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ashamed.
    “Please, sir,” she said, “do not kneel before me.”
    He was a famous man, a powerful lord who had thousands of soldiers answering to him, and who ruled his own city, Silesia, the stronghold of the West, an unusual city, built right into a cliff on the edge of the Canyon. It was nearly impenetrable. He was one of the few that her father ever trusted.
    “I have ridden here with these men because I hear that great changes are astir in King’s Court,” he said knowingly. “The throne is unsteady. A new ruler—a firm ruler, a true ruler—must be placed in his stead. Word has reached me of your father’s desire that you should reign. Your father was like a brother to me, and his word is my bond. If that is his wish, then it is mine. I have come to let you know that, if you should rule, then my men will swear allegiance to you. I would urge you to act soon. The events of today have proven that King’s Court needs a new ruler.”
    Gwen stood there, taken aback, hardly knowing how to respond. She felt deeply humbled, and a sense of pride, but she also felt overwhelmed, in over her head.
    “I thank you, sir,” she said. “I’m grateful for your words, and for your offer. I shall ponder it deeply. For now, I wish only to welcome home my brother—and Thor.”
    Srog bowed his head, and a horn sounded on the horizon. Gwen looked up and could already see the dust cloud: a great army was appearing. She raised one hand to block out the sun, and her heart soared. Even from here, she could feel who it was. It was the Silver, the King’s men.
    And riding at their head was Thor.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

 
 
    Thor rode with the army, thousands of soldiers heading as one back towards King’s Court, and he felt triumphant. He still could hardly process what had happened. He was proud of what he had done, proud that when things seemed at their lowest point in battle, he had not given into his fear, but stayed and faced those warriors. And he was in shock that he had somehow survived.
    The entire battle had felt surreal, and he was so grateful he’d been able to summon his powers—yet he was also confused, since his powers did not always work. He did not understand them, and worse, he did not know where they came from or how to muster then. It made him realize more than ever that he had to learn to rely on his human skills, too—on being the best fighter, the best warrior, he could be. He was starting to realize that to be the best warrior he could be, he needed both sides of himself—the fighter, and the sorcerer—if that’s even what he was.
    They rode all night to get back to King’s Court, and Thor was beyond exhausted, but also exhilarated. The first sun was breaking over the horizon, and the vast expanse of sky opened before him in shades of yellows and pinks, and he felt as if he were seeing the world for the first time. He had never felt so alive. He was surrounded by his friends, Reece, O’Connor, Elden and the twins, by Kendrick, Kolk and Brom, and by hundreds of members of the Legion, the Silver, and of the King’s army. But instead of being on the outskirts of it, now he rode at the center, embraced by all of them. Indeed, they all looked at him differently since the battle. Now, he saw admiration in the eyes of not just his fellow Legion members, but also in the eyes of the real, full-grown warriors. He had faced the entire McCloud army by himself, and had turned back the tide of war.
    Thor was just happy that he did not let any of his Legion brothers down. He was happy that his friends had escaped mostly unharmed, and he felt a sense of remorse at his Legion brothers who died in the battle. He did not know them, but he wished he could have saved them, too. It had been a bloody, ferocious battle, and even now, as Thor rode, whenever he blinked, images flashed in his head of the fighting, of the various weapons and warriors who had come at him. The McClouds were fierce people, and he had been lucky; who