Page 36 of Trapped to Tame
‘Wraiths mostly at the moment, great fire breathing reptiles that look like snakes with massive claws, great big talons, and scales so black, you can't see them in the dark. Just their eyes. Yellow, glowing slits.’ He leaned forward, as her eyes were widening. ‘Members of the Horde,’ he said, ‘with great horns coming out of their heads. Some have scales on half their bodies. Some can turn into beasts so terrifying they’d make you sh—’
‘Priest,’ warned Drax.
He looked back innocently. ‘She should know what we may face. She is one of us now, isn’t she?’ he scoffed.
Eve tilted her head to the side, trying to force the fear that he had elicited away. What would she do if she met any of those creatures? She had no idea. She could fight men. She didn't know how to fight Dark Realm things. Shadows. Monsters. She knew he was trying to make her afraid, but all those things were real, weren’t they?
‘Is there a particular reason why you don't like me?’ she asked Priest quietly.
His eyes found hers and she could see the loathing in them. The force of it made her want to turn away.
He didn't answer her.
They didn't stop travelingall day, but when her stomach started to growl, Priest passed her a bag of dried meat and told her to eat while they moved. She did because she was hungry, and she tried not to look a gift horse in the mouth though none of the others partook. Why were they feeding her more?
That night, a bit before the sun had begun its descent behind the craggy mountains to the west, Eve belatedly realized that they had changed direction during the course of the day. Where they had been traveling north, they now headed towards the east.
They found a cave for the night, which she was glad of as the weather was much colder now. Drax entered first to ensure it was safe before they lit a fire at the entrance.
Priest plied her with more food and water, and she took it without a word. Once she was finished, he beckoned her to him.
‘Sit there on one of those flat stones and close your eyes,’ he said.
She looked at him with suspicion. ‘Why?’
He let out an impatient breath. ‘In order for you to hold up your end of the bargain, you need to do as I say,’ he said vaguely. ‘Give me your amulet.’
She frowned, but took off the rounded, dark pendant and handed it to him, sitting on the rock and staring up at him. Last night, he’d been ready to throw her from the protection of their circle to the creatures that lay in wait. What did he have planned this time? She practically shook with fear, and she heard Drax growl from the mouth of the cave.
‘Would it kill you to put the female at ease?’
Priest let out a weary sigh.
‘I’m not going to hurt you, female. This is merely a mind exercise. Close your eyes,’ he said again, waiting until she did as he wanted before continuing in a smooth, slow voice that had her calm in moments. ‘Imagine that you’re walking through a dark tunnel. The walls are black and smooth as glass. With each step, your body begins to glow, brighter and brighter with energy from inside of you. You can feel it growing. In front of you is a closed door with the same light shining through the cracks. In your hand, there’s a key golden and heavy. You can feel the weight of it as you walk. You put the key in the lock, and you turn it. As you open the door, you see that the glowing is drawn towards you and it envelopes you in warmth. You can smell a tang in the air. Magick. The ability to conjure. The runes of power appear on your skin,’ he said, ‘bright at first and they fade as the power recedes into you. Deep inside.’
The tone of his voice lowered, and she shivered as she felt her pulse quicken.
She opened her eyes immediately, suddenly afraid. ‘What are you doing to me?’
His countenance was hard and unforgiving. ‘Nothing yet. Did you feel anything?’
‘What am I meant to feel?’ she asked.
He turned away. ‘That's enough for now.’
Eve scowled at his back, sick of his condescending tones. He hadn’t told her anything. She realized it was now dark and she stifled a yawn, falling onto the bedroll that had been laid out for her.
She could hear Priest setting stones at the mouth of the cave in order to cast his circle of protection around their camp and sighed. What did they actually want from her? Surely their notion of her being able to open a portal was a jest. She was just a girl on the small side. She had no magick to speak of and she was glad of it. Gods only knew what Talik would have made her do for him if she'd had those sorts of skills.
Eve woke,breathing heavily and she thought she must have had a bad dream, but she couldn't remember it. She sat up in the dark, the dying embers of the fire at the front of the cave casting little light.
She felt stifled and hot, needed to be out of this cavern that was little more than a tomb.
She went to the cave entrance and slipped out into the night, taking a long, deep breath in the cold air.
She felt something brush against her face and drew back. She couldn't see anything. It was too dark. She heard something rustling next to her and jumped, going back the way she’d come and trying to find the entrance to the cave, but it wasn't there!
Eve felt for her amulet but remembered Priest taking it from her last night. Panic rose in her as something pushed her hard, banging her into the boulders at her back. She cried out, trying to fight back, her mind replaying what Priest had said to her about the Dark Realm creatures that roamed the forests.
