by Ash Night
"Sunshine, I…" Cam said quietly. I barely heard him, and it took me a moment to realize he wasn’t just muttering to himself.
"What?" I asked, confused.
"When I said what I said in the barn about you knowing how the world really is…I didn't know it would be this soon."
Chapter Twenty-one
It was later the same day when I finally woke up. Looking around, it took me a second to realize where I was. Doveport. We had traveled almost until dawn to reach it since no one was really in the mood to stop moving. The sun had been up for a few hours now. I'd slept a mere two or three hours at most. I was alone in the room. Did the others sleep at all?
I noticed a note at the bedside table.
Sunshine,
Meet us at Trodder's Inn when you wake up. Ask at the front desk on the ground floor. A magicart and driver are waiting for you. We took Snowbell with us.
See you there
Love, Cam
Sighing, I got up, stretched out my aching muscles, and then got ready. My stomach growled for breakfast. How could I be hungry? Oh yeah, I didn't want to eat before bed. Cam and Liam had ordered some food to our adjoining rooms, but I'd declined. Even though they'd ordered it, Cam and Liam barely touched it, leaving more food on their plates than I had ever seen them leave untouched. Kat had picked at a plate, but she didn't eat much either.
I took my time brushing my hair. Going to that inn was the last thing I wanted to do after last night's events, but I was also eager to fight those wyverns. I wouldn't let them hurt anyone else. One life had been far too many. My blood boiled at the thought and suddenly I didn't feel like sitting still. The rest of my morning routine flew by and I took the stairs two at a time.
The woman, a half spider half nymph creature known as an Arachne, at the desk smiled brightly at me, revealing sharp teeth. Two of her long, thin arms were putting away inn keys while her other two were typing information into a computer.
"How many I help you?" she asked, her large dark eyes taking me in. I felt a bit uncomfortable from her cold gaze. It was like she was studying a science experiment in a cage or a fly caught in her web.
"Um... I was told I had a magicart waiting for me. I hope it hasn't been waiting long. My... acquaintance didn't tell me what time to set my alarm for." I chuckled uncomfortably.
She laughed lightly. "It's all right, Miss Lockleap. The driver was paid handsomely by your acquaintance so I don't imagine he'll be too grumpy about the wait. The cart is right outside slightly to your right. He has already been informed of your destination. Have a very nice day."
"Thanks, you too!" I sprinted outside, eager to get out of there and away from her haunted eyes, and saw the cart right away. The driver tipped his hat to me as I came closer. Opening the door, I waved to him and then got inside. Briefly, I wondered if he could use magic, but I didn't think so. Businesses, like almost everywhere in the world, prohibited the employment of Sealbreakers, and turning in magic users was a lucrative business in itself.
It wasn't uncommon for co-workers, even if they were the best of friends, to turn on each other in the blink of an eye if they caught someone using magic. The king paid outrageous amounts of money for a single culprit. If a bounty hunter was good enough, they themselves could live like a king in no time after a dozen or so arrests. It was a miracle we hadn't been pursued yet by bounty hunters, but it was only a matter of time.
I heard the pair of dusklings snort in protest, and then the magicart began to move at what seemed like a snail's pace compared to how my friends had driven it. It was a shame I couldn't trust the driver with the knowledge that I had my magic. Maybe I could buy a magic syphon off the black market.
The idea seemed more tempting as the ride dragged on.
After what felt like an eon, we arrived and the driver opened the door for me. I hopped out and heard a familiar neigh. Snowbell was prancing in place, as much as the hitched reins would allow. Thanking my driver quickly and tipping him a few extra silvers, I ran over to Snowbell and the others.
Rai flicked his tail in greeting but otherwise ignored me. Cisco nudged at my pocket for nonexistent treats. Cam's horse, Shiloh, was missing. Snowbell prodded my hand with her muzzle, desperate for pats. Laughing, I scratched behind her ears and petted her for a few minutes before heading inside.
Kat was sitting on a wooden stool at the bar, drinking from a slightly chipped mug. Steam rose from it when she set it down. Turning to face me, she waved me over. "Look who woke up!"
"Did you even sleep?" I asked, taking a seat next to her.
"Not much. I doubt the boys did at all because they were up when I got up. Want some apple tea? It takes the early morning chill away. It's not early morning anymore, but I don't think anyone bothered to tell the mountains that. Jerry, an apple tea for my friend, if you please!"
The innkeeper stifled a yawn and grabbed a white mug. He then poured hot, steaming liquid from a white teapot and slid it toward me. It was so hot I barely managed to grasp it without burning myself. He barely acknowledged my quiet thank you before turning back to his cleaning duties. The inn was empty except for us and one or two villagers.
"Where is everyone?"
Kat sipped her tea before she answered. "They're at the funeral. Liam and Cam went too, but I'm pretty sure they won't stay long so they should be back any minute. I wanted to wait for you. Did you want to pay respects? The cemetery is just up the road a bit."
"I probably shouldn't. Not while the funeral is going on. What if Elga sees me and screams at me again? I, for one, do not want a repeat of last night. That was horrible." I took a drink. The warmth trickled down my throat, calming me. The tangy, sweet taste danced on my tongue. It was definitely going on my list of favorites.
Kat patted my shoulder. "She was grieving. I'm sure it wasn't personal."
My eyes widened. "Did you not hear her? It sounded personal!"
Shrugging, Kat downed her tea and loudly asked for another. She was met with a grunt and another mug. This one, I noticed, wasn't chipped.
"Did Cam get his coffee?" I asked, more so just to make conversation and distract myself from the thought that Elga may burst in at any moment and screech at me again.
"Yeah, and he drank it like a damn Frost addict."
I glanced around quickly. "Keep your voice down! You know Frost is illegal!" Frost, or Frost Ash, was a popular drug in the kingdom of Valora. Like most illegal things, it was sold on the black market and anyone caught with even a spoonful of the icy blue powder was sent to King Artimis' dungeon to live out the rest of their days in darkness and agony.
Withdrawal, from what I'd heard, wasn't pretty. Most creatures went mad. Before the ban, it was commonly used to soothe the dying so they could pass without pain.
"I'm serious, though," Kat insisted. "The dude downed like five cups in ten minutes!"
I sighed. "I know. He does that. I was just as amazed the first time I saw him drink it. More importantly, did Liam drink any? Because he really shouldn't have any. Ever."
Kat snickered. "That was the funny part. Liam ordered some, Cam saw, picked up his cup, and drank it before he even had a sip. Then he did it again! Finally, Liam said 'fuck it,' ordered some regular coffee, and told Cam he better not touch it or he'd blast him into next week."
I shook my head in disbelief. "Those guys are hard to understand, I swear one minute they're at each other's throats and the next they're best buds. It's starting to give me whiplash." I took a long sip of my tea and then asked for another cup.
Kat giggled. "At least you can never say they're boring."
"Snowflake, I think the girls are talking about us." Cam smirked as he sat down on the other side of me. "So, anything interesting?"
"Nope, just talking about how you wouldn't let Liam have any 'special coffee.'" Kat grinned.
"Well"—Liam smirked—"I'm sitting on the other side of Kat now, so now's my chance! Innkeeper, one special coffee, please."
Cam raised an eyebrow
as he drank yet another cup of his own Calderdash coffee, but he didn't say anything as a steaming mug was placed in front of Liam. My heart skipped as I saw Liam slowly, deliberately, reach for the cup, not taking his eyes off Cam the entire time.
His eyes widened when he closed his fist around empty air.
"This is good shit!" Kat exclaimed, licking her lips, Liam's half-empty cup in her hand. Liam's mouth hung open as Cam and I cracked up. "Jerri, where have you been hiding this stuff?"
"I sell it under the table so I trust you guys won't breathe a word about it.” He glared at us, as if to assure our silence. “The only reason I told outsiders about it is because I really appreciate what you did for poor Elga and Folstead. They're good people and it's a pity things happened the way they did, but at least now they can have a little closure."
A cry, like a mix between an eagle and a frightened mouse, pierced the air. The couple villagers in the inn all froze, including the innkeeper.
"Oh yeah, I burnt their nest. They're probably pretty pissed, I'd imagine." Cam smirked, turning around to face the door. He took a deep breath. "I should probably go earn my coffee, eh?" His magic pulsed excitedly, and the hair on the back of my neck stood up. "Oh yeah, Sunshine, the innkeeper has something for you. Think you're ready to use it?"
Without waiting for me to answer, Cam downed the last dregs of his second cup since arriving from the funeral, stood up, and ran out the door, shouting, "Awwww, who's cranky I burned their nests?"
My heart jumped to my throat as I saw the leathery green tip of a wing before the door closed. They were here.
"Oh yeah, sorry, miss, I completely forgot. Here you are." Jerri reached behind the counter and placed a bow and a leather quiver full of arrows in front of me. The bow was made from dark brown ash wood and powerful rune magic sang to me the moment I touched the elegant, smooth symbols painstakingly carved into the handle. The string was made from a combination of magic-infused silk and white horse hair.
Impossible. Snowbell's? How? Tears sprang to my eyes as I noticed the small yet thoughtful detail. How had Ezra gotten any of her hair?
The quiver was stitched together using bear hide and softer rabbit skin for the strap. Sliding it onto my back, it seemed as though it was tailored to fit, though Ezra hadn't taken any measurements. That just went to show how skilled a craftsman he clearly was.
"Are you done gawking at that gorgeous bow yet?" Kat asked, grabbing my hand and pulling me toward the door. "I sure hope you’re a good shot."
"Me too," I agreed as we dashed outside. The air was filled with the flapping of wings, awful piercing cries, and the smell of fire. Cam grinned at me, sweat already forming on his forehead.
"Damn, these things are fast!" he shouted, his hands engulfed in flame. "Aim and fire an arrow, Sunshine! I'm excited to see what you can do. Their wings are big enough. Shouldn’t be hard to miss."
I chuckled nervously as I reached for an arrow. "Uh, have you met me? Not the greatest at new things first time around."
"It's not like the wyverns will laugh at you," Liam replied with a laugh. "No pressure."
I rolled my eyes. "Oh yeah, not like they'll kill me or anything if I miss." Nocking an arrow, I took a deep breath, said a short prayer to the Goddess, held my breath as I aimed, and let it fly as I exhaled. It whizzed through the air silently like an angry warblendriver going for in for a kill and sank into a wyvern's wing. The wyvern screeched and lost a few feet of altitude but managed to somehow stay in the air.
"Good shot!" Liam cheered as he dodged a wyvern's sharp talons. The talons barely grazed his shirt. "Woah, that was close! Why don't you come down here and fight me, you ugly, overgrown bird!" He aimed an ice spike and threw it. It managed to hit the beast's tail.
Before it could recover, another spike sank into its chest. It landed with a thud. One down, a dozen to go. At least I thought there was only a dozen. Their wings had kicked up an incredible amount of dust and it was getting hard to see. Fire and ice flew through the air as the wyverns dove and evaded.
Kat cursed as she threw a purple ball of magic. I wasn't sure what type it was. "I hate things that can fly. Make 'em a lot harder to hit!"
Tell me about it, I thought. My first shot, it seemed, had just been luck. All the others had missed and I was running around to retrieve the arrows I could find.
Suddenly, I heard the pounding of hooves and then a hail of arrows whizzed overhead in a deadly, skilled procession. Two wyverns dropped to the ground in the blink of an eye. A few others fell just as quickly. Easily.
"Aim…fire!" a strong voice called out. More arrows, more dead wyverns.
"Who—"
"Shadow Knights!" Cam snarled. Spinning around, I saw dozens of identical dusklings and dark tunics. The king's emblem adorned every piece of fabric. It was an army.
And there was only four of us.
We didn't even have the wyverns to help us now.
My heart slammed against my chest as I struggled to think. My friends all turned to face the sea of knights, wearing identical looks of hatred. A ball of fire scorched the earth right in front of the knight who seemed to be in command. His horse reared and nearly shied away in fear, but the knight was able to rein the animal in.
"Nice shot, Crossfire,” he said smugly. "You missed."
Cam's face was chiseled from granite. I'd never seen him so angry. "No shit, dumbass. That was a warning. You're damn lucky you're even getting that."
The leader raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Should I be thanking you?"
"No." Cam's voice had taken on a gravely rasp that both terrified me and slightly turned me on. "You should be running."
The sound of sizzling reached my ears. At first, I thought it was just Cam's fire collected in his hands, until I looked further down.
His cuffs. They were sizzling against his skin. The sleeves of his jacket had been eaten away by the sheer heat and the skin underneath was burned raw.
"I don't think I'll be running. At least, not until I have your head. Men, arrows at the ready." Dozens of men nocked arrows, the sharp tips glistening in the sunlight. All seemed to be pointing at Cam's heart.
Before I knew what I was doing, I nocked an arrow of my own and let it fly. A Shadow Knight just behind the leader's left shoulder fell from his horse, an arrow lodged deep in his chest. A small puddle of blood pooled under him and he lay still.
I felt nothing except the urge to protect Cam and my friends at all costs.
We needed to go. We hadn't even begun the plans Cam had set. We couldn't die here. I finally understood what he meant. It was either us or them.
"Amazing shot, Sunshine." Cam smiled, quickly meeting my eye before looking back at the leader, whose mouth was hanging open. He was just as surprised as I was. Not only had I just killed someone.
I had drawn first blood.
"Think you can do it again?"
I nodded. "Yes, I can."
The leader snapped his mouth shut, glaring daggers at me. "What the hell are you all waiting for?! Attack!"
We scattered, dodging arrows and duskling hooves, as the Shadow Knights descended upon us. I was thankful Ezra had packed my new quiver to the brim with arrows. I had a strong feeling I was going to need almost all of them. I heard yelling and looked around at the unfamiliar voices.
An army of villagers were running at us, wielding shovels, garden hoes, and an assortment of everyday tools that could be used as weapons. More than a few Shadow Knights had been taken by surprise and were now lying on their backs in the dirt, stunned, as their terrified dusklings took off running up the path that led into the mountains.
Jerri, the innkeeper, whacked one over the head with a giant pitcher before the knight could pull back his bow and embed an arrow into my back. He grinned at me. "It was all I had for a weapon on such short notice."
"Thank the Goddess," I replied, cursing myself silently for almost getting skewered by an arrow so carelessly.
I was able to take out ten more before
my arm was starting to tire. Sheathing my bow, I concentrated on the ground, willing vines to grow. A thick mass of green shot up from the dry earth, entangling a petrified duskling and restraining the rider. More vines, thick as tree trunks, swung wildly, knocking almost all the remaining knights off their dusklings.
Kat had one dagger sticking out of a knight's neck, her face streaked with blood, as she beamed at me. "That's my girl!" In a flash, she took out three more knights, her blades whirling like deadly batons.
Liam has another knight on the ground and was punching him senseless, his knuckles split open and bleeding. There weren't many left now. Most were dead, though more than a handful had run away, deserting their leader and comrades in favor of saving their own lives. I smiled to myself. We were so badass.
As I was running to help Kat fight off a knight who had jumped onto her back, an ear-spitting explosion caught my attention.
"You... Y-y-you're the devil! Get away from me!" The leader was on his ass, crawling backwards, desperate to get away as he screamed at the ball of fire in front of him. Cam was nowhere in sight. It took a moment of squinting into the flames to realize that that ball of fire was Cam.
"Get out of here! All of you! And I want you to tell King Artimis that I'm coming for him next." The demonic tone sent chills up and down my spine. It took everything I had to stay where I was as the ball of fire advanced, the grass burning to ash under his feet. My brain was telling me to run.
The knights did as they were told. They ran as fast as they could. Only the leader remained, too scared to do anything other than gape up at Cam as he stalked closer. Cam set a hand on the leader's head. The knight screamed in agony as the fire burned him mercilessly. Cam squeezed until I heard a sickening crunch, and the knight crumpled to the ground.
Cam wore a triumphant smile as the fire around him died down until I could see him clearly. I heard something metal hit the dirt with a soft thud. His cuffs. They weren't around his wrists anymore. He was free.
After a few seconds, Liam broke the stunned silence.
