Chosen Sister

by Ardyth DeBruyn

  Austyn sat down and watched her carefully for a few minutes before taking a few grapes. Reina smiled to see that, after a few bites, he ate as furiously as she was.

  “Merrrow?”

  Reina turned. A sleek, red-gold cat sat between the table and the fire. It had black markings along its eyes, the tips of its ears, and its paws. Its yellow eyes fixed on Reina’s plate.

  “Oh, are you hungry too?” she asked, grinning.

  “Rrrow.”

  Normally, her parents didn’t hold with feeding animals, but the cat looked so well-kept and regal, Reina felt sure it belonged to whoever owned the castle. Surely they fed their pet good food and wouldn’t mind if she shared. And even if the wizard, or whoever owned this place, did mind, looking at the pitiful expression of the cat, Reina decided she didn’t care. They had plenty more food here than either of them could eat at the moment. She scanned the little table and grabbed a tea saucer. She ripped off some turkey, put it in the saucer, and set it on the floor.

  The cat tucked in as if it had been starving. Reina giggled.

  “Let’s give it some milk too,” Austyn said, grabbing the little milk pitcher from next to the teapot. He put his saucer on the floor and poured the milk into it. The cat started to purr and lapped it up.

  As they continued to eat, Reina’s eyes drooped. She was exhausted. Part of her wanted to keep searching for the Green Wizard—he ought to be around here somewhere—but she was too tired. A stuffed chair stood next to the fireplace. Perhaps if she just sat down for a bit, she’d feel up to it in a minute. She dragged herself over to the chair, and Austyn joined her. It was plenty large enough for both of them.

  The cat stalked over, staring up at them again with big golden eyes. Reina patted her lap, and it jumped up. Together they ran their hands across its fur as it kneaded their legs. Within minutes, all three of them fell asleep.

  A gentle touch to Reina’s face woke her. She opened her eyes. Two large amber eyes looked intently at her face. The cat gently tapped her cheek again with its paw. She yawned and stretched. The cat jumped down. Austyn remained asleep, his curls sticking up every which way. She smiled and gently shook him awake. He looked confused for a second.

  “I thought for a moment we were home again,” he said in a quiet voice.

  “Don’t worry, we’ll get home someday,” Reina replied. “Mama and Papa will be waiting for us, and everything will be like it was before, only better, because there’ll be no harpies or Red Wizard.”

  “I miss Mama and Papa.” Austyn sniffed. “What if we don’t ever get back?”

  “We will. I promise.”

  “Meow!”

  The cat interrupted their discussion. They both stared down at it. It started pacing back and forth, tail straight in the air, looking over its shoulder at them before coming back, rubbing against their legs, and then heading away again. Reina and Austyn looked at each other in surprise.

  “I guess we’d better do what it wants,” Reina said, standing up.

  The cat crashed its head against her leg, purring, and she reached down to scratch it behind the ear. Suddenly, it turned and headed across the hall. They followed. The cat led them out of the hall, into a corridor with one side covered in more unicorn tapestries, the other in arched windows that looked out on the most beautiful garden Reina had ever seen. She stopped for a moment to gaze at it, all the carefully trimmed trees and bushes, beds of gorgeous flowers, and in the center, a fountain with a marble unicorn rearing up amid the water.

  An impatient meow from the cat made her rip herself away. They continued past the garden until they reached the bottom of a curling staircase. Reina guessed this led to one of the castle’s towers. The cat started up and turned to stare at them as if to ask, “Well, aren’t you coming?”

  “We are, we are,” she told it and started up the stairs.

  Austyn giggled. “You’re talking to a cat.”

  “Well, it’s not any ordinary cat—it’s a magic cat.”

  “How do you know?”

  “It doesn’t act like a normal cat.”

  “Ha. I think it does.”

  Reina glared at him. “What would you know about it?”

  “I’m the one who used to play with all the cats, not you. They all act like they know everything, and we’re the dumb ones.”

  Reina shrugged. “Whatever.”

  Just when she began to think the stairs would never end, they reached the top. The cat sat next to the wooden door at the top, waiting for them. Reina opened it and stepped in. She gasped. The room was entirely white, with windows all around the walls and a white altar in the middle of the room, covered by a white cloth. On it lay the most beautiful sword Reina could ever have imagined.

  She had only seen a couple before, rusty and plain. This sword looked brand new and polished. Sun glinted off the long blade. She stepped closer. The handle was inlaid with gold and wrapped in light brown leather. The cross piece had two silver running unicorns engraved on it, with their horns meeting in the center, and on the pommel was another unicorn, this one standing still and looking over its shoulder.

  Grasping the sword gently, she turned it over. The pommel on the other side had a unicorn rearing, although the crosspiece was the same. On the blade three runes were etched, but of course she couldn’t read them. She knew it probably wasn’t proper to handle the sword, but something about it drew her to it. She lifted it, pointing the blade outward. The balance felt right—solid enough to control, but not so heavy as to hurt her arms.

  She smiled. Warmth spread through her, humming gently through her arms, and she gave the sword a few swings. It seemed to guide her motions, to whisper to her how to use it. It felt in every way hers. Reina pointed it downward and sighed. It was so beautiful, and she wanted it more than anything, but was it wrong to take it? Then a new and saddening thought hit her. Was this the Sword of Chivalry? The Gold Wizard didn’t say anything about unicorns, and besides, he said it was in a cave, not a castle. This can’t be it … it’s a different sword, the Unicorn Sword.

  She turned to look at Austyn, who stared at it.

  “I think it’s meant for me.” The words just popped out of her mouth.

  Austyn frowned. “But what if it belongs to someone else—like the Green Wizard?”

  Reina shook her head, her conviction growing. “I don’t think this is the Green Wizard’s house. The Gold Wizard didn’t mention dragons or magic arches or cats or unicorns or anything else we’ve seen here. I think this place is for this sword—The Unicorn Sword. And I think it wants us to take it along with us.”

  “How do you know that?”

  “I don’t know, but I think it wants me to have it.” She set the sword down, but all her being wanted to pick it up again and keep it. With an effort, she stepped back. “You pick it up and see what happens.”

  Austyn still looked worried. He stepped forward, examining it. He reached out but stopped short of touching it and withdrew his hand.

  “Go on. You’re going to have a sword soon, the Sword of Chivalry. You should try this one out and see what it feels like.”

  Still frowning, Austyn lifted it with both hands. He quickly dropped it back, and it landed on the altar with a clank. “It’s too heavy!”

  Before she really knew it, Reina grabbed the sword again. It felt right to hold it. “I’m taking it with us. I’ll need a sword, too, when we face the Red Wizard, and I don’t think the Gold Wizard will bother to get me one.”

  Austyn looked wary but didn’t object.

  But how would she carry it? Reina glanced around and found a belt and scabbard on the altar that she hadn’t seen earlier. Had she just missed them? She decided not to ponder it. Instead, she buckled it on, finding it fit her perfectly, and slid the sword into the sheath. Done, she headed back to the doorway. The cat had disappeared.

  Reina led the way down the stairs and through the hall. Outside, she noticed the garden was no longer beautiful, but an empty waste with sticks
of dead trees. With a shiver, she picked up their pace. Austyn practically had to run to keep up. Behind them, she heard a rumble and knew more than saw when she glanced over her shoulder that the tower crumbled behind her.

  “Run!”

  Everything stood out clearly as she ran. She knew each turn of the castle, each room. They pounded through the fire room. The arch no longer held the blue magic force field. Then they returned to the dusty dining hall, the front door ahead. The rumbling behind them grew louder and more fearsome. Austyn stumbled, and Reina paused to wait for him to scramble to his feet. Finally, they dashed out into the courtyard.

  Reina let her breath out in a whoosh of relief. The dragon had disappeared. She ran across the open space. Behind them the dark towers of the castle were collapsing. “Hurry!”

  The portcullis was up, and they dashed into the archway. Above their heads, the walls rumbled. Austyn dropped behind a pace, and a crash sounded. Reina whirled. A boulder had fallen from the ceiling, the force tumbling Austyn to the ground. She rushed to him.

  “Ouch!” He scrambled up. “I scraped myself. We gotta get out.”

  Reina shoved him forward. “You first.”

  Austyn dashed across the drawbridge. Reina followed, hearing the wood creaking behind her. As her feet left the drawbridge, it crumbled into the moat. She turned around and, with a terrific rumble, the entire castle collapsed into a pile of rubble.

  “What about the cat?”

  Reina turned. Tears ran down Austyn’s face. Her own eyes grew moist at the thought that the cat might be somewhere under that heap of stones, but she gathered Austyn in her arms and reassured him anyway.

  “It was already gone. I bet it knew what was going happen and got out before we did.”

  “You really think so?”

  “Yeah, I’m sure it’s safe. It was a smart cat, remember?” I hope the dragon got crushed, though. It was pretty rude. She glanced at the still intact green waters of the moat. It occurred to her that they should move away from here, just to be safe. “Well, now that we’re back in the woods, let’s see if we can find that Green Wizard.”

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  Chapter Eleven: The Shadowsoul

  While Reina had no clearer an idea of where to go after the castle than before it, she felt more confident. Somehow, facing the ordeal of the castle gave her a sense that she could handle things. Or perhaps it was the Unicorn Sword hanging at her side. It gave her confidence against facing more snakewolves, never mind the fact that she had never used a sword. In her hand, the Unicorn Sword directed her movements of its own accord. So Reina made a guess as to which direction was northwest, and they started off again in search of the path and the elusive Green Wizard.

  For a while, her confidence held. Sun patterned the forest floor, allowing her to find a clear path through the trees. She half-expected to come across the path and the Green Wizard’s house at any moment. Just a day ago, everything had felt hopeless, and now it seemed reasonable that the two wizards would train Austyn, and then the two of them could destroy anything together, even the Red Wizard.

  At first, Reina didn’t notice the darkness. When she did, it seemed a bit like twilight, and it didn’t register that it wasn’t yet midday. The wind picked up, creating a chill, but she just quickened their pace. Finally once heavy mists blocked out most of the sunlight, and she glanced at Austyn and noticed his arms around his body and his teeth chattering. Only then did she have the first inclination something was wrong.

  She glanced at a nearby bush. Frost formed on its branches. She shivered, confused. It shouldn’t be this cold. With that realization came a terrible feeling of foreboding. Something terrible stalked them. Reina turned to find the trees behind them cloaked entirely in shadow.

  “Austyn,” she whispered, her breath coming out frosty white. Her eyes went wide. “Run!”

  She grabbed his hand and started running. With terror coursing through her, they dashed through the woods, trying to escape the dark and cold. They crashed through bushes, branches tearing at their arms and legs. Reina led them weaving around trees and rocks, scrambling under logs or over boulders. Now, and then she glanced back, but the dark and cold seemed to be gaining.

  Her final look cost her—she fell flat. Austyn’s tear-stained face stared down at her.

  “Keep running!” she yelled at him, struggling to get to her feet, but he didn’t. He just stood there, eyes wide and face pale.

  Once on her feet, she realized it was too late. Dark clouds surrounded them. How do you fight darkness? It started twisting and changing. It took the form of a dark bear, then a bat, then a vulture. Reina and Austyn backed up until they hit a tree as the shadow moved closer.

  “What is it?” Austyn whispered.

  The darkness seemed to whisper back, “Shadowsoul.”

  A deep, consuming hunger emanated from it, and Reina felt its desire to devour them. Then the darkness changed shape again, into a tall, black human figure with a cape, and she instinctively knew it was the shape of the Red Wizard. Unlike the monsters they had met before, she felt no determination to survive as it drew near. It held her, mesmerized and shaking.

  White erupted between them and the shadowsoul. Reina gasped. A unicorn appeared before them. Its long silver horn flashed, and light broke through where it stood, expanding to include both children in its circle. The shadowsoul broke form into an undefined mass of darkness, and the unicorn charged at it. The shadowsoul flew, with the unicorn chasing after it, back into the woods. Reina blinked several times, feeling lost. The sun came back, and the woods warmed. She glanced at Austyn; he looked dazed too.

  She heard footsteps and looked up again. The unicorn had returned. It lowered its head until its horn pointed right at her forehead.

  Fear not. The words echoed in her head, and then the unicorn disappeared. Something on the ground sparkled, and Reina looked down and gave a cry of surprise. The sword, her sword, lay on the ground in front of her, the tip facing her. She clapped her hand to the scabbard. Sure enough, it was empty. She shook her head to clear it; she didn’t remember drawing the sword. What was it doing there?

  She stepped forward and grabbed the handle. A tingle ran down her arm, and she almost dropped the sword.

  “Weird,” she muttered. “We’d better get moving.”

  Austyn, still silent, nodded and followed.

  The woods seemed to go on forever. Austyn didn’t look very well either—his face had turned a sickly, pale color. When they came across a stump, Reina sat down on it and patted the place next to it.

  “Let’s take a rest.”

  Austyn shook his head. “The shadowsoul is still following us. I can feel it trying to find us again. We have to keep going.”

  “What?” Reina gave him a confused look.

  “I said, I can feel it!” Austyn stamped his foot. “Like a big ugly lump in the back of my head. It’s still looking for us.”

  Reina’s stomach tightened. She guessed the magic let him sense it, and she didn’t like it. She got up with a sigh.

  “Fine, we’ll keep going. But I have no idea where. We’re lost.” Tears sprang to her eyes, and despite her intention to keep her fears to herself, they came tumbling out. “We’ll never find the Gold and Green Wizards. We’ll just wander around in this stupid forest forever.”

  Austyn buried his face in her shirt, letting slip a little sob. Reina felt terrible for having discouraged him like that, but the shadowsoul had shattered her confidence. Within moments, they’d both started crying. A gentle touch on her shoulder made Reina look up—straight into the face of the unicorn.

  “Oh,” she cried, wiping away the tears.

  Austyn went quiet mid-sob. He stared at the unicorn. Confidence rushed through Reina, and she stood up straighter. It’s going to help us. She couldn’t get the words out, though. Her tongue felt stuck to the roof of her mouth. The unicorn bowed its head at them, turned and started walking away. Austyn slipped his hand into hers
, and Reina followed it. It walked slow enough that they never lost sight of it and picked paths they found fairly easy to follow.

  Evening came, turning the leaves above them shades of gold. Light bathed the tree trunks in yellow, making the bark glisten. Birds twittered above them, and animals began coming out—foxes, raccoons, weasels, wolves, even a bear. They stopped, staring at the unicorn as it passed. Reina felt no fear, only wonder, following in its wake.

  The sun went down. The unicorn glowed softly in the light of the rising moon. Still it walked ahead, and they continued to follow. Moonlight turned the forest silver. The shadows of the leaves patterned the ground under their feet. Everything wrapped together into the endless woods. Reina couldn’t tell if she was awake or asleep, only that she still walked on.

  They came to a clearing, a little circle of grass surrounded by huge trees. In the center on a rock sat the Gold Wizard, his head in his hands. Crying? Austyn ran forward, past the unicorn. The Gold Wizard turned towards them, his tears sparkling like stars as they ran down his cheeks. Austyn threw his arms around his neck. The Gold Wizard gave a half-choked cry and returned the embrace. Wonder danced in his eyes.

  Reina gazed at the unicorn. She held out her hand to it, and it blew hot air on her and nuzzled her palm. Silver light flashed, and the unicorn sword appeared in her hand in its place. Reina almost dropped it in surprise but managed to hold on. She sheathed it and turned back to Austyn and the Gold Wizard. Neither of them seemed to have noticed what had just happened.

  “What’s wrong?” Austyn asked the Gold Wizard.

  “The Green Wizard is dead.” The Gold Wizard shook his head. “Murdered by snakewolves.”

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  Chapter Twelve: Flight to the Mountains

  “What?” Reina stared at the Gold Wizard in shock. She couldn’t believe what he’d just said.

  “After we got separated, I couldn’t find you anywhere, so I decided to continue on to the Green Wizard’s place and ask him to help find you. When I got there, everything was torn apart, and he was dead. More of the snakewolves attacked me, and I barely escaped.” He shook his head. “It’s terrible—the woods are crawling with them.”