by Rinelle Grey
Kriss’s heart constricted.
Lyall reached for his sword, drawing it slowly. He glanced back through the trees, but there was no sign of the approaching army. The child’s crying continued, more pitiful now, pulling at Kriss’s heartstrings. Lyall wasn’t going to just stand there, was he?
“We have to go,” Brianna said firmly. “We can take them.”
Lyall’s brow wrinkled and he glanced in the direction of the sound. Then he nodded resolutely. “Stay together.”
They broke out of the trees and into the sunshine. Open fields stretched between them and the village. And in the middle of the field stood a large troll. Mugos. A woman with raven black hair stood next to him. Though she barely came up to his chest, she didn’t appear afraid.
Unlike the two identical children, Yass and Uma’s twins. Kriss barely recognised their human forms. The twins cowered between the troll and the mage, hugging each other, tears making clean streaks down their dirty faces.
“Let them go.” Jasyn stepped forwards.
“Who’s going to make me?” Mugos taunted. “You? Go on, give it your best shot. Let’s see how brave you are when you can’t cheat. I bet the outcome will be different this time.”
Kriss and the mages stepped up beside Jasyn.
“You don’t scare us,” Brianna said scornfully. “We’ve fought your kind before and won more than once.”
“Oh, not you,” Mugos said. “This is between that cheat and me. Just us. Oriana here is prepared to use her magic to make sure it stays that way. Not to cheat, like you, but just to keep it fair.”
Kriss’s heart hammered in her chest. Jasyn stood no chance against the experienced troll. Even if they had been the same size.
“That’s not fair,” she said. “The challenge for champion has always been between two trolls, not between a troll and a human.”
“I’m no cheat. He can be a troll as well. He still doesn’t stand a chance.”
“Sure,” Jasyn agreed immediately. “Give me the other gem so I can be a troll, and I’ll be happy to fight you under any terms you decide on.”
“You think I’m stupid, don’t you?” Mugos demanded. “If you get hold of that gem you’ll just cheat again. Lucky for you, there’s a way around it. Oriana can transfer the curse onto you without you touching it. We’ve already tested it.”
Kriss bit back an oath. So much for that.
As a troll, Jasyn stood only a slightly better chance against Mugos. He could hold his own in a fair fight, but against the former champion?
“I’ll fight you,” Kriss interrupted. “I was the one you challenged first, it’s my right.”
“Stay out of it, Kriss,” Jasyn growled.
“You’re both pathetic, trying to save each other. I’m the one in charge here, remember?” Mugos said. “And I’m challenging Jasyn. He was the one who cheated me out of my position and he is the one who’s going to pay for it. You and I can have it out later, in private if you want.”
“I’m sure we can resolve this peacefully,” Lyall tried. “There’s no need for anyone to fight.”
Mugos’s eyes didn’t leave Jasyn. “Stay out of it, human. This is between us trolls.”
Jasyn pulled Kriss into a fierce hug, startling her. “As soon as the fight starts, get out of here,” he whispered in her ear. “Don’t stay to watch. As soon as he beats me, Mugos will be looking for a new target.”
“Jasyn, don’t,” Kriss protested.
There had to be another way. If only she could find it.
“Shh.” He put a finger to her lips. When she stopped trying to speak, he removed his finger and replaced it with his lips.
Kriss didn’t have the chance to object, and she wasn’t sure she wanted to. He kissed her with a passion that stirred up feelings she’d been trying to forget. Her knees felt weak.
Mugos’s harsh voice spoiled the moment. “Cut it out. You’re making me sick.”
Jasyn pulled back and stared into her eyes. “Remember what I said.”
She managed to nod, even though she wanted to scream objections instead.
He gently pushed her away from him and Kriss watched helplessly as he took two steps towards Mugos.
“Release the children, then I’ll fight you,” Jasyn said firmly.
“You keep thinking you can bargain here,” Mugos said. “We fight first, then I’ll consider it.”
Bastard.
There was nothing any of them could do except watch as Oriana floated the gem in front of her with magic. Kriss couldn’t see anything, but she could almost feel the curse crawling over Jasyn as it turned first his toes, then his legs, then the rest of his body green. Though his frame twisted and writhed, his clothes splitting at the seams, Jasyn didn’t fall or cry out. And he remained fully conscious. Apparently the curse was less painful to cast than to remove.
Mugos tossed him a sword. “Ready, troll?”
Jasyn didn’t answer, just turned to Kriss. She bit her lip, surprised at how much his familiar green face, so different yet so similar to his human face, affected her. He stared at her, as though waiting, and she nodded slightly.
Jasyn turned back to Mugos. “I’m ready.”
Kriss’s stomach clenched. Mugos gestured to the children, who ran back to the village as fast as their tiny legs could carry them. Then he turned to Jasyn and raised his sword.
Jasyn brought his weapon up in a defensive position as well, and even managed to hold against Mugos’s first swing. But Kriss wasn’t fooled. Jasyn had little chance in this fight. And it probably wouldn’t last long.
She glanced at Oriana, disconcerted to find the woman watching her. How were they supposed to get away if they were being watched?
Kriss stepped closer to Brianna and though Oriana’s eyes narrowed, the king’s ex-wife didn’t say anything.
Jasyn grunted as Mugos swung his sword again, sweat beading on his brow.
“We need to get out of here,” Kriss hissed, hoping the sound of fighting would cover her voice.
Brianna pulled her eyes away from the fight to stare at her, wide-eyed.
Nodding towards Oriana, who was watching them even more closely now, Kriss hoped Brianna wouldn’t ask questions.
Brianna glanced towards the woman, then back at Kriss. She nodded, almost imperceptibly.
Kriss turned back to the fight, but kept part of her attention on the mage. When the chance came, she would be ready.
Jasyn stepped to the side, Mugos’s sword narrowly missing him. Had Jasyn even swung once at his opponent, or was he deliberately losing? Kriss clenched her fists. What she wouldn’t give for a chance to step into this fight. But the mage was still watching her.
Jasyn’s plan was the only option.
Mugos took half a step back. This was it, she’d seen him fight, and she knew that he was preparing for a killing blow.
Thinking Mugos was retreating, Jasyn stepped forwards and swung his sword. There was nothing Kriss could do as Mugos blocked his blow with an armoured forearm and swung his weapon down at Jasyn. Kriss couldn’t make herself look away as the sword buried into his side. Blood blossomed from the wound.
Jasyn’s eyes turned towards her, begging her to run.
The raw emotion in his face set her heart racing. Kriss wanted to step forwards and catch him, to cradle him in her arms and burst into tears, but she knew what she had to do.
The mage was looking at Mugos now, a smug expression on her face. She assumed the fight was won.
This was their chance. The only chance they were going to get.
Kriss tugged on Brianna’s arm. “Now. We have to go now.”
Brianna put up a moment’s resistance, but as Mugos and Oriana turned towards them, she grabbed Lyall and, in a moment, all five of them were running for the trees. Kriss shouldn’t have waited so long. Jasyn had given his life for them, but it wasn’t enough. She could hear Mugos following them, and every step he took was equal to two human steps.
The trees were so c
lose, only a few steps ahead them. But even if they made it, the branches couldn’t shelter them from Oriana’s magic.
“Running away, Mugos? Are you that scared of me?”
Kriss glanced back at the sound of Jasyn's voice.
He was alive.
Clutching his side, his face a deadly shade of grey, Jasyn was nonetheless on his feet. He could barely lift his sword, but that didn't stop him from continuing to taunt the ex-champion. “Don't worry, if you surrender I promise you won't be harmed.”
“Don’t listen to him,” Oriana yelled. “He's dead on his feet. Don't let the others get away.”
Mugos ignored her. The troll roared in anger and ran back towards Jasyn, gripping his sword like a spear.
Kriss couldn't look. “Into the trees,” she urged the others.
“We need to help him,” Brianna said stoutly. “We can't just desert him like this.”
“Maybe if we all attack at once,” Mianna said, her face pale but determined.
“And that mage will kill us all,” Kriss said flatly. “Jasyn is already dead. He planned it this way. We owe it to him to use this chance to escape. He gave his life for it.”
Lyall opened his mouth just as a tree exploded beside them. Was it a missed shot, or a warning? Either way, it spurred everyone into action. Lyall and Terion grabbed their wives’ hands and fled into the trees. Kriss followed them, expecting to be blasted with magic at any second.
21
Cursed
Jasyn managed to stay on his feet until Kriss and the others disappeared into the trees. Relief flooded him and the last of his strength deserted him. He wasn't sure if he was already falling as Mugos’s sword sliced into his shoulder or not.
It didn't matter. He was already dead. He'd known that from the moment Mugos had challenged him. All that mattered now was that Kriss and the others had escaped.
Now that they knew what they were up against, they would come up with a plan to defeat Mugos.
“I can't believe you let them get away, you incompetent idiot.” Oriana cuffed Mugos on the back of his head. She was nearly half the troll’s height, yet she seemed to feel no fear. “Go after them at once.”
“Lay off, woman, or you’ll be next,” Mugos growled. “There's nothing to worry about. They’ll be back. If there's one thing I know about these humans it’s that they have no common sense. We hold their village. They're not going to just walk away. We just need to plan the next trap and they’ll run right into it.”
A chill seeped through Jasyn. Mugos was never going to give up. When Kriss and the others returned—and Mugos was right, they would—they would be walking into an ambush.
But Kriss would realise that. She was clever at that sort of thing. She was good at everything. A picture of her filled his mind, her troll image merging with her human form. She was beautiful in both of them.
It comforted Jasyn to know that she would go on living, even without him. It was better this way. She didn’t love him, but that was all right. He wouldn’t have to live with that knowledge for much longer. Instead, in his last moments he would remember their friendship, the things they’d shared.
That’s when the realization hit him.
Kriss had bonded with him. The magic that tied them together would be enough to kill her too.
His heart rate sped up and pain twisted every limb of his body. He should have remembered. Now he’d doomed both of them.
“Get that curse off him, we’re going to need it,” Mugos commanded. “I have just the thing…”
Jasyn’s vision began to blur, as Oriana drew herself up. “Don’t order me around, you fool. You’re not the one in charge.”
“Of course not.” Mugos’s voice was placating. “I’m trying to help you, remember? I helped you escape from the dungeon and I’ll help you defeat the king. And our best way to do that is to take that curse back so we can use it again. Can you imagine how the king will feel when his son is turned into a troll?”
“I don’t want to make him a troll, I’m going to kill him.”
The blurry image began to go black around the edges. Jasyn tried to hold on.
“Of course, that’s the ultimate goal. But a dead troll is far less of a martyr than a dead human, trust me.”
“I don’t care about martyrs.” Oriana’s voice was silky, but it sent a shiver up Jasyn’s spine. “I just intend to make sure that Hergo Balen feels the pain of losing his son.”
Her words faded out, and the blackness overwhelmed Jasyn, pulling him down into oblivion.
*****
Kriss wasn’t sure how far they ran with the mages shifting the ground under their feet. She didn’t feel dizzy this time, possibly because the tears that wouldn’t stop falling blurred everything.
When the ground abruptly stopped moving, Kriss stumbled and fell to her knees.
She wasn’t the only one. Mianna, Brianna and Terion dropped like flies too. They were no more used to the change in movement than she was. Lyall was the only one who kept his feet.
The only sound she heard was her heavy breathing, tearing at the silence.
“He will always be remembered,” Mianna said quietly.
“It’s not enough,” Brianna responded immediately. “We should have saved him.”
“We couldn’t.” Lyall’s voice was definitive. “They had every advantage and they knew it. If it wasn’t for Jasyn’s sacrifice, we’d all be dead by now.”
The silence returned. There was no arguing with his words.
They didn’t bring any more tears though. Perhaps she had none left?
All Kriss felt now was a numb ache. That, at least, she could deal with. It was easy enough to ignore.
“What are we going to do now?” she asked. “Do any of you have a plan for getting back into the village and taking out Mugos?”
Why were they all staring at her like that?
“Are you all right, Kriss?” Brianna took a step towards Kriss and put a hand on her shoulder.
It felt like a rock. It took all Kriss’s willpower not to shake it off. “There’s no time to sit around mourning,” she said. “No one in the village is safe while Mugos in control.”
What? Why were they still staring?
“You don’t feel… strange?” Lyall asked.
Her husband had just died. Of course she felt awful. “Don’t you realise more people are going to die before this is over? We need to do something. Now.”
Lyall and Brianna exchanged looks. “I would have expected it to have happened by now, wouldn’t you?” Brianna asked.
“She does appear to be in shock,” Lyall replied. “Perhaps that’s delayed the reaction.”
“What are you talking about?” Kriss demanded. “We don’t have time for this. I’ll be fine.”
“No,” Brianna said gently. “You won’t. You were bonded to Jasyn, remember? If one of you dies, you both do.”
Something seemed to pull at her heart, as though trying to tear it apart. Kriss gasped, panic welling up in her.
She’d forgotten about that.
She couldn’t die now, not when she needed to avenge Jasyn’s death. To make sure it hadn’t been in vain.
Forcing herself to take slow, deep breaths, she ignored the pain in her heart. “I’m not going to die.” With every word she seemed to grow stronger. “Maybe weaklings die when the bond is broken, but I won’t.”
A gaping hole was opening up in her heart, but she refused to fall into it. Not now. She had things to do. “I didn’t love Jasyn, not in that way. So I’m not about to give up and die just because he did. Besides, who will avenge his death if I die?”
She looked around at all of them. “Who’s with me?”
Their expressions froze, half way between worried and distressed. Brianna reached for Lyall’s hand and that gesture alone threatened to push Kriss into that deep hole. She took a breath and stepped back. Then back again. She was not going to die.
Mianna was the first to step forwards. “I’m
with you.”
“We’re all with you,” Brianna said firmly. “We just need a plan.”
A plan though, was not so easy to come by. Even once the mage army arrived shortly after, their options were still limited.
“We can take them with sheer numbers,” Brianna insisted. “The longer we wait, the more time they have to prepare. As soon as we attack, most of the villagers will support us.”
Lyall shook his head. “It’s not that simple, Brianna. They have a mage.”
“Only one. Our warriors in Eryvale were willing to face mages in the last battle without pause. She’s as vulnerable to a sword as anyone.”
“In the last battle, things were even. Each side had a gem. This time, they have both gems. A single mage, especially one of Oriana’s power, could easily wipe out our entire army with a thought.”
“Just how powerful is this mage?” Kriss demanded. “Surely wiping out an entire army with a thought isn’t exactly a simple thing.”
Lyall’s expression was grim. “Her raw strength is nearly as great as mine, even before she was bonded. And she’s bonded to my father, so we can’t risk killing her.”
Of course. Oriana was the king’s ex-wife. Their bond would make her doubly powerful. And she was still bonded to him, despite the king now being married to Lyall’s mother, since bonds couldn’t be broken…
Supposedly.
She wasn’t buying it. She’d seen the king and queen together.
“Pfft,” Kriss said. Everyone turned to look at her. Good. She had their attention.
“The bond that your mother and father share is far greater than anything he could possibly share with that witch. I’ve seen them together. They don’t just have a bond because they are married. They have a bond because they love each other. Just like you and Brianna, and Mianna and Terion.”
Lyall’s eyes widened. For a moment, hope smoothed his brow. Then he frowned and shook his head. “I wish it worked that way. But the magic is clear. Bonds are formed the first time a couple sleeps together. It has nothing to do with love.”
“Then why am I still alive?” Kriss demanded. “I was bonded to…” Her voice unexpectedly cracked, and she couldn’t force Jasyn’s name out no matter how hard she tried. “And he’s….” Her throat closed up. Damn this emotion. It was getting in her way. She needed to explain! “It’s because I don’t love him. That’s why.”