Nev had spent a week getting him to his family’s destination. Upon reaching the village, she gave him instructions on how to find his family. Nev had watched, ensuring he was reunited with them safely. It wasn’t until a month later she learned that the village had been brutally razed. Rumors of an Unmarked in the vicinity had given them all the cause they needed, not that their actions had required one. She heard there had been only a handful of survivors. In the months past, she had worked very hard to convince herself that her temporary ward and his family had been among those fortunate enough to escape. Either way, it had been her presence that had drawn the empire’s ire. It was just another piece of the guilt she carried. Always.
With her next breath, she pushed the memories of the small boy’s face to the edges of her memories. She studied Wyatt’s hand and his face. He had helped her, but too many faces haunted her dreams already. She doubted she could survive adding yet another. Maybe if they went their separate ways, she could draw the prowler’s attention back where it belonged: On her. This stranger, Wyatt, would then be free to fade back into the obscurity of everyday life, safe from the prowler’s pursuit.
She managed a small smile. Wyatt deserved to know she appreciated his efforts, even if she felt they were an error in judgment. Snatching her cloak and feeling unworthy, she crawled out of the hollow. The new day’s light shone through the fading mist. She secured her overcoat and checked that her belt pouch and dagger were secure. Reaching just inside her shirt, she briefly ran a finger across a small amulet that hung from her neck. She let out a tiny sigh of relief before letting it rest against her chest. Hesitantly, she stretched her left arm carefully, testing it. She found herself pleasantly surprised that, while still sore, it was much improved.
Wyatt sighed softly. He watched her gather her belongings and exit the hollow and then followed suit. “Well, Birclan is about a week’s long walk from here. If the weather and our luck hold, we might make it a bit sooner,” Wyatt said, staring up at the sky and standing beside her. “We just need to walk away from the morning sun. It won’t take Addi very long to realize something has happened, and Birclan is where we meet when things go sideways.” He gestured westward before tearing the bread he was carrying in half and handing a piece to her.
Nev stared down at the piece of bread she was now holding. “I can’t,” she said softly.
“Allergic to bread, are you?” Wyatt asked, with a raised eyebrow.
“No. What? No, that’s not what I meant. I can’t go with you. This prowler is different. I know that he won’t let me go. If I travel with you, then he will find me… us again. It is inevitable,” Nev said, her voice trailing off.
Wyatt stepped towards her, cupping his hands around hers and the piece of bread she was still holding. He could feel her attempt to pull back from him slightly. He gently refused to let her break free from his grasp. He was no oracle or soothsayer, but it was evident that the injury to her shoulder was not the gravest wound she carried. “Maybe it will,” he said softly.
Nev looked at him feeling confused.
“Or, maybe it won’t. I don’t know what is going to happen. And whether you believe me or not, neither do you. One thing is for certain, I’m not letting you deal with this prowler alone. He is more dangerous than most,” said Wyatt, suddenly sounding uncharacteristically serious.
Nev watched as his amber eyes flashed with painful memories. She knew that look well and found herself being curious about what had caused it. Something about it or him was drawing her to him. She felt her guard drop slightly. Maybe she did need his help, at least for a while. “Alright. Well, if we want to get to Birclan in under a week, we should get moving,” she acquiesced.
Wyatt looked up at her as she pulled her hands from his. “Right,” he said, clearing his throat and stretching slightly. “Good that you relented so easily. I’m stubborn, remember,” he added, sounding back to his usual self.
Nev flashed a quick smile at him. “I am Nevara. But you shouldcall me Nev. Unless you want me to be unhappy with you,” she said, heading out towards Birclan.
“Well, we wouldn’t want that. Nev it is,” Wyatt said with a warm smile. He let the name bounce in his head for a few moments. Nev, he thought to himself, moving quickly to catch up with her.
Chapter 4
General Razine did not wait for the attendant to announce his presence to the emperor. He hated the affairs at court and only spent time at the palace when completely necessary. In fact, he had not spoken to Emperor Malicus in person in a little over five years.
He’d always found the emperor to be of a questionable mental foundation. Over the last ten years, he’d become increasingly unstable, and his tantrums and demands increasingly hard to deal with. Razine and the Oracle were among the very few that Malicus would even talk with anymore. Meals in private, never leaving his living chambers, and listening more and more to the Oracle’s whispers meant the emperor was fully committed to his prophecy.
In the years since the uprising, Razine often questioned why he ever initially backed his friend in such a venture. Why he’d committed to it in the years since, however, was far easier to see. It had given Razine unfettered access to all the resources the empire had to offer. The more the emperor withdrew from the public, the more Razine had stepped in to fill the void. He had made himself the unquestioned face of the empire
