Stoke - 10. Attack

I was sandwiched between Amaris and Talon. Light was filtering in through the canvas and I groaned softly. Talon was behind me, and Amaris’ was tucked into my chest. Talon’s long arm extended over both of us in his sleep. There was a wealth of blankets piled on top of us and I never wanted to leave the warm little pod. Amaris shifted and brought a hand up to rub her eye. She blinked scarlet eyes up at me and snuggled farther into my chest.

“Morning.”

”Hey.”

Talon was snoring softly against the back of my neck still and I pushed Amaris’ hair out of her face. It was freezing even with our combined body heat. She rolled onto her back, and Talon subconsciously held me closer to him. I turned and snuggled into him, bunching his tunic up in my fingers. I missed Syrin. I missed being able to roll over and have his skin meet my palms. His arms loosened a little and I yawned softly.

“Alright, up boys. Let’s get some food. We’ll have to leave soon.” I was a little nervous. We’d have to address the Loren and Rah situation today. Were they friend or foe? Why were they out here? Was it a reason similar to ours? Everything about them seemed strange and maybe a little bit off. Talon didn’t trust them. It wasn’t only because Loren was…friendly. He’d given Talon a bad feeling almost immediately. He’d told us that all around the fire last night. I chewed my lip as I thought.
I heard Amaris cross the room and then I heard rustling as I assumed she got dressed. Talon’s lips pressed a kiss to my cheek. Then he pulled from me to stretch. We were slow to rise and get dressed and by the time we’d left the tent, the others were almost done eating. I was bundled up, but I was beginning to wonder if the clothes were helping any. It was colder today somehow and the white puffs of my breath in the air made me pout my chapped lips. This country was awful. I warmed my hands with light and did the same for Amaris when she thrust hers against my chest. I practically shoveled food in my mouth to make up time. I still had to load up my pack and make sure I had everything before we left. I moved fast, luckily, and managed to finish ahead of the group.

While I was waiting for the others to be ready, I spared a look at the other camp. Loren was gently securing the cover over Rah’s eyes. I felt strange for watching, but she was fascinating to me and familiar for some reason. Their camp was packed up already and I wondered when they’d woken up. He threw her hood over her face and his laugh carried to me as she whirled on him, yelling words I couldn’t make out. They seemed harmless enough, despite the eardrum-shattering thing. I didn’t get any negative feelings from them other than that. Sure, again, Rah had almost deafened us. But I’m not sure that we wouldn’t have attacked first and asked questions later as well. We were hoping to be on the road by mid-morning. We would walk, keeping up our brutal speed from the day before. The plan was to keep up that speed until night fell and then make camp again. After sunset, the temperatures were dropping too low for safe travel.

Our groups stood shifting uncomfortably and staring at each other once we were ready to set out. Talon’s arms were crossed, and he kept stealing glances at Rah, a frown on his face. Loren caught my eye and chuckled when I looked away from him. Rah held his arm again and her head was tilted down. He threw his hood up and it cast shadows over his unique eyes. Hanja and Tyren studied the strangers. Eon’s face was impassive, and Wren looked bored. A smile tugged at my lips as Loren seemed to settle on Amaris. She was making a conscious effort to ignore him, but I caught the way she pushed her chest out. She was toying with a piece of her thick inky hair in an obvious attempt to look coy. Not that Amaris needed to put effort into seducing anyone.

“Friends, good morning. Are we going to be going our separate ways?” Loren grinned at Amaris, and I noticed a small silver hoop through his nose, settled between his nostrils.

“Yes.” Talon, Wren, and Hanja answered in unison. I raised an eyebrow and Amaris shifted her weight from foot to foot. We should have talked about this together. We hadn’t. We’d discussed how we felt about the attack, but no one had brought up the possibility of traveling as one group.

“Do I sense a little division?” Loren drawled in a teasing voice, long bangs falling into his unique eyes. Rah said something to him, whispering in his ear. He sighed. She released his arm and stepped forward, clearing her throat. Her lips were chapped, and her skin was so pale that I wondered if she was ill.

“We will separate when our paths do. At that time we will wish you well.” Loren didn’t argue, but stood slouching with his head tilted back like a disappointed child. They turned to leave, and no one spoke as we watched them.

“We’re going the same way. Until the road splits we’re all stuck together.” Amaris scoffed, “Might as well get cozy.” Loren grinned and Rah turned to “look” back at us. Not being able to see her eyes made me uneasy. It was impossible to tell what she was thinking. There was no further discussion. They walked ahead of us, and we fell into our normal walking formation. It was uncomfortable and we were silent for the most part. We caught up with them and went around. Loren and Rah were slower. He let her set the pace. I was impressed at how sure footed she was. Amaris and I were only about twenty feet ahead and I felt Amaris’ eyes on me.

“What?” I groaned, looking at her finally.

“I want to talk to him.”

“Then do it.”

“Come with me Kally! Moral support!” Amaris rolled her eyes when mine automatically sought out Talon’s back, “The worst that’s going to happen is he fucks you into the ground again. Who knows? Maybe he’ll change his story now and share you. Your relationship won’t fall apart if you add another person.”

“Amaris!” I blushed hard and squeaked as she held me still so they could catch up. My heart surged with unease. I hadn’t nailed down my thoughts on these two. Talon influenced my opinions of course and I knew he was suspicious. I didn’t want to think that way. Who knows? Maybe they were running from a bad set of circumstances like we were? As they reached us, Loren smiled lazily and spoke softly to Rah. We walked next to them for a few seconds wordlessly, Amaris beyond jittery.

“So, I’m going to go out on a limb and say your man doesn’t like me much.” Loren’s voice was filled with laughter.

“Talon was defending me. Liking you has nothing to do with it.” I frowned.

“Well, I have to say I enjoyed the way he advertised his claim on you. It was a very…energetic and loud declaration.” Loren laughed and I felt heat creep into my cheeks. Rah let out an annoyed huff of breath as she listened. I frowned as Amaris’ face fell, watching me take all of Loren’s attention. I didn’t even want it. She could have it.

“Just saying, Talon has exactly zero claim on me. We used to be each other’s stress relief that’s it, but now I’m back on the market. Where are you from? You are way too tan to be from Dleth.” Amaris saved me from further embarrassment, and I squeezed the hand that was still in mine. She also managed to snatch the attention I was more than happy to have taken from me.

“Illiath.” Loren answered, “Rah is from Dleth originally. She did spend a bit of time in Dimian however.” Illiath was across the sea. I’d never met anyone from there. It made sense. I’d never seen someone who looked quite like him. As I looked at Rah, I tried to figure out how old she was. She was young, but her personality was so serious, her voice so commanding.

“Family?” Amaris had drifted closer to Loren as we walked and he noticed right away, a smirk on his lips. It fell when he registered her question.

“Dead. For both of us. We’re orphans.” Loren answered with a sigh. His eyes drifted to his companion and a strange emotion flashed through them.

“We are all the other one has.” Rah added. Amaris was silenced abruptly. I watched her struggling to salvage the conversation and took pity.

“Your power is amazing Rah. I’ve never seen anything like it.” That didn’t ring entirely true in my head, but I didn’t know why. I had seen something similar but where?

“Thank you. From what Loren said, yours seems impressive as well.” I smiled at her and then reminded myself she couldn’t see it.

“How did you find each other? Seems like a strange group.” Loren glanced up at the sky as he asked, fingers running over the beginnings of a five-o-clock shadow.

“We met in Syrin and began traveling together.” I tried to leave out as much as I could while still answering. Loren made a humming sound but otherwise didn’t respond. Rah seemed to only speak when she had something important to add. Amaris threw me a frustrated look. Not for the first time, I wished that Amaris and I also had a connection so we could talk nonverbally.

Instead, we fell into our natural gait. It was much faster than theirs and we put some space between us. Amaris let out a heavy sigh and leaned against me as we walked. Talon had noticed the entire exchange and he looked back at me, chin tipped up and eyebrow raised in question. I blew him a kiss and he smiled before turning as Eon spoke to him. The next two hours were filled with Amaris bemoaning her failure at conversing with Loren. I listened patiently and did my duty as a friend to reassure her she hadn’t rammed her foot into her mouth. Even though she had. You’d think in a group like ours, family would be an off-limits conversation starter.

My legs were still sore from yesterday’s trek and that was annoying me. I thought I was in better shape than this. I sighed. If I complained, Amaris would alert Wren and they’d decide it was time to start running laps again or something equally as awful. I grimaced. Amaris’ fingers were sweaty in mine, even with the cold air. I chewed the inside of my cheek as Wren slowly dropped back.

“What do you make of that man?” He was picking at his nails, trying to act indifferent. It seemed Loren had piqued everyone’s interest one way or another. I’m sure he’d be more than pleased to know it.

“Well, Amaris wants to sleep with him. Talon is attracted to and threatened by him. I think he’s leaning a bit more on the threatened side. To round it out, I’m not sure how I feel.”

“I would think you’d have a certain kinship.” Wren’s eyes met mine, “He’s powerless after all.”

“What?” I stopped so fast that Amaris almost tripped.

“He doesn’t have any powers.” Wren flicked his claws behind him in Loren’s direction. “I suppose a kinship wouldn’t make sense now that I give it more thought. You have power.”

“You can tell that?” I asked while Amaris scoffed, “There’s no way!”

“Eon looks at him. I don’t like it.” We both blinked at Wren as he changed the subject at breakneck speed.

“Eon has never been interested in anyone but you Wren.” I tried after I’d caught up, hoping my voice was soothing. Wren scowled and walked away from us. Well, there was another issue to chase around in my brain. I sighed and resigned myself to another day of walking forever and overthinking.

Through the combined effort of Amaris, Tyren, and I, Loren and Rah sat around our fire. It had been a long argument and Talon and Wren were still silently pouting. Night had fallen and Talon had said we’d be there tomorrow before lunch time. This safehouse had a real bath as opposed to the strange rigged up shower in the last house. I had almost whined out loud when Talon told me. That was all that’d get me through tomorrow. I was sore and sick of walking. Also, my feet were perpetually wet and squished in my boots every step.
Talon avoided Loren like the plague and that only seemed to be funnier to the brunette. He’d take paths through camp specifically so Talon would be forced a longer way around to avoid him. Wren had sat himself on Eon’s lap the minute my brother had finally relaxed. Loren had eyed them before returning to Rah’s side. He never left her for long and was tense at first when Tyren insisted the girl eat something more than the thin broth with bare shreds of meat and veggies they normally had. No one could refuse Tyren’s bright smiles and kind eyes, though. He’d take care of them too. Whether they liked it or not. Now, Rah had a heaping bowl of Tyren’s stew and a soft piece of bread. The brunette leaned close and smiled wide at Tyren who returned only the smile. Tyren was either oblivious or immune to the other man’s charms it seemed. Hanja was completely unbothered, sitting on a downed tree as he ate. Loren gave Tyren a once over, but my teacher only turned away, shuffling over to sit next to his partner. I smiled to myself. I wondered what it felt like to be completely secure in your relationship like that?

Talon sat next to me, stew getting cold as he watched Rah. His eyes were narrowed slightly, and I was confused. It wasn’t lust or interest in that look. I didn’t know what the draw was. Loren, seemingly content with Rah’s meal, relaxed and went to grab himself food. Amaris was squirming next to me, her own bowl clutched in her hands. Talon and I both looked to her when she stood and marched over to Loren. I nuzzled Talon’s shoulder, but I noticed he looked almost upset. That waved a red flag in my head. Why would Talon care if Amaris pursued Loren? Did he have feelings still? I bit my lip hard as insecurity slammed through me. Shit. I took a deep breath, forcing myself to watch Tyren and Hanja interact. I needed to mature. I needed to stop and trust the both of us. I needed to trust my best friend too. Amaris was Talon’s friend now. Maybe he was worried like I was that she’d get hurt. He’d already said he didn’t trust them. I had to stop jumping to conclusions.

Amaris was all swaying hips, flipping her hair over her shoulder as she reached Loren. He drank in the sight of her, face breaking into a mischievous smile. Without many words exchanged, they made their way to the edge of the camp. The pair strategically placed themselves behind a shelter and out of view.

”That’s a bad idea.” Talon mumbled as he finally took a bite. He frowned softly down at his bowl. I assumed he finally noticed the food had gone cold.

”Let her have fun. He seems harmless.” I giggled softly, rubbing my shoulder against his.

”Seems. It is very easy to ‘seem’ like you are just about anything my love. Look at Lex. Look at Anders. Look at you. You seem innocent yet when we’re alone you can’t wait to get my c-”

“Okay, okay. I get it. Watch your mouth. Gods. The things you say in casual conversation.” Talon looked down at me. He’d tried to soften his words’ blow by making the ending dirty, but the damage had been done. My mood was ruined.

With Loren gone, I saw Rah sitting alone and eating by herself. Talon could be right. He knew more of the world than I did. He knew people and what humanity was capable of better than I did. At the same time…Talon never saw the good in people until it was right under his nose. So, Talon could be right. One hundred percent. But, Talon could also be wrong. I squeezed his knee and took a breath as I made a decision. I stood.

I’ll be back,Talon.

Why do you have to befriend everyone?

We’re opposites, remember? I have to balance your prickly self.

Fine. Be careful love.

Never.

I stood and made my way over to the mysterious girl. Up close, she had sharper features and a strong jawline for a woman. This close I could make out the layer of white hair under the dark grey. Layered choppy bangs hung the slightest bit over her blindfold and I noticed a grey sheen on her lips. Her skin was perfect and pale and her nails were midnight black and immaculate. Part of me wondered if Loren took care of her nails and hair for her. He had to.

“Can I sit with you?” I asked, suddenly shy.

“If you must.” She answered shortly, tearing a piece of bread.

“How do you know Loren? How’d you two meet?” I sat and tried to leave a respectful distance between us.

“He saved me. Then I saved him.” Her answer was short again and she dipped the crust of bread into the soup’s broth. She ate fast and I wondered how long they’d been eating the thin broth. It was barely enough to keep someone going.

“From what? If you don’t mind me asking.” She wore a silver chain around her neck that disappeared in her jacket and thin silver rings adorned every section of her thin long fingers.

“I was...imprisoned and then sold to a wealthy baron. Loren was a stable boy. Or they thought he was. Where he comes from, they train as warriors as soon as they can walk.” It was the most I had ever heard from her and I was surprised she’d offered the information. We both took bites of food, main focus shifting to our bowls.

“How did you meet Talon? You seem an odd pair. You seem so kind and he threatened to rip off Loren’s manhood and feed it to him. Not that I don’t understand that Loren can be…polarizing.” Her voice was soft as if she didn’t want to ask.

“He really is sweet. He’s also very protective and we’ve been through a lot too. He’s not comfortable with someone being that…forward with me.” I laughed softly and shook my head. We didn’t speak after that and Loren returned. His hair was a mess and there were telltale red smears over his mouth. His eyes were dazed and Amaris sauntered back over to sit next to Talon, a proud look on her face. He nodded to me and then offered his hand to my dinner companion. Rah’s slipped into his without hesitation and they left for their tent, leaving me alone. Apparently, our conversation was over. I sighed and added my bowl to the other empty ones near the fire. I ran fingers over Talon’s cheek and then crawled onto his lap, sitting sideways, after I’d joined them. Amaris smirked at me, and I rolled my eyes. I guess she’d decided that the reward far outweighed the risk.

With the newcomers to our group gone, we fell into our normal dynamic. Wren detached himself from Eon, sitting next to him instead and Tyren began regaling us with a story of one of his students blowing up his entire building when he’d lost control of his Magik. Tyren insisted that it had been some of his first years teaching and he wasn’t used to watching multiple people at once. We laughed and Talon held me close. It was nice. Relaxing as a little family. Eon had to add a very descriptive story about how I’d slipped and fallen down the stairs in our home, landing at the bottom in a crumpled mess.

“He wailed like an infant. He was eight. Mother thought he broke his neck, but no. No broken bones. Hardly even a bruise. Just a dramatic little Kalian. And he was little. The six year old village kids picked on him!” Eon chuckled to himself and even Wren had a small smile on his face.

“Awe baby Kalian!” Amaris cooed, laughing hard herself as she poked at me.

“How did you slip and fall down an entire flight of stairs?” Talon kissed my shoulder, trying to stifle his laughter.

My mirth died and Eon rubbed his cheek, “Anika threw ice down.”

Amaris glared at the fire, “What a bitch. We should have killed that one.”

I shook off the bad mood that tried to take over and watched a log break in half as the fire ate through its middle. Long fingers rubbed my side and the conversation branched off into something I missed. I wondered where she was. Anika. Was she okay? Had she made it home? Was she dead in a ditch somewhere? Crow food? I grimaced at the thought and Talon’s fingers kneaded my shoulder gently. I looked up at him and he laughed at something Amaris said. I’m not sure he was even aware he was trying to soothe me. His fingers rubbed gently up my spine and he held the middle finger of his other hand in Amaris’ face while she squawked at him for something.

Tyren hooked his arm around Hanja’s neck and the more serious male’s face reddened a touch. He must’ve been telling an embarrassing story about the healer. I couldn’t focus on it. My mind was on a tiny nudging in my brain that told me I was missing an important piece of the puzzle. I didn’t even know which puzzle it was for. Was it the Anders one? The Soul Eater one? Loren and Rah?

Cheek pressed to Talon’s shoulder, I rummaged through my thoughts. The fire’s heat sunk into my bones and I hummed softly as my body slowly defrosted. The group was animated and in a great mood for some reason. I smiled as more stories were told. Near toppling over when Wren described the various arguments and fights Amaris,Talon, and the other Verseckt recruits got in when they were younger. Being cruel, Eon had plenty of my stories to share and by the end of the night my face was hot and I wanted to throw something at his head.

It was getting late and the day had taken its toll on us. Tyren kept rubbing his cheek as his eyelids grew heavy and Hanja announced they were off to bed. Eon was next, dragging Wren with him even though he would be back out here once my brother fell asleep.

“Tired?” Talon’s voice mumbled softly in my ear and I shuddered. He chuckled and his fingers toyed with the hair at the nape of my neck. Swinging my legs forward, I forced myself up. My body protested in pops and cracks as I stretched and I sighed. Amaris stayed put and I looked from her to the dark tent that she stared at. It sat a fair distance from our own shelters. She sighed and helped Talon put out the fire. We all walked to the shelter. Talon and I wrapped around each other as she changed. Talon’s lips pressed softly to mine a few times and then once to my forehead. I could see the fatigue in his eyes and I traced my fingers along his jaw. Talon’s eyes closed and his breathing slowly began to even out.

My brain launched back into my worrying the minute we relaxed. Who were Loren and Rah? What was Anders up to? Was Anika alive? Would my friends and I make it through this in one piece? I was scared and working myself up. I knew I was. I couldn’t stop though. Spiraling was my favorite past time.

”S’wrong?” Talon sleepily slurred, pressing his lips to my nose.

”Nothing.” I frowned, smoothing his bangs away from his pretty eyes.

”You’re doing the thing again.” He mumbled as he yawned and tucked me into his chest, nuzzling.

“What thing?” I pouted.

“The one where you overthink every tiny fucking detail of everything. You’re going to think yourself to death Kally. Now, scooch over.” I obliged and Amaris smashed her back to my back, spine against spine. Talon shared the various blankets he’d already pulled over us and I kissed him one last time. I was securely held against his chest, snuggled under thick blankets. I worked on banishing my thoughts as he rubbed his cheek against the top of my head. His fingers rubbed my spine lightly where Amaris wasn’t touching. Soon the light touches stopped. His hands went limp and both their breathing evened out. My mind relented as well. It would be okay. One problem at a time. All that mattered was it was warm and I was comfortable. Also, I was very tired.

I woke up to shouting. I crawled forward and hauled myself onto my feet. Then I almost fell on my face as I stumbled, trying to move fast. Amaris was right after me, “What is going on?”

Yanking on boots as quick as I could, I made for the shelter entrance. Talon was gone. So was the sword he stowed by our feet at night. Why hadn’t he woken us? What in gods’ name was going on? We rushed from the shelter and emerged into chaos. There were soldiers here, dressed in tattered red uniforms with a sigil I had seen before. It was the same as the group that had attacked us when we’d entered Dleth.
I stared as Talon whirled, sword in hand, shadows slamming out in a violent arc. There were so many of them, crawling over our camp like fire ants. Talon accounted for, I rolled into finding our friends in the fray. Amaris tied a knot in her oversized tunic, tightening it. She secured her long hair in a messy bun and flipped a knife into her hand. I spotted white hair first. Wren was in his element of course, spinning in mid-air as he launched himself through the men around him. Blood soaked earth and screaming followed him. Nearby, about twenty yards, fire ignited. I clenched my hands as Eon ducked away from a huge battle axe. He snapped his fingers and his attacker burst into flames. He didn’t even acknowledge the outcome or the horrible shrieks, simply continued to the next opponent. The last members of our official group were the farthest away from me and the shelters. As always, Hanja and Tyren fought together. They spun around each other gracefully, taking turns blocking and attacking. Tyren with his staff and Hanja with his long, thin sword.

Then I saw Loren. His movements were astoundingly elegant. His body moved like rushing water, quick and powerful while still fluid. He dove around opponents, rolled under them, spun so close his torso slid against theirs. His feet barely touched the ground. It was as if he was gliding across the snow, never quite touching down. It was an intricate dance of knives and violence. I watched now as he held two longer knives with thin blades. He flipped them this way and that, bouncing on the balls of his feet as he watched a uniformed man approach. This was the most grounded I’d seen him and I noticed I’d been frozen in place as I watched.
He smiled at the red clad man in front of him, puckering his lips in a kiss. The man lunged forward with an angry shout. He stabbed with a short sword, aiming for the chest. Loren spun around him after easily deflecting, dark and grey hair seeming to float around him as time slowed. He then flipped his knife back so the blade was parallel with his forearm. His dominant hand moved first and the other followed behind smoothly, striking so fast I didn’t know where they hit the man. When Loren’s spin came to a halt, he turned the knives to face out again, using his arm to push his bangs out of his face. His opponent crumpled behind him, blood spraying from his throat. As he fell to his knees, holding his stomach, blood spilled over his fingers as he drew his last breaths. When had he even hit him in the stomach?

Then I noticed it. He was all alone. Where was Rah? I sprung into action. I dove between men, shoving one harshly out of my way. The poor thing fell right into Wren’s waiting fangs and claws and was promptly ripped apart. The red uniforms were falling, but not fast enough. It made me think of Lex’s ambush. My stomach twisted and I felt nauseous. Were we going to make it out of this okay? Where was Rah? I turned my head as a large crack split the air. Talon had a cut across his cheek. His hair curling from sweat, he looked deeply annoyed, “You know I’d like to go an entire year where I don’t wake up to someone. Attacking. Me.”

After each word, his shadows ripped over the snow-covered ground, slicing through multiple red clad men. I rolled my eyes and continued my search. A man came out of nowhere and swung an axe at my face. I dodged and grabbed his fist and the hilt of the axe in one hand. The man was far taller and wider than I was.

He smirked, “Well aren’t you pretty? It’s a kill mission, but we could have some fun first.”

“What an unfortunate downgrade that would be. I’ll pass, thanks.” My brain froze for a second. How had Talon’s snark come out of my mouth? He tried yanking his hand away, probably assuming it’d be easy since he was bigger. Underestimating me was never a great idea. I gripped tighter and pulled his arm out, extending it. Now, I had a clear shot at his ugly face.

I hit him hard in the nose with my free hand and he seemed dazed. He didn’t release the axe, however, “Drop your weapon. I’m really not in the mood to kill someone.” He spit in my face and managed to backhand me in the mouth. I tasted blood, but kept my hold. I hit him again, harder this time. Wrenching the axe from his hand, I hit him hard in the back of the head with the handle. He went down bonelessly and I threw the axe away from me.

“Hey! Sweetcheeks! The tent!” My head whipped to Loren who was in the middle of jamming his knife through a man’s neck sideways. His eyes were wild and I took off in the direction I remembered their tent being in. Rage. I hadn’t felt it on this scale very many times. Rah was being dragged from the tent. She held her hands up and a man backhanded her so hard she fell to the ground. She struggled to get up and was kicked in the face. As I watched, the men were laughing to themselves and pulling at her long skirts and coat. The arrogance. The audacity. Their compatriots were fighting and dying nearby, and they had prioritized torturing a woman.

It took them far too long to notice. I hurtled over a patch of snow-covered rocks. I wondered if this was what Talon felt like when he went into one of his rages? When he defended me? I saw red, my reason left entirely like it had with the Soul Eater. All my mind could focus on was that they needed to hurt. They deserved to suffer. I got within 50 feet before they noticed they were under attack.

A red head swung a sword as I neared him. I flipped over it and light spread from my fingers. It extended in a beam that ended in a point. I jammed it through the back of his neck. The men started yelling. I released the light to bend myself back as another sword swung over me. I came up on the other side, well within his defense. This one had brown eyes I thought. I didn’t even use light. I gripped his chin and the back of his head and jerked sharply. The loud snap fell on deaf ears. Three more went down fast. I didn’t remember their faces. There was a great roaring in my head. I panted and turned. There were now only four more men around Rah. Two dashed for me and I snapped my wrist. The one that had been coming from my right’s head left his body. The one on the left got within five feet. He jabbed a spear at my side and managed to graze my skin.

My elbow, tipped in my light, came down hard in the middle. The spear snapped in two. I caught the end with the point and whipped around, hurling it through his eye. I turned more slowly this time, feeling my body start to tire. The walking had taken a toll and I hadn’t fought seriously like this yet. When we’d been attacked the first time in Dleth, that arrow had taken me out. My skills and endurance were really being tested here. Wren and Amaris’ training had definitely paid off and as I stalked toward the remaining men, I made a mental note to thank them. I was a warrior now. I didn’t have to depend on my powerful Magik or my luck. I wasn’t the man Lex had captured, near useless to my friends in battle. I could hold my own. More than hold my own, I was a threat.

“What are you? Freak!” Yes, I was the freak. They’d been planning to assault a blind woman on a battlefield, but I was the bad guy.

The one who spoke threw a knife at me that I deflected with a shield of my light. The man who’d been restraining Rah’s hands loosened his grip as he stared at me in shock. Wrong choice. Rah turned lightening quick and cupped her hands around his ears. I felt wave after wave pulse through the air. I had covered my ears as soon as she’d raised her hands.The opponet who’d been moving for me turned back when his partner screamed. He screamed again and then his head just…burst. The other man cried out and then seemed to remember he’d been doing something. Too late. I reached him, ducking away from a serrated knife. I gripped his wrist and yanked him to me, covering his eyes with my free hand as I pulled Magik to myself. I grimaced and closed my eyes, counting in my head.

One. The screaming started.

Two. The screaming paired with burning noises and crackling.

Three. The screaming fell off into an unholy combination of inhuman and bodily sounds.

Four. My palm sank in until it hit something hard.

I held on as he screamed. I held on still when his knees hit the ground. I never let go. He fell away from the hand, body falling over onto the ground. The air smelled like blood and burnt skin.

I shook out of whatever had overcome me. I felt nauseous. I wanted to be sick. I’d have to hold it together for now. It wasn’t the time or the place. My body and muscles were screaming as I staggered forward, “Rah! Are you okay?”
Her shoulders relaxed at my voice and she slumped against me. Her blindfold had been ripped from her face and I saw dark eyebrows first, hidden somewhat under jagged bangs. Then I saw a wide, raised, jagged scar that covered her brow line and eyes.
Her eyelashes were white and I could still see the outline of her irises. Her eyes were milky and filled with tears. A nasty bruise was forming under her eye and blood dripped from her nose. There was also a small cut above her left eyebrow. A busted lower lip completed her face. She brought her fingers up to cover her face, her hands scratched and nails broken and bloody. She’d fought when they had been trying to yank her out of the tent. She’d fought hard. I hurt for her. She reminded me of how I’d been when the carriage had been attacked.

The battle was winding down around us, ropes of shadow dragging men to what had been the center of our camp. It dragged them right into the waiting hands of Talon and my friends. Loren was jogging to us, hair and eyes wild. When he reached us, he tugged Rah to his chest and held her so tight I almost couldn’t hear her sobs. He appeared uninjured; blood was splattered across his face. Her shoulders shook and he was mumbling into her ear. I almost felt like I was witnessing something private. It didn’t feel like it was for my eyes.

A low whistle sounded behind me and I turned. Talon was strolling toward me, eyes scanning over the carnage as he twirled his sword. There was a very clear path through the men and it ended where I now stood. He tucked his weapon under his arm and clapped slowly. Of course. He smirked at me as he spoke, “I knew you’d gotten stronger, but damn.”

I rolled my eyes and turned away from him as my stupid cheeks colored. I was taking deep breaths slowly. My anxiety and guilt weren’t as bad as they had been with the Soul Eater, but there was a struggle. I still felt awful for the men that lay behind me. The men I had killed. One of which, the man I loved, was currently poking at with the toe of his boot. My attention was pulled away as fingers barely touched my shoulder. Loren still held Rah, an arm around her shoulders, but his fingers were reaching out to me.

“Thank you.” His voice was sincere, joking tone absent as he looked me in the eye. His gaze didn’t roam over my body. I blinked. My guilt was forced back and I took a shuddering breath. Rah would be dead. She’d be dead and violated if I hadn’t fought and killed those men.

I had to stop pulling back at the last moment or beating myself up for what had to be done. People were dying. If I couldn’t stand up for my friends and those close to me, no one would. They’d fall. A part of my brain cringed away from the thought of more killing. I wasn’t a killer. I didn’t want to hurt people. Unfortunately, these were the cards I had been dealt. It was inevitable.

“You don’t have to thank me.” I muttered, embarrassed. Loren rubbed Rah’s back and only answered with a small smile. I heard something rip and Talon walked past me. He held a strip of his coat out to Loren, avoiding the other man’s eyes as he held it out to him. Loren looked confused.

“For…you know, her eyes.” Talon grumbled and I wanted to kiss him. Instead, I linked our fingers and pressed into his side. Loren’s mouth opened and then closed. Finally, he grinned at Talon and took the strip of fabric. He whispered to Rah and secured the cloth over her eyes, tying a small knot behind her head. Her shoulders relaxed immediately. She had pulled her mouth into a tight line and she released that as well once the cloth was in place.

“Kalian you were amazing!” Amaris barreled into me. She knocked me into Talon and we almost all ended up on the ground. She wrapped her arms around my neck and planted a sloppy kiss on my cheek. I pushed her face away and laughed as she pouted. She shoved me again into Talon, who dropped his sword to catch me as I fell.

Talon pointed at her in warning as she lifted her hands again. Amaris met his gaze and her eyes lit with challenge. Loren cleared his throat, “So, uh, are you more open to sharing?”

It had taken us so long to pack up our camp that I began to wonder if we should leave it up and rest instead. Loren and Rah didn’t seem to be in a hurry. They sat on the stump Wren had the night before, her hands held in his. Talon noticed me watching them and ruffled my hair, “She’ll be okay Kal. You got there in time. She got roughed up a little bit, but Hanja’s already taken care of her.”

When I didn’t answer, his fingers lightly held my chin as he kissed over my cheeks and forehead. Eon called him to help with something and he mumbled a flame related insult. After pecking me on the lips he trudged over to see what my brother needed.

“My little Sunbeam, hero of the day.” Wren’s grin was a little too wide, a little too fake. His pink eyes were tinged red. The corners of his mouth were suspiciously smeared with scarlet.

“I’m no hero. I don’t remember most of it. I kind of blacked out and came to when it was all over.” I was still coming to terms with the person I was becoming. With the warrior I was becoming. Could I find a way around this? I was torn. I was excited to be useful. To have learned and put hard earned skills to use. But those skills, the shitty part of my brain liked to remind me, existed to hurt others.
Well that wasn’t entirely true. Many of them were defensive. Protection. Was protecting the ones I loved wrong? Of course not. Should I let Talon or Eon or any of my friends get hurt or die? Absolutely not. What was important here? My weird impossibly strict moral code or those I held most dear? There was no contest.

Wren’s claws had blood caked underneath and I cringed away from the copper smell when he tapped my nose. For a second, it dunked me into my nightmares. Into the blood sea. Only for a second though. After that, I was fine. I, thankfully, drug myself from my thoughts. Wren and I hadn’t spoken alone since Eon and I had argued. We hadn’t spoken that much then if we were being honest.

“No injuries?” I asked after the silence went on for too long. Wren’s eyes hadn’t left mine and his tongue scraped over a fang as he giggled. He didn’t answer. Wren simply crossed to where Eon was standing and holding out Wren’s pack. My brows knit together. I wasn’t able to process my recent interactions with Wren. Was he angry with me? Were we okay?

I shook my head and joined Talon. Everyone was ready now and I felt hesitation from most of those around me. Except for Hanja and Wren. Talon scratched the back of his head and looked up at the sky with a heavy sigh. Amaris’ face was distraught, looking between our group and the two still sitting nearby. Tyren linked their fingers and whispered into Hanja’s ear. The healer’s lips turned downward and he shook his head. Tyren looked crestfallen and then irritated which was unusual for him to say the least. Amaris wrapped her arms around herself and motioned with her head to Talon, raising her eyebrows meaningfully. I glanced once more to Rah and Loren who seemed oblivious to our group’s dilemma.

I heard Talon’s sharp intake of breath as I turned in his direction, “No. No. Leave me alone. I know that face. That’s the ‘Talon-I-know-you-said-no-but-I’m-going-to-force-you-into-something-anyway’ face.”

“But baby, love, most handsome man to ever pick up a sword, that’s how I hooked you in the first place.” I leaned against him, interlocking the fingers of both our hands as I looked up at him, “Talon, we can’t leave them, my love. Think if we weren’t here? Rah and Loren would be dead.”

“Kalian, they’re not our responsibility. Keeping them alive-not my job.” He grit his teeth and avoided my eyes, trying to blindly untangle our fingers.

“They are and it is now. I’m not leaving them here alone.” I pulled away, glaring around at him, Eon, and Hanja. They were the ones who wanted nothing to do with the two of them. Hanja met my eyes, expression impassive and unmoved. Eon sighed and winced, as he too met my eyes. Talon still refused to look at me. Wren looked around with a bored expression. He didn’t care either way and I’m sure he didn’t understand what we were doing right now. We were ready, why was everyone exchanging weird faces?

“Kal…” Eon started but I held up my hand.

“You’ve seen how slow they move. She’s shaken up. They’re going to move even slower. They won’t stand a chance and you want to leave them? They’d be safer with us.” I kept my voice as low as possible, not wanting Loren or Rah to hear.

“No doubt, but they are strangers. We owe them nothing.” Hanja’s eyes rolled skywards as if he had hit his patience quota.

“He fought alongside all of you today. He’s a fighter. He isn’t dead weight. He’d be an advantage!” I argued.

“Babe, like you said, he’s a fighter. They’re not defenseless. Also, again, as you said, she slows them down. They’re slow. He may be an advantage but she’s going to be a burden. A liability.” My mouth hung open as I stared at my partner. I had wanted to kiss him earlier. He’d been so sweet to her, but now I wanted to shove him. How could he think about people that way?

“I was a burden for a long time and you never left me behind.” Talon’s face fell. He rested his hand over his mouth, finger hooking over the bridge of his nose as he reined in his temper. He let his eyes close as irritation hummed over the connection. I looked away from him. I was angry and sad at the same time. My chest hurt and I kept my eyes on the ground.

“They have their own food. We wouldn’t have to provide any.” Tyren offered softly and I heard Hanja groan under his breath.

“If they become a hindrance, at least they’d still be useful. As a food source.” Wren added and I scowled at him. He simply shrugged and made a face like he thought I was ungrateful.

“He is a strong fighter. One of the best I’ve seen. He might be better than Talon and I. The girl may not be a physical fighter, but her Magik is strong.” Eon said when silence followed Wren’s horrific comment. Talon bristled at Eon’s words and I rolled my eyes.

“What if we vote? A show of hands?” Amaris suggested, still frowning.

“Good idea!” Tyren’s smile was strained as his partner stared a hole into the side of his face.

“Fine, all in favor?” Eon asked. My hand went up right away, as did Tyren’s and Amaris’. Wren shrugged which I took to mean he wasn’t going to vote. Eon ran fingers over his short beard before lifting his hand up. I stifled a laugh as Tyren stomped hard on Hanja’s foot. He yelped and with wide eyes looked to his normally calm and chipper partner. Tyren’s eyes were like molten gold and the intensity he met Hanja’s gaze with made the healer’s eyes widen. I blinked. Tyren didn’t get upset about much, but when he did…Hanja’s fingers crept into the air hesitantly, eyes still on Tyren, and I turned. Talon looked around and rubbed both hands over his face, pressing the heels of them into his eyes.

I waited, chewing the inside of my lower lip as his irritation and temper fizzled. We didn’t need his vote. Everyone knew it. We also knew that having one member unhappy in our group could shift the entire dynamic. His eyes fell to me. Dragging his fingers through his hair, he let out a long sigh. He looked back down at me and I rubbed my side. He pulled my lip away from my own abuse with his thumb.

“Fine, but he’s going to have to pull his weight. If they stab us in the back, or more specifically if he does, I’m saying I told you so with my last breath.” I threw myself at him, wrapping my arms around his neck. He wrapped an arm around me, murmering into my ear so only I could hear, “Stop fucking making friends you impossible, overpowered, social butterfly.”

I laughed and kissed him. He nipped my bottom lip and squeezed my waist. He set me on my feet and I near skipped over to where Loren and Rah still sat. Loren looked surprised to see me as he lifted his eyes at my approach, “I thought you all were leaving?”

I held my side as I watched Rah’s hands shake violently in Loren’s, “We wanted to, uh, invite you to join our group and travel with us.”

Rah stood and Loren winced as she shouted at me, “We didn’t ask to be part of your group! We don’t want to! This was your fault anyway. We’ve never been attacked like that until now!”

Her whole body shook and Loren took her hand gently, “Rah, they meant no harm. It’s a very nice offer, but we do better alone.”

I glanced between the two. Rah’s mouth was down turned, and anyone could tell she was angry. Or was this all fear talking? Loren smiled softly at me, but his eyes looked sad. I had argued with my friends and put myself on the line for this?

“Too bad. You’re coming with. Kalian will drive himself insane if you don’t.” Talon ordered from close behind me. His fingers curled around my hip, rubbing soothingly.

“Who do you think you are? You don’t get to order us around!” Rah spat at him, temper flaring.

“Don’t care. Pack your shit or I’ll do it for you.” Talon stepped around them and made for their little tent. Loren stood and followed Talon.

“You misunderstand. Rah said we weren’t going with you.” Loren reached out to grab Talon’s shoulder and I tried to yell for him to stop. I wasn’t fast enough. Talon whirled. His butterfly knife pressed horizontally into Loren’s throat. His eyes were cold, face emotionless as he stared down at the other man. My heart rate picked up as I saw another knife tip pressed up under Talon’s chin. Sure enough, Loren held one of the knives he’d wielded earlier, still stained with blood. Talon was a little under half a foot taller, but Loren had gotten close enough to reduce the effectiveness of his reach advantage.

“Hey, stop it you two. Talon, it’s okay.” It was like they didn’t hear me, their eyes locked, “Talon!”

“Back down.” Talon’s voice was low and dangerous, ignoring me completely. His arm shifted and I assumed he’d added pressure on the handle. Loren must have as well. A drop of blood beaded at the tip of Loren’s blade and dribbled down Talon’s neck. I wet my lips as I fought back the urge to slam my Magik into the back of Loren’s head. Talon was just as wrong in this situation.

“I’ve never done that before and I don’t intend to start today handsome.” Loren replied, voice dangerous even with his normal grin in place.

“Loren. We’ll go with. They’re right. We shouldn’t be alone. I…endanger you.” Rah spoke up softly after what seemed like an eternity, fingers lightly pressed to her ragged, makeshift blindfold.

“Whatever you say doll.” Loren’s knife disappeared, but he made no move to back away from Talon’s. They also never broke eye contact. After a brutal full minute, Talon stepped back, flipping his knife closed. He waved his hand and it vanished.

“We’re not doing this again you two. Can we talk next time instead of pulling out weapons?” I scolded but neither man had looked away yet.

“If there is a next time, sweetheart, I don’t think both of us are going to walk away.”

”We won’t have a problem if you back down like you did this time.” Talon grinned ferally, pointed canines on full display.

”Is that what happened here gorgeous? None of this would’ve happened if you were more comfortable with someone behind you.” Loren smiled up at him.

I rolled my eyes and pulled Talon’s face down to mine when he walked by, “Will you please stop trying to make enemies you impossible, overpowered, social pariah.”

“I’m not a pariah. People love me.” Talon pouted.

“Right.”

There's something going on? Didya catch it?
Also the side stories or whatever you wanna call them have both been removed. I have plans for them. Unsure if they’ll be posted here but if you’re interested in a pairing you can dm me and I may be persuaded to email or send you whatever I end up settling on.
Also! Good news! For those of you that weren’t jazzed over the clunky placement of the threesome, it’s been extracted. Y’all had a point and I hope we’re still friends. 😭 Wine and I just get carried away ya’ know?
 
Thank you for reading/following/leaving me awesome comments.

🖤D