Tressa needed as many allies as she could muster to defeat Donovan once and for all, and the warriors of the Vulture’s Tower appeared willing to help. The more that were fighting for the Dragonlands, the more time she would have to find and rescue Fi.
"I've heard your story before," Tressa said. "Donovan claimed to be from the Vulture's Tower. My people naively believed him." She looked around, still stunned she'd happened upon them at all. "How am I to trust any of you?"
“First, I will give you my name. I am Rynth.” The man with the tattoo bowed, then pointed up the stone staircase in the center of the circular tower. "There are thousands of us here, willing to fight for the Dragonlands. It is unlikely you will fully trust us until we can prove ourselves to you."
"And, tell me, Rynth," Tressa said, "how have thousands of you lived in this tower when it's invisible to the rest of the Dragonlands? I've flown over this spot multiple times, even ridden through on a horse once or twice, but I've never seen you until today."
“I’m Krom.” The man with the dark hair nodded. "Of course it's confusing to you. Our tower is under a spell. Not one of vision, but one of time. You didn't see us because we weren't there. You see us now because we are."
"That makes no sense," Tressa said. She eyed the men again, looking for any sign of insanity, but they all seemed very much in possession of their faculties.
"It wouldn't to the uninitiated," Rynth said.
"How old are you?" she asked. None of them appeared much older than her. Maybe they had lived twenty-five years. Thirty at the very most.
"We don't know," Rynth answered. "We have lived only for a couple of decades, but we are centuries older than you."
Their cryptic answers didn't assuage Tressa's concerns one bit.
"The less you ask, the more you will understand," Rynth said.
"I'm sorry," Krom said, "my brothers spend too much time playing with words and phrases. They find it amusing." He glared at his fellow warriors in the gray cloaks. "What you can count on is our desire to help those who live in the Dragonlands. No matter what age, no matter what time, we are here in your hour of greatest need. If you did not require our help, you wouldn't have found us. It is that simple."
Simple? Nothing they said was simple. If they were telling the truth and willing to fight, then she would accept their offer.
"I don't know what we're facing," Tressa said. "So far, it's only rumors. There have been signs and portents, but I don't know exactly what they mean."
"Then tell us the facts." Krom motioned Tressa to join them at the table.
She took a seat. He offered her a cup of steaming soup and she took it, thrilled to get something warm in her stomach. "Thank you."
They waited quietly while she took a few sips of the hearty soup.
"There is this man, Donovan. He told me he was a warrior of the Vulture’s Tower and from Desolation, the land over the Barrier Mountains, and he offered to help my friend and I find a way to defeat a giant demon being held captive under the Red castle in the Hills of Flame. Now I find out he's an ancient being, bent on destroying the Dragonlands." Tressa took another sip of the soup, even though her stomach was roiling with anger. She had trusted Donovan so easily. He'd done as he promised, taking her and Fi to Desolation. It was there Tressa had found her ghost dragon army. In fact, Donovan had led her straight to them. Why? What did he have to gain from it? There were too many missing pieces. Tressa couldn't see the whole picture and had no idea what Donovan was planning.
"I wish I could tell you more," she admitted, frustrated with her lack of knowledge. "I know so little. But I do know that the blood moon was enough to scare the Black into hiding. Their leader's dragon was ripped from him, and now he is as human as I am."
"The blood moon concerns me, as well," Krom said. "It is an unusual phenomenon. One that has only happened one other time. It was five hundred years ago, when the dragons came to this land. The blood moon preceded them by a few days. It was then our tower was asked to leave."
"Asked to leave? Your order was asked to leave, right? Not the tower?" Tressa tried to clarify.
"Well, yes," Krom said, laughing. "The new rulers asked us to leave the land, which was now being called the Dragonlands. Until that time there were no dragons. Just normal humans. Some with magic, some without, but all living in peace. We had no interest in leaving our land behind for good, so with the help of a few brilliant mages, we managed to hide ourselves in time. We promised we would return when there were those who needed us. Until then, we waited here."
"And that was five hundred years ago?" Tressa asked.
"Yes and no." Krom took a drink from his cup. "To you, it was five hundred years ago. To us, it was only yesterday. This soup? This water? Today's midday meal for us, but from your perspective it was made centuries ago. Tasty, isn't it?"
Tressa rubbed her forehead. Their story no longer upset her. In fact, she was beginning to understand what they were saying. "So have I traveled back in time?"
"Don't concern yourself with the when, Tressa. Just the where. You are exactly where you are meant to be." Rynth smiled.
Tressa forced a weak smile in return. Very little magic made sense to her. Growing up in Hutton's Bridge, magic hadn’t been more than an old tale. She'd managed to accept most of it since exploring the Dragonlands, particularly the magic that had allowed her to be a dragon for a short time.
"Then you'll fight with us?" Tressa asked, after draining the remainder of her ancient soup. "I can't guarantee we will succeed. I don't know how many will die, or even what our odds of success are. All I know is that I can't sit by while evil tries to take over my homeland."
"We pledge ourselves to your cause." Krom thumped a fist on chest. "We are warriors, trained to fight. Let us prove ourselves to you and save our land together."
"If we are victorious, you should allow your tower to be seen again. Live in this time, this place. No one here would oppose it. In fact, I know many would welcome you." Tressa thought of the simple people in the Dragonlands who needed protection. Those in Ashoom, who had always relied on their Blue leaders to care for them. They were orphaned, just as those in the north who had been under the thrall of the Red Queen. The Yellow's only leader was still held captive in the Charred Barrens. Yes, there were many who needed the protection of good soldiers.
There was only one problem. Tressa still wasn't sure she could trust these men. She'd been told many lies in the past, and at first she'd been willing to believe all of them. Now, she had to be skeptical of those who told her what she wanted to hear—and there was nothing she wanted to hear more than that a long-forgotten army was waiting to help her in her time of greatest need.
She looked at the men again, their faces grim, but eager. Donovan had been sure of himself, manipulating Tressa and Fi into following his orders. These men appeared willing to listen to hers.
Tressa took a deep breath. "If you are willing to join me, then we need to head in the direction of the friends I asked about when I arrived here."
"Fantastic!" Krom said. "I will rouse the rest of our men, and we will mount our horses."
"Horses?" Tressa looked around the tower again, unable to see any sign of animals.
"They're outside," Rynth said. "They are hidden with us, but today, they will be seen once again."
"Well, then, muster your men,” Tressa said.
"And women," Rynth said. "We have female warriors, as well."
Tressa couldn't stop the smile that spread across her face. "I'm looking forward to meeting all of your brave warriors." Maybe now they would have a chance against Donovan and Decarian and whatever other monsters he would send against them.
Fi huddled under the moth-eaten blanket, her hands over her ears, trying desperately to ignore the screeching coming from outside the cabin. Donovan had told them the day before that his army was almost ready to break free from its underground prison. He promised he would soon destroy the Dragonlands, and he told Fi she would help him.
Of course, she’d vehemently disagreed, vowing to stop him. Donovan slapped her so hard she flew across the room, her face smacking into the wooden slats of a chair back. Now she could barely sleep. Her throbbing face and wounded pride kept her up, as well as the eye she could barely open thanks to swelling from her injury.
She swore Donovan would pay. Somehow. She wanted to kill him, though she was sure there would be a lot of people in line to eviscerate Donovan, given the chance. Jarrett only hid in his corner, doing exactly as Donovan bade. He was a coward and a traitor. Fi would kill him, too. She no longer cared that Tressa thought he might be redeemable. Not in Fi's eyes. Not ever again.
Shrieks rang out in the night, sounds unlike any she'd ever heard. Her skin crawled with goose bumps that came unbidden in waves as the demons and beasts prepared for war. Bone against steel, the squishy sound of pierced flesh, war cries so frightening it was as if they emanated from the depths of the underworld.
Fi didn't want to give up before trying, but she had no idea how the beasts, skeletons, and demons could be defeated.
Could the skeletons, made solely of bone, die? Some of the beasts had flesh. If they bled, it was likely they would die. If they were not alive, then how could they have their lives taken away? And Decarian, the largest of them all. It would take dozens, maybe even hundreds, of dragons to defeat him. Donovan had the upper hand. He knew it, and soon the rest of the Dragonlands would know it as well.
Blood and fire. The Dragonlands would be bathed in it. Donovan had already proclaimed his victory. Fi was hard-pressed to believe he was wrong. She wanted to, but hope proved elusive.
"Fi." It was Jarrett.
She stayed under her blanket, pretending to sleep. Jarrett was nothing to her.
"Fi, I know you're awake. I can tell by the pattern of your breathing. It's not steady enough to mimic sleep. I need to talk to you."
Fi rolled her eyes as she pulled the blanket down. "What?"
"I've thought of a way for us to escape." Jarrett inched closer to her on the floor.
The man couldn't be trusted. Fi had already given him more chances than he deserved and only because Tressa had begged her to. Not this time.
"Please, I want to get away from Donovan as much as you do. We never would have gotten away in the forest. You proved that. But I have a better idea now. One that will work." He sounded insistent. Almost too insistent. He was trying to trick her. Again.
"Go to sleep, Jarrett," she said, pulling the blanket up to her chin. She lay on her back. It was too painful for her face to lie with her cheek pressed to the floor.
"Fi, I know we've had a hard time getting back to trusting each other—"
Fi bolted up. "Trusting each other? There hasn't been one moment where I betrayed you. All you've done is betray us over and over again. Each time insisting you've changed." She shook her head. "No, the man I met helping Tressa is gone. You are Donovan's puppet. That is all you ever will be."
"He's distracted," Jarrett said. He scooted even closer to Fi, his voice no more than a whisper. "His power over me only works so long as he is focused. Right now, I am nothing to him. Just an annoyance. He thinks I've nearly outlived my usefulness. He's wrong."
"No. Leave me alone. There is nothing you can do to make me trust you."
"You don't need to trust me. Just come with me." Jarrett threw his blanket off, revealing a fresh pair of breeches and a clean shirt. He'd been nothing but filthy since reuniting with Donovan under the ruins of the Red castle. Now he was like the old Jarrett. As if he had control over himself.
Still, Fi couldn’t do it. "No."
Jarrett put his hands on Fi's shoulders, forcing her to face him. "Why would he arrange for me to spirit you out in the middle of the night, only to catch you again? It doesn't make sense. Come on, Fi. Do this. If not for me, for Tressa."
Fi slapped Jarrett. "Don't you dare speak of Tressa after everything you put her through!"
"I know there's nothing I can do to make her trust me, much less love me, again. That doesn't mean I want to give in to Donovan, either. My head is clear. I will make my escape now. If you want to stay, then stay."
Jarrett stood. He reached a hand down to Fi, but she wouldn't take it.
"Fi, please. Come with me."
Fi crossed her arms over her chest.
"Fine. I'm headed due east, with or without you. Give Donovan my regards when he comes back to check on us. I'm sure he'll be thrilled to see you here alone."
She quickly imagined the things Donovan would do to her if he found Jarrett gone. She'd be lucky if he killed her, but likely he'd do to her what he'd done to Jarrett. Her insides agitated with conflicting emotions.
Jarrett headed toward the door. Before he could lay a hand on the latch, Fi jumped to her feet. She didn’t want to, but something compelled her. Made it seem like following Jarrett was the smart thing to do. "Fine. I'll go with you. But don't count on my trust."
Jarrett smiled that same stupid smile that had always brought Tressa to her knees. Fi admitted he was attractive, and she could see why Tressa had fallen for him so quickly, but none of that mattered anymore. The moment she found her allies, she'd have him put in isolation again.
"I'm going to use a spell that makes us invisible. I'm not very powerful at magic, so you have to stay next to me." Jarrett motioned Fi over.
She inched closer, standing closer than she wanted. Her stomach turned, unsure if she was making the right decision. Doing something was better than hiding under the blanket, waiting for Donovan to come back. "Why didn’t you do this when we were outside near the forest?"
"Because Donovan was too close. He's away now. I don't know where he went, but it was far enough for his grip on me to loosen. In fact, when you went to Desolation with him, I was completely free of his influence. Unfortunately, those mages kept me sedated the whole time. It wasn't until Donovan returned to the castle that his grip tightened again." Jarrett glanced at Fi, his grin replaced by a grimace. "Ready?"
Fi nodded. She wasn't ready at all, but she had chosen to follow him. Jarrett waved his hands in the air.
Fi's vision wavered as if a sheer blanket had been laid over her head. Jarrett was the only thing she could see clearly.
"Be quiet," Jarrett whispered. "This spell will hide us, but it won't muffle any noises we make. You must be careful of where you step. Hold my hand so we make sure to stay together."
Fi slipped her hand in his, trying not to recoil at his touch, feeling as though she'd just escaped one demon by making a pact with another.
Jarrett opened the door of the cottage. A few skeletons stood guard nearby, swords in their bony hands. Fi and Jarrett padded across the grass, not making a sound. The skeletons' skulls turned, watching the area, but they gave no indication that they noticed the two slipping out from underneath their grasp.
Fi breathed shallowly, doing her best to stay silent. She had to admit Jarrett’s spell was working. Every step took them farther from the cabin and closer to freedom. If they made it to safety, she just might give him a big kiss on his cheek. But she'd still have him quarantined. He'd admitted Donovan's hold over him had to do with proximity. It wasn't truly broken. He still couldn't be trusted. Ever.
Fi felt a surge of hope as they stepped into a copse of trees. Jarrett lowered his shaking hands, the smile back on his face. "We did it," he whispered.
"We're not exactly away yet," Fi said. "We could be caught at any moment."
"There is a paddock of horses just on the other side of these trees," Jarrett said. "We need to steal two and gallop off into the night. If we get far enough away, Donovan won't know where to look. He'll give up on us because his army is more important to him than we are."
"I hope you're right," Fi said. She stepped carefully through the trees toward the other side. Sure enough, Jarrett was right. Dozens of horses slept, standing.
"Let's walk invisibly the rest of the way," Jarrett said. He held his arms up, and the world became fuzzy again.
Fi clenched her fists. She was so close to escaping. For the first moment since the Red castle collapsed, she believed she had a chance.