Page 77 of The Blade in the Ashes
“So,” he murmured. “I suspect you’re here to try to make me leave my sheep again?”
I threw him a sympathetic grin as I tossed an arm over his shoulder and started leading him towards the house. I knew how much he loved this little life he had built for himself, and I hated that I had to tear him away from his home.
Again.
“Would it help if I told you I brought you some new friends to replace them?”
His sideways glare lacked any real malice. “What makes you think I’ll like your friends?”
“Well, you like me,” I reminded him, holding a hand to my chest. “They also like me. And I like them. That all adds up, don’t you think?”
The math made sense to me, at least.
I’d expected Elaijah to put up more of a fight about leaving the farm. In preparation, I’d even planned out a rather long, rather convincing speech filled with reasons about how reckless and unsafe it would be for him to stay here on his own. I’d practiced it over and over in my head during the trek from Kent’s cottage to Elaijah’s farm. I was damn proud of that speech.
And I hadn’t needed it at all.
In fact, I had barely even finished telling Elaijah about the battle at the castle before my brother had stood up and begun packing his things into a small leather satchel.
Thenhe’dbeen the one to march back out to Kent and the others and announce that we’d better get going before we waste any more daylight.
And so we were off, continuing north towards the princesses’ school.
Elaijah and I talked for hours as we rode, but eventually even that conversation died out, and I was back to feeling utterly cold and mentally exhausted from traveling so intensely.
Kent seemed just as worn down. I couldn’t help but notice the way he’d started to hang his head as we rode. Lately, he hadn’t been speaking much either, sometimes no more than a few words at a time. Although maybe he simply felt exhausted from constantly using his magic to numb the pangs of grief that his sisters felt.
I wasn't sure how much good that would do them in the long run.
The twins weren’t much younger than we had been when the Great War started. Grief had found us regardless of our ages.
“Do you feel ready for it?” I asked him.
Kent turned towards me with raised brows.
“The war,” I clarified, visions of battle flashing in my mind. Bodies falling. Ground soggy with blood. Pain too deep to bear.
It seemed to be the only thing I could think about lately.
Kent ran his tongue over his teeth, shifting as he subtly glanced over his shoulder to check that our siblings weren’t close enough to overhear this conversation. “Not at all. Do you?”
I thought for a long moment as a wind sent a rustling through the nearby trees. “I didn’t think any war could be worse than the Great War.”
My horse whinnied, shaking out its mane. Even the beasts were anxious about what was to come.
“This one will be,” Kent agreed, finishing my thought. “This is a war of Gods. It’s unfathomable.”
“You know, back then, during the Great War, I ran into battle with hopes of glory. I know better now. I know that even victory has consequences.”
I’d been so young then. Young and idealistic. War and battle had seemed serious and frightening, of course, but there had also been this hope for infamy on the other side of it. I’d gone to bed each night dreaming of my name going down in history.
After a while, though, those dreams faded into something darker. Visions of terror and bloodshed started to fill them.
How many more nightmares would plague me when this is over?
Heavy hoofbeats sounded behind us, and I stiffened, turning to where Elaijah now charged towards me with urgency.
“There!” Elaijah pointed towards the woods to our left. “Monsters.”
