by K.N. Lee
“Murderers.” The Winds were sure to tell Lilae that, and she gave the twins a look that they understood.
“They followed our tracks, and they wish to rob and kill us,” Lilae said it as if she was discussing the weather.
“Humph. I wish they’d try,” Jaiza said with a glower in the same direction as Lilae’s gaze.
Delia drew in a deep breath. “Holy Elahe. We can never travel in peace?” She stabbed her staff into the ground. “Those bandits are damned fools to be this close to The Barrier.”
“I don’t like this.” Lhana’s eyes darted toward the forest as she withdrew to hide near the cave. “Why does this always happen? One day they’ll sneak up on us, I just know it!”
“I won’t let that happen,” Lilae said, glancing back at her.
“You will be the death of me,” Lhana said as she turned her back on Lilae.
Pirin gave her a sidelong glance. “Perhaps you’d let me train you some time, Lhana. You are not as defenseless as you pretend to be. Your trait is quite rare—it could be of use to us.”
Lhana glared at him. “I don’t want to hear it. You seem to forget that I am a proper lady. Only warriors use their traits.”
Pirin shrugged. “Suit yourself. I don’t understand why you’d rather waste something you’ve inherited.”
Lhana shook her head. “Never. So stop asking me.” She raised a finger. “The first queen of the black throne gave my family my dowry. Who else can make such a claim?”
Risa sighed and gave Jaiza a look. They both set their things down without a word. They’d trained with Lilae for times such as this since they were all children, and this wouldn’t be the first group of bandits to threaten them.
Jaiza grabbed her bow, securing her quiver of arrows onto her back.
Risa drew her sword quietly and put the scabbard down. She rolled her shoulders as if loosening her muscles.
Lilae grinned, her teeth shining in the moonlight. She loved when the twins were like this.
Jaiza stepped beside Lilae, who was younger yet taller. Her keen eyes looked into the growing darkness. “I’ll go ahead and see how many there are.” She twisted her blonde hair into a knot at the top of her head to keep it from getting in the way.
“There are eight.”
“You know everything, don’t you?” Jaiza rolled her eyes. “Fine. I can take them out.”
Lilae’s grin widened. The thrill of a fight excited her. “I’ll be right behind you.”
Pirin continued to unpack their supplies, shaking out their wool blankets. “This will be good practice for you girls. It’s been awhile since you’ve had a real fight. Maybe you can practice working as a team this time…”
Risa lowered her sword. “Eight? What a waste of energy.”
Pirin gave her a stern look.
“What? I was hoping for at least ten,” she said as though it was a sport. “That would have been good practice. I can handle eight on my own.” She put her sword away and started to help Lhana prepare the salted pork and beans.
“Risa…”
“Father…” Risa said as she squatted down and pulled out an iron pot. “Lilae and Jaiza can take this one.”
“Don’t be so cocky. You’re not the best fighter in the realm by any stretch of the imagination, so stop acting like you know everything. Even your Evasion can be countered if someone has the right skill. Trust me, killing people isn’t a game and should not be taken lightly.”
Risa raised a brow. “I know it isn’t. But Lilae and Jaiza can handle it. We’ve done this how many times now? At least seven.”
“Never underestimate your enemy, Risa. You never know if those men are as trained as you or better.”
“You can’t be serious.” Risa huffed. “I doubt it. We both know that most bandits are nothing more than boys who can barely hold the weight of their own cheap sword.”
“You’re not listening, are you?”
“Yes, Father. I get what you’re saying. I will try not to be so cocky about it. That better?”
Pirin sighed. “You girls are impossible,” he said, though a small smile played across his lips.
“You didn’t train us to be warriors for nothing,” Risa said, as Jaiza slunk into the forest.
Without a sound, Jaiza climbed into a tall tree and disappeared into the branches and leaves.
Lilae stepped out of her cloak with her dagger sharpened and ready in one hand. It was warm on her palm and pulsed for action. She listened to The Winds as they led her to the men who approached her family’s camp, careful not to crunch any of the fallen branches beneath her feet.
As the sun’s last light faded, she peered silently at the bandits from her place behind a tall oak tree. Energy flowed within her body, and there was an anxiousness filling her throat and a fire within her veins.
The Winds warned her that the men were merciless. They preyed on innocent travelers, robbing and killing even defenseless women. In return, Lilae and Jaiza would show no mercy.
There was a sudden whistling sound as Jaiza’s arrow cut through the dark forest and slammed into the chest of the leader. He gasped loudly, clutching his chest as he was thrown back onto the ground with a solid thud. The arrow was made of the strongest wood and impaled him to the dirt so that he couldn’t lift himself.
Lilae noted the look of shock and pain on his face as he strained against the arrow. That look always interested her. It was the look of one surprised by death’s touch.
Shouts and frantic orders ensued from the other bandits as they drew their weapons and searched for the source of the arrow. They held their weapons but ducked and cowered toward the safety of the dense, dark forest.
Lilae watched them in silence. She could feel their fear, knowing their hearts were thumping with the terror of the unknown. She wanted them to feel that fear. It was the same fear countless others had felt when those men harmed them. Risa was right about one thing: their weapons were cheap. But these were not boys; they were men who had done this countless times, with success. This would be their last.
“Who's there?” someone shouted in a high-pitched voice that cracked with his words.
“Demons!” another wailed.
“Shut up, Gred. There ain’t no stupid demons in this forest!” Lilae heard someone reply, yet she could hear the fear in his voice as if he were uncertain about his own reassurances.
“I told you we shouldn’t tempt the Ancients! We’re too close to The Barrier!”
Lilae worked quickly, hoping to get some action before Jaiza killed them all with her skilled archery. She took a deep breath, and her vision changed. She could see their moves before they even did them. Everything stilled for her; all sounds muted, and Lilae activated her Focus.
Silence welcome Lilae as she raced into the battle, calculating their every action.
She darted into the mob with her dagger in her fist. She sliced Gred down before he even saw her coming. Lilae didn’t waste time making sure he was dead. Her dagger had cut his throat with such precision that there were no doubts.
She slammed into a tall, burly man who seemed more like a solid tree. His body was made of pure muscle, hard as stone. Lilae climbed his body and stabbed him in the neck. Blood spurted into the air.
As he fell backward, his hands racing to cover his wound, she hopped from his body and went on to the next. She didn’t need to look back; Lilae always struck true. She could hear him gasping for breath.
Someone grabbed Lilae by her hair from behind. She used her Evasion. Her image flickered before his eyes, and, in an instant, she yanked herself free from his grasp. She kicked him in the back with such force that she heard his spine crack.
His scream resonated throughout the woods, and Lilae put him out of his misery, pouncing onto his back. Her hands were secure against his thick, coarse beard as she snapped his neck.
She stood and turned around. The remaining men were lying on the ground, covered in blood and dirt. Jaiza’s arrows protruded from their
bodies. Lilae calmed her breathing.
She stood at the center of the massacre. Her eyes closed as she listened to the last groans of pain and gurgles of blood coming from the bandits’ mouths. Her Focus subsided, and her vision of the world returned to normal.
Lilae waited until their sounds of dying ceased before making her way back to the camp. She emerged from the forest, her hands and clothes covered in blood splatters. She wiped her face free of a few speckles with a rag that Risa handed her.
Everyone stared at Lilae across the dancing flames as she warmed her bloodstained hands over the burning logs. Her pale face was streaked with blood, and her eyes watched the fire without a trace of emotion.
CHAPTER THREE
THE RAIN POURED OUTSIDE the mouth of the cave. Its song was soothing, dripping steadily onto the stones. Lilae enjoyed such private moments with Delia. While the twins had their mother, Lilae had Delia. She still wondered why Lhana had shed that tear earlier. She sensed a deep sadness hidden within that woman.
Lilae sighed, snuggling closer to Delia with her wool blanket. Lilae rested her head on Delia's soft shoulder. She always smelled like mint from the oils she used.
Lilae broke the silence. “Why exactly am I different, Delia?” She had been waiting to ask that question for years now. It was always in her mind. From kingdom to kingdom, she never fit in. “Or special, as you say. Even more importantly, Delia, why is someone hunting me? Why would anyone want me dead?”
For as long as she could remember, Delia and Pirin had only told her the same thing: Someone very bad is after you and will stop at nothing to accomplish his task.
Delia looked down at Lilae as if considering what to tell her first. “They don’t necessarily want you dead, Lilae. They want something from you.” She sighed at the perplexed look that Lilae knew crossed her face. “I suppose you’re ready.”
Delia rose to her feet and held a hand out for Lilae. Lilae accepted the help and stood beside her. Delia was a small woman but that never made Lilae respect her any less. She looked on curiously as Delia held her willow staff out toward the mouth of the cave. A ripple of air floated from the staff and spread. A pale blue light connected to the ripples of air. It covered the entire opening of the cave like a sheer film.
The cave grew warm as if the film stood as a door that closed them inside. Lilae shrugged off her blanket and perked to attention.
“Let’s go.” She headed toward the ripples of air and stepped through.
Lilae hesitated for a moment, and Delia waved her forward. “Come,” she whispered.
She could see Delia through the film. She reached a hand out first, and her body turned frigid. It felt as if a million thorns pricked her flesh, and she winced. She saw Delia standing on the other side, waiting patiently.
“Don’t be afraid. It only stings for a second. The shield will not harm any of us. It is laced to shock anyone or anything that I have not named to protect. Do not worry.”
She took Lilae’s hand and pulled the rest of her body through. Delia walked into the darkness of the forest, expecting Lilae to follow. She held her staff before her, leading the way. Lilae was surprised that they walked deeper and deeper into the forest.
The rain stopped but the ground was muddy and squishy beneath their boots. She could barely see ahead of her. She was afraid that they were being watched, yet The Winds were silent.
Lilae held on to Delia’s small waist to keep from falling over. They walked for what felt like hours, and Lilae fought to keep her questions to herself. She could feel that it was time. Finally, she would know who she was, and what her future held. They stopped by a body of water.
Lilae stared at the lake, feeling the cold air drift closer to her. The soft patter of drizzle sprinkled onto its surface, bathed in moonlight. Lilae held her hand out, catching a cool droplet of water in her palm.
Delia walked to the edge of the water and waved her closer. “Kneel.”
Lilae took off her boots and stepped closer. She loved the feel of the mud on her feet and stepped close enough for the water to lap over her toes. She knelt down beside the lake and looked up at Delia.
“Good. Now bow your head and close your eyes.”
Lilae breathed deeply and looked out over the water. She bowed her head, and her eyes fluttered closed. Lilae nearly choked as she was grabbed violently and dragged into the water.
Lilae’s eyes popped open as the water slapped her face. All she saw was darkness. Her mouth filled with water; she quickly tried to push the liquid out and close her mouth.
She could hold her breath for only so long, and her entire body froze with fear as something held her hand and pulled her deeper and deeper into the water. Lilae fought the urge to scream. Whatever held on to her was rough and unyielding. She could feel the hate and evil radiating from it. She fought to see ahead of her. She wanted to see what had hold of her, but all she saw before her were the inky depths of the lake.
Her ears filled with fluid and her eyes began to burn. Two yellow eyes glowed back at her, and Lilae felt her body shake.
She screamed. “Delia!”
Water flooded every orifice, and she panicked. She tried to regain her composure, but those eyes bore into hers. A hand went over her mouth and pressed her face deeper into the water until her head scraped the bottom of the lake.
Lilae flailed and fought. She needed air. Her mind became a torrent of screams and pleas. Her lungs burned. Her nose burned. Her heart thumped so fast that she was sure it would explode. And then, she saw a face. Bronze skin, yellow eyes that glowed beneath the water, and high cheekbones. Terror filled her very bones, creeping into her soul.
“Join me, Lilae. Or die,” the creature said in a voice that was unlike anything Lilae had ever heard. It wasn’t human; it had to be some sort of a demon from the Underworld.
Lilae shook her head. She felt lightheaded as if she was dying. Still, she refused.
“No!” She swallowed more water. She reached past the face and toward the surface. She could see the light. She craved it.
“Join me and I will ease your pain.”
“No!”
Pain jolted through her body like a flood of hot acid.
“Then, your fate it sealed. You will be mine whether you choose to or not.”
Like a slap to the face, Lilae was jolted back to the surface. Delia had her by her shirt’s collar. She leaned over Lilae, closely watching for her reaction. Lilae coughed and choked as air flooded into her lungs. Cool, delicious air. She breathed it in greedily. She saw Delia nod with approval and sit back on her heels. She wrapped Lilae in her cloak, giving her a moment to calm down.
“What was that?” Lilae shrieked.
Delia put her hand out. “Quiet your voice.”
Lilae shot to her feet, flinging off the cloak. She looked over at the lake. It was still now, peaceful. She would never look at water the same way.
Lilae’s face heated, and tears stung her eyes. She had thought that she was going to die under the lake’s surface; she never wanted to feel that way again. Lilae looked at Delia as tears slipped down her cheeks. She wiped furiously at them.
“What was that, Delia?”
Delia picked up the cloak off the ground and draped it over Lilae’s shoulders. “First, tell me your choice. Did you choose to side with him?
“Who was that?”
“Answer the question, Lilae. It’s important!”
Confused, Lilae tried to gather her thoughts. Wiping her face she shook her head. “I told him no.”
Delia closed her eyes and let out a breath of relief. “Good girl. There is still hope then.” She opened her eyes and pulled Lilae in for a hug.
Lilae buried her face in the warmth of Delia’s chest. The comfort of her embrace still didn’t banish the fear that threatened to make her cry out in hysterics.
“That was an apparition of the Ancient, Wexcyn. He has returned from his imprisonment in the abyss. He has come to claim his throne. And now, he kno
ws that you cannot be swayed to fight on his side. You have denied him.”
Lilae pulled away from Delia. That name did not sound familiar. She shook her head. “I don’t understand.” Cold water dripped from her clothes. She pulled the cloak closer to warm herself. She shivered and slumped to the ground, resting her back on a smooth cluster of rocks.
Her gaze went back to the water, and her eyes glazed over as she recalled the terror she had just experienced. There was a time when Lilae thought that she feared nothing.
Delia made a fire with the tip of her staff onto a rock. Lilae glanced over her shoulder. Such a fire was not possible, but Delia had a talent for the impossible.
Sitting beside Lilae, Delia put a hand on her shoulder and stroked it tenderly. “I’m sorry, Lilae, but I had to show you. Showing you what evil we are up against is better than just telling you. I find it much more effective.”
Lilae scoffed. “It was quite effective, Delia. And it was uncalled for.”
“I don’t think so, Lilae. Wexcyn is a threat to everything you know and love.”
“Was that real?”
“It was.” Delia looked up at the stars. “It was real in your mind. I could see nothing of the encounter, but that doesn’t mean that it didn’t happen. Wexcyn invaded your thoughts. We are lucky that he is not strong enough to actually harm you from a distance. But soon, anything will be possible.”
“Who is Wexcyn?”
Delia pulled her journal from her bag. It was a small book made of supple leather and filled with parchment.
It was the book Delia used to teach Lilae ever since Lilae was a child. There were ancient maps, history lessons, illustrations, and prophecies. Delia licked her thumb and flipped through a couple of weathered pages; she held open a page with a map on it. The map was drawn with such precision that Lilae wondered if Delia was an artist and had done it herself.
“You know about the four realms, Lilae, right?”
Lilae nodded. As a child, she had loved to learn and recite what she memorized. It was rare for anyone other than royalty and nobility to even be able to read. “Yes, of course. There's Eura, the human realm. Alfheim, the Silver Elf realm. Kyril, the Tryan realm. And Nostfar, the Shadow Elf realm.”