Leena
My newly acquired Telesávra was a bit of a handful, and a small part of me wondered if that had something to do with Raven’s willingness to give him to me. There was no mistaking the mirth in her eyes when he nipped my fingers, then rammed his dense skull into my leg. I could already feel a bruise coming on, but at least he’d bonded to me. With his hearth point set to Hireath, we were able to leave as soon as I’d received him. And since Gaige’s Telesávra was set to the same location, we could transport a decent number of assassins safely to the keep in a matter of minutes once we arrived at Cruor. For now, though, we were forced to trek through the Kitska Forest on foot.
For the hundredth time, I brushed aside a spike-covered vine only to have it snag on my coat. A few threads gave way as I shoved through. Even in winter, the forest was dense and unrelenting. Not to mention, the monsters. One deadly call after another rolled through the air, as if they were on edge.
Or out hunting.
I shivered, pushing that thought away. Legend suggested the Kitska monsters were the trapped souls of deceased beasts from the First War. Their terrifying appearance and unconstrained rage were the exact reason Charmers hesitated to fight. Their existence was our punishment for letting ourselves be dragged into war. I wasn’t sure if that was true or not. It didn’t feel right. We’d only been defending ourselves from the Wilheimians. But something had happened to these beasts, that much was obvious. And while they rarely attacked Charmers—perhaps out of some fealty to us in their former lives—it wasn’t unheard of. I’d only spied one of these creatures once before, and I wasn’t in a hurry to repeat that encounter.
Calem let out an irritated grunt as he kicked away a fallen branch obscuring our path. “Remind me again why we aren’t using our shadows?”
Noc’s gaze swept over our surroundings. “We don’t have any idea what Darrien is planning. But we do know he has his sights set on Cruor, and we’re all familiar with how deadly he can be in the shadow realm.”
“Prick,” Calem muttered. Oz nodded his agreement.
“There’s also the matter of Leena and Gaige,” Kost said. “We could try to outrun Darrien in the shadows, but if we found ourselves cornered, neither of them could summon their beasts.”
Suppressing a shiver, I dipped my chin in the direction of Quilla, my Asura, to ensure she was still nearby. Slow-moving but ever alert, she swiveled her cow-like head back and forth as she pushed aside vines and sauntered by my side. Gaige had summoned his Asura as well, along with a Femsy of his own. He’d sent the bird beast ahead to scout our trail and tapped into its sight twice already to ensure we were safe. To boot, Kost had called on Felicks, who was securely perched on his shoulder. Every few minutes, his amethyst orb would cloud and Kost would pause, reviewing the contents of our future, and then we’d press forward. We hadn’t forgotten about Yazmin’s spying. And since we had no real idea where she was hiding, we had to remain alert.
“We’re almost to the winnow point.” Noc jerked his chin, presumably in the direction of Cruor, though I couldn’t be certain. The guild’s secret entrance was near impossible to find without the aid of an undead assassin. “Once we reach it, we’ll be at Cruor’s doorstep.”
A memory of the first time I’d traveled to Cruor surfaced in my mind. My Iksass, Iky, had trapped Kost with his barbed limbs and forced the assassin to escort us to the guild. The swirling, dark vortex—accessible only by a member of Cruor—had transported us instantly and safely without fault. It’d been nerve-racking to set foot in a manor full of assassins, but now it was one of my homes. And I desperately wanted to protect it.
“You okay?” Noc asked.
“Yeah, I’m good.” I gave him a tense smile. I had little faith we’d find any additional information about Yazmin’s spell at Cruor, but I had to do something. I wouldn’t be a ruler who sat on her throne, commanding from afar and putting other people in jeopardy.
Noc held back a branch for me to pass by. “We’ll find something, Leena.”
I ducked under the tree’s limb and stopped. “Am I doing the right thing?”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean declaring war. Is that the right thing to do?” I glanced around at our party. Kost and Gaige had shifted their conversation to spellwork ingredients, while Calem and Oz walked quietly behind them. I didn’t want to jeopardize my family, or my people, by making the wrong decision.
“You’re not declaring war. Yazmin is.” Noc brushed a stray lock of hair off my face. “There’s a key difference, there.”
“Really?” I sighed. “It doesn’t feel all that different. What that woman said…” I swallowed thickly, remembering how her words had rattled me to my core. Yazmin had asked her people to go to war, right before unleashing the Vrees on us all. And her reasons for doing so… Charmers captured at the hands of Wilheimians… It had sounded like a valid reason to fight.
Noc gripped my shoulders tight. “Don’t doubt yourself. Think of Onyx.”
I blinked. “What?”
His fingers tightened. “Onyx deemed you worthy. Not Yazmin. The Charmers saw that. Besides, what about Ocnolog? You said he couldn’t be controlled. So even if Yazmin succeeds in summoning him, everyone will be in danger.”
“Yazmin tamed the Vrees before I broke his bond with her.” My words were low. Uncertain. I glanced at my Charmer’s symbol. Even now, without channeling my magic, it seemed to throb with power. Since welcoming the Vrees, who I’d named Aeon, to my family, I’d felt stronger. More capable. As if the goddess herself had granted me a sliver of her power. Aeon, a giant teddy bear at heart, enjoyed roaming the endless fields of the beast realm, tongue lolling out the side of his maw. Celeste’s magic was strongest there, and I think he felt that. Relished it. Just being connected to him was like being connected to her.
Yazmin had tamed Aeon alone, and she’d gone to extraordinary lengths to do so. She was stronger than me. Stronger than all of us; of that I had no doubt.
“You think that means she’ll be able to control Ocnolog.” Noc’s words echoed my fear.
I nodded. “And I think she’ll use him to destroy everything.”
“Yazmin is power hungry. Even if her motives were sparked by something righteous, she’s going about it the wrong way. War is…” Noc looked away, gaze tight. Everything about him stiffened, as if he were reliving some long-ago memory. He became a soldier, a warrior, in that moment. “It’s not pretty, Leena.”
“I know,” I said. “But you were fighting for something you believed in, right?”
“Yes.” He studied my face carefully. “I believe in our cause enough to go to war now, too.”
“So does Yazmin. She’s certain there are Charmers being held captive in Wilheim.”
The tension riddling his frame fled. He placed one hand on my shoulder and looked me directly in the eyes. “You know I have no idea about these captive Charmers, right?”
“Of course, Noc.” I let out a breath. “You wouldn’t do something like that.” We still hadn’t talked about my parents. I wasn’t sure if there was anything to talk about. Yazmin had insinuated they were dead, that Noc and his family were responsible. But how could she possibly know that? And if they weren’t, did that mean…did that mean they were captive, too?
I shook my head. I couldn’t grasp at straws. Couldn’t feed the hope that they were alive somehow. They’d died on a beast hunt, and Yazmin was just using their lack of remains to her advantage.
Noc’s voice was low, apologetic. “If I’d known, I—”
“We’ve got a problem,” Kost interrupted, abandoning his conversation with Gaige to rush to our side. Felicks had dug his claws into Kost’s shoulder, and his hackles were standing on end. Clouds brewed in his amethyst orb. “Something’s coming our way. Fast.”
My blood turned to ice. “A beast? Yazmin?”
Calem, Oz, and Gaige joined us, each of them picking apart the woods with tight glares. Kost pressed a finger to his temple, his gaze faraway as he connected with Felicks’s vision, and his lips thinned. “I’m not entirely sure. I didn’t recognize it, but it’s heading right for us. There’s something else, too.” His brows drew together. “Another attack, something small and fast. But I can’t decipher it from the creature.”
Our Asura acted without prompting, settling into the ground and firmly planting their palms against the earth. Glistening domes covered us as we peered into the dark wood. Calem’s jaw was clenched tight, and his gaze bounced frantically from one place to the next. Oz went completely still, save for a few shadows that trailed from his fingertips and curled around his wrist. Grazing the back of his hand, Gaige fingered a small branch on his Charmer’s symbol. No doubt using the last bit of his Femsy’s power to aid Kost and scout the area.
“Anything?” I asked, peering at Gaige.
He swallowed thickly. “My Femsy won’t go near it, which could only mean one thing.”
Monster.
As if answering my fear, a deep, bloodcurdling roar crashed through the air. My stomach plummeted to my feet. Why now? What had we done to attract the attention of a Kitska monster? The trees seemed to shiver in anticipation, pinesco pods dancing above our heads in a frenzy. Beside me, Noc cursed and slit open his palm. Blood dripped down his fingers before hovering about his hand.
“It’s approaching from the north,” Kost said. Beside him, Calem shuddered, and the mercury thread around his eyes widened.
“Gaige,” I murmured, tilting my chin slightly in his direction. “What do we do?”
“Until I know what we’re dealing with, I can’t say. I’m sending my Femsy back and calling on Okean.” He flexed his hand, and citrine light exploded from his symbol. The beast realm door groaned open, and while he sent one beast back to safety, he summoned another to his side. A threatening yowl preceded the Zystream’s entrance as the liquid-blue legendary feline manifested beside his master. His claws sank into the soft earth, and wet mist gathered around him. Dew droplets welled along his slick hide before trailing the length of his body and splashing against the ground. I knew from my research that he was a formidable beast, able to summon and control water to take down his prey.
“What do we do?” Calem asked.
“Kitska monsters can’t be tamed. We’ll have to subdue it.” Gaige glanced around, frowning slightly at our Asura’s domes. “I have no idea if our shields will hold against a creature like this.”
Thrusting out my hand, I channeled power to my symbol and wrenched open the beast realm door. Reine still needed to recover, but her ability to teleport in short bursts would come in handy while maneuvering through the trees. She emerged from the realm, indigo spots glowing and hackles on end as she stalked to Okean’s side. Dominus followed a beat later. Despite the lack of light permeating the dense wood, his crystal-plated chest and the jagged, jewel-like wings along his legs glittered without fail.
On Kost’s shoulder, Felicks’s orb cleared and he peeled back his maw in a menacing growl. Kost eyed his beast before fashioning a rapier out of shadows. In a few minutes’ time, we’d know more, thanks to Felicks. But until then…
“Are they normally this aggressive?” Oz asked while he formed a slew of blades and tucked them between his knuckles.
Gaige’s fingers twitched. “Not typically, but—”
A sharp whistling, followed immediately by a loud crack, rang through the air. As one, we stared at an oily, slick arrow that’d burrowed into Quilla’s dome right in front of where Noc was standing. Beside me, my beast shuddered and closed one of her ten milky-white eyes. A low, murderous hiss escaped Noc’s lips.
My breath caught. “What the hell?”
Noc’s gaze snapped to the treetops. “We’re not alone.”
“Darrien.” Kost’s voice was deadly, and the shadows around his frame spiked in erratic patterns. “That’s the attack I couldn’t place.”
“What the hell is he doing here?” Oz asked. Like Noc, he jerked his head upward and scanned the thick network of branches.
Scales formed and receded along Calem’s skin as his body shook. “I can’t see him.”
“Me neither. But I can sense his shadows.” Noc rotated his wrist, and the blood droplets around his hand formed into blades, each one waiting to do his bidding. “He’s using the forest to his advantage.”
A terrifying bellow, much closer than before, rattled the leaves above us.
Before we could formulate a plan, a creature came crashing through the wood, splintering trees with the force of its attack. My blood went cold. Of course it’d be a Gigloam. Or what once was a Gigloam. The A-Class bear beast was the size of an elephant bull with stag-like antlers protruding from its head. A thick skull, separate from the one beneath its hide, grew from the base of its neck and protruded down over its snout. A bone helm to protect its face. Glowing red eyes—eyes that should’ve been green or brown—peered through the sockets. His fur, which was likely once a lustrous, mossy green, was now matted and gray.
Does it still have its powers? I spied the half-moon etching on its skull and cursed. At least the full moon had already passed; otherwise we’d be better off running than fighting.
Felicks’s orb clouded again, and he let out a sharp yip. Kost’s eyes went wide. “Brace yourselves!”
The monster roared, and moonlight gathered between its antlers. Not a moment later, it exploded in a wide beam, targeting our troupe with deadly accuracy. The powerful light slammed into our domes with the force of a battering ram, and splintering cracks spiderwebbed across the near-invisible surfaces. By the time the moonlight had faded, Quilla had closed all but one of her eyes.
And then a volley of three arrows sang through the air—one piercing my beast’s dome and the other two sinking into Gaige’s. Our creatures sighed, their powers fading as they closed their last eye. Our protection was gone.
“What the hell is happening?” Calem shouted as we scattered to avoid the charging Gigloam. Yowls scraped from the backs of our legendary felines’ throats as they formed a circle around the aberrant monster. Howling in answer, the Gigloam stood tall on its hind legs. Okean and Dominus lunged in unison as Reine blipped out of existence. A moment later, she reappeared, teeth and claws deep in the thick hide of the Gigloam’s neck. A gargled cry escaped the creature’s maw, and he fell to all fours at the same time Okean and Dominus attacked.
More arrows pierced the air, pulling my focus away from the beasts. Noc dropped to the ground and rolled, narrowly avoiding one aimed at his head. Leaping before him, Oz extracted a bronze key from his trouser pocket. The beast realm door groaned open, and Jax, his young Laharock, appeared.
“Protect them,” Oz growled as he launched into the trees and hurled blades in the direction of Darrien’s attacks. His creature roared, and a deep rumbling shook the forest floor. Walls of near-impenetrable rock shot from the earth, their veins of lava a dangerous, glowing red, just as a volley of arrows whizzed through the trees. Most ricocheted off the newly erected barriers, but one slipped through and nicked my shoulder. Wincing, I slapped my hand over the shallow wound. A worried caterwaul rose above the volatile snarls of the Gigloam fight, and Reine released her hold on the monster to peer at me.
“Reine!” I shouted, but not quickly enough. The Gigloam capitalized on his relinquished neck and stood once again, tearing off the felines one by one with his massive paws. Each one went flying into the forest until they crashed into tree trunks.
“We have to stop it!” Gaige shouted. Flush against one of Jax’s rock walls, he’d been avoiding the continued onslaught of Darrien’s shadow arrows. Okean recovered first, and a torrent of water exploded from his maw and slammed into the creature’s belly. It stumbled backward, slashing at the relentless stream to no avail.
“And Darrien,” Kost hissed, his gaze darting from the beast fight to the endless, snarling expanse of woods before us. Above, Oz grunted his consent as he continued to sling blades into the dark. A sharp, distant curse answered in response, and a body wreathed in shadows darted from one tree to the next.
Mercury dominated Calem’s eyes. “That wasn’t Darrien.”
“He brought backup,” Kost seethed.
“Darrien!” Noc bellowed, crouching near me. “Show yourself!”
A dark laugh carried through the air, but he never appeared. Instead, he sent more arrows our way. We dodged them all, but Felicks leapt from Kost’s shoulder and let out a guttural bark as he flattened himself against the earth.
Kost’s frantic gaze swept the area, then he grabbed Gaige’s wrist and dragged him to the forest floor. “Get down!”
We didn’t hesitate, and a breath later, a rush of shadow blades soared through the trees from every direction. They sliced through leaves and cut into branches, showering us in debris. Dominus let out a gut-wrenching cry that rattled my bones. A blade had cut open his hide, and blood wept from the wound. Snarling, he faltered for only a moment before returning his focus to the Gigloam.
I pushed myself from the ground, desperate to get to my beast, but Noc wrapped his hand around my wrist. “Wait.” Ire filled his ice-blue eyes, and he fired the blood blades hovering about his body deep into the woods.
A pained scream rose above the treetops as one of them found its target.
“Kost, Ozias, on me. Calem, stay with Leena and Gaige.” Shadows flung to him, and he bolted around Jax’s protective barriers and into the forest. Oz paused only for a moment, his gaze bouncing to his beast. Jax let out a reassuring growl before hunkering down behind a rock wall. Safe, for the moment. It was enough to spur Oz into motion. He launched from the trees, the groaning of branches beneath his feet clashing with the endless roars of the legendary felines and the Gigloam.
Kost sprinted after them with Felicks at his side, only for an enemy assassin to dart in front of them. Felicks let out a startling bark, and then weaved between the attacker’s legs, sinking his pointed teeth into the man’s calf. He buckled forward, and Kost lunged. His rapier slid cleanly through the assailant’s chest, and they were gone before the body even hit the ground.
Darrien’s eerie laugh once again filtered through the dense woodland, and the arrows and shadow blades stopped.
With the air clear, I leapt from the ground toward my beasts, eyes locked on Dominus’s injury. He seemed undaunted, but the constant strain from fighting only made the bleeding worse.
Gaige rushed to my side. “Okean’s attack is about to fade. Stay back!”
The sound of rushing water died as Okean’s torrent gave out. Seizing the opportunity, the Gigloam let out a fierce battle cry and charged toward Okean. With its head angled down, the creature’s antlers were poised to spear Gaige’s beast. But Reine materialized before it could make contact, flanking the creature’s side and sinking her teeth deep into its shoulder. Blood spilled from the wound and the Gigloam howled, peeling off course and ramming into a tree.
Gaige winced. “The only way to subdue it is to sever its skull helm. It won’t fight without it.”
My mind raced as I watched Dominus and Okean rejoin the fray. None of them could come within striking distance of the helm, let alone get the needed leverage to physically sever it. Even with Reine’s teleporting powers, the monster somehow was able to deflect every time. Why was this happening? Was this monster really that much stronger than our felines? Yes, Gigloams were powerful, A-class beasts, but this one had died, according to our legends. Then again… My gaze slanted to Calem and the shadows festering around his frame. The assassins became something else, something stronger, when they’d passed, too.
Moonlight once again gathered between the Gigloam’s antlers. Charging time and power were dictated by the phase of the moon etched into its bone helm. Half moon, half power—but half the amount of time it took to summon a deadly attack.
“Run!” I screamed at our beasts. The felines scattered in response, barely dodging the disastrous beam of light. The Gigloam’s face swiveled to me, and he let out a bone-chilling growl. Claws gouged the earth as the beast stalked our direction, crushing Jax’s erected rock walls with its skull. A warning rumbled from the back of Jax’s throat, and Calem shoved us back, putting himself between us and the approaching beast.
“Stay behind me,” he commanded as he summoned a shadow blade and sent it flying through the forest. It sailed toward the beast with deadly accuracy, but right as it was about to slice into the soft spot behind its helm, the Gigloam jerked his head and caught the blade with its antlers. It careened off course and thudded into the trunk of a tree before disappearing.
The beast let out an enraged roar, but Calem didn’t back down.
“Are you insane?” My gaze darted between him and the Kitska monster. Calem’s form wavered, scales creeping up his neck and over his temples, and he crouched low to the ground. The Gigloam pressed forward as a glimmer of something gold peeked through the dense wood behind it. Before I could get another glimpse, it disappeared, and the Gigloam shuddered. It tossed its head back and frantically scoured the woods at its back.
Gaige narrowed his eyes. “Something drove it this way. That’s why it’s attacking.”
“Darrien?” Calem growled.
Another flash of gold flickered in my peripheral vision, and unease stirred low in my gut. The Gigloam twitched in answer. Then, snapped his attention back to us. Something was out there. Something even this Kitska monster didn’t dare face.
My mouth dried as I took a step back. “I don’t think so.”
In the distance, an angry shout, followed by a pained cry, echoed through the night. A chill swept through me. Oz. Calem’s head jerked in the direction of the sound. Scales consumed the rest of his body as devastating claws erupted from his nail beds. Any minute now and he’d shift completely.
“We can’t help them until we deal with the Gigloam,” I said. The creature rammed into another one of Jax’s walls, clearing the last barrier between us and him. Lava rock scattered before our feet, and the monster roared. Wild eyes targeted us with ferocious certainty.
Our felines slunk through the woods, soft chatters slipping from their maws. With the Gigloam’s attention on us, they inched closer and flanked his rear. They moved like predators with gleaming, narrowed eyes transfixed on the creature’s bone helm. We just needed to pin the monster, and then we could help our family.
Another sickening scream sounded in the distance, and my body thrummed with fear. We needed to act. Fast.
Pin the Gigloam, sever the helm… If only I could call on my Graveltot. My small, spherical beast could manipulate gravity and hold the Gigloam down, but there was no way to solely target the creature. We’d all be unable to move. My mind whirred. What else? The Vrees? We’d only just formed a bond. He’d been so reluctant to fight while under Yazmin’s command, and he was still recovering from the emotional toll of attacking his own kind. He needed his time in the beast realm, free from worry or concern.
The Gigloam roared and spittle flew from its yellowed teeth. And then it charged.
Jax moved first, and the ground rumbled beneath us as a rock wall exploded from the earth, right beneath the Gigloam’s feet. It toppled backward, and Dominus lunged. His gleaming claws raked against the monster’s hide, and blood coated the dirt beneath them. Okean went for the jugular, and Reine teleported to the base of the creature’s neck. She sank her fangs at the juncture between the protruding bone helm and the Gigloam’s skull, and the creature howled so deeply, so violently, that the very air seemed to shake. He tossed his head in an attempt to shake her off, skewering her with his antlers and cutting a wound deep into her belly.
“Reine!” I cried, tearing toward them. Gaige raced after me, but neither of us were as fast as Calem. A hound-shaped blur barreled ahead, crashing into the thick hide of the monster. Dominus and Okean scattered to avoid the collision, and Reine teleported to me before collapsing at my feet.
“Shh, you’re okay,” I said, running my hands over her fur. My fingers came away sticky and bright-red. Panic clawed at my throat. Where Dominus’s wound had been shallow, Reine’s was much deeper. Tendons and muscle were ripped to shreds, and I pressed shaky fingers over the laceration.
“Let’s get you home.” I sent her back to the beast realm to recover as Calem and the Gigloam slammed into a tree, splinters erupting around them. Snarling, Calem leapt a few feet away. Kaori’s Ossilix, with her healing saliva, had saved his life, but also changed him forever. The dominating hound that was once my friend stood tall before us with thick, stone-like scales covering the entirety of his body. His mercury eyes were feral, and yet…
He turned his head a fraction, gaze softening for an instant. As if to assure us he was fine. In control. But when the Gigloam lumbered to its feet, Calem crouched and peeled back his maw, revealing razor-sharp teeth.
It was beast against monster, and after seeing just how deadly the Gigloam could be, I wasn’t sure if Calem’s newfound power would be enough.