Page 197 of Sword & Shadow
“Ilain,” Evylin said, narrowly dodging another attacker. Deckard kicked it back before stabbing it through the gut. “Hold my hand and Ethenn’s collar. We’ll get to Auden.”
As a cluster of limbs with only Deckard and Ethenn capable of defending themselves, they slowly worked back to the entrance. Too slowly. Deckard didn’t know how they’d manage to fight their way through the Keep. How could they keep seven people linked and fight wave after wave of Shades? It didn’t seem possible.
As they progressed, a Shade tackled Auden, sending him tumbling through the air. Ethenn’s arrow struck, the Shade crumbling to dust, leaving only Auden suspended as he languidly began to descend.
Near enough to reach him, Ilain tugged on Evylin’s arm, pulling Deckard with them. She drew Evylin’s hand to rest on Ethenn’s shoulder before releasing her hold. Then she slipped under Evylin’s arm, one hand still gripping Ethenn’s collar as she reached out to grab Auden’s ankle with the other.
“Wait!” Evylin warned too late.
The second Ilain’s hand touched Auden, his speed met theirs, and he crashed to the floor, taking the rest of them with him. They fell in a heap of limbs and sand on the glass, Shades scrambling toward them on every side. The singular benefit of the mishap was that they were all touching each other.
Ilain, free of the need to hold onto anyone, threw up her hands. A billowing cloud of fire seared through the air, and the remaining Shades burst into sand and glass.
Freed of the first wave, Deckard scrambled to stand while Ilain explained the situation to Auden. Evylin kept a grip on Deckard’s sleeve, but she adjusted her hand into his so that he could help her up, too, the press of her palm warm against his skin. Carefully, the five of them rose to their feet. They placed Auden in the center, one hand on Evylin’s shoulder and the other on Ilain’s. Deckard and Ethenn maintained the sides. They moved for the staircase where Thom and Rafferty stood, the men slightly off-kilter from the relentless attacks of the army of Shades.
The first up the stairs, Deckard and Ethenn put their hands on their shoulders, ready for them to jump into action.
Nothing happened.
“Thom,” Deckard said, tightening his grip. He shook his brother. Still, no response.
“Why aren’t they moving?” Ethenn asked.
“They don’t have magic,” Evylin said behind them.
Deckard looked back at her, realization dawning. Thom and Rafferty couldn’t connect with Time magic because they weren’t magical. They were stuck, frozen in time.
The hum rose again, harkening the next wave.
“Shades were still attacking them,” Ethenn said.
Ilain’s eyes went wide. “They’ll kill them if we don’t take them with us.”
“We can’t,” Evylin said. “We can hardly fight as it is. We can’t carry them too.”
Deckard grimaced, knowing she was right. He turned back to Thom, his brother’s gray-blue eyes staring back at him, unseeing. Fear stung his heart. He wouldn’t let him die.
Reaching behind the men, Deckard struck the Keep’s iron door. It rolled open.
“What are you doing?” Auden demanded. “We have to keep going.”
“Yes,” Deckard agreed, then turned to Ethenn. “But they can’t come with us.”
Ethenn understood. He tightened his grip on Rafferty, and, in time with Deckard, they shoved both men back into the waiting antechamber.
The instant their feet crossed over the threshold, they sprang to life. Unable to catch themselves in time, they landed on their backs, grunting from the fall. Rafferty let out a long string of expletives as Thom scrambled to stand. “What are you doing?” he demanded.
“I’m sorry,” Deckard said, then stepped back as the iron door to the Time Keep rumbled closed.
“No!” Thom yelled, but he couldn’t get to the door fast enough. It slammed shut between them, leaving the men behind.
The hum increased as Deckard turned, facing their troop’s dwindling numbers. He couldn’t worry about Thom and Raffertyor their long wait. The five of them had to make it through the Keep alive. And, at the moment, that task was a seemingly impossible feat.
Shades began to form, their hordes dashing for the stairs. Ethenn readily opened fire with his magical arrows, but Evylin turned to Deckard. “What do we do?” she asked. “We can’t keep holding onto each other like this. I need to fight.”
Staring across the vast distance to the Chamber’s entrance, Deckard tightened his jaw. The Shades were growing in number despite Ethenn’s efforts. Ilain had adjusted her stance to join his defense. But Evylin was right; they couldn’t keep holding onto one another this way. They all needed to use their skills if they wanted to survive this Keep.
Deckard sheathed his sword. “We have to split up,” he said. “And I have to use my magic.”
