First, a natural rock formation, which expanded across the hilly landscape to the northeast, marked by sandstone arches that looked as if they might have been man-made but were more likely the result of an evaporated salt bed.
Second, the city of Hurendue, closer now, with two distinct peaks built on identical hills divided by a river.
And finally, between the city and the rock formation, a massive black shadow that was not a shadow at all, but an army.
Ellina had never seen her sister’s army. She heard tales of it passed around campfires, stories of its immensity, but it was not until Ellina actually saw those ranks that she finally understood.Dark Armywas not merely a title. It was a description. The elves wore black armor, rode on black horses. Their cannons were black, their wagons black, their black flags snapping in the wind. The effect was striking, as if Ellina faced not a horde of soldiers, but a single, great titan.
Her hands stiffened on the reins. Sweat trickled between her shoulder blades. She urged Eywen around the knoll and out of sight, riding as close to the army as possible without being seen. Ellina could hear the enemy better as she came nearer, boots and hooves and wagon wheels, the creak of wood, metal against metal.
She eased along the rounded slope of the knoll. Glanced at her own shadow, which looked crisp under the sun’s harsh light. And then, against all her legion training, against every ounce of self-preservation, she walked Eywen into plain sight.
???
Venick waited with a host of archers behind a thin layer of trees spanning either side of the road. The wind was low. The trees glistened with ice. The archers, mostly elven, scanned the lane with steady eyes. Behind them, deeper in the trees, more men crouched alongside cannons, which had been covered in brown cloth to blend into the brush.
The wind shifted directions. It smarted Venick’s eyes.
Maybe the Dark Army would recognize Ellina’s appearance for what it was.
Maybe they wouldn’t take the bait.
A twig crunched under someone’s shifting weight. Everyone tensed, only to slacken again when they realized it was nothing.
The soldiers had pulled scarves over their noses and mouths to hide their streaming breaths. Venick had a cloth over his own face, which had grown damp with moisture. He yearned to remove it. He felt like he couldn’t breathe.
He left the cloth where it was and watched the road.
???
Ellina knew the moment she was recognized. She sensed it in the air like an electric charge.
Three horses split away from the Dark Army’s ranks, kicking up dirt as their riders charged towards her. Ellina’s elven vision sharpened. Each elf was a conjuror, marked by their black hair, the bruised rings around their eyes. They were several hundred yards away. Closing in.
Ellina tugged Eywen’s head around, preparing to take off back towards the trees. It was a straight shot—all that mattered now was speed.
Or, that’s all thatwouldhave mattered…had her path not been suddenly blocked.
Ellina yanked Eywen to a halt. Dread shallowed her breath. She did not know how the Dark Army had predicted her arrival—she herself could not have predicted it, until a few mere hours ago. Yet, they must have known she was coming, because at that moment, a long line of southerners—ten, maybe twelve elves in total—appeared along the path, blocking her way back to the trees, and Venick, and safety.
Ellina’s heart surged even as she calculated, scanning the windy field, marking the distance between herself and the riders, herself and the city. If Farah was giving orders, she did so from a safe distance. Ellina could not spot her among the ranks.
With a silentya, Ellina urged Eywen into motion. The elves gave chase from both directions, pinching Ellina between them like teeth around a morsel. As Ellina’s gaze swung from side to side, her mind was quickly enveloped by a singular word, one that seemed to vibrate out from her core:escape.
She had been Farah’s prisoner once. She could not do it again.
She made for the rock formation.
???
Venick was restless. His eyes continued to rake the empty road even as worry burrowed into his heart.
He didn’t know how much time had passed. It might have been minutes. It felt like ages. But maybe that was better. If time was passing, it could mean that Ellina was being careful. She was figuring the best way to lure the conjurors back into the trees, choosing to work slowly, being smart about her options.
Tell yourself that.
Venick drew his sword. He had no reason to do this yet. There was no enemy in sight, nothing but the fidgety sounds of his own soldiers and the low hum of the breeze through chattering trees. Behind him, Venick heard ranks of men and elves drawing their swords as well, responding to his action as if it had been a command.
Venick sometimes forgot what it meant to be Commander. That his orders—even his perceivedorders—would be followed by everyone without question.
