Chapter Thirteen
KYELLA
“Do you think they ever had guards stationed there?” I asked Elijah, keeping my voice low as we moved through the thick forest that overtook the deserted beach we’d landed on.
As much as I wanted to speed through here and get to the first town as quickly as possible, Elijah had cautioned that just because the cliffs hadn’t been guarded, didn’t mean the areas surrounding the nearest towns would be the same.
“Hard to say,” he mused as his eyes flicked around the dense foliage.
Tension lined his features, his body taut and ready to spring into action.
“If it was our empire, without a doubt, there would be guards there. Malakai has shown his arrogance time and time again, so I’d venture a guess that he thinks no one would be foolish enough to pass the sea wall with how dangerous it is.
Honestly, he probably also doesn’t care about the safety of the small towns near his capital.
His food source is in the capital. We’re simply moving slowly as a precaution. ”
A huff came from Dakath, and as I glanced at him on my right, I found him shaking his head in disgust, his lip curled. “He’s shown no empathy or regard for human life, even within the capital.”
It was like a hand reached inside my chest and squeezed my heart in a vice. We were one in the same, losing our family at Malakai’s hand. If there was one thing Malakai had made clear, it was that the depravity of his mind and his malicious actions knew no bounds.
Kolvar’s voice carried back to us with the wind from his position ahead of us, “I don’t think with the battle having just started, they would have had time to carry the word to forces out here to return to the capital and for those forces to have made it there already.”
While I knew our team would defer to my orders, I was truly counting on my men and their expertise to make the right call.
Elijah was correct when he said that they had much to offer and could help greatly in formulating plans.
I was more thankful than I could ever put into words for having them at my side as sources of emotional support… as well as their sound expertise.
“All right,” Elijah barked out loudly enough for our entire team to hear as he came to a halt.
“It’s time to increase our pace. Kolvar will halt the moment he hears a noise at the front, so despite us running now, you must pay attention and be ready to stop with a second’s notice. Ears open and eyes wide, team.”
The pace of my beating heart quickened at his words.
While I feared what was to come, purely due to the unknown, I couldn’t deny that there was a thrill creeping beneath my skin at finally being able to make a difference.
It wasn’t just all talk and hope for a better future anymore.
It was time to make those dreams become a reality.
With an affirmative nod, we quickly set into a run, keeping pace with the humans on our team so no one was separated.
I was so thankful that the armor that had been made for me felt light as a feather and didn’t weigh me down or make me uncomfortable despite having been made from the blue steel I had chosen in the smithy.
Ross had truly outdone himself—it felt like he’d perfectly molded the metal to fit my frame.
The only odd thing was not being able to strap my daggers to my thighs anymore.
Now, they rested in leather holsters wrapped around my waist, with multiple lighter throwing daggers residing in a closed pouch.
When Ross had asked me my preferred weapon and I’d told him daggers, he’d had the forethought to create feather-light and perfectly balanced throwing daggers that I could use for longer range targets.
It was comforting not having to worry about losing my beloved daggers Elijah had gifted me.
We’d also discussed my defensive capabilities, which were slim to none since I didn’t carry a shield.
I’d have to rely on my speed and agility to dance out of the threat of my attacker.
I was hesitant to test out whether Ross boasting about the metal around my arms being strong enough to act as a shield was true or not.
I could only hope that it didn’t come to that because that was a lot of faith to place in him and his armor.
Otherwise, I’d be sans an arm and potentially my life.
The further we ran through the forest, with no sight or sound of another being besides our group, the more I began to feel a sense of nostalgia washing over me.
There was a distinct scent of primrose filling the air and tickling my senses, which reminded me of the area that surrounded my village growing up.
Despite having been on the outskirts of our town and on the opposite side of where the plant grew, there was always that sweet, but slightly tangy scent in the air.
It smelled like home. My very first home.
“What’s wrong?” Dakath asked, his voice gruff with concern as he glanced over in time to see me wipe a stray tear from my eye.
While it seemed silly to tell him that the smell of the flower was causing my emotion, I couldn’t deny that it sent a pang of sadness through me, causing my lips to thin and my eyes to burn as the memories of my childhood washed over me. When my father and aunt were still alive.
The strange thing about grief is that, at first, it felt so heavy to carry for so long, and then suddenly, one day, it began to lighten.
With each passing day, those small movements built upon each other until it didn’t feel like a thick fog was weighing down your mind and body anymore.
But then when that pain came back, sparked by a memory, place, smell, or whatever it may be, it was like you were transported right back to the first day that it felt impossible to move, to even breathe, without pain permeating every particle of your being all the way down to your soul.
“Just thinking about the past,” I admitted quietly between heavy breaths as we continued to run.
I knew he wouldn’t push unless I wanted to offer up more.
There had always been a mutual understanding and level of trust between us, and it meant that just because we understood the pain that the other was going through, we didn’t pry.
There was comfort in knowing he understood and was simply at my side while I processed it.
As the trees began to thin, Kolvar came to a halt, holding a hand up for us to still.
As we pulled to a stop, my ears strained to pick up what he’d heard. After a short moment, I heard the squealing laughter of children. That was one thing I couldn’t relate to in my memories—playing with other children.
In order to have enough land to farm we were fairly removed from the center of town.
While some might have thought that was a lonely way to lead their life, I’d never lacked happiness or love while running through our fields and soaking in the sunshine alone before returning home to help my aunt with dinner.
The few times we had gone to the market that came together once every few months in the village, I’d never felt welcomed by the other children there.
I was the unknown recluse, and after one attempt at joining in on their game of knucklebones while my father set up our stall, I’d never tried again.
I’d never forget that sick feeling at the pit of my stomach when they’d visibly sneered at me and let their silence deafen the air in response to my attempt to join them.
It was a horrid feeling, being ostracized, but perhaps I could attribute the fire that had never been able to be squelched within me to that very moment.
I remember running back to my father, tears streaming down my face, and him kneeling to look me in the eye.
He wiped the tears from my eyes, and after I managed to choke out the explanation for why I was so upset, he asked me, “Do you feel like your life is less now because of what they did?”
Being so young, it had taken me a while to think of an answer.
Eventually, I told him no, that it just hurt my feelings.
He’d placed his hand over my heart and said, “It’s okay to feel sad or hurt by the actions of others, but you will always have the power to decide how you react to it.
Those reactions can give them power and control over your life.
If you choose to focus on the good in your life, then they didn’t win, did they? ”
Warmth bled into my hands, bringing me back to the present, with Dakath and Elijah gently squeezing my hands.
Sniffling lightly, I shot them both smiles to reassure them that I was okay…
because I always would be. Even despite the horrible things I’d been through, my dad was right.
They’d never win. That knowledge had gotten me through my darkest times and my only regret was that he wasn’t here to see how much he’d helped me.
A knot loosened at my chest at the thought.
It had been bothering me deep down ever since Myrin told me that he likely wasn’t my biological dad, with it taking a vampyre father and human mother to create a dhampyr, but at this moment…
I finally realized it didn’t matter who biologically held that title.
My dad was still my dad and nothing would ever take that from me.
He’d cherished me, loved me, and protected me like a father would.
The Evathrina charm felt like it burned against my skin where it lay tucked against my chest beneath my armor, reminding me of my mother. I wished my entire family was here to see the woman I’d become.
Centering my emotions and collecting myself, I let go of their hands and roughly brushed any lingering wetness from my eyes as Kolvar approached us and whispered, “From what I can see and hear, this is a village with no guards, but there is always a possibility that they could be hiding. How do you want to move forward?”