Anastasia (The Bolton Series Book 1)

by Heaven Lyanne Flores

  The smaller guard looked at Yelson as best he could without moving his head. He knew what was coming. Yelson’s hand glowed to life with the fire that was built up inside of him. He placed his hand over the guard’s heart. I could hear the guard screaming in his mind. He begged Yelson to stop but he couldn’t hear him, only I could.

  I closed my mind from theirs and focused on the sword in my hand. Yelson was right to try to protect me from seeing that. I couldn’t handle it. When he moved I saw what he did.

  A hole was burned into the guard’s chest where his heart once was. His lifeless eyes were open from my spell and stared at me. Even if I wasn’t the one who took his life I still felt the guilt. He was only doing what he was told to and that cost him his life.

  Yelson finished with the second guard. He walked to me and held me close to him. I heard their bodies hit to floor when I let go of my spell. The sound made me cringe.

  “Annie, you have to be strong. I know this isn’t what you wished to happen but it has too. You can’t let it get to you or you are going to be a mess when you face Daruka.” His hand brushed back my hair as he spoke. He was trying to calm me and I was grateful but he was right. I had to toughen up even if it was just an act.

  “The sun is down. We need to go,” I said as I walked out of embrace. I moved towards the door trying not to look at the guards bodies.

  Yelson moved the brush that covered the door away. It revealed a small wooden door with carving marked in it. I remembered them from the book Emilie had given me. They were prevention symbols to keep evil out. The door had cracked through each of the five intricate triangles, breaking their protection which is how I’m guessing Daruka got into the beehive.

  Yelson opened the door revealing a long hall. Its walls held torches to light up the path. No one was there so we quickly entered. He grabbed one of the torched and began to move down the hall. I quickly followed next to him.

  The hall twisted and turned for what seemed like forever before giving way to a huge room with four other halls. We could hear the sound of people moving throughout them. Yelson moved down the farthest right. His hand wrapped around mine to make sure I was keeping up with him.

  At the end of the hall was a cliff that let us see what lay inside the mountain. Rows and rows of houses surrounded one giant common space filled with creatures. Simon was right, this was an underground village.

  We stayed hidden in the shadow of the hall. Hundreds of goblins, elves, giants, and many more I didn’t know moved around the area. The center was set up like a market place to find everything you needed to kill someone.

  There were hundreds of stands filled with weapons and food. Two of the only things they needed here.

  Everyone was carrying some sort of weapon, mostly swords. They were ready for an attack. Here we were giving them just what they wanted.

  An explosion rang out from the north side, opposite of where we were. I held on to Yelson’s hand tighter as I imagined the mountain collapsing on us. Then I remembered that this place was created by magic and probably couldn’t.

  Everyone ran to the source of the sound. My heart beat rose as I thought of my father and Cabel fighting everyone who was now rushing to them. We had to find Daruka fast before something happened to them.

  Yelson pulled me to run to down the steps to where the houses began. Only a few creatures remained but they didn’t notice us as we slipped past them to the houses. Small alleys separated each row of houses. Three main streets split the sections in half.

  We stopped at one of the houses closer the center. Yelson pushed me through it and closed the door, locking it behind us. What I thought was a house wasn’t. It was just an empty room with one staircase in the middle that went down into the ground.

  The torch that Yelson still held lit up the stairs as we descended. It must have gone down three floors before it ended in a tunnel. We followed it until we came to two huge stone doors.

  “He has to be in there.”

  “How are we going to get in?” Without even trying I knew the door would be locked and it was enchanted to withstand any form of magic.

  Yelson went through different plans in his head faster than I could keep up with.

  “He needs to see you. He has to know you are here.”

  “So then he will come to me.”

  “Yes.” Yelson grabbed my hand again and ran back the way we came. We went back up the steps. “Once he knows you are here you’ll be able to get him because he will let himself be seen.”

  “Yelson are you telling me that I have to fight first. Kill people.”

  “I’m sorry Annie but it’s the only way I can think of right now.” He knew how much I hated the idea of killing anything. I wasn’t a murderer. But if I wanted to defeat Daruka I had to.

  I held my sword tighter in my hand. It was all I had to protect myself and was all I needed. I nodded for him to open the door. This was going to be the fight of our lives. And I was prepared. Yelson pulled out his own sword from its stealth. He discarded the torch.

  “I won’t leave you Annie,” he promised and he gave me a hug. “Never.”

  He let me go and opened the door. I followed him out. No one was on our block. We walked against the walls as we entered the main street.

  I saw a goblin run at us when we entered. He screamed as he tried to stab me with his sword. He didn’t notice Yelson as he grabbed his hand and ran his sword through the goblins chest.

  It’s yelling had attracted others. Three other goblins and two elves ran to us at all directions. One of the elves had reached me first.

  I blocked its hit with my sword. A blue fire exploded where the swords had connected. I retracted my hands and shoved the tip of my sword into its shoulder. It cried as it burned from the inside out. A blue flame erupted from the Siren symbol and its chest before it turned to ash. I didn’t have time to acknowledge the fact that I killed something before another goblin came running at me.

  His long hands held a club with nails poking out of the top. He moved it to hit my side but I moved out of its way just in time. We moved circled each other before it attempted once again to hit me with me club. One of the nails had connected with my arm and pulled my skin away with it as the goblin moved the club towards him.

  It jumped with joy at seeing my skin on its weapon. I used that time to plunge my sword into its chest. Its cat-like eyes grew wide with fear as it burst into flames.

  The strega symbol on my sword glowed bright as it healed my wound. My skin repaired itself in just seconds. I didn’t have time to be amazed before two more creatures were on me.

  The taller, red one threw himself at me while the other blocked my sword from hitting him. He collided with my side bring us both to the ground. His huge fist connected with my face causing a small cut under my eye. I could feel the sword start to heal me but it was cut short when he hit me again and again. The second one held my arms down while the red one attacked me.

  The hits to my face caused my mind to be a blur. I couldn’t think of anything to help me escape from the blows.

  He stopped out of nowhere. His eyes grew wide as a scream exploded from his mouth. Flames burst out of his heart and he was pushed to the side. The hands that held me instantly let me go.

  Yelson stood over me. His eyes were red, the same that Mari’s had turned. He looked pissed beyond words as he helped me up. He had a gash along his jaw line and on his shoulder but he didn’t seem to mind.

  “I guess that sword does really work,” he said as he touched my cheek where I was getting hit. The only thing there to prove what had happened was a little bit of blood.

  I moved my hand to his shoulder. Purple mist floated between us as I healed him. I did the same to his jaw.

  “Yea. It does.” I looked around us.

  At least twelve bodies littered the floor of the small alley. All of them burned one way or another. I eyed the two piled of ashes next to where I stood. I had done that. I had killed the two things. I thou
ght I would feel guilty like I did with the goblins outside but I didn’t. I was glad at what I did. They attack Yelson and me and deserved what they got.

  No one else had come our way. I could hear the sounds of the battle going on around us. I heard the screams of people dying,

  saw flames rise against the mountain’s walls. It would only be a matter of time before the smoke kills us all if we didn’t get out of here soon.

  “Let’s go find Daruka.”

  Yelson took my hand and we ran back to the house. We ran straight to the stairs before we realized our mistake. We didn’t check to see if the house was empty. Just as I was about to turn around my world went black.

  ~*~

  When I came to I was on the floor. My hands were tied behind me. I couldn’t see anything around me as there was no light in the room.

  I tugged at my bindings to see how tight they were. I moved my hands as much as I could away from each other but it did nothing to loosen it. I pictured the rope breaking, my hands moving away from each other. Still nothing happened.

  The torches that lined the side of the room lit up the moment two doors opened. Too trolls entered and walked straight to me. They lifted me up from the ground and sat me in a chair. My hands were still tied behind me so I could barely move in the chair.

  Daruka then entered. He looked like a prince from an old fairytale. He wore black tight fitting pants and shirt with a very elaborate tunic. It was dark blue with embroidery around the edges. He smiled when he saw me.

  “My dear princess. You have finally come.” He moved to a table on the far end of the room and poured himself a drink. “I must say you know how to keep a man waiting.”

  “Where are Yelson and my sword?”

  “Oh those things, I threw them out. You won’t need them.”

  “You bastard,” I yelled as I tried to get out of the chair. The trolls grabbed my shoulders and pushed me back down. I fought against them but it was of no use.

  He killed Yelson. I didn’t care for my plan anymore. He was going to die I was done trying to find a way around it.

  “You are just like your mother. You let love blind you. If you let that go you would see what I see in this world. The potential these creatures have on earth.” He put his glass down on the desk next to me and moved to stand over me. His blue eyes sparkled at me. “Just think, being the princess of two planets. You would have everything you wish.”

  “I wish you dead,” I spat as I once again tried to fight against the men who held me down. Their nails dug into my skin causing me to cry in pain. Daruka smiled at the sound.

  “I have a different plan in mind princess,” he whispered in my ear because calling for the guards outside. “Bring the girls in.”

  I looked frantically at who he would be bringing in. My heart broke when I saw my mom walk in holding Arabella in her arms. They both looked like they had been through hell.

  My mom’s clothing hung in rags around her small body. Dirt covered her exposed skin as well as dried blood. Her hair was unevenly cut short around her once beautiful face. It made her seem more scared than anything.

  Arabella was unconscious in my mom’s arms. She wore the same green dress as the day the village was attacked. It was tattered and dirty. I panicked when she didn’t wake up. It was too much like the attack on Weldon’s birthday but this time I wasn’t sure if she would wake up or not.

  “Mom?” I croaked through the lump in my throat. Her sad eyes looked at me as they began to shed tears.

  “You shouldn’t have come here Annie.” Her small voice seemed different than I remembered. She sounded broken.

  “What’s wrong with Arabella?” I asked ignoring what she said.

  “Oh don’t worry about her,” Daruka said. His tall body leaned against a desk just next to the chair I was in. “It is a simple sleeping spell. It should be wearing off soon actually.”

  As if on cue Arabella started to stir in my mom’s arms. She groggily looked around the room. Her blue eyes stopped at Daruka. She knew who he was.

  “Arabella, don’t look at him okay. Just look at my mom, don’t take your eyes off her.”

  She started crying but did what I said. My mom tried to calm her down as much as she could. She whispered words to her that I couldn’t hear. Arabella slowly nodded and covered her ears while keeping her eyes on my mom.

  “What do you want?” I asked through my teeth. He knew I would do anything for them.

  “But we are just getting started.” He motioned for the guards to take them out of the room. I didn’t protest. They couldn’t see what was going to happen in that room. Daruka grabbed his glass and pulled a chair in front of me. “I need to see just how far you will go.”

  “For what?”

  “Love,” he whispered as he took a sip of his drink. “Your mother died for it. I’m sure your father and friends are dying for it too. It is a stupid thing if you ask me. It makes one weak and vulnerable. It blinds them from seeing things. From seeing the truth. I have no love and look at me now. I’m more powerful than you can ever think.”

  “Yet, I’m the only one who can stop you.”

  “Ah, dear princess, in order for you to stop me you would need to have a chance. Let’s face it.” He stood up from the chair. The sound of the glass being set on the table echoed through the now silent room. “You don’t.”

  He turned around and walked out the door. The trolls followed him. Once the doors closed the torches went out submerging me once again into darkness.

  ~*~

  Hours pasted by as I was left alone in the room. No one ever came to check on me. My wrists were bloody from trying to get out of the rope that bounded my wrists together. The room must have been enchanted to prevent me from casting spells because everything I tried failed hopelessly.

  My eyes had already adjusted to the darkness so I looked around for something that could help me cut the rope.

  The large room had three tables. A small one on the far wall that held drinks and glasses, the desk next to me, and one large one behind me. It held eight chairs and was set up for a dinner but there were no utensils and nothing around me looked sharp enough to cut the rope.

  I somehow managed to get out of the chair after a few minutes of wiggling around and almost falling on my face. After a quick search around the room I found nothing. The closest thing that I could get to cut the rope was a table edge but that would take a while. I wasn’t sure how much more time I had before Daruka decided to make another appearance.

  I looked at the paintings on the walls. They were all of landscapes. The only one I recognized was of the mountain we were in. I noticed one painting had a chipped frame. It looked sharp enough to cut the rope.

  I pressed my back to it to keep it steady and worked my wrists around the corner. It took a few minutes but the rope started to loosen.

  Footsteps echoed in the hall outside the doors. I ran back to my chair and sat down just as the doors began to open. Daruka walked in. I really wanted to smack that smile off his face.

  “I thought you would like some company.” Two guards walked in dragging someone behind them. One of the guards was in my view so I couldn’t see who it was. As soon as they dropped the person all three men left the room.

  Yelson was in a crumpled heap on the floor where they left him. His shirt had been torn to shreds and his torso was full of cuts. His face was swollen to the point where he couldn’t see and could barely talk.

  “Yelson,” I cried as I ran out of the chair to him. I freaked when I didn’t see him move. “Yelson, wake up.”

  “Annie,” he whispered when he felt me fall to the ground next to him.

  “Yeah, it’s me,” I sighed with relief. I wanted to brush back the hair from his face but my hands were still confined to my back. I pulled against them one more time. They loosened a little more but not enough. “Don’t worry. We’re going to get out of this. I promise you.”

  “Nice to see one of us thinks so.” He tried to lau
gh but instead cried in pain. It hurt me to see him this broken. He was always so strong.

  “Can you heal yourself? They bound my hands and I don’t think my spells are working.”

  “No. I’m fine.”

  “You’re beaten to a pulp Yelson. You. Are. Not. Fine,” I said.

  He sighed at my words. He didn’t want to believe that he was as bad as he felt. He had to be strong for the both of us. In his mind I knew he could tell I was panicking a little. It was in my voice.

  “Turn around,” he croaked at me. He winced in pain one more time before I turned around/ His eyes had shut again and his breath became even more irregular.

  I did as he said. After a few seconds I felt a slight heat at my wrist. It wasn’t enough to burn me. Yelson told me to pull and when I did the rope fell to the ground. When I turned around Yelson was passed out on the floor.

  “Yelson.” I shook his body to wake him up. “Yelson please wake up. I need you.”

  I placed my head against his chest to listen for a heartbeat or the sound of his breathing. There was no sound. His lungs had stopped breathing and his heart lost its beat.

  “No, no, no, no, no,” I cried as I held him to me. “You can’t leave me too. Please Yelson wake up. Wake up. I can’t do this on my own. You promised me you would be there for me.”

  I couldn’t control the sobs that escaped me. He couldn’t be dead. I refused to let myself believe it. Yelson was there for me since day one. He made sure that I was safe and prepared for anything. He wouldn’t leave me like that.

  “Come on Yelson you have to open your eyes. I don’t think I can do this without you. You’re my guard, my best friend. I need you. If you don’t come back to me I think I may just give up. There is no way I can do this without you. We’re a team, remember?”

  I held my breath for a whole minute waiting for him to open his eyes or gasp for breath like they did in the movies. He had to. Yelson wasn’t one to give up so easily. He would come back to me. I just had to give it some time.