Page 31 of The Ruins of the Heartless Fae

Kolfinna had no idea how Eyfura was able to talk, because all Kolfinna could do was gulp in air and try not to pass out. Talking was out of the question, so she only nodded and forced her foot in front of the other. And then the other. Her focus remained on walking. Another step. And another.

“Gosh, I could really use some iced water,” Eyfura said. “Do you think I should ask Mímir for some water? Like cold water. Wait, no, I don’t think he can make the water cold. That’s more of an ice elemental thing. Maybe I should ask Torsten to make my water canister cold—”

“Don’t complain just to complain,” the brunette Royal Guard with the mole beneath her eye said with a short laugh. “Especiallysince you’re an Enhancer.”

“Me being an Enhancer has nothing to do with being thirsty!” Eyfura swatted the Royal Guard’s shoulder. “Gosh, Thyra, if you’re jealous, just say so.”

“Jealous?” Thyra snorted, wiping the sweat beading her forehead with a handkerchief. “Hell yeah, I’m jealous! These steps are no joke, but it must be a walk in the park since you’re an Enhancer.”

“Hey, I’m not even using my mana for something like this, so I’m on the same level as you guys right now—”

“Something like this? So you agree that this isn’t something you even need to use your mana for?” Thyra laughed and Eyfura hid a sheepish grin behind her gloved hand. “So thisisa walk in the park for you, huh?”

“Well, I didn’t mean it to sound like that—”

While they joked trivially, Kolfinna felt like a fish flapping on shore, the water a distance away, but her body slowly giving out. She was the only one truly struggling to even breathe or take another step. Eyfura and Thyra, for all their jests at each other, were still faring a hundred times better than she was. Was it because she was unused to exercise? Or maybe because everyone else had training? Or was it her weight that made her lousy at this?

Kolfinna couldn’t help but glance over at where the military lagged behind, taking the rear. If the military hadn’t been there, Kolfinna would drift back until nobody could see her struggling. She probably looked like a mess too—with her trainee uniform drenched, her braided hair frizzing with all the sweat, and her face likely a shade of beet red. Meanwhile, everyone conversed, laughed, and joked like they were on their way to the park, as Thyra had said.

It made her uncomfortable to be around all the joy and conversation—it was too foreign to her, and it was something she couldn’t be a part of. But since she was smack dab in the middle of the line—the military behind her and the royal guards in front of her—she had to keep trudging forward and not fall into the military ranks. She was grateful Eyfura kept her company, even though it was obvious that Eyfura was the favorite among the Royal Guards. The whole group seemed to want her attention from time to time.

Half an hour passed before they finally reached another large stone archway, but unlike the first one, this one was attached to the mountain and led to an openingintothe mountain. Beyond it, there was a straight, stone bridge, and what appeared to be the castle ruins.

At this point, everyone was breathing roughly and the wind had stopped howling so loudly when they stood beneath the archway. A shadow fell over the party as they remained there, all of them gaping at the bridge ahead. Kolfinna kept her hands on her knees and swallowed mouthfuls of air. It took all her strength not to collapse in a puddle of her own sweat and quivering muscles.

Kolfinna stumbled forward and peered up at what everyone else was looking at. Her jaw nearly dropped to the ground as the castle ruins came into view at the end of the bridge. The mountain perfectly surrounded the castle like a cloak; there was no ceiling to the mountain, and nothing covered the sky as light poured down onto the magnificent castle. To call it a castle wasn’t an accurate description; it was more like a conglomeration of multiple castles jammed together and connected by suspended bridges.

The sound of birds cawing and flapping their wings overhead finally snapped her out of her reverie and she was reminded that the time to read the runes was now. Soon, everyone would find out she didn’t know how to read them, but a part of her prayed she’d be able to do something with the runes. Maybe not read them exactly, but understand them to some degree? Or maybe the runes didn’t matter in the grand scheme of the ruins?

Goose bumps ran across her arms and the back of her neck as the military swarmed behind the Royal Guards, finally catching up. She stared straight ahead, hoping she didn’t look as nervous as she felt. What if they all died because of her inability to read the runes? She doubted Blár would let her live if he found out she was useless to them.

“Do you guys see the sky?” Mímir pointed up at the clear blue sky spotted with soft white clouds. “There seems to be some sort of … I don’t even know what to call it, to be honest. Magic? But anyway, there seems to be something covering the mountain to make it appear as though there’s a mountaintop, when in reality there isn’t one, as you all can see with the sky. Anytime we sent out someone to investigate and try to get in through the top, like an air elemental user, they’re notableto cross over for some reason. The winds grow too strong, they can’t get close, their magic stops working, etc.”

Torsten raked a hand through his hair and followed Mímir’s gaze at the sky. “Um, what do you mean by their magic stopped working? How’s that even possible?”

“I don’t think they meant it literally,” Mímir said. “Maybe more like, the sky wasn’t cooperating and allowing them to fly? I don’t know.”

Blár squinted against the blaring sun when he came to stand on the stone bridge. He glanced at the rest of the party when they remained rooted in place. “We didn’t come here to sightsee,” he said. “Let’s get this over with.”

Kolfinna’s previous fatigue washed away as she began crossing over the bridge, her nerves pulling tighter as they drew closer to the castle doors. Even the bridge they walked along was suspended between the mountain wall to the castle.

“It’s … bigger than I thought,” Eyfura whispered.

Kolfinna’s jelly legs nearly gave out and she tripped forward, her hand launching out to grasp the stone railing with swirling designs carved into it. She steadied herself and caught a glimpse of the deep, pitch-black ravine below the bridge. Her heart squeezed tightly and the color drained from her face. Falling would be lethal.

“You okay?” Eyfura placed a hand on her shoulder.

“Um, yeah.” Kolfinna’s face bloomed with color and she ignored the snickers from the soldiers behind her. Even though she wanted to move on like nothing had happened, she wasn’t used to such rigorous exercise. And she seemed to be the only one still affected by the climb.

How many people had traversed this bridge all those thousands of years ago? Her ancestors had likely crossed this very bridge. The thought made her shiver. This bridge was built when fae were powerful and abundant. When their civilization was thriving. And now? It was being raided by humans with the assistance of a fae.

“Do you sense anything from it?”Eyfura asked as they reached the end of the bridge.

“Yes.” Kolfinna couldn’t keep her eyes away from the ruins and how impossibly tall they were. A powerful presence drenched the place, but she couldn’t pinpoint what it was. Usually, she could feel the life force of trees when she walked in a forest, and the presence was always powerful and heavy, similar to this place, but the difference was that she knew she was sensing the trees when she did that. Here? She had no idea what it was. Was there a lot of nature inside that was exhibiting such a powerful force? Or was it a powerful monster? Or was this the power of runes? She really had no idea.

“This place is abundant with … power?” Kolfinna settled with as she eyed the wide, twenty or thirty-step long staircase leading up to the entrance doors. “I don’t know how to explain it, but it feels powerful.”

The birds stopped tweeting, the chirr of crickets disappeared, and even the wind ceased breathing when they approached the entrance of the castle ruins. Life seemed to stop moving as the ivory castle walls loomed in front of them. A heavy tension filled the air as everyone looked at one another.

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