Page 84 of Oath of War
She nodded. ‘I know, but if revenge is all they have left, I won’t deny them. I came to ask a favour. I want them to be your bodyguards,’ she said with all seriousness.
I laughed. ‘I don’t need bodyguards.’
‘I know, but they needyou. Between the dragon, that oafish commander, and your magic, being near you will be the safest option on the battlefield. I don’t want them dying, but if I give them any other job, they’ll know I’m trying to protect them ...’ she said. ‘But with you? They look up to you, especially the young ones, so please ask the king to make them your bodyguards?’
I took a breath to answer, and we both jumped as the harsh sound of trumpets suddenly blared.
‘I’ll see what I can do,’ I responded, ‘but I need to go. The dragons are flying first to clear the sky.’
Katja smiled. ‘Then I’ll see you tomorrow. Maybe we can steal some of Ian’s apple cider to share between the three of us.’
‘Ah, Bryna’s coming too?’ I asked.
‘Yes, she’ll be with the other artisans in the support train,and—brace yourself—she is training a special unit; a medley of females who already know how to fight: huntresses, town guards, veterans who’ve settled down. As she put it, Perun’s1 leftnut will drop off before she allows us to have fun without her,’ she answered.
I chuckled. ‘Bryna and her definition of fun never ceases to amaze me. I have to go. Be careful, lady herbalist, and try not to knock anyone out with your tinctures.’
‘See you later, dragon mage. Try not to burn any arses on your way.’
‘Dragon mage?’ I mused. ‘I like the sound of that.’ I gave her a quick peck on the cheek, grinning as she rolled her eyes. After our quick goodbye, I rushed towards the landing field, taking two steps at a time.
‘Vahin?’
‘Waiting for you, Little Flame. Orm is still talking to Reynard, or I should say, arguing with him. He looks about two words away from punching our new king for putting you on the front line.’
‘Fuck, can you calm him down? Is he losing control of his wild magic again?’
‘Calm him? Why would I do that? I’d enjoy watching these two trying to knock some sense into each other. If anyone could give Orm a run for his money, it would be his brother.’
I sped up, running to the landing field as fast as my legs would carry me. The moment I saw them standing so close their breath mingled, I opened myself to the aether and channelled it into the air, sending it forcefully between them.
Both men were knocked back but stayed on their feet, still glaring at each other. As soon as I was close enough, I punched each one in the shoulder to make them look at me, giving them a glare of my own.
‘If you’ve both finished showing the world how mature you are, I’m ready to go,’ I said, reaching out and grabbing Orm’s breastplate to drag him away. He resisted at first, but after amoment, he gave in and followed me to Vahin, lifting me up onto the dragon’s back as though I were as light as a feather.
‘I’ll see you near the Rift, brother. The dragons will clear the area to make camp. I’m sure you’ll be able to find the large, flat, charred space. We’ll finish our conversation there,’ Orm said before the wind from Vahin’s powerful wings forced Reynard to shelter his eyes and turn away.
The swift, almost vertical rise left me gasping, and when I regained the ability to breathe, I looked down to see the massive army packing tents and loading wagons. I’d never seen so many people gathered in one place, and that wasn’t even all of them, as the light fae army was coming directly to the Rift once we’d established a portal.
Cooperation on such a scale was unheard of in recent times. Thankfully, as Reynard explained, once Valaram took charge of the mages, he’d manipulated and convinced Talena and the light fae’s prince, Iasno’ta, to work together.
‘Do you think it will be enough?’ I asked as Orm assumed his favourite position, his chin resting on my shoulder.
‘It must be, Nivale. It’s all we’ve got. Every soldier able to bear arms is down there. Even the dragon fortresses are being emptied to increase numbers. If we can destroy the sleeping army beneath the Barrier crystal, it should be enough.’
As long as wecandestroy the sleeping army.
I knew Orm didn’t want to add to the burden already threatening to crush me, but his words reminded me that my role was no longer just destroying the spectrae. The mountain passage I’d created all those years ago when I buried the wlok now had to be widened to allow our army to pass. Other passages and roads had been purposefully blocked during the First Necromancer’s War, and none of them were wide enough for thousands of soldiers to march through, anyway.
Dagome’s elemental mages could do it, but they needed an incredible amount of power to perform such a feat. Normally, they would have three or four conduit mages to share the burden, but thanks to Ihrain and the chancellor, I was the only one left. The prospect of dying from magical burnout was a possibility I didn’t want to share with my Anchors.
‘I can do it. I have to,’ I said in such a quiet voice that I was sure Orm couldn’t hear me, but his arms tightened around my waist.
‘I’ve never felt so helpless, my love,’ he said after a moment. ‘I can fight, I can wage war and bear the pain of my wounds, but not knowing how to help you, how to ease the dark thoughts lurking inside your mind, is killing me.’
His words, raw and filled with concern, made me ache. We’d both held back, showing each other a brave face while knowing the situation was awful.
‘I’m not ...’ I said. ‘I’m sorry, Orm. I’ve been hiding from myself. So instead of the war, I think about the hot baths we’ve shared, and the field of nivale flowers. Or how the girls and I are going to get so drunk in Ian’s tavern, you’ll have to carry me home. It’s the only way I can deal with this fear paralysing me.’
