Page 82 of Ecliptic

Minroe barely looked at Dyani, offering only the briefest nod. Dyani returned an equally awkward chin dip, and I shot her a questioning stare. Every time I had seen them together, Dyani’s face would light up with joy. Now, it was withdrawn, forming an emotion that, if I hadn’t been watching so closely, I might have missed—heartbreak.

“Thank you for coming,” Dyani said, twisting and securing a tendril of hair behind her pointed ear.

Minroe’s slight features worked so well with her pixie cut, and her light green eyes pierced through thick lines of kohl. “Don’t act like I wouldn’t do this for you or the missing soldiers,” she said, her voice and stare even sharper than Dyani’s. “Just because we didn’t work out . . . romantically doesn’t mean I don't care about you. Someone has to have your back.”

Rowen cleared his throat. “Let’s be on our way, then, shall we?”

“Alvar has been tracking the Voro-Kai’s movements,” Dyani said, her new silver blade shining at her hip. “He reported three demons traveling in a pack near Eldemar River.”

We traveled the dark path, each carrying our Ever-burn blades. As we neared the river, Rowen and Minroe inspected the ground, searching for tracks.

“What happened to you two?” I asked Dyani in a quiet whisper.

“You think we’re friends now?” Dyani asked, resting against a tree.

She wanted the question to sting, but it was clearly hiding a deeper pain. I knew the art of deflecting all too well. “You know you want to be.”

Dyani sighed and pushed off the tree. “She wanted me to train less. She said I was devoting too much time to the sword. She needed more of my attention, more of me, but training was the only thing that helped me forget the pain of losing my brother, or at least lessened it. I couldn’t give her what she asked for."

The suffering in her voice mirrored Rowen’s when he told me how the two of them would spar all day. They would drive each other to the brink of exhaustion, nearly killing each other to keep from thinking of what they’d lost.

“You were grieving,” I said, glancing at Rowen wading through the dense underbrush. His hawk-like eyes were precise and sharp as he searched for the demon’s trail. I was beyond grateful Rowen had never given up on me, never pressured me, or given me ultimatums. I felt the tug on my chest—a bond so powerful it echoed across the stars. “That was a lot to ask.”

A twitch pulled at her thin lips. “Maybe so, but we all can’t have a soul flame like you,” she said, watching me watch my soul flame.

My eyes darted back to the warrior. “Why not?”

“Not all of us are destined for such a love. Some of us have to battle the world alone. Even if we think we have someone, they eventually let us down or abandon us. Unlike you and Rowen, your bond directly reflects the first soul flames: Donis and Althea. No matter how far apart you are, you’ll always find a way back to each other. Like the sea and the sky.”

“You deserve it, Dyani. Everyone does,” I said with my whole chest. I had once believed I was incapable of love, that I couldn’t give what others asked of me. “When it's real, they won’t have to ask. You’ll give it willingly.”

She offered a small, sad smile, but it was the realest, most genuine smile she had ever given me.

Before I could reply, Rowen’s voice cut through the trees. “We found a trail,” he said, standing up from his crouch. His eyes met mine, and our connecting flames offered me a spark of warmth. Then, my eyes immediately darted to Maddock, and I felt the tear in the bond. Madds’ eyes were already on me, and he flashed me a smile, but I glanced away, hating that my bond with Rowen was torn in the first place. And I walked past him.

We followed the trail, the sun rising higher and higher in the sky.

Finally, we approached the pack of Voro-Kai demons, rummaging through what looked like the Wyn’s soldier camp.

We crouched low in the bushes. I tried to steady my breathing, but the thought of facing another astral demon made my blood curdle.

I had battled three of these creatures in my astral form and barely escaped with my life. Even from a distance, their presence sent a shiver down my spine.

The largest boar-like creature was covered in dark fur that bristled as it moved. My heart stopped as I noticed the two other Voro-Kai. Their fur was patchy and short, and filthy clothes clung to their bodies in scraps.

I gagged as a wave of nausea hit me, and I clamped my hand over my mouth. These weren’t just any demons—they were the Wyn warriors who had been bitten.

Their bodies rippled with unnatural muscle from their necks and arms, and they’d grown at least three feet, causingtheir beautiful, one-of-a-kind clothing to hang like grotesque tapestries.

They appeared fully transformed, twisted beyond recognition. Though I hadn’t known the two warriors personally, my heart sank as I tried—and failed—to find any semblance of their faces beneath the tusks, fur, and horns.

The sight was straight out of a nightmare, one that I would never forget.

We crouched low in the bush, Rowen ensuring we remained downwind. But one of the demon’s eyes flickered, its nostrils flaring as it sniffed the air. Its gaze darted, and I noticed its eyes were completely black—a chilling reminder of the power Erovos used to create these astral abominations.

The Voro-Kai huffed through its boar-like snout, signaling the others to snap to attention. But the transformed warriors weremade,not born, and I noticed their movements were more hesitant, more elven. And when their eyes darted, a flicker of humanity remained. The whites around their eyes were still visible, though they were beginning to blotch with darkness.

Was there still time to reverse the process?

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