Chapter One Hundred Three
Ellowyn
Alvor was in ruins.
After the strange encounter with Pip, I’d commissioned a small flotilla to take me from Katiska to Deucena. My breath caught in my throat, stomach clenching violently as we slowly floated through the silent, watery tomb of our navy.
I tried not to think about Peytor as I disembarked, gaze trained firmly on the road that led away from the docks, but it was nearly impossible. At least until I climbed the short hill that led away from the docks and stopped in my tracks, shocked and overwhelmed by the visage below. Buildings and homes were in ruin; the top of the palace was missing completely. Rocks and stones fully blocked streets, while others were clearly flung from a great distance, finally coming to rest in the walls of other structures.
Smoke rose steadily from the palace, the faint glow of fire following, but the rest of the city was completely dark.
An eeriness slithered through the dark streets, only perpetuated by the burning palace under a silent moon. I tried to pull a trickle of Destruction into my hands, but it evaded my grasp, only furthering my concern for Peytor.
My feet crunched over gravel, white dust coating my black tunic and pants as I scaled countless boulders. I peered into windows and shells of homes, looking for survivors and hidden traps. Yet, I never found another soul.
My breathing grew ragged as I scaled what felt like the thousandth rock, my hands scraped raw from the jagged edges, and my body slick with sweat.
I pulled myself to the top of the relatively flat boulder, realizingit must have come from the palace. With a sigh, I sank to my butt, closing my eyes to rest and think.
If everyone is gone, then where did they go? Did Solace capture them to use as bait as she moved toward Vespera? Where was Peytor? Folami?
The questions were harder than my exhausted mind could reason through, and I wished desperately for Faylinn.
She would know what to do in this situation.
I exhaled deeply, blowing my lips outward as I stretched my neck.
Behind me, I heard a rock knock against another as if sliding downward. I frowned at the sound, straining my ears.
Again, I heard the crunch of rock underfoot, and I abruptly whirled, Destruction slowly pooling in my hands and instantly reaching forward to whoever was sneaking from behind.
“Gods, Ellowyn! It’s me!” The female voice was familiar, and I quickly dropped my hold on my power.
“Folami?” I asked, squinting into the darkness. The light from the flames in the palace too distant to truly discern her features.
“Yes,” she hissed, no longer trying to be quiet. “I apologize if I startled you. I had to be sure it was truly you.”
She stumbled as rocks slid from under her feet, nearly forcing her to her knees. Folami caught herself with a grumbled curse, and I jumped off the boulder with a laugh, elation flooding my chest.
“You’re alive!” I exclaimed, wrapping my arms around her shoulders in a tight hug. The other woman froze, her hands locked at her sides as she tensed under my embrace.
“Sorry,” I apologized as I withdrew, Folami finally relaxing once my hands left her completely. “I’m just so happy to see that you’re here and not—” I gestured vaguely, unable to finish my sentence.
Folami offered me a flat smile, but her dark eyes betrayed her relief. I forgot how reticent and stoic she usually was without Ilyas, Peytor, and Lex to balance her.
“Who else is with you?” I asked.
She sighed, rubbing her face with a shake of her head.
“No, I apologize,” she said with a tired exhale, surprising me. “It’s just . . . been a day.”
I barked a laugh, much to her surprise.
“Was that a joke?” I asked.
“Unfortunately not,” Talamh’s dulcet tones came from somewhere in the darkness, his large figure moving from the shadows to joinFolami.
“You move awfully quietly for a man your size,” I deadpanned. “It would be frightening if we were not allies.”
