A Famine of Crows

by A. A. Chamberlynn

  Willow nodded and squeezed her legs to Bullet’s sides, and Arialle shot off in the sky above them. They made it about two hundred feet before the Fallen yelled and pointed behind them. “We’ve got company!”

  “Shit!” Willow looked over at Penelope. “We’re just going to have to make a run for it.”

  “And once we’re there?” Penelope asked.

  “We’ll figure that out later!”

  The horses launched into the sky. Once they had reached the clouds, Willow looked over her shoulder. The Others still tailed them by a few hundred feet, but she didn’t see Zane. A fact that made her both relieved and highly suspicious. She turned back forward and scanned the horizon for a darker spot of blue.

  And then the race was on. She and Penelope had done it a hundred times over the years, just never with their lives on the line. But she knew one thing they had in their favor: the Others might have all of their powers and more, but they didn’t have the fastest mustang in the west. And Domino was no slow poke, either. They’d never been beaten in a race and today was not going to be the first time.

  Clouds whipped past them in a blur. Willow dipped below or around the thick ones. She couldn’t afford to lose sight of the ground. Her eyes were glued to the earth, looking for the dark mountain range the vaqueros had spoken of. They’d said they couldn’t miss it. She sincerely hoped they were right.

  As the land flew by beneath them, Willow didn’t see many mountain ranges at all. It was mostly flat desert, stretches of red and tan earth. The hills that did pop up were the same color, nothing out of the ordinary. A streak of blue-brown here and there as a river cut across the landscape. A look over her shoulder revealed that the Others were hugging them just as closely as before. Not that she’d expected any different.

  And then she saw it. At first, she thought it was another low-hanging storm. Just a mass of dark clouds hovering over the earth. Except these clouds weren’t moving. They sat in one place, hovering over a stretch of mountains which were so dark gray they looked nearly black. Sitting amidst the warm tones of the rest of the desert, it stood out like a sore thumb.

  Willow dove toward it, Penelope at her left shoulder and Arialle a bit further off on the right. As they drew closer, she could see that even the trees which dotted the mountain range were dead and leafless. She saw no dwellings, nor any living things. It was definitely the right place. They were going to make it.

  The horses put on a burst of speed, though behind them the Others seemed to be doing the same. Had they seen where Willow and Penelope were headed? Willow leaned low across Bullet’s neck, red mane whipping her face, her hands pumping up and down her neck as they moved. Just a bit further.

  They passed through the first wisps of the clouds. Now that they were among them, Willow could see that they did actually move, but only very slightly, a slow spin in place not caused by wind or anything in the natural world. The clouds were also cold as ice. Within moments it felt like she was stuck in a blizzard, the temperature raising goosebumps along her skin and making her ears ache.

  It was then that Arialle fell from the sky as if she’d been shot.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Felicity

  When Felicity woke up, she felt a wave of panic. She was in an unfamiliar bed in an unfamiliar room. A huge wooden four-post mahogany bed. Walls papered in yellow flowers, hung with paintings of pastoral scenes and angels. A vanity with a large mirror and a chair.

  Don’t be silly, said a voice in her head. You remember this place. You just exhausted yourself from doing so much research the day before.

  Felicity sat in bed, blanket clutched to her chest, and her heartbeat slowed. She did remember bits and pieces of the day before. She’d had a terrible headache which made it very hard to concentrate. There was no need to panic.

  She walked through the events of the previous day in her mind. They’d spent hours at the Oxford library. It was all a bit foggy, but then, burying yourself in books had that effect at times. Hours upon hours looking through texts was a bit mind-numbing, wasn’t it? She didn’t remember much of dinner, or of getting ready for bed, but the headache had made it quite difficult to focus.

  Her eyes drifted over to the vanity table and she felt a swell of horror. It came in small flashes—she’d been so very tired at that point, practically delirious. Dynah, sitting in the chair. And she’d been touching her hair, her shoulders, her long, slender neck. And then—oh, God—then.

  Had she kissed Dynah?

  She couldn’t have—she would never—but it played out vividly in her mind. Surely it was just a fantasy. Her cheeks flushed and her heart began to race again. If it was her fantasy, then why had Dynah rejected her? Because she distinctly remembered that part. Dynah pulling back. Blue eyes wide with shock. Shock and… upset. She had not reciprocated.

  But then, of course she hadn’t. Dynah preferred boys to girls. Felicity knew that. Felicity herself could barely admit her own feelings for girls. So why had she tried to kiss her? She closed her eyes and sunk her face into the blanket. She would just stay in this room forever and never come out again.

  Someone knocked on the door a moment later.

  “I’m not dressed!” she called in panic.

  “Um—okay.” It was Dynah. “Zachariah and I are going to get breakfast. We’ll wait for you downstairs.”

  “I—I’m not feeling very well. Go on without me.”

  Silence, for a moment, then the door opened a crack. “I don’t care if you’re not dressed,” Dynah said, her voice less muffled now. “I’m worried about you. You were acting—well, not yourself yesterday.”

  “I just had that awful headache,” Felicity said. “Everything is a blur. I’m sorry if I acted strangely.”

  Silence for a moment, then, “It’s okay. How about I bring back some breakfast for you? So you have time to get ready?” She paused again. “I really need your help with the research.”

  Felicity bit her lip. She couldn’t say no. Everything was at stake. As much as she loathed to face the world again, the world depended on it. “Okay. Thank you.”

  Dynah said, “Of course. We won’t be long.”

  The sound of footsteps retreating, and then Felicity was alone. She let out a sigh of relief. She had a few minutes to pull herself together. It seemed the best course of action was to pretend nothing had happened between her and Dynah last night. She’d already said she had a headache. Maybe she could add how incredibly tired she had been. Dynah would understand, wouldn’t she?

  Felicity buried her face in the blankets again. Of course she wouldn’t. This had ruined everything, and it was the last thing they needed on top of trying to reverse their powers and end the Apocalypse once and for all. She just couldn’t fathom what had brought her to do such a thing.

  She heard a sound then, in the silence, a sound that had become quite familiar. A soft susurration within her cloak. Sekhmet’s book. At least she had that. As challenging as interpreting it had proven to be, it was their best chance of fixing this mess. A much better chance than finding some crazy half-angel that hated everyone.

  With fingers that shook (she wasn’t quite sure why), she reached within the cloak. The moment she touched the cool crystal surface of the book, she felt a calm move over her. A numbness. Everything was going to be fine. They would find what they needed to perform the spell, and their lives would go back to normal. Beyond normal, their lives would be vastly improved. She’d be powerful, but she’d be able to control her power. And once that happened, Dynah would change her mind about things. She’d realize what a fool she’d been to turn Felicity down.

  The book was all that was important, the key to everything. Felicity yanked it from her cloak and crushed it to her chest, relishing the warmth that came off of it. She was perfectly fine, so long as she held this book in her hands. She could do and have anything she desired.

  When the knock came on her door, Felicity jerked upright. She must have fallen back asleep.

&nb
sp; “Felicity? Are you ready yet?”

  “Just a moment!”

  Felicity pulled back the covers and then stopped short. The front of her white nightgown was crimson. For a moment she thought her period had come early. But the blood was below her breasts, not between her legs. With shaking fingers, she reached down and touched her gown. Her hand came away wet with blood. She began to shake all over.

  Slowly, she pulled her nightgown over her head, peeling it off the sticky skin. There, over the top of her ribcage, were two marks carved into her skin. Shallow, just breaking the flesh. She felt a wave of nausea.

  Felicity walked over to the vanity and looked at herself in the mirror. It was hard to tell, because they bled freely, but they almost looked like…

  Like some of the markings in Sekhmet’s book.

  “Felicity?” Dynah knocked again. “Are you okay?”

  “I’m fine!” Felicity called.

  She spun away from the mirror and strode to the closet. Inside she found a long silk scarf which she wrapped around her torso several times, then tied at the side. She snatched a dress as well and pulled it on over her head hastily as she walked back to the mirror. Pulling it up, she checked her makeshift bandage to make sure that blood wasn’t seeping through. Then she lowered her dress back down, clipped her hair back, and stepped into her shoes.

  As she reached for the door, it whipped open.

  “What are you doing?” Felicity snapped.

  Dynah recoiled. “I thought something was wrong. You had all that time to get ready while we were at breakfast.”

  “I told you, I’m not feeling well,” Felicity said. “I’m exhausted from reading books all day yesterday. Just—sorry for everything.”

  “You don’t need to apologize,” Dynah said, frowning. “I’m just worried about you.”

  She reached out and set a hand gently on Felicity’s shoulder. Felicity jerked back, and Dynah’s eyes widened.

  “Let’s just get to the library, shall we?” Felicity pasted a wide smile on her face and pushed past Dynah into the hall.

  As she walked, she could feel Dynah’s eyes burning a hole in her back. Her blood felt hot as it pulsed through her veins, and her headache was coming on again, making everything fuzzy. She didn’t know how on earth those marks had gotten on her chest, but she didn’t have time to think about that right now. The spell had to be performed, and the sooner the better. The Riders would be transformed. Enhanced. Evolved.

  Nothing else mattered.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Penelope

  Domino wheeled in the sky as Penelope yanked on the reins, her eyes following Arialle as she plummeted from the sky. She fell like a rock, fast and free, wings flung back. She seemed to be unconscious.

  Penelope leaned forward and yelled, “Ya!”

  Domino dove like a hawk. Straight down, wind racing past them, taking the air from her lungs. They flew like an arrow released, like a cannon, but they weren’t fast enough. Bullet and Willow were right behind her. The ground was rising to meet them with terrifying speed, but Arialle fell faster.

  Then, just fifteen feet above the earth, her wings flared open. She hit the ground and stumbled but didn’t crater into it with the meteoric force she would have. Domino landed next to her a moment later, and Bullet a moment after that. Penelope twisted in the saddle to see where the Others were. To see what had attacked them.

  Arialle tried to stand but staggered slightly. Penelope jumped off Domino to help her.

  “Were you shot?” Willow asked Arialle, voice stricken, eyes wide.

  “N-no,” the Fallen stammered. “I hit something. It felt like slamming into a stone wall.”

  They all looked up but saw nothing solid. What Penelope did see, however, was the Others bearing down on them. They’d changed trajectory and were now headed right at them. They made as if to circle overhead and surround them.

  And then they, too, fell from the sky.

  Right towards Penelope, Willow, and Arialle.

  “Run!” Penelope yelled.

  She grabbed Arialle under one arm and tugged her along, and they moved as quickly as they could out from beneath the falling horses and their Riders. They made it about twenty feet before their pursuers crashed to the ground, a plume of dust rising up around them.

  “I can stand now,” Arialle said, extricating herself from Penelope’s grip. “We don’t have much time. I think I know—here, I’ll show you.” She stopped speaking and stepped towards the dark mountains.

  Until she abutted something.

  “You try,” she said, gesturing to Penelope and Willow.

  Penelope frowned and walked forward, past the place that Arialle seemed unable to pass. Willow did as well. They moved about a dozen strides past Arialle, who, try as she might, couldn’t move past the one spot. She placed her palms flat up against something, pounded her fists on it, but it didn’t yield.

  “Sahkyo must have this place warded from angels and other beings from Heaven,” Penelope said, her breath rushing out with her words.

  “Fallen are not—”

  “Not now, maybe,” Penelope said. “But it’s the essence of you. You came from Heaven.”

  “And the Others, they were made by Heaven, too,” Willow said. “We, however, are human. Even if we got powers from Heaven, we ourselves are not from there.”

  “This is where we say farewell, then,” Arialle said, her expression stern.

  She looked back in the direction they’d come, and Penelope could see the Others picking themselves up off the ground. She should have known better than to hope the fall would kill them.

  “Go,” Penelope said. “And be safe.”

  Arialle nodded, her golden eyes briefly flashing over each of them, and then she vanished.

  Penelope and Willow mounted back up and rode into the gray landscape before them. A look back over her shoulder revealed the Others, standing at the magical barrier, staring after them. She shivered and turned back around.

  What lay ahead wasn’t any more comforting. The vaqueros had been right: this place was unmistakably unnatural. The earth gray and lifeless, the dark clouds hanging far too close to the ground. They swirled and emitted a faint hissing sound. As they walked farther, the ground began to rise and they came across clusters of blackened trees. Each one looked as if it had been struck by lightning and charred to a crisp. Passing close to one of them, Penelope saw a pair of gray eyes staring at her from within a hole in the trunk. She startled, spooking Domino and nearly colliding with Willow, her heart hammering in her chest.

  “We should fly,” Penelope said to Willow. “I don’t like this place.”

  Willow nodded. “Faster, too.”

  But the horses were having none of it. Flying meant entering the thickest part of the dark, susurrating clouds that hung over the land, and neither Domino nor Bullet was the least bit interested. When Penelope and Willow tried to urge them skyward, they snorted and pawed at the ground. After a few minutes they gave up and continued on foot.

  Night fell an hour later, and darkness shrouded them. Penelope didn’t care for the reduced visibility, but she felt an awakening within her. In night and darkness she could use her elemental power. She could cloak them if needed, and she wondered, with practice, if she’d be able to do other things as well.

  It took another two hours to reach the summit of the first mountain. It was slow going, the path being mostly loose shale. The moon rose over them, a fuzzy orb through the thick gray clouds, but it provided some light at least. Penelope and Willow stood in the mouth of a pass just below the peak and looked out at the scene before them.

  The mountains stretched on, seemingly endless. Penelope knew that they were not endless, since she’d seen them from above, but it was a daunting stretch of landscape. It could take them weeks to search the area for Sahkyo. And based on the eyes she’d seen within the tree, she very much doubted they’d be alone.

  “Let’s make camp down there.” Penelope poin
ted to a small plateau a few hundred feet down the other side of the mountain. “I’m exhausted.”

  Willow nodded and they made their way down. When they reached the plateau, they untacked the horses, who looked around mournfully for food. Penelope’s own stomach grumbled with hunger.

  “Sorry, Domino,” she said softly, scratching him under his mane.

  “We’re going to starve to death in here,” Willow said. “I wish we’d had time to get some provisions before those damn creatures started chasing us.”

  Penelope nodded. “You’re right. We need a plan. But first, rest. It’s been a long day. I’ll take the first watch.”

  “You sure?” Willow asked.

  “Yeah.”

  “Alright, well I’m not asking twice.”

  Willow sat down on the ground, using her saddle as a pillow, and tipped her hat down over her face. Within a couple minutes she was snoring loudly. Penelope couldn’t help but smile.

  She knew if she sat down she’d fall asleep, so she paced back and forth across the plateau. When she reached the far aside, a sound caught her ear. A trickle of water. Penelope looked around until she spotted the source: a tiny creek running down from the top of the mountain. In this lifeless place, she knew better than to trust the water. Poison and disease were her specialty, after all. She felt a wave of sorrow at the thought: she was just like this place. Gray and unnatural.

  But an idea sprouted amidst her sadness. She remembered down in Spider Woman’s lair, how she’d used her magic to create light. She hadn’t had much time to practice since then, and being as how she had to stay awake now, it was the perfect activity.

  She started with what she’d done before: creating the ball of light. Calling on memories of things that made her happy, things she loved. Mostly Domino and Willow. She felt like she had come a long way in healing her relationship with Dynah as well, but when she thought of Dynah she thought of her mother and Roy, and that brought only rage and despair.