Guardian of Calandria | ✔️

Chapter Twenty-One

Sabina grunted, lifting the slender sword in front of her. Ry shook his head again. Her stance was terrible. Both feet stood together, the sword held out in front of her like a twig, her hands cupped around each other instead of spaced out on the handle—a child could kill her with that stance.

"Having fun, Rylanne?" Addrick asked, nudging Ry's side with the tip of his boot.

"Loads. My ass is numb, I'm cold, I'm tired, I haven't gone to bed with a women since that damn seer sliced mine and Sabina's hands, and she's making the same damn mistakes every time she picks up that sword. I want to yell at her with Demitra, but every time I open my mouth I cringe, seeing how she looks when she pouts." Ry sighed. "Is it reversible? This bond I have with her?"

"Only by death." Addrick grinned.

"You're enjoying this, aren't you?"

"Aye, a little. Yer an idiot for doing a bonding ritual with a Wilder ye weren't wed to."

"The seer didn't say anything about me feeling what she feels!"

"Then yer an idiot for not asking and an even bigger idiot for doing something without knowing if there were repercussions."

"I love our talks. You're always so cheerful and polite," Ry said.

Addrick sat down beside him, pulling a knee to his chest. His eyes followed the fight between the two women, one corner of his lip twitched whenever Sabina screamed. Ry wasn't sure if the smile was from amusement or something else. The two sat side by side, listening to the clank of metal and the grunts of an angry Princess.

"Where's Kira?"

"I wore her out." Ry frowned and Addrick smiled with a wink. "Relax, Rylanne. I have not bed her . . . yet."

"It's none of my business who she beds, but remember if you hurt her—"

"Aye, ye will castrate me and shove it down my throat. She is resting because she used a lot of magic today. Our magic isn't endless, sometimes it can be overdone. She'll be out for the rest of the night, I'm sure. I pushed her hard, but I think she's ready. Her confidence is back and that was her biggest problem. Killing Astrid's tribe broke her."

Ry nodded. "I think we should head to Osarwin as soon as Kira is awake."

"Judging by Sabina's swordsmanship, she's not ready."

"It doesn't matter."

"Rylanne, we really should—"

"Addrick, look at the sky. You've been in New Calandria longer than I have, when was the last time it rained? Didn't you say the fairy magic keeps the temperature constant? We haven't been here long but this is the first time I wished I had a cloak. Does that look like a friendly sky?" Ry pointed to the lightning cracking through the clouds. Thunder shook the ground. "You might think I'm an idiot, but something is happening. Myra told us to go to Osarwin, so that's where we need to go. Between you, me, and Kira, we'll keep Sabina safe, as safe as she can be given these circumstances."

Addrick snorted, leaning back on his hands. The Wilder tilted his head, staring up at the sky. Wind whipped the growing strands of his hair around, beating them against his face. Ry creased his brow, watching Addrick's growing hair shift in the wind. He touched his own hair hanging unmoving over his shoulders, his eyes lifted to Demitra next. Her braids were also being blown around by the wind ripping through the clearing.

"Why isn't my hair moving?"

Addrick smiled, but didn't look at Ry. "Because the magic in yer hair is wearing off. It'll no longer act like real hair. Eventually it'll fall off and leave behind yer real hair."