Darion was about halfway to us with Syra just behind him.Several members of the Royal Guard loaded their crossbows as the Sentinels stood at attention, chanting.I didn’t see how we could possibly escape.They were too close.
And then Syra made a hand signal and the chanting stopped.
The null field dropped.
A golden shimmer surrounded Syra as she started her transformation.
An instant later, a shimmer surrounded Darion.If he was a traitor and he used his Chronothene against us, we were finished.But instead of the betrayal I expected, Darion extended his Chronothene to me.
Time turned to molasses, and the world ground to a halt.I nearly spit up the few sips of ale in my stomach.
Darion turned and ran toward Syra, who was mid-transformation.He shoved her hard with everything he had.Suddenly I understood why he’d extended his Chronothene.Darionwantedme to see that he was helping us.
Time remained frozen as Darion walked up to me, a look of deep sadness in his eyes.I tightened my jaw and frowned.He had helped us, yes.But a rescue and a sad look weren’t going to fix this.
Time snapped back.
Syra flew into the Royal Guard with the force of a cannon just as they were firing their crossbows.The bolts shot off in random directions, all missing their marks.In an instant, Syra was back on her feet, back in her human form, her transformation interrupted.
She signaled with her hand again, and the null field returned.In a rush, it hit me: when she’d dropped the null field, she hadn’t expected Darion to use his Chronotheneagainsther.She had thought Darion was on her side.But instead he’d protected us.
Jask raised her own crossbow, aiming it right at Darion; as far as she could tell, he was working with Syra and had just magically materialized next to me.
“No!Stop!”I shouted at her, standing in the path of fire.“He saved us.”
Jask kept her crossbow aimed at Darion but didn’t shoot.
“We’ll sort this out later,” Rook said.“Let’s go!Give us a push, will you, Cas?”
Both Darion and I grabbed the ship’s rail and pushed off the dock with all our might.The ship floated away from the shore with both of us holding on for dear life as the dock disappeared beneath our feet.The first crossbow bolts hit the hull just as we scampered up and over the bulwark.
The ship was already quite a ways from the dock as Syra approached the edge at full speed.Even in the moonlight and at a distance, I could see the relentless look on her face, like she was a machine without emotion and with only one purpose.I realized then that Syra wouldn’t stop until her task was done or she was dead.And that realization sent a shudder through me.
She reached the edge of the dock and kicked off.I couldn’t imagine that anyone could make that leap, but somehow she managed it, slamming into the edge of the hull, her arms draped over the railing.Her hair and eyebrows were entirely singed off, and blisters covered her face and arms.The sight was so horrific that it made my legs buckle.Part of me wanted to curl up and hide belowdecks.
Instead I steadied myself and drew my dagger, ready to slash at her fingers on the railing.But she moved with a frightening speed I hadn’t anticipated, and in a blink, she was halfway over the bulwark, drawing her sword.
A twang came from behind me, and a bolt from Jask’s crossbow buried itself in her shoulder.Syra let out a howl.For a split second, something in her face shifted.Gone was the mechanical, almost-blank look, replaced by…terror?Regret?
A second bolt hit her, and she recoiled, losing her balance, then falling over the edge with a large splash.I gave Jask a grateful nod as the adrenaline of the moment washed over me.But that look in Syra’s eyes was stuck in my mind.
Rook finished hoisting the mainsail, and with a snap of canvas, the ship glided forward eagerly.In the distance, the Royal Guard stood at the dock, still firing their crossbows, but at this range, none of them came close to hitting their mark.
TheWind Runnercut through the water with ease and plunged into the darkness.
“Will somebody please tell me what in all the hells is going on?”Rook said.“Why are Sentinels after us, and who in all the hells is this?”He gestured to Darion, who sat on the deck with a wretched look on his face.
I stayed quiet, as interested as Rook to hear what Darion had to say.Probably more interested.The silence was deafening, with only the sound of the hull cutting through the waves.
“It’s complicated,” Darion finally offered, his eyes locked on mine.
Rook turned to me with a look of impatience.“Okay, your turn.Why shouldn’t I throw this man overboard?”
“We’d be dead without Darion,” I said simply.
“So youknowhim,” Rook said.
“I thought I did,” I said.
