Redemption (The Alexa Montgomery Saga)

by H. D. Gordon

  He surprised me when he spoke again. “It doesn’t really matter because death is inevitable for everything that lives.” His head tilted back as he stared up at the stars. I watched his face, as raptured as I always was when Kayden decided to share his rare bits of wisdom. “Except maybe the Gods,” he said, “But everything that has a life must lose it eventually. What matters is that it was a life worth living.”

  I felt stupid tears threaten inexplicably and forced them back with a few deep breaths. My voice was smaller than I would have liked when I asked, “Is it, Kayden? Is it worth living?”

  Kayden tilted my chin up with his fingers and kissed my lips, and the answer to my question was evident to me in his touch. “Oh, yes, my Warrior,” he said, his golden eyes burning into my own. “I really think it is.”

  I glanced around me now, wondering if we were alone enough for me to climb onto his lap and have another taste of something that made life worth living, but something caught my eye, and as much as I tried, it was too distracting to ignore it. I stared out into the night before us and at first could not locate the thing that had caught my attention. The cabins and cottages were still dark and silent, the red maple trees still in the windless night. The sky overhead was still black with its sprinkling of sugar, but something was different. Something was…off.

  And my Gladius, where it was tucked into the waistband of my jeans at my back sent a cool shiver up my spine. I was on my feet before I could blink, and Kayden’s movement followed only a split second later. “What is it?” he asked, his voice hard and low.

  Looking all around me, hands clenched at my sides, I said, “I don’t know.”

  Then the answer struck me like a bolt of lightning, and my brow furrowed in confusion. “The Pixies,” I said. “Look at them.”

  Kayden’s eyes widen when he saw what I was referring to, and a sense of foreboding filled me when I realized that I had never seen Kayden react like that before. My eyes went back to the tiny Pixies, who had stopped their busy work at the flowers and were simply suspended in the air, shimmery wings gone still and useless. The looked very much like little lanterns hung from invisible strings. I noticed that then that the air around us had gone preternaturally still as well, as if a cold-less freeze had fallen over the Outlands. I swallowed a lump I hadn’t known was in my throat. “What’s wrong with them?” I whispered, as if it would be a crime to speak so loudly in such silence.

  Kayden’s voice was flat now, and I recognized it as the tone he used when he was preparing for a battle. “They’re under a spell,” he said.

  “What? Whose spell?”

  “I don’t know, but I have a feeling we’re going to find out.”

  Suddenly the Pixies broke free from their suspension, but their movements were jerky and zombie-like; a complete contradiction to the grace that I had always seemed them move with. They darted and shambled here and there, and a high-pitched buzzing sound filled the air, and it took me a moment to realize that the Pixies were speaking.

  I concentrated on the sound and found that I could understand them, and that they were saying two words: Sun Warrior.

  My eyebrows shot up and I glanced over at Kayden, who shook his head. I could tell by the tense set of his shoulders that he could understand them, too. Now I retrieved my Gladius from its hiding spot but kept the blade in its sheath. This was starting to seriously freak me out, and I’m not someone who freaks out easily.

  “They want me,” I said, and as if I had rung a dinner bell, hundreds of Pixies turned toward me and darted in like tiny colorfully bats out of hell.

  There were so many of them, and though they were small, the onslaught was no less terrifying. It was very much like watching a huge horde of lit of bees come flying at me in unison, and I only had time to shield my face with my arm and duck as though that was going to make a difference. I’m not sure what I expected, maybe tiny stings or bites or burns from the lights that the Pixies glowed with, but I got none of that. When I opened my eyes, I saw that they were simply landing on me. They were landing on me everywhere.

  When I looked down, I saw that my skin was no longer visible, nor my clothes. My entire body, save for my head, was covered in hundreds of colorful little Pixies. When I looked up again, my eyes wide and my throat dry, I saw that Kayden’s face betrayed his emotions, which were wonder and curiosity and horror.

  “What the f—” I began, but didn’t get a chance to finish because now I was being moved forward, seemingly shoved along by the hundreds of little bodies that had attached themselves to me. I felt my feet moving on their own accord, leading me down the red path with no input from me whatsoever. It was an oddly violating feeling, and now a little bit of anger rose in my and I began swiping at the Pixies in an effort to get free. Kayden was moving beside me, and he took my Gladius from my hand, which was swarmed with Pixies up to the blade, without asking.

  “Tell your blade to release for me, Warrior,” he said. “I will cut them off of you.”

  I looked over at my sword in Kayden’s hand and without second though the blade slid out of the handle silently. Kayden raised it slowly, strain on his face as he prepared to cut them down without injuring me. We were moving rather quickly down the path now, and it was not going to be easy. “Wait,” I said, glancing down at the Pixies in their entranced state. “You said they’re under a spell, right? They don’t know what they’re doing. We can’t kill them.”

  Kayden hesitated and eventually lowered the blade. “Then, what?” he said.

  I continued to pluck them off of me, one by one, more gently this time, but gave up when I saw that they just floated back to me like magnets. “I guess let’s just see where they’re taking me,” I said, not sure my own ears liked the sound of that idea.

  You’re damn right I don’t like the sound of that idea, Warrior. Let him kill them and get them off of us!

  “You sound almost panicked, fearsome Monster. I’m surprised with you.”

  Never, my Monster growled in head, and then gave me the equivalent to a mental middle finger.

  If I wasn’t so close to panic myself, I may have laughed. But it became evident where I was being led to, and now I seriously began to worry. Twenty feet ahead and counting, the border of the Outlands was waiting. I realized with a little horror that the Pixies were going to shove me over, where the dark field under the dark skies waited. By the time we reached the border I was ready to say to hell with it and tell Kayden to slice the little bastards in half.

  I didn’t have to. I was stopped with the toes of my shoes just inside the lines, and the Pixies began to flutter away instantly, leaving me feeling oddly naked, even though I was fully clothed. They flew back to their flowers and trees, glancing around as if they didn’t know how they had gotten here. I watched them for a moment before my Monster told me that I was being stupid.

  Why do I always have to remind you to look to where the danger waits, Warrior. Sheesh, what would you do without me?

  “Uh, not be a murderous psycho?”

  Very funny.

  I scanned the field with its tall grass, searching for whomever or whatever had enchanted the Pixies into leading me here, but there was nothing and no one to be seen. Kayden stood beside me, studying the scene as well, and a long moment went by before I said, “Well, that was weird.”

  The look Kayden gave me was one that said this was not the time to make jokes, and I took my Gladius from his hand when he held it out to me.

  “You know what else is weird,” said a voice in the darkness. My head whipped around, searching for its source. It was female, and by her tone I could tell that she was naturally soft spoken, but there was still no one to be seen in the field ahead.

  “What?” I asked the empty air, not knowing what else to do.

  And then the air five feet ahead of me and to my left shimmered, and there stood a girl. She looked to be about my age, with short, lavender-colored hair that was set into curls on side and a little bit of her head shaved o
n the other. She wore very little makeup, but was beautiful in a way that was more interesting than pretty. She wore all black; leather boots with a short heel that came up to her knees, black jeans and a black long-sleeved shirt. A black cloak was tied at her throat, the inside of it a shiny silk that matched the color of her hair hung over her shoulders and down to the ground at her feet. From the little bit of her wrists that was visible, I could see black, indelicate tattoos climbing up and under the shirt. And a look that could only be classified as vengeful was stuck on her face and aimed at me.

  It was almost a shame. A chick that looked as kickass as this, I may have liked if given the opportunity. But her next words said that there would be no such opportunity.

  The girl said, “What’s weird is when your brother goes on a business trip and never returns home. What’s weird is that a little thing such as you could possibly have been his killer, as I will now be yours.” She paused, and a leather gloved hand came up and touched her chin. “Where are my manners? We haven’t been properly introduced. I’m Surah.”

  Nelly

  I snapped out of sleep as though I’d been slapped and sat bolt upright. For a moment, I couldn’t figure out where I was, but when Tommy’s hand fell on my shoulder from where he lay beside me, I remembered falling asleep beside him not too long ago. It was still dark in the room, the city silent outside of the floor to ceiling windows on the west wall. And I was out of bed and moving toward the door before I had a chance to really think about what had jolted me out of slumber.

  “Nelly?” Tommy said, climbing out of bed and rushing over to me.

  I threw the door open without pause. “It’s Alexa,” I said. “Something’s wrong.”

  Dashing out into the hallway and down to the room that Kayden and my sister were sharing, I banged hard on the green door, unmindful of the others that were sleeping in the cabin. “Alexa!” I yelled, leaning against the door. No answer. I twisted the doorknob, a sense of dread coming over me when I found that it was unlocked, and shoved my way into the room.

  They weren’t here.

  “Where are they?” Tommy asked from behind me.

  “I don’t know,” I said, not liking the way the words made my stomach turn. I stared down at the empty bed. “Hold on. I’ll find out.”

  I shut my eyes, not really wanting to do what I was going to, but the worry for my sister trumped any feelings of guilt, and I threw my mind out with more force that I tried for, blanketing the Outlands with it. I cringed when the familiar rush of exhilaration filled me, but reached further and further still with my mental fingers until I found her.

  My heart leapt up into my throat as I opened my eyes and turned to face Tommy in the dark room. “She’s at the border,” I said. And then I was out the door, moving like a hundred mile per hour wind.

  Alexa

  I’m offended, Warrior. What about you?

  I stared at the strange girl in front of me. “Yes,” I told my Monster. “But mostly, I’m confused.”

  “Alexa Montgomery, correct?” asked the lavender-haired girl who called herself Surah. “Such a pleasure it is to meet you. The last Sun Warrior left. It’s almost a shame that I’ll have to kill you.” Her head tilted a fraction. “Actually, not really.”

  This made a harsh laugh escape my throat. “Did you skip your medication or something?” I asked. “I have no idea who the hell you even are.”

  The cool expression on the girl’s face didn’t slip, but hatred burned behind her purple-colored eyes that was so hot I almost took a step back. “Surah Stormsong,” she said, as if this explained everything. “I believe you know my brother, Syris Stormsong.”

  My eyebrows went up. “Uh, no, I don’t. You must be mistaken.”

  Surah’s gloved hands disappeared under her black cloak and emerged holding a sai in each hand. The Warrior in me had to take a minute to admire the weapons, whose three points were silver and sharp. The handles of them were wrapped around with black leather that appeared to be well used. I had never fought anyone with sais before. This was going to be interesting.

  “Will you step over the barrier on your own, Sun Warrior? Or are you a coward?”

  Kayden’s hand shot out and gripped my arm, jolting me a little as I had been half of a heartbeat away from leaping at this girl’s throat. His golden eyes were hard on Surah’s. “What’s your business here, Sorceress?” he asked.

  Surah’s head tilted back, and her voice was too soft and sweet for her words. “That is none of your concern, Libra.” She pointed the tip of the sai in her left hand at me. “Unless you really are a coward, and you need him to fight your battles for you.”

  Now I moved too fast for even Kayden to stop me, leaping over the border with my Gladius in my hand before I had a chance to think about what I was doing. No one—not even some obviously insane chick who thought I’d killed her brother—called me a coward.

  May I have the pleasure, Warrior, my Monster chuckled in my head.

  “Let’s share it.”

  For a moment I was sure that my blade was going to slide right into Surah’s midsection, but amazingly, she blocked my strike, catching my sword between her two sais and deflecting my blow. The weapons made a sharp slicing sound as metal slid over metal. Surah threw her head back and laughed girlishly as I stepped back to calculate a better attack.

  “You’re faster than I expected,” she said. “Good for you.”

  A crooked smile found my lips, and my left eye twitched. “Not so good for you,” I said, moving in to strike again.

  We danced. That is the best way to describe it. Every time I thought that my blade would land home, Surah would parry just at the last moment. Similarly, I blocked and moved away from her strikes in what seemed to me to be just in time. I began to get frustrated, and was consoled only by the fact that Surah’s cool mask was slipping as she too became frustrated. Apparently, she had thought I would be easier to kill.

  Well, that’s a damn big ditto, now ain’t it, Warrior?

  “She’ll slip up eventually.”

  Yes, or we will.

  But Surah did slip up, and I couldn’t help a smug internal smile to my Monster as I saw the opening I needed. It was only the slightest faulted movement on her part, but it was all I needed. That magnificent, terrible feeling rose in my chest, the way it always did when I was heartbeats away from a kill. I ran a tongue over my wet lips, and thrust forward with deadly precision of my blade.

  I roared when my sword halted just before it slid into home plate. I tried to move, and found that I could not. It was as if someone had…

  “What the f—” Surah began, and was cut off when someone behind me said, “Stop.”

  I knew the voice instantly. Nelly.

  Without my having told it to do so, my sword lowered from where it had been aimed at Surah’s heart, and I noticed for the first time the sai in her left hand had been only inches from my own. I guessed she wasn’t the only one that had slipped up.

  Surah’s face was calm and unreadable, but her soft voice was strained when she spoke. “What are you doing to me, demon? Get out of my head!”

  Nelly’s voice filled my head then. Be cool, Alexa, she said, and then she let me go.

  I breathed in and out, sounding very much like an angry wolf, a growl trailing my every breath. I gripped my sword hard in my right hand and swung it back up before I could stop myself, fully intent on removing this girl’s head from her shoulders. Maybe part of me had thought that Nelly would stop me again. But Nelly didn’t, and at the last moment I arched my blade, sending it over Surah’s head rather than through it. I spun around on my heel, my Monster roaring inside my head that I should have finished it. A string of obscenities came out of my mouth and I stalked over to where Nelly, Kayden, and Tommy—who I hadn’t know was here—stood. I felt like a starving animal denied a piece of prime meat.

  When I was safely over the invisible boundary that kept harmful things out of the Outlands, Nelly released the Sorceress fr
om her suspended position. “Cowards,” the girl spat. “You hide behind your border and refuse to fight? I would have expected more from the fearsome Accursed and the Sun Warrior I’ve heard so much about.”

  Nelly stared at the girl for a moment, and I didn’t have to ask to know that she was Searching her. It only took her a flash of a moment, and then Nelly took a deep breath, and I could see sympathy behind her hazel eyes as she looked at Surah. “I’m sorry for your loss,” she said. “But you’ve been lied to. My sister and I did not kill your bother.”

  “Oh, no?” Surah said, her chest heaving and her sais still gripped tightly in her hands. Despite the mask that she had managed to slip back into place, she still looked like she was about two seconds from charging the invisible border. I kind of hoped she would. It would be funny.

  She didn’t. “Then who did?”

  Surprising us all, Nelly stepped over the border before I could stop her. She came to stand face to face with the Sorceress. I tensed, wanting to trust that Nelly could handle herself, but more than uneasy about letting this girl near her. Nelly met the girl’s stare squarely. “I think we have a common enemy,” she said.

  According to plan

  “I have the list for you, your Majesty,” said Andre.

  King William looked up from the paper on which he was writing, and gave his most trusted Warrior a droll stare. “Well, I would say that it’s about time,” he said.

  Andre handed him the list. King William took it between his jeweled fingers and read through the names. Anger flashed inside of him as he saw that the Accursed girl had taken a larger party with her in her escape than he had known. There were even two villagers listed here, their names unfamiliar to him, but the composer of the list had labeled them so.

  “Her power proves greater and greater with each move she makes, Andre,” he said through gritted teeth.

  Andre gave his King his usual level stare. “Yes, I would say so, my King.”