Page 103 of Sun Elves of Ardani

The magic began to flow faster, the tendril growing larger and brighter as the magic-eater grew dimmer. Sparks flew and raw magic burned against Neiryn’s skin. He ducked his head as the light became blinding, and he felt Kadaki’s free arm wrap protectively around his waist.

There was a bone-shaking crash as the stone pillar fell to the ground. More followed it as the magic-eater fell apart. Stolen shards of buildings dropped away piece by piece. Glowing particles of magic blew away like dust in the wind.

The magic-eater gave a furious cry as the last of its magic flowed into Kadaki’s palm. And then it was gone.

Neiryn stared at the pile of dead stone, smoking ash, and churned-up earth, then turned to Kadaki. She wasn’t finished. Her hands were already working again, plucking at threads of magic that were invisible to Neiryn. She was untangling the anomaly.

She worked with amazing speed, first stopping the bursts of fire and lightning, then the darkness, and then the rain. Her hands slowed as the world brightened and the rain became a drizzle. Clouds cleared, allowing slivers of sunlight to shine down on them. The flood of water at their feet began to recede.

Cautiously, the others began to cheer and laugh with relief. Roshan and Eliyr embraced. Rhian caught Neiryn’s eye, smiling in the most genuine expression of gladness he’d ever seen on her.

Kadaki began to sway, and Neiryn steadied her. She looked exhausted, but she smiled at him.

“I knew it’d be no trouble for you,” he said. “I don’t know why you all made such a big fuss about it.”

“Shut up,” she said, putting her arms around him.

Chapter 29

One Month Later

Refka was, to put it lightly, a mess. Half the buildings in town had been damaged or destroyed during the magic-eater’s attack.

You wouldn’t know it from looking at it, but it was much better than it had been a month prior. Rhian and the town council had quickly organized a plan for rebuilding, and they were making slow but steady progress.

The Ysuran quarter had been decimated, and the elves had had to find other places to spend their evenings—namely, The Smiling Dragon. When Neiryn and Kadaki stepped inside that evening, it was already crowded with Ysurans on one side of the room and locals on the other.

Kadaki spotted Roshan in a corner with Eliyr. Both of their eyes were glassy and happy with dream, and they were laughing about something. She watched them for a moment, wondering why she wasn’t as disturbed by the sight of dreamers as she had been in the past. Perhaps it seemed less sad when there were two people enjoying it together. It almost looked fun.

“Have an ale with me?” Kadaki asked Neiryn as they sat down, as she always did. She didn’t expect him to say yes.

“If you’ll dream with me tomorrow,” he countered.

She glanced up at him. He arched an eyebrow, challenging her. It was that hint of a dare that made her want to agree.

“All right,” she said. Neiryn, clearly surprised, said nothing as she ordered two ales. The barmaid brought their drinks, setting one down in front of Kadaki and one in front of Neiryn. Neiryn waited until she’d left before he spoke.

“I thought you had some kind of moral objection to dream,” he said.

“No. I just didn’t like seeing you unhappy.”

“I see,” he said, his expression softening. “I haven’t used it for over a month.”

She raised her eyebrows. “Why not?”

“I felt a need for it then, and I haven’t felt as much need for it lately.”

Kadaki watched him closely. A shadow of an expression that was almost vulnerable and dangerously honest crossed his face for a moment, then disappeared. Warmth swelled in Kadaki’s chest, and she reached out to gasp his hand in both of hers.

Often, her instincts were wrong about when to say something or when to touch someone. People would think you were strange if you did those things at the wrong time. But Neiryn was smiling at her. She felt less and less uncertainty about these things lately. He never thought she was strange. He was never offended.

He peered into the cup the barmaid had placed in front of him. “What are the odds that she spit in this?”

“A couple months ago, I would have guessed eighty-twenty. Now? I don’t know. Maybe fifty-fifty?”

He gave her an unappreciative look and took a sip anyway. His jaw went tense. She realized he was trying not to make a face.

“I think someone put poison in my drink.”

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