by Candy Crum
“I’m going to go tell Samuel you’re once again part of the living,” Cathillian said with a pat to her back. “Come down whenever you’re ready.”
She nodded and smiled. “Thanks. For healing me, I mean.”
He paused a moment before nodding again and leaving the room. Amelia’s eyes followed his every movement before she lifted a graceful hand and flicked her wrist, the door shutting after Cathillian was long gone.
Arryn’s brows creased as she looked at the woman in confusion. “Is there a problem?”
Amelia looked at her knowingly. “Not at all. You don’t remember our conversation from last night, do you?”
Arryn looked at her in deeper confusion. “I can’t say that I do.”
Laughing, Amelia rubbed her hands together like she was hatching an evil plan. “Oh, this is too good. Sit down. You’re going to need to.”
Nervousness began to fill Arryn as she sat on the edge of the bed. “You’re freaking me out.”
As Amelia sat next to her, her eyes flashed white. “I’m not going to tell you. You’ll see it for yourself.”
There wasn’t enough time for Arryn to ask what she was talking about before images started slamming into her mind. It was obvious Amelia had been working to broaden her talents.
This was a new ability, but it was still rough, to say the least. Instead of a steading flow of imagery that swept through her mind like it was being seen firsthand, it was like these images were being thrown at her.
Though her technique needed work, Arryn tried to relax into it and allow them to tell her a story.
After the group had dropped off the injured to whatever doctors the rearick had, they had moved on to the bar. Despite her earlier excitement about the idea of letting go, Arryn remembered being concerned and wanting to stay behind.
Samuel and Cathillian had convinced her that rearick weren’t a particularly sentimental bunch who celebrated battle. They celebrated those who died, and they celebrated surviving. In pain or not, the injured would want her to go have a drink for them.
And she’d had several.
Before going inside, she had cleaned her face, hands, and arms of the blood from the afternoon’s battle. It wasn’t perfect, but it would do. She had planned to get good and drunk enough to forget it. All those things, Arryn now remembered. The memories were hazy from exhaustion, but she remembered them.
It was what had come after the bar that was all new.
Cathillian had carried her outside, passed out from exhaustion, drink, and a few punches to the head. Ophelia’s didn’t have a shower, so Samuel told Cathillian where to find a local pond. It wasn’t the lake behind his house that he had mentioned previously, but it would certainly do.
These images were all from Cathillian’s point of view, so it was obvious that Amelia had been snooping around in his mind. She must have wanted to get even better acquainted with her gifts because of what was to come.
Arryn guessed she couldn’t be angry at that, though she didn’t like being a test subject when it was her mind being tampered with.
Not long ago—though it seemed like an eternity now—Cathillian had taken Arryn to the Kalt River to wash the blood and filth off her after she’d had her ass kicked by Nika, despite Arryn’s winning.
This was no different. He slowly stepped into the water, fighting the chill of the water and his deepest wishes that it was warmer. She had been his only concern.
As he waded in, the cold water hit Arryn, causing her to stir uncomfortably. Though he was drained from pulling men out of the battle and healing them enough to save them from death, he couldn’t help but use the last bit of magical energy he had to take the edge off for her. It was all he had left, but he gave it.
It hadn’t been enough to take the effects of the alcohol away, or even the headache from being punched in the head several times, and certainly not her fatigue, but it had been enough to heal her broken nose, hand, and rib—all injuries she hadn’t really felt due to the intoxication.
Her eyes slowly fluttered open as he began washing the surprising amount of blood and dirt out of her hair and doing his best to scrub it out of her clothes while she still wore them.
“What’s going on?” she had asked as he ran his fingers through her hair.
He smiled. “You needed rinsed off before you would be allowed to stay at Ophelia’s. Samuel said you probably couldn’t make it back to his place tonight in your condition, so I came out here to help clean you up while Amelia and Celine secure and ready your room for you.”
Arryn moaned in reply, a stupid, drunken smile on her face. “Thank you.”
He smiled in return. “You’re welcome.” There was a pause as he continued to care for her before he finally spoke again. “I know we give each other a hard time. We pick on each other all the time, but you’ve always been there for me.”
Arryn snorted. “I’m terrible to you. You know that.”
There was a smile on his face, but it wasn’t his usual “I don’t take anything seriously” smile. It was something else. “I’m just as rotten to you. It’s just us—we like to laugh. But at the end of the day, I know you’re always there. Every time I broke something in training, it was you who nursed me until someone could heal me. When you started to get better at it, you would heal me yourself. You cared for me when I was in a coma for a few days after Jenna death-touched me, too. Even with the training continuing, even working at the Academy—you watched over me and made sure I was taken care of when you couldn’t.”
As she viewed Amelia’s crudely formed images, she smiled, realizing he was right. She had always been the first to help him. Of course, she had also been the first to insult him and give him a hard time, too. But he had done the same for her.
Without ever asking, she knew that if she ever felt scared or worried she could go to him, and he would be there to make sure whatever hurt her paid for it. But she had always just assumed that was because they were raised as best friends. Druids were family, no matter what.
But she could sense his emotions through the way he looked at her, and the tone of his voice.
This wasn’t just friendship.
“Amelia, I don’t like this. This is an invasion of his privacy,” she said.
“Why do you think that?” Amelia smiled.
“Because this is all through his eyes. I know everyone makes jokes behind our backs, but it’s just not like that between us. And if it is from him, it’s not fair that—”
“Stop,” Amelia said. “Just watch. You’re missing something. It’s not an invasion of his privacy anymore.”
Arryn quit fighting and once again let curiosity get the better of her. When Amelia began again, Arryn realized what she had meant. She somehow hadn’t noticed when it had moved from Cathillian’s point of view to hers, but it had.
It hadn’t been his emotions she had been sensing, but her own as she looked into his sincere face and listened to his words.
“We’ve always been there for each other,” he said. “I want you to know that no matter what, I always will be.”
Arryn jumped up from the bed, her hands flailing around and her eyes wide as she cried, “Oh, goddess! Oh, Bitch!”
She looked back at Amelia, who wore a knowing smile as her eyes returned to their original color.
“See?” Amelia said.
“Why?” Arryn asked. “Why would you show me that?”
The image came back with fervor. As Arryn had listened to Cathillian tell her that he would always be there for her, her drunken mind had pushed away all hesitation and worry. Without warning, Arryn had thrown herself forward and kissed him.
She had kissed Cathillian.
Her arms had wrapped around him, and he had frozen there in the water, unsure of what to do. Then, he quickly melted into the kiss, returning it with just as much passion as she put into it.
“Please… Please tell me that was all that happened,” Arryn pleaded.
Amelia laughed as she
stood. “Yes, child. No worries.”
Arryn’s hands went to the sides of her head as she shook it, her eyes wide. “Elysia calls me that when I’m overreacting.” Her eyes widened. “Oh, fuck… Elysia.”
Amelia rolled her eyes. “There’s a reason we all make jokes behind your back, you know. Do I look surprised this happened? You two fight like cats and dogs. You are both constantly picking on one another, but he was a mess without you. This was bound to happen at some point.”
It was all a bit too much for Arryn. She didn’t quite know what to think. “I feel terrible. I was drunk. I shouldn’t have done that. I didn’t even remember it! Oh, Bitch. That would be like a punch in the gut. Kiss someone and have them not even remember it?” Arryn’s face turned deadly serious. “Wait. Can you like… pull that memory out of him?”
Amelia’s eyes widened. “Arryn! No! Not only do I have zero clue how to do it and lack even a fraction of the skill to learn how yet, but that would be pretty shitty to do.”
Heavily sighing, Arryn agreed, “You’re right. Ugh. Okay. Well, I guess I’ll just ignore it. Pretend I don’t know. I am not ready to have that conversation yet. No way. I don’t even think what you showed me was accurate. I mean, I felt something there, but I was drunk and vulnerable. That was probably all it was, so I’m not going to worry about it right now. There are way too many other things to focus on.”
Rolling her eyes again, Amelia said, “Yeah, that’s the answer.”
Arryn’s brows creased as she looked at her. “You know, you’re getting really good at being a sarcastic ass.”
“Be careful picking on me like that. I might think you’re falling for me, too,” Amelia quipped.
“Oh! You… I…” Arryn was so flustered she couldn’t speak.
Amelia laughed. “Calm down before you explode. It was a joke. I’m not going to say a word about you knowing. Really, it’s none of my business. But… When he carried you back in, you were asleep again, and his mind was practically screaming about what had happened. I thought you should know.”
“Lemme guess,” Arryn began. “You picked out my point of view while it was fresh in my sleeping mind.”
Amelia smiled and nodded. “I was curious, okay? Besides, I needed the practice. You were so drunk I could only pick out rough pieces, because you were already starting to forget.”
“I’m never drinking again,” Arryn said.
Laughing, Amelia said, “I thought you’d feel that way. Now, come on. Let’s go before Cathillian starts to suspect us.”
Arryn wasn’t exactly sure how she would keep her mouth shut on this one, but it needed to be done. While she’d had suspicions, not only about her own heart, but of Cathillian’s as well for quite some time, it was neither the time nor place to be thinking that way.
They were on the cusp of war with Arcadia. By now the whole city would be against her. And once that was over, she was sure the dark druids would need to be dealt with.
If the Chieftain was right, they were moving west to get reinforcements. No. Forgetting her responsibilities and trying to be a normal girl at this moment would be a terrible decision.
Lives were on the line, and she was no ordinary girl.
12
It was unusual for Alaric to leave his carved-out section of the Dark Forest. That small piece by the caves along the very edge of the mountains had been far enough away from Alexander—that so-called Chieftain—and his daughter Elysia.
Neither the trees nor the animals surrounding their great barrier had warned the druids of Alaric’s presence. It had gone unnoticed for many years. He had built a home for himself and his people, and they had fed on the land, growing what they could, but mainly surviving on the Forest.
As they traveled, the darkness and desperation of their old home had slowly faded as the grass grew thicker and greener and the trunks of the trees became sturdier and had more color.
They had exited the Forest directly to the west, and now moved through the Terresian Plains. It was flat and vibrant green, as green as the innermost parts of the Dark Forest where Alexander and his lot of assholes were.
It was beautiful.
Contrary to the popular belief of the druids of the Dark Forest, the dark chieftain didn’t enjoy living among dead things. It was simply the form his magic had taken, though his people had admittedly lost their way much more than he had.
He could still bring life, but he was far more capable of taking it.
Alaric was just as dangerous as Alexander, only his magic was the polar opposite.
“Chieftain,” Aeris called as he approached. “It’s getting late in the day. Should we find water and do some fishing?”
The dark chieftain smiled. “That will take too long. I’ll feed the people.”
Alaric lifted his staff, not speaking, but rather simply demanding obedience. His people slowed to a stop, awaiting his next move.
He lowered his staff, walking farther ahead as he turned to the west. Feet bare in the thick, lush grass, he thrust it into the ground just in front of him and his hollow eyes flashed with the faintest hint of green.
He pushed his magic outward and felt around the area, quickly finding what he sought. Soon, the sounds of thunderous hoofbeats echoed across the plain and several Highland cattle, large and thick with long fur and massive horns, came into view.
He could see young Aeris standing just off to the side, his wide eyes shifting between the cattle and back to his chieftain.
If it was a show he wanted, a show he would receive.
Once the cattle were close enough, the dark chieftain released a blast of power, forcing them into submission. He had seen his people use this technique, but they were quite pathetic at it.
Overwhelmed by his strength, the cattle came to an abrupt stop not twenty feet ahead of him, crying out as their legs began to shake. The dark chieftain could feel the pain emanating from them as he pulled his magic back, slowly draining the life from them.
When he had them where he wanted them, he thrust a hand forward and roots from a nearby tree burst from the ground, whipping upward as they splintered and delivered a death blow to each one.
Alaric dropped his hand, turning only his head to look at a shocked Aeris as his eyes faded back to normal.
“Dinner,” was all Alaric said before lifting his staff from the ground and walking away, hoping his people didn’t notice the look of intense fatigue in his eyes.
As the sun began to set on the Dark Forest, the governor, Nathaniel, and their warrior escorts, Cassondra, Ryel, and Clara, crossed the barrier into the druids’ territory.
Relief flooded through the governor now that they were safe. The rest of the trip back had been slow, but uneventful. As the druids had expected, the remnant had been smart enough not to engage or follow.
Suddenly, with everything settled and no need to continue looking over his shoulder, the silence became deafening for the governor.
“So, Cassondra, are you married? Do you have any children?” the governor asked.
She smiled, her teeth a brilliant white against her healthy, glowing dark skin. “We don’t marry like you outsiders, but we do have a ceremony of sorts. So, yes, I am ‘married,’ I guess you would say. We have a daughter. Rose.”
The governor smiled. He wasn’t surprised. Cassondra was beautiful. High cheekbones, a small nose with defined curves, full lips, and a heart-shaped face. Aside from her beauty, she was a strong warrior and very intelligent.
“He’s a very lucky man. Is he a warrior, too?” he asked.
She nodded. “He is. Our daughter, she’s fifteen and wants to be a Schatten. We couldn’t be prouder.”
His eyes widened. “Fifteen? How old are you?”
Cassondra laughed as she met his shocked gaze. “I am just shy of forty. My husband, as you would call him, is nearly fifty.”
“Holy shit. I thought you were pushing twenty-five. Do you just have good genetics, or is that a druid thing?”
“You’ve met Elysia, yes? She and I are close in age. She’s just over forty.”
He lifted his eyes for a moment as he thought that over. “I suppose that makes sense. Cathillian is about twenty, I think they said, so her age makes sense. That also answers my question.” He shook his head as he smiled.
As he turned to her, he opened his mouth and said, “Druid thing,” at the same time she did.
They laughed.
“Clara,” the governor called. “You are incredibly quiet. What about you and Ryel? Either of you married or have kids?”
“Clara is mute,” Ryel replied from where he was riding behind them.
The governor’s eyes widened as he struggled to look at them, horror on his face for having been so careless.
Clara’s shoulders began to move as she burst into a silent laughter.
Ryel joined in as well. “Don’t worry about it, Governor. She was born this way. We believe it makes her unique. She was born with a condition no one else here has, so she is special among us. She communicates through thought.”
Really, please don’t worry about it. The governor’s eyes widened again as he heard a soft and kind voice flutter through his mind.
“You’re able to use mental magic?” he asked Clara.
She nodded. It isn’t what you think, however. I don’t look in the minds of others or create illusions. To me, nature magic is the only true and pure form of magic. It would be dangerous for me to be a warrior and unable to speak. In your world, I would be considered to have a disability. In reality, it just makes me better at my job. I’m more aware, and I’m also a lot quieter.” She winked and smiled.
“That’s incredible!” he replied excitedly.
The group traveled the rest of the way to the village, chatting about anything and everything. It seemed the entire trip to this point had been filled with worry and anxiety, but once back in the safety of the Dark Forest, everyone felt just as relieved as he did.
The Chieftain came to greet them as they crossed into the southern village. He had been gathering everyone for their nightly fun.
“Ah! I see you’ve made it!” he said. “Welcome back, everyone. How was the journey?”
