As I ran, I caught sight of a few Corrupted, all of them running as well. Stunned immortals watched them go, then gathered their loved ones close to watch me run by. It was one of those mixed villages. No, not a village. I glanced up at the towering structures of stone and wood, their height briefly distracting me. This was a city. One of the places my people had been forced out of.
“Do we give chase?” I asked Rath when he came abreast of me.
“Yes.” Then he faded away.
I saw him reappear several feet ahead of me, just behind a group of fleeing Corrupted. He steadied himself and sent his Spirit Magic forth. A shadow emerged from his body, but instead of surging toward one person, it divided into many wraiths and hit the entire group at once.
I came to a stumbling stop.
“Holy fuck,” Xaedren said as he joined me. “That's what you've given us, Ember. You've magnified our Spirit Magic.”
“Then let's make use of it.” I faded away, focusing on another group of Corrupted.
It was time for me to try out my wraith.
Chapter Forty-One
It didn't take us long to chase down the fleeing Corrupted and free them. It took much longer to get them calm and on their way back to their old homes. The people of Great Haven (yes, there was some irony there) helped, just as those in the Ladrin village had. The freed humans were given supplies for their journey and the injured were tended to. Some of them, however, were from another continent, so Rath, Xae, and I had to fade them home one by one. By the time we got back to Wraith Citadel, we were ready for a hot meal and an even hotter bath.
We had the meal first.
Once I had some food in my belly, I remembered something important. “He knew my name,” I said.
Rath and Xae looked up from their plates.
“The Corrupter knew my name.”
“He spoke to you?” Xaedren asked.
“Yes. He said, 'Hello, Ember.' It seemed as if he was expecting me. But if that's true, why would he run?”
“Because he saw how much stronger you've become, and how strong you've made us,” Xae said.
“I don't know,” Rath murmured. “He fled quickly. And then immediately reined in his forces instead of ordering them to fight us.”
“And he smiled,” I said. “When we hit him with our magic, he smiled.”
“That can't be good,” Keltyr said as he sat down at our table. “The Corrupter smiled at you?”
“He had his hood off too,” Xae said. “I hate how pretty he is.”
“Right?” I asked. “It annoys the shit out of me. Someone so evil shouldn't be good-looking.”
“Maybe we should speak to the Emperor,” Rath said. “We need to update him on what Ember's magic has done for us anyway.”
“What has it done?” Keltyr asked eagerly.
A few of the other men sitting further down the table perked up and listened in.
“My magic was intensified. All of it, especially Spirit,” Rath said loud enough for everyone to hear. “It knocked the Corrupter off his feet.”
A murmuring began to circle the hall.
Then Xae said, “And we were able to free more than one Corrupted at a time. I freed eight of them with a single wraith.”
“What the fuck?” Keltyr asked. “Are you serious?”
“Yes,” Rath said. “My wraith split into several and went forth into all the nearest Corrupted without my directing it to do so.”
