Page 9 of Of Empires and Dust

Faenir stood tall over her, his head bowed, hackles still raised, teeth still bared.

Beside Calen, Lasch Havel had taken a few steps forward and opened his arms with his palms out. “It’s all right, boy. Easy.”

Calen moved to stop Lasch from getting any closer, but the man moved past him and stared into Faenir’s eyes.

“Easy now. We need to make sure she’s all right.” Lasch’s words held a calm and level tone, as though he were speaking to a child and not a wolfpine that could rip him limb from limb. “All we want is to keep her safe.”

Calen inched closer, his pulse pounding. But then, as though the air had suddenly changed, Faenir lifted his head, his eyes softening, his snarl fading. The wolfpine whimpered and leaned forwards, pressing his snout into Calen’s open hand.

Calen closed the distance to Faenir in a heartbeat, pulling the wolfpine’s head to his chest and scratching at the back of Faenir’s skull. He looked past Faenir at Ella.

Yana, Elia, and Tanner rushed past Calen and fussed over Ella, checking her for injuries and pulling her lids back to peer into her milky-white eyes.

With all the care of a mother wolf, Tanner picked Ella up – one arm behind her head, one arm beneath her knees – and placed her back in the centre of the bed, pulling the sheets up to her stomach.

With Faenir still whimpering against his chest, Calen turned his head to look at Aneera.

The Angan sat cross-legged in the same spot, betraying no sign that she had even heard Ella’s struggle. Calen prayed to Varyn that she could find a way to bring his sister back.

Chapter 3

Strange Friends

5thDay of the Blood Moon

Níthianelle – Winter, Year 3081 After Doom

“Mam.”Ella stood in the void of Níthianelle, her voice echoing, her heart fluttering.

The woman that stood before her was not her mam, and what’s more, her body wasn’t wrought from white light as Ella’s was. A luminescent mist drifted from her clothes and skin, pulsing with every movement of her body, but she looked very much flesh and blood.

She was a little shorter than Ella, with a lean frame and dark hair tied into a single thick braid. A heavy leather coat adorned her shoulders, and two axes hung from loops at her belt.

“Who…” Ella subconsciously drifted closer to the woman. Her heart thumped, the panic still clawing at the back of her mind, the darkness closing in around her. “Who are you?”

“My name is Tamzin Aurielle.” The woman took a step closer. “I am an Aldruid, a daughter of Kaygan. I’ve been searching for you.”

Ella pulled back reflexively, hackles rising, the wolf bubbling to the surface, her nails hardening to claws. “How did you know to look for me in the first place? How do you even know who I am?” A growl crept into Ella’s voice. She trusted nothing in this place. “Answer me.”

The corner of Tamzin’s mouth twisted upwards, and she raised an open palm. “Calm yourself, Wolfchild. When you fragmented, it sent tremors through this plane, as it always does. I came to you as quickly as I could. Though in truth, I had feared I was too late.”

“Fragmented? What does that even mean? How… Why would you come to me? How are you…” Ella gestured at Tamzin, at her clothes, her skin and flesh – her body. Ella had too many questions for her mouth to process. “How are you likethatinhere? We are in Níthianelle, are we not?”

Tamzin gave a downturn of her lips. “So you do know of this place. Good. That goes some way to explaining how you are still alive.” She reached out her hand, that white mist drifting from her fingers. “There is much for you to learn and little time to learn it. We are not safe here. Time itself is your enemy, one amongst many.”

In the short time Ella had spent in Níthianelle, she’d never once stopped to consider what dangers the place might hold. Ilyain had spoken to her of the Sea of Spirits, told her what he’d known. But he was not a druid. He only knew what Andras had told him. Ella looked down at Tamzin’s hand but didn’t take it. She knew nothing of this woman. “Do you know what happened? Why I’m here? Why I can’t remember how I got here? Why I can’t leave?”

A hint of sadness touched Tamzin’s eyes. She shook her head but kept her hand outstretched. “I don’t know what you did to fragment yourself, but I do have some theories. I can help you, but you need to come with me.”

“Fragment… Why do you keep saying that word?”

Tamzin reached her hand out further, visibly irritated, the muscles in her jaw clenching. “I will explain, but Ineed youto come with me.”

“And if I don’t?”

“Then you will die here. Your body will waste away and wither in the mortal plane while your soul drifts endlessly through the sea. You will lose your sentience and become a wraith, wandering without reason or purpose.”

The words sent a shiver through Ella, one that swept over her skin. Another thought set in: she couldn’t feel Faenir. The wolfpine had become an extension of her, a piece of her heart, and without him she felt strange and alone. She swallowed hard. “How can I trust you?”

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