Page 77 of The Shadow Prince's Ruin
I’m speechless. Too stunned to utter a word or even think, so I watch the massive wolf shake off whatever discomfort it’s been feeling, and then walk away from the gored reptile. The glow it produces adds a new dimension to the hues around us, and the murky darkness of the swamp becomes a whole array of greens and golds reflecting off the surface of the water. Lilac crystals appear to grow on some of the trees, and every time insects flee the Sunwolf, tiny sparkles seem to erupt in the air around their wings. It’s only now that I realize the dead reptile has changed color in its death, now a dull gray rather than the intense black from before.
Hope creeps into my heart, so I glance toward the hill, which is now marred with talon-shaped grooves in rock, and broken bushes, but I cannot see Hawk anywhere. He must have—he must have really…
The pain in my shoulder hits me so hard I slump to my ass on the branch, staring at the shiny beast. I have a general idea ofwhat happens to an elf who puts it on, but a human? Is he even still sentient?
Thoughts of losing the Sunwolf Crown are only the buzzing of a fly, because nothing worries me more than Hawk’s safety. Fenren’s dead, Ivy is gone, and we’re in the middle of a swamp, still far from the Nocturne Court. If I lost Hawk, all has been for nothing.
Why would he have done something so stupid? I warned him the mask wasn’t something to be trifled with, yet he still put it on, and now… now I don’t even know if he’s the one behind those empty eyes.
With a heavy weight in my chest, I watch the wolf walk through the water, a top predator that doesn’t need to be afraid of anything, but as I inhale, ready to get its attention when it comes dangerously close to the line of trees, it turns back and heads toward me.
Despite watching it rip a bassal to shreds, and seeing the blood staining its horns, I have no fear in my heart as the Sunwolf approaches. It’s not just that I sense no ill will, or that its body language is relaxed. I must have exhausted my limit of terror on the fight with the reptile, and have none left in me. I’ve never considered myself brave. In fact, my mother always taught me bravery is stupidity in another guise. But when I made myself bait so that Hawk could escape, something changed in me. I discovered myself anew, and I liked the man I found within.
I feel like a polished diamond. Sharp, clear, and impossible to shatter. But can I avoid breaking if the man I chose to sacrifice everything for is no longer with me?
I remain dead quiet as the creature approaches, terrifying in its radiant beauty, but when it meets my gaze and sits with a soft whine, my heart leaps, because there is no doubt that he recognizes me.
The part of me that cares about proving my worth to everyone at the Nocturne Court, screams with fury, because I told him to never use the mask. But my heart is stronger, and I stroke the beast’s smooth forehead as I try to ignore the throbbing pain in my shoulder.
It opens its jaws, and several clusters of marroweed fall into my lap.
“Thank you.” I sigh and gather the flowers into my bag. I then force myself to slide off the branch and onto the muddy ground. I’m so torn between mourning the loss of the excellent bargaining chip and being elated by the presence of this mythical beast. I don’t know what it means for Hawk and me yet, but I pet Sunwolf’s fur. It’s soft as down. Hawk’s bony muzzle pokes at my hip, and I give in to the weakness in my body, putting my arms around the wolf’s neck. It’s purring, and now that I recognize that it’s a sign of contentment, fear, and tension leave my heart, allowing me to feel every consequence of the standoff.
My muscles ache. My shoulder’s broken. My head is spinning as if the bassal trampled me after all.
“We need to leave this area,” I say, exhausted to my core. “It’s not safe here. See those stars?” I point out the twinkling red constellation called the Blood Serpent. “Let’s go in that direction. With you like this, we should be able to cross without relying on Fenren’s winding paths.”
Hawk’s eyes might be dark and matte like polished stone, but I know he’s looking straight at me when he gives the faintest bark and then jerks his head, causing my hand to touch his back. I have no idea what he means until his elongated form lowers, and his stomach touches the ground.
“Are you sure?” I ask, but I am so exhausted nothing sounds more inviting than a bed of fur warm as the sunshine I used to despise.
I decide to take Hawk’s little whines as an invitation to climb him. It’s not the easiest of tasks for a man with a bad shoulder, but he doesn’t complain when I have to pull on his fur to do so. I straddle his nape and lay forward with my cheek buried in his warmth.
“Follow the red stars,” I mutter, suddenly exhausted, as if I’ve inhaled the spores of a Cerulean Puffball. After days of travel, his fur and closeness are like a cocoon of safety, and for once I don’t have to be alert and in charge, because the Sunwolf can keep me safe.
Hawkcan keep me safe.
It doesn’t feel like riding a horse. The beast under me is hotter to the touch, even with the thick padding of fur, but also broader, taller, and softer. As I relax, sinking my face into the thick hair, a voice deep inside tells me to let go. To close my eyes and let the tide wash over me.
Is this how souls feel just before they disintegrate in the river that takes them away from their world? There’s no fear, only the deepest contentment.
Back in the realm of humans, I detested the sun, but as Hawk moves, carrying me away from the scene of the fight that almost ended with our deaths, I can’t resist the comfort of the warmth he’s radiating, not after the nights we’ve spent in the swamps. He even smells like sun-parched rock, but for once the crispness of that scent is pure comfort.
I must have fallen asleep in my spot between his shoulder blades, so I’m not sure how much time passed, but the pain in my arm catches up with me eventually.
I moan despite clenching my teeth to avoid alarming Hawk. Fortunately, I’ve got the marroweed, so maybe my suffering won’t be endless. I rise to my knees and look around.
We’re not in the swamps anymore. I can tell even before spotting bright blue flowers between the trees and bushesthanks to the fresh scent of ferns. For a moment, I’m confused, because the moon must have set by now, but I realize it’s Hawk’s bright fur that brightens the night.
Sensing that I woke up, he makes a little bark, and I stroke his back to let him know I’m fine.
I feel that I recognize this forest, but most importantly, it’s time to deal with my injured shoulder and work out what’s happening to Hawk. Once he stops walking, I slide off his side, biting my lip to stifle a groan of pain when my shoulder presses too hard on his flank.
The huge bulk of the wolf seems almost too large for the narrow, mossy clearing, and when his long, bushy tail smacks against a tree, several shelled nuts fall to the ground, making so much noise Hawk tumbles, trying to get away. He lands on his side and stiffens, glaring at the offending tree as if it were guilty of bearing fruit. He growls at it and finally settles, grinning at me with teeth like the purest crystal.
“Do you understand me?” I ask, looking into his obsidian eyes. When he nods, I sigh in relief, but it’s short-lived when I face reality. “I don’t know what to do. I’ve not read anything about what happens to the bearer of the Sunwolf Crown. The risk was yours, I don’t begrudge you for the choice you made, as otherwise, I would have been dead and unable to use the mask anyway, but how will we go on?” I ask and stroke the golden skull he has for a head.
Hawk gets back on his feet and shoves my chest with his muzzle. I bite back a moan of pain when he pushes too hard, but this is an attempt to comfort me, so I keep my mouth shut and stroke the smooth surface of his skull. I no longer see any bloodstains on the horns, which means he must have dunked his head in the water sometime on the way.
