Blade of Secrets (Bladesmith #1)(54)

But then the pressure is blessedly gone. I get my feet under me, ignoring the pain. I look up to find—

Temra. She’s there, wielding Midnight, the blade a dark ebony, and circling to find whatever it was that held me.

Just as before, another sword materializes, this time in the new assailant’s hand. Temra doesn’t even flinch at the appearance.

“Temra, run!” I shout.

She blatantly ignores me, and before I can do anything else, she leaps toward that floating sword, slashing just below it. The bastard sword curves down to block her strike, but Temra doesn’t pause. She spins to get more momentum behind her swing and sends it upward, toward where a head might be.

The attacker finally finds their own rhythm, sending a volley of strikes at my baby sister.

I gasp in terror as I watch her block blow after blow, before sending her own at the attacker with battle cries and impressive footwork.

Kellyn still deals with his own invisible assailant.

How is this even possible?

I search the ground for something I can use, and my eyes land on a sturdy tree branch. I place myself behind the floating sword as it advances toward Temra and swing. The branch connects, and I feel the strike bounce up my arms. Temra uses the distraction I made to thrust her blade forward.

A cry rises from the invisible person, and Temra draws back her blade, the point now stained with blood. There’s a thud, and then a red stain floats above the ground, moving forward and backward slightly.

With the strained breathing of the injured person.

Temra removes their weapon before running to help Kellyn. Meanwhile, I lean forward, grab a fistful of cloth, and tug. It catches on something. I feel around until I find a clasp at a throat. I sense fitful movement before everything stills and the rest of the garment comes free.

Beneath is a woman bearing the warlord’s colors, her glassy eyes unseeing. And the cloak I removed materializes once it’s no longer being worn. It’s a finely stitched cloth bearing a striped pattern of tans and beiges. I would think it completely unremarkable if I hadn’t seen what it could do once worn.

The assailant’s forearms are also invisible, and I remove her gloves, which likewise materialize, bearing the exact same stitching as the cloak.

I turn around in time to see Kellyn make contact with his attacker just before Temra reaches him. His strike connects with flesh, bone, sinew—each of these is revealed once the material of the cloak rips with the force of the blow.

And then an arm appears on the ground. I stare at it a moment, unable to process what happened while deep screams fill the air. Once I realize that Kellyn cut it off, I immediately start gagging. Temra silences the attacker’s cries with a well-placed thrust through the heart.

No one moves as we listen for any more attackers. But all is still. No more bastard swords appear, which must clearly be the preferred weapon among Kymora’s men. Temra and Kellyn are both breathing heavily, and I tenderly touch my scalp. Feels as though I’ve got a bald spot about the size of two finger pads in the back.

Now that the danger is gone, I round on my sister, prepared to give her the tongue-lashing of her life for not fleeing when I told her to.

Instead, I come face-to-face with an enraged Kellyn.

“Do you want to tell me what in the twin hells just happened?”

I blink.

“Invisible assassins are where I’m more than allowed to draw the line. Those weren’t sent by your family. One of the assailants tried to drag you off. This is what you were running from back in Lirasu. Who is hunting you and why?”

Temra and I share a look, and I still don’t know whether or not to trust Kellyn. If this had happened before his poor behavior at the Dancing Kiwi, maybe I wouldn’t hesitate, but now that I know what he’s really like—

“We’re on the run from Warlord Kymora Avedin,” Temra says, making the decision for us both. I suppose keeping him in the dark isn’t really an option should he threaten to leave.

“Kymora,” he deadpans, “as in the former leader of the kingdom’s armies? Currently the most dangerous person in all of Ghadra? Unbeatable swordswoman. That Kymora?”

“Yes.”

Kellyn’s eyes widen, as though he hadn’t actually expected Temra to confirm it.

“She’s after me,” I hurry to explain. “Because of what I can do. She wants me to make weapons for her army so she can overthrow the territory leaders and rule all of Ghadra herself.”

“How could you possibly know that?” Kellyn says.

“She cut herself on Secret Eater. I heard her.”

Kellyn looks between me and Temra, as though he’s not sure where to settle his eyes. “And just how do invisible assassins fit in?”

Temra stands by me, offering her strength during this confrontation. “We honestly don’t know anything about that.”

“Wait,” I say as something occurs to me. “The cotton spinner. The only other girl with magic. She must be working for Kymora. She’s made cloaks and gloves that render the wearers invisible.”

“Great,” Kellyn says. “So there’s the potential for more invisible assassins coming our way.”

In the silence that follows his statement, a few birds overhead start chirping to one another. The trees sway in the wind, and the shifting clouds finally let the sun shine down through gaps in the canopy.