Page 65 of Between Fear and Favor
I couldn’t breathe as I dragged myself to my feet.
When I grasped her severed head by the hair, and the chain around her neck slipped free, I found a cruel kind of amusement in it. Picking up the vial, I rolled it between my fingertips. There was no relief or sorrow within me. There was no fear or anger.
I felt empty—like the vial I fastened around my neck.
My divine fire raged around me, swiftly overtaking the fighting soldiers. But as I watched, the only ones pulled into its warm embrace were Nythyrians. Was I strong enough to will the divine fire to only be used on those who would do us harm?
When the ground rumbled beneath my feet, and I felt sheer panic through the bond, I decided to find out the limits of my control on my divinity.
I rifted to the Dragon Hollow; it was time to unleash my fiercest weapons.
Chapter 32
RAINIER
For far too long,we were weightless as the ground disappeared beneath us. I couldn’t breathe; all the air in my lungs had been left behind. Someone’s knee slammed into my head as we fell, and I saw stars as I summoned wind to cushion our fall. Still, though, even with my divine interference, grunts of pain rang out around me.
And then came the screaming.
My divine fire had only struck one of the shadow creatures as the ground beneath us gave out. The woman screamed as the remaining wolf latched onto her leg, and she scrambled to get her toddler away from the struggle. Lasu lunged toward them, taking the girl from her mother, as Aurelia stood and unsheathed her sword. Wincing from the pain in my head, I summoned divine light into my hands as Aurelia struck the demon. It was no good; the shadows parted around her blade, and yet its teeth still gripped and tore at the woman’s flesh.
“Move!” I shouted, not having the confidence to control my divinity in such tight quarters. Stumbling closer, dizzy, I aimed for the beast.
The woman screamed in agony as white-hot flames licked over her flesh, burning her alongside the attacking creature. It was unavoidable, but I did my best to minimize the damage. The moment the beast disappeared, I withdrew my flames, but the scent of charred flesh remained. The woman sobbed, and I wished she would lose consciousness to miss the worst of the pain. The little girl shrieked, struggling with Lasu to return to her mother, and my heart ached. At my friend’s feet lay the lifeless body of the infant, and I swallowed down my sorrow. It would certainly turn to guilt as time wore on. I hadn’t acted soon enough to save them all.
“I’m afraid that was rather pointless, Rainier,” the Supreme called out, and this time, I spotted him leaning over the edge of the pit he’d created. High above us, Nythyrian and Folterran soldiers alike stood sentry along its edges.
“Heal her,” I ordered Maurice, hoping he was capable, as I turned to open a rift.
But nothing happened. The Supreme had warded the area around the woman, I knew that, but I hadn’t realized the elven magick would still work when we were so far below ground.
“Mmm, disappointing,” the Supreme said in a quiet voice. “Retreating is not an option, I’m afraid.” I couldn’t see the evil man, the night still too dark to make him out. But I knew it was him. I could picture his brown eyes that I’d once found understanding and warm, fatherly almost, when I’d never experienced that from my own blood. I thought of the patient kindness he’d shown me as a child, and it made me sick to my stomach. The trust I’d had for him was obliterated, and yet his soldiers watched with rapt attention, waiting for his commands. He’d earned their loyalty while coming for my wife and kingdom. I would kill him with my bare hands, if I had the chance.
“Enough taunting.” Though I couldn’t see Nereza, I recognized her tone as she reprimanded the Supreme. If they were both here, I knew what would come next.
“Emmeline will not fall into your trap,” I called, willing it to be true. I’d known what I was getting myself into, but I couldn’t watch as he killed what remained of that innocent family before my eyes.
Though my soldiers were innocent and had done nothing but defend our walls, there was something about the vulnerability of those children that made me come undone. It made me understand that I had to take the risk. If we survived, if Em triumphed over the Accursed, it would mean nothing if the most gentle and pure perished.
If Em came, I could trust her. I had to believe it. Despite my doubts and fears, despite the mistakes we’d made in the past, she would make the correct choice. She might give them her blood, but she wouldn’t surrender herself to them. Her soft heart was her greatest strength—not a weakness. She would do what was right for the thousands of people spread across our three kingdoms.
Perhaps I only underestimated her because I struggled with my humility daily. If it were me, if it were my choice to surrender, I wondered if I would be strong enough to keep it all in perspective.
“I hope that she willwalkinto it,” the Supreme replied, chuckling. “There is no need for all of this fighting. It was a simple request.”
“It’s not a request if the alternative is death.”
“To a king, a request and a demand are one and the same. You should know that by now,” Nereza said, coolly. “I tire of this, Zaphus.” I could just make out his frown as he adjusted his robes.
Quietly, I summoned the ground beneath my feet. I was unable to open a rift, thanks to the ward, but I could still use other aspects of my divinity. Despite being surrounded, if there was any way to get outside the reach of the ward, I could get them out of here.
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” the Supreme said, followed by a softer, “Show him why.”
The ground rumbled, and I realized the Nythyrians encircling the pit were conduits as the dirt walls pressed closer. Several of my soldiers stumbled toward the center of the pit, forced to move by the shifting dirt. Anton began to climb, jabbing his feet and hands deep into the soil, scaling the wall with an impressive quickness.
When the earth opened up, pulling him deep into the dirt and swallowing him whole, my throat closed.
“Let him go,” I demanded. “I won’t use my divinity again.”
