[wattys 2018 shortlisted]
Humans see her as a dangerous threat -a witch that must be executed. With the uncontrollable ability to form ice at her fingertips, Ravenna is forced into hiding amongst the humans, stealing to survive. That is, until she h...
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WITH ZEPORIA NOW devoid of humans, Caelan and Ravenna did not rush to return to Tylat's old castle. Instead, both spent the next few days in the center of the marketplace — creating ice soldier after ice soldier. Ravenna even taught Caelan the ice soldier spell, which allowed their mini-army to grow tenfold.
"What if you make them similar to the humans in that fake town that you created?" Ravenna asked. She stood in front of the fountain and focused. The humanoid body of yet another ice soldier took form in front of her. "Do you think that Vyses will be able to detect them, considering his entire army is also made out of magic?"
Caelan paused for a moment, considering her suggestion. His hands hovered in the air, glowing a bright vivid white. His own batch of ice soldiers surrounded him. His head tilted toward her and a small frown creased his forehead. "It is possible. It more so depends on how observant Vyses is regarding his soldiers. And whether or not he has forced the other members of the Blood Knights to join his ranks."
Ravenna blinked. "Ah," she said. "Forgot about them."
A smile graced Caelan's lips. "That is a bit surprising since you technically married the lead Blood Knight. The prince was always considered their best fighter."
"Was he really though?" she asked. She arched an eyebrow at him dubiously. Being a member of the royal family, Eoin was always heavily protected. Even in the midst of battle. She doubted that he actually had much experience in a genuine fight, aside from when her ice soldiers attacked the Blood Knights outside the walls of Zeporia.
Caelan looked amused. "I did happen to fight alongside the Blood Knights quite a bit," he remarked. "I've seen firsthand and I can admit that Eoin wasn't the worst fighter on the field."
"I trust you," she muttered under her breath. Glancing at him from the corners of her eyes, she hesitated. Her curiosity got the best of her. "How did you manage to fall into that position, anyways?" she asked.
Caelan paused and lowered his arms. His gaze surveyed the mass of ice soldiers that crowded around them. "I think that we have enough for today," he announced. He glanced over his shoulder, toward the entrance gate. "How many do we have surrounding Zeporia so far for protection?"
"At least two thousand," she answered. She followed his gaze. "I've also sent some into the sewer system below. I don't want Vyses to sneak his way into the city again."
"Good idea," he agreed.
She turned toward him and crossed her arms over her chest. "You never answered my question," she said. She tilted her head, a frown gracing her features. As curious as she was, she didn't want to push Caelan too much. He had been very open to her so far regarding his history.
He met her gaze. His expression was stoic and void of any emotion. But she knew better. The amusement in his eyes gave him away. "Nothing seems to slip past you now," he remarked, somewhat sarcastically.
