Dallas immediately unsheathed his sword, hastily wiping at his eyes. All vulnerability gone. He was no longer the Dallas I'd come to know. Now, he was nothing but a soldier.
I unsheathed my sword, taking a step towards Hailey. The howls became louder and more haunting, the sky darkening as if to set the mood, the moon turning the entire sky into a shadow with its light.
Keo's movement caught my attention. He'd pulled his hair back in a low ponytail, two-toned strands hanging over his eyes, creating a deep shadow that accentuated his amber eyes. As he looked down, they almost seemed to brighten. I moved my gaze to his hands and immediately froze.
He'd pressed a dagger against his palm, the silver gleaming with the moon's reflection, stealing its beauty and outshining it. "Keo, what the fuck?"
Dallas snapped his gaze to me, his eyes cold and dark for split second. The look almost made me want to take a step back—to get away. He relaxed and lifted his hand gently before quietly shushing me. My hair stood on end as I turned to Keo once again, trying to tell him through my gaze how concerned I was.
He smiled softly, almost sadly, before digging the blade deep into his palm and dragging it diagonally across it. His shoulders hunched and tensed as he hissed in pain, blood almost immediately beginning to seep through the wound. It looked black and I wasn't entirely sure it was simply because of the shadows.
The howls became barks and growls, the sounds of their paws treading across the ground sent a cold bolt up my spine. I wanted to run and I was pretty sure I would have if Hailey wasn't there. What's wrong with you? You'd leave them behind? Leave Dallas and Keo? You'd leave them to die?
I took a breath that bounced off the walls of my throat, rattling the entire way. Keo's smile faded as he closed his eyes and whispered something under his breath. The blood that had dripped from his palm began to float back up as if remembering where it came from and wanted to return. It circled his palm before reaching the wound and creating a long rope with the blood around it.
When I looked at Dallas, he didn't look surprised. He only glanced at Keo before moving to protect Hailey. The look in his eyes made me want to stop him but my mind knew who he was, recognized him as a friend, and ignored my instinct.
The blood darkened and became less clear but familiar. It was one of his shadowy chains and as he reached into the forming shadow and pulled out the second one, I noticed the wound had disappeared. The shadow spread up his fingers, invading like a disease, yet Keo didn't fight it. The darkness climbed beneath his skin and through his veins before disappearing.
"I'll only take a moment," he said and he fell into the shadows. He fell and kept falling, becoming one of them, the darkness inside him now becoming him and making him vanish.
And the howling stopped, almost as if in anticipation for him. It was like they had subsided simply for him.
Snap.
Just one, almost silent, but I heard it and met Dallas' eyes in confirmation that he had too.
Snap. Snap.
And it became faster but, this time, the noise only took me a moment to pinpoint. My eyes searched the dark trees behind Hailey and Dallas, stepping between Hailey and the sound. My hands shook and I couldn't seem to ease myself off the balls of my feet.
Slowly, two glowing orbs of yellow seeped out of the space between two trees. As they became clearer, so did the body.
First, the front paws, about as big as two of my hands and then the legs, even from this distance reaching my hip. Its fur was as black as soot. The wolf snapped its teeth, quickly, and the source of the noise became obvious. Its canines were curved back, like a snake's.
And I froze.
No longer was I shaking and the aching in my calves was no longer evident. I could only hear my breath slowing. It was slowing at a time like this. I wanted to move, to protect but I couldn't. I wanted to collapse. I felt like I could and I swear I could feel warm breath against my neck and rough hands on my shoulders. I could see the wolf but it wasn't there. I wasn't there.
"It's okay, I'm here. It can't hurt you here." I shivered but didn't move, my eyes beginning to burn. "Just come back to me."
Saliva stretched across its mouth, a foul smell wafting from the animal. I took a step back and gripped Hailey's hand. I'd run. I needed to run. I'll go back to—
A sharp, metallic noise cut my thoughts off, a streak of black shooting through the air and embedding in the wolf's forehead and jaw. As the familiar arrowhead snapped open, I gasped, as if I'd forgotten to breathe. I realized who had been talking. And why only now did I realize that ever since I heard his voice, it'd replaced his.
Tairen was nothing like him so why was he speaking for him?
I shoved Hailey back with one hand, following with her and cushioning her with my other arm. I pulled her away from Keo and the wolf as it collapsed and he leaped upwards, disappearing into the shadow once again.
Maybe the wolves sensed it or smelled it or maybe even saw it, but almost immediately after the monster fell, a rush of cold air bit at my skin, carrying that horrid smell with it, and the howls started once more. They were more violent and everywhere, caging us in.
And then there were eyes everywhere. All around us. Or maybe there wasn't and I was exaggerating. Perhaps there were only a few and it just looked like it as they circled us. Either way, I let go of Hailey and took a step in, closer to Dallas.
The monsters finally chose their time to strike.
After the short fight with Keo, I'd thought I could take on anything. However, Keo was only human. I was now fighting a monster, something that wouldn't hesitate to kill, and maybe it wasn't so different from Keo in that aspect but my mind labeled them different threats. I had been thrown into the situation with Keo almost immediately and had acted out with a fight response because I felt I couldn't run. However, in this situation, although I felt trapped, I saw openings everywhere to run. What trapped me there were the people there.
But as the wolves lunged forward, their sleek coats like flashes of obsidian, I forgot there were people around me. You're with them now but if you don't run it won't matter because you'll die alone.
So I did just that. The wind rushed through my hair and pulled like hands, grasping and tugging me the opposite way. The air already began to stink of blood, the coppery tang stinging my nose and throat. As I breathed in, tears sprung to my eyes.
I found a tree that I jumped behind, running my hand along its bark as I looked upon the chaos before me.
Keo had one chain wrapped around a wolf's leg, the other clenched between its large jaws as he stood on it's back. He seemed to be struggling, the chains rattling and shivering as if ready to break. Dallas was carefully dodging another wolf, doing his best to keep out of range, narrowly avoiding its teeth every time it snapped. Defense would only get him so far.
And Hailey—
Where's Hailey?
A loud yelp answered my question as Hailey embedded the blade of a dagger into a wolf's eye. She kicked away and I could have sworn that was a switch for all of us. Keo released the chain in the wolf's mouth and it disappeared as he did so. The second chain snapped open, the blades all along it digging into it's leg. He placed both his hands on that chain, planted his feet and jerked up. The wolf cried. There was no other way to explain it. It was a terrible and sad cry of pain as he tore through it's bone, the wolf falling as it broke straight through, the chain flying up as the leg tore off in a spray of blood.
Dallas released a small layer of his shield around his body and rose his rapier, the wolf clamping down on the blade. He just tightened his grip and jerked down. As soon as the wolf was low enough, he kicked his own blade, his shield protecting him. The sound of shattering teeth accompanied the wolf's whines. He kicked again and again until the blade dug deep into the wolf's skull, the bone falling limp as he jerked it out and moved to face another one alongside Keo.
My grip tightened on my sword as I turned to Hailey. I could hear the blood rushing in my ears and my breathing was so loud. I used to float in the pool back at home, my ears filled with water, and all I could hear was my breathing, a lot louder than normal. I knew that my breath kept me floating, kept me moving. So instead of focusing on what I was doing, I allowed my breath to fuel my instincts. At this point, everything I'd been taught by TKG and Dallas was all instinct.
I know I moved forward and I know I was comfortable. I wasn't off balance, I was calm, and my aim was straight. I buried the blade into the wolf's ginormous neck, turned it, and dragged it through it's skull. I guess I was lucky it couldn't see through that eye. Maybe it wouldn't have been that easy, then.
It collapsed in front of me, almost simultaneously with the one Dallas finished off. The blood on my sword dripped onto the ground and I could feel small, warm specks of the liquid on my face.
Everything had become quiet. Either there were no more wolves left or they'd all ran off.
"That was...unfortunate..."
I looked up, meeting Hailey's eyes and dropping my sword, my eyes widening as I ran to her side. Her skin was pale, flushed with blood and sweat. Her trembling hands were pressed to her thigh, blood steadily flowing from between her fingers. "We have to get you back to Myre. It's not too far and they've gotta have a doctor," I said, gently lifting her and turning to Dallas and Keo.
"They're not gonna want to help her," Keo said, gesturing to her.
"Then we'll make them," I said, walking to the first horse I saw. "Just hang on." I placed her on the horse and began to dig through the bag, coming up with an extra shirt. I ripped it, my hands now completely covered in blood and shaking, the adrenaline wearing off.
I didn't even know how I was supposed to tie it on her leg. I wasn't even sure if it would help, especially if it was her artery.
"Don't worry, it's not as bad as it looks," she said, smiling softly. I laughed bitterly.
"Let me do that. It'll be faster," Dallas said, gently taking the cloth out of my hand. As he tied it around her thigh, I took a step back, looking around to look for the other horses.
They were trained not to run unless attacked and it seemed the wolves didn't pay them any mind. They were still spooked but at least we still had them.
Keo walked up to me, silently taking the horses. I let him as I made my way to Hailey and led her horse to mine. "Just lean on his neck but try not to fall asleep," I said, sheathing my sword before jumping onto my horse.
"You're handling this pretty well," she said, resting her head against her horse's neck.
I glanced down at my bloodied hands, still shaking. "So are you." She just laughed as we made our way out. And as she fell silent, her breathing became raspy and I wondered how long we had or even if they would help us in Myre.
My fists clenched as I looked at her back barely raising with her shallow breaths. Either way, I knew I'd have to try.
The sun had begun to rise when we entered the town. Hailey had become even paler, the cloth on her leg was soaked with blood, and her breathing was short and rough. Keo and Dallas followed behind us.
If she dies, it's your fault, you know? You should have done something sooner. If you just weren't so selfish, she wouldn't be in this situation.
That voice again. It was no longer Tairen's. It was his. I wondered which one was worse.
Hailey was running out of energy. She was dying. I could see that but I didn't know what to do. All I knew was that I had to get someone to help. If Zeke were here, he'd be able to heal her. If only I was as useful as that. If only she'd just stayed at the castle. I should have told her to go back. She's too important to die and especially like this.
If I'd only gotten to her sooner.
"Hey, you!" Keo said, jumping off his horse and grabbing a man by his sleeve. The man glared at him, looking down at his pin. "Where's the doctor in this town?"
"Why would I tell you that? We're not afraid of the likes of you, here," the man sneered.
Keo's face went void of emotion. He moved his hand to the collar of the man's shirt and jerked him down so that he was looking down on him, the movement causing the man to fall to his knees. "I don't need all of you to be afraid of me, just you. You're gonna tell me where the doctor is because I'm sure you'd like to keep your fingers."
The man's eyes widened as he glanced at us, his eyes finding Hailey. He gulped, turning to Keo. "Just down the road. It's a small house. Roses outside the door. You can't miss it."
Keo shoved him away, jumping gracefully onto his horse as he began to lead us. The man hadn't lied. It was only about three houses down with large rose vines scaling the walls outside the door, thick enough to cover the windows on either side of it.
By the time I'd gotten off and helped Dallas with Hailey, Keo had already kicked the door open, after having it shut in his face once.
Inside was a man, probably not much older than Tairen. He looked both surprised and angry at the same time, his eyes gliding over us before landing on Keo.
"Get the hell out! We're not helping you scum!" he yelled.
I ignored him, brushing off all the contents from the large table and placing Hailey on it. She winced, moving so she was more comfortable, Dallas' arm around her shoulders to keep her up.
"Where's the doctor? There's no way someone as young as you runs this place," Keo said, crossing his arms.
"I said, we're not helping so bring her to die somewhere else!"
"You're helping her. You're saving her or I'll kill you myself, got it?" I said. "So go get the doctor."
"Son? What's going on?"
"It's nothing, father. Go back upstairs." I looked to where the voice had come from to find an older man standing at the foot of the stairs, a lantern in his hand.
"Are you the doctor?" I asked.
He looked around cautiously before nodding. I sighed.
"Good, you have to help my friend here. We were attacked by Dire wolves and she was injured." The man looked at his son, who was now leaning on the table looking up at him.
"You can't help them. They're outsiders and this woman just looks like some stray whor—"
He broke off as a bloodied blade was slammed into the table, digging in right between his fingers. He froze, his eyes wide.
Hailey glared up at him, her blue eyes blazing. "You insolent prick, I am no outsider in my own country and I am no stray whore. I am your Queen and you will treat me with respect or I will have you executed in front of the entire kingdom."
Her breathing was heavy as she released her hold on the knife, the man stepping back. Dallas gently laid her on the table, her eyes becoming lidded as she became weaker.
I looked up at the older man and said, "You will help her."
He looked at his son and then at Keo. "You heard the boss," Keo said, shoving the younger man out of the way and gesturing dramatically to Hailey. The older man hastily nodded and set the lantern down. He grabbed a wooden box from a cupboard and quickly made his way to Hailey, his eyes widening as he removed the soaked cloth from her leg.
"I'm not sure I can do much here. This wound—its very severe," he said.
My anxiety spiked and I forced myself to take a deep breath. "You have to do something. Please. She can't—she can't die out here. Not like this," I said. Not because of me.
My vision began to fade, slowly spinning and darkening. It felt like there was a hand wrapped around my throat and my own subtly clawed at it. I couldn't take in another breath, I'd lost control. My fingers began to tingle, slowly numbing.
"Hey," Dallas said, his voice low as he placed a hand on my shoulder. "Rye, hey, you alright?"
I looked up, my eyes meeting with Keo's instead of Dallas'. Concern was evident in his eyes for only a moment before they dulled out and he turned away. You're so self centered. Hailey's dying and you just can't handle the attention she's getting, huh? C'mon, even Keo sees it.
"I'm fine," I said, my voice hoarse. "Hailey—she's—" Feeling guilty now, aren't you? Because you just can't handle it? You can't justify it now. You're a horrible person. She's dying, you know that right? And yet you just can't handle not being in the spotlight. "Thats not—that's not true."
"Rye? What's not true? Hey, c'mon man, listen to me," Dallas said, his hand on my shoulder squeezing gently. "Hailey will be fine. We can get her treated the best we can here and then bring her back to Vrateldo. We'll finish the mission afterwards."
"No!" Hailey said, her voice shaky. I squeezed my eyes shut. "No, I want to stay with you guys. I don't want to go back yet. I'll be fine. It doesn't even hurt anymore."
"That doesn't mean its not serious. It's best if we bring you back to Vrateldo," Dallas argued.
"I won't let you. I won't," she said, laying back down, her chest heaving.
I turned away. Breathe. She'll be fine. You have to breathe.
I took in a shaky breath. If we return to Vrateldo with Hailey injured, Tairen and Cedric would be livid. I'd never seen Cedric angry and wasn't sure if I could imagine it but the feeling sent chills up my spine. What if he hated me afterward? It was my fault after all. I allowed her to come with us. I didn't snap out of it in time to help her. If I wasn't such a coward, maybe she wouldn't be in this situation and he'd know that. He'd see right through me.
And Tairen. Tairen saw the real me. He already once said I was selfish. How would he react? I didn't want him angry but my chest hurt imagining him looking at me in a different way. What if he wasn't angry but instead, he wasn't surprised? What if he knew I was a horrible person and he hated me for that? How would I be able to face him?
"Hey, boss, look at me," Keo said, placing a hand on my shoulder. I met his gaze and he smirked, his amber eyes soft. "You're gonna want to calm down. We need that brain of yours, alright?" He gently tapped my forehead.
I swallowed deeply, nodding.
He took a step back, glanced at Dallas, and then turned towards the door. "I'm gonna go tie up the horses. Let me know if anything interesting happens." He then left and as if he had taken it with him, my anxiety disappeared. I looked down at my bloodied hands and turned to the younger man.
"Can I use a room or somewhere to clean up?" I asked, my voice hoarse.
He hesitated for a moment then nodded, glancing at Hailey and his father. "Last door on the right. You guys can use that room until she's better," he said.
"Thank you," I said, turning to Dallas. "Will you be fine staying with her?"
"Of course," he said, his eyebrows curving upwards. "Will you be fine alone?"
I nodded, making my way to the stairs. "I'm just gonna get some sleep."
It was quiet as I walked up the stairs. Quiet as I opened the door. Quiet as I washed my hands and face. And it was quiet as I leaned against the wall, pulling a thin blanket up to my shoulders. My mind was quiet, the house was quiet, everything was so quiet.
When I closed my eyes, I found myself dreaming of Tairen's garden, hidden beautifully above the library. I wondered if he was there. I wondered if he had thought about me since we'd left. I dreamed about him and how much I wanted to see his green eyes. I dreamed about finding out what was behind them.
I wanted to apologize. Oh, how I wished I could just apologize. I was tired. So tired of everything. Of what I was doing. Of what I'd done. I was just tired. I wished I could sleep forever. I wished I would never wake up. I wondered if I even had to live anymore.
But his dark green eyes wouldn't let me sleep forever. They told me that I had more to do—that I had a purpose here.
I never would have guessed that when I finally did wake up, he'd be sitting beside me, his eyes closed and his face relaxed. I never would have guessed his fingers would be gently placed on my hand.
But, oh, how it made me want to live.