Page 47 of Midnight Kingdom

While we were busy arguing with Aima, more soldiers emerged from the collapsed tunnels. They come running at us a few at a time, but it’s manageable. Dragan’s bitching and complaining, however,iswearing on my patience. I shove him from time to time, trying to get the point across that he needs to shut his fucking mouth so we can find the portal again. The one Noni brought us through is gone. It closed up after we failed to cross over to The Veil in time. So, here we are, up to our asses in Unseelie soldiers.

An arrow pierces my shoulder and I look up. A guard in the tower fires his bow from an unspeakable distance, but his accuracy is uncanny. He can’t match Pyre’s skill, but he’s damn impressive nevertheless. Aima fights beside us, arguing with Dragan for the hundredth time. “I love him!” she screams.

“How can you say that? You loved Cambion once, that didn’t stop you from leaving him for Theren!”

“I never loved Cambion like I did Theren.”

“It doesn’t fucking matter,” Dragan yells at her. “You’re more valuable to us than you are to him.” The damn gargoyle doesn’t know when to shut his mouth.

“Theren will turn his back on you like he’s done to everyone else. How long will it be before the Unseelie end up like everyone else in the realms?” I shout above the fight.

“Hewouldn’t do that.” She slashes her sword with graceful fluidity, cutting down the palace guards but not killing them. Dragan, however, has severed nearly twenty heads since the soldiers began fighting their way toward us.

“Theren’s working with Variant and whoever else is pulling the strings around here,” I argue. “Whether you believe me or not, you can’t stay here. If Theren isn’t the one trying to execute you, then someone else is—and that means you aren’t safe.”

Noni gasps and I rush to her side. She fires bolts at the soldiers, pausing only to point over my shoulder. I turn around and see Pyre stepping out of a portal. He looks better and much stronger than before. The guards drop to the ground with a snap of his fingers. Aima gapes at him in awe and hurries over to help Dragan lift Kolvar. I turn to face him. “You look well, my friend.”

“Wish I could say the same about you,” he quips. “Flumph told me what happened. We need to return to the cottage.”

“Damn, am I glad to see you!” Dragan claps Pyre on the back with his big burly hand and hurries through the portal with Kolvar. Noni follows, but Aima hesitates again.

I walk over to the stupid woman and force her to meet my gaze. “If you love Theren, you’ll help us stop him and Variant. You said yourself there’s more going on than we’re aware of. If they’re being controlled by someone, they’ll need you. Do it for the man you love, and for your people.”

She nods firmly and launches herself through portal. Pyre assists me and we make it to the other side without having to fight any more soldiers. He closes the rift and points the others in the direction of the cottage. I hang back to catch my breath. “Where the fuck were you while I was out fighting my ass off? Lazy bastard.”

“I was traveling across The Veil to restore my power. And from what I just saw, Aima was doing most the fighting. I was not aware you needed a woman to fight your battles.”

“And Eilish didn’t just have to carry your fat ass up a mountain?”

“She didn’t technicallycarryme,” he chuckles. Then the laugh falls off his face. “Eilish is ready to take responsibility for her survival. She’s ready to start training.”

I start walking beside Pyre. We take our time, letting the others pull ahead so we can talk. “That’s good?”I ask, not really sure why he’s telling me this.

“And I want you to start training, as well.”

“Training me for what?”

“Do you know how many necromancers there are?”

“No.”

“One.”

“You?”

“Me,” he says with a quick nod. “I was once human.”

My eyes go wide. “How?”

“Listen and I will tell you,” he chides. Then he takes a deep breath. “I was in love with a woman who had the ability to see the future. She was the last seer of the mortal realm, and I sold my soul to save her from the Singularity. What I didn’t know was that I’d be forced to watch her grow old and die while I looked after the spirit world. She died not knowing how much I loved her.”

“I’m sure she knew.”

“My point is, I’m the last necromancer. That doesn’t mean I have to be the last Guardian of The Veil. I need to begin training a successor. And I’ve chosen you.”

“Me?”

“You are my friend, Baron. I trust you,” he replies.

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