Empires of Moth (The Moth Saga, Book 2) by Daniel Arenson

hope—of an end to
violence, of a love with Koyee—vanished under a cold torrent.
    Linee reached him, grabbed his
shoulders, and clung to him.
    "He's after me, Torin. He's
after me!" She trembled. "He killed Cery and now he wants
to kill—"
    He wouldn't even let her finish
her sentence. Torin grabbed her hand and tugged her along with him.
They raced into an alleyway just as the Night Castle gates slammed
open. Torin spun around in the shadows, peered toward the castle, and
saw a swarm of monks spill into the boulevard.
    Ferius marched at their lead,
bloodied hands raised to the sky. Behind him, his fellow monks held
aloft the body of King Ceranor. A dagger was embedded into the king's
left eye. The right eye, still open, seemed to stare at Torin with
pain.
    "The Elorians have slain
our king!" Ferius shouted, voice ringing across the boulevard.
"Men of Timandra, the demons have struck! We will have
vengeance! Soldiers of sunlight, hear my call, raise your swords, and
march with me. Slay every demon you find!"
    Torin watched, heart thudding
and head spinning. He gripped his sword. Linee clung to him,
trembling and still shedding tears.
    "It wasn't the Elorians,"
she whispered and tugged Torin's arm. "It was Ferius who killed
him. I saw him. He's lying. Please don't let him kill me too."
She covered her face.
    Torin held her, gritting his
teeth and staring out to the boulevard. "I will keep you safe,
Linee. I promise you. Now keep your voice low."
    He pulled her deeper into the
alley shadows. The monks kept marching down the boulevard. They
raised their maces and roared for blood.
    "Death to Elorians!"
one shouted.
    "Sunlight rises!"
shouted another.
    Soon all their voices morphed
into a single cry, the rage of one beast of sunfire. They marched
down the street, swung their maces, and smashed windows and shattered
glass walls. What few Elorians walked along the boulevard fled into
homes and alleyways.
    "Let the blood fill the
streets!" shouted Ferius as behind him his monks paraded the
corpse of King Ceranor. "Vengeance!"
    Soldiers began streaming out
from the Night Castle. These were no monks—they wore the armor of
Arden, ravens upon their breastplates, warriors of the fallen king.
And yet they too followed the new Sailith faith; new converts, they
sported the sunburst upon their shields. They too chanted for blood.
    "Death to Elorians!"
they shouted. "The sun rises!"
    Hundreds flowed onto the street,
not marching in formation, not following a commander, but swarming as
a mob, blind with hatred.
    They
are no longer soldiers, Torin realized. He remembered the mob that had slain Koyee's father,
mad with fear and hatred. These men were the same, but whereas a mob
from Fairwool-by-Night had slain a single man, this force could
massacre an entire city.
    Linee
tugged Torin's arm. "Please, Torin, please. I'm
scared. I want to leave. Can we please leave?"
    Torin nodded, throat tight. "I
think that's a good idea."
    Outside the alleyway, soldiers
began breaking down the doors of homes and shops. Screams rose from
inside. Elorians pleaded for mercy and blood spilled into the street.
Torin glimpsed a dozen soldiers drag an elderly Elorian man out of
his shop; he recognized Old Meshu, a dyer of silks. The soldiers
slashed his neck with a sword, then laughed as the blood sprayed
their armor. They raised the corpse with cries of triumph.
    "Vengeance! Vengeance!
Death to Elorians!"
    Torin turned away, nausea rising
in him, and pulled Linee deeper into the shadows of the alley. They
hurried around a few barrels, a stray cat, and laundry hanging on
strings. Most other soldiers only knew the main streets of Pahmey,
but Torin had spent many hours sneaking through the secret passages
with Koyee.
    "We have to find her,"
he said, heart thudding in his throat. "We have to find Koyee.
Oh Idar . . . Ferius will tear down every building until he finds
her."
    They raced around a corner and
down a narrow passageway, dusty glass walls at their sides