Lord of the realm

Then she was gone, moving with a speed that left only the faint scent of sea spray behind.

The reason these people were being careful was because of the power Golden Suits carry as a group; individually, they aren't a threat to a witch. But as a group, they have created a formation to go against the witches. Those formations are very dangerous traps that could kill an Originbound witch easily.

Cornelia was the last to leave, but before she did, she caught Jaenor's gaze and held it for a long moment. Her vampiric features had returned to their human beauty, but her eyes still held depths that spoke of centuries of experience.

"Remember what I told you," she said softly. "The Witch Council will come. When they do, you may find that your old enemies become your only allies."

Then she too vanished, her red shadows swallowing her form until she was nothing more than a memory of darkness.

Odessa took Jaenor's arm, her grip surprisingly strong for such a slender woman. "Come. I know a way out of this place that the Earl's guards have long forgotten."

"What? How?" he said, but the words were lost on her.

They moved swiftly through the castle's twisting corridors, avoiding the main passages where confused servants and terrified guards were running back and forth in panic.

Odessa seemed to know every secret way and hidden door, leading them through passages so narrow they had to move single file and down stairs so old that the stone was worn smooth by countless feet.

Finally, they emerged into the night air near the harbor, where the docks stretched out into the dark water like wooden fingers. The smell of salt and seaweed filled their nostrils, and the sound of waves lapping against the pier created a rhythm that was both soothing and urgent.

Several ships were moored at the docks, but one was clearly preparing to depart.

Lanterns bobbed on its deck as crew members moved about with practiced efficiency, securing ropes and checking the rigging. It was a sleek vessel built for speed rather than cargo, with lines that spoke of both elegance and danger.

A young man stood on the ship's deck, his dark hair tied back in a sailor's knot and his clothes marking him as crew rather than passenger.

When he spotted Jaenor and Odessa approaching, his eyes widened with recognition and concern.

"Jaenor!" Aldran called out, jumping down from the ship to the dock with athletic grace. "What in the seven seas are you doing here? Where were you? You look like you've been—"

"Start the ship," Odessa interrupted, her voice carrying an authority that brooked no argument. "Now. We need to leave immediately."

Aldran looked confused, glancing between his friend and Odessa, who had spoken with such command.

But before he could ask the questions that were clearly burning in his mind, Odessa pressed a heavy leather pouch into the ship captain's hands.

The sound of gold coins jingling together was unmistakable, and the captain's eyes widened as he felt the weight of the payment.

"Aye, mistress," he said with a grin that showed several missing teeth. "For a coin like this, we can be ready to sail within minutes."

"Make it faster than that," Odessa said, her eyes scanning the horizon where lights were beginning to appear—torches and lanterns marking the approach of the two armies that were about to clash in the city streets.

The pirate crew, seasoned professionals all, moved with impressive speed to prepare their vessel for immediate departure. Ropes were cast off, sails were unfurled, and within moments the ship was ready to leave the harbor.

But the wind was not favorable, and the ship barely moved as it tried to clear the dock.

Odessa stepped to the stern and placed her hands on the ship's rail.

Green energy began to flow from her fingers, not the deadly blades of her combat power but something gentler, more focused. A wind that touched only their vessel began to fill their sails, and with a gentle push of Origin energy, she sent the ship gliding smoothly out of the harbor and into the open sea.

Aldran stared at his friend and Odessa, who had just used her power to speed their escape. "Jaenor," he said quietly, "what in the depths of the ocean is going on?"

But before anyone could answer, the night behind them erupted into violence.

Back at the city gates, the Redmoon Coven had finally come face to face with the Brotherhood of the Sacred Flame. The two forces stood opposite each other in the wide street before the main entrance to the city, and the tension between them was thick enough to cut with a knife.

The Coven Mother raised her ancient staff, and crimson light began to gather around its tip like liquid fire. Behind her, the other witches threw back their hoods, revealing faces painted with symbols of power and eyes that glowed with inner flames.

On the opposite side, Lord Commander Thaddeus drew his bone-white sword, and immediately the air around him began to shimmer with anti-Origin energy. His warriors spread out behind him in perfect formation, their blessed weapons gleaming in the moonlight like captured stars.

"Servants of corruption," Thaddeus called out, his voice carrying clearly across the space between the two armies. "You have gathered here for the last time. Tonight, your evil dies with you."

The Coven Mother's response was a laugh like breaking glass. "Foolish children, playing with toys you do not understand. We were old when your grandfathers were suckling babes."

The battle that followed lit up the night sky like a second dawn.

Origin power clashed against blessed steel in explosions of light and sound that shattered windows throughout the city. Witches hurled balls of crimson fire that turned cobblestones to molten glass, while Brotherhood warriors responded with weapons that carved through aura itself like swords through silk.

But Lord Commander Thaddeus had no intention of remaining with the main battle.

While his forces engaged the coven, he broke away with a small group of his most elite warriors and made his way toward the castle itself. His senses told him that whatever had awakened tonight, whatever had drawn both the coven and his Brotherhood to this place, was centered in that old fortress.