Loi nodded in agreement. 'Right then.' She stood and brushed down her pants. 'Bring your weapons.' Grabbing her sword she marched out to the grassy knoll in front of them, the others following suit.
Sian stayed clear of them, wanting to practice with her bow first and while practice would just be with sticks so not to waste the quiver of arrows, she didn’t want to take out anyone's eyes. Roughly measuring out a distance of around twenty yards, she created targets out of piles of stones balanced on a waist-high boulder. Targets in place, she headed back to the starting mark and picked up the bow. Fitting the notched end of a stick into the string she took aim and released. The stick shot through the air and easily took out the lowest pile of stones. A thrill of delight ran through her at the accuracy and speed. A strong bow, she thought regarding the weapon in her hands with absolute pleasure, it almost sings when I release. Taking another stick, she slipped into the rhythm of the bow, time flying while she practiced.
Loi, who'd practiced kenjutsu for nine years, instructed Kassie and I with our swords and my daggers. First she showed a move and then explained the reasoning of it. Kassie and I then took turns in attacking each other. When Sian turned up to practice with my daggers, I realized in surprise that twilight wasn’t far off.
*****
The branches we used to make the shelter stunk, the distractingly pungent smell making our sleeping space feel even smaller. We’d created the shelter out of long slender fallen tree limbs, draping boughs of whatever that smelly tree was over the structure. Then we’d jammed the back of the shelter into the base of a tree, its large roots stabilizing the framework. A pretty basic design but it kept the wind out and might keep us dry. It’s just that smell, I thought with an internal groan, shifting my head over a makeshift pillow of leaves under my cloak which bunched uncomfortably. Sighing, I sat up to try and fix it, scrunching the leaves into a better shape. I re-fixed the hood of my cloak over them and lay down. Loi propped up on an elbow, watching with an amused expression. 'Can’t manage without a pillow?'
'Not yet anyway,' I rolled my eyes. 'But with leaves crunching in my ears all night I might learn to.'
'Why don’t you use Audi as your pillow,' teased Sian. Audi looked up at hearing her name then snuggled back down with Lucky.
'Shuuuussh,' mumbled Kassie, curled up like Lucky and Audi, snuggled down in her cloak. I sighed. Scooping the leaves up, I crawled to the entrance and dumped them out. I could learn to manage like Kassie. Crawling back to my cloak I stuck my tongue out at Loi, who still wore that amused look. Wrapping the cloak around me I pulled my knees up and tucked into the fetal position. Sleep came quickly and it must have been around midnight when Audi’s soft growl woke me.
What’s she growling at? Blinking, I peered around, the full moon made it surprisingly light in the shelter. I whispered her name and Audi crept to my side then gave another low growl. Placing a hand on her back I realized with shock that her fur stood stiff, like when she’d first spied the elgrids.
Oh God, what now? It couldn’t be anything little, considering Audi hadn’t raced out of the shelter to scare it off. Audrey wasn't cowardly but did seem to know when to hold back. With trembling hands I knelt and strapped on the sword and daggers. The rustling I’d mistaken for leaves in the wind sounded horrifyingly close and my stomach plummeted when I recognized the noise of bodies pushing through the undergrowth. Not again, I thought while goose-bumps rose over my arms, the village is half a day’s walk—there’s no way to make it back to the safety of those gates. Swallowing hard and trying to calm my breathing I crawled over to Kassie and shook her, placing a hand over her mouth. She mumbled then her eyes flashed open in shock.
'Shhh, something’s outside and Audi thinks it’s bad. Strap your sword on and get ready.'
She reached for her sword and I turned to repeat the process with Loi and Sian. We packed the loose gear into the packs, Loi placed them at the back of the shelter into the tree’s roots explaining, 'When we jump out we’ll pull the shelter down quickly so the packs are covered, we can dig them out later.' We nodded in agreement.
Kassie scooped Lucky up and draped the cat over her shoulders, wincing when she clung tight. Sian crouched at one side of the shelter’s opening and Loi at the other, with Cat and Kassie right behind them. Audi, pressed to Cat’s side, growled again. Sian nodded to Loi and they ducked, stepping out of the shelter with the other two following.
Loi turned back and with a hard kick, knocked the main supporting branch down. The roof collapsed covering the packs like she’d intended, she turned back to the others. 'Right, back to back until we sort out what we’re facing. Have your swords ready. If you go to strike, step forward so you don’t clip the person next to you.'
We stared white faced at one another for a moment then fanned out and peered into the forest. The rustling in the undergrowth stopped and odd noises began, soft snarls, whines and a strange husky grunting. I shifted into a fighting stance and pulled my sword out. The rustling and strange noises started again, moving nearer still. My eyes widened in shock at the number of creatures that stepped onto the path before us. Fuck. This wasn’t the few uglies Mentan and Lenol had warned us about, but a mass of them. I counted at least ten on my side and from the hiss of surprise from Loi I guessed that just as many stood behind us too. Fumbling with the straps, I wrenched off one of the daggers and reached blindly toward Sian. 'Sian,' I hissed. 'Take this.'
Kassie’s pulse hammered in her ears while she stared at them. Holy fucking hell, they’re so close! They had to be the freakiest things she’d ever seen; just under five foot, with broad shoulders and long arms that came close to touching the ground. They had large pointy ears that stuck out and an almost flat head with tufts of fur or hair. Their wrinkled faces had short muzzles, visible canines when they snarled and slanted eyes that glinted black in the moonlight.
I couldn’t take my eyes off them. All of them held weapons; maces, evil looking cudgels, pretty much anything heavy with spikes, blades or stakes. So not the welcome wagon, I thought grimly. The top heavy creatures would have looked almost comical if it weren’t for the murderous intent they readily displayed, swinging their weapons and grunting or growling to each other while keeping those beady narrow eyes locked on us. Beside me Audi snarled again, the fur around her shoulders and down her spine beginning to bristle. Staring at the number of them caused a horrible moment of clarity; surviving this is going to be a mission. Well then start planning, snapped the rational voice in my mind.
Right. I mentally slapped the silly voice that ran shrieking in hysterical circles in my head and locked it far away in my brain. Only sane sensible thoughts allowed. Frantic ideas for survival pinged about in my head and I jumped on the closest one. 'Loi, we should use Sian like a sniper, can you to get her to a safe spot?'
Loi groaned inwardly at Cat’s suggestion. 'Technically, I think I can, but that’ll start this.'
'It’s not like they have good intentions,' Kassie called softly. 'And someone has to start it.'
Loi tensed her stomach against the sudden urge to vomit and turned to look at Sian, who stared back with a stern expression. 'Let’s do this. The boulder behind us can be my starting point.' Sian bared her teeth in a vicious smile. 'I’ll shoot, you slash.'
Loi exhaled slowly, readying herself and nodded, pursing her lips. 'Let’s do it.' Her stomach felt like it plummeted to her feet when the two of them stepped away from Kassie and Cat, and began to walk to the boulder.
Kassie shifted closer to my back while we prepared to cover each other. I pulled the other dagger out and crouched, ready. The creatures in front seemed to take that as their signal and surged forward.
A huge sword, possibly a claymore, swung toward her. Loi jerked back out of its arc and before the owner could swing it again, lunged, thrusting her sword into the creature. Shuddering in disgust at the sensation of penetrating live flesh and the splatter of blood, she wrenched the sword out, watching the creature fall dead to the ground
. Adrenaline flooded through her, blacking her vision for a moment and she fought hard against the urge to run screaming from it all.
Kill or be killed, that's the way it works. Keeping that grim thought at the forefront of her mind, Loi swung her sword at the advancing creatures and focused on the boulder. Got to reach it!
Sian released an arrow and felt, rather than heard the thud when it struck a creature’s forehead. A wave of nausea swelled at the sudden realization she had just killed a living being. Snap out of it, her rational voice roared; this is survival of the fittest. Kill them! Thoughts on track, she wrenched another arrow from the quiver and shot a creature advancing on Loi. The boulder looked close enough now. With a quick cautious glance around she sprinted the final distance and scrambled up on it. Just in the nick of time, she thought, releasing a volley of arrows at the creatures surrounding Loi. Loi looked astonished at the sudden collapse of her foe and squinted in the semi-light at Sian. 'Thanks!'
Kassie and I fought back to back with Audi ducking around us, snapping at legs and darting away. I wished she’d stay out the way but knew she wouldn’t. Kassie hissed in pain. Alarmed I twisted to check on her. 'Kass! You right?'
'I’m okay,' she grunted slashing out with her sword, removing a creature’s arm. 'Lucky just took off up a tree and used my shoulder as her launch pad.'
I barked a laugh of relief and noticed Audi bound away to the base of the tree where Lucky hid. Loi appeared at my side. 'Glad to see you two are okay,' she yelled over the din of the battle.
'We’re good, so far. And Sian?' I hollered back.
Loi began to reply when a flash of lightning lit the forest. Oh crap, she thought when the rain started to pelt down. 'Sian’s good,' she bellowed and at that moment two more creatures dropped dead, the arrows in their heads quivering.
So I see, I thought, staring at the fresh corpses with revulsion. Huh, oddly comical looking, observed my rational voice; the bright feathers of the arrows almost looked festive sprouting from the dead creatures foreheads. The temperature began to drop and the wind picked up. All in all, this night seemed to grow darker, longer and nastier. Blood soaked the torso of my shirt, so far none of it mine and my arms seemed almost numb from the constant weight of the sword. If we survive this my arms will be black and blue. If we survive this, my rational voice thought; it’ll be a bloody miracle. Glancing at the others I saw the same drawn determined expressions while they fought and my heart thudded with dread while I stared around briefly. Thunder boomed overhead and I ducked without thinking—whoa, loud! Lightning lit the sky and the landscape, illuminating the creatures around us. Where the hell were they coming from? For every one I brought down, another stood in its place.
'Duck!' Loi yelled and she swung her sword over me, removing the head of a creature. I dove into a roll and slammed a dagger into the shank of a creature in front of me. It shrieked and swung an arm out, striking me across the head.
Cat yelped in pain and Kassie jerked around to see her stagger up from the ground then rip her sword up the torso of a creature. When she turned to retrieve her dagger from the body Kassie saw the blood running down her chin. 'CAT!' she shrieked in alarm.
'I’m bokay,' Cat yelled back, her voice oddly thick. 'It bade be bite by friggen thongue.' She spat out a mouthful of blood.
Sian yanked another arrow from the quiver and set it to the bow. Drawing, she quickly sighted and released, hitting a creature behind Kassie’s back. The feathers that sprouted from its forehead gave her a quick sense of satisfaction. It wouldn’t get up again. A hard slam to the back sent her sprawling off the boulder onto the ground. Sian jerked to the side just in time before a mace smashed down. Grunting, she heaved herself to her feet and whipped out the dagger Cat had given her, thrusting it into the throat of the mace wielder. Blood spurted from its mouth over her arm and it slumped to the ground dead. Grimacing in disgust she pulled the dagger out and spun around; nope, nothing on my tail yet. Glancing at the others, she saw a creature draw its sword back about to skewer Cat, whose attention appeared elsewhere. Cursing, Sian seized an arrow and had it off in a flash. The creature slowly toppled to the ground, revealing a surprised looking Cat. Noticing Sian with the bow drawn Cat gave a nod of thanks then moved back into the fight beside Loi.
Damn Sian's quick with that bow! That was too close a call for my liking. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Kassie feint a high jab then drop low with a slash and the innards of the creature she’d attacked spilled out. It uttered a horrific snarl. I felt Loi close to me. 'This isn’t going particularly well,' she muttered in a tight voice.
No really, I thought, I hadn’t noticed. 'Any better ideas?' I snapped. We looked at each other for a brief moment and saw the answer we already knew in each other’s eyes. What happens if we die here, I suddenly wondered. Do we return home and if so, are we dead? Hearing an odd noise from above, I risked a glance up. Lucky clung in the branches of a tree hissing and spitting at the creatures below. Audi resumed her guard at the base of the tree her fur fluffed up like a mane around her shoulders and neck. She snarled fiercely at any creature that came close but they appeared far more interested in us. I hope we survive, I thought, feeling desperation creep in. I’d feel so guilty if those two were left by themselves.
Kassie could hear her sensei’s instructions running through her head like a chant: thrust, block, step backward, step forward, duck, thrust, lunge. She went through the motions taking down creature after creature, relying on her quick instincts to move out of the way in time. An arrow whizzed past and a creature on the left toppled over dead. She turned to see where Cat and Loi fought and then gasped when the lightning illuminated their surroundings.
Directly in front of her a creature swung a huge battle axe closer and closer. She jerked back instinctively.
Kassie bumped into my back. 'Sorry, Cat!' she gasped, both of us lurching out of the path of a massive axe.
'Take that side,' I yelled and we lunged, hamstringing the axe holder. It uttered a horrible moan then toppled forward and Loi brought her sword down, beheading it. Above the din of the screams the creatures kept uttering I heard something strange. It almost sounded like a horn. I kept my focus on our surroundings, swinging, slashing, ducking and lunging; feeling like I operated on autopilot while we continued to fight. Then a creature in front jerked its head away. Excellent! I swung the sword around my head to build momentum. The creature’s attention snapped back to me and I only caught a glimpse of what might have been fear in its eyes before I removed its head.
'Something’s happening!' screamed Loi and she backed next to me. Sian and Kassie moved in too and we stared while the creatures ignored us. Keeping our weapons ready we watched in astonishment when those remaining pulled away. Loping on all fours like gorillas into the forest while screeching in alarm.
A strange noise caught our attention and we looked around in confusion. I heard it again and froze while listening. The deep rhythmic thudding sound felt like it resonated through my body and my stomach churned; not good, I thought, I can’t see a thing in this storm. Even the moonlight wasn’t visible now with the thick clouds that had rain pelting down. 'It’s getting closer,' Kassie whispered hoarsely. We stared at each other and a sense of dread crept through me. Audi stood frozen at the base of the tree and in the branches above Lucky clung, not making a sound. We realized the sound came from above and craned our necks staring upward. Straining my eyes against the darkness I couldn’t see a thing. Then a flash of lightning lit the sky.
HOLY HECK. My jaw dropped and I gasped in horror when five massive creatures landed around us, shaking the earth beneath.
'OH MY GOD. They’re griffons!'
Chapter Seven
All coherent thoughts went out the window. My eyes felt like they’d pop out of my skull.
Griffons—about the size of an elephant, with immense feline bodies, each flash of lightning revealed more; long tails lashing in agitation and massive wings folded at their sides, sharp inquisit
ive eagle heads surrounded by impressive manes. The five of them eyed us intently. Desperation flooded my limbs and my knees turned to water while I struggled to stay on my feet. Oh crap. What are we meant to do now? I felt the others quiver beside me.
'Greetings, can we offer you assistance?'
I gaped stupidly at the griffon; it could speak? About to lose it completely, I spied a shape perched behind the griffon's head. The griffon made a subtle gesture, dropping its foreleg slightly and the man casually slid to the ground in an obviously well practiced move. Still frozen in our gathered fighting position we tensed when he strode toward us. A tall imposing figure, he wore heavy looking armor and a cape flared out behind him. Another flash of lighting showed dark hair and dark eyes, his walk casual yet officious. Remembering then exactly how awful I must look, I made a quick attempt to neaten up. Keeping a firm grip on the handle of my sword I hurriedly wiped at the blood on my face with my free hand. Ouch! I winced, feeling the chunk I’d taken out my tongue. Out of the corner of my eye I could see the others doing the same. After glancing at Kassie and Loi I realized our efforts were pointless, we looked like actors from a horror movie; so much for first impressions.
The Arrival: An Epic Fantasy Romance Page 8
