Scooting down the alley way, close on the heels of Master Warriors Merion and Dixon, Aisline kept to the shadows. There was no imminent danger, but out in the field, you never knew. This was how she was supposed to play her role. She was acting out the reality of the situation. The Mortuorum were known for their extreme cunning and could be lurking anywhere, ready to attack them at a moment’s notice. And she had to be ready for them. Even if she couldn’t lay a finger on them. That wasn’t the point.
Stalking the streets for the very first time was a bit nerve wracking to say the least. She wanted to hold her own. She didn’t want to be the weakest link, just because she was female. She had already proved that she was as good as the others in the academy and she wanted to project that out onto the street.
Keeping to the shadows, they all had their eyes peeled. Well, except for Denver.
In actual fact, Master Warrior Dixon was well aware that there was no immediate danger on this little outing tonight. They had planned it well and were in an area that wasn’t often frequented by the Mortuorum. It was the council who wanted the trainee Warriors out there and it was the Master Warriors, Kelton in particular, who did all they could in the planning to make sure that they could minimise any danger. Even though this exercise was well planned to keep as far away from the enemy as they could, they also had a backup team of Warriors that only the Master Warriors knew about trailing each of the groups, in case of any problems. This was the best way they could think to play it while still fulfilling their duties given to them by the council.
This little exercise was all about giving the newest grads and the trainees a feel for being out on the street. Putting them through the motions, making sure that they followed instructions to the letter, making sure that they knew their place within the team. After all, there is no ‘I’ in team…. Sometimes, the old clichés really are the best.
Kelton would be able to evaluate their strengths and weaknesses from the reports that were produced from the team leading warriors. Dixon knew that Kelton hadn’t agreed with the decision of sending trainees out into the field and they had all staged several meetings to come up with an idea that would get the council off of their backs, but that would also keep the kids out of danger. This was the best that they could do. As a team, as soon as the warriors had found out who the council had selected to send out on the first wave, they’d watched the trainees and all agreed on their teams. It was a difficult situation that they had to try and make the best of. Which was not an easy task.
Obviously, as head of the school and as head of the Sons of Satrina as a whole, Kelton had had the last word, but he could not defy the council. Their word was deemed law and he could only work around it so far. No one was very happy about having Denver out on the streets, but they couldn’t deny that his defensive skills were second to none. And, the pairing of Aisline and Denver made sense. Mainly because she didn’t suffer him lightly and wouldn’t be influenced by his demands or idiotic behaviour.
With a flick of his hand, Merion slowed and Ash knew that they were about to halt and reconvene at the corner before proceeding. Keeping light on her feet, she kept her back to the grime covered wall and glided to the side of the other warriors. The alley was thin and long, littered with garbage and they had to keep their eyes alert. There were so many hiding places that could take them by surprise.
The thrill of being out in the field was indescribable. Excitement throbbed through her veins. Ash could understand why the warriors kept their enthusiasm for this job year after year.
Denver clomped up behind them, making more noise than the other five of them put together, kicking a tin can and bumping into Aisline’s shoulder when he reached the rest of the group.
“Stealth, Denver. Stealth.” Warrior Dixon hissed at him and rolled his eyes in exasperation before turning to scope out the area around them. Denver snorted in response.
Without another word, Merion signalled that they would turn right at the end of the alley and proceed north. Aisline nodded and readied her stance. There was no sound as they started to move as one, no sound from their movement, no sound from the sleeping city.
Everything was clear when they rounded the corner. There was no one in sight. No Mortuorum. No Matris. No humans. This was a really run down area of Brandestowen so there would be minimal contact with humans as well. Concentrating on her senses as the warriors had advised her to do, Aisline knew that they were alone in the neighbour, save the noises of scrabbling rats and mice and a hunting cat.
Running through the check list in her mind, she turned to check out where Denver was. Because a warrior is not alone in his or her battle. They are only as strong as their team, and even if Denver was the weakest link, he was part of the team.
But, he wasn’t there.
Halting abruptly, Aisline scanned to see if he had moved out of formation, which wouldn’t have surprised her. He hadn’t been able to follow orders all night.
He was nowhere to be seen.
Trying to gain the attention of the warriors in front of her without making a sound wasn’t easy. Even if Denver didn’t want to obey their orders, she wanted to follow them to the best of her ability and it was infuriating to have to keep checking on him. They had carried on their way. She didn’t know what to do for the best.
Cursing to herself, Ash quickly turned and headed back around the corner and into the mouth of the alley. Denver was lurking in the shadows, crouching down next to a cluster of overflowing bins and, with a grin that made his teeth glint in the poor moonlight, he beckoned her over.
“What the hell are you playing at?” she snarled at him, grabbing his arm. They had to get moving. “Come on!” The others wouldn’t get far away before they turned to check, but she didn’t like them being out of her line of sight. Out here, with their limited experience, they were totally exposed. “I said, come on!”
“No, wait! They’re here,” Denver pointed down the alley with a manic grin, back the way that they had come, “The Mortuorum. They’re here.”
Aisline felt her temperature start to cool. This wasn’t how things were supposed to go. They weren’t supposed to be out here alone. They weren’t supposed to engage in combat. They had an assignment to complete and without the express permission from the Master Warriors, they were not meant to deviate from the plan.
“Damn it, Denver, I mean it. We’ve got to get out of here. Right now.” She tried her hardest to keep the panic out of her voice, but with every second that passed, the danger was getting closer. It wasn’t that she doubted her mad combat skills, not in the slightest. However, she wasn’t stupid enough to think that she was ready to take on the enemy just the two of them.
“No way. This is what we’re here to do. Just because they’re running away, doesn’t mean I will.” Denver said, puffing up his chest. Did he really think that the other warriors were running away? The boy was certifiably mad.
And Ash could see that he thought that he was invincible.
This was really bad. And it was about to get a whole lot worse.
“Come on, Denver.” She thought that she’d try the softer approach, for once calling on her femininity to try to convince him to get out of there. They didn’t have much time left. She could smell them getting closer, “Let’s get out of here, yeah?” Ash smiled at him softly, fluttering her eyelashes in what she hoped was a flirtatious manner, hoping the tremor would hardly be noticeable in her lips.
For a moment, Denver looked at her like he was thinking about following her, before his lips turned up in a nasty smirk. “Don’t even try to play me. It won’t work. I’m not going anywhere.”
Aisline hitched in a breath and swore silently.
She realised that neither of them were going anywhere.
They were cornered.
The Mortuorum knew that they were there and all she could do was shrug back further in to the shadows, hoping that they’d not be able to pin point their exact location. If only they could stay hidden for a
little longer, then help would soon be here. The Warriors would surely realise that they’d fallen behind and come back to see what was the hold up? Aisline was sure that they would be able to hear the erratic thudding of her heart, pounding loudly in her own ears. Fear had her tightly in its grasp and she felt like she was choking on it.
She could have screamed and jumped out of her own skin as Denver grabbed hold of her arm all of a sudden, if there hadn’t been such a dire need for silence. She could feel him trembling and knew that finally he had realised that he had gotten them both into a situation that they might not be able get out of. He was a complete asstard for pulling this stunt, but she’d save kicking his ass for when they were both back in the safety of the academy.
Risking a glance at him, Denver was drip white and looked younger than his years, like a scared little boy. Before this, his cockiness and over confidence had gotten him in trouble at school and at home, but nothing that he couldn’t handle or talk his way out of. This was way out of his league. This was life threatening. It was frighteningly real, and all he wanted to do right now was scream out like a little girl for the warriors to come back and rescue them. He couldn’t even risk doing that, though, as he didn’t know how far they were away from them and if they would get back in time. They could both be sliced and diced, bleeding out on the floor with life ending injuries before they returned.
He just wished he hadn’t been chosen for this. He wasn’t ready. He shouldn’t be there.
And Aisline was frantically assessing the area around them, counting the Mortuorum, trying to find a way out for both of them. Running through all of her training in her head, she couldn’t think of one goddamn thing to do but to stay out of sight for as long as possible. Also, the Mortuorum vastly outnumbered them and the way that they had fanned out in the alley way, there was no escape.
They were trapped.
Suddenly, one of the Mortuorum spun to stab Aisline with a triumphant grin. “Well, well, well. What do we have here?”
The rest of them turned in unison to surround them even more tightly, a variety of expressions on their faces that ranged from direct anger to amusement to downright hunger. Ash straightened her spine. There was no way that they were was going to see any weakness in her, and was pleased to feel Denver straighten to his full height. She was prepared to fight to the death now that the time was here. She was a warrior. She wouldn’t go down without an almighty fight.
“Oh my. Are my eyes deceiving me? The rumours are true? How very extraordinary! I would never have believed it possible.”
The male who was speaking seemed to be their first in command. The rest of the crew filtered around him, awaiting instructions. It was strange to see them in the flesh. In all the training she’d had at the academy, she’d had the false belief in her head that the Mortuorum were a rag tag, unorganised bunch, but seeing them here? They seemed to have a military efficiency about them, deferring to a leader.
He was tall and skinny with dirt caked in his beard and the stench emanating off of him suggested that he had forgotten how to bathe a very long time ago. The worst thing about him were his eyes. They were blank, expressionless pits of nothingness. No humanity. No truth. Only death.
Ash made sure to keep her expression blank and stared defiantly ahead. Show no fear, show no fear, she repeated in her head.
“The first female warrior. What are you doing out here, all alone, in the big bad world, my dear? I would have thought that they would have wanted to keep one so unique and precious under lock and key.” He was eyeing her like a prize, his gaze travelling over her body in a way that made her want to squirm. A sleaze ball Mortuorum. Great. Just her luck. Could this get any worse?
Denver turned his body slightly, as if to shield her. Aisline appreciated the sentiment, but this was not the best time for her to appear to be weak. Anyway, she knew that she was the better fighter between the two of them, so the action was empty.
Throwing out her senses once again, relief coursed through her when she felt the warriors returning to seek them out, seemingly to be coming from two different directions. Not that she cared where they came from, as long as they came. It sure had taken them long enough to realise that they were missing. They had only been separated from the rest of the team for about four minutes, but it had been four minutes too long. Long enough to endanger their lives and land them smack dab in the middle of a Mortuorum attack.
“Hmmmmm. So, you’re not out here all alone.” The male stated, looking thoughtful, tilting his head to one side, his eyes never leaving Aisline. Obviously, he had also sensed or heard the approach of the other warriors and his eyes took on an excited, dangerous glint.
With a flick of his wrist, the rest of the Mortuorum spread out to the right and to the left of the group, leaving four of them guarding Aisline and Denver. They were still outnumbered, but at least at this rate, they could put up some sort of fight.
A war cry rang out at the head of the alley and she felt Denver’s shoulders sag in relief. But, that relief came too soon.
As the warriors came rushing down the alley, weapons bared and shots ringing out, the Mortuorum leapt forward and lunged at Aisline and Denver. She was ready for them and braced herself for a bloody fight.
Grabbing a small dagger from the sheath attached to her belt, Ash lunged forward also. The weapon wasn’t meant to be used, it was more of a security blanket for the trainee to know that they had a defensive weapon, but it sure would come in handy now. She’d rather have a blade than nothing at all.
A swift kick came from the side, knocking the dagger, her only weapon, to the floor and far out of her reach. An arm snaked around her waist and lifted her off of her feet, still she kicked out to inflict as much damage as was possible.
Denver jumped into the fray, fists flying, without much direction but plenty of force, aiming for maximum destruction of the enemy. He wanted out of there. He wanted to get away from the Mortuorum and this horrific nightmare as fast as he could. This wasn’t the way that this was supposed to go down and he now knew that he should have followed orders and stayed with the team. If he had of done what he was told, they wouldn’t be in danger now. So, the least he could do was take down as many of them as he could on his way.
The rest of the warriors fought with precision. Each lung, kick and punch carefully aimed and executed. This group of Mortuorum were fairly new on the whole and not much of a match for the Sons of Satrina warriors. Only a few of them, the first in command who had addressed Aisline being one of them, had any age and strength behind them and gave any sort of fight.
It wasn’t long before body parts littered the floor and the warriors stood panting. It hadn’t been much of a fight, really. Merion and Dixon had seen far worse, but it was the first real battle of worth for the graduates. Merion and Dixon had to fight and protect the newly graduated, as well as the trainees. Both Lydon and Davis were bouncing on their heels, exhilarated from their first victory and they turned to the Master Warriors for further instructions.
Merion holstered his weapons and assessed the damage. As he glanced over at the graduates, he heard a moan to the right of him and turned to see Denver sitting with his back against the grimy wall, grasping his arm to staunch the flow of blood. Merion knelt down next to him to roughly examine the wound, which was only a superficial flesh wound and wouldn’t need anything more than a couple of stitches.
“You’ll be fine. Well, your arm will be fine.” Master Warrior Merion said. Dixon popped his head over his shoulder and glared at Denver, “I’m not so sure I’d bet on the rest of your health once your Kelton gets your hands on you. What the hell were you thinking? Did you not listen to a single instruction we gave you? This was your chance to prove yourself and all you managed to do was prove that you are a useless dick who should be kicked out on his ass!” Dixon was absolutely fuming. He was steaming angry, his eyes darting around wildly. He knew that he shouldn’t have spoken to a trainee in that manner, but he wasn’t a kid. He n
eeded to grow a pair and man up. Honestly, who the hell did the guy think he was? He put the whole team in danger. Dixon was going to make sure that he was reprimanded to the fullest extent possible. And if he had his way, he’d even make up a few new punishments himself.
Turning, he knew he had to get the guys back to the academy as soon as possible and report to Kelton, so he started to give the sign to move out. Grabbing his phone from his chest pocket, he typed out a brief text, advising the academy and the council of the attack and that they needed a clean-up crew out here as soon as was physically possible.
Turning for a quick head count as he texted Kelton, Dixon paused and looked again. That wasn’t right. There was four of them. Five including him.
There should have been six.
“Where the fuck is Aisline?” He demanded.
Chapter Twenty-Seven.
“What the hell are you talking about? Where is she?” Kelton couldn’t believe what he was hearing.
This, unfortunately proved his point. Look what had happened. Heads were going to roll over this. Those younger trainees never should have been sent out into the field in their first year. It had been an irresponsible call of the council and he had been powerless to stop their decision. The other trainees had only just been about able to hold their own out here and the experience had scared the living daylights out of them. Kelton knew that he should have stood his ground and refused to send this first years out in the real world. That had been pure madness.
And it was his big mistake sending Aisline out. He should have put his foot down and overruled the council. Sure, she was a shit hot warrior in training, but as the only female, she should have been better protected. Kelton was kicking himself. He should have found a way to stop her from going out there.
Now look where they were - a missing student. And not just any student. Aisline. Their first female warrior in history was now in the hands of the enemy. This couldn’t get much worse. Or it could, but Kelton refused to think about that.
The Sons of Satrina: A Sons of Satrina Novel Page 23