Chapter 9
Rubbing her nose from a sneeze, Griselda watched as Thrasik slid up a dense tree near the edge of the village wall. He was fairly upset over not being allowed to walk up to the entry gate with her. He’d get over it. After all, he was about to have the best view to be included but not present.
She’d discussed a plan with him to try and throw the guards off her case.
Slight nerves tickled her belly and felt like a rock lodged itself in her throat as she bent down toward the base of a different tree.
Rubbing both her hands in the moist soil beneath its roots, she began to scuff her clothes and body.
Though she already looked a mess, it really needed to be played up for the guards.
Taking a deep breath, she pinched the bridge of her nose and tried to force another sneeze. Anything to make her eyes water a smidge. They loved seeing people suffer, so maybe this would be enough for them to let her in without any super prying questions.
Or maybe this would completely backfire and they’d just be assholes instead.
Griselda looked up toward Thrasik. His obsidian scales coiled around a thick limb, almost blending in fully. His piercing yellow eyes stared back. A heavy emotion weighed between their distance.
Would he stay there and watch if something actually happened to her?
Shaking her head, she took another breath and straightened her back before hunching slightly and enveloping in the full act of someone who had been chased through the woods. No time like the present. Clutching the small fruit in a fabric wrapping to her chest, she hobbled past the tree line.
A small pebbled path stretched parallel to the trees.
On the other side, long yellow grass swayed in the evening breeze.
The village appeared to her right. The walls were nothing more than sharpened logs, stacked vertical to each other and joined by smeared mud.
Standing at the entrance, which was only wide enough for a single caravan, were two bored guards.
Both wore the same disgusting rusted armor as the others that get stationed to watch who enters and leaves.
One stood on the left, leaning against the wall with his head slanted to the side as though he fell asleep.
The other squatted toward the ground and was drawing shapes in the dirt with his dagger.
Frantic shapes. Shapes that actually seemed to be keeping some poor bug running within the grooves.
Neither seemed aware of her yet. Perfect. That gave her plenty of time to work herself up.
Griselda started breathing fast and heavy. Her chest heaved. Her adrenaline spiked. She whined, teeth bared to almost force a cry but kept it just within reason. Further leaning into the act, she hustled her way toward the guards.
“Please! Please, you have to let me in,” her voice cracked while her eyes went wild with a facade of fear.
The squatting guard stood immediately upon her approach of held his dagger at the ready. A creak of metal drew of their attentions as the guard leaning against the wall stood up straight. He was much taller than he seemed and towered over both of them.
“What are you doing coming here in such a shitty state?” He crossed his arms and moved directly in the path of the entrance. “Do you understand the High Priest is to be here tomorrow?”
“I’m sorry, I—”
“Am no better than a groveling shrine maiden. Get on your knees and beg like one.” The guard flicked a finger toward the ground. “I might just consider letting you in if you look pretty enough doing so.”
The other guard twirled the dagger point into his index finger and tilted his head. He didn’t seem as experienced as this tall fucker.
Griselda bit the inside of her cheek. A singe ticked the side of her jaw along her scar.
Just her luck to end up with one of the sleazy guards being the head of watch this time.
She glanced between the two of them and tried to catch eyes of someone inside the village.
A few people bustled around, but no one was close enough to hear the guard’s demand and step in to help.
“I’m not asking twice. On the ground. Now!” Rust puffed off the armor in a small cloud as the guard moved to grab her shoulder.
A loud bellowing hiss erupted through the area.
Had she not know Thrasik was mere feet away, she honestly would have died on the spot thinking a dragon had appeared.
Panicked and forgetting about Griselda, the guards clutched weapons close to their chests as their heads frantically twisted around.
Taking this as her chance, she shoved past them and ran into the middle clearing of the village. She couldn’t stand any of the guards assigned by the High Priest. Pussies, the lot of them.
In the middle of the village sat a massive stone altar.
Pillars rose on each side with twirls of grass and painted flowers decorating down their length.
Differing dishes sprawled along the flat of the altar.
Some baked goods, a few pieces of jerky, lingering crumbs of prior meals, and wrapped goodies only meant for the High Priest.
Gingerly placing the wrapped fruit onto the stone, a mousy voice chimed from beside her.
“Grissy! You’re in big trouble!”
Griselda looked at the source. Confusion splayed across her brow. A smaller woman, dressed in a vivid green garb, had her hand held to her mouth, blocking the view of her lips from others. Her voice was vaguely familiar.
“Tayna? I thought you were—”
“Being prepped for the High Priest. Yes, yes, I know. I needed some goddamn air, so I snuck out!” Tayna’s face was half-hidden beneath a mask made of bone and seeds, dark curls billowed around in a pseudo halo.
Her brown eyes stared through the holes, swathed in a purple powder.
“But, that doesn’t matter. You need to go see the chieftain! Now!”
Before Griselda could protest, tiny but forceful hands shoved her toward the back of the village where the chieftain’s hut sat. It wasn’t much bigger than the other huts, but definitely had more care put into it.
As soon as she was there, the small woman was gone. Griselda didn’t often get close to the other villagers, but Tayna had this air about her that broke the shell of anyone she was determined to talk to.
Hushed voices sounded from behind the heavy leather curtain leading to the chieftain’s hut. Taking a moment to crack her neck, Griselda smoothed her hands over her face.
Today was about to take an interesting turn.
Bracing her hand over the leather, she cleared her voice upon entering.
Her footsteps fell faint as they moved from pebbled earth to a woven grass rug.
The two voices continued to argue in quiet tones, not noticing her entrance.
A round table sat in the middle of the hut.
Furs and weapons were tacked to the walls.
Above the table swayed a chandelier covered in burning candles.
Two men sat opposite sides of each other with a large parchment between them.
“Hi Oglen, I’m back—,” Before she could get the rest of her words out, one of the men rushed to his feet and scrunched the parchment between his gauntlet.
“Get. Out.” A stern hand pointed toward the entryway. His armor was much nicer than the other guards. He must have been a high ranking captain, but no where near on par with the previous one from the cave.
“Can I get a single damn word out without everyone interrupting me?” Anger started to scratch behind her forced smile.
An older man stood from the other side of the table. He sighed, scratching a scruffy beard while looking her over.
“Nice of you to finally join us again, Griselda. Where the hell have you been?” His voice struck her like a disappointed father.
Oglen always had that ability. After all, he practically raised her. A scowl carved along the shadows of his sun-tanned face.
She folded her arms, grabbing her elbows and tilted her head, averting her eyes from his pinning stare. Every particle of mud immediately felt itchy and heavy while he scanned over her body again in the low light.
“I was attacked,” she responded meekly.
“By what?” The guard crossed his arms mid scoff.
“Some beast out in the woods. I’d found a decaying tree that had a fruit large enough to feed some people for a while.
But… it got darker than I meant and something had been following me.
I didn’t get a good look at it, but it was similar to a boar and about this big.
” Griselda released her arms and motioned a few feet across.
Thrasik suggested the creature since it could be believable.
“Was it contaminated?” Shoving a hand over the table to stop Oglen from speaking, the guard took a step toward her.
“I mean, it didn’t look natural if that’s what you mean.”
“Was it oozing?”
“Okay, is this about to be ‘let’s ask Griselda fifty questions about something she saw in the dark’, or are you going to accept that I ran for my fucking life and now I’m back?” Her plan of a quick entrance to talk with Oglen by himself was steadily becoming more hassle than expected.
The guard slammed his fist on the table, causing both of them to jump as he threw the parchment aside.
“Oglen, this is the exact fucking reason we need to deploy more guards to this village. You are in the direct path of the disease spreading from the East.” He shoved his hands together in a prayer pose and raised his helmed face to the ceiling, voice booming between them.
“Your position is being overruled. I hereby decree, as of this moment, anyone who leaves that gate to be escorted by a guard. Anyone who arrives without an escort or prior notice will be held for questioning.”
A heavy silence crept like slithering snakes amongst them as the guard lowered his head. Oglen’s grizzled features scowled so hard his brows almost fully covered his eyes.
“And per the Justice of the Righteous, our High Priest, anyone deemed… disturbed,” he snarled the word. “Will be disposed of properly.”