Page 63 of Of Vows and War: Special Edition
“Whatever game you are playing, please stop. I was tired of it before it even began.” She huffed at my insult, finally flicking her pink gaze up.
“Asta talks about a land that was special to her on more than one occasion. You assumed it was your Royal City, but I think it is somewhere else. There is an entry in the first journal that talks about how she warded an entire forest. She says that Padon sent creatures to her lands to slaughter her new subjects—to destroy the life she had built for herself even after her husband was dead.”
My mind conjured up an image of the Forest of Tragedies, the name itself seeming to pulse in time with my racing heart. Asta had warded it. Wrath had called her the fallen goddess, which now made far more sense. The holder of Souls, who had lost her place among the so-called gods for daring to love a simpler being.
“She forced all of the creatures into the forest with her magic, and then she placed a ward on the entire span of it. She claimed that her magic would siphon theirs, diluting their abilities over time. It’s quite impressive really, that she had the strength to not simply kill the beasts. I would have, though the stains from that nasty black blood would’ve been foul.”
“Does their blood kill high demons?” I asked, trying to understand the full picture of what she was attempting to explain.
“No, what was made from one cannot hurt another. Asta wouldn’t have been poisoned by their blood or really affected by their magic. There were some that were made in the hopes of ending her, I’m sure. Ones that her magic didn’t work on quite the same. But she was brilliant, and there was nothing that would’ve stopped her.” She waved a hand in dismissal before blowing a stray chunk of pink hair out of her face.
Well, that was optimistic. Reaching into the drawer of my bedside table, I quickly pulled out Asher’s dagger. As if sensing it, Stassi’s head whipped towards the blade.
“This is only a loan, Asher will want it back when she returns. For now though, I thought you might need this—want it.” Sliding my thumb down the runes on the hilt one last time, I offered the weapon to Stassi. She took it greedily, with far less reserve than she normally had for masking her emotions.
“Thank you,” she choked out, touching the runes with the same care I had. Clearing my throat, I nodded and moved on.
“Okay, so where is it that you think the Queen and the Empress sought refuge?” Despite asking, I thought that I likely knew the answer. Knew the lands themselves well. Had made a sort of sanctuary out of them.
“There’s a chunk of unoccupied land beyond that forest, the one she would later name after the tragic massacre that had occurred before she stopped the monsters. I think that Stella might be there, somewhere.” With that, she stood.
“I built a village there. It was recently destroyed by the fae royals, but I imagine if Stella had been there with dual-toned hair and an aura that radiated magic, I would have known.” I argued knowing that I was wrong, but still hoping that I hadnot missed such an important ally. Perhaps one that could have changed everything.
“Well, I doubt she would’ve made herself known to you or anyone else. Clearly, she has a reason to be hiding.” Stassi walked over to my—her—desk, grabbing a satchel she had stolen from my—her—wardrobe and pulling it over her head after tucking the dagger inside. It fell against her hip, the worn leather clashing with the vibrant pink leathers she wore. Had she also stolen from Lara?
“So, what, you will just search the lands and hope you stumble across her?” I asked, following her out the door. She practically jogged down the stairs, moving so quickly that I was surprised she did not fall. Residents of Pike watched in surprise as the blinding pink light that was Stassi barreled through them.
She did not respond to me until we were through the entry to Pike, her gaze set to the mountains beyond as she shouted a single word. “Torrel!”
“What?” I asked.
She scoffed, finally glancing back at me. “I have a sneaking suspicion she’s waiting for someone to find her.”
“And how will you get there? Do you expect me to portal you around?”
“Obviously not.” And then, as if the psychopath had planned it, something horrifically large crashed into the valley behind her.
Rock and dust flew everywhere, screams sounding from those who had been training outside. I covered my face with my arm, ducking slightly to protect myself from the onslaught of debris. When I finally felt it all settle around me, I was met with the sight of pink scales upon a foot twice my size. My body seized up, stilling in the fear of such a beast.
“Oh don’t be such a youngling. Torrel here wouldn’t so much as hurt a bunny.” Stassi’s words did little to calm me as shestepped up onto a fuckingdragon tailand began walking up it like a staircase.
“Don’t believe her, I eat scrumptious things like you daily.” Asher had told me they could speak, but hearing that raspy echo of a voice chilled me to the bone.
“How did you call her here if you can’t use your magic without being found?” I croaked in question.
“Dragons bonding high demons is a big deal,” Stassi said as she settled into her spot. “It’s why Torrel’s scales went from black to pink. My magic runs through her veins. She is me and I am her. She can sense me from galaxies away. There’s no distance that can separate us. If she wills herself to me, no matter where I am, she can come.”
“It’s like coming home,” Torrel added. “Speaking of home, Milo wasn’t safe there, Stassi. Drisha doesn’t listen to Batheda any longer. With Stella gone, her dragon simply holds no sway against that of the holder of Death and Creation. I had to bring him.”
As if that were his cue, a dragon the size of Lian walked out from behind Torrel’s hind leg. Gods, she broughttwo.
My mind immediately went to strategizing. How could we use even one dragon in battle? I could ask Stassi to burn down The Capital. I could watch the gold melt and see the royals aflame. We could stop the war before it even began.
“Stassi—”
“No, my dragon isn’t your weapon to wield. She and I have an empress to find.”
“But—”
