wronged him somehow. “If there is a chance that we can save him or anyone else exposed to one of those things, then we should take it,” Aaron said.
“You haven’t seen what I’ve seen.”
“You can’t expect anyone to fight at your side if they believe that you’ll just strike them down the moment they get wounded by one of those things,” Aaron said.
“They’re called the Forsaken because once you’re infected, there is no cure. Striking down a Forsaken is a mercy both to the infected and the rest of us,” Bayen said.
“How can you be so sure? Tell us what you know, and maybe we can find a way to beat this.”
Bayen didn’t say anything but kept watching Verona. What happened to him? Aaron wondered.
“When you fought before, you protected the men around you, so I think we’re on the same side, but if you don’t work with me, then I’m not sure there is much point in you staying with us,” Aaron said.
Bayen tore his eyes away from Verona. “I don’t know where Halcylon is, but I can tell you where he is going to be.”
“How do you know where he’s going to be?” Aaron asked.
“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you. Halcylon is heading through the Waylands.”
Aaron frowned. “You said you’re the best hope for saving Safanar. What does that even mean?”
“You’ve seen the Forsaken. Now imagine this happening in a city or multiple cities,” Bayen said.
That haunted look in Bayen’s eyes gave Aaron pause. Verona rose to his feet and waved over at them.
“You were lucky this time,” Bayen said. “Next time, you may not have a choice.”
Tanneth ran over. “We’ve just got a report from Hathenwood. There is a large force heading toward Rexel.”
“From where?” Aaron asked.
“They are coming in from the north. This is no remnant fighting force of the former High King’s army. Gavril just sent this over,” Tanneth said.
The comms device on his wrist lit up, and a small holo display appeared. The picture was from one of the many reconnaissance drones they had flying overhead. The picture showed the tracks of vehicles traveling over land, and the only place they could be heading was Rexel. Bayen was right. Halcylon was heading to the Waylands.
“We need to warn them,” Aaron said. “I know we’re supposed to stay in quarantine, but if the rest of us haven’t been infected yet, then it’s a risk we’re going to have to take. We leave now.”
C HAPTER 7
OLD FOES
Night would soon fall on Shandara, and Sarah glanced at the city skyline. The gleaming spires of White Rose Palace stood proudly in the distance. Neither she nor Aaron had so much as set foot inside the home of his ancestors. There hadn’t been time. She suspected the palace and what it represented made Aaron a bit uncomfortable. The man wouldn’t think twice at leaping through a sky filled with Ryakuls, but put one of the grandest palaces of all Safanar and the mantle that goes with it in front of him, and he hesitated.
Aaron didn’t crave power, which was one of the things that drew her to him. That and his broad shoulders and those dark, piercing eyes. Sarah brought her straying thoughts to a halt and slipped her hand down to caress her stomach. If the Goddess Ferasdiam smiled upon them, then their children would grow up here. She pictured it in her mind. A time of peace. A time when their world wasn’t in danger from powerful tyrants. Aaron feared becoming like her father, the High King. Both were Ferasdiam marked, making them the most powerful among them. Where her father had been consumed by his gift, using it to gather power and control everything around him, Aaron used his gift to give hope where there was none. He fought against overwhelming odds to a victory that hadn’t cost him his soul.
He asserted that he was the possibility of what any of them could achieve. The belief was bound to his very core, but after the battle with the High King, he feared walking in her
“You haven’t seen what I’ve seen.”
“You can’t expect anyone to fight at your side if they believe that you’ll just strike them down the moment they get wounded by one of those things,” Aaron said.
“They’re called the Forsaken because once you’re infected, there is no cure. Striking down a Forsaken is a mercy both to the infected and the rest of us,” Bayen said.
“How can you be so sure? Tell us what you know, and maybe we can find a way to beat this.”
Bayen didn’t say anything but kept watching Verona. What happened to him? Aaron wondered.
“When you fought before, you protected the men around you, so I think we’re on the same side, but if you don’t work with me, then I’m not sure there is much point in you staying with us,” Aaron said.
Bayen tore his eyes away from Verona. “I don’t know where Halcylon is, but I can tell you where he is going to be.”
“How do you know where he’s going to be?” Aaron asked.
“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you. Halcylon is heading through the Waylands.”
Aaron frowned. “You said you’re the best hope for saving Safanar. What does that even mean?”
“You’ve seen the Forsaken. Now imagine this happening in a city or multiple cities,” Bayen said.
That haunted look in Bayen’s eyes gave Aaron pause. Verona rose to his feet and waved over at them.
“You were lucky this time,” Bayen said. “Next time, you may not have a choice.”
Tanneth ran over. “We’ve just got a report from Hathenwood. There is a large force heading toward Rexel.”
“From where?” Aaron asked.
“They are coming in from the north. This is no remnant fighting force of the former High King’s army. Gavril just sent this over,” Tanneth said.
The comms device on his wrist lit up, and a small holo display appeared. The picture was from one of the many reconnaissance drones they had flying overhead. The picture showed the tracks of vehicles traveling over land, and the only place they could be heading was Rexel. Bayen was right. Halcylon was heading to the Waylands.
“We need to warn them,” Aaron said. “I know we’re supposed to stay in quarantine, but if the rest of us haven’t been infected yet, then it’s a risk we’re going to have to take. We leave now.”
C HAPTER 7
OLD FOES
Night would soon fall on Shandara, and Sarah glanced at the city skyline. The gleaming spires of White Rose Palace stood proudly in the distance. Neither she nor Aaron had so much as set foot inside the home of his ancestors. There hadn’t been time. She suspected the palace and what it represented made Aaron a bit uncomfortable. The man wouldn’t think twice at leaping through a sky filled with Ryakuls, but put one of the grandest palaces of all Safanar and the mantle that goes with it in front of him, and he hesitated.
Aaron didn’t crave power, which was one of the things that drew her to him. That and his broad shoulders and those dark, piercing eyes. Sarah brought her straying thoughts to a halt and slipped her hand down to caress her stomach. If the Goddess Ferasdiam smiled upon them, then their children would grow up here. She pictured it in her mind. A time of peace. A time when their world wasn’t in danger from powerful tyrants. Aaron feared becoming like her father, the High King. Both were Ferasdiam marked, making them the most powerful among them. Where her father had been consumed by his gift, using it to gather power and control everything around him, Aaron used his gift to give hope where there was none. He fought against overwhelming odds to a victory that hadn’t cost him his soul.
He asserted that he was the possibility of what any of them could achieve. The belief was bound to his very core, but after the battle with the High King, he feared walking in her
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