“Go!” I shouted, dropping my Air Shield so we could dash across the courtyard. Even though the Earth Mage was incapacitated, we were still open and vulnerable to the Air Mage’s attack. She began creating a small windstorm in her palms, intent on wrapping the three of us in its clutches, but I quickly reached out andpulledher magic toward me. Instantly, her command on the windstorm died, and she was temporarily unable to access her power.
Panic flooded her face as we drew closer, and she shouted something to the red-haired Vessel who stood quickly, a silver dagger flashing in her hand.
I held up my palms as we slowed our approach, showing we meant no harm. As a gesture of goodwill, I quickly encased our now much bigger group in an Air Shield.
“Torin?” the red-haired female asked, confusion marring her brow as she slowly dropped the dagger. “Ellowyn said you left.”
I nodded slightly. “I did.”
“Then . . . how, why are you here?” She studied me for a moment before realization dawned, and she hissed. “You’re one ofthem?”
“Heisus, Vessel,” Heco said derisively, and I closed my eyes in exasperation.
“Don’t speak to my Life Bond that way,” the Earth Mage growled from his prone position on the stone, still desperately trying to hack away at the ice with a conjured wood pick. I sighed and melted the ice with a quick blast of fire before re-engaging my Air Magic.
The Earth Mage slowly climbed to his feet, pulling the redhead into his side possessively once he reached his full height. The man was agiant. Well above six feet and built like a brick wall.
“Thank you?” he said, unsure how to feel about my actions.
“We’re running out of time,” I said as a tendril of Destruction Magic worked its way around my Air Shield as if looking for a way inside. I shuddered involuntarily. I didn’t recognize the signature, which meant it wasn’t one of mine, and it wasn’t Ellowyn.
Was the General here to play?
“You’re telling us. Look at what’s waiting for us once you all figure out what the hell is going on,” the Earth Mage ground out with a nod to the prowling forms of the gods’ army. His Vessel shivered in his arms, and he pushed her closer to his side.
“What is the meaning of this?” The Air Mage finally spoke, her Vessel a dark, silent sentinel at her back.
“We’re not here to kill you,” I rushed out as the Destruction Magic tried winding around my shield again. The two Mages and Vessel raised their eyebrows comically high.
“You could’ve fooled us. I saw at least a dozen unAwakened cadets killed by your Mages and at least ten of our trained soldiers. Not that you haven’t gone down in equal numbers,” the Earth Mage sneered, and I sighed, pulling a hand down my face.
This was going to be harder than I thought.
“I know what it looks like, but those weren’t my orders. Now you can choose to trust me and work with me to make sure that when we meet that”—I pointed to the gods’ army, a few of whichwere now howling in anticipation—“we are working together. Or we can both die here today and let the gods control Elyria and whoever else is left alive.”
The Earth Mage shared a look with his Vessel—one that was loaded with unspoken words and thoughts. He nodded briskly. “Fine. A momentary truce. Why are you here? What do you need?”
The Air Mage gawked at him, but he just shot her a look that said “not now.” She clamped her mouth tight, a muscle feathering in her jaw, but blessedly kept quiet.
“Eira and Heco will work on passing the message to the rest of my forces while you do the same to yours. I need to find Ellowyn.”
The Earth Mage narrowed his bright-green eyes at me in suspicion.
“The Queen? This is all a ploy to get the queen?” the Vessel asked as she tilted her head at me. The Earth Mage’s expression relaxed slightly as he seemed to have a conversation with himself. A slow smile spread on the Vessel’s face. “You’re in love with her.”
Eira and Heco snapped their heads toward me in disbelief. I felt my face grow hot at the comment and was grateful for both the cover of night and the dirt that smudged my cheeks.
“What I feel is unimportant. What is of vital importance—of keeping Elyria free from the gods’ total control type of importance—is finding her. Before they do.” I gestured again to the gods’ army, and the Vessel audibly gulped.
“Well, you’re in luck. Because here she comes now,” the Air Mage remarked dryly, and I turned suddenly, facing the courtyard battlefield once more.
There, striding toward me, face ripped into a menacing snarl, was Ellowyn. Andgodswas she beautiful—savagely stunning with her hair wound into intricate braids down her back, bloodand dirt plastering her skin. Her grey eyes danced in the light of the fires dotting the landscape.
I was entranced. Fully and utterly devoted to the brutal goddess in front of me.
“TORIN!” Her voice was a savage, ragged scream, which drew the attention of more than a few Mages from both sides of the conflict. A Pain Mage of ours recognized her almost immediately and took the opportunity to throw a heavy cloud of pain in her direction. Almost without looking, Ellowyn dropped her right hand, a tendril of Destruction Magic snaking out to weave around the Mage. He screamed once before her magic disintegrated him entirely.
Somehow, I couldn’t mourn his loss. If he was dumb enough to attack a godling—araginggodling—then he deserved his fate.
