Page 227 of Season Warriors & Wolves

My magic pierced the earth, seeking a new gate.

“Please, help her and she will help you.”

Then the waiting game began.

For a call that would perhaps never be accepted.

“Save her and she will save you.”

Chapter fifty

Black Pawn to F5

Nia

The ground beneath our feet trembled from the force of the march of Isjordian troops toward us. The strong wind had misted from snow and disturbance, cloaking the view ahead and tricking our sight. Hanaian border walls were not tall—not tall enough to withstand the force of what was coming, but the small advantage had refrained us from waiting for Silas's army down below in his lands.

“I can fade closer to see how far they are,” I said. The beasts had no heartbeat, no emotion, I could not feel anything even if they were to stand right in front of me.

Alaric answered before Moriko could, “Absolutely not.”

“We can see nothing; they might be right below our walls for all it matters.”

“And for all it matters,” he said, “we will fight 'em still, near or far. Below or above. Battle is about patience, hen. Blood will be spilled one way or another.”

“Your father is right,” Sigurd said, leaning against the walls and squinting in the far distance. “They might want to lure us out there, that is why they are being so quiet. Their king knows our forces have joined yours. This is a trap. We’ll wait.”

Mor tensed for a moment, placing her hand on the wall border. “Maybe don’t get too comfortable.” Faster than I could notice, she pulled her slender sword and jumped down the wall. The mist pulled around her and she emerged below shortly with black blood on her blade, a khamir body already disappearing into ashes. “Shields up!” she ordered, and the sound of the shields being raised ricocheted all through the length of the wall until it faded in the long distance.

“Archers!” her general called and the whole wall was lined with soldiers aiming their bows ahead.

It was only then I caught heavy shadows approaching us, piercing the thick fog and barrelling ahead with all they had.

I held my breath, panic raking my bones when Mor did not return back to the wall terrace.

When thousands of arrows slid through the silent air, chaos broke loose.

I lost sight of her in less than a second.

A strong wind blew the misty disguise away to reveal thousands of beasts and soldiers crawling up the border walls and filling the field ahead. I faded between them, engulfed between shadows, fading rapidly from corner to corner, searching and feeling for the Empath that was controlling them. The sounds were dizzying, the vibrations of metal meeting metal almost nauseating.

Luckily, the Glares were melting the cold, green grass and warm air causing Isjordian attacks to weaken.

Isliners barrelled through bodies, recklessly almost, slaughtering away viciously.

“Come on,” I muttered, black blood staining my face as I swung the soul killers through thick flesh and scales all while trying to grasp the location of the Empaths. “Come on. Show yourself. Come on.”

The moment the skies suddenly changed to night, my vision turned bright—brighter than at day—and every shadow in the periphery grew colours, thick colours. It was so easy to tell apart an Empath. The colours they bore, the heavy emotions that carried along with their own, the foreign specks lingering them.

I faded right before the man, but he was quick to know of my intention as he grabbed my hand and smirked. “Do you enjoy pain?”

When nothing happened, when the infliction he intended to pass to me only floated free in the wind, I said, “Do you?” Twisting my hand and gripping his, I squeezed until I felt the bone crumble and then sliced my dagger through his throat.

A set of claws grazed my shoulder before I could fade again, the touch of dark magic seeping in my blood hurt more than the wound, but I shook away the pain—I’d tasted worse pain.

Earth and rock crashed against ice and monsters, creating a dirty fog that was blurring my field of vision. No matter how many times I faded, I could not see who I needed most to see, and the whole entire wall of Hanai was now overwhelmed with beasts crawling to get inside the city.

A strong hand wrapped around my arm and hoisted me up. “On your feet, girl,” the Isline King shouted, pushing me behind him and bearing the weight of the attack before slicing the beast open. “Go! Find who you want to find. You’re smart, you will get to the bottom of it.”