Page 55 of Oath of War
‘Your stupidity blinds you if you think I’ll allow you to take me again.’ Annika was seething, and I felt a pull in my chest as she drew on the aether. For a moment, I worried she might blow the carriage to pieces, but the sensation faded, and she slumped back, shaking her head.
Ihrain’s voice oozed satisfaction. ‘Predictable as always, my dear. Your conduit abilities mean nothing when you can’t cast. How does it feel to be helpless? Delivered to our master in a royal carriage, no less—a beautifully wrapped little package.’ He laughed. ‘I made it ready for you when I first saw you at Varta Fortress, and just look at how perfectly it fits the occasion. You’ll eat from the Lich King’s hand and grovel at my feet when I’m done with you.’
I braced to smash through the doors, but Ani’s hand on my sleeve stopped me. ‘And how do you intend to do it? Vahin will burn you to a cinder the moment he knows. You’ll never get to the Rift,’ she said, tapping a finger to her lips, signalling for me to stay quiet.
‘The Rift? Gods, how naïve you are,’ Ihrain sneered. ‘It took years to find a surviving Moroi mage, and even longer for them to pass the Lost Ridge. But once they did, all they had to do was find the ruins of Netaré and activate the old fae portal there.’
He laughed, dark and menacing. ‘You all forgot that Dagome had a trading agreement with Ozar to exchange diplomats and knowledge. The old portals still stand. All we had to do was bring them back to life. Such a shame only the living can pass through, though; otherwise, Truso would have been overrun by monsters long ago.’
I glanced at Alaric, who nodded bleakly, confirming the truth in Ihrain’s words. I remained quiet, but was already planning ways to destroy the ruins we were being taken to. If there really was an active portal in Netaré, did the Council of Mages know? Or had they failed to uncover this critical threat? Twice now, mages had taken Annika. I couldn’t afford to dismiss the possibility of betrayal or incompetence.
‘If that’s true, why did you bother using the Rift for so long?’ Annika asked scornfully, using Ihrain’s arrogance to keep him talking. ‘Do you take me for a fool, Ihrain?’
‘It was a distraction, keeping the dragons occupied so we could take over without interference.’ His voice turned bitter. ‘You’ve always been a fool and a whore, Annika. I can’t believe I wanted you. If you weren’t a conduit, I’d have killed you years ago.’
I shook from the rage his words provoked, and it took all my self-control to not rip the carriage—and him—to pieces. I felt the wild magic negating the effects of the nivale oil, its power utterly unaffected by the lanara poison.
To my surprise, Annika smiled—a sharp, feral grin, holding my hand and pointing to the door.
‘Ihrain, you are so smart.’ Her voice dripped with mock admiration. ‘You thought of everything, and I commend you for expertly mixing the poisons, but I think you missed one tiny, little detail,’ she crowed, still grinning like a madwoman. ‘Tell me, Ihrain. Do you know what happens when you lock an enraged bear in a cage?’
Ani let go of my hand, and I roared, the sound ripping through the night. Letting go of my restraint, I jabbed my fist into the carriage wall—all the frustration, grief, and pain focused on the robust wood. Wood splintered and flew as my hand smashed through the frame.
On the other side, a man let out a startled cry before I dragged him back through the broken wall. He didn’t even have time to scream as Alaric punched him in the face and stole his dagger, thrusting the blade deep into the flailing man’s chest.
The horses panicked, bolting forward in a blind frenzy. I grabbed Annika, pulling her close to shield her from the chaos. I widened the hole in the carriage, desperate to get us out. Alaric jumped through the opening, and I heard the familiar sound of dying men, the stench of blood and urine filling the air, accompanied by the rising pressure of gathering magic.
‘Orm, get her out of here! It’s heading for the river!’ he shouted. Before I could respond, a bolt of magic crashed into his back, sending him flying.
I grasped the doors, ripping them off their hinges, but the terrified neighs of the horses told me there was no chance of stopping them before it was too late. ‘Hold tight, my love,’ I whispered, clutching Ani tightly before jumping from the moving carriage.
The ground rushed up to meet us. The impact knocked the breath from my lungs, and as we rolled across the grass, myback slammed into something hard, momentarily blacking out my vision. But even then, I didn’t release Annika. I could die breaking my fucking neck, but I wouldn’t add another bruise to my Nivale’s body.
‘Orm, are you insane? Let me go!’ she shouted.
Shaking off the fog in my mind, I staggered to my feet, looking for Alaric. He was battling a small group of horsemen with nothing but the stolen dagger, his movements fluid and lethal. I laughed as the outmatched fae, his back still smoking from the previous magical attack, leapt up, embedding his blade into the armpit of one man while he kicked another off his horse.
‘Ari, look out!’ Annika’s shout brought me back to reality as a bolt of energy flew over Alaric’s head. It looked like Ihrain had finally regained control of his horse long enough to cast another spell.
Ani tensed beside me, reaching for the aether. I placed a hand on her shoulder, shaking my head. ‘You’ve fought enough today. Don’t engage unless we actually get into trouble. We’ll handle this.’
She opened her mouth to protest, but I bent down and kissed her forehead. ‘Just once, let your men look after you.’
With that, I charged into the fray. My fist connected with one man’s kidney, sending him sprawling from his horse. Another rider barrelled towards me, hoping to use his mount as a battering ram. I sidestepped, seizing his stirrup, and yanked him to the ground.
In my current state, the men were no problem, but Ihrain was an issue. He had finally given up trying to control his horse and had dismounted, the murderous look in his eyes not boding well for us.
He muttered something, his hands tracing out a spell. I watched as a flurry of semitransparent blades headed straight for me, but Ari pushed me aside, his free hand moving rapidly inthe air. Most of the aethereal blades disappeared, absorbed by a miraculously appearing shield. All except one that slipped past, scoring a long cut along his ribcage.
‘How?’ Ihrain gasped.
‘Lanara works through continuous exposure. That’s why it’s so effective when ingested or injected. Your little trick stopped working the moment I wiped the damn stuff off onto the grass,’ Alaric answered, throwing his blade into the back of a fleeing soldier.
I brought my boot down on the neck of the man I’d dragged from his horse, though Alaric didn’t seem to notice. His focus was singular, his movements predatory as he stalked his prey, a snarl curling his lips. There were no more thugs to fight. We were alone on the road, and I doubted anyone would be coming this way now.
‘Are you done? Can I come out now?’ Ani shouted, rising from the grass, juggling a small fireball in her hand. It seemed her casting ability had also returned after her exposure to the lanara.
I revelled in the panic on Ihrain’s face. He knew he’d lost, and even better, he knew nothing could save him now. Desperation flickered in his eyes as he turned to run. With a single word, Alaric’s magic lashed out—purple ropes of aether shooting out to coil around Ihrain’s legs, pulling him to the ground.
