Rueln Layheart
Opening my eyes was the hardest thing I’ve ever done. My head throbbed with every heartbeat like someone had taken a hammer to it. I wanted to close my eyes and escape the discomfort, but it had taken too much effort to rise from the dark. I didn’t want to waste it.
I was alive.
Instinctively, I tried to push myself up, but I couldn’t move my arms. The helplessness of it pulled my heavy thoughts past the worse of the pain. Adrenaline flooded my limbs, erasing the discomfort and confusion, and leaving me desperate to escape. Memories of the bandit attack fresh behind my eyes urged me to try harder. I had to get free. The only problem was, I couldn’t get my feet underneath me. Everything felt like it was spinning.
“Rueln, stop! Stop!” a familiar voice yelled. “Ya’re goin' ta toss us in fer a swim!”
I stopped pulling at my bonds and immediately fell back to the hard wooden floor, but that didn’t stop everything from swaying. Blinking, I focused on the figure across from me. Finnley had pressed himself against the wall of the cage we were in, holding on with his arms through the bars and bent to keep himself in place.
“What-Where are we?” I asked him, confused.
“What’s goin’ on is we’re in a cage! What ar ya thinkin’ thrashin’ about like tha?!” Finnley demanded, his voice loud to be heard over the roar of water. “I don’ want ta join the fish!” His accent was heavier than usual, strained with fear.
Water? I shifted and peaked over the edge of the cage and down. The blood drained from my face as I stared down at the raging river below us. Now I understood why Finnley had panicked. We were caged and suspended over a gorge, with only thick rope and an old rusted pulley system to hold us up.
Understanding the danger, I moved slowly, shifting so I could sit up with my back against the bars, trying to calm my racing heart. We weren’t the only cage. There were five more suspended out above the water, with another two resting along the cliff edge, their doors open. I could tell there were people in some cages, but not who they were. They were too far away for details and there was no way they could hear us call over the sound of the water.
How many survived? Melo... Rosie,.. Mistress Harty,... Fayr,... Georgeo… Were they all dead?
Seeing where I was looking, Finnley sneered and settled down on the floor. The cage swayed gently. “What are ya worried about them for? We’re all dead, anyway.”
“Master Esra will-,” I started, but Finnley interrupted me.
“Don’ go thinkin’ we’ll be rescued. This isn’ some story ya mum read ya ta sleep with.” He slowly pushed himself up, his hands tied in front of him, helping him keep his balance. He stood over me, the fear that covered his face moments before gone. “Some hero ya turned out ta be. Vhal Aairith my arse. Aren’t ya supposed ta be some great hero? Why couldn’t ya do nothin?!” I stared in silence up at the older boy, his crystal blue eyes glittering with unshed tears. It wasn’t fair to blame me. I’m just a kid same as him. My vision blurred, but I clenched my jaw, refusing to cry. I wouldn’t cry. “I saw ya last night. Ya’re a coward.” The word was like a knife cutting into me. It was too close to the truth. “Ya didn’ even try ta fight! I bet ya tried ta tuck tail and run like a rat. Are the histories a lie too, empress of cowards?!”
“I’m not the empress,” I said, my voice too low to be heard.
“What?” Finn demanded, daring me to argue with him.
I glared up at him, my mind suddenly sharp with the rise of emotion. “I said, I’m not her. Don’t call me that!” I yelled as I my got my legs underneath myself and rose unsteadily to my feet. My face heated with shame at the accusation as I glared at him. I didn’t like being called a coward and I didn’t enjoy thinking of myself as one either. “I’m just a kid,” I continued, my voice growing louder than I meant it. My frustration that had built up since I experienced recall coming to a boil.
“Ya have lived two lives! What a pile of dung!”
“What do you know about it, huh?!” I demanded, taking a step toward the older boy. “You’re too scared to even look for your past life. If you even have one. I hate it! I don’t want to be the empress! I don’t want to live under her shadow!”
“Ya coulda fooled me,” Finnley snarled, leaning toward me, his nose wrinkling with hostility. “Always showin’ off durin trainin’ like ya’re somethin’ special. What a load of sh-”
I slammed my head into his nose. The older body cried out and fell backward, shaking the cage enough that it was hard to stay on my feet, but I managed. I could hardly see straight. I was so angry, my blood felt hot.
“Shut up! Just shut up!” I yelled at the top of my lungs. Finnley stared up at me, his eyes growing wide as he pressed his arm against his nose, blood shining on his dark skin. I didn’t care as I stared down at him, my emotions clawing at my insides. “You have no idea what it’s like having someone else in your head! How it feels to look at your reflection and see a stranger! It’s like I’m not me anymore, but I’m not her either!”
Finnley scooted himself backward, using his legs until he pressed himself against the opposite side of the cage again. “Rue, look-”
“No,” I said, cutting him off, my hands falling to my side as I clenched my fists. “I don’t want to hear it! You have it so easy! Your sight gives you all the answers you need! You’re never afraid of anything! We’ll if you’re so great, you become emperor! You get us out of this cage!” My eyes burned, unable to hold it back anymore. “Because I can’t, and if Master can’t save us, then you’re right. We’re both de-” Heat blasted across my face, blowing back my hair and spreading up my arms. “What-,” I started, then screamed, jumping backward with sudden terror.
“Ya’re on fire!” Finnley yelled, still trying to distance himself from me, now forced to hold on for life as the cage rocked violently.
“Ahhh!” I screamed, waving my arms around uselessly and hitting at the flames only for them to grow. Orange tongues licked at my skin and ate at the fabric of my clothes.
“It’s magic!” Finnley said, his voice tight with anxiety. “Put it out!”
“I don’t have magic!!” I answered as the fire spread around me, flaring out like a ravenous animal. “I don’t know how!!”
Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.
“Well, figure it out! Ya’re goin’ ta kill us both!”
The rope and dried wood around me burned to black as I tried to press myself against the wall, staying away from Finnley. Panic stole my reason, my body deluding itself into believing I could outrun the fire. There was a low groan of wood, then a crack.
It was only when I felt the bars at my back fall away that I realized that the support of my side of the cage had completely collapsed. My arms windmilled, my toes curling inside my boots, desperate to restore my balance as I fell backward. My hands, still covered in orange flame, reached for a handhold that quickly was out of reach.
“Rueln!” Finnley yelled.
I was still screaming when I hit the water far below and it swallowed me whole.
* * *
Esra Greyborn
I sighed, picking at the potatoes on my plate. For a free meal, it wasn’t bad, but I just couldn’t bring myself to eat. The axle repairs were going to take a few more days, even with urging the smith guild to rush. My employer was unhappy, but content to spend his days preparing for his caravan’s next job once they delivered the supplies. In town, he no longer needed me as an escort, so I spent my hours in far too much leisure.
I would have gone back to the others, but my employer insisted I wait. He cared little that I had two boys to look after, only that I earn my wage with him and remain just in case he needed me. My patience was close to its end. Ever since I woke this morning, something hasn’t felt right.
I didn’t like it.
“Can I top you off, honey?” asked the barmaid, smiling at me from across the bar.
I glanced down at my now empty drink, considering for a moment before I shook my head. “No, I think I’m good.” Leaning back, I reached down into my coin purse and pulled out three coppers. One for the meal, one for the drink, and another for the woman’s tip. It was more than the meal actually cost, but my mind wasn’t on the money. “Thank you,” I said and left the tavern.
The shadows had lengthened while I ate, the sun resting in the west just above the treeline. It wouldn’t be long until this little town fell into darkness and another day passed. Restless still, I settled my palm onto the hilt of my sword, my thumb brushing the design engraved at its end. Perhaps I could do it with some personal training. It would at least cure me of this unease.
Decision made, I turned from the tavern and walked toward the small grassy area a few buildings over where travelers could sometimes tie their mounts. It should be empty enough for my purpose.
I began my warm-up, stretching out muscles and limbering myself before taking my stance. I began with the first dance of the Golden Lion Style, the name of my craft, and worked my way up to the fifth dance. Each dance required a unique set of sword movements, both attack, and defense, and grew more complicated the higher the dance. With ten dances in its set, I had only mastered seven. It was fairly common in the empire, but few mastered it beyond the fifth dance.
The most powerful sword dance, the Winds of the Crane, faded into history. It had died with Empress Vhal Aairith and her attendants. Few in that age had mastered it, and though there were records of some stances and movements, historians had difficulty deciphering them.
With the death of the great sword style, many others took its place, including the one I had fought tooth and nail to master from my uncle. I was determined to pass on the art to my disciples, refusing to let the mastery of the sword die with my generation. It was the duty of a master to pass on their skill and legacy to those younger than themselves. I knew I might not go down in history as many others before me, but I would still leave my mark on it.
After this assignment was complete, I wanted to take the boys home. We would take a warp gate, just to eliminate any further delays. It was already close to the time frame I had given Rueln for seeing his family, anyway. It was best to keep my promise to him. He had done well, despite how much he was struggling.
Lowering my sword to my side, I straightened, using my free hand to wipe the sweat that had beaded along my brow despite the afternoon’s chill. Swallowing, trying to ignore my parched throat, I took my stance again and was about to begin the sixth dance when the sound of horses brought my attention up. I caught sight of two men leading their mounts and a familiar bay gelding.
My heart dropped, and I sheathed my blade and hurried over to them. The horse was being led slowly, walking with a limp because of an injury on his back right flank. It was unmistakably the mark of a blade. Without hesitating, I cut the hunters off and took the lead of my horse. Apple snorted and shied away, but recognized me and calmed quickly, leaning his face against my arm.
“Hey!” One man complained, but I ignored it.
“Where did you find my horse?” I demanded, trying to calm my racing heart.
“He was with a few other horses on the road a few hours back,” the older man answered. “This one was the only one we caught. We thought we would check here to see if he belonged to anyone.”
“He was with the rest of my party,” I said, glancing at Apple fearfully, my unease growing. “Something must have happened. Mobilize the town guard. I need volunteers to go with me.”
“The town guard won’t leave their posts to check on a camp of vagrants,” the younger snorted.
The older one, however, was thoughtful. “How many do you need, my lady?”
“Truke!” the younger one exclaimed, annoyed.
“Hush, Thom. This could be serious,” Truke snapped, holding a hand up to silence the other hunter.
“Fifteen or more,” I said, “and I’ll throw in a five silvers each for the help. Everyone needs to be armed to fight. I don’t know what we’ll find, but saving lives will be our priority.”
The Thom’s expression changed quickly with my offer. It was more than most earned in several months, but I would spend it gladly if it would help make sure my boys were safe. “It’ll be done, my lady.” He saluted me and he and his companion hurried off to do as I bid.
I took Apple to the Inn I had been staying and ordered them to care for his injury, telling them I would pay when I returned. Then, leaving a message for my employer, I saddled Peach and rode out to meet the guard I had hired. Twenty-Three volunteers gathered together within the hour. Twelve from the town guard, while the other eleven were civilians with combat experience. As soon as I gave the order, I led them out of town as fast as our horses could take us.
To all the gods, lords, and masters of the world, I prayed that Rueln and Finnley were alive. Peach, sensing my urgency, pulled at the bit, demanding I give her head. I refused, my better judgment overriding my fear. We couldn’t afford to run the horses into the ground, and with a heavy heart, I ordered my company to slow to a walk, letting the horses take a brief rest before continuing. It was midnight before we slowed the horses to a stop. The animals were exhausted, and I knew that if we kept going in the dark, we could miss something vital.
“Make camp,” I ordered, “No fires. We ride again at first light.”
I didn’t sleep. I knew I wouldn’t be able to. Instead, I spent the hours until dawn pacing, worry for my charges filling my mind and leaving me haggard. When the morning finally broke, I was the first to saddle my horse, ready to ride.
It was noon when my party found the first corpse, the rancid smell of burned and rotting flesh filling the air. A man hurriedly dismounted only to get sick in a nearby bush as I urged Peach forward and stared down at the body. I couldn’t recognize who lay across the remnants of the campfire. Animals must have gotten to the poor man. He was only the first.
Seven more bodies lay nearby, some on the road, while four more were in the trees. Four were of bandits, their weapons, armor, and what remained of their faces enough to identify them. Four had been part of the caravan that had hired me. I couldn’t help but notice that one man was Rueln’s sentry partner. The poor man, and another was... Fayr. He had died with a sword in his hand, three of the four bandits dead around him. An axe had taken him from behind.
Someone had burned the wagons, leaving only charred remains behind. We searched for signs of everyone else, but we didn’t find anymore bodies. It gave me hope that the children, at least, were alive. Although the slave trade was illegal, it wasn’t unheard of on the black market and two healthy boys would be worth good coin to the right person.
I turned to the men and women I hired, my eyes hard and my hand on my sword. “Who here knows how to track?”