Chapter 10
Chapter
Ten
ARA
Despite dawn lining the horizon, it’s still dark. The palace and its grounds lie silent around us. Solaris tempers his flames so that his feathers resemble a bed of coals, with embers like glowing eyes nestled into the darkness.
Shouts of alarm echo out into the night while we pass one of the watch towers, but we gain height, and the noise falls back behind us.
Since we’re close and I know the area, we head home. Giving the fortress a wide berth, we land half an hour later in the valley below, close to the mist. It’s the same area where we leave the food and other offerings every equinox.
The swirling, wavering white mass in front of me is so thick that I can’t see anything past three steps in.
“If I ask you to wait here—” I start, but Solaris’s snort interrupts me.
“You could try to snuff out my inner flame instead. It would be easier.”
“Yeah, I didn’t think you would go for it.” I give him a crooked smile. “Well, then let’s do this,” I whisper and step into the mist.
The noises are instantly muted, the chirping of birds, rustling of small animals, and even the sound of my steps fall away until it’s eerily quiet.
My perception narrows to only me, Solaris, and the spongy ground we walk on.
Other than that, there is only … mist. The air is musty, damp with it, the moisture reaching for my face like cold fingers and never letting go.
The dark shapes of trees and bushes only become visible once you almost run into them, and the silence is starting to freak me out.
“What do I do now?” I ask Solaris.
“This was your brilliant plan,” he tells me. “Maybe we should…”
“Hello? I’m here to meet Tynan of the mist court,” I call.
“…stay as silent as possible.” Solaris finishes his sentence.
“How else are we supposed to find anything in this white mess?” I ask him.
“I’m more concerned about what could find us,” he replies dryly.
I cast out my perception, searching for magic, and … it’s everywhere. The mist around us is pure magic, its glow so bright it’s blinding and so distracting that I nearly miss the dark spots of missing magic moving toward us.
“We might have a problem,” I say, and Solaris curses as soon as he plucks the images out of my mind.
I try to pierce the wall of white around us with my eyes, but it’s utterly useless, so I stick to my other senses.
“Can you fly in this? ” I ask Solaris.
“I can, but we would probably end up in the next tree. I think we have a better chance if we go back to where we came from.”
We retreat but haven’t gone far when a long, dark, spindly leg swipes at me, sending me crashing into Solaris.
A big, ugly head rushes me, fangs ready to strike, and I scramble for my dagger.
Solaris’s beak strikes true, hitting one of the too many eyes of the monster, and it vanishes back into the white with a screech that makes me want to cover my ears.
“Thank you,” I sigh.
Unease settles over me, the leaking drip of fear, like something is watching us. That I can’t see anything fuels the dread that starts to take over my body. My muscles tense with the knowledge that something is waiting for us.
Solaris cries out in pain and bursts into flames only a few steps later, and I nearly jump out of my skin.
The stench of burned … something permeates the air and makes me gag.
I face Solaris.
“How bad is it?” I demand to know, but run out in a hiss when something slashes at my legs, drawing blood. I whirl around, but there is nothing.
“Concentrate on staying alive, and don’t worry about me. I’m hard to kill, remember?” Solaris says, ending in an angry screech. “Unfortunately, that isn’t true for you.” He finishes a few beats later. The pain in his voice makes my temper flare. No one is hurting him and getting away with it.
Flames billow around me, and in my frustration, I push against the magic surrounding me, wishing we would see just a little more. To my utter shock, a circle free of mist forms around us. I look at Solaris, my flames burning bright and high next to his.
“That is a handy trick you could have used earlier,” he deadpans.
I move forward, trying to push in the direction we came from, but nothing happens.
“It would be even better if I knew how I did it.”
“Who do we have here?” a deep voice asks, and I whip around. But I can’t see anyone.
“I’m…”
“Oh, I know who you are,” the voice replies.
“Why the fuck are you asking, then?” I snap. I hear two male chuckles before the mist parts, and a man steps out. His dark cloak swirls like the mist behind him, blending with it.
“If I hadn’t known your gift’s signature, I would never have answered your rude announcement, and Arachne’s maidens would have taken care of you.”
“Well, I feel honored,” I reply dryly while he inclines his head.
“We have to work on your tact before you are of any use to us.”
“Maybe I don’t want to be of any use,” I say, crossing my arms.
“But you want something, don’t you?”
“Answers,” I state.
“And why should I provide them?” He looks me up and down. “Why should I trust someone who is not just tactless but also has no control?”
“Oh, she has some control.” Lorcan steps out of the mist. “We also already have an agreement.” His eyes sparkle while he surveys the flames around me. “And I’m not worried about her burning me.”
“You,” I say dryly and stand my ground while he approaches.
“Are you not going to run today? I’m disappointed.” He does his weird head tilt, betraying his non-human nature. “But I guess you’re not afraid of fire anymore,” he muses.
“No, I’m not.”
“Pity. I could have done with a chase. Ready to start where we left off, then?”
I nod, but the dark stranger interrupts us.
“Let’s get back to the keep first. And cease the fire show. You draw too much attention. Stay next to me, and you are safe.” The warning is clear: if we leave his side, we are fair game.
Solaris is back to black long before I manage to wrestle down the flames. I scan him for injuries, relieved when I can’t see any.
“Are you alright?” I ask Solaris.
“Nothing a good night of sleep won’t fix,” he tells me. “How about you?”
I shrug. I’ve had worse, and we both know it.
We follow the stranger and Lorcan into the mist. Maybe I should be worried, but I’m rather excited at the prospect of finally getting answers.
“I’m worried enough for both of us,” Solaris lets me know, staying close by my side.
“Hey, maybe I’m now hard to kill, if I have an inner flame like you,” I muse.
He snorts. “Yeah, let’s not test that theory.”
“Can’t you ask other Phoenixes? Like your parents?”
Solaris goes suspiciously quiet.
“Solaris?”
“Hmm.”
“What is it?”
“I’m not really on speaking terms with them right now…” He trudges on next to me, without elaborating.
“Why is that?” I look up at him, but he is even harder to read than usual with his head fading into the mist above.
“Eh… a disagreement, nothing to worry about.”
We walk in silence for a moment.
“It’s because of me, isn’t it?” I ask hesitantly.
He sighs. “No, it’s because of my decision.”
“Your decision to bond with me?”
His silence is answer enough. Great. Why do people have opinions or plans for my future without even talking to me first?
And how the fuck dare they punish Solaris for choosing me? I’m so sick of falling in line and being pushed around.
The mist thins out, and Solaris immediately takes flight. His relief at being airborne again floods my body, relaxing me. Walls appear next to us, and it’s so unexpected that I’m startled. There is a city in the middle of the mists?
I crane my neck. The dark silhouettes of heavily armed men and women appear in the thinning white on top of the wall.
We pass through a massive archway with a raised grate easily fitting six men marching side by side.
Catapults and archers complete the lines atop the wall.
They are well-prepared for an attack. For a moment, I’m worried about Solaris, but there are no shouts of alarm.
“How often do I have to remind you I’m not that easy to kill?”
“I can still worry about you,” I reply, and my lips twitch at his reluctant agreement.
As soon as we venture into the city, vigilance is replaced by what appears to be everyday bustle. Children are even playing in the street.
A wolf-pup and a cub tumble into my way, playing, but it seems I’m the only one startled.
My two companions step around them without breaking their stride, as if it’s normal to have wild animals running around in their city.
It’s only when a little boy runs towards them and turns into a fox mid-stride, shredding his clothes, that I realize they have to be shifters too.
I have never met a shifter before—apart from Lorcan—and even less so their children. What is this place?
We are greeted with respect and smiling faces, devotion even, and it’s all directed at the stranger walking next to me, which seems at odds with his dark and menacing aura.
I watch him out of the corner of my eye.
He has the fluid movements of a trained warrior, reminding me of Tate. I shut that thought down immediately.
We close in on a tall building, a fortress, and pass through another heavily armed archway into a courtyard, the mist dancing around us, glowing in the rising sun.
The men head for the building, but I stop short. Solaris won’t be able to follow.
“I don’t like it either,” he tells me, circling above.
“Will you be alright?” I ask, and he snorts.
“I’m worried about you. I’ll be watching. Stay close to a window, so I’ll be able to get you.”
“Will do,” I tell him before walking over to the two men who stopped next to a fortified doorway.
“ Don’t do anything stupid, ” Solaris replies.
“Like what? Erupting in flames?”
“No, there is nothing wrong with that. But don’t take an ice bath.”
I roll my eyes at him and follow the men inside.