"Keep up with me, or I will leave you behind" Klara said, moving ahead of them.
“Right behind you Princess.”
Klara spun to face Wolfgang, “call me a princess again, and you’ll see just how like the High Queen I can be.”
~12~
On the edge of the Forest, Klara looked at the gravel path. She let her shifting potion reset, feeling exposed out in the open. Too many eyes would be on them as a group.
"We shouldn't use the paths," Klara said, noticing the tracks they were leaving. "And if we get lost in the darkness?" Wolfgang argued with Lottie's head resting on his shoulder.
"We will be harder to track, and I know where we're headed."
They didn't need to know I burnt the map. They didn't even know there had been a map. Lilith had brought her as far as Lokey. Now it was up to Klara to get to Kharon. She had visited the River Ferrier once with her Father. The King thought it was vital for her to meet Death's deliverer.
Arthur was already off the Forest path and walking through the leaves and fallen branches.
“We are wasting time. Move it or stay," Arthur said, and Wolfgang followed without argument.
The group held a steady pace as the hours past. Klara needed the others to keep up if they were to make the Ferrier with time to spare. Kharon was devious at the best of times. Klara recalled her last visit with her Father. The Ferrier had pushed a Creature from the longboat and into the River for merely looking at them wrong. Klara looked over her shoulder to see Wolfgang watching his foot placement as his sister slept on his back. He must be tired from carrying the extra weight for hours, Klara thought as Arthur walked beside her.
“How does it feel to be out of the Castle?” She asked, and Arthur stared up at the trees.
“Strange, I haven’t left that place in decades, I know I’m dead but being out I’ve never felt more alive.”
“Lilith got you out?” Klara tried to hide the sorrow in her voice. “I was just finished the night’s feast when she came and snuck me into the Forest. Lilith knew you had returned before the others.”
“Do you know why Lilith helped us?”
“I think of you as a granddaughter, and Abadan knows this. I’m the first on the list as leverage against you.” Arthur pushed aside a low hanging branch for them to step under. “Lilith released my binding spell to the Castle.”
“How did you know where to go?”
“She told me to head East until I reached the toadstools.’
“You had been there before?”
“Decades ago, Tapped was once a haven for Fae who had been banished from Kalos. When Malum and Kalos were ruled under the Fae Queen, Warlocks used to go and treat any wounded in secret before the treaty was signed.”
Klara had a million and one questions about Arthur and her Father’s past, but she had settled for knowing there were thousands of years’ worth of secrets between them.
Klara studied the Forest floor, “Lilith always acted as though she hated me. Made me fight until my ribs cracked and not just on one occasion. I was surprised when she came to my cell. I was sure she was going to kill me.”
“Lucifer told her to raise you, make you an Heir, and that’s what she did. Lilith was always very literal.”
“Maybe if she and the others had been more lenient, I wouldn’t be leaving.”
“If Lilith had, you wouldn’t be strong enough to leave,” Arthur countered, and Klara knew he was right.
“Lilith could have broken you, but you rose to every challenge much to the High Queen’s dismay,” Arthur said, and she looked over her shoulder making sure Wolfgang and Lottie hadn’t fallen behind.
“I’m not the Heir. As Lucifer’s daughter I should relish the misery and darkness, but I don’t.”
“Not yet,” Arthur smiled, and Wolfgang groaned quietly.
“Let me take her,” Klara said, and Wolfgang squinted in mistrust. “We can’t stop, and you have been carrying her for hours.”
Wolfgang hesitated, holding his sister’s legs. “You have been running since last night. If you collapse, I will leave you.” Lilith also trained her to be brutally honest when necessary. Wolfgang opened his mouth to speak, but instead, he slowly handed Lottie over. She was small but carrying anything for a length of time is exhausting, especially in Malum. The air is always cold and thick trying to strangle you, while the roots of the trees were desperate to trip you up.
Wolfgang dropped to a knee, pulling a container of water from his backpack. “The full moon is almost here,” he said looking through the cracks in the trees.
“Is that a problem for you?” Klara asked, and swore, she almost saw a smile.
“No, I can control the shift.”
Klara pulled at the back of her neck. All she needed was for the Lycaon to go rogue. The difference between Werewolves and Lycaons was that Lycaons could stop the shift and maintain consciousness when in their altered form. Werewolves could do neither.
The full moon moved above them, brightening their path. The realization smacked her between the eyes. “Worried about the Fae?” Arthur asked in a hushed tone sensing her unease.
“The sun and moon will be even brighter in the Neutral Lands. There will be no smog or dark clouds to shield us.”
“Let’s just worry about getting to the River first before thinking about the other side,” Arthur said. Klara nodded, swinging her axe through a bustle of briars.
“Has Lottie changed yet?” Klara asked Wolfgang as Arthur continued further ahead. A young Lycaon had little to no control over themselves during their first years. “No, she still has a few years. I was worried that the shock of the fire and the loss of our pack would cause her to awaken, but there has been no fever.” Klara could see from his glazed expression that he was thinking out loud.
“Yet,” Wolfgang finished, and Klara wondered if she would ever love someone that much, if she were even capable of it.
“How do you expect to pass through as a…”
“Lycaon? I’m not offended. There is no other place for us now.” Wolfgang walked up alongside her as Lottie yawned on Klara’s shoulder. She looked much bigger on Klara’s back than on Wolfgang’s broad shoulders. “The caves and reserve is nothing but ashes, those that remain will go into hiding for some time.”
“That’s not exactly what I meant. Once we cross the Neutral Land, there are hard protections before Kalos. If you have…” There was a rite of passage in a Lycaon pack that would seal the border from him. Wolfgang stopped in his tracks, whistling softly.
“You don’t think much of Lycaons.” Lottie stirred, hearing her brother’s harsh tone. The movement made Klara wince. She had never carried anyone before, let alone a child.
“The answer then?” Klara pressed as they continued after Arthur. “No, I’ve never consumed a Human heart, none of my family has. We use the hearts of animals for the changing ritual, not a Humans or Creatures.”
“Why?” Klara asked, knowing it wouldn’t be hard to find a Human heart. “All you had to do was bribe a port official. Or better yet, some sailors are Human that were saved from shipwrecks by the ghost ships. Most Humans are too afraid to leave the ships or dock, but it wouldn’t be hard to hunt them.”
Klara wondered why his pack had forsaken an ancient tradition.
“Lucifer hasn’t restricted the tradition.” It was one of the oldest traditions since Creation, most Creatures were granted clemency for such traditions but only per generation.
Wolfgang cleared his throat, “my pack doesn’t follow the old ways. Didn’t.” Klara noticed his shoulders slump as he talked of his family in the past tense.
“Do you know why Abadan went after the packs in search for me?” It was a strange start to hunting her, and Klara could find no logic in it.
“The packs were gaining strength. Most packs backed you as the future ruler of Malum as they supported your Father when the treaty was created. The Alphas would have accepted anyone over the High Queen and her pet Eve.” Wolf
gang didn’t make any mention of Lilith, but Klara didn’t want to ask and interrupt.
“My parents didn’t involve themselves in politics, but they still attended pack meetings, and Abadan’s Crimson Guard didn’t stop to ask before they blocked the cave and set it alight.”
Klara could hear the pain in his voice. Wolfgang let out a soft chuckle, and for a moment, he looked his age. “If only they could see me on the run with you, they would not believe it.”
“Careful!” Arthur called, and Wolfgang pulled Klara back as she was about to disturb a snake bed. Wolfgang’s skin made contact with Klara’s, and she saw the curve of a scar, but a flash blinded her from seeing into his mind. Wolfgang dropped her hand as quickly as he had grasped it.
“You are hurt?”
“Can’t conceal much from you,” Wolfgang winced, lifting the corner of his shirt. Angry red veins emanated from a deep circular wound at his waist. His defined side made her look away, not wanting to linger. Confined to the Castle, she wasn’t used to being in the company of Creatures her age.
“The silver won’t kill me, my body will push out the bullet eventually,” Wolfgang grunted as Klara placed her fingers very lightly on the veins, her magic told the infection was already setting in. She couldn’t see into his mind, but Klara could feel the searing heat of the silver in her veins before he tugged his shirt down. The silver bullet is in too deep. He can’t reach the silver himself.
“Can you change? Maybe force it out?” Klara asked, and Wolfgang shook his head. He would have been handy in a fight.
“Not with silver inside me, don’t worry, I can still hold my own.” Judging from his cold eyes, Wolfgang thought she was contemplating abandoning them. The thought had crossed her mind as she saw the snaking veins getting closer to his heart, but she had cost them their family, the least she could do was take them the rest of the way.
◆◆◆
A new heart, a bullet wound and a young Lycaon. Klara couldn’t help but think the odds were stacked against them as the sun rose. A film of sweat coated their skin as the morning air was thick with dew. The further south they travelled, the more humid the Forest became.
“Are we almost there?” Lottie whined, hand and hand with her brother. The leaves and tree trunks grew larger with every step as they walked the outskirts of the Giant’s Territory. “Not too far now,” Klara lied, offering her a small smile. What little sun there was, forced its beams through the enormous leaves.
Klara’s axe went to work slicing through the thick stems of the hanging leaves which only depleted more of her energy. “I’m hungry,” Lottie said, holding her stomach and Klara noticed the sweat on Wolfgang’s brow. Klara hoped it was from the exercise and not his wound. Arthur eyed the bushes and trees around them before taking off in a jog. Within a second, he had disappeared behind the leaves.
“Let’s take a breather,” Klara said, leaning against the tree stump and Lottie sat on the exposed tree root, with her knees tucked under her chin.
Wolfgang offered Klara some water, and she hesitated to look after Arthur’s chosen path. “Do you think he heard something?” Wolfgang asked as Klara took a sip and handed it back.
“Whatever it is, I’m sure he’ll be back soon.”
The overgrown plant life and the lack of footprints in the mud along with the buzzing hum of insects made her uneasy.
“Goddammit!” Klara heard the sound of Arthur slapping his skin and she guessed it was because the vampire beetles thirsted for the sweet nectar of his soul.
“Miss me?” Arthur beamed with some Karlick fruit in the cruck of his arm.
Arthur tossed Klara the round prickly fruit and threw the other to Wolfgang. Lottie took a generous bite through the thin purple skin, and Klara stifled a laugh as the little girl pinched her lips.
“It’s so sour,” Lottie tapped her feet into the mud as the juice dripped from her chin.
“I would have warned you, but that’s what you get for being in a rush,” Wolfgang scolded tucking a long strand of blonde hair behind Lottie’s ear. Lottie pulled away and stuck her tongue out at him as he bit into the fruit himself.
“It’s all I could find without going too far in,” Arthur said, taking a seat on the root beside Klara.
“How’s the heart holding up?” Arthur asked slapping at his neck and the crusted beetle flattened against his skin. “Working,” she grunted, taking a bite, the bitterness caused a shudder to run down her spine. She turned away from Arthur’s worried eyes. Giant food was intense in flavour, sour, bitter or sweet. Too much to handle for the average-sized creature, they finished what they could before setting off again.
Hiking through the Giant Forest, Klara’s foot dropped into a small pit, allowing a whimper to escape as it jarred her. She looked and saw what she had stepped into. “A Giant’s print and some Ogres as well,” Wolfgang said, pointing at the thick spread of footprints. “We must be getting closer to their community.”
“This part of the Forest is rife with Giants and Ogres, watch where you step and keep your eyes open,” Arthur warned as Klara freed her foot from the print.
“I doubt we will see an Ogre in these parts. The prints are old.”
Klara admitted that Wolfgang knew more about the Forest than she did. They were far from the swamps in the south, “Why would the Ogres be living in Giant territory?”
“The Ogres were gifted some land for their service to the High Queen by Lucifer,” Arthur said.
“We have crossed no huts or hovels, no sign of much life,” Wolfgang said.
“Are you sure?” Arthur countered. “Look up!”
Wolfgang, Klara and Lottie looked high into the trees where there sat homes and bridges. Most were covered in moss and leaves for protection.
“Ogres don’t live in trees,” Klara said, and Arthur shrugged. But if these are their homes, where are they? Klara asked herself.
“No, they don’t, but you’ll try anything once if you want to survive,” Wolfgang sounded angry, and Klara could see the disheveled state of the homes. Walls and doors hung off hinges, bridges were broken and swinging loosely in the breeze.
“Why are you so irritated? The Alphas weren’t involved in the Giants’ war, they chose to stay in their caves,” Arthur said.
“If Lucifer had come to us, we would have stood with him and negotiated with the Giants when they felt threatened,” Wolfgang admitted. “We wanted to end the Giants’ war with the Ogres without bloodshed, but instead Lucifer sent Abadan to order our conscription.”
“And by that you mean to say, the Alphas couldn’t handle the blow to their egos.”
The male ego. “Not all alphas are men,” Arthur said reading Klara’s smug expression.
Klara caught the sad smile on Wolfgang’s face as she caught him looking at Lottie. Is she the next Alpha? Klara still didn’t know which pack they had belonged to. If their Alpha is dead, it would awaken another.
“It wasn’t our war to fight. They could have been gifted other lands. The Giants responded to their lands being threatened. No offence but it’s been a while since you graced this land. Not everyone wants bloodshed, Warlock,” Wolfgang pulled Lottie up higher on his back.
“The Giants could have sacrificed this small piece of land for peace,” Arthur said calmly, and Klara was surprised to hear Arthur defend the Ogres.
“This was Giants Territory and not only were they massacred in order for the Ogres to claim the gifted land, but when the Giants fell, the Ogres made homes out of their bones.”
“That’s war,” Arthur said sadly. “The Giants, in turn, ate those who resettled in their land.”
The thought of being ground up by a Giant sent a deep chill through Klara’s bones. Klara slashed through the giant leaves revealing a collection of Ogre skulls embedded in the tree trunk. Wolfgang covered Lottie’s eyes, but it was too late she had already seen them. Their pronounced foreheads and sunken jaws hung open in warning to others who dared enter Giant lands. The argument was clea
rly over.
“We move closer to the path. We don’t need any trouble,” Klara ordered. Arthur opened his mouth to argue, but no sound came out.
Giants are exceptionally territorial, and their lands run dangerously close to the River. They had been victim to one too many Fae invasions. The Ogres should have known better than to accept such lands. But as Klara saw the small cracked skulls covered in moss, the skulls of children she mourned for the loss of innocents. In Malum, no one was safe because no one was considered innocent. Not even children.
◆◆◆
“Don’t move,” Wolfgang said, and Klara frowned as she saw the nails grow from his skin. Klara felt nothing, sensed no threat.
“Don’t,” Arthur said, emerging from behind a tree. Klara spun to the ground as she reached for her axe. “Lower your weapons,” the order came from above, and Klara saw the group of Giants surrounding them. Their bulbous heads in the heights of the trees staring down at their small crushable bodies. Klara considered running, but with one step, the Giant would catch or worse, crush her.
“They are here to help,’ Arthur assured her.
“He led us to them,” Wolfgang told Klara as he shook his head in disbelief. “They serve their own. You can’t trust them.”
Klara could see they were surrounded and outnumbered. There was nothing to do but trust or at least negotiate for their freedom. “Went for food old man and came back with Giants. Father said you were unpredictable.”
“Heiress we are here to aid you,” one of the Giants with deep brown skin and long braided hair boomed.
“We need shelter, and the Hounds can’t enter their lands. Even Creatures can’t pass through without express permission from the Elder,” Arthur said, moving to Klara’s ear.
“That will be all Hentor,” the tallest Giant grunted, dropping to one knee so that Klara could get a better view of whom she was talking to. A giant set of green eyes and freckles appeared before here.
Crowned A Traitor: A Hellish Fairytale Page 15
