Chapter 2
“ D on’t move a muscle.”
The cool press of metal bit into the side of my neck as the ragged voice spoke their threat into my ear. My eyes shot open, my body stock-still as I attempted to assess my surroundings. The night’s darkness made it difficult to discern the number of figures surrounding our camp, but they were numerous enough to outnumber us. And considering they’d managed to sneak up on us without Kallistra noticing, we were likely already dead.
Our last night out in the open before Fernfallow, and we were going to die.
The man holding the blade to my throat ripped me from my bedroll and brought me to my feet, not concerned with the way the metal sliced into my skin from his jagged movements. He gripped me against his chest, bellowing, “You will give us everything you have, or I will kill the bitch.”
Kallistra groaned incoherently. As my eyes continued to adjust to the dark, her visage became clearer. She stood on shaky legs, with three men surrounding her, her eyes hazy and glossed over. There was a deathly pallor to her skin which hadn’t been there before I’d gone to sleep, leaving her in charge of the watch. Blood stained the front of her bodice, the wound oozing a purplish black substance.
Five men in total. The three surrounding Kallistra, one at my back, and another to our far left. All working with short-range weapons, except for the man on the left, who wielded a crossbow. Not the greatest odds. Not if Kallistra was poisoned, as I assumed her to be. If she was in perfect condition, the men would never have lived long enough for me to wake.
I had to think. Think. Think.
Should I risk using my magic? The most I’d done with it was conjure a tiny bird. I’d never had to defend myself before. I didn’t have the slightest clue how to use my magic to inflict pain. And if I failed... well, they would kill both Kallistra and me for the attempt.
“We don’t have much of anything. You picked a bad mark. Waste of a poison bolt,” Kallistra snorted, though the smart remark was layered with a wince of pain.
The men ignored her, digging through our packs, haphazardly tearing them open and emptying the contents out onto the ground. They swiftly pocketed what little coin we had left, along with our few remaining rations, tools, and healing supplies. For us, these few things were vital to our survival, but for the gang of bandits, it wouldn’t be enough to satisfy.
“That’s it?” one man barked.
“Bad mark,” Kallistra repeated with a smirk.
“I thought you’d been watching them?” the man sneered, shoving the man at his side. “You said she was a Saintess! What kind of Saintess travels like a peasant?”
“I overheard them, sir… That’s what the other one was calling her.”
“We could ransom her to the church,” another man piped up. “Or sell her. She’s a bit odd looking, but she’s not ugly. Someone will buy her for the novelty of owning,” he scrunched his nose at me, “whatever it is she is.”
Kallistra’s eyes met mine, steady and fierce as a predator waiting for the opportune time to strike at their prey. She dipped her chin ever so slightly, the only indication of what she intended to do next. Of what she expected me to do.
“Please,” I whispered to my captor, desperation thick in my tone. “Please spare us. We won’t fight back. We won’t do anything. Please let us go.”
His grip loosened, and he turned me around so that he could look into my eyes, where he found the tears I’d conjured, quite easily, given how legitimately frightened I was, for the sake of my survival. In that single moment of humanity, where the flicker of guilt sank deep into the pit of his stomach at the sight of a scared, fragile woman, he lost his upper hand. His hand faltered slightly, the knife pulling away from my throat barely. Barely, but enough.
I slammed my foot down onto his and butted my head into his face with as much strength as I could muster. There was a resulting crunch of bone, followed by an agonized scream, and a consequent groan of rage. By the time the man had steadied himself, blood pooling down from his nose, I was already halfway across the field, positioned cautiously behind the trunk of a large tree. It took me a moment to recover from the dizziness, and by the time I’d refocused my attention back on our camp, death had already begun her dance.
There was no better word for the way Kallistra weaved through our attackers, slicing and stabbing with an artful precision that put their brutish thrashing to shame. Bodies hit the ground, silenced, before they had the opportunity to cry out. It hadn’t been the poison; it had been the threat against my life that served as the only thing holding her back, and with my safety assured, they stood no chance.
A Keeper was a protector. A Keeper was also a killer.
It wasn’t the first time bandits on the road had attacked us, but it was the first time the outcome had been so unpredictable. One wrong move and my captor’s blade would’ve sliced my throat wide open. Kallistra never let it get so far in the past. She would blame herself for this. Poisoned or not, she would find herself at fault.
As the last body collapsed to the hard ground, I rushed to her, throwing my arms around her neck. “Kalli! ”
She wrapped her arms around my waist, squeezing tightly. “You’re alright? Let me see your neck. Did he nick you?”
I pulled back enough to look her over and found her wound persistently oozing. “I’m fine. You aren’t.”
Kallistra waved dismissively. “I am. It looks worse than it is. I played it up so that they wouldn’t see me as a threat until it was too late.” She pressed her lips together. “It shouldn’t have happened to begin with. You never should have been put in that situation, but they caught me off guard with the bolt. Jumped me all at once.”
“I’m fine,” I assured her.
“It’s a problem.” She pulled her thumb between her teeth, biting down.
“Why don’t you train me how to wield a blade, then?” I suggested. “I’ll be better equipped to defend myself if something like this happens again.”
“Too dangerous.”
I refrained from rolling my eyes. As if getting attacked by bandits in my sleep wasn’t dangerous… “Then, magic. I’m supposed to strengthen my magic on our pilgrimage, anyway. Why don’t we focus on that?”
“I’ve been trying to teach you,” she said, folding her arms across her chest.
“Yes, but… you don’t have any magic, Kalli. I’ve suggested this before, but I think it’s time you consider it seriously. We need someone to teach me magic who knows how to use it themselves. I’m getting nowhere, and I-I don’t want to fail our people.”
She nodded her head softly. “I will consider it if we find the right person. Someone I can trust.”
It was the best I was going to get her to agree to for now. Trusting outsiders wasn’t in her nature. Our upbringing hadn’t taught us to be that way. If the attack provided one boon, it would hopefully be Kallistra’s recognition of the need to equip me with the means to defend myself. Even if it meant compromising her list of who she could trust. The list which currently comprised… me.
“They got our horses,” Kallistra said, changing the subject. “We need to get moving immediately if we are going to make it to Fernfallow before the next sundown. I’ll drag the bodies into the wood, but it is best we put some distance between us and the scene. A guard may roam through the area.”
“Is that worth worrying over?”
Kallistra cocked a brow. “So, you’ve learned a bit about the ways of our glorious continent, Lustria, have you?”
I frowned. “A bit.”
I’d dreamed about what life would be like outside of our village. I’d dreamed of a paradise full of people and life, love and joy. In some ways, Lustria had lived up to my idea of paradise, but in other ways, it had fallen disappointingly short. For all the goodness I’d witnessed, there were equal parts cruelty and corruption. Specifically, in the upper echelon of the kingdoms and their military. A few dead bandits would not matter to a guard. Investigating would not be worth the resources. It would benefit us now, but I found it sad.
“It had to be done, Nairu. It doesn’t matter what happens to them now. That’s the way of this world. Kill or be killed, and unless you are of noble birth, no one cares how you died.” She exhaled a long breath. “The sooner we complete our task, the sooner we can return to our village. Things will be better, then.”
But that was not a comfort, either. “I don’t hate it here. It’s just different from what I was expecting. Is it not the same for you?”
“No. I did not come into this with lofty expectations. There is a reason our people keep to themselves in the far north. This is a Godless place. Worshiping false idols, it is no wonder their society is so vulturous.” She lowered her gaze. “We have achieved a life of peace that is only possible within the confines of our village. This is what we are working to protect, Nairu.”
I nodded. “Of course. I understand that, but I—If things are perfect the way they are, then what is the point of this pilgrimage?”
Kallistra’s eyes grew wary. “Are you doubting your faith?”
“I’m not. I only… I wish you could provide an explanation of what is required of me,” I sighed. “Or why.”
Her face softened as she spoke. “I know the weight of our entire people’s survival is difficult to shoulder on your own, but we need you to be strong. The north is not an easy place to live, and each year it grows more difficult. We need our God’s power. We need you to master your own and bring him to us.” She turned away. “I cannot say more.”
“I need to become a proper Saintess,” I mumbled under my breath.
What was I doing wrong that God would not grace me with the full weight of his power? That he would not even speak to me? Why was I not worthy?
They had chosen me as Saintess, so why?