Into the Light (Axe Druid Book 1)

by Christopher Johns

  “That’s fucking sweet, bro,” Yoh said, walking forward. “Lemme see it. I want to try something.”

  I tossed him my axe, and he caught it, although he stumbled a bit. Must not have had as much invested in strength as I did.

  “Now, see if you can summon it.”

  I performed the same mental exercise, and the axe turned into the same golden bolt as before. My friend shouted and let go of the weapon. It came back to my hand once again.

  “Damn, that shit hurt, man,” he said as he shook his hands. “Not too much damage, but it’s something.”

  I cast Regrowth on him as thanks, and he nodded my way.

  “Travel well, lad, and don’t let anything out there get the drop on you.”

  “Thanks, you psychotic old bat.”

  She beamed at me proudly, and I smiled back. She thumped my arm and turned to walk away, lifting her hood up as she went.

  “Ah, the witch is gone.” Farnik sighed after a few seconds.

  I laughed hard enough that my sides hurt. He knew how hard of a taskmaster she was and how insane she could be. I couldn’t imagine his dealings with her were fun.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Brawnwynn led us back to the surface after we said our goodbyes to the clan. We slept underground that night, and when we came out of the cave the next day, well dawn, I couldn’t have been happier.

  I called out to Kayda through our bond and felt her joy. She felt a bit different, too, but I couldn’t quite place it. We began our trek to the monastery, traveling into the valley, when a screeching cry echoed off the walls. I looked up, rewarding myself with a view of the sun like the idiot I could be. I shielded my eyes quickly and tried to find the source of the noise.

  “No fucking way, man!” Yoh shouted. He pointed to my left, and I looked to find a shadow careening toward me. Meat-hook talons outstretched toward me, and I yelped, shifting without thought into my fox form. The claws collided with the ground and tore up the soil around me.

  Kayda had found me.

  “Bird!!” I shouted as I finished shifting back. She stood taller now, at least four and a half feet, and her wingspan was massive. Her sleek feathers were well groomed and fuller than before. She looked stronger, more sure of herself, too. I knelt and wrapped my arms around her in a hug. She ruffled her feathers and craned her neck about my shoulder trying to return my affection.

  Yoh and the rest of the party of the party gathered around us to give her playful pats.

  “I gotta find, T,” Bokaj said as he started to sprint toward the monastery. He was moving pretty quickly.

  Fly? Kayda’s mind touched mine, and I knew what she wanted. I shifted into my fox form, and she gingerly took me in her claws before she took to the sky. I was simultaneously exhilarated and terrified. The ground and my friends shrank and began to swim beneath us. I was used to flying—hell, I had ridden the air currents in helicopters for years. I had no problem flying.

  But I didn’t have a gunner’s belt up here, and all that came between me and certain death was my companion.

  You’re safe. Baby, my pilot assured me teasingly. She did lower her altitude a bit, though, which I mentally thanked her for. I could see my pale friend still running beneath us; he’d made it halfway to the monastery when we saw a black shape blur toward him from the shadows.

  Kitty! Kayda squawked loudly. I squeaked a fox laugh. I had to admit, it was a weird sensation laughing as an animal.

  Lower, love. Let’s watch this closer.

  I immediately regretted that because the telltale dip and weightlessness of a dive pushed my stomach up then toward my tail a heartbeat later. We dove low enough to see Tmont spring onto Bokaj’s back and pull him to the ground. They wrestled and played for a minute before we landed beside them.

  Tmont eyed me for a moment, then came over to me and bumped her head against mine gently. I thought she was thanking me for bringing her master back safe, so I bumped her head with my own.

  I shifted back, and we waited for the rest of the group to arrive. Brawnwynn had left the group to go home, and the others made the walk shortly after saying goodbye.

  We spent the afternoon with Leo. We all took turns telling him about our time with the Dwarves, and when I told him about Shellica, he shuddered a bit. He knew. Poor little fella.

  We left the following morning, freshly supplied and rested. We turned our sights toward our original target—the city. The walk there was uneventful; the mountains gave way to plains and hills. From there, we rode our mounts. Thor was happy to get to stretch his legs and hear about what had happened to us since when he’d seen us last.

  Within the next three days, we had Maven Rock in sight. We could see lights in the night. By the fourth day, we were close enough to actually see the wall. It was a large work of bricks as long as I was tall. It stood fifty feet tall and spanned the entire city. A monstrous stone monolith rose into the sky from the center of the city. Had to be the rock the place was named after. We decided to camp for the night and head in tomorrow.

  I was feeling restless—we all were—so I took first watch with Jaken.

  We talked about how much we missed our kids. His little girl Luna was supposed to have her first birthday party soon. With the theoretical time dilation between our worlds, he could make it back in time. I had to admit, I was proud of him. He loved that little girl so much that it was almost like a disease. It was contagious. Made you want to love her too. We joked about the time I was changing her diaper, and she peed on my arms.

  Good times.

  Fog had begun to roll in, and by the time our shift was over, it was pretty thick. We hadn’t had a fire because we wanted to have some say in who knew our position. Didn’t want to attract any unsavory folks, did we? I did Kayda the favor and put her into the collar around my neck. Her form began to blur and turn into shadow, then filtered into the gem. The fog was dry but chilling, and I shifted into my panther form, hoping I could see better and stay a little warmer. It worked a bit; the dull grey around me cleared a little, and the fur warmed me more than my own but not as much as I hoped. I huddled under my blanket and napped a bit after Bokaj took over. Tmont leaned against him, watching his back.

  “So we get in and speak to some witnesses about what has been taking the citizenry,” I outlined while we ate a light breakfast the next morning. “From there, we scour the place for signs of War’s minion as quickly as possible to try and help these guys out. These are people being taken, so it’s gonna get rough fast—we ready for that?”

  “If they’re anything like the Wolves, Skeletons, and whatnot that we fought before—they aren’t human anymore.” Jaken shrugged. “Maybe we’ll get lucky, and the minion will be as easy as the last one but with people in the same state as those animals? Fuck man.”

  The understanding of that hit us pretty hard, so we packed up in silence and began to close in on the city. The light fog couldn’t hide the city’s outline from us, so it wasn’t like we could get lost. After walking a couple hours, we made it within a hundred yards of the gate to the city.

  A large crowd gathered at the gate and stood in near silence. As we walked closer, the crowd parted. There, in the center of the gate, stood a sharply dressed man with a goatee, perfectly coiffed blond hair, and dark eyes. He was of medium height, slight build, and wore what looked like a tuxedo. He had a small child in front of him with a hand resting on his shoulder. The child looked to be around four or five years old.

  “Ah, the guests of honor!” he exclaimed amicably. His voice was like that of a practiced showman. “Do come closer, please. I would hate to have to yell at you the entire time we entreat.”

  We looked at each other but obliged, Jaken taking the lead. With him stepping in front of me, I could see the people around us; they looked terrified.

  We stopped a good ten feet away, easy speaking distance.

  “I expected nothing less of assassins.” The man grinned at us.

  “Who are you?” Jaken
asked.

  “Oh, do forgive me!” He corrected himself in mock disappointment, “Where are my manners. My actual title is Blight, General of his Eminence War, may he conquer all the stars in the sky. You may, however, call me… Rowan, or at least, the host you see before you used to be called that. I have come to speak with you personally. See, it was most impressive that you took care of my minion to the east. Most impressive, indeed, and I assumed you came here expecting to find another? I think you will find that your information was somewhat skewed. As a General, I have an offer.”

  Jaken gripped his sword and settled into an easy fighting stance.

  “Ah-ah,” Rowan warned, his hand tightening on the child in front of him. The little boy whimpered a bit but didn’t scream. “Wouldn’t want anyone here to suffer needlessly, would we?”

  “Jaken, ease down, bud. Let him talk,” I advised my friend. There was no play to be had here. My friends could snipe this guy easily, but if we started swinging blades and slinging spells, people would be caught in the crossfire.

  “One of you seems to see sense.” He eased up on the kid but didn’t let go. “Where was I? Ah, my offer. Leave me and my brothers alone to do our work, and we will spare your own planet.” One of us gasped, but I couldn’t tell who. I know I looked surprised. “Yes, don’t look so surprised. I know all about you. Why you were brought here, what you intend to do. That you may even stand a chance at defeating me, laughable as that is. Do you actually believe that? Sorry, I mean no insult, just truth.”

  “Why would we ever believe what you say?” Yohsuke asked. He had his left hand on his astral adaptor and his right hand ready to cast.

  “Because I have the authority to make such a promise,” he said as if it were the most obvious thing in the universe. “Really think about it. Given time, I could take you back to your world, and you could be with your families again, your other friends—safe, sound, sane, and with the knowledge that we will leave you be. All you have to do is stand down. My brothers and sister will awaken in their own time, much like I did, and we will bring order to this chaotic, disgusting planet. That doesn’t sound so bad, does it?”

  So, the other Generals were still asleep? You guys believe this guy? I asked through our earrings.

  Fuck no, answered Yohsuke and Bokaj at the same time.

  He’s full of shit, man. They’re coming for all of us, Balmur said angrily.

  “Let us think about it for a second?” I asked as if I actually believed him.

  “Take your time, please. I know you will see the wisdom of this deal.” He smiled like an indulgent father.

  Bokaj, Balmur, you guys ready if this goes tits up?

  Yup! I have an arrow nocked with his name on it, broskie.

  I can shadow step, too, maybe nab the kid while he’s distracted.

  Solid plans, stand by. Jaken, bud, keep it cool and conversational. We need him to think he has control.

  Okay, man. This guy sucks. I can feel the evil from here. Bokaj, let me know when to move, and I’ll clear your line of fire.

  Got you, fam.

  “You can get us home?” Yohsuke said after a moment. “Back to my wife?”

  “I can,” Rowan said smoothly. “Given a little time to look into the spells they used to get you here, I could.”

  “I’m about it guys. I miss my wife. Don’t you guys miss your kids?”

  “Yeah,” I said. “He’s all I’ve got, man. I don’t really like it here. Too many people look at me funny, and I miss pizza.”

  We started to walk forward a bit, Yohsuke just behind and to my right, trying to obstruct his view of my stealthier friends.

  “You see reason,” he said as he lifted his free arm.

  NOW! Bokaj shouted into our minds.

  The rest of us stepped to the side, and a flaming arrow shot straight toward his right eye. Balmur stepped out of the shadows and waited for the arrow to connect with its target.

  But it never did. The arrow stopped mid-flight—a foot away from the General—and clattered onto the stony ground.

  “As I said, woefully unprepared,” he said with a sigh. “Oh well. So much for doing this the easy way.”

  The boy in front of him cried out in pain, and blood began to seep from his eyes like tears. Just as the first drop of crimson hit the ground beneath his feet, his head exploded, spattering all of us in gore.

  “Begone.” He raised his hand, covered in blood and vibrant crimson magic, in a flippant dismissive wave. I heard a pop like a cork being popped, and my sight went black.

  Warning!

  You are now leaving this realm of existence. Goodbye.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  I tried to take a breath and scream; no sound escaped, and no air came in. My insides felt crushed, and the pressure around me threatened to pull me apart as if I was being sucked through a giant straw.

  Bits of grey and white flecked into my vision and began to speed past my sight.

  Nothing.

  Sometime later, I woke up, vomited, and tried to get my bearings. The first thing I noticed was that the waist-high grass was purple and green as it swayed in the breeze. Second, I noted that my friends were in their own respective positions, sitting up groggily.

  “The fuck happened?” Jaken groaned. I heard retching off to my right and saw Balmur stand, just taller than the grass around him.

  “We got our asses handed to us, and that kid paid the price for it,” I growled.

  I could see him, his brown eyes pleading, begging for help, his sandy brown hair, fair skin, and freckles stained crimson by bloody tears. My eyes stung with unshed tears, and my cheeks began to burn.

  “Don’t let it get you, man,” Yohsuke said softly from behind my right shoulder. “He died—that’s on us—but it’s that fucker’s fault. He’s gonna pay, and the price will be his life.”

  I didn’t trust my voice at that moment, so I just nodded.

  We were all standing, bloody and gross. I summoned Kayda and had her fly above us and scout for water. She found a lake off to the rear of us, about half a mile away, so we started walking. The grass around us swayed on, at times seemingly moving out of the way. The lake was serene. The water was calm and crystal clear, trees behind it about thirty feet or so back. A perfect spot from some kind of fantasy novel or movie.

  Once we came to the water, we knelt to clean ourselves up. As soon as I was about to dip my hands into the water, a cold spout hit me right on the tip of my muzzle.

  “That’s not yours!” a small voice squeaked at me. I looked and saw a little blue head bobbing in the water before me. It looked like a little person, but the head was like that of a dolls. The eyes were a deep blue, and its lips were set in a scowl.

  “Forgive me,” I said. My friends had met similar opposition.

  “What did it say?” Jaken asked.

  “That the water isn’t our’s,” I responded. “Wait, you can’t understand them?”

  Everyone but Balmur shook their heads. I looked back at the indignant blue creature and sat on the ground.

  “I’m Zekiel,” I said warmly. “These are my friends, and we’re a bit lost. Could you tell me where we are?”

  The blue creature put his hands out of the water, pulled himself out as if it were solid ground, and sat atop it. He regarded me critically for a moment, then shrugged and must have decided I meant no harm.

  “This is Harmasker’s End,” he said, motioning to the side we were on. “Nasty place to be, if you ask me. What are you doing here?”

  “We don’t know. A bad man sent us here.”

  “Oh? How did he send you? Was there blood of the innocent involved?” the little creature asked, jumping to his feet.

  I nodded, and he hung his head. “I was afraid of that. You have been banished here, to Faerie.”

  “What’s Faerie?” asked Balmur. I hadn’t heard him come over. I repeated his question when our little friend just stared confused. I made the guess he didn’t speak the common tongu
e.

  “Faerie is the plane of the Fae. All Sylvan, Fae and Elves began here before crossing to Prime a millennia ago.”

  “I see. Is there a way for us to get back?” I asked. As I was speaking to the creature in Sylvan, Balmur translated to the others.

  “I dunno.” The Fairy shook his head, crossing his arms.

  “Do you know someone who might?”

  He thought a bit and brightened up. “Yes!”

  “Can you take us to them?”

  “No.”

  “Can you tell us where they are?”

  He nodded.

  “Okay, where?”

  “What will you do for me?” The Fairy looked at me expectantly.

  “What?”

  “Everything has a price here in Faerie. If you want information, you pay for it.”

  “Okay, I’ll bite. What do you want?” I rolled my eyes.

  “A certain beast has been drinking our water but is too large for us to stop on our own. If you can either kill it or scare it off, I will tell you where to get the information you seek.”

  “What kind of creature is it?” Bulmar asked.

  “A Fel-Hog. Huge beastie. The lot of you together might be able to get it, though.”

  “Okay. Is there water around here where we can clean up?” I motioned to the blood and dried gore on my person, and the little man rolled his eyes dramatically.

  He asked, “None of you have magic?”

  I had a headache after the epic facepalm moment. I spent the mana to summon my Water Sphere. We all reached into it and pulled water out of it to clean our faces and gear. We got what we could from our shirts, those of us without armor, but I just opted to burn my clothes. Blood was all over them, and I needed to feel clean again.