Page 14 of Of Stars and Lightning (Sun and Shadows #1)
Ten
LEON
LEON HADN’T SEEN so many Jinn since—well, ever. Irene had told him stories, stories he always thought she exaggerated. But the day Sol left Yavenharrow, he realized they might have been under exaggerated.
The demons came from everywhere. From every crack in the land and pocket of the sea, they flooded into town with their waxy skin and rancid smiles. It took him and Lora two full days to contain the invasion and a whole heap of Dark Magic.
The townsfolk who hadn’t been slaughtered, fled. The ones who remained were Wielders on travels, most committed to helping Lora when her identity was revealed. It was hard to abandon the only human on Erriadin that could wield Dark Magic.
“How are you?” Leo knelt beside her, the town around them a silent snapshot of pure massacre. Even the air itself seemed to hum with unease.
Lora inhaled calculated, careful breaths. “Fine.”
“You used a lot of magic.”
“Had to.”
“We could have fled.”
Lora shook her head. “Irene had a reason to protect Yavenharrow, one she wouldn’t share even with me. But I trust her judgment.”
Leo sighed and looked out toward the town square. Buildings stood broken with roofs tilted from the fights. Typically, Air Singers could avoid landmarks with their winds, but Leo was untrained. The little he knew about his magic had come from Irene, who hadn’t been an Air Singer.
He kicked pebbles away from Lora and cursed his father silently for being a coward and choosing not to train him. He gritted his teeth at the realization that the invasion was probably his doing.
“Do you think this is my fault?” Leo asked softly, sinking to the ground. “Because I told them she was here?”
Lora’s gaze turned distant, hazed, the whites of her eyes stained red. “I think they were close to finding her anyway.”
“Her Court?”
“The Jinn.”
Leo swallowed. “How do you think she is doing? I—feel guilty not telling her I knew.”
Lora stood, brushing dust from her skirts. Her fair, worn face was stained with mud. “Fine. Probably pissed at one of those four by now, but she’s alive. I’d know otherwise.” She absentmindedly caressed the scar on her palm. “And don’t feel guilty, Leon. We were all told not to tell her anything.”
Leo sighed, knowing she was right. When Irene pulled him aside at fifteen and asked him what he would do for Sol, he’d meant it when he said “anything.” But he could never have imagined what he agreed to.
“That was dumb, Lora. A blood bond?” He eyed the scar. “Sol shouldn’t be near that at all.”
“It was my only way to know she’s okay, Leon. I was in a time crunch.”
Blood bonds were born from the pits of Dark Magic.
A sliver of the mage’s blood spilled into the receiving person, then took hold of their skin in the form of a raised, red scar.
Not only could one tell if the other person died, but—as was its main purpose—the caster could control and siphon their own magic to the receiver.
At a price, of course.
“I won’t be lending her Dark Magic if that’s what you're thinking.” Lora raised a brow. “Don’t need Arnold getting a whiff I’m alive, though I’m sure word of this mess will reach him soon.”
Leo angled his head. “Are you really okay?”
The mage’s eyes were sunken, shadows and veins all over her skin. Wordlessly, she nodded and made back into the Hound Inn, a tattered mess in the aftermath of war. “I feel okay—but if I start looking blue and smiling cynically, please do kill me, boy.”