Zaria put her hand on his arm. “We need to disembark and make haste to a safer location.”
“Do you think we could create a diversion?” Nyx asked, exhaling heavily.
“I don’t know.” Kol turned away from us, rubbing the back of his head.
“We are getting down to the wire here,” I said under my breath as the rest of the passengers begin to disembark.
“Does anyone have an idea?” Nyx flexed his jaw.
A few of us shook our heads.
One of the well-meaning crew approached us and asked, “Are you ready to return to dry land?”
“Yes, sorry.” Nyx plastered a fake smile on his face. The crew member walked away, and Nyx kept his voice low. “I know everything is telling you not to, Kol, but we have to get off. I’m not willing to risk this crew and innocent passengers by continuing.”
“Okay,” Kol said, but I couldn’t read his mood. Was he placating Nyx or willing to go along with us?
“There are stables up ahead. They should have plenty of mounts for us to choose from. You can see them just up the riverbank north.” Nyx nodded in that direction, and they were easily visible. “Everyone needs to keep their guard up, and if anything should happen, and I mean anything,” he said, looking at first Kol, then me, “We protect our wards first no matter what. If we are attacked again, I’m not taking any more chances. We each take one of the wards and flee. Don’t look back or wait for the rest. Go. Just get back to the First Kingdom however you can. Perhaps we will be safer divided.”
Kol looked apprehensive, so I nodded on behalf of both of us.
He looked to the rest of the group. “Do not leave our sides, and move directly to the stables. I’ll take the lead. Ready?”
“Yes,” we muttered one by one.
I tugged at Kol’s elbow, and he looked back at me. “You’ve got this,” I told him, hoping that my faith in him would count for something if we encountered a problem.
Kol gave one nod, and we followed the group, bringing up the rear.
We smiled at the crew as we stepped onto the dock. They nodded but pulled the ropes as soon as we were off the boat.
“That was weird.” They weren’t even waiting for new passengers? I turned to see if Nyx heard me, but as I did, movement caught my eyes.
Like they had materialized out of nowhere…the undead swarmed us.
TWENTY-SEVEN
CALYTRIX
They came from all sides. Unlike Nova, I’d never been claustrophobic in my life, yet I was suddenly barely able to breathe because they were everywhere. Pushing the oxygen out of every available space.
They were wretched, grotesque things that had the look and smell of death and yet the will to keep going to what end I didn’t want to imagine.
How did we not see them?
Feel them even?
Could they cloak themselves so that they were invisible until that moment?Or had they appeared from another place in the same kind of way my power worked?
My mind slowed as the things reached for me. I was expecting them to tear into me mercilessly. After what we heard of the attack on our palace, I was sure my end had arrived. However, their grabbing and clawing hands did not rip into me. They corralled me and kept me contained within the cluster of their vile, writhing bodies.
Among the chaos, my focus sharpened, and calm came over me somehow. I reached for my knife from the sheath on my back, brandishing it at them. I spun in a slow circle, jabbing theblade at any that came too close, looking for a way out, but there were too many of them. I couldn’t expend my magic without making sure I had Nova with me. While I might be able to take some down, for every one I cut down, five more would replace it.
As far as my eye could see, they were there, hissing and groaning.
“Nova!” I reached for my sister, but the undead had already pushed us apart.
“I’m here. Caly, please help,” she screamed as they engulfed her.
