an elf’s blood solid, dozens of spells to ensure good harvests—but apart from the unbinding spell I’d already tried, there was nothing that might plausibly remove the helm from my head.
In frustration, I gave a low growl.
I started to reach for the helm itself. I could power through the pain and tear it off this time, I was sure. But as my hands neared my forehead, the metal began to vibrate. Heat formed behind my eyes. Any closer and I’d be convulsing on the floor.
Still, that gave me an idea.
There was one thing I hadn’t tried. With a little finesse, it might work.
I waved at the runes on my doorframe, magically locking it. Then, I pulled off my shirt and traced kaun. The rune glowed on my chest, and instantly, flames erupted from the tips of my fingers. I held my hands before me, fire flickering along my palms, around my wrists. The heat warmed my face.
I’d remove the blasted circlet the hard way.
I raised my hands towards my head, and the helm began to hum, buzzing with malevolent magic. I gritted my teeth. The pain would be excruciating, but I had to try. Once I melted the metal, its power would fade, and I would be free. Then I could save Ali, become the king I was fated to be.
I moved my blazing fingers closer to the helm.
Without warning, a jolt of magic staggered me, like a giant hand was squeezing my skull. My body vibrated from the pain, muscles tensing all over.
The air smelled of ozone; I tasted gasoline on my tongue. But worst of all was the voice that tolled in my mind—Gorm’s voice intoning the words of the oath I’d made to him.
I pledge my life, my ambitions….
Oaths could be made, but they could also be broken. This was a crime against the gods, but they were dead now. And Ali’s life meant more to me than an oath.
I began chanting kaun over and over. Magic poured out of me, and my hands blazed like the sun. The trick was to melt the helm without touching it.
A second blast of magic hit me between the eyes, dead center of my frontal cortex. My room disappeared in a flash of searing agony. Waves of pain contracted my muscles.
Wavering figures stood over me, shimmering like desert mirages. Gorm and Revna. My sister was reaching for me, trying to stroke my chest. “You are bound to me forever,” she whispered.
I pressed my hands against the crown.
I will be free.
Pain engulfed me, vibrating down my limbs, contracting each one of my muscles as my body burned. I was sure I was swimming under the surface of the sun. Agony ripped my consciousness apart, until the only clear thought in my mind was Ali.
Then, the pain faded, and I opened my eyes.
I lay on the stone floor of my room. The rune on my chest had turned black, smoking. I drew in several deep, gasping breaths. Slowly, my vision sharpened.
I lifted one of my hands. Smoke rose from my fingertips.
Had it worked? I staggered to my feet and stepped in front of my mirror.
My collarbone was charred, my hair singed, but on my head—shining, metallic, and completely intact—remained the Helm of Awe.
Except … it felt just a little weaker now. I hadn’t pulled it off, and it still controlled me. But I was certain I’d damaged its power.
And if there was one thing every sorcerer knew, it was that every spell had a weakness. A fatal flaw.
More than ever, I was certain I would find a way to rid myself of the helm. It was my destiny.
Thunk. Thunk. Thunk.
Someone knocked on my door. At this hour, it had to be a guard with a request from my father. Then, a second thought occurred to me—could the helm have warned him that I’d managed to damage it?
I pulled on a shirt, covering the smoking rune on my chest before going to the door. When I cracked it open, a petite, cloaked figure slipped past me, into my room.
“You can’t come in here—” I began. Then the figure turned, and I gasped.
It wasn’t possible. And yet it was. That delicate jawline, the soft lips, the silver hair peeking out from under the hood, the bright silver eyes. My heart slammed against my ribs.
Ali had come to me.
“How did you—”
“Shhh,” She lifted a finger to her lips. Then, she rushed for me.
I wrapped my arms around her small body, one hand on her lower