Page 39

CHAPTER 39

‘Tassos? What the fuck are you talking about?’ Elva demanded.

The flecks in Fyn’s eyes flickered in time with her racing heartbeat.

Mystic Agnes ignored her, crouching next to Fyn, who struggled against the demigod’s grip.

His hand was tethered to the gemstone at the base of the tree, as if he was unable to break the magic that connected them.

Each thrash of his body made the runes burn brighter.

Mystic Agnes’ mouth opened in awe.

‘The prophecy was true. I never thought the runes would work without the danann’s guidance, and yet.

.

.

’ She clapped her hands together, glee radiating from her eyes.

‘Your lines have always been interesting, Prince Fynton, yet they began warping after your mother’s Ending.

Only when I saw your lines overlaid with the captain’s, did it slowly start coming together – Tassos.

’

Ever burst from Mystic Agnes’ hand and shot towards Fyn, wrapping him in a writhing net of magic.

His head slammed into the trunk with a thud and Elva sprang, lunging at the woman before a wall of magic intercepted her, sending her careening into the dewy grass.

‘We have all been trying to summon you for years, in our different ways. It was why Advisor Gudren pushed for the marriage treaty, although he was never going to stray from Caius’ shadow.

For a long time we thought it was Elva – rumours of her battle prowess could be nothing short of divine intervention.

And yet here you are: the last danann, hiding in plain sight.

’ Mystic Agnes dipped her head and tapped three fingers to her chest in reverence.

Fyn grunted, the veins in his neck tensing as he tried to pull himself away from the ground, but the mystic’s Ever pulled again and he fell back.

‘How did you come to be here? It wasn’t the sacrifice on Mount Ard; that was a failed Ellarch attempt.

’ Mystic Agnes tutted and turned his head, her skeletal fingers grasping at his cheeks.

‘I told them not to, but it was too late. And it wasn’t the massacre at Anfa where we tried to ensnare the princess – our informer’s attempts did not succeed.

Who managed, when all else failed?

We owe them everything.

’

Ringing sounded in Elva’s ears, a toll that grew with each of Mystic Agnes’ words.

The demigod stood and paced around the tree as the feeling of Ever continued to grow.

It was heavy and oppressive, and Elva didn’t know how much more she could take before she suffocated under the weight.

She shook her head, limbs tired, unable to keep upright as the demigod’s Ever continued to choke her, overriding years of training and discipline in the blink of an eye.

‘Tell me, Fynton, how did you come to bear the last living danann? You, the son of the Seacht’s lap dog?

’

Fyn grunted, the noise strained and angry.

Mystic Agnes laughed.

‘Perhaps I have been wrong; perhaps it wasn’t an Ellarch ritual, but something much closer to home.

Your mother died as an Ever Blessed hero, did she not?

After a murmur of sylphs forced her hand.

Perhaps it was she who imbued Tassos’ soul into her very own son.

She always was one of our best.

’ Mystic Agnes giggled.

Her amusement sent ripples through the Ever, and a wave of it hit Elva in the chest, knocking the breath straight out of her.

She couldn’t reach Fyn, couldn’t do anything but watch as Mystic Agnes stood with her palms outstretched and dropped her head back, eyelids fluttering as she murmured in the Old Language.

Elva could feel her grip on reality start to melt, she’d never felt Ever like this before, as if her being was doused in sludge and she couldn’t shake it off.

It was wrong.

Wrong, wrong, wrong—

‘It is ironic these farcical ceremonies Advisor Gudren petitioned for worked as he intended, only the Ellarch were one step ahead. Tassos, I vow to keep you safe.’ Mystic Agnes brought a knife to her hand and sliced a ruby line across her palm.

The tang of copper and salt filled the air and Ever flooded the clearing once more, sticky and foul.

‘We will free you, unleash you on the one who ushered your Ending.’ Mystic Agnes pulled out a wooden box from her pocket and withdrew a small stone the size of a grape.

It was a clear crystal that looked as if smoke was trapped in the centre.

‘I am so pleased to have found you before the sycophants. Imagine what we can do when we unify the Ellarch once and for all.’

‘What do you mean, unify the Ellarch ?’ Elva managed to spit as she clawed her way along the grass.

‘You’re killing him!

’

Fyn’s face was mottled, his veins rigid as he fought whatever magic Mystic Agnes was wielding.

‘Hush, girl. I mean no harm to Tassos. I cannot promise the same for Fynton.’

Mystic Agnes held out the smoky crystal to Fyn, who shrank away as it neared.

Ever pulsed again, thick and gloopy, wrapping around Elva until she had difficulty breathing.

The stone.

There is something about the stone.

She crawled to the tree, trying to reach him, trying to stop—

A crack sounded and Elva flinched, curling into a ball before she blinked her eyes open to find a different figure standing opposite Mystic Agnes.

Advisor Gudren’s cloak billowed in the phantom wind that carried his Evert, a figure made of death and shadows.

‘I should have known you were the Ellarch traitor,’ Advisor Gudren spat.

His hair was askew, strands of white standing on end, and his chest rose and fell in fast bellows.

‘ You ,’ Mystic Agnes said, moving to stand in front of Fynton, ‘have no idea what you’re talking about.

’

Advisor Gudren laughed, a harsh, jagged wheeze.

‘I owe you a debt of gratitude, Agnes. I was unsure whether the ceremonies would reveal Tassos. But you have done the hard work for me. Pity it’s Fynton and not the girl, but you have my thanks, nonetheless.

’

‘Do not thank me with your profane mouth, Gudren. The Ellarch will rise once more, and all who follow the Seacht’s rule shall meet their Ending, including you,’ Mystic Agnes said as another swell of Ever rose.

‘Profane? It is you who is the blasphemer, Agnes. Interfering with the ceremonies, turning against your own to help the Ellarch traitors.’ Advisor Gudren prowled closer.

‘Your treachery has stained all it touches, yet you shall not live to see the wreckage you have caused.’

Elva sensed the pull of Ever just before a large wave of magic shot from Advisor Gudren’s hands, blasting Mystic Agnes back.

It was a blessing Elva still lay on the ground; heat singed where her hands gripped the back of her head, and Mystic Agnes’ scream echoed around the clearing.

Advisor Gudren approached Mystic Agnes in a swirl of Ever, their attention wholly taken with one another.

Elva didn’t give herself time to second guess her next move as they fought.

Blasts of light and Ever distracted them as she crawled over to the rowan tree, where Fyn continued to struggle against the magic vice that held him captive.

‘Can you move?’ she gasped, her voice shadowed by the screams behind her.

‘No.’

She tugged his arm, but it was anchored to the gemstone, which itself was anchored to the base of the tree trunk.

She could feel Fyn’s Ever flowing into the runes on the tree – or was it flowing out?

She had no way to tell, and her fingers scrabbled against the bark in futility.

Whatever magic had ensnared Fyn – Tassos – wasn’t holding her, so she grabbed the yellow gemstone which lay discarded at his feet, hoping it would offer – what?

How was a stone going to solve this problem?

She locked eyes with Fyn.

With Tassos .

No, no, no, she didn’t have time to think about the implications of Fyn possessing the soul of the last danann right now.

Not when Mystic Agnes was wailing and flashes of light erupted out of the corner of her vision, making time slow as she yanked at Fyn’s arm.

‘Do you know how to get out of this?’

He shook his head, sweat trickling down his brow as she pulled at his frozen hand.

She glanced at the stone in her hand.

How the hell is this stone meant to help?

She spun to where Mystic Agnes and Advisor Gudren fought, each wielding ropes of Ever that slammed into one another, warping the reality around them in a shimmering haze.

Her own Ever hummed in alarm and she moved faster, urging her senses to sharpen so that they might get out of this alive.

She stared at the singed ground where Mystic Agnes had been blasted, and scoured the grass searching, searching – until she spotted the small, smoky crystal the demigod had dropped.

She grabbed it, a warm zing of Ever humming in her seed at the contact, but she ignored the feeling and rushed back over to Fyn to hold it against his skin.

Nothing happened.

‘Can you feel that?’

He grunted and shook his head.

She tried again, bringing it to his hand curled around the tree.

‘What about now?’

Again, Fyn grunted and again Elva felt a stab of panic, which was amplified when she heard running footsteps – how was she meant to go up against a demigod without a weapon?

‘Elva! Are you okay? Your tent was empty and—’

She gasped in relief as she looked at Avi.

He skidded to a halt next to her, eyes frantic.

A second later Lonn appeared, just as another blast had the ground rumbling and Elva ducked closer, Avi and Lonn following suit so they were all huddled around Fyn.

‘He’s stuck.

There’s some sort of Ever keeping him tethered—’ Her explanation stopped short when the clearing fell silent, Mystic Agnes’ final screech echoing until it disappeared into the night.

Elva glanced to where the mystic’s body lay twisted in the dirt, eyes flat and lifeless.

Advisor Gudren stood over her in triumph.

She looked at Avi, and then at Fyn, her heart swelling as knowing thudded through her.

Avi grabbed her arm.

‘You can’t go against him, Elva, he’ll kill you in an instant.

’

‘I know, but Fyn can’t—’

‘Fyn is the prince of Clochain, Advisor Gudren won’t kill him.

’

‘Yes, he will!’ The panic she’d been pushing down erupted, and she tried to suck in enough air to keep her voice from breaking.

‘Fyn is Tassos and now he’s going to kill all of us—’

‘What do you mean Fyn is Tassos?’

She stared at Avi, unsure if he was talking slower than usual or if her reality had sped up.

Lonn’s fingers worried circles in his prayer beads, but she ignored him and grabbed Avi’s arm, pulling him close.

‘Please trust me. Find a way for Fyn to escape.’ She pressed Mystic Agnes’ stone into his hand and squeezed his fingers tightly, before letting go.

She didn’t let herself look at Fyn as she stood, she didn’t trust she would be able to go through with what needed to happen if she gazed upon him once more.

Advisor Gudren laughed as she strode across the clearing.

‘Save yourself the embarrassment, girl. You are nothing compared to me.’

‘Why are you searching for Tassos?’ Her voice wavered, but she yanked her courage up by the lapels and forced herself to keep moving.

He laughed again, and Elva’s Ever recoiled in warning, the fear she always felt in his presence thumping at the base of her spine.

‘You know nothing about the ways of the world. You might be protected, but he is not, and it is he who my master has been searching for.’

He coiled a rope of Ever out of the air and lashed it towards her.

She danced back, forcing herself to listen to the small pulse of knowing to guide her movements.

He advanced, and still she continued to back away, praying this distraction would last long enough for Fyn, Lonn and Avi to find a way to escape.

He lashed at her again, a growl escaping his lips when she dodged backwards.

A guttural screech roared in her head and the entire world staggered sideways at the noise.

She fell, her vision swimming as she clutched her ears, trying to block the unending assault on her senses.

‘ You do not stand a chance against me, Princess. You and your filthy family shall pay for all you have hidden .’

The Voice of the Seacht reverberated in her head, a penetrating onslaught.

It was beyond comprehension, and her body screamed in agony as the demigod turned the full might of his power on her.

Ever writhed under her skin, shrieking as the magic attacked her.

Advisor Gudren’s anger was palpable through his ordained gift as he strode towards her.

She needed to stand.

To find a weapon and defend herself, but she could do nothing but weather the torture.

Advisor Gudren appeared in front of her between blinks, a snarl on his face.

He raised a hand, and the swell of noise in her head grew.

The world stopped making sense.

Colours became sounds, and sounds became feelings.

People were shouting around her, but she couldn’t do anything.

The agony was all-consuming.

It was the Ending, and it was coming for her.

Movement flashed in her periphery, and she saw a figure running towards her.

He launched himself in the air as Advisor Gudren raised his arm, a ball of shimmering Ever nestled in his palm.

Her eyes widened as Avi landed in front of her.

He bent his head and raised two fingers to his brow.

‘May the Ever keep you whole, and the Ellarch keep you safe. Tell your mother she was right.’

She gaped at him, unable to form words against the noise in her head.

Avi stood and turned to face the demigod.

He lifted his hands, and a tingly feeling of Ever washed over her, dampening the agony in her mind.

Avi stood tall and the pull of his Ever increased, channelled through Mystic Agnes’ smoky crystal, which Avi gripped in his outstretched palm.

Each blink Elva took was laboured, and in every second of darkness the fight seemed to continue in warped speed, leaving her gasping and breathless.

Avi brought his hands down in a sharp movement, sending a blast of Ever towards Fyn.

Blink .

Advisor Gudren shouted, surprise etched onto his face as he watched the rowan tree erupt in Avi’s flames.

Blink .

Avi reared back and sent another attack at the tree.

Splinters of burning wood exploded, shooting out to hit Fyn and Lonn below.

The runes seemed to vibrate, growing bigger, growing brighter.

Blink .

‘ Blasphemer, you shall pay! ’ The Voice of the Seacht finally unleashed a rope of magic.

It soared through the air, path visible from the lines of shimmer that trailed after it.

Elva screamed, clawing at her mind to try and move but she was too slow.

Advisor Gudren’s power hit Avi in the chest with a sickly crack.

His body flew backwards, blood raining from the open wound gaping in his chest.