Shepherd King 2
Rachel Gillig
PROLOGUE
Elspeth is trapped and can only say “let me out.” A older man with yellow eyes and wearing armor comes up to her. He says he has been waiting for her.
PART I - TO BLEED
1. Ravyn goes to the one remaining room of the old castle. He uses the Mirror card and waits. When a girl, Tilly, with yellow eyes appears, he asks what she is doing there. She says she is waiting for her father to join them. He tries to ask her questions about how the Shepherd King had died, but she ignores the question. She says she liked the girl he brought there that had the yellow eyes. He realizes what Elspeth had been scared of when he brought her there. When he asks who killed him she tells her father it was Rowan that betrayed him.
2. Elm and a few other Destroers search Hawthorne house for any hidden Providence Cards. They find a Prophet hidden in a book. Elm searches but stops when he comes to Elspeth’s room. Ione appears and tells him there is nothing left of Elspeth there. Bye is surprised to see she hadn’t run with the rest of her family and she is still using the Maiden card. He uses the Scythe and on her to ensure he tells her the truth. He tells her what Elspeth did to her fiancé and is now in a dungeon. He tells her he will have to take her to Stone, but she doesn’t seem to care. He asks if she knew about Elspeth’s secret. She admits that she noticed the yellow eyes that sometimes appeared, but she had no idea what was really going on. She points out that he and Ravyn must have noticed the same, but also didn’t guess what was going on. He releases her from the card and puts her in his horse to take back to Stone.
3. The man in armor tells Elspeth his name is Aemmory Perceval Taxus. He asks if she would like to hear their story of the girl, the king, and the monster they became.
4. Ravyn and Jespyr use their skeleton keys to open the door that leads to the dungeons. Jespyr warns him about going alone, but he insists on it. When he gets to the cell, he forgets for a moment that the woman he loves is no longer in her body. He asks Nightmare if he will take him to the Twin Alders card. The Nightmare agrees to it saying the card always the user to speak to the Spirit of the Wood. Ravyn warns him that the card will belong to him and not Nightmare. He also tells him he must be in his best behavior so the king will allow Ravyn to take him as well. Ravyn asks to speak to Elspeth, but the Nightmare denies him. Ravyn asks if he was there the whole time he and Elspeth were together. Nightmare explains there was a pocket of the mind where he and Elspeth could escape each other and he has no intention of letting him reach her. Ravyn takes him to the king who is watching over Hauth. The king asks a few questions about who knew of Elspeth’s power and Ravyn realizes the cards worked on Elspeth, but not Nightmare. The king promises to release Emory Yew if Nightmare tells him where the Twin Alders card is. Nightmare gives him a riddle describing the three barters that must be passed to find the card.
5. Elm thinks about how warm Ione had always been. He had stared at her longingly several times before she acquired the Maiden card. He doesn’t notice when they come up on three highway men. They tell him to put his hands in the air to prevent him from using his Scythe. Ione reaches into his pocket and uses it herself. She has the archer shoot his arrow into the man that is grabbing at her. Elm and Ione fall off the horse and Elm fights one bloody while Ione has the other kill himself. When the fight is over, he demands his card back from Ione, but she says she saved his life and now she wants him to save hers from the king.
6. Elspeth starts to remember. Taxus says he is leaving her and she will be let out soon.
7. Elm gets Ione inside the castle and they run into Landon. He is doing better since Elspeth attacked him on Market Day, but he has a large scar. Elm takes Ione up to his room to get her dry clothes and by the fire to warm up. He offers her some wine, but she refuses to drink it before he does. He takes off his wet suits and puts on dry ones. She has him help her with the ties on the back of her dress and he ends up having to cut them off. She tosses the dress the king gave her on Equinox into the fire. She says she is surprised he doesn’t have woman’s clothes strewn everywhere like his brother. He says he doesnmt have time for women. He offers her warm clothes saying it will be cold in the dungeon. Ravyn enters Elm’s head and says he has been looking for him and is on his way to his room. He leaves his mind before Elm can explain and Ravyn opens his door a few moments later.
8. Landon shows up before Elm can explain and takes Ione away. He is the one that will be using the Chalice on her. Ravyn warns Elm not to get involved with Ione. Elm tells him what happened and how he had to bring her back because of the other Destriers with him. He owes her his life and he intends to pay the debt.
9. They go to the throne room where the king is waiting on them. He tells Elm to join his side since Hauth cannot. Erik Spindle and Tyrn Hawthorne are brought in from the dungeons. The three captives are given the Chalice wine and are forced to tell the truth. All three admit they knew Elspeth had been infected, but had no idea what her power was. Elm uses the Scythe card to make Tyrn lie. He asks for Ione’s freedom in return for keeping the secret about Hauth safe. When the king accuses what happened to his sone on them, Tyrn points out he is just as much at fault for not vetting Ione’s family prior to the engagement. Elm has to withdraw his use of the Scythe before his nose starts to bleed and gives him away. When the king agrees to let Ione go, Erik attacks. He is stopped, but not before he throws a knife at Ione, whose hands are slashed and blood pours out over Elm while he tries to protect her.
10. Elspeth starts to remember Ravyn. A girl, Tilly, comes up to her asking to swing from the tree, but Elspeth doesn’t see any trees around. There are three boys the girl runs over too. They seem to think she is their father.
11. Filick stitches up Ravyn’s wound on his temple. The king scolds Ravyn for what has been going on. He thinks his responsibility as Captain of the Destriers should have been fulfilled by eliminating all the infected. Ravyn does what he can to keep the king from getting any angrier. When the king tells him he will still go on the mission to find the Twin Alders, he also tells Ravyn that Elm cannot go with him. He points out that Nightmare has already maimed his heir and cannot have his backup in that kind of danger. Ravyn asks to take Jespyr with him. The king agrees to this and tells him to take another Destrier as well. He then tells Ravyn that when he returns and the mist is lifted, he will no longer be the Captain of the Destriers. Ravyn finds the king’s disappointment in him to be a compliment.
12. Elm asks Filick if any physicians have checked in Ione. Filick tells Hume there wasn’t anything wrong with her. He goes to the servants’ quarters where she is staying and finds her hands are healed. She tells him the Maiden card doesn’t appear to have much use for men, but women discovered long ago that it had heals the user. Elm realizes she left the card somewhere in the castle and they is why she came back. She asks if he will use it to heal Hauth now that he knows, but he doesn’t really answer her. He decides to take her to the dungeons to see what is left of her cousin.
13. Elspeth remembers what happened and tells for Noghtmare to let her out. The children Tilly, Bennet, Illick and Nafdin, come and go. They occasionally speak to her and she realizes Illick and Nafdin are twins. The twins ask for Providence cards saying she gave some to Bennet. She remember she killed Orithe Willow, whose blood they needed to complete the deck. She finds Taxus and tells him the children want to see him, but he says his secrets are still kept. Bennet says he won’t stay and starts to swim out to see.
14. Ravyn uses his Nightmare card to tell Jespyr they will be leaving to remover the Twin Alders card soon. He then goes to Emory to get him ready to take home to Yew Castle as the king promised. Ravyn notices there is barley anything left of Emory. He goes to lift his little brother and accidently touches his skin. Emory tells him the Raven has three heads: the Destrier, the Highway man, and the birthright that is yet to be claimed. Ravyn feels awful for the extra degeneration he just caused his brother. When Emory comes back, he asks if he said anything, but Ravyn just finishes getting him ready and carries him down to the foyer. Jespyr arrives and he tells her to get Emory to Castle Yew.
15. Elm and Ione sneak down to the dungeon avoiding being seen by anyone. He points out that she asked for free reign of the castle, but hasn’t seemed to find her Maiden card. He thinks she got drunk and lost it and she doesn’t bother to correct him. Nightmare greets them with a series of clicks until they get up to the cell. Ione reaches out to her cousin and demands to speak to Elspeth. Nightmare says he is letting her rest and will let her out before it is all over. Elm asks him if there are Maiden cards in Stone and he tells them there are three, but he cannot tell him where they are from the cell. Ione is surprised to learn that this was one of Elspeth’s powers she kept hidden. Elm suggest she leave Stone without it. She admits she likes being beautiful and being healed by magic, but it is taking her over and she would like to be herself again. She tells him his debt to her is paid. He admits he was jealous of Ravyn falling in love with Elspeth and it prevented him seeing that she was losing herself to Nightmare. He doesn’t want that to happen to her as well. He doesn’t want to be anything like his brother.
16. Ravyn prepares Nightmare for their trip. He warns him another Destrier, Gorse, will be going with them and cannot be trusted. As they start to leave Stone and head to Castle Yew to check on Emory, They see Elm ride out of Stone with his father.
PART II - TO BARTER
17. Elspeth is able to bring up the memory or Taxus going to the Spirit of the wood to ask her to help him make Blunder prosperous. A stone table appears with a sword on it. The symbol on the hilt is a shepherd’s staff.
18. Elm is put off by his father’s sudden interest in him. He is concerned with Elm’s involvement with Ione, but Elm points out they can’t execute her without all of Blunder suspecting him of corruption. The king knows Hauth won’t be healed enough to rule or create an heir. He is now depending on Elm for that. He tells him he is off the Destriers. That night, when Elm goes to dinner, he meets Ione in the hall. She has on a poorly fitting dress the king gave her. Elm walks her into the dining hall and strides with her up next to his father. They force a family out of their seats pointing out that Ione is their future queen. Elm is frustrated sitting there putting on a show instead of looking for Ione’s Maiden card. The Pine family comes to greet them and says they are excited to have been invited for the feast. The king tells Elm he will be married by the end of the week. Ione suggests they get drunk.
19. Ravyn arrives at Castle Yew with Nightmare. He asks Peter and Wik Ivy to join their search for the Twin Alders and they agree to. Ravyn goes out to find Nightmare in the meadow. He knows that Ravyn dug up his sword and asks him to give it back to him. Ravyn fetches the sword from his room and Nightmare has his faded gold crown as well. Ravyn says he met Nightmare’s daughter, Tilly. Nightmare warns him about using the Mirror card too much. He also tells Ravyn to bring a Maiden card with them on their journey. Ravyn tells Nightmare there were two cards in the stone table when he opened it and asks if he put them there. Nightmare says that he didn’t, but doesn’t answer any other questions. He seems to be lost in thought and Ravyn uses the opening to search his mind for Elspeth. Nightmare becomes aware again and warns him not to search for her. He is protecting her from the pain it would be to her to live in his mind.
20. Ione steals a bottle of wine from the great hall. She and Elm head to the cellar with intentions of using the Chalice. He is hoping to refresh her memory of Equinox when she lost the Maiden card. She bets him a kiss for a minute of using his Scythe card that he doesn’t remember her before her use of the Maiden card. He activates the Chalice and they each drink the wine alternating questions and agreeing nothing is off limits. He learns on the night of Equinox, Hauth made sure to get her drunk and used his Scythe card on her to make sure she hid the Maiden card. He knew he was cruel and that his soft hearted bride would need to harden to survive him. His questions do nothing to reveal where the hidden Maiden might be. He reveals that Hauth would use his Scythe card on him until his mother died and he inherited hers. It is believed that the Rowan family has all four cards, but they actually only have three. They admit they are attracted to one another. She answers his questions telling him she can still feel desire. After the Chalice has warn off, he tells her his memories of her before she used the Maiden card. He wins the bet and takes his kiss. They start making out and she gives him permission to tear off her dress. Before he can, Filick appears in the open door. Ione leaves in a rush and Elm calls after her.
21. Elspeth remembers Taxus talking to his sister Ayris about dueling Brutus before his coronation. She is upset that he will have bruises for the ceremony. An oily voice calls to Elspeth, but she can’t get out.
22. The next morning, Ravyn, Nightmare, Jespyr, Gorse, Petyr and Wik start their journey into the forest. Ravyn makes sure they all have their charms on them before they take off. Nightmare leads them through the woods, but not on a path. He mentions the name Taxus, an old name of an old tree. Gorse quickly gets annoyed with her winding path. When they start to hear wolves approaching, Ravyn tries to get Nightmare’s attention. When he can’t, he goes in his head and finds out Nightmare can’t find Elspeth. He tries to demand he bring her out immediately, but the wolves are too pressing and they have to jump into a river and swim away. A figure of himself as a highway man tries to drag Ravyn under as he swims, but he is able to get away. Petyr has trouble and Ravyn has to pull him along with him. When they get out of the river, Petyr’s leg is rotting rather than bleeding. Nightmare tells them the river is poison.
23. Taxus pulls Elspeth out of the darkness and tells her she will be able to see what he sees, but she will not be able to control what was once her body. She tells him to let her out.
24. Jespyr heats up her blade and has Wik press it against his brother’s leg to stop the poisonous infection. The wound continues to open after each attempt. Nightmare tells them to use the Maiden card and it heals the wound as well as the scar along Petyr’s face even after he stops using it. Ravyn’s Mirror and Nightmare cards fell to the ground and Gorse sees them. Ravyn uses the Nightmare card to get into Nightmare’s head and sees that Elspeth is there. Nightmare kicks him out quickly saying she isn’t ready for him. They get further away from the river before they settle to eat. Gorse asks if the king knows about Ravyn’s collection of cards and implies that Ravyn stole them. Ravyn gets inside his head and Gorse apologizes to get him out. He flees them later that night and the others decide to keep going.
25. The next day, Elm sits in the library trying not to think about Ione. Filick tells him he should go see his brother for appearances. They don’t know if he will wake up, but Filick tells Elm he thinks he would be a great king and what the people really need after generations of brutes. When Filick leaves, Maribeth Larch comes to try to entice Elm. He is tempted, but he knows the experience would be empty and sends her away. He goes to find Baldwyn who is introducing families for the first feast in Elm’s honor. He asks Elm where the marriage contracts are kept because he wants to understand the business side of what he is getting himself into. Baldwyn tells him and reluctantly gives Elm the ring of keys Ravyn gave him that actually belong to Elm. Elm goes to the records room next to the library. It takes some time for him to find the right key and then the marriage contract the king made with Tyrn. He hides the contract under his shirt and leaves without locking the door.
26. Elspeth is furious with Nightmare for cutting her hair. She begs him to give her a few moments with Ravyn and he reluctantly agrees to let him in. They have a few minutes where they each apologize to each other for what has happened. Ravyn vows they will have more time together before they are attacked by arrows with vials on the ends. Elspeth watches as Nightmare falls over. She can only see Petyr and Wik on the ground by her and Wik has an arrow sticking out of his head. Nightmare says they could have prevented being overtaken if Ravyn hadn’t been in his head. A voice comes out seeming pleased to have caught two more Destriers.
27. Elm took the marriage contract to Castle Yew and told his aunt and uncle to hide it until he needed it. He told them exactly what was going on and they support him. He comes back to Stone and waits until his father has had a few glasses of wine. He says he will be his heir if he consents to whoever Elm choses to marry. The king is suspicious, but Elm assures him he has already given his seal of approval. When the king agrees, Elm leaves the feast. He goes up the stairs and finds Linden harassing Ione. He ends up using the Scythe card to make him leave her alone and apologize. Elm walks Ione to his room promising he wasn’t avoiding her, but had some heir business to attend. They get to her room with the hare on the door and he notes which room she is staying in. He tells her they will continue their search in the morning and he has some ideas of other cards they can use to try to find her Maiden.
28. Elspeth sees Taxus’ memory. The infection has come, but he is looking for a way to prevent the degeneration the magic causes. The spirt tells him there will be many more barters before she gives him the cure. He asks for strength, and she tells him to bring him a black horse from his stable. Later, he is sparring with Brutus, who finds it unfair that he can see the cards and their colors. He has tested out the Black Horse card and finds it does make him stronger. Taxus tells him to keep the card. He asks him to be captain of his guard and says he knows his sister and Brutus are involved. She sees more memories of creating the cards and the birth and growth of his family. Taxus took each of his children to the Spirit of the wood to bless them. The oldest, Bennet had the black flowing through his veins. The youngest, Tilly, was able to heal wounds, but it drained her life. Taxus forged the Maiden card to heal her. Brutus and his sister, Ayris started to worry about him and his obsession with the magic. He ends up giving up his soul to create the Nightmare card and the mist came.
29. Ravyn wakes up with an awful headache. He is still reeling from having been able to speak to Elspeth for a few minutes. Petyr is upset about the loss of his brother. They have been stripped of their weapons and and they lay against a stone wall. Two women wearing black and animal skeleton masks (wolf and ram) arrive now that they have woken up. They are the outcasts that have the infection. They have taken the Providence cards from their holders. Hess (wolf) can see through the eyes of crows. Otho (ram) is an alchemist and created the mixture that knocked them out. They try to explain that Ravyn is infected as well, but they don’t believe him. Petyr and Wik had spent their lives helping infected escape, but the women don’t care. They want revenge in the form of Destrier blood. Masked people start to file out of the fort with Gorse. They are thrown into a ring and Otho blows smoke in their faces. They are filled with hate and rage and start to fight each other. Ravyn ends up killing Gorse before Opal comes out and recognizes what is left of her niece. Otho clears out the spectators and gives Opal a chance to tell them how these particular Destriers helped her and her sons. They fill her in on what has happened to Elspeth. They are willing to accept them into their community on Opal’s suggestion, but Petyr tells Ravyn there is a knife in his boot. Ravyn is able to get it and with Nightmare’s help, they get away with their cards.
30. Elm takes Ione into the catacombs to fetch more cards to continue their search for her Maiden. When they get to the vault, there is a Maiden card in there. Ione tries tapping it three times to disengage her magic, but it doesn’t have any affect. Elm grabs the Prophet and they head up to the library, one of the few places in Stone that Elm is comfortable. Baldwyn finds them there and says he has the king’s decree that Elm is now his heir and needs his signature. Ione is the witness of the signing. A group of girls come by to try to win Elm over. He isn’t interested, but he does notice one of them, Yvette Laburnum, is using a Maiden card herself. Ione’s is the only one left that they haven’t accounted for. When the crowd clears out, Ione uses the Prophet and sees herself in a meadow with her Tyrn, Erik, Elm, and the Yew family. An armored man opened her hands to reveal three cards: the Maiden, the Scythe, and the Twin Alders.
31. Ravyn and the others put some distance between them and the outcast town before they take a break. Nightmare moves the trees close around them so it would be more difficult for anyone to sneak up on them. Nightmare allows Ravyn inside his head while he fixes his nose. He is ashamed of himself for killing Gorse, but Elspeth knows it wasn’t his fault. Jespyr uses the Maiden to heal her wounds and asks Nightmare what he gave for it. He tells her it was his long hair. He cannot touch the cards because Elspeth’s ability would absorb whatever he gave to forge the card. Ravyn is glad he gets to speak with Elspeth and Jespyr notices. Nightmare tells them he also had a sister. Both Destriers are put off by Nightmare, but are reminded of Elspeth.
32. The third feast for Elm is themed after the Providence cards. Elm finds Ione dressed as the Nightmare, and she tells him his father picked it out for her. They leave the party and head out to the rose maze in the garden. She remembers cracked stone, but not much else of the night Hauth made her put her card somewhere. They find a statue of Brutus Rowan on an island in the middle of a pond. Elm swims out to it, but the card isn’t there. The statue falls into the water taking Elm with it. He gets free and swims to shore as fast as he can. He feels like the mist is trying to take him and Ione gives him her charm. They go to his room so he can change into dry clothes and Filick arrives to tell them Hauth has woken up.
33. Elspeth remembers Tilly going to Taxus to ask to swing in the Yew tree. He finds it easy to say no now that he doesn’t have a soul. He continues trying to find a way to get rid of the mist, but the spirit that has been helping him tells him it is the price they pay for the magic. The Spirit of the wood still needs people to come to her. He says he will give anything to be able to speak to the Spirit of the Wood personally. This is what makes the Twin Alders card. He later finds out the price was that the cards no longer work for him. The fever doesn’t only take people that ask for it. Brutus comes to talk to him about the mist getting worse. Taxus tells him to stop complaining when he himself uses the Scythe to kill people for pleasure. Bennett tells his father there are cards he can no longer use. Taxus takes the Twin Alders and is going into the woods. Ayris asks to join him and he allows it. He doesn’t feel much, but he still feels a bond with his sister.
34. Filick leads Elm and Ione to Hauth’s room. Elm tells Ione she doesn’t have to go in, but she does in a show of support for him. The drunk king comes in after and demands the Nightmare card to try to reach Hauth. Ione is shocked at seeing the card again and is slow to hand it over. Linden tells her to do it, but Elm uses his Scythe to keep him from saying anything else. Hauth opens his eyes and looks at Ione before closing them again. Later, the king asks Elm if he signed the testament making him heir. Elm assures him he did and has already has a marriage contract in place. He keeps the Nightmare card he took off Hauth’s bedroom floor with him while he rides out to scream his frustrations. He goes to Hawthorne house and collects a pile of dresses before returning to Stone. He delivers them to Ione’s room and asks her to go to the next feast with him.
35. Nightmare wakes everyone up in the morning to get moving again. He takes them to a tree and tells them they need a guide to go the rest of the way and the price is a charm. Ravyn goes to give his, but Nightmare points out that the mist doesn’t affect them. They need someone that feels drawn to the Spirit of the Wood when they don’t have their charm on them. Jespyr volunteers, but it is decided she and Petyr will flip a coin. Ravyn says Petyr would be the one to go, but Jespyr says she knows when he is lying. She puts her charm in the hole of the alder tree. She asks Ravyn if he is with her. He says he is right behind her and she takes off running.
36. Elm is stuck dancing with women while he waits for Ione to show up at the feast. Ione enters the room and heads turn to look at her. Elm leaves a conversation to join her. They start dancing and Elm says he has the Nightmare card so he can see in her mind. He uses the Scythe to make the band play louder and he goes into Ione’s head as they dance. He is able to see the night of Equinox and where she hid the card. He is about to pull out of her head when she tells him to stay because she wants him to see the rest. She shows him several memories. Hauth asked her if she knew about Elspeth’s powers. When she says she didn’t, he threw her out the window at Spindle house. She lay on the ground thinking she was dying, but the Maiden healed her. She remembers looking at Elm and admiring his strength and kindness. When he leaves her mind, he takes her to the throne room. There is a stone in the hearth that lifts up and that is where her Maiden is. They go back to his room before she taps it and all of the emotions the card kept her from feeling come rushing in.
37. Ravyn and Nightmare follow Jespyr through the mist leaving Petry behind. They get to a pair of alder trees, one light and one dark, like on the cover of the Book of Alders. The clearing is filled with the dead they have drawn to them with the mist and fed on. Jespyr has the infection running through her and the roots of the trees starting to take her. Elspeth begs Nightmare to help as Jespyr’s heart slows. Nightmare asks the trees to spare Ravyn the pain she put him through or else he will dig out all the trees from the ground. The trees start to go after Nightmare. They grab Ravyn and throw him through the door between them.
38. Ione is overwhelmed by the emotions and asks Elm to give her a few minutes. He returns the Nightmare to his brother’s room before going back to her door and waiting against it. Ione lets him in and they fall asleep in each other’s arms. In the morning, they tell each other how they admired one another from a far before they met. They decide to go for a ride and take off to a unpopulated place. She admits she wanted out of her marriage with Hauth once she realizes there was nothing she could do to stop the Rowans from killing infected. He tells her how he instructed Jespyr to get her family out. He had no idea she was at Hawthorne house when he went there and found her. He tells her how he doesn’t want to be king, but that he can make a difference if he is. He wants her to be his queen. They have sex. They decide to announce their marriage contract that night, but when they get back to Stone, Hauth is in Elm’s room waiting for him.
PART III - TO BEND
39. Ravyn, Jespyr, and Nightmare wait on the shore. When the Spirit of the Wood appears, she greets them all, including Elspeth.
40. Hauth uses his Scythe card to hold Elm. Linden steals Elm’s Scythe card. Hauth realizes the Maiden must have had healing powers when he saw Ione wasn’t dead after her fall from the window at Spindle House. Linden used the Nightmare card and Hauth just repeated Maiden. Linden found Elm had left his room unlocked and easily found his keys. He was able to get into Ione’s room to retrieve her Maiden and heal Hauth. Hauth makes Ione use her Maiden card and then stabs her through the chest with a dagger. Elm is forced to watch her die and is relieved when the card heals her. Hauth decides to go celebrate his recovery by joining the ongoing feast.
41. The Spirit of the Wood uses her claws to rip open her stomach and pull out the Twin Alders card. She doesn’t let Ravyn take it, but she allows him to tap it three times to be able to speak to her. Ravyn has every intention of using his own blood to unite the deck. Nightmare is surprised by this. Spirit takes Ravyn back 800 years. She tells Ravyn she will let them all live, including Elspeth and Emory, if he goes back and takes the crown. He doesn’t want the crown and doesn’t think she has the power to meddle in human politics. She says for him to get the card, but must tell her his name. She says when he goes to unite the deck, they will meet under his namesake’s tree. She then shows him his second clue. She shows him how Taxus worked tirelessly on writing The Old Book of Alders. When he returned from the wood without his sister, Brutus waited a few days before stabbing him in the ribs. He rounds up Taxus’ children and takes away his sword to prevent the trees from helping him. When Brutus tells his men to kill the children, the castle is set on fire. They find Bennett in the meadow. They try to control him with the Scythe, but it doesn’t have any affect on him. He is able to get to Brutus and rip his Scythe card in half. Bennett was able to get away and make a life for himself. He got married and had children. He realizes he is the descendant of Taxus and tells Spirit that is his true name.
42. Hauth keeps a tight grip on Elm using the Scythe card while he makes speeches of being a great heir to the Rowan dynasty. He has Elm fill their father’s wine and makes a toast. When the king drinks, he is poisoned. He gives Elm his Scythe. When the king is dead, Hauth calls for Elm’s arrest. Elm uses the Scythe to keep anyone from grabbing him. He takes Ione and they get out to the stable. They ride as far as they can before the pain of keeping anyone from pursuing them becomes too much and he falls from the horse. He tells Ione she has to keep going into the woods because he cannot let Hauth use her to bargain with Ravyn. He uses his Scythe to send her away. He is staring up at the moon when the Destriers find him.
43. Elspeth asks what happened to Nightmare’s sister. He tells her he tried to carry her body home, but didn’t make it. He tells her her mind will be her own soon enough. She can’t remember what it was like to not have him in her head and she is a bit sad about it. She says she will not allow Ravyn to use his blood to unite the deck and Nightmare says he won’t either. He has a plan. Ravyn returns with the Twin Alders. Nightmare reveals he plans to take back the throne of Blunder for Elm, the only person he has ever seen use a Scythe without intent to hurt people. When they get back in the alderwood, there is snow on the ground and Petyr is gone.
44. It is the day of Solstice and they have to rush back to unite the deck. With Nightmare carrying Jespyr, they start running back. Ravyn is exhausted, but the Nightmare tells him they have to keep going. When they reach the river, he isn’t sure he’ll make it across. He sees Elm’s horse and the. Petyr and Ione are there. She explains what happened to Elm and that he is being held at Stone for Hauth to trade for the Twin Alders. She went to Castle Yew and banged on the door for help, but took off into the woods before they could answer. Petyr went to bury his brother and found Ione and now they found them. Ione shows them Elm’s Nightmare card. Petyr takes Jespyr from Nightmare and puts her on the horse. Nightmare is furious, but knows they are short in time. Ravyn barely makes it across the river. Nightmare says he has a plan to keep Ravyn from sacrificing himself. But they need to hurry.
45. Elm is freezing in the dungeon and Filick brings him a blanket. Hauth and a few Destriers come to ask him questions using the Chalice and Scythe, but he doesn’t know the answers. He says he stayed behind to kill Hauth, but his brother is not scared of him. Erik tries to keep Elm from giving up. He tells him that Elspeth’s mother was infected, but she never told him to keep him safe. He left the Destriers because he couldn’t stand hunting down people like his wife and daughter. He didn’t realize Ravyn was different until he saw him with Elspeth. Tyrn admits that he killed a highway man on the road and stole his Nightmare card. He held onto it for a long time knowing it could grant his family favor. He knew things were wrong, but didn’t want to do anything about it because then he would have committed murder for nothing. Elm, Tyrn, and Erik are taken to Castle Yew with Hauth and Destriers. They wait at the watching where Ravyn went into the woods to start the search for the Twin Alders. Hauth doesn’t want the deck united. He likes things the way they are because the people are afraid and easy to control. Hauth uses the Scythe on the Yews to find out where their cards are hidden and retrieves them. Emory grabs Hauth’s wrist and tells him he won’t win. Hauth goes to strike him, but movement is spotted in the woods. Ione comes out holding the Maiden, Scythe, and Twin Alders. Hauth pulls out a knife to kill Ione, but she activates the Maiden before he can do anything. Haugh cuts his hand and his Scythe is caught in the wind. Ravyn steps out of the wood and warns the Destriers that his fight is with Hauth over the cards only. They can leave if they want to live. Ravyn uses the Nightmare card to tell Elm to go with Ione into the woods and to the stone table. He rushes forward using the Mirror to make himself invisible and Hauth orders the Destriers to kill his family. The ground starts to shake and the trees are there fighting the Destriers. Some of them take off into the woods after Ione.
46. Ravyn’s group charges. One Destrier surrenders and Ravyn tells him to run. Elm, Erik, and Tyrn run to the woods as best they can after Ione as planned. The trees keep Hauth distracted from picking up his Scythe card. Ravyn goes to his family and tells them to go into the castle and stay there. Petyr offers to take them and says he is coming right back. Ravyn speaks to Elspeth and Nightmare. They tell him Ione is bringing the Destriers back around. Ravyn goes to take on Hauth. Hauth gets his Scythe as Ravyn hit shim. Ravyn uses his Mirror to make himself invisible and the Nightmare to speak in Hauth’s head. Ravyn is able to get his knife to Hauth’s neck, but Hauth has he has a Maiden activated to prevent dying. Ravyn gets the cards out of Hauth’s pocket, but the new king keeps hold of the Scythe. Ravyn takes the Scythe from him and tears in in half. When Hauth stabs him in the ribs, he is able to get free. He takes Ravyn’s Mirror and taps it three times to become invisible.
47. Ione draws the Destriers to Nightmare and he kills four and the trees take three. Elm, Erik, and Tyrn join them. Linden tries to shoot them, but his arrow grazes Elm and hits Ione’s shoulder. Nightmare charges at him, but Elm gives the killing blow. They each use the Maiden to heal. Nightmare can see the cards going to the wrong way and takes off. They find Ravyn on the ground with the knife still in his ribs. Elspeth doesn’t want to leave him, but Nightmare takes off after Haugh. The trees help them catch Hauth. They see Brutus there with him saying they are now both monsters. The trees take him to the chamber and drop him through the ceiling. They are minutes away from midnight, their deadline. Nightmare takes the cards from Hauth and lays them on the table. Nightmare tells him he is the final Rowan; he plans to crown Elm as the first of his name. Elm and Ione arrive. Nightmare gives Elm his sword to do what he must. Nightmare leaves them
48. Elm says he is ready to be king. Hauth points out none of them are infected, so they cannot unite the deck. Hauth reaches for Elms throat. Elm just smiles and cuts off Hauth’s charm. The Spirit takes him and infects him. Elm has the sword and asks Ione to help him. They put the sword to Hauth’s chest over the cards and plunge it into him. The cards disappear. Hauth frees himself and his crown falls off. He runs out into the mist. There is a single card left on the stone table: a circle with his name in the center.
49. Petyr carries Ravyn into Yew Castle. They have him put Ravyn on the table. Thistle runs to get the medical supplies. They argue about the best way to heal him without bleeding out. Ravyn goes in and out of consciousness. Nightmare comes in and pushes himself to the table. He tells Jespyr to start a fire and the rest to hold him down. He says only magic can save him now. He tells Jespyr to warm her hand and then come to him. Nightmare is going to pull out the knife and Jespyr will touch the wound to heal it like Tilly. When it is time, the pain makes him pass out. When Ravyn wakes up, he is in his bed and elm is watching over him. He has been asleep for two days. Elm shows him the mist-free view out his window. Ravyn apologizes for leaving Elm at Stone. Jespyr and Emory come to see him. The new card took the infection from him. Elm shows him the twelve colored Providence card: The Shepherd. Ravyn asks about the Nightmare. Elm tells him he had to get something, but asked him not to use the Shepherd card before he returns. When Nightmare returns, he gives Ravyn the last Nightmare card. He asks Ravyn to go into the woods with him one last time. Nightmare helps him into the chamber. The Taxus and Brutus crowns are there together and bloody. He tells her how Elspeth thought no one could care for her as she was. She gave Nightmare a second chance at being a father. Nightmare tells him Elspeth cannot be cured using the Shepherd. He tells Ravyn he has to destroy the Nightmare card and her degeneration. Ravyn is furious he could have released her the entire time. Nightmare explains there were things he had to do first. He gives Nightmare ten minutes to say goodbye to Elspeth before he tears the card in half.
50. Nightmare reaches out to Elspeth and apologizes for dragging her into the dark with him. She says it was worth it to unite the deck. She trie to tell him their story, but she isn’t ready to let him go. They finish the story.
EPILOGUE
Elm sends out a message to the people of Blunder to tell them they can come to stone to be healed by the Shepherd card. Ravyn comes back to the meadow to tell Elspeth that Taxus’ was created by his sister and children. They go to Hawthorne house for Elm and Ione’s wedding. As they walk down the road, Elspeth turns her head at a sound and thinks she sees yellow eyes, but it is just a glare of the sun. Ravyn kept his magic to keep his tie to Taxus. He destroyed the final Scythe card. While they know Nightmare is gone, he is still part of Elspeth though she learned who she was without him.