Page 51 of Sky of Thorns

The words settle belatedly in my mind. The ones of plans that Kieran and the queen have. “What plans, Nero?” I ask, rage lacing my words, my entire body tensing.

“Easy there, Prince.” Nero responds soothingly, but any humor is wiped off his face as he sees the expression on my face.

“No, you told me it’s time to tell me the truth. I want to hear it.”

“The Queen has been using dark magic for quite some time. You have seen her power in the throne room. That is not normal magic, Aramis. It’s dark, and it is unforgiving. As such, it asks for a price. We are not entirely sure what her ultimate goal is, but she is draining shifters’ of their magic to counteract the effects of whatever evil she is manipulating. It helps her cheat time. The attacks are an excuse. She sends some sort of demons to raid unprotected villages, and then she sends us there to collect the leftover shifters.”

“You fucking knew!” The words slip out of my mouth automatically. “Sybil told me all of this and I called her a liar to her face. Goddess-damn it, Nero.” She is never going to forgive me. After all this time… after trying to protect my people, I have been unknowingly causing harm. Goddess above, no wonder people have torn opinions about me. “Fuck, Nero!” The words burst out, revealing the hurt I don’t want to show. “Why didn’t you say something earlier?” Fury rises in my gut. I have played a part in all this destruction: innocent men, women and children, not rebels.

“Would you have believed me? Would you have believed any of it?” Nero asks, voice cracking after moments of silence, clearly reading my own. He leans his head against the rocky cave wall behind him as he runs his hand through his hair and takes a steady breath. Everything I’ve ever believed has been a partial lie, and it was I who was unraveling my kingdom one raid at a time. I press my lips into a line and sigh. I must make amends. To him, to my people. And, most importantly, to Sybil.

The light coming through the cave mouth has slowly become darker as the evening wanes and snow fills the entrance.

“Tis going to be a long night, Aramis.” Nero cuts me off. “Ye ken speculate onwhat ifsuntil water burns, but ye will nae be any closer to the answers ye seek. Ye ken we need as much sleep as we can get if we’re going to hike through the snow banks an’ catch up wi’ Sybil. We won’t find her in the dark, even if it stops snowing.”

I sigh again, knowing he’s right. But this conversation isn’t over, and we both know it. A long time passes as I sit in silence watching his small ball of flame dance before us until sleep claims me.

Sybil

Kelapullstwopacksfrom the shelf and tosses them on the bed followed by empty flasks, sacks of dried food, an assortment of cookware, and a tin of tea leaves. “The skies should be clear of storms for a few days, but it’s going to be a journey. We will need to avoid Shadowvale’s patrols as much as we can.” She shoots me a knowing glance.

“How long until we get to the rebel camp?” I begin packing the bags and my healer’s satchel. Luckily only a few bottles cracked during my fall.

“Well that depends,” Kela replies, grunting as she tosses a heavy armful of thick winter clothing on the table. “They move around a lot to keep from being detected. Our progress is going to be slowed due to all that thick snow. Have you ever tried hiking through thigh-high deep snow?”

“I can’t say that I have.” Glancing out the frost covered window, a frown tugs at my lips. The snow had indeed piled up at least thigh-high over the last couple of days to my utter surprise. It snowed in Kallistar, but never more than a few inches at a time. The most I had to worry about were my toes freezing on my walk to the village. This will be a real adjustment to make.

“Well, if we didn’t need these supplies and our magic at full strength, I’d suggest we shift. We’d both be faster on four legs but we need to be smart about how and when we use our powers.” She turns away and pulls out the cast iron pan from the fire and places it on the table. “At least we will have warm, full stomachs when we leave.”

Lemon slithers into the bag of food and pokes his head out, watching us. “Hey! You little rascal! Get out of there!” I scoop him up in my arms and plant a soft kiss on the top of his head. Of course he would try to slither into our food provisions. I shake my head in disbelief, giggling slightly.

Kela lifts the lid, the aroma of caramelized berries mingles with a buttery pie crust. Nestled in the bottom of the cast iron pan sit six small pastries.

“Those look and smell divine.” My mouth waters as my eyes devour the perfectly browned crust and oozing baked berry compote. “Hunter, healer, and baker. Is there anything you can’t do?”

“Hmm. I can’t grow wings and fly. Boy, that would really come in handy. You don’t happen to know a drake shifter do you?” Her eyes twinkle as she grins wolfishly at me with eyebrows raised.

“Nero?” I shrug as I pull thick woolen socks over my feet. I know he is part fire drake, but you’d think I’d remember him having wings.

“Pfft. He’s a cinnamon roll that would do anything to help a damsel in distress, but I think I’d remember if he could fly.” She bites into one of the pastries and groans. “Unless you know something that I don’t. Here, try this.”

Before I can answer she grabs another pastry and shoves it into my mouth. My eyes close in ecstasy as the pastry melts on my tongue; flaky savory crust mixing with sweet sticky jam.

“You’ve really outdone yourself this time.” I say between bitefuls of her sinfully delicious pastry.

“Oh please,” she says, nonplussed, waving a hand in my direction as she backs towards the fire, but I can see a creep of blush along her cheeks and silver lining her eyes. I try to make eye contact with her, but she doesn’t quite meet my eyes.

“Kela, is something wrong?” I asked, worry creasing my brow. She doesn’t respond, and her silence sits like a cold stone in the pit of my stomach.

“Was it something I said? I was being serious about your cooking being delicious.” I cross the few remaining steps to her side and lay a hand on her shoulder. My movement brings on a fresh wave of tears rolling down her cheek. I don’t know how to explain it but I can sense sorrow and loneliness rolling off of her in waves. Was this an extension of my powers? I had never been able to feel another’s emotions before.

“No, it’s not that.” She sniffles and rubs at her eyes. “It’s just, all my life I have not fit in with the pack. I was always the odd wolf out, especially since I started getting my visions from a very young age. Sharing the cabin with you for the last couple of days has been the happiest I have been in a long time. Thank you for reminding me what it’s like to have a friend and not having to constantly look behind my back.” I smile knowing very well what she is talking about.

“We were meant to find each other Kela,” I say and take her hands in mine. “I will be your friend for as long as you’ll have me.”

“Oh Sybil,” she embraces me in a tight hug that squeezes the breath out of me. I pound at her back until she lets me go.

“You are one strong woman!” I wheeze as I lean forward bracing my hands on my knees, catching my breath.

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