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“I used a Union spell on the two of us,” he replied, still in that low, calm voice.
My heart stopped. A Union spell? “How?”
The spell could only be used on people familiar with each other well. It was such an intimate spell, combining the most important parts of two people. I was suddenly aware of that sensation of having two heartbeats once more. My stomach churned as I understood. His heartbeat. Mine beat in a chaotic rhythm, his steady. How? Why? Araki eased away from me. The glow of his violet eyes had dimmed, but his face was clear in the golden-blue light from the fungi. “I had to make sure you weren’t going to kill me. Now if you hurt me, you are hurting yourself.”
“So you made yourself more vulnerable,” I spat.
“How so?”
I stared into his eyes coldly. “I could kill myself. That would end you.”
I tightened my grip on the dagger. My teeth clenched with tension as his eyes bore into me for a few heartbeats, and then he threw back his head and laughed. The sound was icy, arrogant.
“You won’t,” The Usurper drawled. “Something tells me you value yourself too much. You won’t dare end yourself.”
“I care about the kingdom more than I care about my own life!” I snarled and attacked him again. He subdued me once again.
“Do you now?” Sarcasm laced his words.
I shoved at him again, “Get off me!”
“Only if you swear you won’t try to fight me again.” His arm tightened around my waist, his other hand forcing mine down. The dagger pointed toward the mossy ground. I glared at him, judging my options. In my current position, I couldn’t harm him—but he also couldn’t harm me without releasing me. The moment he did that, I could quickly strike. I could kill him or myself and end this monster once and for all. He couldn’t continue to steal and kill if he was dead. But I couldn’t be queen if I was dead. Who was next in line if Araki died, and I wasn’t there to fill the void? He had no family that I knew of or heir. The power struggle could lead to a very bloody civil war. I hated to acquiesce. I wasn’t an idiot, though. This situation I found myself in was intendable, but so was his. Unless we came to an agreement, all that would happen was we’d stay here, fighting one another until one of us passed out. Or he started to covet and take magic from the forest itself. My muscles were sore and tense. I forced them to relax, going limp in his hold. The air rushed from my lungs in a defeated sigh.
“I won’t fight you,” I relented, forcing the words through gritted teeth. “But only if you promise not to harm the forest.”
His brows furrowed as he stared down at me. I wished I could read his expression, but my emotions were such a confusing blur that I couldn’t figure out his. If I were honest, I doubted even he could harm the forest. Not because of any moral imperative not to, but because Araki had already proven, with that lightning trick, that his magic had changed here, too. Yet, if he couldn’t steal the magic from the forest, there were other things he could do. How would his tampering affect the land here? And in turn, how it would affect the magic spreading from this epicentre. Araki’s eyes flitted across my face, searching. What was he searching for? I stared back, surprised at the intensity with which he studied me. Was this how he stole magic? Did he bind his victims to him, preventing them from fighting back, and then siphon their magic away? Was he deciding whether I would kill myself to end him after all?
“Alright, I promise.” Slowly, he released me.
It occurred to me how flimsy words were. I abandoned the thoughts and trained my ear to the sounds around us. For now, it seemed as though we had reached an uneasy truce. We both made a promise to the other, but it was easy enough to break such a promise for either of us. I wouldn’t lose sight of my goal, but I would play nice until I was certain what sort of Union spell he used on me and break it.
“I can hear a river,” I noted. “We should find it.”
Araki nodded, and we made our way through the marshy forest floor. After a few meters, the ground firmed beneath my feet, and that chill water no longer soaked through my shoes. It was sometime later before we found the river. It was a small, shallow one. I searched its clear waters, seeing the rounded stones but no signs of fish or other life.
“We need to find our way back to the kingdom,” Araki said as he shrugged his doublet off. He held it out to me. I stared at the doublet. If I could bring him to Nightshade, Priestess Opaline or Master Briggs could break this spell, and we would kill the King—Usurper. How would I find my way back to the coven when trapped in this forest? There were no indications of which direction we needed to go in. No sky to track the sun, and the lichens wrapped around every tree trunk. And why was he still holding the doublet out to me?
“I can feel you’re cold,” Araki said, his tone cold. “Take it. You’re in your underclothes. So unless you really are the temptress, you were portraying yourself as….” His eyes lingered on me, the corner of his mouth tipping up.
I accepted the doublet reluctantly. My bloomers were soaked through, the fabric of my gown hardly enough to keep me warm. I must be a pitiful site, which made my teeth grind together. I hated appearing weak before this man, although it could be beneficial in the end. I laid the doublet over a low-hanging branch and quickly undid the ties on my bodice. Turning my back on Araki, I first removed the bodice, then loosened the laces of my corset to allow myself more movement. The shift I wore beneath only reached mid-thigh, but at least I was covered. I pulled on the doublet, ignoring the spicy scent clinging to the fabric. I tore the sleeves off my discarded bodice and tucked them into the waistband of my bloomers for easy carrying. I might require the extra fabric later. I tightened the doublet around me and couldn’t ignore the scent this time. It was a pleasant smell. Patchouli. The rare plants were used in some spells. Bergamot, too. And that indescribable ‘male’ scent of sweat and pheromones.
“The Forest is east of Halafarin,” Araki said as he turned to look at me. “So we head west.”
I narrowed my eyes at him. “How would you know where the Forest of Shadows is? Its location changes.”
Araki’s face turned toward the sky. “Halafarin is on the western coast. We're east of the kingdom unless the forest is in the ocean. I can fly above the trees and might be able to see where the sun is and follow it. Otherwise, we’ll be lost forever.”
The constant shifting nature of the forest wasn’t the only thing we had to be wary of. It was full of dangerous creatures like spectres, void spirits, and others lacking corporeal bodies. Without our magic, there wasn’t a way to defend against them. I frowned. Our weapons were useless against spirits, just as my dagger was useless against his broadsword.
“Okay,” I agreed, and Araki flew. I watched as his giant wings spread and flapped, propelling him in the air. I craned my neck as he flew higher and higher past the tall trees until he was a small figure in the sky.What if he leaves me here?Worry and a trickle of fear coursed through me. My gut twisted. The knot in my stomach unfurled and relief washed over me when Araki flew back. I watched him land nimbly. His eyes studied me as he folded his wings.
“Don’t worry, I won’t abandon you,” He smirked as if he could sense my mild relief of his return.
“Where is the sun?” I asked instead, schooling my face. Had my relief been so obvious?
“We’ll follow the river west,” he commanded as he began to walk through the springy moss toward the tree I stood nearby. “So we don’t lose our water. Dehydration—”
“Will kill us faster than starvation.” I finished with a grin, bearing all my teeth at him. “But not as quickly as a spectre will.”
