We don’t even bother packing up camp. I guess Darian figures we can always come back for the supplies later if we need to. Instead, everyone save Xamireb races to mount a star drake. Earnest and Liz catch sight of me as we’re getting ready to depart, and they each flash me a sympathetic, reassuring smile. I look away, feeling strangely guilty and embarrassed. I didn’t hurt either of them. But they still saw me in that state. I wish…

  I sigh. It doesn’t matter what I wish. It happened.

  Darian and Liz take the lead, and Quell and I follow on Poppy. This at least is familiar. The saddle, Poppy’s rhythm, Quell’s back. We race over the dunes, the moons lighting our way.

  Is this a glimpse of my future? Following Quell, wherever he goes. I feel all sorts of ways about that. But he doesn’t know, I realize. I still haven’t told him everything that happened in the Lifespring.

  I take a breath. “It didn’t work.”

  Quell turns his head part way back. “What?”

  “It didn’t work,” I repeat, raising my voice over the low whistling of the wind. “Using the Lifespring to try to break the pact.”

  “I sort of figured, what with the shield going rogue, and everything,” Quell says.

  “No, I mean, us,” I say. “Before I tried to break the pact between me and the shield, I tried to sever the tie between you and me. But Echo said it wouldn’t work.”

  “Oh.” Quell frowns, clearly processing this. “Perhaps back at the capital, we could speak to more knowledgeable mages there.”

  I shake my head. “We can try, but I don’t think there’s any magic that can change my Role.” Echo had mentioned it was possible, technically, but trying to figure out how had caused her to reboot. Why? Is something, or someone, trying to keep that knowledge obscured? If so, court mages are unlikely to have answers.

  “So anyway,” I say, “it looks like you’re stuck with me.”

  “More like you’re stuck with me.” He smiles at the joke, but it quickly fades away. “Nye, I… I’m sorry. I can’t imagine the frustration you must be feeling. And I’m not sure where this leaves us.”

  Frustration? Surprisingly, I don’t feel much of that at all. Resignation, maybe. And… relief? At least I know the Lifespring isn’t the answer. Somehow, knowing that helps. It’s better than uncertainty and trying not to let myself hope. Even if it’s not the outcome I wanted, at least I’m no longer on a fool’s errand. I’ll find some other path forward.

  With Quell, for now.

  “What do you mean, where that leaves us?” I ask.

  Quell self-consciously hunches his shoulders. “I suppose, what our relationship will be like going forward. It’s not a very balanced power dynamic. But I swear I won’t use it to my advantage. That first night—that was very stupid and selfish of me. I just want you to know that no matter what happens with this Role of yours, I won’t abuse it.”

  “Like how you just used it to pull me away from the fight when the Aegis was influencing me?” I ask, slightly amused.

  Quell looks stricken. “That’s not—I’m sorry! I shouldn’t have—”

  “No!” I laugh. “No. I was teasing you. I’m glad you did that, actually. It was smart, and it helped. Thank you.”

  “Ah. I see.” Quell rubs the back of his neck. “Saying ‘you’re welcome’ feels rather inappropriate when I was abusing the compulsive effects of a spell to force you to disengage.”

  I snort. “Well when you put it like that.”

  He meets my gaze with a nervous, self-conscious smile of his own. What a dork.

  “Thank you,” he says suddenly.

  Now I’m the one caught off guard. “For what?”

  “I don’t know,” he admits. “All the times you’ve saved me, of course. But also, for seeing me. For listening. I’m not very good with people. I’m not very good at most things, really. But you’ve made me feel capable, now and then.”

  Several teasing responses come to mind, but I don’t say any of them. He’s being vulnerable, baring his heart, and hearts don’t heal quickly once hurt. I smile fondly.

  “You are capable,” I tell him. “You just get in your own way. What you really need is a healthy dose of self-confidence. Then you might even surprise yourself.”

  “I don’t suppose there’s a spell for that?” he asks, grinning.

  “You’re the bookworm. You tell me.”

  He laughs, turning back around to look out over the sand dunes. After a moment, he says, “Well, in the field of mind magics, there might be a few spells—”

  “It was rhetorical, Quell.”

  “Oh, right, of course,” he says. “That was my first instinct.”

  I chuckle, even so. I wonder if he meant to make me feel a little better about everything, or if he just does that naturally.

  The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

  Almost ten minutes later, we see them. Constance’s troops are marching straight for the Lifespring’s gates—right into Moonfall’s hands.

  We’re still a few dunes away, and they’re on the paved road to the city. They’re on foot, but still far too close for my liking. Quell also seems worried, as he spurs Poppy on.

  Light spills from the Lifespring’s walls as the front gates open welcomingly.

  “No, no, no,” Quell says under his breath. He sits forward. “Liz! Can you send them a warning?”

  “On it!” she calls back, breathing a light into cupped hands. She shapes like light like clay between her fingers, and few moments later she’s created a bright, glowing ball. She braces one arm against Darian, then uses the other to throw the light as high as she can manage. Even then it raises higher than I expected before exploding in the sky.

  Giant glowing words say “CONSTANCE, RETREAT!” They sparkle overhead, continuing to hover over Liz as she and Darian ride down the dune.

  The Duneshade procession halts.

  I let out a relieved breath, but Quell shakes his head. “It’s not over yet.”

  There’s people spilling from the city’s gate.

  Liz lets her illusion dissolve with a swear. “We’re too late!”

  I tense up as we continue careening toward the two forces. They haven’t clashed yet, but it won’t be long. What will I do when Quell takes us into the battle? I don’t trust the Aegis so close to the city—actually I’m not sure I trust the Aegis at all. But I’m weaponless without it. What do I do? A rare bout of fear flutters through my gut.

  “No,” Quell says, his voice full of relief. “Look!”

  The ground cracks, and sand explodes into the sky. A giant creature bursts from the ground with a shriek, coiling out of its hole. It snaps at nearby Moonfall soldiers with a dragon-like maw, though like a snake it has no other limbs to speak of. Its scales glitter in the moonlight as it slithers over the ground, sending the Moonfall soldiers scattering away.

  Check, I think, trying to figure out what sort of creature it is.

  [Check,] Echo says. [A sand wyrm illusion.]

  Constance’s, of course. But damn is that a convincing illusion. Behind the shrieking, snapping wyrm, the Duneshade forces are retreating.

  It takes less than a minute for us to reach them.

  “Prince Constance!” Darian cries as we speed into their ranks. Liz has helpfully cast a new illusion over our heads that reads, “PLEASE DON’T KILL US!”

  Constance is dressed in armor, and he looks to us in surprise at the call, his gaze taking all of us—and Liz’s message—in in an instant. Granted, I haven’t known the guy for very long, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen him so stunned.

  “Quell,” he says. “Liz! I thought you were captured.”

  “I told you I would bring the Princess back,” Darian says.

  As our star drakes pull up beside him, Liz and Quell jump (and slide) off their lizard’s backs, racing up to Constance to crush him in a hug.

  “It’s a trap,” Liz says, looking back behind them. “Moonfall is already in the city.”

  “Yes, I gathered,” Constance says. He starts walking once more, keeping pace with his retreating soldiers. “The warning was appreciated. If not cutting it a bit close.”

  “Oh, sorry,” Liz says sardonically. “Next time I’m abducted by the enemy and uncover a secret plot I’ll try to make it back to you more promptly.”

  Constance snorts. “You seem in good spirits, at least.”

  Her rueful smile softens into an affectionate one. “It’s good to be back.”

  Constance’s gaze turns on Quell next, and sours into a frown. “You ran away.”

  “Oh.” Quell winces. “Yes, I did do that. But I came back with Liz, so it all turned out as planned!”

  “That was extremely foolish,” Constance says, and Quell withers beneath his words. “But we will have time for lectures later. For now we need to retreat and reassess.” He looks to me and Darian next, nodding to us. “Captain, well done. And it’s good to see you’ve made it back as well, Nye. I was worried I’d lost my brother and the Aegis.”

  I grimace. Great to hear he’s so worried about my wellbeing. Then again, he basically doesn’t even know me, so I can’t really blame him for caring about the family heirloom more than the stranger who got dumped into the middle of all this. He’s not going to like what I have to say about my tie to the Aegis. Hopefully that’s another conversation that can wait until after we’ve retreated and reassessed.

  Once we’re far enough away, Constance pauses to direct his sand wyrm illusion once more. He recalls it from where it was patrolling the walls, and has it slither back into its hole. I guess that’s better than dissolving the illusion before their eyes; if they continue to think it’s real, or at least suspect it could be real, they’ll be less likely to follow us.

  Darian dismounts as well, passing her star drake off to a different soldier as she falls in line with Constance and relays the events of the last few weeks to her commander. Liz and Quell hang back, so I give the siblings some space. I’m sure they’re all relieved to be together once more.

  We march another three hours before we make camp, in a valley that Constance dubs sufficiently hidden. The soldiers set about making camp, and for once I can relax while others roll out the canvas and pitch tents.

  Dinner is warm and fresh—and much better seasoned than the rations we’ve been living off of. Conversation is light, and laughter rings through the camp. There’s an unspoken understanding that tomorrow is when the heavy discussions will be taking place. But for now, in this moment, it’s about family and friends.

  Eventually the soldiers retreat to large communal tents, while a solo tent is even offered to me, part way between the soldiers and the royals. That’s a significant step up from the last time I was offered a tent near the prisoner. I hesitate outside it.

  “You can still share my tent,” Quell offers.

  I jump, unaware he was nearby. “The camp seems pretty clearly segmented between those who are and aren’t royalty. Wouldn’t that seem… inappropriate?”

  He shrugs. “Liz has already dragged Darian into hers. Etiquette is out the window at this point.”

  “They’re also a couple,” I say.

  Quell laughs uncomfortably. “Right. Well. There is that. You know, never mind. Forget I asked. I’m sure you’ll be grateful to have some privacy, finally.”

  I raise an eyebrow. “Do you want me to share your tent?”

  Quell fiddles with his glasses. “I figured it would be more comfortable than standard soldier bed mats. And… I’ve grown quite used to having someone nearby while I sleep. It’s comforting.” He pauses, his gaze going distant. “When the Umbral Blades abducted me, I was alone.”

  Aw, Hell. All this time, and that never once crossed my mind. “Sure, Quell. I’d be happy to.”

  He flashes me a smile, then leads us over to his tent. A significantly upgraded tent, mind. We can actually stand up in it, and it could easily fit six people sleeping across the ground. There are already two bed mats laid out, I notice.

  Despite the extra room, Quell nudges his roll over until ours are a few feet apart; the same setup we’ve been using since being on the road with Darian.

  Even though I’d been sleeping not six hours ago, when I stretch out over the bed roll, I can already feel weariness pulling me back down.

  “Nye?”

  I jerk back awake. “Yeah?”

  “Tomorrow… what do you think is going to happen?”

  It’s a good question. Will Constance try to take back the Oasis, or retreat and wait for backup? What will we do about the Aegis? What about my Role, and how that affects both of our paths going forward?

  I stifle a yawn. “I dunno. We’ll take it as it comes, I guess. There’s enough to worry about today; no sense in worrying about tomorrow until tomorrow.”

  “Right,” Quell says quietly. “Thanks. Good night, Nye.”

  I snuggle into my bed. “Good night, Quill.”

  I hear him sigh, long and disappointed, and I grin.

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