Got this ready to post last night and then proceeded to forgot. oops!
review replies:
LPK9: Every chapter I post I have several people clamoring for Lucius' death, which is totally fair.
Lenticel: Hehehe, emotional pain successful. Our boy Stephen is getting stronger! It took me a solid minute to remember that you were talking about Orion... that book is notably absent from my brain, especially considering I recently published it on amazon. Did I mention that? I can't remember if I mentioned that.
Stephen was sleeping.
Cafos rubbed at the vein-like burns on his arm, shooting another glance at his companion to see if he had woken yet. He hadn't. Cafos was tempted to rouse him, but he stubbornly reminded himself that Stephen would be more use if he wasn't falling over from exhaustion. So, he waited.
After their escape, the boys had gone as far into the woods as they could manage before all but passing out on the forest floor. Cafos had woken first, about an hour ago, and was itching to go after Alexis as soon as possible. She was probably more than halfway to her father's estate by now, and she'd have long arrived by the time they made it there. Cafos was fairly certain that her father wouldn't hurt her, but she would still be miserable in such a place. Even during their short visit, with her friends beside her, Cafos could tell that she had been very uncomfortable.
He pacified himself by reasoning that an hour's difference, or even two, wouldn't make such a difference in the grand scheme of things. At least she would be safe, fed, and sheltered while they came to get her. Miserable was better than dead.
What of Lucius? Cafos cast a glance in the direction of the castle, the imposing towers only just visible through the trees. He wasn't sure if he'd been hit by that… thunder, or whatever Stephen had done. Had Lucius known about that ability? He'd never acknowledged it before. And Stephen had seemed just as shocked as Cafos was when he'd dumped them both in the woods the night before. So, he'd just… manifested a new magical ability out of sheer panic. Cafos shivered, quietly glad that the two of them were on the same side.
Lucius would probably search the area… then, if he didn't find them here, he had to know they would be going after Alexis. They would have to stay ahead of him. Between their lack of experience and Cafos' injured wing, they probably wouldn't be able to beat him in a fight.
Stephen shifted, and Cafos perked up, looking over as his companion blinked and lifted his head.
"Morning." Cafos greeted him. Stephen made a noise and pushed himself up on his arms.
"Wh' time…?"
"About an hour after dawn." Cafos stood up and stretched. "We need to go."
"Right…" Stephen staggered upright. "Which, uh…"
"That way," Cafos pointed in the opposite direction of the castle. "Back to Blackhaven. Alexis is probably there by now."
"Right." Stephen leaned back until his back popped, and he winced as he shifted his weight. Cafos rested a hand on the hilt of his sword as he waited for him to get his bearings. Stephen looked exhausted still, and Cafos could sympathize, but they didn't have time to stand around.
"Think the captain made it out alright?" Stephen murmured.
"Captain? Oh." Cafos was abruptly reminded of Captain Lysander. "…hard to say. Did you hit him with the… thunder?"
"I don't know." Stephen shook his head. "And if I didn't, Lucius may still have…" he trailed off, and Cafos nodded quietly.
"We can hope that he made it out with the Lady." Cafos felt a pang of regret, of urgency, to go back and find out if the people who helped them were safe. That would be far too foolish to attempt, he decided a moment later. Not when they were the reason that those people were in danger in the first place.
"Let's go." Stephen started walking, and Cafos fell into step behind him. He ran his thumb over the pommel of his sword, silently thanking Notch that he'd managed to hold onto it in the chaos. Even if it didn't give him all that much of an advantage in a fight, he felt much better with his weapon at his side.
The two of them kept a steady pace through the woods alongside the road, keeping just far enough away to be out of sight of anyone traveling there. Neither of them said much, Cafos lost in his own thoughts. The further they walked, the more anxious he felt, wondering if they were walking into a trap.
"Stephen," he said at last. "Maybe it would be wiser for us to come back for Alexis later." Stephen stopped, shooting him a questioning look, and Cafos pressed on. "Lucius will expect us to go after her. He could be laying in wait for us there. But he doesn't know that we know where the Aether portal is, so we could travel there first and he would lose our trail." Stephen frowned, holding Cafos' gaze as he considered his words.
"Maybe," He said at last, "but I'm not leaving her." Cafos nodded, feeling oddly relieved.
"Alright. I… I don't want to either."
"Good. C'mon." Stephen started walking again, waving him forward. "If we hurry, maybe we can make it to Blackhaven by tomorrow."
They reached the river that Alexis had fallen into by midafternoon that day. Having been walking without food or rest for hours, the two of them agreed to take a small break to quench their thirst. They picked out a spot far enough away from the bridge to be out of sight of any travelers and stopped on the bank to rest.
Stephen settled down on top of a warm rock, shoulders slumping as he rubbed his aching legs. He was sure he would feel much worse if not for his upbringing- long, grueling walks had been a part of his training for as long as he could remember. He'd never gone on for so many days in a row, though. It was very impressive that Alexis had been able to keep up with him so well.
Stephen's gaze shifted over to Cafos, who was staring at the rippling water where he sat just on the edge of the river. He seemed more worn out than Stephen was. Likely because his stamina was in his wings, not his legs.
"Stephen." Cafos said suddenly, and Stephen jumped, wondering if he'd seen him staring. He leaned back as the valkyrie turned to look at him.
"Yeah?"
"I…" Cafos turned around all the way, not quite meeting his eyes. "…wanted to say sorry." Stephen blinked.
"For…?"
"For…" Cafos shrugged, gesturing aimlessly. "…the last fifteen years, I guess." Stephen's lips parted in understanding, and Cafos went on. "I was childish, and jealous, and blamed you for… a lot that you didn't deserve." His voice lowered slightly as he spoke. "So, I'm sorry."
Stephen shut his mouth, swallowed. "I forgive you." Cafos' gaze flashed to his, stunned, but he just nodded.
"Thank you."
In the woods behind them, Stephen heard a crunch.
He and Cafos fell silent, both spinning to look for the source of the noise. As silently as he could, Stephen rose to his feet, scanning the immediate area for any sign of danger, and Cafos joined him at his side.
A figure dressed head-to-toe in blue robes appeared suddenly from within the trees. "Hello!"
Both boys jumped at the fright, Cafos' hand flying instinctively to his sword, but he released it quickly enough when he processed that the newcomer wasn't armed. Stephen took a breath, then lifted his hand in greeting. "Hello."
"It's not often that we see valkyries in these woods." The figure said cheerfully. Her face was mostly covered by a red scarf, leaving only her brown eyes visible. "Certainly not just one, and with a human at that! May I invite you to spend the night in our camp?" Stephen and Cafos exchanged a glance. The sudden, warm invitation was… a bit suspicious, to say the least.
"I'm afraid we can't," Cafos took it upon himself to reply. "We're search- going to see a friend of ours."
"Oh? Does she travel in these woods as well?"
"She lives this way," Cafos answered vaguely.
The girl pressed a hand to her chin, nodding thoughtfully. "What is her name?" Stephen and Cafos exchanged another, confused glance, before deciding that the stranger could do no harm with this information.
"It's Alexis." Stephen answered her. The girl exclaimed softly, clapping her hands.
"Wonderful! She's with us. Come on!" With that, she scampered off without waiting for a reply. Stephen's heart leapt, but Cafos seized him by the arm before he could move.
"Could be a trap," he warned.
"I know." Stephen's gaze didn't leave the girl, getting further and further away. "But," he finally looked at Cafos. "If they do have her, we'd be wasting our time going to Blackhaven. I think we can get out of a trap." Cafos pursed his lips, but nodded.
"Alright."
"My name's Evie," The girl introduced herself as they caught up. She had a basket half-full of blueberries resting at her hip. "And you gents?"
"My name is Stephen, and this is Cafos." Stephen gestured to each of them in turn. "You, uh, said Alexis was with you. How did that happen?"
"My ma an' I ran across her fleeing through the woods last night," Evie told them. "She had a bit of a fall, banged herself up a bit, but she'll be alright." The anxiety in Stephen's chest loosened, allowing him to breathe easily.
"That's wonderful to hear." He glanced at Cafos for his reaction, finding the valkyrie watching their guide with a slightly pinched face. It seemed he was still wary of her.
Not long after, the trees thinned out and revealed the campsite before them. There were tents made of deep, navy fabric staked in a half-circle, with llamas carrying blankets and bulging saddlebags tied to pegs in the dirt. About a dozen more of the blue-robed figures were milling around camp, performing tasks that Stephen and Cafos had seen a thousand times in the camp in which they were raised. At the very center of the camp was a campfire ringed with stones, and beside it was a red-haired girl fiddling with the bandages on her leg.
"Alexis!" Stephen shouted, and her head popped up in shock.
"Stephen!" Alexis lurched upright, only to yelp and wobble dangerously as she put weight on her bandaged leg. One of the people in the camp rushed to her side, steadying her and scolding gently as she was set back on the ground. Not wanting to give her any more reason to hurt herself, Stephen broke away from his guide, hurrying forward to greet her.
"How did you escape?" Were the first words out of his mouth as he sank down in front of her.
"They shoved me in a carriage," Alexis said, rubbing absently at her bandaged knee. Her trouser leg had been cut off just above the knee, presumably to give whoever treated her access to the injury. "So I waited for the guard to be distracted and jumped out. Then I ran, but it was dark, and I… fell." She shrugged. "Worth it. How did you escape?" She turned the question back on them.
"Stephen struck everyone with lightning." Cafos lowered himself down to sit beside them. "Then he teleported away with me. We were heading back to Blackhaven when we ran into Evie." He nodded to their guide, who was heading towards one of the tents with her basket.
"He huh?" Alexis shot an incredulous look at her friend. "Since when can you-?"
"Since last night, apparently." Stephen cut her off. "I didn't- I've… never done it before."
Alexis rubbed at her chin, peering at him thoughtfully. "Another inherited power from your father, I suppose." Stephen just shrugged helplessly.
Cafos leaned in a bit closer, wary of the people milling around the camp. "These people helped you. Do you trust them?"
"Well enough." Alexis nodded. "I didn't tell them much, just that I'd been kidnapped and I was running, but they hid me in a tent all night just in case someone came looking. And-" she patted her leg. "-they patched up my knee."
"Can you walk?" Stephen frowned. They could most likely carry her, but it would slow them down, and time was short when Lucius was hunting them.
Alexis chewed her lip. "…I can, not well." Cafos cast a glance at Stephen, and she went on. "Well, I could… stay with these people, maybe." She gestured around at the camp. "You have to get to Notch, and they seem nice enough."
"No." Stephen shut her down. "I'm not leaving you somewhere that Lucius can get at you. Or your father, for that matter."
"Well, what other choice do we have?" Alexis protested. "Of course I don't want to split up, but if I can't walk-"
"We can carry you." Cafos interrupted. "It won't be much trouble."
"It will be if you have to fight and I'm dead weight."
"We can handle ourselves." Stephen told her.
"I don't want to be a burden!"
"Beggin' your pardons, sorry to interrupt." Evie popped up abruptly next to them, making Stephen jump. "You're needin' to travel?" A few exchanged glances, then Cafos nodded.
"We're trying to get to the Basalt Tower, east of here."
"Oh, well then, you're in luck!" Evie beamed under her scarf. "We happen to be heading that way."