She Rises, page 22
Raven pulls me out of my reverie. “So, what happened last night? We wake up, and the two of you are all cuddled up and protected by your wall of air.”
I take in a deep breath. “Well, there’s more to the story than you think…”
Ahead of us, Ned calls, “I don’t want to hear it,” and he trots off in front of us. She slows down when he gets out of earshot.
"Give him time.”
My brows knit. “Time for what?”
“He’s hated the Fae his entire life. I don’t know how he feels about himself and his father being Fae but dealing with his issues surrounding Fae is hard for him. When it was only the three of us, it was easier but he’s starting to like Allister, and it's making him question how he’s felt his entire life about Fae. He’ll get over it, but it’ll take time. He’s not mad at you.”
I shake my head in agreement and then remember she’s underneath me, she can’t see my movements, so I say, “Okay.”
“Go on, get on with it. What happened?”
I run my hand down my face and almost whine, “Do we really have to talk about it?”
“No, but if we don't, I'll buck you off,” she answers matter of factly.
“Fine.” I know she’s serious by her tone and I don’t think I have a good enough grip on my powers that I could get thrown to the ground without getting hurt. “I don’t know if you know it or not, but ever since we made it to Sanctuary, I’ve been having night terrors.”
“What are night terrors?”
“They’re recurring nightmares. They're about things that have happened to me; Father and Oak dying or being bitten by a Solis. It's so real I think I'm going through those things all over again. I can't differentiate my dreams from reality. I’m not sure how else to describe them than by saying they’re horrifying nightmares. They also make me scream and thrash in my sleep.”
“I haven’t heard any of that happening,” Raven questions.
“You haven’t heard it because Allister has been using his powers to keep you guys from hearing when it happens.”
“What?” She sounds shocked. “Well, that was rather… considerate of him.” She chuckles. “Most men don’t surprise me in a good way. I’m glad he does.”
I smile. “Last night, I had a night terror…”
She interrupts, “What was it about?”
So I tell her.
"Do your dreams always have James attacking you in them?"
"Not always, but a good portion of the time they do." I wave my hand. “Anyway, Allister woke me up from my night terror. He held me while I calmed down. You didn’t hear me this time, though, because somehow I built the barrier of air in my sleep and made it thick enough that you couldn’t hear when I woke up screaming.”
“I’m so sorry you’re going through this, and I didn't know.” I can hear the sadness in her voice. “Is there anything I can do to help?”
I release the reins and lean on the horn of the saddle, fidgeting with my hands. “Honestly, I don’t know if there is. I’m kind of worried about going to sleep tonight, though. Allister's been there for me when I wake up, it’s been such a comfort.”
“I’ll be there for you.”
“Well, I don’t know if that’s even possible. Last night I put my wall of air up without knowing it. The only reason Allister could hear me was because he was inside my wall when I woke up. I guess my powers wanted to protect my mate too.”
“Oh.” Raven sounds hurt.
“I didn’t do it on purpose,” I try to explain.
“I know,” she says, but the sadness is still there. “Well, tonight sleep right up against me, I’ll wake you up if you have a night terror.”
“All right, I’ll try.”
We sit there quietly for a minute, letting everything sink in, but Raven doesn’t take long before asking, “So how did you two end up cuddling this morning?”
“Like I said, he held me while I pulled myself together after my night terror. He felt so safe and warm. I thought maybe if I had him next to me I wouldn’t have another night terror, so I asked him if we could cuddle.”
“You asked him?”
“I didn’t have another night terror.”
“Good, but it still doesn’t explain why you needed to keep your barrier of air up around the two of you.” I can hear the smirk in her voice.
My cheeks heat again. “I didn’t want to wake you if I had another night terror.” My voice waivers as the lie slips through my lips.
The excitement radiates off of her underneath me even before she says a word. “So, is he a good kisser?”
I was nervous to admit it to Raven because she’s incredibly protective over me, but my nerves are gone now hearing her excitement. So I gush, “He’s an amazing kisser. The only other person I’ve kissed was James, but there’s no comparison.”
“If you two are done gossiping back there,” Ned shouts.
“I think we’re in trouble, girl,” Raven says. “Let’s catch back up.” We quickly trot until we are right behind Ned. The trees are still thick so there isn’t room for us to walk side by side.
“Hi Ned, we’re back,” I chirp, trying to make the conversation light. “What’s up?”
“We need to talk. I don’t know if you realized we’re making our way closer to Shadow Mountain.”
“Yes, I did, I’ve never been this far north before.”
“Then you need to know, the closer we get to Shadow Mountain, the more Solis there'll be.”
My brows knit. “What? I thought they were all in the big cities still.”
“Everyone says they’re in the big cities but let’s be honest, do you know of any big cities left standing?”
I think back. “No, but that’s what our town leaders said, and I have no reason not to believe them.”
“They probably fully believed it themselves. It’s become a mass illusion that all the Solis are in the big cities. No one thinks about the fact that there really are no big cities anymore; so when a straggler is spotted, everyone assumes they’re leaving the big cities, but it isn’t the case.”
“What is the truth then?’
“While the Solis did search out humans following the Night of Destruction, they pulled back around Shadow Mountain almost ten years ago. We don’t know why, but we assumed Henrik called them back. I can guess why he called them back now, though. He found out about you.”
“And? I was only ten years old back then.”
“He was probably pulling them back as a precaution. You could have had no powers or you could have become what you are now, a Fae capable of rivaling his own powers. He must have wanted to see what was going to happen. If you'd have powers or not. If you were worth his time and energy.”
“Why did he send a werewolf to kill me before my powers awakened then?”
“You have his blood flowing through your veins. He could probably sense your powers stirring. Now there won’t be a ton of Solis on the way to the next town, but we might see some, so we need to keep an eye out.”
“Okay.”
* * *
We ride the rest of the day making small talk between the three of us. Raven and I tell him all about our hometown, I tell him more about my father and Oak, and he tells us a little about his parents.
According to him, they were mates who were utterly and completely in love. His father would grow their food or hunt all day while his mother took care of Ned. And even though his father was always exhausted by the time he got home, he would dance with his mother after dinner. He told us about how his father taught him how to fight as he got older and how his mother taught him to cook. I can hear the love he has for them in every word that leaves his lips.
Then he tells us how he got his awful scar and those burns down the right side of his body.
"One night I was awoken by my mother bursting through my bedroom door. She said, ‘Ned, we have to get going the slayers are here.’ I can still hear the terror in her trembling voice. I asked her where Father was. She said he was giving us time to get away. I grabbed for my scabbard, intending to go help him. She grabbed my arm to pull me back, but I brushed her away. I was a young man by then and I thought I could help. I remember walking into the doorframe, turning back and looking into her tear-soaked face just as the house fell on top of us in an instant blaze of fire. I remember a blood-curdling scream as the house fell. "
Unsure of what else to say, I meekly reply, "I'm so sorry.”
"By the time I woke up, the house was completely burned down. I had this huge gash on my face, and the right side of my body had been burned. Both injuries were so terrible that even with my Fae healing, I'm still left with these scars. I searched for my parents, but I never found their bodies. I assume they were burned up in the fire."
I gasp.
"My father was an amazing warrior and could have held his own against almost anyone except Henrik. The intensity of the fire and the way it instantly dropped our house, I know it was him at our house."
I drop my head. "Ned, I don't know what to say except I'm sorry."
"It's all right, princess. I don't know what my family did to make Henrik leave his mountain and attack us, but I know we will take him down and I'll get my revenge."
I nod to him and nothing more is said.
* * *
When the sun starts to sink, we all decide it’s time to make camp for the night. We find a felled tree next to a small stream of water. The ground around the tree trunk is soft with lusciously soft grass. It'll be perfect to sleep on. Trees encircle us behind and around that felled tree, protecting us. The stream fills up the last side of camp. We fill up our canteens with fresh water before Ned makes a small fire, and I lay out our beds. We’ve gotten into our own routine after all these days together. While Allister's absence does mean more work needs to be shared between us, let's be honest, it's not much more work. Nothing needs to be said between us, we know what needs to be done and get it done, no words necessary.
After dinner, we all lay down for the night. Again I’m laying in the middle, every night we’ve been gone, I’ve been squished between Allister and Raven. The thought makes me smile, I guess everyone wants to protect me. I snuggle up to Raven’s back and close my eyes.
* * *
I wake to a scream. I think to myself, that’s weird. I don’t remember having a bad dream, shrug my shoulders, and turn toward Raven. I’m about to wrap my arm around her when I hear Ned’s panicked voice.
“Attina!”
My eyes shoot open and I'm instantly on my feet searching.
I don’t see Ned, but I sense the struggle through the earth underneath him. I follow that feeling and find Ned lying on the ground through the trees about twenty feet past camp. A Solis is lying on top of him, pawing at him, trying to get past Ned’s arms to bite him. I move to help Ned, but at the same time, I notice movement on the ground coming toward our camp from the other side. Toward where Raven still lays.
Fuck!
“Raven, get up!” I shout at the top of my lungs.
I lunge forward and grab the hair of the Solis on top of Ned, but when I pull back, all I have in my hands is its long black hair. It doesn't even phase the Solis. I don’t know if the thing even realizes I’m there as it continues snapping at Ned, pushing to move through the wall of arms blocking it. I lift my leg and kick the Solis off of Ned, suddenly realizing I left my sword and bow back at camp. The Solis goes rolling and slams hard into a tree a few feet away.
I reach down and grab up Ned.
“Let’s go, another Solis is coming to camp where Raven’s still sleeping!”
We move, and I notice how fast I'm becoming, but I don't know if it's fast enough. I have to get to her before the Solis does. I round the last tree before camp and see Raven laying peacefully on the ground with a Solis hovering over her about to pounce.
I yell, “Raven!”
Wind and earth propel me forward, and it's like I’m out of my body as I move. I know I shouldn’t be capable of moving this fast, but I don’t care. I bend down in a split second and come up swinging my sword at the Solis. Its head goes flying as I fall over Raven. The Solis’s body falls on top of me.
She finally lifts her head. “Shit! Kid? You all right?” She carefully gets up and nudges the heavy Solis partway off of me with her muzzle.
I lie there breathing heavily. “Since when do you sleep so hard?”
Behind Raven, I hear sword meet bone and hear something human-sized go crashing to the ground. I breathe out a sigh of relief.
“I’ve been carrying your ass everywhere. I’m tired, okay?” Raven answers.
I push the rest of the Solis off me the rest of the way and sit up. Turning around, I see Ned staring at me.
“You okay?” he asks.
I nod. “What about you? Did you get bit?”
He shakes his head. “No, I'm fine. Thank you for your help back there.” He throws his thumb over his shoulder in the direction I found him.
“Always, but what the hell were you doing out there alone?”
“I had to go to the bathroom and forgot my sword.” He drops his head, looking ashamed.
“It’s okay; I left camp without my sword too. We need to start sleeping with our swords on. It’ll be uncomfortable, but it’s better than being stuck without them.”
Afterward, none of us are able to get back to sleep, so we stay up until dawn. We pack up camp, saddle the horses, and get back on the road.
35
Allister
It took longer than I wanted, but I finally made it back to Shadow Mountain. I ended up skirting around a herd of those damned Solis. Usually, I would have put those poor souls out of their misery, but with my wound, it would have taken a lot of energy, and I need all my energy to deal with Henrik.
I have no idea how this is going to end.
I walk to the base of the mountain, where a massive black door covered in ruins waits. The ruins carved into the wooden doors are an ancient spell. The spell only allows beings who live within the mountain to enter unchecked. A small group of soldiers guard the door day and night.
As I walk through the dark entryway, those soldiers now line either side of it, their fisted hands on their chest, heads lowered in reverence. It took me years to earn their respect, so in turn, I give a slight bow of my head in acknowledgment. It takes a second but my eyes adjust to the darkness in here. Where Henrik's personal guards are covered in gold, these are covered in black. The color matches well with the inside of the mountain.
The inside is smoky quartz with small veins of gold cracking throughout the walls, the pillars, and even the polished floors. From this entryway, guests are led up into more black with gold veined rooms, furnished in all the greatest luxuries known to Arealea. Deep pool-like baths which warm to any soaker's desired temperature, their food cravings automatically appearing from thin air, and beds which change firmness based on who lays in them.
But I’m not going to the guest suites. I’m going straight to Henrik's throne room, in the heart of the mountain. The rest of the mountain is where all the permanent inhabitants live. Down here is a completely different atmosphere than the plush guest suites above.
The rooms, if you’re lucky enough to rate one, are essentially a space with a door and a cot. The royal family are the only people who have rooms comparable to the guest suites. Since Henrik despises my existence and the only reason I’m still alive is to be useful to him, I also do not rate a fancy room.
But I prefer it that way.
Everyone who isn’t the royal family, or a warrior, basically fends for themselves. While warriors are allowed to leave the mountain, the rest of our people are not. Whole ballrooms are filled with cots for our people to sleep on. The rest of the Fae living here take care of the mountain and its inhabitants. These people live in squalor while walking by walls covered in gold.
I walk by one such room filled to the brim with cots, barely enough room to breathe. A red ball comes rolling out, followed by two young boys, brothers if I had to guess by their matching sandy hair and gray eyes. I bend down, picking up the ball as they almost run smack into me. The boy in front slams on the brakes, but his brother doesn’t notice and plows right into him. The first boy almost topples forward but is barely able to stay standing, he holds his arms out and backs away, protecting his brother. They're both much too skinny; their drawn cheeks and small boney arms tell me they aren't getting enough to eat. Dirt stains their too-small clothes.
“Um… um… I’m sorry, mister. We didn’t see you.” Fear coats his voice as it shakes.
“Why are you scared?” I cock my head, unsure as to what he has to be scared of.
“You’re Allister. The king’s top slayer. We’ve heard stories of you. You kill without mercy for the smallest slight against you.”
I huff a breath out. I'd played my part too well, I guess.
That was the Fae I put on for Henrik's benefit, not the Fae I’d like to be known for.
I bend down on my haunches and hold the ball out for the boy. “Don’t believe everything you’re told, little one.” I wink as he snatches the ball from my hand, turns, and runs away with his brother.
Shaking my head, I continue to Henrik’s throne room.
When I make it to the throne room, the doors are closed and guarded on either side by two of his golden guards.
The one on the right puts up his hand, stopping me. “His highness is not to be disturbed.”
I level my most menacing glare at him. “Are you seriously going to stand there and act like you have no idea who I am? Open the fucking doors,” I say, venom coating my words.
The guard lowers his hand but shakes his head. “I can’t do that.” The golden armor encases the soldiers, making them almost impossible to recognize, but I know those puffy red cheeks and high voice.
I put my hand on the hilt of my sword. “I’m here with news for Henrik’s ears only. When Henrik asks me who kept this information from him for so long, I’ll be sure to give him your name, Agar.” I sneer.
I take in a deep breath. “Well, there’s more to the story than you think…”
Ahead of us, Ned calls, “I don’t want to hear it,” and he trots off in front of us. She slows down when he gets out of earshot.
"Give him time.”
My brows knit. “Time for what?”
“He’s hated the Fae his entire life. I don’t know how he feels about himself and his father being Fae but dealing with his issues surrounding Fae is hard for him. When it was only the three of us, it was easier but he’s starting to like Allister, and it's making him question how he’s felt his entire life about Fae. He’ll get over it, but it’ll take time. He’s not mad at you.”
I shake my head in agreement and then remember she’s underneath me, she can’t see my movements, so I say, “Okay.”
“Go on, get on with it. What happened?”
I run my hand down my face and almost whine, “Do we really have to talk about it?”
“No, but if we don't, I'll buck you off,” she answers matter of factly.
“Fine.” I know she’s serious by her tone and I don’t think I have a good enough grip on my powers that I could get thrown to the ground without getting hurt. “I don’t know if you know it or not, but ever since we made it to Sanctuary, I’ve been having night terrors.”
“What are night terrors?”
“They’re recurring nightmares. They're about things that have happened to me; Father and Oak dying or being bitten by a Solis. It's so real I think I'm going through those things all over again. I can't differentiate my dreams from reality. I’m not sure how else to describe them than by saying they’re horrifying nightmares. They also make me scream and thrash in my sleep.”
“I haven’t heard any of that happening,” Raven questions.
“You haven’t heard it because Allister has been using his powers to keep you guys from hearing when it happens.”
“What?” She sounds shocked. “Well, that was rather… considerate of him.” She chuckles. “Most men don’t surprise me in a good way. I’m glad he does.”
I smile. “Last night, I had a night terror…”
She interrupts, “What was it about?”
So I tell her.
"Do your dreams always have James attacking you in them?"
"Not always, but a good portion of the time they do." I wave my hand. “Anyway, Allister woke me up from my night terror. He held me while I calmed down. You didn’t hear me this time, though, because somehow I built the barrier of air in my sleep and made it thick enough that you couldn’t hear when I woke up screaming.”
“I’m so sorry you’re going through this, and I didn't know.” I can hear the sadness in her voice. “Is there anything I can do to help?”
I release the reins and lean on the horn of the saddle, fidgeting with my hands. “Honestly, I don’t know if there is. I’m kind of worried about going to sleep tonight, though. Allister's been there for me when I wake up, it’s been such a comfort.”
“I’ll be there for you.”
“Well, I don’t know if that’s even possible. Last night I put my wall of air up without knowing it. The only reason Allister could hear me was because he was inside my wall when I woke up. I guess my powers wanted to protect my mate too.”
“Oh.” Raven sounds hurt.
“I didn’t do it on purpose,” I try to explain.
“I know,” she says, but the sadness is still there. “Well, tonight sleep right up against me, I’ll wake you up if you have a night terror.”
“All right, I’ll try.”
We sit there quietly for a minute, letting everything sink in, but Raven doesn’t take long before asking, “So how did you two end up cuddling this morning?”
“Like I said, he held me while I pulled myself together after my night terror. He felt so safe and warm. I thought maybe if I had him next to me I wouldn’t have another night terror, so I asked him if we could cuddle.”
“You asked him?”
“I didn’t have another night terror.”
“Good, but it still doesn’t explain why you needed to keep your barrier of air up around the two of you.” I can hear the smirk in her voice.
My cheeks heat again. “I didn’t want to wake you if I had another night terror.” My voice waivers as the lie slips through my lips.
The excitement radiates off of her underneath me even before she says a word. “So, is he a good kisser?”
I was nervous to admit it to Raven because she’s incredibly protective over me, but my nerves are gone now hearing her excitement. So I gush, “He’s an amazing kisser. The only other person I’ve kissed was James, but there’s no comparison.”
“If you two are done gossiping back there,” Ned shouts.
“I think we’re in trouble, girl,” Raven says. “Let’s catch back up.” We quickly trot until we are right behind Ned. The trees are still thick so there isn’t room for us to walk side by side.
“Hi Ned, we’re back,” I chirp, trying to make the conversation light. “What’s up?”
“We need to talk. I don’t know if you realized we’re making our way closer to Shadow Mountain.”
“Yes, I did, I’ve never been this far north before.”
“Then you need to know, the closer we get to Shadow Mountain, the more Solis there'll be.”
My brows knit. “What? I thought they were all in the big cities still.”
“Everyone says they’re in the big cities but let’s be honest, do you know of any big cities left standing?”
I think back. “No, but that’s what our town leaders said, and I have no reason not to believe them.”
“They probably fully believed it themselves. It’s become a mass illusion that all the Solis are in the big cities. No one thinks about the fact that there really are no big cities anymore; so when a straggler is spotted, everyone assumes they’re leaving the big cities, but it isn’t the case.”
“What is the truth then?’
“While the Solis did search out humans following the Night of Destruction, they pulled back around Shadow Mountain almost ten years ago. We don’t know why, but we assumed Henrik called them back. I can guess why he called them back now, though. He found out about you.”
“And? I was only ten years old back then.”
“He was probably pulling them back as a precaution. You could have had no powers or you could have become what you are now, a Fae capable of rivaling his own powers. He must have wanted to see what was going to happen. If you'd have powers or not. If you were worth his time and energy.”
“Why did he send a werewolf to kill me before my powers awakened then?”
“You have his blood flowing through your veins. He could probably sense your powers stirring. Now there won’t be a ton of Solis on the way to the next town, but we might see some, so we need to keep an eye out.”
“Okay.”
* * *
We ride the rest of the day making small talk between the three of us. Raven and I tell him all about our hometown, I tell him more about my father and Oak, and he tells us a little about his parents.
According to him, they were mates who were utterly and completely in love. His father would grow their food or hunt all day while his mother took care of Ned. And even though his father was always exhausted by the time he got home, he would dance with his mother after dinner. He told us about how his father taught him how to fight as he got older and how his mother taught him to cook. I can hear the love he has for them in every word that leaves his lips.
Then he tells us how he got his awful scar and those burns down the right side of his body.
"One night I was awoken by my mother bursting through my bedroom door. She said, ‘Ned, we have to get going the slayers are here.’ I can still hear the terror in her trembling voice. I asked her where Father was. She said he was giving us time to get away. I grabbed for my scabbard, intending to go help him. She grabbed my arm to pull me back, but I brushed her away. I was a young man by then and I thought I could help. I remember walking into the doorframe, turning back and looking into her tear-soaked face just as the house fell on top of us in an instant blaze of fire. I remember a blood-curdling scream as the house fell. "
Unsure of what else to say, I meekly reply, "I'm so sorry.”
"By the time I woke up, the house was completely burned down. I had this huge gash on my face, and the right side of my body had been burned. Both injuries were so terrible that even with my Fae healing, I'm still left with these scars. I searched for my parents, but I never found their bodies. I assume they were burned up in the fire."
I gasp.
"My father was an amazing warrior and could have held his own against almost anyone except Henrik. The intensity of the fire and the way it instantly dropped our house, I know it was him at our house."
I drop my head. "Ned, I don't know what to say except I'm sorry."
"It's all right, princess. I don't know what my family did to make Henrik leave his mountain and attack us, but I know we will take him down and I'll get my revenge."
I nod to him and nothing more is said.
* * *
When the sun starts to sink, we all decide it’s time to make camp for the night. We find a felled tree next to a small stream of water. The ground around the tree trunk is soft with lusciously soft grass. It'll be perfect to sleep on. Trees encircle us behind and around that felled tree, protecting us. The stream fills up the last side of camp. We fill up our canteens with fresh water before Ned makes a small fire, and I lay out our beds. We’ve gotten into our own routine after all these days together. While Allister's absence does mean more work needs to be shared between us, let's be honest, it's not much more work. Nothing needs to be said between us, we know what needs to be done and get it done, no words necessary.
After dinner, we all lay down for the night. Again I’m laying in the middle, every night we’ve been gone, I’ve been squished between Allister and Raven. The thought makes me smile, I guess everyone wants to protect me. I snuggle up to Raven’s back and close my eyes.
* * *
I wake to a scream. I think to myself, that’s weird. I don’t remember having a bad dream, shrug my shoulders, and turn toward Raven. I’m about to wrap my arm around her when I hear Ned’s panicked voice.
“Attina!”
My eyes shoot open and I'm instantly on my feet searching.
I don’t see Ned, but I sense the struggle through the earth underneath him. I follow that feeling and find Ned lying on the ground through the trees about twenty feet past camp. A Solis is lying on top of him, pawing at him, trying to get past Ned’s arms to bite him. I move to help Ned, but at the same time, I notice movement on the ground coming toward our camp from the other side. Toward where Raven still lays.
Fuck!
“Raven, get up!” I shout at the top of my lungs.
I lunge forward and grab the hair of the Solis on top of Ned, but when I pull back, all I have in my hands is its long black hair. It doesn't even phase the Solis. I don’t know if the thing even realizes I’m there as it continues snapping at Ned, pushing to move through the wall of arms blocking it. I lift my leg and kick the Solis off of Ned, suddenly realizing I left my sword and bow back at camp. The Solis goes rolling and slams hard into a tree a few feet away.
I reach down and grab up Ned.
“Let’s go, another Solis is coming to camp where Raven’s still sleeping!”
We move, and I notice how fast I'm becoming, but I don't know if it's fast enough. I have to get to her before the Solis does. I round the last tree before camp and see Raven laying peacefully on the ground with a Solis hovering over her about to pounce.
I yell, “Raven!”
Wind and earth propel me forward, and it's like I’m out of my body as I move. I know I shouldn’t be capable of moving this fast, but I don’t care. I bend down in a split second and come up swinging my sword at the Solis. Its head goes flying as I fall over Raven. The Solis’s body falls on top of me.
She finally lifts her head. “Shit! Kid? You all right?” She carefully gets up and nudges the heavy Solis partway off of me with her muzzle.
I lie there breathing heavily. “Since when do you sleep so hard?”
Behind Raven, I hear sword meet bone and hear something human-sized go crashing to the ground. I breathe out a sigh of relief.
“I’ve been carrying your ass everywhere. I’m tired, okay?” Raven answers.
I push the rest of the Solis off me the rest of the way and sit up. Turning around, I see Ned staring at me.
“You okay?” he asks.
I nod. “What about you? Did you get bit?”
He shakes his head. “No, I'm fine. Thank you for your help back there.” He throws his thumb over his shoulder in the direction I found him.
“Always, but what the hell were you doing out there alone?”
“I had to go to the bathroom and forgot my sword.” He drops his head, looking ashamed.
“It’s okay; I left camp without my sword too. We need to start sleeping with our swords on. It’ll be uncomfortable, but it’s better than being stuck without them.”
Afterward, none of us are able to get back to sleep, so we stay up until dawn. We pack up camp, saddle the horses, and get back on the road.
35
Allister
It took longer than I wanted, but I finally made it back to Shadow Mountain. I ended up skirting around a herd of those damned Solis. Usually, I would have put those poor souls out of their misery, but with my wound, it would have taken a lot of energy, and I need all my energy to deal with Henrik.
I have no idea how this is going to end.
I walk to the base of the mountain, where a massive black door covered in ruins waits. The ruins carved into the wooden doors are an ancient spell. The spell only allows beings who live within the mountain to enter unchecked. A small group of soldiers guard the door day and night.
As I walk through the dark entryway, those soldiers now line either side of it, their fisted hands on their chest, heads lowered in reverence. It took me years to earn their respect, so in turn, I give a slight bow of my head in acknowledgment. It takes a second but my eyes adjust to the darkness in here. Where Henrik's personal guards are covered in gold, these are covered in black. The color matches well with the inside of the mountain.
The inside is smoky quartz with small veins of gold cracking throughout the walls, the pillars, and even the polished floors. From this entryway, guests are led up into more black with gold veined rooms, furnished in all the greatest luxuries known to Arealea. Deep pool-like baths which warm to any soaker's desired temperature, their food cravings automatically appearing from thin air, and beds which change firmness based on who lays in them.
But I’m not going to the guest suites. I’m going straight to Henrik's throne room, in the heart of the mountain. The rest of the mountain is where all the permanent inhabitants live. Down here is a completely different atmosphere than the plush guest suites above.
The rooms, if you’re lucky enough to rate one, are essentially a space with a door and a cot. The royal family are the only people who have rooms comparable to the guest suites. Since Henrik despises my existence and the only reason I’m still alive is to be useful to him, I also do not rate a fancy room.
But I prefer it that way.
Everyone who isn’t the royal family, or a warrior, basically fends for themselves. While warriors are allowed to leave the mountain, the rest of our people are not. Whole ballrooms are filled with cots for our people to sleep on. The rest of the Fae living here take care of the mountain and its inhabitants. These people live in squalor while walking by walls covered in gold.
I walk by one such room filled to the brim with cots, barely enough room to breathe. A red ball comes rolling out, followed by two young boys, brothers if I had to guess by their matching sandy hair and gray eyes. I bend down, picking up the ball as they almost run smack into me. The boy in front slams on the brakes, but his brother doesn’t notice and plows right into him. The first boy almost topples forward but is barely able to stay standing, he holds his arms out and backs away, protecting his brother. They're both much too skinny; their drawn cheeks and small boney arms tell me they aren't getting enough to eat. Dirt stains their too-small clothes.
“Um… um… I’m sorry, mister. We didn’t see you.” Fear coats his voice as it shakes.
“Why are you scared?” I cock my head, unsure as to what he has to be scared of.
“You’re Allister. The king’s top slayer. We’ve heard stories of you. You kill without mercy for the smallest slight against you.”
I huff a breath out. I'd played my part too well, I guess.
That was the Fae I put on for Henrik's benefit, not the Fae I’d like to be known for.
I bend down on my haunches and hold the ball out for the boy. “Don’t believe everything you’re told, little one.” I wink as he snatches the ball from my hand, turns, and runs away with his brother.
Shaking my head, I continue to Henrik’s throne room.
When I make it to the throne room, the doors are closed and guarded on either side by two of his golden guards.
The one on the right puts up his hand, stopping me. “His highness is not to be disturbed.”
I level my most menacing glare at him. “Are you seriously going to stand there and act like you have no idea who I am? Open the fucking doors,” I say, venom coating my words.
The guard lowers his hand but shakes his head. “I can’t do that.” The golden armor encases the soldiers, making them almost impossible to recognize, but I know those puffy red cheeks and high voice.
I put my hand on the hilt of my sword. “I’m here with news for Henrik’s ears only. When Henrik asks me who kept this information from him for so long, I’ll be sure to give him your name, Agar.” I sneer.
