A blinding flash of light pulled my gaze to where Solace still gathered her power, the ball of white lightning growing steadily larger.
My heart pounded somewhere in my throat, my body twitching with the need to move as I watched that power nearly consume the ship Solace stood upon.
What was it? And could my Mages outlast whatever cosmic power she unleashed on our fleet?
The quick drop in my stomach and the sour bile in my mouth answered the question as a stray bolt of lightning struck one of my Fire Mages on the foremost ship, turning her to dust instantly.
Her quick death shook me from my stupor, and I launched into action, pushing aside my own misgivings and fears to command our navy, to protect those I loved just beyond these shores. Though I feared my desires were foolhardy.
The screams of the dying combined with the whistling of air as magical attacks struck our ships. Wood fractured into thousands of splinters, exploding outward onto neighboring vessels as we tried to circumvent the barrage from Solace’s Mages.
Grimly, I watched as our ships were picked off one by one, my Mages and Vessels plunging beneath the waves, never to rise again.
It was clear in that moment, as I watched a female Earth Mage no older than twenty sink beneath the waves, her blonde hair floating atop the ocean for a moment before sinking completely:
The sea was to be our final resting place.
Chapter Ninety
Torin
The communication stone clutched tightly in my fist continued to crackle, periodically offering a window into the fierce battle that raged upon the seas north of Deucena. Sweat coated my palm, and I transferred the stone to my other hand before wiping away the evidence of my fear on my pants.
“This wasn’t supposed to happen,” I mumbled, my attention completely rooted to the stone, trying to parse through the shouts of pain and fear, the crackle of magic and booms as attacks found their marks, splintering ships into pieces.
I hated separating my commanders, especially when they were all important to me in some way or another.
But—as Rohak so eloquently put it—that was battle, that was war. If I kept us all together in a vain attempt to protect their lives, we would not only lose Elyria, we’d all meet some sort of horrid end.
It had to be this way, but it didn’t mean I was any less concerned for their safety, especially as Solace bore down upon Peytor’s pitiful force.
“Lord d’Eshu?” A Mage tentatively approached my horse, his own mount throwing his head as he sniffed my obvious irritation.
“What?” I snapped. The man flinched, but I couldn’t find any sense of remorse in the moment. From the stone, there was a gasp of pain, loud enough that my stomach dropped to my knees. It sounded feminine in nature, and I held my breath for a moment until I heard Peytor’s mumbled “fuck” loudly.
“Scouts report, sir,” the Mage stated again. I closed my eyes and ran a hand down my face. We were stationed on the northern side of the river that borderedthe southern edge of Deucena. The area was flat and open, frost from a cold night covering the spring buds of grass and flowers. I could see for miles in either direction, especially on a clear morning such as this. A small forest lay on the southern bank of the river, but I was less worried about that angle of approach, especially because Vespera sat a few miles west.
If there was any movement from that direction, Rohak would send communication either via a running scout or the second communication stone I had that only connected to him. It was to the east—to the hills and forests that separated Hestin from Deucena—that worried me the most.
My breath puffed in front of my face, belying the chill in the air despite the quickly rising, warm sun.
“Speak,” I said on a deep exhale, trying to tune out the sounds of destruction constantly emanating from the stone.
“No movement from either direction. General d’Alvey’s scouts report nothing for miles. No word from Lady d’Eshu as well.”
I grunted my thanks, hands tight on the reins of my horse. He stomped in agitation, and I rubbed a hand down his neck.
How did we miss this?
I looked out at the portion of the army under my command—there were nearly a thousand men and women stationed here with me. They milled about, a few deconstructing their camps from the night before while others ran through various combat drills in an effort to stay sharp for the battle to come.
A piercing scream cut through the stone, followed by a ragged boom that had my heart stopping in my chest and drawing the concerned stares of more than one Mage in the vicinity.
Fuck.
How much longer could Peytor hold without help?
“Peytor, can you hear me?” I spoke into the stone. I waited for a few moments for an answer before repeating my question.
