But before either of us could press him further, his hands ignited with green fire. He hurled it straight at me—not at me, I realized too late. At Meryn.
I moved, shadows lashing up in a shield, but the spell torethrough, searing against my shoulder. Pain ripped down my arm, but I didn’t care. My shadows surged outward in a wall, forcing the magic away from her limp body.
“You’ll not touch her again,” I roared, the sound shaking the stones beneath our feet.
The mage only sneered, gathering more power. His fury burned wild, reckless, his magic twisting beyond what any mortal should wield.
“Elena,” I ground out, eyes fixed on him, “if he keeps throwing that much power, he’ll burn himself alive.”
“Then we use that against him,” she murmured, golden light spilling from her palms.
She raised them against him, but the mage only laughed tauntingly. Before I could close the distance, before my shadows could seize him fully, he vanished—teleportation tearing him from our grasp in a sickening crack of energy.
Gone.
The silence after was suffocating. Smoke curled in the ruined street. My chest heaved, rage and frustration pounding against my ribs like fists.
“He got away,” I spat, my voice rough.
“Yes,” she whispered. Her gaze dropped to Meryn, then lifted back to me. “But if we chase him again now, in this state, we’ll lose more than just him.”
The truth of it landed heavy. I knelt, gathering Meryn gently. She was hurt, her small body still as death, and for a brief, terrible moment, my heart stopped.
Elena knelt beside me, her face pale with shock as she reached out, her hand resting gently on Meryn’s feathers. “Dario… is she…?”
I didn’t answer, the words choked in my throat as I focused all my energy on Meryn, pouring the shadows into her fragile body, willing her to stir, to fight, to survive.
I could feel the faint, flickering pulse of life within her, the soft beat of her heart, and I poured every ounce of strength I had into that tiny, precious spark, watching as her feathers slowly regained their brilliance, the sickly glow fading.
Meryn’s eyes fluttered open, her gaze dazed but alive, and I felt a surge of relief so powerful it nearly brought me to my knees. I cradled her gently, brushing a thumb over her feathers, murmuring soft words of reassurance, though I barely registered the sound of my own voice.
She hooted softly at me, her weight a comforting presence in my arms, a reminder of the bond that had kept me sane through every long, dark night.
Elena reached out and ran a gentle finger over Meryn’s back, and a gentle golden light suffused her feathers. A moment later, Meryn hooted more loudly, fluffing her feathers. She looked fully healed.
“Elena,” I whispered, unsure how to thank her. I took a deep, shuddering breath, my gaze shifting to Elena, who watched me with a faint, knowing look, her eyes filled with quiet understanding.
A long moment later, she stood, her cloak swirling around her, and extended a hand. Not commanding, not priestess to supplicant—but partner to partner.
“Come. We have the boy. The mage will return, sooner or later.”
I stared at her hand for a long moment before taking it, her fingers warm against mine, grounding me in ways I couldn’t explain.
“Elena,” I said, my voice low, controlled, as I turned to her. “My magic has marked that godsdamned mage. Whenever he returns, wherever in your city he will go, I will know.Youneed to return to your city to find out what you can from the Temple. I’ll keep watch over the boy until we get the answers we need.”
She nodded, her gaze steady.
With a final, resolute nod, I turned and began to walk away, Meryn perched on my shoulder, her presence a steadying force as I left the broken street behind, cursing the day I’d gotten myself involved in this tangled mess.
Elena’s mess, her city, her light.
And yet, no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was in this too deep, bound to her by shadows and light alike.
As I disappeared into the night, her presence lingered in my mind, a constant, quiet reminder of the path I could never truly walk away from.
Chapter 13: Elena
The dawn light crept gently over the horizon as I slipped through the city.
