The woman crossed her arms, pushing together an impressive amount of cleavage as she shifted her posture. “She’s all alone in here without me anyways. Alone in the emptiness of her own heart.” She pouted, pursing her lips.
Endrance smiled, touching the white-clothed Selene’s shoulder reassuringly.
“She will never be alone,” he stated surely, waving his hand up over his head. As he did, the darkness above became alight with thousands of specks of light. “When the darkness becomes too deep for her, I will cast stars into it, to light her way. When she feels lonely, I will whisper in her ear that I am near. When she cries, I will turn her tears to roses.” His emerald eyes shone as he stood confidently before her demonic half. “So there is no rush, you see? She will always have me.”
The other half of Selene scowled. “Fine, I will step back… for now.” The complete version of her started to sink into the polished floor, her feet being absorbed by the reflective surface. “But know this, Selene. You cannot avoid the truth. You are half demon. The sooner you accept this the better off you will be in the long run.”
And as her other vanished, Selene looked down to see her reflection had returned. As she looked at her own face, it winked at her, and returned to normal.
She turned to her husband, who stood before her. “How?” she started to ask. “How did you get here? I thought I was all alone in here.”
Endrance embraced her, smiling lovingly. “I will always be with you, my love.” The young mage winked. “When you feel alone remember that I love you, and know that I’m always by your side.” He stepped away from her, and she saw his appearance was becoming slightly transparent.
“Please, wake up when you get the chance to, okay?” he asked, his body slowly fading. “Don’t keep us waiting!”
He faded from view, his tattoos being the last to disappear. They were both right. She was going to have to accept that she was a half-demon, and live with it. But unlike many of her kind, she had a man who loved and cared for her to help her go through the process. He was someone who had the knowledge and experience to actually help her. She closed her eyes, and knew it was time to wake up. With effort she focused on opening her eyes to the real world.
Her eyes fluttered open, and she realized she was tucked into a small bed heaped with furs. Her body was incredibly hot, and she shifted under the covers, wincing as freezing cold mountain air snuck in under the furs and danced across her naked side. She looked around the room, and found herself in a cave of some sort. A small fire pit in the center of the cave was burnt out, the cinders long since cooled.
Scattered throughout the room were several travel packs, the trunks that Joven had retrieved from the longhouse, and several of the bodyguard’s weapons were leaning against the stone of the wall. A large sack was near the exit to the chamber, and Selene could see several white furs folded up within.
She rummaged through the pack until she found one of the white fur coats her fellow Keepers wore when they couldn’t tolerate the cold. Their training included working in the cold, as their traditional garb was only the white linen dress, and the cold practically ignored the thin layer of cloth. Still, having a higher cold tolerance did not make her immune to freezing, so she pulled on the coat, and slipped into heavy winter boots.
She looked down the cave corridor, but didn’t see anyone. No one was around, and she wondered how Endrance had been in her dream a minute before but had left her bed so quickly. He probably used some kind of spell to be in her dream, and he had left her to recover.
Walking cautiously down the cave corridor, she found several other rooms of varying sizes. Some of them had simple furniture in them as well as the biggest one which had a rug across the stone to help keep feet warm. She still didn’t find anyone, but could hear some faint noises in the distance. Following the tunnel, it came out to a cave opening to the exterior.
The cave opened up to a mountainous area somewhere in the barbarian territories, as far as Selene could see. Snow was everywhere, and though the sky was clear and the sun out, it didn’t look about to thaw anytime soon. The area was a relatively flat space about fifty feet across, one side mountain and rock, the other winter pines and sharp slopes. The air was thin, and she figured they were up the mountain a ways at least.
Anna and Bridget were sitting on a fur covered chair nearby, but hadn’t noticed her approach. They also wore heavy boots and winter coats, as well as gloves that helped keep their fingers warm. Selene hadn’t seen any more when she dressed, so they may not have had enough for all three. Gullin sat on top of a small fire surrounded by stones, enjoying the warmth in a way only those immune to fire could afford.
Selene blinked at the sunlight reflecting off the snow, and when her vision refocused, she couldn’t help but stare as she spotted her husband.
Endrance skidded backwards in the snow, both daggers drawn and held defensively, blade reversed in his hands. He was breathing hard, but seemed to be concentrating very hard. He wore the armor they had given him, as well as his heavy winter clothes. His hair was bound back behind his head, and the hood of his coat flopped uselessly on his back, likely having fallen off in the fighting.
His opponent was Joven, which was more surprising than Selene would have expected. The big man strode towards his charge, his face a mask of determination. The barbarian wore heavy furs and hardened steel armor. In his hands was a pair of long daggers, sturdy and likely sharp. He lunged into Endrance’s space, slashing with his right blade.
The young mage didn’t dodge as Selene expected, but stepped forwards and deflected Joven’s arm with his left forearm. Hooking the back of his dagger against Joven’s arm, he pulled the barbarian towards him while slicing at his ribs with his right blade. Joven, an expert fighter, was able to deflect Endrance’s strike with his left and counter with the same blade. The young mage ducked and twisted under Joven’s extended right arm, sliding away and leaving a shining new cut across the steel plate on his opponent’s thigh armor in passing.
Selene walked up beside the two Draugnoa standing watch. “What’s going on?” she asked.
Anna and Bridget looked up at her surprised. “Selene!” Anna exclaimed. “You’re awake!” The two stood and embraced their sister.
Bridget tilted her head towards the two fighting in the snow outside. “I’m being impressed by Endrance’s knife fighting skills. The man’s been keeping even with Joven for almost ten minutes of constant fighting.”
Anna settled back down on the fur, rolling her eyes. “It’s almost like neither of them are willing to admit they’re getting tired.”
Bridget pulled Selene down to sit on the fur with her. The woman picked a comb up from a nearby box and started brushing Selene’s hair. The young woman hadn’t even thought to check on her hair, which had been treated badly by the fire and nights of unconscious nightmares.
“To be honest,” Bridget said quietly. “Endrance has the advantage in this fight. While Joven’s much more skilled than him, the man’s smaller, lighter on his feet, and much nimbler. I think he would be able to win, if he wasn’t worried about hurting his bodyguard.”
Selene half shrugged, wincing as a particularly hard to loosen knot in her hair was tugged painfully by the brush. “He should know the first rule by now, right?”
Anna nodded, reciting the rule even though the three all knew many combat rules by heart. “First rule of fighting with knives, expect to get cut.”
The barbarian and the mage moved in a manner that almost seemed like a performance. Their strikes, blocks, and counterstrikes flowed into one another, and their weapon’s effectiveness was reduced to causing nicks and scratches across armor or clothing. Their movement remained fluid, and the snow was trampled in a large area as they fought.
Selene smiled slightly as she watched the look of concentration on her husband’s face. Maybe they hadn’t realized it yet, but from her perspective she saw that he was concentrating so hard not on the fight itself, but on avoiding infli
cting wounds on his opponent. Joven’s armor had too many scratches across vital areas for it to be coincidence. The big barbarian had stamina, but this fight would have been over quickly against someone trying to kill him. All they had to do was slip in, cut the bodyguard in a few vital places, and use their superior agility and speed to avoid the man until he bled out or at least weakened enough to finish off.
“I don’t know…” Selene said, “I think he might be trying to avoid that rule.”
The young mage must have heard her voice or seen her out of the corner of his eye, because his ‘flow’ faltered for a split second. Joven took advantage of this, hooking his dagger against one of Endrance’s and sending it flying. Endrance tried to leap back out of the way, but Joven caught him upside the head with his elbow and forearm. The young mage spilled across the snow, his lost dagger landing into the snow several feet away with a piff as snow was displaced.
Joven stopped advancing, and waited for the young man to recover from the blow. “You see there, that’s what I’m saying is your problem!” he exclaimed. “You lose concentration on the fight for even a second, and your enemy is going to be all over you like soldiers jump on free ale.”
Endrance sat up in the snow, wiping the pain and flakes of white from his face. He sighed, pulling himself to his feet and retrieving his other dagger. Tucking them into his belt, he shrugged as he turned back to face Joven.
“I still held my own for several minutes.” He began. “In a close quarters battle like that minutes might as well be an eternity.”
Joven shook his head. “The purpose of teaching you this is not to teach you to ‘hold your own’ for any amount of time. You need to be able to win quickly when you engage an enemy with your knife! The longer the fight gets, the more chances your enemy has of killing you!”
Endrance nodded his head and held up his hands in a gesture of appeasement. “I understand, I understand. But I was distracted.”
Joven scowled. “Another thing you can’t allow! Distracted by what?”
Endrance inclined his head towards the cave entrance and pointed with a finger. “It seems Selene has awoken?”
Selene watched the two approach her, and stood to hug her husband strongly as he reached her. She heard his breath rush out as she squeezed, and lessened her hold. He took a breath and coughed slightly as she let him go.
“You’ve gotten stronger.” He observed, his hand on her shoulder was assuring.
“Really?” she asked, uncertain. Endrance wasn’t very physically strong, so he could be guessing.
“Yes, really.” He replied with a wheeze, “I should let you run through burning buildings more often. Soon enough you’d be beating Hydras in arm wrestling contests.”
She frowned at him, but couldn’t get angry. She had long since learned to tell when he was joking and being serious, though sometimes he didn’t convey it clearly.
Bridget held up a brush with a few dark tangled hairs. “Her hair wasn’t violet.” She observed. “She doesn’t need to change to use her strength, Endrance.”
“How long were you out here?” Selene asked. “When did you come visit me last?” she asked.
He shrugged. “I’ve been out here all day sparring with Joven and practicing my spells. I slept next to you every night since the fire, though Anna and Bridget have been checking on you almost every hour I’m not there.”
Her eyebrows wrinkled up as she tried to make sense of his statement. “But I saw you in my dreams, right before I woke up. How would you have been out there, but also in my dreams?” Her vision became unfocused as she remembered her dream, which haunted vividly in her mind.
Endrance blinked at her, puzzled. “I don’t know.” He admitted. “I did dream about you while I slept the last few nights, so maybe somehow my thoughts reached you from where you had gone to.”
Selene sighed. “I guess it wasn’t you after all.”
Reaching out to her, the young mage comforted her. “Now, Selene, it might have been me in your dream, or you could have dreamed of me. You know, like when you dream of other places or people.”
She nodded. “It just seemed so real.” She sniffled. “It was also about my demonic half. And you were… different.”
“Oh?” he stated, wrapping an arm around her shoulder and walking with her towards the tunnel in the cave. “Tell me about it.”
“I think I’m not ready to talk about it; Maybe later?” she asked.
He nodded, glancing back at the trio behind. “Well, then we can talk about our plan then. Come on everyone.”
The five of them met back in the largest of the cave chambers. Finding suitable places to sit down, they sat comfortably while they began to discuss their next moves.
“So where is this place anyway?” Selene asked. “Are we still in the kingdom?”
Joven spoke up. “This is a cave my father showed me a long time ago when I was still a young’n. We used to rest here on extended hunting trips around the mountain.” He shrugged. “We needed a place to go to that the king wouldn’t find.”
“But Balen works for the king. If Kalenden asked him for places we could be-“
“Balen doesn’t know about this place. You see, my brother was a military blockhead since before he had teeth. By consequence he never went hunting with his father like I did.”
“Oh.” She admitted. “What about your other brother?”
Joven narrowed his eyes at her. “He hasn’t been seen in a decade.”
“Oh.” She repeated again, feeling awkward.
Endrance watched the exchange silently, but chose to change the subject then. “So!” he began. “We managed to escape from King Kalenden and his men. Joven led us through a hidden path up the other side of the mountain where we are for the moment safe. While Selene recovered from the fire, I’ve been intensely practicing my fighting skills so I can help for the next stage of the battle.”
He looked each of the Keepers in the eye, and ended by staring into Joven’s. “We’re going to take the fight to King Kalenden.”
“Initially we were going to remain behind, and search for a way to expose his corruption, but he’s already taken that option from us. Our last observation shows that he has declared we died in the longhouse fire, a tragic accident. But before I died, I confessed to him his son was the chosen hero. I cannot let this stand. We know the truth, and we can’t let him lead the world to destruction without a fight. I didn’t want to be an assassin of a king, but I would rather be considered a killer than let evil like this be perpetrated because I let it remain.”
“We have brought the babe to Anna’s family in Betton, and they are taking care of him as their own. He will be safe, so long as we move quickly before the king starts searching the outlying towns for us. We need to act soon, any longer risks chance of either our or the baby’s discovery.”
“And,” Bridget chimed in, “If we go on the offensive while he thinks we’re running…”
“Exactly!” Endrance agreed. “He won’t be expecting us to strike at him directly when he is supposed to be chasing us down. Right now the best way to discredit him would be to make a public appearance.”
Selene raised her hand. “But he’s the king. And he’s the demon summoner who had been manipulating things for who knows how long.”
Anna shrugged. “This is a valid point. Even if we arrive publicly, decrying the king’s proclamation can still be turned to his advantage. He has to have some demons at his disposal, as well as his royal guard. He himself is one of the best warriors in Balator, and he’s got powers he’s gained from his traffic infernal.”
Endrance clenched his fists as he focused on the discussion. “I understand. As it is we may have to remove him from the throne and hope we can find the proof after the fact. But don’t worry; I have a plan.”
Joven grinned. “Oh, I love this plan.”
Selene watched the big man grinning foolishly. “Let me guess.” She began. “It involved you hitting something.” She sta
ted.
“Yep.” Joven agreed, nodding. “Hitting things really hard.”
“Oh yes, that reminds me!” Endrance exclaimed, digging through a belt pouch. “I have prepared a few spells for each of you to use.”
Endrance held up a metal brooch, like the ones used for a heavy cloak or fur cape. Joven’s totem, the bear, was etched into the surface. The wizard flipped the brooch over, and the women could see the inside had arcane script carved into the lip of the metal.
“Bridget, you remember the strength that I had the day we sorted things out?” he asked.
“Yes.” Bridget admitted. “Hard not to remember being kicked through a door.”
“Well, the spell was designed to grant someone the commensurate strength and toughness of a bear. It takes what strength you have and amplifies it. I have crafted this brooch for Joven that will allow him to use that spell for exactly fifteen minutes.” Endrance shook his head. “It’s the best I could do, and it will only work once.” He flipped the brooch to Joven. “You activate it by touching your blood to it. It will start working immediately.”
He produced three armbands, made of white leather and with decorative silver coins punched into the leather. From tightly braided cords hung three crimson feathers, which looked to have been donated by Gullin. He handed one to each of his Draugnoa.
“These you wear on your main arm, opposite arm and position from the traditional knives you wear. I have prepared three castings of my healing spell on each, and can be activated by breaking the threads holding one of the feathers. They should not be too hard to snap by pulling, but they shouldn’t just come loose either. Pull hard.”
As the four around him donned the items that Endrance gave them, Selene looked at the wizard as he stood waiting. “What about you, Endrance? Did you make anything to help you in this battle?”
The young wizard only grinned. “Of course.”
“What did you make?” she asked.
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