Page 56 of Savage Crown
I reached out to Valkaryn.‘I know you can’t talk.But if you need to take energy from me to fight, you do it. I’m strong now. I can handle it!’
Almost instantly, a pull yanked through my chest, draining my strength so abruptly my paws fumbled beneath me. But then a burst of power surged outward from my ribs like fireworks.
My wolfkin magic? If that was even what it was? It didn’t feel like what I imagined magic with the Elites was like. It felt ancient, raw, like wind and bone, like mountain roots and the cry of night predators.
I surged forward, body thrumming, and I knew then that Valkaryn was locked in a battle for her life. Worse, I had no idea how to get her out of it.
The moment we reached Loroc, Godric was suited up in armor and waiting, his stance rigid and ready. Kaelric must have mentally hailed him the moment things turned bad.
We shifted immediately, the world snapping back into two-legged motion. Godric bowed his head to me. “Good to see you alive, Lady Brynn.”
His voice was gruff, but there was relief in it that made my throat tighten.
“We need to get back into the city. Val is in trouble,” I told him, urgency staining every word.
He nodded once. “Kaelric told me. We need a plan, though.”
“I’m going this time, too. I’ll disguise myself like you did,” Kaelric offered, already stepping toward Godric like he expected agreement.
“No way,” Godric and I both said at the same time.
“No?” Kaelric cocked his head, brow lifting as if he genuinely didn’t understand how anyone in the entire realm could deny him anything.
“My love…” I stepped close, placing my hands over his pecs, grounding us both. The heat of him radiated through my palms. “They will recognize you even with a good disguise. You are the alpha of the largest pack in Fenmyr.”
His jaw flexed. “I won’t let you risk yourself.” His chin tipped higher, a familiar stubbornness settling over him, equal parts noble and infuriating, like telling the storm not to rain.
“I will protect her with my life,” Godric told him.
I felt another drain on my power, but just as soon as it was there, it was gone again. A cold tremor ran down my spine. Val was fighting, and I wanted to get to her as soon as possible. My muscles tightened with the urgent need to move, to be where the danger was, to feel Valkaryn’s metal warm in my hands. The world around me narrowed until all that existed was the thought of her, trapped and struggling.
“You almost got caught last time!” Kaelric told us.
His voice snapped me back into the tent like a rope dragging me from water. I peered back at Godric in the lantern’s glow. “Go get your disguise on, and I’ll meet you outside in a few minutes.”
Godric looked at Kaelric, who was glaring at me, but he nodded once, and his second-in-command left the tent, the leather at his hips whispering as he moved. My pulse was loud in my ears as I prepared to talk Kaelric down.
“Listen, I know before, when I was human, I needed you to protect me, and I was useless without Val, but that’s not the case anymore.”
Kaelric frowned, his beautiful lips pulling downward. “I’ll always protect you, Brynn, whether you need me to or not.”
Those words settled into my chest like a warm stone. It was very sweet, and my heart melted. I leaned forward and pressed a quick kiss to his lips, tasting the faint salt of sweat and pine smoke.
“I have a plan, and I’m going to need you and your men ready to storm the city on my word. Can you do that?”
His eyes glowed yellow. “I’ve been waiting to do that for a decade. But, Brynn, he has Mind Render.”
I laughed, the sound brittle with nerves. “And I have the King Killer, so let me go and kill this king.”
His expression changed, wide-eyed, like a boy finally hearing that his dreams will come true. He looked hopeful. “You have a plan?”
Narrow hope, sharp and dangerous.
I nodded. “Get your men as close to the city as possible, hidden in the forest, and charge the gates when I say to.”
His brow furrowed. “What’s your plan? He has so many loyal to him… He’s more powerful than you know. He’s?—”
“He’s a man with an over-inflated ego who needs a magic sword to exert control over people. I’ll crush him under Valkaryn’s power.”
