The Champion's Ruin

by Kristen Banet

  They jumped down, using their wings to slow their descent, and entered the woods below. They moved quickly and tried for silence, but it was impossible with fifteen Andinna warriors jogging through the underbrush. As they moved, the sun set, casting large shadows. The mountain had been picked by a scout. The scouts didn’t just report numbers of Elvasi troops but also major topographical information. The Andinna forces needed that information to be successful. When they reached their objective, it would be completely shadowed, the sun having dipped behind the mountain. There was only a slim chance they would be seen by the Elvasi in the camp below.

  They didn’t run into any Elvasi patrols on their trip and began to move around the mountain, climbing to a more advantageous position. Night fell on them quickly as they found the perfect spot.

  “Rocky up here. Good,” Kian said softly, looking around. Mave moved around him and looked down the mountain to see the Elvasi camp below.

  “Is it enough?” Mave asked, crouching to get comfortable. Her tail helped her, taking some of the weight off her legs.

  “We have enough of this stuff to take off a third of the mountain and send it down on them. It’ll be fine,” Kian answered.

  A whoosh. A brown blur. Air grazed her cheek. Her wing stung from whatever went through the thin membrane that made up most the wing.

  Mave stood, and as she did, an arrow sank deep into her thigh. She pulled it out with her left hand as she drew a sword with her right.

  “AMBUSH!” Kian yelled.

  How?

  Mave turned, seeing Elvasi soldiers running for them as arrows continued to fly toward them. Mave watched two of the warriors in their unit drop.

  She had no time to think. She ran for Emerian and Kian, grateful they were near each other. She ignored the pain in her leg, only focused on getting to them. Before she could, an Elvasi cut her off, swinging a mace. She tried to sidestep, but the soldier hit her left wing.

  She felt the snap and screamed as she turned on the soldier, cutting his arm off in one powerful move. An arrow hit her side, sending her staggering. She couldn’t pull that one out or risk bleeding to death, so she left it.

  “Retreat!” Kian roared.

  Emerian was at her side, grabbing her arm. Other warriors entered the air, but Mave watched as arrows found them. A net hit another. She couldn’t watch for long because the ground soldiers were now surrounding them.

  She ran for a gap, Emerian following her. Together, they killed two soldiers and kept moving. She looked over her shoulder to see Kian following her, an arrow in his shoulder and noticeable holes in his wings, a long cut down one of them as well.

  They used the trees to dodge the arrows, but they were pursued.

  “We need to fly!” Emerian yelled.

  “I can’t!” Mave yelled back at him. She slowed and let him pass. “Head for the cliff! Go!”

  He slowed as well, though, and they held position. She didn’t care to argue with him. If he wanted to fight at her side, that was his right. Kian was next, along with five other warriors. Once the last warrior passed her, she grabbed Emerian’s wrist with her free hand and pulled, making him come with her. Kian stayed at her pace as well.

  “Can you fly?” she asked, looking at him as an arrow whizzed between their heads and landed in the back of another Andinna. “Fuck!”

  “I might, but it’ll be hard. They aimed for the wings. They knew what they were doing,” Kian explained. “We need to fight them off in a better position.”

  She figured that would be his answer. They ran into the valley as Elvasi on horseback followed them, but they didn’t find the valley quiet anymore. The Elvasi had snuck around them.

  Mave slid to a stop as she was met face to face with another unit, their weapons drawn and ready. Another warrior laid dead. Behind her, the ones who initiated the ambush caught up and dove in, continuing their attack.

  Emerian roared and swung his scythe, cutting off an Elvasi’s head.

  “Punch through!” Kian ordered. “We’re pinched! More on the way!”

  Mave went to the new line and roared as she made a leaping attack into their forces. She landed on two, killing them before her feet were on the ground. Her wing sent shockwaves of pain through her, but pain was easy to deal with when dying was the other option. She went down to a crouch and spun low, cutting the legs out from underneath the Elvasi around her. When she came back up, she eviscerated two more, opening their bellies and spilling guts onto the ground.

  Kian and Emerian moved to her side as she backed away from the carnage. They were the only three left now, and from what she could see, there had to be fifty Elvasi coming for them, if not more.

  “We need to keep moving,” Kian snapped. “Go!”

  They ran, turning on their heels. Mave tried to work her wing as they moved, knowing she needed to fly if she needed to get out alive.

  Another arrow sank into her lower back and sent her to the ground.

  “MAVE!” Emerian screamed. He reached for her, trying to pull her up. Kian took a defensive position as she tried to keep moving, using Emerian to help her up. Once she was on her feet, her nemari forced her to keep moving. She struggled for every step, but she wasn’t dead yet.

  I’m not ready to die, Kristanya. You won’t get me this easily, Skies damn it.

  They didn’t move fast enough. Mave turned to see Kian taking up the rear, an arrow now firmly embedded into his shoulder.

  “Run without me,” she ordered. “Go. I can find a way out.”

  “No,” he growled. “No, we’re not talking like that. They’re struggling to keep up in the underbrush. It’s going to be fine. We’ll get there.”

  “Yeah, don’t talk like that. We’ll make it out,” Emerian said, readjusting his hold. He brought her arm over his shoulder and half carried her as she tried to keep moving her feet. He was pushing to move faster, and she was unable to keep up. Her broken wing was now dragging on the ground.

  They splashed through a stream, and Mave saw it run red, her head spinning as the blood loss and pain started to hit her and take hold.

  “Emerian, take this,” Kian ordered, holding out a bag. Emerian used his free hand to grab whatever it was and flung it over his shoulder.

  Some Elvasi were catching up on them. Mave could hear them and tried to stop to fight, but Emerian kept moving.

  “Kian?” he asked frantically.

  “We’ll make it,” the warrior snarled. “Don’t worry. You’ll get out of here alive, young buck.”

  “They’re coming,” she said, a gasp ending her words as pain ran through her. Her wing clipped a small tree.

  “I know,” Kian said softly.

  They didn’t make it to the cliff before another skirmish. Mave turned to see four horseback riders coming fast down a game trail. They must have taken the long route, but they knew the valley well enough to make it work. They had prepared this ambush well. They had time to prepare this ambush.

  “Emerian, get Mave to the cliffside and fly her up. Set the charge to blow just the way we were trained to. That will give both of you time to leave and stop anyone from continuing the chase,” Kian said, turning his back on them. “Go…Now.”

  “No,” Mave snarled, finding the energy to pull away from Emerian. “No, Kian. You are not—”

  “I can’t fly. Emerian can, but he can only get one of us up before the other is overrun. That’s going to be you. You are going to get out,” Kian snapped, not turning to look at her. Every second they wasted, the Elvasi on horseback drew closer. “It has to be you. It’s been an honor to be your father. This is what parents do, Mave. We die for our children. I won’t stand by and watch another child of mine die, so I’m going to hold them off, and you are going to leave. Emerian, take care of my daughter. Get her home. I don’t care how much she fights you. Protect her with your fucking life, do you understand?”

  “Yes sir,” Emerian said, wrapping his arms around her waist. “I swear on the skies to get her home.
”

  Mave fought. She screamed. She wasn’t going to let this happen. Emerian only continued to drag her away, forcing her to keep moving. Uninjured, she would have taken him. She could have killed him and gone to her father. Kian could go home. He was going to be a new father soon.

  “NO!” she roared. “KIAN, NO! BABA!”

  Soon, he was out of sight. She heard him roar and begin his fight.

  Emerian dragged her all the way to the cliffside with her fighting every step. She knew Kian would put up a hell of a fight. He would take down a dozen of them before he fell.

  “There’s still time,” she said, breaking his hold. She could hear the distant sound of steel hitting and a fight happening. “There’s still time!”

  “No, Mave!” He grabbed her again. A roar made them both look up. This time, it was cut short, and with it, Mave’s heart was sliced in two and left bleeding—broken. She felt something die inside of her. She fell to her knees. “There’s no time,” he said softly. “We need to go.”

  She was paralyzed. There were no more sounds of fighting in the distance, only the steady beat of footsteps coming their direction.

  No, no, no, no.

  “Mave, get up,” Emerian ordered, trying to pull her from the ground.

  She only watched the woods.

  No. Not him. I can’t…I can’t do this again. I can’t lose another one. No, no, no, no. Come through the woods, Kian. Come on. Please.

  “Mave, he’s gone, and we need to go!” Emerian yelled.

  And it wasn’t Kian who came through the woods because Emerian was right. The first of what was probably dozens of Elvasi came. There was only a handful to start, probably those who outran the rest.

  Emerian met them in combat, and he was vicious. Mave watched him cut them down, fighting for everything he had. He growled, snarled, and roared. She watched a sword cut precariously close to his face and saw blood spatter the dirt, but her nemari killed the Elvasi who did it. He screamed as it happened, but he didn’t stop moving. He only continued to fight. She watched as he sliced an Elvasi in half at the waist.

  He killed six Elvasi before coming back to her. This time, when he tried to lift her, she allowed it. He held her tight and jumped for the air, taking her to the top of the cliff. She couldn’t walk anymore, her legs giving out as they landed. He took her to the first horse and helped her up, leaving her there. She stared at her hands, realizing she lost her sword at some point. She still had one, but the other was down in those woods.

  When Emerian came back, he rushed to jump on a horse. He grabbed the leads for two others and kicked them to start running at a gallop. The remaining horses were now running around free.

  “They should all make it out,” he said. “Hold on, Mave!”

  She tried, but the fast ride was bumpy, and the arrow in her back was moving too much. The arrow in her side was hitting her arm. She couldn’t see anything, blinded by tears and pain.

  Then an explosion shook the world and made the horses scream and begin to buck. She was flung, falling into the dirt, and it sent the arrow in her back even deeper. Emerian yelled and tried to settle them, but she nearly got kicked in the head by one running for its life.

  She couldn’t move now, not even if she tried. She listened to the rumbling of whatever Emerian had set that blast to do and stared at the sky, trying to block out the pain.

  Once Emerian got the remaining three horses to settle down, he went to her.

  “I’ve got you,” he whispered. “I’m sorry. We’ll stop and treat your injuries soon. Please don’t die. You can’t die on me.” Emerian got her onto a horse and secured her in with ropes. “Sleep if you can,” he ordered. “Sleep and heal. I know some field medicine from training, but we need to find a good place to stop.”

  Her eyes drifted closed. He was right. She needed to heal if she wanted to get home.

  The empty feeling in her chest threatened to drag her into the darkness and never let her go. Hollow. She wanted to be hollow.

  When she drifted to sleep, not even Kristanya visited her in that hollow place where Mave retreated.

  28

  Zayden

  Zayden slaved in the kitchen, making the biggest meal he probably ever had. One roasted elk leg from a quick hunt he and Mat just came back from, several organs grilled with vegetables for those who liked that sort of thing—he didn’t. Two types of salads and a variety of other side dishes.

  This kitchen was not equipped for this sort of cooking.

  He made do, though. He had big plans. Waking up at dawn, he came straight to the kitchen and started cooking. It was already past midday, and finally, the door opened, Mat walking in.

  “Is he coming over?” Zayden asked, grinning at Mat.

  “He is. I convinced him we needed a smaller party before the big official one, just for the Company,” Mat said, grinning back. “Even got Bryn and Luykas to take a night off.”

  “Good. I convinced Nevyn and Varon to come over. Is Luykas going to talk to Alchan and Rain?”

  “He promised he would.”

  Zayden nodded, glad to hear that. They were missing Mave and Kian, leaving a hole for everyone. Those two were firecrackers of energy in two very distinct ways, but that was even more of a reason for tonight.

  Zayden had the first idea for tonight’s fun. There had always been a plan to throw a party for Leshaun, but it was supposed to be a big event with the entire village. With the way missions were being sent out, there would never be a chance with the entire Company around anymore. With only two gone, it was something they could do.

  “Wait, we should invite Senri, Willem, and Gentrin,” Zayden declared, looking around to see where Mat had walked off to. “In honor of Mave and Kian, who can’t be here.”

  “I’ll go get them. They won’t want to miss this,” his old friend said with a chuckle and headed back out. “Good thing I haven’t taken my boots off yet,” he called out before the door closed.

  Zayden was still grinning as he continued working. Bryn came in first and jumped into the kitchen, ready to help.

  “The potatoes need to come off,” Zayen said, pointing to the large pot over a secondary fire he had going. “The roast is in the oven, and I need to check on it once I’m done with this…”

  “Let me take that, and you check the roast,” Bryn offered as he took the large pot off the fire and set it to the side.

  They worked well in tandem. Zayden had ruled his kitchen for centuries, but if there was one male he liked cooking with, it was Bryn. Bryn knew his way around the kitchen nearly as well as Zayden.

  I would say it’s surprising, but the only surprising cook in the Company is Alchan. I can’t believe that male even knows how.

  Zayden couldn’t deny their king’s skill, though. They traded recipes, something they told no one. It started with Zayden teaching Alchan how Rain liked his breakfast growing up and evolved from there. It was their dirty secret.

  When the door opened again, a group flooded in. Senri, Willem, and Gentrin were with Matesh. Behind them, Luykas, Alchan, and Rainev.

  “This is nice,” Alchan said, nodding at the space. “This is a good idea. Thank you for thinking of it, Zayden.”

  “He needs something special and small,” Zayden said with a small smile. He stepped out of the kitchen to welcome everyone. “Please have a seat anywhere you like, and we’ll sit around you, Alchan.”

  “I think I’ll wait for Leshaun to come and claim his place first.” Alchan had a kind smile as he looked over the home. Zayden liked seeing this side of the king. It was a part of him they hadn’t seen for the thousand years they fought together. Alchan could always withdraw and be rigid. That changed, thanks to Rain, who most definitely brought the male out of his comfort zone. It showed him how his son could fall in love with Alchan and made him realize how Alchan, king of the Andinna, could fall in love with his son.

  With a smile, Zayden helped everyone find a place to wait out of the way. Nevyn and Varon ca
me in next, carrying two bowls.

  “We brought something to help ease the load,” Nevyn explained, looking into the kitchen as he put his bowl down. “But it looks like it wasn’t necessary.”

  “Thank you,” Zayden said with a breath of relief. “I wasn’t sure I would be able to cook enough, but this definitely helps cover the gaps I might have missed.” He checked the bowls and saw they were identical—a vegetable medley grilled over an open fire. He kicked himself for not thinking of doing a plain veggie grill, but he’d made Leshaun’s favorite dish with the heart and liver.

  The food was near done by the time Leshaun walked in and rolled his eyes.

  “All of this wasn’t necessary,” the old male said, moving farther into the room. Behind him, Learen followed, someone Zayden hadn’t thought to invite but wasn’t annoyed with either. He was once one of them, and he could be again if he wanted it. “I found Learen while I was leaving. He was bringing me a special order I made to Kerit.”

  “He likes a certain wine, and I thought I should hand-deliver it before someone snatched it when the supplies were distributed,” Learen explained, lifting the pricy bottle of red wine. “Dave saw it, and I knew where it needed to go.”

  Leshaun smiled mischievously. “I’ve already cracked it open and had a glass. I hope none of you mind.”

  “This is your day. You can do whatever you want,” Alchan said with a laugh. “Find a seat, so everyone else can.”

  “Oh, you’re waiting on me? That’s new and interesting.” Leshaun chuckled and sat down at the dining table. Everyone quickly found their own places. Zayden and Bryn finished up the food and set it out for everyone to make their own plates, but he personally dished up for the old male and set the plate in front of him.

  “Thank you for being my uncle, just as much as Mat’s,” Zayden whispered, hugging the male over his shoulder. “We’re going to miss you.” He tried to blink away the sudden tears. He never let anyone know how much Leshaun really meant to him. He had to be strong for Rain, but Rain didn’t need him now, and it let Zayden remember the important relationships he had missed as Rain grew up.