Assassin's Liege

by A Lonergan

  Chapter Five

  Cal

  It was easy to send him away, and it wasn't. I knew that I couldn't leave my kingdom vulnerable, and so I had made the decision to send men back with my best. Willow had stared at me like I was crazy before she stomped off, muttering, "He didn't even say goodbye."

  A pang of jealousy shot through my heart but I pushed it down. There was no need for that. I had seen the way her eyes lit up with the both of us, and I had never seen her heavy-lidded eyes turned his way. I knew I had nothing to worry about when it came to that, but her reaction had been a surprise. Especially after seeing her throw a book at his head. It was a nice relief.

  The biggest thing that was bothering me though was the fact that we hadn't gone down the cliff yet. We needed to get into the valley, but somehow we had ended up paused on this journey. Willow growled in frustration and ripped her hair tie out of her long hair before she unsheathed her knives and threw herself over the side of the mountain.

  A few of my men shouted as she went over, but I couldn't say I was surprised. She had gotten her elevation legs, and now she was ready for anything, and that was what scared me the most. Her blades scraped against the stone, and I finally peeked over to see her grinning up at me. She even had the audacity to yank one out of the stone and flick it into the air as she held onto the other blade. I felt the color drain from my face.

  She ripped the blades from the surface of the rock, fell a few feet before she jabbed them right back into the stone. The metal sliced through the rock, like the mountain was made out of keffer fat. My men hung over the side of the cliff as she continued down. Their eyes were round, and their mouths were hanging open.

  "I guess she showed all of you,” I smirked. I had seen the gleam in their eyes when she had struggled to get up here. Now they were perplexed and astonished. There wasn't a single part of me that was though. I had seen the determination and grit in her eyes as she stood up and realized what I had known. The men feared her until that moment. She was determined to make them fear her again. But based on the looks on their faces, fear seemed to be the farthest thing. Arousal clogged the air and made me fumble. I could feel the frustration hit me like a horse.

  I was the next one over the pass. I didn't care to be around my men when they wanted the woman I did. I didn't blame them, but I didn't have to be around for it.

  We settled in for camp at the base of the mountain. The mountains weren't my specialty and venturing around in the dark wasn't wise. We couldn't risk losing men to stupidity. We pitched our tents and I watched as Willow assembled hers effortlessly. She turned around and caught me staring. I didn't avert my eyes and continued to assess her. She raised her eyebrow and shook her head. "Do you like what you see, King?"

  "I always did."

  She rolled her eyes. "Of course."

  "How are you feeling?" I asked. I pushed up from my crouch and marched to her side. She ignored me and fled into her tent. I followed her, the fabric of the tent was rough as I brushed through it. She scowled over her shoulder.

  "I would feel a lot better if you didn't follow me." She gave me a smile, but it didn't reach her eyes.

  "I thought we were past all of this hatred," I said. I knew what she was doing. She was pushing me away, again. I didn't blame her. I had treated her unfairly after proclaiming that I wanted her to be the Queen of Rosalia. I had gone cold.

  She took a deep breath and watched me with tired eyes. “As much as I would love to have this conversation, I have watch in a few hours and sleep is at the top of my to-do list.”

  Willow unrolled her sleeping pallet and laid down on it before I could get a word in.

  “Willow, my behavior has been unacceptable as of late, for this I owe you my apologies.”

  She snickered and rolled over under her blankets. “Okay, Cal. Goodnight.”

  Chapter Six

  Willow

  I had wanted his apologies right? Now I wasn’t so sure. Why? Because if he apologized now, and continued to let me down, that meant his apologies were for nothing. When Cal finally left, I pulled my father’s journal free and snapped my fingers. Light illuminated the room and showed me my father’s perfect scribble across the parchment. I wondered if my father had experienced what we had in Arinal. I flipped to the back of the book and started my own journaling. There was no entrance into the Mystic Mountains unless you climbed them. I capped my pen and tucked the journal under my pillow. It was a good start.

  I had been prepared for the bustling of the camp to wake me. The only thing that woke me was the eery silence. My shift was coming up soon and I had expected one of the men to wake me up to start, but knew my expectations were entirely too high. They expected me to fail or they hoped Cal would throw me out if I didn’t have my act together. I stretched before I strapped each of my knives to my thighs and some extras in my boots. I doubted I would need my tent for the rest of the night and we would need to move quickly once the sun came up. I dismantled the tent and tucked all of my belongings into my pack. My tent folded up nicely and I left it under my backpack as I surveyed the camp I wasn’t a part of. I had assembled my tent on the outskirts of the rest of the soldiers. I wasn’t sure if it labeled me as a target or not, yet. Not that it really mattered, I was always up for a little action, especially as of late. My fingers itched for the steel strapped to my body.

  I cracked my neck and prowled around the camp in the shadows. I snickered when I got to the dying fire near Cal’s tent. No wonder I hadn’t been woken, the watchdogs were sound asleep leaning on each other. I shook my head and let the wisps of my magic free. It had become easier to control it over the last few weeks.. The black magic swirled around my palms and coated the ground around my feet. It jumped and skipped over the ground before it wrapped around the men sound asleep. They jumped as the first tendrils wrapped around them and their eyes grew wide as they realized what was happening. I stayed in the shadows and watched as they jumped up and tried to stomp on my darkness. It was harmless fun. I called the magic back to me and stepped away from the tent beside me.

  “You’re not supposed to fall asleep on the job.” They both jumped sky high at the sound of my voice behind them.

  “Damn females shouldn’t be allowed at war. Bad luck,” one of them muttered.

  “The only bad luck here is you two sleeping on the job.” I crossed my arms over my chest.

  They both looked at each other and sneered. “There wasn’t anyone here sleeping on the job. You’re just a bit early.” I had the right mind to let my dark magic coat the ground and swirl around their ankles. The fear always made it more interesting. I blinked my eyes in surprise at the black thoughts that had wiggled their way into my mind. I decided it was better to keep my distance from the men and not cause any more drama.

  It wasn’t hard to ignore Cal. In fact, it was a lot easier than I thought. But even though I ignored him, I couldn’t help but keep the corner of my eye on him as he loaded up his tent into one of the caravans. He had stripped off his tunic in the heat of the day and sweat rolled down his back. His whole body glistened. But that wasn’t what caught my eye. It was the scars and repaired skin on his back that had me captivated. I swallowed thickly and continued to sharpen my knives. They were already sharp enough, but they could always be sharper. The sound of metal on metal soothed me in an odd way. I tested the edge of the blade and watched as red blood sprouted from my skin immediately. I didn’t feel the prick either. I smiled to myself. I could feel eyes on me and knew it was Cal before I looked up again.

  “How did you sleep?” He asked as he shrugged a fresh tunic over his rippling skin. I felt a tinge of disappointment as the view disappeared. I tried my hardest to keep the emotion off of my face.

  “I didn’t.” I shrugged as I placed my knives back in their holsters on my legs.

  Cal didn’t say anything but opened his mouth like he was going to. But then he was cut off and shuffled away. I hefted my bag onto my back and trudged away from the group. I
didn’t care to be apart of it, but then I heard Madam Colver call out to me and I knew I was stuck. The sun had been at its highest for a while and the desire to explore was overwhelming. The desire to scout ahead tugged at my soul. I was accustomed to recon. I didn’t have any problem with going alone into the unknown. But I knew I needed to stay on Cal’s good side. Since Nico was no longer with us, I felt the need to take his place. He had his other elites, but were they as good as I was? Especially with my magic now? I pushed my sleeves up my arms and traced the swirling bands of ink there. Madam Colver spoke again too close for comfort and I pulled my sleeve back down.

  “Did you hear me, you stubborn girl?” the big burly woman said from behind me.

  I smirked as I turned to her. “I did but I was weighing my options on whether or not I could outrun you.”

  “You most certainly could not.” She crossed her arms over her chest and the movement forced her large bust to overflow from her corset.

  I cocked an eyebrow. “Isn’t that a little risqué?”

  She barked out a laugh and her face turned red. “You’re one to talk. Marching around these men in such attire! Your britches are so tight there isn’t much left to the imagination, my dear.”

  I rolled my eyes. I had heard the same speech from my mother. “I like them like a second skin for a reason.”

  She blinked and her eyes changed from brown to gold then to red. “No one around here is complaining either.”

  I laughed. “I’m sure they aren’t complaining about your breasts either. Though I am curious. You never dress like this around the castle.”

  She leaned against the tree and the wind picked up her graying hair. “The more skin you show, the more men will do for you.”

  I didn’t find that to be the case in my situation. “Great advice. What can I do for you?”

  “Are you making sure the King is eating all his meals?” I began to laugh until I realized she was serious.

  “Do I look like his mother?” I frowned. “Just because we courted doesn’t mean I have to follow behind him like a lost animal. If he isn’t eating it isn’t my responsibility, I can promise you that. He has advisors to see to him.”

  “Most of which are at home. You do realize that you are one of his advisors, right?” Madam Colver straightened up then yanked on her corset before she marched off.

  I hadn’t been officially called into the service of that. I hadn’t officially been called into anything. I was in limbo. All I could manage to do was float until I found a place I belonged. I imagined for a short period that was by Cal’s side but then as time went on I began to imagine myself in other shoes. A part of the King’s Elite. I considered the military. Sometimes it was nice to dream of being a mercenary for hire. Killing didn’t exactly suit my fancy but bringing bad people to justice wasn’t so bad. I had the skills that was for sure.

  We marched onward. Right through the valley that was entirely too quiet. A valley that seemed to be dead but also thriving. My skin crawled. I was on high alert. Most of the men around me twitched nervously and I watched as Cal pulled his sword from his side. Satisfaction courses through me. I was relieved I wasn’t the only one feeling this. His elite surrounding him did the same.

  Something whistled through the air and time slowed around me. This was a first. I turned and looked toward the sound, an acorn flying through the air straight for one of the elite. Faster than I had ever moved before I flicked my dagger and it pierced through the center of the damn nut. A hush fell over the party around me and eyes shifted in my direction. Pride shone on Cal’s face.

  “Wood sprites are pesky creatures,” I said as I plucked my dagger from the tree it had embedded itself in. The bark flaked around my fingers as the tip slipped free. Sap coated the end of my knife and held the acorn together against the trunk. “But it would explain why everything is so still. They are waiting for our move. They want to know why we are in their valley, I would imagine.”

  Cal spoke up as the men watched me with incredulous looks. “Wood sprites are harmless but they will continue to annoy us until we gift them.”

  I didn’t know much about wood sprites but I could see their magic in the air. As my magic had slowed time, I could see the sparkles around us. They had quieted down the rest of the creatures and stopped all activity until they found out our motive.

  Madam Colver pushed her way back to the front of our procession. “Wood sprites will only take hand made gifts. They won’t accept anything else.”

  No pressure.

  I closed my eyes and tried to connect with the earth. The wind rustled my hair from its pins and I knew I was on the right track. I had never created anything with my magic, only destroyed but I was on a mission. Then my mind pictured the flowers Cal had gifted me. The rare flowers that could kill and before I knew it, the flowers were sprouting in every direction. Cal’s eyes grew wide and Madam Colver chuckled.

  “Flowers?” One of the men shouted. “How will that do us any good?”

  Cal’s lips twitched. “These aren’t just any flowers. They’re poison. She’s giving them a rare means to protect themselves.”

  A few of the guys around me shifted nervously. “What if they use it against us?”

  I shrugged. “They won’t be able to. It’s made of my magic. It won’t harm what is mine.” The words left my lips before I knew what I had done. I had claimed them and bound them to me. The ground shook beneath my feet and I knew there was no taking it back. Cal narrowed his eyes at me before he smirked. He knew exactly what I had done and he knew I was clueless. I had a feeling he wasn’t going to give any insight either unless I came looking for it. For now, it didn’t matter. I would cross that bridge when I got to it.

  Chapter Seven

  Cal

  Willow was an enigma. She was the kind of woman that one didn’t tire of easily. Maybe how stubborn she was, but not anything else. Watching her squirm with nerves was enough to light me up. She had no idea what she had done. She had claimed an entire kingdom of soldiers. That meant she would protect them with her life and she would do what she could to bring them home. Back at the castle those words wouldn’t have meant much but in the Mystic Mountains… they were like holy words. She had declared something to the magic residing here and to the gods watching over this hallowed ground. She wouldn’t be able to take it back either.

  The wind ripped around us and thunder rumbled in the distance. Willow gave me a nervous glance before she straightened her spine and looked into the woods behind us. I had never seen a wood sprite before but as I blinked my eyes they came into focus. Just barely though, like they didn’t want to be seen. Their long brown arms blended in with the trees they pressed their bodies against. They blended in perfectly with the woods around them. Their bodies blinked in and out between the trees until they were gone.

  Willow pulled her journal out of her back pocket and grinned. “They’re popular creatures in these mountains. They protect the land here. If we befriend them it could help us in the long run. If we turn our backs on them, I don’t know if we will make it out of this clearing alive.”

  “Sounds hopeful,” one of my men muttered.

  The air shimmered around us and my men started to fidget. My elite pulled their swords free and I shook my head. This was no time to show hostility. We needed to befriend as many of the creatures as we could. I wanted to make it out of these mountains alive. I had never met a man that had accomplished a mission through and I wasn’t going to let my sister win.

  An ebony woman appeared before us. She was naked, besides her long hair concealing most of her intimate parts. She ignored me and looked to Willow with surprise and intrigue, which wasn’t exactly uncommon. The assassin’s magic would have anyone curious. Then her beauty would rope them in the rest of the way.

  “Greetings Queen?” the wood sprite tilted her head in question.

  Willow bowed her head but I caught the haughty smirk before the shadows covered her face. “I am no Queen. I am mer
ely a tool.”

  “You have the magic of a Queen.” The wood sprite’s eyes flicked to me. “I would recognize a King anywhere. Royalty is royalty though you try hard to conceal it. Your magic says otherwise to your station. Welcome to the Mystic Mountains. I have to say there has been much commotion as of late. The other riding party wouldn’t have anything to do with your appearance, would it?”

  I bowed low and took a deep breath. “We want peace. Unfortunately, neighboring kingdoms do not want the same. We are here to protect our people and yours.”

  “Is that so?” She touched her fingers to her lips and her nails elongated.

  “Yes. May I ask your name?” I knew I could be putting myself in danger for asking the question but a look of amusement flashed across her face and I knew we weren’t in trouble. Yet.

  “What a dangerous thing.” She murmured. “I like your tenacity. Please, follow me. You and the woman only.”

  My elite straightened at that but I waved my hand in the air. Willow had more than enough magic to take care of any threat at the moment. I didn’t worry about what would happen next. I knew I wasn’t in danger.

  The long willowing branches that led to dense forest opened up for us. As we walked the Wood Sprite Queen’s hair seemed to grow and drag behind her on the ground like a train to a dress. She didn’t seem to walk. She floated above the ground as she brought us deeper into her domain. There were whispers in the wind around us but no other creatures emerged. Finally, we made it to a wall of rock and the woman stopped. The rock crumbled away and we were invited into the cavern. The queen never stopped to look back, she knew we would follow. My boots crunched on the loose ground and the magic in my blood hummed. Willow gave me a casual glance as I paused at the opening. I couldn’t see beyond it but Willow wasn’t concerned. She shrugged her shoulders and disappeared into the darkness. When we made it to the other side, it wasn’t darkness we found. It was a thriving city.