Page 59 of Soul of Thorns
Caelynn
Wet ground squishesbeneath my fingers, against my cheek. I groan and push myself up. My muscles scream in protest, and I let out a trembling breath.
“Ow,” I say, sitting upright. I press my palm against the side of my throbbing head. “What the hell?”
After a few deep breaths, I manage to do a sweep of my surroundings. In front of me is the vicious fire, but the air is several degrees cooler than before. The ground is mushy dirt. The edge of a murky swamp sits only a few feet behind me. There is a small forest to my left and open water to my right. In the center of the murky water are stones spread over the length like a pathway.
My brain is still overloaded, my body still throbbing in pain, but I force myself to think things through. We were attacked by wraiths and somehow made it through the fire. We...Rev.
My breath catches. He should be here. I stand on wobbly feet, my heart pounding in my head. “Rev!”
Nothing. It’s so quiet here. So still. The sky is hazy red. How long had I been in the flames? It was just shy of dawn when we entered. Now, Rev is gone and it’s as bright as the sky gets in the Schorchedlands.
Behind the wall of flame, I know, is an army of wraiths seeking to rips us apart.
My hands shake. Did Rev not make it past the fire?No, how could he have failed that judgment? It’s me that has the soiled soul. He’s... well, he’s not perfect, but he’s good. Better than me.
“Rev!” I call again, louder. I know it’s a risk. I know it’s stupid given my circumstances. The wolf told us there was an ambush waiting on the other side of the flames. I know there were thousands of wraiths beyond the fire—how many of them would cross to find me here? At least a few, I’m guessing. And my magic is not exactly at full strength, even with Rev’s help.
And how far off is the Night Terror? She could be anywhere.
God, I need to find Rev.
“Ahh,” a voice calls joyously. “The princess decides to grace us with her presence.”
My wraith drifts over, his smoky magic billowing side to side like a dance. His body language is all casual. His expression is... odd.
“Wonderful,” I mutter under my breath.
“What’s wrong, lovely daughter of mine?” He smiles, big and obnoxious.
“Stop. Where is Rev?” I spit at him. “Have you seen him?”
“Ahh. So, you do not want to entertain my presence... until you want something from me? How is it that you living-beings are so ignorant all the time? How do you live that way?”
I stand and wipe the muck from my leather pants. “You’re damn right. I don’t trust you, so I don’t want you around me. But if you have information, I’ll take it.”
