Page 85 of Crown of Wrath

“It’s okay, little one,” Brenna whispers to the child. “You will want for nothing. I will give you all the love I couldn’t give my own daughter.”

The baby coos to her, and Brenna notices the strange white lines that run through the baby’s eyes. They flash with power that is different. It’s not like her mother’s, and not like any of the other shadow walkers. It’s different. It’sother.

It reminds Brenna of the mists that make up her own body. This child is not only High Fae. She is part of Valinar, just like herself.

Brenna runs her hand over the baby’s curly black hair, and she smiles. “My blood doesn’t course through your veins, but you’ll always know that I love you. One day, you’ll grow up, and you’ll meet my daughter. She’ll be a sister of your soul.”

Brenna never forgot her daughter, Maeve. Every single day that she taught Echo to wield her powers or a piece of history, she wished Maeve was sitting beside her, learning those same things. Instead of tears for what she’d given up, she was reminded of how lucky she was to have the chance to raise another.

And she looked forward to the day that her two daughters would meet.

Chapter 42

Train or die. This should be every single magical being’s motto. No matter how much power flows through your veins, without experience, you are nothing but a meal for the hunters. Train or give your power to someone that will. We have a war to win.

~Maeve Arden, The Future of Magic and Dragons

Maeve

Cole is getting Darian from Stormhaven and making sure that Aric’s soldiers are ready for when we need them. I’m enjoying taking a few days to spend time with the people that I’d thought I’d lost, but I know that we’re going to need those soldiers sooner rather than later. Every day that we wait is another day that Gethin has to find the relics he’s missing.

We don’t have a plan in motion yet, though, so today I’m just enjoying the lightness of knowing that my friends and family are really safe. At the same time, it’s hard for me to be so far away from Cole. Ever since I woke, the thought of him being anywhere but at my side is almost painful. So I try to fill my time with anything other than worrying about him.

My mother is standing beside me as we watch Echo in a field. Three adult shadow walkers stand across from her, none of them with blades out. They’re all silently watching each other as if they’re waiting for a sign to move.

A single shadow shifts near Echo’s foot, and suddenly, the world is chaos. Shadows explode around her opponents, coming alive and lashing out at Echo. It looks like I should rush in to save her. She’s a child being attacked by three adults who have probably lived for hundreds of years.

I know that training is painful, though, and for Immortals, that pain starts early. Cole was being beaten by his father at a far younger age than this.

As those tendrils get within a foot of Echo, they suddenly stop. The shadow walkers look frustrated, and I realize what’s happened. Echo has stolen their shadows from them. She turns them on her enemies, and there’s no chance that they’re going to pull them from her.

“Stop,” my mother says, and everyone on the field in front of us does exactly that. “Echo, you know that the point of this is for you to train in fighting and protecting yourself with your powers, not fighting other shadow wielders. This trick works fine for the second, but it doesn’t help you at all if you’re fighting someone from another House.”

Echo sighs and nods. “Yes, Brenna.” She releases the darkness surrounding her, and the shadow walkers seem hesitant to take control of them again.

I whisper to my mother, “Has she trained against anyone other than shadow walkers?”

My mother shakes her head. “There haven’t been any other High Fae in Valinar until you three showed up yesterday.”

Dozens of finger-thin tendrils of black explode from Echo’s feet, racing across the ground toward the three shadow walkers. They move to block her attacks with theirs, using wide bands of darkness to push against the many thin attacks. Where I’d be moving, Echo stands completely still. Her opponents disappear, reappearing elsewhere, and Echo complains, “If I’m supposed to be training against others, then why can they shadow walk?”

“Because you should be fast enough to overwhelm them. Every Great House has ways to escape your attacks, and they can’t use those options, so stop complaining.”

It’s so different from how Cole had taught me. Why isn’t Echo being pushed to move and attack at the same time? Is it really because the shadow walkers here are too slow?

“Would it be a problem for me to spar with her?” I ask.

My mother looks at me, an eyebrow arched. “I trained her myself. She is young, but she’s not weak.” I know she doesn’t question my skill with a blade or magic since I fought against her for three months straight.

I shrug. “I would like to know what she’s capable of, and I have skills she’s never seen before. It would probably be good for both of us. She heals like other High Fae, correct?”

My mother nods and turns back to the field in front of us where Echo’s shadows have wrapped around two of the three shadow walkers, holding them still. The third has escaped again, but he’s not attacking. He’s just evading, and it’s only a matter of time before Echo catches him as well.

She turns to my mother and says, “Done.” A faint smile crosses her lips, but it’s not one of excitement like when I’d won those handful of fights with Cole when I’d first begun training. It’s onebuilt of confidence rather than excitement. She’s done this too many times to count.

“Maeve would like to spar with you,” Mother says before turning to me. “What specifically would you like to train?”

I grin at her. “We’re going to war, and I’d like to know how well Echo does in an actual fight. Valinar has been a place of safety since she was born, and while it appears she’s learned to use shadows well enough, I want to know if she’s capable of fighting someone who knows how to fight back.”

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