Page 39 of Ever Dark Academy, Vol. 7

She went over what the guards had said. That last bit: Nothing has happened since you– Fiona repeated it again and again. Since you what? Since Tanis did what? Since Tanis was… was last there? But if she was down here before then she would see Seeyr? Unless she’s not being held here yet…

“Mistress! Charlie! Come!” Tanis sounded anxious.

Charlie met her eyes but he said nothing. He didn’t have to. Something was wrong here. Something was very wrong.

But we have to go down. We need to speak to Seeyr.

On numb limbs, she turned and both of them headed down the stairs. When they reached the bottom, there was that central cell. Seeyr was inside of it. Tanis stood in before it.

Smiling.

The smile did not reach her silver eyes.

They were clear and cold and calculating. They were not Tanis’ eyes at all.

Fiona let out a choked laugh that was filled with grief and bitterness. Her own words ran through her head: That’s just it, dear heart, Kaly can be anyone. They can take over any body. They can have any power. They could be your best friend and you wouldn’t know until it was too late.

Fiona gritted, “Hello, Kaly.”

Run

Khos looked over at him with its tongue lolling out, a happy smile on its face, and its eyes bright with the hunt. The Dire Wolf did not realize that this was deadly business. It thought they were playing. He gave a deep woof of appreciation for Khos’ presence and was rewarded with a deliriously joyous look. It had found a pack, he realized. It was no longer alone.

We will take you with us, Khos. We will not be parted, he sent.

The Dire Wolf danced a little as he ran. He let out a bark of laughter in response. He sent images of the Weryn Palace, the large fireplaces, his and Grayson’s comfy bed, and all the people who would be Khos’ family from now on. Demos’ smiling face. Siban offering tasty bones. Eager hands reaching down to pet him or go running with him.

Never alone. Not anymore, he sent.

Khos’ eyes half shut with pleasure. The Dire Wolf couldn’t believe how lucky he was. To have a pack again! To be with family! To be accepted and wanted! To have a place of his own!

Always, Ryder promised.

A wave of pure unadulterated love flowed between them. The Dire Wolf would share his meat always with him and his.

Ours, Khos, he corrected.

Ours, it was a word that he used this time rather than an image though it was accompanied by one of him, Grayson and himself sitting on the bed with a roaring fire. His head was in Grayson’s lap while Ryder thumped the Dire Wolf’s side with one hand.

Yes.

He’d missed this. Gods, why had he never reached out to the animals before? But he knew why. There was this prejudice against the Weryn that they were lesser because of their ability to become animals and, therefore, maybe they were as unsophisticated as animals. At least compared to humans or Vampires. As Weryn, he had never had this prejudice, but after the War, the violence and bloodthirstiness he’d shown–his animalistic nature–had made his people take a few steps back from nature. It was a great, great loss.

But it will be fixed from now on, he promised himself.

Khos would be just the first. They would re-establish their connection with nature and all the creatures within it. Glancing up at Grayson flying above them, he vowed to make that promise doubly true. The last thing he would ever want was for his beloved to shy away from all the gifts of his Bloodline. Connection was one of the greatest the Weryn had, far greater than their claws or beaks or teeth. Truly, this exploration of the wilds around Solace with Khos and Grayson at his side would have been, under other circumstances, almost his favorite thing to do. It was connection at its greatest levels.

If only Legion weren’t chasing us, he thought ruefully.

This was only to be a chase and not a fight. It was to lead Legion somewhere they couldn’t follow after them when they went to Nightvallen’s gate. He had been in Solace many times in the past, but he’d never actually spent much time in the wilds here. His memory offered him a broad-based sketch of the area, which told him that a swamp filled with Nighthags and other loathsome things was to the north of them. In that thick, gooey stew of bubbling mud, they would lose Legion. Their scent would be obscured by the belching of the ground. Then they would double back and head to the Nightvallen gate.

He could see it nearby. Like the gate to Destiny, it, too, stood on a prominent rise. But it was much higher up and there was absolutely nothing around it. The forest had been completely tamed or so it seemed. And the twin moons shone down onto its pale, white stone painting it with shades of red and blue.

We’re going to be home soon, he thought.

Going back into the past had led to many things, not the least of which was Grayson’s turning, but he would be glad to leave this behind. He hoped it wasn’t just because he was getting an up close and personal view of the aftermath of the War. No, it was because he knew they didn’t belong here. They couldn’t change anything here.

All they could do was make as least an impression as they could. Considering they had already let much of the cat out of the bag with Eyros, Elgar and Tanis, he wondered if they were truly doing a very good job at that. Though seeing Fiona come alive like she had when seeing Tanis had wrung his heart out a little bit. He hoped there was some way to save her. There must be. It would be too cruel otherwise.