by Eve Langlais
“What happened?” Agathe asked as she led the new goat beside the aging one in the stable. It wasn’t giving milk anymore, meaning it was time to give it to the cooking pot.
“The brat did it.” Hiix beamed. “About two days after you left, she was fidgeting too much for storytime, so I took her out into the courtyard to work off her energy, which was when the attack occurred.”
“The courtyard? Inside the Abbae?” Agathe yelped.
“Yup. Monster made right for the brat.”
Agathe couldn’t help but gasp. “She’s all right?”
“Better than fine.” Hiix snorted. “I swear she knew it was coming and wanted to touch it.”
Did the brat crave the power? “How did it get in?”
“Alcove,” Hiix calmly informed her. She pointed upward. “Squeezed right through the slits.”
“But they’re tiny!” exclaimed Agathe.
“Apparently that’s not an issue with some creatures. A total of three came through. By the time it was over, dust covered everything, I discovered how it felt to be choked out, and I woke up a tad bit younger.” Which pleased Hiix immensely.
“Is the brat really okay?”
“I swear, nothing can hurt that child,” Hiix replied with a shake of her head.
Not entirely true. The girl could be injured. However, she seemed to automatically heal from it so long as her eyes had a bit of purple. When they were that muddy brown, she suffered through the scratches and bruises with a grumble.
“Did her eyes glow?” Agathe asked. Might as well study what happened. Only then could they perhaps understand the brat’s power.
“Like purple lanterns at first. Then they got lighter and lighter ‘til they were almost white!” Hiix exclaimed. “Soon as the monster died and she touched me, they started going dark again until the purple was all gone.”
“Do you think she controls it?” Agathe voiced her fear aloud.
“If you’re asking can she suck us dry if she decides she doesn’t like us? I don’t know,” was Hiix’s honest reply.
Agathe took it as a good sign that only monsters had been destroyed thus far. Still, she knew the brat had a temper. A single tantrum and she could possibly cause great harm.
“Where is she now?” Agathe asked.
“Hanging with Venna. She thinks she might have made a breakthrough with those books.”
The breakthrough was about the sigils scattered around the Abbae. Apparently, a book Venna had been deciphering claimed they were symbols of magic. But how to make them work? What did they mean? It would take time to decipher.
The Abbae turned into the fortress of days gone by with the alcove slits shielded at night and a heavy bar holding the door. Over the next few years, Agathe and her Soraers received more doses of youth because the monsters kept coming.
For practice, they would sometimes venture out and fight the creatures. Per Venna’s request, they ensured the monsters were almost dead before letting the girl come anywhere near. It turned out a dying beast didn’t give the child as much oomph, but even that bit of magic kept them healthy and young. Even more important, the Ninth Shield resumed its job of protecting the King’s Valley from the monsters in the Abyss. No longer did they wander around unarmed, even within the keep. The devious creatures had ways of weaseling into the smallest of cracks. It was interesting to note that walls with intact sigils didn’t have penetration issues. Once Venna deciphered their meaning in the books, she learned to paint them on the doors and the walls of unused rooms.
It was only by accident they learned it needed the brat’s glowing-eyed touch to activate them. They then went on a quest to ignite as many as they could up and down the path. Life was good. Serene.
Like the eye of a storm.
They were in the midst of practicing their sparring, less than an hour before sunsdown, quite some time since they’d first found the child, when a pounding came on the door.
Agathe scowled at Hiix. “I thought you said no one was on the road.”
“And at the time, no one was.” The problem with there being only the three of them plus the brat was if someone wasn’t in the alcove watching, they could be taken unaware by visitors.
“It’s close to sunsdown,” Agathe remarked, eyeing the slits that would soon need shutting. “Time to lock up.”
“You going to refuse them entry?” Hiix snorted. “As if. Since Venna’s already downstairs with the brat, I just need to tidy up. Stall whoever it is.”
Stall? How?
Agathe waited until the visitor rang the bell again before pulling the plug on the hole that allowed her to speak to the other side. “Who is it?”
“Soraer Agathe, I’ve returned with news.”
Her eyes widened because she knew that voice. “Baree?” It had been years since his last visit.
“Yes, it’s me. Can you let me in?”
She wondered how Hiix was doing getting rid of the brat’s stuff from inside the communal hall. “Just a second while I deal with the locks.” It involved heaving the weighty bar sideways and then a series of latches.
By the time it opened, she’d bought a little more time, but just in case, she stood in the doorway, blocking it. “Baree, what a lovely surprise.” She didn’t have to feign the shock and even the tad bit of pleasure she felt. Had he returned to see her? It had been so long she’d assumed he’d forgotten all about her.
“You are looking well,” he stated. The soldier looked as dapper as ever, if a bit harder with his braided mustache. The years had left him leaner and meaner.
Heat curled inside her. “You’re too kind. I’m sure I look a mess.” Sweaty and unkempt from the sword practice. She’d placed the weapon in the pot by the door before admitting Baree.
“You could never look unattractive.” His gaze slewed to the bar she’d heaved to the side. “I see you’ve begun barricading during the day.”
“It doesn’t hurt to be cautious. The mist has been rising more often of late.”
His lips flattened. “I am aware. I’m surprised you haven’t moved yet.”
“The Abbae is my home. It’s so kind of you to check on me.” She fluttered her lashes.
“It eases me to see you safe, especially with the increase in monster activity.” His voice lowered.
It was only as she glanced past him to the empty ledge at his back that she realized he’d come alone. “Where are your men?”
“Fyme and Tildor are dead. Patrew is recovering from a gut wound.”
“I’m so sorry.” She put fingers to her lips.
“To be expected, I guess, with how often they’re attacking now.” His lips turned down. “However, they’re not the reason I’ve returned. May I come in? I could use a respite.”
While she’d opened the door, she’d yet to let him cross the threshold. “How rude of me. Of course, you can enter.” She stood aside and could only hope Hiix had managed the quickest cleanup.
As he stepped into the courtyard, he took note of the changes since his last visit. Hard to hide the pruned vegetation and the lack of clutter. Nowhere for critters to hide. Another reason why they’d begun keeping the doors closed, and when they opened the windows for light, they kept watch. Not all threats waited for night anymore. They now had to watch for the cave rats and insects, too. It was as if everything living was changing—for the worse.
“Did you hire some help?” he asked.
“More like finally got a recruit that isn’t a hundred years old,” she said with a bright smile, hoping he hadn’t noticed the fact that she had her youth renewed.
“Wouldn’t it be easier to move to one of the more occupied Abbaes? There’s better protection.”
“Leave my home? But the path is so dangerous,” she said lightly.
“I’d protect you,” he said, puffing his chest. Judging by the dents on his armor, he’d become a true soldier since his first visit.
Remembering past intimate moments with Baree made Agathe eager. “Shall we go
somewhere for privacy?”
He didn’t protest as she tugged him by the hand, leading him to her room, where he pleasured her twice before rolling onto his back with a sigh.
“I needed that.”
So did she. As was usual for Baree after sex, he didn’t move, nor did he fall asleep. He wanted to talk.
“How have you been, other than barricading from the monsters?” he asked.
“Keeping busy. You?”
“Traveling the Kingdom, keeping it safe, and still looking.”
“Don’t tell me you’re still seeking that missing child.”
“Crazy, eh? But the King insists. And I don’t get it.” He shook his head. “The strange thing is no one will admit to having lost her.”
“I can’t believe you’re still searching.” She really couldn’t.
“Not so much searching as keeping an eye open just in case we come across her. With the increased monster activity, we’ve been reassigned. Which is a good thing. We were wasting our time. Whoever took her won’t be able to hide her forever. The girl’s got the purple eyes. Eventually, she’ll be presented at the festival, either by willing choice or because someone turns her in.” There was a large reward for doing so.
“Ever wonder what happens to those who volunteer?” All Agathe knew was that they entered the Citadel. And while the boys became soldiers, the girls disappeared from sight.
Baree rolled his shoulders. “They serve the Kingdom.”
“I’ve heard it said the females become the King’s brides.” The very idea soured her stomach, especially since most were only children.
Baree shrugged. “I am not at liberty to say.”
She couldn’t help but prod. “Did you have purple eyes when you joined the King’s men?”
He stiffened. “Why the interest?”
Because she had a curiosity that wanted to be fed. Pushing him would only draw his attention, so she changed the subject. “Have you fought many of the beasts coming out of the mists?”
His chest swelled. “I have. The King has me and a bunch of others patrolling the rim. Especially the area with the path down to the edge of the Abyss. It’s gotten treacherous of late.”
“Does the King know why the monsters are surging?”
“No. Could be after our ancestors beat them back it took them this long to recover. Which means we’ll beat them back again!”
A declaration that had her smiling at him and saying, “Speaking of recovering…”
He brought her to climax again and, when done, remarked, “It’s late.” Which meant she could hardly send him away. She offered him an invitation to spend the night, in her bed. She’d forgotten how nice it was to sleep in someone’s arms.
He woke her from a sound sleep with a whispered, “I hear something.”
So did she. Someone was ringing the bell. In the middle of the night.
That wouldn’t bode well.
Chapter Ten
It didn’t take Agathe long to put on her robe and grab her weapons while Baree eyed her, not saying much. Perhaps their long acquaintance had been enough time for him to lose some of his misogyny about women.
Only as they stood in front of the door, the bell having just rung for the fourth time, did he finally say, “You’re not opening it, are you? It’s probably a trap.”
“Monsters don’t ring bells,” she noted.
“Always a first time.”
The ringing ended abruptly, and in that sudden silence, a sibilant voice rasped, “Open.”
A niggling sense of wrongness had Agathe saying, “State your name.”
Rather than reply, they pounded on the door, and uttered a terrible cry that pimpled her skin.
“What is that?” she whispered.
Baree growled. “Vhampir.”
She didn’t recognize the word, but the lieutenant appeared perturbed. “What is a Vhampir?”
“Do not open that door. Whatever you do. The monster on the other side will get inside your head if offered a chance. Make you do things.”
“How do you know this?” How had she never heard of it?
“We were recently briefed about some of the Abyss monsters we might encounter.”
“Are you sure it’s a monster? It knocked and said open.” Agathe reminded.
“They can mimic some human actions and words. It’s how they fool people into letting them inside.” Baree glared at the door. “It’s how a Vhampir and his pet monsters recently killed a legion of men.” A legion being made up of numerous squadrons.
“How do you defeat it?” she asked.
“By cutting off its head.” The suggestion came from Hiix, who’d emerged in battle leathers painstakingly sewn together from scraps, but it provided some protection from the monsters, more than fabric robes that tangled around their legs.
What former Maeder had thought it wise to transition them from commonsense clothing to pajamas? Obviously, one who had ruled during a time of peace.
Hiix drew close to the door and shouted, “I am coming out to see you, monster. You can stop trying to whisper inside my head.”
“You can hear it?” Agathe exclaimed.
“It’s been taunting me for days. And I’m done with it.” Hiix jammed her hands into her gloves.
“You aren’t facing it alone. Give me a second to change.” She rushed back into her room and exchanged her robe for leathers. She should have put those on the moment the bell rang. She’d worried what Baree would think.
She emerged to find the King’s man silent. His gaze went from Hiix to Agathe.
“I’ve heard stories since we last spoke, about the Soraers of the Shield and their skill with weapons. I’ll admit, I wasn’t sure I believed them.”
“It’s been a while since we’ve had to fight.” A lot had changed since then. “We are the shield against the Abyss, the first line against darkness,” Agathe recited.
“The beloved of the Goddess,” Hiix finished.
While the Vhampir added, “Hunnnngry.”
A tad unsettling.
Agathe eyed Hiix, who appeared cocky and ready. As for Baree, he wouldn’t look at her at all. Only as they opened the door did it occur to Agathe that they were doing exactly what the Vhampir wanted, but it was too late by then.
He stood several paces from the door in a pocket of open space around which swirled the mist. Unlike other monsters, the Vhampir wasn’t hideous. Nor was he entirely human. There was something in his face. The sharpness of his cheekbones, the darkness of the eyes with a hint of sickly red, and the pallor of the skin that set the Vhampir apart. Despite all that…
“He’s beautiful,” Hiix muttered before dropping to her knees.
Baree was already down, head bowed, as well. As for Agathe, her legs folded, and she sank, even as she wondered why.
She saw the hem of the inhuman creature’s robe as it neared. Her sword lay on the ground, and she had a hand braced beside it.
Why aren’t I fighting?
Why would she fight? She couldn’t hope to win. Easier to relax. Wait.
Wait for what?
She heard the suckling and with a grunt of effort managed to turn her head enough to see the Vhampir latched to Baree.
Sucking his skin.
His blood.
And she would be next if she did nothing.
Gritting her teeth took monumental effort, but she still managed to mutter, “Give me strength, Goddess.”
No reply. But that didn’t mean Agathe could give up. She was a Soraer of the Shield. Protector against the Abyss. A defense against the Void.
And this Vhampir couldn’t be allowed to live.
She strained and heaved against the shackles on her will. At first, they only flexed tighter.
“Goddess, give me strength.” With a growl, Agathe broke free.
Her fingers closed around her sword, and as the Vhampir turned a face bright with crimson lips, she swung.
Off went its head, with its wide, surprised eyes. Th
e contents of her stomach soon followed.
Chapter Eleven
While Agathe dealt with the dizziness that befell her after breaking the Vhampir’s hold, Hiix cursed.
“Is it dead?” She poked the head with the tip of her sword.
“I don’t know.” Agathe wiped her mouth with the back of her hand.
“Think he’ll die?” Hiix pointed to Baree, slumped on the ground, his breathing shallow. How much blood had the thing taken?
“Better hope not. It might draw attention. Help me get him inside.” She sheathed her sword to grab one of his arms.
“What about that thing?”
“I’d say making sure the King’s lieutenant doesn’t die in our care is more important.”
“People will assume monsters got him if he disappears.”
“We aren’t killers.” Agathe wouldn’t admit a slight fondness for the man.
“Not sure what we can do to help him,” grumbled Hiix, helping her drag him inside.
“We have to do something.”
Hiix eyed her. “Are you implying we should unleash the brat on him?”
Agathe bit her lip. “He would never know.”
“The question being, is her magic charged enough?” Her eyes were a steady purple right now, not the white-hot after a kill or the brown that indicated she was drained.
“We don’t need to turn back time or close a wound. Just deal with some blood loss.”
“I’ll get the brat while you set the monster on fire.”
Arguing would just waste time. It wasn’t as if she could do much for Baree. Agathe grabbed a can of oil and a flint before going back onto the ledge. The lights by the door barely pushed back the mist.
The body remained on the ground and was quickly doused and set afire. The flames licked at the corpse, and the fog retreated at the heat. She aimed for the head next, sightless and even more strange now that it was dead.
Just as she poured the oil on it, another creature appeared, human-like in appearance but crawling, its skin mottled, teeth rotting. One eye was milky white and unseeing. It scuttled for the head.
“Oh no, you don’t.” As its gnarled fingers went to grab, she kicked the creature.
