Page 88 of The Ruins of the Heartless Fae

“How are we back here?” Truda hugged her elbows to her chest. Her shifty eyes flicked from one corner to the next, as if something would attack at any second.

“I used the runes.” Kolfinna’s voice dropped to a whisper. There was nothing heroic about what she had done. People had died. If she had been quicker, if she hadn’t trusted Revna, and instead focused more on getting out, they probably wouldn’t have died. The realization hit her like a brick wall, and she staggered back, eyes stinging.

Mímir touched the runes she had written on the wall, turning toward her. “Did you create these?”

“Yes.”

“Amazing.” He kneeled beside them, his fingers skimming over the glowing words. “You’ve made a lot of progress …” He pushed himself to his feet, and that seemed to be too much for him because he staggered and held the glass window to keep upright. “How is everyone?” He brought a shaky hand to smooth over his ripped, red cape. “Is this … is this everyone who survived? I thought Eyjarr was holding on …”

“No.” Tears made clean streaks down Eyfura’s dirt-smeared face, and her voice thickened with emotion. “He was with me, but … but”—a strangled sob escaped her lips and she quickly covered her mouth—“thatthingate him.”

Magni rested a hand on Eyfura’s shoulder and she flinched from the contact, but then leaned into his touch. She buried her face into his shoulder, her body trembling with sobs.

Kolfinna wanted to comfort Eyfura like she had done every time Kolfinna needed it, but she couldn’t move. Her guilt kept her frozen in place, and she feared they would blame her for not helping them sooner.

“What happened?” Blár finally asked.

Magni stroked Eyfura’s hair as her cries subsided; a faraway, haunted look reflected in his emerald eyes. Gashes formed on the back of his hands in a claw-like formation. “We were in a forest and there were these—thesemonsters.” There was a detached element to his voice, as if all emotions were depleted from him. Or perhaps he was tired—verytired. “They could fly and they were grotesque, and … and they ate most of everyone. We had to hide from them and they kept chasing us down.”

“I want to go home.” Truda lurched to her feet and made her way toward the doorway Kolfinna had come from. She paused and turned to the other doorway at the end of the room. Tears shone in her eyes as she looked between the two doors. “Which way did we come from? Let’s go,now!” When no one moved, her face crumpled further and she stomped her foot on the floor. “I don’t care about the reward, and none of you should either! Screw the king, and screw this whole place! Let’s go,please!”

Eyfura sniffled and wiped her tears with the back of her hand. “I agree. I think we should just forfeit this mission. What have we accomplished so far other than dying out? This is too dangerous for us to handle, even if we have a black rank on our side. We can’t do anything if we can’t use our magic.”

Relief washed over Truda’s tight expression and she held her hand out to Eyfura. “Come on, let’s—”

“No.” Magni’s voice was as sharp, jagged, and clear as shattered glass. “We’ve already come this far. Leaving now would just mean everything was in vain.”

Eyfura ripped away from his touch, her lips twisting into a disgusted scowl. “Do you really care about the reward moneythatmuch?”

“It’s not the reward money, but the fact that we haven’t accomplished anything,” Magni said. The wound on his hand dripped crimson blood onto the similarly colored carpet. “It’s embarrassing. What will we do when the king confronts us? Say that we were too scared to move forward? All those people died, and for what? Nothing. We have nothing to show for what we did here. We would just be failures.”

Mímir wrung his hands together and looked from person to person. “I agree with Magni. We can’t abandon our mission.”

“What?” Truda spun around to face Mímir, her fists balled together. “You agree—Oh.” She huffed, rolling her eyes. “Of courseyou agree with him. Your rank will inevitably drop if we return empty-handed. You’ll be seen as a failure for leading us all into failure. You’re a selfish, inconsiderate, weak leader, Mímir. Fenris made a mistake choosing you.”

Kolfinna cringed at the harsh words and she had to hand it to Mímir for keeping a straight face. She half-expected him to either look hurt or snap back at her. Instead, he did neither and held an air of calm. But the tension thickened between them all, and she noticed Magni’s expression darken at the insult.

“Says the girl who wishes she were in his place,” Magni scoffed, climbing up to his impressive height. Even with blood running down the side of his face, and the various red splatters on his sullied, white uniform, he was as intimidating as always as he looked down at her like she was dirt. “Captain Asulf doesn’t make mistakes. There’s not much Mímir could’ve done to change this situation. Who would’ve thought any of this would happen?”

“That’s enough.” Mímir raised his hands as if that could quell the group. “We’re all tired—”

“Did those monsters knock a few screws loose in your heads?! If we stay, wewilldie!” Truda said. “I’d rather be a failure than be dead.”

“You can go home then.” Magni waved to the door.“If this mission means nothing to you, if your honor as a soldier means nothing—then walk out.”

“Why do you care so much about this place? Does your pride as a Royal Guard mean more than your life? Or is it your honor?” Truda sneered. “Well, I definitely don’t want to die because of your pride and arrogance!” She pointed between Magni and Mímir. “Both of you!”

Eyfura was crying, the tears mixing with the sweat and dirt on her cheeks. When she wiped her face, it smudged brown on her white sleeve. “I don’t want to be here either. Please, let’s just go back. I don’t know if I can handle any more of this.”

“We need to move forward.” Mímir planted his feet firmly on the floor and squared his shoulders. “We have to complete this mission.”

Kolfinna watched them argue, and Blár did the same, his expression guarded. He was leaning against the glass window, the sunlight streaming around his tall frame and casting a shadow over the group. Their eyes met, and Kolfinna had to rip her gaze away. She was scared of what she would find there—if he wanted to stay or leave.

If they left right now, what position would Kolfinna be in? Would she still be able to become a Royal Guard? She had nothing to offer Fenris or the king if she couldn’t complete this mission. Forget being a Royal Guard. Would they even let her live? Because why would they pardon her crimes if she couldn’t make this mission a success? The thought of a noose around her neck made her inadvertently touch her throat.

“H-Hey, everyone, I think we can do it.” Kolfinna’s interjection sounded as flimsy as the deteriorated wooden trim piled on the floor, but it was enough to garner everyone’s attention. “Um, I agree that we should continue this mission—”

“Unlike you, we have lives to get back to!” Truda threw her hands up, but then winced and touched her shoulder, where blood darkened the gray material of her uniform. “Some help you’ve been! Aren’t you supposed to be deciphering all this stuff and making sure we don’t die? Maybe you want us to die! How can we trust a fae anyway?!”

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