There. Between the trees, at a slight rise in the path. I sprang to my feet and charged at the robed figure. In this cursed storm, the advantage lay with the Chiasma, the power they could draw through their dagger only limited by their own abilities. My only hope was to overtake them with sheer force, using the element of surprise.
For a moment, it seemed I would succeed. My sword’s deadly path halted only inches from a pair of furious blue eyes.
“Rahni!” I exclaimed, recognizing the burly form and round features of the Dwarfish female who had once served me.
“Master,” she spat, baring square white teeth. Her tone dripped with contempt, her expression mocking as she held her ground. Her hood had fallen back, revealing close-cropped reddish hair, the glowing Aurean runes tattooed on her scalp shimmering through. The Dwarf was a vicious fighter, as deadly with her axe as with her magic.
I gathered the last reserves of Fire magic within mylyr-stone, letting it race from my hands over our locked weapons into hers, hoping to break her grip. She cursed in guttural Dwarfish and jumped back, but quickly laughed when the fire flickered out without causing actual damage.
“Low on magic, I see,” she crowed. “Deira was right. You are weak.”She balled one gloved hand into a fist. “The power of the Adept is there for the taking. A gift for anyone brave enough to try.”
Fuck! This was worse than I had expected. All my former acolytes sought my death, eager to claim my power. Wherever I ran, they wouldn’t let me find peace. My mind raced, searching for any advantage, any way to turn the tide in my favor.
“Do you really think you have what it takes to claim my power, Rahni?” I taunted. “Aren’t you overestimating yourself, my dear? You’ve always excelled at only one thing: following those more gifted than you.”
With an angry growl, the Dwarf reached for the dagger strapped to her side. The moment she drew it, I was upon her, abandoning the Fire stone to cage her hand before she could weave any more magic. I could feel the power of the Chaos stone in the dagger’s hilt, its hunger to be unleashed, gathering the energy of the surrounding storm.
Unlike Vultaron, Rahni didn’t struggle over the dagger with me. Instead, she pulled me closer with surprising strength and landed a hard kick against my shin, her teeth clicking together dangerously close to my nose as she tried to bite me. Distracted, I let go, despair flashing through me as she raised the dagger high above her head, channeling more power into it until it glowed like a fallen star.
“Who is the weak one now?” she screeched, her robe fluttering in the wind generated by the ferocious surge of magic.
With the last of my strength, I reached out, trying to seize the power that once flowed through me effortlessly. Only a hollow emptiness answered, Chaos whispering uselessly over my skin.
Knowing it wouldn’t save me, I raised my sword in a final, futile attempt to defend myself. Rahni’s smile twisted into a mask of cruel satisfaction as the Chaosdagger descended with the finality of a death sentence.
A large hand wrapped around the acolyte’s throat from behind. Rahni’s blue eyes bulged in shock. She clawed at her unseen assailant, dropping her axe and dagger. Air and Water magic hissed, stealing her breath as she tried to cry out, blood bubbling on her lips as her lungs failed. Grim relief coursed through me as the light in her eyes dimmed and she crumpled lifelessly to the ground.
Kyree stood over her fallen body, the glowing Water stone in his hand casting an eerie light. He looked like a winged wraith of death, dark hair plastered to his head.
I gripped his shoulder. “Thank you,” I said, my voice hoarse with gratitude. Kyree didn’t react, his gaze locked on the dead acolyte, oblivious to the pounding rain that drenched us both. “You swore an oath to preserve life, not destroy it, didn’t you?” I asked, noting the haunted look on his face.
“Every healer who knows how to save a life also knows how to end it,” he replied, his voice shaking slightly. A wry expression entered his eyes as they met mine. “And if it means saving my friends, I’ll make that choice every time.”
I nodded, picking up the Chaosdagger, its power humming in eager recognition under my touch.
“They are some of the Chiasma, aren’t they?” Kyree motioned at Rahni and then at the still-glowing dagger in my hand. “Will that give you enough power to counter their magic?”
His earnest belief in my abilities sent a strange warmth through me. “Let’s hope it’s enough,” I answered, suppressing my own doubts.
My head came up as I sensed a sudden shift in the air, the tendrils of Chaos dancing around me, hissing viciously in warning. Though we had been victorious, something about the attack tugged at my mind.
“She knew we were coming,” I murmured, my gaze scanning the dark forest as I came to a terrifying realization.
“Perhaps that should not surprise us,” Kyree said, not catching on to the direction of my thoughts. “Anyone who knew Briseis and Varien were important to Rada could have guessed you would come to free them.”
“No, that is not what I meant.” Bright lights flickered through the Chaos stone, reacting to my agitation. “Rahni lacked the ability to sustain spells like this for long. She knew we were coming right now. Which means…”
The Aerieth spun toward the path to the hut at the same moment a dozen dark shapes emerged from the rain. His voice shook with a mix of rage and disbelief. “We’ve been betrayed.”
I should have known better. Anger at my own foolishness pounded through me as the Rakash fanned out around Kyree and me, cutting off any escape routes. The Chiasma could have delivered that message to us far more easily than by letting Calder go. Sparing him had been a poisoned mercy. Deira allowed no one to flee without sinking her claws in first.
The dark iron of the Rakash’s weapons gleamed menacingly in the flickering light of the storm. I suppressed a vicious curse at the sight of at least two entire fists of the brutal creatures, herding Adesh, Tristan, and the two female soldiers in front of them. The four of them had evidently been overwhelmed not long ago, their weapons taken, although they appeared unhurt aside from a few bruises and cuts.
I did not have to wonder how they had been defeated. Calder followed behind them. The fact that his sword remained by his side and he walked free was confirmation of his complicity.
“So this is the extent of your duty to protect this village?” I asked coldly. “The moment your own life was in danger, you betrayed us.” It served me right for having faith in the strength of mortal hearts when the past had shown me time and time again how easily Humans were corrupted.
“No. You don’t understand.” Despair flashed across Calder’s pale face as he turned to me. “She said she would keep the others alive if I brought you to her. That she would leave without harming anyone else in the village. I had no other choice.”
