Page 96 of A Bond So Deadly

I let out a strangled cry at the sight of the burning trees, and I can faintly make out some of the forest creatures running from the flames.

“The Xalgrith!” I say to Emorie in a panic as my mates and their animali hover in the air on either side of me. “They’re here!”

“No, bonded,” Emorie says softly. “Look closer.”

I take a deep breath, grateful for my heightened eyesight as I stare at the burning forest. Barely visible on the far right, behind a row of burning oak trees, stands a group of shadow warriors. “Why aren’t they helping?” I ask my phoenix, but the realization hits me a moment later.

“Queen Krosia did this, didn’t she?”

“Yes,” Emorie replies. “A long time ago, the oracle came to me and told me my own prophecy. They told me a darkness was coming, and when the time came, I must bond with the only one who could help.”

I tear my gaze from the fire to look at the two shadows who are resting on my shoulder again.

“Oh, don’t look at us,” Elgen says. “Whatever we may have said or done is not something we can remember, right now.”

“But how am I supposed to help?” I mutter, feeling completely inadequate for this task.

“That was not divulged to me,” Emorie replies calmly.

“Okay, but you must have some idea. How did you know to choose me?” Personally, I’m starting to think she really made a mistake given everything we’ve already been through, but I’m not about to tell her that.

Emorie tilts her head, her beady black eyes focused on the burning forest. “I chose you because you were the first student at Shadowbone to seem completely unequipped for the job.”

“Oh, great. So my incompetence caught your attention,” I reply dryly. “I’m sorry to say, but you probably should have been looking for different strengths.”

“You misunderstand me, bonded. Your…clumsy charm caught my attention, yes,” she explains, “but that is not why I chose you.”

“Okay,” I say slowly. “Then why did you?”

She’s silent for a moment. “Because no matter what the professors put you through, or how unmatched you seemed, you always…”

“Managed to evade death?” I finish for her. “You know that was luck, right?”

She gives me a look. “You always had hope.”

I swallow hard. “Some would say that hope was just me being delusional.”

“And others would say that hope is the only thing that can get us through this,” Emorie replies. “You’ve seen what the shadow queen is capable of.”

“The giant chicken has some wisdom,” Elgen adds with a nod. “In simple terms, your stubbornness to not die is exactly what we need.”

“My stubbornness to stay alive?” I reply.

“They refer to your bravery,” Tarlaz corrects.

Okay, now I want to laugh, because obviously these three still don’t understand me at all. “I’m not brave,” I counter. What we really need is this so-called goddess who’s going to help us all. If they were here, I would happily help them get the power from Elgen and Tarlaz as the oracle foretold. But until then, survival remains our focus. But why would Krosia burn the forest? I mean, I get that she’s evil, but what does she gain?

“Why would the queen do this?” I ask my mates, because the shadows are still chatting about the definition of bravery, which according to Elgen, the word can sometimes be used interchangeably with stupidity.

Knox is the one to answer me, and his entire body is tense as he watches the flames lick at the sky. “Krosia has always been able to draw more energy from this realm than the rest of us, but over time she decided it wasn’t enough.”

“She can draw on the shadow energy from the rest of us, but that has limitations,” Thane adds. “One day she discovered that by burning parts of the forest, the destroyed trees released more shadow magic that she could harness. We’ve questioned her about it on multiple occasions, but she’s rationalized that it’s the cost of us winning this war. That if she doesn’t increase her power, this realm turns to ash anyway.”

Horror cuts through me. “The prophecy,” I rasp, feeling ill. “Forests of ash before the final call.”

Knox nods. “She thinks this is justified. That the prophecy showed this was meant to be. That in time once the war is over the forests will heal.”

“But you’re supposed to be saving this realm,” I say, starting to get choked up.