Page 2

CHAPTER 2

SERENNA

L ykor’s shadows engulfed Serenna’s vision, drowning the fortress streets in darkness. Her heart pummeled against her ribs, panic crushing the fleeting reassurance of Vesryn’s arrival.

She’d hardly had time to process his presence before instinct took over. She whipped Essence into a spiraling vortex, forging it into a shield of violet light. Vesryn’s ward slammed into place over hers, sealing them in as they knelt beside Fenn.

Lykor’s rending crashed into the barrier with the force of a hurricane, the impact rattling through Serenna’s bones. Beside her, the prince bared his teeth. Essence fountained from his outstretched hands, absorbing Lykor’s onslaught.

Illuminated by the ward’s amethyst light, Vesryn’s eyes met hers. Through the bond—one of three coiled in her mind—the prince’s emotions swept over her. Relief tangled with confusion, grief threaded with fury, but something tender and unguarded wove into the fabric of her heart.

But another bond flickered.

Serenna’s breath caught, terror reigniting. Her eyes fell to Fenn’s limp form, riddled with enough crossbow bolts to be kindling for a pyre. Blood slicked her fingers as she clung to him, pouring every ounce of her will into keeping him anchored to life. To conserve her rapidly dwindling power, she released her shield, letting it dissolve under the shelter of Vesryn’s barrier.

A flare of red light ignited around the prince. His arm hovered, wisps of mending winding around his palm. For a heartbeat, Serenna’s hope swelled—he was going to help heal Fenn. But he veered toward her shoulder, stitching up a wound she’d already forgotten about.

Vesryn’s jaw tightened as his fingers skimmed over her neck, crimson light sealing fang marks. He stared at her hands, clenched tightly around Fenn. A muscle twitched in his cheek as a cold decision settled.

The hollow ache in Serenna’s chest constricted as he withdrew. She wanted to protest, to demand that he try, but he wouldn’t waste Essence on a life he’d already deemed lost. Especially not while Lykor’s shadows swarmed around them, strangling his shield.

“Lykor’s mind—there’s coercion,” Serenna forced out. She tunneled through the third bond but only met emptiness, Lykor and Aesar both lost to a void. “You have to leave before the compulsion drives him to kill you. He’s…he’s your—”

“I know exactly who he is,” Vesryn grated out, each word honed with fury. His jade eyes locked onto hers, fierce with determination yet shadowed by anguish. “And I’ll save Aesar from Lykor .”

Another wave of rending slammed into his ward, the blow detonating in a burst of violet light. Essence blazed around the prince, his magic a beacon defying the shadows.

Serenna reached for his arm, her fingers trembling against the tension knotted beneath his skin. “You can’t,” she whispered, her voice nearly breaking as Lykor’s power surged again. “But if you leave, the coercion should dissipate.” Her plea sounded brittle and desperate, but that was all she had to convince the prince.

Vesryn’s hand curled into a fist before he pulled free from her frail grip. “I’m not leaving my brother.” Flicking his wrist, he wrapped a shield around himself. His features darkened, mouth set in a hard line as he tipped his chin toward the portal he’d left open. “You should go.”

Serenna’s fingers curled around Fenn’s claw—a silent vow not to leave him. Their bond wavered like a dying ember, her soul refusing to release his, despite the prince imploring her to.

“Vesryn!” she screamed as he ripped through the protective shield, reforging the barrier before striding into the darkness. “I can’t lose you too.”

The prince glanced back, his mouth parting. But he faltered, abandoning the words. He lingered for a moment before turning sharply, vanishing into the shadows.

Serenna’s hands shook as she dragged her focus away from Vesryn’s retreating silhouette. A tear trailed down her cheek when she took in Fenn’s ashen face, his pulse a weak flutter under her fingertips. She yanked another crossbow bolt from his chest. Despair consuming her, she spooled her remaining power into him, denying death’s claim for a few moments more.

Lykor’s rending receded, following the prince. But Essence still ricocheted through the keep, the pressure of power vibrating through her knees. Over the chaos, Serenna heard footsteps pounding against the cobbled street behind her.

She glanced back to see wraith scattering down the streets, seeking shelter elsewhere. But Kal warped closer to her, his spiked armor as dark as the night. He drew a gold-plated dirk from his side and sliced through the prince’s shield as if it were no more than smoke.

Face contorting, Kal dropped to one knee beside her, brushing a strand of hair back from his son’s still face. He placed a quivering hand on Fenn’s chest, fingers barely grazing the blood-soaked fabric.

Serenna’s voice cracked as he gripped her shoulder. “I’m so sorry.” Tears spilled freely now, dripping from her chin as she leaned over Fenn, her heart shredded with sorrow. “I’m doing everything I can.”

Another tremor of Essence barreled down the street where Vesryn and Lykor clashed. Gauntlet crushed into a fist, rending erupted from Lykor as he stalked after the prince. Fangs bared, his deadened eyes locked onto Vesryn, shadows colliding in brutal bursts.

With each step, Vesryn led Lykor away, rending spiraling around him. His shadows slashed at Lykor’s, meeting the assault blow for blow, severing waves of magic before they could strike.

A shockwave burst from Lykor’s fist, racing across the broken cobblestones, sending tremors through the fortress. Serenna gasped, the ground quaking beneath her knees as stone splintered and bricks crumbled, flying loose as Lykor wrenched a bridge apart. Rubble churned around him, gathering speed until he twisted his magic into a whirlwind. Thrusting his arm out, Lykor flung the spinning rocks at the prince.

Vesryn’s hands blurred, opening portals that swallowed the deadly barrage. He sidestepped into another rift, reappearing behind Lykor.

Snarling, Lykor spun and prowled toward the prince, shadows swirling in his wake.

Serenna’s pulse drummed a frantic beat, chest tightening with every bone-rattling impact as their magic clashed. Vesryn couldn’t outlast Lykor—his Well was far outmatched. Each shock reverberated against her ribs as Vesryn endured blow after crushing blow.

“The coercion will drive Lykor to rip this place apart,” Kal said, jaw clenching tight. His eyes darted to Vesryn’s portal before dropping back to Fenn. “We have to get the prince out of here.”

Serenna shook her head, sensing Vesryn’s unyielding resolve beating down the bond, a hammer striking iron. “I tried.” She cast another futile wave of mending over Fenn. Crimson light spilled from her hands, but his blood only slowed as his life slipped through her fingers. “He won’t leave. Not until he gets Aesar back.”

Kal’s mouth fused into a frown, his face a bleak mask. “Then we have to stop the magic on Lykor.” He snagged her hand. “You have to use the bond. Restrict his access to Essence. If Aesar could stop him, he would have by now.”

A thunderous crack boomed through the cavern. Serenna flinched as an errant bolt of force smashed into the mirrors lining the volcano’s slopes—glass panes designed to catch and funnel light through the crater above, now shimmering faintly with starlight. The impact shattered a section in a spray of fractured brilliance.

Serenna tossed her arms out. “I can try,” she panted, reinforcing the prince’s shield against the deadly avalanche of broken shards. “But restraining Lykor won’t put an end to the compulsion.”

“I know.” The light in Kal’s crimson eyes dimmed. He clasped Fenn’s shoulder, just as reluctant as she was to let him go. “But you can give the prince a fighting chance.” Urgency sharpened the sorrow in his tone. “Go.”

Serenna layered another wave of mending into one of Fenn’s wounds, her words coming out hoarse. “I can’t leave him.”

Kal’s voice broke, hand twisting into Fenn’s tattered tunic. “Fenn’s gone.”

Serenna’s heart lurched, caving in. “He’s not,” she whispered. “I can still feel him.” She clung to Fenn’s lifeless claw, denial blurring her vision.

“You have a chance to save the living.” Kal’s words sliced like a blade, carving away her resistance. “Use it.”

Serenna’s chin trembled, grief splitting her heart. Save the living. She didn’t want to admit it, but her magic—her limited skill—couldn’t bring Fenn back. Too many bolts had been driven into him for anyone to survive.

Fenn , she called through the bond.

But only silence answered through their fraying connection.

With an unsteady breath, she let Fenn’s claw slip from her grasp, though every instinct screamed to hold on. Serenna released a sob, knowing he would want her to help Lykor.

As she rose, a shiver raced down the back of her neck. Sensing a strange pulse of earth magic, she whirled around.

Jassyn staggered through Vesryn’s portal. His eyes bounced around the wreckage before landing on Lykor and the prince, who were hurling shadows at each other amid the crumbling streets.

Serenna rushed to him, a spark of hope flaring to life as she gripped his arms, her eyes widening at the faint green glow racing through his veins. “Fenn needs you.”

Without hesitation, Jassyn rushed over, dropping beside Fenn and Kal just as the portal sealed shut. Mending light flickered from his fingertips but then vanished. Jassyn sucked in a breath, his spine snapping straight before his head whipped toward Vesryn.

The barrier the prince had left around them shattered. A shimmering wave of Essence burst from Jassyn’s chest, flowing toward his cousin across the keep.

Vesryn’s face was a mask of strain, hands outstretched as he launched another wave of shadows. Unblinking, Lykor advanced, driving the prince back down the street step by step.

“He’s…draining my Well,” Jassyn gritted out, sweat beading on his forehead. His fingers shook over Fenn, glowing with that strange green light. “I’ll do what I can but…” He shoved curls from his eyes and wrestled with thin wisps of mending, weaving a sputtering stream into Fenn’s wounds.

“Hurry,” Kal urged her.

Wiping her cheeks, Serenna’s breaths shuddered through the desolation gripping her heart. Dread doused the relief of Jassyn’s arrival as Essence continued to flow from him to the prince. But if she could help Vesryn, take the fight off his shoulders… It might leave Jassyn with enough magic to save Fenn.

Digging her nails into her palms, Serena ruthlessly focused on the task ahead. One unsteady step after another, she ventured forward, plunging into the fray.

Vesryn dashed through a portal, narrowly dodging a cleaving whip of rending. He emerged a level higher on the streets above and launched a whirlwind of shadows down at Lykor.

Lykor’s gauntlet snapped into a fist. A riptide of force blasted the street beneath Vesryn’s feet, the cobblestones exploding upward in a hail of stone.

The prince slipped, boots skidding across the fractured ground. He vanished, tumbling into another portal just as the wall behind him collapsed.

Vesryn reappeared, smudges of dirt streaking his face. He stumbled further down the street, his shoulders heaving with labored breaths.

Lykor prowled forward, pursuing the prince into a courtyard, shadows lashing from him like living chains. Window boxes outside of dwellings spilled over with herbs and luminous mushrooms. Fountains gurgled, drowned out by the crackling roar of Essence.

Serenna’s steps slowed as she approached, her skin tingling beneath the oppressive weight of their magic. Casting her perception down the bond with Lykor, she sensed a dark energy —a wall of coercion. She tunneled deeper into the link, reaching toward the shared space within their Well, uncertain whether the king had woven any safeguards against intervention.

Across the plaza, Vesryn locked onto her, eyes wild and sharp. “Get out of here!”

Whips of rending lashed out, snapping through the air as Vesryn attempted to restrain Lykor. But with a flick of his wrist, Lykor shattered the prince’s magic, swatting it aside effortlessly.

“I can help,” Serenna insisted.

Vesryn circled Lykor, keeping her out of range. “You’re going to get yourself killed.”

“So are you!” Serenna bristled, in disbelief that they were trading arguments while the fortress collapsed around them. The prince’s warning was a distraction she couldn’t afford—and one she could prove wrong.

Her mind spun. Using the bond was uncharted territory, something she’d never attempted before. But she’d have to figure it out. Lykor had exploited their link before, pilfering from her Well.

Gritting her teeth, she plunged into their connection, hurtling toward his side of their shared magic. She seized his reserves, wrenching on every shred she could.

Essence poured from Lykor in a rush. The glittering deluge of raw power slammed into Serenna’s chest, forcing a gasp from her lungs.

The jolt was enough of a threat to snap Lykor’s attention away from the prince. He whirled to face her. Shadows coiled around his fist before he punched them forward.

Darkness streamed from Serenna’s fingertips, her rending streaking through the air to collide with his in a violent clash. The impact shattered into jagged arcs, obliterating a nearby planter and sending soil and stone flying in every direction.

Serenna’s pulse spiked as Lykor’s wrath fixed on her, the full strength of his power crashing down. Panic clawed at her as she desperately wrenched on their bond. Lykor staggered, magic surging violently between them while they both grappled for control.

Muscles burning, every breath a battle, Serenna twisted away from a dark coil of shadows whipping toward her. The prince darted into place beside her, disintegrating the strike before it could land.

“Anytime you want to fill me in on the plan, that would be great,” she bit out.

“I need Jassyn here!” Vesryn snapped, his exhaustion fraying his temper. He launched wave after wave of force and rending at Lykor, his magic shattering uselessly against Lykor’s shadows.

Lykor flung out his claw, smashing nearby pots of mushrooms and flowers. Petals and pottery blasted apart, pelting them in a spray of ceramic and dirt. Forgoing a shield, the prince veered aside, but his movements were slower than before.

“If Jassyn is your plan, why did you charge in without him?” Serenna stumbled over the strewn debris. Vesryn’s arm shot out, catching her by the waist.

“Fine. There is no plan!” He swept a cloud of shadows aside with a sharp flick of his wrist.

“Then I’ll do something!”

Serenna cast her perception out to the surrounding fountains, grasping for any leverage she could seize. Water bubbled louder as she poured her mind into the decorative fixtures, tracking the current’s flow. Tunneling deeper into the fortress, she yanked at the streams hidden in the veins of the earth, hauling them upward.

Water geysered in an explosive surge, shattering the stone fountains. Power buzzing along her fingertips, Serenna flung the torrent at Lykor. The waves slammed into him from every direction, trapping him in a churning vortex.

Lykor hurled lashes of shadow, but Serenna twisted the water to deflect his magic. His power raged through the cobblestones, fissures spidering outward with a grinding groan.

“You realize you’re just pissing him off, right?” Vesryn growled beside her.

“It’s the coercion, not him. If you would get out of his line of sight, this would be over.” Serenna spared the prince a quick glance, but he’d set his jaw. Logic wasn’t working. But she had one idea left.

Flexing her fingers, Serenna heaved on the water encasing Lykor, drawing out every last thread of warmth. Fog rose as she transferred the heat to the puddles collecting on the ground.

Lykor’s limbs twitched as the column bound him tight. His thrashing slowed as frost crept over his armor, crystallizing into a prison.

Beside her, Vesryn let out a disbelieving laugh when Serenna sealed Lykor in a block of ice.

“I can’t keep him like this for long without hurting him,” Serenna panted, bracing her hands on her knees.

Vesryn nodded, shoulders sagging as he drew in labored breaths.

For a moment, everything held still.

Then the ice shattered.

A blast of force sent shards flying through the air, knocking Serenna backward. Flung across the courtyard, she slammed into a stone wall. Her head bounced, pain blazing down her spine.

Vision spinning, she stumbled to her feet. Beside her, Vesryn clutched a golden dagger in his fist.

He barely had time to raise it before Lykor warped.