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The fight was almost over, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that something else was coming. Panting, I looked around, making sure there wasn’t a second assault to catch us chasing our retreat. The woods were filled with the sounds of the dying and I shouted for healing plates. Kael hopped off the vanira and started going to the soldiers nearest her, healing them one by one.
Sweat beaded on my forehead as I moved deeper into the trees, eyes scanning for the threat.There.Theodas Vennorin stood in the far treeline, watching the battle with disgust. He waited there for a moment, eyes cold and calculating as he observed the chaos before him. Looking around for his backup and finding none, he turned and vanished into the darkness.
I moved toward him instinctively, ready to fight, but Theodas was too far away and out of reach before I could pursue him.
“Fuck.”
I cursed under my breath as my warriors finished the last of our opponents. I’d face him again when we eventually took the capital, but for now, my priority was leading my army.
Sheathing my sword, I shouted orders to form up ranks in case they mounted another attack, but I doubted they would. We’d already overtaken their prepared positions. They weren’t used to fighting as the rebels did. They were our hidden blade that had plunged into the heart of our enemy.
My warriors gathered around me, and I turned, surveying the damage. The trees were broken, some had been uprooted, while others lay bare and splintered. The ground was littered with bodies, men and women, both moaning as they clung to life.
Elves joined the rebels, pressing their healing plates to wounds as they complimented the rebel tactics.
An injured male was eagerly talking to Roza, her hands swirling in complex patterns as she described her strategy, while Zerek glowered at him from a distance. The Niothe’s animosity hadn’t fully disappeared, but there was respect there that hadn’t been present earlier today. They’d seen what the rebels were capable of—killing elves just like them.
A sense of hope filled me as I watched them. Maybe, if we worked together like this, we could win the war.
Chapter 24
Kael
Thenightwhisperedsecretsaround us, its shadows dancing in the flickering light of the campfires. Anticipation, like a silent serpent, enveloped the camp, hissing whispers of the forthcoming battle, intertwining with the indistinct murmurs and laughter of warriors preparing for war.
I leaned into Theron’s side, chuckling as Gavril continued his story, and tried to ignore the anxiety pulsing underneath.
My brother’s eyes twinkled mischievously, a smile tugging at the edge of his lips. “I’m serious. It was huge.”
“Bullshit,” Roza laughed. “There’s no way there was a giant taudrin hiding in the sand. They’re barely bigger than a lobaros.”
“It was as big as a scopscion!” He swore, his grin bright in the darkness. “It was south of the Red Wilds. Tell them Kael.”
I took a sip of my canteen, letting the wine warm my belly before responding. “You said it was bigger than a daeza.”
“See?” He gestured to me and Roza rolled her eyes.
Roza scoffed. “All that proves is that you lied to your sister first.”
The group surrounding the fire burst into laughter at her proclamation, Gavril laughing too, as he tossed a hunk of bread at her. “Oh yeah, then what’s your best scouting story?”
She shook her head, her eyes going distant. “I don’t have any good stories.”
Zerek raised a brow. “What about when you were younger? Or something about your family?” He feigned nonchalance, looking away into the fire, but I could sense his interest.
“My little sister,” she began softly, “used to believe she could talk to birds. She would chirp and tweet all day long, insisting she was having very serious conversations about worm politics when she was little. It was how she entertained herself as I worked before Kael showed up.” Her eyes shimmered with unshed tears.
Gavril’s grin faded, Orya’s loss still hitting him hard. I reached over and squeezed Roza’s hand. “I remember that. She loved birds, even the damned crows.”
Roza’s eyes were distant for a moment before she focused on me once again. “Yeah. That must be why she liked Gavril. She took one look at that nose and—“
“Hey!” He laughed. “My nose is just fine, thank you.”
Zerek jumped in, no doubt eager to erase the hurt in Roza’s expression. “I once spent an entire day tracking what I thought was a wild boar. Turns out, it was just Raenisa. She had bad gas and was scouting ahead.”
A ripple of laughter spread through our group and Roza grinned, the firelight glinting off her scales. “Idiot.”
Zerek’s cheeks flushed. “I was hungry,” was his only defense, sending another wave of laughter around the fire.
