Chapter 35: Arcturus

It was early in the next day, the sun barely peeking its head through the treeline to the east. The night chill was lingering with the morning mist. Arcturus was planted in his makeshift pillow, asleep and unbothered.

Until something lightly touched his shoulder and vehemently shook him.

“Arcturus, wake up! Arcturus!”

Blinking awake, Arcturus bolted forward—a mistake as he let out a groan at his injuries. His shoulder throbbed painfully, clearing away his drowsiness faster than usual.

“What, what is it?” he asked, turning to the voice. He stilled at Andromeda’s worried expression, clearly alarmed.

“We have to leave, like right now. Can you stand up?”

Her words didn’t fully register. “I, well yes, I can stand up, but why? What happened?”

“We’ve been discovered. We can’t stay. Get up and grab as many things as you can, okay?” Without another breath, she spun on her heel, reaching for Antares’ sleeping form to wake him. Arcturus instinctively pushed himself to his feet, frowning as he shook the rest of his sleep away and scanned the camp.

Discovered? What in the stars?

Most of the others were already awake, to his dismay. Astrid barked orders to Eclipse, Orion, and Cassiopeia, pointing frantically to the area where the horses slept. Items were being thrown into bags and hauled away, clearing their somewhat home for a month away.

His companions' movements spurred him into action, and Arcturus bent and reached for his bed—really just a few blankets and a roll—gathering them in his hands. After shoving his boots on and stepping forward with a tilt to accommodate his left leg, Arcturus headed over to Eclipse, who seemed to hold all of the sleeping items. Andromeda dashed past him towards the far end of the camp near Cassiopeia, leaving Antares scrambling to his feet behind him.

“Eclipse,” he called, taking note of her tousled hair. “Here. I have mine here.”

“Oh, perfect,” she said distractedly, taking it from his hands and stuffing it in the bag. “Help me with the others, can you?”

Arcturus nodded, reaching for the other bulging sacks. “What discovered u—”

His question was cut short by a loud crack emitting from the woods to his left. He sharply looked to it, searching for what caused it.

“That would be our uninvited guests,” Eclipse muttered, yanking a drawstring tight. “Hunters. They spotted Cassiopeia while she was coming back here.”

“Oh shit,” he breathed, stealing another glance at the trees. He swung the bags over his shoulder and nodded to Eclipse, who led him out of the camp.

“Antares, the blades! Over there, by the pit!” Astrid called out. Arcturus glanced behind him to see the barren plot of land, save for the black pile of ash in the center and his running friends. Confusion still muddled his brain, not fully grasping the reality he had been woken up to.

Leaves and tangled roots crunched loudly under his feet as he hurried forward, entering the patchily lit area of trees. The steeds came into view, Orion standing expectantly with three satchels over his shoulders.

“Surprised to still see you here,” Eclipse remarked as she hurried over to Phantom, hooking her bags onto his saddle. The beast shifted nervously, sensing the thick tension in the air.

He could have just left… Arcturus thought.

“Where would I go?” he asked, still stuck in his spot. Orion blinked expectantly at Eclipse who shook her head lightly with a puzzled, but amused, look.

“Role call!” Astrid shouted from behind them, running up to the trio. “Who’s here?”

Arcturus responded along with Eclipse and Orion, followed with the others after a beat.

“We’re here!” Andromeda called breathlessly behind her, coming up with Antares and Cass next to her. Each held armfuls of items and bags, unruly and a little wild.

Astrid scanned them before nodding curtly. “Great, now let’s move. Hook everything onto the horses and pair up.”

Arcturus turned away as everyone broke off in a fluid motion, as if they've been doing this together for years. He stepped to Phantom, where Eclipse was hoisting herself up onto his back. She gestured distractedly to the empty ropes to tie on the sacks over his shoulders as she watched everyone from her spot. His leg chose that moment to send a throb of pain through it and his winced, knotting the last bag.

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“Arcturus, come on.” Cass motioned him to hobble over to Clover, her unclaimed steed. Giving Eclipse a small smile before walking over, he grasped Cass’ hand and allowed himself to be pulled up behind her.

“Soldier Man, you go with Antares. I don’t trust you to ride on your own yet,” Astrid said. He watched Antares pull Orion up behind him on his own steed, leaving Andromeda with Eclipse and Astrid alone on Maximus.

“Wow, Astrid, your hair matches quite nicely with Maximus’,” Cass noted nonchalantly in front of him, leading Clover to an opening in the woods, opposite from their camp. The chuckles that came after her jab were cut short by a loud yell, echoing in the morning.

That sounded dangerously close.

“Ha ha, how humourous. Now go!”

“Hang on to me, would you? I don’t need you falling off either,” Cass said in response before snapping Clover’s reins. Arcturus nearly toppled off the beast as it eagerly shot forward, momentarily taking the lead of the group as he wrapped his arms around his friend’s waist. Exhilaration filled his lungs as he breathed deeply, blinking against the whipping wind. He caught glimpses of the others, colorful blurs riding in time next to them The rush of air erased any more yells or shouts from the hunting group. Cass shifted the reins to the right, following the others around the main road and into a different part of the woods. They continued that way for a while, Arcturus quickly losing his sense of direction.

...where are we going?

The thought seemed so obvious yet he didn’t have an answer for it. The rush of their escape seemingly caught up to him and a feeling of dread began to overtake in their ride. Their home for the past month had been snatched from them so quickly and so easily. What do they do now? Who was an ally and who wasn’t? His friends were essentially the only thing he could count on right now, and they seemed just as lost as him. His shoulder seemed to throb in response, dull and painful.

Strangely enough, Arcturus’ confusion aroused a heavy blow of homesickness in their prolonged ride—especially for Taryn and Hesperos. They had always been there for him when he felt lost or confused, helping him sort out his thoughts. He could always trust them, even with the teasing they constantly liked to pull.

If they were here, what would they say?

Finally, they gradually came to a stop, the four horses breaking through a tangle of branches into a small clearing, just enough for them to form a lopsided circle. Arcturus forced himself to breathe deeply, sitting straight again. The sun was almost completely out now, its rays breaking through more of the foliage.

“Where are we?” he immediately asked when they were situated.

“Somewhere in the west side of Ealis, I believe,” replied Antares.

“So where do we go now?” questioned Orion, the obvious question permeating the air.

Astrid sat quietly in her saddle, eyebrows furrowed.

“We could go back later in the day?” suggested Cass. “I’m sure they’ll leave once they see no one is there.”

“It’s been compromised, so that’s not an option,” Eclipse said flatly.

Cass pressed her lips together and nodded. The group was quiet, uncertainty hanging in the air.

“Where else can we go? We’re not safe anywhere near Aldebaran. We’d only be found again,” Andromeda started again.

“Unless we go somewhere secluded. How about north? Cressova? No one hangs around there,” proposed Astrid.

“But that's near Eldura territory,” Eclipse countered. “That’s why no one ventures there.”

“Eldura?”

“You know, those strange creatures that live in the northern forests?”

Astrid cast her a confused look.

“You’ve really never heard of the Eldura?” Arcturus said with bewilderment.

“Apparently not. It seems they don’t talk of them much in the south.”

“Is it time for crazy ideas?” Antares said suddenly, brushing his hair out of his eyes.

Astrid sighed. “Might as well. What are you thinking, Soldier Boy?”

“We know that the Legion is getting stronger, we’ve seen that,” he started. “And if they’ve got the entire Ash Court at their command, there's no way we can stop them ourselves. We need more help.”

“I think we can all agree with that. Your point is?”

“Let’s go to King Altair’s Palace.”

A pause. “And why would we do that? Last time I checked, half of you are being searched for.”

“Prince Damian,” Orion mused.

The Prince? Arcturus had maybe seen him two or three times from afar at royal events in the capital. The palace was hidden quite cleverly in the city, its impressive structure only visible when approached closely.

Antares nodded. “Exactly. He was the one who had spoken out after the raid on Aldebaran and promised to help the people of Ophelia. King Altair and the Royal Family have been losing their power for years, but they still have the Royal Guard at their command. If we can convince the prince to help us, someone who is influential yet neutral in the Court politics, that is the biggest advantage we could get.”

“That still doesn’t solve our problem. You three still have a heavy reward on your heads,” Astrid said, looking between Antares, Eclipse, and Orion.

“Well, it’s just the Ember Legion that is looking for me. I don’t think they’d reveal themselves to the prince just to catch me,” said Orion.

“And my parents’ influence is diminishing every day. Who are they, now that they aren’t political figures? I don’t think I’m a priority to most,” Eclipse argued.

“That just leaves me, but I’m used to sneaking around by now,” shrugged Antares.

“How would we even speak to him?” asked Andromeda, hesitancy on her face.

“We’d have to request an audience,” Eclipse replied from in front of him.

“Talk to the Crown Prince himself?” exclaimed Arcturus, leaning to the side as he spoke.

“I say it’s the best chance we’ve got,” said Antares.

The group looked to Astrid, who held the reins as tightly as she thought, her deep blue eyes narrowed.

“Fine. Let’s go meet this prince of yours.”