by Candy Crum
But there she was, fighting to stay alive so she could get the revenge she so desperately wanted.
After several days of incredible acting, hardly anyone paid attention to Amara anymore. Everyone went on minding their own business. The men typically stuck to training, drinking, and leaving for a few hours to scout or recruit, while the few women in the group made food, served drinks, and entertained the men in other ways. It made her sick, but she'd been to some of the local small towns with her dad to sell. She knew what the world was like.
Sitting up in her tent, she dropped quietly to all fours and crawled to the door. She listened for several moments, waiting to see if anyone walked by. When no one did, she slowly poked her head out to see everyone was busy around the fire. Several men laughed as they told stories and held clearly uncomfortable women on their laps. Satisfied that everyone was preoccupied, she pulled back and tied the door to her tent shut, knowing no one would bother her for a while yet. They usually checked on her around midnight, when the moon was highest.
Amara quickly went to the back of her tent, pulling a makeshift bag she'd crafted from a sheet out from under her bedding. She'd stuffed extra rations of bread and fruit she'd stolen over the past twenty-four hours inside and hidden it. After tying her bag in a way that would allow her to carry it on her back, she turned toward the back wall of the tent.
She slowly stuck her hand into the sand in the corner and found the knife she'd stolen earlier that day and hidden parallel to the tent stake. After dusting it off, she quickly went to work cutting open the cloth in the corner, making two small horizontal cuts every eight or so inches. After a few moments, she was able to crawl out without being noticed.
To make sure no one caught on to her escape before midnight, Amara went to work tying the corner back together. The horizontal cuts had created a single strip on each side of the vertical cut, allowing her to hide the evidence of her escape. Unless someone inspected her tent closely, no one would notice, not even patrol if they walked around the back.
Once her tent was re-sealed, she listened for movement. The soft sound of shifting sand under large feet echoed on the opposite side of her tent. She ground her teeth as annoyance and anger radiated through her. She'd watched them for three days, and they'd been so predictable. Why was someone lurking around her tent now?
Leaning as close to her tent as she could, she quietly waited to see what would happen. Please, whoever's listening, protect me.
Memories of Amara's father dying while pleading for her life consumed her. She'd looked at him, begging him silently to let her help. It was possible he had been wrong. Maybe she wasn't too small or too weak. Maybe she could have saved him. But had her father been right, the men who took her would have known her secret.
She remembered her teary eyes staring into his, praying he'd nod at her. Praying he'd tell her it was okay, but he didn't. Instead, his eyes had locked onto hers, and he'd shaken his head. He didn't want her to give herself away. He'd done it to protect her, but deep down, she wondered if it was the wrong thing to do. She blamed herself for listening to him because things might have turned out differently for her parents if she'd disobeyed.
Sitting there, pressed against a poorly set up tent while waiting for death to find her, Amara knew that if the worst happened, she would have no choice. She couldn't be discovered. She had to get away.
The footsteps grew closer, and her breath hitched in her chest. She could hear a belt adjusting as the objects he had strapped to it shifted and jingled. The man took almost two full steps past the back corner of her tent, looking into the sky as he prepared to piss. Her face scrunched as she imagined that smell lingering behind her tent while she slept had she not attempted escape.
One of the men by the fire howled in laughter, causing the man to stop fidgeting with his pants and look back. The moon was just high enough that he saw her hiding in the shadow of her tent out of the corner of his eye. He looked down and opened his mouth to speak, but Amara moved like a snake. Adrenaline exploded through her body with fear of being caught, forcing her to react without thinking.
Her eyes flashed from deep brown to light gray with green around the edges as her hands shot out in front of her. The man's eyes widened as he tried to take a deep breath to call out but was unable to do so. He clutched his chest as weakness took him. Within only a few moments, he fell to his knees. As he did, Amara was able to stare directly into his eyes.
"I know you," she whispered, recognizing him. He’d stood behind Zuri and laughed as he mentally tortured her father before killing him. "You helped him take everything from me."
The man gasped, trying to breathe, but Amara could feel him fading. Tears poured down her cheeks, and her innocence melted with every bit of the life she drained from the man before her.
"I imagine the desperation I feel pouring out of you is exactly what my father felt when he thought of you and your friends taking me away from him. You'll rot in hell with those demons from the south. May they drag your pathetic soul to the depths and torture you for eternity for what you've done to my family and others."
She took a deep breath and flexed her small body, and the rest of his life tore away from him as he collapsed to the ground. Since no one had come running, she imagined none of them had abilities like hers or any other type that allowed them to sense magic.
She quickly untied the corner of the tent and pulled the man inside before going out the back and tying it closed again. She was grateful her adrenaline hadn't yet settled since it gave an easy boost to her Kemetian physical magic, the school her father had known and taught to her.
Once she was finished, she listened for movement. This time, she heard nothing. Another surge of adrenaline pumped through her and her eyes flashed again. She allowed the magic to flow through her limbs as she propelled herself forward, running faster than she knew any of the others were capable of doing.
She wouldn't be able to keep it up for long, especially after draining someone's life, but if no one caught her, her magic would get her far enough away to be safe.
Then she would go to the capital to warn them. It had been the queen at their home that night. She'd tried to save Amara's family but had failed in the end. If Amara could aid the throne in finding Zuri and his men, maybe she would get the revenge she sought after all. That was all she could ask for.
Chapter Fifteen
Zuri and a large group of his most trusted men had spent two days traveling south. They told their plan to no one in the army. They were only told Zuri and the others were going to scout the portal and make sure nothing had come north.
Though several men volunteered to go with them, Zuri had made a big deal of it being his job to defend his people and that they should stay behind. It went a long way to make him seem even more admirable among the ranks.
As he and his men traveled, they watched carefully for any glowing red lights in the darkness. While it was far more dangerous to travel into the demons’ territory at night, the portal was much easier to spot in darkness than in the daytime.
The hell portal glowed bright red and looked like a deep, bloody lightning bolt—an open gash in the world, floating just above the ground. Off in the distance, he saw the faint red glow, and his heart began to race. Behind him was his first in command, Asher, and behind him was a group of ten men, with an eleventh driving a horse-drawn cart with a large cage loaded in the bed.
Each man carried magitech rifles and magitech zappers they would use if shit went south, but they hoped the tranquilizer they'd brought with them would be enough to take a red devil down. They had no idea what they would look for, but they hoped it was big enough to sound scary without posing much threat to them.
As they drew nearer, the faint glow got brighter, and Zuri signaled for his men to slow their pace. They had no idea where any of the demons were. It was possible they'd retreated inside the portal, but there was no way for them to know.
Zuri came to a stop and signaled for th
e others to do the same. At that point, they needed to go on foot, so they didn't risk the scent of the horses drawing any attention. He lifted his weapon as he stepped lightly. For all he knew, one of the bastards could be under the sand.
"Pst," Asher hissed from behind him.
Zuri turned, and Asher pointed toward the portal.
The leader's eyes widened as he saw the portal pulsing, the glow shifting and moving around it. A shadow moved inside, and he went on guard, the rest of his men following suit.
A long snout poked out of the portal. From what he could see in the moonlight, the creature was the color of blood. Its red irises gleamed in the moonlight as it stepped out, one large hoof after another. When it fully revealed itself, Zuri wondered what the hell it was.
The head reminded him of a rhino’s; the shape was the same, aside from the razor-sharp tip to its snout. It curved down over the front of the mouth like the beak of a raptor and it looked armored, as did the rest of its head. It had two short, thick horns on its snout, much like a rhino’s, and the body was similar, though the armoring was much thicker. He didn't have much to go on, but if he compared the horn sizes to that of a rhino, that beast was an adolescent.
His suspicions were confirmed as he watched another step through. This was three times as large, with long, bladed teeth that protruded over the bottom jaw. The horns on its snout were much larger, and the armor was thicker. He swallowed hard, wondering if he'd made a mistake. This was too much, even for him.
"I can't do this. I can't do this," one of his men said quietly behind him. His voice quivered, and Zuri could hear the fear in it. His subordinate was about to lose his shit and get them all killed in the process.
"Shut it," Asher scolded quietly. "Get your shit together, or we’re all dead!"
Zuri turned to see the other man shake his head, his weapon lowering as he began to back away. "No. Uh-uh. I shouldn't have come. Oh, fuck. I can't do this. I can't do this."
"Shut the fuck up!" Zuri hissed.
"I'm outta here!" the man said before running as quickly as he could back toward the horses.
Zuri's head snapped forward to see the adult monster huff hard enough that the sand in front of him blew up in a cloud. It had spotted them.
"Shit," Zuri said a breath before the beast charged toward the running coward.
"Fuck! What now?" Asher asked, weapon raised.
Zuri nodded toward the big one. "We kill that one and take the little one."
"Little one?" Asher snorted. "That thing's fucking huge!"
"You wanna take the big one instead?" Zuri asked.
A scream ripped through the sky as the beast ran the other man through the back with its massive horn. It pierced his torso as the monster whipped its head straight up, flinging the man off the horn. The monster then caught him in its razor-sharp teeth before slinging him back and forth like a dog with prey. Blood and human shrapnel exploded in all directions as the body broke apart.
"How...the fuck...are we supposed to kill that thing?" Asher asked.
Zuri looked at the adolescent and saw the armored plates over its head and shoulders, extending across its back at an angle. For the most part, the abdomen was uncovered.
His heart began to pound in his chest as he thought of what he needed to do. When he turned back, the monster was moving to face them. It lowered its head like a bull, scraping a spiky hoof in the sand as it prepared to charge.
"Everyone split up. Kill the big one but save the little one if we can. Lay down cover fire. I need to get under that big bitch, so try not to shoot me. Got it?"
"What?" Asher asked, his eyes wide. "Look, I pride myself on being fearless, but that...that is straight-up stupid."
"It's either that or we get mulched into ground beef. Which is it?" Zuri glanced at Asher.
His second didn't have time to answer as the ground began to shake. The demon rushed forward, head down, to gore its next victim.
"Now!" Zuri shouted. Everyone raised their weapons and fired at the beast. The magitech shots hit the armor but did nothing besides make it angrier. "Jump out of the way before it gores you!"
Zuri dove out of the way, quickly scrambling to his feet. He had to find a way under that monster, but he couldn't see how. It was smart, he could tell that. If it were smart enough, it might know what its weaknesses were, so getting it to rear up or expose its underside in any other way would be nearly impossible.
He needed a decoy.
"Asher!" Zuri shouted. He watched the beast's every move as it charged past the line of men, who all tumbled out of the way. With its large size, it took some effort to slow its momentum to turn. "Asher! Get your ass over here. I need you to be a decoy."
His second in command looked at him incredulously. Even with twenty feet between them in darkness, Zuri could see the expression.
"I'm serious. I need it to focus on you so I can get a good shot."
He looked over his shoulder to make sure the other one hadn't become a threat and that nothing else had come through the portal. They'd been lucky so far, but he didn't think that would last. The smell of blood was enough to draw any predator, and he didn't think these bastards would be any different. The baby didn't quite seem to know its size, and he was grateful for that.
Asher groaned loudly. "You get me dead, and I'm finding a way to return the favor."
"We have to get the underbelly. That's it's weakness," Zuri stated.
Without another word, Asher dropped to his knees, aiming and shooting his rifle at the monster's lower chest. It cried out and charged again. Zuri used the opportunity to run wide to hopefully stay out of its peripheral vision.
As Asher shot at it from the front, Zuri dropped and aimed. Only the front of the legs had the armored plates, so the backs were vulnerable. He smiled as he aimed just behind its shoulder. He fired, and the beast roared in pain as it tripped, rolling several times. Asher and the others once again had to dive out of the way.
It landed on its back momentarily, and Zuri jumped to his feet. Lifting his rifle, he fired three times into its abdomen as it struggled to roll back over. It cried out in pain again, the baby crying out along with it.
The moment Zuri heard the adolescent's screams, he smiled. It was horrifying. The parent sounded far worse, but the baby was terrifying all on its own. If they got it in the cage and away without any other interference, the plan would work perfectly.
Asher climbed to his feet and joined Zuri as they walked toward the beast, which was moaning weakly on the ground. They both raised their magitech rifles and fired shot after shot until it finally went limp.
Movement out of the corner of his eye caught his attention, and he looked up, rifle pointed at the adolescent. It had started to charge but stopped immediately, seemingly understanding the situation. Zuri's eyes narrowed as he stared into its glowing red eyes.
"Go get a chunk of that coward Joseph and pour the sedative all over it," he demanded.
"Are you serious?" Asher asked. When Zuri nodded, Asher didn't bother to argue. He sighed and motioned to one of the men closest to him, ordering him to do it instead.
Zuri watched as the man brought Joseph's arm, struggling not to throw up as he did. "Good. Throw it to the baby."
The man did as he was told, and the baby jumped a little before cautiously sniffing it. After a few moments, the adolescent picked up the arm, watching Zuri and the others as it began to eat.
Two of his men vomited in the sand as they listened to the monster's jaws grind the bones as it chewed and swallowed. After a few minutes, the beast grew weaker. Zuri hoped the sedative would knock it out but wouldn't kill it. There was no way for him to know how it would react.
While none of his team had any real knowledge of magic, Asher's minuscule ability in physical magic was able to help them lift the unconscious beast into the wagon. The trip hadn't been perfect, but it had turned out much better than he'd imagined.
"Uh, boss?" one of his other men asked.
&
nbsp; "What?" Zuri replied harshly, wiping the sweat from his forehead.
The man pointed toward the portal, and Zuri turned to see it pulsing again. He could see a much larger shadow as it moved forward, and cold chills raced through his body. He didn't think they'd get lucky twice.
"Go. Now. We need to get the fuck out of here," he ordered.
The man driving the wagon was the first to leave, the rest following on foot in a full run as they made their way toward their horses. Zuri hoped like hell that whatever was about to come through that gate held off for a few minutes. As he mounted his horse nearly a quarter-mile away, he saw something incredibly tall and broad move through the portal, rising to its full height once it was in the open.
"Fuck, fuck, fuck," he chanted as he kicked his horse hard.
He had no idea how big that demon was, but he thought it was twice as tall or more than the portal it had come through. Looking over his shoulder, he saw it pick something up and put it in its mouth. He wondered if it had just eaten the gigantic monster they'd killed not long before.
As he and his men fled, thanking Lady Luck the adolescent was sound asleep and wouldn't draw attention, Zuri hoped he hadn't just made an even bigger mistake. That he hadn't just led that and anything else that might come through the portal toward the north. Though the trip was a success, he couldn't help but wonder if he'd just shortened whatever timeline they had before.
Chapter Sixteen
In the last two days, Arryn had seen incredible structures. Large swaths of land were largely untouched, but along the river where the land was fertile, there were many small towns and smaller villages. They were usually met with kindness, though there were some who were leery of outsiders.
