Page 45 of Heart of Defiance

A crossbow bolt zings through the air to slam into a trunk. Someone farther behind me cries out.

I hurtle into the midst of the marl trees alongside my comrades, all of us whipping out our weapons. Whacking the bark on one tree with the flat of my sword, I kick the next nearest trunk at the same time before dashing onward. All around me, bodies and blades thud against the precious trees.

And then the buzzing starts.

A fierce hum swells in the air as hundreds of tiny red-and-brown bodies spew from little holes in the tree bark. The angry insects shoot right past me, raising the hairs on the back of my neck but not pausing to aim their stingers at me.

They careen straight toward the unprotected soldiers storming into our midst.

The wasps fly at uncovered hands, at the gaps in helms and around collars, as penetrating as the lissweld pollen but ten times more vicious. The figures in their skeletal uniforms who barged into the forest break out into a horrifically ridiculous dance, shaking and slapping as they try to fend off the miniscule attackers.

As their larger enemies, we can’t just stand back and watch. The Veldunian soldiers among us launch themselves at the Darium force, cutting down our opponents while they’re distracted by the wasps.

Some of the Darium soldiers have already crumpled over, the toxin in the stingers numbing their bodies. I can’t quite stomach stabbing those people in my inexpert way while they’re so defenseless, but I knock off their helms, giving the wasps better access. Welts are swelling around their necks and mouths.

One woman lurches forward with a jab of her sword toward Landric, who has his back turned to her as he shoves away another soldier. My heart lurches. I swing my own sword with all the strength I used to put into my axe when I chopped wood at my old cabin.

The blade slams down on her wrist and severs it from her body so abruptly my jaw goes slack.

Landric whirls around at the woman’s groan. She slumps over, yanking the stump of her arm closer to her body, trying to huddle against more wasps descending on her.

My childhood friend blinks and looks at me with a mix of shock and relief. “Thank you.”

A sudden guffaw tumbles out of me. “Thankyoufor this fantastic plan.”

The cries echoing between the trees are all triumphant now as the Darium soldiers lie broken or dash away in another retreat. We’ve won the day once more.

I can only imagine how much more furious the survivors will be when they descend on us next. But that’s a problem for another day.

Chapter Seventeen

Signy

Laughter bounces across the water along the shore of the vast lake at the foot of the mountains. My comrades slosh around, thigh- to chest-deep in the cool water, rinsing the remains of the stinking algae from our skin and clothes.

I wobble on the rocky lake floor, and Iko grasps my arm to steady me. He aims a grin at me, looking twice as roguish with his blond hair slicked back and darkened with the water. “Need a little help washing up?”

I pat my face. “Did I miss a spot?”

“There’s a little in your hair…”

He guides me to lean backward and swishes my hair in the water with unexpected gentleness. But of course he takes a moment to stroke his fingers right over my scalp in a provocative caress.

As he pulls me upright, my cheeks warm. “Aiming to be thorough?”

He chuckles, his hand on my waist. “Nothing wrong with having a little fun at the same time.”

At my teasingly disgruntled sound, he leans closer, lowering his voice. “We hit the Darium army with quite a blow. It’ll take at least a couple of days for them to recover. I think tonight we should look forward to a lot more fun.”

I arch my eyebrows at him, though a flush has spread all across my skin despite the cool water. “Oh, do you?”

He hums meaningfully. “And I’d imagine Jostein would agree.”

With another flash of a grin, he dips his head to claim a quick kiss. Apparently he doesn’t care who knows how our relationship has developed.

And maybe there’s no reason to worry. Most of our companions are too busy reveling in relief to pay attention, and the few who’ve glanced our way simply smile with fond amusement.

No more sneering comments. No more disdainful glowers.

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