Kate sighed, then finally looked up. “Very well.” She said, raising one hand in Silver’s direction. Instantly Silver felt magic swell inside her filling her. “You may also use your gifts without fear of the prices they demand.”
Silver nodded, and Kate resumed looking at the waters.
“One more thing, Night Angel.” Kate said, just as Silver was about to teleport away. “If you fail to uphold your end of the bargain. You will be sentenced to far worse torture than you have ever endured before. We will break you into tiny pieces.”
“There is no bargain.” Silver retorted. “If this was a bargain, I would gain something from it.”
“I did you a favour once.” Kate dismissed. “This is payment.”
“My favour had no such repercussions to you.”
“True. But you will repay the debt all the same.” Kate instructed.
Sensing the end of their conversation, Silver turned to leave.
“Goodbye Talia.” Kate said.
Silver said nothing in return, she merely teleported away from the Ancients plane, reappearing in the blood red sky above the battlefield where she allowed herself to free-fall before her wings sprung out to catch her as she drew level with the treetops.
She swooped down past Kobos’ approaching army. The cheers that erupted from the alliance’s side of the field were gleeful as she glided down to land directly in front of Marten’s horse.
“Very flashy.” He commented as she folded her wings away. “I suppose there was no way you were going to remain a surprise attack.”
“I could leave…” Silver retorted, leaving him stuttering. “By the way, you look stunning in your armour. I will send Romana a picture.”
“Is she safe?” Marten demanded, but his question was cut off by a roar from the other side as the opposing army assembled itself before them.
“Most likely.” Silver hedged, her eyes on the tents being assembled behind the enemy front line. “Where is Endis?”
“He’s with the magicians and the wytches.”
“Why are the wytches with him?”
“Because he wants them to group together to create a shield against magic.”
Silver was gone before he could blink. She reappeared in a small glade that was full of every single wytch that she’d sent over; in the centre was her oldest brother and his four pet magicians.
“Stop whatever it is you’re doing.” She told her brother. “It won’t work.”
“Why not?”
“Because demons are not magical. They’re pure evil. Draining my wytches will not help your cause when you need them to help you kill those that are already dead.”
“Are you sure about this?” Nathan demanded. “If this were to help then it would outweigh the potential problems.”
“If by ‘potential problems’ you mean magically exhausting all of the wytches here and leaving them defenceless, then yes, I’m sure it won’t help.” She heard some of the wytches hiss at the way that the elven magicians had clearly left out the part about being defenceless.
Wytch. Ash began, down their mental bond. Kobos’ men have begun, Marten is fighting off numerous goblins. We require Endis at the command tent.
“The armies have engaged each other.” Silver informed the waiting group. “Endis, you’re needed in the command tent.”
With a flash of light, Endis and his pet magicians disappeared.
“Next time, inform me of anything my brother attempts to make you do.” Silver reprimanded the wytches. “We’re needed in the battle.”
There were no mutters of annoyance this time, and some of the wytches openly thanked her for intervening before they teleported to the front line.
She waited before following them, appearing in the sky above the battlefield, her wings flapping to keep her hovering in one place as she took stock of the situation.
Above her dragons soared, alternating between blowing streams of lethal fire at each other and colliding with the enemy in a tangle of deadly claws and teeth.
Below her, elves and dwarves from both sides quickly decimated the numbers of humans. Centaurs galloped through the fray, attacking at will. Goblins, useless as they were, just stuck a sword into anything that moved, while giants came together in a crunching of bones and flesh.
But there was no sign of Kobos. And no signs of the demons. Wytches killed quickly, working a path through the fray with their magic, but there was nothing there that they couldn’t handle, especially with Joanna’s armour.
“Something’s wrong.” She yelled to Marten as she flew over him.
“What?” He yelled back.
“There are no demons. I don’t see Kobos either.”
“He was never there. His army just attacked.” The kingling replied, dodging a blow from a centaur and returning the favour.
Silver landed next to Marten, wincing as her wings folded into her back in the same moment that she withdrew her swords and beheaded a swarm of elves.
“It’s a good thing he’s not here too.” Marten bellowed over to her as he dealt with another centaur, but his face didn’t look convinced.
Silver nodded, but she also had her doubts.
The battle went on for what seemed like an age, and although Silver and her wytches slaughtered countless of the other army, there seemed to be no end to their numbers. Noon came and went and though Silver used magic to keep her energy levels boosted, even she began to tire towards dusk.
“Come.” One of Romana’s familiars instructed. “Both sides have set up camp behind the front lines. You must rest.”
“I do not require sleep.” She informed them tersely.
“But your magic needs to recharge and you must nourish yourself.” The moonstone dragon replied in a logical manner that gave her no way to argue.
Her wings unfolded again, though they were strained to carry her after being used so much after centuries of neglect, and she flew back towards the elven city, where she could see the barricades marking the beginning of the neat circles of tents. Each small brown two man tent faced inwards, creating a ring around the command tent which stood tall and proud in the centre. She landed in front of it with a flourish, pretending that she was not tired so as not to appear weak.
As she flowed from the air to the ground, she noticed Marten riding up to meet her on a flowing black horse.
“The other army has ceased its attack; I’m putting half of the men as guards just in case, but the majority will probably take the evening to rest.”
“Make sure they’re all able to be attack ready at a moment’s notice.” Silver instructed.
“Last time I checked I was the one in command of the armies, sister.” A cool voice interrupted from behind her.
“My apologies, I didn’t realise you had a better plan. Plus, I have no alliance, which clearly makes me the better person to lead this army.”
“But would you be able to sit in the command tent rather than joining in with the action?” Endis queried, though it was obviously a rhetorical question.
“You are correct; I don’t usually go for the coward’s route.” Silver baited him deliberately.
Endis glared at her for a moment before turning to Marten. “You and I are sharing a tent, surprisingly no-one wanted to share with her.”
“’She’ can hear you. And I like my space.” Silver called as they walked away.
Chapter Thirty-Eight
BIG BROTHER
Silver looked over at the tents, hearing footsteps approach her from behind, recognising who they belonged to in a heartbeat.
The sound stopped, and the person behind her took a deep breath.
She turned.
“Hey.” She mumbled, as Roan, her second oldest, and most devoted brother looked down at her from his exceptional height.
He said nothing, and a part of her, a small part that had once laughed and smiled and hugged with a careless never-ending youth broke as she read the sadness in his eyes.
Roan. Her Roan, had
once been a joker and a dandy. The second son of her parents and the sunshine in her life. He had always been there for her, and they’d barely spent a day out of each other’s company. He’d been her best friend, her confident, the one who would beat up any boy who dared break her heart all those years ago when she’d been a teenager. The one who would get her out of whatever mess she’d been in. Her one true rock in what had always been a tumbling ocean.
Memories flooded back to her as she stood under his gaze. She had known that he had suffered in the two decades since she’d been forced to leave, but she had never thought that it would be this bad. His eyes were marked with dark shadows, his face was gaunt. His stance rigid. His clothes black.
Gone was the jester, the joker and dandy. This new Roan was not the brother that she’d cared for above all the others.
“Walk with me?” He finally requested, his words awkward and halting.
She gave a small nod and dropped into step beside him, staying silent as he led her from the camp and further away from prying ears. When they reached a significant distance from where both armies were gathered, he stopped but kept his back to her.
“Why?” He asked. “I don’t want anything but the truth. Just tell me why you left us.”
She paused, uncomfortable with explaining the story, but knowing that there was no way she would be able to let herself leave the situation like this. She may have chosen to quit hiding what she did from the world, and indeed, she may no longer be the innocent princess handing out food in the night, but her story was not an easy one to tell.
“When it came to be my time to soul-swap,” She began. “I did as I have always done, and I secured the offspring of a powerful creature, with great magical ability. The ritual would have gone as planned, and I would have been fine, but I did not factor in certain implications of my stealing this particular child.” She glanced at the ground, then cursed herself for doing so. Half an hour with Roan and already she was losing her confidence and returning to the meek little princess she’d always pretended she was.
“When I sent my soul out of my old body, I attempted to enter the body of the infant, only to find a slight problem. The child’s mother had been powerful enough to alter the magic of the magicians, she’d blocked the child’s soul from leaving its body and at the same time she kept me from re-joining mine. At the time, I was overconfident, and I thought I could simply overpower the infant’s soul, and mine would absorb it, making it so that I was still dominant. I was foolish, and as a result the mother locked me in the subconscious of the child, keeping me prisoner there.”
Roan turned around, but said nothing. Silver took this as the cue to keep going.
“I could do nothing but watch from the side-lines as the magicians assumed that the spell had gone according to plan and sent me off to the human village where I was to be raised until I was fit to re-join court. I could also do nothing as the goblins raided that village a mere few days later, and took the child from the ruins where they attempted to sacrifice her to one of their more bloodthirsty gods. Fortunately, the child’s mother intervened, and instead took the child to the desert slave shop, where she grew up and developed as she would normally. For eighteen years I worked away in the subconscious, attempting to free myself from the dark prison of her mind.”
Roan’s face softened, and he subconsciously moved in closer to her, as if to offer some comfort. With only him and the moon to hear her, she concluded her tale.
“When the girl was old enough, and I had finally broken free of my bonds, she was no longer a resident of the disgusting sand pit the humans call a slave shop, instead she had been brought by King Marten, or Prince Marten as he was then. I was only able to surface fully once a personal possession from my past life was given into my possession. Once free, my personality was warped after two decades of darkness. I admit I am now unstable. I know what is wrong with me. But now I share this body with the girl who I tried to steal it from. I never left you intentionally, big brother, for the first few years, when I still had my sanity, I would have given anything to see you again. I’m sorry you’ve been through so much.”
Silver’s mind reeled in shock as she realised that she’d made her first true apology since being free. It must be the effects of telling such a stressful story, she consoled herself, traumatic events would naturally make her feel less like her normal self.
Roan looked at her, speechless. His red hair, long and flowing in the breeze whispered between them. It took a moment or two, but eventually, he reached forwards and pulled her close into a hug.
For a second, just a second, Silver allowed the small, wounded princess within her the comfort and security of her brother’s arms before she pushed away.
Then he reached for her mask.
“No.” She told him firmly.
“Why not?” He asked, reaching for her again, but her hands stopped his midway.
“Someone could see.” She muttered.
“See what? My beautiful baby sister? Like that will change the world.”
“Look I’m not a spoiled princess anymore Roan. I have a use now.”
“You had a use before!”
“No. I got to sit around and look pretty while you all got to do things, fight wars and help people.”
“Just let me see you for a few moments.” He pleaded.
Glancing around the deserted glade, Silver willed away the mask, showing her true face for the first time in years. Men had fought over her face, men had died over her in duels she’d never really cared for. All of them bewitched by the sight. Her mother had once told her she was so beautiful because of the strength that had been forged into her from a young age. Silver had always believed that after each of her tortures as a child, when the magicians had mended the broken skin and bones, they had changed her appearance to fit her mother’s expectations.
Her face had an angled, finely chiselled beauty, with shaped eyebrows and a straight nose followed by thin, yet shapely lips set into a stubborn jaw. Her eyes were silver, like the rest of her family, yet framed with dark lashes that her blonde mother had never acquired.
“Talia.” Roan breathed, hugging her to him once more. “I missed you so much,”
“I won’t be a stay at home princess, even when this is done, brother.” She told him quietly. “You will have to get used to living without me.”
“I survived before.” He told her as he stepped away and she commanded her mask to reappear.
“Not very well.” She muttered. “You can’t doom yourself to depression over me.” She told him as her wings unfurled. “Goodnight, big brother.” With that she took off into the sky, feeling more and more in control the further away she got from one of the few emotional links she had left in the world.
Chapter Thirty-Nine
HELL UNLEASHED
A disturbance in the air around her woke Silver; the quivering of tree limbs had her drawing a sword slowly. She’d come up to the top of this tree to sleep, knowing that it was the only place she was going to be safe, at least momentarily, while she was unconscious. Plus, no-one had thought to assign her a tent.
After making peace with her brother that night, she had taken a watch shift with some of the guards, only to find that her presence was too much for the puny mortals, who were quaking at the sight of her. Apparently words of her slaughters had gotten around.
She’d left her shift with those guards then ran deep into the heart of the green forest to be far away from the battle while she was vulnerable. The other wytches, she assumed had gone to the bunker to sleep and be healed by the wytches there.
Now, as someone, probably the kingling, scaled her tree, she sheathed her blades and sat up.
“What is it now?” She asked, annoyed at being found so easily.
“I wanted to talk.” He told her, climbing up to sit opposite her.
“Why?” She asked.
“Kobos hasn’t shown up. This battle may be pointless if we can’t get to him.”
/> “He’ll show.” She reassured him. “He has to. His army alone is not enough to win this battle, he knows it. He has to pull something bigger out of his hat, and what better way to do it than when we’re all exhausted.”
“The demon dragons.”
“Yes.” She replied. “You should go, dawn is nearing and you must be with your troops.”
“Yes–” He began, but he was cut off.
The sound of a deep, resonating horn rang through the forest, slicing through anything Marten had been about to say and causing them both to freeze in their tracks.
“Kobos.” Silver murmured. “Come.”
Without further warning she teleported them both to the command tent.
“What the devil is going on?” Marten demanded of the first soldier he saw.
“Your highness.” The soldier bowed in respect. “The enemies troops are lined up perfectly. At the sound of the horn they did not even react.”
Silver looked into the man’s face, sensing familiarity. “MacArthur.” She muttered, even as the kingling waved for him to carry on.
“They don’t move, they just remain out of catapult range. It’s like they’re waiting for something.”
“Where is Prince Endis?”
“He and the others are surveying the events from the front line. I believe they’ll be fighting alongside us today.”
“MacArthur.” Silver called as Marten waved a hand to dismiss him. “I hold a favour of yours if I’m correct.”
“Yes, ma’am.” He fidgeted nervously.
“In about a minutes time, you will find yourself standing in a cave, I want you to call out for Leigh and Miria. Two centaurs will approach you, you are to tell them that I command their presence. Around fifteen minutes from the moment you arrive, I will teleport the centaurs and yourself to my location, so be battle-ready. Are you clear?”
“Yes ma’am.” He replied. “I must say, I was worried you would ask worse.”
“How could I when you have a child to look forward to?” She asked. “Your wife is very clever. You are a lucky man.”
Kate's Legacy (Soul Merge Saga Book 2) Page 27
