The Silver Siren (33 page)

Make me proud,
Faraway!

And he
did
.

The tide slowly began to turn. But it
would be too late. A gap had been made in the line and Raven’s army
made it to the castle.

The Raven watched the massacre of men
before him with interest before his head turned ever so slightly to
look up to the wall and right at me. I stepped back in alarm. He
couldn’t see me from this far could he?

Some of his men didn’t move in a
natural way—more like they were puppets being jerked around by an
unskilled puppeteer. More of his Denai powers?

Sinnendor’s archers were deployed as
they tried to pick off the early leaders in the attack. I breathed
a sigh of relief that our gate was closed, and I didn’t see a
battering ram, but then I was quickly reminded that an army created
by the Raven would not need one.

A huge blast ripped through the outer
wall and the ground rumbled below me in distress. Screams of pain
and fear ripped across the courtyard below as those who didn’t have
time to run were caught in the explosion. Scattered about, they lay
injured or dying. The first of Raven’s army ran through the opening
in the wall and met with our army, who fought bravely.

“
Son of Light, save us,”
Syrani called out in horror as she pointed to the Denai that
blasted our wall apart. He stood on a small hill to the side. His
blond hair whipped in the wind as the air he controlled whirled
around him in mini tornados. His once-smiling face and dimples were
hidden behind a mask of anger and hate.

“
Joss?” I cried out. My
heart lurched with terror. There he was, standing tall, wearing the
same clothes I had last seen him in, although dirtier and torn. His
eyes looked dazed as if he weren’t fully in control of his own
actions. Whatever they had done with Siobhan was child’s play
compared to what they had done with Joss.

He threw his arms open wide. Another
flash of bright light and a blast of air ripped at another part of
the wall. The second explosion mirrored the damage of the first
one.

“
He’s going to bring the
whole castle down on top of us!” Syrani screamed.

A girl came and stood next
to Joss, her blonde hair a shade or two lighter. She closely
resembled a younger version of Gloria. “
They
are!” I agreed, as Joss’s
sister, Tenya, hurled a wave of power at the closest flank heading
to attack them. She was guarding Joss as he rounded up for another
attack on the castle. She was smaller and not as strong, but she
was still a weapon to be used against us.

“
Syrani!” I yelled at her,
“Do something.”

Syrani gritted her teeth and began
frantically rebuilding the wall with earth. She filled the gaps in
the walls and sealed them, trapping some of the Septori within the
earthen layer as she desperately tried to build up the
wall.

I couldn’t help but scan the army and
seek out the others. The Denai. If Joss was here, then the others
that were taken would be here. And then I began spotting them.
Brecken, Tydus, Marcel, Karni plus dozens more of controlled Denai,
all scattered along the field. Fireballs erupted out of the earth
as Brecken cleared the way for another wave of troops to
attack.

All of them, under the influence of
the Septori, were reaping massive destruction upon the horde of the
Sinnendor army. I picked up my bow and arrow and nocked it, but I
couldn’t find the willpower to release it. How could I kill my
peers? While my inner battle consumed me, I managed to pick out an
older faceless target wearing a red robe as he ran down one of the
Elite. I released the arrow, and sighted my next victim. One by
one, I picked off random targets from among the Raven’s Septori. I
felt a little more vindication with each death, but it couldn’t
come near to erasing the devastation the mind-controlled Denai
wreaked.

“
Thalia!” Syrani called
out, her face now completely covered in sweat and dirt. She built
up another wall, only for Joss to blast a hole somewhere else.
“There are too many of them. I can’t fight off all of them by
myself.”

A desperate voice cried out a warning
from below, and we ducked as a large fiery missile just missed our
heads, crashing into the courtyard beneath us. Fireballs rained
down from heaven as the young fire-gifted Brecken started an attack
from the air.

“
Do what you can, Syrani.
Show them what a Master Denai of Earth can really do,” I
encouraged. Her worried look transform into one of complete and
utter confidence.

“
You’re right! I’m from
one of the most powerful Denai families in Calandry. I don’t clean
up other people’s messes. I make them.” Syrani’s face lit with pure
delight as she abandoned her defensive strategy and went on the
offensive. She focused her power on the earth around Joss.
Suddenly, he and his sister vanished into a cavern deep below the
ground.

“
Did you…?” I couldn’t
finish.

“
No, I just sealed them in
a hole deep below. It will take them a bit to get out.” She turned
her gaze toward another group of enemy soldiers running toward our
gate. Hundreds of Septori slid into a huge pile of quicksand—the
more they struggled, the more they sank.

I fired another arrow and took out
another Septori.

Apparently, we would have to go
without rebuilding the walls. Syrani couldn’t do two things at
once, and attacking the army was more important at the moment. I
needed Syrani to unleash her power like she’d never done
before.

Targeting pockets of the enemy army
without attacking our own became more difficult for her, though she
was clearly doing her best. Sometimes one of the Elite were caught
in the landslide or shifting sands and disappeared with the men
deep under the earth.

I reached behind me for another arrow
and came up empty. “Here! More arrows!” I called.

A young boy ran along the
wall, staying low, to bring me another quiver of arrows. He
deposited them at my feet and stood up to give me a relieved smile
that soon fell into a mask of pain. His eyes dropped and I couldn’t
help but follow his gaze to see the silver tip of an enemy arrow
protruding from his chest. His mouth opened in a small
oh
and then he slid to
the ground.

“
AAAAHHH!” I screamed and
whirled around, searching for the attacker with an arrow at the
ready, but I was greeted by the surprised look of Prince Sevril. He
looked awful. Dark shadows ringed his eyes and he looked pale. He
looked over the rampart and watched as Sinnendor’s flag bearer went
down. The long black banner fluttered once, twice, and then fell to
the ground.

Prince Sevril looked grim. “Come with
me before all is lost.”

I looked to the boy and felt anger and
fresh tears fall down my face. Everything was already lost. I
couldn’t even find my father among the mass of red soldiers and
field of blood. Our clan was now separated, and I had no clue who
was alive or dead. I wasn’t ready to retreat, but we needed a
better battle plan. I turned to grab Syrani, but Sevril shook his
head.

“
Let her be. She will be
most useful here,” he said.

“
She could die
here.”

“
We will all die here,”
Sevril said solemnly but grabbed my wrist and pulled.

I hesitated. I couldn’t abandon
Syrani.

He saw my hesitation. Sevril took a
deep breath looked me in the eyes and begged. “Please. I need your
help.”

It was the ‘please’ that did it. I ran
after him, careful to not look at all of the dead bodies lying on
the ground. Even though they were strangers, a sense of heavy
injustice filled me. They were my people. They were Sirens like me.
Blood watered so thin we couldn’t possibly be related, but still. I
felt like they were my responsibility.

Swords and shields clashed as the army
made it through one of the partially repaired walls. They were
right on our heels. The large double doors were barely being held
open as a servant waited for Prince Sevril and me to dash through.
As soon as I passed through the threshold, the doors were slammed
and bolted. Furniture started to pile up in front of the doors.
Ready to make a last defense, the servants faced the oncoming
slaughter with grim determination.

This day was a rewriting of history.
Only this time, it wasn’t the Denai being slaughtered but the
Sirens.

We could hear the pounding of the
castle doors as the army tried to break in. Servants and more
troops arrived to block the door with more heavy objects, tables
and chairs. More of the Elite in armor gathered in the main hall
preparing to defend with their lives. It was odd. A few days ago,
they’d been my enemies. Now they were trying to save me.

Sevril pulled me on. I followed him
down hall after hall, until he came to a large marble sculpture in
an alcove. Sevril stepped up to the statue and pulled the curtain
behind the alcove to reveal a small wooden door. With a quick push,
he had it open and beckoned me to follow him down a dark set of
stairs. Why did everything always have to lead down? I halted and
he turned to stare at me impatiently.

“
Come on,” he grabbed my
hand and pulled me down after him.

“
No, not until you tell me
where we’re going.” I argued. A loud crash and the metal clang of
swords alerted me that the invaders had breached the main
hall.

“
We don’t have time for
explanations,” Xiven suddenly appeared behind me. His hands hit my
shoulder blades and pushed me roughly down the stairs. I fell
forward the first three steps, my ankle twisting as I tried to
catch myself.

Xiven entered and bolted the door
behind him, encasing us in darkness.

Sevril reached down and tried to help
me back up, but now I was limping. He put his head down next to
mine and wrapped my arm around his shoulders. He half-dragged,
half-carried me the rest of the way down the stairs. I impeded him
with my awkwardness and refusal to walk where I couldn’t
see.

Xiven stopped and felt along the wall
for a torch.

A few seconds later, it was lit. Then,
I was only semi-impeding Prince Sevril’s movements.

“
Where’s Tomac?” I asked
as the stairs ended and we were met with a catacomb of tombs. Again
I tried to stop.

“
Thalia, for the love of
all that is good, you have to keep going,” Xiven said.

Sevril shook his head. “I don’t know.
I saw him run out in the first wave of troops to meet the army. I
hope the fool survives.” Fear raced across his face and he kept
running his sleeve over his eyes, evidently trying to keep the
tears at bay.

Xiven took the torch and now led
Sevril and me to another door that he held open, waiting for me to
enter.

As soon as I cross the threshold, I
wished I hadn’t.

It was the machine, the torture
device.

The iron butterfly.

Every part of me started to shake in
terror and I grabbed the handle to the door and tried to rush out.
Xiven held the door closed and Sevril grabbed my arms. Tears raked
down my face and I started to sob.

A hand slapped my face.

I blinked in anger at
Sevril.

He leaned in close to me, his hot
breath on my neck. “Stop crying. You don’t have time for
tears.”

Anger flowed through my body and I
punched Sevril in the face. I watched in pleasure as his head
snapped back and his lip started to bleed.

His eyes lit up and he became excited.
“Yes, that’s it. You pathetic excuse for a Valdyrstal. You
half-breed imposter to the throne.”

This time I balled up both fists and
focused on his pretty front teeth. I was determined to take out a
few. “I don’t want your bloody throne, but I’m not above leaving
Tomac next in line,” I growled out. Feinting a punch, I spun and
kicked him in the stomach. Sevril grunted and then fell back into a
table full of beakers and instruments. Glass crashed and shattered
on the stone floor.

Xiven yelled at me, “Thalia, stop it!
You are not helping any by destroying Sevril’s
sacrifice.”

I whirled on Xiven who was working on
pulling open the metal bands and preparing the machine for the next
victim. This one looked different than the one I spent weeks in but
also different than the one I saw in Fanny’s workshop. I felt like
I had come full circle.

“
Thalia, I told you in
Skyfell that I was your friend. I really hope that right now, you
can believe me and trust me what we are about to do.”

“
You almost killed me, and
then you ran away,” I confronted Xiven, pushing him.

His skin color deepened in
embarrassment. “If Talbot had found out I challenged you in a
fight, I would have been dead anyway. And if I remember correctly,
you were the one who almost killed me.”

“
Something I now regret
not finishing properly,” I hissed.

“
Good, Thalia, that’s it.
Stay angry. It will help you through the pain and will bring out
the Siren in you faster.”

I grabbed a candlestick holder covered
in wax and threw it at Xiven’s head. “There’s no way I’m going near
that thing.”