Page 233 of A Kingdom of Wild and Power
Kage stilled. ‘What do you mean he left?’
Willow adjusted the belt of her armour with mild irritation.
‘He left. Do not ask me where.’ She glanced towards the distant entrance where soldiers continued to rush in and out. ‘We are about to fight the witches. Not only them, Kage Blackburn, but my daughter Eris. This will be a bloodbath. We cannot waste our time chasing after a wolverian prince.’
‘King.’
She waved a hand dismissively. ‘Then perhaps he has gone to fetch me a wolverian army.’
ButKage had already turned away. He did not remain to hear anything else. His boots carried him swiftly across the hall, searching for Bryn through the swirling chaos of movement and shouted orders.
Then something caught his attention.
Far in the corner.
Kage was not sure what had drawn his attention there, some quiet instinct perhaps, or the hand of fate itself.
He slowed as he approached.
Two bodies lay upon the ground, resting on enormous leaves that had been used as makeshift stretchers.
Kage paused a few steps away.
Only then did he notice the strange contrast surrounding them.
The hall itself was breathtaking—great tree trunks rising like living columns, vines curling across stone walls, flowers blooming in vibrant colours. Small rabbits and mice darted through the greenery as though this place were a garden rather than the heart of a fortress carved into the belly of a mountain.
It was a place of impossible beauty.
And yet death had arrived here all the same.
In that moment, the beauty around him soured, twisting into something ugly, something unbearable.
Kage sank slowly to his knees beside Ylva’s body and gently took her hand. He assumed it must be cold, though it was difficult to tell. His own flesh no longer held warmth either, not since death had claimed him. The difference between living skin and lifeless flesh had long since blurred for him.
He glanced towards Arden, who lay beside her.
They both looked peaceful. As though they had merely fallen asleep beneath the quiet shelter of the leaves.
Kage had never known Arden as deeply as he had knownYlva. Wren, as he had first known her. But during their travels he had come to appreciate the Black Lotus warrior far more than he had ever expected.
Arden had been good company.
Steady. Loyal. Brave in the quiet sort of way that rarely drew attention.
And now they lay here together.
Dead.
If Ylva had died in the mortal world, then it made sense that Wren’s spirit in the Underworld had begun to fade. Souls were not meant to exist in two places forever. Eventually, one form had to follow the other.
He wondered where her soul would go now.
Wherever it was meant to travel, he hoped she would find peace there.
Joy.
Perhaps she would find her parents again. Perhaps she would be reunited with her sisters.
