“I hear things are getting a bit exciting down in Tahn,” he said. “Want me to keep on with the journey, or pass over to you?”
“I’m sorry, Barnes,” Cavill rode up to greet Bette with a polite nod. “This isn’t a business trip—I really can’t justify the expense of two escorts.”
“Two?” Bette yelped.
“Cavill, we’re not charging,” Julianne gently explained.
Cavill looked uncomfortable at that. “You’re not? I really can’t accept that. You’ve come all this way, surely you’ll let me—”
“And I wasn’t offering to stay as a hire,” Barnes broke in. “I’ve a mind to see this rift business myself. I’ll plod along, no charge to you.”
Pink flushed Cavill’s cheeks. Curious, Julianne brushed against his mind. The trader really did feel bad about accepting services he hadn’t paid for.
His strong moral code touched Julianne. She smiled at him. “Honestly, Cavill, it’s no bother.”
“Ah.” Cavill looked around and motioned for the rest of his small company to catch up. Two women—one middle aged, one young—and a man who looked to be in his early twenties nudged their horses up to join him. “This is my family. We are all very grateful for your help.”
The older woman came forward. “I’m guessing none of you are Annie?” she said with a grin. “I can’t wait to meet her. Pa has been a whole new person since they met.”
“Hush, Dora.” Cavill blushed again, but Dora just laughed it off.
“I hope she’s not as stodgy as you, Pa. Come on. Let’s go.” She looked around expectantly, and Bette nodded.
“Aye, let’s be off.” She waved and kicked her horse, leading the way back to Tahn.
“So, you’re the mystic queen?” Dora asked, falling in with Julianne.
“Master—I’m far from a queen,” Julianne said.
Dora nodded thoughtfully. “And you’re friends with Annie.”
Julianne nodded. “I am. We all are.”
Dora glanced at Julianne nervously. “This feels like a stupid question, but… she is nice, isn’t she?”
“You haven’t met?” Julianne asked. When Dora shook her head, Julianne understood why the woman seemed skittish. “She’s old. A tough, leathery old woman who could strip your skin off with a few words.”
She waited until that settled over Dora—who, surprisingly, didn’t look at all upset by the description.
“But she’s fiercely loyal, extremely kind, and very protective of those she loves,” Julianne finished.
Dora sighed happily. “That sounds like the woman Pa talked about. Strange—she sounds the exact opposite of Ma, except the kind and loyal part. Ma was as timid as a dormouse. I don’t know how she and Pa ever got anything done between them!”
“Sometimes, love comes from surprising places,” Julianne said, glad Dora seemed taken by the thought of her father seeing someone as tough as Annie could be.
“I think it’s just what he needs,” Dora said. “And he must have fallen hard—the stories about forest monsters and remnant hordes would have him hiding under the bed any other time. Look at him!” She pointed to her father who rode at the front of the group alongside Bette. “He’s not even scared!”
Perhaps he should be, Julianne thought. She kept that to herself, but when she looked up, Marcus gave her a knowing glance. He’d been listening in and had the same thought Julianne had.
Keep your ears open, Julianne sent to him. The lack of remnant about today has me more worried than relieved.
Marcus gave a tiny nod to show he’d heard, then took up conversation with the boy who’d traveled with Cavill and Dora.
“Who’s that?” Julianne asked.
“My son-in-law,” Dora said. “Or, he will be if Amity gets her way.”
“Ah.” The young couple exchanged an infatuated glance as Julianne watched. “They seem happy together.”
Dora rolled her eyes and groaned. “It’s like living in one of those goopy tavern songs. Bitch help me if Pa and his new lady go all soppy like that.”
Julianne couldn’t hold back a giggle. “I promise, Annie is anything but soppy.”
Dora raised a hand to her chest. “Well, thank goodness for that. I’d need a bucket otherwise.”
They travelled on, but Julianne struggled to focus on the light conversation. Her mind kept pulling back to the road, and the eerie silence that followed the travelers.
“And then, Amity told him to—”
“Birds.” Julianne’s sudden thought cut off Dora’s story. “There aren’t any birds today.”
Dora fell silent, immediately alert. Marcus reeled his horse back to Julianne, feeling her sudden spike of worry.
“Marcus, I haven’t heard a single bird since we left the—”
A scream echoed through her mind, shoved into her consciousness by brute force.
Attack!
Bastian’s terrified warning came with a barrage of images. A monstrous man clad in red armor. A cluster of guards and workers, herded into a group in the middle of a clearing. Three lumbering beasts with razor sharp claws and wickedly fast legs trapping them.
Julianne shoved the message at Marcus, Bette, and Garrett.
Fear soaked the air, and the horses shuddered and flinched, dancing in place as their owners strived to calm them.
“Garrett, Barnes—get Cavill and his people to Tahn and barricade the town. Bette, Marcus…”
“Julianne, you can’t!” Marcus yanked on his reins to swing his horse around. “Go with Cavill. We’ll take care of it.”
“The hell you will,” Julianne said. “I’m not missing this for anything!”
She shoved a burst of compulsion at the trader and his family. As one, they kicked their horses and raced for Tahn, Garrett and Barnes beside them.
Marcus stared at Julianne. “Last chance to bail,” he said.
“Ha!” She kicked her horse towards the witchpost.
We’re coming, she sent to Bastian.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Polly rested a hand on Danil’s face. He leaned in for a deep kiss.
Polly yelped. “You prick! What did you do that for?” She touched her lip where he’d bitten it.
“Sorry,” he said, hoarse. His eyes darted left and right, then widened.
Polly jerked back. “What’s wrong?” she asked.
Danil shot to his feet and started pulling on his clothes. Polly quickly grabbed her shirt and yanked it over her head.
“The worksite was attacked,” Danil said. “It’s… bad.”
Polly’s stomach flipped over. “And we’re riding right into the thick of it?” she asked.
He paused. “Unless I can talk you into staying?”
“As if.” Polly stepped into her boots without bothering to lace them. “Your socks are there.” She let her eyes linger on the socks strewn on the table long enough for Danil to get his bearings, then ran outside.
“Tessa!” she cried. “I need your horses!”
Tessa stuck her head out the window next door. “What for?”
“Emergency,” Polly said grimly. She vaulted over the fence and ran to Tessa’s stable.
She hefted a saddle over one of the horses and pulled the straps tight.
“Here,” Tessa said, running in and grabbing another saddle.
“No time,” Polly said. “I’ll go bareback.”
“You ride better that way anyway.” Tessa slipped a bridle onto the second horse while Polly tended to the one Danil would take. “Be careful. Send word when you’re safe.”
“I’ll try,” Polly said.
The stark fear on Danil’s face was like nothing she’d ever seen, and she’d bet her ass that all three mystics would be racing for the same spot. Any messages back to Tahn would have to be taken by hand.
“Tessa…” Polly grabbed the older woman’s hand. “I don’t know what’s going on, but Danil is scared out of his mind. I can’t tell you what to prepare for…”
Tessa gripped Polly’s shoulder. “We’ll prepare anyway. Don’t you worry about us, we’re Tahn. We’ve got this.”
Polly nodded as Tessa swung back the gate. As soon as the horses were outside, Polly vaulted onto the shorter one. “Come on, Danil!” she yelled.
He ran out of their cottage, stumbling over the doorstep. He straightened, then headed for his horse. He swung up without difficulty and grinned. “This is gonna be the craziest thing we’ve ever done.”
“And what is that, exactly?” Polly asked.
“I’ll explain on the way!” He kicked his horse and ran for the gates leading out of Tahn.
“Close the gates!” Danil yelled on the way through, then pulled his horse to a stop.
“Don’t close them!” Polly yelled, seeing the small group of riders racing for safety. “Garrett’s coming!”
The six riders dashed towards Tahn, only pulling their horses up once inside. Garrett kicked his in the ribs and trotted out again.
“Bitch-damned ass of a trick!” he swore. “Use that bloody magic on me, why I oughta—”
“Garrett!” Danil snapped. “Where’s Julianne?”
Garrett looked crestfallen. “Off to have fun without me. Even Bette got to go!”
“You brought these guys in?” Polly asked. Garrett nodded, and she shrugged. “Then come out with us. Sounds like they can use all the help they can get.”
Garrett brightened, then his face hardened. “Nah. Whatever’s got yer master scared is a bad one. There’s no tellin’ who’ll come out on top, and if ye lose out there…” He cast a glance over his shoulder at Tahn.
The streets were crowded with people who’d heard Polly and Danil’s frantic race through town and seen the terrified travelers race inside the gates. Curiosity warred with fear on their faces and a nervous hum vibrated in the air as they muttered.
“Good man,” Danil said. He grinned. “I’ll try and save one for you.”
“Yer a good lad!” Garrett called happily, and the couple turned to go. “Make sure it’s a big’un!”
Bastian, we’re coming, Danil sent, focusing his thoughts through the amphorald at his wrist. He still wasn’t used to using the device, but damn if he wasn’t glad he had it right now.
Hurry, Bastian sent back. These bastards are— he broke off, then resurfaced a moment later. Are bastards.
These bastards are bastards? Danil queried, pushing his horse along with another kick.
Fucking… bastards! Bastian’s mind tried to knit back together. The shock of the attack and a blow to the head didn’t make it any easier to string a thought together.
He risked diverting his attention to look around. Bodies littered the ground, but so did one of the large, long-nosed beasts. The guards and workers alike had fought valiantly, some to the death.
Now, what remained of them faced off against an impossible beast.
The armor-clad man had climbed atop one of the animals it had brought with it. Red metal shone beside the red carapace, and when the light hit them just right, it was like they'd melded into a single creature.
The second beast ducked and wove, snapping claws out at the weary humans. Between attacks, it followed the first, their movements so synchronized Bastian was sure it wasn’t natural.
A growl came from one of them—probably the man, as the beast’s mouth didn’t open. It stalked closer, and the man drew a long, pointed weapon with a wicked curve to it.
We’re here! The thought popped into Bastian’s mind and relief made him sag. Just as hope seeped through him, his enemy screamed, thrusting its covered face towards him.
Bastian flinched, but grit his teeth and endured the loud shriek. He had felt Tansy’s grip on his arm let go and knew she’d moved away.
The beast jerked and screamed, opening the small orifice under its snout to make the high-pitched sound. Bastian’s ears ached, and his head throbbed.
The monster turned and bolted into the trees with its rider. A spear hummed past Bastian’s ear, glanced over the retreating tail of the second creature, and clattered to the ground.
“Fuck,” Mack whispered. “What in the ever-living fuck was that?”
Tansy stepped into Bastian’s view. She held a spear of her own, this one tipped with dark, slimy blood. “I got it!” she crowed. “Right up the ass. It’ll be shitting out of two holes for the rest of its very short life!”
“It’s still out there,” Bastian said quietly. He rubbed his head and tried to shake away the echoes of the piercing scream.
“That knock you took still bothering you?” Tansy asked, worried.
“Not the bump, the sound,” he clarified.
“What sound?” Mack asked. He cocked his head to see if he could hear anything.
“My ears are still ringing, that’s all. From its shriek?” he clarified when Mack and Tansy both looked bewildered.
“Bastian, we didn’t hear a shriek,” Tansy said. “It kind of hummed when I stabbed it, but it wasn't a shriek. I thought I’d missed until I saw the blood.”
Hoofbeats erupted, and Bastian scrambled to his feet.
“It’s gone,” he told Julianne. “Ran off into the bushes. Two beasts left, and the… man-thing.”
“One’s injured?” Julianne asked. “I heard it scream.” She shuddered at the memory.
Bastian raised his eyebrows to Tansy. “See! I don’t know how you didn’t hear it.”
“Well, I didn’t hear it either,” Bette said. “No bloody clue what she was talkin’ about. But I guess if ye heard it yerself, she didn’t imagine it.”
“It must have to do with mind-links,” Julianne said. “Perhaps… the one we saw at the rift screamed so everyone could hear. Maybe this is a more evolved species. It must communicate telepathically.”
“Well then, how did he hear it,” Bette asked. She jabbed a hand behind her where Marcus was walking his horse into the clearing, hands clapped over his ears.
“He’s a mystic, but he just won’t admit it,” Julianne said.
“Bullshit!” Marcus snapped. “I can block, but I don’t have an ounce of magic in me.”
“Then what do ye call blockin’?” Bette asked.
“Iron will,” Marcus growled. He stuck a finger in his ear and wiggled it. “Next theory?”
“The monster’s scream is a psychic defense,” Julianne said. “We already know Ardie is sensitive around magic, and I mind-read him, so there’s got to be—”
“You what?” Marcus screeched. “When?”
“Yesterday,” Julianne said calmly.
“Yesterday? Who were you with—DANIL! I’m going to roast that bastard!”
“Please, I beg you, no,” Danil said jovially behind them.
Marcus swung around, fists balled.
“Come on, man. Have you ever tried to stop Jules from doing something she was hell bent on?” Danil asked.
“You said it was dangerous!” Marcus said to Julianne. “Too dangerous for Bastian to try.”
“It was,” Julianne said. “But not so dangerous that it wasn’t worth doing. Besides, Danil was there to pull me out if I needed it.”
Marcus lifted his hands in the air, then dropped them to his sides. “Can’t leave you alone for a day!” he muttered.
“Mmm,” Julianne agreed. “You probably can’t. I’m a bit of a troublemaker, aren’t I?”
Bastian rubbed the back of his neck. “Sorry to interrupt, guys… but what the fuck are we going to do?”
“We need to shut down that Bitch-damned portal,” Bette said. “Before that bastard pulls through another army of… whatever those things were.”
“I think I know how to do it,” Julianne said. “Jessop?”
The old man limped forwards. Blood dripped from a lump on his scalp, but his eyes were bright, and he seemed alert. “Yes, ma’am?”
“I need you to build us something,” Julianne said. “But we need to do it in a hurry… and we need to build it at the rift. Get your men to bring whatever supplies they
need. We leave now.”
Jessop paled.
“Men!” Mack yelled. “You hear that? We’re going to the rift, and we’re going to stop these hellspawn coming through!”
A weak cheer rose through the crowd, and Mack shrugged one shoulder up. “I tried. Gotta be honest, I’m not too excited about going back, either.”
“It’ll be fine,” Julianne said. “What’s the worst that can happen?”
They moved as one big group, carefully spreading out along the path towards the rift and staying as quiet as they could.
Bette was the first to step into the carnage.
“Oh, Lewis,” she said. “Ye poor wee bastard.”
Lewis’s legs had been torn off his body and tossed on the ground. A few steps further, and she found the rest of the corpse.
The men looked to have put up a valiant fight. Bruises on arms and legs and faces showed they’d fought. Crushed hands and broken fingers suggested they’d fought hard.
Still, with only three men free to guard the portal while the rest of the crew had gone to make sure the workers were safe, they hadn’t been able to fend off whatever attack they had faced.
“Did they come back here?” Mack asked, voice low and weapon high.
Julianne shook her head. “I don’t think something came into the camp. I think something escaped from it.”
She pointed at the ground, where thin, spiked prints marked the soft dirt.
“Two claws and long feet,” Marcus said, bending down for a closer look. “But either this guy stayed around and danced the night away, or…” he trailed off.
“Or there was more than one,” Bette said. “A whole damned lot more than one. And this isn’t one of the wee beasties that knocked ye on yer ass,” she pointed out.
Marcus coughed. “I wouldn’t say I was on my ass, exactly.”
“We have to get back to Tahn,” Julianne said. “But not until we block off this portal.”
“What if the bastards head to Tahn?” Marcus asked. “We can’t leave the town undefended.”
“If we don’t shut down their access to our world, the fat pricks will keep dragging their scaled asses over,” Bette pointed out. “And if we don’t have the men to fight the goat-fuckers off, we’re fucked.”
A New Dawn- Complete series Page 92