Fate Abandoned (Book 1 of the Fate Abandoned Series)

by L. Danvers

  Daphne took in every inch of the remnants of Perdeus that she could. She was fascinated. What a shame it was that the city had never been rebuilt.

  Something caught her eye as they passed a lone building with its roof still intact. She leaned forward, and she craned her neck to make sure her eyes weren’t deceiving her.

  “Daphne,” Lillian said. “What is it?”

  The princess hopped from her horse so she could investigate further. She slushed her way through the thick snow, each step feeling heavier as her pants saturated with moisture. It looked like there were branches sticking up out of the snow, which was an odd sight considering there were no trees or shrubs nearby. She shoveled the snow aside, and what she saw set her heart on fire.

  Ashes.

  She gasped in delight. “Phillip was here,” she said to herself, then she shouted to the others. “Phillip was here!”

  “How can you be sure?” Gregory asked.

  “Who else would it have been? I’m sure of it. My brother was here.”

  “Well, let’s go find him then.”

  She got back on her horse, and they continued their journey through the ruins, marveling at the remains.

  “It’s as if no one has touched this place since King Cedric overthrew it,” Lillian said.

  Thomas scoffed. “You mean destroyed it. Let me guess. You believe in the legend, too.”

  “I do.”

  “I don’t buy it for a second,” Thomas said, giving Lillian a look like she had gone mad. “A dragon? Please. Wouldn’t there be records of them in the ancient manuscripts? Or are we just supposed to believe that a dragon appeared at a convenient point in history and then went extinct?”

  Lillian took his disbelief as a personal insult to her intelligence. “How else do you explain one man overthrowing an entire kingdom?”

  Thomas was taken aback by the sharpness in her words. “Alright, alright. I didn’t mean to offend you. It’s not like it matters. The outcome was the same either way.”

  Hours passed before they reached the mountain. Chills raced down Daphne’s limbs when she spotted it. They were so close to the site of the Battle of Gargantem. So close to Phillip, or at least she hoped they were.

  She swept a frosted strand of hair out of her eyes as they rode for the mountain’s base. Seeing it renewed her energy. The others talked and joked and laughed all the while, but not her. She kept her focus on the mountainside. It was brimming with snow-capped evergreen trees and filled with life. The hooting of owls. The padding of the feet of forest animals. It was both beautiful and mysterious.

  It was midday. The sun was high above them, but it gave no relief from the miserable cold. Tree branches blocked the group from its warmth. Daphne was cold and hungry. She should have appreciated the hardened roll Merek had given her earlier.

  “What was that?” Gregory asked. His attention rested on Thomas, whose eyes were shifting back and forth. His cheeks flushed.

  “Sorry,” he said with a shrug. “I’m starving.”

  Merek reached for his satchel, but Thomas shook his head. “I’m sick of hardened bread. I need real food. Something fresh.”

  A goofy grin spread across Merek’s face. “You thinking what I’m thinking?”

  Thomas gave a wry smile. “Let’s hunt.”

  Lillian cleared her throat. “Excuse me. You realize we should be looking for the prince right now, don’t you?”

  She was such a good friend. Always considering Daphne’s feelings. “Thank you, Lillian, but it’s alright. I’m starving, too, and we’ll need sustenance for the journey home. Let’s keep an eye out for him while they hunt, though.”

  They rode a little further until they neared a good spot for hunting. Gregory, Lillian and Daphne waited while Thomas and Merek hopped off of their horses and got to work. The three of them kept quiet, as Thomas and Merek had requested, so that they wouldn’t startle any animals that might be near. Daphne helped pass the time by stroking her horse’s mane. She liked to think she appreciated it.

  An arrow whistled in the distance, and Thomas gave out a cheer for Merek’s good shot. Minutes later, the two of them returned with a deer.

  Daphne couldn’t stand to watch Thomas carve it. She shifted her attention to anything else she could think of—their footprints vanishing in the snow, the way Lillian’s yellow hair rested on her shoulders, how Gregory clutched his belly when he laughed. He and Merek helped Thomas start a fire, and in no time their noses were graced with the aroma of roasting meat. The group huddled around the flames, reveling in its warmth. Daphne’s stomach fluttered when Gregory came and stood beside her.

  When the meat was cooked, Gregory and Thomas distributed it. Daphne had grown to enjoy eating with her bare hands. There was something liberating in not having to act so ladylike. She could be herself around this group. She didn’t have to worry about saying the right thing or looking a certain way. They didn’t see her as the princess. They saw her as Daphne.

  She gave Lillian a nudge with her elbow. “Can you imagine what Father would say if he saw us eating like this?”

  Lillian chuckled at that.

  Merek wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. “We should be getting close, right? To the battle site, I mean.”

  “I believe so,” Daphne said. “No one has been there since my great-grandfather, so I can’t say for certain.”

  “No one has been there since then?”

  “Well, Phillip might have been there already, but don’t you remember? King Cedric declared Perdeus was to remain in ruins. No one has been there, or beyond that point, since.”

  “What if—” Merek stopped himself. “Never mind. I shouldn’t have said anything.”

  “Go on. It’s alright.”

  “What... what if your brother already completed his quest and is on his way back to the castle? What if he went another way, and we missed him? Or what if we went right past him and didn’t know it?”

  Hours ago, Daphne had had the same concerns, but something in her gut told her they would find Phillip soon. “He’s here somewhere. I can feel it.”

  When they finished eating, they put out the fire and continued on their way up the mountainside. The winds had picked up, and their horses were moving slower than ever. She wondered if the horses were having as much difficulty seeing through the thick downpour of snow as they were.

  There was a rumble, and their eyes pierced Thomas like daggers.

  “What? That wasn’t me. I swear.”

  “Then what was it?” Lillian said under her breath. Daphne wondered the same thing.

  They continued to ascend the mountainside, tremors rippling under their horse’s hooves as they rode. They would start, then stop. Start, stop. It was perplexing. It couldn’t have been an earthquake. There was a rhythmic nature to the shaking. It was almost as if...

  Gregory jerked his horse to a stop. He held his left hand in the air, signaling to the others. He pulled back his hood and leaned to his side, leading with his left ear so that he could hear. He went still, and something in the way he did so made Daphne’s heart race. Something wasn’t right. He turned to her, the blue in his eyes swirling like a storm. “You said this place wasn’t inhabited.”

  She wasn’t sure if it was a statement or a question. “It isn’t.”

  “I wouldn’t be so sure.” He turned and pointed, but all she saw were rows upon rows of evergreens and the occasional eagle soaring high above. “There. Look closer. Do you see it? That’s what is causing the ground to quake.”

  Lillian’s face turned as white as the falling snow. “Giants.”

  Daphne saw it, too. Far in the distance, it looked as if the tip of a person’s head was bobbing up and down over the tree line. It felt like all the air had been sucked right out of her lungs. She was scared for herself, scared for her friends and scared for Phillip.

  “We should turn around,” Merek said, his long fingers clutching his horse’s reins.

  Daphne’s eyes burned with
tears. She would understand if they left. “You may go if you want. You got me this far. I’ll see to it that you are paid for your efforts. But I’m not leaving. Not without Phillip.”

  Thomas waved his hand, brushing aside her suggestion. “We didn’t come all this way to turn around now. We survived the atrocitas and brutes. We can handle a giant if we must. Look how far away he is. He may not even notice us. They aren’t known for being bright.”

  “It’s settled then,” Gregory said. “We’ll find the prince, then leave as soon as possible.”

  She could have kissed him. She could have kissed all of them for being so loyal. Who would have thought a princess, a maidservant and a pack of thieves could grow to become friends? True ones, at that.

  As they rode, though, a nagging worry crept into her thoughts. What would happen when they returned to the castle? The boys would get their reward, and then what? Return to the silver forest? The thought of never seeing them, of never seeing Gregory again panged her heart. As much as she yearned to find her twin, she dreaded returning to Vires. She should have been thrilled that they were so close to completing their quest, but she felt nothing but sorrow. Not just at the thought of saying goodbye to Gregory, Thomas and Merek, but also at the thought of saying goodbye to her freedom.

  Every hair on her body stood on end as she kept a constant watch on the head bobbing in the distance. All she could do was pray giants were as stupid as they were rumored to be. All their heads were turned, their attention paid solely to the monstrosity. That was a grave mistake.

  The five of them jolted forward, their horses coming to a sudden stop. They looked down and saw their hooves were stuck in mud. Thomas spewed expletives, while Merek shook his head. Lillian’s eyes went glossy with tears. Bubbles of brown expanded and burst around them, splattering over the snow sprinkled on top of the ground.

  Daphne tried to get her horse to keep moving, but the horse wouldn’t budge. She and the other horses were stuck.

  Lillian moaned. “I thought you were thieves. Aren’t you supposed to be good at paying attention to your surroundings?”

  “You didn’t notice either, Lillian,” Thomas snapped.

  “That’s not helping, Thomas,” Gregory said. “We need to stay calm.”

  “Stay calm?” Lillian cried, her face stricken with panic. “How are we supposed to stay calm? We’re stuck in a mud pit with a giant right over there.”

  Gregory and Merek took in the surroundings, looking for some way to escape. Thomas had calmed himself, too, and by the way he combed through his messy hair and his eyes widened, it appeared he had a plan. “It’s a stretch,” he said, “but it just might work.”

  He removed his fur-lined cloak and pierced into the garment with a dagger.

  Daphne gasped. “What do you think you’re doing?”

  “Making a rope.”

  Shivering, he carved his cloak into long strips. He took care to knot each of them together. “Merek, an arrow,” he said, still tying the ends. Merek pulled one from his quiver and leaned over to Thomas to hand it to him. Thomas took it and secured an end of the makeshift rope to it. He handed it back. “You can make the shot, can’t you?”

  Thomas pointed to a particular tree branch. Merek’s eyes squinted into half-moons. “I, uh... I think so.”

  “Shoot the arrow over there, then, and we’ll swing over to that grassy area. We’ll have to journey the rest of the way on foot.”

  Merek gulped. He took a deep breath and readied his arrow.

  “Make it count,” Gregory said.

  “Thanks,” Merek mumbled. “No pressure or anything.”

  He went into a trance-like state, his focus narrowed in on his target. He started to pull the arrow back, but he startled when Thomas let out a sneeze.

  “Sorry.”

  Merek scowled at him, but his expression softened when he exhaled and shifted his focus back to the branch. He pulled his arrow back again, and he released it. It whizzed through the air and lodged into the exact branch he’d intended. The others pumped their fists in the air and cheered, and he couldn’t help but smile.

  “Go on, then,” Thomas urged.

  Merek, clutching the tail end of the fabric, hiked one leg on top of his horse. He drew his other leg up so that he was crouched atop the horse’s back. The horse stayed still, but it didn’t look pleased. “Shhh. There, there. Easy now.” He extended his arms, balancing as he rose to a standing position. “Here goes nothing.”

  He pushed his feet against the horse’s back and swung through the air. He let go and fell facedown in the grass. The tip of his boot landed in the pit and sent mud splattering in the air. He pushed himself up and wiped the snow from his face, though it clung to his eyebrows. He pulled his boot from the mud, stood and said, “Who’s next?”

  Lillian volunteered. Daphne was surprised at this, but Lillian wanted to get it over with. With great effort, Merek swung the rope in Lillian’s direction, but his aim was off, and it slung back toward him. He whipped it again, and this time she managed to grab hold with her trembling fingers.

  Daphne could see the worry in Lillian’s face. But there she was, facing her fear. “You can do this,” Daphne said, trying to sound encouraging. Lillian nodded and gave a half-smile. Then, with the knotted fabric firm in her white-knuckled hands, she stood and pushed off her horse. She flew through the air, and Merek caught her when she crashed on top of him.

  Thomas was next, and then it was Daphne’s turn. When she landed, she flung the rope back to Gregory.

  The ground beneath them rumbled.

  Gregory caught the fabric, but before he could stand, the five of them were cast in a tremendous shadow. A gigantic set of bushy eyebrows and never-brushed hair bobbed toward them over the treetops.

  With haste, Gregory leapt from his horse and swung through the air, but before he had a chance to let go, he was snatched up by a hairy hand.

  Daphne gasped, and that was the absolute worst thing she could have done. The giant’s gray eyes narrowed. He stomped toward her and the others, and they fell to the ground, which trembled with each heavy step. He let out a slobber-filled snarl and reached for them.

  They were in complete darkness.

  Daphne pushed and squirmed, fighting for air.

  Her head was lodged between Thomas’s elbow and Merek’s belly.

  She was going to faint.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Daphne was starry-eyed and bruised from being jostled about in the giant’s fist. His hand was leathered, and she grimaced each time her flesh brushed against it. She let out a grunt when her nose met Thomas’s arm. There was a clang and a push, and they found their bodies rolling as the giant swung his arm back and forth with each long stride. She heard a loud-pitched clink, and her eyes went hazy as the light shone for the first time since they were captured.

  The giant unclenched his meaty fingers. They tumbled through the musty air, which was as stuffy as his hand had been. Daphne’s cheek slammed against the base of a cold iron cage. She cupped her cheek with her hand and opened and shut her mouth to stretch out her jaw. She’d blocked enough practice blows from Phillip to recognize the feeling of a bruise forming. She rubbed her cheekbone some more and pushed herself up onto her knees, trying to process what was happening. She looked up and saw the teeth of a key twice her size grating against the inside of a lock. The giant stuffed the key in his shirt pocket, grabbed the cage’s handle and slung Daphne and the others back and forth as he walked. Daphne worried she wasn’t going to be able to hold down the deer meat she’d had earlier. There was one final swing up, and he set his catch on a shelf.

  Drool dripped from the giant’s lips. His eyes were wide with hunger. “Stew’s gon’ be good t’night.”

  None of them dared make a sound. They watched in horror as he licked his slobbery lips and marched away. The room shook with each step. He used an untrimmed, dirt-covered nail to scratch the back of his neck. He was covered in moles. Big ones. Hairy ones. He was e
very bit as horrible as legends said giants to be. Daphne shivered to think what he had in store for them. She had never been so in awe of her great-grandfather. How could he have defeated the giants on his own? He must have been a force to be reckoned with.

  The door shut, and Daphne burst into hysterical tears. “I’m so sorry,” she blubbered between snotty sniffles. She buried her face in her hands, unable to look her friends in the eye. “We never should have come here.”

  Fabric swept against the base of the cage, and though she was still crying, she sensed someone sit beside her. A strong hand squeezed her shoulder, and Gregory whispered, “We’ll get through this together.”

  She rested her head on his shoulder. He comforted her at first, but then he went rigid. His demeanor shifted in such haste that she stifled her tears and raised her head. She knew that look. He’d heard something. He craned his unshaven neck, and she followed his line of sight.

  She heard it, too. Rattling.

  She rubbed her tired eyes. Was she seeing things?

  A shadowed figure was sprawled across the base of the cage beside theirs. She started forward, but Gregory pulled her back. She pushed his hand away, entranced by this mysterious entity. On her hands and knees, she crawled toward the person cloaked in shadows. Her heart raced with each slink forward. She tried to convince herself not to get her hopes up. This could be anyone.

  The person moaned and shifted. A sliver of light cast through a crack in the window shutter reflected off of a purple and gold vest.

  “Hello?”

  It felt like an eternity had passed since the words escaped her lips.

  Why wasn’t the person answering her?

  “Phillip?”

  The figure stirred. There was a groan, and the person sat up and turned around. As sure as the night was black, she saw her brother staring back at her. He’d never looked worse. His dark hair was wild and greasy. His expression was sullen, and there was a weariness in his eyes she hadn’t seen before. He drew his thick eyebrows together and scrunched them. She sensed his confusion.

  “It’s me.”

  “Daphne?”