Chapter Twenty-Nine: Julian…

Elda was inconsolable. The group erupted into chaos, both dragons roaring at the clouds, Gira and Brady trying to quiet Elda’s screams. Clover stared, bewildered, at the spot the Soul Forge had disappeared from, and Edward crouched with his head in his hands.

And inside Julian there was… nothing. The universe had taken so much that something in him had broken. His ability to mourn, to feel the loss of his friend, was gone.

“We have to tell the king,” he decided, speaking over the din. “All of you need to get up. We need to go to the palace.”

Clover nodded in agreement, drawing closer to the others and preparing to transport them through the shadows if they were unwilling to walk there.

We will follow soon, Cain promised, nosing his mother gently.

Gira tried to get Elda to her feet, but she thrashed away from him. Julian sighed and stepped forwards, motioning for Clover to take the other three instead.

“I’ve got her.” He gripped Elda under the arms and lifted, locking his hands in front of her and stepping backwards into the darkness before she could slip from his grasp. She went limp in his arms, broken sobs rasping from her lips. When they were deposited inside the palace courtyard, she sagged. Julian lifted her carefully, cradling her against his chest.

The others appeared a moment later, following him up the stairs and through the palace doors. He went straight for the chancery, kicking the door open and ignoring the protest of the guards waiting there.

Hrothgar looked up from his papers, paling when he saw his daughter. He set them aside, eyes flicking between the newcomers in his doorway.

“The Soul Forge is dead,” Julian said bluntly. “He turned.”

The king swallowed. “Did you manage to put an end to him once he turned?”

“No.”

“Spirits,” he gasped, rising slowly. “He was mortal, yes?”

“Until one of the Spirits restored his power. We were betrayed.” Julian’s arms tightened around Elda. “We need to do what we can to protect the city and the remaining Keepers.”

“I’m afraid there’s not much to be done against the full might of the Soul Forge,” Hrothgar murmured, scrubbing a hand across his eyes. “The man is an army.”

“The people in this city need your help,” Brady warned. “You can’t just decide there’s nothing to be done.”

“And what would you suggest, young lady?” he retorted, arching an eyebrow at her.

“Evacuation.” The mumble came from Elda. She shifted, keeping a tight hold on Julian’s sleeve when he set her on her feet. “The civilians should be evacuated.”

“The priority is the court.”

“The priority is saving as many innocent lives from my failure as possible!” she snarled, squaring up to her father. Despite her height, he shrank away. “Malakai wants the Keepers, father. He’ll come here to get us. Rank and wealth mean nothing. If you don’t issue the order, I will. Go with them if you’re too afraid to stay.”

Hrothgar sized her up, taking off his crown and setting it down on his desk. “Very well. I’ll have Reiner get people moving immediately.” He paused. “Though it would be safer for Eden if the Keepers were to leave.”

Julian felt himself beginning to bristle, but Elda paused, then nodded.

“You’re right. It might be safer for you. But who will defend Eden when Malakai comes here looking for us?”

“He wouldn’t look here if you were elsewhere.”

“Wouldn’t he?” This voice came from Irileth, stepping out of a portal of swirling ice and mist to defend her Keeper. “The last place the Keepers were seen is right outside your city. Do you think the Demon Lord has the capacity for permanent surveillance on them, or do you think he’ll start from the last sighting and work outwards from there? What would you do?”

“…I’d start with my latest reliable information,” the king admitted.

“Exactly.” Julian answered, suppressing a disgusted scowl. “But it’s good to know how quickly you’d toss your daughter out the moment she needs your help.” He took Elda’s arm and turned her away, not bothering to show deference to the monarch. “You handle the evacuation. We’ll make sure the walls are defended.”

The chancery doors closed behind them before he could reply, the group following Julian and Elda through the halls. They stopped by the library to inform Bennigan of what had happened.

“I’ll start rounding up the staff,” he said gravely, pausing to put a hand on Elda’s shoulder. “I’m so sorry, princess.”

“We can save the apologies for after,” Elda mumbled, squaring her shoulders. “We have a war to prepare for.” He nodded and hurried away in search of the many lives that kept the palace running.

Julian’s hollow heart ached at the sight of Elda forcing back her grief. She latched onto the task at hand like a lifeline, anchoring herself with it until she could function properly.

“What do you need?” he asked her.

“Soldiers. I need soldiers. My father will handle the evacuation, but if we see no movement within the hour I might need a couple of you to take over.”

“And if the king objects?” Edward asked.

“Then you bring the captain to me, and I’ll convince her myself.” Elda strode through the halls with her back straight, hands clenched into fists. “If my father can’t govern his city properly in a crisis, then he’s no longer the king Eden needs.”

The sunlight was waning, shadows extending across the city when they emerged back into the courtyard. Ember and Cain still hadn’t followed, but Elda’s sights were on the barracks. She marched towards them with her group in tow.

“Knights,” she called out. “I need your attention.” Those training in the sparring ring paused in their fighting and lined up. More filed out of the barracks at the sound of her voice. “The Soul Forge is dead.” To their credit, none of the soldiers flinched. “He has turned into one of the creatures afflicted by the plague, and is likely under Malakai’s control. My father is handling the evacuation of the civillians. I need you to defend our walls until the last man, woman and child are safe.”

“Aye, Your Grace,” was the resounding reply.

“Who is the ranked officer here?”

“I am, m’lady.” A young man with deep black hair and olive-toned skin stepped forwards, small tusks protruding from behind his lower lip. “Knight-captain Horner.”

“I need the message relaying to every soldier in the city. Can you do that for me?”

“Yes ma’am.” The Knight-captain hurried off, issuing instructions to the group of soldiers that followed.

“Where’s the captain stationed?” Elda asked, turning her attention to a dark-skinned woman with striking amber eyes.

“Outer wall patrol, Your Grace. She should be on her way back now.”

“Make sure she finds me once the evacuation begins.” The soldier snapped a salute and hurried off with the others to arm themselves.

“Where will they evacuate to?” Brady asked.

“Bratus,” Elda replied. “The only city with space. Now there’s no monolith, it’s relatively safe there.”

“And what do we do?” Gira asked.

“We go to the wall.” She set off without waiting for an answer, still bruised and dirty from their ordeal below the city, but determined.

Julian watched the ice seep through her soul, covering up the cracks beginning to appear. He knew as well as she did that it was the only thing keeping her moving. The same ice had coated his heart since losing Yani, protecting it from the risk of more hurt before it could completely fall apart.

The streets were still filled with people going about their lives, so Elda made sure to tell as many people as she could about the evacuation on her way to the gates. Around them, more soldiers were spreading the word.

By the time they reached the gates, the whole civilian population was scrambling to gather whatever they could carry. Julian stepped through the enormous portcullis behind the princess, studying the thin stretch of grass between the main gate and the trees. The forests would hide anything approaching.

We should tear enough of it down to give us an advantage, Cain told them all from somewhere inside the greenery. My mother is still grieving, but her rage is growing stronger. She will be ready to help us again soon.

“Do it,” Elda agreed aloud. “We need a defensible perimeter, no surprises.”

Cain’s roar echoed up to the skies, the sound of trees groaning filling the air. The soldiers standing guard at the gates exchanged nervous glances when a bout of red flame broke through the leaves.

“The dragon is widening our field of vision,” Gira told them when they started to murmur. “We don’t know what’s about to happen, only that the Soul Forge has fallen victim to the plague that took Bratus.”

“Princess?” The voice came from the captain. Reiner jogged away from her horse with a frown on her face. “There was commotion in the forest. Was that you?”

“Yes,” Elda nodded. “We destroyed the monolith below Eden before Malakai could corrupt it. We were successful, but…”

“But the prince is dead,” Reiner finished for her when she realised he wasn’t with them. Elda’s head dipped. “I assume you think the city is in danger?”

“Malakai is after the remaining Keepers,” Julian agreed. “And now Sypher has succumbed to the plague, he knows both of them are here.”

“Have we ordered an evacuation?”

“The king said he’d get you to handle it,” Brady piped up.

“I’ve had no instruction, but I was beyond the wall until a few minutes ago.”

Edward stepped forwards. “The civilians are already aware of the evacuation. We notified whoever we could on our way here, and your knights are taking care of the rest. Elda didn’t trust her father to treat everyone equally.”

“Aye, money buys a better spot in the escape queue,” Reiner nodded, her brow creasing. “I never agreed with it. I assume everyone is to be escorted to Bratus?”

“Yes,” Elda said. “Eden is a death trap now.”

“Very well,” the captain replied. “I’ll handle that and arrange a message to the other kingdoms if your father hasn’t already. We can spare a contingent of soldiers to protect the civilians, but help from our allies is needed.”

“We can go,” Clover put in, gesturing to everyone except Gira and the princess. “We’re not much use here anyway.”

Julian shook his head. “I’m not leaving Elda.”

“Me neither,” Brady agreed. “You protect the civilians. We’ll stay with the Keepers.”

They were interrupted by the dragons flattening more trees, Ember’s black head appearing above them to release a jet of blue flame. The forest was quickly disintegrating under their claws and controlled bursts of fire.

Ember smashed her tail through the last row of trees cutting her from the city. Is this deep enough? she asked. When Elda nodded, the two dragons separated, starting to widen the cleared area in a ring around the city.

“That forest has been there longer than Eden,” Reiner commented.

“That forest will survive. Eden may not,” Elda replied, then turned her blue eyes on Julian. The light in them had dulled. “Are you sure you don’t want to go with your brother?”

He dropped a hand onto her shoulder. “I’m not leaving you, pipsqueak. We’re in this together.”

She swallowed and turned back to the captain. “Did my father tell you where the evacuation route is?”

“He did, along with the tunnels we’ll be using to get everyone away from here quietly.”

Elda’s eyebrows rose. “Tunnels?”

“Several. The civilians and your friends will be fine. It’s us that should be worried.”

“As soon as the last man is out, you and your soldiers should leave too. It’s no use losing an army as well as the city.”

Reiner laughed. “And leave our future queen behind? Not a chance.”