by Jen Wylie
* * *
By the time the men returned, the sun had nearly set, staining the sky with pink and red. Kei followed Bo and Cain, making her wonder if he had gone to meet with them at the south gate.
"So what's the word?" She leaned forward, trying to read how things had gone from the expressions on their faces.
"Gates are all too well guarded," Cain answered.
"Even the smaller side gates," Bo added with a scowl. "Men are patrolling the walls. The streets as well. Civilians have been ordered to stay within their homes."
"Rot it," she muttered. It made sense, but didn't help them at all.
"From what we heard there is a small army setting up camp outside the south gate," Bo said. "Kei will see what he can find out tonight."
She looked over at Kei in alarm. "You're not..." She stopped when he shook his head.
"Darkness doesn’t hinder my sight much," he reminded her. "I'll be able to see from the walls."
Letting out a deep breath, she nodded.
They ate, the men talking in whispers about the city’s few defenses, the soldiers they had seen in the streets and lining the walls. Darkness fell and they grew quiet, resting in the shadows, waiting for the city to go to sleep.
She wrapped her arms around her legs and rested her forehead on her knees. Squeezing her eyes tightly against threatening tears, the sudden urge to hit something rose within her. Knowing she was being irrational didn’t lessen her spiraling emotions. Falling apart in such a situation was the worst thing she could do, yet she couldn't seem to stop herself. No wonder they treated her like a child.
A hand settled on her shoulder. Knowing it to be Prince, she shrugged it off and leaned away so he'd understand she wanted to be alone.
Her thoughts circled uselessly in her head. She tried to calm herself, to regain control and be rid of the insane fear and panic haunting her. At some point she drifted off to sleep and dreamed of the Dragos, Damon. He smiled at her, taunting, asking over and over again, "Are you broken?"
When she started awake she saw Kei had already left. Clouds drifted in the night sky causing the faint light of the stars and moon to wink in and out. Leaning her head back against the stone wall, she rubbed at her eyes. Waiting, not knowing if he was safe, left her trembling inside.
Kei returned, his face grim. His appearance didn't help lessen her fears. The others gathered close around him as he sat on the ground beside her.
"There are at least two thousand," he said, getting straight to the point.
She grimaced. Even though the number didn't come close to the size of army which had taken Kingsport, it remained large enough under the circumstances.
"I saw about a hundred horses. Soldiers are geared up the same as the ones here." He raised a hand when Bo and Cain both began to ask questions. "They have a battering ram, were setting up a cover for it by firelight."
The others quickly began questioning him and she stared off into the darkness, listening absently to his responses. The ram changed everything. She hadn't seen the south gates. However, the northern one had been wood. It wouldn't hold long. The men quickly came to the same conclusion. The city would not face a long siege.
She listened to them make vague plans based on assumptions and possibilities. Having nothing to add, she remained quiet until they ran out of ideas and decided to get what sleep they could. Prince and Kei curled up to either side of her and she closed her eyes obediently, wondering if sleep would come, wondering if she even wanted it to.
Prince slipped his arm over her waist. We are worried about you.
I know.
We will escape the city. You do not need to worry.
She sighed and nodded but didn't reply. She didn't really believe him, but didn't want to argue. She didn't want to hear him lie.
Chapter 2:
How to Escape an Army
Morning brought more clouds and sticky heat. Eating quietly, everyone tried not to look as tired and cranky as they felt. They went through their packs, discarding the few items they didn't need, mostly extra articles of clothing and a few odds and ends. Soon they would need to fight and run, and the lighter their packs, the better.
She clutched Avery's sweater to her chest, not wanting to part with it, irrationally thinking she would forget him.
"Aro."
She looked over at Kei. Sadness clouded his face. He raised a dagger and lightly tapped the tip to his forehead. Avery's dagger. She still had hers, too. Smiling a little, she nodded, hugged the sweater one last time, and placed it onto the pile of items to be left behind.
They each attached water skins firmly to their belts. Packs were put on, tested for balance, sometimes contents adjusted. The skins and packs would be a hindrance in fighting, but they couldn't leave them behind.
"Remember, our first priority is to get out of the city," Bo said, helping Cain adjust a strap.
"And evade the enemy army," Aro added with a grimace.
"Yes, so head directly for the fields." Bo looked at her specifically. "Understood? Don’t turn back for anything."
"I know. We’ve been over this."
"If you are followed then…" Prince looked at her expectantly.
She wished they’d stop treating her like an idiot. Her ears worked, she had been listening. "Run for the woods. If separated, meet there along the boundary."
She didn't like the plan. It was too haphazard, too ripe for disaster. The odds of something going wrong were so high it made her nauseous. Tactics had been one of the subjects in her tutoring. Her brain didn’t want to work though. Fear and thoughts of battle drowned everything else out. She simply nodded and listened carefully. The boys were seasoned soldiers after all. She trusted they knew what they were doing.
Kei left to scout ahead and returned quickly, silently guiding them through streets quiet with fear and anticipation for the battles to come. Occasional shouts echoed from the walls to the south, causing them to pause and listen.
Trying to remain calm, she followed slowly, worrying her lower lip. Eventually Kei led them to a narrow alley. They followed him in and then through a broken boarded up door of an abandoned building. Treading carefully on the rotting floorboards, she squinted in the faint light peeking through the boarded up windows. The rooms were empty and the walls in the process of being torn down.
Kei turned and motioned for them to be silent before proceeding up a narrow flight of stairs. The room they entered had little light as well, just enough to make out the gaping holes in the floorboards. Prince drew her aside against a wall and pointed for her to stay there.
The men took turns peeking out the cracks in the boarded up windows. Kei gestured her over. Carefully, she made her way to his side and bent to peek through a crack.
Their building stood close to the outer wall, only one street over from the main street leading to the gate. The window however, gave a view of the main street between the buildings. She could see part of the wall, men patrolling it. Other men were gathered in a rough formation in front of the gate. Waiting.
Something would happen soon. Hopefully they were now close enough to take advantage of it. They continued to watch, and to wait.
Shouts from the walls indicated the attackers were approaching. She smiled a little when she heard the soft whoosh of hundreds of arrows being released, followed by the faint screams of the dying from beyond the walls. The morning dragged on with much of the same; shouting, taunts from both sides, and volley after volley of arrows shot into the enemy ranks. They settled back to wait, listening carefully to orders shouted as the day passed into night.
The next day she heard the first strange noise shortly after noon. Before her mind could make the connection, Bo supplied the answer, "They have the ram at the gates."
Grimacing, she shifted position slightly, getting the cramps out of her legs. She couldn't believe how quickly things had progressed. "How long?"
"Not very," Bo answered. "The gates aren't strong. A dozen or so good rams shou
ld take it down." He looked over at her. "You ready?"
"Wither me," she muttered. No she wasn't. She nodded anyway and faked an encouraging smile. It wouldn’t help to have them all worrying about her.
Cain stood, watching her for a moment, his forehead crinkled in worry. "Let's move."
They quickly left the building, not bothering to be quiet or to hide while running through the streets. They were on the east side of the city and so met no soldiers along their path to the smaller eastern gate. Nearing it however, they began to meet a growing number of civilians until their path became blocked altogether.
Cain cursed, running a hand through his short hair in frustration.
She took the opportunity to catch her breath and actually look at what had caused the sudden masses to block their path of escape.
Hundreds of people, from the elderly to young mothers with babies, crowded the streets around the closed eastern gate. Soldiers guarded it, others stood upon the walls above. Civilian men fought against all of them. She wasn't certain if the people were aware the southern gates were about to be breached, or merely looked for any chance to escape a city under siege. Either way, it would work in their favor.
Both Cain and Bo continued to curse.
She smiled and smacked Bo's arm. "This is good," she told him when she got his attention. "Let them get the gates open. We'll go with the flow and escape unnoticed."
He grimaced at her, but did stop cursing.
She watched the soldiers resist until it became apparent they were fighting a losing battle that would only end with the loss of their lives. The crowd had quickly grown more restless, more frantic. When the soldiers finally stepped aside, a loud cheer rose up. Men lifted the bars and pushed open the wooden gates, nearly being trampled when the crowd surged forward.
They moved with agonizing slowness as people poured into the main street from side ones. Nearing the gate, she noticed her men had formed a circle around her. Kei walked before her, Cain and Bo to either side, Prince behind with a hand resting against her back.
She rolled her eyes. They continued to protect her. With all the people, she wondered if their plans had changed.
No. Run for the fields. We will be with you.
She glanced back at Prince and smiled slightly as they moved slowly forward.
Screams ripped through the air, shattering her tenuous calm. The crowd surged forward then stopped abruptly. She clenched her fists, standing on her toes trying to see, wondering what happened.
"Some are trying to come back in," Prince said from behind her.
She looked back, wondering how he knew, before she realized his height did indeed have some advantages.
His face became grim, his perpetual frown back and dark brows drawn together over his eyes until the crowd moved forward again.
She lowered her head and moved with it, trying not to think about what could have happened to those who blocked the way.
Finally they passed through and she stumbled as the press of people suddenly disappeared. Some ran north, others darted ahead. Others continued to scream.
Someone swore. Excessively.
She turned to Cain and then followed his troubled gaze to the south. Dozens of horsemen bore down on the crowd, not far behind came more men on foot.
"Wither me," she gasped out.
Survival instructs overcame panic. Immediately she took in her surroundings. A long stretch of flat ground before her eventually dropped down into a gentle hill. The fields didn't begin until the ground leveled out once more. The distance between her and the fields actually wasn't too great, unless hundreds of people blocked the way and enemy soldiers pressed to attack.
Everyone drew weapons and moved quickly toward the fields, pushing people out of their way while keeping an eye on the approaching horsemen. It quickly became evident they wouldn't reach the hill before the enemy arrived.
The horses didn't slow, but plowed through the crowd, the riders slashing left and right with their swords, cutting down everyone in their path. Each rider also had bows or spears in cases at their sides. She didn't even want to think of the damage they would cause.
Too slowly, the hill drew nearer. So did the men on foot. The horsemen were nearly upon them. Looking around at her men, she saw them already spreading out around her. Kei's eyes began glowing faintly, already up to orange. No one appeared to notice.
Swords clanged and the screaming took on a different tone as both civilians and the city’s soldiers fought the horsemen.
Cursing under her breath, she braced herself for the fight to come, twirling her daggers in her hands. Time rushed forward and the enemy surrounded them. Instinct and training overtook everything else. She fought, spinning and ducking, striking where she could.
A man rushed her, sword swinging wildly in a strike that would remove her head if she didn’t move. Bending to the side, she sprang forward to meet him, barely missing the sword. Too close for him to stop her she thrust upward at his chest. Flinging himself back he barely evaded her blow. He failed to see the old man slide an equally old sword up into his back from behind.
Aro nodded to the old-timer before looking around quickly. She’d become separated from her men. She had expected it. However, her gut twisted not knowing where they all were and if they were safe. The horsemen passed, moving on to attack those escaping north. Footmen took their place. Some on horse turned back for another round.
When she finally found a moments respite, she turned, searching for everyone. Kei remained close to her side, eyes red and claws fully extended, covered in blood. Cain fought one man a short distance to her left. She found Prince surrounded by four men, pushed back nearly to the gates. For some reason, she nearly smiled seeing he still wore the stupid floppy hat. Then she noted he wasn't faring well and fear streaked through her.
"Help him! Please," she begged Kei.
He regarded her a moment before nodding once, sharply, and bounding off.
"They'll be fine. Go! Go!" Cain gestured wildly with his free hand, his opponent dead on the ground behind him.
She spun around, searching for Bo. She couldn't see him anywhere. Her heart sank. Cain screamed at her again and with a growl of frustration she sprinted down the hill, dodging those in her path, until she finally entered the corn.
Barely slowing, she looked quickly behind her and saw Cain followed her, slowing only to sheath his sword and glance behind him.
"Run! They're following," he cried, putting on a burst of speed.
She ran, frantically pushing corn out of her way, trying to ignore the sting of the stalks and leaves smacking her face, bare hands, and arms. Glancing back again she saw a rider appear behind them. Cain had closed the distance between them and would soon pass her if she didn't speed up.
She did, panic rising with the thought of the horseman catching them. If he did, he meant to kill them. At least she didn't have to worry about becoming a slave again.
The frantic beating of her heart drowned out the sound of the horse behind her. The absence of sound scared her even more. She didn't know how close the man chasing them was.
Running until her lungs burned and her legs ached she found herself beginning to slow. Gasping for breath, she gritted her teeth against a stitch in her side. Certainly the horseman had given up by now?
Cain made a strange sound and cursed behind her. She looked back to see him stumbling, hands grasping at an arrow through his chest.
"Cain!" She skidded to a frantic stop and ran back to him, stumbling in her haste.
Reaching his side, her fingers fluttered hopelessly around the arrow as she searched his face. Avoiding her eyes, he grasped her arm and dragged her through the corn until he dropped to his knees, unable to go any further.
Gasping out curses, she pressed clenched fists to either side of her head, trying to keep calm and to figure out what to do. She’d never dealt with such a serious wound before. Her brothers had never come home from practice or fights with arrows sticking o
ut of them.
"Pull. It. Out," Cain grated through clenched teeth.
"But it will bleed–"
"Out! Now!"
Not hesitating again, she quickly moved around behind him. Taking the shaft in both hands she sucked in a deep, shaking breath and snapped off the fletched end. His body jerked and a hiss of pain escaped his lips. Scrambling to hurry, she knelt in front of him again and grasped the point which had gone all the way through his chest. Bracing one hand on his shoulder, she clenched her teeth and pulled.
He bent over and brought his hands to the gaping wound, coughing blood.
So much blood.
Dropping the arrow, she lurched forward to grab his shoulders. "Cain!"
He straightened suddenly, sucking in a deep, gurgling breath. Coughing, he spit blood to the side.
Blood. Blood everywhere. Everything was turning red.
Shrugging off his pack he tossed it to her. "Run."
Tears welled in her eyes and fell. Shaking her head, she clasped his pack tight to her chest with bloody hands as if it would protect her. It hadn't protected him. The arrow had pierced him just above where it had hung low on his back. If Cain had been a little faster, or the man not on a horse...
He forced himself to his feet, drawing his sword. "I'm done." He coughed more blood and looked over at her shocked face. His voice softened, "You know that."
Yes, she knew. He was dead already. Blood soaked his shirt. It dripped from his mouth and down his chin. His lungs were filling with it. If he didn’t drown in his own blood he would bleed out. There was nothing she could do to save him.
"No." She didn't want to believe it. Didn't want to lose anyone else. "Rot it all, no!"
"I'll buy you time."
"Cain...John..." Dropping the pack, she stood and moved quickly to his side. Heedless of the blood, she pulled him into her arms, holding him too tightly with trembling limbs. He sagged against her, resting his head for a moment against hers.
