by Eric Vall
Then everything was silent.
We crouched in the shadows of the ferns and waited, and eventually the wolfish dog emerged.
His hackles were smoothed, and his ears stood erect as he strolled out and dropped half a brain into the dirt. There was a throaty gag as it peeled its lips back over its red fangs, and then it hacked a chunk of torn flesh from its throat. The meaty wad landed in the shadows in front of us, and I gagged as well.
In the dappled moonlight, I could see the blood drenched fur of the wolf’s face and chest as it stood with the oozing brain beside its massive paws. The ruff of its neck had long, bloody handprints smeared across it on both sides, but somehow, it seemed more relaxed than it had since I’d first seen the wolfish beast.
It shook its coat off with a satisfied smack of its tongue, and then it lifted its nose toward the treetops. I could hear the pools of blood in the snout gurgle as it sniffed the night air, and within a few seconds, the wildish dog trotted off into the ferns to resume its trail.
“D-did you see that?” I stammered as I gaped toward the lifeless legs that splayed from the base of the ferns. “It just--it fucking ate that thing! I mean it literally … ” I trailed off as my knees went numb.
Cayla grabbed the sleeve of my shirt. “Don’t lose that dog,” she said firmly, and we all turned to sprint after the crazy beast.
My eyes were wide with shock as I stumbled to catch up, and they stayed that way for most of the way to House Kylen. I didn’t register anything we passed as we ran through the plants and wove around felled trees and boulders. All I could see was the mottled grey flesh ripping from the creature’s bones, and the deformed features pinching hideously as it screeched and flailed in the fangs of the wolfish dog.
I’d been worried the unruly dog would eat me within the night, but now I knew damn well it could if it wanted to, and I also knew exactly how it would go about doing it. I had to remind myself to blink several times as I gaped blankly ahead of me and recalled the blackened organs popping and oozing like cherries in the beast’s jaw.
I almost barreled right out of the tree line when we came to House Kylen, but Shoshanne grabbed my arm in time to pull me back.
“Thanks,” I whispered as I squinted through the dark toward the towering fortress. It looked like a slender rectangle tipped on its side, and the grounds were pitch black. No guards stood at the doors, and from what I could see, there were no torches lit within the walls of the courtyard at the back either. I craned my neck and let out a low whistle.
“That’s gotta be at least seven stories,” I muttered.
“Where is everyone?” Shoshanne asked uneasily.
I shrugged. “They probably figured Deya’s father is a spineless lump of shit who wouldn’t have the balls to lift even a fucking finger to get her back.”
The three women were silent, and when I turned around, they were all looking at me.
“Well, it’s true,” I grumbled, “but that’s not important right now. What matters is we get through this house without dying.”
Aurora sighed and shifted to move a little closer to the edge of the trees, but the wolf beside her took this as a cue. It stalked right out into the moonlit clearing that surrounded the fortress, and I jumped to grab the rope that trailed behind it.
The second I had it in my grip, the wolfish beast whipped around and snapped its bloodied fangs at my wrist.
I dropped the rope just in time and leapt at least three feet back as I fell onto my ass and looked into the eyes of the growling beast.
“Don’t eat me,” I hissed, but it only snapped at the air between us. “Fucking hell, we’re on the same side! What do you think I followed you for, you little--”
“Shhh!” Aurora hissed, and she helped me to stand up again. “The dog can’t understand you, are you serious?”
“I can’t feel my legs.”
Cayla rolled her eyes. “You’ll draw a lot more attention to us if it starts eating you than if it snarls a bit so … go with it.”
I gaped at the three women, but they only shrugged.
“Fine,” I scoffed and turned to the dog. “Go on then, you crazy fucking-- ”
“Mason!” Aurora hissed.
“Alright,” I sighed, and I scruffed my hair to get my blood circulating again. “I’m cool. Let’s do this.”
I took a hesitant step forward, and the dog’s growl slowly got louder as I moved. I gritted my teeth and stiffly passed the angry beast, and to my relief it didn’t snatch me from behind and rip my brain out of my skull. It actually snorted a bit of blood from its snout and quietly trotted to pass me up and lead the way toward the fortress.
I shook my head, and Aurora curled her arm in mine. “You’re cute when you’re afraid of getting eaten,” she whispered.
“I’m not talking to any of you,” I grumbled. “How you can watch that thing and be like eh whatever is beyond me. I just-- ”
“Hey,” Cayla pointed out, “that Wendigo would’ve given us a similar treatment if the dog hadn’t come back to protect us.”
I stopped. “There’s Wendigo here? Real ones?”
Cayla smirked and pulled me along. “Yes, but again, let’s focus.”
I grimaced.
“Here,” Shoshanne said as she came to my other side. “This’ll help: Deya’s a beautiful and lithe beauty with violet eyes that sort of make you feel like you could fall naked at her feet any second, and she’s somewhere in this dark and creepy fortress waiting for you to save her.”
I raised my eyebrows as my pulse kicked up a notch. “That actually helps,” I told her with a grin.
“Of course it does,” the healer answered with a coy smile. “Now, enough about being eaten. Let’s rescue Deya and get out of here.”
The three women trotted to catch up with the dog, and I couldn’t help but grin as I watched them go. There was nothing like three ridiculously steady and sexy women to keep you grounded in fucking weird times.
I jogged to join them, and as we neared the fortress, the wolfish dog turned toward the courtyard. I was surprised I couldn’t even hear its heavy paws on the ground anymore, and it didn’t snarl or growl once. It stalked like a deadly ghost through the grounds, and it brought us to a shadowy corner of the wall beside the courtyard. We all filed into the corner, and even the dog tucked itself out of the rays of the moonlight. Then it sat down and looked at us.
Aurora grinned. “Good boy,” she purred.
I rolled my eyes. “Here,” I whispered, “I’ll give you a boost. See if you hear anyone around once you’re over.”
Aurora nodded and hitched her boot on my leg, and I caught her thighs to lift her up to the top of the wall. Once we heard her boots land softly on the other side, we waited until she gave a few taps on the stonework. I nodded to Cayla next, and the princess secured her rifle more snuggly before she hitched herself up as well. Once I got Shoshanne up and over the wall, I glanced to the dog.
As I eyed the bloodied snout, I considered bringing the beast with us. I could pull the dirt up into a ramp, and then coax it over the top, but then I recalled the ravenous snarl that echoed through the jungle ahead of us our whole way here.
There was no way we’d be able to stay undercover inside if the wolf decided to go wild again.
“Wanna give me a boost?” I asked with a snort.
The dog only licked its bloody snout, and I promptly jumped to snatch the top ledge of the stone wall. Then I pulled myself up and over the other side, and the three women were already armed with their bows where they waited.
Aurora shook her head once and motioned for us to follow, and I brought my own bow around and checked to be sure the magazine was full. We moved along the shadowed edge of the stone wall with the barren courtyard glowing before us. It had only three stone benches in it, but no plants or any type of finery.
When we made it to the wooden doors, I pulled my magic to the surface and unlocked the metal latch on the other side. The door creaked lightly as we opened it just enoug
h to slip in, and when it closed behind me, we were in complete darkness. I felt Cayla tug at my sleeve, and I followed along behind her until we turned a corner and a shaft of moonlight illuminated the hall through a small window. The carpets were a deep red, but there was nothing on the walls or anywhere in the long dim hallway.
“Stairs,” I muttered as quietly as I could, and the three women nodded.
We moved through the hallway without making a sound and turned down the next as well. Once we turned once more, I began to wonder if we’d end up making a circle around the entire fortress. There were no rooms on this level, so the empty hall only continued eerily until we finally came to a darkened alcove.
Aurora ignited her fingertips, and the flames illuminated a thin stairwell.
Then she extinguished the fire, and we carefully headed upward.
Our boots echoed lightly against the stone steps, but we made it to the second floor without coming across anyone.
“Should we start here?” Shoshanne whispered.
I shook my head. “Dragir said she’d be in the upper levels.”
“But the stairs end here,” Cayla said. She gestured to the shadows beside us, and as I reached out, my hand met a cool stone wall.
“Shit,” I cursed. “Okay, let’s find the next one.”
We moved out into the hall of the second story and padded along the red carpet, but this time we passed by a few rickety looking doors. They were all closed, and the rooms were silent from what we could here. The other stairwell was on the opposite side of the fortress, and as we ducked into its shadows, a thought occurred to me.
I caught Aurora’s arm before she could continue. “We need a plan,” I whispered. “This layout isn’t going to work.”
“What do you mean?” the half-elf asked.
“I mean we get Deya, and then there’s five of us stomping through the place at once and just hoping no one’s waiting in these corners for us … ”
Cayla furrowed her brow. “Okay,” she said with a curt nod. “We’ll go another story up, and I’ll stand watch at the stairwell. Shoshanne will go another two stories, and Aurora will take the last watch. If anyone comes along at any level, kill them quietly.”
I raised my brows. “That’s not bad,” I said with a grin. “You’re sexy when you’re plotting.”
“I know,” Cayla said with a shrug. The icy cast of her blue eyes warmed my blood immediately, and I pulled her in for a kiss. The princess left a light bite on my bottom lip, and I groaned.
Then I took a deep breath. “Be careful,” I told the three women, and they nodded before we turned to head up to the next level.
This staircase crossed two stories before it ended in another wall on the fourth floor, and I pulled Cayla in for one more kiss before we left her to stand guard in the shadows.
This story was illuminated in moonlight from large square windows, and it had twice as many doors. I could hear Elvish being spoken through the wooden planks here and there, but we moved more slowly to be sure we didn’t make any sounds.
Once we made it to the opposite side and up the next stairwell, light spilled across the stone steps. The fifth floor was well lit with torches mounted along the walls.
“Shit,” I cursed under my breath. I heard boorish laughter from down the hall, and we flattened ourselves against the wall of the alcove.
The laughter came closer, and I could hear the heavy footfalls of the elves as they approached. It sounded like there were three of them, and I nodded to the two women as I readied my hand on my bowstring.
The moment the elves entered the alcove, they turned to head down the stairs, and we loosed three arrows into the base of their skulls.
The large elves dropped heavily to the steps and rolled a few feet until their weight piled on each other and they came to a stop. I eyed the broad shoulders and massive boots of the elves and raised my brows.
“Dragir said they were large, ” I muttered.
“I’ll stay here,” Shoshanne whispered. “If anyone finds them laying there like that … ”
“Good idea,” I agreed, and I laid a fiery kiss on her lips before Aurora and I entered the bright hallway.
“Should I put them out?” the half-elf asked as she gestured to the torches.
I considered this, and then I glanced to the base of the nearest door. There was a two-inch gap between the wooden planks and the carpet, and I turned back to Aurora.
“No,” I told her. “They’ll be able to tell.”
She looked at the door as well and then nodded before we proceeded down the hall as quietly as we could. The doors here were well polished, and each one had a torch mounted on either side. The iron rings at the latches were inlaid with a strange symbol, but I didn’t waste any time trying to figure out what they were.
I let out the breath I’d been holding when we finally made it to the next stairwell, and we could already tell the next floor would also be well lit. The stonework glowed ahead of us, and Aurora leaned toward my ear.
“What do you think?” she whispered.
“Let’s check it out … but it’d be best to have you another story up just in case something goes wrong up there.”
“True,” Aurora said with a nod.
We peered out into the sixth story hall, and it looked exactly like the one below. I motioned for the half-elf to follow me, and we quickly rounded the corner and scanned for the next stairwell. Then a door swung open about ten feet ahead, and an elf emerged and turned toward us.
Aurora loosed an arrow directly between his eyes.
The burly elf’s face went slack, his eyes bulged, and as he swayed there for a moment, I lunged forward.
I caught the massive elf just as he tipped backward, but he nearly flattened me under his weight.
Still, I managed to set him out across the carpet without making much noise. Aurora tiptoed over and grabbed one of his thick boots. She cocked her head toward the door he’d left open, and I came to her side to get his other foot.
We strained to drag the massive elf across the red carpet and into his chamber, and once he was well within the room, we quietly set his trunkish legs back down.
Aurora huffed. “Gods, that’s a big elf,” she whispered as she wiped a bit of sweat from her brow.
“Seriously,” I chuckled quietly. “What are they feeding these guys?”
Aurora nudged me and motioned toward the wall, and as I peered over her head, I saw a massive half-eaten boar sitting on a platter. There was no bread or anything else. Just a huge roasted boar all for himself.
I snorted. “There you have it.”
We peeked into the hall, but there was no one around, and we carefully closed the wooden door behind us with the dead elf inside. There was a small slick of blood that stained the carpet, but I shrugged since there was nothing we could do about it.
When we made it to the next stairwell, I could hear several voices coming from the next floor. They didn’t sound like they were getting any closer, and I figured about three to four elves stood around a little way down the hallway. Their chuckles were deep enough to be able to tell they were as brutish as the last few elves.
I glanced at Aurora.
The Ignis Mage sent me half a grin and quickly tipped onto her toes to lay a little kiss on my cheek, but I caught her against me and pulled her in for a more passionate kiss. She slipped her tongue into my mouth, and I gently pinned her against the wall of the alcove for a half a dozen seconds. When I pulled away, her skin was warm all over, and her lips curled into a coy smile. Then she returned her hand to her bowstring and flicked her emerald eyes up the stairwell.
I smirked and kissed the beautiful half-elf once more before we turned to sneak up to the seventh floor. My adrenaline surged as a booming laugh echoed down the hall, and we stood as still as statues in the alcove. Aurora trained her ears carefully, and her brow crinkled with worry. Then she held up six fingers.
I grimaced, but with any luck, this was the top floor and
the last group of burly elves between us and Deya.
After taking a steadying breath, we quickly stepped into the hall. Six elves were to our right in a group outside of an open door, but there were three more to our left as well who had been in a less raucous conversation.
I quickly turned right as Aurora turned left, and we each took three elves down within three seconds. A few called out as they were pierced with arrows, and as I pulled my bowstring back once more, two of the large elves bolted and lunged around the far corner. I managed to get the one who’d remained there in shock, and he fell onto the heap of elves at his feet.
Aurora and I scaled their bodies as we ran after the two who had fled, and I cursed when we rounded the corner and found it deserted. We sprinted on and came to another stairwell just as the boots of the elves disappeared.
Then Aurora threw out her hand, and her flames poured across the steps and enveloped the entire stairwell. The elves called out in shock as they were engulfed in the enchanted fire, and Aurora jumped straight into the stairwell with her bow poised. Within seconds, their bodies made a heavy thud on the stone steps.
The flames extinguished, and Aurora quickly came down the steps with her cheeks flushed and smudges of ash all over her. She was unburnt though, and she wiped the sweat from her brow once more as she motioned for me to follow.
The burnt flesh of the elves still bubbled from the heat, and they secreted a yellowish ooze here and there along their blackened bodies. Their jaws were still split from their screams, and their arms were twisted unnaturally from their fall.
“Damn,” I muttered.
Aurora shrugged. “I’ll stay near the other bodies, go get Deya.”
I nodded and gave her another kiss before she turned and headed down the stairs, and I stepped around the burnt elves to come to the landing of the eighth floor.
Instead of torches, the doors in this hall had ornate lanterns mounted beside them, and the deep red carpet was fringed with gold filigree. I could hear music playing somewhere, and I waited for a minute to see if anyone would come running after the brief ruckus the burnt elves had caused.
When nothing happened, I checked my magazine once more. I only had five arrows left, so I shifted to pull a few more from my quiver. Just as I was about to load them, I heard a door open, and the sound of the music filled the hall.
