“They’re not going to hurt you,” he said, amused. “You should be thankful for them. They allow me to fly.”
“Fly?”
“That’s what it feels like, doesn’t it?” Rowan reached the end of the roof and swung down to grab hold of the ledge. “I guess it’s not really flying. I can’t stay in the air for long periods of time. But the shadows help me feel weightless and increase the range of my jumps.”
So that explained how he could carry me so easily despite us both being on the smaller side.
“What else can they do?” I asked, squeezing my eyes shut as he crawled down the side of the building. Heights were definitely not my favorite thing.
“Crush bones.”
“The Bone Crusher.” I smiled. “Your ultra-powerful superhero move.”
“As I said before, I’m no hero. Far from it. Your men were right about that. I do act with my own interests in mind. I’m selfish.”
We reached the ground, and he shifted me off his back but kept hold of me until I found my footing. An act of kindness that contradicted his words. He could say he was this horrible and selfish villain, but I didn’t believe it. Not for a second.
“Can you manage to walk without killing yourself?” He nodded toward a coverage of trees.
“Do you hear that?” I curved my hand around my ear. “Some of your woo points fluttering away in the breeze.”
Rowan gave me a toothy grin before grabbing my hand. “I’ll get them back.”
I linked our fingers and walked with him toward the woods. A dirt path snaked through them, making the nightly stroll easier. No thorn bushes out for blood or vines snagging our legs. It was kind of relaxing, actually. I didn’t fear the dark when he was with me.
“You never answered my question,” I said, peering up at an opening between the trees where moonlight streamed through.
“Which one? You’ve asked a thousand.”
I scoffed. “It hasn’t beenthatmany. Other than using shadows, what else can you do? When we met, you knocked me out with some kind of magical dust.”
“That wasn’t magic. Simply the right blend of ingredients to incapacitate the target.”
“Ah. So like chemistry? Sounds like you and Briar would have fun talking about that kind of stuff.”
“I highly doubt it. Specs and I have nothing in common.” He looked down at our joined hands. “I can manipulate fire. Create it from nothing. I can also use the flames as a glamour and create small illusions.”
“Like when we stayed the night in the dark wood?” I asked. “You said something about the fire tricking the demons.”
He nodded. “The flames sent mana particles into the air that acted as a camouflage of sorts. Any demon nearby mistook us for one of them. Honestly, I can’t do much else. My main skill is with shadows. Using them to travel, lift things, crush things, and to mask my presence while I gain intel.”
“Spy.”
He cracked a smile. It seemed sad. “People fear me because of what I can do, but also for what I’ve yet to learn. Not all magic folk have the capacity for dark magic. It rots them from the inside out if they try. Those of us who do possess it can be… powerful.”
“How so?”
“Well, take the Bone Crusher, for instance.” His lips curved when saying the name I’d given it. “I can target up to four enemies right now, and then I can’t use it again until my mana restores. A powerful dark mage could target an entire army. Or do other things, like casting curses or other magical attacks. With the proper teacher, I could improve my craft and learn how to harness more mana to allow for stronger spells.”
“A teacher like Lord Onyx? Are you still wanting to get in his good graces?” That’d been the reason behind him wanting to capture Prince Sawyer—to use him as an offering for the demon lord.
“And if I say yes?”
I shrugged and looked ahead of us. “Onyx is at war with Bremloc. Many knights have lost their lives fighting his hordes of demons.Wewere attacked by them and almost died. By joining him, you’d…”
“Become your enemy?”
My gut twisted.
