Page 146 of Of Serpents and Ruins
Up ahead lay our meeting point.
My stomach tightened. That sense of foreboding worsened with every step, the short sword and dagger heavy at my side.
A small camp had been set up, a low fire burning in the center with pale smoke circling above. Figures circled the fire, some disappearing, hidden by the rough-surfaced pillars of rock. Candy, in her dark-pink attire, stood out even from here. The side of her face was badly bruised, but her arm was bloodied rather than broken. Could those be just from her encounter with Brandt? It was hard to tell from this distance, but they seemed different.
Tile sat beside the fire, hands folded before himself in quiet contemplation, dark red streaks in his fire-red hair like dried blood. Cahji struggled to fix what looked like a splintered spear. A bandage wound around his shoulder. A few others who I didn’t recognize were also present, all in various states of contemplation or circling. No laughter or jokes or conversation reached us.
Something was wrong.
The wind shifted.
Blood. Fresh blood, old blood, burned blood.
Death.
My skin prickled with goosebumps. Brandt’s jaw clenched as his nostrils flared. He glanced back at me, putting his arm out to indicate he wanted me to stay half a step back. Kine moved to my other side, still gripping the spear but ready to fight if need be. Arjax and Lorna flanked us.
"It wasn’t just one fight," Lorna murmured. "Many have died here recently."
Something terrible had happened. The tension and malaise intensified, nauseating me. The wind masked our approachas we neared the first of the stone pillars outside the camp. I brushed my fingertips against Brandt’s elbow. "Not even a lookout facing the ocean?" I whispered.
Brandt indicated the first of the stone pillars outside the camp. A sliver of shadow cut along the sand. Someone was waiting.
My stomach twisted.
No, please. Please no. Don’t be Hord.
I closed my eyes, drawing in a deep breath as we continued forward. If he was waiting for us, it didn’t mean he was a traitor. He was a good man. I knew it.
Brandt motioned for us to stop. He set his hands on his black belt, squaring his shoulders. "Whatever you have to say to us, come and say it," he said, his voice a low growl.
The sand shifted. Some of it kicked into a fine dust, carried away by the wind as Hord stepped out.
Blood streaked his face. Cuts and bruises marred his knuckles, and a dirty bandage had been affixed to his neck. His hunting knife was sheathed at his side, and he did not carry his spear. Pain haunted his burgundy eyes, and his face was hard. "Forgive me," he said, his voice strained. "The Gola Resh has the Great Axe."
STELLA
My stomach sank.
No.
"I’m sorry," Hord said again, his voice shaking. "We did all we could."
Brandt’s mouth turned in a snarl, his right arm twisting as if to strike. He stepped beneath the shadow of the stone outcropping, his gaze darting about with sharp-eyed scrutiny. "What happened?" The words ground out of him.
Hord remained stock still, arms at his side. "Elias came last night, but…it wasn’t him exactly. We thought he returned with you. There were others with him. Hooded." His breaths hissed through his teeth. "He betrayed us. They took the Axe and the Goblet."
"It’s you! Hord, why didn’t you tell us they were here!" Candy bounded forward, her sandaled feet sliding over the coarse sand as she almost skidded into us. She flung her good arm around Brandt, breaking his focus. He staggered before he caught her, grunting with surprise. A spasm of pain twisted over her face as she straightened. "You’re here! We were worried sick about you. Elias is a traitor!" She kissed Brandt on the cheek, then looked back over her shoulder. "They’re here! They’re here, andthey’ve got the spear." She then sprang toward me and snatched me up in a tight hug with only one arm as she kept talking. "He betrayed us. Can you believe him? He was working with one of the factions. He leads it! After all that time!" She crushed me so tight it hurt before she kissed me on the cheek and jumped to Kine. "We were so afraid he’d already gotten the spear from you or killed you or worse!"
"No, we’re quite alive," Kine said, his voice cracking as Candy seized him. "Careful of your arm there, Candy. What happened? Your ring still isn’t working?"
"No. None of our rings are working any more. We can’t shift," Hord said. "And most of our weapons and armor and supplies are gone as well. They have been attacking regularly, trying to get the reagents now."
A reedy voice called out, "It’s all right though." Tile made a far slower approach, coming around the stone pillar as the other members of the camp called out and drew closer. He limped along, favoring his right leg. "I still have enough of the reagents," he said, his hand over his chest. His breaths shuddered. "So long as all of them are cast into the heart of the Ember Lord’s Crest along with the items fashioned from the Babadon’s heart, this can still work. This is an undoing. And it is always easier to destroy than it is to create. So that is to our advantage. There’s still hope."
Candy had already moved on to greet the rest, her arm now wrapped around Lorna’s neck as the tall Vawtrian woman stooped down to greet her. "Yes!" Candy called out. "Yes, we have hope, and we are going to crush them."
Brandt looked about, his brow furrowed and his expression dark. "So none of you are in league with Elias?" he demanded, his voice rough.
