Page 212 of The War and Deceit Series omnibus

The speaker dips her head gracefully, a smile making her face seem all the more radiant as she gestures towards the treeline behind her. “The others are about to join us, we thought you might like to be there for their arrival.”

I smile and nod. “Yes, you were right. Thank you for letting me know.” I start to walk in the direction she indicated, pulling my cloak around me as the sun sets. I’m looking forward to seeing the rest of the wood elves. I hadn’t had the chance to meet many of them during my short time there, but I made a few friends.Friends.My heart clenches painfully in my chest at that thought, my mood dropping.I wish I knew if my other friends were safe.So many of my other friends had been left behind. Master Ardeth and Vaeril’s friends, Taelir and Saril, were still in Galandell when we left, and I can’t help but worry for them. How did they fare in the attack on the city? I didn’t see their bodies amongst the forsaken, and I made sure to check every single corpse, even though I knew I’d be seeing the faces of those forsaken in my dreams for a long time to come.

I feel the most guilt about my human friends in Arhaven, since I never got to say goodbye or explain myself. But I regularly think of Jayne, Aileen, and Wilson, although as a mage, I’m hoping the latter is able to keep them safe. Jacob plagues my thoughts often, although I’m not quite sure how I’m supposed to feel about him anymore since I learned my mother was the Queen of Arhaven before she was murdered by the king. I know at some point, I’ll have to confront him and find out if he knew, to find out if we are related, but for now, I push those uncomfortable thoughts to the back of my mind.

“Your people are eager to see you, beloved.” As if she knows I need a distraction, Fawne breaks the silence, a serene expression on her face.

I shake my head as she walks by my side, her hooves almost silent against the mossy ground compared to my clumsy footing. “You make it sound like I’m their leader.” I snort, imagining Chief Ragnar’s face if he was to hear this conversation. “You were at the meeting with the chiefs the other day. I am an adviser, nothing more.”

It’s the speaker’s turn to snort, except hers sounds more like that of a deer and is much daintier than mine, making me smile. I can’t imagine her making such a crude sound often. “I don’t believe that, and neither do your people.” She glances at me, wearing a sure smile on her face. “The tribes will see eventually, but until then, the wood elves and fellow fae will follow your lead.”

I wish I was as confident about that as she was, but she hasn’t spent much time around the tribes. They’re stubborn and set in their ways. They don’t believe I am a goddess reincarnate like Speaker Fawne does. For her, it’s simple. Something about what she just said plays over in my mind.

“Wait, wood elvesandfellow fae?” I ask, confused, but her smile just widens as she gestures forward.

Following her pointed arm, I see Vaeril, Eldrin, and Naril standing with Speaker Hawthorn. Tor isn’t in view, but I can feel him nearby, probably with the chiefs. Something taps on my consciousness, something powerful, and with a frown, I tentatively spread my awareness. I gasp and fall to my knees as I’m overwhelmed with feeling. My elves surround me, and I know they’re trying to ask me questions. I can see their mouths moving, but I just can’t register anything they’re saying. My mind is completely overloaded with sensation as I’m welcomed back by the forest. Pushing away the prying hands around me, I dig my fingers into the mossy ground, and with gritted teeth, extend my awareness farther.

Beloved.

Welcome home.

We missed you.

The ‘voices’ greet me loudly and enthusiastically, and I let my head roll back as joyous laughter escapes me. I’m aware I’m being watched, but I just close my eyes and focus on the forest around me, gasping again as I realise it’s absolutely teeming with life. The elves have not come alone, they’ve brought the rest of the fae with them, and the forest is joyous at their return. I realise now how different this forest is compared to the small grove of trees I’d been communicating with in the mountains. Here, every root, leaf, and petal is filled with magic and bursting with life. It’s mesmerising.

I’m not quite sure how long I stay this way for, but I’m brought back to full consciousness when my body shivers and I realise how cold I am. Slowly and reluctantly, I pull my awareness back into my body, rolling my shoulders and groaning slightly at the stiffness in my muscles. Opening my eyes, I see Vaeril, Tor, and Eldrin all sitting on the ground, surrounding me like sentries, and beyond them is a large group of creatures.

“Mother above,” I whisper, drawing Vaeril’s attention. Seeing me rubbing my hands together to warm myself, he automatically removes his cloak, ignoring my protests, and drapes it over my shoulders.

“Come warm up by the fire. You’ve been in a…trance for almost an hour.” He stands and offers me a hand, the others following suit, but instead of helping me, they turn and cast a wary eye over observing elves.

“Who are all these elves? They aren’t all wood elves… Are those sea elves?” I exclaim as he walks me over to a smaller fire away from everyone else, Eldrin and Tor acting like bodyguards as they follow behind us. I’m confused by what’s happening, but at the moment, I’m so cold, my brain is taking a few moments to catch up with everything that’s going on. When we reach the bonfire, I see there are four high elves already sitting around it, and as I get closer, I instantly forget about the sea elves.

“How?” I look up at Vaeril, my eyes stinging with unshed tears before I look back at the elves who are now staring in my direction. “How is this possible?” My voice is a whisper, but I’m sure they still hear me anyway with their superior hearing.

“Come on, chosen one, haven’t you kept us waiting long enough?” Naril teases, confirming he heard me, only to yelp as he gets smacked in the shoulder by a delicate pale arm. Snorting at the scene before me, I start to walk again, Vaeril’s hand on my lower back gently guiding me forward. Tor and Eldrin stand behind me, still in guard mode, which I don’t quite understand. What happened?

“Be nice to the poor girl, she’s had a shock.” Saril glares at Naril, then looks at me across the fire as I settle onto one of the logs that’s being used as a bench. “It’s good to see you again.” Her smile is soft and genuine as her gaze flicks between Vaeril and me, and I wonder what he’s told her about our relationship. From the gleam in her eyes and how she keeps looking at wherehis hand is still touching me, he’s either told her about the bond or she’s worked it out for herself.

“Life has been such an adventure since you came into our world, Clarissa,” Taelir, her mate, comments brightly from her side. Elves live for such a long time that seeing an elderly elf is unusual, but if these two were humans, I would guess them to be in their forties, so I can’t even imagine how old they are. The two of them are old friends of Vaeril’s I met in Galandell, and sitting next to them, watching me with a wide smile, is Master Ardeth.

“Hello, Clarissa.”

My eyes sting as the realisation that I might have never seen him again finally hits me. Ignoring Vaeril’s protests, I push up from the bench and approach the master, sitting at his side and taking one of his hands in mine. “I’m so happy to see you again.” My voice catches in my throat, and his expression softens. Taking a few moments to compose myself, I look between the three of them, questions making my mind spin. “How did you escape Galandell?”

The master’s face turns more serious, his sigh heavy at the prospect of having to relive what happened, but he nods his head in agreement, knowing he needs to explain. “After you left to visit the wood elves, Saril had a vision.” Glancing over at the older couple, I see Saril nodding, wearing an unusually somber expression.

When I first met Saril, I learned she gets visions, and sometimes when she touches someone, she might get a vision of that person. However, I didn’t learn this until I had already shaken her hand, and she didn’t know my goddess gift can sometimes amplify the powers of others. This had been quite the revelation for both of us.

“I don’t get many anymore,” she tells me, leaning closer, keeping her voice low. “However, since I met you, I’ve been getting more of them. Just small snippets that don’t usuallymake much sense,” she reassures me when I frown. Has being around me somehow set off her abilities? I’m not quite sure how I feel about that. “This vision was different and very clear—we needed to leave.” There’s a note in her tone that makes the hair on my arm stand on end, the taste of magic on the air. “I didn’t know what was going to happen, only that we needed to leave.”

I don’t remember Saril’s powers being this strong before, but I’ve not had the chance to spend much time with her. Glancing over at Vaeril, I see he’s watching with a slight frown, but he doesn’t seem to be too concerned.

“Taelir and I are old friends,” Master Ardeth says, picking up the story. “He told me what Saril had seen, and we left together. We headed for a house I have near the White Cliffs, my sanctuary.”

“By all accounts, they left just in time,” Eldrin interjects from the edge of the bonfire, still standing like he’s expecting to be attacked at any moment, his eyes scanning the area. “The attack happened hours after they fled Galandell.”

I’m suddenly really grateful Taelir was such a good friend to Master Ardeth, unable to even think about what could have happened if he’d been left behind. Blowing out a long breath, I nod as I try to piece everything together. “So how did you come to be here?”

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