“Agreed. I will set up a range in the yard. Should be easy enough.”
The rest of the night the two men talked about the younger one’s travels around the country. She recognized many of the places he described and the prospect of being at home filled Raven with hope and joy. Hopefully tomorrow she would get to see it again.
The night felt long and drawn out but she managed to sleep for a few hours before being shaken awake while it was still dark. The big man, Tarak, knelt down and released her bonds.
“Get up, woman.”
Raven felt compelled to follow the brash order. She rose to a seated position then rose to her feet. She stood before him, still and quiet, but her mind raced with all the possible ways the she could kill him in that moment. If only she could make her body respond to her mind.
“Follow me,” he said in a low voice and turned to exit the building. Raven had no choice but to go where her body led her.
The man was big, one of the biggest she had ever encountered east of Solotine, across the great Ocean. She wondered if he had any Solotinian blood in his veins. She quickly dismissed the thought when she remembered the slim Brother and that the two men were apparently blood brothers. Maybe a different parent? It would not be uncommon at all for that to be the case.
Her eyes darted around the grassy lawn which brought to mind many happy memories which were now tainted by the current events. Those two things, her eyes and her mind, were the only things she seemed to have control over and even her mind betrayed her, like when she told the slim one that she recognized their location.
That information would have been an advantage if I could have kept it to myself, she thought. Being brought along to scout could also be an advantage, even if she could not react in the moment, she could form a better plan of escape once the enchantment that kept her bound to the Sacred Blood clerics ended.
Sunrays cut like daggers through the lush canopy of evergreen trees, illuminating the forest before them. Tarak led them to an overgrown track which Raven recognized as the route to her uncle’s village. She began to get nervous when she spotted a familiar large, pear-shaped boulder. As a child, the sight of the peculiar, moss-covered rock used to bring her much joy as it marked the boundary of the village.
Dark thoughts filled her mind as she pictured being ordered by Tarak into battle against her own kin. Sure, her family would battle each other at feasts and gatherings but those were merely demonstrations of strength and prowess. She prayed silently, because that was the only way she could, that would not be the case.
Raven could feel her heart beginning to beat rapidly as Tarak led them off the track and into the thick brush. The going was much slower but they would have the deep shadows to cover their approach.
During her careful observations of her captor she came to realize that for all the time she was a prisoner, she had not spent enough time with this Brother to gauge his character. The other was a detestable, cruel human but this Tarak was another sort altogether. As they trudged through the thick underbrush, he captor would point out pitfalls and overextended branches. He had even gone so far as to offer her his hand when she slipped on a muddy incline. He showed her an odd amount of respect considering their positions which caused a great deal of confusion within her mind. She had an inclination that he was somewhat honorable when he forbade his brother from disturbing the two women during the long night, an act that Raven was most thankful for. Her time spent with him solidified that notion.
She began to observe him more closely, inspecting him carefully. He had discarded the heavy green robe and leather mask he was wearing during the battle that stole them to the other side of the world and it changed her perception of him greatly. When she first laid eyes on his true form, she thought he was more monster than man but now she was seeing him in a new light.
You cannot be attracted to this man! Look what happened last time!
Her mind betrayed her and brought memories of Jaers, the last man she had any interest in, as well as a traitor who turned out to be an agent of the Sacred Blood the whole time she knew him.
As part of her warrior training she learned to put up barriers against affairs of the heart but in recent years her training seemed to get away from her. The first had been Kai, before he changed and chased off after Rosalie. Maybe he was the one who broke the seal, so to speak. She had been ready to commit to him when, suddenly, he disappeared and when he returned, he had in tow the long-lost love of his youth.
Raven had been heartbroken, though she was very careful to not reveal her true emotions. She had been feeling vulnerable and lonely when Jaers came into her life. He was kind, attentive, and hardworking, as well as incredibly handsome. She had opened herself to him like she had never before to anyone else and it turned out that he had been lying to her the entire time, playing her for information and who knows what else. Lucky for Jaers, the slim brother took control of her before he revealed himself to her or she would have killed him on the spot. Instead, she was made to suffer in her own head while her body became another tool for the Sacred Blood.
“Stop. Get down.”
The order was delivered with a hasty whisper. Immediately her body responded by dropping low behind a thick clump of high grass. Her eyes moved wildly trying to pick up a source for the man’s distress but she could find none.
She waited intently for her next order but she was aware that her companion had moved on ahead, leaving her safely behind. A few moments later, he returned giving no thought to using stealth.
“C’mon, get up. Let’s go,” he said at a normal volume which led Raven to believe that he had found no reason to hide any longer. She found that was the case when he led her into the small village that she vividly remembered from her youth. But, this was very different from the village she could recall. What stood before her now was a dilapidated ghost town, perhaps abandoned at the same time as the Hope Spring temple.
“Do you know this place?”
Raven was compelled to answer honestly. “Yes.”
“Are we near the east coast?”
She did not know and told Tarak as much. Raven could see the frustration growing in his face but he masterfully kept his demeanor calm and collected.
“I suppose Solotine is a big place,” he said with a grumble. “How far are we from a major center?”
Another thing that Raven did not know. In her youth, she had no concept of time or distance. She remembered travelling a long way to get to the village and the temple but she could not say exactly where it was as she had left Solotine long before such things became important to her.
“South,” she said vaguely but it was all that she could offer. She could not say exactly where but she was almost certain there was a city somewhere in that direction.
Tarak grunted an inaudible response then ordered her to begin searching the town for anything they could possibly benefit them although it became quickly apparent that the villagers packed up all their belongings when they left. They went from building to building but found nothing useful.
The sun was bright and hot that day and both master and slave were sweating profusely. Raven felt fortunate that when she was captured she was wearing her light cuirass which left her arms bare from the shoulders down. She was also thankful that she had been allowed to remain in her armor for the entirety of her captivity thus far. She felt bad for Tarak who had a similar type of armor but wore a heavy black tunic underneath which left him drenched in sweat.
As if he could read her mind, Raven’s captor ordered her to stop when they came to the bank of a stream that ran through the small mountain village. He cursed the heat as he stripped off the heavy black leather chest piece and black wool tunic revealing a body that was as heavily muscled as it was scarred. Raven’s eyes grew wide as she watched the big man use his tunic to dry the sweat from his rippling muscles and she felt a lustful heat run through her body. She immediately squeezed her eyelids shut as she was filled with a deep, hurtful shame. Ho
w could she find this savage man attractive?
“Carry my gear,” Tarak said, barking at her as he pulled back his long dark hair and retied the leather strap that kept it back. He slung the loop of his black canvas bag over his shoulder but he left his armor and damp tunic for Raven to pack.
She could do nothing but obey his order. She slung his armor over her shoulder and followed him dutifully as he led her back toward the mountain staircase having given up on the village.
Along the trail back to the temple, Tarak saw a wild boar rummaging for food and decided that he was going to hunt it. He ordered Raven to go to the bottom of the staircase and wait for him.
Although she was compelled to follow his instructions, she would have gone willingly. Raven lugged the High Priest’s armor to the end of the narrow, overgrown trail which came out of the forest by the discreet staircase that climbed the mountain toward the heavens.
Being away allowed her the opportunity to calm her mind which had been raging while her body followed its orders. While she stood at the foot of the staircase, still holding the armor because he had not instructed her to put it down, she envisioned a hundred ways that she could kill him. She ran each scenario over in her mind and each one ended with his bloody death by her hand. Which gave her a pathetic sort of satisfaction.
Her body screamed in discomfort from the stationary standing position but she was compelled to follow his instructions explicitly which meant she had to “stand at the bottom of the staircase” and await his return. She had been standing in the same spot and planning the same plot for more than an hour when she heard a faint rustling coming from the trail.
The sound got louder and louder until Tarak came crashing out of the woods pulling a thick rope that was tied to the feet of a dead boar. Raven lost all train of thought as she became entranced watching the big man drag the heavy beast behind him as he jogged toward her. She could not help her gaze from falling on his thickly corded muscle, taut and slick with sweat as they strained from the effort.
“Got him,” Tarak said, a wide grin crossing his stubble-covered face as he approached her. He let the rope fall and bent to catch his breath.
Confusion filled her mind again as she briefly convinced herself that this beautiful, happy, charming man was not the monster that she knew him to be. She saw the way he had looked at her occasionally throughout the day. She could see there was a longing in his eyes, a longing for what a good woman could offer.
“Keep up. I want to butcher this thing before the sun goes down,” Tarak shouted at her which brought her mind out of the fantasy world. Predictably, she followed without question as he began a slow jog up the steps with the boar slung over his wide shoulders.
Raven’s raging mind was silenced as it was replaced by awe as she watched the man bound up the stairs, apparently unaware that he carried a significant weight upon his shoulders. She could see sweat pouring from his back but his pace was relentless. She followed as quickly as she could but soon fell behind. When she reached the plateau, Tarak had already handed the boar over to his brother’s care and was in the process of washing off the thick mixture of sweat, mud, and blood that covered his skin.
“Put my gear by the door and go to your cell,” Tarak said to her before handing her a bucket of fresh, clean water. “Take this with you. Drink and cool yourself off.”
She did as she was instructed to do, her body desperate for her to quench its thirst. She lay on the cool stone floor of her cell and allowed her body to relax but this allowed her mind to once again wander wildly as she tried to sort through her contradicting emotions.
After some time, the door of her cell opened and Tarak entered carrying a wooden plank stacked with slices of steaming meat. The smell immediately made her mouth water as she became aware how ravenous she was.
“You earned it,” he said gruffly as he dropped the makeshift plate on the ground by her feet. Before barring the door, he was sure to give her an order that would allow her to consume the meal. “Eat up.”
In that moment, she gave no regard to the fact that she resembled a starved wild animal. She tore chunks of meat with her bare hands and shoved them into her mouth as fast as she could chew. Her captor had given her such a significant portion of meat there was still some remaining after she decided that she could not eat another bite.
When she was done, she sat back against the wall and did her best to wipe the grease off her face and hands although there was no available surface that would be suitable for such a task. It was while she was attempting to accomplish this that Shayla popped into her mind.
I completely forgot about her!
Pangs of guilt shot through her mind until she inevitably realized there was nothing she could have done for the young girl anyway.
I can’t even help myself right now! Raven thought and slammed her fist against the cold stone floor in frustration.
It took her a moment to realize the significance of the action but when it finally dawned, her body shook with excitement.
Her control was beginning to return.
11
After the first few days, Kai’s hope of being rescued from the island began to wane. After the first week, it was gone altogether. He began to feel like the skeleton he found in his new home was in a much better place than he was.
“What should we do today?” he asked the pile of bones that sat in a basket he wove out of strips of soft wood. He placed the skull on top so he had a face to talk to.
When he first arrived on the island, the first thing he did was gather the bones and move them. He did not have a shovel and could not bury them so he just piled them up on the edge of the forest a short distance from the enclosure. He found them again as he wandered the area to relieve his boredom and brought them back to the shelter. He found it helpful for his mental state if he had something to talk to as opposed to just talking to himself.
Surviving on the island was a struggle but Kai felt like it could have probably been worse. It seemed the island had been home to more than one abandoned person over the course of time and the amenities were lavish for a deserted island.
He had easily found the signs Finnely had mentioned would lead him to the fresh water spring. The signs were carefully carved in stone and placed every ten meters or so. Someone had spent many hours carving the symbol that represented the ancient water god Hy’dy into each tablet of stone. The wear on the cuts of the tablets told Kai they were very old.
When he found the spring, he was pleasantly surprised to find there was also an abundance of fruit trees and bushes growing in the area so he did not have to worry about food. The spring was in a clearing with a small field that held the rows of trees that made up the small orchard. Someone had planted these trees many years ago as their trunks were thick.
Kai wondered why the shelter had not been built here but he figured from Finnely’s warnings that this area was not always so safe. He would make the journey to the spring every second day to replenish his stores at the shelter but always as early as he could so that he had the maximum amount of daylight.
The forest looked dense so Kai was sure to heed the advice and not venture away from the path at all although he was tempted many times to climb to the top of the mountain that rose in the center of the island in hopes of seeing farther. He talked himself out of the idea every time because he knew that if he did see a ship, it would take him too much time to reach the beach to light the signal fire.
When he first arrived on the island, he prepared his signal fires using the fire pits that were built into the beach for just that purpose, another clue that the island had been used for the purpose of desertion more than once before. There were three pits, as was traditional, each a wide circle of large rocks built up using a lot of dirt so the fire sat a meter higher than the surrounding area. He piled the cut wood he found by the shelter into each pit and lit them. He kept the fires going for three days before he let them fade in the interest of preserving his fuel. He used the
dried wood sparingly and spent much time collecting wood from the fringes of the forest. He felled a few trees to get more wood but it was a painstaking process using the few tools he had available to him. The wood was useless anyway until it dried but it gave him something to do as he waited to be rescued.
“If there are animals on this island, I will find them,” he said to the pile of bones he named Camdyn. “I must if I am to survive. I must save Raven and I must return to Rosalie.”
As he spoke the names, dread filled his heart. He tried to suppress any thought he had of never seeing his friend or his lover again. He would survive. He had to.
“I’m going up the mountain today, Camdyn,” he said as he belted his weapons. He strung the bow and pulled an arrow from the quiver, which was still full, with the lack of anything to shoot at. “I know what you’re going to say but I’ve made up my mind. If we are to survive here then I must go. Wait for me here.”
He gave the skull a pat as he opened the newly constructed door he made for the shelter. He latched the door behind him and set out toward the spring. He followed the usual route and found the spring as he had left it a few days earlier. He had noticed what looked to be an overgrown path on the far side of the small orchard so he thought today was the day he would investigate it. The path looked to be going into the heart of the island.
The brush was thickly grown in but at one point in time it had been a clear path. Kai used the hatchet to clear whatever was necessary for him to proceed along the way. Soon the path began to incline which Kai thought was a good sign until the path grew so steep that it became impassable. The path led to a sheer cliff face.
“Perhaps there was something here at one point but it’s been destroyed by time,” Kai said aloud.
Kai looked around the site and could see there was a great deal of rock build up around the base of the cliff. Perhaps a great earthquake shook the mountain so violently that the rock just crumbled away. His search paid off when he found a great boulder that was partially covered with brush. When he cleared it away to look behind it he found the boulder was carved as if it had been part of a broken statue. Many of the boulders had markings that indicated they had been, at one time, a part of a greater structure, one that was carved and created by man.
Dragon Flight: Sisera's Gift 3 (Dragonblood Sagas Book 5) Page 8
