by Justin Sloan
A commotion sounded not far off, someone shouting, “This way! I heard voices over by the dome.”
They all perked up, excited to see who it was, but checked their weapons all the same.
“Pssst,” a voice hissed from the other direction. “You’re not with them, so we have to assume you’re not on their side. True?”
They all looked around trying to find the source of the voice, until a young teenage boy dropped down from a ledge, landing approximately fifteen feet from where Stone stood.
“Don’t piss on my doorstep, and I might just show you a way out of this mess,” the boy offered. He looked at them, then at the swords at Stone’s and Alastar’s waists. “Balls, you are with them, aren’t you?”
He took a step back, eyes flitting across them.
“Them?” Rhona asked, reaching out a hand in a friendly gesture. “With whom?”
The boy pointed at the swords. “You’re paladins? Or with the paladins?”
“We can assure you that we certainly are not.” Rhona stepped forward now, glancing over her shoulder at the sound of the approaching voices. “And if they find us, it will likely lead to a fight. So if you know a way out of here, now would be a good time to say so.”
The boy’s eyes were still focused on the swords, but he nodded. “Stay close and follow me.”
With a nod, he turned and darted around the corner of the ruins, giving them a moment to glance at each other before deciding to follow.
Rhona took up the rear, and was the last of them to disappear around the corner when she heard the clatter of armor behind them. She paused, peeking around the corner, and saw a small group of paladins—five, she counted—moving about the area, eyes alert.
Ducking back just as one was about to turn her way, she glanced over to see the others vanishing into a crevice she hadn’t previously noticed. The boy waved for her to hurry, his eyes showing frustration.
“I’ll take you this far,” he hissed as she ducked past him into the darkness, “just so you’re out of harm’s way.”
He bobbed inside and motioned for her to follow. She paused, looking back in the direction of the paladins—a group of men she had once considered to be as close to her as her own brother, one of them even more so, for at least a few minutes, anyway. Behind her were the hills that separated them all from the army of remnant and the scorched fields. And before her, a strange boy leading them into darkness and the unknown.
It seemed to her that it was a gamble no matter which route they took. With a sigh and a silent prayer to a Saint she wondered if she had ever really believed in, she ducked into the crevice and the embrace of darkness.
CHAPTER TWELVE
On the outskirts of the village, hidden just at the tree line beyond the main entryway, Kia watched a guard pass. The guard was a woman, tall and broad-shouldered, with frizzy black hair that stuck out the back of her cap of a helmet.
“What’re you doing?” Lannis whispered. Kia held a finger to her lips, simply continuing to watch.
“You studying her movements? What?”
This time Kia gave him a harsh glare, put the finger to his lips and then turned back. It wasn’t that. She was here to save the mystics, to do her part for this world. She hadn’t counted on this guardswoman looking so much like her mom. She definitely hadn’t counted on getting teary eyes at the very beginning of their rescue mission, and it pissed her off that all she wanted to do was sit down, eat a slice of cake she didn’t have, and remember the good ol’ days.
Like the time her mom had taken her on guard duty, parading her around the village like a little warrior. How Kia had laughed when her mom pretended a tree was an intruder and they fought it off together. Well, they hadn’t really fought it off, but they had accidentally broken one of its branches.
She smiled, biting her lip, then noticed Lannis staring at her like she was a crazy person.
“Shut up.”
“I honestly didn’t say anything that time,” Lannis protested.
“Let’s…find another way. I don’t want this lady to get into trouble.” Kia waited, gave the guard one more look, and then turned back into the trees and made her way along the wall in the opposite direction.
“We could’ve snuck past her,” Lannis said. “I’ve snuck past more attentive guards, trust me.”
“And what reason did you have for all this sneaking?” She stopped at a tree and then leaped up to grab the lowest branch, using her feet to push off the trunk and climb.
“You could say I have an addiction,” the boy confessed, grabbing the branch with one hand, but needing her to reach down and help him up with the other. “An addiction to goat cheese, actually. I mean, it’s bad! Sometimes in the middle of the night I used to sneak into the inn where they had it and get me some.”
“Not anymore?”
The boy chuckled. “No need. The owner of the place had a cat that almost got drowned in a river, and I saved it. All the cheese I can eat, the guy says. Little does he know, I can eat a heck of a lot of cheese. Probably more cheese than that cat’s worth.”
“A cat can be worth more than all the cheese in the world to the right owner.”
“What kind of person thinks that way?” he said with a scoff as he followed her up to the next branch, the one that leaned out toward the wall.
“A person with a heart much bigger than yours, apparently.”
“Hey, my heart’s the same size as anyone else’s.”
She paused at the point where the branch was starting to get too thin, and considered their options. “We have to jump for it.”
No answer to that, but a glance back showed that his eyes were wide with worry.
“Relax.” She put two hands on the branch and carefully stood. “Just don’t fall, and you’ll be good. Just. Don’t. Fall.”
And then she started to fall, of course. But using the momentum, she took a couple steps forward on the branch, heard it snap, and leaped.
She wanted to shout, to scream as she found only air around her, and then she was on the other side of the wall, very glad it had a walkway for the guards. She landed on it and rolled, nearly falling off, but caught herself.
When she had her breath back and was fairly sure her voice wouldn’t crack from the excitement, she stood, brushed herself off, and motioned to him to follow.
He just stared at her blankly.
“Come on,” she hissed.
He shook his head.
“Ack! Can’t you just…use your wind friend to help catch you or something?”
“I…I don’t think it works that way,” he said.
“Then I tell you what: I’ll catch you. You jump, I catch. Easy.” She stood, arms out, waiting.
He scrunched his face up, debating, then shook his head again, and she deflated. As she was contemplating her next move, a voice barked, “Hey! What’re you doing up there, kid?”
She went rigid for a split second, then took off running along the walkway. The person—the man—was yelling behind her now, and a moment later there was a rustling among the trees and a shout that she thought was Lannis; she couldn’t be sure.
If he had fallen and gotten hurt, she would never forgive herself. At the end of this section there was a ladder that led to the ground, and when she glanced back she saw that no one was behind her, so she quickly climbed down.
A quick look showed she was in the clear, but the shouting was accompanied by another voice now.
Lannis was in trouble. She was scanning the area, planning her next move, when she spotted an open doorway with something glimmering in it. Taking a step closer, she saw a rack of swords. The armory!
But she couldn’t leave the boy to fend for himself, right? She ducked into the doorway as a man ran past her toward where she had left Lannis, and then she had an idea.
The last thing she wanted to do was burn down the village; for all she knew, these villagers were good people. But starting a manageable little fire wasn’t the worst idea in th
e world, she told herself.
With a quick motion of her hands, she focused on the pile of hay she could just make out near the edge of the street and pushed, watching the hay burst into flames a moment later.
Now the shouting was moving toward her. Someone yelled, “Fire!” and she decided it was time to move. She would get the mystics, then find Lannis. She hoped he was smart enough to use the diversion to make a break for it.
Turning, she looked for a way down to where Larick had said he and the other mystic were. Nothing in the main area but more racks of swords, along with a couple of spears and crossbows.
Tiptoeing, she made her way around to the other side of the counter and then froze—eyes were staring at her.
She couldn’t breathe at first, but then she processed the boy’s scruffy hair and hint of a smile and realized it was Lannis standing there in the darkness.
“How the…” she started, but he put a finger to her lips.
“Shhh…” He motioned to an area just outside, where there was a cellar door. Not so secret after all.
There was no denying it, she was impressed. She waited until they had made their way in and were walking down the steps in the dark again before she asked, “Seriously, how’d you do that?”
“It wasn’t me they caught, or almost caught,” he told her. “It was Stormy I made him look like he was running the other way and, since he stayed in the shadows, they must’ve bought it. Well, until the fire, anyway, and then I let him vanish before I booked it over here.”
She held out her hand and made a small flame appear so they could see their way, then gave him an impressed nod. “From now on, no more misjudging you. In fact, I bet you were just pretending to be afraid to jump.”
His eyes went wide again, and he shook his head. “Oh, no. That was terrifying. Don’t ever make me do that again.”
She motioned to the dark tunnel they were in. “This you’re okay with though?”
He laughed. “Darkness is part of life. Jumping from high places doesn’t have to be.”
“Unless you’re saving mystics,” she pointed out.
“Right. You win.”
A form appeared before them, floating at their side. At first Kia thought her heart was going to explode; her instincts told her it was a ghost. Then she recognized the mystic Larick, and smiled.
“You’re close,” he told them. “Up ahead on the left, there’s a door they have locked.
“If it’s locked, how’re we going to get in?” Lannis asked.
“Be creative,” he replied, then faded away.
Kia and Lannis shared a confused look, the fire sending a dancing glow across his face that made the confusion look ominous. She led the way, turning as they walked to see the dirt walls growing narrower, until finally they reached the door on the left.
“So…creative.” Kia glanced around, hoping a keyring hung nearby. No such luck.
Lannis cleared his throat. “Um, Kia?”
“Not now,” she snapped. “I’m trying to think.”
“Kia…”
“What?”
She spun on him, but he just smiled and pointed to the door.
“I know the door is our problem, but what do you want me to…” She stopped, feeling like a complete jerk and idiot. The door was held shut by a large wooden plank, with no keyhole whatsoever. After the two worked together to lift the plank from its holders, the door swung open naturally.
“Was that so hard?” Larick asked as he appeared in the doorway, another mystic visible behind him.
The boy shook his head, bashful, and the two mystics emerged.
“I’m Volney.” The second mystic introduced himself, and his eyes went white as he looked at Kia. “You’re Donnon’s little girl?”
She nodded.
“Wonderful! We’d like to see him.” He started walking toward the exit, but Kia caught up with him.
“We can’t stroll out of here, just like that,” she warned, turning from him to Larick. “There’re townsfolk everywhere.”
“That is a conundrum,” Larick said, with a wink to Volney. “What if we made them all think we were stray cats?”
“Do I get to meow?” Lannis asked, perking up.
“Only if you’re really good at it.”
Lannis smiled and let out a meowing sound which even Kia had to admit was pretty convincing.
“Deal,” Larick agreed, and his eyes went white. “Carry on.”
Kia looked at herself and the others, not noticing any change, and frowned. “But…nothing happened.”
“You’ll see.” Volney led the way.
When they emerged from the armory, several villagers were watching some others putting out the last flames. They turned to see Kia and her group, then frowned with confusion.
“Meooow?” Lannis tried, and one of them actually smiled at him.
“Awww, where’d they come from?” a teenage girl asked, then turned to her mom. “Can we keep one?”
Kia hurried, not wanting to become someone’s pet anytime soon. They went right past the guard, who made an “Awww” face that nearly caused Lannis to laugh out loud.
Even Larick and Volney were chuckling by the time they made it into the woods, and soon they paused to look at the bonfire where the clan was feasting and drinking, where Kia’s father would be waiting.
“We should be off now,” Volney said, glancing back the way they had come. “If they find us in the next village over…”
“Couldn’t you just mask your faces so you look like different people?” Kia asked. “I mean, if I understand the magic right.”
Larick shrugged. “Basically true. We would be making them think we looked different, not actually creating a mask, but that could work.”
“Come on then, at least join us for a bit.”
The two mystics shared a pensive look, then Larick nodded. “As much as being locked up was annoying, I certainly wouldn’t mind seeing more of the highlands and the other clans before we depart.”
“We’re just getting started,” Volney replied. With a wave of his hand, he and Larick suddenly looked like two villagers, generic in every sense of the word. “Will this do?”
Lannis laughed, nodding at their kilts. “Watch out for strong gusts of wind, and be sure to sit properly so you don’t expose your—”
“Ew,” Kia interrupted. “We get it, come on.” She started off, hoping her father hadn’t gotten too drunk while they were away. She didn’t know these mystics all that well, but she knew of them and was certain having them along could only help.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Rhona took a moment to let her eyes adjust, then nudged Alastar in hopes that it would remind him not to use the glow he liked to call in dark caverns. She didn’t want to give this kid any more reasons to be freaked out by them.
The boy’s shape was silhouetted against a light that came from deeper in the ruins as he stood staring at them, a hand up for silence. She knew it was in case the paladins happened to walk past this area while searching outside, but after a few minutes that seemed like hours, she grew restless.
“Who are you?” she whispered.
“Nu-uh,” he whispered back. “You are the ones who will be doing the explaining.”
“We’re the good guys,” Stone hissed.
“That’s what the paladins told us too, the first time they came,” the boy spat back.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Alastar asked.
“You don’t know?” The boy paused, then added, “Horse’s shite, that’s what you’re full of. Tell me, then, where’d you get those swords?”
Neither of the two answered, so Rhona took charge. Honesty was always best in her book.
“They were paladins, but not anymore.”
The boy turned to her, waiting. When she didn’t add anything else, he grunted. “You’re not making sense. If they were paladins, they’d know what I meant.”
“Stone?” Alastar asked.
Stone shook
his head, a gesture barely visible in the darkness. “I don’t know.”
“You’ve been on the holy quests before,” Alastar urged. “Spit it out.”
“Honestly…” Stone took a minute to compose himself, then confessed, “I never told you, but they always left me to guard the boats.”
“What?”
“Alastar, you wouldn’t know this, but it’s true. Said it’s what they do with the newer paladins. They kept us on guard while…you know…so the remnant couldn’t attack the boats and sink them or whatever they might do.”
Alastar rubbed his temples. “Let me get this straight. Your holy quest participation, which, I might add, you used to be pretty snobby about, consisted of you babysitting the boats?”
Stone’s face went red, or so Rhona imagined; the darkness made it hard to tell. He simply let out a humph and didn’t say anything more.
“Well then,” the boy said, a hesitation still in his voice, but less so. “It’s conceivable that the two of you don’t know what the hell’s been going on here, isn’t it?”
“Assume that’s the case.” Rhona ignored the poutiness coming from the two paladins. “For now, just go ahead and figure we’re all a bunch of ignorant arses.”
The boy folded his arms, staring at them in the darkness. “Right. Come with me, then.”
Rhona had flashbacks to the caverns in Roneland, not wanting to be stuck underground while remnant hunted them again. Her palms felt clammy and she wiped at her ear, feeling as if she was passing through spider webs while knowing she wasn’t.
To her relief, the boy took a turn and moved aside a slab of concrete. Even though it was night outside the opening, the moonlight seemed almost blinding compared to the darkness they had just come through. They stepped into the courtyard where the boy waited, then slid the slab back.
“What’s this?” Alastar asked.
“Your trial,” the boy replied with a hint of a smile. He whistled softly, then moved back.
Rhona’s heart beat double-time as she noticed shadows appear, and then the silhouettes of several men and women armed with bows and arrows. They stood in a circle around them, staying low but making it clear that they were armed.