Dark Wood: Legends of the Guardians Read online

  Heart pounding, heat built within her chest like fire, exploding out through every limb, bringing with it a surge of power.

  The clergy was paralyzed as he looked upon her. Terror blazed in his depthless pools. Light radiated from her very fingertips, blinding white. So brilliant that everything else in the room was cast into darkness. Even the fire extinguished in the wake.

  Bulging eyes stared at nothing, for they saw nothing. Blood seeped from his sockets, as they themselves dimmed slowly until not even a dull spark of life showed within them. All at once his weight collapsed in a clothed pile at her feet.

  Stunned, her trembling hand covered her gaping mouth. “What have I done?” Aryaunna’s whispered words echoed off the walls around her.

  The light from within her now gone, returned from whence it came, only one dull glow cast light upon the room. “Oh thank the stars!” Aryaunna’s heart all but stopped at the sound of a new voice. Looking up, a young woman stood within the open doorway. Gathering her wits as quickly as she’d lost them, the young woman started; fliting down the hall swiftly.

  Unsure what to do next, Aryaunna stood frozen, alone with the corpse. She hadn't intended to kill him. The first witness had fled. But how many would come now? In answer a swift set of footsteps returned to the room. The last of her color drained from Aryaunna’s cheeks as her eyes clinched shut. “What are you doing?” The maiden. Her voice was apprehensive but stern as if she were scolding her.

  Aryaunna’s lids opened, so filled with fear tears streamed down her cheeks. Pleading would not matter. It never did. She was dead, there was no doubt about it now.

  “Now is not the time for you to lose your senses. You have to hurry. No one else is coming yet, but they will. Someone will be here to tend the fire or warm the bed sheets soon. You have to get out!” With haste she strode across the room, taking Aryaunna’s hands in her own and pulling her around away from the body.

  The girl’s eyes burned feverishly, pleading for Aryaunna to come to her senses. No one was coming to rescue him, for it was Aryaunna that had screamed, not the Bishop. No one dared to intervene with that.

  Quickly the girl went about throwing the rest of logs on the fire. A large fire if noticed first would be left alone, and the room may go unchecked longer.

  “Get his feet, and pull him to the bed. If they think he is sleeping they may not look closer until morning.” Once the fire blazed, engulfing the logs, she flittered quickly to the bed and threw back the heavy linens.

  Using the robes as a barrier between Aryaunna’s skin and the priest’s she pulled on his ankles. It was to no avail. She could not lift his body despite her strength.

  Coming to Aryaunna’s aid yet again, the girl quickly moved next to her and took up one leg as she took the other. “Must they be so fat!” The girl groaned, stopping as they could barely manage to get his rear end off the floor. “Okay, I'll take the feet you take his arms, and on three we lift him to the bed.” Aryaunna was thoroughly bewildered. The girl acted as if dealing with a corpse were but any other chore! Then again, perhaps she had seen her share.

  “You're quite astounding,” Aryaunna grumbled while switching places. Cringing, she swallowed down the bile that rose in her throat as she grabbed a hold of his wrists.

  “Yes. And you killed a Prior of the Church. Let’s finish this quickly now before we're both found! One, two, three!”

  In minutes they were down in the cellar. The maidens all shared rooms. There were few places to speak in complete privacy. “You must leave. You must leave tonight, Aryaunna.”

  “You know me.” Aryaunna felt ashamed that she could not put a name to her face. Beneath a wrap, the girl’s white blonde hair was a mess of tendrils over pale fresh skin. Her eyes were cold and hard, blue as the frozen lakes in the valley. She was so striking. It seemed odd to Aryaunna that she could not recall meeting her before. It was a big Church, with many bodies to keep it in working order.

  “We met over the summer, working the fields of Brimshire. My name is Lena.” With her every word, like magic, Aryaunna recalled the memories. So keenly in fact it’s a wonder she could have forgotten.

  “I’m sorry. I should have known you.”

  “Do not be. Now is not the time for manners, Aryaunna. You must gather your things, and find Elizabeth at once.” Again, she was so well prepared and together that it caught Aryaunna off guard and made her feel foolish. “If she does not go with you, what they will do to her will only make her wish for death.”

  “You know Elizabeth?” Eyes narrowed, Aryaunna gazed upon her closer, trying to place a memory that whispered at the edge of her thoughts.

  “Really, Aryaunna, who doesn’t know the daughters of the White Witch that have grown under the ever watchful Magistrate and his Church.” Lena looked upon her as if she were daft for questioning her. It was a true enough statement, though no one had ever been so blunt about it before. “Now go and get your sister. Bring with you nothing you cannot carry in a small satchel. Return here immediately, for I will not wait long.” Lena’s eyes shown bright with urgency. With little more than a glance back at her, Aryaunna was up the stairs and slinking through corridors to find her sister.

  The sisters’ chamber was on the other end of the Church, in the northern corridor. Though they were young, and by law not old enough to be tainted, the Church did not wish to risk exposing the sisters to others of the Church, and thus were granted a small private chamber, intended for anything other than living.

  Entering their room, the oaken door creaked louder than it may have ever before. As if by touching it, it cried out to the guards that Aryaunna was guilty of the worst of crimes. Her feet were light on the stone as she swiftly entered and strained to ease the door closed quietly.

  “Ary?” Elizabeth was crouched by the window on her knees. By the light of the fire Aryaunna could see the wet trails on her sister’s cheeks. Had she heard her cry all the way from the northern corridor of the Church? Or had she seen something?

  In a moment, Eizabeth crossed the room to meet her sister, taking Aryaunna into her arms as if she were the mother they never got to know. “I thought he was killing you when I heard... I thought they'd found out.”

  Unable to speak to explain, Aryaunna shook her head, pulling from her reluctantly. Bracing her hands on Elizabeth’s shoulders, she looked into her eyes and saw the love and relief pouring from them. “We are leaving here, Elizabeth. We are leaving tonight. Now. Gather your things.”

  “Ary! No, they’d hunt us! If we were ever to be found by the Church they would burn us!” Elizabeth pulled from her sister’s grasp as if Aryaunna were crazed, and it could be catching.

  “Elizabeth,” she snapped as she stepped closer, cornering her sister against the wall. “They’ll do worse if we stay…” her voice quieted to barely a whisper. Elizabeth’s brow furrowed in concern, marred with her confusion. “I killed a Prior. Prior Hile. Please, there is no time to explain. Elizabeth, we must go!”

  The blood drained from her face as she looked at Aryaunna closely. “Did he hurt you?”

  Shaking her head no, Aryaunna forced a weak smile. “No. I did not let him. Not this time.” Relief flooded through Elizabeth’s stricken heart as tears brimmed over her lashes. “Please, Elizabeth!” Aryaunna begged.

  A dozen times she asked what had happened, and a dozen times Aryaunna answered her with silence. Elizabeth looked aged beyond her years as they returned to the cellar.

  Reaching the cellar they took heed of their every step, for the only light was the red coals of a cooling fire. The room pitched into darkness did nothing to ease their worry. “Ary, why are we at the wood cellar? Shouldn’t we go to the kitchen for food?” Elizabeth had always been the ever logical one.

  “We’re meeting someone. If she hasn’t left…”

  From the shadows Lena emerged as if she’d stepped from another place completely. “I am here. Hello, Elizabeth.”

  Elizabeth’s hand clasped a hold of her sister’s
wrist defensively. “It's all right. She helped me, Elizabeth. She's here to help us get away.” Elizabeth stood stock skill, appraising the young woman with bald skepticism. It was a wonder at what she truly saw.

  “She's not like the others,” Elizabeth breathed out in surprise. “She's not... human.” Her eyes widened, skin turning placid as she hastily stepped between them.

  “You need not worry, while I am indeed Drow, I mean you no harm.” Lena’s eyes radiated a brilliant silver, casting a light almost hypnotizing. As soon as Aryaunna saw this beautiful gleam it vanished, as if she’d imagined it.

  Drow were thought to be deceased, much like the Guardians themselves. The Magistrate had declared all Drow demons, and ordered their death on sight, even offering bags of silver as compensation. Very few bodies were ever turned in for the rewards though... Some say a true Drow could never be caught or killed. That the bodies turned in were humans whose teeth had all been filed to points to make them appear demonic, and it was the Drow themselves who claimed the bounty, for the Drow could appear human. Perhaps this legend wasn't so far off.

  “Run!” Lena hissed. She had been pushing them every step, quite literally with her hands on their backs to guide them. Their steps crunched softly through the snow leaving a powder of white dust in their wake. Through the frozen wind, the sound of the hounds’ baying chilled them more than any winter ever could. The Magistrate’s guards were always on patrol, day and night.

  Lena had sworn that once they got to the woodlands she could protect them. Until then, they’d have to run, and pray to the Guardians for a swift and safe journey. Suddenly, Aryaunna’s torso jerked back as Lena pulled them to a stop. “Not that way. There are guards by the gate all through the night. I could fight them in my natural form, but not like this. Not before the knights come.”

  Elizabeth pulled back and spun on her heels to face Lena. Even red cheeked and out of breath she seemed perfectly put together. “Just how do we get out of here? These walls were built to defend armies. We cannot just climb over them.”

  Lena’s gaze never once stopped roaming as they stood halted in the middle of the courtyard. “We have to get out of sight. Come now.” Without so much as regarding Elizabeth, Lena urged them quickly to crouch down beside a great fountain. “You’re right. I’ll have to take out the guards then…” she spoke to herself more than either sister.

  “You are insane.” Elizabeth’s eyes rolled as she looked behind them at the daunting stone wall. A bastion sat not more than a stone’s throw behind them, looming like an all seeing eye.

  Smiling ruefully, Lena looked over to Elizabeth expectantly. “You have any better ideas?”

  “Here’s an idea, it may be the dead of night but we are on a white snow. We are going to be found if we do not move!” Aryaunna hissed at them anxiously.

  “The Church was designed like any other castle. We are at the outer curtain. Tis a solid wall, but the corner bastions are hollow with stairs up to the allure.” Elizabeth was of course brilliant in her logic. Still yet…

  Lena and Elizabeth eyed the wall, gauging the height. “Either way we have guards to face,” Aryaunna whispered anxiously before giving into a nervous habit of biting her knuckles.

  “Stop that, Ary.” Elizabeth bat her hand away as she scolded. “The bastion will keep us hidden. We can get to the allure and go down from there.”

  “How do we do that? Fly?” Aryaunna scoffed.

  Elizabeth’s eyes narrowed on her sister. “The wall isn’t too high. The snow will break our fall.” She looked to Lena with nervous hope. “Lena, we follow your lead.”

  “Very good. Elizabeth will watch the yard. Aryaunna, you will watch for my signal. When everything is clear I will wave for you to make run for the tower.”

  “You’d take them by yourself?” Aryaunna looked half astounded.

  “What, would you prefer to have the fun of slicing their throats?” Lena smiled wickedly, as if the very thought amused her. Balking, Aryaunna looked away. In thought, she was brave enough. To do so was another story. Lena’s smile softened as she pulled a blade from her tall boot beneath her skirt. “It’s all right, Aryaunna. This is why I have come.”

  By the time they made it to the forest the moon was high in the sky. Elizabeth made work to hide her limp with every step they made, refusing to complain even when asked. The snow did cushion their fall, but not enough.

  The winter woods were a quiet place. Sensational, yet frightening. By just the light of the moon reflecting off the blanket of fallen snow one could see their every step and yet the canopy of trees cast everything into shadow. The only sound was the owl that called to them. Aryaunna could feel it watching them, and for it she felt safer.

  The Thuringian forest edged the chiefdom of Kenan, where the Magistrate ruled. The woodland spread out like a vast ocean. The surrounding forest was a peaceful place where hunters roamed. It was what lie deep in the Thuringian that both frightened and intrigued Aryaunna-the Hollow, and beyond it, the Dark Wood. “Where are we going?” Elizabeth questioned low to her sister, shy of the worry in her voice.

  The hood of Elizabeth’s cloak had cast her gaze in shadow. Aryaunna’s only response was the tender reassuring smile for her sister. Elizabeth’s cool hand clasped her sister’s tightly. If Lena had heard, once again she had chosen not to respond. Perhaps it was the way of Drow. Perhaps it was just Lena.

  Time seemed to have stopped in the woods. Perhaps it had frozen along with the rest of the world. Elizabeth could no longer hide the limp in her ankle. It was a worry that ate at Aryaunna for she could do nothing for it. “Ary, enough. I will be fine. We have to get away from the Church. The further away we are the safer we will be. I have suffered worse,” in a quiet breath she answered her sister’s never ceasing questions.

  “Elizabeth is right. Do not worry. We will be there before the red dawn rises.” Lena’s words were whispered, yet seemed to come from everywhere.

  “And where exactly is ‘there’?” Aryaunna called ahead as Lena walked faster than they were able.

  Before Aryaunna could see her move, Lena stood facing her. “Keep your voice quiet. We are not safe yet.”

  “You said once we made it to the forest you could keep us safe,” the panic in Aryaunna’s voice betrayed her nerves.

  “In my woods, yes. We are not there yet. Your answers will come soon, Emissary. Even the ones you have not asked for.” Turning her back again, she walked on. The minutes had turned to hours as the night continued endlessly. It was Aryaunna’s worry for her sister that tired her so. She’d never slept much.

  The moon was now hidden. They were cast into darkness. The woods were quiet but for the sound of labored breath, and the call of the ever watching owl. “Lena, please, we have to stop.” Elizabeth was almost asleep on her feet as she leaned against her sister. “Lena?” Aryaunna whispered into the night. Raising her voice to a hiss, she called again, “Lena!”

  Elizabeth’s cloak had fallen, though she’d been too tired to right it. Her exhausted gaze looked upon her sister, revealing her pain and worry alike. “It’s all right, Elizabeth. Sit.” Holding her arms around Elizabeth she eased her down against the base of an oak. “Sit here and rest.” Pulling water from her satchel, she placed the bota in her hands. “Drink.”

  “Why do you think she called you Emissary?” Elizabeth asked after taking a drink.

  “I don’t know.” Aryaunna’s hand clasped around the amethyst heart which hung from her neck.

  “You prayed to the Guardians, became sworn to them. It’s true, Aryaunna. And if the Drow know, then more will.” Hanging the bota over her neck, Elizabeth held her hands out. “Help me up. We have to find her.”

  “No. You sit. I shall find her. You must rest.” Aryaunna couldn’t respond to her otherwise. How could she admit that she doubted her sister’s words after everything she had confessed to her just hours before? She didn’t feel strong enough.

  Where have you gone to, Lena? Have you left us? Ary
aunna wondered as she walked careful circles through the trees, always keeping an eye on Elizabeth with every step. “Lena?” she whispered to the night.

  From the corner of her eye she saw quick movement. “Lena?” she called louder before she could catch herself. Her hand placed over her mouth, wishing she could take it back. Again she saw it, this time from the right. A cloak billowed as it disappeared through the trees. It was not Lena’s.

  Watching carefully, she made her way back to Elizabeth. She had never fought before, but she was not afraid to do so, especially to defend her sister. Again and again, she watched the blur through the trees circle them. “Ary?” Elizabeth questioned so much with just her sister’s name.

  “Stay down,” Aryaunna warned as she watched what little she could see. It was strange that in such darkness she could see the cloak as it moved through the trees, as if it was a light of its own making. “I am not afraid of you!”

  “Are you not?” a voice called from the darkness. It was not Lena.

  Deft fingers unclasped the cloak upon her shoulders, laying it over Elizabeth. Her right hand pulled a knife from the hem of her skirt. It was not a decorated blade, but it was sharp and strong. A valuable aid in her work. “If you doubt me, then approach.”

  “Sister, don’t! You do not know what dwells in the woodlands,” Elizabeth called from behind her as Aryaunna turned in slow pivots to watch the cloak circle.

  “Guardians of the light heed me, give me your strength,” her voice was but a whisper to the night air, though every word warmed her very soul. She could feel their warmth, like a kind hand on her back, feeding her strength.

  As she turned, Lena stood an arm’s length away, facing her. “I told you she was strong,” she called to the trees.

  Without hesitating Aryaunna brought the blade’s tip to her slender throat. “Where have you brought us, Lena?”

  “We’re still inside Thuringian. We have entered the edge-wood of the Hollow, Emissary. I assure you, you are safe here.” Her hands held out, palms to the air as if welcoming them to a pleasant countryside inn.