here. If the ryuu aren’t already waiting for us outside, they’ll be there soon.”
“Right, let’s go,” Broomstick said, turning and crawling toward the exit.
As they got closer to the part of the tunnel that Broomstick had blown apart, they had to watch for shrapnel from the rocks. By the time they got to the exit, he had several shards embedded in his palms.
Broomstick poked his head out of the opening to check for ryuu.
“Coast is clear,” he said, waving them on. He climbed out first, then offered his hand to help the others.
Fairy and Empress Aki came out and clung to the steep, rocky ledge. Below, the ocean roared and spit at them. The clouds had covered up the moon again, and thick mist shrouded the night.
Then came Spirit, who looked like a phantom version of herself. Stars, what had Broomstick missed? He’d never seen Spirit this defeated. Even when the world was against them, she was their fearless leader.
Finally, Wolf emerged in boy form.
“What happened to Spirit?” Broomstick asked quietly as he pulled Wolf out of the tunnel.
“Prince Gin killed her mother in front of her, and now Hana has their father captive.”
“Good gods.”
“Yeah.”
Empress Aki interrupted them, pointing into the fog. “Is that a ship over there?”
“Nines,” Wolf said. “We killed Skullcrusher and Skeleton, so how are their navies still working?”
“They shouldn’t be,” Fairy said. “But Tidepool is here, too. Maybe she’s behind this ship.”
It sailed quickly toward them, no doubt investigating the source of the explosions.
“Gods dammit.” Broomstick had led his friends and the empress here, to perch precariously on a ledge with nowhere to go but back into their prison or up over the top of the rock, which was a good ten-foot climb.
They were sitting ducks.
Chapter Fifty-Four
Sora stared at the ship cutting through the fog.
Daemon touched her shoulder. “Sora? We need you.”
“I . . .”
“You’ve been through something terrible. And I know you need time, but . . . I’m sorry. We can’t do this without you. You have to make us all invisible.”
Sora shook her head. “I—I don’t know if I can concentrate enough to command the ryuu particles. All I can think of is Papa and Mama.”
Daemon’s entire face softened, and he smiled kindly. “Then think about them. Remember what your mother said to you during the Autumn Festival when we were visiting? What did she tell you to be?”
Sora almost broke down again. She would have tumbled off the rock face, but he held her fast. “‘Be more.’ That’s what your mother said, and you rose to the challenge then. Honor her memory by doing it again. Save the empress. Kill Prince Gin. That’s what we have to do.”
Sora wanted to crawl back into the tunnel.
But she didn’t. What Daemon said hit a nerve.
Mama and Papa had known what Sora was capable of. And Mama’s entreaty had been about not only Sora’s potential but also her duty to be the best person she could be.
That included pushing through sadness to save Papa, her friends, and her empress. To protect the kingdom.
So she did her best to stow away her grief. Sora knew it would come raging back again, but she needed to try to control it as much as possible right now, to let it out in smaller doses. Grief was a beast that didn’t react well to being caged, but this had to be done.
“Everyone, huddle together. I’ll try to make us invisible.” Her voice cracked. She didn’t know if her magic was strong enough to do this. But Daemon nodded at her, encouraging.
The ship breached the mist. Daemon and Broomstick pressed against Sora on her left, while Fairy and the empress pushed up on her right, all while holding on to the slippery crevices to avoid plummeting into the sea.
When they were packed together like sardines, Sora called on the emerald dust. The particles dove into her, taking away the cold of the ocean spray and infusing her instead with the heady warmth of ryuu magic. And then the magic spread to her friends on either side of her like ink traveling through water.
Just in time, too, because the ship sailed closer to inspect the rocks. Sora dared to look over her shoulder to watch the ship approach.
The collapsed remains of skeletons and corpses littered the deck. But it didn’t matter; this ship didn’t need an entire crew to sail it. Tidepool stood at the helm, directing the sea to guide her where she wanted to go.
Please hold, Sora thought to