Lexa tries to dodge her sister as she blocks her from joining the fight. “Anne let me out! My people need me to fight, not to cower and run!”
Anne doesn’t back down. “No Lexa. What they need is for you to leave and go on the mission that will free them. The scarlet force is too big, and we are unprepared. Our only hope is the mission.”
I glance back as Melissa and Lucas frantically pull the grain away from the wall. An opening peeks out around the remaining sacks of grain. Melissa pushes her fingers into a crack and together she, Tash, and Lucas pull the rock aside. A tunnel comes into view.
They knew this was here, why didn’t they send the people out this way earlier? Lexa somehow manages to dart around her sister. She takes a single step out into the chaos and is scooped up by a giant man, who brings her back into the room.
Lexa huffs and growls, “Nathanial, put me down.”
Nathanial ignores Lexa’s demands and faces Anne. “Take the tunnel and go. Get her as far away from here as you can. Don’t let her come back.”
Nathanial nods and heads for the tunnel. As his massive frame moves forward, I gain a clear view of the other side of the doorway. I watch in horror as scarlet guards cut down the people around them. The people fight back, but most of them are using makeshift weapons, and the guards bring them down easily. Samuel and his friends light a wooden barrel. One that housed the alcohol Lucas made, and together they throw it at a group of scarlet guards. The explosion as the barrel hits the ground is so violent, people are thrown backward,and numerous fires start around the room.
Samuel and his friends take advantage of this and descend on the dazed guards, using kitchen knives from the buffet table to stop them from rising. I call out as a guard comes up behind Samuel and swings his sword at the birthday boy. My voice is lost in the screams, and I can do nothing to help him.
The guard’s sword meets the boy’s flesh, just below the knee. It cuts his right leg clean from his body. Samuel falls to the ground and rolls, punching his knife through the gap in the guard's armor, slipping his blade easily between the man’s stomach and his pants. The guard clutches his gut and falls with a cry.
Hands grasp my arms and drag me away from the awful scene. A scene I know will be burned into my memory for as long as I lived. Lucas pulls me towards the tunnel.
I follow him, but my question bursts through my lips, “Why didn’t we send everyone else this way?”
Lucas gives me a grim expression. “Because we wanted them to live.”
I stare into the narrow tunnel. What is so bad that they didn’t want to send anyone down here? I don’t get long to think about it as Lucas forces me into the narrow space. I have to enter sideways, but the tunnel behind the opening appears to be a little wider.
Nathanial is already in here, and it looks like it is taking all his effort to keep Lexa inside the tunnel. Melissa stands behind Nathanial thwarting Lexa's efforts to dart around him and return to the fight. Anne pushes Tash into the tunnel and removes one of the round balls from her belt.
A guard rushes into the room towards Anne. She draws her dagger and stabs him in the throat as he lifts his heavy mace over his head. The guard falls to the ground, clutching his throat, and his mace hits the ground next to him. The guard twitches for a moment before he stops moving altogether.
I look at Anne in amazement—that was more skill then I had expected. I shouldn’t have been surprised. Lexa is her sister. More guards flow into the celebration room behind her; their numbers are endless. Anne is right. No one will make it out alive. But the way Lucas had answered my question makes me suspect the way we are going doesn’t hold much hope either. Anne squeezes the ball in her hand, and a blue light shines through her fingers.
“Anne. No!” Lexa cries, the battle forgotten as she desperately tries to get to her sister and the glowing ball in her hand.
Lexa’s attempts at reaching her sister are so strong Lucas has to join the group holding her back. The three of them struggle to keep her in place.
Tash indicates to the glowing orb in Anne's hand. “Anne, you need to be far away by the time that turns red.”
“I have to make sure this entrance is destroyed. It will delay them following you. Go,” Anne states, making no indication she would be moving away before she completed her goal. The light in her hand turns purple, and it takes mere seconds to become red. Guards flow into the storeroom and approach Anne.
Anne ignores them and looks at Lexa. “I'm sorry.”
She throws the red ball to the ground, and the world around us explodes. Everything rattles and the explosion is deafening. My ears ring. Disoriented I stumble back into Lucas who is standing behind me. Small rocks pelt my face and arms as they rocket away from the explosion. Strong hands grip my forearms and shove me away from the explosion. It takes a moment for me to realize those hands belong to Melissa.
Rocks fall around us, effectively blocking the only way back. The only light in the tunnel comes from the remaining balls on Tash's belt. Their eery glow lighting up faces of the group in unfamiliar ways. I glance at Lexa. Tears run down her face. My heart thuds in sympathy to her pain. Nathanial gently turns Lexa in the direction we need to go. Releasing his hold on her, he steps back, giving her much-needed space.
Lexa closes her eyes and takes in a deep breath. “Let’s go.” She jogs down the tunnel, and everyone follows close in pursuit.
We run for a time in near darkness. Finally, a small speck of light can be seen down the tunnel. An exit from the suffocating black is drawing near. This gives me the motivation I need to keep my burning muscles moving. Light from the end of the tunnel grows steadily bigger with each step. Every ragged breath makes my lungs burn as if they are on fire. The light up ahead is unusual; it has a strange blue tinge to it. What could be making a blue light like that?
Finally, we break free of the tunnel and stumble out of the exit, pausing for the first time since we started running to catch our breath. Once I have returned a sufficient amount of air to my lungs I examine the world around me. Giant mushrooms completely surround us, taller than anything I have ever seen before.
As tall as they are, the thing about them that holds my attention is not the massive height of the mushrooms, but that they all emit a soft blue light. The world around them glows. The mushroom forest somehow holds the inky darkness of the cavern at bay.
Caught up for a moment in the eerie beauty of the scenery around me, I almost forgot what brought us here. Almost.
I look around at the group of people surrounding me. Lucas and Tash stand in awe, staring up at the mushrooms around us. Melissa and Nathanial seem to be having a competition to see who can look the least puffed out. Neither of them are doing a convincing job. Lexa stands off to the side, her cheeks flushed and streaked with dried tears. She wraps her arms around herself, and I fight the impulse to go over to her. Space is what she needs now.
Everyone’s adrenalin dies off, and quiet settles amongst us. The very real feeling of pain settles on our shoulders as we all register the fact we left good people to die. Not that our staying would have really made a difference. Perhaps it would have prolonged it for a time. I sink to my knees and stare at the ground, my shoulders slump, and I bury my face in my hands. What have we done?
My necklace falls forward and sparkles in the eerie glow of the mushrooms. It must have worked its way out of my shirt during the fighting. I grasp it. This is why we left. This is what we fight for. This is the journey we were preparing for, and even though it had begun with a rocky start, we must see it to the end.
I climb to my feet and clear my throat. “Where do we go from here?
The group turns to look at me. Their faces are a mixture of sadness, confusion, and disbelief over the events that had transpired. Their bloodied clothing and skin are testaments of the pain they carried in their hearts.
Lexa takes a deep breath and resumes command. “To Erast.”
Sneak peek look at Katera
Book o
ne of The Celestia Series
(Same world different series)
I carefully avoid the townspeople, I wasn’t looking for another confrontation like the one I had earlier with Nancy. All of them are busy and preoccupied as I hurry towards the twins’ house. The little white home has lots of extensions built onto it and a small picket fence surrounds it. Encasing an herb garden and a flower bed, with a short dirt path that snakes its way from the gate to the front door.
I stand at the gate and see figures moving behind the window. Are they sitting down for a meal? Maybe I should come back later. I turn just as Kent comes crashing through the window and lands heavily in a garden bed. His father stands on the other side of the window frame looking furious. I stand rooted to the spot as sounds of angered screaming fill my ears.
“Hayton is a glorious leader! And you, you unworthy little worm, do not deserve to be in his army,” The twin’s father yells at Kent who lay sprawled on the ground surrounded by shards of glass.
Now that the window is gone I can see the dining room and kitchen clearly from where I am standing. Chloe sits in a heavy wooden chair surrounded by her siblings and mother.
Chloe looks up at her mother who is holding her at gunpoint while her younger siblings tie her to the chair. “Mother please.”
I stand by the fence and try to take in the situation. How am I going to deal with this? I can’t take on the twin’s father, his body is built like Kent’s but with more years of experience, and their mother has a gun. Not to mention their siblings, four in total. I can’t take on that many people and win.
Thinking quickly, I march up to the door and knock. Completely ignoring Kent sprawled on the grass, while I wait for someone to answer.
One of the twins’ siblings answers the door and eyes me. “Taliah, what do you want?”
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Acknowledgments
Thank you to all my beta readers who live far and wide, without you this story couldn’t have been possible. A special thank you to my beautiful partner, who was my inspiration and muse every step of the way.
My editor who saved your eyes from countless errors, and of course to my readers.
May your imagination lead you to exciting places.
Shadowsoul Page 15
