Chapter 6 Ariana
ARIANA
The Lysian looked like he was part man, part yellow bear.
His shaggy blond hair was unkempt, making him appear wild.
His arms and chest were enormous, in a terrifyingly brutal way.
A scar carved the side of his face, spanning from eyebrow to jaw.
Chilling ice-blue eyes pinned me. He looked everything that the Bavadrin stories had warned about Lysians.
As soon as the beast of a Lysian stood on the threshold, I halted in my tracks, all my focus going to him. Like a deer who had caught the sight of a hunter, I froze, waiting for him to make his move before I acted in response.
He must have seen the alarm written all over my face, for when he spoke, his voice was gentle, not harsh as I would have expected coming from someone who looked like him.
“I’m not here to harm you,” he assured, sheathing his blade, and opening his hands out before him as if to show he was unarmed. “But it will be easier if you come with me willingly.”
Armed or not, he was a threat. Every muscle in his gigantic body was primed to kill, and that was not even considering his teeth or claws. Someone like him needed no weapons to be deadly.
I did not move or make a sound in response.
“I have come here to escort you to the Lysian territory under orders to protect you. No harm will come to you.” There was an almost effortless kindness to him whenever he spoke, which was a stark contrast to the way he looked.
When I still did not move, Edda acted. She came over and hugged me, wrapping her thin yet powerful arms around me.
“Be brave. You will return to me,” she whispered before releasing me with a small push towards the massive Lysian who was surprisingly patient as he waited. I expected him to drag me away for taking too long, yet he did no such thing.
I did not reply to Edda as I took a small step towards the stranger. As I did, he moved into the hall, keeping the space between us from closing too quickly.
My ears felt as if they were filled with cotton. All sounds were muffled except for the pulsing of my heart, sending blood rushing to my head. My legs wobbled unsteadily beneath me. Tension tightened my throat.
I had no control over the events going on around me, the danger the Bavadrins had been placed in.
If only I had acted sooner against Fraser or, at the very least, put up more of a challenge when he sentenced the Lysian to the lashings.
Perhaps then the outcome would have been more favorable.
Instead of having my world and everything I’ve ever known crumbling.
I tried to focus on my steps to keep upright. My head spun, feeling lightheaded.
Without saying goodbye, I left Edda in my room to follow the stranger.
The Lysian was careful not to touch me while leading me through the building.
I was surprised by how he appeared to know his way around, taking care to avoid areas that were likely to be crowded or well-traveled.
It was not until he led me to a side exit of the building that I finally found my voice and spoke to him.
“The people here, my people, what will happen to them?” I asked.
He paused, quickly scanning the surroundings before turning his full attention to me. “We will spare them, and if Lysians are attacked, then we were told to use nonlethal means, if possible.” He turned, considering the environment. “We need to keep moving.”
The Lysian told me what I wanted to hear. Was he just trying to subdue me, or was it the truth? There was no way for me to know.
He continued leading me over the terrain a short distance before we arrived at a huge dark gray horse. A long mane flowed down its side while its ears flickered towards the sound of our approach.
“From here we ride,” the Lysian said, holding out his hand to help me up. A hand that could grow claws and slice through flesh with too much ease.
A glance around let me know that there was no other horse. I was left with no choice but to consent.
Accepting his hand, I allowed him to help me onto the animal before he took a seat behind me.
Goosebumps covered my flesh at the proximity.
Never had I been so close to a Lysian before.
I could literally feel the warmth coming off his skin as his arms moved around me to grab hold of the reins.
Though he touched me as little as possible, it was an impossible situation.
There was no way to share a horse without contact.
The trip to their Lysian territory was nearly a day’s journey. That was if one stopped for rest along the way. It quickly became apparent that Lysians did not have the same rest requirement as the Bavadrins. And their horses were insanely faster.
The sun rose and crossed the sky. We rode in silence, not stopping until we passed into their territory. I did not know how the horse didn’t die of exhaustion. Even their animals were superior to our own.
The Lysian relax just a fraction behind me when we passed onto their land. Once in the thick of their forest, he finally allowed us to stop and rest just as the sun began setting.
I hadn’t realized how cold it had gotten. Without the warmth of the stranger behind me, the icy air surrounded me in a chilly embrace before sinking into my bones.
My muscles groaned and shivered uselessly while the Lysian built a fire before he handed me a blanket. For his monstrous size, he continued to surprise me with his gentleness. It was not something we’d been told his kind had been known for.
Eventually, the Lysian settled down before the fire, but not before providing me with some water and bread.
I shamelessly devoured every scrap of food and downed the water in record time.
Wincing, I shifted into a more comfortable position.
My entire body sore from riding for so long.
Muscles and bones protested every movement as I settled down with the blanket wrapped snugly around me.
Several heartbeats went by while the Lysian and I simply stared at one another without saying a word.
It was unnerving, having something like him silently watching me.
His icy eyes felt cold even in the darkness.
The way the firelight danced across the features of his face and the scar that ran from eyebrow to jaw had me tensing.
Finally, when I thought he might try to attack me, he lay back and closed his eyes.
Relieved that his attention was no longer on me, I found the courage to finally speak.
“Why—why are you being kind to me?” I asked, for he was nothing like what I expected. He didn’t need to feed me or give me water, didn’t need to provide me with a blanket. I would have survived without those comforts, at least for a while.
His blue eyes slid open, and he angled his head my way.
“Two reasons: First, my King asked it of me. Second, and most importantly, you helped my friend when he needed it. You were gentle and kind to a Lysian when you needn’t be.
We are returning the favor. As long as you do not give me trouble, I do not need to be anything other than that. ”
I shifted to better view him. “Your King was there? In the Bavadrin lands? In that battle?”
A sloppy smile softened the Lysian’s features until his teeth glinted in the firelight. And suddenly, the smile looked more intimidating than comforting. “You will speak to my King soon enough.” He responded to my eagerness instead of my questions.
“And Erik is your friend?”
“Indeed, he is.” The Lysian closed his eyes, a smile still splayed on his face.
For some reason, I felt better knowing that he was friends with Erik. It was senseless, for Erik brought destruction to my lands. Yet, the conjuror had spared Landin’s life. That act alone meant a great deal, despite what it cost me.
I glanced at the unfamiliar darkness. Never had I been in a territory not belonging to Bavadrins.
Bare tree limbs reached for the sky while moonlight filtered through, creating an eerie sensation.
Straining my eyes, I tried to see the forest beyond the warmth of the fire.
My vision played tricks, or something was moving beyond.
Despite hardly knowing the Lysian before me, I was glad to have him near, for I could have sworn I saw the glowing eyes of beasts in the distance.
Frowning, I lay down with the blanket wrapped tightly around myself. Rest was challenging to find. Every single noise made my pulse race. As soon as it would slow enough for me to potentially drift off, there was another unfamiliar sound to set it off.
My travel companion woke before sunrise and, seeing as I was already awake after a sleepless night, we were quick to continue our journey under cover of darkness. Neither of us spoke to one another the entire time.
I would have thought that the silence between two strangers of races at war would have been uncomfortable, but it wasn’t. The quiet strangely did not feel empty.
I did not know where exactly I was being taken, did not know what was to become of my people or me.
Yet I felt oddly content, foolishly hoping that the worst had ended.
I imagined the Bavadrin people afraid and confused but safe.
Imagined myself unharmed, and someday soon returning to the Bavadrin lands.
Such thoughts brought me comfort, for I believed in them as if they were fact.
I had a fleeting concern that perhaps I was becoming delusional, but I shoved the notion away.
If I was to survive the days to come, I needed to believe those things to be true.
Edda promised that these things were clear in the future she saw.