Page 28 of Soul Forge

“So am I. Are you coming or not?”

Elda chewed her lip, less than thrilled with the idea. But if she didn’t go, she was defying the will of the Spirits. Her creators. The whole of Valerus would look on her with shame if she refused their request. She’d be denied entrance to the temples, possibly even disinherited. Her father wouldn’t want a blasphemer on the throne.

She had no other choice. “How do we do this?”

“You keep hold of these.” Sypher stooped to pick up her dropped pack, passing it to her along with his own. She slipped them over her shoulders and secured them around her midsection, careful not to tangle them. When she was done, she noticed him still waiting.

“Are you going to carry me?”

“How else do you expect to get there?” he asked, one dark brow quirking upwards. “Sit on the wall.”

“What?”

“Spirits, give mestrength,” he groaned, and then he picked her up by the waist and sat her on the wall before she could object. Did she weigh anything at all to him? “Don’t fall.”

Elda gripped the stone with both hands, the sudden empty space and steep drop at her back making her stomach roll uncomfortably. She leaned away from the fall, watching Sypher turn so his back was to her.

“Hold onto me.” He crouched a little, hooking his hands around her thighs when he felt her fingers tighten on his shoulders, and hoisted her onto his back. She settled in the hollow between his wings, trying not to squirm at having a man so close.

“Are you seriously telling me this is how we’re travelling?” she asked, heat flushing her cheeks.

“Just until we meet up with the captain, and she can take you off my hands.”

“Can you even fly like this?”

“Yup. Hold tight.” He hopped onto the wall and stepped off the balcony. Elda screamed, arms constricting around Sypher as tightly as she could hold on, all reservations about his proximity entirely forgotten. Her knees clamped around his hips instinctively, ankles crossing in front of him. The wind tore at her, threatening to rip her from his back when the ground rushed up to meet them.

Those massive wings splayed wide and caught an updraft that sent them soaring skywards again. Her body tilted when he banked left, angling himself towards the stables right on the edge of the palace grounds. Elda kept her face pressed into his shoulder, frozen in fear even after he levelled out.

“Worst bit’s over,” he grunted, tapping her arms. She forced herself to loosen them. “You can open your eyes, you know.”

“Absolutely not.”

“I’m not going to let you fall.” He raised his voice to be heard over the wind.

“And if it’s out of your control?” she called back.

“Then I catch you again.”

“What if the wind picks up and I’m blown off your back?” she panicked, her legs squeezing his hips tighter at the thought of falling.

“Damn, Princess, ease up. You’re going to bruise me.”

“I’m not easing up if it means I might fall to my death!”

“Stars above,” he muttered, then waved a lazy hand, and the wind abruptly lessened. Elda’s hair no longer whipped out behind her, stirring gently over her shoulders instead. “Better?”

She dared to peek over his shoulder. “How did you do that?”

“One of my many talents.”

“But you’re an umbramancer.”

“And an elemental.”

“How is that possible?” She expected him not to answer, but a sigh rippled through him, and he turned his head to look ather, giving her a glimpse of one burning red eye. She could see enough of his face to know he was frowning.

“I’m a half-breed,” he admitted eventually. “One talent from each side.”

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