by Jen Wylie
Moving everyone there and into them would certainly be a headache though. "Slight change of plans." She related what Rhee-En had told her to the others.
Baelan scrunched up his nose. "Moving so many Fey, this is a nightmare. Are we sure there is room in the caves?"
"Rhee-En seemed to think so," she answered.
He pulled out his now worn notebook and began quickly flipping through pages.
She turned to Kei to find him staring off into the distance, his brows drawn together. "What is it?"
He blinked and then shook his head. "Just thinking."
The young Were assure me there will be ample room for all of us, Garen told them. We will be broken up though. There are many small caves, some connected, but there are only a few larger caves.
"We've nearly seven hundred Fey now," Baelan said, looking up from his book. "Supplies were delivered to the main group yesterday, so we will be good in that regard. Water, of course, will not be a problem."
She rolled her shoulders, trying to loosen the growing tension. "Good. So…just firewood will be an issue? We can gather as we make our way there."
"I'll go ahead," Kei offered. "Let the main group know what is going on. And get them moving."
"Take some Were and Fey and move on to check out the caves. We can see what we have to work with and if there are Fey already there."
I'll go with him.
She smiled over at Garen. "Good enough. Anything else?" When no one had anything to add, she continued. "Let's get moving then. Keep in touch."
When Garen and Kei were gone from view she huffed out a breath.
Baelan grinned as he tucked his notebook away. "There's always something, isn't there?"
She grimaced. "Sure seems like it."
∞ ∞ ∞
Aro stared up at the shadows flickering along the cave ceiling. A fire crackled to her left, warming her side and face though her back seemed to suck the damp and cold right up out of the stone despite the blanket under her.
In the distance, echoing through the connecting caves, came the sound of pipes and singing. Baelan, entertaining the Fey in the largest cavern. She was quite certain they didn't know quite what to make of the Elf. His music kept everyone in high spirits though, despite the cramped quarters.
The storm still howled on in the darkness outside. After nearly two days, she hoped it would end soon. Though they had enough wood, food, and water, there had been issues with flooding and crowding the hundreds of Fey into tighter quarters.
Click, click, click.
Closing her eyes, she sighed. Weariness pulled at her, but she couldn't sleep, even though she had her own little cave to herself. They found thirty-four Fey in the caverns. She'd just healed the last of them earlier. Though she released much of the fury, it still hummed within her. Winding threads of red and black.
Click, click, click.
Groaning, she pushed herself up and stood, turning toward Kei.
He stood along the back of the cave, shoulder against the stone. Head tipped down, his wild hair shone gold in the firelight around his face. It'd grown out, nearly to the length it'd been before Damon took him from her. He stared off into the shadows, lost in his thoughts. A knot of worry twisted her stomach when she saw his eyes glowed. Gold, nearly orange.
Click. Click, click.
Her gaze shot down to his hands. The claws gently clicking together. Through their bond she felt his agitation.
"Kei," she said softly, moving toward him. He didn't move, and she gently touched his shoulder. "Kei."
He looked up at her. "They come–"
"With the storm," she finished. "I know."
He kept saying those words, over and over, the past two days. They discussed it briefly the first day. The phrase was one of the few lines seemingly randomly noted in the book of prophecies. He didn't know what it meant, neither had Damon. Kei suddenly thought it was important, and not knowing who "they" were was driving him crazy. They could be anyone; assassins, Fey, Elves, humans, Vor…or someone else entirely.
They took what little precautions they could, placing extra guards at all the entrances to the caves.
It worried her, how the prophecy still had such a hold over him. He'd been doing so much better. She'd thought, she'd hoped, all of his mental torment was over now.
"I don't… I can't…" His gaze dropped, and he shook his head.
She placed her palms on his cheeks, holding his face for a moment before stepping closer. Her fingers moved, gently soothing, over his face, pushing back his hair. "We'll find out soon enough."
"I know." Sighing, he closed his eyes. A hand settled over hers, stopping it as it cupped his face. He pressed his cheek against it for a moment, before stepping away.
Her hands dropped, but her worry lessoned. His claws were gone. When his eyes opened, she found the light gone from them as well.
"I can't lose you," he whispered.
"You won't." He looked away, but she didn't know what else to say.
"You're supposed to be sleeping," he finally said, changing the subject.
She shrugged a shoulder, still watching him carefully. "Can't sleep."
"The Elf needs to learn some new songs. Those are getting old."
She smiled a bit at that. "The Fey don't seem to mind. I think a few have been trying to teach him some new ones."
Aro-En.
She held up a hand as Kei opened his mouth to speak. "Rhee-En."
Good evening, she answered the alpha. Is the storm almost done?
Yes, it should be passed you later tonight. How are you all faring? Are there any issues?
No, we are doing well enough.
Good, good.
"The storm should be done later tonight," she quickly said to Kei in the lull that followed.
I need you and the Fey to stay at the caves, Rhee-En finally said.
Her brows rose as she darted a glance at Kei. Why?
I…We…made an error. We were not vigilant enough. We didn't think… His words trailed off. A large number of Vor have made it deep within my lands.
They came with the storm, she said.
Yes, he agreed, surprise coloring his beautiful voice. Hidden in the heart while we all took shelter. Even as the storm passed, we did not know. It washed away their tracks and scent.
Where are they now?
The swollen rivers are at least keeping them contained to some extent, he said, ignoring her question.
Rhee-En.
He paused, and then started naming off landmarks.
She waved her hand at Kei. "Map! I need the map!" Are they still moving?
Kei dropped to his knees and began frantically digging through their packs. Once he pulled it out, she joined him as they flattened it out.
"What is it?"
"Vor."
He let out a deep breath and nodded as her fingers danced over the page, finding the spot Rhee-En mentioned.
Yes, the alpha answered. Heading for the wardwall as usual. The river is keeping them from turning right now, but they will soon enough.
Have you engaged with them?
Just outliers. There is an unforested stretch of land by the wall. We will strike them there.
When?
Late morning.
Her eyes flitted over the map. We aren't far from there. We could make it on time.
Aro-En… He let out a mental sigh. We could use any assistance you can provide. I'm uncertain how many of my Were I can gather there by that time. And…I was not expecting such numbers.
How many?
Thousands. There are thousands of them, Aro-En.
"Wither me." She met Kei's eyes. I'll bring as many Fey as I can. She paused, thinking. Not all of them. Some aren't ready and–
I understand. Any help will be appreciated.
I'll get back to you.
Thank you.
She sat back on her heels, looking up as Baelan rushed into the room.
"What did you need?"
/> She blinked up at him in confusion, before remembering the map. "Sorry." She grimaced and gestured at it.
He relaxed but then frowned. "What's happened?"
Leaning over the map again, she quickly told them what the alpha said to her.
Baelan ran a hand over his face. "Thousands?"
She nodded grimly. "If we leave at first light, we can make it there on time."
The Elf's voice rose. "Thousands as in two…or eight?"
"Ah, I didn't ask." Rot. She should have.
Kei leaned forward. "What kind of Vor? Those big ones? The crab things? Something else?"
Hadn't asked that either. "I told Rhee-En I'd contact him about what we're doing. I'll ask then."
Kei's eyes were glowing again. "We need to decide who will stay and who will go."
"You better mean in regard to the Fey," she said sharply. "Because I'm going."
His gaze lowered. "I know."
"Well, if she's going then I'm going," Baelan said, though he didn't look too enthused by the idea. He frowned. "Is it a good idea to bring the Fey? You just found them, and it's not like there are a lot left."
"We were created to fight," Kei said firmly.
The Elf rolled his eyes. "I know. I'm just saying perhaps giving your people time to increase their numbers might be wise."
Aro frowned. He was right, in a way, but unless they weren't going to fight at all during this rising…it still didn't matter. They didn't have years for the Fey to mate, have children, have those children grow up… Yet, he made a good point. "Well, let's talk this out."
Garen joined them, and then Cano and Lissana. Eventually it was decided they would ask for volunteers to fight. However, those who were uncertain of their control over their fury, or healed in the last few days, would stay behind. As would the few children and pregnant women. The main argument revolved around mated pairs, whether they should fight or not. In the end, Baelan's concerns won out. That, and there were not many pairs among the Fey. They too would remain behind. However, a compromise was made. All the Fey would travel toward the battle, those staying behind stopping a safe distance away. The young Were would stay with them, giving them warning if the battle went badly or Vor approached so they could run. The mates would protect the pregnant women and children. Once the battle ended, the Fey left behind would join them to help with the wounded.
It was a sound plan. Aro wondered how much of it would go wrong, and then bit her tongue.
She contacted Rhee-En again, letting him know she had around six hundred Fey who would fight, and he answered her questions.
"Well?" Baelan rubbed at the back of his head and yawned. "Do we want to know?"
"They estimate around six thousand."
"Wither me," Kei muttered.
"He said he should have close to three thousand Were gathered by then. Hopefully."
"That evens things out," Cano said. "What kind of Vor?"
"Not the ones we have seen. They are the size of a small Were. Long bodies, claws, a long face with lots of teeth. They slink in the shadows and are fast. Why he doesn't want to engage in the forest."
"Any Vor-ai?"
She shook her head. "Not that they've seen. But we need to make sure everyone knows the Vor bindings."
Though they'd found several older Fey, not all remembered the words to the bindings. Luckily, they eventually finally found a few who did.
Vor-ai bind, still and blind, moving not, until death it finds.
Shorter than the bindings she had done with Kei, though she did worry it still seemed a bit long. Kei assured her it was fine. What was important was the Fey's intent. What he did worry about was if she would be able to cast the binding. Though she had bound with Kei, she wasn't Fey.
She looked to Baelan. "You know what to do once they are bound?"
He nodded, a hand going to his side, and she remembered some of the runes there. "All ready to go."
If not killed by an Elven rune quickly, a Vor-ai could possibly escape if the binding wasn't strong enough. If it was, and there was no Elf to kill them, they'd remain bound until they starved to death.
Then we have our plan, Garen said. Time now for some sleep. Tomorrow will be a long day.
Cano and Lissana left, intending to speak to the rest of the Fey again. She would be leaving them in charge during the battle. At least she didn't worry about that, she trusted them and knew they'd protect their people.
Kei added more wood to the fire. Garen curled up in the small cave entrance. She shouldn't have been surprised everyone was spending the night in her little cave.
"So, prophecy boy," Baelan said into the quiet. "We all going to survive tomorrow?"
The silence was deafening.
"Probably," Kei finally answered, his voice low and quiet. "I don't know."
"Next time I ask, just say yes."
She and Kei snorted at the same time, which made her laugh. It was a little bit hysterical. Kei laughed quietly at her, shaking his head. Even Baelan laughed, a soft chuckle. For some reason, it relieved some of the tension in her body.
"Good night, boys."
"Good night, Aro."
They left at first light. A small army of Fey with a few Were, one Elf, and one human. Or whatever she was. Some days, she wasn't quite so sure.
The storm passed in the night as Rhee-En said it would. The sun shone brightly, not a cloud in the sky. The temperature rose as they walked, slowly drying the rain-soaked ground and turning the air sticky with humidity. She hoped the battlefield would be dry enough by the time the Vor arrived they wouldn't be fighting in mud.
She and the boys led the way. The murmur of hundreds of quiet voices behind her was oddly soothing. She spoke to Rhee-En a few times as the morning progressed, keeping him updated on her location and discussing battle tactics. Their chosen battleground was a long stretch of open ground in the river valley. With the river to the east and the wardwall to the south, they planned to box in the Vor. Were would attack from the north, behind the approaching Vor, pushing them forward, and then a line of Were and Fey from the west.
Later that morning they stopped briefly to settle those who would stay behind. Kei stood before them all, with Cano and Lissana at his side, discussing the care of possible wounded. When they finished, she uncomfortably moved forward to speak with them all.
"Good morning." She cleared her throat nervously and looked to Kei as they quieted. He gave her an encouraging smile. "As most of you know, I'm Arowyn Mason. Aro." She held back a grimace. They probably all knew who she was. Stupid.
"So, a few things." She rubbed her hands nervously against her thighs and glanced at Kei again. "As you may have noticed, I can take your fury. The power of it. Enough for you to regain control. I…uh…" Hundreds of Fey watched her, giving her their full attention. She felt a bit nauseous. "I can also give it back," she finished quickly. They stared at her. "If you need it. To…ah…heal." Their gazes remained locked on her silently for a moment before they broke out in quiet, shocked whispers.
Feeling her unease, Kei quickly turned the talk to the fighting ahead and gave final instructions to those going on with them. After preparing for battle, they set out again.
She had every weapon she owned strapped on her somewhere. Swords, daggers. Baelan pulled her hair back into a tight braid. Her fingers danced from weapon to weapon as she walked. Garen roamed ahead of them. Kei and Baelan walked to either side of her, quiet in their own thoughts.
She felt Kei's skittering emotions; unease, worry, excitement. Glancing at the Elf, she thought he looked at bit pale. He'd never fought the Vor. As far as she knew, he'd never fought in any sort of large battle. Would Baelan remain once the fighting started, or would the assassin come out?
He glanced over at her. "We will protect you," he said softly, his voice more serious than she'd ever heard it.
"That's not what I'm worried about."
His lips curved up slightly. "No, of course not."
"I'd rather
you didn't die."
He chuckled and shook his head. "You needn't worry about me."
"Fine. I'll worry about Kei."
The Fey snorted. When she turned to look at him, she briefly caught his small smile before it disappeared.
"Well, then." Garen, I'm going to worry about you.
The Were laughed as he trotted into view. We're almost there.
Another Were joined him, tipping his head to her as she noticed him. Aro-En. If you would follow me.
She nodded and picked up her pace to follow the Were through the trees to where Rhee-En wanted them positioned.
Once they reached the tree line, she sent the Fey off in either direction, spreading them out. Kei, Baelan, and Garen remained at her side as she surveyed the long stretch of river valley. The wind that brought the storm hadn't shifted and it teased her hair, blowing loose strands around her face. At least they were downwind and the Vor wouldn't scent them.
Short grasses and flowers filled the valley. Though there were a few dips, it was mostly flat. "Where is the river?"
Just beyond the far trees, Garen answered. You can see where the wardwall is to the right. The valley ends at it.
"Why?" That didn't make any sense.
"We keep the valley clear of trees for the deer."
She turned, unable to stop the smile forming on her face at the sound of that beautiful voice. "Rhee-En."
"Aro-En." He tipped his head slightly. "You brought more Fey than I thought you would."
"They wanted to fight. It was hard to keep the young and the mated pairs back."
"That was wise."
"It was Baelan's idea, actually."
The alpha looked to the Elf, who stared up at him almost…adoringly. Yes, Baelan still couldn't get over the Were's sultry voice.
She tried to hold in her amused grin.
Rhee-En shook his head, his lips turning up into a faint smile, twisting the scars across this cheek.
Don't embarrass me, she reminded the Elf.
He blinked a few times before lowering his gaze. I apologize. I just…
Oh, I know. I've gotten used to it. Mostly. Catching his gaze, she smiled so he knew she wasn't angry. She turned her attention back to the Were. "What's the word?"
