“Yes. I was told it was a strange fire that burned without wood. It sounds like the wraith’s fire,” she replied, then mounted Orion’s saddle.
“We will head east and speak to some of the remaining villagers there.” He nodded at Astraia, then spurred his horse into a trot.
She urged Orion on, joining Caelan at the front of the riders. Her pulse quickened in time with the thundering of the hooves meeting dirt. Anticipation hung in the air like a net, ready to drop on them at the most unsuspecting moment.
An hour passed, and the river curved sharply, trees obscuring the path ahead as they marched. Just as they came around the river bend, Caelan skidded his horse to a stop, throwing up a hand in command to halt. The riders waited with bated breath for their orders.
Astraia walked Orion beside Calean, leaning forward in the saddle enough to see through the trees. Her hand flew to her mouth, stifling a gasp.
Up ahead, another village slightly larger than the one they had just left had been burned to the ground. Red and orange flames licked the sides of what remained of the homes, twisting and contorting, then slithering on the barren ground, like a sea dragon stalking its prey. Black smoke billowed from the flames and seeped between the skeletal remains of the buildings.
But the devastation and unnatural flames were not what made Astraia’s stomach drop and blood rush from her face.
Standing in the midst of the fiery inferno, clad in black leather armor and tattered hooded cloaks, with blood-red eyes and inky smoke coursing from their molten ashy skin, was not one but six stewards of Dominion.
They had found the wraith horde.
Chapter 27
“I have gathered what Drakari and Drengr remain. The Peaks burn, but we have beaten the wraiths back. I make for Luxterra. Hold fast, brother. I await your orders with your falcon.”
Celestial War Correspondence of Lord Fafnir of the SkyForge Peaks, Steward of Rage to King Illias, Ruler of the Celestial Court, King of Astradeon
ASTRAIA HELD HER BREATH AS she watched the wraiths glide through the village, spreading their unnatural fires, consuming every living thing in sight. The wraiths kicked over wagons, upending anything that could be a hiding space. The ravaging made her stomach turn, praying to the Stars that innocent blood had not been spilled.
Orion’s ears flattened, sensing evil was close at hand. She patted his neck, shushing him as they waited behind the trees.
Caelan narrowed his eyes at the wraiths, then gestured for Astraia to follow him. He turned his horse around, walking it back several paces down the road, away from the looming threat. The men followed behind them, their faces stoic, but fear hung in the air.
Stopping beside the riverbank, Caelan faced the Empyrean and Astraia. He straightened in the saddle, head held high. “We are here to scout, nothing more. Taurus, you will send word to the village we passed to evacuate to Volpes. Get everyone out.” Caelan nodded at the Empyrean Guard with skin as dark as the starless skies and eyes as deep as the oceans.
Taurus nodded, then took off in a gallop, his horse’s hooves kicking up dirt as he flew.
“Rados, Nax, head south, then come around from the east. Give the village a wide birth so as not to draw attention to yourselves. I want to know which direction they go so we can track them. If they head east, follow and send a falcon with your report.” Caelan’s voice was firm, commanding, but Astraia could see the slight tick in his jaw. He was struggling with sending his men into danger, into hellfire itself. “Keyser, you hold this position, and if the wraiths begin heading down this road, you will retreat and join Taurus to get the villagers out and report back to Volpes.”
Keyser nodded, his dark eyes fixed on Caelan as he placed his right hand over his heart, then to the sky, honoring Caelan and the Stars. “Yes, sir.”
“Traia, you and I will scout from the south. There is a higher hill in the trees we can use for cover and a vantage point.” He kicked his horse forward, moving down the road away from the wraiths.
She nudged Orion to do the same, nodding once at Keyser as she passed by him.
Several minutes down the road, Caelan veered his horse south, blazing a new path through the trees. Avoiding branches and undergrowth, they made their way south before heading east once more. The terrain shifted to a steady incline until they were high above the river. Ahead, an outcropping of stone juttedout from the trees, overlooking the village roughly a quarter of a league away.
Caelan halted just inside the trees, dismounting. Crouching low to the ground, he edged his way out of the trees then lay flat on his stomach on the stone cliff.
Astraia followed suit, making sure Orion was tied to a branch before she crept to the edge, lying down next to him. From this elevation, they were well out of sight but could still watch the wraiths as they slunk through the village.
There were six in total, black and ominous shadows with broadswords strapped to their backs and glowing red eyes. The smell of smoke lingered in the air, even high above the decimation.
Astraia shuddered at the memory of ash coating her throat and otherworldly strength bearing down on her from the wraith she battled. Squeezing her eyes shut, she willed the memory to fade and refocused on the scene below.
The wraiths had burned every scrap of wood. Only the cinders remained. One wraith in the center of the wreckage bellowed at the others, the unnatural guttural noise reverberating off the rocks and echoing far enough to be heard where they hid. Astraia fought the urge to cover her ears, to mute the demon tongue. The other wraiths stopped moving, snapping their attention to the wraith who spoke, then moved in tandem toward the eastern edge of the village.
“That one is a leader of some kind. Maybe a commander or general?” Astraia whispered, keeping her eyes fixed on the demons.
Caelan nodded, gesturing toward the far east side of what remained of the village, near a stone archway that now crumbled.
Astraia’s eyes drifted to where he was pointing, and her heart stopped. Partially obscured by the stone archway, a massivecloud of dark shadows grouped together. At first, it looked like another building smoldering in the dirt, but the longer she looked, the more defined the shadows became.
