Seth never took his eyes off his prey. As Dane weaved in and out of the underbrush along the river, Seth’s little band followed suit. Swiftly and silently, the small party moved through the woods like a swan on a lake.
Dane looked back as he heard something.
Seth froze. Did he hear them? They were silent, but—maybe he sensed them. Yes—no—maybe? Dane was heading southwest from Arrowhead Lake along the river. But, where was he going? Back to Crey Village? No, that couldn’t be so. Why would he go there? Once word got back from the knights about Dane’s lack of credentials, he’d be finished, right? Seth glanced back at Jena and Ellis. They’d be with him forever, especially Jena. Would she be his queen?
Ellis tapped Seth’s shoulder and pointed at Dane.
Seth swallowed.
Dane was on the move. He broke out from the woods to move along the riverbank.
Seth moved up behind a great oak tree as Dane stopped. He pushed a sapling aside as he tried to get a closer look. Dane was looking across the river at—what? He couldn’t see. Dane looked along the river towards the bridge, then back across the river. What did he see? Seth leaned over to Jena. “Can you see anything?”
Jena shook her head. “No.”
“Want me to get closer?” Ellis asked.
“I—I’m not sure,” Seth said.
Dane bolted along the riverbank.
Seth jumped to his feet. “Come on.”
Ellis grinned. “This is where the fun begins.”
Jena rolled her eyes. “Please.”
Seth sprinted toward the riverbank and stopped just inside the wood line. As if doing a left face, he pivoted towards the southwest, following Dane.
Dane kept looking across the river as he sped up as if something was chasing him.
Seth stopped and looked across the river. Something caught his eye, but what? What got Dane so scared that he was running like the cowards he always claimed others to be. Yeah, Dane’s yellow spots were showing through his false demeanor.
Ellis pointed at a small figure running along the other side of the river. “Look.”
Seth’s eyes focused on the short sprinting soul barreling down the far riverbank. He was strong, with long, brown hair pulled back into a ponytail. The short man was carrying an ax and—he was not human. Seth blinked. What was he?
Ellis pulled on Seth’s arm. “He’s getting away.”
Dane! Seth broke into a sprint. He lost sight of the murderer, but where could he go?
“He can’t be far,” Jena said as she pushed through the underbrush.
Seth broke out into the clearing right next to the bridge. The moonlight illuminated the road and the bridge. Where was he? Seth scanned both sides of the road and looked towards Crey Village. Nothing. Seth stomped his foot onto the hard-packed dirt road. “Damn it!”
“Take it easy,” Jena said. “We’ll get him next time.”
“Did he know we were following him?” Seth asked.
Jena shook her head. “I don’t know.”
Panting, Ellis swallowed his breath. “I don’t think he cared. He was more afraid of the dwarf across the river.”
“Dwarf?” Seth asked.
“Yeah, didn’t you see him?”
Seth nodded. “Yeah, but—I never saw one before.” He looked over the bridge. “What’s over there?”
Jena squinted her eyes as if she saw through the darkness “Never been there.”
“Across Bahr River is the Long-Tail Forest,” Ellis said. “Father used to talk about selling bread in Qrento.”
“Where’s that?” Jena asked.
“About 15 miles up the road,” Ellis said. “Unless he’s planning on scaling the Wailing Mountains, there’s nowhere else to go.”
Jena frowned. “I’d just go back to Crey Village.”
Seth shook his head. “He can’t. Once word gets back that he’s a fake, they’ll string him up.” He grinned. “Wouldn’t mind seeing that, though.”
Jena hit Seth in the shoulder. “Stop it.”
“Where to?” Ellis asked.
Seth looked across the bridge. Once they crossed that bridge, there was no turning back and they would’ve chosen their destiny. They could always go back to their parents, right? Sure, it would be so much easier than—no, he had to go on. Brock was a coward at heart, no better than Dane, right? Seth shook his head. No, if his adoptive Mother was to be avenged, he had to do it. There was no one else. His mouth dried up as he stepped towards the bridge. “Let’s find him at Qrento. It shouldn’t be that hard once we get there.”
“What about the dwarf?” Jena asked.
Ellis laughed. “Are you afraid of some short, fat guy who needs a step to look over the bar? Please.” He pulled out his daggers. “I’d skewer him without a second thought.” He grinned. “I’d use his bones to pick my teeth.”
Seth smacked Ellis in the back of the head. “Shut up.” He moved towards the bridge. “Let’s go.”
Jena sighed as she took one last look towards Crey Village. “Are you sure, Seth?”
Seth nodded. “Yeah, there’s no other way.”
Ellis dragged Jena by her cloak. “Come on already.”
Jena pulled away from Ellis. “Okay, I hope you know what you’re doing.”
Seth smiled. “Me too.”
The hard-packed dirt road stung Seth’s feet every time his foot hit the ground. Hours, it’d been hours since they’d left the bridge. His normally vibrant step was replaced by lumbering as they moved towards Qrento. His sword—his sword seemed to gain weight the further they went. How far had they gone? At least ten miles, he hoped. Yeah, could he take another five miles? No, no way.
“Can we stop please?” Ellis said as he dropped his pack on the side of the road. “I hate this crap.” He pulled off his soft leather shoe and began rubbing his foot. “Maybe we should stay here.”
“Why?” Jena asked as she moved next to Seth.
“Because I’m tired,” Ellis snapped. “We can get there in the morning. He’ll still be there.”
Seth looked around. “I suppose, but—shouldn’t we get off the road?”
A small limping figure emerged from the darkness, trudging along the road towards them.
Seth straightened out. “Who’s that?”
Ellis blinked. “The dwarf? Yeah, that must be the one Dane was running from.”
Jena tugged on her sack. “He’s hurt. I can help him.” Determined, she headed towards the dark-haired dwarf.
“Jena, hold up!” Seth said. As soon as he figured out that she wasn’t stopping, he ran up next to her. “What are you doing?”
She sniffed. “My duty as a healer.”
Ellis ran up beside them. “It’s probably a trap.”
Jena shook her head. “How could someone like that hurt anyone?”
“I don’t know,” Seth said. “Jena, are you sure about this? Ellis may be right.”
Jena laughed.
Ellis frowned.
“Just be careful.” As the dwarf collapsed to the ground, Seth sprinted towards him. Jena may be the healer, but he wouldn’t let anything happen to her. His stomach wrenched in anxiety, not for him, but for her. Yeah, he had to get there first. If it were a trap, the short bastard would spring it on him, rather than his future bride. He knelt down next to the dwarf.
The dwarf wore leather armor with two axes by his side. His long brown beard was knotted and he stunk like sour ale. Was he drunk? A dwarf that can’t get enough ale? Maybe he wasn’t hurt at all, just passing out?
Jena shook him as she knelt over the dwarf. “I’m here to help you.” Her nose wrinkled as he exhaled in her face.
Ellis waved his hand in front of his nose. “This guy stinks. Jena, how can you stand being that close to him?”
Jena coughed. “It’s not easy.”
Seth never took his eyes off the dwarf. No groaning. No fidgeting when Jena was caressing his shoulder. Nothing.
Crack. Crunch.
“What’s that?” Ellis asked.
Seth drew his sword and stepped over the dwarf towards the edge of the road. “We’re not alone.”
“What about him?” Jena asked.
“Come on, let’s go,” Seth said.
“What about him? We can’t just leave him here,” Jena said.
Crunch. Snap.
The noise from the woods was very close. They had no torches and the moonlight didn’t pierce the shadows just inside the woods. No, but the moon illuminated them, so whoever was in the woods could see them. Seth backed up. “Come on, he’s one of them.”
Jena shook her head. “No, he can’t be.”
The dwarf’s eyes shot open. He grabbed Jena by the upper arms, throwing her to the ground. “Got you!”
Seth whirled around. “No!” He raised his sword.
“Look out!” Ellis whipped out his daggers and sidestepped as four dwarves bolted out of the woods.
A dwarf knocked Seth to the ground.
Ellis threw a dagger.
The dwarf on top of Seth reeled back in pain.
Jena screamed.
One dwarf charged at Ellis, knocking the other dagger from his hand.
The last two tackled Seth, tossing his sword aside. One held down his arms while the other raised his ax.
Seth glanced over at Jena as the dwarf tore off her tunic. What did he do? He got them killed—no, worse, he got Jena raped by a dwarf. Some knight he would be, Seth the Pathetic. He would not die. He would not die and let those—things—have their way with Jena. A tiny tingle tickled his heart. As his face grew redder, the more the tickle spread throughout his body. He felt tiny shocks—no, pinpricks—all over his skin. Seth’s strength returned to him, tenfold.
The dwarf’s eyes flew open. “What are you doing?”
“Leave us alone!” Seth’s hand’s glowed a fiery red. He grabbed the dwarf holding his arms.
The dwarf screamed as his arm melted into nothingness.
Seth’s fiery-red eyes stared right at the other dwarf with the ax.
The dark dwarven face went white. “He’s possessed. Run!” He grabbed the one-armed dwarf and sprinted into the woods.
Seth grabbed his sword. As his hand touched his weapon, it began to glow.
Ellis pushed the dwarf off him and stared at Seth. “What’s happening?”
Seth kicked the last dwarf off Jena.
The dwarf curled up into the fetal position. “Please, spare me. I won’t do it again.”
Seth licked his lips. He wanted this creature to pay for what he did to Jena. His sword glowed brighter, then its glow receded.
“Stupid humans,” the dwarf said as he pulled out a short sword from underneath his cloak. “I’ll kill you and then she’s mine.”
Lightning jumped all over Seth’s sword. “No!” A bolt of lightning shot from the tip of Seth’s sword into the dwarf’s chest. In half a second the dwarf flashed, then he was gone. All that remained was a small pile of ash. The fire in Seth’s eyes dwindled and tiny bolts of electricity along his sword and his skin vanished. What happened? Was he a demon like the dwarf said? Or possessed by demons? Seth knelt down next to Jena. “Are you all right?”
Jena backed away. “That was—magic. Human boys can’t wield magic. What are you?”
Ellis got between Seth and Jena. “Yeah, you’d better tell us what’s going on. How’d you do that?”
How did I do it? Seth wondered. He shook his head. “I—I—I don’t know.” He stared at his sword. “I didn’t even swing at him.”
Ellis looked down at the pile of ash and smiled. “Just don’t get mad at me.”
Seth grinned. “I won’t.” He reached for Jena.
She backed away.
“Jena?”
She shook her head.
Ellis cocked an eye at her. “What’s wrong with you? He saved us.”
“I—it’s not possible,” Jena said. “Boys can’t use magic.”
“Are you saying that I’m not human?” Seth asked. His eyes softened. “I love you. I couldn’t let anything happen to you.” He reached for her again. “Please.” Tears nearly broke free from behind his eyes.
A smile cracked Jena’s face. “I’m sorry. I—I just didn’t know.”
“Me either,” Seth said.
Ellis grinned. “Let’s go before we get attacked by the midget squad again.”
Seth nodded. “Okay.” They continued down the road towards Qrento.
An hour later, the trio was still on the road toward Qrento. Seth’s eyes were heavy. Firelight from the town up ahead could be seen in the distance. “Is that it?” Seth asked.
Ellis sighed. “I hope so.”
Crunch. Crunch. Crunch.
Seth’s head jerked toward the woods along the road. “Not again.”
Ellis pulled out his daggers. “I’m ready this time.”
“What’s that?” Jena asked, pointing to a faint haze.
Seth tried to focus. The haze was pink. As it got darker, the heavier his eyes became.
“What’s going—?” Ellis collapsed to the ground, snoring.
Jena sank to her knees. “Sleep, it’s—” She rolled onto her side.
Seth blinked, fighting off the pink haze. His world became blurry. Three green creatures emerged from the woods. They were just a bit smaller than him, wearing chain mail armor. He blinked.
“This one is still awake,” one said in a gruff voice. He was the biggest amongst them.
“Not possible,” another said. “Only magic-wielding creatures can resist my sleep spell.”
The large goblin grinned. “I’ve got a sleep spell for him.” He hit Seth with the hilt of his sword.
Seth’s world went black.