A black mist started to form around them. He was about to teleport them both away, and there wasn’t a whole hell of a lot I could do about it.
Then, with a cry, Eva dove forward, yanking her head free from his grasp. She darted to her feet and ran. I motioned for her to move toward Axel and held my ground.
The stranger glanced down at the clump of torn hair in his hand, then hurled it at the ground. He started toward me, grinning. “I’m beginning to lose my patience.”
“Then piss off,” I told him. “She’s not going with you.”
“Isn’t that for her to decide?” he asked, his gaze moving past me. “It’s time to go home now, dear lady. Be a good sport and come along. Don’t make me kill your new friends.”
“I’m not going anywhere with you,” she said. “Go to hell.”
“Such a shame,” he said, shaking his head and focusing on me. “Guess you’ll have to die now, Blade Mage. You and your idiot friend.”
“You talk a lot,” I replied. My give a damn was all out and my path was set. No point screwing around now. “I thought you were in a hurry.”
He raised his sword and started forward, then paused, raising his ear to the sky once more. He shook his head in frustration and looked at Eva. “We’re out of time. Come with now while you still have a chance.”
“Fuck off,” she replied.
He shook his head again. “Well, I tried. Better start running. There are worse things out here than me.”
With that, the black mist rose around him again and in a poof, he was gone.
“What the hell was that?” Axel asked. “What do you suppose he meant?”
Before I could make a guess, there was a flutter of birds overhead. Then the number grew. In seconds, hundreds of birds were cawing like mad and flying past us.
There was a sound in the brush nearby and I whirled around to see three rabbits run clear and dart across the road. A fox scurried past a moment later. Then more rabbits. Four deer appeared next, not even paying attention to us as they scurried past. It was as if every woodland creature in the forest knew something we didn’t. They were all fleeing from something.
I glanced back at the others and yelled, “Run!”
Chapter 11
We ran. I didn’t know what we were running from, but the scary emo asshole had booked it out of there in a hurry. Bambi and his friends had as well. Whatever was coming, it wasn’t good.
The truck was totaled. It had become one with nature and was no longer a viable means of escape. We were on foot.
We followed the direction of the woodland critters. They seemed to know what they were doing. Yet as we ran alongside them, they were completely unconcerned by our presence. Whatever the hell was coming, they were more scared of it than they were of us.
I jumped a log and glanced behind me to ensure the other two were keeping up. Eva cleared the log, then Axel. He was a hell of a lot faster than me, but brought up the rear anyway. He might’ve been a buffoon, but I’d never discount my friend’s bravery.
I tried to keep pace with the animals, but they were much quicker than us. Worse, their numbers were thinning, which only suggested that whatever was hunting us was closing in.
“Keep moving,” I shouted over my shoulder as I slapped a pine branch from my face.
“Where are we going?” Eva asked.
I didn’t answer. Mostly because I didn’t have an answer. I just knew we had to keep moving.
Following the diminishing trail of animals, we headed up a steep hill. Several times I almost lost my footing in dead foliage, but kept climbing upward. My legs burned and my breaths were coming in sharp rasps.
Halfway to the top, I paused, intending to stop for just a second.
Behind me, Eva said, “Look!”
I spun around and followed where her finger was pointing. At first I didn’t see anything…and then I did. There, in the distance, a living darkness crawled across the treetops. It seemed to go on forever, closing in and blotting out the forest like ink spilled on a map. Like a tidal wave, it consumed all light and crawled toward us. A hungry beast, and we were its prey.
“Keep moving!” I said and started upward again, the others in tow.
“We can’t outrun it!” Axel called after me.
“Open for suggestions,” I yelled back.
He didn’t offer one.
We pressed on.
As we crested the hill, my legs felt rubbery and weak. I didn’t know how much further we could go. I looked forward, for any place we could hide. Any place we could seek sanctuary. What I found was only more terrifying.
The darkness wasn’t just behind us. It was ahead of us as well. All around us. It was closing in from every direction. A circle cinched tight. There was nothing we could do.
“There,” Axel said, pointing wildly. “The old chapel!”
I followed his gaze and saw it, just over the next hill. Of course! Paeter’s house was nearby as well, and if I could remember where, perhaps his wards would protect us. Glancing back at the darkness closing in, I somehow doubted it.
I could feel it, even at this distance, and I don’t think it was just my magic. It radiated pure evil. An oppressive weight bearing down, beckoning me to stop and let it consume me.
I didn’t know what sanctuary the chapel would offer, but it was our only option.
I started forward again, only to hear Axel yell from behind.
I turned and saw Eva on the ground, huddled in the fetal position and screaming. As I moved closer I realized her screams had words. Over and over, she repeated, “Get out of my head! Get out of my head! Get out of my head!”
“Eva,” I said, reaching for her. “We have to move.”
She jerked her arm from me, her eyes wild and feral as she tried to back away.
“Eva, it’s me. It’s Wyatt.”
Still she tried to get away.
I glanced at Axel, but he only shrugged in reply.
Then Eva’s eyes rolled back in her head and she sagged to the ground, limp.
I reached down and scooped her up in my arms. My legs still burned like fire, and I hadn’t gotten my breathing under control, but there was little choice. I would have to carry her or I’d have to leave her to die.
I gritted my teeth and forced one leg forward, then another. Glancing at Axel I said, “Run! Get to the chapel!”
He gave me a hurt expression and shook his head. If I was going to let the darkness catch me, then so would he. Damned idiot.
“Go ahead,” I said between breaths. “Maybe there’s a cart. Or a wheelbarrow.”
He stared at me for a moment. He couldn’t argue with the logic, though we both knew there would likely not be time to make it back before the darkness reached us.
“Go, Axel!” I screamed. My foot snagged a rock and I nearly toppled. I glanced back at my friend and yelled, “Go!”
Axel scowled but turned from me and ran, working his way down the hill. I continued forward, step by step, trying not to fall as I carried Eva down the steep incline.
I won’t lie. Some part of me wanted to set her down and run. I didn’t know this woman, and it was her the darkness wanted, not me.
I could still escape.
I owed her nothing.
She was but a stranger to me. What did she matter? All I had to do was give her up to her dark fate.
And still my legs went on, one quivering step after another.
I couldn’t do it.
I couldn’t just leave her.
On my back was the sword of a Blade Mage. The others would never accept me, but it had. Somewhere, my father was looking down on me. And I knew he’d never give up. I couldn’t either. I cursed myself for a fool and kept going. One step after the other.
Then a loose rock gave way under my foot and I fell to the ground. Eva’s weight came down on top of me and knocked the breath from my lungs. Still I clutched her tight, but I didn’t think I could lift her weight again. I wasn’t sure I could lift my own.
Her eyes flickered open and she gazed into mine. “Wyatt…”
“It’s all right, Eva,” I lied. “Everything is all right.”
“The darkness is coming,” she said in a whisper. It was as if every ounce of her strength had been sapped. Even those few words seemed to take a great toll on her.
“I know,” I replied. I couldn’t think of anything else to say. “It’ll be all right.”
“I’m sorry,” she said, closing her eyes once more.
I didn’t bother with a reply. There was nothing left to say. Nothing left to do, save wait for it to arrive.
Eva went limp in my arms. She either fell asleep or passed out. I couldn’t say which.
I closed my eyes as well. When the time came, I’d try to fight, though how I’d fight something like that, I didn’t know. I didn’t even know something like this was possible. The amount of magic it would take… The thought made me shudder. Whatever was coming, it was beyond any power I could imagine.
“Wyatt!” I heard Axel’s voice in my head. “Hang on, buddy! We’re coming!”
I didn’t know who ‘we’ was, but I cursed inwardly, knowing my fool of a friend was on his way back. Why must he insist on dying with me?
I forced open my eyes and saw him over the rise. For a moment, I thought he was riding double with someone on a horse, then I realized that wasn’t the case at all.
It was Paeter! And Axel was riding his back! Mary Beth was just behind them.
On their powerful legs, they were to us in seconds.
Paeter took one look at us and said, “Hurry, Blade Mage! It’s almost upon us!”
“Put her on my back,” Mary Beth offered. “I’m more graceful than my husband.”
Paeter snorted but didn’t argue. “Axel you ride on Mary Beth as well. I’ll hand you the lady.”
As ordered, Axel climbed on Mary Beth’s back while Paeter scooped up Eva. He gently placed her on his wife’s back and Axel held her in place in front of him. When they were both on, Mary Beth glanced back at Axel and said, “Hang on.”
Without another word, she bolted for the chapel.
Paeter reached down and helped me to my feet. “Hop on, Blade Mage.”
He bent down and I threw my tired legs over his back. “Thank you, Paeter.”
“You’re welcome. Now hang on,” he said, and turned. Glancing back the way we’d come, I realized the darkness had already crested the hill. It was almost on us. For a moment, I thought it was already too late, but then Paeter took off at gallop.
I did not realize how quick donkeys could run.
“You all right back there?” he asked, still at a full gallop.
It wasn’t the most comfortable ride, but I was in no mood to complain. “I’m fine, Paeter. Thank you.”
“Thank me if we survive,” he replied. “I’ve never seen anything like this.”
“Me neither,” I admitted. Then a new thought struck me. “How did Axel find you?”
“It wasn’t hard,” he said. “The circle is tightening. We were running from it as well.”
“Herded right toward the middle,” I said, glancing up at the chapel ahead. The darkness was circling all around us.
“Yes,” he said. “We thought at first to try our wards against it, but Mary Beth said it wouldn’t be enough. She knows better than I. And we couldn’t rightly leave Claire alone at the chapel. We grabbed a few magical trinkets and headed this way. We were just about there when we saw Axel.”
“Dammit, Paeter,” I said, shaking my head. “I think I’ve pulled you into this mess.”
Paeter laughed. “It’s not your fault, Blade Mage. Darkness such as this is bound to you, I’m afraid. Such is your calling. You have any idea what it is?”
“Not a clue,” I replied. “It’s after the woman.”
“What foul manner of evil has she angered?”
“I don’t know that, either,” I repeated, shaking my head. “But I think we’re about to find out.”
“Do you think the chapel may protect us?” he asked, glancing over his shoulder. “Is there any truth to holy places having a magic about them?”
“Some, I think. I don’t really know, Paeter. Maybe if the souls who frequent the place have enough faith in their beliefs.”
“You’ll find none with more faith than Claire.”
Ahead of us, Axel had already dismounted. He stood on the side of one tall wooden door and Mary Beth stood at the other. They beckoned us onward, ready to close the doors as soon as we were inside.
I risked a glance back and realized that despite his speed, Paeter had only shaved off a few seconds. It’d be on us in a hurry.
The chapel was small and made of stone. A simple kind of place, nestled away in the hills. As far as I knew, there were no regular services held there, but people could rent it out to do weddings and such. There was an old cobbled path leading to the swinging doors, lined with an array of flowers. It was clear that the landscaping was maintained with a lot of care. The whole place was. So, I felt a tinge of anger as I saw the darkness closing in on the garden. Where it touched them, the flowers wilted and died instantly, just before disappearing into the vast nothingness around us. I didn’t know if the force behind that black energy killed the whole forest in just the same way, or if it was just being a dick to the flowers. Either way, I hated it.
Above us, the circle was almost closed, and a dusk-like grayness fell over us.
Paeter didn’t slow down until we were through the door. Axel and Mary Beth slammed them shut behind us, and Axel dropped an old wooden crossbar.
A plump old woman crept toward us on a cane, her whole body shaking as she approached. “Paeter! What is it, Paeter? Is the Lord coming for us?”
“Not the Lord, Claire,” Paeter said, shaking his head. “Something else.”
He leaned down to allow me off his back.
I glanced at the old woman and said, “Is there a room in the back? Some place to hide?”
She nodded weakly, glancing from me to Paeter, her terror apparent. “What’s happening? Is this the work of the dark one?”
I wasn’t sure how to reply. It was definitely the work of a dark one.
Paeter moved alongside Mary Beth and lifted the unconscious form of Eva from his wife’s back. He turned back to Claire. “We should hide.”
The old woman glanced between us and her face hardened. “The wicked one has no power here. This is the place of the Lord. Our faith may be tested, but it will not be broken!”
“Of course,” Mary Beth said, moving alongside the woman and patting her on the shoulder. “But we’d still be wise to hide.”
“The Lord helps those who help themselves,” Axel said, nodding. “Am I right?”
Claire nodded. “Come with me. There isn’t much of a hiding place. But there’s room enough for us to pray.”
The others started down the row of pews and for the first time, I noticed just how pristine the little chapel was. High vaulted ceilings of a dark varnished wood. Stained glass windows. Wooden pews for seating about fifty. It occurred to me that if I had to die in a church, this was the type I’d choose. There was a certain integrity about the place. I just hoped it would be enough.
As soon as the thought entered my mind, there was a crash against the door.
We all jumped, and Claire immediately began mumbling a prayer.
“Let’s go,” Paeter said.
In his arms, Eva was tiny, almost fragile looking. Her eyes opened and she glanced around suspiciously. “Where am I?”
“You’re in the house of the Lord, dear,” the old woman said, then turned toward the back. “Come this way, everyone.”
She led the group past the pulpit and toward a door in the back.
We were halfway across the room when there was another crash against the door.
“It’s coming,” Eva said, her eyes widening in fear. “Oh, God, it’s coming.”
“It’ll be all right,” Paeter said, though the fear in
his own eyes told me he wasn’t convinced.
I paused by the pulpit and waited. The room was darkening more by the moment, only the soft glow of burning candles offered any light to see by.
Claire opened the door for the others and Paeter started forward. Mary Beth glanced back and saw I still stood by the pulpit. “Are you coming, Blade Mage?”
I shook my head.
“What?” Paeter asked. “You must come.”
“Go,” I said, forcing a smile. “I have to wait here.”
“I’ll wait with you,” Axel said, moving toward me.
“No,” I said, giving my friend a hard look. “If I can’t stop it, you have to protect them.”
“If you can’t—”
“Then you’d better prepare the biggest damned light show possible. Now go.”
“This is madness,” Paeter said, staring at me in disbelief.
“Come with us,” Eva said, almost pleading. “You can’t stay here.”
“I have to stay.” I drew Drynwyn from my back, dropping the veil that kept it hidden. Its grip was comfortable in my hand, reassuring. As were the white flames that jumped from the blade. I glanced back up at the others. “This is my calling. It’s my job to face the darkness. To be the lantern bearer. Now go.”
There was no further argument, but as they entered the dark room in the back, I heard Claire ask, “Is he a guardian angel?”
“Something like that,” Paeter replied. “Something very much like that.”
The door shut behind them and after a moment I heard Claire’s mumbled voice as she lead them in prayer.
I took a seat on the steps leading up to the pulpit and lay Drynwyn across my lap. Claire’s mumbled prayers were interrupted as another crash sounded against the doors.
There was nothing left but to wait. The darkness was about to come inside.
Chapter 12
There was a splintering crunch as the crossbar gave out and the chapel doors swung wide open. Outside was pure blackness.
I heard the caw of a raven, followed by another. Then another, and another, until the screeching chorus drowned out all other sounds.
Then the black things took form and appeared from the shadow. A murder of crows or an unkindness of ravens, I couldn’t say the difference, but the creatures flocked this little place of worship. They flew upward, circling overhead like sharks as more and more joined their fray.
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