Shadows of Lela

by Tessonja Odette

  “No, I’ll be fine,” I said, shouldering my bow and quiver. “I need to scout their camp and get perspective. We know nothing about them, except for the name Drass. For all we know, they could be heavily guarded.”

  “Which is why I should come too.”

  “No, Teryn. I’m small and quiet. I don’t need an extra set of noisy feet lumbering beside me.” His face fell, making my gut feel heavy for the insult. Even though I had resolved to foster a friendship with Teryn and Lex, it was still most natural to want to keep these strangers at a distance. But he isn’t a stranger, not anymore, I reminded myself. He’s my friend.

  I put a hand on Teryn’s shoulder. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean that, but I do want to go alone. I think it’s best for all of us that their camp is scouted before the three of us go there together. It’s the smartest tactic. I will come back for you, and the three of us will formulate a plan together.”

  Teryn let out a grumbling sigh, but nodded in agreement. Lex made no argument, likely preferring that he never see the hunters’ camp at all.

  I left my companions behind and followed a narrow path that appeared freshly traveled by our new targets. Valorre quietly followed; he was the only one I couldn’t persuade to be left behind.

  It was after midday when I began to sense we were nearing the hunters. I urged Valorre to wait for me while I searched out their camp. I don’t want you getting too close, just in case.

  Be careful. Don’t be hasty. Be safe, Valorre warned.

  I quietly crept through the trees, following an inner pull toward what I could only explain as a feeling of density in the peaceful, flowing energy of the forest. It was a sense of rigid darkness; a place of death. I’d felt it before, at the previous hunters’ camp. Now I understood what it meant.

  Before long, I came to the outskirts of a clearing, and the camp unfolded before me with every step. Remaining in the shadows of the undergrowth, I took in every detail. The scene was like that of the previous hunters; messy, strewn-about belongings, wooden cages. My eyes lingered on the cages as I counted them. There were eight, and only one of them was occupied. The unicorn within was small and brown, not yet completely emaciated. Aside from the unicorn, the camp was empty.

  Wait. Not empty. A young man, no older than fourteen, strolled slowly out of the woods at the far end of the camp and into the middle. There he began to pace aimlessly—bored—around the fire. He appeared to be armed with nothing but a belted dagger. My mouth dropped open at the sight. This young man was the great defense the hunters had left to guard their precious goods? This boy, whom I could have tied to a tree within moments? Whom I could easily force to answer every one of my questions?

  I nearly raced forward, led by my burning exhilaration, until I reminded myself of the promises I’d made to both Valorre and Teryn. I clenched my teeth and surrendered to the fact that I would have to wait. At least when we return we can free the unicorn, get the boy to talk, and there will be no bloodshed. Lex will like that too.

  My limbs twitched with resistance as I turned my back on the perfect opportunity for answers, and made my way back to Valorre.

  * * *

  “One guard. One unicorn. That’s all,” I blurted out upon returning to our camp, breathless from my anxious, hurried pace.

  Teryn and Lex raced over to me. “Does he look…dangerous?” Lex asked with a gulp.

  “Not at all. He’s pretty much a boy!”

  “When do we leave?” Teryn looked at the late afternoon sky above us. “It’s too late for us to go today. We wouldn’t make it there and back before dark.”

  My shoulders fell, but I knew he was right. “We will have to go first thing in the morning.”

  “Hopefully the conditions of the camp will still be the same.” Creases formed between Teryn’s brows. “It seems unusual that they only have one guard.”

  I nodded. “We will prepare for the worst, but hope for the best. If there really is only one guard, there will be no need for violence. Even so, I want the two of you to practice your sparring. Practice like your life depends on it. Tomorrow, it just might.”

  * * *

  Teryn

  It was exactly as Cora had said; one guard, one unicorn. I let out a sigh of relief. The three of us exchanged glances and Cora nodded once, signaling the execution of our plan.

  We each went our separate ways, moving quietly to surround the camp. I placed myself directly behind the young guard, who was idly picking at his nails with a dagger. I waited until I saw the boy stiffen at a rustling in the trees at the other end of the camp. That was my sign to move forward.

  I hooked my arm around the guard’s neck before he even knew I was there. I knocked the dagger from his hand and pressed my palm firmly over his mouth. The boy struggled to pull free, but Cora was at my side a moment later. We quickly bound his hands and feet with rope, followed by a gag for his mouth and a cloth for his eyes. Cora kicked him in the back of the knees, and the boy fell on his side. I felt a twinge of guilt at how easily he was defeated.

  We left the boy wriggling futilely while we went to assist Lex in freeing the unicorn. He’d nearly cut through the ropes that secured the frame to the cage door—Cora’s suggestion, and a much easier method for freeing the unicorn than struggling with keys and a lock. Once the ropes fell away, we coaxed the small unicorn from the cage and hurried him from the camp.

  “Go. Take the unicorn to Valorre,” Cora said when we were back beneath the trees. “Once he feels safe, he will leave you and be free.”

  Valorre had remained behind, not far from us. Still, going to him without Cora had not been mentioned in the plan. “What do you mean? Why aren’t you coming with us?”

  “Teryn, we came here for two things: the unicorn and answers.”

  “Then we’ll get the unicorn safely away and come back together to question the boy.”

  “No. The other hunters could be back any moment, there’s no telling when. We need to do all that we can now. You take the unicorn, I’ll get the answers.”

  I opened my mouth to convince her otherwise, but knew it would do no good. Besides, maybe she was right. Perhaps this was the perfect opportunity to get what we wanted without bloodshed. “Fine,” I said through clenched teeth, “but be quick about it. And stay safe.”

  “I will.” Cora put a hand on my arm. “Valorre will know if anything is amiss. Watch him. He grows very still when he senses danger, and fidgets when it comes near. But I’ll be back before you even need to worry about that.” Without another word, she turned and raced back into the camp.

  I watched her go, wishing I had something else to say to change her mind. Despite our ideal situation, I couldn’t help but feel wrong about leaving her. What if the hunters did return? What if that boy proved to be more difficult to manage than he looked? And if Valorre did sense danger, would we have time to respond?

  “Teryn,” Lex said, shaking me out of my stupor. “This little guy is trembling with fright. Let’s get him to Valorre already.”

  I looked at the unicorn; Lex was right. Lex, however, was shaking nearly as much. I threw one last look over my shoulder toward the hunters’ camp and then led the way back to Valorre.

  The unicorn needed help as he was both weak and frightened, but we eventually made it back to our meeting place. Lex and I sat down and drank from our water skins as Valorre received the hesitant unicorn with a gentle nuzzle on the neck. We sat in silence for a few moments, catching our breath, until Lex shattered the somber atmosphere with his laughter. I stared wide-eyed at his apparent madness. “What’s so funny?”

  “Nothing,” Lex managed through bursts of chortling. “I can’t believe it. We saved a unicorn! We really did it!” He was grinning like a madman as tears pooled in his eyes. It was the first time I had ever seen him in such a mood, and it wasn’t long before his joy became infectious.

  I joined him, laughing at the absurdity, the danger, the victory, the incredulity of our entire situation. “If someone had tol
d me a year ago I would be rescuing unicorns, I never would have believed them.”

  Lex nodded, blotting his eyes on his sleeve as he attempted to sober himself. “What do we do with this little guy?” he asked, turning his attention to the rescued unicorn that seemed fixed to Valorre’s side.

  I shrugged. “Nothing, I guess. Cora said he will leave when he feels safe.”

  “You know, I wish he wouldn’t leave. He’s beautiful. I’m glad we could save him. Maybe this being heroes thing isn’t the worst after all.”

  I opened my mouth to agree, but was distracted as a flash of brown streamed past my eyes. It took me a moment to realize the rescued unicorn had fled our company.

  “Was it supposed to leave like that?” Lex raised an eyebrow.

  “I don’t know.” I went to Valorre, a chill creeping down my spine as I watched the unicorn grow rigid. “What is it?” I whispered. Valorre didn’t flinch or meet my eyes. He stared off into the trees, listening, watching.

  Lex joined my side. “Something’s wrong, isn’t it?”

  I shuddered. “Cora.”

  * * *

  Cora

  I stood over my captive lying limp and helpless on the ground. The boy had short, rust-colored hair, a thin, angular face, and a lanky, youthful build. He had given up his struggle and had grown so still I wondered if he’d fainted. I kicked his foot and he flinched, turning his blindfolded face toward me. He made no attempt to struggle away as I unsheathed my dagger, pressed the tip to his throat and roughly pulled the gag from his mouth.

  “What do you want from me?” he asked flatly. I was taken aback by the lack of fear in his voice.

  “I want you to answer my questions,” I growled.

  “Are you the one, then? The one who has been massacring the other hunters? Ha! But you sound like a girl! And to think we were told you were dangerous.”

  I felt the blood drain from my face. He knew. They knew about the deaths of the other hunting party. Somehow, they had been warned. It made completing my current task even more urgent than before.

  I grabbed the boy by the hair and slammed his head hard on the ground. I then pressed my blade closer to his neck until it just barely broke the skin. “I’m doing the questioning here. Who do you work for?”

  “Drass and his hunting party.” The boy’s voice was calm, his composure completely unaffected by my abuse.

  “Why are you hunting unicorns?”

  “Because those are our orders.”

  “Who gives these orders?”

  “Drass.”

  “Who does Drass take orders from?”

  The boy remained silent.

  “Who do you really take your orders from?” I shouted in his face.

  “Our master,” he finally whispered.

  “Who is your master?” Another stretch of silence followed, causing my blood to boil as sweat beaded behind my neck.

  “Do you really need me to tell you?” The boy had laughter in his voice. “Or do you already know?”

  My gut churned. Something wasn’t right here, and I had been too ambitious to realize it before. This boy was not the pathetic, easy target I had figured him to be. This was not my perfect opportunity to get answers. This was a trap. I released the boy and stepped away from him, taking a deep breath to calm my sudden fear.

  “You’re dying to hear his name, aren’t you?” the boy taunted softly. “You know who he is. You wouldn’t be asking all these questions if you didn’t already know the answers.”

  “What does he want?” My voice was shaking despite my attempt to steady it. “Why has he sent you here?”

  “Ask him yourself.” A wide, toothy grin spread across his face.

  I felt a shadow fall behind me. I whirled around, stifling a scream as I found myself face to face with Morkai. With trembling legs, I stumbled backward until my ankle snagged one of the logs surrounding the extinguished fire. I caught myself as I fell and scrambled back to my feet. This shook some sense of awareness into me, and I remembered the dagger still in my right hand. Fury replaced my fear.

  “What do you want?” I planted my feet and thrust the dagger toward Morkai as he took a step toward me. Just as quickly, I took a step away.

  “It’s a pleasure to see you again too. You look…dreadful.” Morkai stared down his nose at me. “Just look at you, a wretched mess. And to think you used to be a princess.”

  I pressed my lips tightly together, lifted my chin, and looked at him through narrowed eyes. In the six years that had passed since I last saw him, he hadn’t aged a day. His disturbingly familiar face was long, thin, and shockingly pale; his skin nearly translucent. His eyes were dark beads of black under an arch of thick, black, bushy eyebrows. His head was bald, yet he wore a long, braided beard that grew to his waist.

  His clothing was familiar to me as well: a long, midnight-blue, velvet robe patterned with intricate designs in black and gold, belted with a sash of dark-brown leather. A dagger with a jeweled hilt adorned his waist. He wore a long, charred, wooden staff at his hip as if it were a sword. My eyes lingered on the staff, noticing the row of blood-red rubies running along its length. Atop the staff was a large, deep-purple crystal. His hand idly rubbed the top of the crystal, where I saw endless clusters of heavily jeweled rings on his fingers. My family rings.

  "You look as disgusting as ever,” I sneered.

  “Thank you, my dear. Now, if you will be so kind as to come with me.”

  I opened my mouth to retort when a sudden pain struck my right arm, causing me to drop my dagger. Before I could react, I felt arms tightly encircle my torso and neck. The guard boy snickered behind me.

  “Not so tough now,” the boy teased.

  I struggled to free myself, but he squeezed harder. Even though he was years younger than I, and had appeared puny in strength, I had greatly underestimated his height. The length of his long, lanky arms gave him advantage over me.

  “Come, Coralaine.” Morkai stepped toward me until he was uncomfortably close. “You can’t interfere with my plans and expect me to let you get away. You will be coming with me now.”

  “You’ll have to force me!” I roared, and then spit in his face. I tossed from side to side, trying to free myself from the boy who still held me in an iron grip.

  Morkai calmly wiped a hand over his cheek, eyes locked on mine. “I’m going to have to hurt you now, you see?” He stepped back, took his staff from his hip, and lifted it in the air.

  The arms surrounding me finally relented and I threw myself sideways, dashing for the trees surrounding the camp. Before I could run more than a few steps, I was brought to my knees by a searing pain in the back of my skull. My vision swam as I tried to fight my inability to stand. The ground sped toward me and then faded to nothing.

  19

  Morkai

  Cora

  A dream. I was only dreaming. Or am I dreaming now? Or dying. Am I dead? I opened my eyes, startled as I found myself in the Great Hall of Ridine Castle. Confusion flooded through me but was quickly replaced with awe and a sense of ease as I took in my surroundings. My body relaxed. All worry and concern melted away as I stared at the familiar walls. I studied each picture, each tapestry, each crevice, each stone; everything was exactly as it had always been during my youth.

  Music floated upon my attention, but as I looked around, I could not find the musicians. All the tables around me appeared empty. I looked down the hall to the opposite end of the room at the head table. At first glance, I took it to be empty as well. Then, after a blink of my eyes, two occupants appeared. I nearly jumped out of my skin as I recognized the familiar figures. “Mother! Father!” I shouted, vaguely noticing how small my voice sounded as I ran forward to greet them.

  “Coralaine!” My smiling father threw his arms open wide to embrace me. “Come to me, my love. Why are you so upset?”

  I opened my mouth to answer, but couldn’t remember any reason to be upset in the first place. “I don’t know.” Something pulled at
my mind, feeling like a thorn in my happy thoughts. I pushed it away. “I’m just so happy to see you.”

  My father smiled down at me with only a hint of concern in his kind, olive-green eyes. I drank in his presence as if he were the most beautiful vision in the world, which in that moment, he was. There was beauty in every strand of his long, straight, brown hair and wiry beard; in every crease on his wise, smiling face.

  “My, my, strange child,” my mother whispered in her feathery voice as she touched my shoulder. “You do seem out of sorts. You act like you haven’t seen us in ages!”

  I turned around and looked into my mother’s beautiful face surrounded by her long, velvety, black curls. I choked back tears as I stared into her dark-brown, almond-shaped eyes and relished the comfort and relief her presence gave me. But why? A dark thought or memory tugged at my heart. Again, I forced it away. My parents are here. They have always been here.

  “Coralaine! Mother, Father!” I turned toward the voice, looking down the Great Hall as Dimetreus and Linette strolled in, hand in hand. Their faces glowed with love, as if they had just returned from their wedding bed. My happiness at seeing them was overwhelming; I nearly tripped down the stairs beneath the dais as I raced to embrace them.

  “Lovely Coralaine, how I adore you,” Dimetreus said as he bent to kiss my cheek. His face was warm, youthful, and enchanting as always. His eyes were green like Father’s, but a brighter shade, like that of a spring leaf. His hair was also straight and brown like Father’s, cropped just above his shoulders. But unlike Father, Dimetreus’ face was smooth shaven.

  “Little sister!” Linette took my hands and spun me around.

  “Yes, let’s have dancing!” Father clapped his hands and the music increased tempo.

  Linette and I continued to twirl and dance, laughing until tears fell from our eyes. My head began to spin, but I continued to dance anyway, my smile growing so wide that my cheeks ached. I was enchanted as I watched Linette, her beautiful face flushed with a rosy hue, her auburn hair flowing wildly, and her golden skirts swirling round like a windblown flower. My family! My family is here! They are all here!