‘He was worried about the whole ‘just being a human’ thing.’ He made little air quotes with his fingers so I knew those were Thomas’s words and not his. ‘I told him things like that didn’t matter when love was involved, but he didn’t feel he was good enough for her.’
‘You….’ I looked back over my shoulder and then up at Turos. ‘You staged this whole thing. You’re letting him fight with us so he feels worthy?’ My fists clenched at my sides. He was going to get one of my best friends killed and break the other one’s heart.
He shrugged a shoulder as he pulled a face. ‘Of course not. He does deserve to fight with us. I just thought I’d milk it a little seeing as how he wasn’t going to.’ A wicked grin flashed onto his face. ‘If you weren’t fighting with me I’d be doing the same to you.’
I punched his shoulder lightly. ‘Silly man.’
Thomas cleared his throat and said, ‘Ahh, we’re finished, I think.’
The flush on Sabby’s cheeks was no longer from embarrassment. Her eyes shone bright and a satisfied smile curled her lips. ‘Don’t go getting him killed,’ she said. ‘I’d like to do that again, later.’
‘Yes Ma’am.’ Turos gave her a salute.
‘You stay safe back here.’ I hugged her, pulling away before I got teary. ‘We’ll share a campfire tonight.’
‘Sabby, we’ve tapped an underground stream. Come and see if we have enough water.’ I didn’t recognise the young witch who stood about ten feet away.
‘And now I must go.’ Sabby reached out and squeezed my hand before letting the other healer lead her away.
‘You heading to the front?’ I turned back to Turos.
‘Got to fill the men in on the plan.’
‘I’m going to swing by the witches.’
‘That’s a good idea. Don’t be too long.’
I nodded. It felt funny, after so many years of fighting with the Guard in Trillania, to now be working with the Millenium instead. But I knew it made sense. Fighting as a unit with our increased speed we would wreak havoc on the enemy. Working alone with the Guard I might end up stranded. Not that we were meant to be penetrating past the front line like we had yesterday. But unexpected things happened in the heat of battle.
I wound my way through the soldiers, busy with their battle preparation, until I found the witches. They sat in three loose circles, all of them looking to where Wolfgang stood on a boulder to the side. A group of faeries clustered behind him.
‘Your circle,’ he pointed to the circle on the far right, ‘will be responsible for holding a shield over our soldiers. Just like we practised.’ He waited while they all nodded their heads before switching his attention to the middle circle. ‘Your circle will hold a barrier out the front to stop the enemy engaging us. Their magic wielders will concentrate everything they can on breaking down that barrier. Hold as long as you can without doing yourself any permanent harm. We will weave our magic in to fortify you as much as we can.’
He didn’t state the obvious. The longer they were able to hold them off, the less of us would die.
He turned to address the last group. I noticed Grams and Lionel sitting in this circle. ‘Lieutenant Bella will be in control of this circle. You will link and lend your power to her. She will construct spells designed to frustrate the enemy.’
Grams smacked her hands together a couple of times and flexed her fingers. ‘We’re going to do more than just frustrate them.’
‘Circle one. Link hands and set your circle. Handron,’ he nodded at the witch who had taken the north arc of the circle, ‘I want you to imagine the barrier but don’t form it. Circles two and three, do the same. We’re going to wind our magic into yours so you can feel us, just like we’ve practised.’
He looked over to where I stood and held a finger in the air. I waited while the witches began linking their circles. The air began to thrum, tightening like an invisible guitar string as the strength of their combined magics increased. I resisted an urge to scratch at my arms where my skin tingled. With an almost audible twang the circles snapped into place.
‘Excellent.’ Wolfgang clapped his hands. He turned to look at the faeries. ‘One at a time, feel the circle and weave your magic in. You want to strengthen the fabric of their magic without disturbing it.’
Clever. The faeries were to be the reinforcement to the witches’ magic. Holding them up while they concentrated on their tasks.
Wolfgang climbed down from his boulder and made his way around the circles to where I waited. I could feel the faeries’ magic, strong yet supple as it wove through the witch circle.
‘Can I help?’ I asked him.
He pulled at the end of his beard, his bushy, grey eyebrows lowering while he considered my question. ‘I suspect your magic might disrupt the circles.’
‘Cause I have no control?’
He let out a rumbly laugh. ‘It’s not so much your control, more the wildness of your power. It would be like a lightning bolt striking the circle.’
I shuddered, imagining the effect that would have on the witches.
‘However,’ he continued, a grin of boyish delight flickering over his face, ‘if you feel the goblin circles, perhaps you could try to lend them a hand.’
I let out a laugh. ‘I’ll see what I can do.’
He turned back to the circles. ‘Now you, Rillania. Slowly now.’
I left them to their preparations and headed for the Guard. Aethan was briefing the men so I stood at the back, waiting for him to finish. I couldn’t see Ebony anywhere so I was guessing he had won that argument.
‘Right, split into two groups behind Baulda and Lingro. You two work out whose group will fight first.’
The men divided down the centre, moving out to stand behind two of the Guard. I recognised Baulda, but not Lingro.
‘Paper, rock, scissors?’ Lingro asked, his Italian accent letting me know why I had never met him before.
‘Of course.’ Baulda held his clenched fist up in front of him.
I suppressed a smile and started towards Aethan. He watched me coming, his adorable half-smile lighting up his eyes.
‘Do you always settle your affairs with paper, rock, scissors?’
‘It’s the only way to do it without drawing blood.’
I let out a little laugh as he led me away from the men. Half of them were watching Baulda and Lingro – they had progressed to best of three – but the other half didn’t try to hide their interest in Aethan and me. I waved at them, hoping to shame them into turning away, but the cheeky bastards just waved back, their smiles getting even broader.
I let out a sigh. It was to be expected. They had watched our relationship develop over the years, and Isla had told me they had a betting pool going on whether he would end up with me or Ebony. The odds were 3-to-1 against me.
‘Do you mind that we are taking the lead?’ It wasn’t what I wanted to say but it was a safe conversation.
He shrugged and looked over to where the Millenium were warming up. ‘It makes sense.’
I winced. It had to have hurt his ego admitting that. ‘I wish I were fighting with you,’ I whispered.
I wasn’t sure he had heard me until the corners of his eyes crinkled as he reached out and took my hands. A couple of the Guard groaned while another couple let out whoops.
‘Did money just change hands?’ I asked.
He nodded. ‘Ignore them.’
‘What did you say to Ebony to get her to stand down?’
‘I promised I’d see her every break.’
I nodded, desperately wanting to move closer, but the watching eyes stopped me. I was pretty sure that Turos’s would be amongst them.
Aethan stiffened, his head swivelling to look out down the Valley.
‘What is it?’ I couldn’t see anything.
‘Can you hear it?’
I shook my head. ‘No. Wait.’ I craned my head to the side, concentrating harder. ‘Yes. Drums,’ I breathed. They were coming. ‘I’d bet
ter go.’
Aethan’s grips on my hand tightened. ‘Be safe,’ he said.
‘You too.’
We stared into each other’s eyes for a few more moments, then I wrenched myself away from him and headed over to where the Millenium waited. I could feel my heart beat accelerating as the drums grew louder. The ground shook slightly, the vibration running under my feet.
Oh great. Giants.
Every line on Turos’s body screamed alert. He stared down the valley, eyes narrowed as his hands clenched and unclenched.
‘Hey.’ I touched his arm lightly.
He didn’t move his eyes from the front. ‘You ready?’
‘Ready as I’ll ever be.’ I took a deep breath, forcing the air deep into my lungs. I didn’t want to start hyperventilating. ‘Somewhere in that army is my grandfather. My very pissed off grandfather. Did I mention that he’s a little crazy? So’s Galanta. You’re going to love meeting her. She’s a real treat. Her English isn’t that great, but hey, I can’t speak a second language so I shouldn’t really be picky.’
He clasped my hand in his and turned me to face him.
‘She hates it when I tease her.’
He let go of my hands and placed a palm on each side of my face. ‘Izzy.’ He looked down into my face, his eyes wide with concern.
‘She never forgave me for dressing her in that bridal dress. But that’s small change considering all the awful things she’s done to me.’ His hands constricted my movement but I tried to shake my head anyway. ‘We’re never going to be good friends.’
‘I can slap you,’ he said, ‘or kiss you. Which would you prefer?’
I felt my eyebrows going up as I considered his question.
He sighed and shook his head. ‘Never mind.’
His lips were on mine in half a beat of my heart. I had been going to tell him that I thought the slap might be more effective, but I knew immediately that I was wrong. The warmth of his skin, the movement of his lips, the feel of his breath mingling with mine, they were far more distracting than a slap would have been.
He pulled away far too soon and stared into my eyes. ‘You all right?’
‘Uh huh.’
‘Going to start babbling again?’
The drum beat picked up its pace. ‘Nah. I’m done.’
‘Excellent.’ He turned to gaze down the valley. ‘Cause we’ve got work to do.’
I moved to stand next to him, staring down the winding ravine. Shadows were moving at the end of my vision. Big shadows.
I felt my pulse quicken as goosebumps broke out over my skin. This was it. The moment we had been working toward. We were going to walk away from this triumphant, or we weren’t going to walk away at all.
Now I could feel the War Faery genes kicking in. My smile started to form as I pulled my swords from their crossed sheaths on my back.
Threaten my country? Threaten my family? Threaten my friends? That, was intolerable. I would not allow it, or I would die trying. All of a sudden I was okay with that.
I felt a pressure building far behind me. The witches’ circles were starting to work.
The shadows at the end of the valley took form, becoming three dimensional as they gained features. Big, giant features.
A low hum resonated through me as the faeries linked into the circle.
The drums grew louder, their vibrations alluding that the enemy coming to meet us was feral and vicious. Even though I was no green rookie, I had never faced off against a force this size before. I could feel my muscles quivering in response to the beat. The new soldiers would be quaking in their boots.
I looked at Turos, at the wild, feral excitement in his eyes, and I felt it flow into me. This is where I belonged. Not hiding in London with the women and children, but here. Here where I could make a difference. Here where I could roar my defiance.
Giants rose above us as they rambled forwards. Goblins, orcs and ogres stretched behind, their presence shadowing the earth as far as I could see.
Where were the Vulpines? I had expected an aerial attack by now.
The power in the witches’ circle grew till the hairs on the back of my arms were standing on end.
‘Steady.’ Rako paced along the front of the forces. ‘Hold steady.’
Where was Santanas? Where was Galanta?
I could see the giants well enough to read the ugly expressions on their faces. They swung clubs that had been carved from whole trees, the branches along their lengths sharpened to points.
Two hundred metres out the drums broke from a rhythmical pulse to a frenzied beat. My heart rate accelerated with it.
The giants broke into a run, their car-sized feet splintering the road beneath them. Churned bitumen was left in their wake, their allies forced to clamber around it.
I knew Tiny was bigger than these giants, but they looked huge as they pounded towards us. I tried to count how many of them there were. Fifty? Sixty? A hundred? They would tear through our ranks.
One hundred metres out.
I was on a jumping castle, the ground writhing in agony beneath my feet. I fell to my knees, tilting my head back to stare up at the murderous faces bearing down on us. We would have to go for their achilles. That was if we could find our balance well enough to do it. It was the only way we would be able to stop them. And there would be so much collateral damage as we brought them down. But if we didn’t, they would be trampling us, smashing us into the earth under the souls of their feet.
The only way for us to have a chance was to slow them down. Where was the…Oh. There.
I felt a zing as a barrier slammed into the earth fifty metres in front of us. The giants collided into it a second later and our troops let out a howl of savage delight as giant heads and giant bodies ricocheted off the invisible wall.
I tensed as more and more giants piled onto the barrier, praying to the Dark Sky that it would hold. It did.
They had lost their forward momentum. Even if that was the only thing the barrier gained us, it would be a lot.
One of the lead giants roared and beat on the shield, his fists blanching white with the force of the contact. Another kicked at it, letting out a howl of pain as he clutched his foot and hopped on the spot.
And just like that, terror turned to humour and laughter rippled across our force.
‘Remain vigilant,’ Rako roared as he continued his pacing. ‘They could break through at any moment.’
The laughing stopped, and grips shifted on weapons as soldiers moved back into a fighting stance.
‘Well met.’
Turos’s arm stopped me from stepping backwards as a hooded figure walked through the giants’ legs. Though much smaller, the malevolent energy radiating off him brought more terror to my heart than the charging giants had.
Santanas. I bit down on my lip to stop from whimpering.
‘Now,’ his face was hidden in the shadow of his hood as his gaze swept along the army, ‘where is she?’
I lifted my chin as Santanas’s darkened face turned toward me.
‘Ahhhhh.’ He stretched out his arms. ‘Isadora.’ My name rolled from his lips. ‘Daughter, will you not join me?’
My traitorous knees trembled as I pushed away from Turos. I would have loved to have stayed there, letting his warmth give me a false sense of security, but I needed to be strong. ‘If I’ve told you once, I’ve told you a thousand times,’ I said, ‘the answer is no.’
He reached up and pushed back his hood and I couldn’t hide the shudder that ripped through me.
‘What’s the matter?’ his voice crooned. ‘Don’t you think I’m handsome any more?’
Thick, red scars twisted down his cheeks. His lips stayed still as he spoke, the shiny, tight tissue incapable of movement. It added a slur to his speech where there had been none. Orion’s eyes stared at me from the melted ruin of his face.
Santanas waved at the damage. ‘I’m surprised you don’t like it. This is your handiwork after all.’
Na
usea twisted my stomach as he ran his hands through patchy tufts of blond hair. I let out a prayer to the Dark Sky that Orion was really gone. I didn’t want to think that his soul had suffered through that. I would die from the guilt if that were the case.
I stiffened my spine. It had been Santanas or me. Anyone else would have died from what I had hit him with. It was his own stupid fault for binding his soul to his body so I hadn’t been able to finish him off. But then again, I guessed that was rather the point.
‘At some stage, you’re going to have to take some responsibility for your actions.’ I could feel the burning concentration of the thousands of people behind me, listening to every word.
He turned and walked along the front of the barrier, bumping it every few metres with his knuckles as if testing its strength. I prayed he wouldn’t find a weak point.
‘Whatever makes you think I don’t take any responsibility?’ He paused and looked back over his shoulder at me. ‘I’m just asking that you do as well. After all, I was quite happy snoozing in my little rock. It was you who chose to wake me.’ The skin around his mouth pulled tight and his eyes tensed. I guessed that was him smiling.
I let out a huff of air. We could play the blame game all day. ‘This is getting us nowhere. What do you want?’
‘You know what I want.’ He turned so that his focus was beyond me. ‘You all know what I want. Give Isadora to me and this will all go away.’
There was an angry mutter behind me. I tensed, waiting for someone to decide that it was a great idea.
Vulpine. Incoming. Emerald’s thought pushed into my head.
The barrier should stop them.
They aren’t coming from that side of the barrier.
I spun and stared back down the valley. White spots were speeding towards us.
Go, I shrieked. Go.
‘Vulpine,’ Turos yelled, stabbing at the sky.
I could hear the rustle from a thousand dragon wings unfurling. They had to get aloft before the Vulpine arrived.
I spun back to Santanas. His stiff smile dominated his face. Madness danced in his eyes as he laughed. ‘Perhaps we should continue this conversation later,’ he said. ‘Looks like you’ll be busy for a while.’
Faery Revenge Page 35
