Page 90 of A Deception of Courts

Their scream of suffering was a song to my ears. It was a song of pure, extreme agony as flesh burned and metal liquefied.

No longer trapped by the insistent earth magic, I pushed myself up to standing and gathered my power to hold off the rest of the soldiers who raced to take the place of those who died. There were so many of them – more than just who’d escorted us here. More had been lurking in the forest, out of view, waiting for… Kayne.

He betrayed us.

A new type of ferocity raged within me. I gathered his name in my lungs before shouting it out across the landscape. “Kayne! You fucking coward.”

My power cast outwards, knocking enemies back, all to create a clear path for me to find him.

“Where are–”

Lucari burst into view, silencing me. Althea screeched as the hawk blurred through the air and flew into her line of sight. The hawk tangled itself within Althea’s hair, claws outstretched for her face, iron tips slicing flesh, rendering her powerless.

The conjured fire spluttered, like a candle blown by a weak wind. Once again, the forest was bathed in shadow.

“No,” I screamed, the air turning frigid before me. My eyes snapped around the panic, trying to make sense of where Althea ended and the hawk began. Even if I wanted to cast shards of ice upon it, I couldn’t do so without risking Althea.

“You called for me, Robin.” Kayne’s voice rose from behind me.

I spun, teeth bared, a growl working out of my throat. Blinded by the need to hurt him, I didn’t expect his hands until they were around me, grasping at my throat. He kicked out at my twisted ankle, forcing it to give way.

I was back on my knees before I could so much as conjure frozen winds.

Kayne’s touch disappeared as suddenly as it arrived, although I still felt his presence linger upon my skin. I lashed out with my arm, preparing to thrust my magic into his flesh and shatter him. But nothing happened. My power didn’t respond, its presence silent and forgotten.

“Did you really think I wouldn’t have planned for this?” Kayne towered above me, his face dusted with soot and grime. “How does it feel to be the powerless one now, Robin Icethorn?”

It wasn’t Kayne’s touch that lingered on my neck. Lifting my hand, I found the answer. A band – a cuff of iron – had been locked in place.

Powerless or not, I still had the means to elicit pain. So I took it, jolting forwards, clawing down at Kayne’s chest until he fell backwards. I drew my fist back, arcing it down upon him, knuckles cracking against something hard.

“It was you,” I screamed, spittle falling out of my mouth. “It was always you.”

Kayne couldn’t reply as I rained my fist down upon him. All the pain in my ankle, all the helplessness caused by the lack of my power, I took out on him.

“I’ll kill you,” I bellowed.

His eyes met mine before another punch could crack into his face. “And if you do, who will stop Lucari from prying the eyes out of Althea’s skull?”

I stopped, enough to recognise Althea’s cries which still thundered behind me. It was a risk, but there was something joyous about the way Kayne looked when he said it that told me he was telling the truth.

My moment of hesitation gave him the chance he needed. He shifted his weight, spinning me onto my back until he was the one to straddle me. I thought he was going to beat me, like I had done to him, until the world spun again and I was on my stomach, facing Althea. Lucari continued to claw at her face just as Kayne suggested. My friend had thrown herself into a ball on the floor, her head was covered with her arms, skin glistening with gashes spewing dark blood.

And the only way I could help her was by not fighting Kayne. “Stop it,” I pleaded. “Please, Kayne.”

He whistled, surprising me with his word. Lucari stopped her attacking, instead flying to perch on a nearby branch. From the shadows of the tear, more soldiers ran forwards, overcoming Althea before she had the chance to right herself.

“Don’t fucking touch her.” I fought against Kayne’s weight, but he pressed his knee into the soft spot on my back, causing me pain every time I moved.

“Duncan,” I cried for my love, waiting for him to strike Kayne down with his power. But the forest had stilled – the battle no longer waged. At least the noise told me we still had a chance, but the silence I was met with hurt me more than any wound Kayne could give me.

Duncan didn’t respond.

“Are you going to be a good boy and stop your struggling?” Kayne asked.

“That depends,” I said, struggling for breath.

My view of the forest ahead moved again as rough hands spun me onto my back. I was forced to look up at Kayne, seeing the dark forest crown his dishevelled face. “I will be the one to remind you that you’re on your back, and are in no position to make demands. Do you hear that?”

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