Author's Note:
Hi all, enjoy! I will try to post again this week.
Thank you for your patience as I scramble to find more time in my days to continue writing this story.
Hang in there, I have more to come!
Happy reading!
Veda couldn't shake the unsettling feeling in her gut. She tried pacing, climbing, scouting but nothing served to calm the creeping sensation gripping her innards.
It was probably just their sedentary approach on what to do next. Sitting here wasn't comforting in the slightest; not after what happened last night. Her lilac eyes roam until they land on the pretty brunette a few paces away.
Octavia was busy filling their canteens at the river with a straight face. Though she wasn't smiling or frowning, Veda thought Octavia always looked serious. She wondered what her laugh sounded like and looked like.
Sensing the stare, Octavia looks up from the river and over her shoulder, locking eyes with Veda. Immediately, Veda's lips drop the smile that formed there as she looks away.
She tries not to look at Octavia again even though she knows the other girl is looking right at her. Out of the corner of her eye, she notices Lincoln. He walks out of the underbrush carrying a bundle of twigs and leaves. He approaches the fire before releasing his leafy clump. He bends over it to start sifting through it. After a minute, Veda isn't sure if he's working or brooding. After all, he wasn't exactly onboard with this morning's plan; the one that involved staying put.
It was affecting Veda too; she couldn't seem to sit still. In fact, the only one that didn't seem to have a care in the world was Octavia.
Veda spots her walking towards Lincoln and wonders if they are going to bicker again. Before she can get an answer, a rustling nearby catches her attention. Veda freezes and listens closely. After a long minute of silence, she relaxes and goes back to listening to the other two as the eerie feeling clings to her bones.
Lexa rode fast and hard. It took her longer than expected to catch up to the Demonkai. Only a handful of her men had managed to follow her. She had cursed under her breath when she counted 6 of her men. She had Jaeer, at least.
She looks over her shoulder at the man who had served her for a dozen years. His head had little hair but on it sat a crown of bones made from his fallen enemies. Across his face, a pale scar reaches from his chin to his left ear. Under his fur clothes, Lexa knows her brand was hanging around his neck, a sign of undying loyalty.
When he sees her green eyes on him, Jaeer nods stiffly, his face hard as rock.
"Em ste good dei de oso stay kom emo, Heda" whispers another one of her men. He had short blonde hair that looked like straw. It fell into his eyes as he spoke.
"Demonkai na fig au 'er," he smiles nervously. "Oso na fali rid houd kom Wandemon."
Lexa notices his face twitch as he speaks. "Kru na klir en pure once mou."
"Hosh op," Lexa hisses. His smile fades as his face furrows behind his wiry hair.
Checking that she and her men are far enough from the others, Lexa slows her horse before speaking.
"We must get to this girl before the Demonkai do," Lexa orders quietly.
At this, the twitchy grounder's smile returns. "We shall kill Wandemon and prove ourselves to the Demonkai. We will be hailed heroes."
"No," Lexa says more loudly than she wanted. The grounder's face scrunches in confusion. She looks to the group ahead and when she sees nobody looking in their direction, continues.
"We are to save this girl," Lexa whispers. "She is a member of Skaikru, not a demon. She is one of our people and we need to rescue her before it's too late."
At this, her men – except Jaeer – exchange glances. Chaga, the grounder with straw hair, blinks repeatedly.
"Heda-" he tries.
"I am your Heda and I have given you my order," Lexa raises her chin as she speaks. "Will any defy me?"
Nobody moves for a moment until Jaeer spurs his horse forward.
"We always obey, Heda," Jaeer's voice is low and steady. "We are with you."
Upon seeing the veteran warrior accept Lexa's order unquestionably, the other men straighten their backs and call out their support.
Lexa turns her gaze to Chaga who had yet to confirm. He looked around the group, his face pale.
"Heda," his voice shivers, "she is Wandemon. We cannot protect –"
"You will not obey?" Lexa asks, her hand moving to her sword. Behind her, Jaeer had grasped the handled of his machete. All her men had their hands on their weapons as they stared at the shaking blonde grounder. His face twitches faster as he looks around the group.
"I will obey," Chaga says, his head bowed. Without looking at Lexa, he starts his horse.
It looked like Lexa and her men had fallen behind. As they start their run back to the group, Jaeer approaches Lexa.
"Shall I kill Chaga, Heda?" he asks in a rough voice.
"No," Lexa shakes her head. When she looks at him, she remembers the battles they had endured together. She was with him when he had received the scar on his face. His smile was red with blood that day.
"Not yet," Lexa says to her friend. His scar flashes as a crooked smile cracks the old man's face. Lexa quickly begins to explain the plan to her faithful general as they make their way back to the Demonkai.
Veda sits by the small fire, trying to ignore her twisted stomach by watching Octavia. She remembers all the things that she had told her; about Veda always having a place with her and Lincoln. Veda smiles widely, knowing everything she said was true because if she learnt one thing about Octavia, it was that she was honest.
Veda notices Octavia walking towards her and her smile widens. Octavia opens her mouth to say something but Veda doesn't hear it.
Instead, her weaponized senses detect a rustling coming straight for them. Veda jumps to her feet to put herself between Octavia and the incoming intruder.
A second later, a grounder bursts into camp. He isn't holding a sword or screaming. Instead, he holds his hands up and tries to catch his breath.
"Lexa sent me," he pants. "Run! You have to-"
A small red explosion burst out of his neck. Veda blinks before seeing the red arrow sticking out of the grounder's neck.
He is in shock, gasping for breath as a wave of blood bubbles out of his mouth. He drops to his knees and Veda immediately scans the trees for the attacker. She finds him in a tree about 30 meters away. Entirely dressed in black, he looks like a crouching gargoyle as he reloads his weapon.
Realizing what this is, she turns to Octavia.
"Run!" she shouts as countless men break through the tree line.
When Veda catches up to Octavia, she jerks her head down, making it avoid a speeding arrow.
"Wait!" Octavia shouts as Veda grabs her arm and sprints towards the horses.
Veda ignores her until Octavia gives her a hard shove.
When she turns to see what's wrong, she notices that the men who were attacking them were fighting amongst themselves. Veda didn't understand. Who were they fighting?
Sword in hand, Lexa slashes at one of the Demonkai. Already two of her men had fallen.
It didn't make any sense; she had sent her men quietly and quickly. There was no way that the Demonkai could have figured out their attack.
Trying to focus on the battle, she dodges the Demonkai's returning blows. She keeps her feet steady, feeling the rocks and roots around her.
The Demonkai is not so skilled. As he bumps his foot on a thick tree root, he sways backwards and Lexa takes her chance. She slashes at his leg to render him immovable. He screams in pain as she leaves him behind. She didn't intend to kill the Demonkai if she didn't have to. She has to get to the girl. She is all that matters now.
Quickly, she weaves her way through the trees until she emerges into a clearing. There she sees her men fighting the Demonkai and the villagers. Lexa knew this was a battle they were going to lose. She curses, not understanding why her men had to die. She had a plan and yet somehow…
Then, she sees him. A sweaty heap of straw flopping in the sun as he swings his sword at a badly wounded Jaeer. Without a second thought, Lexa charges Chaga.
Suddenly, a shadow falls upon her and she hits the dirt, hard. Her head spinning, she gets to her knees, scrambling for her sword that had landed a few meters away. As she grips her weapon's hilt, a black boot smashes down on her hand. Lexa grunts in pain just before something slams into her side. Lexa is thrown a few meters away, gasping for breathing as a piercing pain stabs her lungs.
Veda and Lincoln had finally convinced Octavia to get on a horse. The three of them were on the other side of the clearing when they looked back and finally saw Lexa.
They were so busy scrambling to get away, that hadn't seen the Commander enter the fight. Veda can see Lexa laying on the ground, clutching her side as the Demonkai leader approaches her, a black axe in hand.
It looked like the Commander had lost. Only she and another man still lived. Veda watches as a pale blonde grounder sinks his sword into the other man's stomach. As he falls, Veda notices a thick scar on his face.
Unsure what to do, she looks back at Lincoln and Octavia who stare at the scene in horror. She notices both of them reached for their swords.
Veda knows how this was going to turn out. There is no way she is going let that happen.
In a swift move, she sweeps by Octavia and Lincoln to take their swords. They don't notice it until they were fumbling with their hips looking for them. When they look up, they see Veda heading towards the fight.
Lexa coughs painfully as the Demonkai leader picks her up by her arm. He yanks it above her head to lift her, causing a lightning storm of pain to explode in her side. She hates that she yells in pain.
The Demonkai leader turns to his men and the villagers.
"The Commander has tried to stop us from fulfilling our sacred duty," his voice booms. "It has become clear to the Kai that our Heda is tainted."
A few murmurs run across the villagers. The other Demonkai are still as statues.
"We must cleanse the Commander before more of us-"
A villager breaks the Demonkai's speech with a blood curling scream. The leader slow looks at the trembling boy. He sees the boy's shaking finger pointing to something behind him.
Slowly, he turns, still holding the Commander's arm, until her sees the figure running towards him at super human speeds. His beady black eyes narrow as a dark smile creeps onto his face.
Lexa's vision is blurry, yet she still manages to make out something moving through the clearing, heading straight for them. It takes her a moment but she realizes it's the girl.
Em ste good dei de oso stay kom emo – "It is good that we stay with them, Heda"
Demonkai na fig au 'er. – "The Demonkai will find her."
Oso na fali rid houd kom Wandemon. – "We will finally rid the world of Wandemon"
Kru na klir en pure once mou – "The people will be safe and pure once more"
Hosh op – "Quiet."
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