"Another fae lord trying to take what isn't his." Karse's tone carried the weary annoyance of someone who'd had this conversation too many times. "You all really can't help yourselves, can you? Like magpies with opposable thumbs."
Malus's copper hair seemed to flame brighter in the growing dusk. "And what are you supposed to be?"
"The one who got here first." Karse walked past him as if he weren't surrounded by creatures of rot and decay, past Arion's defensive light, past Thaine's coiled readiness. He stopped directly in front of Briar and his fingers locking around her wrist, already turning to walk. She didn’t try to pull away, too surprised to see him, but she didn't follow either. He stopped, looking back over his shoulder.
"Aren't you exhausted by all this yet?" Karse gestured vaguely at the assembled fae with his free hand. "They'll keep talking about you like furniture until dawn. You have capable legs. You should use them."
"She's not going anywhere—" Arion started.
"With you," Thaine finished, though clearly meaning something different.
Karse sighed, making no move to relinquish his hold on Briar's wrist as he turned to face them. "I really don't want to have to kill you all. It's messy, and—" He glanced at Briar, his head tilting slightly. "You look like a crier. Are you going to cry if I burn them? Because that would be tedious."
The casual way he discussed multiple murder while worrying about her emotional response made her head spin. Before she could formulate any kind of answer, Malus's patience finally snapped.
"Enough."
The quiet command came out quiet, decisive. The Withered moved as one, their stillness breaking into motion that was wrong, unnaturally fluid and far too synchronized. They spread out in a circle, antlered masks turning toward different targets. The smell of decay intensified, and where their robes brushed the ground, the grass withered and died.
"Kill the Drak," Malus said, already moving toward Briar. "Disable the others."
White-blue flame erupted from Karse's free hand, hot enough that Briar felt her skin tighten from proximity. "Finally. I was getting bored."
He pushed Briar behind him, and the others instinctively closed ranks—Arion's light flaring into a protective barrier, Thaine positioning himself at her left despite having no weapon, Sian at her right with water already gathering. For a moment, they formed a unified defense around her.
Then the Withered struck from multiple directions at once.
The formation shattered instantly. A creature lunged at Thaine, forcing him to roll away and grab a decorative spear from the wall. Another came at Sian from the side, making her pivot and lash out with water whips. Halian had to dodge backward, hands moving in complex patterns to call on what remained of the Star Court's wards.
Karse held position longest, flames roaring, but even he had to move when two Withered converged on him from opposite angles.
And through it all, Malus walked calmly toward Briar, autumn magic pooling around his fingers.
"Now then," he said, as chaos erupted around them, "we have much to discuss, you and I."
The warmth in her chest contracted so violently she gasped, responding to threats from every direction—Eliam's brother approaching with patient malice, the defenders being pulled away from her, and something else, something building that felt like thorns trying to grow from inside her bones.
She watched Arion trying to return to her, but a Withered's fingers brushed his light barrier's edge. Where they touched, the light itself seemed to rot, turning gray and crumbling like ash. He stumbled back, eyes wide with shock.
"Don't let them touch you!" Sian shouted, whipping water at another creature. The liquid struck its mask, but instead of flowing over it, the water blackened and fell as putrid sludge.
Karse laughed as he sent a torrent of white-blue flame at the Withered approaching him. The fire consumed its robes, but the thing kept coming, bones or wood or whatever else comprised its frame still moving despite being wreathed in flames.
Through it all, Malus continued his approach, steps casual.
"Such chaos," he said, stepping around Thaine as he rolled away from grasping, decay-touched fingers. "All this fuss over one human girl. You have quite a talent for garnering loyalty. Unfortunately, it won’t be enough to save you."
Briar backed away, her heart hammering. The warmth in her chest pulsed erratically, responding to threats from every direction. She could see Arion still trying to reach her, but a Withered blocked his path, forcing him to retreat and avoid that terrible touch.
"There's nowhere to run," Malus continued, matching her retreat step for step. "This ends only one way."
She ducked behind the fountain, putting it between them. Malus sighed, amused, and walked around it with unhurried steps. She scrambled in the other direction, nearly colliding with Sian who was desperately trying to freeze a Withered in place.
"Briar, get inside—" Sian's words cut off as she had to dive away from reaching fingers.
“Come now, spare your friends, no one here has to die today.” Malus reached towards her, palm up, as though inviting her to take his hand.
The ground beneath Briar's feet suddenly erupted.
