The Beast had come. It swung its lanky arm up and pounded its chest with a thud. With the speed of a falling star, the Beast bolted towards the Raiders. With two swipes, the Raider holding Eva dropped to the ground.
Eva caught herself before she fell. The Raiders charged the Beast and sliced its leather hide with swift strikes.
The Beast blocked its face with its arm. With a powerful blow, it whipped its arm around and banged the hip of one of the Raiders. The Raider’s body shifted unnaturally, and he crumbled to the ground.
The other Raiders dropped their swords and fled. The Beast bolted after them, grabbing one in each hand and slinging them into the sky while keeping on the heels of the escaping Raiders.
The two who were thrown landed on the ground, neck first. Their silence spoke of their deaths.
I have to get out of here, Eva thought.
The Beast jammed its foot into the ground, rocks and dirt flailing from its sliding. It raced back towards Eva and scooped her up in its arms.
“Wait!” she yelled, beating on its thigh with her fists.
The Beast halted, panting. Its long snout spilled cooling mist from its nostrils.
“Put me down,” Eva said. “I can’t leave the others.”
The Beast placed her on the ground, feet first.
Chills shook like tremors throughout Eva’s body. This Beast was obeying her. She stepped towards it and poked its forearm. The Beast snatched its arm and grunted.
“Find the Raiders and kill them,” she said.
The Beast turned, punched the ground, and roared. Streams of saliva leaked from its top fangs. The Beast honed in on the invisible Raiders, snatching them up by their unseen throats and tearing through them, leaving nothing but empty shells of armor.
The Strikers fled, abandoning the town. The Raiders followed, but the Beast did not let them escape. It slaughtered them as they surfaced. Then the Beast returned to Eva, panting, waiting for her command.
Eva looked around at the deserted city. Only darkness. No people. No sounds and no whispers. “That’s all of them,” she said.
The Beast’s face drifted into golden particles and vanished, leaving behind yellow ashes that drifted along with the breeze.
“What was that thing?” Stasis asked, sliding her bloody dirk back into its sheath.
Wolf morphed back to himself with a suspicious look. “A curse,” he said.
“I’m not cursed. My mother did not let anyone hex me,” Eva replied.
Wolf said nothing, but the suspicious look did not leave him.
“What is it, Wolf?” Jahn asked.
Wolf rubbed his sweaty chin and pushed his dark hair off his forehead. “Curse Empyrean is the easiest to find. It streams like gold strands from the one who is cursed. I’m not sure why I had not seen that Empyrean on Genevieve. Even now there’s not one stream of Curse Essence flowing from her.”
“Only a Wielder of darkest kind could have done this to her,” Jahn said, shaking his head.
“Aye.”
“My mother did not let anyone come near me, and neither did Edward. How could I possibly be cursed?”
“Witches delve into arts that no man could stomach,” Stasis said. “If Wolf is indeed right about this being a curse, then we must find the one who did this to you.”
“And do what?” Eva asked.
“Kill her,” Wolf replied heavily.
“It’s the only way that the curse can be broken,” Stasis said.
“What bothers me,” Wolf replied, “is that a Wielder of this magnitude surely must be advanced in many forms of Empyrean.” He swallowed hard, thinking. “I dread what he would be capable of.”
“A Wielder?” Eva asked. “A witch, you mean?”
“Aye,” said Wolf.
“Can we be sure that this witch is indeed a man?” Eva asked.
Stasis dropped her head. “We cannot.”
“Stasis is right,” Wolf said, tapping the top of his tomahawk. “And this Wielder, man or woman, would put what little Empyrean I know to shame. Surely the witch would be able to wield fire and deception and shift forms.”
Eva felt nauseous. “You mean that the witch would be able to turn into beasts just as you have?”
Wolf nodded. “Even gifted enough in the arts to transform into another person perhaps. To alter oneself into a beast is one thing. To become another man is an entirely different matter.”
Eva’s mind landed on Kingi from Shady Peninsula. Why the witch would have taken such a decrepit form was beyond Eva’s comprehension.
“There’s something else.” Wolf rested his hand on the head of his tomahawk. “I can’t see the curse on you, but I saw it on the Beast…the Haunt has the same Empyrean. ”
CHAPTER 14
THE ENCOUNTER
Eva and the other others headed northeast to find Edward. Wolf’s words about the Haunt and the curse rattled in her chest like the coins from the beggars’ cups. Could it be that she was in charge of the Haunt? If so, why did it try to kill her? Why was it stalking her, and where was it now?
She pushed the thoughts from her mind, but they bled back in throughout their journey over the hills. Spring had come, but the weather was no different from how the winter had been, at least not where Eva was now.
The oaks and willows from months before gave way to mountains with solid clods of dirt caked over the stones. The King’s Breath blew in between the mountains that poked holes in the puffy clouds above.
Maria had mentioned this place to Eva many times, all tales from Eva’s father. The breeze was named the King’s Breath, because the king wanted to remind the people that he was always nearby, close enough to blow on their necks, so travelers beware.
The icy gusts brushed against Eva’s face as a frigid reminder that the king, though high on his throne, was not far away. She trembled.
Despite the Striker’s warning about following the bodies to find Edward, there were none to be found. Not even spots of blood or footprints, according to Wolf and Stasis.
Eva was beginning to believe that the Striker had no idea where Edward’s squadron went. That sick feeling of loss returned to her gut, and she felt like her stomach had been removed. What if Edward was not strong enough to fight off the Raiders? He certainly wasn’t strong enough to ward off the Haunt.
At the top of the ledge, just set at the horizon, Eva could see the town of Winter Hills, Wolf’s home village. She could sense his trepidation as they came closer, or maybe the anticipation was her own. She only hoped that she would find her brother, but there was something about Winter Hills that made her believe she would find something more. Then again, that might have been her anticipation talking.
Winter Hills was set on the mountain’s plateau. The village was not much larger than Green Planes, though the bearskin-covered houses were packed densely together. Men and women trudged up and down the snowy trail to the city, carrying firewood and hunting supplies. None of them seemed to notice Eva or Wolf.
Wolf stood straight, pushed out a sigh, and hiked up the hill behind the people. Eva and the others followed.
The village smelled of roasted snow boar, smoke, and damp bear hide. A skinned, skewered hog was cooking over a fire in the center of the town, reminding Eva of Tyel and how he had brought the pork legs. So much had changed.
“Genevieve, come with me,” Wolf said. “Stasis, you and the Kibitzer see if there are any Strikers quartering here.”
Eva wished she could have gone with Jahn and Stasis instead. Finding her brother was all she cared about.
Jahn and Stasis took to the left, and Wolf led Eva forward. As they passed by the huts, she realized that the town was much broader than she thought. Only the entrance flat was the size of Green Planes. The city extended up the side of the mountain to different flats, but the divisions were connected with stairs that had been carved into the stone, and Winter Hills stretched far up the mountainside.
“How many people live here?” Eva asked.
> “When I left nearly seven years ago, we were well be beyond a thousand. They have since built this side and that one,” he said, pointing at the flanking flats up the mountainside.
“What did you want to show me?” Eva asked, changing the topic.
“I have nothing to show you, only some questions are rolling in my head.”
Eva hesitated, not sure what Wolf would ask her. Whatever it was, he certainly did not want Jahn and Stasis to hear. “I’m not sure I have any answers for you,” she replied, remembering how he had betrayed her to Stasis not long before.
“Then my suspicions would remain unaddressed.” He rested his hand on his tomahawk. The black eyes of the wolf pelt peered at her.
Wolf needed her. This was her opportunity to forego the riddles and the silences and the waiting. She could exchange questions with him like a barterer at the Connect. “I too have questions for you,” she replied, not nearly as confidently as she had sounded on the inside.
“Aye.”
Eva was stunned. She didn’t expect that he would answer her. All of the questions that she had dispersed from her mind, leaving her thoughts empty. “I will answer you first,” she replied, hoping that she had not given up her bartering rights.
Wolf’s brow wrinkled, confused. “What did you see?”
This was the question? He had asked her that same question in front of Jahn and Stasis already. Why did they have to leave for her to answer the question this time? “I told you. I saw the Raiders.”
“That’s what you told me, but that’s not what I’m asking. Not now.”
“Then what are you asking?”
“When you saw the Raiders, how did you see them?”
Eva’s shoulders slumped, and she dropped her head, only slightly, wanting to appear stronger than the fear in her bones would allow. “Vapors. Violet like painted steam.”
Wolf’s expression opened to intrigue. “At the fire, when you woke up that morning looking for me, the time that I had vanished into the nether. What did I look like to you?”
“The same as the Raiders,” Eva replied.
Wolf looked to the ground, squinting, eyes full with Eva’s words. “We have to alert Stasis.” He rushed off to the direction where Stasis had headed, heavy boots jabbing into the snow leaving behind footprints.
“What is it, Jevar?” Eva asked, doing all that she could to keep up with him.
“Only Erosion Empyrean is violet, and I am not an Erosionist,” he said, hurrying past the villagers.”
“What does that mean?” she asked, crunching the ice underfoot as she chased after him.
Wolf stopped. His boot slid in the snow. His dark eyes caught hers, shifting, looking for answers deep within her soul. She did not look away, hooked by moment of trepidation. “We are being followed.”
“By whom?” Eva asked, still waiting for relief that now seemed farther away. “The Haunt? The Raiders?”
“I don’t know, but whoever it is has be tailing us. They must know about you.”
Could it have been one of the Water Walkers from the Connect before she and Stasis had left? That made no sense. Stasis knew them all. She would have known if one of those women had been on their trail.
Then it hit her. Eva could barely swallow. She could still taste the tea that she had drunk that night in Shady Peninsula, the night when she had met the tobacco lady, Kingi. Eva knew that Kingi’s hut was a coffin, but she never thought that death would follow her to her grave.
When the Haunt had come, those spirits had chained it to the ground, rescuing Eva. But what did the old woman want? How could she have kept her pace so steadily for all these months? Perhaps she was as illusive as Jahn.
“What is it?” Wolf asked, now waiting for Eva’s reply.
“There was this one woman,” Eva said. Her words were stale and dry. “Kingi. We stayed with her in Shady Peninsula. She said that she knew where you were.”
Coming up from Eva’s left, Stasis approached them with Jahn at her side. She had a smooth smile on her lips, and she pushed her braided blonde hair behind her back. “You two do not look well,” she said.
“We are being followed,” Wolf replied.
The smile brushed away, replaced by an open mouth that would not close. “How can you be sure?” Stasis asked.
“Because of Eva. Her eyes have seen what mine could not. Deceptioin Empyrean.”
“Kibitzer, is this true?” Stasis asked.
“The stars are silent, afraid to speak their hearts,” Jahn replied.
“So it is,” Stasis replied. “Who could it be?”
“Eva says that you met someone named Kingi from Shady.”
“That wench!” Stasis clenched her fist on the hilt of her dirk. “We must get you safety, Eva.”
“Where will I go? What about the three of you?”
“Jevar and I will redirect the trail. The Kibitzer will guide us. As for you.” Her compassion came back, showing her graceful smile. “The Strikers are here.”
The fear of their follower fled. Edward was here, in this town. Her heart bubbled with joy and pain. “Edward? Where is he?” she asked, voice cracking.
“The villagers said that some of the Strikers took the high flat and the others veered to the eastern flat. Check both and you might find him.”
Eva walked backwards, nodding without saying goodbye. She raced to the side of the mountain and ascended the stairs. Edward had to be here. He had to have made it. Her confidence in his strength returned.
She climbed up to the high flat first. Looking down from the ledge, the people were as tiny as her fingernail. She couldn’t make out their faces, and the winds were fiercer at this height. A broken-down wooden fence enclosed the edge, possibly to keep the villagers from falling, though it didn’t look like it could hold much weight.
The same bear hide-covered huts sat on the high flat, though the homes were built against the mountain. At last, her heart was eased. She saw the Strikers. Some were cooking, others were tending to their wounds, while others gazed out into the vast exposed hills that spread out as far as one could see.
A heavyset Striker sat on a wooden pail that seemed that it might splinter to pieces under his weight. He cut slithers off of an uncooked potato and stuffed them into his jowls, crunching loudly and turning the chunk over on his tongue. After every few chews he would use his teeth to scrape off his tongue for whatever reason.
Eva stepped to him calmly. He glanced at her and stared back out to the horizon. “Can I hep’ ya’?” he asked. His stomach jerked when he spoke.
“I hope so. I’m looking for my brother.”
“Many a man comes this way, lookin’ for this man or that man. Ever thought to look to the grave?” He jammed another chunk in his mouth.
“I’d want this particular grave to empty.”
He gave a soft, belly-shaking chuckle. “Mighty slick tongue you got there. Your brother, what's he go by?”
“Edward. Edward Solace.”
The man set his knife on the edge of his knee, no longer chewing. “Ed, ya' say?” His pause was longer than Eva’s beating heart could bear. “Afraid that Haunt had his way with ole' Solace.”
Eva’s mouth dried. She wanted to cry, but her eyes could not find the tears. “What…what happened…to him?”
Clunk! A heavy pan banged against the man’s head. The pan hit the ground and spiraled around in snow, sliding.
“Hey!” the man said, rubbing the back of his noggin.
“Rufio, please don’t toy with my sister’s already fragile heart!” Edward’s smooth smile spilled onto his cheeks as he strode confidently over to Eva.
“Edward!” Eva trudged through the snow and swung her arms around her brother, nearly tackling him to the ground. Her eyes found the tears, and they poured down her cheeks and lips and neck.
Edward embraced his sister as fiercely as she held him, laughing. “Eve, how fortunate it is to see you all the way up here.” His dark hair streamed out from the hems
of his fox hat.
Rufio was still laughing on his pail, holding his belly. The side of the pail cracked. His legs shot out as stiff as nails. The bucket splintered and collapsed. Rufio fell backwards into the snow on his neck. His belly mashed into his face. “Ugh…I’m stuck.”
“Serves you right, lying to my darling Genevieve.”
Edward’s voice was more soothing than Wolf’s. The way he spoke made her feel that her worries would soon fade away. Even after being chased up to Winter Hills by the Haunt, he still remained as cheerful as if he were back in Green Planes cutting vegetables at the dinner table.
“I’ve missed you so much, big brother.”
“And I, you,” he said. The sweet smile drifted away, leaving behind the sugary hazel eyes with the long dark lashes. “How did you convince Mother to let you come all this way? Surely she put up a fight that even the gods are still recovering from.”
Eva did not respond. More tears leaked down her full cheeks.
“Has something happened?” Edward asked.
“They came for me.”
“Who came? The Raiders? Where’s Mother?” His heavy voice reached an unexpected high.
“They came for her instead.”
“Did they hurt her?”
Eva pressed her face into her palms. Her orange hair dangled past her hands as she sobbed.
With the rage of his father, Edward snatched off his dagger and ran to the edge of the flat, screaming wildly, not caring if he lost his footing. In a fury, he heaved the dagger into the air, sending it flying down the mountain.
He wasn’t crying. No. His tears were hidden in the belly of his rage. His face flushed red, and the vein in his throat swelled. “I will kill them where they stand,” he said, gripping the handle of his spadroon as the other hand was staid on the sheath.
“Edward, where you going?” Rufio asked, brushing the snow off his pants and hobbling across the flat to catch him.
Edward whipped out his blade and sliced it through the cold mountain air. The tip nicked the ice. “To pierce the necks of those vultures! And the ones who aren’t skewered by my blade will be forced to swallow their teeth when I bash in their faces!”
Eva rushed after him. “Edward, you can’t go after them. They’re too dangerous.”
The Girl with the Scar (Dark Connection Saga Book 1) Page 14
