The Raven Flame [The Crown Saga III] (First Draft)

Weeping Sun

Each breath felt like drawing fire into my lungs as we followed the golden path down the mountain.

Eventually, the declining terrain leveled. Rocks turned to soil and grass; the empty air surrounding us filled with towering trees and dense bushes. It only made my lungs burn hotter.

Sweat trickled from my brow, racing along the bridge of my nose before plunging to the damp floor.

"How are you holding up?" Caiden whispered, as if nervous his voice would cause the sleeping jungle to wake.

Because that's how it felt—as if the jungle was asleep.

"I'm fine," I said through a strained breath.

Caiden lifted a brow at me, clearly not convinced.

I huffed another breath, swallowing the moan itching in my throat. "I'll manage, Caiden," I said determinedly, glancing over his shoulder at the shadows that seemed to follow us.

It was too quiet. A rich environment like this would normally be bustling with diverse life, but the winds and twigs crunching beneath our feet were the only sounds echoing between the leaves.

Every shadow in the vicinity of my eye seemed to shift unnaturally as if something watched us. However, each time I turned to search for those watchful eyes, I spotted no indication of life.

My heart jumped to my throat when Art conjured a blast of air to clear the moss from the golden vein. "Ouch," I hissed when the shock sent another ripple of pain pulsing through my ribs.

"Don't overexert yourself," Piper said, tightening her grip on me. "We won't lose the world if we stop for five minutes."

"I'm fine," I repeated through clenched teeth. Spirits. They acted like worried parents. "I can push through, but I can't guarantee that I'll be able to get up again if we stop."

Piper rolled her eyes and grumbled a few meaningless phrases. Caiden didn't respond, but I could see the fear glinting in his haunted eyes. It made my chest ache with a stab of guilt and regret.

My suffering might be superficial and painfully evident, but Caiden thought he'd lost me twice in less than twenty-four hours. I'd spent so much time peeling that impassive mask from his face that the faintest crack left me able to glimpse his truth.

I'm not sure how he was still walking so steadily. If I'd had even the slightest inkling that I'd lost him to the spirit world, I would've been in absolute ruin.

"This place is creepier than the tunnel Prince Arthur dragged us through to get out of the castle," Piper mumbled, her eyes surveying every darkened nook around us. "Why is it so quiet? I don't even hear the vexing wing beat of those pesky bloodsuckers that I would've expected to swarm us by now. I barely even hear the wind rustle the leaves."

Piper's eyes suddenly widened, her cheeks turning hollow as she sucked them in. "Do you think we've walked right into an invisible, odorless cloud of poison?" she whispered, trying hard not to hold her breath.

"Stop it, Piper!" Alia snapped, hitting the back of Piper's head with a flat hand. "You're making everyone nervous. We've been down here for hours, and none of us suffers from any sign of poisoning."

"How do you know we're not surrounded by a slow-working poisonous gas?" Piper snapped back, rubbing the new bruise. "I didn't realize you majored in poisonous effects before you joined the Crown Trials. Maybe I shouldn't be so surprised with those venomous remarks that tend to roll—"

"Enough, Piper," I hissed before she said something she'd regret.

Piper snapped her eyes back to me. A blaze I'd never seen from her eyes burned so intensely behind those cool depths that I briefly feared it would burn right through me. It almost reminded me of—