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Jasper clasped my shoulder briefly in solidarity as he brushed past towards the door. “I’ll arrange transport and gear,” he said briskly. “No time to waste now that we’ve got the scent.” His fierce grin reminded me viscerally of his lupine nature—relentless instinct now drove us just as surely.
Cassius lingered only a heartbeat longer, eyes stormy with unvoiced dread. “I should come along,” he suggested, though haltingly. “My skills may be needed.”
But Crow halted him sharply. “Your place is here, for now, young raven.” Her stern tone brooked no dissent. “Ours is the burden of deepest night, after all. But your wings may yet spread at the proper hour.”
Their tense exchange pricked my curiosity, but time was too scarce for inquiries. Cassius slipped away, leaving Crow and Aleric deep in conversation.
“How soon can we leave?” I interjected. The scrying’s visions still blazed brightly in my mind. Rhys was so close now—waiting, hoping, believing still... I could not stomach any delay.
Aleric flashed a rakish smile, though tension lingered around his eyes. “We’ll depart within the hour.” He turned thoughtful, calculating logistics. “Jasper will secure the necessary... equipment. There’s little chance of entering completely unnoticed, but we’ll plan for any contingencies.”
Despite the circumstances, I nearly laughed aloud at his comical understatement and delicate phrasing. Jasper’s “equipment” likely consisted of enough illegal magic firepower and explosives to level a fortress, knowing his connections. But if it won us entry to Rhys, I would flatten the complex myself stone by stone.
Crow clapped once sharply, dispelling the moment’s levity. “Time flees!” Her piercing stare turned distant once more. “I’ll clear the path ahead in my own special way.” Before I could decipher her latest cryptic meanings, she swept off in a swirl of lace and leather.
I lifted my brows at Aleric in silent inquiry, but he just chuckled. “Best not to dig too deeply there, sister.” In a sobering moment, he gripped my shoulder silently, understanding that empty reassurances would be pointless. But I covered his broad hand with my own slender fingers, understanding passing silently between two souls bound now by devotion and fate. For Rhys, our efforts would never flag.
In the chaotic hours that followed, I caught only glimpses of the others’ feverish preparations between my own hasty arrangements—submitting a leave of academic absence, preparing healing balms and restoratives for Rhys, donning practical garb... The mundane tasks anchored me amidst the whirlwind.
Finally, we gathered outside the school limits as dusk bled across the bruise-dark sky. The unremarkable van parked nearby promised anonymity for whatever the next hours held. My companions clustered closer, our mismatched band girded now for battle. Grim purpose bound us, overriding all differences.
Crow leaned elegantly against the van’s door, watching the sparse traffic with sharp eyes. She had swapped her slinking gowns for more practical dark leather, but an elaborate raven mask with her namesake’s cunning gaze still adorned her face. A little dramatic flair, even now.
Jasper murmured something under his breath, eliciting a sly laugh from Crow. He kept one protective hand resting casually near the vehicle’s back doors, likely concealing enough magical munitions for a small army. Though entirely at ease, Jasper’s powerful frame radiated coiled readiness, hazel eyes restless for action.
Aleric stood slightly apart from the others, wings mantled pensively. He appeared lost in thought, doubtlessly wrestling as I was with emotions too profound for words. Yet a core of resilient hope shone in his tawny eyes. As long as breath and blood remained, he would fight at my side till the last.
As for me, preternatural calm reigned now that, after endless doubts and sleepless nights, events were hurtling forward beyond my control. Every fiber of my being stretched towards the cryptic vision wrung from blood and ether—Rhys, chained and despairing, waiting for us somewhere in that warren of tunnels and pipes. The time for patience and planning had slipped away. Now, we seized destiny with our own hands, come what may.
Everyone got into the vehicle. Distantly, I felt the van rumble to life, lumbering forward into the hazy twilight. But my thoughts remained anchored back at the academy, wandering the secret alcoves and whispering galleries where Rhys and I had first built the foundations of trust. I harbored no illusions about the black hours stretching bleakly ahead. But revisiting those cherished memories now lent me fresh strength. For Rhys’ sake, I would face any darkness.
The coastal foothills rose sullenly around us as we drove towards the sea. Despite myself, I recalled my childhood trip here, touring the sprawling desalination works that sustained the small island. Back then, the steam tunnels and roaring pipes had seemed wondrous.... but now took on a more sinister cast. What fresh peril awaited in those corroded depths?
I sensed Aleric’s steady presence at my side, though we both kept our silence. Words were paltry armor against the unknown. But sharing the unfathomable weight of dread lightened its crushing load, nonetheless. I found myself leaning gratefully into his sturdy frame. However tortuous the path ahead, at least we walked it together.
When the van at last rolled to a stop, twilight’s last embers had guttered away. I scarcely dared breathe as the others wordlessly took positions around the hulking complex. Rust-pitted pipes vented clouds of steam into the bruised sky, the entire structure groaning and shuddering with infernal industry. Somewhere in that maze, Rhys lay trapped...
We slipped nearer, flitting between sparse floodlights like ghosts. Far too few guards patrolled the derelict grounds. Clearly, Rhys’ captors relied on secrecy and isolation, not force of arms. Arrogance would be their undoing. They had brought a knife to a dragon fight.
Aleric laid a steadying hand on my shoulder as we crouched behind crumbling machinery, our shrouded forms just another pool of shadow. His eyes gleamed with wordless promise—we would brave these fetid depths together. Jasper and Crow were already scouting stealthily ahead, searching for our infiltration point. Time slowed to a crawl before Crow’s slender hand finally beckoned us onward.
Within moments, we were easing through a neglected access tunnel, moving swiftly into the facility’s bowels. Still, no alarms had been raised. I scarcely dared believe entry could be achieved so smoothly.
Where were the vigilant guards and bristling traps? Unease rippled down my spine as we delved deeper into the damp warren.
CHAPTER29
Rhys
Fatigue threatenedto pull me under into haunted sleep once more. But some lingering instinct warned against full surrender just yet. No matter how bleak things appeared, there had to be an untraveled path with potential for salvation. As long as I had breath and blood, I couldn’t let go of that defiant spark. Where there was desperate life, possibilities still flickered.
Inspiration struck with blinding clarity. The chains binding me were magical, but mundane physics might still expose weaknesses. I examined the links spanning from the manacles at the wrist to where they joined the anchoring pin, considering angles and tension. The configuration kept my arms raised slightly behind my back. But if I could undermine the narrow joint at my fetters, perhaps catastrophic failure would follow.
Ruthlessly silencing the skeptical voice insisting mad hopes only brought fresh disillusionment, I whispered a prayer to the watching stars they might continue shielding their child just a while longer. Then I grasped the chains crossing my back and pulled with all my prodigious might.
The magical links groaned under the abuse, but held fast as I expected. They had been designed to withstand a gargoyle’s brute strength. Panting, I reiterated, more cautious on the second attempt. But sudden sharp trauma could still stress them past limits.
Bracing my feet against the floor, I took a deep breath, then wrenched mightily backwards while simultaneously kicking forward with all my weight. Agonizing pain lanced through my wrists and shoulders at the awkward angle’s pressure, but I didn’t relent, letting momentum build. Something had to give...
