Canyon of Crystal: Signed Edition (Paperback)

Alara woke with a start, her hand reaching for the dagger tucked in her belt. It was more reassurance than protection—the blade had remained dull over the last week as they trekked through the thick cloud forest. Still, she found herself checking for it every few hours, even in the middle of the day, as they took turns sleeping.

It was a moment before she recognized what had awoken her. Runeo leaned over her, dark eyes shining in the twilight. His long dark hair hung limp around his shoulders, forgotten over the past few days. Around them, the small clearing came to life in the growing shadows. Small purple flowers had opened up along the ground, giving off a faint glowing light. It would have been beautiful if Alara had the energy to appreciate them.

“We should head out soon.” Runeo’s voice was a clear and commanding whisper. He stepped away without waiting for an answer, shaking Quenti and Khuna, who curled together nearby. Mitteo was already sitting up, eyes cloudy with sleep. Suri gave Lili a small shake on her shoulder and the
tierren batted her hand away with an annoyed movement. Alara knew things were bad when the even-tempered Lili was showing her irritation, her hazel eyes narrowed and pale skin flushed.

Alara was too tired to do more than roll over and take in the forest around them. The trees were thick, wide trunks with a tangle of vines and moss blotting out the sky above. A contradiction of silent, constant
movement settled over the trees as animals moved through the branches, somehow
quieter than a whisper.

Runeo drifted around the clearing in complete silence. Even while he was in his element, surrounded by the forest, his shoulders remained slumped.

It had been a few days since Alara had heard his voice crack with grief, and she wondered what he locked behind the grim look of determination. She learned not to mention his brother Micos’s name after the
third day, when the word sent Runeo into a spiral that ended with him not talking for hours.

Alara stood up, trying to shake the exhaustion and ache of hunger from her bones. It didn’t work, but at least her brain had stopped spinning. She couldn’t blame Runeo for how he felt. Her own gut clenched with grief whenever she dwelled too long on the events that had brought them here.

A botched escape from the Haven that led to an all-out battle, assisted by the bruyas who had hidden among the ranks of the mages for decades, and a brother who was lost to their mind-cleansing—now brainwashed like the very worst within the Haven. It had all seemed so simple at the time, but Alara knew that what they’d done at the Haven would have ramifications all across Sombria. She only hoped their strange ensemble of magites, bruyas, and even one mage could make it to Arbol before they were faced with the consequences.

“Alara.” Suri’s voice was close to her ear and she realized everyone else was up, eyes focused on her. “Are we clear?” The sole mage of the group’s tone was patient, her brown eyes ringed with dark circles, easily
visible under her pale skin. Her short hair stuck up in every direction, a result of her ongoing habit of running her fingers through it when she was thinking. Or tired. Or distracted.

Alara imagined her own knotted curls didn’t look much better. She gave her a halfhearted smile before closing her eyes. She reached toward her core, fumbling with the familiar threads, trying to grasp her magia with any semblance of control. A wave of cold nausea rolled through her, but she grabbed a strand of power and sent it out around her.

She searched the surrounding trees, but nothing beyond the cold absence of magia greeted her. Not even a magiaful beast was within a mile of them. Over the past week of using her mind-stalking skills to scout out a path through the forest, grasping onto this power had become almost second nature. She’d even grown to notice the magia-filled cores of the animals that lived here—a few howlers and a fruit bear so far. The forest contained more magia than even the Council likely knew.

When Alara opened her eyes again, Lili, ever the caretaker, was at her side, hands hooked under her elbow. She leaned heavily on the tierren, another wave of nausea rolling through her.

“No one for at least a mile.”

Alara tried to move her weight to her own legs, but instead she nearly collapsed, her knees shaking beneath her.

“We’ll head south then,” Runeo said.

“We should prioritize food. It’s been two days of nothing,” Lili noted.

“If we cross the river, we may find more game.”

“Don’t you think the councilguards have planned for that?” Quenti said. “There’ll be just as many problems hunting on the south side of the river.”

“So, what do you recommend?” Runeo said. “That we keep hiking in circles?”

“Those circles,” Lili said, “have helped us avoid councilguard confrontations thanks to Alara.”

Runeo’s eyes bore into the ground with a fierce intensity Alara knew too well. Perhaps it was the hunger or the exhaustion, but everyone had been on edge over the past couple of days.

It had been a week since they had fled from Cielo, and they did so with only a meager amount of supplies. The morning after their escape, they woke up with plans to cross south over the river and head into the cloud forest toward Arbol. They hadn’t even broken out of the trees before they’d heard yelling and the pounding of feet.

Runeo and Khuna had climbed a nearby tree to scout out the commotion without being seen. When they dropped down from the treetops, eyes distant and panicked, Alara knew her mind-stalking abilities hadn’t lied to her. A platoon of councilguards were marching down the road, spreading out
along the river, preventing their most direct route home.

They’d been running non-stop since, sleeping among the trees or in hidden clearings during the day and walking at night. But no matter how many directions they tried, they remained trapped by the councilguards staked out along the road and river. The borders within Sombria were officially
closed, and they were stuck on the wrong side, far from the sanctuary of Arbol—their one beacon of hope, and the one place they couldn’t get to.

It’s something Runeo had never forgotten. Runeo, who had pushed them to keep going beyond exhaustion upon their escape.

His face reddened, and Alara was sure he was coming to the same conclusion. “This wouldn’t have been a problem if we’d just kept moving that first day,” he said in a sharp whisper.

Lili placed a hand on his shoulder. “Anger will take more energy than we have.”

He jerked away from her hand, but didn’t speak again.