Page 24

Selenia's face fell. “Grayden–I'm sure she's okay.” But her words sounded hollow.

He hung his head low, unable to answer her. He kept his eyes ahead on the bright light just outside the line of trees, trying to focus on their goal rather than the ache in his heart.

Phillippe caught up and studied them both, his keen eyes taking in their tense postures. “What's going on?”

Selenia jumped in, saving Grayden the pain of responding. “Grayden could feel Renya, and she's in trouble.”

“Grayden, we'll get her back. I know it,” Phillippe said, trying to reassure Grayden as much as he could. His voice was firm, filled with a determination that Grayden wished he could feel.

“She's my entire life,” Grayden said, in a small voice, hardly audible over the hoofbeats of the horses. The admission hung in the air, a testament to the depth of his love and the weight of his fear.

“We know, Grayden. She's a big part of our lives now too.” Selenia pushed her ringlets back over her shoulder and looked grimly ahead.

No one said anything until they reached the edge of the forest, knowing the pain Grayden was in was uncategorizable. The silence was heavy with unspoken worry and shared determination.

As they approached the Sun Realm, the temperatures increased and the horses, equipped and adapted for the Snow Lands, started to struggle in the intense heat. Selenia had shrugged off Grayden's fur and her gloves were long gone. Grayden's shirt clung to his back, and Phillippe removed his altogether. Their pace slowed significantly as the sweltering heat wore them down.

The trees thinned, and soon the forest floor transitioned from soft, earthy-smelling dirt to coarse sand. A vast desert appeared before them, hot and unforgiving, stretching as far as the eye could see.

“A desert? Phillippe, where are you leading us?” Grayden grumbled while unbuttoning another button on his tunic. It was the first word he'd uttered in an hour.

“This is the fastest way to the Sun Realm. We could have come through the southern border, but you have to go around Gradis Lake in order to get there. It's an easier route, but it would add at least three days to our journey.” Phillippe dismounted and walked along his horse for a bit, grabbing his water pouch and drinking deeply.

Grayden nodded, and dismounted as well. He pulled a few small traveling cakes and passed them to his siblings. Selenia nibbled at hers, while Phillippe inhaled his without chewing. Grayden passed his rations to Phillippe, his appetite long gone. Phillippe accepted it hesitantly, worry etched along his forehead.

“Have either of you been past the Sun Realm?” Selenia asked, her curiosity momentarily overriding her exhaustion.

“No,” Phillippe answered. “But Father saw it in his youth. He said that it's beautiful–but at the same time, incredibly...chilling.”

“Chilling?” Selenia asked.

“He said that parts of it are destroyed, but other areas are completely untouched, as if any second someone is coming back to claim it.”

“Do you think we'll find any clues as to how to defeat Cressida?”

Grayden looked at Selenia, his eyes haunted. “That doesn't matter. All that matters is freeing Renya from the blood magic.”

“Grayden,” Phillippe warned, his voice gentle but firm. “If there's any clues there as to how to beat her, we need to look. Getting Renya back, only to have Cressida take her again or destroy our entire kingdom, isn't much better. Renya would want us to search for anything in their archives that could potentially help us and our world.”

Grayden knew his brother was right. He wasn't usually so self-serving, so selfish. But now that he was fated, everything else seemed to fade into the background. Food had no taste, and no amount of fireale could numb his pain. Colors were dull and sounds were nothing but noise. Loving Renya fundamentally changed him, and her absence left a void that nothing else could fill.

As they carried on, he found himself following Phillippe absentmindedly, thinking about the first time Renya traveled with him on horseback. She had tried to hold herself away from his body, but she had fallen asleep quickly and relaxed against his chest. He remembered the smell of her hair and the softness of her body. Then there had been that moment at the inn, where she gaped at his shirtless body, warmed by the fire. He smiled briefly, thinking about the pink in her cheeks when she was embarrassed.

The trek through the desert was rough. They watered the horses right before leaving the borders of the Twilight Kingdom, but there wasn't a stream or pond in sight. Nothing but scorching sand lay ahead of them, the heat rising up and obscuring the horizon. He looked at Selenia, her lips parched and her back slouched. She didn't complain, but Grayden could tell this journey was arduous for her.

Phillippe, on the other hand, ventured so much through their world that he was immune to the elements, seemingly unbothered by the humid desert air once he removed his shirt. Every once in a while he'd shake the sand out of his short hair, but he kept riding without complaining, like the dutiful soldier he was.

Grayden was no stranger to the harsh and extreme climates that made up their world either, but between his injury and the fact that he hadn't had a decent night's sleep since he woke up alone in their shared bed, was seriously impairing him. He wasn't the strong soldier he usually was. However, nothing, not exhaustion or injury, would convince him to stop moving forward.

At the hottest part of the day, Phillippe broke the silence.

“I think we need to camp now, and move again when the sun starts to set.”

Grayden looked around, trying to see if there was any natural shelter. The tents would bake them to death in the intense sun. A little to the west, he saw a large outcropping of rocks. He nudged Phillippe and pointed, and Phillippe nodded.

“That'll work well. If we rest for a few hours, and travel through the evening, we could be at the Sun Realm before the next sunrise.”

The outcropping Grayden spotted was actually a cave, hollowed out against a small, rocky hill. It was just big enough for them to spread out their sleeping rolls.