The Crowned (The Blood and Brotherhood Saga, Book 6) (13 page)

Garret could bear no more loss. At least he had managed to
save Linaya and Zorbin from a death at Seth’s hands. Falling from the pew to
his knees, Garret pressed his head to the floor.

“Mighty Gorandor, protect me and guide me to do what is
righteous. Lift me up as I choose the honorable path in a world where dishonor
rules. Help me to save that which I love, so that I may bring more love to your
cause.”

With those words, the king of Valdadore rose, and turning
upon his heel he strode from the temple back into the streets. Morning had
come. With enough light to finally see what might have transpired throughout
the night, Garret turned to head back to the western wall so that he might look
upon his enemy and learn something of use about him.

* * * * *

Borrik raced along the air currents, his great wings
flapping to propel him ahead as fast as he could manage. Even so, he was having
trouble keeping up with the princess below. Though he could not track her
progress perfectly, even in the darkness moonlight glinted off her black armor
and when she leapt an obstacle, sometimes he could hear her return to running. As
it was, she was ahead of him and the distance between them was growing.

They had traveled most of the night like this, after Sara
had explained what had happened to him in the forest, and then took a moment to
tell the tree people that she was leaving. It was odd, Borrik thought, that
Sara would bother with telling them. Then again, he supposed if they had not
freed her from her original captors then perhaps she would not now be on her
way home. He supposed, by some small measure, she felt indebted to them.

Now, however, they were well on their way. In fact, Borrik
could already begin to smell the battlefield where just days ago his master had
fallen, and then risen again from the dead. Presently he wished that everyone
else had risen as well, for the air he was forced to breathe smelled of death
and decay.

Just an hour later they were crossing the frozen lake, or at
least what remained of it. By now the water level had dropped so much, draining
into the great chasm Seth had made, that the ice had begun to crack without the
support beneath it. Great sheets had fallen or overturned and below, Sara was
forced to leap great holes in the ice and natural walls of the frozen water. The
obstacles barely slowed her, but at least Borrik was catching back up.

At this rate they would be at the city wall in just two
hours. Borrik was happy for it too. Leaving Seth alone did not appeal to the
giant of a mutated wolf man. He had left his master unguarded just days ago and
had not been there to protect the prince when he needed protecting. Something,
he assured himself, that would not happen again.

Looking below, Sara stood out against the ice and snow that
coated the remnants of the lake. Now she was directly below him and as they
reached the eastern shore of the would-be lake, Borrik flew lower as to not
attract unwanted attention.

* * * * *

Sara leapt over chasms in the ice, one after another,
bounding higher than any person was meant to do. It was ridiculous, really. Preparing
to leap a great sheet of ice that had turned up creating a barrier, she thought
better of it and instead of clearing the sheet of ice she leapt to the top of
the makeshift wall and then leapt again. High up into the air she flew, feeling
freer than she could ever recall. With a rush of wind she plummeted down at
gut-wrenching speeds, only to land lithely upon the ice without missing so much
as a step.

Making the shoreline, she was careful of every foot fall. Here
arrows, spears, and every other type of blade she could imagine had been
abandoned and now lay hidden beneath a thin coating of snow. Though she doubted
she could be killed by stepping upon the blade of a sword, she did fear it
might slow her down, at least temporarily. That wouldn’t be a problem if she
and Borrik weren’t racing. Of course, then again, the flying wolf man had yet
to be let in on the competition.

Running nearly a third of a mile a minute, it was not long
before the tops of the great white towers of Valdadore became visible, its
walls stretching for miles and miles across the horizon.

Defying the possible, Sara pumped her legs even harder,
knowing her husband was again in reach. For a moment Borrik swooped down out of
the sky behind her, warning her of Sigrant’s camp ahead before rising again to
a safe altitude. Veering left she continued running, aiming for the north
corner of the city.

Onward she ran, forcing herself to move faster and faster,
feeling herself growing yet stronger by the minute as Sigrant and his troops
fed upon their countrymen. Still accelerating incrementally, she watched as the
city grew at a steady rate before her. Leaping a small tree, rather than go
around, she could see the base of the city’s walls before she again touched
down to the ground. Almost there! Faster still she urged her legs, stretching
out her strides as far as she was able.

Two miles…

She sprinted on, growing closer and closer before suddenly
changing direction. Upon the air the scent of his blood. She had tasted it
before, what now felt like a lifetime ago. Now that her senses were keener she
focused in his direction and could hear his heart.

Pumping her legs she angled towards the great door upon the
west wall that looked like a giant maw of a stone beast. Then, with one great
leap she rocketed into the air and invoked the magical boots her husband had
gave her.

“Jump!”

Up she went. Up and over. Then down she fell, those
defenders on the wall craning their necks around, completely overwhelmed. Falling
felt like forever, but finally she struck the ground, landing in a crouched
position with one knee low to the ground, her fingertips resting on the
cobbles. Before her stood the most powerful man upon Thurr, and rising, she
leapt into his arms, tears streaming from her eyes.

* * * * *

Seth watched her aura come. Though her life force was
bloated to be near equal to his own, he recognized her, as he would always
recognize her, as the only woman he would ever love.

Towards him she raced, moving faster than any human he had
witnessed. He wondered if she intended to plow through the great defensive wall
surrounding the city, or climb it like their last adversaries had done. Then he
heard her voice, and realized her intention.

Without so much as wiping the tears from his face, he rose
to his feet just as she struck the ground before him. Looking up to him, she
immediately burst into tears. Spreading his wings, he pulled her into his arms
and wrapped them both in a cocoon of his own flesh.

Together, wrapped within his wings, they spent many intimate
moments, their lips and bodies locked together as if they were one. Seth needed
her, and though he had sworn to keep emotion out of his daily life, he realized
now that for her he would make an exception.

Though she was likely one of the most powerful women on the
planet, she trembled in his arms, sobs wracking her body for many long moments.
After the initial realization that she was returned to him, Seth calmed
quickly. Realizing that they needed to catch up so that Sara could join him in
the preparations for a battle he believed would come this very night. Time was
of the essence and as much as he wanted to, he could not simply stand in the
street all day holding her small body against his own.

“I want to hear all about what happened to you,” Seth
whispered to the top of her helmet.

“You have some explaining to do as well,” Sara replied,
taking on a mock stern tone.

“I’m glad to have you back,” Seth whispered.

“I love you too,” she replied.

Unwrapping his wings from their bodies, he led her back down
the alley he had come from earlier, and rounding the corner Borrik plunged to
the ground to join them. Pulling the door open to the building where he had
changed all of the children into soldiers, Seth allowed his companions to
enter. Jonas, already inside and waiting, bowed low to Sara, welcoming her
home.

Pulling up cages that the rats had been stored in for
makeshift seats, each of the four companions sat. They looked around the circle
of familiar faces and each of them grinned.

“It’s an odd group we make, isn’t it?” Sara asked to three
responded nods.

“I’m afraid we don’t have a lot of time,” Seth began.
“Perhaps you should start, Sara. What happened to you from the time I was
struck until now?”

Sara appeared to think for a moment, her lower lip quivering
slightly as she recalled some detail, but steeling herself she began to speak.

“I panicked. I think everyone did. No one knew if you were
dead, or if you would heal. Borrik pulled you from the bolt, and you were gone.
I tried to save you. I bit you, but nothing happened…”

“Wait…” Seth interrupted. “You bit me?”

“Yes? Why?” Sara asked

“Just… No. Keep telling your story.”

“Well, then, the next thing I know some guy grabs me and
everything goes to spinning. All of a sudden, wham, we’re in a new spot and
then he teleports us again and again. Then, some big creature bangs me around
like a doll and tosses me in a cage. I was broken to bits, but I was healing. After
that, King Sigrant came to my cage. He offered me his arm and I took it,
thinking to drain him dry, but then the teleporter reappeared and hacked off his
arm. He
used
me, Seth. He used me to take the gift you gave me. He
figured out how to use me as a weapon against you and I’m so sorry.”

“It’s OK, Sara, this isn’t your fault. But keep going, I
want to hear everything.”

“Well, then I was hauled away on an ox cart across the lake.
When I got to the other side I got a new driver, and big black stallions were
swapped out for the oxen. They raced me past Westgate and into Sigrant’s lands
but then something really weird happened.”

Seth watched as Sara stopped and looked around to make sure
everyone was paying attention. Borrik of course knew the most about what Sara
was saying, but even so he listened intently.

“As we raced down a path through the forest, we were
attacked by the trees. I could never believe it if I hadn’t been there, but
Borrik can tell you that they are very much a real thing. It seems that Shadra
forest is protected by these huge tree people that can uproot and walk around. They
can talk and everything! Anyways, we get attacked and all of us, me, the
driver, and the horses get crushed pretty bad. But the tree people pick us all
up and haul us through the forest to Shadra keep. There isn’t much left of it,
but when I heal up, the trees all gathered at the keep and they talked to me.”

Seth found the whole story enthralling. Of course he
believed her, not just because he loved her, but because at this point he was
convinced that absolutely anything was possible.

“So what did they say?” he asked.

“They said that all life is precious,” answered Sara.

“That’s it?”

“They said that to end a life is wrong, and every life we
touch, we change that life’s destiny and fate. They showed me the monster I
have become, and made me realize what I was doing not only to the people I
hurt, but also people in general. It may already be too late, but they freed me
and gave me the chance to come back and put right what wrongs I have done. They
told me what you have been saying all along. That all life is meant to serve
life, not destroy it.”

“So then, I might have allies in these tree people?” Seth
asked anxiously.

“I doubt they want to get involved. They called me the
Plague Bringer, and you The Abomination. I think you have the same beliefs, but
different tactics,” she grinned.

“Then what?” Seth continued his questioning.

“Then Borrik showed up, a little worse for wear, but they
let him live too. At first I didn’t believe him when he said you had come back.
I wanted to, but I couldn’t bear the disappointment if he was wrong. But of
course he convinced me and we came back as fast as we could.”

Seth nodded slowly, reaching across to take her hand. He had
sworn never to leave her and yet he had done so. Giving her hand a squeeze, he
assured her that he understood.

“I suppose then that it is my turn,” Seth began, “but now I
have doubts about the truth of what happened to me. I’ll explain as I tell my
story, though. Let me see. I died, so far as I know. When I left this plane of
existence I came to stand before Ishanya, but I was not yet willing to give up.
At first I was angry but then I asked her to send me back. Obviously she did,
but not without conditions. She said I would be changed, though she never
actually said that
she
was going to change me. I think that I have you
to thank for that,” Seth said, smirking at Sara, watching her red tinted amber
eyes light up with a smile of her own. “She said that I was to see this war
through and then leave Valdadore to collect followers for her from around
Thurr. If I did not agree, then she threatened to absorb my power and I would
have ceased existing. At least that is how I envision it. But now, as I said, I
have my doubts. I can’t help but wonder at your bite, Sara. I rejoined my body
and already I was like you. Between what the tree people told you, and my own
understanding, I am beginning to think that there is more going on in the
heavens than we presume. I was already working upon my own plan, or rather,
Jonas was working on it for me, but I think I am going to need all of your help
in this regard in the future.” Seth paused a moment in silent reflection, his
features straining as he made previously unknown connections about his
understandings of what was transpiring around them. “I’ve strayed. Back to my
story. I awoke on the battlefield, and in a hurry to get to Valdadore I gave
myself these,” Seth said, raising his wings slightly. “Then, when I arrived, I
helped to fend off Sigrant’s initial attack. Long story short, Valdadore has
been decimated. Our troop numbers are pathetic. Garret is the only remaining
knight. We have perhaps two dozen battle mages, Thousand Hole Tommy, Borrik,
Jonas, and six others. Now we have you as well. I needed more troops so I had
my men gather up teenage orphans and I melded them with rats.”