"Get ready," Reeca drew her sword.
Xanthy frowned and rubbed at the back of her head. What happened in the tower and why was she running across the grassy field with her friends? What was that loud sound just now? Was she hearing...cheering?
Where's Nyxis?
The last question was answered first when Nyxis dropped from the sky. He was pale; his eyes were wild.
"An army is gathering past the moat," Nyxis trudged towards Reeca with a scowl. "Is that what Vikara was talking about?"
Reeca flapped her wings only wince at something bothering her. "We ran out of time without throwing the flare," she massaged her shoulders and cracked her neck. "What do you expect?"
"They are on the wrong side of the moat," Nyxis waved his arms. His tone was clipped. "They would not be able to cross the bridge that way."
"That is why we must do our work from the inside to make sure they would make it across," Reeca raised an eyebrow. "Or would you rather not fight your family?"
Nyxis sputtered. His cheeks reddened. "I want whatever this is to be over," he crossed his arms. "Will you at least help with that?"
Xanthy cleared her throat. "Vikara said to never go into battle," she raised a finger.
"Yeah. Vikara also told you to stay in the Temple," Reeca rolled her eyes. "Do not engage the Queen? Remember that?"
Xanthy pursed her lips. She couldn't even remember what happened after the Queen got her legacy. The pain from that spell was still heavy on her shoulders and still bit at her muscles. "Yeah, okay," she rolled her wrists. "We have to get Marin out of here. Was that not the mission in the first place?"
Reeca jerked her chin towards a vague direction. "You do that," she snapped. "I am staying here to fight."
Xanthy knitted her eyebrows. Reeca was here just to experience being in the battlefield. Perhaps, she was here for another reason, entirely.
"Fine," Xanthy tucked her arms by her chest. "I would need guidance in the tunnels, though. Nyxis?"
She turned to her friend. Nyxis shook his head. "I have to help out here and make sure the kingdom would not fall over my head," he sighed. "I am still a prince, you know?"
Of course. He still felt obligated to help his kingdom. Xanthy nodded. "I understand."
"I would not mind going with you," June said from behind Xanthy. She whirled to find him with his eyes to the ground. Oh.
Xanthy tried to smile at him. What he said to her before all of this flashed in her mind. Her smile fell. Instead, she stalked towards Marin. The girl avoided her, too.
"I am—"
"Not now, please," Marin rasped. Her jaw was clenched. She looked everywhere except at Xanthy.
Xanthy pursed her lips. Another horn sounded, blasting Xanthy's ears until she couldn't feel her toes anymore. Her heart raged with the resounding cry. Defiant screams echoed beyond the walls. Footsteps crunched against the grass. Metal clanged against metal. The sky flashed in various colors and lights. Animals brayed and screeched.
Reeca extended her arm to one side. Xanthy knitted her eyebrows. What's going on?
A bow and quiver sped towards Reeca's hand from nowhere. Did she just—?
"Do not lose that again," Reeca shoved the weapon into Xanthy's chest. She stared at it with brand new eyes. The varichria called it to her fingers. Could Xanthy do that as well?
"Get the Draswist out of here," Reeca ordered. "We will see you at the Temple."
Xanthy nodded. She turned to her companions. "Come on," she muttered. This was going to be a long and silent journey.
"Avraja," Reeca flapped her wings once, twice. She rose from the ground.
Without knowing what it meant, Xanthy bobbed her head again. "Avraja," she repeated.
Nyxis and June muttered the same thing. Reeca flapped her wings again with each movement setting her higher and higher from the grass. "Let's go."
Xanthy turned from the chaos and ran towards the dungeon once more. June and Marin were at her heels. She hoped it would stay that way until they were all safe. They ran through the wall circling the tallest tower. What happened to it? Why did it have a huge chunk torn from it?
Servants streamed past them, their soles scratching against the grass. Where were they heading?
"Hey!" a voice called to Xanthy. She ignored it and pushed her legs to go faster. She couldn't afford to be chased now. Her muscles were still sore and her head spun whenever she whirled to a direction too fast.
The middle wall passed them by in its lofty glory. Xanthy huffed as she craned her neck to see if the crossbows moved. She breathed a sigh of relief to see the walkways void of soldiers. Then, her breath hitched. That only meant that the outermost wall would be the one prepped with defenses.
Queen's britches.
Her chest rose and fell, bringing a stinging sensation every time it did. Ugh. What would a person have to do to get rest around here?
The sound of battle was thick in her ears by the time they reached the lush gardens separating the second wall and the outermost one. Xanthy glanced behind her, psat June and Marin's running frames, and noted the broken tower. The tallest and the most visible. It sent a message.
Perhaps, this legacy wasn't meant to stay. The reason why was one of the things Xanthy didn't want to think about. What had destroyed that tall tower in the first place?
Xanthy and her friends ran past the dungeon shed. It was quiet and still. It was as if the battle underneath didn't happen at all. She reached the decrepit door that would lead them to the trap door. After the trap door, it was a carriage ride from the Magic Road then, they would be back at the Temple.
Piece of butterbread.
Xanthy glanced at June and Marin who came up to her, breathless and a little red on the cheeks. They both huffed and braced their knees. She slipped out of the door, noting that the guards Nyxis had knocked out with that strange oshella potion were gone. Good for them. She hoped they were away from the chaos raging outside the Palace.
The trapdoor disguised as a sewer grail was just next to the door. About a dozen other grails were scattered at the perimeter but it seemed like this was the only one that led to the tunnels.
Xanthy planted both hands around the grails and pulled. The lid popped off with a hiss. She slung her bow across her shoulder and tied her quiver by her hips. "This way," she jerked her chin towards the stairs leading down into the darkness.
She slipped into the tunnels. Their last journey began.