by E. L. Todd
He tested the sword in his hand, spinning it around, making it whirl in a flash of bright red color. “This is a powerful sword.” He held it up to the light, taking a closer look at the scales fused together. “It can slice a stalk of grass and break through a shield—if you know how to use it.”
“Well, we both know I don’t.”
“I’ve fought against a blade such as this in battle many times. To say I was unintimidated would be a lie.” He spun it around his wrist again before he lowered it to his side. “But a blade is only as powerful as the one who carries it. It takes time—a lot of time. But we don’t have the luxury.” He turned the blade, holding the hilt out for her to take.
The blade suddenly felt heavier once it was in her grasp. It had hung on her hip over the last few months, but she never removed it from the scabbard. “Damn, this is a lot heavier than the branch.”
“Which is why we’re in armor.” He was in the same attire as the first time they’d met at the border—except his flower medals had been removed from his chest. His chest plate was black with a flower in the center, but instead of it being metallic and shiny like the guards of Anastille, it had the ability to bend but not snap. The armor on his shoulders was dark green and sleek, so a blade would slide away from his arm. His black vambraces were jagged and sliced irregularly, so he could catch a blade and fling it from the hands of his opponent.
She wore the same attire, and it wasn’t as heavy as she imagined it would be. It was still uncomfortable, but she wouldn’t complain. She wanted to wield her weapon like she knew how to use it—and that was finally happening. “Where did you get this armor?”
“A favor from a friend.”
“They made it even though they knew it was for me?”
He gave a nod. “Their loyalty to me is stronger than their contempt for you.”
“Contempt…ouch.”
“Let’s begin.” He stepped back and unsheathed his green sword. “I apologize in advance for hurting you—but there is no other way to train you. You’ve been taught maneuverability, defense, and balance. Remember those skills because you will need them. You can’t beat me, or any other opponent, with strength. But you can be quicker, smarter, swifter.”
She held up her blade and took her stance. “I’ll do my best, so you do yours.”
He spun the green blade in his hand and took his first steps, moving sideways, immediately circling her like prey.
She pivoted as he turned, waiting for his attack.
He continued to spin the blade around his wrist, his dark eyes staring her down like a real opponent.
This isn’t terrifying at all…
Focus.
Callon made his move, launching several feet forward, his blade striking down.
She blocked it just in time, stumbling backward from the immense force he exerted.
He moved again, his blade clashing hard against hers. He pushed her back, controlled the fight, and then he gave a flurry of hits that happened with lightning speed.
She caught each one—but barely.
Callon stepped back, spun the sword around his wrist, and then stared her down.
I swear, he never blinks.
Focus.
He leaped forward again, this time moving so fast that she couldn’t keep up.
Her knees were kicked from underneath her, and then the blade ended up at her neckline.
She breathed, the blade just an inch from her neck.
He released her and stepped away. “You exceeded my expectations. But we have a lot of work to do.”
At least I got a compliment in there…
Enough with the jokes, Cora.
What else am I supposed to do? Just sit and cry?
FOCUS.
Callon rushed her again, sword clashing against hers, her body forced back as he took over the fight.
She barely met his hits, her forehead already coated in sweat.
He was at physical ease, his endurance and strength giving him an advantage she couldn’t match. There was no sweat. No exertion. No breaths. “You can’t win a fight with defense. You can only hold it. Make your move.”
“You’re too fast—”
“Then be faster.”
Pretty.
Her fingers lost their grip on the hilt, and the blade tumbled to the grass.
Callon didn’t bother with the killing blow. Her defeat was obvious enough. “Pick up your blade.”
She moved to her knees but didn’t reach for her sword. Flare?
Yes.
The smile took hold of her face as she pictured the beautiful red scales and yellow eyes. How are you?
“Cora. Up.”
Exhausted.
Why?
Because I crossed the desert with four people on my back.
What…? Are you…are you here?
If here is Eden Star, then yes.
“Cora?” Callon kneeled and grabbed her shoulder, his face taking up her entire view. “Are you alright?”
“Yeah, I just need a second…”
He took her hand and helped her to her feet.
Come to us. We have something for you.
I’ll be right there!
“You’re speaking to someone.” Callon’s face came back into view.
“Yes. It’s Flare.”
Now he looked even more intimidating than he did in battle. “We’re training right now. Your time is mine. Whatever he has to say is not more important than the instruction I’m desperately trying to give you.”
Flare? Ashe asked.
I’ll tell you about it later. She reached out to Flare once more. I need a couple hours. Callon is training me.
We’ll wait, Pretty.
Thanks. I’m sorry I can’t come sooner.
You’re worth the wait.
The moment the instruction was finished, she thought about her friends waiting for her. “Callon, I need your help.”
“What is it?” He sheathed his sword and drank from his canteen.
“Flare is outside Eden Star. Wants me to meet him.”
He lowered his water, as livid as she anticipated.
“I can’t take the passage because I’m meeting someone. So…can you get me in and out?”
“Why?”
“He says he has something for me—”
“They have something for you. General Rush, the murderer, and his mindless dragon.”
Grrrrrrrrrrrrr.
“Callon, please.”
“He’s not welcome here.”
“They aren’t coming into Eden Star—”
“But they are close enough.” He whipped away, marching to his pack by the waterfall.
“Callon—”
“Haven’t you asked me for enough?” He spun back around, his eyes snarling.
She faced his rage with a slow and steady breath. “I know this is hard for you—”
“You’ve met your father, the greatest king that ever ruled Eden Star, and this is not hard for you? I hoped a single conversation with him would be enough for you to hate Rush as much as you should. But I was wrong.”
“Callon…” She was choked up with wet eyes, and her following words emerged with a long pause. “You have no idea how hard it is for me…”
He turned his head away, closing off entirely.
“But if King Lux and his army marched on these lands, he’d be the first to come to our defense. As much as you don’t like it, he’s our ally, and he’s the most powerful ally we can have.”
His stare remained on the waterfall.
“He’s not that person anymore—”
“No amount of contrition will bring my king, my brother, my best friend back from the dead.” He stepped away and grabbed his pack from the ground.
She stared at his backside, watching him sort through his rage.
He won’t help you—not this time.
He will.
Cora—
He just needs a minute.
We must us
e the passage.
Cora watched her uncle.
Cora?
Callon turned back around to face her, releasing a deep sigh. “Return your weapon and armor. Then I will take you.”
Callon escorted her out of Eden Star.
General Aldon was at the perimeter, decorated in the medals of his status. With his guards, he intercepted Callon and Cora. His stare lingered before it shifted to Cora. Then it went back to Callon again.
“I’m escorting Cora on a tour of the wildlands.”
General Aldon stared.
“We’ll return in a few hours.”
“She doesn’t have the clearance to come and go—”
“But I do. I take full responsibility for her actions while she’s in my care.”
Just as before, General Aldon didn’t impede. He gave a nod to the guards and stepped aside.
Callon moved forward, Cora close beside him.
They moved deeper into the forest, far away from the sights of the guards.
“Callon?”
He took the lead, moving through the stalks of grass with little disturbance to the ecosystem around him. “Yes?”
“Have you ever…thought about being king?”
He halted in his tracks and, after a long bout of silence, turned around to face her. “Why would I?”
“Because people treat you like you are.”
“You confuse respect with obedience.”
“When it comes to you, they do both.”
He faced forward again and continued on his walk.
“Aren’t you as entitled to the throne as she is?”
“No.”
“Why not—”
Callon spun back to her. “Queen Delwyn is our rightful queen. I don’t have to agree with her decisions to respect her as my ruler. I serve the crown—regardless who wears it.”
“Even though she’s lying to her people about my existence? Even though she removed your rank because you needed to save your niece? The king’s daughter?”
“Cora.” He lowered his voice, his eyes angry. “Tread carefully. You speak of treason.”
“To question King Lux’s rule is treason because he’s a tyrant. Is Queen Delwyn a tyrant?”
His eyes narrowed. “We will speak no more of this.”
“She doesn’t seem like the best person for the throne…at least not from where I stand—”
“Because you’re a child.”
She shook her head. “I’m old enough to know corruption when I see it.”
He knows it too. Just doesn’t want to see it.
Angry eyes bored into hers, but nothing more was said. He turned around and continued his trek into the wildlands. “Where are they?”
“I’ll ask.” We’re southwest of Eden Star. Where are you?
Flare’s voice emerged. Pretty, you’re close. He sent an image of the rocks at the edge of the forest. Come quickly. I’ve missed you.
Cora stepped out of the trees and saw them gathered together near the rocks. They sat around a cold campfire. Cora recognized three of them from the prison cell, along with Bridge. But there was only one person she stared at.
He sat on a rock near the pile of cold wood, arms on his knees, head slightly down as he listened to Bridge across from him. Scruff was on his jaw, his hair was a little longer, and his long-sleeved shirt fit the muscles of his arms a little tighter.
“She’s here.” The woman with dark hair stood up first and dusted off her pants with her palms.
The rest turned their heads.
Blue eyes locked on hers.
Hers locked on his.
Shit…I forgot how hot he is.
Hot? Is someone on fire?
No, it’s an expression… Never mind.
Fire safety is no joke, Cora.
Bridge and the others rose to their feet.
Rush remained seated.
Bridge took the lead with the others behind him. “We meet again.” A smile was plastered on his face, and he embraced her once they were close enough. “It’s been so long. We saw each other at Rock Island, but…didn’t really count.”
“Wish that were under better circumstances too.” She pulled away and reflected his smile with her own.
Bridge gestured to the woman beside him. “This is Lilac—my sister.”
Lilac sized her up and down before giving a nod. “Hey.”
Cora gave her an awkward wave. “Hey.”
“And this is Zane.” Bridge patted him on the back. “And then Liam. He’s a scholar too.”
“It’s nice to meet you all,” she said, her eyes shifting between them, heart racing in her chest. A distinct thump sounded in her ears, just the way it did when she got a shot of adrenaline before all hell broke loose.
Bridge glanced behind himself then stepped out of the way.
Rush came into view, a sack held at his side. Their eyes made contact and stayed there.
Bridge nudged the others to head back to the camp.
Anguished blue eyes looked into hers, still and steady, absorbing her appearance as if it was the first time they’d met.
Like a flower facing the sun, she took in the heat of his stare like a summer afternoon.
He gave a breath. A drop of his shoulders. And then he gave a smile. Not the kind that reached his eyes. “Let me guess. Still haven’t made any friends.”
Her eyes dropped momentarily. “You know me so well.”
His smile faded and the stare continued.
Silence.
Stares.
More silence.
Cora cleared her throat. “I can see dead people…”
The intensity of his stare vanished as his eyebrows hopped to the top of his face. “Whoa…what now?”
“At the Cemetery of Spirits. I went there with Callon to visit his wife and son…and I saw his wife.”
“What do you mean, you saw her?”
“She was this bluish outline. I watched her kneel on the ground and take his hands.”
His fingers ran through his hair before he gave a shake of his head. “Did you tell Callon this?”
“Yes. And I could talk to her too.”
Rush took a long pause, processing that information with a gaping mouth. “So, when you go to the graveyard, you just see and hear a bunch of dead elves?”
“No, it’s not like that—”
“Because that sounds like the scariest shit I’ve ever heard.”
“It’s not scary. It’s…peaceful… And sad,” she said. “When I visit their graves, sometimes they come, and when they do…I can talk to them.”
“So, it’s not just Callon’s wife?”
“No.”
“Who else?”
Her eyes shifted away. “Other elves at different gravestones…” When she turned back to him, his eyes were fixated on hers. She ignored the question in his eyes. “When I asked Callon about it, he said no other elf has ever had this ability. He attributes it to the size of my mind, but I think it has something to do with the Shamans.”
“You aren’t a Shaman, Cora.”
“I know, but…it’s gotta be related, right?”
He gave a shrug. “I really don’t know.”
“But listen to this…” She lowered her voice even though Callon was out of earshot. “When I asked Callon about the Shamans and Death Magic…he wouldn’t talk about it.”
His eyes immediately flicked past her to look at Callon.
“Don’t stare.”
“Well, he’s staring at me, and he still doesn’t like me very much.” He looked at her once more. “So, he knows something.”
“He said it’s forgotten lore among the elves.”
“Forgotten or forbidden?”
“The second one.”
His eyes flicked back to Callon. “He’s done everything for you up until this point. So, the only reason why he’s not helping you now is because…it compromises the elves.”
Her eyes dropped.
“You need t
o get this information from him.”
I agree with General Rush.
Stop calling him that.
I will call him—
Stop. Calling. Him. That.
Ashe retreated from her mind.
When Cora focused once more, she felt Rush’s stare.
“I know how that is, carrying on two conversations at once.”
“I’m still not very good at it.”
A smile moved on to his face, this time reaching his eyes. “You’ll get better at it.”
“So…what are you guys up to?”
“Oh, it’s a long story, but we’re basically going to the dwarves after this.”
“Never even seen a picture of a dwarf. Wish I could come with you.”
“No, you don’t,” he said. “Come on, you can talk to dead people. That sounds way more interesting than trying to forge an alliance with rats that live underground.”
She gave a slight chuckle. “If you call them rats, you won’t make any friends.”
“Maybe I’ll let Bridge do all the talking, then.”
“That’d be wise.”
His eyes shifted past her to Callon. “His eyes have been trained on me like an arrow this entire time.”
Cora glanced over her shoulder.
Callon stood in his armor, dark eyes driving into Rush with menace. Just like the poisonous frogs, that hatred was etched into the features of his face, and he looked like he might snarl just like them too.
Cora gave a sigh as she turned back to him. “Just ignore him.”
“I’d like to thank him for what he did…if that’s okay.” Rush turned back to her.
“I…I don’t think he wants to hear it.”
“I owe him my life. He deserves my gratitude.” He stepped forward to cross the field and approach Callon.
The slide of metal against his scabbard was loud in the trees, echoing in the canopy up above. Birds immediately vacated their nests and cawed as they flew away. His sword was at the ready, his defensive stance identical to the one he used when he trained Cora. The weapon in his hand wasn’t the only one he possessed. His eyes were sharp blades themselves.
Rush halted.
Cora placed her hand against his chest, her fingers digging deep through the fabric as she felt his hardness. The touch prompted a series of images across her mind in a split second. She sucked in a breath as she guided him back. “I’ll tell him for you.”
Rush dragged his look away from Callon until it was on Cora again.
