Cynes blinked, peering up at Heath from the ground. “Did you just hit me?”
“Want another one?”
“Eiravel, he just hit me.”
“Yes, I saw.”
“You think you know a man.” Cynes shook his head.
Opening her eyes, Ash released her temporary visibility to the others. “The bog is dangerous. Be careful.”
Heath had to remind himself this was not time for a dreamspace as he checked his blades before setting as steady jog away from their starting point. The twins moved quickly to match his pace as Ash hovered next to him, floating over the black grass, her white dress floating around her legs.
“You control the sea?” Heath gave her a sidelong glance.
“To a point. I cannot make an entire ocean lift at my hands, but I can use the salt and water in the air, or even call some of the sea to me. It helps for protection and gives me some measure of healing.”
Heath thought it was more. The very life of the sea lived within her, staining her magic and scent with ocean breeze.
“How long have you been here?”
“So many years. I thought … I thought I could trust her. She offered me a hand when I most needed it, and I took it. I wish I had not.”
“Dude, he’s talking to air, brother. Fucking air.”
“Shut up, Cynes. It was much easier when you were marking the map.”
“I mean, I know she’s there, but it’s weird as fuck. You have to admit.”
“Quiet.”
Ash looked over her shoulder at the Unseelie following Heath. “They are your men?”
“Yes. We’re bonded together. Eiravel is the red-eyed one. Cynes is the asshole no one likes to talk to.”
“‘Asshole’? What is that?”
“Uh…” How exactly was he supposed to answer that? He noticed how Ash spoke in an odd manner, but he didn’t think it meant she didn’t understand what he was saying as much as she didn’t get common speaking.
The thought broke his heart.
How long must someone be trapped, lost to the outside world, that it could pass them by? She wouldn’t know how to use a spell phone or know what tv was. It was the sort of thing many took for granted.
“I’m saying he’s a jerk.”
“A jerk, as in to do this?” Ash jerked her hand side to side.
“Damn … well, no. Don’t worry about it. It’s just a saying.”
Her brow creased, and she worked her bottom lip with her teeth. “You are calling him simple, is that it?”
“Yeah, basically.”
Her smile at figuring it out was brilliant, and he nearly stumbled over his own feet for staring at her.
“There was a stick there. Should have warned you.”
“Fuck you, Cynes. Just, fuck you,” Heath snapped.
Ash stopped. “Why would you want to fornicate another?”
Gods dammit. “No, I wouldn’t.”
She started floating again, streaking back next to him.
“You’ll have to trust me when I talk sometimes. Things have changed so much. You don’t have to take everything so literally. I cursed him.” Dammit, that could go wrong too. “Not with magic, but I used a curse word. Like saying ‘goddess’s tit.’”
“Ah, I understand now. The world of The Fragile has indeed changed much. The words are much more violent.”
Oh, he had alternate words he wanted to teach her. Things like fuck, hard, cum, and all the little naughty things he’d love to hear in her sweet, cultured voice. He hardened at the thought of messing up how innocent she was.
Heath cleared his throat. “How about you tell me about yourself. From before.”
“I do not know how much there is to tell. I was … just Ash. I did not have much say in my life, but it was a good one. I did not want for anything, expect maybe my parents. They died unexpectantly, and it changed my world.”
He knew what she meant. “I lost mine too.”
“What happened to them?”
How could he tell her they were criminals? That, according to her kind, they deserved to be exiled from their homes and lose everything that meant anything to them? The Seelie and Unseelie agreement to exile their criminals to each other had shattered families in more ways than they’d cared to think about when the deal was struck. There had been so many orphan children in Daemon, children that had no one to protect them.
Heath had tried his best until he also was taken from them. He hadn’t thought of those children in so many years due to his memories being pulled from him, but Ash had given them back. He supposed he didn’t have to hide it from her when she had seen so much already.
“I never learned what happened to them, but I don’t think they survived. My father was a master of fabrics, and my mother a hearth Fae. Neither were meant to fight or be treated like I was.”
And he didn’t want to imagine his mother being kicked and beaten, tossed aside.
“I was told my parents died in a shipwreck.”
“I’m sorry.”
“I am sorry as well, Heath.”
Most people had the misconception that immortality or long life meant one couldn’t be killed. Fae could die just as a human; however, their magic allowed them to heal faster or protect themselves from injury. They were harder to kill, but it wasn’t impossible.
They continued in silence for a time. Just having her there, even if only in spirit, soothed him. He didn’t have to worry about her in danger, and the quiet of the In Between surrounded them. The group crossed over flat land of sparkling black grass, and Heath could just make out a dark shadowing of tangled trees and vines shortly ahead.
“Is that the bog?”
“Yeah,” Cynes replied. “We’ve got a clear trail on the way, Heath, but once we get in, we’re going to be blind.”
Not the best, but it would have to do. Cynes knew his shit when he created his maps. If he couldn’t see into the bog, there was a reason.
“I’m going to try the Tethers again. Hopefully, we can at least link.”
“You’re not feeling your Tether?” Ash was closer to him now, floating almost near his hip.
“Kallan and Teague aren’t here, and connecting to them hasn’t been easy.”
He’d chosen strategically. Eiravel was by far the best fighter, and Cynes was their foremost scout. Kallan may have been a good one, had Heath been thinking clearly. He was the only of their group who could use the rivers of magic and open a portal. But Heath hadn’t known what was on the other side, and Kallan was completely open and needed protection when he worked. Teague used the power of his voice to battle enemies.
“Why are they not all with you?”
Indeed. “I only could bring two.”
“I don’t even know what you guys are talking about, but I’d like to offer we’re the hottest and the best. He’d need us.”
Heath rolled his eyes at Cynes’s comment.
Ash glanced at the Fae with the gold sparks in his eyes. “He is not as pretty as my Foraltin. Does he have difficulty with lies?”
Heath sputtered, his laughter ringing out. Couldn’t say that didn’t feel good to hear. And the bastard he was, he’d share.
“She says you’re not as pretty as me, and you’re a liar.”
Eiravel chuckled. “I think you would say you’ve been ‘owned.’”
“It’s only ’cause she hasn’t gotten the full effect of me.”
Cynes sped up and approached Heath’s side.
Right where Ash floated.
Okay, seeing the big-ass Fae with a small face in the center of his chest was weird as hell. “Move, man. You’re standing on her.”
“Oh, excuse me.” Cynes moved off to the side. “How about this view?”
“Cynes, I’m going to kill you.”
“It’s just research. You should know if your Foraltae needs to get her eyes fixed or not.”
“Duck, baby.”
At least she understood that, ducking her head as Heat
h swung at Cynes. The Fae danced away from bodily harm.
“You wound me, leader.”
“I’ll carve you if you don’t cut this shit out.” A thought occurred to Heath. “Ash, can the future one see what we’re doing now? Could she already have seen it?”
Ash shook her head. “I am not physically here, directing you. Eventually, yes, something will spark, but I do not know when or what.”
It didn’t matter though. He’d come for her anyway. But working against the Future Norn was going to be tricky no matter what.
“Will she hurt you before I can get to you?”
Again, Ash shook her head. “She wants something from me. She is more likely to try to kill you.”
Figures. He didn’t get the chance to ask what she wanted before Cynes stiffened.
“We’re getting closer.”
Cynes’s sudden change from jokester to serious made Heath look forward once more. The edge of the bog was just a few football fields away.
“What’s the plan?”
Eiravel had come closer too, ready for anything.
“We go in quiet and see what’s waiting for us. I’m pulling on the Tether constantly to see if I can connect. I can feel Kallan more, so I know we are getting closer.”
Eiravel nodded. “So be it. I’ll take point. Cynes?”
“Yeah, yeah. I know. I’ll take right flank and Heath can bring up the rear.” The Fae leaned back, as if checking Ash’s ass. “And it’s a lovely one too.”
Even knowing Cynes couldn’t see her, and that he was relieving tension before they went in, Heath still wanted to punch his face in.
“When we get out of here, Eiravel is going to be short a twin,” Heath promised.
“Gotta catch me first,” was the only response.
Cynes was gone, disappearing into the bog and heading to the right to find his position. Eiravel went straight in, the most dangerous position, but one built for a Fae of his kind.
Heath motioned for Ash to get behind him. “I know they can’t see you, but if you know the danger of the bog, it may be able to hurt you.”
Once he knew she was secure, Heath headed in. Thick, black moss covered the gray trees, and white vines twisted and hung from the branches. Even the murky ground was softer underneath his boots.
It was unnatural, the way the terrain changed so quickly. It should have been impossible. Magic was thick here, twisting this space into a dark miasma of clashing power.
What the hell happened here?
“Incoming!”
It was all the warning got from Eiravel as a black shadow, studded with diamonds and stone, swelled in front of Heath. The giant had onyx skin and bright-red eyes. Commanding Wraith—his sword—to create a shadow duplicate of itself, Heath now had two swords at the ready.
“Come on, fucker.”
Eyeing his enemy and circling around, Heath tried to keep the giant’s attention on him to let Eiravel attack from behind. They’d done this a million times before while practicing their fighting together.
The giant didn’t make a sound as he lifted big, hard fists and swung at Heath. His long reach allowed him to hit Heath long before Heath could get his blades into the giant’s body. Heath was tossed into a tree and plowed through it, sending up dust and splinters. His teeth slammed shut at the impact, and blood gushed from his mouth as he’d bitten the sides of his tongue. Heath spat on the ground to save himself from choking and blinked away the stars winking in and out of his vision. His bones ached as he stood.
“Dude, he kicked your ass already?”
Fuck you, Cynes.
Cynes ran in, guarding Heath as he shot arrow after arrow at the soft points of the giant’s eyes. Eiravel swung his blades, dancing in a beautiful arch of deadly precision, the muted red-and-charcoal glow over the metal creating a circle as he worked. Each slam of his blade clanged against the monstrosity before them.
“Cynes, get me an opening,” Eiravel called. “He’s hard as stone.”
“Why must I do everything?”
“Just do it!”
Cynes’s eyes glowed as he lifted his hands at the giant, his magic turning his pale skin bronze. He whispered words too fast for Heath to comprehend.
Heath gripped the hilt of his swords in a tight fist and went back into the fray. The first strike on the giant’s side reverberated painfully through his fingers and up his arm.
“Work faster, Cynes,” Heath bit out.
Another hit.
More vibration.
They needed to cut this fucker down. It was attacking them, but it felt more like it was protecting something. It focused its gaze somewhere over Heath’s shoulder.
Heath took a chance to look and his heart stopped. The giant didn’t give a shit about them—it was focused on Ash.
“Ash, baby, leave. It can see you.” He couldn’t focus on her safety and fight at the same time.
“I will not leave you to battle alone.”
“That’s sweet, but if it comes after you, I won’t know how to stop it. Cynes, get your ass in gear, dammit.”
“I’m working on it. The thing is a golem.”
Solid stone. That meant Cynes was working to create fissures in something made of magic and stone, just like his own gift. Sounded easy, but the thing could probably repair as quickly as Cynes broke it.
“Eiravel!” Heath shouted, but Eiravel was already moving.
He found the hilt of the blade and allowed the flat side to rest along his forearm. Eiravel rushed in and swiped at the giant’s back. The giant roared, turning around and swinging his fist at the same time.
It didn’t matter because the thing had reacted to the hit. Whatever Cynes was doing was working. Eiravel went flying, but Heath didn’t let up. Rushing in when the giant wasn’t focused on him, he stabbed him in the gut.
Score! Or maybe not.
It didn’t have the effect Heath thought it would. The giant wrapped one hand around Heath’s hand on the hilt and held him in place. It lifted its other fist and slammed it into Heath’s nose with punishing force.
The giant struck again and again, knocking Heath’s head from one side to the other. Heath heard Ash whimpering behind him, but he couldn’t focus. Pain exploded through his nerve endings. Cartilage crunched and bone cracked around his nose. Heath heard Eiravel’s war cry and through tear-filled eyes saw the blurry image of him in the air.
Eiravel, blazing red eyes, raised his daggers high above him and landed on the giant’s back. With incredible force, he swiped the blade downward into the giant’s chest. Coughing and spitting blood, Heath slipped from the giant’s grasp.
He yanked on his Tether. He needed Kallan—now. Sure, he’d heal fast enough, but he’d be leaking power and blood until he fixed his damn face. He couldn’t feed to speed things up with what was going on. Heath let part of his armor disappear so he could grip the bottom of his shirt underneath to wipe his face, ignoring the pain of touching his battered flesh.
The giant bucked and twisted, trying to dislodge Eiravel. It pounded Eiravel with its fists before getting a grip on his breastplate and tossing him over his shoulder. Bits of tree and vine cracked and fell to the ground with Eiravel, and a deluge of stagnant, black water splashed around him.
Heath had to get this shit under control.
The giant was making him look like a pansy in front of his Foraltae.
Kallan, get your ass here, now!
Heath yanked hard on the Tether, knowing they’d need help. This was a magicked beast, strengthen by the forces going crazy in the In Between. Heath wavered, his vision blurry. He stumbled toward the giant and lunged dizzily. The giant swatted him away like a fly. As strong as the giant was, they’d be fucked if things continued like this.
“Kallan, Teague. Help me.”
Heath struggled to grasp the Tether buried deep inside him, but he pulled it past the pain and felt it saturate every one of his pores. If he did not do something, the giant would get to Ash. Heath knew Ash was
held in captivity, and maybe he’d assumed his time in the In Between would go smoothly like it always had before.
He realized the mistake of thinking like that.
He wasn’t going to let her be hurt. Not while he had breath in his lungs.
Slowly, power suffused his body, a dull whisper of healing.
Kallan?
“You are bloody lucky I could hear you crying, Heath. I’m pretty sick and tired of trying to find you.”
The swirl of a portal opened wide, and Kallan in his green armor was there, glowing hands already directed at Heath and healing him. Teague screamed—his dark-purple armor gleaming like the sparks in his eyes—and sent a shockwave of power at the giant, shattering his chest around the area Eiravel had punctured him.
Heath forced himself to stand tall, unsteady on his feet. He blinked rapidly, trying to clear his vision. “Fuck, I’m happy to see you guys.”
“Less talk, more killing whatever the fuck that is,” Teague called, already racing past him. He fought with his voice and gauntlets, using sound to disorient and push back while striking with lightning-fast hits.
Healed, thanks to Kallan, Heath joined them. Together—with Cynes holding and Kallan on guard—Eiravel, Teague, and Heath battered the giant. The tide of the battle was changing.
Limb by limb, the giant broke and shattered until Eiravel tackled it to the ground and smashed its head under his booted foot.
“Well, that was fun,” Cynes said, trying to catch his breath.
Heath still wanted to kill Cynes. “Shut up.” Heath looked to Kallan. “The Renegades?”
“They are at the hideout for now. They wouldn’t leave until they knew you were safe.”
Heath nodded. The Renegades were not all they appeared to be. Mercenary and ruthless, for sure, but they had reasons to be that way.
“He’s got a Foraltae. She’s invisible, but hot.” Cynes grinned at Heath. “She’s trapped in the Forgotten Tower. We may have royally fucked our mission ’cause Silva isn’t a bitch at all, and we may not make it out of here alive. I think I’ve caught you up.”
Heath silently counted to ten. “Cynes.”
Cynes lifted his hands. “What? He was going to ask.”
Heath looked to make sure Ash was safe, and his heart swelled when she stood at his side. He couldn’t feel her physically, but just seeing her was amazing. He took the time to fill Kallan and Teague in properly.
Fated to the Traitor (Portal City Protectors Book 4) Page 8