Page 50 of Heiress of Fire

Ron nodded as he observed the tree. His eyes analyzed the different fruits within the tree. They all hung and danced with the breeze. The fruits that had grown from the tree branches were so majestic that they slightly glowed.

“Do you know what you need to do?”

“Not really.” Ron shook his head.

Slowly, Ron stalked toward the tree trunk. He set his left hand over the bark. A loud screech of ripping bark echoed into Davina’s ears, Davina reached for her ears as birds flapped out from the nest of branches and leaves.

Ron groaned as tree branches wrapped around his arms, his sword fell out of his hand and the chest piece in his other was being wrapped in branches.

“Davina!” Ron called with his eyes widened.

“Ron!” She cried. The branches were circling his figure faster as she neared him. Ron reached for her, pushing against the tightness of the branches. Their fingers grazed before he was yanked into the hollow trunk of the tree.

“Ron?” Davina croaked as she touched the bark of the tree, pushing away all the foliage. “Ron!”

This was too much for one day. She was still tired from the exertion she’d done back at the lake. They still had to find a way out of here and into Auris. Who knew how long it would take to find the armor in Auris. Would every search for their armor be this terrible?

They hadn’t even gone to a battle against Raven and circumstances were already gruesome. These trainings were becoming too harsh that she questioned whether they were truly necessary. The King had chosen her to be the Captain of the Island Protectors, but she was no leader. What kind of Captain is incapable of saving those in her team?

What if she lost Leilani, Valerie, or even Snow? And Cara was also on the team. The boys. What if something happened to them?

Her hands reached for her head, her fingers shaking, her limbs filled with tremors. Chills spread across her skin. Her knees buckled as her eyes remained where Ron once stood.

All she could do now was sit and wait for him to come back. What if he didn’t come back? What if he needed her to help him again?

Davina sighed, rubbing her eyes. Getting anxious or beating herself up for her incapability was not going to solve her issues.

Slowly, the same hollowness from a few seconds before reappeared. Ron stepped through the pit, this time with his armor complete.

There was a bright smile on his lips. He seemed so happy, and rightfully so. Davina swiftly pushed herself to her feet as she saw the dark metal covering his figure completely. Once again, the islands responded. His weapons and armor were, in fact, scattered throughout the four islands.

The only remaining question was why.

FOURTEEN

They stood near the Aurisan Bridge, surrounded by bustling strollers wearing mixtures of yellow and orange.

The metal of his armor shined under the sun as Ron examined the buildings around them, his sword tightly gripped in his left hand. Davina followed his gaze toward the premises that she was all too familiar with. Most of the buildings had black spots covering their walls and smoke escaping from the crooks of the edifices.

“You’re not sweating under that?” Davina asked.

“No, not really. It’s quite fresh in here.”

“Are you sure? You’ve lived in Auris long enough to know that the deeper we go into the island, the more you’ll feel the heat of its core.”

“Don’t worry,” he chuckled.

Davina turned toward the white posts that held the street names of Auris. She scanned the arrowed sign that directed them for Spark Street, feeling as though she needed to head down that path. An image of her and Ron walking down the street flashed through her mind.

“Spark Street,” Ron said.

“Alright,” Davina noted before they walked down the pathway, down Spark Street.

Children ran across the pavement, rushing to the market stands that were set across the street. Surely, they were searching for sweets and toys to buy. Smoke filled their nostrils with more intensity as they passed by a few market tents.

Another flash passed through her mind.

“We should go right,” he said.

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