Page 19 of Rising Out of the Darkness (Divine Guardians Duology #1)

My words caught in my throat as Liam held up something shiny.

The light reflected off the object and fluttered over Killian’s smirking face.

Held up high like a torch was the silver spoon I had tossed at Declan’s forehead last night.

Mouth agape, I struggled to find a retort, but there were no words, because they were right.

“I’ll keep this in my pocket from now on.

Not only has it proved to be a dangerous weapon, but it’s proved successful in aiding young maidens in distress from ravenous stomachs.

” Liam’s smile grew wider as he tucked the silver spoon into his pocket with a loving tap.

“Seems like it has the potential to save my life on more than one occasion.”

With a huff, my shoulders sagged in defeat. They both chuckled as we continued our way.

S weat beaded in droplets across my forehead as the midday sun scorched the tops of our heads.

“Any way those lovely Frost abilities you told me about could cool us down a little bit?”

Liam caught my smirk as he tugged the collar of his tunic to allow for a much-needed breeze from the stifling sun. Wiping his brow, he waggled his eyebrows up and down then released his dynamis towards Killian and me. A chill fluttered towards us as a few speckles of snow dusted the top of my nose.

“I’m unsure if I should be in awe or revolted.” I snorted. “All I can think about right now is the fact that I’m covered in frozen flurries of your sweat.”

Laughter burst from Killian.

“I think the words you were looking for are ‘thank you,’” Liam grinned.

“Umm … thank you?”

“Anytime, little lady.”

My gaze wandered over the guard behind me. “Your turn, Killian. Why don’t you just zephyr us to the nearest place with water, or, for that matter, why not just take us to the capital itself?”

Killian scoffed. “As I told you earlier, there are limits to our dynamis.”

I rolled my eyes. “I know, I know,” I sighed dramatically. “You just said you could only zephyr for about five trips. Any further and you would drain your dynamis. So…why don’t you just zephyr us to the closest stopping point then? It can’t be that far, right?”

“Though my dynamis may be strong, unfortunately I cannot zephyr all of us and two horses. Tried once, it did not end well.” He grimaced.

My mouth hung wide open and it sent Killian and Liam into a fit of giggles.

I elbowed Killian in the gut. “Truly though, if I could, I would have done it by now, because it’s as hot as Hells out here!

” He sighed as he rubbed where I elbowed him.

“Alas, that is just one thing we cannot do. As I said?—”

“— everything has its limits, including dynamis.”

A whistle pierced through the group, averting all eyes to the broody leader at the head of the pack.

Declan pointed to the left side of the road, and I sighed with relief at the sight of the creek that came into view.

After we dismounted our horse, Killian guided her by the reins towards the edge of the rippling water, and I took the opportunity to cool myself down as well.

The knees of my pants became damp from the wet ground beneath them as I splashed the water across my face. It slid down my face as I rubbed my wet palm over the back of my neck. The trickle of the creek murmured against my ear as I took a moment to soak it in.

Tension that had been caged in my shoulders and back began to melt away. Nature had always had a way of bringing me back to life, healing me in a way no elixir or dynamis could. A familiar awareness prickled the hairs of my arms.

Opening my eyes, I turned towards the direction of the pull I felt, and my gaze landed directly on the Lord of Shadows.

One hand rested on the mane of the brawny stallion beside him while his mouth hung agape.

When our eyes collided, his lips slammed shut as he turned his body and gave me a full view of his back instead.

My curiosity lingered only a moment more before I rose from the edge of the lake. Mud clung to my pants as I worked on brushing it off, just like the thoughts that swirled inside my head about the prince.

Another guard sauntered up with his horse beside me. Before he bent down to refill his waterskin, he tossed me a nod. It reminded me that I should refill my own water before we got back on our journey. Killian had already taken his horse back to the road, so I began to make my way towards them.

After a few short paces, a high-pitched squeal startled me. I turned just in time to see the chaos that unfolded before me.

The guard who had been next to me now rolled on the ground, avoiding the hooves of his horse as she reared.

Before I could figure out what had caused her distress, she changed directions and barreled straight towards me.

My breath hitched as my legs froze. I begged every part of my body to move, but it was too late, fear had taken over.

With eyes slammed shut, my hands rose in front of my body, my only shield against the scared mare. Panic filled my veins with fire as I felt it pulse against my skin. As I closed my eyes, I braced for an impact that never came.

Shouts echoed all around me, but all were muddled as white light burst from inside me. The horse reared up once more, squealing as she changed direction and galloped away. A heavy hand landed on top of my shoulder, and I almost jumped out of my own skin.

“Elena, it’s okay,” Killian soothed. “You alright?”

I stared down at the scorched ground underneath me.

Am I alright?

“Elena?”

“I…uh…” The words were stuck in my throat. I swallowed, wetting my dry lips before trying again. “I—think so.”

He eyed me cautiously, probably noticing my wild eyes and trembling hands. “Good, because we need your help.”

It took my brain a moment to catch up on his words.

“Oh, no, the horse—d-did I hurt it?” Tightness coiled around my throat as it threatened to close at the thought.

My bottom lip stung under my teeth as I balled my hands into fists, as if the action would stop the dynamis from being spewed from them once more.

“No, Elena. The horse is fine, I promise. A guard was bitten by a snake, and he’s not doing so well.” Killian’s brow furrowed.

Clearing my throat, I forced every hint of my own panic down deep inside and replaced it with a mask of tranquility. “Then let’s go help him.”

T here wasn’t a Healer among the small group of guards, but they did have a small satchel of cloth wraps and a few elixirs for different purposes, none of which were useful for poison.

I had known it was poison from the moment I saw the guard’s bloodshot eyes.

When I lifted his pant leg, dark lines had already spread like vines underneath his skin from the bite wound.

My greatest fear confirmed. This man didn’t have much time, and I had to work fast.

There was one plant that I knew would work, at least until we reached the nearest town, but I had spotted it a while back alongside the road.

“I need you to take me to a specific plant I saw on our way here.” I said hastily, as I swiped away a bead of sweat as it slipped over my brow.

“I’ll take you.” Declan’s deep voice stirred from behind me. Another guard took the reins of the spooked horse from his hands. Declan must have gone to fetch her when she galloped away. His lips formed into a thin line as he took in his guard lying in agony on the grass behind me.

He extended his hand towards me. When I hesitated to grab it, his eyes thinned into slits. “Elena,” his tone so low it made me shiver. “Take. My. Hand.”

I jumped at his forceful command and took his hand. He tugged me into him, then a gust of wind enveloped us.

When we finally landed, my hand flew to my lips and I tried desperately not to retch.

“Sorry, I should have warned you.” He smirked. I returned it with a glare, removing my hand now that the nausea had dissipated. “Longer bursts of zephyring will have those affects.”

“Noted,” I said tersely.

We’d landed precisely in the area where I had observed the overgrown field of sidra root.

To the untrained eye, this would just look like a field of weeds, which indeed it was.

However, these weeds had one of the strongest medicinal benefits for removing anything unwanted that poisoned the body.

In certain times of the year, they blossomed like white flowers in the shape of a star. Thus, how it had received its name.

Suddenly, I realized I had never mentioned any of that to Declan or where exactly to take me.

“How did you know that this was what I needed?” I rapidly plucked as many green leaves as I could and shoved them into my pockets.

Running a hand behind his neck, he chewed on the inside of his cheek.

“Well?” I raised an eyebrow. My pockets overflowed with enough sidra root to help the guard and keep him comfortable until we could get him a more powerful elixir, or a Healer.

“My cousin is a Healer and my mother…” he breathed, his voice faltering. “She had a fascination with anything flora.”

Adoration for his mother flowed through in each word, and the familiar ache tugged inside my chest. That same feeling that had curled itself around me whenever he was around.

Clearing his throat, the prince wrapped an arm around my waist, shoving me into his chest. In two blinks, a gust of wind and shadows consumed us, and then we were back with everyone else.

Lying on the ground, paler than when we’d left, was the guard. I wobbled over, remnants of nausea from being zephyred still wafting through me. Pulling out all the items, I got to work, determined not to add another name to the list of those I’d lost.