The side of his shirt was in tatters, the flesh underneath scorched and raw. If that was anything to go by, Riel had gotten at least one good hit in. A fierce surge of pride rose within me, only to be dashed by Solois’s response to my arrival.
“Look, the human came to save you,” Solois said in English, his tone mocking. “This is perfect. You two traitors can hang out here together while I deal with your mess.” He prodded Riel’s body with a foot. The motion elicited a pained groan.
He’s alive! Adrenaline flooded my body, and I nearly collapsed to my knees in relief. I can still fix him. I just have to think fast.
I couldn’t fight Solois… but I had to get close enough to make contact with Riel. Maybe I could distract him somehow, get him to let his guard down.
“I’m surprised you’re not out there,” I tried. It was a miracle my voice came out steady.
“I was tasked with ensuring that the American spy does not have the chance to escape,” Solois responded coolly. “I didn’t anticipate that my brother would get in the way, but no matter. Once I’m finished here, I will be joining the defense of our people.”
My eyes drifted to Riel. “Where does he figure into that? You’re brothers. Isn’t he your people?”
Solois gave a casual, one-shoulder shrug. “He defied our father’s orders to let you go. Aligning himself with an enemy makes him an enemy too, regardless of blood.”
“I see.”
I drew out the words in an attempt to gain extra seconds. Even as I racked my brain for potential excuses, any options at all, nothing came to mind. “I won’t try to escape,” was my next attempt, “so let me heal him. Then you can throw us both in a dungeon or whatever.”
I figured it was best to tackle one thing at a time. So long as we were both alive, we could try to plan some kind of daring escape. Maybe I could get Riel sanctuary back in America.
“Bargaining only works if you have the upper hand,” Solois pointed out. He looked down at Riel and tilted his head. “From where I stand, that doesn’t seem to be the case.”
“I can heal that for you,” I offered in desperation, nodding toward the wound on his side. “It has to hurt. I would only need a moment.”
I watched his stance adjust as he considered my proposition.
“I won’t let you go just for that,” Solois remarked, eyeing me apprehensively .
Jesus, this guy doesn’t have a decent bone in his body. But then, maybe I could use that.
I tried to appear meek and sorrowful. “I wouldn’t have a chance anyway,” I sighed, letting my shoulders sag. “You’re too strong.”
Whoever said that flattery would get you nowhere had apparently never had the pleasure of meeting someone like Solois. He grinned, white teeth flashing in the light, and spread his arms to bare his torso to me. “Have at it, then, human,” he said. “But make it quick, and don’t try anything. My brother was foolish enough to fall for your trick, and he’s paid the price. I won’t let the rest of the family suffer for his mistake.”
I blinked, not quite believing my luck. Did that actually work? When he waved his hands impatiently, I snapped out of it and scrambled forward. I tried to keep my eyes on Solois as I approached so as not to reveal my true intentions. Tilting my head as though examining his wound, I crouched by his side, making a show of going slowly and wincing all the way.
Behind me, I felt for Riel with one hand. As a second stretched by, then two, I was terrified that Solois would hear my heart beating out of my chest and know what I was up to. When my fingers brushed against an arm, I almost cried with relief. As if picking up on my sense of urgency, mana flowed through me with an intensity that left me breathless. I dared a glance downward. Before my eyes, Riel’s wounds were knitting shut, angry red giving way to healthy pink skin. Internally, I could feel the sharp, raw pain of his fresh wounds ebb away into nothingness. Riel breathed a sharp inhale.
The sound finally caught Solois’s attention. His head snapped around, and I saw his expression darken with outrage as he pieced together what I had done.
Luckily, Riel was already moving.
He grabbed my hand and snatched me off my feet, pulling me into his chest and rolling us both out of reach of Solois before he could retaliate. The world spun around me, but cradled against Riel’s body, I barely felt the motion. I clung to him and squeezed my eyes shut, breathing him in and reassuring myself that he was here, I was here; we were both alive and here together. We came to a stop some distance away, and I reluctantly let go of him.
“Are you okay?” he demanded, springing to one knee. He held me at arm’s length while his eyes scoured me from head to toe, inspecting me for any signs of injury.
“Am I okay?” I repeated in disbelief, going rigid in his grip. I saw red. “Let’s just recap for a moment, shall we? I come running back here to save your stupid ass with a savior complex, and not only are people dying literally everywhere, but you’re getting the shit kicked out of you by your brother, and you have the nerve?—”
“Yes, yes.” Riel wrenched me into a brief, tight hug, and my rant died on my lips. Releasing me, he hopped to his feet. One arm remained stretched protectively in front of me as he faced down his brother, who stared us down in return.
“Thank you,” he said to me, voice thick with emotion, “but you shouldn’t have come.”
“I wasn’t just going to leave you,” I grumbled, getting to my own feet and standing tall behind him. “I wanted to help. This way, we can fight together.”
Solois hadn’t budged from where he stood, but he gave me a dirty look, as though he couldn’t believe I’d managed to pull one over on him. I was tempted to needle him further, but there were other things that took precedence right now.
“Oyanni’s waiting outside,” I said quietly, easing forward to grasp Riel’s sleeve without taking my eyes off the enemy. “We can make a run for it. Come with me?”
Solois sneered in response. “I’m not looking to waste any more time here,” he announced. “I’m sorry to say that neither of you will be leaving here alive.”
Riel didn’t grace him with an answer. His arm stayed raised in front of me .
“Riel—” I began, reaching out to give his arm an imploring tug.
Solois moved. Riel’s sleeve was ripped from my fingers a heartbeat later as he moved forward to intercept his brother’s attack. I reached for him, my mouth opening to warn him.
Except that Solois didn’t go after Riel. Instead, Riel stood alone a few steps away, staring back at me with a confused look on his face. The faint presence at my back and a whisper of a breeze were all the warning I got before I was struck from behind.
Not understanding what had happened, I stumbled forward a step before catching myself. I meant to keep moving, to run to Riel and to stand at his side, but I was finding it difficult to breathe for some reason. Bewildered, I tilted my head downward. My eyes widened at the elongated fingers tipped with claws that sprouted from my ribcage.
Was that… Solois’s hand?
The taste of copper and bile started climbing up my throat just before the pain registered. With a grotesque sound and a violent surge of uncomfortable pressure, Solois withdrew his hand. Riel scrambled to catch me, reaching me a split second before my legs finished buckling. Thank heavens, I thought absently. Face-planting on the marble would have been super uncool.
Riel’s arms gripped me. He screamed something, but I had trouble understanding the words. Why couldn’t I feel my legs? His fingers dug into my arms, but though I tried to shake him off, I barely managed a twitch. Then I tried to tell him that I was fine, but that he held me too tight. All that came out of my mouth was a choked gurgle and a gush of bright red blood. Riel’s expression contorted in fear; I never imagined I would see that look on his face.
“What have you done?!” someone shouted.
Riel , I determined belatedly, as everything in me went blessedly numb.
“What have you done?” His voice broke .
It’s okay , I tried to say. I love you . But my mouth refused to form the words. My limbs were growing heavier by the second, the shock and pain great and terrible and all-consuming.
“... draw it in,” Riel was saying. No, commanding. “Avery, are you listening? You have to reach for your power. Stay awake! You have to heal yourself.”
Something else grabbed his attention. Light flashed in the background. Riel grunted, and I went weightless for a moment. There was an echoing shriek of pain. I felt myself slipping away, but before I succumbed, I was being shaken back to awareness once more.
“Avery, focus!”
The pale blue light of Riel’s magic danced over the bloody mess of my chest. It wasn’t doing much—at that point, what was left of my lungs was heavy with liquid—but the pain eased slightly. I was trying to find my inner fire. I could see the flicker, a lick of candle flame, but it sputtered as if the wick was drowning. I heard a distressed sort of groan. Was that me? God, what an unattractive sound . Everything ran around my head in dizzying circles.
“You must, Avery, you must,” Riel chanted.
He rocked me back and forth, trembling like a newborn fawn. My forehead creased in concentration as I dug hard for the thread that connected me to the river of power. It kept slipping out of my grip. I closed my eyes, reaching for the magic, and Riel’s touch became more and more distant.
My last coherent thought was that if there was a God—or a Goddess, as the case may be—I could really use a miracle right about then.