Trinity (3 page)

Kiana had enough wits to see
Nidan’s eyebrows raise as his mouth dropped open. Under different
circumstances, his expression might have been comical.

“
Let’s
go!”

She forced herself to follow Finn
out of the tunnel, expecting to see Wolves at any moment.

Finn must have sensed Kiana’s
nervousness. He paused and glanced at her. “From what we could see,
the Wolves are concentrated around the moat. It’s unlikely they’ll
find this entrance.”

Kiana nodded. They had run through the tunnel for what felt
like an eternity, and the fighting sounded so distant. Despite
Finn’s assurances, Kiana stared after the other group as they
vanished into the forest. They had to stay safe. They
had
to.

They ran at the edge of the river
across wet, slippery pebbles that threatened to send Kiana crashing
to her knees. It took all her concentration to stay upright. She
kept looking round. Every sound she heard sent shivers of fear
through her body.

A burnt body swept past, carried
by the fierce current of the river. Kiana paused, trembling, even
though she knew it was insane to stop. “Why?” Her eyes felt heavy
under the weight of unshed tears.

“
Because the
Wolves are monsters,” Nidan said as he stopped beside
her.

“
We have to keep
running!” Finn said. “We don’t know how long it will take the
Wolves to realise you’re no longer in the tower.”

Kiana swallowed back her tears.
“It’s my fault. Everyone is dead or dying because of me.”

Nidan took hold of her hand. His
touch felt warm against her cold skin. “No. They are dying because
of the insane hatred of the Wolves. It isn’t your fault.”

Kiana’s legs felt like lead. She
couldn’t control them or make herself move. She started to sink
towards the ground.

“
What are you
doing?” Finn said. His grip tightened on the pommel of his sheathed
sword as he glanced up and down the bank.

Gently, Nidan held Kiana by the shoulders, forbidding her from
collapsing completely. “We have to escape.” He looked her directly
in the eyes as he spoke. “
You
have to
escape.”

She stared at him, blinking to
stop her tears from falling.

“
If you don’t,
the Wolves will win.” His voice sounded cracked and his hands were
trembling on her shoulders. “People have sacrificed themselves for
you and for Miale, but that was our choice, not yours. We all chose
to become servants of Pios. We chose to become your
Guardians.”

“
Why? Why would
you sign up to die?”

“
Because
defending you prevents the time of Thanatos coming early. That’s
what matters.”

She nodded slowly. “Your sister.”
She drew in a shuddering breath. “What’s happening… what the Wolves
are doing… it’s so horrible.”

“
I
know. It
is
horrible. We’ll have time to grieve when we reach
Valgate, I promise you. But not now. Now we have to
run.”

Kiana nodded again and righted
herself. At the same time, she heard the sound of footsteps
crashing through the undergrowth. Finn and Ciall both drew their
swords, but when Nidan went to draw his own Finn stopped him.

“
Take Kiana and
run. We’ll follow you when we can.”

Nidan opened his mouth and then
shut it again. Kiana cried out as he grabbed her hand and pulled
her away. She’d already lost Marcas and now Finn was going to
vanish too. Even though it made her footsteps clumsy, she looked
back over her shoulder until Finn and Ciall had vanished out of
sight. Soon after that, all she could hear was the ringing sound of
steel clashing against steel. Unchecked tears fell down her
cheeks.

They ran past more bodies, some
still being carried by the current, others trapped on the bank. All
were burned. All were dead. Kiana tried not to look, but it was
almost impossible not to. She wondered if it would be possible to
rid herself of the horror of the burnt corpses and twisted
faces.

As they ran, Nidan kept glancing
over his shoulder at her. He looked lost and frightened, but every
time he caught her gaze, a confident smile broke onto his face.

Suddenly, Kiana pulled him to a
halt. He turned round as she dragged her hand free of his and knelt
down beside yet another corpse. Except it wasn’t a corpse—not yet.
She could see the faint rise and fall of the man’s chest and hear
his ragged breathing. The sight was hideous. Glistening red welts
covered his exposed skin, slowly oozing clear fluid. His face had
not been burnt as badly. It was a dark shade of red that looked
painfully tender, but there were no open wounds. His dark hair,
beard and eyebrows were only a little singed. A revoltingly sweet,
acrid stench rose up from the burns, so overwhelming that Kiana
could almost taste it in the back of her throat. She clapped her
hands over her nose and mouth and tried to breathe calmly. Beside
her, Nidan gagged as he crouched down on the pebbles.

Kiana forced her hands away from
her face, as she looked at Nidan. “Heal him?”

Nidan didn’t move. “He’s a
Wolf.”

Nidan was right: he was her enemy.
His hands had probably killed her Guardians. Her friends. Her
family.

Kiana’s mouth quivered. She was sure of one thing: too many
people had already lost their lives
.
“He’s dying.”

“
He’s a Wolf. We
need to keep going,” Nidan said, tugging at her hand.

Kiana pulled away from his touch.
“We can’t just leave him.” She didn’t look at Nidan as she
disobeyed him.

“
Yes we
can.”

“
No! He’s in
pain! How can you be so cruel?” She breathed in and out heavily.
Her throat felt sore from shouting.

Nidan sighed and pulled a dagger
from his belt before holding it over the man’s throat. Kiana placed
her hands over his, forbidding him from delivering the killing
blow, even though her hands were trembling violently.

“
He’s a Wolf!
It’s no less than he would do to us.” Nidan’s voice dripped with
venom. “Besides, look at him. Killing him is probably a
kindness.”

“
You can’t.”
Kiana’s breath caught in her throat. It seemed that it wasn’t just
the Wolves who were controlled by hatred.

The Wolf made an odd whistling
sound as he suddenly sucked in a large gulp of air. Kiana turned
her attention back to him, knocking Nidan’s hands and the knife
aside without resistance.

The Wolf’s eyes opened slowly,
revealing cold, light eyes that were full of pain and anger. He
stared directly at Kiana and his eyes widened slightly.

He
knows who I am
. “Can you
talk?”

He
did not respond. Kiana wasn’t even sure that he
could
respond.
She reached out a hand but hesitated, unable to actually touch him.
His mouth twisted into a faint grimace.

She looked up and stared at Nidan.
“Please? Please heal him.”

“
Even though he’s
a Wolf?”

Kiana dipped her gaze and looked
the Wolf in the eyes again. His stare dared her to kill him.
“Yes.”

“
Why?”

“
Because it’s wrong to leave him in pain. And Pios teaches us
that
all
human life is sacred. Even if he is a Wolf, he’s still
human.”

Nidan rubbed his face with his
hands. “He would kill us without hesitation.”

Did
he really think she didn’t know that? Fresh tears welled in Kiana’s
eyes. “I don’t want anyone else to die because of me.” She drew in
a deep breath. “As a Guardian, you have the power to heal him. As a
Guardian, you must do as I say and I am
ordering
you to save
him.” Despite the stern words, she could feel herself
trembling.

Nidan looked from her to the Wolf
and then back again. “You’re so naïve.” He shook his head,
muttering something under his breath. “Keep watch. If you hear or
see anything, I stop and we run, understand? Nothing is more
important than keeping you safe.”

Kiana nodded and stood. Water had
seeped into her clothes, and the woollen cloth clung to her legs,
making them feel heavy and cumbersome. She watched as Nidan laid
his dagger within reach but away from the injured Wolf. Then he
placed both hands over the Wolf’s chest and closed his eyes.

At first nothing seemed to happen.
Kiana did her best to keep watch. She glanced up and down the bank
and tried to gaze into the forest, listening to the distant sounds
of fighting; it sounded more like swords clanging in the practise
yard than a heated battle. The trees that Kiana had longed to see
seemed to be working against her, as their deep shadows provided a
multitude of hiding places for the Wolves that wanted her dead. She
couldn’t see or hear the birds that woke her every morning with
their song. Every living animal in the forest seemed to be hiding
from the destructive force of the Wolves. Kiana wished she could
join them.

She
kept finding her gaze drifting back to Nidan and the Wolf. Nidan’s
brow was furrowed and his fingertips were twitching. Kiana laced
her fingers together and glanced around again. Now that she was
further away from the Wolf, her stomach was no longer churning at
the sight and smell. She heard the sound of a twig snapping behind
her and spun round. An animal? A man? She held her breath and
stared.
I should tell
Nidan
.

Kiana turned back to face Nidan.
His face had become slack, peaceful, and all the tension had
drained from his shoulders.

There was no more sound from the
forest. It had to have been an animal. Ducarius had told her that
there were deer in the forest; his books had contained drawings of
the timid animals.

Suddenly, Nidan looked up. “He’s
one of their cursed mages.”

She looked at the Wolf. His eyes
were still open, staring and unreadable. “How do you know
that?”

Nidan twisted so that he could look at her. “The damage
started
inside
him. That’s the cost of their repulsive
magic. Use too much and it kills them.” His mouth curled into a
snarl. “I should have known.”

“
How could
you?”

Nidan gestured to the Wolf. “He’s
not carrying any weapons.”

Kiana’s brow puckered in thought. The Wolf’s weapons could
have been swept away by the river. However, if Nidan said the Wolf
could cast magic, she believed him. A mage had killed Marcas.
Countless other Guardians had burst into flames.
I should hate him. I should want him
dead.

“
Can you save
him?”

Nidan shrugged. “If the damage is
too great, no amount of healing will help him.” The corners of
Nidan’s mouth tugged down. “Why hasn’t he killed us?”

Kiana looked at him, puzzled.
Surely the Wolf was too injured to harm anyone, least of all
her.

“
I was taught
that a Wolf mage could cast their magic no matter how badly injured
they are, even if doing so kills them,” Nidan said.

Kiana shuddered and regarded the
Wolf. It was a good question, but she doubted he would give them an
answer.

The Wolf’s brow furrowed and he
closed his eyes tightly.

Kiana didn’t need to know why the
Wolf hadn’t tried to kill them. “Will you try to heal him?” She
expected Nidan to argue.

He didn’t. Nidan puffed out his
cheeks and closed his eyes again. This time he relaxed almost
immediately. Kiana made quick glances around, watching for danger.
When she looked back at the Wolf, his eyes were open again and his
expression was less pained. Physically, he looked the same.

Eventually, Nidan rocked back onto
his heels and looked down at the Wolf. “He won’t die.”

“
But…”

Nidan snapped his head round to
look at her. “I’ve set magic in place so his wounds will heal
quickly. There won’t even be any scarring. It’s a damned sight more
than he deserves.”

A smile of relief touched Kiana’s
lips. She had been wrong to doubt Nidan. “Thank you.” She looked
down at the Wolf. “Try not to get yourself killed.” She began to
turn away, but paused. “If you want to thank us, then don’t kill
another soul tonight.”

She held a hand out to Nidan. “We
should go.”

The nervous expression vanished
from Nidan’s face. He stood and accepted her hand. As they moved
away, the Wolf painfully propped himself up on one elbow. Kiana
froze and stared at him.

“
Run.” The Wolf
stared directly at her, his eyes were cold and piercing.

Kiana shuddered.

The Wolf’s eyes narrowed in an
expression of anger. “Run.”

Nidan’s grip tightened on Kiana’s
hand and he pulled her away from the Wolf.

Chapter
Two

Nidan dipped his flask in the cool
river, took a swig and then stood and faced the imposing cliff that
towered above them.

“
What are you
thinking?” Kiana was watching him intently. The shine had gone from
her eyes, and her shoulders sagged under the weight of the day’s
events.

Instead of replying, Nidan looked
at the uneven surface of the dark rock, searching.

“
Nidan?” Kiana’s
voice had risen in pitch.

It was the first rest Nidan had
allowed them to have since they had fled the tower. Throughout the
day, they had heard Wolves in the distance and caught the
occasional glimpse of men through the trees, but by Pios’ will they
had managed to evade detection.