Page 5 of Shardless (Tempris #1)

-From the personal diary of Talya Caro

I had the dream again last night. The dream about the fire.

It began differently this time. Rather than being shaken awake as the fires blazed outside, it started out peacefully. I was standing in a garden with a man that seemed so familiar to me. His face was scarred, but his eyes were kind. He made me feel safe. But when I tried to focus on anything else about him—the color of his hair, the clothes he wore, or even his name—the more difficult it became to stay present.

We were walking a circuitous garden path, and my hands danced through an intricate series of gestures. Gold dust started to materialize and weave itself around my fingers, and in my dream, it almost felt like that energy was a natural part of me—an extension of something deep inside that I’ve somehow forgotten.

The dream skipped forward at that point. No matter what, no matter how many times I relive this same nightmare, I always end up face-to-face with a woman. She’s speaking, but I can’t quite make out her words. It’s as though we’re underwater.

And that is where the dream always ends. Every time, I wake with the same alarming sense that something awful has happened to that woman. I dream so often of her. In contrast to the man, I can recall every detail about her. Her face. The dimple in her cheek. Even the spatters of blood that dot her fingernails as she strokes my hair. I don’t even know if she’s real, and yet, I’m always left with an inexplicable sense of loss.

Taly gasped, startled awake by a familiar sense of dread. The illusory sting of smoke still clouded her eyes and sweat beaded on her brow as she emerged from the already fading memory of the blistering heat.

Taking a deep breath, she sunk into the mattress as the rapid beat of her heart began to slow. This particular nightmare was nothing new. She’d been reliving the night of the fire that stole away her old life for as long as she could remember, so the initial terror, though acute, was fleeting.

With a sigh, Taly stubbornly pulled the impossibly soft quilt over her chin and flopped onto her side, wriggling until she was fully ensconced inside a cocoon of fluffy blue blankets. How could it be morning already? It felt like she had gone to bed only moments ago.

I guess that’s what a soft bed will do for you. Shards, I miss soft beds. And food. And champagne. Shards, how much coin did Ivain and Sarina throw away on just champagne last night?

She tried cracking open her eyes again, flinching away from the bright light streaming in through a gap in the curtains. A quick glance around her old room immediately confirmed her worst fears. She really had agreed to come back to the manor.

Taly still wasn’t quite sure how she had ended up here. She had successfully avoided coming back home for nearly a year, and then Skye had somehow talked her into returning within the span of a few minutes. It was almost pitiful if she really thought about it.

That doesn’t matter now. What’s done is done. As nice as it had been to be reunited with all the people she loved most—eating and laughing together like she had never walked out on them—she needed to leave. She would finish the job today and then go back to her new life. Even if nothing bad had happened in the past year, she was no longer comfortable staying here. Not with her… condition .

As if to reinforce that thought, a gossamer fog fluttered across her vision.

Not again, Taly thought, bringing her hands up to shield her eyes. Most of the time, if she just took a deep breath and willed the visions to go away, they would.

When she dared to peek through her fingers, it became clear that wasn’t going to be the case today. The golden mist was still there, hovering in the far corner of the room. It flickered, its edges hazy and undefined until, finally, it molded itself into the ghostly likeness of a woman. As Taly continued to stare, the specter listlessly drifted across the perimeter of the room before coming to a stop in front of the door. It raised a hand as if to knock but then paused, its edges already blurring as the image dissolved.

These visions— premonitions, as she had started thinking of them—used to frighten her, but she had become accustomed to their sudden appearances at this point.

At least… that’s what she was still trying to tell herself.

In the beginning, she had hoped, prayed, pleaded with whatever might be listening, that she was just going crazy. After all, humans weren’t supposed to have magic. And every time an earth mage came to the island, she had considered going to see him, desperate for this strange power to be nothing more than an affliction.

But she never did. Because if it wasn’t an illness, easily cured with magic and medicine, if she really was seeing some version of the future…

The Sanctorum would not be kind to her. Or anyone stupid enough to try to protect her.

Taly listened closely, straining her ears for signs of movement. It was faint, but she could just make out the sound of measured footsteps as they echoed down the hallway. They came closer and closer, coming to a stop right outside her door. After a moment of hesitation, there was a soft knock.

“Taly?” came Sarina’s gentle voice from behind the door .

Her voice still raspy with sleep, Taly replied, “Yeah. I’m up.”

“I’m leaving your things outside the door. The others aren’t up yet, so take your time. Eliza’s already put on a pot of coffee—it’s downstairs when you’re ready.” With that, she heard Sarina turn and walk back down the hallway towards the stairs.

Stretching, Taly decided it was time to get out of bed. She was just postponing the inevitable at this point, and she had coin to earn. She had finally managed to corner Ivain and Skye the night before to get the details of the job. It was real. And while she knew they were overpaying her, she was desperate enough not to care.

When she went to retrieve her clothing, she wasn’t surprised to see that Sarina had taken it upon herself to make some substitutions—meaning that Taly had a completely new set of gear waiting for her outside her door. Not that she was going to complain. The leggings were a deep royal blue and lined with wool, and the ivory tunic was made of lightweight silk with sleeves that buttoned at her wrists. She had a new jacket too—black, waterproof canvas with a brindle fur trim around the hood.

She dressed quickly, admiring her reflection in the full-length mirror set against the wall as she tightened her belt holster. Even though her old wardrobe didn’t fit her nearly as well as it had only a year ago, she couldn’t help but preen—just a little bit. The coat pulled in at the waist, accentuating what was almost an hourglass figure, and even her hair had chosen to behave this morning, lying flat with only a very slight curl at the end. For the first time in months, her cheeks had color, and the circles under her eyes seemed a little less bruise-like.

“Not bad,” she murmured. It was remarkable how a single night of good food and even better company could transform a person.

Pulling herself away from the mirror, Taly dropped to the floor, groping underneath the bed for the brown parcel she’d hidden there before dinner last night. She really hoped this little project didn’t turn out to be a waste of coin. Eyeing the door warily, she stepped over and turned the lock before settling back onto the bed to unwrap the package. The paper came away easily, revealing two translucent hyaline pistols.

When the first firearms had started coming through the Aion Gate from the mortal realm, the shadow mages didn’t know what to make of them since even the smallest amount of aether could render human gunpowder completely inert. It had taken a few years, but eventually, a particularly industrious crafter managed to mimic the human firing mechanisms using fire crystals.

Unfortunately, the transition wasn’t completely seamless. The smaller handguns that Taly preferred just didn’t have enough room for both a shadow crystal large enough to power the circuit and the necessary focusing crystal required to transform the raw aether drawn from the power source into fire aether. Even under the best circumstances, the shadow crystals completely discharged after only a few shots, making the converted firearms impractical in combat scenarios.

With this new design, however, Taly was hoping to change that. Despite their drawbacks, she had always had a fondness for pistols. Guns felt solid, more so than a simple bow. And as a human, if she could avoid getting into close-range with a fey combatant, all the better.

She glanced in the mirror one last time, making sure that the illegal firearms were well hidden beneath the hem of her coat, before setting out.

Taly tiptoed through the house, easily navigating the familiar path out the back door and through the training yard to the workshop, a spacious single-story structure situated at the back edge of the main property.

The door to the shop was a great massive thing, old but sturdy. She hadn’t been able to open it on her own until she was fourteen, and even then, she had trouble. Setting down a steaming cup of coffee she had grabbed on her way through the kitchens, Taly leaned against the door and pushed hard. It groaned in protest but eventually slid to the side. A blast of cold air immediately rushed out of the open doorway, and she shivered as she stepped inside. She took a sip of coffee, relishing the warmth.

The inside of the dusty workshop was a welcoming sight. The forge in the back corner was unlit, so the air inside the main room was unusually crisp. An array of hammers, tongs, and files hung neatly to the side, and she could see the anvil and quench tank tucked into a corner.

She slowly made her way to the back of the room, trailing one hand across the various crystals, quills, and other enchanting tools that had been left strewn across the benches.

Skye’s personal workbench was chaos (nothing new there). Evidently, all the hard work she’d done trying to bring order to his crafting station had completely disintegrated in her absence. There were random piles of crystals, the odd piece of scrap metal, dirty inkwells, and discarded pieces of crumpled parchment littering every available surface.

In the middle of it all sat a polished longsword. The blade was made of a dull, gray metal that almost seemed to absorb the light around it, and blood-red crystals had been embedded in even intervals along the ornately swirled hilt and cross. Taly ran a finger along one of the gemstones set into the flourished sweepings. The rich color and startling clarity made the fire crystals shine like rubies in the dim light of the workshop.

A cup extended below the sweeping curls of metal encircling the guard, and an intricately carved relief of House Ghislain’s crest, a dragon surrounded by violet tendrils of coiling shadow magic, had been etched into the surface of the metal. Black leather cord enveloped the grip, parting in even intervals to reveal three deep violet shadow crystals.

The artistry of the blade came as no surprise to Taly. Skye had always had a special talent for etchings and carvings. When they were younger, he used to practice by whittling little animals out of wood that he would then present to her whenever she needed cheering up. No, what truly made this sword unique was the row of glittering air crystals embedded along the length of the blade.

Taly remembered when Skye had first shown her the plans for the sword. She thought he was crazy at the time, but it seemed he had gone and done it anyway .

Tucked beneath the weapon, Taly spied a small slip of paper, the edge of what looked like a glamograph. Glamographs were pictures created with aether-infused paper and a glamera—a small device programmed with a simple water enchantment. The humans had created something similar called a camera , undoubtedly copied from the fey device after its inventor had accidentally stumbled through the Aion Gate.

Taly immediately recognized the picture as she pulled it out from beneath the clutter. She had an identical copy hidden away in her room at the tavern. It was from her 18 th birthday, and Skye’s arm was slung around her as they sat on the front steps of the manor, laughing. Though she had been reticent at first, he had convinced her to let him take her into town that night, insisting that he should have the honor of buying her the first beer she would drink as an “adult.” Sarina had made them stop as they were leaving, and they had sat down on the steps, waiting for the older fey noblewoman to return with the glamera. Skye had been telling her some stupid joke, and Sarina had snapped the picture when they weren’t looking.

“I see you found it already,” a voice drawled from behind her.

Taly hastily tucked the picture back underneath the sword. She hadn’t expected Skye to get up before early afternoon. “What? The sword? Yeah. It’s beautiful. How did you keep the fire crystal from overheating the circuit? With the enchantment diagram you showed me originally, you would’ve had to route the aether flow through the fire crystal first. Air focusing crystals are so finicky when it comes to internal temperature.”

Reaching for the sword, Skye hefted it and gave it an experimental swing. “That’s my little secret. Although, I did break a lot of crystals in the process. Ivain threatened to disown me on more than one occasion.”

Taly snorted. “I can imagine.” Then, with an appreciative smile, she said, “But you did it. So, I will gladly concede that I was wrong. In this case, at least.”

Skye grabbed his chest in mock horror. “Now, I’ve seen just about everything. Princess Tink can be wrong?” He held up a hand to her forehead. “Are you sure you’re alright? I think we need to get you back to bed immediately.”

“I’m not that bad,” Taly muttered, shoving him away. It seemed some of the familiarity they had recovered the previous night hadn’t completely disappeared. She probably had Sarina to thank for that. She had kept their champagne glasses quite full. “I’m usually quite agreeable. You’re just an ass.”

Chuckling to himself, Skye turned to sheathe the sword in a scuffed, leather scabbard while Taly started absentmindedly tidying the bench. She was just finishing sorting the crystals by type when she jumped back and said, “Oh! I almost forgot.” She reached for her dagger. “Since you were complicit in trapping me here—"

“Yes— trapping you. In a place with hot water, ample food, and soft beds among people who care about you, your well-being, and your safety. I’m a truly awful person, I know.” Skye made no attempt to hide the sarcastic edge to his voice as he turned to glare at her. “But go on.”

“Yes, all of those things,” she replied, unaffected by his teasing. “I was hoping you could repay me by repairing my dagger.” She held out the weapon for his inspection. It was a plain little thing. There was a single, dull air crystal embedded in the blade and a shadow crystal mounted on the hilt. When he continued to stare at her blankly, she added, “Please? It stopped firing last week.”

With a beleaguered sigh, he took the dagger and held it up to the window behind his bench. “I can’t believe you still have this thing. It’s so awful.”

“Hey! Don’t talk about Zephyr that way. She’s sensitive.” Taly punched him in the arm for emphasis.

“Terribly sorry. I forgot that Princess Tink’s special power is granting sentience to inanimate objects,” he responded drolly. The crystal in the hilt flashed as he used his magic to push a small amount of aether into the circuit. “The shadow crystal is fine—shitty but fine. Here,” he said, handing the dagger back to her, “show me what it’s doing.”

Skye tossed a wadded-up piece of parchment into the air, and Taly held up the dagger, depressing the tiny toggle mounted beneath the guard. She tensed as the blade lurched in her grip, and a pitiful gust of wind sputtered out of the tip. It didn’t even reach the little ball of paper as it landed and rolled off into a corner.

Skye looked at her with a smirk. “Wow, Tink. I used to be jealous of your aim, but now? I don’t know.”

Taly pursed her lips and threw the dagger on his workbench. “You watch your mouth, Em.” She didn’t miss the small smile that tugged at his lips at her use of his old nickname. She was only six years old when she came to the manor, and she hadn’t been able to pronounce his last name—Emrys. So, she had taken to calling him Em . “This has nothing to do with my aim, and you know it.”

Skye laughed as he turned and started to rifle through a stack of parchment. Finding a page that had a series of crimson runes inscribed down the side, he sat down on the bench and set to work. “You know, I’m much better at setting air crystals now. I could make you a new dagger. This thing—it’s just a stain on my reputation at this point.”

Taly shrugged noncommittally as she leaned against the table. She had always liked watching him work. Skye might be arrogant, but no one could deny that he had the skills to back up the ego.

Choosing a quill, he pricked his index finger and held it over the page. A single drop of blood dripped onto the surface. Before the wound managed to heal itself, he held his hand over a clean inkwell and let the remaining fluid trickle out. Since shadow mages didn’t need to refine the aether they absorbed from the air into a specialized form, they had raw aether dissolved in their blood. That meant the more traditional uses of their magic tended to be tied up with bloodletting. As a child, Taly had been surprised to learn about this little quirk in their magic, but she had become accustomed to it over the years. She only felt a little squeamish now whenever she saw Ivain and Skye slice open their hands with ceremonial daggers.

Skye gave her a knowing look as he placed the dagger directly over the crimson stain and touched the quill to the shadow crystal inlaid at the base of the blade. The script on the edge of the page began to glow as it pulled aether out of the surrounding air.

“The rune on your air crystal is starting to fade. At the very least, it needs to be re-inscribed, but I’m thinking the entire crystal is probably going to need to be replaced eventually. From what I can tell, you’re still getting aether feeding in from the shadow crystal, but the air crystal just isn’t converting it to air aether efficiently enough. For now, I can increase the amount of aether that’s getting pulled for each shot—overload the circuit—but that’s going to drain your shadow crystal pretty quickly.” Skye glanced at her briefly before turning his attention back to the dagger. Dipping his quill into the inkwell, he penned a few additional crimson runes around the base of the grip before setting down his quill. “While I’m at it, do you need anything else looked at?”

“Let me check,” Taly replied, pulling out her new pistols from the holsters hidden beneath her coat and placing them on the bench for his inspection. She also retrieved a small drawstring pouch from her pack and dumped its contents out on the table. “I think that’s it. I just had the fire crystals for my lamp re-inscribed, so they should be fine, but it can’t hurt to check.”

He began picking through the little pile of crystals, occasionally holding one up to the light and running a finger over the runes carved into the surface. As he finished examining each one, he carefully placed it back in the bag. “These are fine—for now. They won’t last long, though. Whoever inscribed these runes did a piss-poor job. I’d try to fix these for you, but this is beyond my ability to patch. I’d need to get a fire mage here to look at these.” He handed the pouch back to her and then moved his attention to the pistols. “Is this what was in that package last night?” he asked, picking up one of the crystalline handguns and turning it over in his hands.

“Yup.” Taly shifted her weight nervously. “I’m testing a new theory.”

“Is this what I think it is?” he asked, scowling. He tapped the crystal frame and looked at her pointedly.

“If you were thinking hyaline, then yes,” Taly said shakily, fidgeting with one of the stray crystals on the bench. She knew Skye would have a small conniption once he found out she had been meddling in a few harmless, illegal activities, but she was hoping his curiosity would win out in the end. She really wanted his feedback on her latest idea. “And before you freak out, I only used hyaline for the frame. And the magazine. And the slide. And the barrel. Okay, it’s mostly hyaline.”

“Talya Caro!” Skye exclaimed, running an anxious hand through his hair. “What the hell were you thinking?! Hyaline? Are you crazy?”

Taly rocked back on her heels. “I know you’re mad, but you’re also curious, right?”

“Shards.” He placed the gun back on the bench with a thud. “Yes. Yes, I am. So, go on. You have one minute.”

“I can work with that,” Taly said enthusiastically, shoving him over as she sat on the bench beside him. There was barely enough room for both of them, so she had to lean into him to keep from sliding off the edge. “So, you already know that the problem with guns is the same problem with any other enchanted weapon. Once the shadow crystals expend their aether, there’s no way to charge them back up quickly unless there just happens to be a shadow mage hanging around. On top of that, any shadow crystal small enough to fit into the circuit for a handgun is only going to be able to store enough aether to fire off a few rounds—meaning that after seven or eight shots, the gun is useless. I figured out a way to fix that problem.”

Smiling, Taly depressed a small button below the barrel. A hidden compartment in the frame slid out. Carefully removing the capsule inside, she held out the rectangular piece of metal for him to see.

“What is this?” Skye held up the metal object to the window, running a finger along the surfaces of the embedded shadow and fire crystals.

“It’s a cartridge,” she explained. “This piece and the inner spring are made from an aether-conducting metal—viridian. With these, instead of installing the crystals in the gun itself, both the shadow crystal and the fire crystal for the firing mechanism get set into the cartridge. That way, when the shadow crystal runs out of power, the cartridge just pops out, and you can replace it.” Reaching into her pack, Taly pulled out a handful of identical cartridges.

Skye took the cartridges and laid them side-by-side on the bench, studying each one with rapt interest.

Resting her chin on her hand, she continued, “This way, the gun keeps firing. And then when you drag your still-alive ass back into town, your resident shadow mage can do all the necessary handwaving and such” —she paused to demonstrate, earning a snort from Skye— “and the newly charged cartridge fits back into the chamber. The viridian still conducts aether the same way any enchanted weapon would, but the cartridge makes it interchangeable. Carry enough cartridges around, and suddenly you have a weapon that’s good for more than a few cheap shots.”

“So why use hyaline then? Why not use a metal that conducts aether?” Skye started disassembling the handgun, turning each piece over in his hands before he laid it on the bench in front of him.

Taly shrugged. “Because you don’t really need to use a conducting metal for every piece of the gun. The first firearms were made from metals because that’s just how traditional enchanted weapons are made. But this is different from, say, a sword or an ax. The entire pistol doesn’t need to conduct aether—just the firing mechanism. And since aether can’t move through hyaline, I thought it might make the aether transfer from the shadow crystal to the fire crystal more efficient. Plus, hyaline is harder than the metals used in the vast majority of weapons, and it doesn’t conduct heat.”

Skye sat stunned for a moment. “Taly, I…” He stopped, unsure how to go on. “Where did you get the idea for this?”

Taly reassembled the handgun with a few practiced motions before placing it back on the table. “Remember when Sarina taught us how humans had figured out a way to store energy in these little metal cylinders and use them as interchangeable power sources? Kinda like shadow mages and shadow crystals? It was an interesting idea, so I tried to replicate it with our materials. If there had been more interest in guns when the first enchanted firearms hit the market, I’d be willing to bet good coin the crafters in the Shadow Guild would’ve come up with something similar—eventually. But everybody just sort of lost interest in guns small enough to be carried.”

Skye remained quiet for a long moment as he considered the two pistols laid side-by-side on the benchtop. “You know what would make this even better?” He paused, waiting for her to look at him. “The cartridge needs an air crystal. There’s more than enough room for one, and that would decrease the load on the fire crystal. You’re going to have a problem with heat buildup inside the frame. The way this is constructed right now—I bet you’re going to get some kickback.”

Taly stood up from the bench and stretched. “Yeah, I thought of that. But most shadow mages for hire can’t make fire and air crystals work together in perfect harmony. Not like some people.” She half-heartedly punched his shoulder, glancing at the sheathed sword that sat on the table behind them. “Plus, that would’ve been way more expensive. I spent three months eating sludge just to save enough money to get the metal for the cartridges. Don’t ask me how much it cost to have them made.”

“Yeah. There’s so little surface area on the cartridge—if you had used anything cheaper than viridian, you wouldn’t get nearly enough aether to the focusing crystal. Why didn’t you ask me? I could’ve made these for you, or at least given you the metals.”

Taly shrugged, looking away. “We didn’t exactly part on good terms the last time we spoke. Plus, you probably would’ve lectured me.”

“Yes. Yes, I would have,” Skye snapped. “Granted, this is kind of amazing, but hyaline mining is regulated by both the Genesis Council and the Dawn Court. There are some heavy penalties for illegal mining. How did you even get enough dead crystal to make these?”

Taly bounced in place. “I… found it,” she said with a secretive smile.

Skye looked like he wanted to say something else, but instead, he held up his hands in surrender and turned back to the bench. “So why didn’t you want to show me the guns last night?”

“Because you already looked like you wanted to lecture me about—well, knowing you—everything. I could see it in your eyes,” Taly replied, waggling her finger. “Plus, they’re my new toys, and I wanted to spend some alone time with them before I let you manhandle them.”

“You are so weird,” Skye chuckled, his irritation seeming to evaporate. “I hope you know that.” Holding one hand over the parchment and dagger that had been pushed to the side of the table, he said, “Well, my work here is done. Zephyr should be good as new in about an hour. Are you sure you don’t want a better dagger? Maybe even a short sword?” He jerked his head towards the door to the armory at the far side of the room. “Ivain and I have stuff in there that we literally haven’t touched in years. You can take your pick.”

Taly smiled and shook her head. “Nope. I like Zephyr.”

“Okay.” Skye stood and started heading towards the door of the workshop. “What do you want to do while we wait?”

Taly followed him out into the training yard. The sun had chased away some of the chill, and the smell of early morning dew saturated the air.

Taly leaned against the wall of the workshop. “Do you have everything you need for the trip to the Aion Gate? ”

“You act like this is my first time outside of the city, Tink.” Skye’s voice carried just a hint of derision, but mirth colored his expression.

“Okay, okay,” Taly acquiesced easily. Pushing herself away from the door, she rounded on him, pretending to inspect him carefully. “We could spar. We used to do that all the time when we got bored.”

“Or Sarina just wanted us out of the house,” Skye added with a laugh. His good humor was short-lived, though, and a look of pain flitted across his expression. “I don’t feel like sparring.”

Taly snorted indelicately. “Since when? You’ve never turned down an opportunity to kick my ass.”

“Just… I said no.” Grabbing a dagger from the rack on the wall, he stepped over to one of the training dummies.

“Oh, come on.”

“No, Taly. The last time we sparred, I hurt you, and then you left.” His eyes were hard as he swung the dagger in a practiced motion.

Way to ruin the mood, Caro. She knew Skye still blamed himself for what happened during their sparring match that day, but it wasn’t his fault. After all, it wasn’t the first time he had discharged a dagger while she was holding it. There was no reason it should’ve hurt her the way it did, and no way they could’ve known that it would. Really, it was what happened after that was the real problem. Just after she’d dropped to her knees screaming in pain, her vision had clouded with gold, and she had started seeing things that hadn’t happened yet.

I need to fix this, she thought. It was one thing to push him away. It was another, entirely, to let him think it was his fault.

Well, Skye had exploited her weaknesses to get what he wanted. Turnabout was fair play.

Dirt crunched underneath her boots as she entered the training yard, circling him thoughtfully. When he lowered his dagger, she sauntered towards him, trying to muster some bravado. “I get it. You’re scared.” She punctuated the statement with an arrogant smile.

Skye frowned. “Scared of hurting you, yes.” He grabbed her hand and held it up between them. “Here’s the evidence, right here.” His thumb grazed the small scar centered at the base of her palm. “You’re too fragile, Tink.” When Taly arched a brow in response, he said, “Don’t give me that look. You know exactly what I mean. You’re human, I’m fey. I could kill you without even trying.”

He had a point there. Still...

“This?” Taly squeaked, jerking her hand away. “This was just a fluke. You know that. I know that. But if it makes you feel any better, you could not use your magic. I hardly think it’ll be a fair fight, though.” She pursed her lips and shrugged in mock sympathy. “You always were a little slow when you weren’t using aether.”

She knew the exact moment she had him. That narrowing of his eyes. That smirk. She had to consciously fight the urge to crow victoriously.

He raked an appraising eye down the length of her body. “Okay, Caro . But first— terms .”

“Oh, so you’re a betting man now?” she taunted, taking a few steps back as he started to round on her. “Name them.”

“If I win…” He paused, making sure she wasn’t going to say anything cheeky. She gave him an innocent smile, so he continued, “If I win, you have to come to the manor once a week for dinner.”

“No deal.”

“Fine, once every two weeks.”

“Skye,” she warned. “No.”

“I’m not backing down on this. You’ve lost too much weight since you moved out.” Taly grimaced, but either Skye didn’t see it, or he chose to ignore it. “And you have to start using me for all of your weapon crafting and crystal maintenance. Exclusively—none of that overpriced back-alley shit anymore. Whoever inscribed your fire crystals ripped you off. You need to start using better vendors, which I happen to have access to.”

Taly opened her mouth to speak, but Skye interrupted her. “ And, you have to let me give you a better dagger.”

Taly stared him down, quietly considering his terms. She knew that she shouldn’t take this bet. Skye was fey and a highborn. Even without magic, a highborn’s reflexes, strength, and speed were far superior to their lowborn brethren and orders of magnitude above what a mortal could manage. Taly had been sparring with Skye for almost ten years, but as a human, no amount of training would ever allow her to match his natural gifts. As much as she hated to admit it, she couldn’t beat him. Not without help.

Of course, she wasn’t completely without help, now was she? Taly smiled when she saw a gold aura materialize around Skye. His ghostly shadow peeled away from his body, walking one step ahead of him as he circled her. If she knew what he was going to do, where he was going to be, before he did, that skewed the odds in her favor. And while it was probably a little stupid to encourage this ability to manifest, she would really enjoy being able to beat Skye without having to wonder if he’d let her win. Just once—just to know what that felt like.

She opened her mouth to speak, but not before pausing momentarily to make sure Skye was finished with his extensive list of demands. When he nodded his assent, Taly said, “Wow! You want a lot. You’re going to have to let me think about this a minute. Let’s see. What do I want? What would even be comparable?” She stopped, pretending to consider his potential punishment carefully.

Oh , she thought excitedly. That would be fun. She had the perfect punishment for Skye. It was a little mean, but he’d probably done something to deserve it.

While Ivain entertained the Bryer siblings every summer because they were family, Aimee had never hesitated to make her true intentions known. She planned to marry Skye in the hopes of becoming the future Duchess of Ghislain. However, throughout the years, her clumsy and aggressive attempts to woo the future duke had not gone quite according to plan. In fact, she had only been successful, so far, in making Skye dread her presence at the manor only slightly less than Taly did. In this particular case, Taly could use that to her advantage.

With a snap of her fingers, Taly announced, “If I win, then you, Skylen Emrys, have to tell Aimee that you’re in love with her.”

Skye stared at her with wide eyes for a long moment, his mouth slack. Just when she was starting to think that she had broken him, he doubled over, his body shaking with uncontrollable laughter. As much as she tried to remain serious, Taly felt herself start to smile. “That’s so mean,” he gasped, glancing up at her. “You know if I do that, she’ll never leave. She will be here forever. Forever . A resident, overzealous, annoying pest.”

“Oh, I’m aware,” Taly said with a poorly suppressed chuckle. “But if I win, I won’t be here to witness that. I’ll just get to sleep soundly at night knowing that I was responsible for your future marital bliss.”

“It’ll be a cold day in hell,” Skye replied with a grimace. He hesitated for a moment, running a hand along his chin as he considered her proposal. A slow smile emerged. “Okay, Caro. You’re on,” he said, already confident in his victory. “I take it the usual rules apply?”

“No weapons and no magic. Three hits or a pin to win,” Taly agreed with a nod. She shrugged out of her coat and threw it off to the side. Then, pulling her old pistol from her boot, she tossed it onto the pile.

Skye followed suit, depositing his dagger and greatcoat with her gear, before stepping back and eyeing her up and down. Taly did the same. Even if she could predict his attacks, she shouldn’t underestimate him. He was bigger, faster, and better in close combat. A single mistake would cost her.

She watched him carefully, waiting for him to make the first move. He sidestepped around her, looking for an opening. Then she saw it. A faint golden specter—almost an afterimage—lunging forward. Even before Skye began to move, she shifted her weight, narrowly avoiding his attempt to grab her. He looked slightly taken aback, but he quickly recovered, twisting his body as he reached for her again.

He’s trying to grapple me . That was his best strategy, with his superior weight and strength.

Taly dodged his second lunge easily. She could sense his confusion—his ghostly aura was chaotically dancing this way and that in her peripheral vision as he planned his next move. He wasn’t certain what to do. Taly had always been quick on her feet, but he’d always been quicker.

Sensing his hesitation, she sprinted forward, punching him in the gut. He managed to slip to the side, partially deflecting the blow, but that didn’t matter. Even a partial blow counted. Those were the rules.

“That’s one!” Taly cheered, dancing backward out of his reach.

“Not bad, Caro,” he replied grudgingly.

Skye took a step back, and the golden mist crowded around him. She could see the moment he made his decision. The mist shifted, taking on a more corporeal form, and it shot out to her right. So she dodged left, laughing lightly. “You’re going to have to do better than that, Emrys .” Taly couldn’t help giving him a cocky grin as he grasped at empty air.

“Okay.” He stopped to wipe the sweat from his brow. “You’re definitely better than you used to be. I guess I can get serious now.”

“You weren’t serious before?” Taly taunted. She couldn’t help but goad him a little. It was just too much fun. “Remember, if you lose, Aimee’s going to be moving in. And this time, I’ll gladly give her my room. I know you’re going to want her close by.”

Instead of replying, Skye abruptly charged. But Taly was watching his gilded doppelganger, and she anticipated his advance. She waited, letting him get close, before relaxing her body at the last moment, successfully ducking out of his grasp just as he reached for her. His fingers grazed her sleeve, but not enough to grab her. She rolled away, putting some distance between them.

Skye was starting to look frustrated now. He wasn’t used to being beaten. Not by a mortal, at least. He considered her stance, watched her movements—and Taly waited, her eyes trained on the glimmering aura only she could see. While her newfound ability had saved her life more than once on a salvaging run gone wrong, this was the first time she had ever used it in hand-to-hand combat. It was exhilarating.

“Giving up, Emrys?” she challenged.

“Not by a long shot, Caro. I’m going to be seeing you for dinner in two weeks’ time.”

Taly saw the psychic aura shudder restlessly, flickering in and out, starting to take form and then shifting back into a chaotic assembly of particles. He was thinking about flanking to the left, but he wasn’t sure yet.

Let’s help him make up his mind , she thought devilishly. She lowered her arms and stood a little straighter, just enough to relax her defensive posture and create a small opening. Just as she predicted, he took the bait. The aura condensed into a solid form and leaned to the left.

Taly braced herself when she saw him charge, waiting until he came a little closer to dodge. She made a slight miscalculation, however. Skye was fast, even for a highborn. She stepped to the side, but his hand shot out and found purchase in her collar. He dragged her in close, but she wasn’t going to be caught that easily. She twisted her body, grasping at the thin fabric of his shirt as she pulled herself forward and slammed her forehead into his nose. He released her as he rocked back and fell to one knee.

Taly giggled as she easily regained her footing and circled him. “That’s two!” she sang.

Wiping away a trickle of blood from his nose, he snapped, “That was a cheap shot, Caro.”

She ignored him. “So, tell me. How exactly do you intend to express your love to the young Miss Bryer? Flowers? Chocolate? Oh, I know,” Taly said, hopping from foot-to-foot. “You’ll probably take her to Halcyon Hill. That’s where you used to take all your dates in Ghislain, right? Oh, Shards—that is so sweet, Skye. I always knew you were a romantic.”

Skye looked up at her, his gaze cold and angry. The golden haze roiled and seethed around him. Taly tensed as she waited for him to determine his next move. She knew him. He was most likely going to charge her again.

A slow smirk began to surface, spreading his lips, and then he sprang forward. But this time, his specter kept pace with his movements.

What’s he doing?!

The aura split as he approached, darting to both the left and right simultaneously. It converged right where she stood. Taken aback by the sudden change, she hopped back a few steps, hoping to dodge his attack, but it wasn’t enough. He feinted right, and then flanked her from the left, grabbing her arm as he shoved her to the ground.

Taly fell, hitting the dirt hard. She had seen him pull back at the last moment, but she was still a little disoriented. Skye was much stronger than her, even when he pulled his punches.

He was crouched over her now, and he seemed far too pleased. As she started to regain her bearings, she tried to move, first her arms and then her legs. No luck.

Damn. He had her pinned.

Refusing to go down without a fight, she tried again, putting a little more effort into her struggle, only to be rewarded with a smug laugh from her captor.

“You’re going to have to do better than that, Tink.” He smiled as he extended one of her arms, reminding her that she was well and truly stuck. “Do you surrender?”

“I know the rules as well as you do,” Taly dodged, her brows knitting together in a frown.

Skye laughed and pulled at her other arm. “I know. But I want to hear you say it. C’mon, Tink. Let me hear those three little words I love so much. ‘ Em, you won .’ C’mon. You can do it.”

He was uncomfortably close as he searched her face, waiting for her to capitulate. She could feel the heat from his body even though they were barely touching, and the way his muscles flexed when she struggled against him made her stomach clench in a very confusing way. When she still didn’t submit, he shifted, letting more of his weight press against her as he pushed her into the ground. All she had to do was surrender, and he would help her up. Everything would go back to normal, and they’d have a good laugh.

She hated losing, though. Especially to him.

“Skylen!”

Taly saw his face fall just before he hung his head. Still unable to move, she whispered, “And there’s your biggest fan.”

He snorted humorlessly, his hair tickling her nose as he lifted his head to look at her. “Well, at least I managed to save myself from the horror you would have inflicted upon us all.”

Standing, he reached down and pulled her up with an ease that left her slightly off-balance. His hand hesitated at her waist as he waited for her to find her footing before he reluctantly turned to greet the girl that had just emerged from the house. “Good morning, Aimee.”

“And to you, Lord Emrys.” Aimee lowered herself into a deep curtsy, artfully arranging the voluminous, velvet folds of her skirts around her in a crimson halo.

Taly didn’t miss the subtle roll of his eyes. Gesturing for the young woman to rise, Skye asked, “What can I do for you?”

Aimee looked up, shock gracing her delicate fey features. “Oh! Talya. You’re here too?” She reached up to fidget with a raven curl, unable to completely conceal her irritation behind her schooled expression.

Really? Taly thought, recalling their unscheduled and uncomfortable meeting the night before.

Taly took a step forward, coming to stand next to Skye. She made no move to subserviate herself as the noblewoman’s superior station demanded. “Yes. I believe I had the pleasure of your re-acquaintance last night. I’m pleased to see the Shards blessed you with a safe journey.” Taly tried to smile, but it came off as more of a pained grimace.

Aimee smoothed her hands over the bodice of her gown, no doubt trying to draw Skye’s gaze towards the feminine dip of her waist. Even though the fey noblewoman didn’t participate in anything unladylike like sparring or being outdoors in general, her highborn blood still granted her a natural fitness and tone to her body that Taly had only ever been able to achieve after years of training in the ring with Skye. Seeing as how Taly had lost more muscle mass than she cared to admit over the past year, the disparity between the two girls was stark.

“I had no idea you were still… in residence . I offer you my sincerest apologies for any discomfort I may have caused,” Aimee replied in the cultured accent of the mainland nobility. The look in those inhumanely blue highborn eyes was anything but sincere.

Taly took that as her cue to exit and gave a curt nod. Skye grabbed her arm as she moved away. “Please don’t leave me with her,” he whispered desperately.

Prying away his fingers, she said through gritted teeth, “No. This is your problem. Not mine. So play nice, have fun, and keep her away from me.”

Walking back towards the workshop, Taly smiled when she heard Skye’s barely suppressed groan of pain. Since she had lost the sparring match, she wouldn’t get to see her little prank play out—but this would be almost as much fun.