Page 44 of Sea of Stars

Denton was trying feverishly to untie the pronghorns’ reins from the small, dead tree they were tied to. His chubby fingers were clumsy with the strings. The guard was almost upon us. I grabbed my sword and slashed at the ropes

I jumped onto my pronghorn's back and grabbed onto his horns. His horns were thick, which made it hard for my hands to grip them tightly. Dreaming about Rizelle made me feel small and weak. I felt like I was suffocating on the smoke again, watching the burning house in terror. I would never stop seeing the roof cave in on top of her. I would never forget her screams, mixing into the air with the other divinares’ as the village burned to the ground.

The guard was almost beside me. There was a ferocious look in his eyes, and an even scarier one in Mikado’s.

My pronghorn was picking up speed. He was just as terrified of the large mountain dweller as me. I was beginning to think we’d get away when out of the corner of my eye I saw the guard leap off of the mountain dweller. He slammed against me, wrapping his arms around my shoulders, and together we fell off the pronghorn. My skin scraped against the gritty sand and I watched in dismay as the pronghorn continued running. I stayed still as I felt the cool, steel knife press against my neck.

Chapter 17

“Release him,” Denton commanded. He unsheathed his sword and pointed it toward the guard and me.

I could tell he was scared, but only because I knew him so well. The guard would see him as a legitimate threat.

“Not until I get some answers,” the man said angrily. He was tall like Denton, probably close to two and a half feet. And he looked the part of a guard. He was strong and sturdy and dressed like us. A brown cloth covered his nose and mouth, preventing the desert sands from hindering his breathing. The cloth also allowed his identity to stay a mystery to me, because all I could see were his black eyes and eyebrows. I didn't recognize him at all.

“I’ll give you the answers you seek,” I said slowly, trying not to cut my throat against the edge of his knife as I spoke.

“Who is the true ruler?” the guard asked defiantly.

Denton was the only one who knew about Mahlia. Would telling this man the truth spare me or get me killed? Luckily I didn’t have to choose between a lie or the truth because Denton decided for me.

“How dare you disrespect the king with this question,” he said angrily.

Without taking his eyes off me, the guard replied, “I overheard the visitors talking about the true ruler. And then a few hours later you two fled the castle. You’re both traitors!”

“We’re going after the visitors to end their slanderous lies. We can’t afford a revolt,” Denton responded without hesitation.

The blade moved slightly closer to my throat as the guard protested, “Then why wouldn’t you bring some of us with you? They had a brutarian with them! They were armed. Even If you were able to find them, they'd kill you.”

Denton didn’t have a quick response this time. The knife entered my flesh, leaving a tiny slit in my skin.

“Wait,” I said quietly, not wanting the knife to deepen. “Let me up and I'll explain.” The warning look Denton gave me didn’t make me stay silent.

The guard pulled the knife from my throat, tossed it up in the air and caught it in one of his gloved hands. He sat back and twirled it around in his fingers, waiting for me to proceed. I pulled myself up into a seated position and looked at the guard. I thought I might eventually recognize him, but his face did not look familiar. I should have made more of an effort to know who was working for me.

“I believe the visitors spoke the truth,” I said slowly.

The guard stopped tossing his knife and stared at me, his left eyebrow raised.

“The truth as they know it,” I continued. “But there are many sides to a story.”

The man scoffed.

“Humor me,” I said. He shrugged his shoulders and I continued speaking. “I think there’s someone else out there with the gift of the Moira. I’ve been sensing it for weeks.” I rubbed my head, trying to make it seem like I had been having visions. “And when the visitors came my suspicions were confirmed. However, the strangers believed the girl they found with the power is the only one in existence. That’s why they spread those hideous lies, because they believed I claimed her throne without warrant.”

The man was now listening intently.

“So now I must go make peace with this girl. And if I showed up with a whole army, she would feel threatened. I do not wish to scare her, just show her that I am the rightful king. Besides, we do not need a queen in these troubled times. We need a man on the throne.”

The guard nodded his head in agreement. “Well you could have told us,” he mumbled.

“And you would have let us go?” I asked, already knowing his answer.

“No. It’s a fool’s mission. Ignore the girl. We have bigger problems on our hands. You said the brutarian forces would be at the castle soon. We need to go back.” The guard stood and reached out his hand. I grabbed it and he pulled me to my feet.

I glanced over at Denton and I could see his mind was working feverishly, trying to absorb the new lie.

I hope I had twisted the truth just enough to make my words believable.

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