Rain looked up. Farel was watching Ellysetta. There was no mistaking the helpless adoration, the naked longing. No Fey woman had ever claimed Farel’s soul, yet still he could not help but love them. It was plain on his face that even now, evendahl’reisen,he remembered the dreams of every Fey boy and man for a truemate, he remembered the untarnished beauty and limitless love of Fey women. He might want to blame them for his banishment, but he could not.
“Beloved of us all,” Rain said quietly.
“The gods have mercy upon us.”
With another man, Rain would have laughed at the familiar rejoinder. But he could not laugh with adahl’reisenwhose only hope of mercy had perished long ago.
The boats reached Celierian shores under the protective blanket of mist, and thedahl’reisendisembarked as quickly as they had boarded. As the last man leapt to dry land, the boats dissolved and shrank, becoming the fallen trunks of trees littering Celierian shores.
“The Mages will likely follow us,” Farel said. “And not necessarily by the river. We slay them where we can, but the Eld have thoroughly infiltrated the borders. The north belongs to Eld, and only now does Celieria begin to know it.”
“So Gaelen warned us months ago, but few believed him.”
Farel nodded, but this time silenced any bitter reply he might have made. “Gaelen told us to keep you safe until he arrived, so you’ll be coming with us.”
To one side, adahl’reisenemerged from the mists leading a blackba’houdahorse. “Can you ride, Tairen Soul? It’s either this or we carry you and your mate on a pair of litters. We cannot afford to let you slow us down.”
“I can ride,” Rain said. Flamed if he would let somedahl’reisencart him about like a decrepit mortal. It wounded his pride to allow Farel’s men to lift him into the saddle, but better that than allow thedahl’reisento touch Ellysetta. When theba’houdaactually moved, more than his pride hurt but he gritted his teeth and bore it, clasping Ellysetta tightly against him as they galloped through the Celierian hills.
Every so often, a small squad ofdahl’reisenwould peel off from the main group and lope away in some different direction. Decoys, Rain presumed, sent to befuddle any followers and to erase the signs of passage of the main party. Thedahl’reisenoperated with impressive precision. Which wasn’t all that surprising since alldahl’reisenwere seasoned Fey veterans with many centuries of training and warfare beneath their belts. Once, they had been among the best warriors of the Fading Lands.
Rain was grateful for thedahl’reisenweave that kept Ellysetta unconscious. Between thesel’dorin her body, his own burning pain, and the presence of thedahl’reisen,she would have been screaming in torment. And with his arms around her—his body pressed against hers, their shared pain would have formed an agonizing harmonic.
Rolling farmland ended at the edge of a deep wood, and thedahl’reisencame to a halt. Rain’s innate tairen sense of direction and long-forgotten memories pinpointed their location. This was Verlaine Forest, the deep, vast woods in northwest Celieria. Legally, the forest was part of King Dorian’s family holdings, but in reality Verlaine Forest belonged to no one. During the Mage Wars, Fey, Celierians, and Elves alike had found refuge here amongst the trees, using the forest as a base from which to launch attacks against Eld. Dark, bitter battles had been fought all around the forest’s edges, terrible magic released in and around its ancient borders, but the Eld had never conquered the dark Verlaine, nor penetrated its deepest interior.
Farel approached and laid a hand on the neck of Rain’s mount. “You’ll have to run from here. Not evenba’houdawill enter this wood. Do you have the strength to carry yourshei’taniand still keep up?”
Rain arched a brow. “You just lead us to safety. I’ll find whatever strength I need to follow.”
The corner of Farel’s mouth lifted. “Then follow, Tairen Soul.” He turned and plunged into the dense, dark forest of the Verlaine.
Rain adjusted Ellysetta in his arms, set his jaw, and ran.
Eld ~ Boura Fell
“Escaped? What do you mean my prizes haveescaped?”
Primage Vargus stood before Vadim Maur, shaking like a leaf in a hard wind. “Thedahl’reisenwere using their invisibility weave—the one that renders them completely undetectable. They came in such numbers, with no warning, and they destroyed all thechemarin the area so we couldn’t flank them. We searched for them, but found no sign of their tracks. We can only assume they’ve crossed the river and taken refuge in the Verlaine by now.”
Vadim paced, the hem of his purple robes swirling around his feet with each brisk step and sharp pivot. He’d been waiting impatiently for the arrival of Ellysetta Baristani, and when she had not been delivered to him within one bell of her capture, he’d gone looking for an explanation—and found Vargus in the war room, sweating a river as he tried frantically to coordinate a doomed search for the missing captives.
“We did at least recover the Tairen Soul’s blood, Most High.”
Vadim stopped abruptly in a billow of purple velvet. “Did we?”
Vargus nodded. “Quite a lot of it. Enough for Primage Grule to ensure that the next time the Tairen Soul flies near Eld will be his last.”
“See it done.”
Vargus bowed and exited the room.
Vadim began to pace once more. Thedahl’reisen.They’d been a thorn in his side for centuries, slaughtering hisumagi,foiling the raids he sent to bring back the magical offspring from the breeders he’d released into Celieria in the hopes of creating a greater and more powerful pool of prospective breeders. He’d captured a number of thedahl’reisenover the years and added their gifts to the bloodlines he was creating. For that usefulness—and because he hadn’t wanted to tip his hand to the Celierians—he’d never sent a large enough force into Celieria to kill them.
But now—incredibly—it seemed thedahl’reisenhad joined forces with the Fey.
And that was an alliance he could not allow.
Vadim wrenched open the door to his office and barked a curt command to Zev.
