A Legacy of Nightmares

by J. M. Wallace

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Shaye

  Shaye looked up at the rocky terrain ahead and tried to ignore the unwelcome pit in her stomach. It had taken them only a few days to reach the North Pass that led to the mountains. The coast had given them an unhindered path around the Raven Wood, and without the density of the forest, they had been able to cut time from their ride.

  Along their way, they had seen the dangers of the blight more frequently. There were no more signs of broken earth like they had witnessed in the valley, but the presence of the blight was there all the same. The closer they came to the mountains, the worse the conditions became. Creeks were dried up completely, and the grass which had been brown and dying, was scorched. The barren dirt was giving off the sickening smell of decay, making Shaye worry that it would never again give life. Would stopping the blight even be enough to save Asterion, when it had already done so much damage?

  Now that they had reached the northernmost tip of Asterion, Shaye had new concerns to add to her list. It was now the trek they faced through the jagged mountain ridge that worried her.

  “It’s...”

  “Terrifying,” Sorin finished for her.

  She nodded in response, too speechless to find the words. Finn sensed her fear, prancing around from side to side. She placed a hand on his neck, running it along his soft fur. “I know boy, I know.”

  They rode on until they came to the very edge of a small mountain pass. The mountain range was a formidable barrier between Asterion and The Beyond—one that very few had tried, most of whom had failed, to pass through. The small trail between the two mountain peaks was their best, and really their only, chance to reach the magical realm that awaited them on the other side.

  “Ready?” Sorin was beside her on Bron’s warhorse, Altivo. The stallion’s coat glistened with sweat under the early light of the morning.

  “As ready as I’ll ever be.” She tried to give him a smile, but failed to conjure one.

  Sorin led the way. The pass was barely the width of a horse, allowing only one of them to squeeze in at a time. Shaye followed behind, and gazed up at the mountain walls on either side of them. She was grateful for the open sky above; if it had not been for that, she would have felt utterly trapped. She reached for her magic, comforted to feel it within her grasp. It gave her a sense of control over the situation.

  She could see Sorin’s hand on the hilt of the Sword of Roth, ahead of her. His knuckles were bone-white from gripping onto it so tightly. It was the only sign of stress he was showing. He had been like this since they had left the valley, when she had told him the details of the visit from her mother. It had been a big revelation for him to find that it was not his father’s men who had landed the first blow during the Winter Solstice ball.

  Tears had filled his eyes as he said, “He’d been telling the truth when he said he meant to take them without bloodshed, but I didn’t believe him.”

  Shaye had felt so helpless in that moment, watching his old wounds open up. After that, Sorin had avoided the subject. He needed time, and she knew he was trying to stay strong for her, but she wished he wouldn’t hide how he was really feeling.

  She supposed they were both hiding from each other in a way. They hadn’t spoken of his declaration of love in the tent while under Nefari captivity, but the words Shaye had left unsaid lingered between them. Whenever they had stopped to make camp for the night, he would lay his bedroll within her reach, just as he had done many times before. Only now, she felt the constant need to reach out for him, and to touch him. They had laughed and told each other stories throughout their days of traveling, but the tension they felt didn’t leave much room for anything else.

  Being so close to The Beyond made her nervous, and she wanted to say something to him before it was too late. Anything could go wrong, and she did not want to die without saying those words back to him. “Sorin,” she called to him up ahead, “there’s something I should have said to you... I...”

  Footsteps from behind interrupted her, and the hair on her arms stood on end. If they had been followed into the mountain pass then there would be no way to defend themselves, no way to turn the horses around. She whirled around from where she sat firmly in her saddle to see who the unwelcome visitor was.

  She slumped in relief when she saw the familiar shadowy body. “Erebus! You horrid creature, what are you doing here?” The Black Shuck lowered his head, and Shaye softened, “You scared me half to death.”

  “Seems he did not want to leave his new master.” Sorin was twisted around in the saddle with his sword drawn.

  Erebus tucked his large, shadowy tail between his legs. Shaye had no desire to be anyone’s master, but she would not turn him away after all that he had done for her.

  “Fine. You can come with us.” He popped his head up eagerly; it was hard for her to believe she had been so terrified of the creature; he was more like one of Brina’s hounds than the demon everyone believed him to be. He was just... misguided.

  Sorin chuckled and mumbled under his breath playfully, “Sucker.”

  “I heard that!” Shaye threw up a vulgar gesture, though he could not see her as he rode on up ahead.

  Erebus followed them loyally as they continued through the tight passageway. It took longer than Shaye liked to get to the opening on the other side. She focused on calming her breath and keeping her magic on the surface and within reach.

  Beyond the pass, she could see a small, flowing, jewel-blue stream, and more mountains. She groaned. The valley here at the bottom of the mountain ridge was small. They could stop to rest for the night, but after that it would be a perilous trek.

  They made camp beside the water, allowing the horses to drink and rest. Erebus sat nearby; he was curled up in an attempt to shield himself from the sun. It was clear that he preferred the dark, and Shaye wondered if the light pained him. She took the blanket that she used under Finn’s saddle and laid it gently over him. He purred gratefully at the gesture.

  “You really do care for him.” Sorin was in the middle of starting a fire for them. He had left nets in the stream, hoping to catch fresh fish for them so they could save their pack of provisions for the mountains.

  “He’s just misunderstood, that’s all. We know all about that, don’t we?”

  Sorin grunted in response. “Here we go, a nice warm fire.” He held his hands out to display his handiwork.

  “I could have done that for you.” Shaye called on her elemental magic, making the flames grow bigger.

  “Let me feel useful.” He smiled ruefully at her.

  She took a seat by his side, close enough that their legs brushed. He reached down for her hand and she laced her fingers between his. This was the moment she had been hoping for after finally working up the courage in the mountain pass to tell him her true feelings. She looked into his dark blue eyes—they reminded her of the night sky when lit up by the Northern Lights.

  “Sorin, in the Nefari camp... when you told me you loved me...”

  “Shaye, you don’t have to—”

  “No, Sorin, I do.” She shifted so that she was on her knees facing him. “I love you. I couldn’t say it then, for fear of who was listening, but I love you and I will do everything to make it up to—” Sorin cut her off with a kiss.

  When he pulled away, he brushed the hair from her face, and she melted into that touch. She giggled, and the giggling soon turned into a fit of laughter. The horses looked up at the commotion before going back to grazing on the green grass.

  Sorin’s eyes went wide. “What is so funny?”

  “I just...” The laughter continued, “I just told the king that I am in love with him.”

  He laughed then, too, “We make quite the pair, don’t we?”

  Shaye wiped the tears of laughter from her eyes and nodded. They sure did—a Druid smuggler and a mortal king. Sorin laid back onto the grass with one arm behind his head and the other around Shaye. She laid back with him, breathing in the fr
esh air of the mountains around them. She rested her head on him and closed her eyes, drifting off into a peaceful sleep.

  The peace did not last long. A screech pierced through the quiet night sky and she jolted awake. Sorin was already up and alert. His eyes were wide as he held a finger to his lips, signaling for her to remain quiet. He pointed above with his other hand.

  A faceless creature circled high above them, winding its way through the valley. It was headed back the way they had come and seemed not to have noticed them camping below. Shaye watched in horrid fascination as the creature passed by them. It was remarkably large with wings that looked too small to be holding such a heavy weight. The wings were like old leather and beat heavily, blowing a small wind in their direction.

  Shaye did not speak for fear of drawing its attention. The dying fire beside them popped and she held her breath. She felt her magic pool within her on instinct, ready to defend against whatever this horrible creature was.

  Its wings shifted in the air, and the creature paused, flying in place. It turned its head to where Shaye and Sorin were, and she could see that it had no eyes or nose. Only a long snout covered with taut skin. It felt as if time was slowing as Shaye readied herself for a fight.

  But before the creature could descend on them, something across the field caught its attention. An unwitting deer had wandered into the clearing and Shaye watched as the faceless creature turned toward it. In a fluid motion, the creature flew over the deer, reaching out sharp talons to grab a hold of it.

  The creature’s claws pierced into the deer’s skin and swept it up into the air. Shaye let out a sigh of relief as the creature carried the deer out of sight and away from the valley.

  Sorin broke the tense silence. “Shit. What the hell was that thing?”

  Shaye shook her head in wonder. “I have no idea. But I can wager a guess that it came from the direction we’re headed in.”

  “It was headed toward Asterion...”

  Shaye thought so, too. It was clearly flying in the direction of their home. It infuriated her that they were allowing something so dangerous to venture so close to the Asterion border.

  She cursed. “I should have killed it.”

  “We have no idea what that thing was. Or what it was capable of.” Sorin added, “And anyways, there is nothing to be done now. All we can do is keep an eye out and keep moving north.”

  Shaye relented, but the pit in the bottom of her stomach remained. They did their best to rest again, but sleep did not come easily. Shaye spent the rest of the night restless. When she did drift to sleep, her mind was filled with images of the creature and the look of anguish on the deer’s face as it was carried away.

  When she awoke in the morning, the air was wet with dew, and there was a chill in the air. The smell of fire-roasted fish filled her nose, and her stomach growled. When she sat up, she stretched out her limbs, aching from sleeping on the hard ground all night beside Sorin. She did not want to mention the creature from the night before, willing herself to forget the whole encounter and focus on the journey ahead.

  Sorin smiled from across the fire, “Rise and shine. Unfortunately, I don’t have a magnificent feast to present to you... only fish.”

  Shaye yawned, “Oh how I miss the muffins that Rolland bakes every morning.”

  “He’ll have to teach me how he does it, when we return home.”

  “You’re going to bake muffins?”

  “Why not?” He handed her the fish and shrugged, “If I remember correctly, you made me brew tea for you at the inn.”

  “And you did a horrible job of it,” she teased. “I sure hope you’re a better baker than you are a brewer.”

  They both laughed, and the sound echoed through the empty valley. Erebus broke through their good humor when he let out a low growl in the direction of the mountains that stood opposite of those they had just left. There was nothing out of the ordinary, just phantom-white mountain tops looming high above.

  Sorin drew the Sword of Roth. “He’s seeing something that we don’t.”

  Shaye grew nervous again. “Do you think the creature circled back?”

  She grabbed the horses and stood behind Sorin. The sun was just beginning to rise over the ridge, and she shielded her eyes, trying to get a better view in the direction of whatever it was that had Erebus on edge. She wished the Black Shuck could speak, to tell them what was wrong.

  They walked slowly in the direction he was looking; it was the only safe pathway up the mountain, so they had no choice but to go toward the potential danger. Shaye extended her magic toward the ridge, hoping to feel or sense something.

  It wasn’t until they reached the base of the mountain range that it hit her. It was an intense feeling of power, but it wasn’t coming from her or the land. She grabbed Sorin’s arm. “Something is definitely wrong.”

  Her breath hitched in her throat when she saw the threat. Finn and Altivo reared up as a man rode up on horseback... no, not a man... a Centaur. His upper body was bare, revealing a muscled chest—but from the waist down he had the body of a horse.

  Erebus jumped in front of Shaye and Sorin to defend them, his hackles raised. He bared his teeth at the warrior standing between them and their only way to The Beyond. The Centaur did not acknowledge him; instead, he looked directly at Shaye.

  “You seek passage?” His voice was rich and smooth.

  Shaye answered him, “We do.”

  “Many have tried, and have been found unworthy. What makes you so different?”

  Shaye did not know how to respond; her first instinct was to say “nothing.” She did not fancy herself better than those who had come before her, and she wasn’t sure she would even survive this new quest they were on. What she did know was that she was not ready to give up before they had a chance to try.

  “It is our cause that is worthy. We seek to return something to where it belongs.”

  That answer had not been the one the Centaur was looking for. He stamped a hoof into the ground and a horde of Centaurs appeared from various positions on the mountainside. They brandished spears and bows; she and Sorin were vastly outnumbered and out armed.

  “We are the guardians of what lies beyond. To get through the great North Pass means getting through us first.”

  Sorin spoke up, “We are not looking for a fight.”

  “Then you should not have come here, mortal.” The Centaur spat the word.

  “Enough.” Shaye could see that there would be no reasoning with these ancient warriors. It was clear that they would not listen to words. Instead, she would have to show them.

  She raised her chin high and closed her eyes, soaking in the rising sun. Holding her hands out she thought of the Northern Lights that she missed so much, and let her power bloom around her and Sorin. It began as a beautiful mist, filled with colorful light, but erupted into something more. She opened her eyes as darkness fell over the valley—she then replaced it with a curtain of light, cascading around them. Lights of purple, blue, and green sparkled in the sky; it was magnificent.

  She held onto the magic proudly, and looked around at the Centaurs. Their leader was stunned into silence, fueling her to make the display even more grand. She spread the veil of lights throughout the entire valley, reaching it high above to the mountain peaks.

  She was amazed by the strength of her magic as she held it without strain. It felt like every fiber of her being was awakening with it. There was no sting, no guilt, and best of all no darkness, like that which had accompanied the Nefari magic she had used before. It was as if every element of the universe was coming together, for her.

  When she released the veil and allowed the sunlight to return to the valley, the Centaurs were kneeling on their front legs. Each of them crossed an arm in front of their chest, bowing to her.

  Their leader broke through the heavy silence, “It has been many an age since we have been presented with one worthy of the power you wield. If The Mother has seen fit to bless you with su
ch a gift, then we are not to stand in your way.”

  He bowed again, nearly touching his head to the ground. Shaye took that as their cue—she did not want to test the patience of these creatures. She led the horses forward, with Sorin and Erebus close on her heels, past the Centaur leader. She hadn’t even realized she’d been holding her breath until they had passed him.

  Sorin gave her a boost onto Finn, and they rode away at a full gallop, refusing to slow until they were well away from the valley, and the threat they had just faced there.

  Once they reached the range, they were met with a new sort of threat. The elements on the rocky terrain seemed to be in place to stop them as well. They were hit with rain, sleet, and snow. Sorin was quiet but calm as they made their way up the steep slopes. They stayed close to the body of the mountain, and every so often one of the horses would cause the rocks that made up the narrow path to fall, sending them toppling down the dangerously steep height to where more dangerous stones awaited.

  Shaye shut her eyes tight when the threat of falling became too much for her. It felt like time was slowing, and she desperately wanted to be back on flat ground. She pulled her jacket tightly around her, trying to block out the dropping temperature as they traveled. Snow was beginning to fall rapidly, and it was becoming increasingly more difficult to see. As night fell, it became impossible to see the path ahead.

  “Sorin!” She shouted to him and hoped that he could hear her through the wind. “The horses need to rest!”

  Rather than shout back to her, he pointed up ahead to a break in the stone wall. She squinted through the snowflakes that were stuck on her lashes, and it wasn’t until they were upon it that she realized it was a cave.

  The talus was a small opening just big enough for them to slip inside. The horses snorted in discomfort until they reached the larger opening past the mouth of it. They tended to the horses and Erebus first, giving them much-needed food and water.