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“Lady Fulthain is gone. She never returned from the raid and our sprite companion has informed me that she’s heading somewhere very dangerous.”

“What do you need from me?” The gargoyle takes a long drag and exhales through his nose. I smell the faint aroma of wolfsbane and hemlock with subtle notes of chamomile and lemongrass.

“We need at least two archers, three footmen, and a tracker. There’s no telling what direction she went or if the sandstorms have blown away her trail. I leave in an hour.”

The cigarette dangles from Myerdoth’s lips as he nods and soars toward the barracks. I head back to the Vindication headquarters to gather my things. Flumph and Noni exit their room, dressed for battle and carrying their small weapons. Their loyalty never fails to amaze me.

The three of us leave the compound only to be stopped by a soldier. “Lord Cambion,” he says with a bow of his head. “The artificer in the dungeons is asking for Lady Fulthain. I thought you should know.”

“Thank you.”

Flumph and Noni accompany me to the dungeons, where Zir’s head pops up as I approach. She shuffles over and opens a small chest with a pile of rings inside. Small crystals are engraved along with several runes, but they flash with blinking lights like human technology.

“What is this, Zir?”

“Her Graciousness instructed me to craft communicators for the Rebel Lords of The Vindication and their allies. These are in the final stages of testing and I wished to show her.”

“How do they work?” I reach through the bars of the cell and pluck one from the pile.

“They are linked by magic signatures, allowing the users to contact one another using telepathic frequencies.”

“Telepathic frequencies,” I repeat. “As in… read each other’s minds.”

Zir nods.

“Is it safe?” I ask.

She nods again. “It is entirely safe and will allow you to track one another and speak with your minds.”

I slip the ring onto my finger and it tightens itself. A small needle pricks my skin and I blink as a map appears in my vision. After the ring adjusts, my sight clears.

“It only works from one ring to another at the moment, so it won’t help you locate Her Graciousness,” Zir explains. “Not unless she were to wear one, as well.”

I eye her with interest. “How did you know she needs to be located?”

She smiles. “There is very little I don’t know, though my visions come in clouded context usually.”

“Thank you.”

The small woman flushes and hurries away with the box. Flumph gives her a look that says he’s still skeptical of how helpful the artificer will be, but if Eilish trusts her, then so do I. I grow weary of questioning everything. If there are consequences to be had, then I will face them with dignity.

Noni takes the lead as we head toward the stables. Myerdoth waits there with a handful of mercenaries to join our efforts, and I thank them all as I mount my horse.

“No matter what we face, we return with Lady Fulthain. Those of you who aren’t willing to give your lives for the leader of our rebellion, turn back now. I won’t hold it against you.”

No one turns away.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

THEREN

Delendren Glade

“Yes,” Pyre says with glee. “I feel the Veil’s presence here. The ethers are thin.”

He stands at the heart of the volcano and rips open the fabric of the universe. It’s beautiful magic, yes, but treacherous if not used carefully.

“It will transport us directly to Eilish.” The necromancer gestures toward the rift.