“Aye, me too!”
“Aye!”
“I remember my vow.”
“As do I!”
I fight the astonished smile on my face as soldier after soldier leaves their lines to join us. Delphia gives a wicked grin and winks up at me. More and more tear away from the army until we are flanked on either side by soldiers.
I look around; the renewed Queen’s Army has formed ranks around us. Now, only twenty of the Green Rule stand before us, faces a mask of shocked anger.
The first soldier spits onto the ground. “The Green Rule has been promised dominion over the Vale. We will not be cowed by weaklings who would pursue a false ideal of salvation!”
“The Green Rule may promise you dominion over the Vale, but it will be the dominion of a wasteland,” I say. “They will take everything that is good and beautiful and turn it to ash. We are offering you a second chance. I urge you to take it.”
He grits his teeth. “I’m going to fucking kill each and every one of you!”
Delphia nudges my arm. “Nowcan we fight?”
“I’ve got this,” Nori says and steps forward. Just as I reach to pull her away, she draws back her arm and chucks her pumpkins, one after another. They fall among the remaining members of the Green Rule, murky, brownish-green sludge exploding over them.
“What is that?” Delphia asks.
“A substance I created from something I found in the harpy nest.” A thin smile spreads across Nori’s face. “Let’s just say they’re going to be very popular with the harpies.”
I give the soldier a sympathetic shrug. “I’d run as far away from here as fast as you can, if I were you.”
The soldier looks at his body, covered in the brownish-green muck, then turns to his comrades. “Retreat!” The Green Rule takes off, sprinting away from the bridge.
I ruffle Nori’s hair, then look around, staring at the ranks. Eighty soldiers, sworn in renewal to the Queen. One hundred and one warriors I didn’t have to kill.
I can’t see my brother, dangling below the bridge, but one way or another, he’ll get out of there. This isn’t the end. He still has my Blessing, and I will have to face him again. But I can do it without losing who I am. Without losing the man Rosalina fell in love with.
I raise my mother’s blade into the air. “For the Queen!”
“For the Queen!” my new soldiers echo. The sound of their spears rattles through the desert.
I turn to lead them back to Hadria when something drifts from the sky. I lean down and pick it up, holding it to the light.
It’s a large white feather.
CHAPTER 98
Farron
Coppershire is beautiful at dusk. I walk through the grand living quarters of Keep Oakheart. Has it ever looked so lovely, drenched in dying sunlight? A warmth fills my chest, an almost drunken sense of peace.
My father sits on the couch, laughing with the twins. They wave to me as I walk past. Nori lounges in a chair nearby, legs stretched over the armrest as she flips through a book. She glances up at me as I pass and graces me with one of her rare smiles.
My family. My beautiful family that has stood by me throughout fire and ash.
The glass doors to the balcony are open, letting in the warm Autumn breeze. It smells of a rich harvest, my realm bountiful and prosperous. Kel and Ezryn lean on the wall beside the open doors, deep in conversation. Kel looks resplendent in the brilliant blue robes of Winter, his brow adorned with a sapphire circlet. Ezryn wears armor of starlight silver, his helm shining in the fading light. Both of them nod their heads toward me. My chest thrums with the strength of our brotherhood.
Two figures walk in from the balcony, their laughter a joyous sound. Dayton has his arm around Rosalina’s shoulders, and she places a hand on his chest. When they see me, their eyes crinkle and smiles break across their faces. My heart swells. They are both so beautiful, backlit by the sun.
Rosalina strokes a hand along my arm as I walk past her onto the balcony. I stride to the railing and look out at the city. My citizens are busy in the streets, pulling carts of Autumn’s bountyand selling handcrafted wares. Each one of them is under my protection. They are my responsibility to keep safe.
“Is this not everything you’ve ever wanted?” a familiar voice asks.
