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She ran over, still looking around in confusion. “What the fuck is going on? Why aren’t they moving?”
“I need a healing plate,” I said urgently. She handed me one without questioning anything further, and I placed it over Tykas’s wound. I pushed power into the metal, but it refused to warm.
“No, no, no, no, no.”
With a frustrated roar, I threw the plate away and stared down at Tykas’s lifeless body. He was gone. Nothing I could do would bring him back. My rage and grief were like a living entity inside me, burning my veins with fury.
I clenched my fists and roared again, unable to accept it. What was I going to tell Zora? I couldn’t—couldn’t think about it right now. Kael needed me.
I stood up, that hollow rage filling me. I had to find Kael.
“What happened?” Raenisa asked softly.
“The soldiers are collared. Kael has been captured. I’m going to kill my mother.” I couldn’t mention Tykas. Not yet.
She blinked. “Succinct.” She whistled, the sound echoing. “Cae! Secure the entrance. I have to go with Theron.”
Caelia shot her a grin. “Got it.”
Raenisa rolled her shoulders, shaking them out before looking at me again. “What are you waiting for?”
I nodded in grim determination. “Let’s go.”
Chapter 30
Kael
Hundaelr.
The weight of its history pressed down on me as we made our way down the halls, leaving bloody footprints in our wake. Every corridor, every chamber should have been a testament to my ancestors, to our people. But all I saw was the shadow of its former glory. The proud walls which once showcased our vibrant past now felt tainted, stained by Carxidor rule.
“Kael,” Roza whispered, bringing me back to the present, “we need to keep moving.”
I nodded, taking a deep breath to center myself. “I know. It’s just... seeing this place... it’s not what I imagined.”
Zerek looked around, his expression hard to read. “This isn’t what it looked like when I was a child.”
“When was that, five hundred years ago?” Roza whispered, and he huffed a dry laugh.
“I’m not that old.”
Our hushed conversation was interrupted by the soft clink of armor. Guards. Roza’s hand went to her weapon as she signaled us toward a nearby alcove. “Quick, over there.”
As we hid in the shadows, I gripped my dagger, a stark reminder of my lost swords. The guards drew closer, their torches casting long shadows on the ground.
Roza picked up a small stone and tossed it in the opposite direction. The clatter caught their attention, drawing them away.
“Now!” she hissed.
We sprung from our hiding spot. Zerek took down one with his bare hands, swift and silent. I moved behind another, my dagger finding its mark in her neck.
“We need to avoid any more encounters like that,” he murmured, scanning our surroundings. “We won’t have the element of surprise every time.”
Roza smirked. “What’s the matter? Getting slow in your old age?”
He raised an eyebrow, the hint of a smile on his lips. “I’d like to see you do better.”
“Want to bet?”
