Page 61 of The Lost Guard's Healer

Wini shakes her head and gasps. “I don’t know.”

After a time of swift galloping, Wini almost slides off her horse. She looks weakened and drained. Her determination is evident and admirable. Her brother tells her to back off before she hurts herself, but she remains resolute.

Somehow, the horses are not tiring. It makes me guess Wini is somehow absorbing their fatigue. Her magical gift seems to be a multi-faceted mystery.

I’m surprised at how strong Wini is, and I realize I had underestimated her character. She is far more than the voracious vixen who had tried to seduce me. It speaks of the strength of the Shanti People in general. These are good people capable of good things, who have kept to themselves for too long. Now is their time to show the world what they’re capable of. I just hope I don’t get them all killed.

We soon crest a hill and see the Kingdom far along the horizon. The sky-piercing white towers are highlighted against the flames surging through the city. The battle is well underway. The biggest city in our world looks like a glowing ember in the darkness.

Something is flying over the city, a dark shape against the firelight. It isn’t until I focus on it more that I realize it is a dragon of some kind. Other smaller creatures cover the sky over the city.

This is going to be a battle unlike anything that’s been seen in this world. We pick up our pace and race to reach the Kingdom before it’s too late.

Chapter twenty-five

Galene

My first battle. I feel numb to the idea. My heart threatens to burst from my chest as we reach the outer gates of the Kingdom. The sheer scale of it is like nothing I could have imagined. The illustrations in the books I’ve seen do not do this place justice. It could be a very beautiful, magnificent place under other circumstances, when there aren’t fires raging through the buildings and monsters tearing through the streets.

Wini stays behind as she is on the verge of unconsciousness. Wills stays with her by the outer gate, although as we rush by, I hear Wini telling her brother to join the battle and forget about her. I don’t hear the rest of their talk as the booming sounds of chaos bombard me. I tighten my hold of the spear in my hand as we run through the inner courtyard to the nearest streets. Impossibly tall buildings loom over us in the distance, some of their tops disappearing into the dark clouds.

A screeching dragon roams the sky overhead, joined by smaller dragon-like creatures who are throwing themselves into buildings to destroy as much as they can. One of the smaller dragons has picked up someone in the distance and drops them. The destructive madness around us drowns out their screams.

Through the remains of a broken building, a ten-foot troll barrels through the smoke and debris to swing a gnarled club at white-armored Kingdom Guards. Short, stout creatures are among the invading army. Their pointed ears and mottled green skin make me think of goblins from the old stories.

Rourk calls for us to charge forward. His fierce, confident voice gives me some strength, but doesn’t remove the crippling fear coursing through me. This is already too much for me and my legs are weaker than I’d like. But I have to stay strong.

The vast city has a pyramidal shape, meaning we have several levels to climb if we’re going to reach the center. We come to a wide abandoned street with short buildings on either side, the paved stones cracked and scorched. Ahead, Kingdom Guards battle with an enormous troll. Frightened civilians rush through the street, ducking into alleys or hiding behind carts and barrels. Some are banging on doors to be let in.

Several cackling goblins burst out from an alley and charge at us, waving metallic clubs and oversized hammers.

When we get close enough to engage with the goblins, I see their forms are decayed and rotten. These are not living creatures. Some have eyeballs half-hanging out of their sockets while others have gaping holes in their bodies. They all have white-glazed eyes.

“They are undead,” someone yells shrilly.

“The undead army of Thanek,” someone else yells.

None of us had been expecting this, but we engage in the battle with vigor. We fling arrows into the charging goblins and attack with axes, knives, and spears.

Bohan is surprisingly brutal and effective in combat, cutting down several of the undead army with his broadaxe. Small creatures drop from the roofs above, falling onto those around me. These have the petite three-foot frames, pointed noses, and sharp teeth of vicious elves. They wrap their claws around necks and sink their teeth into flesh. I rush up and stab an elf in the back with my spear, causing it to fall to the ground, writhing and shrieking. Another stab ends its thrashing. Then the thought comes to me. Will these undead stay dead?

An axe swings down and cuts the downed elf in two. I startle and look up to see Zayne is there with the ax.

“The more pieces, the better,” he barks, and rushes off.

The enormous dragon swoops down to us with a blast of hot wind. Delis is in the air, flying toward the dragon. My heart jolts at the sight of her charging at the dragon head-on. The dragon snaps its long mouth at her, but Delis cuts to the side at the last second and spirals away. The dragon veers and takes chase, no longer interested in us. I lose sight of them both when they clear the rooftops. I hope that crazy brave girl will be okay. She’s given us time to fight without the dragon bothering us.

I look for Rourk but don’t see him anywhere. That sends violent shivers through me. When we reach the Kingdom Guards, their white armor gleaming in the glowing firelight, we help them fight back the giant troll and surrounding goblins. It’s then that I see Rourk, who has picked up a sword and is diving under the feet of the troll, slicing its shins as he goes. My heart swells at the sight of him. I want to stay close to him, but I don’t want to be dependent on him.

If there’s any sense of surprise or confusion from the Kingdom Guards at the sight of us, it doesn’t show. There’s no time to explain who we are or where we’ve come from. I look back to see some villagers at the back of our group battling more of those cackling elves. The roar of another troll echoes through the street, though I cannot see where it is. That sends more dark fear through me. The sounds of death and destruction are all around, and no place is safe.

The sight of my father barreling through the undead army with his axe gives me a tremor of hope. He is proving to be a surprisingly formidable warrior. I need to be more like him.

Someone falls down near me. It’s Geron, a fisherman, who has lost his spear and is on the ground, crying out as a goblin leaps on him. I swing the spear and knock the goblin away, but see that Geron has been slashed in the chest. Others help him up.

A body is on the ground. My heart leaps into my throat. It’s Tan, Yovin’s son. His stomach has been cut open, and he lays there with frozen fear on his pale face. We are all rushing around him, ignoring his dead body. I think I’m going to vomit.

Ahead, the huge troll is swinging its club at some of our group. I’ve never seen a creature so big and angry before. It’s enough to make me want to freeze with fear, but I don’t let it. I look inward and summon my light and throw it at the troll. A cube of golden light cuts through the air and smacks into the troll. It knocks it off balance, but it isn’t enough to damage it. The troll soon regains its balance and is angry, thrashing and growling, with spit flying from its mouth. My arms glow with a vibrant light as I run, ready to throw the light for offense or defense at any moment.

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