Cinderella Assassin

by Allie Burton

  “The mission will be dangerous.” Keltie had gotten them this far and protected them. The warning was fair.

  “Sitting here is dangerous.” Hokima huffed.

  I agreed. I didn’t want to die without trying. “I’ll take volunteers only. Who is willing to take a risk? To go deeper into the tunnels not knowing where we’ll come out?”

  Keltie, Tos, and Hokima’s hands shot up.

  I didn’t want to sugarcoat. “This isn’t going to be easy. It’s risky and we don’t know what we’ll find on the other side.”

  Bim raised his hand.

  “Okay, then.” Pushing away my misgivings, I nodded. “Hokima will lead since he went this way once before.”

  The troll got on his knees to crawl through the opening. Tos and Bim followed behind.

  My lungs expanded, and I took a few satisfying breaths. I was taking a new step on my adventure with new companions I didn’t know well. They risked their lives to help me, and I needed to live up to my end of the bargain.

  Some way, I’d get them out of this dungeon prison.

  Keltie’s gaze swept over the remaining majiks. “Good luck to you. With good fortune, the human will rescue you.”

  “We hope you all survive.” Another elf held her hand up and fisted it in a gesture of respect.

  Swiping at my eyes, I firmed my resolve. “I don’t want to survive. I want to triumph.”

  This wasn’t only about saving Arbor. I needed to rescue these majiks too, and any others we came upon. Gardenia might be starting a revolution, but I was starting a mass escape.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Crawling through the tunnel, my little speech rang through my head. The ringing became more silent as our little group progressed. The tunnel became darker and colder.

  I tripped on the skirt of my dress and my elbow banged the rough rock wall. “Ow.” I might need to use another strip of the skirt for myself.

  “You okay?” Keltie crawled in front of me, sure and brave.

  I wished I could be more like her.

  The tunnel got taller. We went from crawling, to stooping, to walking fully erect reminding me of Darwin’s Law which I’d been taught in class. I huffed. Returning to school held less and less appeal. I’d learned more tonight about the world and myself, than I’d learned for years with human teachers.

  To go back and be restricted on what I could say. To go on pretending I believed what was being taught. To carry on as if none of tonight had ever happened. The thoughts attacked putting chinks in my plans. After a couple of hours, there was a lot of doubt. And too much silence.

  Getting to know my companions might inspire trust and pass the time. “Where in the kingdom did you live, Keltie?”

  “I lived in Elvenstad in the Metsa Forest.” As she walked, the tails of her top swayed with the movement of her hips.

  I’d noticed the flowy-cape top covered a tighter material that stretched across her clear, pale skin. Long, bright red hair was tied in a braid going halfway down her back.

  My ancestors came from the same forest. “Is that anywhere near where the fairies live?”

  Fairies, elves, sprites and brownies shared the forests. Fairies and sprites lived and worked together. The elves and brownies fought over territory with each other and the fairies.

  “At one time, there was plenty of forest for the different majiks. For an elf to meet a fairy was rare.” She shrugged her elegant shoulders. “Now, with the repatriation of majiks, space is limited, and natural borders are being crossed.”

  And yet, we worked together. An elf, a brownie, a troll, a fairy, and me. “Repatriation because the majiks are leaving the city and returning home?”

  The law basically said the only place a majik could move was back to their natural habitat.

  “Forced to leave the city.” Bim’s chilliness struck like ice. “If a majik loses their city job, which is happening more and more frequently, they are not allowed to get a new job. They’re forced to return to their homeland.”

  “Which makes the habitats more and more crowded.” I could picture this happening.

  The regent was causing problems he didn’t even realize. The ignorant man didn’t understand he was creating bigger issues for the future. If the majiks fought for territory, the battles would affect humans.

  “Less places to make a home. More people to feed.” Keltie twisted around to scrutinize me. Her flawless, white skin glowed in the dark. “More majiks, at least the elves, are getting restless.”

  “The trolls are agitated and overwrought.” Hokima swiveled around to make his point. “There’s talk of war.”

  He sounded like Gardenia. How a war was brewing, and I needed to pick a side. The battles would be magic against the elite’s technology. Who had the greatest power? And who would be hurt the most?

  I wanted to understand what drove the different majik races. “Are many trolls going home to the mountains?”

  The mountains had stood as a sentry behind the castle. Shadowed and foreboding.

  “They’re trying. They are fearful for their kids.” Hokima started trudging forward again. “Trolls believe if they can return the children to the homeland, they will be safe from the humans.”

  I didn’t fully understand the kids’ thing. Humans liked kids. Many thought troll children were cute, resembling dolls, while disgusted by the full-size version. Glancing around, I noticed all of us were young. And most of the other majiks in the cavern appeared to be in their teens as well.

  Coincidence?

  Hokima raised his hand imitating a bird. “The dragons don’t like our returning in such large numbers.”

  Leaning back, I quivered remembering the dragon in the fighting arena. It must’ve been captured and brought down from the mountains. I understood why the trolls would fear one.

  Keltie’s braid swished. “Have you ever seen a dragon?”

  “When I was a little kid.” Hokima sounded far away remembering happier times. “They flew peacefully in our skies. Soaring and majestic. They never injured or killed a troll. Stayed mostly to themselves.”

  “I want to ride a dragon.” Tos jumped up and down. “Do you think I ever could?”

  “No!” Keltie and Hokima both shouted.

  I was thinking the same thing. Why would anyone want to get close to a dragon? Let alone ride one?

  “A dragon isn’t an animal to ride.” Bim disapproved of everything. “They’re majiks like us.”

  Not with fire-breathing capabilities they weren’t like us. The one at the ball could’ve roasted everyone if it had escaped. “I saw a dragon inside the palace ballroom tonight.”

  “What was it doing inside a ballroom? Let alone inside a building?” Keltie’s shocked tone rang out.

  I told them about the arena and the fighting. And about Jayunja.

  Hokima stomped a foot before continuing on. “That’s why the dragons have been patrolling more heavily. They’re being captured by the horrible humans.”

  The adjective should’ve gotten a reaction from me. I’d always identified as human. Except I wasn’t fully human, and I’d declared myself on my new friends’ side.

  “Tell me, Elle.” Bim shuffled behind Keltie. “Where do you hail from? I haven’t heard of many half-fairies.”

  The insult cut harder than it should, harder than the horrible humans the troll had used. At least Bim didn’t call me half breed again.

  “I was born in the city of Lindenhamn where my parents lived. My mother was fairy and my father a human.”

  “Even though you look human, how did you pass for human if you’re registered as a majik?” Keltie asked.

  “My parents never registered me.” My dad must’ve suspected registering would be the start of more restrictions.

  “Where are your parents now?” Tos sniffed. Was she missing her parents?

  My legs slowed, and the air weighed heavier. “They both died. My stepmother is my guardian for a few more months.”

  “Does s
he know you’re in danger?” Keltie was always thinking of others. Especially her team.

  My spirits lifted. A team experience that came with new friends and compatriots. Even though we were surrounded by darkness, I was inspired by the light of friendship.

  “My stepmother wouldn’t care.” Although she wouldn’t want to lose her slave. I kicked at the ground.

  “What was your mother’s name?” Bim’s shortness didn’t upset me. Maybe he could help me learn more about my ancestry.

  “Lily Kunglig.”

  “What is her heritage?” His tone whined higher with either excitement or suspicion. He hurried his pace to catch up to me in the front of the group.

  “She’s a fairy.” Duh. I’d explained already.

  “No.” His irritation and intensity came through in the speed of his reply. “Who are your mother’s parents? And her parents before?”

  I didn’t realize I’d be taking a genealogy quiz. “I don’t know. My mom died when I was a toddler and my dad never spoke of her past life.”

  “Ignorant humans.” Bim shook his head and lifted his nose. “When did you come into your magic?”

  My cheeks warmed. “A couple of months ago when I turned sixteen.”

  “Do you prefer wands or enchantments?”

  A genealogy quiz and an inquisition.

  “Um, I don’t know.” The warmth burned to scorching. “I haven’t been trained.”

  “What?”

  I might as well confess everything. “And my magic doesn’t work very well.”

  His nose went higher. “So not from one of the higher placed families.”

  Shrugging, I really hadn’t cared until this moment. “I don’t know.”

  “Why weren’t you trained?” Bim tossed out another question.

  I was getting tired of the interrogation. “Because I lived with a human family and was trying to pass as human.” The scorching went through my veins shifting into frustration. “I didn’t know fairies’ powers didn’t materialize until they turned sixteen. I didn’t think I had any magic.”

  Another reason I’d wanted to pass as human. What good was being a fairy if you didn’t have powers?

  “And then my fairy godmother Gardenia showed up on my sixteenth birthday and wanted me to join her.”

  Bim’s gaze widened. He recognized the known fugitive’s name.

  “Do you know her?” My turn to question.

  “We haven’t met.” He twisted his lips together and looked away. “I’ve heard of her.”

  “She’s been harassing me ever since.” I didn’t dare tell them about the Binding Promise I’d made in my stupidity. The team would never follow me anywhere. “Let’s keep moving.”

  I scrambled to the lead because I didn’t want any more questions. There were so many things I didn’t know about being a fairy. I didn’t enjoy feeling ignorant.

  “Eep. Eep.”

  The strange chirping caught my ear. I signaled the others to be quiet.

  “Eep. Eep.”

  The noise came from inside a pit at the bottom of the rock wall in the tunnel.

  Slipping out the dagger from my headdress, I braced myself for attack. I peered inside the pit, and my eyes adjusted to the even darker space. Bright red eyes stared back.

  “Eep. Eep.”

  An orange snout bumped against my arm.

  “It’s a small animal.” I stretched my hand out.

  Keltie knocked my arm away. “Small animals bite.”

  “It’s so cute.” I squealed. “And it’s shivering.”

  Tiny, scaly wings flapped. “Eep.”

  Ignoring the elf’s glare, I picked up the creature. Its rough scales chafed against my skin with its trembling.

  Hokima leaned toward me. “It’s a baby dragon.”

  “A dragon!” Tos clapped her hands.

  A tiny spurt of flame came out of the dragon’s mouth. Tos must’ve scared it.

  “It can breathe fire.” Keltie pulled back.

  “Only a flicker because it’s so young.” Hokima demonstrated his affection in his tone. “It’s a Wyvern. I’m surprised it’s alone. There’s usually multiple eggs and the mother is never far from her babies.”

  The Wyvern dragon wrapped its wings around its body and ducked its head beneath a wing. The entire creature quivered.

  “It’s freezing.” I cradled it closer experiencing an instant, almost-motherly bond.

  “Eep.” It sounded thankful.

  “It’s sooooo cute.”

  “What if the mother is nearby?” The fear in Bim’s voice had us glancing around.

  “I don’t think a grown dragon could fit in this tunnel.” I’d seen a fully-grown wyvern dragon at the ball. The animal was as tall as a tree. Was this little guy and the monster related?

  Removing my ripped skirt, I used the material to wrap up the dragon trying to get it warmer. The poor guy, or girl, had lost its mother and was now alone in the tunnel.

  “Eeeep.” The dragon drew the mewl out settling into the material.

  Keltie inspected the shorts beneath the skirt. “Nice, and useful.”

  Too bad the thin fabric wasn’t thick enough to warm the dragon. I opened the bag hanging from my shoulder and gently set the dragon inside. “There you go, cutie.”

  Now our group had a mascot.

  “Why was the dragon in the tunnel by itself?” Bim asked.

  No one answered.

  The baby dragon wasn’t mean like the one in the arena. It was cold and afraid. Lonely. Things I could relate to. “Let’s call it Drago, short for dragon.”

  With a few mutterings, we continued on.

  The tunnel became wider forming into a subterranean grotto. Stalactites and stalagmites grew from the floor and ceiling. The rounded room had several tunnels leading from it. Which one should we take?

  We stopped in the center. Keltie scanned each of the tunnels.

  “Do you think the mother dragon could fit in any of the other tunnels?” Bim’s voice trembled.

  “Let’s hope not.” Clutching the purse to my side, I peered in each of the tunnels. All of them were as small as the one we’d traveled. All were dark. All appeared to round off around a corner. “Hokima, any ideas?”

  The troll shook his head. “Everything looks the same.”

  “Eep.” Drago lifted his head out of the bag. “Eep. Eep.”

  “Let’s just pick one.” Keltie clipped her words.

  Debating, I pivoted on my feet about to use the childhood game of Eenie Meanie Miney Troll. Which would be politically incorrect in this situation.

  A harsh war cry pierced the silence.

  My heart rushed up my throat.

  A human war cry.

  At least it wasn’t the mother dragon.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Time slowed as I processed the sound. Or should I say sounds?

  A second war cry. Boots stomping on the ground with threatening force. The crackling of radio communication pinching my ears. Deep voices echoing off the cavern walls. The noise wasn’t coming from more escaping majiks.

  My muscles tightened. “Thoughts?”

  “We can’t go back. It might lead them to the others.” Keltie spoke fast holding the stick in front of her, ready to attack.

  “If we run, we’ll make too much commotion.” Hokima growled and raised his fists. He probably wasn’t much of a runner, either.

  Tos wound between our legs. “We don’t know how many are coming.”

  “Maybe they’ll go a different way.” Bim flicked his fingers as if he could do magic.

  I wish.

  There were no nooks and crannies to hide in. No way to be certain which way they were coming from. No way to save ourselves except to stand our ground and fight. Yanking the dagger from my hairpiece again, I tried to fortify my shaking knees.

  The five of us scurried into the center of the room, backs to each other in a defensive position. Depending on how many people, maybe, just maybe, we could take
them. It was our only hope.

  The stomping and crackling and voices came from every tunnel. Advancing.

  My heart rushed like my feet wanted to. I stayed planted in position.

  Shapes emerged from each of the tunnels in a coordinated fashion like a sweep. Wearing SCUM uniforms with their large bills and neon stripes, ten guards surrounded us.

  My rushing heart dropped into my stomach weighing me down. Terrible odds.

  The guards held guns with long, thin shafts. Instead of a cartridge for bullets, a bulb held liquid that sloshed with their movements. New weapons I’d never seen on the streets.

  I gasped and blew out a breath, as if by breathing I proved I was alive. At least for the moment.

  Keltie raised her stick preparing to strike. Hokima stood his ground. Had I led my new friends into a slaughter? I ground my teeth together. What was I thinking believing I could lead?

  “Zaubers.” An older guard with gray hair and beard charged toward us. He wasn’t afraid of our powers which must mean he knew we couldn’t use magic. The humans must’ve done something to strangle our powers beneath the palace.

  “Aiea!” Keltie’s distinctive battle cry echoed in the chamber. She blocked the guard and pushed him back. The old man fell to the ground and his face reddened. She wasn’t giving up.

  Neither was I.

  “Get them!” The old man yelled from his spot on the ground.

  Another guard took on Hokima and Bim. Hokima threw a punch. The guard evaded. Bim broke off a stalagmite and poked him in the eye. With no magic, they fought with whatever they could.

  “My eye!” the guard screamed.

  Another moved in to take his place.

  I swung my dagger toward the guy moving closer to me. He resembled a rock.

  “Oof.” I swung and missed.

  The Rock jumped away from my slice on quick feet. He had one stripe on his uniform which meant he wasn’t high up the ladder. He didn’t appear to be much older than me.

  “Careful. They’re teens.” He stared at me sending a frisson of warning across my skin.

  Was the warning tone for me or the other guards?

  Battle noises clanged. Other guards tramped in to fight my friends. They surrounded us with their advanced techno weapons. We had nothing but our muscles and our wits.