Arnold began to shake.
A chill ran down Piller’s spine. “Don’t!”
His hand went to his sword hilt. Piller never liked that sphere on top of Nadia’s staff. He had always tried to believe it was just some strange fashion used in Farrest, but here was proof it was something more. Something magical.
“Then do as I command,” she said, keeping her staff pointed at Arnold.
Piller let out a long breathe. He looked up at Krist and Martellus, who were still peering down at them.
“OPEN THE GATES!” he yelled up to them.
Krist and Martellus both exchanged a worried look. They looked back down.
“AS YOU COMMAND—CAPTAIN!” Krist yelled back down.
The last word didn’t sit well with Piller.
Krist and Martellus disappeared behind the wall. Moments later, there was a loud thump.
The gate doors rotated inwards. The metal bars across them broke, and there was screeching from the rust that had eaten away at the metal for the past three years. It sounded like thunder and lightning. Inch by inch the doors opened.
Piller’s heart sank lower as the doors widened until—
BANG.
The two doors came to a halt. The opening was cloudy from the dust and fog that had accumulated in the air. Piller could not see past the gates.
Nadia stared happily into the opening. They waited for her reaction. She was still pointing her staff at Arnold’s chest.
After the minutes ticked away, Piller heard something through the fog.
Crunch, Crunch, Crunch.
Piller tightened his grip on his hilt.
Crunch, Crunch, Crunch.
He thought he glimpsed something yellow.
“Captain! Look out!” Hollow cried out, but he remained on his knees alongside his brother.
Crunch, Crunch, Crunch.
Piller unsheathed his sword.
A Hoarder appeared through the fog. Not one, but two. Then another and another until Piller lost count. Dozens of Hoarders were coming through the gates.
“Your Grace?” Piller was waiting for her command. The Hoarders were marching towards them. Nadia’s expression did not change. She did not move the sphere.
The yellow army stopped. One of the Hoarders stepped forward, standing directly in front of Piller.
“Put him in the dungeon,” she commanded.
“Yes, Your Grace,” said Piller, relieved she was finally acting.
Piller walked over to the Hoarder. But before he could act, the Hoarder stepped behind Piller and thrust a boot hard into his back. Piller went face first into the cobblestone.
Arnold and Hollow started to rise to help their captain.
“Stay where you are!” Nadia yelled at them, keeping her staff pointed in their direction.
“Your Grace?” Piller’s helmet had popped off. He coughed up blood. He turned to look up at her. He spat. “What…”
Nadia stared down at him. The crow on her shoulder flapped its wings and cawed. The Hoarder lifted Piller to his knees. He was now facing his two brothers. They looked at each other with frightened eyes.
Nadia gave a nod to the Hoarders behind Piller. They walked around to stand behind Arnold and Hollow. The young knights were afraid, as was Piller.
The Hoarders raised their Captors. They pointed them at Arnold and Hollow.
“No!” Piller pleaded. “You said you would take care of the Hoarders?”
“I am taking care of the Hoarders, Sir Piller.” She smiled as she looked at the yellow cloud floating in her sphere. “I needed the gates opened, and you know how cautious Leoné was. I needed him out of the picture.”
“You killed the king?” Piller’s head was spinning.
“I didn’t kill him, but I did have something to do with it,” she smiled again.
“Why? What are you trying to do?” Piller didn’t understand any of it.
Nadia walked over to Piller and crouched low, so she was face-to-face with him. “My life, Sir Piller. I’m trying to get back my life.” She rose back up and walked over to Arnold and Hollow, petting their heads. She nodded to the Hoarders next to her.
Arnold was shaking uncontrollably and Hollow had tears rolling down his face.
Piller reached a hand out towards his two brothers. “NO! PLEASE! LEAVE THEM AL—”
Two yellow blasts shot out before he could finish begging for their lives. Both Arnold and Hollow screamed in terror as they fell forward. Their screams echoed throughout Astenpoole. They landed with a chilling thump on the cobblestone. Blood filled the cracks of the road.
“No.” Piller’s voice was lifeless as he looked at his two brothers, now lying motionless in front of him.
The Hoarders kept their Captors raised. A deep, low hum gradually filled the air. The ground began to shake under Piller. A yellow beam shot out from each weapon.
VHRUUUUMMMM.
The light blinded Piller’s eyes. He looked away. When the light disappeared and he regained his vision, he turned back to find the bodies of his two brothers were gone.
Nadia stood over him, her crow cawing.
Piller’s eyes were frozen on the spot where his two friends had just been.
“I’m sorry, Sir Piller, but their lives were needed.” She turned to the Hoarders behind her. “Take him to the dungeon along with the rest of the Poolesguard.”
“Yes, Mother,” the Hoarder in front replied.
Piller was dragged away as he watched Nadia’s sphere glow even brighter.
Chapter 31
Alana
THE STONEWORK SPIRALED above her head. Alana was lying on her bed, following the pattern with her eyes. They swirled up to a single point at the tip of the tower. She started to count the stones as she lay there, twirling a piece of her hair in her fingers. But the counting didn’t take her away from her racing thoughts about the death of her father, and about her mother—her real mother. It also didn’t take her anger away from Nadia, who had her locked away in her bedchamber. I need to take my rightful spot as queen before she corrupts everyone. But she was trapped, no different than the prisoners in the dungeons below.
Her room was located in the High Tower, just north of the King’s Tower. The window across from her bed overlooked the courtyard below her room. It provided a pleasant view of the large Fountain of Zalus. Her bed was next to another window that looked out over the armory and the training grounds. On some days, when there wasn’t a cloud in the sky, she could see the highest peak of the Western Mountains. But ever since the Hoarding, that sight had been destroyed by the endless gray sky.
A round white rug filled the center of the room. There was a dresser next to the door that had her jewelry box sitting on top. The bookcase sat next to her bed, across from the large walk-in-closet. The closet was filled with all of her clothes and shoes, along with a secret box she kept hidden under the floorboard.
Paintings hung all around her room. Paintings of legendary knights that little girls dreamed and giggled about, like Galagar Poole, saving Princess Isabella from menacing outlaws. There was Letholdus Quinn, the first Captain of the Poolesguard, and the romantic Palor A’kal, saying goodbye to his stepsister, Melaine Danor, below the Western Mountains. But Alana was no longer a little girl and didn’t fantasize about those knights anymore.
She contemplated escaping, but she didn’t know how. Her father had boarded up the secret passageway behind her bookcase years ago. And Nadia had ordered her to be locked inside her bedchamber, so she couldn’t even get down to the library beneath her room where the other secret passageway was.
Just when her father had acknowledged he was wrong for keeping her locked away, Nadia had her locked up. And she hadn’t even come to see her since her father had died.
She was trapped. All she could do was pass the time on her bed, staring at the ceiling and thinking.
She lost count of the days she had been confined to her bedchamber. No one came to visit her except for Benjamin. Mother Clara
ine wasn’t even allowed to visit her anymore. Alana was beginning to miss her and her handmaids. For some reason, she missed their snarky comments about how unkempt her body was.
Knock. Knock. Knock.
Alana’s heart jumped at the sudden noise. She jumped out of her bed and hurried to the door, waiting for him to unlock it. The door flew open.
“Sir Benjamin!” She was excited to see him. She needed someone to talk to.
“My princess. I’ve brought you something to eat.” Benjamin walked into her room with a plate of chicken, roasted vegetables, and some bread. He had been bringing food to her, but he didn’t speak much. He had been ordered to keep his conversations quick and simple.
“What happened to the boy?” she asked him once again. “Have you found out his name?”
“I’m sorry, Princess. I’m not allowed to tell you. I would if I could.” Benjamin placed the plate down on a table against the wall.
“You’re not allowed to tell me? What are you talking about! I am the true Queen of Astenpoole!” Alana still felt weird saying those words. “You must tell me! Nadia has no right to such commands!”
Benjamin only gave her a pitiful look. “I’m sorry, Alana.”
“Please, I must see him for myself. I want to know who killed my father.”
Benjamin sighed. “I’ll tell you his name, but nothing more. I cannot disobey my orders.”
“You disobeyed your orders every time you snuck away to practice sword fighting with me.” Alana was frustrated. “How’s this any different?”
“This is different because your life is in danger!” Benjamin raised his voice.
Alana sighed. She didn’t feel like arguing anymore. “What’s his name?”
“His name’s Jahrys Grent. Now please, eat and get some rest.” Benjamin marched out of the room, shutting the door behind him. There was a snap as Bejamin locked the door.
“Wait! Benjamin! You must tell me more!” Alana ran to the door and banged her fists against the wood. “Benjamin! Come back!” Alana screamed.
She moved back to her bed, her hunger forgotten. Jahrys? A wave of confusion washed over her. Was it her fault her father was dead? She couldn’t find herself believing that Jahrys killed her father. It didn’t make any sense. How could he have done such a thing? And why?
Days past, but the time felt endless inside her bedchamber; the minutes felt like hours, the hours felt like days, and the days felt like weeks.
Benjamin had never returned to her with more food and water; it had been days since she had eaten. She had taken to drinking from the basin, what was meant for hand washing. Without it, she probably would have died already, but she couldn’t live off only water for much longer.
Alana’s stomach was a hollow pit. Where is Sir Benjamin? She thought. She was getting worried. She was going to starve to death if he didn’t return soon. She needed to find a way out, to save herself and to find out the truth about Jahrys.
Ding, Ding, Ding.
Alana sat up on her bed. She listened to the bells ringing outside her window, forgetting her empty stomach.
Ding, Ding, Ding.
There’s going to be a city gathering which means—No! I need to get to him!
Alana jumped out of bed. She ran to the door, pounding it with her fists. She banged on the door violently. “Let me out! You must let me out!” She yelled, but no one replied.
After her fists were bright red and stinging, she stopped. She turned her back to the door and let her weight fall against it as she slid to the floor. She needed to get to the library. She needed a distraction. She needed to get out, but how?
Suddenly, she had an idea. Her gaze went to her closet across the room. She ran inside and pushed a dresser hidden in the back away from the wall. She got down on her knees, plunging her fingernails into the floorboard that was beneath it. She lifted it, and several dozen different knives and pieces of armor stared back at her. She slipped on her light elastic pants, her leather gauntlets and faded green vest, and her boots. She clipped on her belt and picked out two knives, one short, but very sharp, and the other a little longer, and just as sharp. She placed them in her belt.
She walked out of her closet and picked up her long sword that was leaning against the wall next to her bed inside its scabbard. Tears flowed down Alana’s cheeks as she looked at the sword. I will make you proud, Father. She strapped the scabbard around her waist so the sword was on her left hip.
Alana threw a dark cloak over her shoulders and walked towards the locked door. She took one last look around her room before letting in a deep, deep breath.
“Helppppppp! Please! Someone helpppp!” she screamed at the top of her lungs.
She placed her ear against the door, but she didn’t hear anything. No one was coming to her aid. She was about to scream one more time, but only tears came to her eyes; it was hopeless. Alana fell against the door, crying. She would never get to Jahrys in time. She would never find out the truth about her father’s death. She would never be able to stop Nadia from stealing her title.
But then she heard a man’s voice.
“…I know we aren’t supposed to open her door! We’ll just take a quick look inside to make sure everything’s all right.”
Alana pressed her back against the wall, inches from the door, waiting. She didn’t expect there to be two people. Was Benjamin with someone? Regardless, if she kept them in the doorframe, she could take them one at a time.
It felt like an eternity as she waited for the slightest movement from the handle. She wasn’t going to hurt Benjamin. She was just going to knock him out for a bit, long enough for her to escape through the tunnels. She was confident she could take him after spending so much time with him sword fighting.
As the door flung open, a man came flying in. Alana stuck out her foot and tripped him. He stumbled forward, but before he hit the floor, she flung her elbow straight into his back. The man slammed hard into the floor.
“Don’t move!” another man yelled behind her.
Alana turned. A second man entered. She was face-to-face with him. He was pointing something at Alana’s chest.
Alana recalled her lessons. Breathe. Swing. Don’t miss. Breathe. Swing. Don’t miss. She quickly reached out to grab his weapon and yanked it forward. The man stumbled into her room. She stiffened her leg behind the man, wrapped her arm around his chest, and rotated her body. The man went flying down on top of the first man.
She looked at both of them. They were wearing suits that glowed yellow with black belts and boots. They had helmets on also. Where was Benjamin? She thought.
She found keys hanging from the second man’s belt. She grabbed them. Alana ran out the door, slammed it behind her and locked it. She ran for the stairs and made her way to the library beneath her room.
She had to get to Jahrys before it was too late.
Chapter 32
Jahrys
THERE WAS A woman. She was barefoot. Her feet looked torn up and bloody. She walked with a limp in her right leg. Blood was soaked through her ripped clothes, which hung in rags off of her body as if they were two times her size. She was skinny, too—terribly skinny. It looked like she hadn’t eaten in days, weeks maybe. Her cheekbones were poking out of her skin. Her blonde hair was dirty, thin, and dry. She was carrying something. It was wrapped up in a blue blanket. She clutched it close to her chest. It looked like a baby. She was leaning on a staff she held with her right hand as she struggled to walk. A glass sphere glowed a faint blue at the top of her staff.
It was a silent night. Trees surrounded her. The woman limped down a steep slope, her feet crunching on fallen leaves. The path was not smooth; the ground was scattered with large, sharp rocks that looked like knives protruding from the earth.
She stumbled on a rock. She lost her balance and the baby went flying from her hands. The silent night was broken by the baby’s cry. The woman yelled as she crawled towards him. She dug her staff into the hard ground, trying to balance.
A howl echoed in the distance, bouncing off the mountain around her. The woman’s face shot up. She looked frightened. She mustered her strength together and managed to half-limp, half-sprint towards her baby. She let out a yell from the pain as she scooped up her baby in her arm. She leaned all of her weight into her staff to rise up.
The howling grew louder. It was hard to tell which direction it was coming from—it seemed to be everywhere.
Another howl called back in the distance. Panic struck the woman’s face. She looked left and right, searching. The baby continued to cry. The woman whispered, trying to comfort him.
HOWWWW. HOW, HOW, HOWOOOOO.
The crunching of leaves behind the woman startled her. She spun around. She was face-to-face with a large gray wolf, almost the size of a horse. She took a step back. There was another crunch behind her. She turned again. A second wolf appeared from the darkness of the trees. This one was even larger than the first wolf. A third wolf appeared, and another. She lost count. Dozens of glowing eyes surrounded her. There was nowhere to run. She clenched her baby close to her body with her left arm. Her right hand tightened around her staff.
The largest wolf stepped out from the circle, towards her. It bared its teeth, drool leaking from its mouth. The wolf was challenging her to make the first move, but she waited patiently. The sweat dripped down the woman’s face. Her baby continued to cry.
The wolf sprung forward. The others followed, breaking the circle around her and her baby. The woman raised her staff high above her head and a flash of blue illuminated the night.
Jahrys shot up from the cold hard floor. He had had the dream again. Usually he could only remember screaming, but this time the dream was as vivid in his mind as his hands in front of him. Who was this woman he always dreamed about? And who was the baby she was carrying?
Junkland (The Hoarding Book 1) Page 25