Army Of The Winter Court (Skeleton Key)

by Ali Winters

  “Crap,” she mumbled.

  There was a soft knock on the door and a pause before it creaked open. Pale yellow light flooded through the opening.

  “Evvie? Are you okay?” Silvia’s silhouette moved from the doorway and into the room. The side of the bed depressed as she sat on the edge.

  “Yeah, I’m just coming down with a bug, I think.”

  A cold hand touched Evvie’s forehead and elicited a sigh of relief.

  “You’re burning up!”

  “No, it’s fine. I just had too many blankets on me.” Evvie kicked at the covers, pushing them off. “I just need water.”

  She propped herself up on her arms and fell back down unable to support herself.

  “Stay laying down, I’ll get you something to drink.” The bed leveled itself as Silvia stood up and walked out of the room.

  Exhaustion pulled at Evvie and she let her eyes slide shut. When she opened them again, she was on her side and the dim light from the hallway illuminated the room. A glass of water sat on the bedside table as condensation dripped down its sides and puddled at the bottom.

  She blinked.

  Her eyes opened again, and the glass was dry. Groaning, Evvie lifted herself up on one elbow and reached out for the now room-temperature water and lifted the glass to her lips. The liquid slid down her parched throat, not quite quenching her thirst. Murmurs floated from the hallway. Snippets of the conversation reached her.

  “Worried… check… fever… high…”

  Who is Silvia talking to? But she already knew the answer. Evvie strained to hear more, but even that effort sucked the energy from her. She set the empty glass down and dropped down onto her back, and surrendered to sleep again, allowing the darkness to take her again.

  .:。·*இ*·.:。·*இ*·。:.·*இ*·。:.

  Evvie’s eyes shot open as pain seized her muscles and her lungs pulled air inward in one, pain ridden rush. It felt like needles and knives stabbed at every inch of her body, as freezing water splashed up around her, covering her body and flowing over her hair. She choked as water poured into her open mouth. Her hands grasped out for anything, finding only a slick surface with nothing to hold on to.

  An arm slipped around the back of her neck, lifting her, as a hand pushed the hair out of her eyes.

  “I’m so sorry! I lost my balance.” Silvia was cradling her head, keeping her above the cold water.

  “Wha—what’s going on?” Evvie sputtered.

  “I called your mom. She said to give you a cold bath. Your fever was really high.”

  “You called my mom?” Evvie looked down at her soaking, pajama-clad form floating in a bath of cold water. The pain that gripped at her muscles had disappeared and left her with a feeling of relief.

  “I’m sorry, I just didn’t know what else to do. I was really worried.”

  “It’s fine… But can I get out now?”

  Silvia helped Evvie to sit up and then reached for a towel setting it on the counter.

  “I’ll give you some privacy… uh,” she hesitated. “If you feel dizzy call for me, and I’ll help you.” Evvie waited for her to leave the room before dragging herself to her feet and pulling off her tank top and silk pants. She could feel her skin heat up as she dried off. The cool water had helped bring her mind back to her, giving her a sliver of the energy she was used to. Evvie was just thankful that she could stand on her own.

  .:。·*இ*·.:。·*இ*·。:.·*இ*·。:.

  Aurelian

  Aurelian paced the hallway angrily. “Why isn’t she here yet?” he demanded as his eyes scanned the land outside the windows.

  “What seems to be the problem brother?” Nolan’s icy voice asked from behind, causing Aurelian to stop in his tracks.

  He closed his eyes and counted to three before Nolan’s heavy hand dropped down onto his shoulder.

  “Nothing, Nol. I wouldn’t want to bother you with my insignificant troubles.” He ground out through clenched teeth.

  “Oh, it’s no trouble at all. We are brothers, are we not?” he asked with a saccharine sweet tone.

  Aurelian forced his body to relax as he studied his older sibling. Nolan was up to something and he knew something… but what did Nolan know and how much did he know, exactly? He cursed silently, hating that he was forced to play by rules designed to slow his progress. Each brother was attempting to pull information from the other… and he grew tired of these games of deceit. When he was finally crowned, he would put an end to this once and for all, no matter the cost.

  “Tell me, brother, what’s on your mind?”

  “I—”

  “Oh, Nolan!” Lilith’s voice called.

  Both men turned to look, as she skipped down the hall toward them, stopping a few feet in front of them and smiling a Cheshire grin. “What are you two doing? You aren’t trying to play your game without me, are you?”

  “No, of course not. I am just checking to see what is bothering our dear brother.”

  Aurelian internally gagged. Death. For both of them, as soon as he had the power…

  “Good, I would hate to miss anything.”

  “What did you need, Lil?” Aurelian asked impatiently.

  “I just wanted to let you know that the pegasi got out again…” Lilith said nonchalantly as she examined her nails.

  “What?” Nolan yelled. “Why didn’t you say so, right away?” He threw his hands in the air and stormed off.

  They waited until Nolan was out of sight before meeting each other’s gaze.

  Aurelian raised an eyebrow. “Why do I get the feeling that they didn’t just happen to get out?”

  “He seemed bored. I thought I’d give him something to do with his time. Besides, you already set the game in motion—the girl must come. Nolan just needed something to occupy his mind while we waited.” she said, shrugging.

  “You know if he finds out, I won’t be able to help you?”

  “I can handle myself, don’t worry about me.”

  He grunted and walked past her, already tired of her presence. Though it wasn’t much of a surprise when she followed him, skipping alongside.

  “So what is troubling you, Auri?”

  “I can’t seem to get this feeling to go away,” he growled.

  “What feeling is that?”

  “I’m not sure,” he said hesitantly. “It’s a nagging feeling that crawls up my spine.”

  “Do you think it is because of her?”

  “I know it is,” he said bitterly.

  Lilith tittered.

  “That’s normal when you claim someone, and it’s been too long without her claiming you. If you’re not careful, you will end up merging souls with her the second you see her.” Her eyes sparkled mischievously.

  Before he could stop himself, he rounded on her. His hand shot out, gripping her throat and lifting her off her feet.

  “Don’t even joke about such a thing. It will never happen.” With that, he let her go, and spun on his heel, storming away.

  “Be careful, brother!” Lilith called after him.

  .:。·*இ*·.:。·*இ*·。:.·*இ*·。:.

  Evvie

  Soft light filtered through her curtains accompanied by the light tap, tap, tapping of rain. With it came with the promise of a chilly wind. Her skin radiated heat as though it were on fire.

  There was no explanation for being as tired as she was, or to feel like the world around her was a furnace. Evvie rolled onto her back and stared up at the ceiling.

  Focus. She told herself.

  After several moments, she’d managed to gather the most energy she’d felt in hours… days?

  What day is it?

  Swinging her legs off the edge of the bed, she stood on her shaky limbs. Her body felt heavy and unnatural, like a rock trying to swim in the endless ocean. The few feet from her bed to the window seemed like miles. Unlatching the lock, she pressed her palms against the cold glass and sighed.

  Evvie was grateful that the windows
were older, therefore easy to open and not the newer, heavy windows. Pushing up, the breeze hit her, providing the instant relief she’d longed for. The chill in the air rejuvenated her and with small, unstable steps, she moved to the bed again and allowed herself to fall onto her back over the top of the blankets. The fresh rain-scented air filled her senses, cooling her burning skin.

  She didn’t feel sick, just drained and unlike herself. All her life a fever had come with chills, not this unbearable heat. This was something different, something she couldn’t quite identify.

  “Thank you for coming on such short notice, I didn’t know what else to do.” Silvia’s voice came from the other room.

  Who was Silvia talking to? Her eyelids felt heavy again.

  Still exhausted, Evvie rolled to her side and slipped back into the heavy sleep that she couldn’t seem to escape.

  A soft knocking pulled her from her sleep. Cracking open her eyelid she watched as Silvia walked into her room, a frown pulling at the corners of her mouth as Evvie’s mother followed her in.

  “You told my mom to come?” she groaned.

  “I was worried.” Silvia looked down.

  “Don’t apologize to her, you did the right thing. She’s always been stubborn.”

  “I'm all right, you two… I promise the cold bath did wonders. It’s just going to take some time.”

  “When was the last time you ate?” Her mom asked.

  “Mmm, yesterday… last night when I was on my date,” Evvie murmured. Her forehead wrinkled as her gaze turned to her roommate standing just inside the doorway with one hand gripping onto her arm. Even from this distance it was easy to tell Silvia’s fingers were digging into her flesh hard enough to bruise. “What is it Silv?” Evvie asked.

  With a slight hesitation, she stepped up to the foot of the bed.

  “Your date was three nights ago.”

  “What? I can’t have slept that long.” Evvie sat up and shook her head.

  Oh, that was a mistake, she thought. The world tilted around her and her fingers dug into the mattress.

  Evvie didn’t miss the look that passed between her friend and mother. She was all right. They shouldn’t worry so much. “What aren’t you two telling me?”

  “I want to take you to the hospital—”

  “No, I’m fine, it’s just the flu or something. It will pass.” Evvie insisted, even though she could feel the layer of dried sweat settling over her skin.

  “If you get worse, then I’m taking you in.”

  “Okay, I’m already feeling better though.” She tried to assure her.

  “You should take a cold shower, while I make you something to eat.”

  Her mom stood, pausing to bend down and pick something up.

  “Here, you dropped this,” she said, distracted, as she set the black, obsidian skeleton key on the nightstand before walking out of the room.

  The key gleamed up at Evvie.

  How did it get over here? She thought as she picked it up, her fingers tracing the cuts of the black glass. It was strange and beautiful, feeling cool in her hand. It was probably all in her mind, but she almost felt as though she could draw energy from it and that just holding it seemed to energize her. Clutching it in her hand, she stood and walked into the bathroom.

  Setting it down on the countertop, she turned the water on cold and quickly stripped down.

  Tilting her head back, she let the cold water wash over her, soaking her hair and body. Whatever this feeling was, it was making her crave the cold. It was odd, but she didn’t feel like questioning it. All Evvie cared about was that it helped calm the heat coursing through her. She stood under the shower and let it rain down on her, the pounding of water massaging her back as she let her eyes slide closed. After a long moment, her body developed goose bumps. Finally, her temperature had lowered enough to feel… semi-normal.

  Turning the water off, Evvie pulled her towel to her and wrapped it around her body. The towel was old, but also her favorite in powder blue with yellow ducks along its edges and its soft terrycloth caressed her aching body. Turning to move, her foot slipped on a small puddle of water on the tiled floor. She flailed and caught herself on the porcelain counter. Pulling herself up, she reached down to pick her towel up and wrap it around her body once more.

  The black key called her attention. The contrast against the white surface was like night and day. What did the key open? She eyed the bathroom door, it was a skeleton key after all, and there was a small chance that it would work on the doors of this old building. Bringing the key up to the door’s lock, she was amazed to see that it fit perfectly.

  She took a breath and turned the key.

  It clicked.

  The distinct sound was of the door unlocking, but how was that possible when it wasn’t locked to begin with? Evvie turned the handle and pulled it open.

  What she saw made her question her sanity and yet… tucking the end of her towel in to secure it against herself, she stepped through.

  CHAPTER SIX

  Evvie

  With bare feet, she stepped out onto the icy gravel and though the sharp rocks threatened to cut through her skin, there was no pain. A thin layer of frost coated the blackened world before of her.

  Where am I?

  Evvie turned her face to the dark sky, ominous clouds covered every inch, as a light dusting of snowflakes began to fall. The world around her had a soft glow to it without any visible source, allowing her to see. Scanning the area, she turned slowly in a circle as she fought to keep the rising fear from taking hold.

  Behind her the path extended for as far as she could see. A copse made of charred and blackened trees was to her right, their crimson leaves coated the forest floor in a red blanket, those still clinging to the branches fell in a steady shower as they fluttered slowly to the ground making the world look as though it were bleeding. To her left an open field stood, covered in white flakes, glinting from the frost.

  Facing forward again, Evvie squinted into the distance. A shape loomed ahead where she assumed the path led—a pointed, angular castle shrouded in shadows and thick, ghostly fog. Taking a few steps toward it the rocky ground pressed against her flesh with each step.

  “This has to be a dream… I’d be cold if it weren’t,” she mumbled, wrapping her arms around herself and holding the duck clad towel more securely around her body.

  “Tigers, and lions, and bears…” The chant making its way unbidden past her lips.

  What if there are rabid animals… or worse, what if someone is waiting in the shadows to murder me?

  Her gaze darted from side to side as the beat of her heart drummed against her ribcage. Listening intently, she heard nothing but silence, not so much as a chirp of a bird or insect or the call of any night animals. Even the snow fell, soundless, in the silent, unmoving air.

  It’s so creepy here… She thought.

  Her head pounded.

  Maybe I should go back to bed and rest… stopping in her tracks, Evvie let out a loud cackle of laughter and smacked her palm against her forehead.

  I am sleeping! How crazy do I have to be to think I’m awake right now?

  It was turning out to be the same dream as before, but the details were more vivid, more solid. Her feet began to ache from the harsh ground. What was she walking on? Bending over, she scooped up a handful of the gravel and examined it. It looked like… broken glass? It was a wonder that her skin wasn’t sliced open and shredded.

  Dropping the shards, she stepped carefully on to the wilted grass. Instantly the discomfort melted away, soothed by the frozen turf.

  The large mountain range in the distance reared up, casting darkness over the world that sat in its shadow. Her eyes traced paths from the tallest peaks down to where she stood, the shape of the land taking its features from the black and sinister origins that towered over it.

  Boulders of varying sizes lay scattered around the harsh environment, remnants of a landslide from centuries ago. Trees grew with
no rhyme or reason between the massive rocks, their gnarled roots forming hollows in the ground as if they were trying to rip it open with their slow and violent existence.

  Everything she saw was void of any signs of life and nothing moved, time stood still, trapped in a never-ending moment in the most desolate winter, frozen in a single moment of time. But even that was wrong, as flakes continued to fall from above, dancing and swirling in a non-existent wind, independent of the world around them.

  Ice formed in knife-like shards, growing up from the ground as though it were organic. Stalagmites climbed, source-less, from the soil, striking in their glistening, and dangerous beauty.

  “Weirdest dream ever,” Evvie mumbled under her breath. The dreamscape took her breath away as she took it all in. Everything about it was unusual and different.

  The hair on the back of her neck stood on end, as an unmistakable feeling that she was being watched, crawled over her skin and wrapped itself around her like an anaconda squeezing its prey, ready to devour it at any second.

  Evvie spun around as the snap of a branch sounded behind her.

  “Hello? Is someone out there?” Her voice echoed in the empty space as she called out into the dark stillness of the night. White smoky plumes of her breath curled before her eyes, dissipating into the air.

  Paranoia reared its head, as thoughts of strange unknown beasts lurking in the shadows came to mind, waiting for her to get close enough—claws reaching out, catching her and slicing at her. The shapes of her imagination twisted and morphed into more familiar shapes—shapes of insane men escaped from a horror movie formed to take their place. “Stop it, you’re freaking yourself out,” she scolded.

  A branch from a tree moved, lowering and then slowly rising, Evvie’s eyes widened as she watched the invisible force move the limb.