Title: Knotted Destiny
By: QT
Edited By: Microsoft Word
Summary: A new era is arising as darkness sets over the vast kingdom of Tortall. People are slain ruthlessly, cities are destroyed, people's hope diminishes rapidly. The only one who can turn the tide and return things to a balance is an unknown and unexpected hero.
Disclaimer: I don't own any of Tamora Pierce's characters, however, I do own this plot.
"..." Talking
'...' Thinking
blah Dreaming
Kalasin was left standing in the middle of the camp, alone, as the centaur muttered obscene language under his breath, walking off to find the leaders of his herd. She sighed loudly, relaxing her white-knuckled grip she had on her sword when around the black-haired immortal. After a few minutes of watching immortals work, she found herself being handed a basket of bandages, and whisked away into a nearby tent.
"I saw what you did, so fix these ones too," came a voice beside the girl.
Kalasin frowned, turning to face the immortal, but she stopped herself when one of the men near the back end of the tent suddenly went into convulsions. Kalasin's complexion paled as she rushed over to the man, glancing at nearby centaurs, demanding they hold him down. Without waiting for them to do as she bid, she dove into the man with her power. She felt her power drain out of her as she stopped the bleeding in his head, slowly allowing her power to mend minute things as she pulled out of him.
Gasping, the girl opened her eyes, toppling off of the bedside onto the floor, the room spinning. 'I overdid it again,' she thought scolding as water was thrust at her. Unable to move without feeling the need to vomit, Kalasin tried pushing the water away, only to feel cool liquid being poured into her mouth.
Slowly, Kalasin got to her feet with the help of a brown-haired centaur. Sighing, Kalasin looked around at all of the injured humans, her azure eyes narrowing at the centaur. "Why do you bother helping these men, and where did you find them?"
"We all have a common enemy, mage-girl. If we heal these humans, they'll fight our enemy for us, and we found them along the riverbank, much like yourself."
Kalasin nodded, her eyes scanning the beds. "I'll run out of power easily, so for the basic wounds, we need bandages, ones that have been boiled mind you, and sticks to use as splints for broken bones."
Within minutes, Kalasin had immortals bandaging up minute wounds. Smiling to herself, she went from bed to bed, getting rid of fatal infections, internal bleeding, and other injuries the body needed assistance in healing. Nearing the last bed, she felt her strength leaving her. She began to feel unstable on her feet as she came to stand at the side of the bed. What she saw made her body and mind go numb; a ghostly pale man lay before her, his breathing shallow and hoarse. The sheets that lay above him were stained with old blood, Lerant's old blood.
"Lerant," she breathed, her blue eyes widening as she slipped her hands over his. Closing her eyes, she searched inside of her, finding a dull light; her magic was nearly gone for the day. Not caring of what consequences would come from using it up, she gathered as much as she could and let it slide into Lerant's body. She healed multiple wounds from arrows; thankfully none of the wounds were deep. She also reduced the size of his lip to normal, repairing the cut and bruising that came with it.
Slowly, her eyes opened, her legs wobbled a bit, but didn't give way. She heard the sound of hooves clicking against the ground, stopping behind her. Her arm was firmly gripped, and soon she was being dragged out of the tent, the fresh air bringing her back to reality.
Kalasin stared up into the black-haired centaur's furious face. A slow smile crossed her pink lips, "he's alive," she whispered, her eyes turning glassy.
The centaur gave her an odd look, his stern voice ringing in the air, "who's alive?"
"Lerant-"
"Your lover?" he asked, a grin appearing on his face.
Kalasin's cheeks turned a deep shade of pink as she looked away, her trance that she was in diminishing. With a loud sigh, she shook off the immortal's grip, and stood straighter, raising her chin up stubbornly. "Have you gathered the herd's leaders? I wish to speak to them still."
The centaur suddenly stood up straighter himself, narrowing his eyes a bit. "Follow me, and don't stray off," he commanded, walking off at a fast pace, causing Kalasin to jog in order to keep up.
Mithros glanced next to him in the darkness. The spot where his sister had been was absent. He felt alone and vulnerable without the Goddess there to be his more reasonable half. He had a quick temper, whereas she had the calmness and patience of a worm wrapped in its cocoon, waiting for its day to fly.
Closing his eyes, his large fists clenched shut as her screaming echoed in his mind. The humans were fighting that mage after shooing Kalasin away. Alanna, the human his sister had chosen to bless, drained herself against the mage in order to save her soldiers. His sister, sensing this, seeing this, used the remaining of her powers to help her daughter. Alanna and the Goddess became one, the Goddess bonding herself to her daughter, but it was useless.
Gashes, and cuts appeared all over his sister's body, blood, mortal's blood, trickled out of the wounds as she screamed. Death came to his sister; her body disintegrating until only her cloak was left in her spot, tattered at the hems.
His sister's death stole all the remaining hope that he might have had. "It's over now," he mumbled to himself mournfully, "all over."
The Princess stopped at the closed entrance of an abnormally large tent. Its walls were made of various shades of green silk, and the sticks that held it up were polished wood. About to send out a prayer to the gods for good luck, she remembered the position they were in, and a sudden sadness overcame her. Her posture faltered, and her eager expression became dull.
The black-haired centaur glanced at her briefly before opening the flap of the tent. "My sires, I've brought the human."
"Well, what are you waiting for, Blackfire, bring him in," commanded an elderly looking centaur, positioned in between two others.
Blackfire nodded, glancing back over his shoulder, beckoning to Kalasin. "Do not keep them waiting," he hissed, grabbing her by her wrist. Walking into the tent, he shoved her towards the immortals, then backed up until his rear was inches away from the entrance.
Kalasin's eyes widened as she stared at the three centaurs. Each adorned multiple metal chains around their neck, and jewels decorated their wrists and fingers. Their hair contained small braids upon which cloth or feathers were weaved into.
The girl forced a smile, glancing at the floor. Hesitating a moment as to what gesture she should make, she curtsied as gracefully as she could with trousers on. Slowly, she rose, her azure eyes darting nervously from one immortal to the next. Clearing her throat, she smiled slightly, taking up the air of royalty.
"I'm-"
"You're a female," the centaur in the middle snorted, a look of disgust overcoming his face.
"I'm Princess Kalasin of Conté. I come with a proposal dealing with the mage-"
"Blackfire, what sort of shit is this?" a younger looking centaur roared, his eyes glaring daggers at Kalasin.
"Let her talk," he snapped, walking up behind Kalasin.
Taking a deep breath, the girl continued, "I say we join forces!" When no one seemed to respond verbally, she went on. "We'll be stronger, together, than by ourselves. This war is no longer between humans, but between humans and immortals. The mage has both following him, and so it would only make sense to do the same. If we choose not to join one another, we'll all be sent to our graves."
Silence fell upon them, causing Kalasin to start playing with the hem of her tunic. The girl felt a sturdy hand come to rest on her shoulder, squeezing it subtly in attempt to bring comfort to her. "Will you not fight with us, along the sides of men? No not men, but friends? Do you not see we fight for the common purpose of life? I have men that are still alive, and able to fight once I get my fingers on them. They are in cages I've been told, and once I heal their major wounds, we'll have a chance, one that we should take!"
"We have too many young foals to worry about, and their dams. We care not about human affairs. We mind our own business. We stay out of the wars humans bring upon the world-"
"You are already involved!" she cried, interrupting the eldest centaur. "You've helped my men not perish, and so you're obviously not on the side of the mage. Whenever he is mentioned, whispers rise all around you, do you not hear? He is taking your lands, he will enslave you and your herd. Do you not care?"
"If they were his men we would do the same, we are neutral!"
"Then pick a side, my side! I beg of you, help us. If you, or anyone does not help us, then the gods will fall! Their time is fading, as is ours, unless we fight for it!"
The three centaurs exchanged looks. "Why should we believe you?" the youngest one spat, his eyes dangerously cold.
Kalasin opened, and closed her mouth, unsure as to what to say. Looking down at the floor, she heard him snort. She could feel his eyes on her as he spoke venomously towards her, "You are just a human, a female human for that matter, and a princess. You know nothing of what you speak, and here you are, trying to be bold, winning over the hearts of your followers. You will find no support here. All you will bring is trouble."
"Blackfire, lock her up, we will discuss this later," demanded the eldest of the centaurs.
Blackfire stared at them before looking down at Kalasin. He hesitated before glaring defiantly at the three head centaurs. "No," he said, his attempt to hide his fear faltering when his voice shook a little.
The eldest centaur rose, his face turning red. "What did you say?"
Blackfire's grip on Kalasin's shoulder tightened as he dug into the dirt with his hoof nervously. "I said no."
"You dare defy us?"
"She doesn't deserve this, she has healed our people as well as her own."
"If we let her go, she'll run off to that mage-"
"We have her lover, if she runs off, we can kill him."
Kalasin's eyes went wide as she jerked away from Blackfire, stumbling over her own feet, and landing on her rump. Glaring up at them, she stood, dusting herself off. "You will do no harm to any of my people-"
She felt the flesh of a callused hand make contact with her soft cheek. The sting caused her eyes to grow moist as she backed away from the eldest centaur. Seeing he was about to say something, she turned on her heel and fled the tent.
Only when she met the edge where the clearing met the forest did she look back at the tent where she discovered Lerant. Her fingers went up to caress her pendant as she thought a moment. About to go back to the camp, she stopped, glancing towards the forest. Withdrawing the sword from its place at her hip, she gripped it firmly. Slowly, she entered the darkness of the forest, a place where immortals that preyed upon humans lived.
The mage smiled crookedly as he sent Uusoae with a squadron of men to the heart of Tortall. They would storm the castle in Corus, and Uusoae would easily destroy anyone who got in her way. 'Once she takes care of Jonathan and his damned family, I'll have what I want,' he thought ruefully, his eyes gleaming with joy.
Kalasin flinched when she stepped on a twig, causing it to snap. Stopping where she was, the girl glanced around, her eyes searching for the slightest movement, her ears searching for any sound. None. She continued to make her way deeper into the dark forest, the only noises she heard being her own footsteps.
Judging by how tired she was, Kalasin figured she had been traveling at least an hour. Her feet ached, and she longed to be back home, soaking in a hot bath. 'What did I do?' she thought miserably, 'I ran away to help "my people", but I'm not fit for this at all. I don't know what I'm doing, and I just want to go home!'
Whimpering in self-pity, Kalasin leaned against a large tree, and slid down so that she was crouching at its base. Her facade of a noble girl who was as tough as anyone was melting away as quickly as wax over a flame. Too busy with feeling sorry for herself, Kalasin didn't notice large, dark figures moving soundlessly in the branches high above her.
'Toughen up,' the brave half of herself told her, 'you're acting like a baby. Have you no dignity?' Sniffling, the girl began to stand up when a glowing, sticky rope latched itself onto her body as well as the tree trunk behind her. She was unable to move away from the tree, or reach her sword to cut herself free from her bindings.
One of the large figures dropped down in front of Kalasin, its metal teeth showing as it sneered at the girl. It was a spidren, an immortal. The creature had a human head, metal teeth showing it was a predator, and a black spider's body. The spidren that stood before the girl was male, his skin pale, and his eyes the color of honey. He had light blonde hair that fell in his face.
"What is a dainty human like you doing, wandering around, alone?"
His voice was filled with spite, causing a shiver to run down Kalasin's spine. She could feel herself trembling, though she refused to show her fear in her voice as she spoke clearly. "Get me out of this thing right now," she demanded, her blue eyes glaring into the immortal's.
The spidren cackled along with a few more who decided to drop down, getting a better view of the girl. "Who do you think you are? You've wandered into our territory. We will be the ones giving the orders, not some puny human." His eyes suddenly turned cold, "if you go on acting as though you are better than us, I will bite off your head," he remarked bluntly.
Kalasin took a deep breath as her body continued to tremble more fiercely. "I am the Princess of Tortall, and I command you to let me go this instant."
What sounded like a growl emitted from the blonde-haired spidren as he suddenly sprang forward, his mouth open, and his metal fangs dangerously nearing the Princess' throat.
The girl's eyes shut tightly as she reached for the sword, willing it to reach her hand. As soon as she felt her fingers brush the hilt, she grasped it tightly, slicing through the sticky string of web that entrapped it. With a quick movement of her wrist, Kalasin had the sword pointing at the immortal's throat.
The immortal's teeth were nearly latched around her neck. Beads of perspiration formed on her forehead, 'that was too close,' she though as she glanced around her at the other immortals. "Let me go," she said in a low voice, pressing the sword against the spidren's delicate flesh. A small line of red formed where the blade met the skin, and suddenly Kalasin's eyes widened as the immortal hissed and backed away from her.
"Bitch," he spat, still backing away from her.
"Please, let me go. I'll heal it, I promise. I came to speak to your leader if you have one. My friends and I need help, your help. Please," she added quietly, a sudden wave of sadness overcoming her.
"Nightstriker, don't you dare leave her. She's the one the prophecy speaks of. We are to be lead into battle by the child of light and everything good. She is that child; do you not recognize that blade? It is the blade of Mithros. She is the chosen one-"
"Don't be stupid-What are you doing?" he cried as the female spidren who had spoken in the girl's defense released her.
Kalasin put the sword away, and flashed a small smile at the immortal who helped her. She had black, stringy hair with bright green eyes. "Will you help me then?" the Princess asked softly, her eyes pleeding for them to say yes.
A scream, then two, then many, erupted at camp as the sound of fleeing centaurs rose in the air. Blackfire quickly grabbed his bow and collection of arrows. Slipping one into place, he galloped out of the tent towards the far end of the grounds. What he saw shocked him, and made his skin crawl. Kalasin was leading spidren into the camp. 'Has she gone mad?' he thought wildly, aiming at a blonde-haired creature that stood next to the girl.
Kalasin gasped, "no!" she cried as the centaur loosed the arrow. Pulling out her sword, she knocked the arrow aside, and stood in front of the spidren, Nightstriker. "Blackfire, stop! They are friends, our friends."
Blackfire gazed at her uneasily as he pawed at the earth. "You have gone mad! You can't trust them, just look at them!"
"Blackfire, hold your tongue," she commanded, her blue eyes blazing. "Get your followers and meet us by the stream," her voice suddenly went soft and kind, "I have an idea as to how to defeat that mage."
Blackfire hesitated a moment before bowing his head. He frowned as they turned around to head to the stream where he had first encountered the girl. "I hope you know what you are doing," he muttered before going to gather the others.
Jonathan gazed out the window, staring at the starless sky. "I couldn't sleep," he mumbled to his wife when she walked up beside him, a thick blanket wrapped around herself. "Something's wrong, I can sense it and feel it in my bone-Thayet!" he cried as a hurrok smashed through the window. The creature's claws slashed at Thayet as it stumbled onto the floor. Jonathan grabbed his wife's hand, and began to lead her down the hall when she was suddenly jerked from his grip.
Thayet screamed out in pain when the hurrok's claws bit deep into her leg, pulling her onto the ground. "Jonathan! Get the kids!"
Jonathan's fists clenched and unclenched as he watched, terror-stricken, as his wife tried to defend herself against the immortal. The immortal's teeth latched onto one of her hands while its claws continued to find flesh to tear up. Walking towards the immortal and his wife, Jonathan held out his hand, which was now glowing a royal blue.
Thayet gasped when a beam of blue-colored light slammed into the immortal, and a hole burst through its chest. She felt herself being lifted up from beneath the creature, and she gazed into Jonathan's deep blue eyes. "Jon, we have to get everyone out of here, it's not safe," she whispered, tears gathering in her eyes.
Jonathan nodded, scooped her up into his arms, and took off down the hall shouting for everyone to get out.
Blackfire led a group of centaurs to the stream, and as he was told, Kalasin was waiting for him there, the spidren hanging in the trees. His eyes narrowed at the immortals before glancing at the girl, "so what is your plan?"
Kalasin sighed as she walked closer to the centaur. She smiled, and held her hand out to him, "do you not trust me? They will not hurt you."
He bit down on his lip, his eyes darting from her hand to the spidren, who appeared to be bored, and back again to the girl's hand. Slowly, he slipped his own hand into hers.
Kalasin smiled as she gave it a squeeze before leading him closer to the spidren. "I have talked with Nightstriker and his kin. They are going to help us, but the first step into helping us is to find out the enemy's plans. Therefore, I'm sending a few of the spidren as spies. They will hang in the trees above the enemy's camping grounds, and they will be able to not only find out possible plans of the enemy, but they can also pick off the guards nearby."
Blackfire nodded, his mind processing the information. "So why do you need us if you have them?" he asked bitterly.
"I need you for battle. You're great warriors, and I will do my best to keep you all alive. The spidren can't truly battle. They can slow the enemy down for us, but that's about it. They can also perhaps keep the flying immortals occupied. I was hoping to have stormwings-"
"Those disgusting creatures! Why on earth would you want them?" a spidren shrieked.
"They aren't all bad, and they are on our side. They have battle-magic which we do not. Their wings bite flesh easily, so if they were to be severely injured, they could take out some of the enemy's army as they go to their grave. I haven't seen a stormwing around here since the last great battle though," she said quietly, her eyes darkening.
Blackfire rested a hand upon her shoulder, causing her to look up into his dark eyes. She smiled a little, setting her hand on top of his. "We will come out on top, it's just that our numbers cause us to use strategy which may take a while to carry out."
"Do not forget about your men in cages, and the men we have at the camp."
Kalasin's heart skipped a beat as she remembered that Lerant was still alive. "Lerant," she whispered as her grip on Blackfire's hand tightened.
"Kalasin," he muttered, slipping his hand from hers when she realized what she was doing.
"Sorry," she mumbled, looking away. "Nightstriker, choose who you want to send out as spies and do so now. Have them choose a post nearest the most people, and stay out of sight."
Nightstriker rolled his eye as he turned to look at who was with him. He watched the girl leave with the centaurs out of the corner of his eye. "The rest of you who are not on spy duty, see if you cannot find a stormwing. They have to be around here, somewhere," he said quietly.
Roald had awoken to screams, and the scent of wood burning. Stumbling out of bed, he pulled on some clothes, and grabbed his sword. Running out of his room, he nearly crashed into a servant whose face had been slashed by something sharp. The Prince's eyes widened as the servant shoved him aside, and continued to run down the hall. 'What is going on?' he thought wildly.
As he made his way down the hall, he realized that the castle, his home, was under attack. Hearing someone scream nearby, Roald pushed against a wall to his left and was let into an empty space. Placing the wall back to its proper position, Roald felt around until he found a chain attached to the floor. Pulling on it, he opened up a passageway, the smell of musty air reaching his nose.
Calling his powers to form a ball of light in his hand, the Prince made his way through the passage, and soon found himself outside the castle walls. Battle was going on here as well. Groups of riders were attempting to hold back an army of immortals and humans alike. Numair was trying to battle a creature of sorts; it was every color at once, and never stopped changing shape.
Animals, Daine's work, were helping in the battle as well. 'Figures she'd not leave us alone, even if she can't be here herself,' he thought as he continued to scan the area. High up on the castle wall his father stood with the Dominion Jewel. Raoul was there, helping to protect him as well as Buri who had been shot in the leg by an arrow. Roald clenched his fist as he aimed at a wolf-like immortal. Blue fire enveloped the creature, the stench of burning fur and flesh rising in the air. He crinkled his nose as he ran to help some others keep as much of the army back as possible. 'We're going to die here,' he thought grimly as he came to stand beside a small, pale Queen's Rider.
When Kalasin got back to camp with Blackfire and the others, she suddenly stopped dead in her tracks, her blue eyes widening. Blackfire glanced where she was staring, a small smile crossing his lips. "Go on," he whispered to her before walking off.
Kalasin stood frozen in place for what seemed hours though it was only a moment. Suddenly she had all the energy in the world, and with that energy, she ran towards Lerant who was sitting next to one of the other soldiers at the fire.
Lerant gasped when he suddenly fell backwards onto the ground, another person's body clinging to his own. He blinked multiple times as he stared into watery blue eyes. 'It can't be. My mind is playing tricks on me,' he thought shakily.
"Oh Lerant, you're awake!" the girl cried, tightening her arms around his neck in a hug.
"K-Kalasin?" he asked, clearly in shock.
Kalasin nodded, ignoring the chuckles that came from the men nearby. Planting a quick kiss on his lips, she crawled off of him and offered him her hand to help him up. "When I got to you, you were so close to death. Raoul told me he didn't think you made it," she said, her voice suddenly very quiet.
Kalasin noticed his eyes darken. She sighed, and looked away from him. "I was told that men are still alive, only they're in cages. I'm going to get them out, Lerant, and I'm-"
"No, Kalasin, I forbid you. You can't possibly survive against that mage and his army! The Lioness didn't even stand a chance!"
Kalasin slipped her fingers over his mouth, "I'm doing what I must. I'm not asking you or anyone of you," she said with a glance at the others nearby, "to join me. I'm just telling you what I'm planning. You don't understand, Lerant. It's my duty, I have to do this whether I want to or not, but I'm sure I want to," she said, surprising even herself by that last remark.
Lerant paled as he took her hand in his, and gripped it tightly. Taking a deep breath, he forced a smile, "if that's your decision, I'll stand by you until the end, my Princess." He smirked when Kalasin glared at him, a blush crawling across her cheeks. "I love you," he whispered before walking off to talk to the others.
The moving of vines and trees caught the Prince's eye. The vegetation seemed to be engulfing the enemy, though many remained untouched. Stealing a glance at his father, Roald saw that beads of sweat rolled down his face. The Dominion Jewel glowed in his hands, and the earth trembled slightly. Turning his attention back to the battle, Roald grasped his sword with both hands and ran an attacker through his middle. Not bothering to flick the blood off of his blade, Roald charged the enemy.
Kalasin crouched down in the brush. It was nearly sunset; the spidren spies had informed her that at sunset the watch changed. Wincing as her leg began to cramp, her ears picked up the mumbling of voices. Withdrawing a knife she was given to carry rather than the bulky sword, she waited in silence. Minutes that seemed like hours passed by before Kalasin was sure the new watchman was alone. Inching closer to the edge of the forest, the girl slowly stood up behind the unsuspecting man.
Slipping her hand around his head to cover his mouth, Kalasin pressed the knife's blade against his neck. Pressing deeply, she slid the knife across flesh creating a deep slit that bled heavily onto her hand and weapon. Grimacing, she pulled the suddenly limp body into the brush, making sure that it was well hidden from sight.
All night long, Kalasin picked off various watchmen. No one seemed to notice the men missing when the sky darkened, turning into a mass of black. Swiftly and quietly, the Princess crept towards the campsite of the enemy, crouching behind tents to remain unseen. Here and there groups of rough-looking men sat guffawing at jokes or telling war stories.
The soft clang of metal on metal caused the girl to peer far to her left where her blue eyes rested upon men cramped into a metal cage. Her heart clenched as she briefly looked them over. Each of the men was covered in dirt and dried blood. Their complexion was pale, and they appeared to not have eaten for a few days.
Darting around the back of a few tents, she stopped dead in her tracks when she came within range of the cage. If she were to attempt a rescue, she'd be in the open, and vulnerable to any attack. Not one of her soldiers in the cage seemed to know of her presence until she was within an arm's reach of the metal bars. Sending a prayer to the gods, she held a finger up to her lips to signal the men to be silent as she stole a glance at the barbarians crouched around the fire. It was as if she were invisible as she slowly moved to the locked door, continuously looking over her shoulder to make sure she remained undetected.
Pressing against the door, she whispered to the awaiting soldiers to run into the woods as soon as she got the door open. Waiting until they nodded in a silent agreement, Kalasin grasped the lock in one hand, her knife in the other. Sticking the point of the knife into the lock, she worked on it, biting her lip as a protection spell sent stinging jolt through her body.
Cursing under her breath, Kalasin mumbled a counter spell, and worked the knife until she heard a click. In attempt to pull the lock off of the door, the girl caused a highly audible clatter of metal against metal. Silence, and then yelling erupted from the enemy soldiers around the campfire. Pulling the door open, Kalasin screamed at her men to run as the Scanrans approached, weapons in hand.
Feeling panic enveloping her, Kalasin grasped the knife by the blade and flung it at an oncoming Scanran. The knife inserted itself into the base of his neck causing him to trip over his own feet, crashing into the muddy earth.
Roald stepped back as a young boy, a Queen's Rider no doubt, fell breathless in front of him. Pushing back that nauseating feeling in the pit of his stomach, Roald continued to advance on the enemy, people and immortals alike. Men were yelling back and forth on the wall where his father was positioned, informing the Prince that something was going wrong.
Numair was breathing heavily as black sparkling fire hit the ever-changing figure in front of him. He had seen something quite similar years ago when Daine and he were pulled into the gods' realm. Every attack he sent at the thing became absorbed or deflected. He was draining himself of power and energy, and no good was coming from it. The only help he was giving was distracting the creature as well as slowing down its advance.
Running into the safety of the woods with the rest of the Tortallian soldiers, Kalasin nearly tripped as arrows whistled past her. Landing with a thud on her bottom, she slid to the edge of the river when the ground dropped suddenly. Groaning a bit, she urged her men on, muttering for them to follow the river.
Onward they ran, their breathing ragged from exhaustion. Once light began to peak through gaps in-between trees, they came to a stop at a clearing. Urging the men on a bit more, Kalasin stopped when a black-haired centaur stepped in front of her. The escaped soldiers fell to their hands and knees, some vomiting while others rolled onto their backs groaning.
"Were you followed?" Blackfire asked worriedly.
Shaking her head, Kalasin waited a moment to catch her breath before spitting out a quick "no".
"This is it then? There were no more?"
"No more," she muttered, standing up a bit straighter now that her lungs no longer ached. "I need to heal them, Blackfire, and they need food and water. Send some of the healed men to fetch these things please," she commanded, pulling up each of the soldiers off of the ground. "Come on, on your feet men, just so we can get you into this tent here," she said, her voice ringing in the air.
The Prince gaped at the wall as a woman let out a blood-curdling scream. Lord Raoul was crouched beside a severely wounded Buri as arrows flew into the air. One went straight through Raoul's neck as another entered Buri's skull. Feeling himself begin to go numb, Roald looked to where Numair was standing.
The mage was shaking, and his magic blazes were fading before they reached the creature. Collapsing onto the ground, Numair felt his life source slipping away as he willed himself to hold the creature back.
Stealing a glance at his father, Roald felt his heart plummet. His father was holding a cracked Dominion Jewel, and a spear was protruding from his leg while a large red stain on his chest told the Prince that he had been stabbed in the chest and was as good as dead.
AN: Shocked to see I'm alive? Thank you everyone for the reviews! They made me squeal like a psycho-girly-girl. As for the story, I hope you all like how it ends. I'm doing my best, and I know, this was a LONG chapter. Next chapter may be just as long. I will be creating a sequel to this story.
Sadly, I just figured out what a mary-sue was oo and so this is a response to a review I received a long time ago, however, so everyone knows: I tried not to make Kalasin my own character, but since Pierce didn't focus on her too much, I had to be creative. I've tried keeping the born nobility-attitude, but I tried adding more to her character to fit my story and to create a more interesting read.
As for killing off characters :) Well, tragedy happens. Much love everyone!