by P D Atkerson
Pushing down his feelings, Aroron looked around and for the first time noticed that he was higher up on the mountain side than he'd thought, and a path (almost completely covered in snow) lay before him.
Aroron gritted his teeth and took a step forward. The snow crunched under his boots. The echo was followed by a soft groan.
He froze.
Someone was following him.
Aroron glanced around, that's when he saw the arrow sticking out of the snow above him.
His heart thudded in his chest as he realized what was going on. Aroron lunged forwards, but it was too late. The snow started to rumble, as it started to crumble away from the side of the mountain and down towards him. A twenty-foot-tall wall of snow lay between Aroron and the path ahead.
He just stood there, stunned. Then he snapped out of it.
Frantically, he tried to climb up, but he hadn't made it two feet off the ground, before the snow slipped away from him and he slid back down.
"Draven!" He spat, as he kicked at the mound. He needed to think fast! Where had the arrow come from? Quickly, he glanced around. Something was very wrong! He could feel it!
Keeping his hood up and staying close to the ground, he moved towards the direction the arrow had come from.
Luckily, the snow was falling hard or he would already have been picked off by one of the unknown archers. It was then he heard screaming and yelling, coming from not far away.
Aroron stopped short and quickly scooted back. The ground fell away from him and into a valley. Dead and bleeding bodies lay scattered around the valley. Ravaged with arrows. As slowly and quietly as he could, Aroron scrambled down the edge of the snowy hill side and towards the nearest arrow. He grabbed a hold of it and yanked it out of the snow.
The arrow was black with a fiery red tip.
"Munay!" He hissed, snapping the arrow in half. These were arrows only used by the Loyal Warriors. He needed to get out of there and fast. He was just about to move back towards the hill side, when he spotted one of the bodies moving.
Slowly, the girl stood up and turned towards Aroron "Help me!" She cried, stumbling towards him.
"Duck!" Aroron cried, lunging towards the girl.
Grabbing the girl's arm, he yanked her down just as another round of arrows soared through the valley and pounded the ground around them. They needed to get out of there! If the snow let up even just a little bit more, they were easy targets.
"Hurry! This way!" Aroron said, dragging the girl towards the snow wall, away from the archers. They both pressed themselves up against the snowy embankment and held their breath, as the sound of crunching snow passed them by.
He held his finger to his lips, warning the girl to stay quiet.
After waiting a minute longer, Aroron finally relaxed and turned towards the girl. "What's your name?" He whispered.
"I am Lady Gana of Elay!" She said, lowering her hood. "You will be rewarded for saving my life." The girl's long curly blond hair fell around her shoulders, as piercing blue eyes bore into Aroron.
Aroron shook his head. "That's not why I did it. But I do want to know, what were you thinking traveling through the Winter Pass?" Aroron asked. "And alone, my lady! That was very unwise of you."
"I wasn't alone! Did you not see the bodies?! We were traveling back to Shenock from Drinadad and... and... we got lost," she whispered, tears forming in her eyes. "The next thing I knew, those men were upon us! And... and... they killed my companions! If you hadn't shown up when you did..."
"I'm sorry for your loss, my lady," Aroron said.
Gana nodded her head and quickly dabbed at her eyes. "I did not know them well, but it's still hard to believe they're gone! They were there one second and gone the next!" She said, sniffing. "Who were they? Bandits?!"
Aroron nodded. "Yes, they're bandits." Sent by King Munay. "You really are lucky to be alive. Most of the time, they don't miss their targets."
She glanced towards him. "Maybe I wasn't their target?" Aroron shrugged. "What were you doing out here?" she asked.
"Luckily for you, I hadn't really cared where I was going," Aroron mumbled, clearing his throat. "I'm not even sure how I got here."
She smiled at him. "What's your name? I must know the name of the knight who has saved my life!"
"I'm not a knight, my lady," Aroron said, his face flushing.
"You are to me!" Gana cried.
Aroron quickly clasped a hand over her mouth. "Shh! They might still be nearby and hear us."
"Well... then you'd better tell me your name!"
"Aroron, my lady," he said, dropping his gaze. "Aroron of... of the Winter Pass," he said, with a wink.
She started to giggle, but quickly covered her mouth. Her blue eyes lit up and she moved closer to him. Before he could stop her, she kissed him on the cheek. "Thank you, Aroron," she whispered.
"You're welcome, my lady," Aroron mumbled, his throat tightening.
"Please call me Gana," she said, leaning back against the snowy wall. "After all, you've saved my life! You shouldn't have to call me 'Lady'!" After that, they both fell into silence for several minutes. Aroron glanced around. He could see more than he'd been able to earlier.
"We can't stay here much longer," Aroron whispered. "The snow seems to be lifting and they're going to be able to find us soon."
"What do we do?" Lady Gana asked, her eyes wide. "I... I don't want to die!"
"And I'm not going to let you," Aroron said. "I've got a plan."
"What?" She asked, scooting closer to him.
He swallowed. She smelled of cinnamon! Quickly, Aroron slid away from her. "I'm going to distract them. When I do, you're going to run as fast and hard as you can in the other direction out of here," Aroron told her. "The Pass is the worst place you could be. Especially in winter."
"But... that means you're going to risk your life for me!" She cried. "I can't let you do that!"
"I'm not asking, my lady," Aroron said. "Besides, isn't that what knights do?"
"If we ever meet again, I hope to get to know you better, Aroron."
"I won't forget this day, my lady," Aroron said, bowing his head towards her. "Until we meet again." With that he scrambled to his feet and turned towards the valley. "Are you ready?" He asked, without looking towards her.
"Yes," she whispered.
"Good." With that, he stepped out into the valley. As he did. The last of the storm died down.
As fast as he could, he ran towards the other side of the valley. Avoiding the dead bodies on the other side. He heard yelling, when he reached the middle. Soon, he reached the other side of the valley. But when he did, he realized his mistake.
He'd thought he could try and make it to the top of the hillside before they could kill him. But what he hadn't know, was there was a gorge between him and the hillside. There was nowhere for him to go.
"Don't make a move!" Someone behind Aroron ordered, pressing the tip of their blade against his back. "Now slowly, turn towards me."
He did as he was told.
"Kant!" Aroron spat the name. "I thought I smelled a rat!"
"Aroron Normal!" Kant laughed, lowering his sword. "And to think, I thought my little trip here was going to be worthless!"
"No. You're the worthless one!" Aroron said, stepping away from him.
"Don't make another move, or I'll run you through!" Kant ordered, moving closer again.
"You're a foul creature, Kant! A sewer swimming rat!"
"Your mother wouldn't want you talking that way, now would she?" Kant growled, sneering at him. "She was a wonderful and gentle person."
"You mean Helen Normal?" Aroron asked. "Shon's wife?"
Kant looked at him, then his eyes watered, and he turned away. "She should have been my wife!" He spat.
That was what Aroron had been hoping for.
Before Kant could move towards him, Aroron lunged towards the edge of the hill. He couldn't help but scream, as he went tumbling and rolling down the icy hill that
ran along the side.
Aroron was thrown about.
Slamming into loose ice and snow, a couple of times he slid around and went flying down the hill head first. It wasn't easy to get himself right way up again! Then finally, the ice stopped. He flew off and landed in a pile of hard snow. For a second, he was afraid he might be buried alive under it.
Aroron gasped for breath, as he broke through the snow and into the open air. He found himself in a small alcove inside the mountain. A hole led to the swirling world outside. He was glad he hadn't ended up trapped inside the mountain. He hadn't really thought about what he was doing before he'd jumped.
He was just turning back towards the icy tunnel, when he spotted someone sliding down after him. He knew instantly it was Kant.
Unlike Aroron, Kant landed on his feet. He took one look at Aroron, ran forwards and slammed into him, throwing Aroron to the ground. Kant grabbed Aroron by the collar and yanked him back to his feet, throwing him against the wall, his brown eyes ablaze.
"I should kill you right now!" Kant spat in Aroron's face, as he tightened his grip around Aroron's neck. "You're a slimy little imp!"
Aroron closed his eyes, as he started to grow dizzy. With every passing second, he found it harder and harder to breathe. His eyes shot open and he gasped for air. A blast of air threw Kant off him and against the wall. Aroron crumbled to the ground, his body sucked of energy.
To Aroron's surprise Kant started to laugh. "You're an Oddity?!" He asked, as he shoved himself up and turned towards Aroron. "Munay never tells me anything!"
Aroron swallowed, as he scooted back from him. At the same time, he reached towards his side and grabbed the handle of his sword.
Kant brought his sword up and blocked Aroron's cut, they spun around and came face-to-face. "You're a fool to try and fight me," he growled, as he shoved Aroron back.
Aroron dodged another cut and parried. Both moving faster and faster.
"You're good," Kant said, as he blocked another cut. "Too bad I've got more than ten years on you. You might have beaten me otherwise." He parried and dodged another slice. The sword slipped past and slammed into the ice wall, causing a crack to travel up the side. Pieces of ice and snow rained down on them, blinding Aroron for a second.
Kant brought his leg out and tripped Aroron.
Aroron slipped on the ice and slammed onto the ground. Kant was on top of him. "The only reason I haven't killed you yet, is the fact that you're Helen's only child!" Kant hissed in Aroron's face.
Aroron fought back a smile. Good thing he hasn't heard what Hunter said about me.
Kant laughed. "But that doesn't mean I can't hurt you, just a little bit," he said, swiftly drawing a knife out of his belt. "Sorry, kid."
Aroron screamed out in pain as the metal pierced his side.
"Like I said, I'm sorry. But I can't have you following us," Kant said, letting go of the blade handle, as he shoved himself back to his feet.
Aroron stared at Kant in shock. "What the heck, Kant?!"
"It's not personal, kid."
"My side seems to think it's personal!" Aroron spat. "Why are you even doing this?"
Kant shrugged. "I'm not paid to question him."
"I'm sure you aren't," Aroron mumbled.
"But I do want that sword of yours, if you don't mind," he said, moving towards him.
"Take it!" Aroron hissed, throwing it at Kant's feet. "It's brought me nothing but trouble."
"Well, that was easier than I'd expected," he said, sliding it into his own scabbard. "Goodbye, Aroron. Maybe one day we will meet again," Kant said, bowing to him.
Aroron glared. "I hope not!"
"I don't have a quarrel with you," Kant whispered, stepping towards Aroron. "But if we do meet again and you get in my way, I will kill you and I won't care if you're Helen's son or not. That fact won't protect you again."
"Likewise," Aroron growled. "I plan on killing you."
Kant eyed him, then without another word, he whipped around and marched towards the small hole leading out of the icy cave.
He was gone.
Chapter 30
Healing
Silence settled over Aroron.
He knew he had to get the stupid blade out of his side.
Fighting against the pain, Aroron grabbed ahold of the knife, gritting his teeth as he yanked it out. He grimaced but didn't scream as the blade came sliding out. It was numbingly painful.
He dropped the blade to the ground as a small trickle of blood dripped down his side and onto the ice. He knew he needed to stop the bleeding. Aroron grabbed a handful of clean white snow and pressed it against the wound. He bit his lip, as the cut began to sting and blood seeped onto the snow, staining it red.
Aroron rested back against the wall and closed his eyes. But as soon as he did, memories of Shon's death flashed through his mind. His eyes shot open and he knew he wouldn't be able to sleep.
Wasn't he already enough of a target for King Munay? Why hadn't he just left things alone? Now, if Kant went back and told King Munay they'd met, the king would renew his efforts to find Aroron. He wiped his own blood off the blade, then slowly slid it into his belt.
The hours ticked by, night came and went, and the wound at Aroron's side slowly began to heal. Soon it was healed enough for him to stand up and move around the small alcove. His legs tingled and his feet felt like there were needles digging into them, as he paced up and down the icy room. He grimaced and stretched his feet. Aroron knew he needed to get moving. He couldn't stay in the alcove for the rest of his life!
After he worked the blood back into the rest of his body, he started out. Making his way towards the hole in the snow-covered wall and grabbed on to the edge. As he pulled himself out of the alcove, he realized the storm had passed during the night, and now only a light breeze blew through the snow-covered mountain, causing the hairs on his arms to stand up.
Still, he knew it wasn't going to be easy making his way down the hill side. But with the sun out, he was able to figure out roughly where he was. If he was right, Shey wasn't a long walk from where he stood. Good. He didn't really want to stay on his own for any longer than he had to.
Ice now covered most of the ground, glowing blue in the dim sunlight.
But the sun didn't melt it. It only caused the top to grow wet and slippery. It might have been easier if it was still cold out.
Aroron's boots barely kept their grip on the ice, as he moved as fast as he dared down the hillside. Slipping down the ice the day before had taken him further than he'd thought. He climbed over small snow mounds in his way, then across frozen river beds and onwards.
Chapter 31
Marking of an Enemy
Enrick stared out over the castle grounds below him, as he sat on the edge of the roof above his chambers. He shivered and tightened the cloak around his shoulders. Winter seemed to be worse this year than any other year he could remember. He was just about to lay back against the stone roof, when he heard someone knocking on his chamber door below.
Quickly, he grabbed the edge of the roof and dropped down onto the balcony.
"Come in!" He called, straightening out his cloak and tunic, as he leaned against the railing. He didn't care for people to know he liked to sit on the roof of his chamber. If Willow found out, she'd spread it all over the castle. Luckily, it was only Dasety who'd knocked on the door.
"Were you on the roof?" Dasety asked, raising his eyebrow as he stepped out onto the balcony. "Don't worry, your father used to do that too."
Enrick glared at him. "If my father did it, then I was definitely not on the roof!" he hissed. "What brings you here? I know you didn't just come here to talk about my strange habits."
"Sir Kant and his men are back from the Winter Pass, I thought you might want to know."
"Why would I?" Enrick asked, shrugging. "I don't even like the man."
"I believe Aroron might have been in the Winter Pass at the same time as Kant."
"How do you
know that?!"
Dasety smirked. "Not all my men are confined within the walls of this castle. I have not always served your father. I once served under King Dillaran's father."
Enrick's jaw dropped. "You knew Willow when she was younger?"
"No." Dasety said, shaking his head. "She did not live in Shey. Why did you think I wasn't around after the wedding?"
"I didn't really think about it. Why'd you leave?"
Dasety sighed and shook his head. "Enough talk. We should go and see what Kant knows of Aroron."
"I thought you didn't care what happened to him."
"Did I say that?"
"Well...not exactly."
"Then why would you think I didn't want to know what's happened to him?" Dasety asked. "I only doubt if he's still on the same side as us."
A minute later, Enrick and Dasety found themselves hurrying down a hallway, hoping to find Kant before Munay. When they turned the corner, they found him.
Kant grimaced, as Dasety clasped his hand. "What's wrong with you?" Dasety asked, letting go. "Show me."
Gritting his teeth, Kant slowly slid his glove off.
Dasety whistled softly. "What did you do?" A strange red mark was burned into the palm of Kant's hand.
"I tried to use the cursed sword of Aroron's." Kant mumbled, lowering his sword. "And it started to burn almost instantly."
"You have the blade?!" Enrick asked.
"Not anymore." Kant mumbled, glancing at the ground. "After it did this to my hand, I couldn't touch it and none of my men dared to either."
"Interesting. Well, you'd better have someone check that for you." Dasety ordered. "I have something I need to speak with the Prince about anyway."
"Yes, sir." Kant said, saluting.
The moment he was gone, Dasety turned toward Enrick. "This isn't good!" He said, rubbing his face.
"How so?" Enrick asked, frowning. "I know Kant almost had the sword, but is it really that big of a deal?"
"Do you know what this means?" Dasety asked. Enrick shook his head. "This means the sword sealed itself to Aroron. No one else will be able to wield it."