Page 2 of Oaths & Vengeance
As the line of fae troops came near the end, Lord Therress gave me a brief scowl. What had I done to annoy him this time? Ulmar had a pleased glint in his eyes that said he knew and couldn’t wait for me to find out. That didn’t bode well.
“Why are they looking at me like that?” I asked Tadeus in a whisper, no longer needing to chant now that my magic held steady.
He looked at me apologetically. “From what I heard this morning, Father is arranging a betrothal for you. I don’t know who he’s chosen, but my brother bragged that you’ll hate him and likely protest.”
Several available men were within my uncle’s close circle of allies and friends, but none were remotely appealing. He tended to affiliate with cruel, greedy types who enjoyed inflicting pain on others. A shudder ran through me. “I’ll find a way out of it.”
“You know he won’t give you a choice.” Tadeus gripped his reins tightly. “If I knew how to help, I would, but he never listens to me.”
True, since he barely tolerated his youngest son. “It’s okay. Thanks for the thought.”
“Of course.”
My younger cousin and I were the last to go behind my uncle and Ulmar, so the portal closed behind us. Transport wasn’t quite instant, but since the distance wasn’t too far, it only took a few seconds to appear on the other side. Despite the dizzying colors as we moved lightning fast, it didn’t affect us or our mounts. It was only on the first few occasions that people and animals experienced a bit of vertigo, but the transition was so smooth that everyone quickly grew accustomed to it.
Tadeus and I guided our mounts from the ring. My uncle, his eldest son, and his three captains shouted orders at the troops ahead of us. They’d moved out of the way of the ring to allow us room. We were at the top of a hill covered in trampled blue-green grass, and below in the valley, less than a mile away, lay the village of Palbour.
It wasn’t large and only had five hundred residents, but we had to protect those people. Just because I didn’t have any love for my uncle didn’t mean I wouldn’t do anything for our people, which he knew very well.
Veronna’s army wouldn’t hesitate to burn everything to the ground. They had done it in the past when our Therressian troops didn’t intercept them in time, but that problem had stopped since my uncle began using me to move his soldiers quickly. Our other four portal channelers could only funnel their magic for five to fifteen minutes to reach this distance, depending on their power level, which didn’t allow as many soldiers to getthrough. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d hit my limit, but it had been a few years.
I became a valuable asset when I developed my abilities and proved stronger than average. Lord Morgunn had pushed me hard to develop my talent even before I lost my father and subsequently moved into Ivory Castle with his family.
Tadeus gave me a nod. “See you when this is over.”
“Take care,” I said, forcing myself to give him an encouraging smile. He was an excellent fighter, no matter what his father said. The real trouble was that he killed cleanly and not cruelly like his older brother. I couldn't figure out how they came from the same parents.
He nudged his horse into a gallop and joined the rest of the forces ahead.
In the distance, I scanned the Sobaryan Mountain range that cut directly through most of theRealm of Zadrya, our kingdom, and defined some of the land borders. The violet peaks were so high that hazy clouds obscured them. Veronna lay on the other side, but they didn’t have a strong portal opener like me. Whenever they wanted to attack us, they had to use one of three passes between us and make it past the border sentries that we kept stationed in camps up top.
Our people could see them long before they reached the top of the trails, and they usually sent a warning to us throughsebeskas—birds that had cerulean feathers tipped in black with white underbellies. Then, we could deploy forces quickly to intercept them before they reached the base of the mountains. Something stopped those sentries this time. Veronnian forces must have used a new magic spell on them, and we didn’t have a counter for it yet since I couldn’t think of any other reason for the lack of early warning.
Each border town close to a pass also maintained an observation point near the foot of the mountains to watch for adversary troop movement and receive alerts from those above. I assumed the ground tower was the one to contact my uncle’s top military commander. Their later warning meant we couldn’t intercept in time, and they’d already begun attacking the village when we arrived. Smoke rose from where several buildings burned, and faint screams reached our distant position, filling me with dread.
My vision was good, but I had to squint to catch sight of the Veronnian forces. They were almost as numerous as ours. Therressian captains led their soldiers, racing to meet the enemy on the outskirts of town. They needed to move quickly if they hoped to keep the battle from going deeper into the village and burning more homes. I could no longer make out my uncle in the throng, but I spotted each of my cousins on opposite flanks.
One soldier stayed behind with me. While I had some training, I was too valuable to risk sending into the fight. Still, I nudged Astra toward a closer hill rise for a better look. It was too difficult to observe much near the portal ring.
Off to the north, I noted a sizeable section of dry, withered land that stood out from the surrounding blue-green grass. I hadn’t visited Palbour in nearly five years, but there had been flourishing crops in that area before. It appeared the ever-spreading blight had also made its way to this part of Therress. The farms to the south of the village continued to thrive, but for how long? The amount of food we produced declined with each passing year, which worried me deeply. We had no way to stop it.
I forced my attention back to the immediate threat. My guard and I had reached the most ideal point to observe the battle, and my uncle’s forces had just clashed with our enemy. Swords rang as soldiers attacked each other, and flashes of magic in various forms and colors flew across the ranks. Some would blind opponents, others would cause pain, and still more would cause various injuries or afflictions. Fae battles were merciless and gruesome. We were on higher ground, which gave us a clear view of the terrible things they did to each other.
Normally, our army would have used offensive range magic first, but there was no time to prepare. Instead, it came down to a close-quarter battle in which our enemy excelled.
One man stood out on a large dapple-gray mount. His hair was a brindled mixture of brown and onyx black, sunlight glinting from the strands hanging over the sides of his face. His shoulders were broad. I knew that for certain because, unlike everyone else on the battlefield, he only wore light armor without the heavy metal plates most preferred for protection. His olive and black Veronnian army uniform was snug, moldingaround his muscular build. I wished I could see the details of his face, but the distance was too great for that.
He raised his arms toward the Therressian frontline, fingers outstretched. I watched in horror as six of our foot soldiers lifted into the air, kicking their feet but finding no purchase. With a twist of his hands, their heads spun clockwise until their necks cracked. They fell to the ground in a heap, dead before impact.
I gasped, realizing who he must be. “Is that Lord Gannon’s second son, Darrow?”
“It is.” My guard’s lips thinned. “It’s been years since we last faced him, and it's bad news for us that he’s here today.”
“He’ll decimate us at the rate he can kill,” I whispered, a chill running down my spine.
The soldier’s eyes reflected the same anxiety I felt. “It appears that way.”
Darrow was his father’s second son from a subsequent marriage after his first wife died in childbirth. He was known to be powerful and ruthless on the battlefield. The fact that he was half dark elf made him especially dangerous because they weren’t known for compassion or mercy. He and his twin sister had been the products of a failed peace treaty agreement between our realm, Zadrya, andKarganoth—the realm of the dark elves that lay across the sea to the west.
