Maya, Khate, and Thallan ran to the right while the others took the left. As they reached the end of the hall, Maya held up her hand, slowing them. Bright natural light spilled in from the connecting corridor.
The soft, steady echo of footsteps of a guard running a standard patrol drew closer. The trio moved against the wall, their back flat. When the guard appeared, Maya lunged forward, wrapped her hand around his mouth, and pulled him back into the darker hallway.
Khate drew closer, pressing her blade against the man’s throat. “If you try to call out, I’ll slit your throat. Understand?”
The man nodded. Maya removed her hand from his lips, using her other arm to keep him pinned against the wall.
“Where are you taking the prisoners for execution?” Maya asked.
“Execution?” he asked.
“Don’t play dumb with me,” Maya said.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” the guard said. “There’s no executions scheduled for today.”
“Then—”
An explosion shook the castle.
34
They all turned their heads toward the sound. Shouts erupted from down the hall, and the fast staccato of boots drew closer.
Maya heard a gurgling sound and looked back at the prisoner to find his throat gushing blood.
“What’d you do that for?” Maya asked Khate.
Maya let go of the body and it slumped to the floor.
“I—I don’t know. I just got this sudden desire to kill him,” Khate said.
Maya glared at Thallan.
“What? He was going to call out to the guards as soon as they passed,” the elf said.
“Stay out of my friends’ heads, or I’ll leave yours on the floor,” Maya said.
Thallan rubbed his neck. “Fair enough.”
They all crouched low in the shadows as nearly a dozen men ran past.
“That explosion must have been Kosta,” Maya said. “He wasn’t supposed to engage, but the man was never very good at taking orders.” Maya paused and took a deep breath. “I don’t know where the Berxlians took Khal, but Governor Gerard will likely hole up in his office until the battle outside passes. Our best bet to finding my family and stopping their execution is taking him down.”
“You’re in charge,” Khate said. “I’ll follow you.”
Thallan shrugged and motioned for her to lead the way.
Slowly, Maya stepped out into the lit corridor. Sunlight was spilling in from the left where all the soldiers were running, which likely led to the castle’s entrance. Instead, Maya opted for the right. If there was one thing she’d learned in her years at Shadowhold’s palace, it was that no personal chambers were ever within easy access of the public.
They were no sooner out in the open when another contingent of guards rounded the corner. The men stopped dead in their tracks.
“Get ready,” Maya said, drawing her sword.
“I don’t have a weapon,” Thallan said.
“You don’t need one,” Maya said.
“That’s fair,” he said.
The guards shouted and ran as one. Thallan dropped into a fighting stance and what Maya could only assume was an imaginary set of twin swords appeared in his hands.
Ducking under the first guard’s swing, Maya rose up and plunged her blade into his chest. Her second opponent fell back into a defensive position as her sword soared through the air. He blocked and counter attacked, which she also parried.
A second Maya appeared and lunged at his flank. He gasped and turned, dodging the imaginary blade, but exposing his side. Maya drove her sword through flesh and up under his ribcage.
Making a third Maya appear, she and her illusions all descended on her next opponent. His sword and gaze shifted between the Mayas, unsure who to fight. He moved to block the first blow, but that Maya passed right through him, leaving him stunned. When the real Maya pressed in, he didn’t bother blocking and lost his head.
Khate stood, pulling her blade out of the man on the ground. Thallan finished impaling a man, then let his swords vanish. The blood that lay on the ground around Thallan’s victims also disappeared.
“Are they really dead?” Maya asked.
“As dead as you can get,” Thallan said. “Their brain believed the injuries were mortal. The blood was just for show.”
“Could they wake up?” Khate asked.
“In theory,” Thallan said. “But you’d have to restart their heart with chest compressions. They are otherwise unharmed.”
“Interesting,” she said.
Another series of tremors shook the castle. The first must have been a warning shot. Now, the battle was beginning in force.
“You can swap science lessons later,” Maya said as she continued down the hall.
A series of turns got them hopelessly lost. Maya was really beginning to regret that she hadn’t taken a larger interest in politics while her father was alive. She used to accompany him on some of his visits, but by and large she had been a rebellious youth who was too busy plotting how to unseat her father rather than learn from him.
Maya froze.
“What’s wrong?” Khate asked.
She really was the traitor everyone claimed her to be. How could she have even started the Revenant in the first place? It was her fault her father was dead. Her fault they hadn’t seen the elves coming. Her fault they were even loose in the first place. Her fault that Celesti was gone. All of it.
“It’s all my fault,” she said.
You can’t think like that, Merva said. You did what you thought was best.
That’s exactly what he would have said.
“What are you talking about?” Khate asked.
“This isn’t the time for self-pity,” Thallan said as another explosion rattled the walls. A vase fell off a pedestal and crashed into the ground.
Maya shook her head and continued forward. As they rounded the corner, Maya came face to face with Callum, wearing the garb of a Berxlian guard.
“You!” Maya said, raising her sword.
“Maya!” Callum exclaimed. “What are you—”
“You sided with Berxley? I’ll do it right this time,” she said, arcing her blade for his throat.
Callum stepped back, both hands raised.
A sword flew up and caught her weapon a foot from Callum’s face.
“Maya, stop!” a familiar voice said.
She turned and saw Khal, Jade, and Evangeline. Maya fell to her knees and dropped her weapon. Khal rushed in and cradled her. “It’s all right. We’re all right.”
“But I—They said—How?” Maya asked.
“Callum, he broke us out,” Khal said.
Maya looked up at Callum, smiled, and mouthed an apology.
He smirked and nodded, then said, “We were almost through the front door when those explosions started. What’s going on?”
“We came to rescue them,” she said, indicating her family, “but—”
“Khate?” Khal asked.
Evangeline lifted her head and gasped.
Khate pulled her arms in close and said, “Hey, Khal.”
Khal stood and rushed her, wrapping her in a tight hug.
“That was… unexpected,” Maya said. “You two know each other that well?”
Khal released her and said, “You didn’t tell her?”
“Tell me what?” Maya asked.
“Khal is my twin,” Khate said.
“Your what?” Maya asked. “You’re my… aunt?”
“I was going to tell you, but it never seemed like the right time,” Khate replied.
By then, Evangeline was in tears behind Maya.
“What’s wrong?” Khate asked. Then her eyes narrowed as she said, “Don’t I know you?”
Oh, wow. Khate doesn’t know my mother’s still alive, Maya thought. Then she said, “That’s—”
“Riley,” Evangeline said, extending her hand.
Why would she—
Now�
��s not the time, Merva said. And your mother knows it.
“Right,” Maya said. “And this is Thallan, my elf prisoner. Now we all know each other.” To Callum, she added, “How did you know they were here?”
“Do you really think I was going to abandon my only niece?” Callum said. “After Luka, I—I just needed some time. But I’m here for you now. Just don’t ask me to denounce your father.”
“Deal,” she said.
“Then let’s go take back Berxley. Gerard is holed up this way,” Callum said, pointing his thumb back over his shoulder.
Another set of footsteps came running toward them and everyone turned to face the newest enemy—but it wasn’t Berxley. Instead, Ari, Alban, and Ciara rounded the corner.
“Hold!” Maya shouted. “It’s all right, they’re with us.”
“Looks like you found your family,” Ari said.
“We were just heading for Gerard,” Maya said.
“Perfect, right on time!” he exclaimed. “Let’s do it.”
“Follow me,” Callum said, pushing to the front.
A few more turns and they stood outside a lavish, intricately carved, gold-framed set of double doors.
“They’ve got him holed up in here,” Callum said.
“What do you mean, ‘they’?” Maya asked, but Callum was already pushing the door open. Nearly two dozen men stood on the other side, standing at attention around a tall man in golden armor. She couldn’t make out his features through the helmet.
“You’re sure the beggar said she saw Maya Drygo?” the leader said, “Here? In Berxley? We would have received word if it—”
“The name is Maya Ravenwing,” Maya said, stepping into the room.
The guards drew their swords and fell into position.
“Oh, boy,” Ari said, shaking with excitement. “This is going to be fun!”
“Seize her!” he said, pointing at Maya. “And kill the rest.”
That voice, Maya thought.
But she didn’t have time to think on it. The two forces rushed at each other.
Maya created a blanket of darkness and dropped it on the enemy. But as soon as it appeared, it was dispelled.
What? Maya wondered.
She didn’t have time to ponder it further as two men descended on her. Khal and Callum both stepped in front of her, blocking the guards’ path. Maya pulled the same trick from the hall and duplicated her uncles, but that illusion, too, disappeared a heartbeat later.
Looking past the battle, Maya’s eyes focused on the tall man. He smiled at her and lifted his helmet, then tossed it to the ground.
Erintos, Merva said.
As she stared at the elf with her jaw slack, his face turned brown and grew large, as did the rest of his body. A heartbeat later, Erintos was gone, replaced by giant grizzly bear. It stood on its haunches and roared.
He’s a shifter, Merva reminded Maya.
All fighting stopped as heads throughout the room turned on Erintos. Dropping onto all fours, the god of nature barreled through the room, heading straight for Maya. Friend and foe alike dove out of the mad god’s way—except Maya, who stood paralyzed, an unprecedented fear gripping her.
Her heart told her to run, but her legs wouldn’t move.
Somebody crashed into her, knocking her out of the way. Maya flipped over and watched as the great bear plowed into Alban, smashing him through the wall.
“No!” Ari roared, hefting his hammer and slamming it into the side of Erintos’s head.
The bear fell over on its back. Raising the hammer above his head with both arms, Ari lunged at Erintos, bringing the hammer down.
The bear lashed out with its claws, catching Ari on the arm.
Ari howled, fell away, and dropped his weapon.
Leaping to her feet, Maya ran to his aid.
“I’m fine,” he hissed through clenched teeth.
Maya leapt onto the bear’s back as it regained its footing. Erintos bucked and swatted at her, but she didn’t let go. Holding on with her left hand, she raised her sword with her right and thrust it into the bear’s side, but its thick hide prevented the blade from penetrating more than a few inches.
She pulled her sword free and swung it for a second blow. Erintos completely stood up, dislodging Maya causing her to crash to the floor. Maya’s jaw dropped as the bear’s six hundred pounds started to fall backward.
With a frantic roll, Maya avoided becoming a pancake by mere inches. She turned and lashed out, slicing Erintos’s side as he lay on his back.
The bear howled and lunged its head at her.
Maya raised her sword to parry.
Clamping his teeth onto her blade, Erintos wrenched it free and tossed it aside, then flipped onto all fours. Before he could get to her, Maya placed her hands behind her head and jumped up to her feet, landing in a defensive position.
Erintos growled and snapped, taunting her. Then he charged her.
Turning, Maya ran away, but the bear still barreled in. She drew a knife from her waist and continued racing across the room, guards diving out of the way. As she reached the wall, she placed her foot on it, took two more steps, then pushed off with everything she had, somersaulting over the bear. Its jaws reached up and bit at the air, trying to snatch her.
Maya plunged the knife into the soft part of Erintos’s jaw and used the fall to push the blade deep as she drove the bear to the ground.
In response, the bear’s claw flew out and smacked Maya away.
Maya winced and hissed, struggling to stand.
“Maya, watch out!” Khate called.
She lifted her head to find one of the other elves standing over her, dagger poised to strike at her heart.
The blade sailed in, but Thallan stepped into his path, catching the elf’s wrist and wrenching the dagger free. Then Thallan reached toward his heart and made a squeezing motion with his right hand.
The elf dropped over dead on the spot.
“Enough games,” Thallan said.
Thallan’s eyes turned brown, then his left leg kicked out to steady himself, and he raised both his hands in front of his body. Sweeping his right hand out across the room, he pulled his left in close, then brought his hands together and closed his fists.
He yanked with all his might and, in one fell swoop, bodies dropped across the room. Only Maya’s friends stood standing.
The bear snorted and growled, then changed into a creature Maya had only read about in storybooks. The griffon had the head and wings of an eagle, but the body of a lion. As Erintos changed, the knife clattered to the floor, no longer lodged in the bear’s jaw.
“Stop him!” Maya shouted to Thallan, but Thallan collapsed beside her.
Khal charged in, but as he drew near, the beast pushed off the floor and soared into the air, smashing through the stained-glass windows and disappearing into the sky.
35
With the flick of her wrist, Maya cast her Ophi-blocking net around the room, then dropped to her knees next to Thallan.
“Thallan!” she cried, shaking him gently. “Are you okay?”
The elf’s eyes blinked open.
Sitting up, he groaned and brought his hand to his head. “What—what happened?”
“You gave me a scare is what you did,” she said, and then slapped him.
“Ow!” he said. “Didn’t anyone ever tell you it’s not nice to hit?”
“Next time you tell me before you’re about to kill yourself,” Maya said.
“Did it work?” he asked.
“Look around,” Maya said, extending her hand around the room. “What did you do, exactly?”
“I touched all their minds at once and made them believe I severed their necks. In theory, it should have stopped their hearts. I guess it did,” he said. His eyes scanned the room several times rapidly. “Erintos?”
Maya shook her head. “He escaped.”
Thallan cursed. “You know what this means, don’t you?”
Maya tilted her head
in confusion.
“If Ophi wasn’t watching, Erintos certainly was,” the elf said, pulling his knees into his chest and placing his head in his hands. “I killed my kin—Ophi’s soldiers. And now my brother is as good as dead. I’ve killed him.”
“Then we go and rescue him,” Maya said, standing.
“It’s not that simple,” Thallan said. “What are you going to do? Walk into a camp full of elves and say, ‘let him go or else’?”
“Well… no, but—”
“Look, Erintos is probably long gone by now; there’s no way we make it back before him,” Thallan said.
“And whining isn’t going to help either,” Maya countered. “If your brother’s still alive, we’ll find him soon enough. I’m sorry it came to this—I tried to prevent it. You didn’t have to come, you know.”
“I don’t blame you, and, in fact, I’m sorry,” Thallan said. “For everything. For the lying, for the turning you in… for trying to kill you.”
“Hate to break up your little heart to heart,” Khal said, “but we really need to—what did you just say?” Khal stomped over, clutched Thallan’s throat, and shoved him against the wall. “Did I just hear you tried to kill her?”
Maya ran up and grabbed Khal’s arm, pulling him away. “It’s okay. He didn’t have a choice. They have his brother and they threatened to kill him if he didn’t do what they wanted, but that doesn’t make any difference after he just defended us.”
Khal released Thallan and snorted, glancing to the side. “I guess thanks are in order, then. I was two inches away from being skewered. Sorry about your brother, though.” Khal started to step away, then came back in hard and fast, punching him in the gut. “Don’t do it again.”
“Never,” Thallan wheezed.
“Where’s Ari?” Maya asked.
Khal nodded his head toward the hallway.
Maya ran from the room and found Ari cradling Alban’s broken body, weeping. Ciara leaned against the wall, one arm crossed while she wiped her eyes with the other hand. Maya drew near to Ari and touched his shoulder. Steadying himself, he turned his head.
“He was like a son to me,” Ari said. “Though you wouldn’t know it. The boy didn’t talk much.”
Soul Shade (Soul Stones Book 2) Page 27
