“Not yet. It is going to take more than an old witch and a retired empath to unlock that part of you. I’m afraid my powers are not the same these days.”
“It’s what he’s been training me for!” Nyah interrupted, “I can tell him that, right?”
“It is going to take more than you and me to complete the ritual. Turns out I was better at doing my job than I was supposed to be. It’s why we are headed to Eldnol, we are going to need an entire coven of empaths to help.”
“I still believe we need to take our time with this,” Hadrian added from the corner of the room. “What is the rush? The Dragori are not needed like they used to. Without the druids, we have no purpose.”
“My boy, an ancient evil is stirring. The Goddess wouldn’t have brought you both together otherwise. There’s been a prophecy, an Alorian seer has foreseen the return of the druids. It might explain what has been occurring across Thessolina in the recent months.”
It couldn’t be true. The druids died out centuries ago, how could they return?
“Ridiculous,” Hadrian said. “You really believe the druids are behind this? It is impossible. It is my Father who is the threat. He has deployed twice the number of ships in the past day. It is only a matter of time before they find us.”
“But you said he wouldn’t find the island. You said we are safe.” I turned to Gallion, shocked he would lie to me.
“No one is ever safe, boy. War is brewing, and it is over something the Alorian and Morthi elves have no control over. This island is shrouded, but it only takes luck for a boat to pass through the barrier. And with the number of ships Dalior has between here and Olderim, it is evident that time is coming.” Gallion pushed off the cabinet he leaned on and called for Nyah to follow him. “I think it’s time we leave these two alone, you and I have some training to resume.”
Before he left the room, he turned to face us once more. “Browlin is to return by nightfall. We will talk then and plan our next move. Pray to the Goddess that we’ve been granted passage to Eldnol. I worry it’s our only chance of survival.”
***
IT WASN’T LONG until sundown. Beyond the open window, the sky was beginning to darken, a light shadow of dusk resting across the tops of the trees.
Hadrian passed me a piece of spiked, orange fruit from a bowl and I bit into it. Glad to finally eat after the day I’d had.
“If you don’t want to go through with the ritual in Eldnol, I will tell Gallion to stop wasting his time,” he said, picking at his strange looking fruit.
“I want to do it, Hadrian. I finally feel like the answers I have longed for are in my grasp. I will not waste this opportunity.”
Hadrian patted the space on the bed beside him and I moved to sit. “I have asked Gallion and he doesn’t know much about the ritual, but it will not be easy. It may be painful, it might not even work. But if you are willing to take that risk, I will be there with you.”
I tried to smile. “How is it Nyah can leave the island and find it again? I’ve been wondering about that.”
“You truly have a question for everything.” He chuckled, brushing a silver strand of my hair and planting a quick kiss on my forehead. “I am not sure how it works, and I worry that if I ask Nyah, she may talk me to death when explaining. But, Gallion acts as some sort of beacon to her. My guess is there is a link between them both, being empaths and all. In terms of her being followed, I trust that she is clever with her choices when scouting and can avoid that, we have not had an issue yet and she has been going out every day since we arrived.”
I felt like I knew her well enough to trust her ability to stay hidden, but being so safe didn’t sit well with me. I half expected an army to burst through the island at any moment, driven by King Dalior’s need to punish me for what I’d done.
“And you promise my parents are safe?” I asked. Gallion had reassured me that he has someone keeping an eye on them
“Trust in Gallion’s words. He would not tell you something that is not true.”
“I am sorry for doing this to you, Hadrian, I never wanted you to go against your own family.”
He frowned, taking my face in both of his large hands and pulling me inches from his own. I wanted to look away from his intense gaze, but at the same time get lost within it.
“You need to stop this. Apologizing for something that has been out of your hands since the day my father called for you and the other shifters to attend the feast. None of this has been your fault. My father has not cared for me, despite how he acts in front of the kingdom. Since my mother died, he hasn’t been the same.”
“You truly believe the answers will be found in Eldnol?” I asked.
“I do hope so.”
If we don’t find out there, I will make it my mission to find out for you, I silently promised him.
I had nothing to lose, where Hadrian had a whole kingdom to protect.
Hadrian held my face in his hands and kissed me, this time on my lips. We melted into each other, disconnecting from the worries and world around us. His mouth tasted like sweet oranges. He ran a hand down the back of my scalp and brought me closer to him. We sat there, lost in each other’s lust.
I’d never felt like this. Never found it so natural to lose myself with someone. I felt whole with Hadrian.
Petrer.
I pulled away.
“What’s wrong?” Hadrian asked, his eyes pinched with alarm.
“I’ve left him.”
Hadrian went to wrap his arms around my back, but I shrugged him off.
“Who?” he asked.
“Petrer,” I snapped, standing from the bed. “I’ve left him there. What is he going to think of me? What if Dalior uses him against me, that’s what villains do in the stories you read right? I can’t fathom what I would do if he was hurt.”
With the rush of anger, my magick stirred to life. Gallion was right, it was no longer within me. I felt it pulsing in the room around me. I clenched my hands into fists, trying to catch my breath.
“You are going to need to calm down. Worrying will not change anything.”
“If he is hurt—”
“I know, Goddess help who ever touches him. But father will be too focused on you to even look his way. Please, just calm down.”
If you tell me to calm down one more time, you’ll regret it.
I didn’t recognize the voice in my head.
I moved for the door and flung my hands forward, sending the wind to swing it open. I walked onto the pathway beyond and threw my hand back, slamming the door closed.
I ran down the spiralling pathway away from the raised huts. The wind silenced my footfall without my need to ask it. My magick played off my own thoughts, it felt like a large extension of my own body and mind.
I kept going, not stopping until I was deep in the belly of the island. Not until I knew no one would hear me scream.