She knew her hope was just wishful thinking--logic told her that she didn’t belong. In her own mother’s words, she was an abomination, a mistake that shouldn‘t have happened. No one would miss her, and the few that even knew she lived would be happy she was gone. That little bit of hope she harbored was the same thing as putting her bad foot down every now and then to see if it would hold her up. It wasn’t real hope she held on to, only the memory of something she had once thought possible.
She decided that she would do it tonight.
The day seemed a bit brighter now that she knew for certain what she would do. Picking berries stopped being a chore. She only had to gather what she wanted to eat today, for there would be no tomorrow. She got her berries and took in the scenery around her as she hobbled towards her next stop. She was glad to be outside, to see the trees and sky before her life was over. There were many in her mother’s realm that only saw cold, dead rock before they were killed. Running away hadn’t saved her the way she thought it would, but she took comfort in the beauty she found on the surface world. It was a small thing, but it was a victory. Tonight when she went to bed, she would dream of the trees and the large oceans of grass she had seen. Maybe if she dreamed about them hard enough, her spirit would stay on the surface and not be drawn down into the abyss, as her mother promised would happen. The only thing she hoped now was that souls remembered beauty.
Movement in the trees got her attention. The tall shape took form as one of her mother’s soldiers, the ones she called pilgyns. The pig-faced giant hadn’t seen her yet; it was only trying to keep the branches out of its face. Out of instinct, she searched its mind for what it was doing. What she saw made her eyes grow wide and her heart thump in fear. Another got her attention, walking behind the first. To one side, she saw yet a third. All of them were on the same task.
She hobbled back towards her hut, trying to mask her presence from the large creatures. They were simple-minded brutes, and their few wits were fixed on one thing. Find her and taking her back to Aliana.
***
Scorpio walked with one hand up to keep the branches off his face as they waded through heavy brush. He had the visor on his helmet down to stop the bits of leaf and twigs from poking his eyes out. Ahead of him, Odif seemed to just flow through the tangle, barely disturbing a twig. The people behind him had it a bit easier once he caught the larger branches and broke them back. He didn’t complain, fearing Odif might send him to the back of the line. The way she had been acting since she came back from Tolina, he was afraid to let her out of his sight.
From the moment she returned, Odif had acted very strangely. She barely said hello to him before she started working on a peculiar weapon. He wondered why she was carving a piece of wood into the shape of a dagger. Very intent on her work, she refused to let anyone touch it. That was bad enough, but as soon as she had it shaped the way she wanted it, he found her covering her newly carved wooden knife with her own blood. She healed the wound in her hand then made a fire and charred the blade until the outside was black. Next she sat down and drew it though the dirt as if sharpening it. That night, she stood with the abused object over her head in a thunderstorm. He didn’t see where the first lightning bolt hit, but he saw her get struck by the second. The lightning struck the wooden dagger she was holding, and her whole body glowed briefly before she collapsed.
Horrified, he had gone to help her, and she almost wrenched his arm out of the socket when he tried to get that damn thing out of her hands. The end came when she went to her morning ritual. She didn’t have the knife when she returned, but now she sported a wide gash under her ribs on the right side. She refused to heal herself, and wouldn’t let Mother Frieda touch her. Although the rip in her hide didn’t bleed, he did get her to put a bandage on it. He decided right then he was going to stay tight by her side.
As if hurting herself wasn’t enough, she insisted she had to go fight the demon she had finally told him about alone. According to her, she was one of the hammers the wizards had seen. Everyone tried to talk sense into her; but once Odif made up her mind, trying to sway her was like trying to move one of those large oak trees she loved so much. Zodiac couldn’t talk her out if it, and she became furious when Scorpio stated he was going with her. Then Mother Frieda decided she had to go, counting on holy presence to tip the scales. Shilo wouldn’t be left behind, which got Theo and Hutch to add themselves to the group. Jo-Jo said she would need his magic, at which Gloredaniel stated two wizards were better than one. Entaurus decided to go, and Porthalen, one of the elf sergeants, committed his squad to defend Gloredaniel.
By the time Odif left, she had most of the original Company with her. Zodiac was beside himself as he watched his friends march off on a fool’s journey.
In the weeks of travel since they left the main force, Scorpio had begun to think Odif had lost her mind. She didn’t look for the easiest route but tramped straight through whatever they came across. They slogged through marshes, fought their way through brambles and climbed up and down steep slopes through the wilderness. It seemed she was doing her best to discourage anyone from following her. Animals they came across seemed to give them “what-in-the-abyss-are-you-doing-here?” looks.
Still, neither he nor the others gave up. They all knew Odif was going to need help. Besides, in the past week or so, no one dared go off on their own--only Odif knew where they were.
Bumping into her brought him out of his thoughts. She turned to glare at him then raised a finger to her mouth as he was about to offer an apology.
“Get down,” she hissed, as she waved for the others to drop.
He knelt, watching her as she peered off into the trees ahead.
“What is it?” he whispered.
She turned to face them, speaking just above a whisper. “Pilgyns about a hundred yards ahead of us--I’m not sure how many. Porthalen, take two of the elves and scout ahead.”
“Won’t they see us?” the elf asked.
Odif shook her head. “They're heading to the left, like they’re searching for something. Stay behind them and find out how many there are. We’ll wait here.”
“Want me to fly over them?” Shilo asked.
“No.” Odif signaled to Porthalen to move. He indicated for one elf to go with him, and two others to check to the right. In a rustling of brush they were gone.
They squatted for what seemed to be an hour until there was new movement in the brush. One of the elves appeared in front of Odif wearing a satisfied grin. He gestured as he told her what they found.
“Off to the right we caught a wizard with the pilgyns. We shot him, and they didn’t even know he died. All the pilgyns are moving off that way, towards a field, it looks like. They’re coming together.”
“Did you see any of those explosive spears?” Odif asked.
He shook his head. “Sarge says a couple have globes, but if we sneak up on them we can set the damn things off on their belts.”
Odif considered doing just that. “Where is Porthalen?”
“About one hundred-fifty yards that way,” he said, pointing a little to the left of their track. “A little farther ahead is a stone wall; he told me he’ll wait there.”
Odif turned and stood up. “JoJo, Gloredaniel, take the elves and go meet up with Porthalen. Do nothing until I send out the insects then hit them with everything you got. Scorpio and Mother Frieda, stay with me; we’ll get ready to the left of them. Entaurus, Theo and Hutch, you get to the left of us. Shilo, go with them. Once they're set, fly over me. After we attack, do what you can to keep the pilgyns confused.”
Shilo grinned and rubbed his hands together. “All right!”
“Do we dare spread ourselves so thin?” JoJo asked.
“By the time they figure out where we are, they should be dead,” Odif told him then started out.
Following Odif when she was careful was not easy. Following her when she ran through the brush was nearly impossible. Scorpio had to use his shield to kee
p the whipping branches off his face. They hadn’t gone far when the brush lightened into woods. Ahead, he saw the stone wall; and the three elves kneeling behind it. He followed Odif as she bore left, getting down below the wall just out of sight of the elves.
He got his crossbow cocked and loaded a bolt as he watched the field. There looked to be twenty pilgyns surrounding a small log hut. They started jabbing at it and grunting as they gathered.
“What’s with that?” he asked quietly.
Odif shrugged and watched the sky. “As long as it keeps them busy, who cares?”
One pilgyn smashed down on the roof, caving part of it in. From inside, a woman screamed. Supporting his crossbow on the stone wall, Scorpio aimed at the back of one who was starting to tear down the chimney.
“Wanna hurry up with those bugs?”
A pilgyn reached into the hole in the roof then jerked his arm out, sporting a cut on his hand. They began to rip the hut apart. Inside, the scream became a wail.
Fearing for the woman in the hut, Scorpio became anxious. Looking up, he saw Shilo banking out over the field. The low humming of thousands of tiny wings grew as the cloud of insects flew over his head. Watching the pilgyns tearing apart the hut in earnest now, he settled his sights on one about to pull a wall down. The bolt sailed out to strike the giant in the back of his neck. It fell dead without a sound. A few seconds later, the swarm descended on the pilgyns, covering their faces.
No longer concerned with the hut, the pilgyns swatted and dug at their faces, trying to escape the tiny attackers. A forked lightning bolt from the right dropped two, and another from the left downed a third. Shilo dove into the confusion to crack one on the head, and then a spear of fire hit one that had staggered away from the hut. This one had purple globes hanging from its belt.
The detonation engulfed the pilgyn in a fireball that ripped it into burning bits and sent a shockwave to flatten the grass as it raced away from the explosion. Pilgyns were knocked off their feet--two fell into the hut, shifting the logs to a crazy angle as the remains of the roof were shredded by the blast. Three lay on the ground engulfed in fire, screaming and thrashing as they tried to put themselves out.
A figure ran limping from the ruined doorway. Her face was contorted with terror. Scorpio dropped another bolt into his crossbow and drew down on a pilgyn that had spotted the woman and was reaching for her. He hit it square in the forehead. It fell, and so did the woman as she tripped on something.
The explosion not only flattened the pilgyns; the air around the hut was full of falling bugs, also stunned by the blast. It didn’t take him long to figure out that soon the remaining pilgyns would be on this poor woman. She got up to run again and fell flat a second time. He left his crossbow as he drew his sword and vaulted over the wall.
“Scorpio, no!” Odif called, but he was already running towards the figure crawling for her life.
Another lightning bolt split the air then a bright white bar flashed by him. He dimly caught sight of Shilo diving down to hit another creature, as he focused on the woman. He closed on her, and she caught sight of him and turned to crawl away with a crying scream.
“No! This way!” he called to her. Seeing that she was headed towards a puffy-faced pilgyn who was squinting out of one good eye, he raced ahead of her and got between them. She hit him in the back of his legs in her blind flight. Not knowing what else to do, he pushed her to the ground. “Stay down!”
He moved to the side and set himself as the pilgyn charged. It was then he realized that he was alone out here, and too many creatures were still standing. A few were blinded by the insects, but too many saw him as something to fight back against. Another bright white bar lashed out, beheading a pair who stood close together. Unfortunately, neither of them were ones who could see. “Aww, shit,” he mumbled. There was no way he could get back himself, let alone take the woman with him.
He blocked the pilgyn’s axe with his shield, or rather he got it up in time to meet the blade. The impact tore it from his arm and knocked him down. The giant lifted its weapon and struck again. He rolled to the side, the blade ticking against his armor as it sank in the ground. He jumped up and stabbed under the thigh plate on the giant’s leg. It dropped its weapon with a loud roar then grabbed him and threw him, leaving his sword stuck in its flesh.
Scorpio hit the ground on his back, driving the wind from him. He couldn’t breathe and could barely move as the pilgyn picked up its axe and raised it high to kill him.
A shape flashed by the creature, leaving one of the long-handled halberds buried in its throat. It fell, clawing at the spurting wound as it kicked its legs. Above it, Shilo banked hard and dove down to grab the handle and yank it out. Blood poured out in a fountain and the kicks settled down into spasms as it died.
Scorpio managed to roll on his side as he struggled to suck in air. A short ways away, the woman looked at him from under a hood that was skewed partway over her face, showing a tangle of dark hair. He motioned to her and gasped, “Stay down!”
An explosion sounded behind him. He looked to see bits of tree cartwheeling through the air at the edge of the woods. That had been where JoJo and the elves were. Another globe sailed over his head. As he watched, Shilo flew up behind it and plucked it out of the air. He banked around and yelled, “Duck!”
Searching for the remaining pilgyns, Scorpio saw three were left. The one only thirty feet away was cocking back with another globe to throw. He knew what Shilo was going to do. Scrambling over to the dazed woman, he pushed her head to the ground and pressed himself as flat as he could. He felt the heat of the detonation; then the wind tried to lift him up and turn him over. He slid a few feet forward, which put the woman’s head under him. Dazed, he felt her pounding on his armor, attempting to get him to move. He had just enough energy left to hoist himself up and off. Lying on his back, he flopped his head over to see no more pilgyns standing.
Chapter 14
Sam sucked in a breath then coughed out the grass that had stuck in her throat. She was beyond understanding what was happening. Being chased by pilgyns was bad enough, but now she was in the middle of a battle straight from the abyss. Magic flowed heavily through the air, not only the kind her mother did but also a new energy she’d never felt before. She was familiar with the explosive globes and spears, as well as the cast magic from wizards. This new energy was different; it seemed to permeate the area.
The man who lay in front of her moaned and tried to get up then flopped back in place. She peeked up to see where the pilgyns would come from next; her jaw dropped when she saw not one was left alive. Her mother’s powerful soldiers were scattered amid the smoking grass and the remains of her hut. Whoever was here had just killed all of them.
A winged man flew down and pulled a sword from the leg of a dead pilgyn. Walking over to the man in front of her, he slid the weapon into the man’s scabbard and frowned at him.
“I think you just might be the perfect match for Odif. Both of you are nuts.” Looking at Sam, he beamed her a smile. “Hey, lady, you’re safe now, I’m here.”
She knew demons, but this man had feathered wings. “What are you?”
He gave a snort, as if she’d insulted him. “I’m Shilo, What else do you need to know?” Patting the chest of the man on the ground, he added, “And this crazy fool is Scorpio.”
Looking at the other man, Shilo curled his lips in around his teeth to sound like an old man. “The boy don’t got a lick o' sense in him.”
“Shut up!” Scorpio groaned. “That pilgyn was after her.”
“Yeah, and I had to come save both your asses.” Pointing up, he added, “I was watching her, and I had a better view that you did.”
Whoever these people were, she knew she had to get away from them as quickly as she could before one of them found out what she was. She moved to sit up, and pain shot from her bad ankle. Letting out a cry, she gripped her leg in an attempt to choke off the sharp pain.
“Whoa!“ Shilo e
xclaimed. Stepping over Scorpio, he helped her sit up and examined her.
Her ankle was turned out and broken; a piece of bone sticking out sported bits of dirt and grass. There was no way she was going anywhere on that.
“It’s bad, but Odif can fix it,” Shilo assured her then gave her a stiff pat on the back. His show of affection shattered the partially healed wing. She arched back and cried out anew.
“Oh, shit! I’m sorry, I didn’t know,” he said, his face turning red.
Squeezing her eyes shut, she tried to keep her head low enough to hide her forehead. “You just scared me,” she gritted through her teeth.
“Hang on, I’ll get help.”
Sam’s mind spun. What was she going to do now? She saw people coming out from behind the stone fence at the edge of the field. A pair of short, dark men walked beside a wizard in a blue robe. A heavy-set woman who wore the same brown robes as the priests who attacked her ran toward another wizard who was calling for help in the shattered section of trees . She sensed power from them--that’s how she knew the men were wizards. The woman held the opposite power from what her mother had.
The strongest energy, however, was not from any of them, but from the slim, hard woman striding towards her looking very angry. This one not only existed in herself, but in all the living things around her. She was the source of the insects that had attacked. Even though she looked human, all Sam could think of as she watched her approach was “wolf.”
Shilo stopped and pointed back towards Sam as he told Odif, “Help that kid, she’s got broken wings. I know that hurts like hell.”
As she looked at the wolf-woman, terror gripped her anew. The priests had hurt her badly, and they didn’t even have any power. The one she locked eyes with now was powerful enough to destroy a troop of pilgyns. The woman would crush her like an insect. With a howl of terror, she stumbled up, arms flailing for balance as she tried to escape. She didn’t feel the pain in her ankle as she tried to flee. What she did feel was the unfamiliar power flood over her. She tripped and hit the ground. Grass wrapped her tightly in place as the power surged though it.
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