She stumbled forward, dazed. Past Zarrek.
And ran straight toward the place she felt him standing.
30
The Return
The moment the portal spat him out, Kailorien drew breath through his teeth.
Blood.
Fresh. Too much.
He stood at the edge of the street, runes flaring to life—Krâthar surging across his shoulders, Perthro vibrating like a warning drum in his ribs. He drew his blade. A stillness settled over him that came before slaughter. Four Reskala lay strewn across the cobbles. Slashed open. Skewered. One of them—a younger recruit—was missing his face.
His stomach clenched.
He stepped forward, fast. Searching the buildings, the darkened alley mouths, the angles of rooftops. He found the Glider corpses, too. A wing that looked like it had been cleaved. Only a massive weapon could have accomplished it, and just the thought of that being anywhere nearher.
His voice cracked the night, raw and thunderous.
“Auryn!”
Nothing.
No—movement. From the shadowed side of a ruined entryway.
She emerged like something risen from a battlefield hallucination. Covered in blood—grey. Not hers, but enough to set every one of his runes screaming. Her white and gold dress hung in tatters, her silver wire diadem askew. A thick rope-like bruise was blooming around her calves,burns covering her skin in bright red splotches. Her hair was soaked with sweat and blood. Tangled. Her eyes—Void, her eyes—were wild with shock.
His chest split open.
“Auryn—”
She ran.
No hesitation, no words. Just ran straight into him, her breath escaping her in a streaming litany of his name—Kail…Kail…Kail…
He caught her like falling glass. One arm swept under her thighs, the other wrapped behind her shoulders, crushing her to him. She was shaking. Bleeding. Trying to speak—words falling from her lips in a broken rush.
“There were children—they’redying, the Pale Madness is so much worse than we thought. The Temples are overflowing. Death everywhere. They’re tearing their skin off, Kail—and the children—oh Void help me—and some healers don’t stop them—they let themjump—let them burn themselves—I just wanted to help—but then—thentheycame, the Gliders, theykilledmy guards—”
Her voice cracked. Her whole body convulsed in his arms.
“I tried—Itried to shield them—but they were too fast, and I couldn’t cast in time, and there wasso much blood—”
“Auryn.” His voice shook. “Stop. Breathe.”
“The Council isn’t—doing—not doing anything—”
She couldn’t stop. She hiccupped, gasping through clenched teeth. Her head buried itself in the hollow of his neck, fingers digging into the straps of his armor so hard that one of her nails tore from the quick. Her strength failed. Her limbs went limp. She sobbed without tears, her voice gone, herbreath shallow.
He held her tighter. Pressed his lips to her temple. Closed his eyes against the rage seething under his skin.
A step.
From the alley.
His eyes snapped open.
