Page 69 of Black Onyx
“Everyone else, go and get showered and changed. Grab your bags as well. We can go over the files while we eat breakfast.” Storm orders, and everyone separates to go to their own rooms.
Once in the shower, it occurs to me that none of them asked me any questions about what happened yesterday, and I find myself incredibly grateful. I don’t want to explain it. I’m just so incredibly glad that they were there for me, especially Storm, it was his voice I heard calling me back.
Who would’ve thought it?
I feel strangely energised as I get everything ready, and as I step back out into the main part of the room, I realise it’s because I got a whole night’s sleep with no nightmares.
I join the others at the table after placing my bag by the front door. I take a huge gulp of much needed coffee, and I grab my fork in one hand and the file in the other so I can read and eat at the same time; everyone else is doing something similar.
As I read the file though, my interest in the food disappears; it seems like there have been reports of the Rogues becoming intelligent. The higher-level ones are organising the lower levels and causing absolute devastation in the Shadowlands. It’s surprising because before now, all Rogues have been working individually, which makes even the higher-level ones easier to take out. If this isn’t an isolated incident and the file doesn’t make it sound like it is, then that could spell significant issues for the future, even more so if they come out of the Shadowlands and are able to terrorise the rest of the Fae Realm. I’d be willing to bet that they’re not only testing their methods in the Shadowlands because it’s the most dangerous place in the Fae Realm, so if they can succeed there, then they’ll definitely be able to succeed out here but also because there are no laws there, supernaturals who find themselves living there are only out to protect themselves. Some factions rule certain parts which you can ask for protection from but very few can afford to pay the prices they ask. There are some incredibly powerful supernaturals living there, and the lesser known thing is that not all of them are there because they are evil and dangerous and want to live without rules; no, they don’t believe in the current monarchy and how things are being run. The Shadowlands are so much more than they are made out to be, and I think it’s going to surprise the guys. However, it is deadly, the inhabitants don’t take kindly to strangers, and it takes a certain kind of person to survive there. The vague rules they do have are harsh, deadly and don’t follow most people’s moral compass. So basically, it's easy pickings for the Rogues to test their abilities on and improve their tactics in the Shadowlands because the rules are a guideline that not everyone follows, and there’s no one there to enforce them either.
According to the file, there’s been talk of an attack planned at one of the outer settlements, Tripdeorc. As soon as I see the name, I frown.
“What’s wrong?” Storm asks, his eyes on me.
“What isn’t? This is fucking crazy, and if it's true could have catastrophic consequences for the Fae Realm,” Mayhem answers.
“Very true, but she read all that and then got to something that made her frown.” Storm explains.
I raise my eyebrow, “You were watching me?”
He grins, unguarded and reaching his eyes, “Yep.”
“Well, alright then,” I mutter, not knowing how to respond to this new version of Storm, so I explain instead, “I was frowning because Tripdeorc is an abandoned town. There isn’t anyone living there, or at least there wasn’t the last time that I was in the Shadowlands. They may have repopulated it, but it’s doubtful it was absolutely ransacked.”
“Well, shit, so we’ve basically got two options. One, they’ve repopulated it since you were there, and now, they’re being attacked again since I assume they’d be a fairly easy target, as they’ve already been attacked once, or there’s no one there, and this is a set up of some kind.” Rival suggests.
“Is there any way that we can pull out?” Loki asks.
“No, the Headmaster would send another team, and even if it is a set-up for us, they would still be sent to the Shadowlands, and they would die.” Storm says.
“So we’ve got no choice. We go.” Killian answers, standing up. “I’ve already notified the stables. Our horses should be ready. Let’s go and get this over with.”
Everyone gets up and dons their backpacks, checking their weapons before we all file out of the door and down to the stables. It takes barely any time at all to get going, and once we’re away from the ears of the academy, Storm goes over the plan.
“Okay, first I can get us to the border of the Shadowlands, but after that, Farren, you’re navigating us. Can you do that?”
“Yes, I know it well enough, and I know where Tripdeorc is.” My reply is sure. It might not be the best time to tell them that I actually have friends in the Shadowlands. People tend not to take that too well. We share a life debt and an experience I wouldn’t wish on anyone.
“Great. When we’re there, it’s safe to assume that we’re going to have to hunker down for a while in order to wait for the attack. We need to stay vigilant always. The file said that it was planned for two days time. It will take us roughly a day to get to the border,” he pauses and looks at me.
“It should take around two hours to get to the village. It’s right on the very edge.”
“Right, so we should have a few hours to set up and wait before the attack.”
“Something you need to remember is if there are people there they don’t like outsiders, they will strip you of everything valuable, torture and kill you. Weak supernaturals do not live in the Shadowlands; they simply wouldn’t survive.” I explain.
“So how do we protect them if they’ll just kill us on sight?” Killian asks, his uncertainty causing his tail to wrap around his waist.
I grin, “Fortunately, I know their language, and I have a few other tricks up my sleeves.”
“I’m not even going to bother asking,” Reaper mutters.
“You had to have spent a long time there in order to learn their language.” Kill points out, a frown on his face, no doubt because this is something that he didn’t know about me.
I shrug, not bothering to reply because, in order to answer that question, I’d have to explain why I feel at home in the Shadowlands in a way that I have never felt in the rest of the kingdom. Unless they experience the real Shadowlands, they won’t understand, so for now, my mouth is staying shut.
Storm looks insanely curious, but the words that come out of his mouth are surprising and convince me that whatever the barrier was between us has been obliterated.
