Page 9 of A Dawn Of Blood

“Which would explain a lot,” Lorcan adds.

“Exactly,” I say. “It would explain the fact that Troyes is under occupation all of a sudden, that no one seems to recognize me, that there are midnight masses people are forced to attend, that there’s an entire new social order in place…”

“How did this happen,again?” Lorcan asks, a tinge of disapproval in his eyes when he meets mine.

I grit my teeth. “I’m sorry, Lorcan, I’m sorry, Raven, I really don’t know, but I’ll fix it, I promise.”

“How?” he demands.

“I don’t know yet,” I admit, “but I think our first course of action should be to find somewhere safe to be.”

“The shifters say the Academy is deserted,” he says.

This makes my eyebrows shoot up. “Deserted? How is that possible? Isn’t that the place he’s using as the headquarters?”

He shakes his head. “He’s the Emperor now. Dryvein is his capital.”

My jaw clenches. He’s taken one of the First Cities and defiled it with his presence.

But this actually goes in our favor. “If he’s no longer at the Academy,” I start, determination in my voice, “thenthat’swhere we need to go.”

Lorcan glances over at the road leading to the east.

I can tell he’s skeptical, and Raven is reluctant at best, but I know I’m right.

It’s eastward that we need to go. It’s eastward that hope for a brighter future resides.

Chapter 6

It’s in the late afternoon of our fourteenth day in 2056 that we finally reach the German forest bordering the Academy grounds. In silence, we keep walking, driven forward by the plan that will allow us to enter the castle, do it before sundown and avoid being seen.

And it’s a good plan, but it’s with a heavy heart that I keep making my way through the towering trees, our three pairs of boots shuffling the leaves underfoot.

It’s not all the dangers we’ve been through that are making me sad. Sure, there’s been a number of vampire soldiers we’ve had to hurt to avoid being arrested. But these are all people actively choosing to side with Baldur.

What’s making me sad is the state of the world now that he’s ruling it. What hurts is having to see the way nature all around us seems to be reacting to the presence of evil magic, even more so than before I traveled back in time. We’ve seen entire forestsrapidly rotting away, shadows killing animals by the dozens, even the sky vomiting acid rains.

Still, nothing pains me as much as the state of the settlements we’ve passed to get here — vampires living in luxury while faes live in poverty and shifters rot away in prisons.

It’s absolutely despicable, so much so that I can barely hold it together without screaming, but I’m going to find a way to fix it even if it’s the last thing I do.

Right now, I’m nearing the end of the first stage in my plan — getting settled in the Academy.

The only problem is…

Even if it’s no longer Baldur’s headquarters, it’s not entirely deserted for sure. The chances of that being the case are astronomically low, especially in a world like this.

So once we arrive and inevitably find someone there, what approach do I take?

Do I run, stay and sneak around, or barge into the place like I own it?

Just as I start going through those options for the millionth time in the last two weeks, we find the clearing.

It’s only once we spot the tree and the carvings in it that we exchange looks of relief.

To me, the sight brings sadness as well, because this is a secret entrance into the Academy that Jericho showed me.

But I shake it off and I keep moving.

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