by Quinn Loftis
Most definitely an idiot, I thought. Even I knew what Calder was saying, but he was going to have to spell it out for his brother.
“I will treat you the same as I would any intruder.” Calder raised his hand, and his men, some with notched arrows and some with drawn swords, began to emerge from the forest.
I turned in a slow circle, confirming that we were surrounded. “Why do things feel like they just got a whole lot more serious?” I whispered.
“The beating you and your sister just took wasn’t serious enough for you? Having arrows pointed at you is what finally makes it serious?” Hilda asked dryly, though I could see the unspoken concern in her eyes as she stared at me and Dayna. I tried to convey through my own eyes that I was fine, that we would be fine. It would take more than a couple of fists to break us.
“Tie them up,” Calder ordered.
“I’m your blood!” Magnus said, his hands fisted at his sides, clenched so tightly that his knuckles were turning white.
“All I see is a weak jarl who foolishly took two females way too valuable for him to hold on to. Since when did your clan start kidnapping English royalty?” he asked, pointing a finger at us. “Why in Odin’s hall didn’t you take commoners that would not be missed?”
“How many times do we have to establish that Magnus is an idiot?” Dayna asked as I pulled her behind me. Despite the fact that I wouldn’t be much of a shield for her since she was taller than me, and we’d both been knocked around already, I still felt better with her out of the brothers’ direct line of sight.
“One of them is more than just English royalty,” Magnus said. His words were spoken through clenched teeth. His hands were being tied behind his back, and the hate churning in his eyes made me want to take a step back. To my surprise, he didn’t make a move to fight his captors. I guess his idiocy stopped short of being suicidal, as his men were outnumbered three to one.
“Miraculously, Magnus is making an intelligent decision,” Hilda whispered. “He knows he doesn’t have a chance at besting Calder, so he is biding his time,” she said.
“To escape?” Dayna asked.
Hilda nodded. “Or make a deal. Considering Magnus’ pinched face, I don’t think he’d even considered Calder might be anything but welcoming.”
“What will Calder do with us?” I whispered, leaning a bit closer.
The Oracle’s eyes darkened, and her mouth turned down. “Anything he wants.”
“Well that isn’t ominous or anything,” Dayna muttered.
Calder’s voice caught my attention, and I glanced up from Hilda.
“Which one of them is special? And why?”
Magnus laughed. “As if I would tell you so that you can take her from me?” Magnus and his clan members were being pushed into a line, their weapons taken from them as they went.
“You don’t’ have much of a choice. You either tell me, or I will kill them both and send their bodies back to their king. And I’ll send you along with them—alive, of course. I wouldn’t want the king to mistakenly blame me for their deaths. It is your fault, after all that they will die.” Calder folded his large arms across his impressive chest and stared at his brother like a wolf watching its prey.
When Magnus did not respond, Calder gave a stiff, single nod, and suddenly there was a steel band in the form of a strong arm wrapped around my torso and a sharp blade at my throat. Dayna was jerked from behind me to my side. She, too, was being held at the tip of a very sharp blade.
“You would become a fool, like your brother, if you killed these women,” Hilda said as she turned to fully face Calder. She hadn’t raised her voice, yet all eyes were on her as if she had shouted at the top of her lungs.
She spoke again, but this time her voice had taken on a strange timbre. I felt the pull of strong magic and knew it was coming straight from Hilda, along with what sounded like a prophecy.
“There is another king searching for one of these women. Should he discover she has been in your possession for even a single breath of time, he will burn your home to the ground, kill your women, children, and elderly, and make you watch until your own death is upon you. It is foolish to imprison either of the women, and it is even more foolish to imprison a healer.”
When Hilda finished, she slumped forward just a little as though speaking the prophecy had taken some of her strength. I wondered briefly if it was because she no longer had her anchor.
Movement to my right caused my head to turn, but I froze when I felt the blade slide across my neck. It wasn’t a deep cut, but along with the sting of the blade, I could feel a trickle of blood slowly run down my throat. I tried to quell my fear, wondering if Torben was able to feel it. I still didn’t understand all the ins and outs of the magical bond between us, but I hoped he couldn’t sense my fear because I didn’t want him distracted. He was miles away, and he couldn’t do anything to help me in that moment.
Calder walked straight toward us. His face was set like stone, the only thing that moved were his eyes as they darted back and forth between myself and Dayna.
“Gisele,” he called out, still staring at us.
A woman stepped out of the forest from behind Calder and quickly matched his pace. She was striking in appearance. Her long, red hair was a curly veil cascading down her back and over her shoulders. Her eyes were almond shaped and the brightest green I’d ever come across. Her nose was perfectly proportional for her face, and, had it not been for the smirk on her lips, I would have said she was beautiful. But there was a wicked gleam in those emerald eyes that spoke of enjoyed cruelty.
Gisele was thin, teetering on the verge of emaciation. Her dress hung on her as though it were a size too large, flowing all the way down to the ground, where it trailed behind her like a faithful dog. She almost appeared to be gliding across the clearing, as though it took her no effort to move through the brush and brambles.
They stopped about two feet in front us. After a few moments, I felt something cold and heavy descend upon me and was immediately overcome with despair. Any hope that might have lived inside of me was snuffed out, leaving me empty. I wanted to take a step or fifty away from her, but the blade at my throat prevented me from moving.
Hilda nearly hissed as Gisele turned to her and reached out a hand. “Touch me, witch, and I will take great pleasure in watching you wither like an old husk.”
Gisele narrowed her eyes on Hilda and took a step closer. “Your magic cannot match my own, old woman. And even if it could,” she crooned, “your days are already numbered.” She took another step closer to Hilda, their faces merely inches apart as the witch leered at the Oracle. “Your days on this earth grow short. Have you seen it? Your death?” Gisele asked, licking her lips like a starved mutt staring at a steak. She made a sound in her throat like a cat purring. “Yes, you’ve seen it. The truth is in your eyes. But I wonder… will you try to stop it?”
My eyes widened at the witch’s words, and I stared hard at Hilda’s face for any hint of truth in Gisele’s words. Had Hilda foreseen her own death? If so, was there a way we could prevent it from happening?
“You should know better than to trust the bones you throw, Gisele,” Hilda responded, her voice cool and even. “They do not hold a candle to the accuracy of an Oracle. But I’ll humor you, seeing as how being around this lot”—she motioned to the warriors—“can’t be much fun for you. Know this, witch: Death will not sneak up on me. I see it clearly as it comes, and I am not concerned. I’m sure it will comfort you to know that my demise is still some way off.”
I felt the whoosh of air leave my lungs. I had not even realized I’d been holding my breath. When I started to slump forward a little, the prick of the knife reminded me why that wasn’t a good idea.
Gisele’s face didn’t look so gleeful anymore. Her head whipped around when Calder cleared his throat, and she dismissed Hilda as if the woman were no threat at all. I was certain that wasn’t true; Hilda was immensely powerful. But what powers did this witch possess
, and could she unleash them against us? I had no idea how to answer that.
“Can you feel anything?” Calder asked.
Gisele pointed at Hilda. “That one is an Oracle and a healer.” The words spewed from the witch with a palpable spitefulness. Hilda didn’t blanch.
The shocked sounds that came from the Hakon clan warriors caused Magnus to shout, barking at them to mind their tongues. Despite the fact that he was tied up just as they were, the men still obeyed. I remembered then that Hilda had told me her people only thought her to be an Oracle. Magnus had made her keep her healing abilities a secret, so he could use her only for himself.
“And what of these two?” He motioned toward us.
Gisele stepped closer to Dayna and reached out her hand, placing it on her cheek. The fear of what she could do to my sister took over, and my internal survival instinct stopped working.
“Get your bloody hands off her!” I screamed as I lunged forward. My sudden outburst caught the Viking holding me off guard. For a split second, he loosened his arms and I was able move a few inches. Despite the momentary freedom, the knife was still held in place, a fact I’d completely forgotten when I saw the witch touching Dayna. The feel of the blade piercing my neck quickly reminded me, cutting off the sound off my scream and replacing it with a wet gurgling. I don’t think the man meant to stab me, I’d impaled myself as I’d tried to reach my sister.
“Allete!”
Dayna’s high-pitched wail pierced the otherwise silent forest, and the terror that shone in her eyes gave me pause. The warrior quickly pulled the blade free, and my hands rose to my neck. Surprisingly, the pain was minimal, and I felt Dayna must have been overreacting. Surely, the wound was superficial. Within a matter of seconds, however, I felt lightheaded. My hands were saturated in bright red liquid. Looking past them, I could see that blood covered my shoes as well and was pooling on the forest floor.
“Move!” Hilda’s voice boomed like a cannon, and I imagined everyone dropping to the ground as if her voice had physically struck them.
I blinked my eyes. The movement felt as though it took an eternity, and by the time my lids reopened, my face was on the ground and my view was that of the grass being trampled underfoot. When had I fallen? I knew Dayna was still nearby because I could hear a steady stream of profanities coming from her direction. I felt myself being jostled, and then Hilda was leaning over me.
“It’s not your time,” she murmured as she moved my hands out of the way and pressed her own to my bloody neck. I wanted to push her hands away. I had done this so many times myself. I was so used to healing the injured, it seemed strange to be on the receiving end of such an act. “Shh,” she hushed gently and leaned even closer to me. “Keep your eyes open for me, Allete. Don’t close them.”
I wanted to obey her, but holding my eyes open was becoming more and more difficult, and shutting them seemed the most natural thing in the world to do. When I finally let the darkness swallow me, it wasn’t quiet, like I’d expected death to be. Instead, there was an angry voice growling at me.
“If you die, my son is going to be as angry as a wild boar on roasting day.”
“Hilda?”
“No, it’s your guardian angel. Yes, it’s Hilda, you pampered peacock. Quit taking a nap and give me a hand.”
If I could have frowned, I would have. “I am not a pampered peacock, you ancient artifact,” I snapped back, or at least I thought I snapped—-it could have only been a whisper. It was hard to gauge such a thing when it happened in my own head and I wasn’t exactly thinking clearly. I felt so tired. Breathing took too much of an effort. I just wanted to rest.
“Allete, you’ve lost a lot of blood. I can heal your neck, but I need our combined magic to replenish your blood. I can’t make something out of nothing.” Her voice was no longer sharp and testy, having taken on a new sense of urgency. I was cold now and growing colder. But then I heard Hilda chanting. The sound filled my mind, and slowly, warmth started to return.
“Magic flowing deep and strong,
Lend your power, right the wrong.
Seal the wound, flesh made new,
Bind the blood through and through.
Heal this daughter of the moon,
Make it quick, make it soon.”
As the warmth continued to spread, my own magic rose, as it always did when I healed injuries myself. I felt the moment it melded with Hilda’s efforts. My body filled with a flash of heat, and a moment later, it was gone. My eyes blinked open, and the morning sky gazed down upon me, the sun’s rays reaching out to caress my cool skin. Hilda was still leaning over me, but the worry was gone from her face, replaced with a small smile.
“Welcome back,” she said. “How do you feel?”
Confusion clouded my thinking. Slowly, I tried moving my extremities. Fingers and toes wiggled at my command. Everything seemed to be in working order. “That depends,” I finally answered. “I don’t suppose the lunatic witch and the bloodthirsty Vikings decided to leave us in the forest while I was out?”
“Afraid not,” Hilda responded.
“Well then, I guess I’m as well as can be expected considering my throat’s been cut.” I sat up, wiped my hands on my dress, and then reached to feel my neck. Much to my relief, it was completely intact, though my fingers slipped and stuck to the already-congealing liquid running down my chest. The movement gave me pause as my blood, which wasn’t completely replenished, rushed out of my head into the rest of my body.
“Take it slow. It might take a day or two before you feel completely normal,” Hilda said. She stood and wiped her hands on the front of her clothes, then reached down and pulled me gently to my feet. Her strength was quite remarkable for a woman of her age, and I realized she was exceptionally good at disguising it when necessary.
When I was finally back on my feet, my eyes immediately latched onto Dayna. Her face was streaked with tears, and her cheek was a bright, angry red as though she’d been recently struck again.
“Are you all right?” I asked.
“You just about bled to death, and you ask me if I’m all right?”
I shrugged. “I’m the older sister. It’s my job to worry.” My hands were clasped suddenly, pulled tightly behind me, and bound together at the wrist. Apparently, having my throat slit did not make me any less of a flight risk.
“That was quite an impressive display,” Calder said, drawing my attention away from my sister.
“It was,” Gisele agreed, her words slow and measured. “The old woman has proven powerful. But I wonder, is the princess as powerful?” Before I could blink, a blade appeared in the witch’s hand, materializing out of nowhere. Her eyes were staring straight at me when she plunged the knife into Dayna’s stomach.
“Nothing could have ever prepared me for the sight of my youngest sister being stabbed—absolutely nothing. I couldn’t lose her. That was the only thought running through my head. I couldn’t face the world without her. It would be a much darker place without the bright light that was Dayna.”
~ The Diary of Allete Auvray
“No!” My voice came out in a booming thunder, filled with a power of which I’d never known myself capable. It started deep in my lungs and rushed out of me as if I could have reversed what had just happened with the sheer volume of my voice. I jerked out of my captor’s grasp. He seemed as shocked as everyone else who was standing around in stunned silence. I rushed to where Dayna had fallen, her hands grasping the knife protruding from her abdomen. Hilda, whom they’d failed to tie up, snatched a dagger from a sheath at Calder’s hip. She jumped down beside me and sliced through the ropes binding my hands.
As soon as my hands were free, I grabbed the hilt of the knife with one and held my other on Dayna’s stomach next to the wound. Drawing the knife out, I threw it aside and covered the area with both hands. I closed my eyes without a thought to my own safety, having turned my back to the witch and our captors, and focused on pushing my magic inside of Dayna.
Blood of my blood,
Heed my words,
Let healing flood.
Mend every inch,
Leaving nothing behind,
I offer freely,
All that is mine.”
I stood absolutely still for several minutes. I couldn’t feel Dayna breathing and was terrified to open my eyes. What if it hadn’t worked? What if, for the first time ever, I’d failed to heal someone? I couldn’t bear to watch the lifeforce leave my sister’s body. Leaning forward, I pressed my head against the back of my hands and prayed to anyone who would listen that Dayna would be okay. I couldn’t lose her. Without her, a piece of me would be missing. I felt the tears running down my face and bit back the angry sobs threatening to break free. My body shook with fear, rage, indignation, and the all-consuming love Dayna had had from me from the moment she screamed her first breath, announcing to the world her arrival as if everything should stop and stare in wonder at her. All these years later, she was still just as demanding, just as endearing despite her crass nature and impulsive actions.
Too distracted by my grief, I didn’t feel her breath return at first. But I noticed when my hair was yanked. I lifted my head and stared into the very-much-alive eyes of my sister.
“Are you going to lie there all day?” Dayna asked. “I’ve been stabbed. Someone is going to die for that.”
My face stretched into a smile. “I’ve never been so glad to hear you talk about murdering someone.”
Gisele’s voice interrupted my moment of joy. “You both realize I’m standing right here, do you not?”
I looked up at her and grinned what I was sure was a feral smile. “We haven’t forgotten. We just want you to have no confusion over who will end your life.” I pushed myself up from the ground, grabbing Dayna’s hand in the process and pulling her to her feet as well, and then wrapped her in my arms. “Please refrain from being stabbed again. I would very much appreciate it.”
She hugged me back, her face right next to my ear. “I am not bluffing, sister mine. Gisele will die by my blade,” she whispered before pulling back.