Page 14 of Death Cap

My stomach dropped as my hand trembled lightly, my eyes reading the cursive words over again and again. I ripped the brown parchment in half, rushing to the table as I watched the candle’s flame consume it until it was nothing but ashes upon my plate.

The king of darkness and the devil himself had declared war, and I needed to prepare.

TWENTY

MOREL

Orion watchedas Hesper stood behind my chair, her hands on my shoulders. We had to force ourselves to return to the palace and resume our duties. It was in rare moments like this that I wished not to be king, so that I may spend my days tangled with my love.

“And we know he received my letter?” I asked, my hand touching Hesper’s.

“Yes. Apparently, he did not take the declaration of war well.” Orion chuckled to himself, rotating his weight between his feet. “But forgive me for asking, my king: why give him a warning? Would it not be better to attack him by surprise?”

I smiled, pulling Hesper from behind the chair and planting her in my lap. Her silver eyes sparkled, tiny constellations shooting across the metallic color. I tucked her inky hair behind her ear, my hand purposely stroking the scars along her face. “Agaric damn near killed my queen. He poisoned her, made her into a puppet and a pawn, all while thinking he destroyed me. I want him to see us coming and fear what we will do to him.” I looked past Hesper to Orion. “I want Agaric to sit and stir in his fear, festering in the dark unknown.”

Orion nodded, approving of my choice.

“We shall make him watch as his kingdom falls. He shall remain alive and helpless as the night kingdom suffocates Dryade, snuffing out its light. Only then, will he feel the mercy of death.” Hesper’s words excited me, her fierce persona fully returned as we smiled at one another.

“There is my queen of darkness.” I squeezed her face as she giggled. “Tell me, what do you crave?”

Her eyes widened with desire. “Blood.”

TWENTY-ONE

HESPER

The sun began to set,the sky darkening as a storm brewed deep within the clouds. Morel and I were waiting, watching Agaric’s palace as it glistened in the warm light of the fading sun. Our horses huffed as they waited patiently for our command, their nostrils flaring with adrenaline. I glanced at my husband, black and white paint hiding his skin, creating the image of a skull, his amber eyes piercing from beneath the thick layer. He wore the armor of Grisset, dark black leathers with a hand stitched silver moth on his chest, and his pitch-black crown of thorns atop his head. The menacing armor only enhanced Morel’s dangerous beauty. He was intoxicating. I was dressed similarly, the skin of my chest exposed as my moonstone wedding ring lay looped through a silver chain close to my heart. I had the same war paint smeared across my own face, a matching death skull. My hair was braided back, a precaution I always took in battle, as my own onyx crown rested securely on my head.

“Once the sun dissolves into the night and fades from view, we strike.” I nodded, agreeing with my king. Our forces filled the land behind us, reaching as far back as the eye could see. A sea of blackness.

“Be like the sky and remain true; an unchanging symphony of the stars.” I chanted our kingdom's words, watching the sun as it dropped beneath the trees, the last bit of light gone.

Drums played in the distance as Agaric’s army marched onto the land outside his palace walls, the same place we had battled him before. His white horse rushed from the palace gates, galloping to the front line of his men, his hair blazing in the growing night. I snarled, disgusted by his existence.

“That’s my girl.” Morel retrieved his sword, his horse rising, screaming in readiness. It was time. “A symphony of stars!” He kicked his horse, the beast galloping towards Agaric’s forces. My hand clutched the hilt of my sword, raising it high as I screamed, signaling our men.

“Grisset!” the thousands of men shouted in unison, shadowing me as I raced after Morel, quickly gaining on him.

The earth shook at the might of our army, Agaric’s men frantically bracing for impact as the distance between us shrank. Morel glanced over his shoulder at me, catching my eyes. “Wolfsbane! Shadow me!”

I smiled. “With pleasure!”

Our horses neighed as they leaped over the front line of Agaric’s army, slamming into a row of screaming men as our horses’ hooves crushed them, the sound of breaking bones exciting me. Together, we sliced at the army as our forces collided, shadows and darkness swarming through Dryade’s ranks. Unlike the last battle, we had come prepared. Our men knew our story, angered by the betrayal of Agaric and fueled with revenge. They loved their king and queen and were willing to die for us, more so now than ever.

My stallion pranced in a circle, searching the fighting armies for any sign of the bastard. I made the mistake of not observing my surroundings as a Dryade soldier ran his sword across thefront of my horse, the beast screaming in pain as he kicked, knocking me from his back.

“Hesper!” Morel’s voice called to me amongst the chaos as I quickly stumbled to my feet, my sword buried in the growing pile of bodies. I frantically scanned the battlefield, searching for Morel, when his stallion leaped over me, landing not far ahead.

“Give me your hand!” he screamed, racing towards me. I reached out, grabbing his arm as he pulled me onto the horse. He wrapped an arm around my waist, squeezing me tightly as he kissed my cheek. “Rookie mistake, wolfsbane,” he teased me. I flashed my canines at him.

“I need a sword.” Morel pulled at the reins, bringing us closer to a pile of fallen soldiers.

“There.” He pointed, and I nodded, knowing exactly what to do. He yelled to the beast, kicking its side as our speed increased. I reached my hand out, gripping the pommel of a sword that stuck out from a corpse, yanking it as we flew past.

“Perfect.” I grinned, admiring the blood.

“Hesper!” he yelled, pulling my attention back to the war. “Ahead!” I turned to see Agaric, fighting on the ground, next to his fallen white horse that lay dead aside him.

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