Farrin straightened,surprised and a little dismayed at her words.Evil scheme?He countered the ice sword Rakel hurled in his direction, this time taking care to avoid the injured princess.
She didn’t seem to notice—or care. She hit him with ice chunks the size of a reindeer, dumped a mini-avalanche on him; she even shattered all the ice in a section of the gardens, filling the air with fingernail-sized shards of ice that tore through clothing and ripped at skin.
She’s going to injure herself in her anger, Farrin realized.
Farrin lunged forward, grasping the fabric of her shirt. Rakel tossed him backwards by pulling up the ice under his feet. He tapped his speed magic and regained his footing, but Rakel was running, zig-zagging through the ruined gardens.
He sighed, tapped his speed magic, and was on her in an instant. Rakel tried to throw an avalanche of snow at him, but he ducked, and it missed him completely.This needs to end.
He crouched, then leaped forward and shoved his shoulder into her stomach, tossing her over his shoulder. “Your Highness, you need to rest—” he broke off with a hiss when Rakel froze her skin to an icy cold temperature that was difficult to bear.
He grit his teeth as his skin prickled. Rakel pushed off him, and when her feet touched the ground, the wind flared, tossing light snowflakes in the air and creating a screen of snow.
When the snow finally settled, Farrin spotted her climbing through a hole in the wooden fence that surrounded the produce gardens. He shook his head in disbelief and followed her.
She’s going to get herself killed in her stubbornness. Shecan’tbe moving this easily after experiencing one of Tenebris’s curses. They’re lethal, just like him.
Rakel scrambledfor the three water towers at the back of the gardens, her heart pounding in her chest.I was wrong. I was so wrong to think I could manage him alone! If I don’t hurry, he’s going to grab me.Rakel ran under the wooden trough system that ran from the water towers. The troughs, supported by strategically placed pillars, made a miniature aqueduct system—joining in a massive central chute.
Footsteps crunched behind her. Trembling with fear, Rakel covered Farrin’s feet in ice. He shattered it immediately and drew closer. Rakel snapped a cage around him, using the same three-layered pattern she had used on the shapeshifter in Glowma.
Farrin stared at Rakel then swung his sword, shattering the wall. “Your Highness, you need to stop,” he said. “Give up.”
Rakel swallowed hard and backed up under the main chute. “You haven’t caught me yet.” She kept her eyes on Farrin instead of glancing at the water towers as she tapped her magic and started cooling the water.
“Because I’m choosing not to push you. If your soldiers were in the area, you would be more careful with your magic, and I would have nabbed you moments after our fight started.”
It is odd that he is so observant of meand yet missed the most important part of this plan: Liv.
Rakel threw another round of ice arrows at him, using his counter-attack reflection as an excuse to back up. The noise of the fight also covered the groans of the wood that protested as she brought the temperature of the purified water lower still. Her heart pounded in her throat as Farrin drew closer and closer, stopping when he was one step away from the chute.
One more step, just one little step! If he doesn’t take it, I’m as good as captured—and Ostfold, Steinar, the rebellion, everything will be lost!
With her resolve keeping her standing, Rakel flung a boulder of ice at Farrin while simultaneously throwing a snowball at his back. He reflected both, of course, but whirling around to parry the snowball put him smack dab under the chute.
“Now!” Rakel shouted.
Farrin blinked.Now?
There were three metallic clicks—like levers being pulled.
Farrin heard water gushing from the water towers. He looked up to see water flood the network of troughs overhead and dump down through a chute directly above him.
I didn’t know she had a water user among her allies. Did she think a surprise attack would catch me off guard?He shook his head and swung his greatsword up to deflect the pointless attack.
The water didn’t reflect at all. It splashed across Farrin’s sword and rained down on him, freezing the moment it touched his cloak and clothes. The water kept gushing until Farrin was thoroughly drenched. Not all the water froze on contact, but Farrin felt the familiar minty flash of Rakel’s magic. The air grew colder, freezing what little water there was left.
He frowned and turned to Rakel, his clothes stiff with ice.What does she hope to accomplish…he stopped thinking when Rakel reached out and touched his shoulder.
Ice grew around him like the trunk of a tree, pinning his arms to his side and his legs to the ground, and understanding finally dawned on him.How very clever.
Out loud, Farrin said, “I see. I can’t break and reflect the first layer of ice because it’s natural, not magic, and it’s reinforced by your magic. Well planned, Your Highness. There’s just one problem: Iwillbe able to break free shortly, once my body heat melts this first layer of ice,” Farrin said.
Even so, she did well. I cannot recall the last time I was incapacitated, even temporarily.
“Yes, but freezing you wasn’t the point of this,” Rakel said, crouching next to him.
Farrin raised an eyebrow. “Oh?”
