CHAPTER 31
Seth
Seth awoke abruptly, feeling something was wrong. He scanned the small stone room around him in the dim light from the moons. He sought out his brother in the darkness and was surprised to see him looking in his direction. They both remained still, unwilling to move, listening into the night. A small thud sounded from the back of the cavern where the ceiling was lowest and shadows the deepest. Seth slowly turned his head towards the noise, not wanting to bring attention to himself with sudden movements. Garret had heard the sound too, but from his position on the floor had no way to look in that direction, and so remained intent upon his twin, awaiting a response or command.
He peered into the gloom unable to see anything, yet knowing that just beyond his vision, something lurked in the shadows. Something moved then, appearing as another shadow in the darkness. He had not noticed it until it moved. Now that he could see the difference between the object and the surrounding shadows he was able to make out more details about it. Whatever it was, it was crouching in the darkness on two legs. That ruled out most animals. It was doing something as well but Seth could not tell what. The creature had its back against the same stone Seth rested against, and so its gaze was not on him.
He slowly freed his hands from around Sara, careful not to disturb her, praying she would not wake. He still wore his belt, but from this position, with Sara in his lap, he was unable to either draw his sword or reach his dagger. He looked to Garret to see if his brother was still armed and noted at once that he was not. Remembering the previous night, Seth recalled both Ashton and his brother placing their items in the back of the cave where the creature now lurked. Seth peeled his eyes from his brother and again squinted into the darkness until he could distinguish the creature’s form once again. He located it, right where it had been, and now realized their predicament. The creature was rummaging through their packs, standing between them and Garret’s weapons. Seth looked around for something, anything, he might use to distract the creature long enough for his brother to regain his sword.
CHAPTER 32
Garret
Garret had suddenly realized what was going on. He watched helplessly as his brother’s eyes darted around the cavern, first to him, then back to their gear, back to Garret, then everywhere. Realization came to Garret just as Seth found their solution.
CHAPTER 33
Seth
Seth hadn’t found anything to distract the creature but, in fact, he’d found something better. Propped beside him was Sara’s pack, and leaning against it was her small crossbow. This was perfect. The crossbow sat on the opposite side of him from the creature, so whatever it was it would not see him reach for the weapon so long as he moved slowly.
Seth’s eyes on the creature, he reached out his left hand slowly. Finding the crossbow with his fingers he traced it top to bottom and frowned. It was not drawn, nor was it loaded. This altered his plan extensively. First he needed ammunition. The short arrows for the crossbow were in the quiver, belted to Sara’s waist. With his left hand, the one the creature wouldn’t see, Seth slowly traced Sara’s body, feeling a little guilty as he did so. Sliding his hand over and around her waist he located the quiver. Another setback. He could reach the quiver with his left hand, but the opening was facing off to his right, just out of reach. He would have to get an arrow with his right hand. He now knew where they were, and he was certain he could get one loaded in a fraction of a second if he could get the bow drawn. Still watching the creature, which remained oblivious, Seth again searched for the crossbow with his fingertips.
Finding it, he slowly, carefully lifted it away from the pack and away from the wall. Feeling it was far enough from anything to make any noise he flipped it over in his hand, turning it bow side up. Again he moved painstakingly slowly, bringing the crossbow to rest against the stone that made the wall behind him. He gingerly released his grip on the weapon, assuring himself it wouldn’t fall in his hand’s absence. It remained, unmoving. Maneuvering his shoulder and arm he was able to reach above the bow to the handle that was used to draw the cord. He gripped and pushed both down and back, one direction to keep it securely against the stone, the other to draw the cord. The awkward position he was in made it more difficult then it usually would be and he strained in the effort. Slowly, gradually the cord neared the catch, and Seth, unable to watch what he was doing, realized he almost had it when he felt the handle come to a stop. He had reached the catch. One more tiny push and the crossbow would be drawn. He pushed, and the catch caught with a click. Seth closed his eyes and froze. He heard the creature turn. He knew it was looking at him; he could feel its gaze upon him. Seth waited, afraid even to breathe. He listened intently to hear if the creature moved towards him. Worse than that, he heard something he recognized. The sound of steel on leather. The creature, it seemed, was armed. Seth at this point was not. Sara stirred slightly in his lap and Seth wished she would be still and not bring attention to herself. Seth listened. As he feared, he heard the creature take a step. The creature again paused as if watching and listening. Another step. Seth had to act. He knew if he waited until the creature got any closer, he wouldn’t have a chance.
In one moment, in a flurry of movement Seth opened his eyes, nodded to his twin, grabbed the crossbow and pulled it before him with one hand, while drawing an arrow out from beneath his blanket with the other. Looking to his hands he brought the bolt to the crossbow and seated it in place. He turned his head to find his target, but it was too late.
CHAPTER 34
Intruder
The very second Seth began to move, the creature raced across the small cavern raising his thin, wicked blade in front of him turning it over in his hand. He saw the man brandish a crossbow and so lunged at him with all his might. The creature knew it was a long shot. He would have to travel through the air an incredible distance to deal the man a death blow. Even so, he was already in the air, sailing forward, falling short. His attack would meet the man's leg or his lap if the creature was lucky. Maybe if he injured the man he would buy himself enough time to kill him and then the other two men before they were aware of him. The creature thought all this while still in the air, in a fraction of a fraction of a second. He was falling now and thrust his blade out before him, blade down. He would not reach the man's head or chest, but he would be able to drive the blade into his gut.
CHAPTER 35
Seth
Seth reacted the only way he could. The creature’s lunge had propelled him and his blade not to Seth, but to Sara. Seth did not think. He had no time for thought, instead he reacted. Rolling his body around, and turning his back to the creature, Seth shielded Sara from danger. At that moment the creature collided with Seth’s back. Seth felt the blade rip through his ribs, driven deep into his chest from behind. The wind was knocked from his lungs, and light exploded before his eyes. He was helpless. The creature regained his feet and drew the blade from Seth’s back. Seth screamed in pain. His scream was echoed in a roar from the back of the cave. Garret came racing, sword in hand, towards the creature. The creature spun and raised his blade to protect himself. Garret closed the distance quickly and swung his huge sword at the creature. The creature deflected his blow easily, sending Garret’s blade smashing heavily into the stone wall. Seth moaned in agony, rolling to his side. Garret regained control of his sword, just in time to see the creature lunge at him. Garret had no time to defend himself and Seth watched as he braced himself for the blow. Midway through the air the creature’s evil, tooth-filled grimace was replaced with one of panic and its blow went wild, missing Garret altogether. The creature hit the ground sprawling, the nub of a crossbow bolt sticking out between its ribs. It tried to recover, brandishing its wickedly curved blade and preparing for another lunge, but Garret had already moved in, his blade in motion. Seth’s vision went dark.
CHAPTER 36
Garret
With every ounce of strength he could muster, Garret brought his weapon to mee
t the creature in a sweeping motion. The beast succeeded in getting its own sword in the path of the oncoming assault, but such was the momentum behind the swing that Garret’s blade simply clashed against the beast’s own blade, sending it flying. Garret’s stroke made true to the beast’s ribcage, cutting clean through its side all the way to the spinal cord where it wedged between two vertebrae. The creature's eye’s rolled in their sockets as it hit the ground nearly cleaved in two. Garret couldn’t believe his eyes. He looked up to see not Seth holding the crossbow, but Sara. She shook from head to toe, the weapon slipping from her fingers and falling with a loud clang upon the hard ground. She dropped to her knees sobbing uncontrollably, wrapping her arms around Seth, trying to push him onto his side so that she could see his face. Ashton was there then, helping Sara roll Seth’s limp body over. Garret stood frozen, not knowing what to do, what to feel.
Garret watched as Ashton felt Seth’s neck first, and then placed his ear to Seth’s face, listening for his breathing. Assured of something he then climbed over Seth to assess his injuries. Grimacing at the grievous wound upon his friend he dropped to his knees immediately as he had done before, and raising his face to the heavens he prayed. He prayed longer than usual and Garret found this annoying. How much time did he think he had? Ashton finished his prayers and turned his gaze down to his fallen friend. He placed both hands over Seth’s wound and began chanting. Louder and louder, faster and faster the chant continued. First Ashton’s fingers exploded in light, then his hands, then his entire body. As Garret had seen him do before, Ashton began to tremble. This gradually worsened until he began to shake violently. Even through his intense spasms Ashton continued, controlling, bending and twisting the goddess’s power to his will. Unexpectedly his convulsing suddenly stopped. He had pushed past his limitations and continued until he lost consciousness.
Garret stepped nearer as Ashton collapsed on top of Seth. Surprisingly, Sara did not notice as she cried uncontrollably, oblivious to what was happening around her. Only Garret was there to bear witness, his entire body numb. He reached down, grabbed Ashton’s limp body by the shoulders and dragged him off his brother. He lay him on the ground a few feet away, on his back. Garret then knelt down beside his brother, looking at his blood-drenched clothing. He peeled back his brother’s shirt. The wound remained, still bleeding. Ashton had failed. Knowing little about medicine, Garret removed his shirt and tied it around his brother’s torso tightly to stop the bleeding. Sara sat, Seth’s head in her lap, crying over his face. Tears rained on Garret’s twin. He sat down on the floor between the unconscious form of his friend and the dying form of his brother. Sitting there, unmoving, he showed no sign of emotion, no intention of ever regaining his feet. Garret was numb, lost in his subconscious.
Garret was in fact dimly aware of his surroundings. From his peripheral vision he could see Ashton lying to his left and Seth to his right. He could hear the continued sobs of anguish from the small girl just out of his sight and he tried to ignore them. Ashton was alive, this much he knew. The healer had overexerted himself somehow and passed out. Seth, on the other hand, was probably still bleeding; bleeding slowly to his death. Garret was helpless. He sat, unblinking, unmoving, barely breathing himself. He did not know how long he sat there but it seemed like an eternity. Then, as if from nowhere, Sara’s wailing was interrupted by a cough. Garret raised his head, this new sound confusing him. He realized the girl’s relentless sobs had come to an abrupt stop.
Garret forced his mind to focus, and regaining control of his body, he turned to see if she too had passed out. But Sara sat unmoving, turning blue, refusing to breathe. The cough came again and Garret saw Seth’s body jerk in unison with the sound. He stumbled to his feet, to better see his brother’s features, to be sure he hadn’t been mistaken. Sara still did not breathe. Garret looked to his brother’s face, cupped in the small hands of the girl. On Seth’s lips and on the girl’s hands lay small droplets of blood. Seth coughed again then, spraying more blood across Sara’s hands. She finally took a breath, but only one as she stared at the face she held. Again a cough, but this time Seth’s eyes moved beneath his eyelids. Garret and Sara now both watched him, un-breathing, waiting for another sign of life. It came suddenly, though it was not another cough as they had expected. Seth’s body jerked suddenly, violently. His appendages thrashed about for a moment and then he was still again. Another cough followed, this time spraying an entire mouthful of blood into the small woman’s hands. She sobbed again, gasping for air, and then was silent once more. Seth moaned. It was an agonizing sound, a sound not of the living, and it sent shivers down Garret’s spine. The moan was followed swiftly by another round of coughs. This time, it was several in rapid succession. These coughs were more powerful, from somewhere deeper down.
CHAPTER 37
Seth
Seth opened his eyes, a panicked look on his face. He looked towards Sara and then away, his eyes unable to see, unable to focus. He tried to move but found he couldn’t make his body cooperate. He was having trouble breathing and tried to clear his throat. All that escaped his lips was a gurgle. His vision again started to go dark and, as he found himself fighting for air, it dawned on him that he was drowning.
CHAPTER 38
Garret
Garret heard the gurgle and, seeing the blue tint on his brother’s lips, understood the situation. Dropping to his knees, he again pushed his twin onto his side. Careful to avoid his wound, he struck Seth several times between the shoulder blades with the palm of his hand. The gurgle came again, followed by another fluid sound. Seth vomited blood, spewing it everywhere, but as he did he gulped air. He was wracked by coughs again and again, but he was breathing.
CHAPTER 39
Seth
Seth’s vision began to clear and feeling returned to his extremities. He lay on his side in a pool of his own blood when his eyes finally were able to focus enough to make out Sara. She sat in front of him, holding his head. Tears streamed down her face, a face that was twisted in pain, a face that was one of an angel. Seth looked into her eyes, and willing his lips to move, was able to whisper brokenly.
“Are you…” Seth was shaken by another round of coughs before he could continue. “Are you OK?” This time he was able to complete his question before the coughing spasms overtook him.
Sara waited patiently for Seth’s coughing to subside, and waited still for his eyes to reopen. When they did she was smiling at him warily, stroking his hair away from his face. Seth knew not how close to death he had come. He knew only that he was afraid that the blade of the evil creature had pierced completely through him and had injured Sara. He was afraid he had failed to protect her. Seeing her smile, knowing she was all right, Seth relaxed and let unconsciousness take him.
Chapter 40
Sara
Sara used the last of her water to wash Seth’s face and then her hands. She sat, as always, with Seth’s head on her lap, gently stroking his face with her fingertips. Seth remained unconscious, but his coughing had subsided and his breathing came easier.
Garret had told her earlier in the day the story of that morning. He told it from a third person’s point of view as only Seth knew all the details. But one thing would be the same no matter who told it. Seth had used his body to protect Sara. He had used his body as a shield to keep the blade from her sleeping body. Seth had nearly lost his life trying to protect her from harm. That thought alone brought a storm of emotions to her heart. First and foremost she was filled with gratitude and love towards the man who now lay in her lap, but she was also angry. What kind of fool was he to nearly kill himself to protect her? What could possibly make him think that her life was more important than his own? But that aside, Garret had also thanked her for probably saving all of their lives. Sara barely remembered the events of the morning. It already felt like a lifetime ago. At the time she had been barely awake enough to create any conscious memories of the events. All she could vaguely remember was Seth’s agonizin
g scream, the feel of the crossbow in her hands and Ashton passing out.
Ashton was awake now. He had come to sometime during the afternoon. He was barely able to move since he had weakened himself almost to the point of no return. Garret had dug through their belongings and forced Ashton to eat what few scraps of food they had left, hoping he would regain some strength.
Ashton began to recover quickly after eating. He explained that though he was unable to completely heal Seth’s wound, he had been able to repair his friend’s lung and heart before he had blacked out. He had regained enough strength at one point that he half crawled to Seth’s side, and praying to his goddess, started a low chant, sealing what remained of Seth’s wound. Again he had drained himself, but he was still able to sit without any support, and he did so now. In predominant silence, Sara sat with both the resting forms of Ashton and Seth, hoping that soon they would be back to their normal selves.
CHAPTER 41
Garret
Garret was doing his best to keep himself busy. He knew that nothing passed time like doing manual labor. Dragging the creature, which Ashton had identified as a goblin, out of their shelter, he claimed from its corpse a few coins and the twisted blade. It was a gruesome looking creature. It had dark green, muddy looking skin streaked with stripe-like patterns of black. It had no hair, not even on its oblong head that was split in two by a wide mouth filled with razor sharp teeth. Its eyes, now rolled back into their sockets, were an eerie yellow color. It resembled a human in the fact that it too walked on two legs and had two arms with hands, but that was where the similarities ended. Its appendages were unnaturally long and its torso incredibly small. It was a lanky, gangly creature to say the least.
Age of the Gods: The Complete, twelve novel, fantasy series (The Blood and Brotherhood Saga) Page 11
