I hopped up and drew my dagger, then peered out the door.
Running down the hallway, out of breath, was Caldren, the man who had greeted us when we’d arrived at the Order and guided me to the council meeting.When he saw me, he looked as if a massive load had been lifted.“Thank dust!When you didn’t return, we feared the worst!”
I did my best to regain my composure, but part of me just wanted to curl up in a ball.
“Where is everyone?”I asked.
“The entire Underworld is under attack,” he said.“Scouts arrived with the news, and we evacuated.I’m to bring you and Darion to High Steward Mireth.”
At the mention of Darion, I flinched.
Caldren looked around.“WhereisDarion?”
“Darion didn’t make it out,” I said flatly, holding back the emotion trying to pour out of me.I couldn’t bear to say what had really happened.
“Dust!”Caldren said.“I’m so sorry.I knew you cared for him.”
“Have you seen my sister?”I asked, brushing off his concern.
“Yes,” Caldren said.“Kael saw to her evacuation personally.”
My chest tightened.The letter was true.
“Which way did they go?”I nearly shouted.“I have to get to her.”
Caldren appeared taken aback.“She’ll be quite safe with Kael.They left through the cellars, like everyone else.The city is locked down.All the normal routes are blocked.”
“But did you actuallyseethem leave through the cellars?”I asked.
“No,” Caldren said, a quizzical look on his face.“I don’t understand.Where else would they have gone?”
“I don’t have time to explain,” I said.“I need to find her.”
Caldren shook his head.“My orders are to escort you to rendezvous with the high steward at Shadowfen.You have an item critical to the Order.I insist that you come with me.”
I simply couldn’t delay any longer, so I took the two vials of Emberbane from my belt and held them out to Caldren.“Here.Take the damn vials.But be careful.If you drop one, this whole room will be engulfed in fire.”
Caldren looked at the vials as if they might bite him.But then he took one and added it to the satchel on his belt.“Very well.But you keep one.It’s probably best that we split them up.”
“I’m leaving,” I said.If there was any chance they hadn’t left through the cellars, I needed to get topside as fast as I could and have Zephyra track them.
“I still think you should exit through the cellars with me,” Caldren said.“But if you want to leave through the front entrance, you’ll need to hurry.The Sentinel army will be here any moment.”
As if in confirmation, the thrumming of a null field hit me like a crashing wave, so strong that my teeth ached.It was much stronger than I’d ever felt it.
I cursed under my breath.“It’s already too late,” I said.“They’re here.”
With the front entrance cut off, the cellars were our only option.I ran with Caldren through an older part of the Order’s headquarters that I had never been to.The walls looked worn from age and were in disrepair.
“When we get to the cellars, you’ll have to follow me closely,” Caldren said.“It’s a maze of tunnels, and if we get separated, you’re sure to get lost.”
I had read about the cellars in a book on Analonian history—a series of natural caves that stretched for miles, a mazelike warren of passageways extending well past the city gates.
The null field continued to thrum.“They’re getting close,” I warned.
We reached a long corridor that ended at a narrow stone staircase twisting into darkness.As we took the first steps down, a group of masked Sentinel soldiers turned the corner at the far end of the hallway.Leading the charge was one of the last people I wanted to see.My blood turned to ice.
Syra, The Butcher’s bodyguard, made eye contact with me, her face neutral as always.She started sprinting toward us, brandishing her sword.
