Aurora's Heart

by V C Sanford

  Alex closed his eyes. He knew Maxx all too well. The straight-talking Duaar was not telling him something, something he wouldn’t like to hear. “Out with it, whatever it is you are not telling me. Give it to me straight.”

  Maxx averted his eyes as he answered, forcing the words through tightly clenched teeth in a futile attempt to evade a direct answer. Alex had spent quite a bit of time playing cards with the young corporal, their friendship growing to the point of discussing a reunion after their quest was complete. Maybe even an offer to join the business. Inwardly he groaned, wishing they had never left the ship. Drasst it all to the hells.

  “We lost Mathias. It was fast, he didn’t suffer. The girls aren’t taking it well, they really liked him too. There’s also a problem with continuing to Alliance. All but two wagons were destroyed, they’re burnt too badly to salvage. Most of the supplies are ruined, and the three merchants refuse to continue onward. There is talk of returning to Cabrell immediately.” He hesitated again, “It might be the best thing for us too.”

  “I hate it about Mathias. He was an all right guy, even if he did pay too much attention to Nikiva. Returning to Cabrell doesn’t make sense. We can continue without them. If we cut cross country, we can make up some of the lost time.”

  “Think we can convince the girls to return with the caravan?”

  “No. But I’m going to try, Alex replied.” You’re right about the attack. Why this pack-train? It’s a military transport, with very little cargo. And none of that’s very valuable, mostly food supplies for the fort.”

  “I’ve been thinking the same thing. Even stranger, the raiders disappeared right after that Orrogg snatched Nikiva’s necklace.”

  “Why? It wasn’t valuable, just some cheap trinket she bought from a vendor during the festival. No, that must have been a coincidence. Besides, there’s no way anyone could know we’re here---we decided to join the caravan at the last moment.”

  “I’ve no clue, but I’m positive there’s more to it. Something bigger motivated the raiders, something that we’ve stumbled into. And my gut says it’s related to what happened in Cabrell.

  ********

  Alex dropped to one knee to get a closer look at the tracks leading away from the camp. The ambusher's trail was faint, but clear enough for them to follow, even with their limited experience. “The tracks head up into the mountains. I say we take a chance and follow them as long as we can.”

  “That may not be for long,” Maxx replied, his eyes drawn to the rapidly gathering storm clouds. Winter storms came in fast and hard this late in the season and even a light dusting of snow could erase any traces long before they caught up with the remaining bandits

  “I’m not much for foolish heroics,” Sergeant Kelvarr said regretfully. “Even if I could spare the men--- what do you expect to do once you’ve located them? We were outnumbered before, a small group wouldn’t stand a chance in a fight.”

  “We have to try …Mathias would’ve tried.”

  “Mathias would’ve failed too. Don’t waste your time. Those men know the mountains, neither of you are woodsmen. Give up your foolish thoughts of vengeance and return to Cabrell with us. There’s nothing you can do by yourselves.” Sergeant Kelvarr swung himself up into the saddle of the restless stallion, easing his injured leg into a more comfortable position slightly forward of the empty stirrup. “I hate the idea of turning back, but I won’t endanger anyone else. Continuing is not a viable option. With Tyche’s blessing, I can reach Cabrell with my head intact, and save what’s left of the traders. Try and understand, I’m a soldier first. It’s my job to protect the caravan. Not to sound callous, but continuing without adequate supplies is foolish. You young folks might be willing to risk it all while chasing impossible dreams, but I’m heading back to town to sit out the winter.”

  He motioned for the dejected soldiers to mount up and prepare for the long trip back home to Cabrell. The entire trip had been a disaster. The only wagon remaining intact was carrying those too injured to ride or walk. Five of the male traders remained out of the fourteen that had ridden out of Cabrell, three of them in the wagon with the five injured soldiers. Three women survived out of a dozen. Even one of the children had been lost, a victim of a ricocheting arrow fired by his own uncle. All their dreams were gone, now they just hoped to reach Cabrell alive.

  “I guess I can’t blame you,” Alex replied despondently. “If the circumstances were different, I’d be returning to town with you. But the risk for me is greater in Cabrell. Maxx and I will continue onward. The girls will be returning with you.”

  Sergeant Re shook his head sadly. “I don’t understand the minds of young people. I’ve already discussed this with Nikiva and Rhianwen earlier today. The girls are determined to stay with you. You’ll have a fight on your hands if you try to send them back alone.”

  “I know it’s probably a lost cause, but Nikiva trusted me to get them back in time for school. I can’t guarantee that any longer. This was supposed to be a simple trip, find my families old homestead and then return to Cabrell, ten days at the most. But Mathias death changed everything. I can’t return until I’ve exhausted every lead.”

  “You know that I’ll back you no matter what, but I have to admit our chances are getting worse by the moment. The sergeant’s right, there’s no use following the raiders. It’s been a day and night since the attack occurred. If there were tracks, the weathers erased any traces. All we have is an educated guess about the general direction, and neither of us has any experience in tracking. We spent the last five years on a ship. It might be time to admit we are beaten and return to Cabrell. We can try again next spring.”

  “Then go back with the girls. I have to try.”

  “It may not matter, Maxx stated. We may not have a choice either way.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Take a look at this.” He pointed toward something bright red that was caught on a broken branch. Even in the dim moonlight, the brightly colored swatch of material stood out against the ice enshrouded foliage, a flame-colored beacon that beckoned for their attention.

  “Rhianwen was wearing a red cape. This looks like it’s the same material. And see how neatly the seams are sewn, Rhianwen’s mother makes the cleanest stitches I’ve ever seen. I think the girls have been listening to our discussion. And if I know women, they’ve already decided what we are going to do.”

  Chapter 12

  The second of Omission’s twin red giants was slipping from sight as the quartet crested the ridge above the main roadway leading to Alliance. Alex pulled his horse over to one side, scanning the area for any landmark that might seem familiar. The weather refused to cooperate with their search. The snowfall was increasing in intensity, making it difficult to see more than a few feet in any direction. He blinked his eyes to clear away a soft dusting of flakes. It was growing colder by the hour, a sure sign the storm wouldn’t be breaking anytime soon. There was a full moon rising, offering enough light to illuminate three distinct path choices, none of which he recognized. The first choice was simple, it was a well-traveled path leading directly to the main thoroughfare. The second choice, little more than a game trail, led off to the right, an improbably vague track that skirted the edge of the ridgeline before disappearing in the distance. The final choice was even grimmer, a sandy wash almost hidden in shadows, that vanished into what appeared to be an almost vertical drop less than a league away. If he made the wrong choice, everyone would suffer.

  True to Maxx’s prediction, the girls had refused to return to Cabrell without them. What was worse, Maxx continued to rail about his decision to leave the tentative safety of the caravan on what he considered a fool’s errand. He might be right, the odds of them tracking the ambushers were growing slimmer with each snowflake that fell. Despite his disparaging opinion, Maxx had gathered their belongings, stripped out anything unnecessary, and followed him into the night without further comment. That was yesterday, today he’d voiced his disple
asure at every opportunity.

  “It looks like we’ll be backtracking from here, at least as far as the last fork in the trail.” Alex stared at the waters raging below. The only visible trail had led them directly to their current location, the rotted remains of an old rope bridge. The path was well worn and followed the natural curve of the terrain, someone was using it. It was the easiest way to reach the mountain cut… at least until the trail ended at the gorge. “It’s been a long time since anyone used this thing for anything other than a scenic view.”

  “I knew it was too easy. Backtracking won’t help. Did you get a good look at the other trail? That path is impossible. It looked like a mountain goat would slide, how can we expect our horses to manage it?”

  “The horses can’t. We’ll be walking from there unless we missed something along the trail. Everyone needs to keep a watch out for game signs. If a deer can make it, maybe our horses can. Pray we missed the turn-off.” He turned his horse and headed back along the trail.

  “I vote we head back,” Nikiva said.” The drop off that we know about is too steep for the horses, but it seemed to be well traveled. Maybe it leads to another way across, the path is too well maintained to go nowhere.”

  “Either way we’re walking. Maybe we should skip the unknown trail and continue into Alliance and wait for the weather to break. There’s got to be a better way in from that side of the mountain.”

  The girls debated a moment, then shrugged and followed Alex.

  Maxx joined the others at the crest of the hill. The trail they’d followed mirrored the natural curve of the shadowed canyon, curving slightly before descending sharply down several switchbacks before ending at the base of the shattered bridge. Logic said that the path should be overgrown with scrub since the bridge was unusable. The rocky sides of the canyon were steep, with many small crevices, none looked deep enough to hide a way out. Then he noticed the ants.

  “Hey, Alex. You notice any game sign?

  “Except for a few crows, I haven’t seen any sign of life since we entered the canyon.” Alex looked defeated.

  “Don’t say anything to the girls. Take a good look at that pile of bones…they’re fresh, only a day or two old, the ants haven’t finished cleaning them yet. There’re more bones scattered amongst the scrubby brush nearby. This shortcut is something’s home territory, something big…and it eats meat.”

  Then let’s get out of here before it notices were here.

  This section of the trail wound over a small creek and thru a low area full of dense scrub. One or two heavy boulders broke up the overgrown vegetation. Here and there were signs of frequent landslides along the canyon wall. He motioned for his friend to be silent and listen.

  “Something wrong?” Nikiva inquired.

  “It’s probably nothing, just a funny feeling. You know what I mean when you get icicles running along your skin. Let’s just go,” he said, nudging his mare into a trot.

  The girls giggled, they were miles from the main road on an unknown trail that no one ever traveled. Maxx could be so paranoid. Still giggling, the two girls turned their horses, following close behind them. A heavy silence fell over the group as everyone kept their senses on high alert, watching for any sign of danger.

  “Hear that?” Alex inquired suddenly, reining his horse to a stop. He stood up in the stirrups, scanning the area for anything out of the ordinary. Nothing…

  Maxx listened but he couldn’t hear anything. In fact, it was too quiet. With the winter wind blowing it was difficult to make out anything specific. It was possible that Alex had picked up something from a distance, audible because the wind was blowing just right, at the perfect time. The wind through the canyon shifted often, changing directions and bringing with it the strangled howls so often heard running before an impending storm.

  Maxx’s eyes swept the sides of the canyon, catching a brief glimpse of grey just before the shadow slipped behind a pile of rubble. “Now I think you’re making me paranoid,” he snapped.

  He kicked his tired mount into a shambling trot that quickly slowed to a walk and then to a stumbling halt, allowing it to drop its head to the ground in exhaustion. “Paranoid or not, we need to stop for a while and rest the animals before we lose them. They’ve been on the move all last night and most of the day. And I could use some rest myself, napping in the saddle isn’t enough. We can’t stay alert if we’re too exhausted to ride.”

  “All right, let’s take a break. I could use some rest myself. We should be all right here in the open for a short while, but we have to find shelter before nightfall.”

  He swung down off the weary horse, allowing it to graze freely on the sparse late autumn foliage. The gelding took advantage of his respite to roll vigorously on the ground, and then joined his herd mate in foraging for edible plants buried beneath the snowy blanket. The twin geldings stood quietly while the girls dismounted, more interested in rest than the minimal forage.

  The weary teens sprawled out under a stunted hickory nut tree that still held a few of it leaves. It was too wet for a fire, so the meal consisted of bread, cheese, and hard sausage, washed down by water from the nearby stream. After scraping up a small mound of newly fallen leaves that were not completely covered in snow, Maxx stretched out on his cape, enjoying a short nap before the storm hit. Unable to sleep, Alex was cleaning his sword, oiling the blade in preparation for any future trouble they might run into. A ragged squeal brought him to his feet, sword in hand.

  Startled from his impromptu nap, Maxx caught a glimpse of a dark form leaping from the bushes directly at Nikiva’s horse. Alex must have noticed about the same instant, his voice rising in warning as the massive beast struck the unlucky animal. Like ants, warrgs poured out of hiding, rising from both sides of the canyon in a well-planned ambush.

  Nikiva threw her hand up before her face, instinctively blocking vital areas as she fell sideways, out of the path of the panic-stricken animal’s desperate charge. Bleeding freely from two deep gashes and encumbered by the weight of the massive predator, the frightened horse plunged directly into the oncoming pack. Seconds later he screamed, an almost human appeal for assistance, before silence.

  Alex somehow managed to swing aboard Tempest seconds before the animal realized the danger. Mouth-frothing and sweat soaked, the terrified gelding fought to get away. Alex struggled to stay in the saddle as he pushed him into a ragged gallop back along the trail, directly into the largest grouping. He muttered an apology to the faithful steed before diving from its back, abandoning it to the hungry pack in hopes of buying the others time to escape. He knew he’d hear Tempests last scream of agony for the rest of his life, that’s if he somehow managed to escape the trap and survive. Right now, things didn’t look so good for any of them.

  For the moment, the warrgs seemed content with the fresh horse meat, but Alex knew there were more hungrier mouths, than freshly killed warm bodies. It wouldn’t be long before the hungry pack came looking for more.

  ********

  Panda went down as one large grey brute tore into her rear hamstring, ripping flesh and muscle before he’d a chance to react. The terrified horse struggled valiantly to scramble back to her feet before an older cagey female tore out her throat. One of the younger males, a black furred half-grown pup weighing about two hundred pounds, ignored the frenzy beside the mare, thinking Maxx an easier target. Heart pounding as adrenaline coursed through his system, Maxx kicked out, landing a sharp blow to its ribs that gave him time to snatch his axe from its sheath. He swung randomly at anything that moved, landing more than one lucky hit before reaching a cluster of large rocks that offered momentary cover. With his back protected from immediate attack by a large flat-faced rock, he turned to face the oncoming horde, hoping to hold them off long enough for the girls to reach safety. One or two of the adolescent males made halfhearted attempts to get at him before the heady smell of bloody horse meat proved more tempting than a possible future meal of stringy Duaar. The black-furred male
gave few more halfhearted snaps before he raced to join the others beside the warm carcasses, eager for his share of the fresh meat.

  Safe for the moment, Maxx used the opportunity to check on his friends. Alex and Nikiva were pale and shaken but neither looked hurt. They were moving in his direction, using whatever cover they could find. However, he didn’t see Rhianwen or her gelding. He called out, but she didn’t answer. Maxx knew his mind had been occupied during the main attack, but he couldn’t remember hearing her, or her horse, scream. It wasn’t much, but even the slim chance that she’d escaped the attack was better than the other--- more realistic prospect.

  ********

  Rhianwen had been digging in her pack for something to feed Tweet when the warrgs attacked. Instinct took over, and she’d somehow managed to swing astride the trembling horse in the seconds before the remainder of the hunting pack arrived. Tweet took to the air and Brownie took off running back toward the old bridge. By twisting, he managed to evade the first wave of warrgs by taking the bit in his teeth and running away, but he had been too tired to keep up his frantic pace for long. Safe for the moment, Rhianwen stood beside the dark bay gelding, stroking his silky ears and murmuring soft words of encouragement to keep him calm and quiet. The gelding shuddered and shifted his legs restlessly, the heady scent of the freshly killed horses only intensifying the fear. The excited animal jerked his head around at the slightest noise. Rhianwen could feel the heated moisture of his breath as he panted. She knew it was only a matter of moments before one of the hungry animals decided it’d waited long enough and made its move, and both would probably die.

  When the attack came, it was from an unexpected direction. Somehow, one of the warrgs had managed to slip around behind the boulder, scramble to the top, and then drop down onto the back of the panicked gelding. His mate struck as the panicked animal rose to his hind legs in a futile attempt to throw the heavy warrg from his body. The desperate horses ragged breathing became even more labored as he strived unsuccessfully to escape the sharp teeth tearing at him from every side. Brownie was still alive, his eyes wide with terror, as they began their gruesome meal, razor-sharp teeth tearing out chunks of steaming flesh. He continued to struggle, legs churning as though he was still running, finally slowing…slowing…then stopping.