Page 45 of Lucifer's Mirror
As the sun goes down, we eventually stop in a small copse of trees with a stream for the horses.
We don’t cook that night. I presume this is the shape of things to come, but I miss the comforting glow of a fire. I expect to lie awake, but strangely enough, I sleep. Surrounded by Thanouq, Therion, Khaosti, and Zayne, I feel safe, though I’m sure it’s an illusion.
The next day, we do the same thing all over again.
But the following afternoon, we ride through a forest of tall trees. Beneath the canopy, the land is dead. Nothing grows, and unease shivers through me. I’m glad when we come out into the sunshine once more. Therion is riding beside Thanouq, leaning in to talk. Thanouq does not look happy. He nudges his horse forward and comes to ride beside me.
“How are you faring?” he asks.
“Okay.” Actually, my ass hardly hurts at all today. But I don’t mention my ass to Thanouq; it doesn’t seem proper. Anyway, it’s late and the sun is low, so we’ll be stopping soon, and my ass can have a rest. “I’ll be glad when it’s over, you know, when we get to the Crone.” I think for a second. “Does she actually have a name other than the Crone?”
Thanouq smiles. “Yes, but it’s up to her to tell you if she desires.”
God, why does everyone have to be so cryptic?
We ride in silence for a few minutes, then he speaks again. “Do you think you will like the answers you get?”
That’s an interesting question. And one I don’t have an answer to. “Probably not. But it doesn’t matter. I need to know. I can’t go back home until I understand why those things came after me. Otherwise, they’ll just keep coming, and I won’t be safe. No one near me will be safe either. It’s not as though I have a choice. I’ve never had a choice.”
“None of us really have choices,” he says. “Or at least, it appears that way. In reality, we do. We can choose. But we have to face the consequences of those decisions.”
“Well, it would be nice if I knew what the consequences were. Right now, I know nothing. And Iwantto know.” But it’s more than that. “Ineedto know. There’s always been this little voice in my head, telling me that I can’t give up.” I give him a sideways look. “So, you’re royalty.”
He snorts. “A defunct royalty of a kingdom that no longer exists.”
All the same, royalty is royalty. “Do you have a crown?”
He snorts again. He’s obviously amused, so at least that’s something. “The crown was destroyed during the last battle before my ancestors fled the city. According to the stories, the king was wearing it at the time. Only the queen survived—she dressed as a serving woman and managed to escape. She lived long enough to bear the child she carried, and so our line continued. But everything of value was left behind, including the crown.”
“Maybe they’ll make you a new one,” I say.
“It is said that when Lucifer is defeated, a new crown will be forged, but I don’t believe in prophecies. I think it’s just as likely that our world will be completely destroyed in whatever battle is to come.”
“So you think there’s a battle coming?”
“I know it.” He waves a hand at the world around us. “This place, Valandria, was once known as the playground of the gods, but it became the gods’ battleground, and much of it was destroyed. And it’s not over yet. There’s been a lull. I don’t know why.” I feel his eyes on me. “I can’t help but think,” he continues, “that you’re part of this. That you bring change. I just cannot decide whether that change is for good or evil.” He frowns. “You’re human?”
He makes it sound unbelievable. “Of course I’m human. What else would I be?”
He chuckles at that. “There are lots of other things to be. Some good, some not so good.”
I remember that he’s some type of shifter, like Khaosti, but at the same time, different from Khaosti. Khaosti said he was born that way. But I’m guessing Thanouq was made, like Zayne was. He was bitten by one of those things, the shadowguard.
I’m just about to ask him about it, but Therion rides up beside us.
“We’re being followed.”
Chapter 22
A Clash with the Shadowguard
Athiswords,mystomach flips, and I turn to look over my shoulder. My muscles tighten involuntarily, and Stella dances beneath me. I force myself to calm down, and she settles, but I’m anything but calm.
The sun is setting, and the sky is red. Across the far horizon, something like smoke snakes across the landscape—thick, black and alive.
“Shadowguard,” Thanouq says. “They must have picked us up after we left the city.”
A sudden image of red eyes and yellow teeth fills my mind, and a shudder runs through me. A sense of dread wells up in my belly and spreads through my entire body. I’m not ready for this. I may never be ready for this.
