Turning, our group walked toward the door, unable to make out her quiet, angry words to Conan. I felt my chest squeeze in pain at how difficult this situation had to be for Niz. Not only had he slighted his parents, but he’d done so without question—for the better of his people, even if his parents couldn’t see that.
More than that, though,we had failed. We failed to secure the help we needed to defeat Alfemir.And that…that felt insurmountable.
22
KIERAN
We didn’t wastetime packing, only grabbing a few essentials with the plan to make a quick exit. It was clearer than ever that we werenotwelcome here. I could practically taste the feeling of defeat that floated through our group, and I could hardly blame the others.
I hadn’t realized until now how much hope I had pinned on the wyverns deciding to help us. I had truly thought we would have a chance against Alfemir with their help, especially after we’d made our way through their kingdom and saw how many wyverns actually existed within these mountains.
I supposed I shouldn’t have pinned my hopes on something so far-fetched considering the past. Could I blame them for not wanting to be involved with the same individuals who forced them into this isolation? Absolutely not. But that didn’t make this any easier.
Frustrated, I offered a small shake of the head and a sigh as we made our way into the large corridor that led to the exit of the castle. A not-so-small part of me was surprised when neither of his parents stood waiting for us at the castle doors. I would have figured they would attempt to convince their son to stay—or at least bid him goodbye. Instead, we were met with a group ofguards that announced they would serve as an escort out of the kingdom.
If Niz was surprised by his parent’s lack of appearance, he didn’t reveal so.
As we exited the central courtyard and began down the main road once again, I couldn’t help but notice how busy the streets were at this time of day. Much like last time, we were unable to blend in, drawing looks of curiosity and even caution. As we continued through the crowded streets, the looks of caution gave way to anger in some individuals, making me think the truth of our arrival and our identity had become more widespread.
I felt a sense of relief when no one approached us, allowing us to make our exit swiftly out of the kingdom. The entire time, I fought the urge to say something to comfort Niz. I knew nothing I said could change the hurt and disappointment his parents were causing him. He’d expressed his concerns to me the night before, before this morning’s horrible interaction, so I had to assume his feelings had only amplified since.
I was also very aware that nothing I said would make the group as a whole feel better about our journey forward.Was there even a journey forward?It felt like we had slammed directly into a dead end.
“Where do we go from here?” I asked, our pathway slanting upwards toward the exit out of the kingdom. I pushed my body forward despite being exhausted, the descent down into the cavernous world of the wyverns arguably far easier than the one back out.
“Back to the Rebellion,” Steele decided, calling back from where he walked slightly ahead with Gabe and Niz, the guards having left us at the end of city limits as we neared the main door. “We need to regroup and make a new plan.”
I nodded in agreement, and no one protested. Even Bastian didn’t bother trying to lighten the mood with a joke—his hand instead sneaking out to intertwine with mine.
“Who needs them anyway, we’ve got this,” he finally said, unusually somber.
Ronan nodded sharply from my other side. I so badly wanted to believe them, but I think we all knew the truth. Without the wyverns’ numbers, we stood no chance against Alfemir and their militia.
“Your Highness.” The guards at the door opened the massive doors that served as a barrier between the wyverns and the rest of the world, offering us no other words of goodbye.
As we entered back into the cave system we had arrived through, I found myself feeling eager to see blue skies. I couldn’t imagine living my whole life underground, not knowing what it felt like to feel sunlight on my skin. Then again—it wasn’t truly the wyverns’ fault that they were in this position—rather it was the angels of Alfemir. Like I said, I couldhardlyblame Nora for not trusting us.
After several minutes of making our way through the dark, I saw sunlight shining ahead of us at the end of the tunnel. I didn’t hesitate to walk faster than normal, aching for the feel of the warmth on my face. I broke away, pushing past Steele, Gabe, and Niz and feeling relief as a blinding light hit my skin.
Instantly—and mostly without my permission—my wings snapped open, and I felt relief at being able to extend them properly. Their use hadn’t been something we’d wanted to risk within the wyverns’ kingdom limits.
“We may have to wait by the forest’s edge until the next shift change,” Gabe pointed out as everyone filtered through the mouth of the cave. “It probably won’t be more than a few hours, but we don’t want to risk guards spotting us, or worse, following us back down to the Rebellion camp.”
I nodded in understanding as I took a running start and dropped off the edge of the cliff, my wings taking me skyward. I soared through the air and sighed happily as I dipped down toward the trees. The others joined me, and we started our journey toward the perimeter wall. But before we arrived, though, something caught my eye.
A flash of flames.
My brow dipped in confusion as I continued to glide above the treetops, sweeping a hard right so I could look over the spot where the flash of light had occurred. The mountainous divide—the space I now associated with Bash’s horrendous past—was to the left of where I had seen the flash of intense light.
A second flash of flames.
Knowing that I wasn’t imagining the fiery explosions, I didn’t stop to explain myself to the others. Instead, I trusted my gut and darted toward the spot in question. Something was wrong. I didn’t know what was happening, but I could feel that I needed to get there. Immediately.
A third flash of flames.
Flying faster than ever before, maybe even faster than the night Gabe and I escaped while stealing the dagger, I arrived on the scene within seconds.
What I saw invoked both rage and heartbreak.
