“Good.” With that knowledge, I throw myself into the chaos Halazar is devolving into.
We head in the opposite direction from Twino and Gregor. Halazar is not complicated in its layout—simple enough that I was able to get an almost complete sense of it the last time I was here as Glavstone took me from my cell to ink for him.
We reach the first-floor cellblock.
Familiar rows of iron bars line either side. Prisoners recoil at the sudden light and sound. Our footsteps are punctuated by the clanging of metal as Ren undoes the locks with the key and the sounds of iron and stone shattering as the rest of us use magic to forcibly open the cells.
The prisoners pour out and we move on to the next floor.
The air thickens with the sound of guards shouting. Magic flares. We free more prisoners in the same fashion. One more floor left.
My legs burn and every breath feels like inhaling daggers as I race up the last staircase. But I can’t stop—not when there are still cells locked. Not when I hear the cries of men and women whose position I was once in.
“Clara, we should head to the docks!” Jura calls from behind me, equally breathless.
“We’re almost done.” My feet hit the stone of the final hall of cells.
“We don’t have time,” Jura pants, catching up.
I stop her with an outstretched hand. Ren as well. Kaelis hovers behind them. They both regard me questioningly but don’t push past.
The King of Swords hovers over my shoulder. Not the rudimentary figure of a man wielding a greatsword like Glavstone had inked…buta detailed and embellished king upon a throne of swords, everything down to the tiny gems in his crown carefully rendered.
Kaelis’s cards feel delicious.Since I learned to ink from such a young age, I’ve rarely used anyone else’s cards. And when I have, they paled in comparison to those I could ink myself.
But this…This.Magic dances across every inked line. It’s as though Kaelis folded power evenbetweenthe elements of the design, storing more than should be possible.
He’s not a Major. Yet this card feels like one. It’s staggering. It leaves me breathless with delight. Desperate for more.
Reclaiming my focus, I thrust out my hand and the card. The hum of magic that had surrounded it erupts into a gale of wind. Hundreds of shimmering swords of light unfold from shadow. They slice through locks and bars with earsplitting cracks. At once, the doors fall, every prisoner freed. The exertion of magic has me swaying slightly, but I keep myself upright.
“Move!” I yell. “To the river! To freedom!”
I take my own advice.
Beneath us, prisoners are taking their revenge on the guards, paying back years of brutality. My boots skid on blood-slicked stone. I barely stop in time as a guard lunges from an adjoining hall.
The Five of Swords rises from my deck in a blur before bursting into magic that condenses into a light shortsword, which I wield with nimble precision. The guard falls with a grunt.
I don’t stop or slow as I barrel down the main stair of Halazar toward the docks. I pay the other prisoners no heed, nor the guards attempting to contain them. It’s utter chaos, and, in the mix, we’re disregarded.
Ahead I see Gregor, his massive frame standing firm as he fends off those who would take our boats. Arina is slumped against Twino in the back vessel. Twino uses his deck to assist Gregor and dissuade those taking their chances swimming.
We push our way through. Jura dispatches another guard who tries to stop us. Kaelis avoids harming anyone while in view of so many. Hedarts around most of the carnage, not even getting so much as a drop of blood on his boots.
“Took you long enough!” Gregor barks. His attention shifts, and he jabs a sword over my shoulder, yelling at another prisoner, “Stay the fuck back if you want to keep breathing.”
The freed prisoner jumps into the river, taking his chances with the water. Twino continues to support my sister and regards the man warily as he swims by the boat.
Jura and Ren dart past me, starting for the boat with Twino and Arina. I move to follow. But when Kaelis doesn’t take another step, I pause, two paces away.
He stares at the forward boat. His eyes swing back to me.
“You all go without me. I’ll take this one.”
“What?” Gregor takes a step forward. “If you think we’re going to let you sail back and report to the enforcers that—”
“If I was going to turn you in, I wouldn’t have even helped you get this far in the first place,” Kaelis interrupts with a sigh. Luckily there’s too much chaos for anyone to overhear. “I am going to attract attention. You can use that to your advantage. I’ll call the enforcers my way.” His eyes find mine, holding my stare. “It’s your best chance to escape into the tunnels.”
