Burning Shadows

by Jennifer Anne Davis

  Something tried to drag me away from him. It had to be the poison, spreading through my body. Kneeling next to the cot, I placed a hand on Morlet’s cheek. His blue eyes opened, and he tenderly smiled. My vision started to blur, and I feared we’d lose our connection. “I need your help,” I whispered. “Please.”

  He immediately sat up and pulled me onto the bed. “What happened?” he asked, examining me. Upon seeing my back, he hissed. “Who did this?” he demanded.

  “A fugl attacked me.”

  Without uttering a word, he stood and pushed me onto my stomach, ripping the shirt clean off my back, exposing my wounds. He muttered a few words, and then the entire room erupted in a blue glow. His magic slammed into me, my back arching at an unnatural angle. It felt as if my skin were on fire, and I screamed in agony.

  The sensation abruptly ended. Cold liquid gradually spread through me, starting in my toes and moving upward. When it reached my torso, I felt the skin on my back close. Morlet touched my head, and his magic withdrew from me, returning to him. He folded to his knees.

  “Thank you,” I mumbled.

  “I’m not done,” he said, breathing heavily. “I healed your injuries and extracted some of the poison while containing the rest.” Black shadows glided over his skin, disappearing and reappearing in quick successions.

  “What’s happening to you?” My hands clung to the sheets, squeezing tightly.

  “It’s the poison,” he said, gasping as the shadows caressed his skin. “Just… give me a moment.”

  “Can I help?”

  Shaking his head, he clenched his hands into fists and hunched over. Again, he started speaking words I didn’t understand—ones from another language—words that sounded harsh and grating on my ears. This time, he didn’t send his magic to me. Instead, his skin glowed soft blue, as if there were a bright light beneath it, sending the shadows into a frenzy. The light flashed brighter, and then disappeared, taking the shadows with it. Morlet sat on the ground, his brow covered with a sheen of sweat.

  Was he okay? When he’d previously healed me with his Heks magic, it had taken him some time to recover. The more serious my injuries were, the longer it took him to rebound. I’d never seen the black shadows before. I assumed the more Heks magic he used, the weaker his body became—like me when I exerted a lot of my power. So what was happening to him now?

  “I need to remove the rest of your poison,” he mumbled.

  “Can your body handle it?”

  “Yes.”

  “Why didn’t you remove it all before?”

  “Too much.”

  “How do you know there’s still poison in me?” My vision no longer blurred, and I felt more energetic.

  He pointed to my arm. My skin had a green tint to it. Still kneeling, he placed his hands on my bare back, tracing the healed marks from where the fugl had ripped my skin open, while chanting words I didn’t recognize. Something in me responded, and my back tingled as if thousands of sewing needles lightly pricked it. Morlet kept chanting. Suddenly, it felt as if the needles pierced my skin and began sucking the poison out. His words grew in volume, increasing the pulling sensation. He uttered the last word, and silence fell over the room. The pain vanished, and I relaxed, a sense of calm filling me.

  Morlet coughed and collapsed on the floor. He curled into a ball, his body shaking and drenched with sweat. I tried pushing myself up in order to help him, but I couldn’t move. Morlet continued to mumble unintelligible words while lying on the ground.

  “Open your eyes, Kaia,” Anders anxiously said. “You’re healed. Come back to me.”

  Anders must be trying to wake me up. But I was stuck here, unable to move or return my consciousness to my body.

  What was wrong? Maybe Morlet didn’t extract all the poison. I couldn’t speak to let him know my suspicion. Fear took hold, and my heartbeat pounded in my chest.

  Morlet clamored to his knees. “How are you feeling?”

  I wanted to scream that I was stuck in an unresponsive body.

  “Kaia?” Gently placing his hand on my face, he searched my eyes. “What’s wrong?” He lifted my arm and let it go, watching it plunk to the cot. “I removed all the poison and healed your wounds. What else is there?” Standing, he paced about the room, muttering to himself while rubbing his hands together. “I have an idea!” He ran out of the tent, leaving me alone.

  “Kaia,” Anders said, his voice filled with desperation. “What’s wrong? Why aren’t you coming back to me? You’re scaring me.”

  My chest tightened and breathing became difficult. Blackness hovered at the edges of my vision, and my stomach rolled with nausea. Was I going to die? I couldn’t die like this. Not after Papa’s sacrifice. Not when so many people were counting on me. I had to survive this.

  Morlet burst into the tent, carrying a small wooden cup steaming with white foam. “This isn’t going to be pleasant, but I must get this in your body.” He set the cup down and carefully rolled me onto my back, propping my head up on a pillow. Grabbing the cup, he placed it against my lips, pouring the contents inside my mouth. Raging hot fire scorched my throat, searing everything in its path as it extended to my limbs, making me silently scream in agony. I had to survive. I couldn’t die now. Yet, it was so painful I wanted to curl into myself and let the poison take me, just so the agony would end. The fire vanished as if doused by cold water, and the pain instantly disappeared. I could move again. I groaned and rubbed my sweaty face.

  Morlet closed his eyes, his shoulders slumping forward. “You’re okay,” he mumbled.

  “Thank you,” I whispered, knowing he didn’t heal me simply because I was a Kriger. There was so much more to it than that.

  Morlet helped me to a sitting position. My shirt started to fall forward since the back had been torn open, so I clutched the fabric, holding it firmly against my skin.

  His eyes never left my face. “Every time you come to me, something inside me reacts. I don’t know how to explain it other than we must share a bond.” He shook his head, sitting on the bed beside me. “I don’t understand it.”

  I knew exactly what he meant because the feeling was mutual. The curse somehow linked us together.

  “How are you feeling?” I asked. The shadows hadn’t returned to his skin, yet he still looked pale.

  “I’m fine.” His eyes never left mine. “What about you? Does anything hurt?”

  I couldn’t stay here with Morlet when he was so vulnerable, so normal, and so human. “I’m healed, thanks to you.” But my heart ached. I leaned forward and kissed his cheek before forcing my consciousness to return to my body.

  I woke up lying on Anders’s lap with his arms wrapped around me, tears in his brown eyes. “You came back,” he said, his voice trembling with emotion.

  I reached up and touched his stubble-covered chin. He closed his eyes, leaning into my touch. “Morlet managed to heal me,” I said, withdrawing my hand. “It took a while to cleanse the poison from my body.”

  “I was so worried he wouldn’t be able to help you.” He pushed the hair off my forehead. “I hate being grateful to a monster.”

  I gingerly sat up, the air caressing my exposed back. Anders handed me a blanket, and I wrapped it around my shoulders, reveling in its warmth. Morlet wasn’t a monster—the evil Heks magic inside of him was. Desire to be near Morlet flooded me, and I shoved that emotion away.

  “Is everything okay?” Anders asked. “You seem a bit unsettled.”

  “I’m always unsettled after visiting the king.” I forced a placating smile on my face.

  ✧

  I remained in bed for the next three days, Vidar, Henrik, and Stein fussing over me. I hadn’t told them Morlet healed me—besides Anders, no one knew that was even possible. They would never understand my connection to the king, and it wasn’t something I cared to discuss. As far as they knew, I healed myself. However, they insisted I rest to ensure a full recovery.

  Anders sat next to me, handing me a cup filled
with water. Commotion ensued near the cave’s entrance.

  “What’s going on?” I asked, taking a drink and setting the cup down. Vidar and the Krigers huddled around something.

  “Vidar returned a few minutes ago with a girl by the name of Damaris,” Anders responded.

  “Who is she?”

  “I don’t know.”

  Vidar ushered the girl to the fire in the center of the cave. She wore commoner clothing. Her stringy, blond hair hung limply around her face, making her look about eighteen years old. Damaris clung to Vidar’s arm; her eyes had a wild gleam to them.

  “Let’s find out what’s going on,” Anders said, helping me to my feet. Everyone stood in a loose circle around the blazing fire. Henrik and Stein moved over, making room for Anders and me.

  “I want you to tell everyone what happened,” Vidar said.

  The girl seemed unsettled as her eyes darted around, taking in the thirteen men and one woman assembled around her. “I’m here on behalf of Cyrill,” she said, her voice barely audible, her hands clutched together.

  She bit her bottom lip and looked at Vidar. He nodded for her to continue. “He learned that the King’s Army is near a large village in the town of Bakke. They plan to burn the village, to kill everyone.” Damaris looked around at us again. When she saw me, her gaze became piercing, and I gasped, feeling a certain familiarity with her, yet knowing we’d never met before. She quickly glanced away.

  “Cyrill was arrested and is sentenced for execution for obtaining this information.” Her eyes filled with tears. “Cyrill is… a relative of mine.”

  “Who is Cyrill?” I whispered to Anders.

  “A spy for our organization. He was in the apartment the night we planned the Krigers’ rescue.”

  Vidar folded his arms across his chest. “We’ll do what we can to save the village and Cyrill.”

  “Thank you,” Damaris replied, wiping her eyes with the end of her sleeve.

  “Do we know when the execution will take place?” Marius asked.

  “Three days from now,” Damaris answered.

  “How long will it take to reach Bakke from here?” Stein inquired.

  “Traveling fast with minimal rest, two days,” Vidar replied. “If the King’s Army is already there, they could attack at any time.”

  And we’d be too late, like the last time we tried to warn the villagers.

  “We’ll have to split up,” Anders said.

  “We’ll break into two groups,” Vidar said. “I’ll give you your assignment tomorrow. For now, everyone needs to rest.” The Krigers disbanded, going to their bedrolls. Vidar took Damaris to where the extra supplies were located in the back of the cave.

  I headed over to my own bedroll, lying down. Damaris placed her bedroll not far from mine.

  Vidar knelt next to me. “You need this more than I do.” He handed me the medallion.

  I took it, placing it around my neck. Thankfully, Morlet hadn’t communicated with me since he’d healed me. I suspected he was exhausted from the effort and needed to regain his strength. “Thank you,” I replied.

  “Are you well enough to participate in one of the missions tomorrow?”

  I rolled my eyes. “I’ve told you I’m fine. Stop treating me like a baby.”

  He smiled. “Well, you are a girl.”

  “Thank you for pointing out the obvious. However, I’d also like to point out that, as a girl, I’ve bested you while sparring on more than one occasion.”

  Vidar chuckled. “There’s the Kaia I know and cherish.” He stood and joined Anders near the fire.

  Thankful I had the medallion’s protection and I wouldn’t have to face Morlet tonight, I fell into a deep slumber.

  I ran, my breathing steady, my footsteps purposeful. There were only four of us. Four tasked with saving an entire village. Hundreds of lives depended on Anders, Stein, Henrik, and me. We had to make it to Bakke before the King’s Army attacked. Not only that, but we also had to warn the people and evacuate them to safety. When I questioned Anders on how we’d do that, he told me he would figure it out on the way there.

  We set out with minimal provisions early yesterday morning. I feared Henrik and Stein couldn’t maintain the grueling pace Anders set. However, they had volunteered for this job and seemed as determined as I was to save the villagers.

  While the four of us headed east, Vidar led a small group of three Krigers to the capital to save Cyrill. Before we parted ways, Vidar expressed concern about me going on the mission; however, I assured him I was healthy, and Anders promised to watch over me. I told Vidar my suspicion that the king wasn’t in the capital but rather with his army since I’d communicated with him in a tent. Armed with the medallion that shielded the wearer from magic, I was willing to face him if need be. Vidar insisted that if we saw Morlet, we leave the area. He’d made us swear an oath we would do so. Given the fact that Anders was bound to Vidar and had to follow his orders, Vidar finally relented and let me go on the mission.

  We alternated between walking and jogging, only stopping for a few hours to eat and sleep. When one of us faltered, Anders reminded us of what we were running toward—the men, women, and children we had to save from a gruesome fate. Then, suddenly, we had energy to continue, to endure, to keep up the rigorous pace. The sun was high in the sky as we made our way through the forest on the second day.

  My hands pulsed with a dull pain. “Wait!” I stopped. Anders, Henrik, and Stein slowed.

  “What’s going on?” Henrik asked, walking back toward me.

  I shook my head and searched for danger lurking nearby. Not seeing anything, I put my hands out before me and slowly turned in a circle, just as Anders had taught me to do. A pull came from the east. “Are we near Bakke?”

  “It’s a mile from here,” Anders answered.

  “I think the King’s Army is close by,” I said. “In that direction.” I pointed to the right.

  “Why do you say that?” Stein asked.

  “I can sense danger nearby.” It could be an animal, but, most likely, it was a camp full of soldats or the army on the move.

  “Impossible,” Henrik muttered.

  I didn’t want to argue with him, so I looked to Anders. “We have to outrun them.” The four of us could travel faster than an army of men in formation who carried supplies.

  “Then let’s pick up the pace.” The four of us sprinted, Anders leading the way.

  I remained acutely aware of the throbbing in my hands. “There’s something up ahead and to the right,” I called to Anders. He veered to the left, skirting around the unknown danger.

  “You can feel that too?” Stein incredulously asked.

  “My hands alert me to danger.” The first time I’d felt it, I hadn’t understood what was happening to me. “Actually, it’s the power within me responding to the danger, begging to be released.”

  “Through your hands?” Stein asked.

  “Yes. Or my weapon.” I reached back, touching the smooth wood of my bo staff strapped to my back. Jumping over a fallen tree trunk, I pushed myself further, harder, and faster than I’d ever done before. The people in the village would not burn—we would save them.

  “The village is a half mile to the north,” Anders said, not slowing. “We’ll split into two groups. Tell everyone you see to evacuate and take shelter in the forest. Any able-bodied men you come across, ask them to help spread the word.”

  “Kaia,” Henrik puffed, “do you know how close the army is?”

  I focused on the painful sensation in my hands. It wasn’t any worse than before. “I don’t know.” If they were close enough to attack us, my palms would feel like they were on fire. I hadn’t reached that point yet.

  “Assume we have a ten to fifteen minute lead over the army,” Anders said.

  “That’s not much time to evacuate everyone,” Henrik replied.

  My legs burned, and my side cramped, but I didn’t stop running.

  “There it is,” Anders said
. Up ahead, sprinkled among the trees, was a village blending in with the towering, brown trunks. “Stein and Henrik, go to the east end and tell people to evacuate to the north. Go!” The two of them veered to the right.

  I remained with Anders, and we went to the left. A few people who were out and about saw us running toward them.

  “The King’s Army is coming,” Anders shouted. “Save yourselves.”

  We entered the village, sprinting down a street bellowing at people to evacuate. People poked their heads out of windows to observe the commotion we made.

  “Soldats are coming to burn the village,” Anders hollered.

  “Go north,” I shouted. “Hide in the trees!” People immediately responded and took off running in the direction we indicated.

  We turned down another street, continuing to warn villagers. We reached the main road leading down the merchant sector. It was filled with vendors selling goods. We told everyone we saw to leave the village immediately.

  Chaos ensued as people ran every which way, trying to flee the village.

  “We have to make a stand,” I said to Anders. “Face the army, so these people can have more time to escape.”

  Anders ran his hands through his hair. “It’s suicide. Besides, if Morlet is here, we have direct orders to leave.”

  “We only have minutes until the army arrives,” I said, noticing the pain in my hands had intensified. “Even if everyone is out of the village, they won’t have gotten far enough away. We don’t know for a fact Morlet is here, so until you actually see him, we are staying.”

  Most of the homes were single-story wood structures—ones that would easily burn. If we managed to buy these people enough time to run and hide, we probably wouldn’t be able to stop the king from incinerating their homes.

  “You want the four of us to take on the King’s Army?” Anders shook his head. “You’re insane.”

  “But in a good way.” I smiled, thrilled he was considering my suggestion.

  “Fine. We’ll do it.”

  I threw my arms around his neck, hugging him.