The Warriors, page 27
part #3 of Wicked Series
He threw one hand over the edge of the ledge and grabbed a hold of a rock jutting from the ground. Then, using the footholds beneath him, he pushed his upper body over the ridge. Swinging one leg up and over the edge, he rolled over and found himself lying on flat ground. He peered up at the snow covered branches and laughed.
After a moment he clambered to his feet and began inspecting the tree. It looked to be dead, or dying at least, which meant the thinner branches would likely be good enough to assist in starting the fire. He scooted in under the tree more and started breaking off some of the branches. They snapped off easily, unlike the greener trees that were still well moulded together.
Caspian worked his way around the tree until he was on the other side where the perimeter of the ledge was. He was far enough from its edge to be safe, but it was still unnerving.
‘Interesting way to search for sticks,’ came Oscar’s voice.
Caspian jolted upright, bumped his head on the above branch, slipped on a patch of ice and stumbled backwards.
He shouted out, desperately grasping at thin air. He slammed against the ground and slipped over the edge of the ledge. At the last minute his hands gripped against a rock and his fall halted, his body dangling high above the ground. If he fell, he would die, regardless of whether he was Enchanted or not.
All of a sudden he understood how Gemma had felt when she’d nearly plummeted to her death.
‘Caspian!’ Oscar roared above, and then he was there, clutching at Caspian’s hands as they clung to the ledge.
Caspian didn’t look down. He couldn’t. He only looked up at Oscar who was grasping both of his wrists tightly and beginning to pull.
His feet kicked in the air, but there were no footholds close enough for him to use to push himself up. He could hear Oscar straining above, and he prayed that he wouldn’t let go.
Caspian could feel himself being dragged back over the edge as Oscar heaved him to safety with his own sheer strength. When Caspian felt his stomach reach the ledge he was at last able to use his legs to kick up over the side and roll back onto the flat surface.
Oscar collapsed beside him, the two of them pressed up close against the tree.
‘I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have startled you. God, you could have died. I’m so stupid,’ Oscar muttered.
Caspian laughed, the adrenaline still rushing through his body. He couldn’t believe what had just happened. He couldn’t believe he was still alive. He’d been fairly certain he was going to die right then and there.
‘What are you laughing at?’ Oscar asked, his voice angry.
‘I don’t really know,’ Caspian admitted, then began to laugh harder.
After a minute, Oscar sat up, hitting Caspian’s arm. ‘Stop it. You nearly died because of me. It’s not funny.’
Caspian saw the serious expression on his face and sat up too. ‘It’s fine. I’m fine,’ he said, the smile fading from his lips.
‘I know, but you might not have been,’ Oscar countered.
Caspian had never seen Oscar so serious. He was so use to his friends joking manner, his easy smile and calmness, that the genuine fright in his face was almost unnerving. He didn’t know what to say to Oscar, what to do to make him feel better.
Oscar closed his eyes for a long moment then opened them, and just like that, the look was gone, and his usual mischievous sparkle was back in his eye.
‘Come on, let’s collect these sticks and head back to the cave. It’s freezing out here and it’ll be dark soon.’
Caspian sat there for a moment longer as Oscar gathered the sticks he had dropped and started climbing back down the rock face. What had just happened? Besides his nearly dying. There was a strange feeling deep within him that he couldn’t explain.
Eventually, Caspian scrambled to his feet and followed after Oscar.
~
Logan manoeuvred the vessel through the seas, eyes continuously searching for land. They had been sailing for a few days already and it was going to be a long trip to Dante. They didn’t have time to waste, they had to reach land as soon as possible.
Grace bustled up behind him, wrapping her arms around his waist and resting her head against his spine. He liked having her close. Drew and Mitch were asleep in the cabin, and the sun was close to setting over the ocean. Having Grace there with him almost made it perfect. Almost.
The fact that they were at war, that Stella and Leo were still in Alast, that the rest of their friends were on dangerous journeys of their own, that they were on their way to a possible death, was the only thing that made it not perfect.
He wanted to be able to forget it all just like that, but it wasn’t easy, no matter how hard he tried. And it felt wrong, ignoring it, pretending like everything was normal. Because it wasn’t. Because they were at war. And their chances of winning were slim.
Logan thought back to the Wicked they’d tortured. He’d given in easily, he knew that. The Lightening was painful, but if he was so loyal to Erebus betraying him as easily as he did was unlikely, which was promising. But then again, the prospect of being murdered was enough to scare anyone into telling.
Logan knew there was a sure chance of not finding Mr Stark in Dante. The Wicked could have been lying, Logan knew that too, but they had to look. It was the best lead they had. And they’d killed the Wicked afterwards, so retrieving more information from him wasn’t possible.
Logan shuddered. He’d thought it so easily. He’d tortured a Wicked. He’d killed him. The Wicked had been weapon less, and they’d killed him. It wasn’t a fair fight.
‘What’s wrong?’ Grace asked quietly, coming around to look at him.
He allowed her to stand in the circle of his arms while he continued to steer. After some strong tablets and rest, she appeared to be feeling much better.
‘Nothing,’ he said to her, refusing to meet her gaze.
But she already knew. She always did. ‘He would have killed us anyway. He was going to, remember? I hated doing it as much as you, but Enchanted are dying, are being converted to Wicked. Humans, are being experimented on. We have to stop it.’
Logan felt himself relax a little at her words. She always knew how to calm him. She always knew the right thing to say. He felt bad, he always would, but it was war.
‘How long until we reach Dante do you think?’
Logan looked down at the map in the dying light, then up at the small island ahead. ‘I’ve got a better idea.’
Grace spun to stare at the island they were approaching. Norik Island; still free of Erebus. ‘You want to steal some birds, don’t you?’
Logan grinned to himself. ‘You know me so well.’
The birds would have them in Dante by morning, he was sure of it. He adjusted the direction of the boat slightly and sailed for Norik Island.
‘Go wake the others. We’ll be arriving soon.’
~
Leo set his eyes on the two Wicked Guards as they sat back lazily, watching the four of them while they cleared the brick of one of the last buildings that had been knocked down. It was meant to make way for a new hotel where, apparently, the Wicked would be able to live.
Leo knew it was his chance. He turned to his fellow rebel and began speaking, quiet enough to make it look as though he was trying to whisper, but loud enough so that the Guards would hear.
‘Laura’s safe. She’s on Mortan Island. One of the Enchanted got word to us through the Guards,’ He said.
They had decided to incorporate the idea of Wicked having betrayed them simply because it would instil a sense of distrust and fear between them. That was the hope, anyway.
Out of the corner of his eye he saw the Wicked Guards sit up a little straighter. He jumped back into his work, pretending as if nothing had happened. And just like that, the plan had been put into action.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Means To An End
The sun was setting when Stella was at last escorted back to the hotel along with her group. As they were going, they passed by the Grand Court’s houses, and Stella was pleased to see a large group of Wicked rushing into Erebus’ house. Had they laid the ground work enough for Erebus to really believe he would find Laura on Mortan Island? She hoped so. Their plan relied heavily on it.
It was slow going back to the hotel – not only was it on the other side of Alast, but they were all exhausted. The Wicked escorting them poked and prodded them forward, but even Stella was feeling the strain. They would be dead soon - worked too hard - if they didn’t escape. That was why, after their weeks of planning, the escape would be happening that night.
Stella still feared failure. They all did. It was hard not to. They’d been so sure the time before was going to work – that they were all going to escape. None of them could deal with another broken attempt. They had to make it off the island. They wouldn’t survive much longer if they didn’t.
Half an hour passed before Stella made it back into the dining room of the hotel and she joined Leo and her brothers for dinner. Their rations had been cut to half after their previous escape attempt, their clothes were in rags, their inner power was close to depleted due to their lack of sleep, but despite all that there was still a sense of hope in the room.
Leo was covered in soot, and Stella knew she probably didn’t look much better. Last time she’d caught a glimpse of her reflection in a window her white-blond hair had been matted with mud and her eyes were bloodshot.
They finished their meals, taking note of the small guard group that were in the dining room that night, then trudged up the stairs to their rooms. Leo was quick to open the secret door to the tunnels, and the two of them hurried down to the cavern as quickly as their sore, tired feet would carry them. Before long, they found themselves in underground where many Enchanted were already changing into the Wicked guard uniform or strapping weapons to their bodies.
Archer and Tarim arrived then and called the meeting to order.
‘All right everyone. I’m not so good at giving speeches or words of encouragement or wisdom, so all I’ll say is be safe, and do not give in. We have to escape tonight. We will escape tonight.’
‘The seed has been planted,’ Leo added. ‘Many saw Wicked flocking to the Grand Court’s houses today. We can only hope Erebus sent them straight through to Mortan Island.’
‘Good,’ Archer said. ‘I know we are riding on hope, but this is the best option we have. We’ll be ready to fight when we reach Mortan Island however we need to. And then we’ll make our way back to our families.’
Stella felt something shift in the air around them at the mention of their families. They all wanted to be back with their ones they loved. They were all desperate to ensure that everyone was alive and well, Stella included. Her parents were out there, and so were her students.
She leaned in closer to Leo, thankful to have had him by her side. Without him, she probably wouldn’t have made it. Without him, she would have given up.
‘Stella, Leo, Tarim and I will be going in for the Devils Cane. Everyone else knows their positions. We all know the meeting point. Take care of the Wicked then get everyone straight to the beach. We’ll get there as soon as we can to open the portal,’ Archer told everyone.
There was a noise from behind Archer and then someone was climbing through the hole.
‘He’s back,’ the man said, looking at Archer.
That was the signal they’d required. Erebus had returned, without Laura. Which meant it was time to go after the cane. Stella felt Leo’s fingers lace with hers, granting them with a final squeeze. They were in it together. They would make it. They would survive. She hoped.
She changed into the Wicked uniform, strapped her weapons to her body, and joined her brothers and husband by one of the tunnels. It was time to escape Alast.
~
The moon was just starting to appear in the sky as Grace, Drew, Mitch and Logan sailed over the shores of Dante, searching for a place to land. Grace pointed out a small grassy space that looked to be good enough to land on, and they slowly lowered their birds down onto the ground. Trees swayed in the breeze created by the large hawks wings and Grace was glad for the surrounding protection.
They had managed to break into a zoo during the night which, to all their surprise, was extremely unguarded. They’d been quick to pass through into the Enchanted Animal enclosures where they found their birds. They took two, assigning two to a bird, and lifted off into the sky before anyone had a chance to stop them.
The trip had been much quicker flying, taking them the rest of the night then the following day to reach Dante. The moon was in the sky by the time they had landed, which worked in their favour, for it appeared the Wicked had taken over Dante as well.
Ships still battled out in the harbor, but there were many scatterings of fires throughout the island too. Grace could see small figures fighting on the grounds, some towns had been burnt down to nothing, and even the screams and shouts echoed right up to them. They would have to be cautious in whatever actions they took, but if Mr Stark was definitely underground on Dante, then they would have to take some risks too.
‘You feeling better?’ Drew asked as they climbed down from their birds and slung their bags over their backs.
‘Much better after getting off that ship,’ Grace responded.
‘Where should we go?’ Logan asked as they encouraged the birds to fly off into the sky; to be free.
When they refused to lift off, however, Logan gave up and turned to the group.
‘I think we should head north. I saw a little town that way, not much fighting. Hopefully we’ll be able to sneak in and get some information,’ Mitch suggested.
‘I think that’s our best bet,’ Drew agreed.
They left the birds pecking at the ground in the little clearing and started north through the trees. It didn’t take long to reach the outskirts of the town. Lights were on everywhere, illuminating it as if it were day. Wicked walked through the streets, un guarded and unconcerned. They clearly thought they had complete control of the town.
Grace peered around the small town, catching sight of a row of buildings that reached right up to the tree line.
‘There,’ she whispered, pointing them in their direction.
The four of them crept through the trees and down to the buildings. They watched the alleyway for ten minutes to see what the traffic was like, and once they were sure it was safe, then left the bush and sprinted over the small patch of ground to the brick wall. They pressed themselves flat against it, remaining in the shadows as they edged their way down the alley.
It was slow going, but they didn’t come across anyone. They reached the end of the alleyway and ducked down behind a dumpster, peering around the edge to see the streets. Wicked swarmed the town centre. It was midnight, and yet clearly that didn’t seem to bother them. Some Wicked hung out in the pubs, some wandered about talking with their buddies, and some were sitting around eating or drinking. It was so… normal. And yet so abnormal at the same time.
Grace felt a tightness in her gut. The Wicked were taking over, and it was as if the fact that they were killing innocent Enchanted and Humans didn’t mean a thing to them. She was still sick over what they’d done to the Wicked for information, and yet there were their armies, laughing and playing without a care in the world.
It almost made Grace lose the small tendril of sadness over what she’d done. Almost. But she still had compassion. She still cared. She couldn’t change that.
Drew pointed to a car just off to their left. Grace understood what he was suggesting. If they could sneak into it, there was a chance that they could listen in on the conversations close by. It was a larger car, with high, tinted windows. It would be enough to conceal them, and if the keys were inside, good to use for a quick getaway. Grace didn’t know how to hotwire a car, but she imagined Mitch did, so hoped that even without keys they would be safe.
One by one, they gradually edged out from behind the dumpster and peered into the street. There were Wicked around, but none were paying attention to the alleyway that concealed them. As quietly and swiftly as possible, they crossed the pavement and reached the car door. Drew opened it and they crammed themselves inside as fast as they could.
Mitch climbed over the seat into the front so he could drive if they needed to escape, and Logan rolled over into the boot so he could lay down below the windows. Drew and Grace settled down on the floor, heads below the window and knees pressed up to their chests, the seats in front of them pushed as far forward they could go without squishing Mitch.
They could already hear the Wicked in the street better. They were talking about sports though, which came as a surprise to Grace. She didn’t know the Wicked played sports.
Cramped and uncomfortable, they waited. Grace didn’t know how much time had passed before they overheard any useful information. But after a short while, someone said something about new Wicked coming into town, and someone else mentioned they were Enchanted who had been converted and trained by Mr Stark as Wicked.
Grace locked eyes with Drew, knowing some of them could have been from Alast. That was where Erebus had been sending them. To Mr Stark to train them. They’d all suspected it, but having it confirmed was sickening.
‘Someone will have to go meet them early in the morning,’ a Witch said.
‘Ah come on, can’t they find their own way here? It’s such a long walk,’ another Witch replied.
‘It’s not that far at all you lazy ass. Just for that you can go tomorrow,’ the first Witch said.
Grace saw Drew’s eyes widen and the two of them turned to peer up through the window at the Witch they would have to follow in the morning. That was how they would find Mr Stark. She would lead them straight to the entrance to his hideout.
‘Should we stay here till morning?’ Logan whispered through the seats to them.
