Page 41 of Favored By the Stars

Even as I ran for my life, the memory hit like a brick wall. Everything had been so simple back then, and I hadn't appreciated that enough.

I sprinted behind Van, my heart pounding like a war drum in my chest. Thorn's blade cut through the air, the sounds of battle reverberating behind us. I dared not look back; the shrieks and snarls of the feral fae chased me like shadows in the night.

"Keep going!" Van urged, his voice a sharp command over the chaos. The rise loomed ahead, but with each step, I felt my strength waning. The moonlight flickered through the canopy above, illuminating our path, yet casting eerie shadows that danced along with our every movement.

As we reached the slope, I stumbled over a gnarled root, my foot catching and sending me sprawling to the ground. Panic surged within me as I hit the earth hard. Thorn's shout echoed from behind, he was still fighting.

"Senara!" He called out, his voice laced with urgency.

I scrambled to my feet just as one creature lunged past Thorn and headed straight for me. Adrenaline coursed through my veins, igniting something deep within, the power I had barely grasped. With a wild cry that echoed from somewhere primal inside me, I thrust my hands forward.

A wave of silver energy burst forth, enveloping the creature in light. It recoiled as if struck by lightning. The moment hung heavy in the air; even amid chaos, time seemed to stretch thin. My breath caught in my throat as I witnessed how easily magic responded to my will, no longer an unpredictable force but an extension of myself.

The feral fae screeched and flailed against the energy before it turned to dust, the same as they had before when I'd thought Thorn was being cut down in front of me. Behind it, Thorn sliced through another attacker with precise strikes of his sword before rushing toward me.

"We have to move!" His eyes locked onto mine for a brief second before shifting back to face the oncoming threat.

I nodded, scrambling back to my feet again. We had no choice but to press forward. With each step up the slope, determination replaced fear. "We can't let them corner us," I said breathlessly as we crested the rise together.

Thorn glanced at me and I knew we were both remembering what had happened the last time the feral fae had cornered us. I, for one, didn't want Thorn giving up some of his life force to get us out of a deadly situation again, not if I could help it.

"We're here," Van breathed as he loped down the slope to a shimmering lake, a sanctuary in this corrupted forest. Hope flickered within me at its sight. If we could just reach that water…

Thorn glanced back at our pursuers before he tried to push me forward. I refused to let go until he finally nodded. "We go together," he said fiercely.

"Right," I agreed through clenched teeth, determination flooding my voice. As though he'd had a choice to begin with. Volker and Wyn were almost near the water's edge as Thorn and I practically flew down the hill toward them.

The creatures pressed closer behind us, shadows creeping ever nearer, but something happened as soon as we stepped into the water, and the world shifted, the creatures that had been behind us turning into shadows that ran through us instead.

We all paused for a moment just to breathe before Van huffed and said, "This way." He took off walking, and we were left to decide whether to keep following him or try to find our own way. He hadn't led us astray so far, so I followed, feeling the wariness coming through the bond I shared with Thorn, even as my soul mate remained behind me.

As we ventured deeper into the garden, the air grew thick with magic, not the refined, controlled power of the courts, but something wilder, more primal.

Van smiled as he watched me look around, though it didn't reach his eyes, and when he spoke there was an undercurrent of sorrow in his voice, "This forest remembers the time before division, when magic flowed freely without distinction between moon and sun."

My Mark responded to the ancient magic, pulsing with increasing intensity. The alternating sensations of heat and cold were no longer separate waves but overlapped, mingling in a way that made my skin feel both feverish and chilled at once.

"You're in pain," Thorn observed, his voice low with concern.

"It's getting worse," I admitted, pressing my palm against my forehead. "The two magics...they're not just competing anymore. They're trying to merge."

Van's pace slowed as he glanced back at me. "That's both promising and dangerous. The Crescent Diadem might be more necessary than I thought."

"Or you could simply explain what's happening to her," Thorn challenged.

Van's expression grew unexpectedly serious. "Some things must be experienced to be understood, Thorn. I could describe the taste of starfruit to you for hours, but until you've bitten into one, you wouldn't truly know it."

"She's not a piece of fruit to be consumed," Thorn growled.

"No," Van agreed. "She's much more valuable."

The casual way he assessed my worth sent a chill through me that had nothing to do with my mark. "I'd appreciate if you stopped talking about me as if I weren't here."

Van inclined his head in acknowledgment. "My apologies, Eclipse Child."

"And stop calling me that," I added. "My name is Senara."

"Names have power," Van replied. "Titles even more so. The one you choose to answer to shapes the path before you."

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