Page 208 of Scorched Earth

Dead.

Dareena screamed curses and shot arrows after Rufina, but Killian couldn’t move from where he’d fallen to his knees in the mud and blood.

Seldrid had him by the shoulders. “Are you hurt?”

Killian pulled off his helmet and cast it aside, shaking his head to try to clear the visions filling it. God towers falling one after another until only the black tower of the Seventh remained. “I think Revat has fallen.”

His brother went still. “Killian, that’s not possible. The Cel army is in Emrant.”

“I saw it. The towers falling.” He scrubbed at his eyes. “I can’t stop seeing it.”

Dareena knelt before him. “Has something happened to Lydia?”

“I don’t know.” Killian dug his fingers into the ground, a scream boiling up from his insides. “This was a trick. A ruse to keep us from aiding Revat. A gambit to keep me from going to her.” He slammed his fists against the ground. “I was supposed to be with her!”

Every part of him was rage and fear and grief, and Killian wanted to lash out. To hurt and maim and do something, anything, to free himself from the horror that threatened to drown him.

Lunging for his bow, he chased after his horse to get an arrow from the quiver fixed to his saddle. “Where is she?” he screamed, aiming at the sky. “Where are you, Rufina!”

He shot arrow after arrow, howling in fury until Dareena and Seldrid dragged him to the ground.

“Rufina’s gone!” Dareena’s face was inches from his, hidden by darkness. “She got what she wanted and did not linger. Now tell me exactly what you saw!”

“I saw the god towers of the Six collapsing across Revat, smashing the city to ruins,” he whispered. “All that remained was the Seventh’s tower.”

“Killian, are you certain you didn’t take a blow to the head during the fight?” his brother asked.

“I didn’t hit my head. It was a vision.”

“I’ve never heard of Tremon’s marked receiving visions.”

“And I’ve never heard of Tremon taking a sword from one place and giving it to a person half a continent away, and yet he did just that for Killian,” Dareena said. “Killian, when you spoke with Tremon and he gave you your father’s sword, did he touch you again, as Hegeria did Lydia?”

He blinked through tear-swollen eyes. “Yes.”

Dareena gave a slow nod. “Then I believe you see truly. Revat has fallen, though it remains to be seen how such a thing occurred.”

Adra let out a wail of despair and fell to her knees. Seldrid went to his wife and pulled her into his arms, giving words of comfort where there was none to be had. Killian squeezed his eyes shut, allowing grief to pull him down and down, because if Lydia was lost—

“Don’t even think it,” Dareena barked at him. Grabbing hold of his shoulders, she gave him a rough shake. “Lydia is clever and resourceful, but more than that, she has the capacity to endure what would kill anyone else. Focus your mind instead on what Rufina’s actions tell us. She clearly knew Lydia was in Revat with Malahi, and the fact that she went through this effort to keep you from going to her suggests that they were on the right track. That the Seventh perceives whatever Lydia and Malahi might learn in Revat as a threat to his plans.”

“They had no time. How much could they have learned?”

“Who can say?” Dareena replied. “But we do them no service weeping in the mud. We must hold Rufina back until they have time to return with whatever they have learned. Because I choose to have faith that theywillreturn.”

Killian wanted to believe her. Wanted to share her hope, except his hopes always seemed to burn to ash.

“This group of blighters is but one of many forming behind our army’s lines.” Dareena let go of him and sat back on her heels. “We need to track them down and stop them. We must do our duty to the queen so that all is not lost when she returns. Now get up.”

Killian stood, but he felt unsteady on his feet.

All around him were the soldiers who’d fought, torchlight illuminating the splatter of blood from the blighters they’d killed. They watched him and Dareena, looking for a path through the horror pressing in on all sides.

“Which way did she fly?”

“North, I think. With Niotin—” Dareena’s voice broke off with a choked sob of grief, but she wiped blood off her face and steadied her breath. “With Niotin lost, we have no way to know.”

Killian drew in a steadying breath and shoved his emotions behind a wall, forcing himself to focus. “Dareena, break our force into groups and start hunting down blighters that have risen behind the front lines. Use dogs to track them.”