Once

by Alyson Serena Stone

  Juel trained his bow on the Iron Fairy, ready to fire.

  "Time to -" the Iron Fairy started.

  That was when Ryanon decided to do something stupid. She launched herself at the Iron Fariy, who was about twice her size. The Iron Fairy was caught off guard and the two of them fell to the ground.

  "NO, IT'S YOUR TURN TO DIE" Ryanon screamed as she pointed her sword in the Iron Fairy's face. She let the arrow go, wincing as the Iron Fairy screamed until its life finally let it.

  Another Iron Fairy stormed through the open door, his fingers charged with power; random jets of light flying through the room.

  "Well, well, well!" the Iron Fairy whispered as the hand went up. The jet of red light struck a guard in the in the chest.

  Ryanon blinked as she watched a crack form in the floor and make its way up the side of the wall. Centimetre by centimetre the crack made its way up the wall and toward the ceiling. Swearing, Ryanon grabbed the closest guard and pulled him back, just before a section of the ceiling collapsed, sending dust and debris flying through the air, crushing those below it.

  "Is everyone alright?" Juel called.

  Several chorus of "yes" filled the air.

  "I don't think the Iron Fairies are though," a guard said. "They look a little crushed to me."

  "Let's get out of here!" someone else exclaimed.

  No one could argue with that. They ran out a door and down a dark hallway. Ryanon chanced a look back and saw that two more Iron Fairies had entered the room during the blast and were right behind them.

  Both Iron Fairies raised their arms. "THERE THEY ARE!" the leader cried.

  The guards in the back were all flung backward. Ryanon could hear the cries of the others and Jual urging them to keep going. She felt her head smash into the wall; little lights formed covering her vision. She shook her head.

  "WE FOUND THEM!" an Iron Fairy was roaring. "WE'RE I-"

  Ryanon pointed her bow and arrow at him, shooting him in the throat. He fell onto the ground.

  Juel pointed a small dagger at the second Iron Fairy. He smirked at the Iron Fairy with a bloodily mouth. "Your turn." He hit the Iron Fairy right in the chest.

  "Can you stand?" a guard asked Ryanon.

  Ryanon nodded. "I think so." She looked at another's limp form. "What about him?"

  Juel knelt down and picked his man's up. "Let's go. We can't stay here. Those two idiots probably alerted everyone of our whereabouts."

  Ryanon nodded and followed Juel with the debris, with her bow and arrow out and ready and senses alert.

  They walked slowly down a dark corridor, no one speaking. Ryanon kept waiting for the Iron Fairies to appear, but none came. She could hear Juel shifting around, but other than that there was nothing.

  Ryanon was thankful that they were this deep. At this level, the cries of the dying could not be heard and the bodies could not be seen. She knew that this was war, but did there have to be so much death?

  "Well, well, well, what do we have here?"

  Ryanon looked up and found herself staring into the eyes of yet another Iron Fairy.

  Probably the biggest she had ever seen.

  And there was no mistaking her famous markings.

  Chapter Thirty-Four: The Most Deadly of Them All

  Ryanon quickly drew herself backwards, also knocking into Juel. They had all heard of this Iron Fairy. Outside, the fire balls had stopped, but only because the dragon was staring down at them. The coldness seemed to balance off Nightstone, making it seem as if winter had reached the inside.

  A wake of black and purple goo was left behind as Nightstone took a step closer to them. "Now, I will ask you again. What do we have here?" She paused, her devil's smile widening. "I think what we have here is a group of mortals trying to break my curse. Ah, did you really think it would be as simple as coming in and kissing the dear princess?"

  No one answered.

  "It seems you have gotten yourself in a little bit of mess." Nightstone shook her head. "I hate to think what the people will think of you for destroying their homeland."

  "That was you," Juel snarled. "They would have never been in this mess had it not been for you."

  "Oh, you think. It was just a simple matter of inviting me to the princess's Naming Day and this would have never happened."

  Ryanon's eyes narrowed. "You're doing this all because you didn't get invited to a party!"

  Nightstone's head whipped in Ryanon's direction. "It was more than that! It was the Iron Fairies chance to have a role in society and we never got the chance!"

  "I don't think you will now," Ryanon muttered.

  Nightstone's fingers came to life. She grinned at them. "Looks, like you are in a bit of a bind."

  Out of the corner of her eye, Ryanon could see that Juel was shifting around.

  Nightstone pointed her fingers at Ryanon 's chest. "It's such a shame really. You are pretty easy on the eyes."

  "NOW!" Juel roared.

  The an arrow struck Nightstone in the chest before she even got the chance to block it. He fell over backwards, unable to move. Ryanon could see that it didn't kill her. It would only be a matter of seconds before Nightstone was back on her feet.

  "Let's go," Juel muttered.

  Ryanon stepped over the limp Iron Fairy and followed the others down the long, dark hallway. It was a rather long walk, even though they did not walk all that far. Juel and Ryanon were still bruised from the earlier attack and they had to somehow carry limp guard from earlier. Ryanon could not take her eyes off the guard.

  Juel paused. "I don't hear anything."

  "Me either," Ryanon whispered back. "Where are we?"

  "I don't know."

  Ryanon lead the way down a hall that had a series of doors on either side of it. This was not a good place to be. Anything or anyone could jump out from them.

  "Stop," Juel muttered.

  Ryanon froze.

  Juel nodded toward the door to his right.

  Ryanon listened in. There was something there. She caught Juel's eye, who nodded. Taking a deep breath, Ryanon whipped open the door, causing three people to tumble out.

  "DON'T!" Dak exclaimed.

  Ryanon lowered her bow and watched as Dak, Vicar, and the princess slowly made their way to their feet.

  "Are the others with you?" Dak muttered. He looked around at the small number of guards and legions who had managed to stay with them. Then, he focused on the limp guard in Juel's arms.

  "No, we got separated during a blast," Juel said.

  Dak took the guard from Juel. "There's more Iron Fairies here than I thought there would be. It's like they were expecting us."

  Lord Tyon Cragshield pushed open a door at the end of the hall. "We really don't have time to worry about that now."

  Dak walked through with the guard in his arms. The others were right behind him. Ryanon kept looking over her shoulder for any signs of Iron Fairies, but there was none. It really didn't bother her, but it did kind of make her nervous.

  Dak heaved the guard toward another door. They were within a few metres, when the door burst open and three Iron Fairies stepped out.

  "THERE THEY ARE!" Nightstone roared.

  Ryanon fought the urge to groan. Why did the Iron Fairy have to heal so quickly?

  Stunning spells raced across the room. Dak ran across it, leading the rest of them safety. They made it himself just in time to slam the door in the Iron Fairies' faces.

  "It will only slow them down! It won't keep them out forever," Vicar wheezed.

  From the outside, it sounded as if the Iron Fairies were trying to blast down the door, but not really having any success.

  "There are other ways in," Nightstone was muttering on the other side. "Move out."

  Ryanon looked over at Dak. "Well, this is fun."

  "I'm the one who is supposed to provide the humour," Dak muttered.

  Ryanon was about to say something back to him when she heard the sounds of running feet on the other
side of the door. They all exchanged looks and took off running down the other side of the hall. Behind them, Ryanon could hear bodies ramming into the door. The door was threatening to give way.

  She urged her body to move faster, but the will was not there. The bangs of the Iron Fairies were getting louder, as was the creaking of the door. She looked over her shoulder and saw that five Iron Fairies, led by Nightstone, had managed to break down the door.

  "FASTER!" Ryanon screamed.

  Juel looked back and sent am arrow down the long hall. It struck one of the Iron Fairies, but the other four and Nightstone charged forward.

  One of the Iron Fairies shot a colourful wave at them; it barely missed Dak. The other three Iron Fairies were sending silver lights toward them that left craters were it struck.

  "Charge forward," Dak muttered to Ryanon . "It may be our only chance."

  Ryanon nodded.

  With their weapons out, the guard members charged forward. The Iron Fairies did not have time to react; the guards were almost out before the spells starting flying again. Ryanon ran behind Dak down at step of steep steps, each one threatening to send her falling down them.

  The stone walls exploded as a one of the Iron Fairies sent a spell down at them. Juel and Dak reached the bottom of the stairs right behind Ryanon .

  "Move and cover your head!" Dak yelled. He pointed his bow up the steps. Ryanon could see that it was loaded with an arrow unlike anything that she had ever seen; it looked like it had been made out of magic. "NOW!"

  A loud boom filled the air. Ryanon could faintly make out the stairs falling into a massive crater. Over the roar, she could hear the sounds of the Iron Fairies as they hopefully fell to their deaths.

  "Let's go," Dak muttered.

  As they walked away, Ryanon could have sworn that she heard the groans of someone below the rumble. She froze as a streak of light that resembled a purple flame shot out of the dust. She dodged it and took off running down the hall.

  Behind them, she could see Nightstone was getting her feet. Though the fairy looked worn, it was still clear that she had a lot of fight left in her. "TIME FOR YOU TO DIE!"

  Ryanon gasped as she saw a flash of purple and black light whip pass her. Her heart was in her throat. She had never had anything like this directed at her. She knew it was a killing curse, knew that Nightstone was going to kill her.

  Dak reached back and pulled her in front of him as the purple and black light went over their heads.

  "We have to get out of here!" Juel snapped.

  Dak nodded and lead them up another set of steps. "I'm trying, but she simply will not die!"

  "She's a cat, who just hasn't used up his nine lives," Lord Tyon Cragshield said. He paused. "Wow, that was really bad. I am losing my touch."

  Below them, Ryanon could see more purple and black light were being sent down the hall. She only hoped that the person sending them did not look up.

  At the end of the hall, Juel was holding a door open and motioning for them to hurry up. Behind them, movements were growing louder and occurring more often. She gulped and darted into the door.

  Dak turned in the door frame and fired his bow. The impact generated such a force that Ryanon fought to stand upright. The Iron Fairy screamed as Juel slammed the door behind them.

  Ryanon stared down the hall, which was lined with cells. Terrified Trelians peered at them from behind the rumble. She looked at their sad faces, reminding of her of victims from the darkest parts of Xandria. Their hallowed out faces and haunted eyes made them look more ghost-like than human. The way the Trelians stared at Ryanon made her feel terrible. Their eyes showed no signs of life, only defeat. They were slave until the end of time and stuck in this nightmare.

  She wanted to free them all and let them see that there was hope in the world, but now was not the time. To let them go now would only kill them. There was no way they could fight their way out of this.

  Ryanon followed Dak and others into a small room with a back door. She was beginning to see why no one ever escaped the curse. This place was too much of a maze to possibly get out of here. Even if they had a warning, the Trelians would have never been able to make it to safety in time.

  Juel had his sword out now, pointing around each turn in the rather curvy hall that they were making their way down now. Ryanon 's ears were alert, but the roar of the dragon prevented her from hearing anything.

  Great, now they were back to having to fight a dragon.

  Dak walked close to Ryanon. He caught Ryanon 's eye and gave her a small smile.

  Ryanon returned it, thankful that no Trelians were in this hall. She wasn't sure if she could walk past them again and leave them. She had always known that there was a price of evil, but hated to witnessed it. They were all people too.

  A jet of black and purple flew down the hall in front of them. Ryanon flung herself against the wall as the light hit Juel's sword and balanced back down the hall. She hoped that it hit whoever had sent it.

  A guard sent an arrow down the hall and was returned with a crater curse. Ryanon stared wide-eyed as the curse hit the wall across from her. There was no time to move as rock made its way toward her. She gulped, knowing what was coming next.

  Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Nightstone grab onto Dak with her sharp claws. Before she had even time to scream at him, the curse hit her.

  Ryanon woke up to a spinning world, lots of blue and silver, and the smells of homemade chicken noodle soup. Groaning, she pushed herself up to get a better view of her surroundings. She was in a bedroom. She tried to look more, but feel back down onto the pillows with a small cry of pain.

  "That wasn't wise."

  She looked toward the door and saw Dak leaning against the doorframe with eating out of a bowl. "And you are your normal annoying self." She smiled. "I guess that's better than dead."

  Dak pushed himself off the doorframe and came over to her. He sat down carefully on the edge of the bed.

  Ryanon grabbed his spoon and started eating out of his bowl. Much to her surprise, he didn't say anything. "So, how long have I been out?"

  "Close to three days."

  "Oh." She paused and took a deep breath. "What happened?"

  "The Iron Fairies have since then disappeared."

  "Oh."

  Dak looked at her. "Is that all you can say?" He looked away. "Amberfall reports that the Trelian king is doing well."

  Ryanon blinked as it all came back to her. The Iron Fairies were gone, but she had a feeling that they would be back. At least, the Trelian king was safe for now. Still, so many had died... They were gone! She couldn't believe it! It was all her fault. People always died when it came to these things and it was always the good guys who did. Why didn't the bad ones have to go? What had happened to their bodies? She didn't understand how Dak could be so unaffected about losing so many men.

  "Ryanon?"

  Ryanon looked at Dak. "I'm fine."

  Dak looked at her with a doubtful expression, but didn't push the issue.

  "Where's the princess?"

  "Upstairs with my mother."

  Ryanon attempted to nod, but her head hurt too much. "Was there anyone?" She paused. "Was there anyone else who knows about Rawlin?"

  "No."

  Ryanon blinked hard. There was nothing worse than being the only ones. Now, that Rawlin was dead, they had no proof of his action. Dak put his arms around her and she leaned into him, not hard because she didn't want him to start bleeding-she had a faint memory of Nightstone's claws getting him as they rushed out of the castle. She didn't think it had been in her head....

  She turned up to him and kissed his sweet lips.

  "Will you two wait until I'm out of the room?"

  Ryanon jerked away from Dak and saw that Amberfall was making her way toward the bed. She felt herself get red. It's not like they were doing anything wrong to begin with.

  "At least you're in the same room, so I don't have to hunt."Amberfall motioned for Dak to
move. "How's the head?"

  Ryanon winced as Amberfall started gently examining it. "Sore."

  Amberfall nodded. "It's going to be." She moved away from her. "Other than that, it looks good. Are you having any difficulty with memory or anything else?"

  Ryanon shook her head.

  "Good." Amberfall turned to Dak. "Your turn."

  "What happened to you?" Ryanon asked.

  Dak moved around on the bed. "Just a little run in with one of Nightstone's claw. It's not a big deal."

  Amberfall just huffed.

  Dak said something to Amberfall so quickly that Ryanon couldn't catch. Amberfall answered back just as quickly. She hated whenever people did that. Why couldn't they just speak like normal people? The next thing she knew, Dak was pulling his tunic and bandages off and Amberfall was staring at his side.

  "You need to stop moving around so much," Amberfall muttered to Dak.

  "I'm not moving as much as I normally do," Dak pointed out.

  "True, but you are moving around too much. You'll tear those wounds back open."

  "I know."

  "Then, do it!"

  When Dak didn't answer, Ryanon could not help but to smile.

  Ryanon peered at Dak's side. The wound was healing, slowly, and would leave a nice scar, but he would recover. The one his stomach looked better. That scar would probably be smaller than the one from where she had stabbed him during training a few years ago; it really had been an accident, but no one seemed to believe her. They weren't red, which was good and the bandages were clear, which was even better.

  "Okay," Amberfall muttered.

  Dak pulled his tunic back on.

  "You two will be okay." Amberfall paused. "I just wouldn't take it past snogging."

  Ryanon turned red and Dak made a face. Smirking, Amberfall backed out of the room.

  "So, what have you been up to?" Ryanon asked as she finished off Dak's soup.

  "Not much. I've just been doing some reading."

  "On what?" Sighing, Dak reached under the bed. "I didn't want them to see this. Amberfall and I did a little digging while you were out." He showed her the title: Secrets of the Darkest Arts of Weapons.