The ground rushed up at her. Her hair flew upward behind her. She squeezed her eyes tight and felt herself land heavily on something soft, something that gave. But the stench of rot was overwhelming.
Emily heard a yelp beneath her. As she opened her eyes, she saw that indeed she had landed on the back of the large wolf beast. Around her the soldiers were milling around, confused. They didn’t know what to do. She had caught them completely off guard.
Emily used this as an advantage and lunged at them with her pike. Beside her, Anna helped her with her two slender blades. The soul beast was still dazed from the blow she had struck across the back of his furry head. It lay motionless on the ground. The creature not a threat to them; it was knocked out cold. Eric rushed into the courtyard, having taken the stairs, and he fell over the railing. He hit the ground with a thud.
“Are you nuts! You could have killed yourself! You’re crazy!” Eric got up and screamed at her.
Anna smiled and put her arm around her. “I like crazy. That was pretty cool. The landing was perfect.”
Before she could reply, a voice intruded on them.
“You never cease to amaze me, Emily.”
She recognized the voice. It came from the prince who was standing above them on a balcony overlooking the courtyard. Clover and Lionel stood beside Prince Declan, stone-faced.
Emily realized that this was not looking good for them. She saw that Clover and Lionel were armed. Clover had her cards in her hand ready to fight and Lionel’s sword was at his side.
Gritting her teeth, she clenched her pike even tighter. This was bad, very bad. Clover could easily defeat them with her magic cards alone, Lionel was skilled in weaponry and the Prince? He could order their execution, to say nothing of his being in possession of extraordinary powers. Anna looked like she wasn’t yet back to her full strength and Emily didn’t know if Silver even knew how to fight. Considering Eric’s physique, she realized that this was going to be a hopeless confrontation.
But Emily was not a person who ever gave up hope. Even as she stared at the three arrayed on the balcony, she started to form a plan. She remembered what had happened in the forest against Fluffy. That power that she used that had terrified and sent away the wolf beast.
Was it possible for that power to be summoned right now? It had happened when she and James were in trouble. It just welled up in her, seemingly out of nowhere, when the beast attacked. Closing her eyes, she waited for that similar rush, but she felt nothing but her fear. No surge of energy, only fear.
Opening her eyes she huffed, “Well, isn't this just great...”
Just then, Clover drew one of her cards. Before the attack could hit, Anna slammed her body into Emily. The wind blast hit the spot where Emily had stood moments before. From where she lay, Emily could Silver was engaged with Lionel in hand to hand combat. Eric was gone.
“Eric went to find a way out of here!” Anna yelled into her ear.
She scrambled to her feet and held up her blade just in time to stop another blast from Clover. Anna ran past her and headed toward Clover, with Emily following. To be able to defeat Clover, they both needed to attack her. Clover wouldn’t be able to handle two attackers.
“I will go for her arms,” Anna told her. “And you go for her legs.”
At first, they seemed to have taken Clover by surprise. She was being pushed back by the two of them. But something was not right. Emily was sure of it. Suddenly, Clover dropped her cards as Anna struck her shoulder blade.
“You actually fell for that again!” she crowed.
The grin that Clover gave chilled Emily’s heart.
“It's a trap!” she screamed at Anna. “Get out of there!”
The ground began to rumble. A combination of lightning and fire shot upward and it engulfed both Clover and Anna.
“Anna!”
The blast threw back Silver and Emily. Emily crashed into a column, sending an explosion of intense pain through her. It was like the blast during the sparring she and Clover had done, but it was far more powerful.
She weakly raised her head to see Anna on the ground, not moving. For a minute, Emily couldn’t breathe. Her head was buzzing and all the voices around her seemed far away. Clover stood over Anna’s body and she smiled.
Emily rolled over and pushed herself to her knees. She picked up her weapon, using it as a support to stand.
That’s when she felt a tingling as something began to shift within her. Every cell of her body felt infused with energy. She narrowed her eyes and positioned herself in the fighting stance she had been taught. Clover was going to pay for what she did. They all would.
“You are going to regret doing that.”
Clover laughed at her, stating, “Not to be mean but ...look at yourself. You can barely stand.” She placed her hands on her hips “Just give up and maybe there will be a chance that you won’t be executed for treason.”
“I was held here against my will! You ruined the life of my friend! And now you have the nerve to tell me to give up? That is...just...not...going...to...happen.”
Emily precisely circled her pike above her head and made a slashing moment in front of her. A wave of vibrating energy lashed out with a snap and struck her opponent. She grinned. She would enjoy this. She twisted around and aimed another blast of energy at Clover and her shield shattered into thousands of pieces. Clover slammed back into the wall behind her and slid down the wall, unconscious.
Emily turned around and saw that Lionel was charging at her, his sword raised. She stepped smoothly to the side. Looking straight into his eyes, she swept her blade up across his chest, breaking through his armor. He dropped to the ground like a stone.
Silver was at Anna’s side, who was now conscious. Both of them stared at her with wide eyes, and she hardly blamed them. Even she had been surprised that she was able to take down both Clover and Lionel so effortlessly. Recalling that the prince was still about, she looked up to see if he was still on the balcony.
He stood there still and his eyes locked with hers. He looked appalled, his face white with a look almost like terror. He had underestimated her and he now knew what she was capable of. As Emily watched, the look on his face slowly turned to fury. He turned and left the balcony
She guessed it was time to leave. Prince Declan wouldn’t dare fight both her and Silver, now that he knew the power she was able to wield. He was outnumbered. His soldiers were useless, cowering beside the heap that had been the wolf beast. Prince Declan was the heir to the throne so he couldn’t risk getting hurt. The power vacuum would cause the ruling of this kingdom to fall to the other Sunclaire family.
Suddenly, Emily had the urge to give up and help him. She couldn’t understand why, but for some reason, she knew that if she left now, their strange friendship would be broken forever. Emily slowly sat down in the dust of the courtyard and surveyed her surroundings. She needed a moment to gather her thoughts.
A horse neighed behind her.
“Emily. My sweet Emily. I have gotten some horses for your friends from the stable.” The prince was leading three large horses, already saddled, towards her.
“Prince Declan, please just stop this! I am not your sweet anything!” Emily said loudly. “And furthermore,” she continued, “going after someone who is innocent is not the right thing to do. Forget this anger with Kator. His parents did a terrible thing, yes, but children don’t pay for the crimes of their parents. “
Emily looked over at the horses. They were beautiful. “Don’t. Don’t torture yourself, Declan. It will only bring you more suffering.”
Her words did not seem to reach him. He had hardly noticed that she spoke to him using only his given name, that she spoke to him as an equal. His expression did not change and silence hung between them.
“So,” he said, “You are not interested in me that way. “
Emily realized that he still thought that she would be the perfect spouse for him. That’s why he looked so bereft.
/> She looked him in the eye and slowly shook her head. No. It was not going to happen.
It was time to go. Eric must have found a way out of the castle. Emily had to find him. She bowed to the prince one last time before she helped Silver get Anna up into his saddle. Silver lifted his head and turned toward the distant thunder of approaching soldiers. They had regrouped and gathered themselves into troops again.
“Guards! Get them!” The prince’s loud, commanding voice echoed through the courtyard.
Emily swung herself up on a dappled gray and grabbed the reins. Slapping the horse’s rump, she felt it bolt beneath her, galloping out of the courtyard with her holding fast. She was quickly followed by Eric, who had just leaped onto one of the steeds and was pointing at their only available exit. Silver, with Anna, settled beside him, set off with his horse keeping pace with Emily’s. The gates had not been closed yet on this side of the castle where they had managed to enter earlier, hidden inside the barrels. There were no guards or soldiers to be seen.
It was an easy escape for them. As they rode by the gate, Emily leaned over and cut the rope that held up the steel bar that secured the metal gate. The gate came clanging down behind them with a sharp bang. This would buy them some time until they were able to leave the city. Behind her, she saw Silver wrap a chain and lock around the hasp of the door, giving them even more time to get far from the castle.
Once outside the gates, Emily, Eric, Silver, and Anna trotted down the rutted path from the castle towards the highway into town. Groups of people, on foot and on horseback, filled the wide expanse of the road ahead. It would be easy to become lost in the teeming humanity. And Emily knew that she would be bringing some much hard-fought knowledge back to her dimension. It was time to go back.
Epilogue
Emily had finally reached the edge of Sunclaire Kingdom and gazed at the landscape before her. She couldn’t see the town behind her. A pang of sadness creased her heart. After they had fled the town, they had met up with James and Win Blade outside its low walls. Eric, Anna, and Silver chose to stay behind. They told her that they would meet up again someday. She understood why they chose to stay with James and she couldn’t have asked them to travel to a place that may not even exist. Her own world seemed to recede further and further from her memory.
James mentioned that he may go to the same kingdom, in a distant dimension, and hide there until the prince’s anger dissipated. Somehow, she was sure that the prince would never give up on having his vengeance. It was part of him now.
“You ready to go?”
She heard Wind Blade beside her. “We can always turn back if you wish.”
Emily shook her head, comforted that Wind Blade had chosen to come with her. “We should move forward.”
“Of course, princess.”
Emily grinned heartily and said, “Let’s go then, Windy.” She winked at Wind Blade, who groaned.
They were easy in each other’s company now. Emily had learned so much. She and Wind Blade started ahead with their horses doing a brisk trot. She looked back on the town one more time. Deep in her heart, she knew that she would come back. But first, she had to find her true homeland.
“Thank you for coming with me.”
“I am your personal guard and... “Wind Blade paused, “Your parents would have wanted you to come home.”
Meanwhile, in the Sunclaire Kingdom, the Prince paced around the wide drafty hall of the throne room. His attendants stood by anxiously. He ignored their concerned glances. He wanted...no, he needed them to stop.
“What is it?” he roared. “Get out of my sight now!”
Bowing, they quickly left the room and shut the massive doors behind them. Only Lionel stayed in the room with him. Prince Declan turned toward his trusted Captain.
“How is Clover?”
“My Prince, she is still recovering. I have sent my troops to capture Fortune as you requested.”
Prince Declan rubbed his hands together vigorously.
“Send a message to your troops that they will be joined by Clover. Clover will be able to find the fugitives efficiently.”
As he spoke, the massive doors to throne room were flung open. Two soldiers entered with Fortune clasped between them. It was clear she had not come willingly. The prince walked over to his throne and sat down heavily. Fortune was brought before him.
“It seems that you weren’t quite telling the truth about Emily, were you? You lied about her and about her power.”
Fortune turned down her mouth at Prince Declan’s words.
“No, Prince. It was simply not the time to tell.”
Lionel stepped forward and drew his blade. “You better tell the truth, witch! And I promise, with all the power vested in me by Our Royal Highness, that your head will roll - you will die - if I think you are lying.”
The woman ignored Lionel and looked directly into the face of the Prince. Prince Declan studied her, then leaned back in his throne and closed his eyes. After this, he would make sure that he had a chance to fall into a deep slumber. Yes, that’s what he needed - a long restorative sleep. There did not seem to be an end in sight, nothing gained, that would make carrying around this vengeful anger worth all the energy it required.
His black heart was the real shadow beast.
The prince sat up in his throne.
“Let Fortune speak,” he demanded. “Let her tell me what she knows.”
Fortune stood straighter. “You have heard of the City of the Heralds?”
The prince heard Lionel sneering chuckle.
“That place is just a myth, Prince. The words coming from this woman’s mouth are putrid lies! Your majesty, she is not worth talking to. How dare she try to make a fool out of you.”
“Continue what you are saying,” the prince said calmly to the woman standing before him.
“The city did exist at one time. Everything that you have heard of its marvels is true. Never has such a kingdom existed, with all of its inhabitants possessing powers beyond any you can conceive of, in any dimension. And everyone used their skills in harmony. The pure good in one dimension transferred seamlessly to all others.”
Fortune paused, reflecting on a time in the past of such joy.
“But all that changed thirteen years ago. The kingdom was sacked. Destroyed. The royal family perished in the attack except for one.”
Fortune looked over at Lionel, who stood slack-jawed, his weapon lowered at his side.
“She was just a girl, a five-year-old. She managed to escape with the help of the family’s servant, Wind Blade. You know her very well, your majesty. Her name was Rayna Archwood. But you know her as Emily.”
The Shadow Beasts: The Sunclaire Chronicles Page 12