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My chest tightened, and I rose to my feet, knowing a guard wouldn’t run toward me unless it was important. “What is it?” I asked before he fully stopped.
“The Originals march on Evanguard.” He spoke through his labored breaths, exhausted from the run and the heavy armor that weighed him down. It was white like an iridescent pearl, but heavy like a stone.
Fear dropped into my stomach like a boulder. “You must be mistaken.”
“They bear the black armor.”
The Originals were far more difficult than the Kingsnake and Cobra vampires. Their strength was more substantial. Their movements were quicker too.
“We signed a truce,” he said. “And they go back on their word this quickly?”
“The truce was with the Kingsnake and Cobra vampires…not the Originals.” They hadn’t violated any of the terms, but they must have told their father, King Serpentine, the truth of the obelisk and our crimes…and he wanted revenge.
The guard waited for orders.
I was in too much shock to speak.
“Will the Kingsnake and Cobra vampires come to our aid?”
“Yes—if they’re aware.” I could send a missive now, but by the time they received it and left their kingdoms, the Originals would have already attacked. “They must not know what’s going on.”
He continued to wait for orders. “Send a missive to Kingsnake and ask for aid. Even if he receives it too late, at least he’ll have been alerted to what’s happening. In the meantime, prepare every Ethereal for war. The Originals may be stronger than us, but we still have the numbers to challenge them.”
He took off at a dead run to fulfill my orders.
I fetched my sword and armor, terrified of what would come next.
* * *
I chose to meet the Originals for battle rather than remain hidden in our forest. If King Serpentine couldn’t attack us directly, he would inflict his wrath on the forest, and we would all rather die than let the trees and creatures suffer because of our misdeeds. So there we stood, lined up for battle, some on horseback and others on foot.
They had already crossed the desert and the arid lands and approached across the open valleys. They started off as black dots in the distance, but then their shapes became more distinct, their darkness a direct contrast to the greenery they stomped on. The closer they came, the harder my heart worked.
My pulse was in my ears.
I knew Cobra would never abandon me. I knew Kingsnake wouldn’t take back his word. They hadn’t deserted us. They were just unaware of our plight. And by the time they realized it, we would probably be wiped from this earth. We had the numbers to meet them in battle, but we didn’t have the strength nor the ferocity any longer.
King Serpentine was pissed, and he wouldn’t stop until my head was on the ground.
“Queen Clara!” I turned to my commander, who was positioned at the edge of our forces.
Then I spotted it—a lone rider on horseback. They came from the north, rather than the west. They were astride a brown stallion, and it rode hard, like death chased him from the rear. I turned my horse to get a better look, no longer interested in the army that charged right at me.
As he drew closer, I spotted the dark brown hair…and the brown eyes.
“Cobra.”
I dismounted my horse and prepared to receive him.
He didn’t slow his horse until he was just feet away from me. He pulled hard on the reins and made his horse take a few steps backward before he jumped down from the steed. He nearly fumbled when he hit the ground, like he was exhausted, like he’d ridden night and day to reach me. “Kingsnake and Viper are right behind me with the army. We didn’t know of my father’s departure until long after he left.” He was nearly out of breath even though the horse had done all the running. “I’m so sorry I didn’t stop it—”
“You’re here.” I moved into his arms and hugged him. “That’s all that matters.”
He hugged me back, gripping me fiercely.
We indulged in the hug longer than we should, clinging to each other for seconds.
I was the one who pulled away first.
