Chapter 2

Wind blew hard and the funeral pyre blazed. Thick smoke rose in the sky, carrying with it every foul word and curse against the Bethgardel kingdom Elery could think of. Her bondmate lay amongst the corpses at the center of the fire. The black coil around her wrist was the only physical reminder of the man she'd pledged her life to.

Ishthemir stood tethered some distance away, eating from a sack of arnea berries tied nearby. His hoofed feet pawed restlessly at the ground as he pulled his head back, violet feathers ruffling in the strong breeze. His kind, the molner, were a strange breed of beast. Feathered, yet flightless. Ishthemir was her father's steed.

Elery clenched her fists, then turned from the pyre.

"Lady Elery, please rethink this," A guard said. He tried to stand in her way.

She moved around him.

"That dragon is madness incarnate! You will�""

"I will what? Fail?" She spun to face him before squaring her shoulders. "What choice am I left with? What other pact spirit could hope to face against the armies of Bethgardel? Legend tells of a dragon king beyond the might and majesty of any other spirit in this world. Isandel, the Mad God, who steals the souls and hearts of men and women alike. I know his tale. I know it well. My father once told me of his venture into the Dark Forest. While the rest of the world knows only the legends stating the death of those who enter, I know the truth. One man has entered and left alive. That man was my father." She shoved the guard, her eyes blazing. "Perhaps because my father was a touch mad himself, who knows? Maybe it's rubbed off on me."

She turned and headed toward Ishthemir again, this time without interruption. He cooed and lowered his head to her, berries staining the downy feathers of his mouth blue, and she rubbed his snout. She unbound his tether and climbed into the saddle, gripping the reins tight. "I ride for Andethayn to speak to the Duke. I order the enactment of the Knight Council to oversee Lyewryn in my absence. With no one to spare to act as my guard, I will go alone. Protect our people with your lives until my return."

A slender woman with pinkish horns rushed over. "Please let me come with you, Elery."

"Cylphi, this will be dangerous."

"Which is why I should go," she said, balling her fists at her sides.

Elery sighed. "Go get your things."

Cylphi smiled and rushed off, her dark red hair bouncing with each step.

When she was out of sight, Elery tugged the reins and turned Ishthemir around. "Tell her I'm sorry."

With a snap of the reins the molner bolted forward, leaving the crowd to yell behind her.

The setting sun cast deep red and rich orange light across the land and sky. The smoke of the funeral pyre built a pillar to the upperworld, where the homeland gods dwelt. She rode north until the sun dipped past the horizon, surrendering its stage to the two moons destined to chase it. The howls of olvarays came from the east, and she rested a hand on her sword. Casting a wary glance to the thin forest, she saw their shadows and nothing more.

Another set of howls came from closer by, and she didn't have time to turn before she was knocked from Ishthemir's back. The molner shrieked and tossed his head and Elery struck the ground. The olvaray that had struck her tumbled and kicked its thick hind legs before righting itself to leap toward her.

She rolled to her feet, withdrawing her sword as she kicked the creature away. Olvarays stood in a loose circle around her, their smaller front legs tucked against their fat bellies while they sat on their more muscular hind legs. Their large eyes gleamed in the dying light and, as one opened its short maw, she could see scraps of its last kill wedged between its teeth.

Though they were only two feet tall at their largest, she knew better than to underestimate them. Their packs were large, and they possessed strength beyond that of the other wild beasts. A single knight stood little chance against the creatures once thought of pests, until their population became intolerably large. She realized too late that leaving Cylphi behind was a mistake.

"I am so mad at you!" a voice called through the darkness.

Elery stabbed her blade through one of the creatures when they all turned toward the sound of the voice, and a mixture of relief and annoyance flooded her. "Be that as it may, you can save the lecture until after we've dealt with these pests!"

Cylphi leaped from the back of her silver molner and clasped her hands together. Green light surrounded her, then rose, forming a tiny green ball of fluff in the air above her. It dove into the ground, then rose up and flew through each of the olvarays before they could run. A thick green vine formed, piercing each to form a grim wreath of dead monsters. The earth familiar turned back into energy and dispersed.

The few olvarays that remained gave sharp yelps and ran away as Cylphi opened her hands and summoned a fire familiar. Its flaming skin flared out as it leaped to the air, spreading leathery wings and bathing them in light.

"I can't believe you did that!" Cylphi stormed over, pounding a fist against Elery's chest plate. "You're so lucky one of the knights let me take their molner!"

"I thought I could outrun them," she said, catching her fist before she could hit her armor again. "This is my fight�""

"Lyewryn is my home too, Elery!" Cylphi's brown eyes moistened. "My father...died..."

With a frown, the Princess reached out and pulled Cylphi into a tight embrace. "Your father was a brave and honorable knight. You have every right to avenge him. I was selfish, and I am sorry.

The slender girl sobbed into her shoulder, and for a moment Elery wished she could allow herself that luxury as well. The bondmark on her wrist no longer hurt. It was numb; nothing but black scar tissue.

The fire familiar remained in the air, flying around the two as both molner drew closer to the light. The sun was gone. The blue moon hung high in the air, with it's sister moon, a smaller, pale silver orb, stayed just a little lower.

"We should make camp," Cylphi said, pulling away to wipe her eyes. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't�""

Elery shook her head. "Don't. I'm sorry to have left you behind like that." She turned and took Ishthemir by the reins, soothing her hand over the silky feathers of his forehead. "I'll tie down the steeds if you'll set up a shelter."

She nodded opened her pack, pulling a torch from the bundle and whistling. The familiar hurried over and perched on it briefly, then flew away as a small flame quickly consumed the bundled fabric at the top.

Elery took it and gripped the reins of both molners, leading them to a nearby tree and tying the leather straps around a low branch. She gathered wood and dry leaves, still able to see the occasional shadow of an olvaray deeper in the forest.

Setting a camp didn't take long. Cylphi seemed small and frail compared to Elery, but she'd spent her time learning the art of casting. When Elery came back with the wood and kindling, a small shelter made of stone braces wrapped in fresh veilspar vine greeted her.

Elery crouched a few feet from the shelter and handed the torch to Cylphi. "You're going to use up all your aura before we even get to Andethayn."

Cylphi laughed. "With little familiar castings? That's funny."

"Just don't overdo it, okay?" As Elery pushed a few sticks in the ground at an angle, forming a crude peak over the other sticks and leaves, she heard the deeper growls of another creature wandering the forest. "Sounds like a lycar scout." She grasped some nearby stones and formed a circle around the firewood, then held out her hand. "Torch."

"They won't come out here, will they?" Cylphi handed back the torch and rubbed her arms.

"Doubtful. Their tribal lands are deeper in the forest. One may spot us, but they have no reason to attack." Elery set the kindling ablaze and stood up, handing the torch back. "Just don't go into the woods."

"Father said they don't need a reason." Cylphi put the torch out and set it aside on a smooth stone to cool. "Savage warmongers."

At this, Elery narrowed her eyes at the smaller girl. "I imagine they say the same thing of us Seryns. They've never caused us harm. Be careful of the words you speak, they might bar us from future help one day."

Cylphi clenched her arms tight around herself, looking thoroughly rebuked, and looked away. "I'm sorry..."

Silence descended as the lone call of the lycar died out. Cylphi pulled some food from her pack and handed a piece to Elery, and both ate while the fire cracked and spat before them.