I sighed, stepped forward, linked my arm with Ashley and tugged her along. “Let’s go.”
“Wait… I don’t get second breakfast before we leave?” she gasped in disappointment.
“Knowing you, you’ve probably already stashed food in your pockets,” I murmured, giving her a knowing look as she smiled innocentlyback at me.
CHAPTER
10
As promised, two others met up with us before leaving. Caleb, an Ashen Corps soldier with light brown hair and blue eyes, was apparently highly regarded for his close combat skills and had excellent aim for someone who wasn’t a sniper. Faelin was an air Aetherion, with light ginger hair and impossible moss green eyes. She walked with grace, but seemed careful and quiet, often casting a cautious eye at Malakai. At least she seemed to have been notified about his nature, unlike Jaden.
We had been walking for perhaps an hour in the stillness. Slowly, the birdsong faded, crickets stopped chirping, and the trees turned awfully stiff.
“Why does our group keep expanding?” Ashley complained. “It makes it a lot harder to sneak.”
“I apologize if I’m causing you trouble,” Faelin said with a lowered voice.
“Shit. Don’t apologize like that… now I feel like an ass,” Ashley sighed, still irritable.
“I’m sor—”
Before Faelin could apologize again, Ashley’sgrunt cut her off.
“The demons whooped us last time,” Eve said bitterly. “Just bow and accept any help we get through these Godsforsaken lands.”
“The day I’m forced to bow to anyone, is the day my explosives target humans again,” Ashley muttered, making Caleb and Faelin stiffen.
“Relax, she’s all talk,” Lionel apologized in her stead.
“Right,” Caleb nodded. “So, what’s the plan then?”
“The group that was sent out before us has drawn some attention, keeping the demons out of our path for a short while,” I explained, trying to remember what Amestele had told us before leaving. “It should give us enough time to sneak past their first line.”
“We’re not supposed to kill them?” Faelin asked confused.
“Eventually,” Lionel added. “But our focus is to make it to Darkshire.”
“Why?” Caleb asked curiously, more open when a fellow ungifted was speaking.
“We need to know more, such as whether most of their forces guard the border, or if they’re preparing elsewhere? What if they have a half-breed army that can wield magic outside of the elements? They’d be able to infiltrate and crush us from within,” Eve muttered, her eyes sharp.
“The question isn’t if they have one, rather why are they stalling? They haven’t made any significant attacks for at least two years,” I said, unease filling me. “They must be planning something…”
“Question is, what?” Lionel pondered, eyes locked forward.
I glanced over at Malakai and saw his hands curling into fists. For him, there was more to this mission than merely facing off against the demons and their leader. The DemonKing was hisfather… He had left Malakai and his mother behind, forcing them to deal with their fate all on their own.
She had been a mage, forced to feed other Aetherions to her half-demon son, so that he may live. What a cruel fate—not only for her, but for him, too. To have to take lives at such young age…
What would Malakai do once he met his father? I knew he had little interest for someone who abandoned them, yet… feelings are complicated… The heart doesn’t always get along with the brain.
For a brief moment, I battled with myself, wondering if I should initiate the conversation, but I ended up pushing it back. By the looks of him, he was already at war with his own thoughts. It occurred to me that I never asked him if he had been to these lands prior to when he scouted ahead of us by himself. Was this land giving him bad vibes, bringing back memories he didn’t want to relive?
Or was he…sensingthe other demons?
I swallowed hard, as the squad fell quiet once again, leaving only the sound of our boots hitting the dirt, the tension clawing at us from all around.
This time, wehadto get through.
