Chapter 42 Hell
Morietha was a behemoth of a city in comparison to the small town of Forsgeth, and somehow even more alive.
The trade square was not at all what we expected.
Performers, workers, and patrons bustled about the streets, draped in colorful silks and surrounded by paintings.
Even the cobblestones themselves were covered, every inch painted with bright depictions of the seasons and tales of old.
The air was rich with the smell of spices, and despite the approaching winter chill, hearths burned inside each shop while great fire pits throughout the square kept the streets comfortable.
Dinah and Johanna had become completely spellbound by a group of belly dancers and fire-eaters that were performing around a great fountain in the center of the square.
The fire-eaters were diviners and witches, or whatever they call magic wielders in Torezia.
They were working together, throwing fire back and forth, swallowing it and blowing it back out.
It was mesmerizing, and the girls wanted to watch longer.
Liv and I were capable enough of gathering supplies throughout town so we let them stay, with the understanding that they could not separate, and we would meet back in the same spot in front of the fountain in three hours' time.
That was all the time we would be afforded if we did not want to find ourselves on the road late into the witching-hour.
Liv and I made quick work of the list of supplies.
Things were surprisingly easy to find here in Morietha.
There were so many options, which made sense as we were so close to the capital.
We were even able to find Verithean popliums, a rather bitter poplus fruit stuffed with sweet vanilla mousse and covered in chocolate.
On its own, the fruit was nearly unpleasant, but prepared this way, it was divine.
Both Liv and I had missed them after fleeing.
We were sure to purchase extra to take back to Ezra, Margaret, and the other sanctuary dwellers.
We strapped bags of supplies to the horses and made sure everything was secure.
We had finished in record time and though we did not have time to linger, we stopped to watch three women dancing atop a table.
I smiled at Liv warmly, and I could tell she was picturing the same memory I was.
When they finished their dance they took to the crowd, grabbing the hands of friends and strangers and pulling them into a jig.
We quickly ducked out of the crowd and made our way back to the fountain.
Johanna and Dinah were already there waiting, each of them wearing a wide smile and a gleaming gold bangle covered in jewels. Liv’s eyes nearly left her skull.
“We left you with a small amount of pocket money, enough to eat, but not nearly enough for those I am sure.” She took both of their wrists in her hands turning them over and inspecting the jewelry.
“Well there was this man…” Dinah started. Oh, gods.
“Please tell me that he did not ask anything untoward as his price. We may be part of the rebellion, but we are still ladies and your virtue is not…”
“Where is this man?” I cut Liv off before she could finish, my hand moving instinctively to the dagger at my hip.
“No!” Johanna held up her hands. “It was nothing at all what you are imagining. There was a man selling these bangles, we asked him the price and we of course could not afford them. So, when he saw how much Dinah liked them and how disappointed she looked,
he offered to accept something else in the form of payment. We told him that we have nothing of value to give, but he said if we had magic maybe we could help him…”
“You exposed your power to a stranger?!” Dinah’s eyes went wide with my harsh tone. Truly I hadn’t meant to startle her, but it was dangerous.
“This is nothing like Verith Hell! Look around,” Johanna motioned to the square, still alive with witches and diviners alike, all practicing magic. She was right, Torezia was nothing like Verith, in more ways than one.
“Plus,” She reached into her bag and produced two more bangles, “we got each of you one as well.”
Liv’s eyes grew wide as tea saucers. The girls burst with giggles as we headed for the horses, for home.
The path was quiet and peaceful. I hunched lazily over Strega and snacked on various little morsels we had picked up in Morietha.
“What did that man ask you to do anyway?” The question came out muffled through a mouth full of food.
“It was the silliest thing really,” Dinah chuckled.
“You know how Johanna has the power to communicate with animals?”
I nodded. “And I have plant magic?” I raised my brow as I nodded again, urging her to continue before the curiosity consumed me whole.
“Well, the pigs that were traded at the stall a few down from his, had taken to defecating behind his stall. He was afraid the smell and filth would drive away his higher-class customers who bought the rarest jewels.”
She laughed loud and bright. “The farmer would do nothing about it. So when he saw Johanna talking to the fish that swam in the fountain, he asked if she would politely direct the pigs to do their business elsewhere.”
She shrugged as though it were no great feat.
“And where did your powers come in?” I tilted my head at her. He gave them an awful lot of jewels for just a conversation with a pig.
“She covered his stall in flowering vines to make it look and smell beautiful,” Johanna said dryly, clearly feeling as though she got the shit end of the stick.
Literally. The horses trotted lazily along the path as the sun began its descent.
The forest came alive around us. Fireflies bounced through the air, lighting the trees, and crickets sang harmoniously.
At this pace we would be home just after the sun sank below the horizon.
The wall came into view, and we all straightened instinctively.
This was the closest to the wall that our new trade route would bring us, and we knew that if there was going to be an attack, this is where it would happen.
We slowed the horses even more, Johanna whispering to them to keep quiet.
If there were enforcers on the other side we did not want to give them cause to come over.
We passed the wall without incident. All of us breathed a little easier knowing the trip had been a success.
“Just a little while longer, then home.”
I sighed. I did not get a response from Liv, instead there were branches cracking.
I pulled the reins back and held up my hand.
We all stilled and listened. Nothing. Perhaps I had imagined it.
Before we could move again there was a rustling in the trees.
I waited for a moment. Liv and I passed a wary glance, but again there was nothing, only silence.
Silence. My eyes widened. It was far too quiet.
Not even the crickets chirped through the darkening forest.
I waved to get the girls' attention, and we closed ranks, arranging ourselves in a circle.
The horses began to dance around uneasily, the same way they did when they sensed a storm coming.
I ran my hand down Strega’s neck to calm her, shushing her while I strained to listen.
“What is it, Sole?” Johanna leaned close to her horse and whispered. Her eyes grew wide as the moon, and she sat straight up, looking all around us. I looked at her questioningly and without me asking she answered. “She says there are people in the treetops. Enforcers.”
“Where?” I strained my eyes searching the trees.
“Everywhere.” Johanna was trembling.
“It is an ambush!” I shouted to Liv. Everything exploded at once.
I called up towering rocks to shield us against the flurry of power the enforcers began to throw.
Liv and Dinah called upon the trees and wrapped the enforcers who had not descended in branches.
Johanna calmed and corralled the horses so we would still have a way home.
Arrows rained down upon us from the enforcers who still had their hands free.
The enforcers who had made it to the ground were now rushing us.
I hurled rocks, but it was not enough to hold them off. There were too many.
“Liv! You have to stop the arrows! I cannot shield us and hold them off at the same time!”
She winced and Dinah whimpered. They knew exactly what must be done, that did not make it any easier.
The wood creaked as it twisted tighter, a small tremor wracked Liv and Dinah at the same time.
Then, the unmistakable sound of bones snapping. The arrows ceased. I turned to Johanna.
“We cannot leave any alive, they will follow us home and everyone will be in danger.” She grimaced but nodded her head, resolute.
Johanna let out a small low howl and something shifted in the air.
“We need a wall for the horses, and you all need to stand beside me. They will not be able to discern friend from foe and once they start they will not cease until the fight is done.”
She pulled Dinah to her side. Liv and I passed a glance, not knowing what she was talking about.
The forest grew silent once more and the enforcers who were pursuing us halted.
A low rumbling growl came from the dark shadows of the woods. Then a scream. And another.
“Wha…” Before I could finish the question, wolves burst through the tree line. We all watched in horror as the enforcers were torn apart. It all happened too fast. Not a single enforcer remained standing. Liv reached with her power to try and sense life within them. There was none.
“Stop! Go home.” Johanna commanded once they were done.
“Thank you for your help!” She called after them as they retreated back into the darkness.
I dropped the stones I had risen to protect us.
The horses stood calm once more. The forest floor was covered in blood and carnage.
Even the air itself felt stained with violence, no longer peaceful and silent, but heavy with chaos.
Johanna wrapped her arm around Dinah’s shoulder and helped her to her horse.
This was the first time Dinah had to take a life.
Liv’s eyes filled with sorrow, no doubt recalling the first life she had taken, the spider.
We finished the journey home in silence, the girls too shaken to speak. My only concern was the enforcers. They were far too close to home. My thoughts settled on one question: how in the seven hells did they know to wait there?