Vron ran after Nishta, but not as fast as he could have. He didn’t dare look behind him at the horde at his back, their faint snuffling sending chills down his spine. Alyna was at his side, keeping pace with him, pretending, just as he was, that she, too, had succumbed to whatever foul magic Nemia and her minion Azlinar had cast.
The last thing he wanted to do was hurt another orc, and when he saw it was Nishta he’d been ordered to attack, he had almost hesitated. She had been special to him many years ago, before the humans took her. He’d thought her dead, and was overjoyed to see that he was wrong. Even though he was involved with Alyna, he still cared for Nishta. He couldn’t lay a finger on her, not even to keep up this ruse. So he was relieved when she fled.
Vron chanced a glance at Alyna. Sweat glistened upon her breast, and her clothes were in tatters like his. He wasn’t sure if Nemia had discovered Alyna’s secret. The two of them stayed in front of the army on the way to the orc encampment. He knew there would be bloodshed, so he had to find Dalgron as soon as possible. He would beg the orc to do as he said before too many lives were lost.
Scanning the encampment, Vron looked for the white flag with a warrior’s helmet that would fly over Dalgron’s tent. “There it is. To the east,” he whispered out of the side of his mouth to Alyna.
One simple, mindless nod was all he got from her. But it was enough. They both knew where to go while the army was fighting. Vron only hoped he wouldn’t have to engage anyone until he could get out of Nemia’s sight.
“Keep to my side,” Alyna whispered, her eyes vacant, staring directly ahead.
The two moved together into the camp, their crude cudgels waving in the air. The orcs of Agitar attacked, with Vron holding back from his usual battle fury. He fought them off, one by one, only knocking them to the ground or hurting them in ways from which they would quickly recover. Alyna snarled at anyone who got in her way, biting her teeth at them as if she were rabid, and with her wild and unkempt red hair making her appear even more feral, the orcs stayed clear of her.
All around them, orcs battled, fighting off Nemia’s army. Vron chanced a glance over his shoulder. Nemia and Azlinar were headed straight for the center of the camp, their infected orcs surrounding them, killing anyone in their way. Vron’s heart thumped in his chest. He needed to get to Dalgron before Azlinar could do what Vron suspected he’d come to do.
“No one’s watching us,” Vron said to Alyna. He straightened up. “Let’s get to Dalgron.”
They held their hands up in the air to any orc who came near them. They looked battle-worn enough to have fought on either side.
“Stop!” a voice called from their left.
Vron turned. It was Nishta. “Take us to Dalgron, quick!”
She tilted her head to the side. “You are the leader of the army who is currently attacking our camp. Why should I?”
“Nishta,” Vron said. “You know me. I would never hurt Dalgron. I need to speak with him. I want to tell him Nemia’s plans. I must warn him.”
“I think it’s too late for that.” Nishta glanced to the west, where Nemia and Azlinar were high above everyone else on their draft horses. Azlinar’s hands were moving in a strange dance.
“He’s casting a spell that will make all of the infected orcs here heed their orders. He has to be stopped. Please, take us to Dalgron,” Alyna said, her voice clear and commanding.
“No,” Nishta said. “I don’t trust you. Either of you.”
Frustration bloomed in Vron’s chest. “How can I convince you?”
“You can’t.” Nishta raised her sword. “I am sworn to protect the general above all else.”
“Don’t do this,” Vron begged her. “We used to be one. You know my heart.”
Nishta’s snarl turned into a frown. “I did know your heart once. I knew it well enough to believe you’d come after me. That you would find a way to help rescue my sister and me from slavery to that evil human mage. I also believed that when I came back, I would at least be able to speak with you in private. But I wasn’t. You were too busy to see me.”
“Don’t blame Alyna,” Vron said, uncomfortable with the direction this was heading.
“I don’t blame her.” Nishta’s eyes flickered to Alyna. “I accept that you moved on while I was gone. I would have done the same. I do not find a faun threatening. Not even one who also shares a piece of your heart. All I wanted was a moment of your time. An acknowledgment that I had returned.”
“I am sorry, Nishta. I’ve been so busy. Like now, I really must speak with Dalgron before it’s too late.” Vron was growing more frustrated by the moment. “Please, let us through.”
“How do I know this isn’t a trick?”
“You know me.”
“I knew you.”
“Then let me go,” Alyna said. “We are running out of time.”
Nishta looked at Alyna, then turned her eyes to Vron. “No. You will not pass this point without killing me.”
“Don’t make me do this.” Vron didn’t want to fight her. He only wanted to get to Dalgron.
“You owe me this, Vron. Acknowledge my return.” Nishta’s eyes filled with tears.
“Damn it, of course I’m acknowledging your return! I’m speaking to you. I’m begging for your help!” Vron dropped his cudgel on the ground at her feet. “I won’t fight you. Just let me pass.”
“I waited for you. I knew you’d find a way to get to Gashta and me. Together, the three of us would fight our way out of the human city and back to Agitar. I thought about it every day. Every night. I believed in you, and you failed me.” Nishta lifted her sword and pointed it at his chest. “How can I possibly believe you now, after you led the enemy here?”
Vron felt Alyna’s hand on his forearm. He shrugged it off. He knew how to deal with Nishta. She was a strong orc, never needy. She had spent years thinking he would lead the battle to liberate her. And instead, he’d stayed in Agitar, doing nothing. He was partly to blame for her problems.
“I’m sorry,” he said. And he meant it from the depths of his soul.
“I’m sorry, too.” Nishta thrust the sword into his chest.
A strange gurgle popped in Vron’s throat. His vision swam. Staggering, he dropped to his knees. Something roared in his ear, a guttural anger he’d never before heard.
“That was the last thing you’ll ever do!” Alyna screamed. She swung her cudgel at Nishta’s head, hitting her so hard her neck snapped at an unnatural angle.
Vron could barely see as Alyna bludgeoned Nishta until the orc no longer moved.
Alyna fell to her knees at his side and wrapped her arms around him. “I won’t let you die. Not like this.” She kissed his lips, lingering for a moment, as if she thought her kiss might save him.
“I failed Nishta,” Vron choked out.
“No. She was ill. She took her anger out on you. She can’t hurt you, or anyone else, ever again.”
“You must get to Dalgron,” Vron sputtered, his lips wet. He tasted blood in his mouth, coming up in spurts from his throat. “You must tell him what they have planned.”
“I won’t leave you here to die alone.” Tears streamed down Alyna’s beautiful cheeks.
Vron lifted a hand and wiped her tears with his thumb. “I would be glad to have you be the last thing I see before I die, but you must go to Dalgron. Don’t let my death stop you from doing what you set out to do.”
“I love you. I’m sorry…”
“Shhh, don’t. No regrets. I only took what you were willing to give, and it was always enough.” Vron choked on the last word. He gasped for another breath, but it wouldn’t come.
Alyna gently rested his head on the ground. He felt her fumbling with his hand, tying something around his forefinger. But he was too weak to lift his head to see what it was. His eyes closed, and he was at peace.