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ANARIA
We descended the rough trail until the Solarys army was close enough my Fae hearing heard every minute sound—the rattle of armor, hoarse shouting, thudding hoofbeats on dry earth. Zorander was out in front, sure he had superior numbers and the element of surprise.
But the Oracle had signed Zor’s death warrant with her betrayal, and right now, we were the only ones who knew he was charging into a trap, leading five thousand males to their deaths.
Once we hit level ground we raced south, our horses thundering over the rocky terrain. Tavion kept pace, his long strides gobbling up the distance with ease, tongue lolling over long, deadly teeth.
Then speed didn’t matter, because we crested a rise and the whole of Solarys’s forces were spread out before us in a sea of black, heading straight for the city, a spear of mounted riders drawing ahead of the foot soldiers like the point of an arrow.
Zor would be at the very tip of that charge.
He’d be the first to fall beneath whatever ambush the Fae King’s forces mounted. I opened my mouth, but nothing came out except a strangled, helpless cry.
“Tavion. Go,” Raziel ordered, and Tavion flew across the flat ground, his legs a blur as he raced for the Solarys army.
Raz gripped my arm, hard enough to break through my terror. “He’ll warn Zorander of the ambush and give him a chance to divert his forces.” Raz’s words were torn from his lips as we galloped, then we bore right, close enough to Tempeste’s defensive walls to see the flags flapping from the city spires.
The three of us climbed another short rise that was once densely covered with trees. Twisted gray trunks were all that was left now, sharp, pointed branches above our heads. From here, we watched Tavion race toward the army like an arrow of pure silver, straight for the leading wave of the army.
“The Caverns are there.” Raz pointed to a dark opening at the base of the mountain to our right. “The mages and hounds will be in there. The rest of the army”—he swung his head to the left, where the remnants of the decimated forest stretched out as far as I could see—“is somewhere in there, hiding in the trees. Or what’s left of them.”
I searched the trees, picking out small movements from the hidden forces. I barely remembered my escape from the city, though we’d taken this same route.
I had been so consumed with saving Ember, I hadn’t paid any attention to my surroundings. But we were so close to the city, too close for the archers that were likely posted right above our heads. “Last time, Tavion was worried about archers. Shouldn’t we be?”
Raz stared out over the flatlands, his eyes narrowed. “No, because they’re out on that bluff, like Tristan said. Waiting to force the entire army into their trap.” He pointed to some small figures moving on the rise.
“There. They’ll use the Taranth archers because they have a longer range. They’ll pin down the Solarys army long enough for the mages to set the hounds loose. The trees will make mounted calvary useless, so battle will come down to hand-to-hand. The hounds…will tear those men apart.”
I began to see how hard it would be for an army built for wide open battle to be reduced to one-on-one fighting. Spears wouldn’t do you any good within the thick trees, and Raz was right—horses would be nothing but a hinderance.
“Tavion will warn Zor in time.” Raziel was the picture of quiet calm, his gaze fixed on the scene below us. “We’ll do what we can to distract the mages and the hounds. Zor will likely split his forces in half and send one further south to launch an assault against the western wall.” He hadn’t taken his eyes off the archers. “We’ll all be sitting ducks, since the Taranth archers can hit a target more than a mile away. We’ll deal with them first.”
Zor and his men thundered across the wide-open plain, a cloud of dust at their backs, and even from here, I saw he had magic wielders riding with him. A shield pushed the dust out before them, shimmering with power. A shield that would not hold once they were attacked from all sides.
“How do you propose we draw out the mages and the soldiers in the Caverns?” I didn’t loosen the iron bands—would save my power until the very last minute—if I used my magic at all.
Don’t wield your magic in anger.
That’s what happened with Solok. My burning, consuming rage had ramped the magic up hotter and hotter. The anger had become glee then turned into cold, calculating vengeance. I couldn’t do that again.
I had to keep a clear head this time.
“My guess is, they’ve been hiding in those caverns for the better part of two days, waiting to spring this trap.” Raz scratched his chin thoughtfully, his eyes on that army. “The hounds will be jumpy and aggressive.” His gaze found mine. “Ready to attack anything that rides past.”
“You think an entire army will break position for three riders?”
“Two riders,” Raz corrected. “Tristan’s heading to higher ground.”
“This is ridiculous. They’ll never come after us.”
“They will.” Regret filled Raz’s heavy sigh. “Every single Caladrian citizen knows who you are, Anaria. The thief who stole the king’s magic. There is a reward of fifty million gilder for whomever brings you in alive. When those mages—and the soldiers—see you, nothing will stop them from trying to capture you.”
“How do you know there’s a reward?” I snapped my mouth shut.What did it even matter? “Fine. What’s the plan, then?”
“Take your hair down, Anaria. Let them see you.” Raz didn’t try to hide anything, then.
I saw it all. How his love for me was tearing him apart. His fury that he had to use me as a decoy. His utter determination to keep us all alive, even when we were so badly outnumbered.
