by K. A Knight
Well, fuck, I guess I got what I wanted, but fuck that doesn’t sound good.
“Any rules?” I ask, tilting my head back, ignoring the hissing of my men. I won’t let them second-guess me, we need them. That’s all there is to it.
“You go alone, you have twenty-four hours, and you may take any weapon or supplies you wish, but if by tomorrow night you are not back when the moon rises...I will throw your men from this mountain and you will never return to your war. Or you can leave now, and I will escort you home, your choice.”
“Piper,” Evan hisses.
“Princess, even I’m agreeing with Doc on this one, it’s a suicide mission,” Archel grumbles.
“Brawler,” Jago starts, and I turn to see him analysing my face. “I trust you, if anyone can do it, it’s you.”
My eyes widen. “You aren’t going to stop me?”
“I wouldn’t even dare try, not when you have your mind set to it. I’m terrified, but...if there’s one thing I’ve learned from loving you, no one in this world can stop you when you set your mind to something. So you want to prove yourself, you will, but if you don’t come back I’m going out there and I’m dragging your ass back myself and tying you to our bed,” he snaps, stepping closer and ignoring the audience. “Understood, baby?”
“Understood, big guy, don’t worry, I got those skills.” I wink and he snorts.
Archel moves closer, searching my eyes. “Move quick, stay low, and get the fuck back here, Princess, or I will have to kill all these mountain people,” he snaps, his eyes narrow.
“Shit, I’ll get the med kit ready, don’t you fuck up your body too badly,” Evan yells, and I turn to see him with his arms crossed. “You got this, Pip,” he adds, and I grin, turning to look at the pascha.
“When do I leave?”
Packing my bag on Clay’s bed, I feel the others staring at me from across the room. I sigh and look up to see them all there. “Guys, I’m coming back, okay?”
“Why the fuck can’t we come with you?” Jago snaps.
“We could sneak,” Archel offers.
“They would notice and she would forfeit,” Clay rumbles near the fire.
“Forfeit?” Evan echoes.
“Die,” Clay clarifies.
“Brilliant.” I grin and then let it flow from my face. “Clay, may I have a minute alone to say goodbye?”
He looks up at me from the fire and nods, rises, and leaves with no more words. They all surround me as quickly as he leaves, embracing and kissing me. I can taste their worry and fear on their lips, not that they will speak it out loud.
“I need you to trust me, I need you to be strong for me, okay?” I ask. “We don’t have long, if I don’t make it back—” They start yelling in outrage, but I carry on, “If I don’t, you must escape and get back to The Forgotten and to Worth, promise me?” I demand, searching all of their eyes.
“Anything for you, Princess, you know that.” Archel smirks and then swallows. “Plus, if you die, I might as well die in a war too, no point in living.”
“I promise,” Jago grunts.
“Evvie?” I murmur, looking at my reluctant lover.
“Pip, don’t ask me to leave you out there. I lived without you once, I can’t again,” he begs, his eyes filled with tears.
“I need you to do this for me, Evvie, I need you to trust me this time,” I implore, stepping closer and cupping his cheeks.
He closes his eyes and blows out a breath before opening them again. “I trust you, I promise, Pip,” he exclaims, wiping at the falling tears. “I’m not good in a war, though, so I will stay behind as a distraction for these guys to get out. You die on this mountain, then so do I,” he states strongly, without compromise.
“Fuck, we should have said that,” Archel grumbles.
“Too late,” Jago retorts. “Plus, Brawler is coming back, she learned from the best, after all.”
“Fuck.” Archel groans. “Here, take some more weapons.” He starts pulling knives from his body and strapping them to me as Jago loads up my bow and checks out my sword. Evan adds some bandages and pain relievers to my bag, explaining what I can use them all for. I watch them, beyond lucky.
“I love you all,” I say, and they all stop, blinking mid-action.
“We love you too, Princess, now you fight like a demon and come back to us,” Archel orders, and I nod.
As I turn to grab my bag, I see them share a look and know they are planning something—fine, let them. I trust them, and they have already promised me to go if the worst happens.
I just hope it doesn’t, because come sunset tomorrow, they are leaving me and joining the war.
“Come with me,” Pascha calls, and I turn to my men and blow out a breath as I shove my arms through the pack.
“See you tomorrow, have a coffee waiting, won’t you?” I joke, and I kiss each and every one of them before ripping myself away and following the pascha. If I stay longer, I won’t want to leave, I will curl into their arms. So instead, I walk away and I don’t look back, even though I can feel their eyes on me the whole time.
The pascha heads to the left of the throne room and there, built into the mountain, are steps leading up. I follow him up and out, fresh air hitting me in the face, and I realise we are on the top of the mountain. The night is just closing in, the sky fading from orange to black, the moon peeking through. He steps to the very edge of the cliff on the left and I follow him, staring down in shock.
“Is that the sea?” I inquire, peering down at the almost black-looking waves crashing against the bottom of the cliff we are on.
“Yes, the Dead Sea,” he agrees, and I scoff.
“Why is everything dead? Can’t it be like, I don’t know, the pink sea?” I grumble, and he looks at me with a raised eyebrow.
“Because everything in it is dead,” he points out.
“Ah, I see, kinda gives it away in the title,” I quip, and he sighs.
“I hope your honour serves you well out there in the planes, Piper, as much as you think I am unfair, I am rooting for you,” he assures me, and I look over at him. “You are right, we have been waiting for this, but if I order my men into battle behind an unproven woman, they would turn on you the very second you left. We are not like the men out there or even the ones you brought, they kill and enjoy it. This is the only way.” He looks tired now, and I realise this man is barely holding his people together. I guess being the leader of a scary as hell warrior army would do that to a person.
He moves over and points into the distance where something is shining, a light maybe? “See that?”
I nod and he carries on, “That is where you need to go, it’s an old electrical or cell tower, we can’t tell. There is a concrete building beneath it where we stored our devices as a fallback position.”
“How do I carry them back?” I finally ask.
“In there is a truck of sorts, load them into it and drive here. There is a path to follow, which you will see once you are in the building.” He glances back at me and points before it. “About fifty meters in front of it is a ravine where the eaters have set up camp and are sleeping. It is closed in on either side with cliff faces, your only choice is to go through it.”
“Brilliant.” I groan. “How do I get there or do I have to figure it out?”
He grins, flashing sharpened teeth that have me blinking. “Follow the trail of course, your time starts now. Good luck, Piper of The Forgotten.”
Then he turns and heads back into the mountain, leaving me alone on the top of it with nothing else to go on but a glint in the distance. Okay then, it’s time to get to work…this will be easy…right?
Twenty-One
Run, Little Warrior
Perched on top of the mountain, I stare at the blinking in the distance before surveying the peak. I see a path I didn’t notice before. A trail, one I wouldn’t have caught unless I was looking. I’m guessing that’s the way, otherwise why would he have brought me up here? It wasn’t
to show me the Dead Sea, that’s for sure.
I stop myself from looking over the edge as I crouch walk down the trail. It’s rocky and more like a swathe cut into the rock, which I hear crumbling down the side of the cliff, but I still don’t look. Nope, I don’t know if I’m afraid of heights, but tonight would not be the night to learn that I am.
It’s slow going and I’m aware of the time passing, so I try and pick up the pace, almost jogging when the path widens and zigzags down the mountain. There are a few places I have to climb, my fingers getting cut gripping the sharp rock, leaving my blood behind, but I carry on.
It takes me a good couple of hours before I reach a plateau on the mountain. The trail doesn’t continue down, so I start to walk across the ledge until I notice a gap and another ledge farther down. I can barely see in front of me, the dark setting in, so I would quite literally be flying blind.
Fuck it, lady up.
Stepping back, I get a good run and leap into the air. I’m airborne for a moment before smacking into the ledge, getting a grunt knocked out of me and rolling a couple of feet…and right over the other side.
A scream escapes my lips as I grab on to the ledge, my hands grappling for purchase on loose rock and losing my grip. Looking down into the black below, I get my ass into gear and yank myself back over the edge.
Landing on my back, I laugh as I try to catch my breath. Well, that was fun. Staring up at the starless night, I force myself to get to my knees and then to my feet. One of my ankles twinges, probably from landing on it wrong, but I ignore it. I don’t have time to be hurt. Wiping my hands on my jeans, I grimace at the pain the movement caused, and I hold them up to the moonlight and see they are cut. Fuck.
I set down my pack and wrap some bandages around them to soak up the blood, otherwise I am going to keep slipping. Zipping my bag shut, I hoist it up and put my arms through it before looking over the edge of the ledge. There is one farther down and wider apart this time.
Shit stick.
Okay.
Piper, you can do this. Time is ticking down and there is no way I’m getting my men killed. I step back to the opposite edge, my heels hanging over the side. Crouching slightly, I burst into a run and fling myself off the ledge. My arms windmill as my hair flies behind me, my stomach in my throat for a moment before I hit the other shelf on the very edge. My arms spin as I try to stay on it before I throw myself forward and land on my hands and knees.
“Fucking hell,” I mutter. “Why do I agree to this crazy shit? Oh, that’s right, ‘cause I’m crazy,” I mumble to myself, as I get to my feet and look around, peering into the dark. At least there are no more ledges. I glance back to see I’m almost at the base of the mountain, where there is what looks like a dirt path leading off into the dark.
Yellow brick lane, here I come.
My eyes adjust and I use the light of the moon to see in front of me as I start to jog down the lane. I’m going to need as much time as possible to get around the eaters and load up the truck—at least with the truck, I can make up some time on the way back…if I get that far.
Every single noise has my head snapping around, searching for eaters jumping out of the dark to attack me. My body is strung tight, and I know I need to loosen up, but there is no one here to protect my back like usual. I haven’t been out in the world alone since my attack, but I’m stronger now. Better, faster, a warrior.
Regulating my breathing, I concentrate on the slap of my feet against the dirt as I run, the moon following after me, the mountain fading into the darkness behind me.
After a few more hours of twisting and turning and running in the dark, I know I am lost, so I stop and press my hands to my knees as I catch my breath. Thank God I’m sleeping with three men so my stamina is good. I grab the water bottle from my back, though, and take a sip, saving the rest as I stand for a moment, not wanting to sit because I know my muscles will lock up.
After a few minutes, I hear a noise, an unmistakable crunching of stone. Grabbing my crossbow, I place my back to the wall behind me and search the darkness for the sound, keeping my breathing even as I aim. I see the shadow against the other wall move and loose an arrow. I hear a thud on impact, but load up another and fire as I walk towards it, shooting arrow after arrow before grabbing my sword.
“Come out, you eater piece of shit,” I snarl. “Try and eat me if you dare.”
I stare at the dark, waiting, my heart racing and my hands turning slick with my sweat. Maybe I got the bastard? But no, just as I am about to investigate, the shadow moves again, forming into a person-like shape before they step forward, the moonlight illuminating him.
“Clay?” I gasp, as I stare at the big mountain man.
His mask is in place again, but it’s him and he’s holding all of the arrows I shot in one hand…did he…catch them? What the hell?
“Are you following me?” I snap, not putting down the sword.
He holds the arrows out to me and I notice cuts along the palm of his hand. Stepping forward, I take them back and load them into my bow, watching the whole time, but he doesn’t speak.
“Don’t get mute on me now, why are you following me?” I demand and point my sword at him. “I have to do this alone, that was the rule…unless…are you here to watch me for them?”
“I’m here to make sure you get back alive,” he rumbles suddenly.
“Why?” I ask, dropping the sword, my arm aching from holding it still for so long. “That wasn’t the test…”
“You have your reasons, I have mine,” he grumbles, and then turns and starts to walk down the path heading in the direction I was going. “Are you coming?” he calls.
Fuck, I rush to catch up, his large strides eating across the dirt. “I have to do this alone or die, your own words.”
“They will never know,” he says without looking at me.
I reach out and grab his arm, stilling him. “Why? Why help me? You don’t know me.”
He looks down at my hand, just stares at it, so I slowly retract it. I’m betting not a lot of people touch this man and live to tell about it. “Does there have to be a reason?”
“Yes,” I nod, “there does. He said he sent his best out here and they died, so why risk it if you don’t have to? I’m no one to you, just a stranger here to ask for your help.”
“Exactly, you risked everything to come to us. That takes courage. You have honour, little warrior, maybe I want to see how far that will take you,” he explains, looking down at me. “And your men tried to make a deal to help you, they didn’t know I already planned to.”
Yep, sounds like them.
“And if we die?” I challenge, eyebrow arched.
“Then at least I die fighting, it’s an honourable death, better than standing on a mountain,” he offers, his tone playful. Well, I never.
“Come on then, Mountain Man, we have a test to pass and a war to win!”
We walk in silence after that. I have to run to keep up with his long strides, I must look like a child next to him. The silence isn’t uncomfortable though, we both understand why the other is here even if we don’t know each other—it’s for similar reasons…mine for family…his for honour. I can understand that.
The moon is high in the sky and I’m betting it must be very early in the morning, we have a few hours until sunrise, and I want to make it to the tower before then, easier to get around the eaters. Not that I know how we are going to do that.
I hear them before I see them—the snap and growl of their no longer human mouths, their howls, the high-pitched noises they make at each other, filling the once quiet night. Crouching down, I slow my breathing and try to stay silent, hoping they can’t scent my blood.
“Have any suggestions?” I whisper, as he stands next to me, not even crouching, crazy bastard.
“The ravine is slimmer at the top to the left, I scouted it the other day. We can jump it, but then we will have to run like mad.” He glances at me and grunts, like the sound of rocks hit
ting together. “The tower runs its own electricity and the fence is electric. That’s why they haven’t gotten in, they have learned their lesson from others being fried. If we can get behind it, we are safe for a while, they won’t lose interest, but won’t get through.”
“So your plan is to run like fucking hell?” I grin. “I like it, okay then, Mountain Man, looks like we better get ready.”
He nods and turns back to the front. “What a glorious way to die fighting though,” he grumbles before striding forward.
“Wait,” I hiss. “I wasn’t ready,” I mutter, but chase after him.
We curve around a bend and I spot the ravine up ahead, and behind it, the tower, which is at least two hundred feet behind it. Oh yeah, we will just run that. Fucking hell, maybe he is a crazy bastard.
“Run, little warrior,” he orders, just as the first howl goes up and they start to pour from the ravine like a bubbling sea of disjointed bodies.
“Fuck!” I yell, and burst into a sprint, Clay right beside me, keeping pace. He doesn’t leave, he stays beside me as I swing my crossbow around and fire blindly as I sprint. I hit a few, but I don’t want to use all my arrows, so I grab my sword as we approach the ravine.
One leaps at him from the right, and he simply grabs it mid-air and snaps its neck, tossing it back to its friends without losing his stride. One rushes me and I slash out my sword as I pick up speed, seeing the gap approaching. Why the fuck am I doing so much jumping tonight? But just as I’m about to leap, one grabs my ankle and tackles me to the ground.
I go down hard with a grunt to see Clay already on the other side. He looks back and whistles, and the rest of them turn to him. I watch with wide eyes as they rush him. Fuck. He fights them all, killing as many as he can as a distraction while I stab into the one at my feet who is trying to claw its way up my body. I finally get it in the eye and kick the carcass into the ravine. Stepping back, I see Clay surrounded by dead bodies as more broil over, fuck. He’s going to die in a pile of eaters because of me.