Fool king, you have brought your own visions to life. Soon my imprisoned children will be released, in this dimension, in your dimension, and on Earth. We will reign with terror you don’t yet comprehend, with the ruthlessness of the darkest souls, the glory of what is most corrupt. Prepare for anarchy, for bloodshed, for the tears of your children, your children’s children and every generation of the fae until your species is eradicated from the annals of time.
The voice faded away; the portal lightened back to the bluish swirls and stopped shaking. I looked around me wildly, this time searching for my father. His hand was clasped tightly to my mother’s, and when our eyes met, his flashed in a silent warning. He was unnerved—but it wasn’t going to stop him reaching the other side of the portal. He wouldn’t turn back. Novaks never did.
Hazel
As the earthquake continued to rip and shudder through Nevertide, we stood against the wall of the cliff, all eyes on Tejus as we waited for his command.
“They’re opening the portal using the children—we need to break the focus of the Acolytes. Ragnhild, take the guards and attack them from behind. Do whatever you deem necessary to break their trance.”
Ragnhild nodded solemnly, removing his broadsword from its sheath. Tejus turned to the ministers, who were staring wide-eyed at the children slowly circling the ocean.
“Catch the children when they fall—they’ve been drained completely, if they fall into the water they won’t come out alive.”
“We risk being seen by Queen Trina,” one of them mumbled, and I frowned briefly at the typical lack of ministerial courage, or willingness to take any kind of action that might endanger themselves. Obviously, the queen was dangerous, but the whole of Nevertide was at stake here!
“Leave Queen Trina to me,” Tejus replied curtly.
“Shouldn’t we wait for the rest of the army?” the minister asked again, then quailed under both Tejus’s and Ash’s glares.
“We don’t have time,” Tejus snapped. “The rest of you, guard the periphery of the cove; I don’t want any of the Acolytes escaping.”
I glanced over at Ruby, taking a deep breath. Her blue eyes calmly met mine, reminding me of the day I had seen her in the trial arena, when I’d thought she was already safe at home. Maybe today we’d get that chance again. We were ready.
She took Benedict’s hand, and we fanned out slowly, careful not to make a sound, surrounding the cove. I prepared myself mentally for my own task, one that Tejus wouldn’t be pleased with, but I would do anyway. If any of the Acolytes managed to escape, I wanted to be ready to throw out a protective barrier toward Ruby and Benedict, stopping them from coming to any harm. They were my priority. Julian would be arriving with the second wave of the army, and I was grateful—he’d be in less danger that way.
I turned my attention to Tejus. He and Ash stood at the front of an arrow-shaped formation of guards and ministers, ready to attack. Tejus was crouched low, waiting to hurl himself forward when the time was right. He reminded me of a black panther, coiled before leaping to attack its prey. His face was set in a snarl, his gaunt, rugged looks making him appear dark and deadly—once again reminding me of a creature more animal than man.
Ash and Tejus lunged forward, running toward the chanting Acolytes, leading their men. Tejus drew a sword from his back, lifting it up in the air and then bringing it down with a single, elegant swipe. It sliced through the neck of the nearest Acolyte, sending his head flying in an arc through the gray sky.
The fight had begun.
The chanting was replaced by screams. The Acolytes, with deadly speed, jumped up from their positions and turned to attack the oncoming army. Tejus fought his way past another Acolyte; neither side having much time to syphon, they were relying mostly on the weaponry they had. I’d mistakenly believed that the Acolytes weren’t armed—instead, each drew out long daggers from their forearms that had been concealed by the sleeves of their robes. Wielding one in each hand, they launched themselves at the Hellswan guards.
The fight was bloody. The war cries and the high-pitched howls of the injured pierced the air, merging with the ferocious roar of the ocean—and then the throaty laughter of Queen Trina.
Tejus fought off another Acolyte who had attacked him from behind, and ran toward the queen.
She held out her arms to Tejus, almost as if she wanted to embrace him. I watched as he stumbled, almost dropping his sword as the pain of her syphoning tore at him. She continued to laugh, her eyes shining brightly, the dark mane of her hair whipping upward with the wind, making her look more like a vengeful god than a mad queen.