The Forsaken Hero

I didn’t know whether to sit or stand, to shy away or run to him. So I just stood there, staring dumbly. Lost in his violet eyes, unaware of anyone else around me. Even Selena mana felt distant, soft as the breeze against the rush of my pounding heart.

”Luke...?” I whispered. ”How did you...why are you...?”

”Hmm? And here I thought you’d be happy to see me,” he said, softening his words with a gentle smile.

”No, I am! I was so...um...” Realizing the suddenness of my outburst, I looked down, fingers curling into my dress. ”Well, um, I mean...”

He glanced past me, and his lips quirked in a smile. I shivered, sensing where he was looking.

”At least your tail’s honest,” he said.

”L-Luke!” I blushed crimson, snatching my tail out of the air, holding it in a death grip. It was practically wagging. I wasn’t that excited. I wasn’t!

He let out a hearty chuckle, turning so he stood beside me, not across, and looked over the courtyard.

”What is this place? And who’s that mage? I could sense their mana the moment I entered the city.”

”We’d...better sit down,” I mumbled, sitting on the edge of the bench, my knees pressed together, hands in my lap.

Luke nodded slowly, sitting on the other end. Close. Too close. But not close enough.

The Star Guard shifted, all but Kahlen exchanging tense looks. I ignored them, doing my best to stare at Luke without actually looking at him. I still couldn’t believe he was here. As I explained who Selena was and how close she was to breaking through, my hand twitched, inching across the gap between us before I caught it, pinning it in my lap with the other.

”So she’s your old mentor? That’s why you’re helping her break through?” he asked.

I hesitated before nodding. ”But not just because I owe her. But what about you? How are you already here?”

”I’ve concluded my business elsewhere. All shards on this continent, save for a handful under Risen control and those among the elves, have been consumed.”

”What of Heartland? And the kingdoms west of that?” I asked, meeting his gaze before I could remember not to. MY cheeks colored, and I looked away. Why was this so difficult? We’d talked together countless times!

Luke smiled faintly. ”During the time we rested at Blacksand, I sent Constance and a small horde to claim them.” His smile faltered. ”He was as unintrusive as possible, but I’m afraid the lands there are in dire straits. I expected as much from Brithlite, hells take that place, but infernal beasts, monsters, and rogue demons have ravaged everywhere. The closest thing they have to a government is local warlords and marauding bandits.”

My face fell, the heat fading as quickly as it had come. ”I... know. I’ve seen it all...the pain, darkness, and despair. They need a light, but I...I can’t give it to them. I can’t abandon our fight, not after we’ve come so far.”

Luke nodded, pursing his lips. I knew he wasn’t particularly bothered by the devastation left in the wake of his invasion, but there were few I’d shared that burden with. I hadn’t even meant to; it just kind of slipped out.

”I wish the innocent didn’t have to suffer,” he murmured, ”But too many innocents have already paid the price. As you say, we’ve come too far to stop.”

Another glowing circle appeared in the sky, slowly scrolling around the courtyard before rising to join the others. It was the fourth so far, appearing almost an hour earlier in the cast than yesterday. Selena was showing no signs of slowing.

”I see you’re still wearing your same dresses,” Luke said after a few minutes of silence.

My hand flew to the hem of my skirt, tugging it to my knee. ”Oh, um...sometimes. I bought more, but...I was in a hurry this morning.”

”And your hair. I’ve never seen it so lustrous before,” he murmured.

My heart skipped a beat as he half raised his hand to my face, where a strand fell across my cheek. But he paused, then quickly lowered it with an abashed look. I stared at my lap, hands clasped tightly. The air was thick between us, and we petered off into silence again. I heard an exasperated sigh behind us, though from Luxxa or Jenna I couldn’t tell.

”Am I out of time?” I asked in a small voice.

His tail twitched once. ”What? Time?”

”To save the shards. If you’ve conquered everywhere else, then...”

”Xiviyah,” his voice was gentle but firm. ”I told you before. It will be months before we’re ready for an assault on the southern continent. And I’ve promised to save the shards. If you keep worrying about them, I’m going to assume you don’t trust me to keep my word. That’s not true, is it?”

I shook my head, rubbing my horn, and he nodded.

”Good. Then let’s enjoy the quiet a little longer. There won’t be a chance once the invasion has begun.”

Together. He meant to enjoy it together. The thought was titillating, sending a tingle down my tail. It curled toward the middle of the bench, rustling over the grass. With a beating heart, I realized Luke’s was the same, curving so it nearly brushed against me. I quickly jerked my tail away before he could notice.

Time passed slowly, the hours crawling by. Slowly, I grew more comfortable sitting next to Luke, no longer stammering when I spoke or blushing at the slightest glance. Borealis found his place in my lap again, much to Luke’s disbelief.

”He’s still following you around?” he asked.

”I...I like him,” I said, stroking the demon’s back. ”He’s thoughtful and sweet.”

”The wolf I can understand, but this one’s literally a demon,” he muttered, shaking his head.

”So is Kahlen, but that doesn’t stop him from flirting with Jenna,” I said, glancing over my shoulder at the blade demon.

”What?” Luke turned, staring at them openly. Jenna giggled, waving at him. Kahlen just sniffed, turning his head.

”Demons aren’t so different, once you get to know them. Well, some aren’t,” I said, frowning. ”Others are just monsters. But the same’s true for people.”

Like that, another hour slipped by, and then another, until Selena began the eighth circle of her spell. The point of no return, according to Fyren, at least. I should have noticed it then: a strange quiet in the courtyard, and the whispers of power surging from Fyren’s soul. But it wasn’t until a low rumble filled the air, and the earth quivered beneath our feet, that I tensed, looking around uneasily.

”Was that her?” Luke asked, straightening with an alert expression.

”I don’t know, I wasn’t looking–”

Another rumble cut me off. The ground jerked violently, pitching me against Luke. I grabbed his arm with both hands, instinctively clinging to him.

”That’s not the elf,” Kahlen cried, springing in front of us. His blades materialized in a gleam of silver, hovering over his head.

”What?” Luke stood, pulling me to my feet. Shadows flowed into his hand, forming a cold, black blade. I shivered as the thick, oily power of his aura rubbed against mine, a stain in the golden mist.

A torrent of soulspeak flowed from Fyren into my mind, breaking through my mental barriers. I gasped, eyes widening as fire, sunlight, and pain overwrote my own senses. Terror seized me as the scattered memories slid into place between the fragments of the vision that had terrified me the night before.

”Inquisitors!” I choked, ”They’re coming!”

No sooner had I spoken than a blazing meteor the color of a fresh coal streaked across the sky. Luke’s arm broke free of my grip, snaking around my back and grabbing me by the shoulder. The world blurred as he drew me close, kicking off the ground. My stomach lurched, making me grateful I’d eaten nothing more than light snacks all day. When my vision stabilized, we were on the other side of the sparring field from Selena.

The meteor struck the bench we’d be sitting on, exploding in a firestorm that consumed the gardens. I screamed as white-hot light enveloped me, burying my face in Luke’s chest. Adaptive resistance consumed the mana of the explosion, but I shuddered as my skin burned with phantom pain, and my horns itched like they were peeling. Sun magic.

Luke hissed as the light faded, and I looked up, blinking away tears. His armor had survived the blast, but his exposed flesh was covered in blisters and burns. I gripped his tunic tightly as I looked him over, relaxing only when I saw no hints of sunpurge.

My next thought was to turn, and my relief increased when I saw Borealis and the Star Guard had survived unscathed. I perpetually had them shielded with Adaptive resistance, and they lacked the sun magic sensitivity that left my body stinging in the residual mana of the blast.

Selena, just fifty feet from the epicenter, hadn’t even flinched in the blast. From the concentration on her face and the mana that continued to flow into the spell, I wasn’t even sure she had noticed. Which was good, because she’d already poured enough mana into her spell to vaporize half the city if it failed.

With my allies secure, I turned my attention to the crater that had replaced the bench. A single figure rose from the billowing smoke, fire, and cinders, his white cloak flaring on the fiery winds. A stylized sun was emblazoned across his chest, a long sword held naked in his hand. An inquisitor.