He didn’t answer for a long time, still pacing back and forth. Florian kept his gaze on the Arrow.
“Out to where the monsters still are,” Valyris finally replied, now sounding more annoyed than anything. “I got rid of everything in the city, but creatures from further away keep trying to get in. I hunt one pack to extinction and another takes its place before long. They’re everywhere.”
From behind him, he heard Kade whisper, “What monsters?”
“What monsters?” Florian asked, loud enough for Valyris to hear. “We haven’t seen any since we got here.”
Valyris scoffed. “Of course not. I just said I destroyed all the monsters in the city. Now only distant ones remain, ones that venture here. All sorts of deformed creatures. Rats and pests. These gods-damned bugs!” He snarled wordlessly as he swatted some away; he hadn’t seemed to notice the beetles at all, but now several of them buzzed away from him in a sudden cloud.
“I can get rid of the beetles,” Florian offered quickly, trying to keep him calm. “Would that help? It wouldn’t last very long, but it would keep them away from you for a little while, at least.”
“Stay away from me,” Valyris warned, shaking his head. “You should leave. No one should be here. This place is cursed. There is nothing good here. I don’t want to hurt you, but if you don’t leave, I will.”
“Okay,” Florian said, taking a nervous step back. “Can we just keep talking like this? This is okay, isn’t it?”
The centaur didn’t respond, though Florian could make out the slight movement of his mouth as he paced, as if he were muttering to himself.
“You said you’re a fae?” Valyris said, turning to face him abruptly. The Arrow sticking out of his eye nearly hit the wall of the cave as he stepped forward, making Florian wince. “You’re from the Winter Court?”
“Y-Yes,” he stammered. He started to say more, but Valyris took another step toward him, his one wild eye passing over Florian to lock onto the others behind him.
“But you have memories of a summer fae,” he said, still looking past him, past Kade, to look at Rune and Koji. Florian took a nervous step back, almost bumping into Kade, who had gone very tense beside him.
“I—yes,” Florian repeated. He was unsure what the centaur was getting at, but at least he was talking, so he would go along with it for now.
Valyris looked down at him again, an unreadable expression on his face. He looked angry, but it might have just been the way that the Arrow cast the rest of his face in unnatural shadow. Florian stayed perfectly still as Valyris seemed to consider him for a moment. Then the centaur grimaced and turned away.
“I will speak with you,” he said. “But send these others away.”
“Not a chance,” Kade whispered beside him. Florian suppressed a groan.
“If this is what it takes to get him to talk,” he hissed, but Kade shook his head rapidly, brows furrowed.
“There’s no telling what he’ll do if he gets you alone,” he replied, barely above a whisper. Valyris had gone very still, as if he were listening intently to their whispers. “No, Florian. I’m not leaving.”
“Let me bring one with me,” Florian called out, regretting the frustration apparent in his voice. “The other two can stay behind.”
Distantly, he could hear Rune grumble, but he kept his eyes on Valyris, who was still turned away. He remained motionless for a moment, then looked over his shoulder at Florian again, his gaze flickering between him and Kade.
“Fine,” he said, then snarled at Kade. “But you do not speak to me. Don’t touch anything.”
Kade let out a long, slow breath through his nostrils, worrying his lower lip between his teeth. Then he gave a single curt nod and gestured for Florian to go.
He turned to Rune and Koji. “Wait for us back at the safe room. We’ll catch up. Alright?”
“You can’t just leave us,” Rune protested, but Koji was already stepping away. “Florian! You’re our ticket out of here. What the hell are we supposed to do if this guy fucking kills you?”
“He’s not going to kill me,” Florian replied, though his heart started pounding at the thought. He glanced nervously back at Valyris, who was still watching them with an expression close to disgust.
“I’m not going to kill you,” Valyris echoed, but he sneered at Kade. “This one, I make no promises.”
“Great,” Rune snapped, throwing her hands in the air as she turned to follow Koji. “Perfect. See you when we see you. Fuck.”
She stomped off without anything else intelligible. Florian watched her and Koji go until they were no longer visible in the light, hoping he hadn’t just condemned them to a long, drawn-out death. Like Thallia.
With a sigh, he turned back to Valyris. “Alright. After you.”
