Chapter 168 The Ground Splits

Chapter 168 The Ground Splits
Lio

Sunset stained the sky the color of old blood. The stream separating Ashwood from the Cursed Forest shimmered beneath the fading light, while long shadows stretched beneath the ancient trees.

I stood at the water's edge with my staff planted firmly before me.

Beside me, Andreas knelt with one hand pressed against the damp earth while Veylorn rested his palm against the trunk of an ancient oak. Both had their eyes closed, listening to the heartbeat of the forest.

Ysoria stood ankle-deep in the stream. Ribbons of water circled her feet, as though the river already understood what we were about to ask of it.

Behind us, dozens of wolves waited among the trees. Not one growled. Not one moved. Blink's Alpha stood at their head, his amber eyes fixed on the opposite bank.

As dusk settled over the forest, tiny fairies floated through the canopy, each glowing like a firefly. Their soft radiance bathed the branches, revealing Elowen's archers waiting silently above.

Footsteps approached.

Aldo emerged from the trees with Mira at his side. Nearly forty rebels and refugees followed behind them, carrying whatever weapons they had managed to gather.

Some carried swords. Others gripped hunting spears. A few held nothing more than sharpened farming tools.

They weren't soldiers. They were ordinary people willing to die for Aetherion.

Aldo stopped beside me. "We're ready."

I nodded. "You remember the plan?"

A grin spread across his face. "We're the bait."

"Exactly." My gaze swept across every face behind him. "Don't try to be heroes."

Several exchanged puzzled glances.

"When they find you," I continued, "run. Make them believe they've broken you. Lead them across the stream. Let them think they're chasing frightened refugees."

Aldo chuckled. "I've spent half my life pretending to be more afraid than I actually was."

Normally, Helga or Jehan would have answered with some sarcastic remark.

Instead, only the wind replied.

The leaves rustled overhead.

Across the stream, something enormous shifted among the branches. For an instant, I caught sight of a massive emerald tail coiling around a tree before disappearing once more.

Vipera was in position.

Aldo drew his sword. "We'll lead them exactly where we want them."

Mira looked at me. "And if they reach the stream?"

A faint smile touched my lips. "Then the forest will decide the rest." I rested a hand on her shoulder. "May the gods watch over you."

She nodded.

Without another word, Aldo led the rebels across the stream. One by one, they disappeared into Ashwood until only silence remained.

The stream murmured softly beside us. The sky darkened. The last rays of sunlight disappeared behind the trees.

Veylorn suddenly opened his eyes. "They're here—"

A war horn shattered the silence.

Its deep note rolled through Ashwood like distant thunder.

Every wolf lifted its head behind me.

"They've found them," Andreas said quietly.

A second horn answered the first.

Then the sky came alive. Birds burst from the canopy by the hundreds.

Crows, ravens and falcons. Even tiny sparrows joined the flock until the evening sky became a living cloud of wings.

A heartbeat later, the first screams echoed through the forest.

The birds weren't attacking with beaks and talons. Each carried a stone. Large enough to wound.

Together they swept over the army, circling above the soldiers before releasing their payload.
Rock after rock rained from the sky.

Thuds. Cracks. Cries of pain.

"Shields up!" officers shouted.

Rows of shields snapped overhead.

Andreas frowned. "They're adapting." He looked toward Veylorn. "Tell the trees to prepare."

As Veylorn whispered to the ancient forest, another command rang out from the enemy ranks.

"Catapults! Now!"

Massive wooden arms lurched skyward. Flaming boulders roared into the evening sky.

Toward the birds. Toward the Cursed Forest.

Ysoria thrust both hands upward and the stream answered. Columns of water surged into the air before weaving together into a shimmering wall.

The burning boulders slammed into it. Steam exploded across us. One by one, the flames hissed out before they could reach the Cursed Forest.

The blackened stones splashed harmlessly back to the earth.

Ysoria lowered her hands, breathing harder than before. "They'll keep firing."

"I know," Andreas replied as he stepped into the stream beside her. "I'll help hold the barrier." His gaze shifted toward the enemy siege engines. "But those catapults need to disappear."

A deep hiss answered him. Leaves rustled high above us.

Vipera and the trees had heard.

Ancient vines burst from beneath the leaf litter. They lashed across the battlefield with terrifying speed.

One coiled around a soldier's throat before yanking him screaming into the canopy. Another wrapped itself around three men at once, dragging them beneath a writhing mass of roots.

The trees swayed. Branches twisted. Roots erupted from the earth.

Ashwood had awakened.

Then something enormous rose above the treetops.

Vipera.

The great serpent towered over the battlefield, her emerald scales gleaming beneath the last light of the setting sun.

With astonishing speed, she coiled around the nearest catapult. Wood splintered. Ropes snapped.

With a violent heave, she tore the entire siege engine from the ground and hurled it into the advancing army.

It smashed into a second catapult. Then a third.

Above us, Elowen raised two fingers to her lips and let out a sharp whistle. The archers rose from their hiding places among the branches.

"Release!"

The forest answered with a storm of arrows.

The arrows arced into the evening sky before raining down upon the Arcanian soldiers. Their formations broke as men scattered in every direction.

From the edge of Ashwood, the rebels burst from the trees, sprinting back toward us.

Aldo's voice boomed across the battlefield.
"Retreat!" he bellowed. "Keep running!"

Mira reached me first, breathing hard. "There are too many of them."

I frowned. "What do you mean? Their advance has stalled."

She shook her head frantically. "That's only half their army." Her eyes widened as she looked beyond me. "Elowen!" she screamed. "Get down from there! They have—"

Another war horn echoed across the battlefield.

Long, deep, and different from the others.

Vaelric's army was signaling for another onslaught.

Every smile disappeared as we felt the ground tremble beneath us.

Tree after tree crashed to the earth as the Arcanian army rolled more siege engines into view.

Not a handful, but an entire line. Ballistae, heavy catapults, supply wagons.

And with them, ranks upon ranks of soldiers stretching beyond the trees.

Vaelric hadn't sent an army. He'd sent an invasion.

"Fall back to the Veiled Sanctum!" Mira shouted as she turned and ran. "Move! You too, Lio!"

The first ballista fired. The massive bolts screamed upward instead of forward. It tore through the flock overhead. Birds dropped from the sky.

Another volley followed. Then another. Arrows blackened the heavens. Feathers drifted through the smoke like snow.

One massive bolt slammed into Vipera's shoulder. The great serpent recoiled with a furious hiss that shook the forest. A second bolt pierced her flank. She writhed in pain before disappearing beneath the canopy.

Then the catapults fired. Burning boulders arced overhead. Some shattered harmlessly against the walls of water Ysoria and Andreas raised. Others slipped through.

Flames erupted across the treetops. Ancient branches burst into fire. Smoke rolled through both forests.

Aldo splashed back across the stream with the rebels close behind him.

"They're breaking through!" he shouted.

Another burning boulder crashed behind them, showering sparks into the air.

"There are too many siege engines!"

The wolves began to withdraw. The surviving birds scattered from the burning canopy. Even the trees seemed to recoil from the flames.

The forest... was retreating.

Aldo looked at me. "What now? The others aren't back with the dragon."

I tightened my grip on my staff. This was exactly what Vaelric expected.

A battle. A retreat.

I planted the butt of my staff into the earth. The violet crystal blazed.

Power surged through my body. Into the soil. Into every root stretching beneath Ashwood and the Cursed Forest.

I closed my eyes. Then whispered a single command.

"Swallow."

The earth obeyed. The forest groaned. Cracks raced across the battlefield.

Then the ground split apart.

\----------

Florian

Lady Elyndra had always prepared for failure.
It was one of the many reasons she had survived centuries in my master's court.

Even unconscious... She still had a contingency.

I sat quietly beside Kier, our wrists linked by the unnecessarily excessive chains Lady Helga had fastened around us. Lady Elyndra leaned limply against my shoulder, still unconscious from the blow to her head.

I must admit, Lady Helga possessed a remarkably powerful swing.

Around us, the Veiled Sanctum hummed with controlled urgency. Refugees sharpened spears, bundled arrows, and carried supplies toward the forest's edge.

No one spared us more than a passing glance.
Except Rowenna.

She stood several paces away with a bow already strung, an arrow resting lightly against the string.

"I hope one of you gives me a reason," she muttered.

Kier shifted beside me. "I don't think she likes us."

"I don't believe she likes anyone at the moment."

She looked over immediately. "I heard that."

"I assumed you would."

She frowned. "I liked you better when you weren't talking."

"I'm afraid Lady Elyndra encourages independent thought."

"She also likes possessing other people's bodies," she scoffed.

Ah. That explained much.

Lady Elyndra had apparently borrowed the young woman's body at some point.

Why? I decided not to ask.

Instead, I lowered my eyes to Lady Elyndra's hand.

Just as I'd hoped, no one had noticed. Hidden between her fingers rested a polished white travel orb.

The very one she had idly rolled between her fingers while speaking with Lady Serafina. Everyone had been too distracted by Lady Helga's theatrics to remember it.

Now, I merely required an opportunity.

It arrived sooner than expected.

The ground trembled. At first, only slightly. Then the entire mountain shuddered.

Cries erupted throughout the camp.

"The ground's moving!"

"The earth is splitting apart!"

Refugees stumbled as tents swayed. Children screamed. Horses whinnied in panic.

Rowenna spun away from us. "Everyone into the clearing!" she shouted. "Move! Stay away from the trees!"

People surged past the cage. Exactly as I had hoped.

I leaned toward Kier. "Hold my shoulder."

He blinked. "Why?"

"Just do it."

Before he could ask another question, the cage lurched violently. A deafening crack split the earth beneath us.

The entire cage tilted.

My heart skipped. No.

Stone crumbled away as a jagged fissure raced beneath us. The ground was collapsing.

"Kier!" I snapped, all composure abandoning me. "Now! Hold on to me!"

He obeyed instantly, grabbing my shoulder. With my free hand, I lifted Lady Elyndra's limp arm and draped it across my other shoulder.

"What are you doing?" Kier shouted.

"We're leaving!"

"How?"

I pried open Lady Elyndra's fingers. The polished white travel orb slipped into my hand.

"A travel orb!" Kier exclaimed.

The cage lurched again. A piece of earth broke free and disappeared into the darkness below.

"But where are we going?"

"Anywhere but here!"

The earth vanished beneath us. For one impossible heartbeat, we hung suspended in empty air.

Then...

We fell.

Kier screamed.

The cage slammed against the side of the widening chasm. Iron shrieked. Stone exploded around us. The chains jerked painfully against my wrists as we plunged deeper into darkness.

I wrapped my fingers around the orb so tightly they hurt.

Please.. Work.

Warmth spread through the sphere. White light burst outward.

The cage, the forest, the mountain—everything vanished.

A heartbeat later, polished marble replaced iron beneath our feet. Golden chandeliers replaced open sky. The scent of roasted meat replaced damp earth.

We had arrived.

I let out a shaky breath. "Oh, thank the gods."

Several servants gasped. A pair of palace guards instinctively reached for their swords.

At the far end of the chamber, Emperor Vaelric looked up from his evening meal.

His dark eyes narrowed. "Florian." His voice echoed through the throne room. "I have been looking for you. And my sister." His gaze settled upon Lady Elyndra hanging unconscious between Kier and me. "What happened?"

I bowed as deeply as the chains allowed. "Lady Elyndra entered the Cursed Forest to rescue me from the rebels."

"And?"

"She was struck unconscious..." I allowed the briefest hesitation. "...by Lady Helga."

"The enormous woman?"

"The very same."

One of His Majesty's hands slowly curled into a fist. "I underestimated her."

"So did Lady Elyndra."

His eyes returned to me. "I have already dispatched an army to deal with the rebel vermin." His voice remained calm. "Tell me... is my army victorious?"

I met his gaze. "Your Majesty..." I drew a measured breath. "Lady Serafina is alive."

Vaelric laughed. "Impossible."

"I saw her with my own eyes."

"The dragon watched her die."

"I know what I witnessed, Sire." I gestured toward Kier. "He can confirm my account."

Every eye turned toward the former shadow.

Kier swallowed Then bowed awkwardly. "She's alive, Your Majesty."

The Emperor's expression hardened. He turned toward the great windows overlooking Aetheria.

"I require General Sallow."

His hand touched the black crown upon his head.
The gemstones pulsed. Green light rippled through the chamber. Moments later, General Sallow materialized before the throne and immediately dropped to one knee.

"You summoned me, Your Majesty?"

"I want a report."

"The rebels have retreated. Fire has spread throughout the Cursed Forest."

Vaelric gave a single nod. Then he looked back at me. "My bride." His voice had become unnervingly quiet. "Where is she?"

I lowered my head. "She is no longer in the Cursed Forest, Sire."

"I assumed as much." His eyes narrowed. "Where?"

"Inside Aetheria."

Another pause. "Where in Aetheria?"

"The Penitentiary."

For the first time, I saw genuine alarm cross the Emperor's face.

He turned sharply toward Sallow. "Have the Fleshwrights completed the extraction?"

"Yes, Your Majesty."

"Good." Vaelric descended from the throne. His eyes burned with quiet resolve. "Open the vault."

Sallow looked up. "Now, Sire?"

"Serafina intends to free the dragon." He continued down the steps. "To stop her, I require Celestial blood." His gaze drifted toward the distant silhouette of the Penitentiary. "And binding collars."

A faint smile touched his lips.

"Soon... my bride will wear one."