Lilly's wings shuffled a little next to . I paid them no mind though as I stared at the building.
It was a shoddy log cabin looking thing. Maybe a barn. But there was no denying the stink that ca from it.
They were here. We had found them. Finally.
Gritting my teeth, enough to almost crack them, I glanced around . Lilly was to my right. Not far from her was Sally and the four other warriors of the Society. Two n and two won, each as strong and deadly as Lilly.
Or well, maybe not. I had heard once that Lilly had single handedly defeated all of them once, but I wasn't sure if that was a real rumor or not.
The final mber of our little group, a short and thin man who looked like he would break from a gust of wind, ca into view. He crossed a small section of the forest in front of us, ducked into so foliage and rounded the bushes as he hurried over towards us. It didn't take long for the small man to crawl through the thick briars we all sat behind, and he directly addressed Lilly.
"They're here. At least thirty of them," he told her.
My heart missed a beat as my body went cold.
Finally.
"And our people…?" Sally asked with a harsh whisper.
The man didn't say a word. He simply held Lilly's eyes as he nodded.
Thank goodness…! Sally and I had found Vexli's village burnt down, but not enough bodies. The obvious conclusion was they had been taken. Kidnapped. So…!
I started to stand. To head forward. To rescue Vexli and her people, but before I could I was grabbed.
Before I could even comprehend what happened, I was on the ground again. Kneeling, but not out of my own desire. A very strong hand had grabbed by the back of my clothes, near my neck, and had pushed down. I turned to glare at the owl who held in place, and wondered what the hell was her problem.
"Stay back, Tosh," Lilly said.
I bit back a growl. "I can help," I said. I may not be as strong as her, or the others here, but I was still strong. Still a non-human.
"You will. By tending to those of us who need your skills, once it's all said and done. Stay here. Until it's over. That's an order," Lilly said, her large eyes narrowing at .
Wanting to complain… I knew I couldn't. If I did, even a peep, Lilly would just smack . She'd hit just once, and I'd be out like a candle in a storm. I'd seen her do it enough tis to know.
So… I just remained quiet. Even as she let go and she stood.
The four other warriors stood as well. Swords were drawn. Spears readied. One of them had a bow, but he didn't draw it as they all stepped out of our hidden area and towards the building.
Feeling sick to my stomach, I watched Lilly open her large wings and then take to the sky. She didn't make a single sound as she did so, akin to an impossibility, and she left my view in just two wingbeats.
"Stay here. Be wise. There will be injured," the scrawny man whispered to , and then he too stepped away. Unlike the others he had hurried deeper into the forest… almost as if he was running away. I knew he wasn't though. He was the lookout, and although small and weak he wasn't scared at all. He hadn't hesitated to scout the place out first for everyone.
Glancing over to Sally, I found her tight-lipped as she studied the scene before us. She looked… tired. Sad. Worried.
I looked away from my friend, who I knew shouldn't be here. She was only here because I was. She was here for . To help save my wife.
Vim should be here too. Had he been here I wouldn't have needed any of them. Not a one.
Then there was a scream. A loud shrill of pain, which was quickly followed by the sounds of battle.
I heard tal hit tal. I heard people die. I saw Lilly swoop into view from the sky, straight into the building. Wood chunks flew out as she fell onto the roof, breaking into it. I heard shouts and screams from within the building, and when I heard even a woman's shrill shriek I stood up.
"Tosh…!" Sally was next to before I could step forward. Although her grip wasn't anywhere near as strong as Lilly's, it sohow still kept in place as I stared at the building.
This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
The thing didn't have any windows, but it had a couple doors. One broke open as a man fell out of the building. He rolled on the ground, and I watched as a pair of large wings rushed out in pursuit. Lilly was quicker than the eye could follow. The man fell, rolled, and then he was stuck to the ground with a very sharp sword sticking out of his throat.
She wasted no ti. Lilly turned and headed back into the house. One of the other mbers, a man nad George, followed her into the building. He had blood on his left arm, though from here I couldn't tell if it was his or soone else's.
My heart thumped wildly as the sounds continued… until they didn't anymore.
For a few monts of silence, I waited… then I saw Lilly walk out of the building, and do so in a way that told it was over. She glanced around, huffed a little, and then swiped her sword through the air as to clean it.
I stepped forward, but Sally still held back. "Wait. Tosh," she warned.
I grit my teeth but obeyed. Yes. I knew. Lilly hadn't waved us over yet. I understood… but…
For what felt like an eternity I watched Lilly and the other mbers walk around a bit. They checked behind the building, the tree line across from it, and then went back into the building… and then finally, right about where I couldn't take it anymore, Lilly finally waved us over.
I ran through the sharp briars, and out into the open. Before I could even comprehend what I was doing, I was walking up and past Lilly as to enter the building.
Before I could though she stopped . With an outstretched wing.
"Lilly…!" I groaned at her. What now!? What if Vexli was in there? Or soone else? Soone who could lead to her and…!
"Lilly…?" Sally whispered her na, and I realized she was here with . I hadn't even noticed her running with .
The owl's eyes were gentle, but cold. The kind of cold that would usually make shiver. She then she slowly shook her head. "No one's here, Tosh."
I didn't want to hear that! "Then let see!" I said as I stepped forward.
Lilly didn't move. I walked right into her wing, and didn't like how it felt like walking into a wall. How was a bunch of feathers so sturdy!?
"Lilly, co on!" I shouted as I tried to step around her. I nearly walked right into the corner of the building as I did, since she had simply extended her wing to stop .
"Tosh!" Sally shouted at , but I didn't care. I didn't listen. I ducked under her wing, barely got past, and then hurried into the building.
I found two of the other mbers. They were standing near the other side of the building… and…
I grimaced at the carnage. There were dozens of bodies lying on the ground, scattered all over. So were in pieces. The scene would not have normally bothered too much, but right now I was not intentionally keeping my mind clear and empty. I felt a strange rush of emotions as I stepped deeper into the building, looking all around.
There were cots and beds. Shelves… on the other side of the building was a giant cross made of tal. The Epoch cross was sohow a little terrifying, but a little relieving too. It confird what we had all expected. What we had all known based on the way the village had been destroyed.
They hadn't burnt it like the humans would, as if trying to expel demons or burn evil away. They had burnt it with another purpose. One more disgusting and…
"Tosh…" one of the warriors whispered my na, but I ignored her. I ca to a stop in front of the back of the room, and the giant circle of blood painted on the floor before the cross.
I'd read about such things before, but had never seen one myself. I'd been involved in so of the chaos the Epoch church had committed, but usually always from a distance. I helped treat and heal those who had been targeted by them. Who had suffered at their hands, or been attacked by them. But I myself had never seen their altars or their pyres. Not until now.
And now I knew why no one could properly explain it.
My stomach twisted as I tried to make sense of what I already did.
That was a torso. Those were arms and legs. That was a tail of so kind. All stacked neatly in a circle, with purpose and precision. Were… were those sutures…? To tie the pieces of flesh together…?
They were.
My eyes blurred as I stepped back, and felt weak all of a sudden… as my mind made sense of what my heart already knew.
This is what they did. Epoch did this. They sacrificed our people in grueling ways to anger the gods. On purpose. That was their faith. It was how they showed it. Where those like Sally and Celine did it with kindness and soft prayer, the Epoch cult did it with blood and death. Pain and sorrow.
And…
Falling to the ground, I blinked and wondered why the world was spinning… and why was Sally yelling at ? I heard her, but didn't understand her. She looked distraught.
Before I could make sense of anything, her yelling or my own thoughts, I felt myself get pulled. I glanced up and found Lilly was dragging out of the building. I couldn't see her face, thanks to her wings being in the way, but I could feel by her grip on my shoulders that she was being gentle. A little too gentle.
Which only made this worse. Because it ant…
Flinching as the sun blinded , I reached up to cover my face… as I realized I'd never find her.
She hadn't been kidnapped. She hadn't been taken alive.
None of them had.
At least… that was all I could hope for, now. My only hope was she had not been taken alive, because the alternative was… so, so, worse.
My Vexli was gone.
Taken from before we could be wed.
Taken before her child could be born.
Falling backward, I realized I had been released. I landed harshly on my back, and flinched in pain as if I'd been dropped from a great height. Although I knew in the back of my mind that Lilly had simply released , and probably had even done so gently, I still passed out… as to hide from the terrible reality around .
Reviews
All reviews (0)