“What? Where is he?” Rydan tried to locate him.
“Around, I assure you. Watching us,” Mycah said calmly. He kicked awake the line of elda sleeping in blissful slumber, starting with Ender.
Another cold wind ripped past all our bodies, carrying with it the threads of that malefic cackle. Mycah whistled the graceful tune that called his Fëa, and like magic, the dragon appeared out of thin air as it soared high in the sky.
How did he do that? It made me wonder if he was always there but invisible or something. I couldn’t comprehend it so I tried not to dwell too much on it, for my own sanity’s sake.
Both Mycah and Rydan were suddenly screaming in anguish across the way from me as a black, molten substance consumed their bodies starting from the legs and increased upward. I lost my breath as I ran to them and grabbed a hold of their shoulders, not knowing what to do. “Ender, help me! Help them!”
“Nari, it’s okay!” Rydan’s voice called from a place behind me, and I was once again grasping at air. He didn’t hesitate to make his way over to me and gobble me up in his arms, Lómë joining us. “There’s nothing there.”
I clutched at his back, breathing hard and fast, feeling like I might lose it if I saw either one of them dying again. Real or not, it was scaring the crap out of me.
Naminé was there then, with Calen flying overheard on lookout. We were forced to wait for Dae’Sûl to show himself, or to see what he’d do next. And I hated it.
Dúlin landed on the ground next to us as Mycah marched to me and slid his fingers around my wrist. “You’re leaving.”
“I’m what?” I blinked up at the obviously crazy night elf. “I’m not going anywhere, Mycah. I’m going to stay and help you fight this monster.”
“I cannot risk it again. Go with Dúlin and he’ll keep you safe.”
“No! I’m going to help.” I stood my ground.
“Nariella, you’ll only distract me.”
Ender of course added his two-cents, “You should listen to him, Nariella. It is for your protection.”
I grumbled at getting ganged up on. If this shadowy guy would stop playing mind tricks, I could be useful! But then Dae’Sûl appeared next to us, and I jumped at the sudden intrusion. He crossed his arms and nodded his head with a pensive expression, as if included into our conversation. “Yes, yes. I do agree. You best do as the young king says, Nariella. It would be quite terrible if you should perish in our impending scuttle.”
“Speak her name again and I’ll cut out your tongue,” Mycah snapped. Oh, good. I wasn’t the only one who saw him this time.
Dae’Sûl ignored him and said to Naminé, “We meet yet again, little crow.” She turned away in disgust. “You really should find yourself some better company.”
Ender urged the scorned elf, “Dae’Sûl, abandon your folly revenge. It means nothing now.”
“You do not speak to me,” he replied, pointing a finger at my father. “This does not concern you, Guardian.”
The wood elf soldiers had gathered in a circle, surrounding us. Cathar remained outside of the line, protecting his parents with his life. I cringed as my grandfather spoke up, “What chance does one have against many? You cannot win here, goth en gothamin.” His wolf growled from his place at Döron’s side.
Dae’Sûl slowly blinked a polite smile at my grandfather, and without saying a word, flew from one end of the circle to the other, before ending back where he had been standing before. Naminé turned away with a hand over her mouth, and I made some sort of horrified sound. Blood soaked the torsos of each knight of my guard as they crumpled to their knees like dominoes. Cathar escorted his parents away from the terrifying scene, fleeing for their lives. And I was glad for it. Dae’Sûl then muttered with boredom, “You were saying?”
I couldn’t even heal any of the fallen soldiers. Though I doubted they remained alive in order to do so. Or that Dae’Sûl would’ve even given me the chance to. But none of that alleviated the tremendous amount of guilt and frustration of not having the ability, and the overwhelming desire to do so.
Cílon was the only one left, and that was only because he had been standing at Döron’s shoulder within the circle. The beautiful wolf Fëa did not cease growling. Fear clawed its gnarled tendrils into my gut and chest, strangling the air from my lungs. I held onto Rydan for support, knowing I was going to be forced to watch my grandfather die a second time. Only, I’d have no way of reviving him again.
“Dae’Sûl, your battle is with me. Do not needlessly bring innocent lives into your pettiness.” Mycah stepped in front of my grandfather to protect him, and my heart unforgivably fell in love with that darn creature just a little bit more. “Let them go, and I will fight you.”
“It matters not.” The tall elf turned away, waving them off. His long crimson hair blew wildly in the cold wind, as if it followed him directly from the tops of the Nura’ringul Mountains. “It would have been like swatting flies.”
“Go.” Mycah jerked his head at the welcoming forest that lay waiting to provide my grandfather and Cílon safety. “Naminé, Nariella, go with them.”
Rydan pushed Naminé toward the exit when she resisted. “He’s right, you need to get out of here. You’re no match for this guy and you know it.”
“I cannot leave you, I mean any of you, and not at least try to help,” she objected, the same way I was about to do.
“Your parents and brother need you more. Make sure they stay safe. And you already know from last time there won’t be anything you can do anyway, and I’ll feel better knowing you’re alright,” Rydan whispered while Mycah and Dae’Sûl said a few things to each other in Elvish.
Ender made effort to corral me out of there as well. “Nariella, now is your chance to do as Remycah asked and ensure your safety. You must leave.”
“Yeah, okay,” I lied. I had no intention of going anywhere, but I didn’t want to argue in front of the villain again.
“Nariella,” Mycah chastised me in that one simple utterance of my name. I blushed, hating that he felt the truth. “Please go.”
Rydan took hold of my arm and dragged me away. “You stubborn brat.”
“Hey!” I protested. “Come on, man. Let me do this! Goodness, when will you two stupid brothers learn that I’m a lot stronger than you think?”
“Never,” he stated matter-of-fact. He deposited me in one swift motion and then trekked back to the waiting fight. Lissë was at my side in an instant, breaking her cover from the nearby trees that she had been hiding in. I huffed, crossing my arms in defiance, refusing defeat.
Naminé reached the spot I stayed standing in, but stopped before she passed. “I must tend to my family. Are you to join me?”
“Uh, yeah. I will. Go on ahead, I’ll be right there.” I gave her a nice smile. She smiled back, accepting my answer as truth, and continued on her merry way.
I was going to burn in hell.
I knew it had to be true. If such a place existed, that was. Not that I believed there was, but if it did, I’d be sure to go there upon my death.
Dúlin rocketed into the sky, causing me to look up and watch as another giant black dragon followed him. Where'd the second dragon come from?
As they attacked each other, I realized it was made of shadows, a trick of Dae’Sûl’s that I had become acquainted with the last time we fought. I punched a closed fist into the palm of my other hand. There was no way I could stand here on the sidelines while Mycah and Rydan were in the fight of their lives.
I needed to be there. Anxiety on their behalf would be the death of me. Who cared what Dae’Sûl could dish out when I’d face death by waiting otherwise? No, I couldn’t stay here.
I ran at full speed back to the campsite. Rydan hadn’t dragged me far, but it gave me plenty of time to work up a ball of courage within. Once their fight came into view, I halted behind a tree to assess the situation.
Though it was four on one, with Mycah, Rydan, Ender, and Lómë on a team, the fight appeared
to be almost even. What was with this guy? How did he get to be so powerful?
The problem was all of Dae’Sûl’s nifty tricks he had slithering up his sleeves. He’d shift into a raven at the last second, just as Mycah or one of them was about to deliver a harmful blow. On top of that, he had several shadowy figures that appeared to blind, sting, and disable whoever he wasn’t directly fighting with. It made it impossible for the four of them to gang up on him at once.
My instinct was to climb onto Lissë’s back to fortify my strength, and so I did. If I connected myself to her, we’d have that constant link transferring power back and forth. She was hesitant to join the fight, but I encouraged her nonetheless. We raced into the chaos, distracting Mycah from an oncoming attack, and I immediately commanded large slabs of rock to shoot up from the ground and block Dae’Sûl in a square.
I felt bad for accomplishing exactly what Mycah had been worried about—distracting him—but I had expected it would happen upon my entrance, and so I made sure to make up for it. Dae’Sûl was quick to wiggle his way out of the blockades and intent on bringing Mycah down once and for all.
Mycah dodged, sidestepped, and parried from Dae’Sûl’s reach. He had his own set of offensive attacks by using both his energy blasts and sword skills. But Dae’Sûl didn’t seem to have a weakness that Mycah could take advantage of. They continued to clash blades, and Dae’Sûl never let up his rotation of who he was fighting with. He’d flash in and out of places, leaving feathery shadows in his wake.
“Nari!” Rydan roared. He blocked an attack made by a shadow as he spoke, “Get the hell out of here!”
“Stop ordering me around!” I yelled back as I jumped off Lissë upon galloping next to my target. I ran into a slide toward Dae’Sûl’s legs and sliced a dagger I had picked up from one of the fallen soldiers at the back of his knees. It worked so well on Aglar and the Drake Hunters, I felt like a pro by now.
He hadn’t seen me coming, and when he finally spotted me, it gave just enough time for Dúlin to come hurtling down like a spinning cyclone. He opened his mouth wide, showing off his dozens of glinting razorblades for teeth, and snapped it shut over the top half of Dae’Sûl’s body. Flinging him into the air, he tossed the rest of his carcass a few times like a plaything before gobbling up what remained.
The whole thing transpired in only seconds and finished while Mycah was still skidding to a stop. His eyes showed his shock as he watched the silver cloak that slowly floated toward the ground below.
It was done. Dae’Sûl couldn’t haunt Mycah ever again.
Chapter Thirty
“What is wrong with you?” Rydan practically screamed in my face, and I flinched away. I had never seen him like this before. “You know you’re crazy, right? Why can’t you ever listen?”
“You’re the one not listening, Rydan. I need your protection as my Guardian but don’t limit me completely. Don’t shut me out of something I must be a part of. I will never stand by and watch you guys fight, knowing I can help.” I grabbed his shoulders to accentuate my point. “So you really should just stop trying to keep me away! It’s my choice, and you both need to respect that.”
“You didn’t need to be in this fight, Nari. He wasn’t Ohtar. That’s the fight we need you in. The one we need you alive for. You won’t do us any good if you die before then!” He mimicked my gesture by grasping my shoulders in turn. His eyes were dancing flames of fiery orange. It contrasted with the black of his hair, almost taking my breath away at how beautiful it made him. But I was currently in an argument that I was dead set on winning, armed with a big point to make. So, priorities and all that.
“Oh, but it’s okay if you die in a battle against evil shape-shifters, but not me?” That sounded funnier coming out of my mouth than it did in my mind. I shook my head and waved myself off. “You know what I mean.”
“Let her be, Rydan,” Mycah interrupted from afar. He picked up Dae’Sûl’s heavy, silver cloak and ran it through his fingers. I noted a hint of irritation painting his voice, but chose to ignore it. If he was willing to back me up, then who was I to object?
“You have nothing to do with this, so keep your mouth shut,” Rydan bit back callously, not even turning his eyes to his brother. Oh, jeez.
“Don’t start, you two. You know, he really wasn’t as hard to defeat as I thought, with Dúlin helping us, anyway.” I shook my head and sighed. “Look, I’m very much aware that you both have saved my life countless times before. And I have no doubt you’ll be saving me who knows how many times again. But if you didn’t stop to notice, I did have a little something to do with Dúlin’s midnight snack. So, if you don’t mind, let’s be grateful none of us got hurt and that the battle didn’t last all night, like it seriously looked like it could have before I stepped in.”
Speaking of the black dragon, he was curled on the ground beside Mycah, breathing out hot, billowy breaths. It was hard for me to keep my eyes off him. His sharp gaze was fixated on me.
Ender managed to be on my side for once. “She is right. Nariella has become a great warrior in her short time in Luïnil. You will always be fearful over her safety, especially as her Guardian, Prince Rydan. However, you should not let that fear confine her. Your duty is to protect her when in dire need—To enhance her defense and strengthen her power. Not prevent her from ever fighting at all. It’s time we all trusted her. Myself included.”
“Thank you,” I said with a kind smile. Hearing him say all that filled my heart with a warm fondness and joy. It meant more to me than I could voice to him at the moment, so I walked over to my wise father and gave him a grateful hug, which he returned.
Rydan suddenly pulled me from Ender’s embrace and smothered me against his hard chest. He held me there for several minutes, or at least, it felt like that long. My arms were pinned beneath his stronger boy muscles, so all I could do was stand there. I took advantage and breathed him in, allowing his smoky scent to infiltrate my every pore—One of the best smells in the entire world. The thrumming of his heartbeat coincided with mine, and we felt almost like one person. He eventually mumbled into my hair, “I can’t lose you.”
My heart swelled. I loved this boy. Not in the same way I felt for Mycah, but I loved him nonetheless. I wiggled my arms loose and wrapped them around his neck, forcing him closer. “I know the feeling,” I whispered.
The connection I had with Rydan could never be broken. I understood that fact in this moment. It didn’t matter if I was head-over-heels in love with someone else, dating, married, whatever. There could never be anything or anyone that would come between Rydan and me. I had been so worried things would have to change between us. Terrified and sick to my stomach over it, even.
But I knew then that it could never change. He would always be the one constant that I had in my life. The one I truly never had to be in fear of losing, unless by some horrible tragedy that stole him from me too soon—God forbid. But a connection this strong and powerful could never be undone by any other means. And that gave me profound comfort as I stood there embracing my best friend. It might have been selfish of us, but whoever it would be that we chose to give our hearts to in a romantic-type relationship, that guy or girl would have to understand and accept that Rydan and I would always be this way with each other. We needed it. I couldn’t survive without him, and he couldn’t survive without me. I was his Heart Shadow, and he was my Guardian.
We were inseparable for all of eternity.
My heart ached once I caught Mycah walking away with pain etched in his face. I buried my eyes in Rydan’s neck to block out the image. This was how it had to be now. It hurt to be the cause of Mycah’s pain, but I wasn’t going to give up my best friend. Not ever. And maybe, just maybe, seeing Rydan and me like this would help Mycah come to terms with his destiny a little bit more. He couldn’t have me. Perhaps seeing me with Rydan would make him angry enough to no longer want me. I prayed it made it easier for him, if by some chance. I had to hope it would be that way and not t
he opposite for the sake of my sanity.
And that it also made it just a bit easier for me to get over Mycah Nightly.
“What if Ohtar isn’t there anymore?” I inquired and craned my neck to stare up at the top of the mountain.
“There is nowhere else Ohtar could flee to. And you forget, he wants to be found. My uncle would never truly run from this sort of thing. He wants me dead and out of the picture completely. He won’t stop until he has what he’s been working for since he killed my father. I promise you, love, he’s waiting for me.” Mycah had his hands resting on his hips as he, too, gazed upward.
“Well then, now what?” I paced a narrow path along the mountain’s base. We had reconnected with everyone, but were short a battle plan. Naminé’s parents, my grandfather, and his wolf left to go look after the people of Lassaira while their queen was “away.” A.K.A. off hunting evil bad guys. But they didn’t need to know that part. “All wood elves in my guard are dead, thanks to Mr. Raven. Except for Cílon and Cathar, and I refuse to let them go up there without more back-up. If you really need a Tavas to bypass the spell that incapacitates an Isil, then maybe I should go with them.”
“Don’t be absurd. You’re also part Isil. It would ward you off as well,” Mycah scoffed.
“But you said the magic word. I’m only part Isil. It may disable my Isil abilities, but I have the Tavas blood in me to back me up. Right? That sounds like a feasible plan. I could lure Ohtar out of his snake hole and voila!” I clapped once and then held up my hands for a response.
Mycah flexed his jaw, like he gritted back a big ol’ objection to my idea. Rydan crossed his arms over his chest and kept his eyes on the ground. “I don’t like it.”
“Guys, what happened to the whole you trusting me thing? I can do this.” I tapped my foot.
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