“No.” His answer was calm, matter-of-fact. “But that’s never stopped us before.”
Behind them, Kaelith chuckled softly. “It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” His voice was quieter now. “Very old magic. Older than any Reach. Older than the Source.”
Rynna turned to glance at him—and caught him mid-stare.
Kaelith’s gaze was fixed, unmistakably, on the curve of Fenn’s backside, the loose drawstring pants doing little to disguise the taut, clean lines of Fenn’s frame.
Then he blinked. Once. Twice. Caught.
His eyes snapped to Rynna’s, and for a heartbeat, the tension between them shifted entirely. A flush rose along his neck, visible even in the limited light, crawling fast up to the tips of his ears. He looked away too quickly, his hand rising to sweep hair behind his ear in a forced, casual gesture that only drew more attention to his awkwardness.
Rynna raised a single brow.Like what you see, snake?
Kaelith cleared his throat, then busied himself dusting imaginary grit from his sleeve. “It appears the path is waiting for us,” he muttered, suddenly fascinated by a nearby glyph.
Fenn hadn’t noticed a thing, or at least pretended not to see. In reality, the man missed little.
Amused, Rynna stepped to his side. “No more time to delay, then.”
Fenn glanced at her, brows lifted in question, but she only smiled and turned her attention back to the path.
The truth was, they were all unraveling in their own ways. Tensions ran high, not just because of the past or the tangled intimacy they shared, but because the weight of theworld clung to every decision. This path, this trail of floating blue stone across a dead continent, might be the only way through the enemy’s barrier, and they were the only ones who could walk it.
“The others are counting on us,” Fenn said softly, almost to himself.
Rynna nodded, serious now. “All of Fang Unit. The entire world.”
“Then let’s move.” He stepped onto the first glowing stone.
It held his weight easily, humming beneath his boot.
Kaelith hesitated for just a breath, then followed, his gaze lingering on the Waygate behind for a moment, as if trying to commit the patterns to memory. Rynna moved last, her hand reaching for the hilt of a sword out of habit as she followed the two missing pieces of her soul into the desert’s abyss.
Chapter fifty-four
Thepathcarriedthemforward, stone by shining stone, stretching endlessly into the dead desert. The air shimmered with fading heat, but the wind had turned cool in places it shouldn’t be. It slid beneath her collar like ghost fingers, raising bumps along her arms.
Rynna adjusted her grip on the leather strap across her chest, the short swords at her back shifting with the motion. Ahead, Fenn walked in silence, his pace unhurried, the moonlight gleaming silver against the outline of corded muscles in his back. His hair, tied up in a messy knot, had begun to unravel, loose strands trailing along his neck with every step.
Now behind her, the faint scrape of Kaelith’s boot on stone sounded, followed by the kind of pause that always meant he was thinking too hard.
“You’re brooding,” Rynna said, watching him sidelong.
“I don’t brood,” he muttered.
She snorted. “You absolutely do. That’s your entire brand. Brood, smirk, flirt, sulk. Repeat.”
His lips quirked. “You forgot ‘save your life in dramatic fashion.’”
“That part’s negotiable,” she said, though her tone softened slightly. “You thinking about what’s ahead?”
He didn’t answer right away. Then, with a sly glance, “Just calculating how many dramatic one-liners I’ll need to balance out Fenn’s lack of personality.”
Rynna barked a laugh before she could stop it, glancing ahead at Fenn’s rear, flushing, then back at Kaelith, one brow arched.
Was he always like this?Fenn’s voice slid into her mind, dry and cool.
So annoying? she replied, though a smile tugged at the corner of her mouth.
