Authors: Ardyth DeBruyn
“It’s a fake! You’ve got the real one. That’s weird!” She turned and held out her hand, helping Austyn to his feet.
He held the sword with both hands and swung it a couple of times. “Wow! My own sword.” But his face clouded again. “I hope the lady’s okay.”
“I’m sure she’s fine,” Reina said quickly. “She was just there to test your chivalry. And you know, it’s a good thing it was your test, not mine, because she got on my nerves, and I don’t know that I would have helped her like you did. So you really did it! You passed your own test.”
Austyn beamed at her. “I did!” he shouted. Then he grew more serious. “She was just lonely. If you’d stopped to really look at her, you would have been nice to her, too, Reina.”
Reina just nodded and didn’t comment, thankful the annoying lady was no longer there. She could just imagine what a disastrous combination the lady and the Gold Wizard would have been.
“Come on. Let’s get back to the Gold Wizard, before it gets dark.”
They wound their way back down the hill and through the now darkening marble room, back to the cave. The water from the entrance reflected moving patterns across the cave wall—and across the Gold Wizard, who sat on a rock with his eyes closed. He looked more peaceful than Reina had ever seen him.
“I did it! I did it!” Austyn waved the sword back and forth as he dashed up to the Gold Wizard.
The Gold Wizard congratulated him. Reina stiffened and bit her lip. Part of her wanted to yell that she’d done most of the hauling of the stupid lady, but if she did, the Gold Wizard would just light into her over having helped at all. She gripped the Unicorn Sword so tight it cut into her palm. Reina looked away from them to the entrance to the cave. Water still dripped down in front of it in a quiet pattering, soothing her feelings. She walked over to it and held her hand out under the water. Cool drops landed on her palm, and she put her fingers into one of the constant streams, feeling the flow of the water.
Beyond the water, she glimpsed hills and fields. The air had turned colder, and the sky was getting dark.
After a few minutes, Austyn joined her, looking radiant. “We’re going to win, aren’t we?”
Reina put a hand on his shoulder, her jealousy dissipating. “Of course. And after the Red Wizard is defeated, Mama and Papa and all the village, and all the other villages, even Port Town in the south, will gather at the castle to hear our story…. “And just like that, she got caught up again in making a story out of what might happen if all went well. Austyn looked up at her, soaking in every word. It seemed just like old times back home, and Reina filled with warmth.
“We should get going.” The Gold Wizard’s voice broke into the silence when she had finished the story. She almost jumped; she hadn’t realized he was listening.
She turned to him, surprised. While she’d told the story, night had come, cloaking the rolling hills before them in darkness. The moonlight reflecting off of the water dimly lit the wizard’s face.
“If we travel by night, we can avoid the harpies,” the Gold Wizard continued. “I know you both must be tired, but it would be safer to travel by night and hide during the day. Otherwise, the Red Wizard will know we are coming and send out his creatures to attack us.”
Reina nodded. This was the most sensible plan she’d heard from him yet. Then she realized he might not see her agreement in the dark. “Yes,” she said. “We can travel tonight for a while. It’s a good idea.”
The Gold Wizard stepped through the waterfall, and, taking Austyn’s hand, Reina followed him. The night was warm down here, unlike in the mountains. A half-moon shone brightly above them, and while they traveled pleasantly in silence, they could see easily. Reina hummed to herself quietly, swinging Austyn’s hand back and forth while they traveled. For a while, it felt like walking in a magical dream.
As the night wore on, she grew more and more tired, until she could barely drag one foot ahead of the other. The Gold Wizard ended up carrying Austyn, whose head lay across his shoulder and peacefully slept away. Finally, the Gold Wizard found them a grove of bushes to hide in, and they went to sleep.
On and off, Reina woke during the day and peeked out at the countryside around them. Sometimes, she glimpsed the dark shape of harpies flying across the sky, but the creatures didn’t notice them. They journeyed several nights in this manner towards the Red Wizard’s castle.
The hills flattened out, and the farms increased. They tried to avoid them, since the dogs would bark if they trod too closely to the farmhouses. Tree cover grew scarcer, but the Gold Wizard seemed to know this area and found them shelter every dawn. One night, they passed by a larger village, and Reina gazed longingly at the fires and lights that made her think of home.
“We can’t trust the towns,” the Gold Wizard explained when he saw her looking wistfully at it. “The Red Wizard has spies everywhere.”
“People would tell him about us?” It shocked Reina that someone could do that to another person.
The Gold Wizard nodded grimly. “Some of them for money, but others he makes his servants with threats. They would do so to try and protect themselves or their families.”
Sadly, Reina turned away from the comforting lights of the town and walked on. She sighed and looked up at the many stars above them, distant lights. They seemed so far away, like the lights of a far-off village, calling them to come home. She thought of her parents, how her mother liked to laugh at her jokes while cooking over the fire, how her father would tell her stories in the evenings. And she thought for the first time in a long time of Kylen, Lilia, and Bryan. She wondered what sort of trouble Kylen might be getting into, what new clothes Lilia might have sewn with her mother, or if harpies had found and taken all of them.
She grew so wrapped up in her thoughts that she didn’t notice the dark shape flying between her and the stars until it came quite close. She threw herself to one side as sharp claws hissed by the side of her head. The Gold Wizard, off to her left, gave a cry, and Reina scrambled to her feet again. Several more dark shapes moved across the backdrop of the stars. She drew the Unicorn Sword.
“Austyn, use your sword, keep them away!”
Two creatures swooped at her. The sharp claws had seemed very much like harpy claws, but as the animals neared, she realized they weren’t the right shape for harpies. They had smaller heads with sharp beaks, like a bird, but something was wrong with their wings. She couldn’t see properly, because of the dark and having to concentrate on keeping them from hurting her. She slashed at them, forcing them to flap backwards. One slipped in front of the moon, revealing its wings were not feathered, but leathery, like bat wings.
“Bathawks!” called the Gold Wizard.
A bathawk dove straight down at her, another at her side. The unicorn sword jerked her arm upwards at the very last second, and the bathawk above her pulled up and flew past her. The Unicorn Sword swung her around just in time to cut into another bathawk, seconds before its claws would have struck her. The sword cut it down, and the creature fell to the ground with a strange shrieking noise.
Austyn yelled, and Reina turned just in time to see a bathawk dodge his sword and rake him across the shoulder. She winced. Apparently, the Sword of Chivalry didn’t help Austyn move the way Unicorn Sword did for her. She jumped forward, and the Unicorn Sword guided her stroke to cut down another bathawk diving at him.
“My shoulder hurts,” Austyn said, blinking back tears.
“If I stand next to you, we can do this together,” Reina said, blocking another attack.
Austyn sniffed and swung wildly at the bathawks, missing them completely, but forcing them to back off.
There came a bright flash of light and fireballs exploding into the air, driving more bathawks away with their high-pitched, squeaking calls. It appeared the Gold Wizard’s spell had worked properly, although the flash of light made everything seem darker afterwards. Spots flickered in front of Reina’s eyes. Only the Unicorn Sword pulling her arm forward let her protect her and Austyn from the next attack; she couldn’t see a thing.
Austyn screamed and ducked, forgetting about using his sword, and Reina jumped in front of him, trusting her sword to show her when to block. The sword flashed forward and sideways with lightning speed. With another crack, gold light erupted from the Gold Wizard. Balls of fire skyrocketed in every direction. Reina pushed Austyn flat as she threw herself to the ground. A fireball sizzled right by her head, singeing her hair.
“Stop it!” she shouted at the Gold Wizard. “You’re going to kill us!”
Another bathawk came screeching out of the sky at them, and, unable to get up in time, Reina, rolled while still holding onto Austyn. Clutching their swords above their heads and thus clear of each other, their other arm around each other’s body, they tumbled down the hill. Reina scrambled to her feet and picked up her sword, scanning the sky for more bathawks. She saw something fly past the moon and realized there was an entire flock flying towards them.
“Let’s run,” she said, catching Austyn’s arm. “We need somewhere not so open.”
They dashed across the field in front of them. Reina noticed the glow of a town ahead of them. She didn’t care anymore about staying hidden and headed towards it. The Red Wizard had already found them—the bathawks would tell him their location. They needed cover.
But the creatures’ approach forced her to stop, halfway across the field, and turn to meet the first onslaught. Four bathawks dove at her, three at Austyn. The Unicorn Sword flashed out, driving them back. Austyn turned, holding his sword high, and white light flashed from it. The bathawks screeched in dismay. Light burst outwards from the sword, making the bathawks fall from the sky into the field with a series of thumps.
Reina didn’t know if they were dead or only unconscious, but she didn’t want to wait to find out. The paling horizon in the east showed more bathawks flying towards them.
“Good magic, Austyn,” she panted. “Let’s get to that town.” They turned and dashed onward.
Light shone from a doorway ahead, the first house in the town. A figure stood in it, waving at them. “Over here!” it shouted.
Reina changed course, racing towards the door. She dashed through it, Austyn right behind her, and the man slammed it shut just in time. She heard claws slash at the door and the frustrated shrieks of the bathawks. She collapsed on a wooden floor, trying to catch her breath. The door burst open, knocking the person standing by it aside, and Reina glanced up. The Gold Wizard ran through.
“What were you thinking?” he gasped.
“I’m only trying to help you,” a strange, rough voice said. A man with a dark beard dusted off his shirt as he regained his feet.
The Gold Wizard glared at him. “Why should I trust you?”
“Because I just helped those children escape the bathawks,” the man snapped. His face grew angry. “Last night they took my Tyler. I’m tired of standing by while they rob us of our children. Tomorrow, I and those of this village who stand with me plan to attack the Red Wizard.”
Reina gaped at him.
The man gave her a sympathetic look. “I know it’s suicide, but we had no warning. They took all eleven children. If I can’t rescue my Tyler, at least I can die trying!”
The Gold Wizard’s whole expression changed. “Sir, that’s exactly what we need!”
The man wrinkled his brow.
“This,” the Gold Wizard pointed dramatically at Austyn, “is the Child Warrior. All we need is something to distract the Red Wizard while we break into his fortress and destroy his heart. We will go with you, and with all luck, Austyn will end the Red Wizard’s reign for good. Perhaps it’s not too late to save the children!”
“Then let’s go at once. The bathawks will retreat at the first light of the sun, but the harpies will show up for you soon enough. Wait here—I’ll be back in a moment.”
The man rushed from the room, and Austyn slumped to the floor with a little groan. Reina remembered his shoulder and bent down with a gasp.
“I’m okay,” Austyn said in a quiet voice, but he yelped when Reina tried to look at it.
“Let me do that,” the Gold Wizard said, taking out some bandages. He frowned as he spread some cream on the scratches. “It’s not deep—you should be fine.” His worried expression didn’t match his words. Reina tried looking around him but couldn’t get a good view. When he finished, she followed him, with the intent of cornering him on the subject.
“Is he really all right?” she asked him in a whisper. “And don’t you try lying to me.”
The Gold Wizard sighed, and then grinned at her. “I haven’t lied to you yet, Reina.” He shook his head. “His shoulder’s fine, but I’m just worried, because it’s unlucky to go into battle already wounded.” He held up his hands to stop her protest. “No, he’s not going into a battle if we can help it, but you never know what might happen when facing the Red Wizard himself.”
Reina gave him a stern look. “So why are we doing this?”
“There isn’t another way. We have to try! You heard that villager—they took eleven children! That’s the most they’ve ever found at once. He’s getting better at finding them, and worse, now he’s just doing it to be cruel because he knows I’ve got the real Child Warrior with me.”
“What if this is a trap?”
The Gold Wizard shrugged. “Seeing as he knows where we are, what else can we do?”
That sounded illogical to Reina, but the villager returned at that moment. “It’s dawn. We’re ready to go after our children. Are you still coming?”
Reina turned to see that the sun had indeed broken over the horizon. It looked like the beginning of a beautiful day, but her stomach felt like lead. No matter what the Gold Wizard might say, this would be the most dangerous thing they had done yet. Her hand tightened around the Unicorn Sword.
Austyn is destined to do this. Everything will be fine.
But at this moment, the prophecy did not comfort her.
What do prophecies really know, anyway?
It never said in the prophecy that they’d be fine afterwards, only that the Red Wizard would die.