I struggled to sit, knowing I needed to help, but she continued to fight without me. The angle was perfect for the wolves, but I could see it was hard for her to get them in a place to keep them down because they were low to the ground. She searched the clearing and her face sharpened, eyes narrowed as she looked at something I couldn’t see from where I lay.
Even in my half-conscious state, I could tell she had a plan when she suddenly changed direction and strode away, calling out for Sel. I had no idea what she was doing, but wasn’t strong enough to ask.
I slumped back onto the deliciously soft ground, now fighting to keep my eyes open. I wanted to sleep so badly, and it took all my strength to keep my eyes from getting dragged shut by the weights pushing them down.
As my eyelids fluttered, Gwen’s wolves took up positions around me. I couldn’t see much beyond the varying shades of white and grey, but felt strangely safe for the first time since we’d been ambushed. Gwen had told them to protect me, and I was certain nothing would get by their snarling teeth and claws.
I caught of flash of color as Sel dropped out of a tree beside Gwen, uninjured and hardly breathing fast. I smirked despite my haze, unable to believe that’s where he’d been this entire time. Brilliant. Once again, he’d proved how smart he was without saying a thing. Why hadn’t I considered using the trees? Stupid brain. I’d been too overwhelmed by fear to notice earlier, but none of these ur’gels could fly. I could have sat in a tree and knocked them down.
A trickle of blood burned my eyes and I tried to wipe it away, but my shoulder screamed at me and the nausea crested. I rolled, emptying my stomach toward my uninjured side as spasms racked my body. I felt Gwen’s eyes and looked away.
"What do we do now?" Sel was panting now. The sound of his stick crashing on the head of another ur’gel caused me to look, catching a glimpse between Swift and Kiya just as he lobbed it several feet into the air. As it descended, it smashed against the trunk of a nearby tree and went still.
Gwen’s eyebrows rose before she answered as calmly as if they were discussing supper plans. "We need to get out of here. Trappers leave animal snares about ten feet away from here. Do you think we can lead them over there? I know where they are, so if you follow my lead, you shouldn’t accidentally set them off. We need to get her out of here and seen by a healer right away.”
I could see the determination on his thin face as he raised his chin. He was such a good boy.
"I’ll protect her with my life. What do you want me to do?"
Gwen pointed toward the space between the trees. "Underneath the tree with the knobby bark, there's a lever. If you can cut the rope with your knife, it will release the whole mechanism, causing a trap to fall which should cover the entire clearing. But you need to make sure you don't step anywhere other than a straight line between here and there."
She demonstrated the path he needed to follow and he narrowed his eyes.
"I can do it.”
He kept a firm grip on his stick and tightened his hand around the small knife. It didn’t look as useful for fighting as the stick, which he’d used effectively to keep them at a distance since he’d jumped out of the tree, but it would be perfect for accomplishing the task Gwen had given him.
"Then go," Gwen shouted.
She was amazing. I wish I were that good under pressure. I sighed and closed my eyes again, the last thing I glimpsed as I drifted off was an image of Sel dashing into the trees. A loud whistle pierced the air, and I listened as if from a great distance as Gwen taunted the ur’gels.
"Hey, uglies. See the little boy over there? I bet you he's tasty."
Did they speak the same language as we did? I forced my eyes open again. It didn't seem to matter if they did or not though, as once they saw her standing alone, her knives out with a strong, bring-it-on stance, with him apparently running off in the distance like a scared boy, they were off.
A few stopped to fight her, but she dispatched them with her knives, their blood spraying everywhere as she slit about five throats before the rest gave up, chasing after Sel, who must have seemed like a much easier target than the fierce warrior in front of them.
I looked at my furry wall, smiling against the pain in my shoulder. I was now sure the ur’gels were pretty dumb, based on the way they’d been attacking, but even they’d realized three large wolves weren't as easy a meal as an escaping human boy. How much he would change away from Cliffside and the rules we lived by if we made it out of here? I shifted slightly. Pain sharpened my mind.
My friends needed my help. How long had I been on the ground? Everything was so blurry. I blinked and forced myself to sit, gritting my teeth against the pain and waiting as the ground and sky wobbled for a few moments. When it finally stabilized and stood still, I knelt and was surrounded by soft fur in varying shades of white, grey, and brown. Swift, Kiya, and Daimyo moved closer to support me as I worked to right myself.
I met Swift’s intelligent eyes with my own and tilted my head in acknowledgment of their actions. "Thank you."
I put a hand over my heart, bowing my head only slightly and right it immediately when the world spun again. When my vision cleared, I pondered if it was possible for a wolf to smile. Swift calmly watched me, but before I could decide, his ears perked up and his head swiveled. I followed his gaze toward the clearing, realizing I was now alone with the wolves. There were no ur’gels, but Gwen and Sel were out of sight as well.
I struggled to my feet, knowing I needed to keep moving, keep fighting. At least until my friends were safe.
The sound of fighting pushed me to continue on. After a few staggering steps forward, I regained my knees and headed toward the noise to find them. They were fighting off two ur’gels apiece, and I could see they’d captured at least twenty or thirty underneath a large net too heavy for them to wiggle out of. The ur’gels were struggling, their shrieks of rage futile against the trap. I breathed a sigh of relief. They appeared to have matters under control until another group of ur’gels exploded from the far end of the clearing.
"No, no, no!"
I struggled to move faster, knowing my friends needed as much help as they could get, even if I wasn't great at this and hardly mobile.
"Gwen! Sel! To your left!" I shouted, picking up another stick as I limped toward them. Sel reacted first, scampering back up the tree beside him. He moved effortlessly, as though he was floating, and I wondered if Sel had something more in his background than just human lineage.
Once back in the tree, he began to pick off the ur’gels one at a time as they swarmed up the tree after him. Confident he was okay, I turned my attention to Gwen. She looked vicious and beautiful, with both knives coated in greenish-black blood, her eyes narrowed above a snarl. She looked almost feral, as though she were part wolf herself.
I moved closer to her, placing myself on her right. She turned, and a flash of relief crossed her face when she saw me beside her. I felt a fierce burning in my chest, pride that I’d forced myself to come this far giving me the strength to continue.
The wolves had beat me and already taken up defensive positions in front of their elven mistress. My right shoulder screamed obscenities in the form of burning knives of torture, but I somehow managed to beat off the ur’gels attacking from my side. Grateful these ones were smaller than the one who’d taken a bite out of my shoulder, it unfortunately meant they were faster as well. Each time I made contact, I could feel my energy lag further. Breathing hard, I grunted with each swing, lancing pain shooting through my injured arm at each blow. I couldn't keep it up much longer. Desperately, I turned to Gwen.
"I don't know how much longer I can do this. There's too many, and they just keep coming." I spoke the words one at a time, gasping as I barely batted another ur’gel off my leg.
Gwen’s expression was grim. "I know. I'm trying to think of something else we can do, but the only thing I can think of is to climb a tree the way Sel did. Maybe we’ll stand a better chance from above."
I tried to smile reassuringly, but we both knew better. "I'm not sure I can climb. But it's okay. I got you into this, so—"
She glared, twin points of red on her cheeks. "Absolutely not! I’m not leaving you behind. You didn't get me into this, your home was attacked by ur’gels and you left. Cliffside isn’t far from the forest or the village. They would have been here within a day even without you here. If anything, you might be the reason any elves or humans make it out alive. Thanks to you, I had a warning, as well as everyone the wolves dropped off those notes to. Hopefully, they got everyone to a safe house before the ur’gels descended."
I couldn't feel proud, even with her vehement defense of my actions. Maybe it wasn’t my fault we’d been followed, but either way, it was hard to feel proud when you were getting your butt handed to you by ur’gels and certain you were going to die any second.
We didn't say anything else as we continued to fight the never-ending stream of dog-sized monsters with grunts and rasping breaths. I was sure she was still trying to come up with a solution, the way I was. We weren’t any closer to winning and it was only a matter of time until one or all of us were killed.
A loud trumpeting came from the direction the ur’gels were attacking from. I squinted, turning to see what the noise was. The ur’gels were still coming, but now their numbers were decreasing, and the ones who were still coming seemed to be escaping rather than attacking. When a large centaur burst into the clearing, my mouth dropped.
I’d seen a few before in passing, but I'd never been this close to one. He was beautiful, with large, well-muscled flanks covered in hair the red of a blood moon, and a bronzed and well-muscled upper body. His face appeared to have been chiseled out of granite, all hard-edged and deep-grooved, while the hair on his head was long and flowing down his back. He had a matching beard that had been trimmed neatly around his jaw. Intricately tattooed arms gripped a wickedly sharp sword with a hilt bedecked by a single ruby.
A smile crept over my face. Regardless of whether I knew him or not, centaurs and elves generally had good relationships. Gwen had noticed the pause in my fighting and turned to make sure I was okay, her worried eyes running over my body to see if I was injured. When I pointed at the centaur emerging through the woods, she cast her eyes skyward and exhaled with relief.
"It's about time!" Gwen shouted.
I was startled to hear her speaking to the centaur in such a familiar way until he shot her a rakish grin in response.
"My dear Gwen! What have you been up to? Staying out of trouble, I can see."
He was quite clearly teasing her, but her reaction confirmed while they knew each other, they weren’t necessarily friends. She was always quick to tease me, but ever since I'd met her, I’d known she didn't take well to teasing herself.
"Ha, ha, Loglan. Glad to see you're still as funny as ever. Hopefully, you fight better than you tell jokes." Gwen arched an eyebrow.
Loglan roared with laughter. "Luckily for you, I can. Not to mention I just happen to have a little something up my sleeve to take care of these little buggers for you.”
I frowned, looking at his chest and arms. Up his sleeve? Did he mean the tattoos? As I waited, Loglan closed his eyes, muttering something under his breath. A split second later the forest seemed to explode as ur’gels shot up into the sky, completely disappearing into thin air.
I turned around, looking to see if they were behind me. Nothing. I tried to process what I’d just witnessed. All the ur’gels, including the ones we’d already killed, had vanished without a trace. Gwen leaned over, gently closing my mouth. I swallowed, staring at her blankly, but she shrugged.
"Loglan is the protector of this area of the forest. We've met many times in the past, as I spend most of my time out here. Because he's the protector, he has a few…" she paused, shaking her head while she considered her words. "Why don't we just say he has a few extra abilities. Apparently, one such ability is disposing of things which don't belong in the forest, a category I'm assuming ur’gels fall into."
I could only nod dumbly as I looked at Loglan. Gratitude swelled in my chest now that I processed what his presence meant. I wasn’t going to die after all—at least, not yet.
Sel jumped out of the tree, and on his face was a hero worship I hadn't seen from him before. "Thank you, sir. How can I repay you?"
He smiled down at Sel, who barely reached his shoulders, eyes twinkling at the awestruck expression on the boy’s face.
"I was just doing my duty. My name is Loglan, what's yours?”
"My name is S-Sel," he stuttered. "I'm the human servant for Lady Rhiniya. We were on our way to Abrecem Secer when we asked Gwen to join us. Then we were attacked by ur’gels."
Loglan gave his hand a solemn shake. "Nice to meet you. I think if the Library is your end goal, you should move quickly. The woods aren’t a safe place for you tonight, but with what I can see brewing in the stars, I'm not sure if anywhere in our world will be safe for long."
Loglan stared at the wolves, neither greeting them nor letting them out of his sight. I realized it was entirely possible wolves and centaurs were not the best of buddies. But whether they were friends or not, I could see at a minimum Loglan and Gwen had a mutual respect. Which was possibly why he had just appeared and saved our lives.
"What did you do with the ur’gels?" Part of me was still waiting for them to fall out of the sky.
Loglan winked. "I just returned them to where they came from. It's simple, when you know how."
"I don't suppose you can teach me how? It seems like a handy thing to know, in case we get attacked again." I looked up at him hopefully.
"The spell I used is one which requires time and talent to perfect. While I’m sure you may possess the talent, it is clear you don’t have the time. If this many of the ur’gels found you so quickly, you would be wise to continue posthaste.” He turned to encompass our group, pursing his lips, and I followed his gaze, trying to see us from his perspective.
Gwen and Sel appeared slightly worse for the wear, but the smallest wolf, Kiya, the one who’d leapt into the fray early in the fight to save me, was lying on the ground, barely moving. Her white fur was matted with dirt and the familiar rusty dark brown of blood on her chest, like a badge of honor.
My heart sank.
At some point during the last few minutes while we’d been talking, she’d lain down. Her chest heaved and Swift now stood next to her, nuzzling her. He whined at Gwen, and once she saw what he was looking, the worry on her face eclipsed anything I'd seen in the past, including when I’d fallen to the ground.
"Kiya!" Gwen dropped to her knees beside the wolf, resting her forehead on the wolf’s head and received a weak lick on her cheek in response. Gently, Gwen ran her fingers over the wolf, murmuring soft words as she assessed the damage. When she looked up, her eyes were swimming with tears. "Loglan, Kiya needs help. Is there a healer, or someone nearby who could help? She can't travel far like this." Gwen pressed her lips together, then tried to lift the wolf up.
I rushed to help, but Loglan stopped me.
"Allow me, Gwen."
He moved beside Kiya, kneeling low enough so he could scoop up the wolf, which seemed tiny in his massive arms. He placed her gently on his back and stood carefully.
"I know a healer who lives at the edge of the forest, not far from here. We can go to her. She should be able to help." Loglan looked at my arm, the sleeve now soaked through. "It would also be wise to have your arm looked at as well, young elf. What is your name?"
I realized I hadn't introduced myself and bowed my head, trying to keep my arm from moving as I did so. "My name is Rhiniya, from Cliffside, but call me Rhin. I came to find Gwen when the castle was attacked, but it appears the battle has already found us."
Loglan sighed, looking into the sky that was now full dark. "I have known for some time this day would arrive, and y
et I find myself still unprepared. You are heading to Abrecem Secer and the Library, correct?"
"Yes, we are. I found some things in my library, which makes me believe there may be a way to stop this before too many lives are lost, but I’m missing details. I discovered the lost textbook of Piotr the Elder is housed there. I’m hoping it will point me in the right direction."
Loglan half-closed his eyes, considering me almost sleepily for a moment before inclining his head. "Very well. If you need to head to Abrecem Secer, your way will not be easy. I can guide you to the edge of the Low Forest as far as Sunglen if you wish, but you’ll be on your own afterward. Be prepared. The way is long and even more dangerous now than it has been at any time over the last several centuries."
I inclined my head, wincing as the movement jarred my shoulder. "Thank you, for everything. I'm ready to move now, we could be expecting more of the ur’gels."
Loglan looked at Gwen and Sel. "And you as well? You are prepared for the path ahead?"
She narrowed her eyes. When she gritted her teeth, I could see the simple question had set her back up, but she breathed through her nose and abruptly nodded.
Sel was wide-eyed with awe, still staring at the powerful centaur and didn’t respond at all.
I bit back a smile at his sudden boyishness, seeing another side yet again to my silent yet competent servant. The moment of levity was nice under the circumstances, and was what helped me make it the rest of the way to the healers before collapsing.
Chapter 6
The edge of the forest wasn’t far from where we’d confronted the ur’gels, but every step jarred my shoulder a little more. By the time we arrived at the healer’s cottage, my hand was completely numb. I’d been experiencing a weird burning in the area and it crossed my mind that I could have been infected by the ur’gel’s teeth.
My mind began to conjure thoughts of poison, a deadly fluid that could cause my arm to shrivel up and turn black. I checked my hand constantly, hoping to reassure myself it was still there. It was the first real injury I'd ever received, so I tried to convince myself it was possible the burning, pain, and numbness were to be expected, but no amount of logic could make me worry less, even the sight of my pale hand cradled next to my chest.
Soul Goblet Page 6