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The Wayfinder's Apprentice (Shadows of the Umbra Book 1) Page 10


  Edward raised a hand to the one eating his shoulder, and the invisible force caused its head to burst, then he impaled the other through the back with his sword. However, his strength reached its limits, and he collapsed. The impaled one continued to drag itself on top of him. At least four more were on their way over.

  “Kyan, help me save him!” Rose called out, hoping for his aid.

  With a flash of blue fire, Kyan appeared, jetting up from the ground, slashing at one of the oncoming monsters. They tried to grab at him, but he danced out of their reach.

  Rose rushed to Edward’s side, the monster still determined to reach him despite the sword slowing it down. She grabbed the sword and pulled up with intent to finish the job. Then she heard a voice in her head. ‘Who Are You?’ Rose was so startled she nearly dropped the sword in surprise.

  “Uh…” She was unable to find the words to reply.

  ‘Never Mind,’ the voice said. ‘Kill It!’

  "Uh, right!" She took careful aim and stabbed down at the monster, running it through the head and narrowly missing Edward. She pulled out the sword and rolled the dead creature off him. He looked badly hurt and unconscious.

  "Lawrence?" Rose called out. "Lawrence, I need your help!" She looked around, but couldn't find him anywhere. Had he really just left them?

  Before she could administer further aid, a guttural snarl sounded behind her. She looked to see the other monster had dislodged the rock. The right side of its face was mutilated but its left eye was still working, locked on her, as it advanced.

  She picked up the sword again. ‘Use The Gun!’ She heard the voice yell at her.

  "What gun?" she asked.

  ‘On His Belt!’

  Rose looked down at Edward and saw, sure enough, on his belt was a holster with a gun. She hurriedly grabbed it and chambered a round. Taking a deep, steadying breath, she carefully aimed and fired. The bullet hit the monster in the head, spraying black goo as bits of its face flew apart. It fell over dead.

  Thank goodness Macklass and I learned how to shoot. She’d been reluctant to the idea at first, but she’d enjoyed the alone time it brought them.

  Heart pounding, hands shaking, Rose collapsed on her knees beside Edward. The acrid smell of the monster goo mixed with the pungent, coppery smell of blood was becoming overwhelming. Kyan had managed to fell one of the monsters, but she knew he couldn’t keep the others busy forever.

  Rose leaned over Edward and began fervently smacking his cheek. “Edward, wake up!”

  His eyes snapped open and his hand closed in a vice grip around her arm. He took in a deep, gasping breath as he stared up at her, looking both startled and confused. “Rose?”

  Kyan yelled and Rose looked to see one of the monsters shambling towards them. Kyan intervened, catching it in the side with his claws, the blue fire dimming. "Run!" He shouted at her.

  The two other creatures he had been fighting attacked from behind, one catching a hold of his arm, the other rending into his back as it sank its head down and started biting.

  "Kyan!" Rose shouted.

  "RUN!" He bellowed, his eyes a flurry of red.

  Rose turned to Edward, who grabbed her and pulled her down on top of him. His hand slapped the ground and there was a flash of blue light, then they were falling.

  ************

  The fall was a short one, and they dropped out of the air and back onto the ground in the middle of the woods. It looked very similar to the woods Billy had guided Rose through not long ago. Rose picked herself off of Edward who was once more unconscious, his hands dark and blackened.

  Heart pounding, Rose glanced all around, making sure there were no other monsters ready to jump at them. The forest was eerily silent, and there were no signs of movement.

  “Kyan?” she called out.

  No answer.

  “Kyan,” she tried, again, more insistent this time.

  Nothing.

  A soft sob released from her throat, and her stomach finally lost the battle. She vomited onto the grass. She gagged and coughed a few times until her stomach emptied itself. Once she was finished, she felt better, but not by much.

  Rose turned back to Edward. She realized she was still holding his gun and set it down beside him. Then she shrugged off her backpack and dug out the first aid kit. She wasn’t certain how bad the injuries were, but if she didn’t do something, he was sure to bleed out.

  She began cutting away the fabric and cleaning the wounds, soaking up the blood with gauze and bandaging them. However, halfway through, she watched as one of the smaller cuts sealed itself together until it was no longer visible. In fact, all of his wounds were miraculously healing right before her eyes. The skin was stitching itself together and reforming. Even the burns on his hands were slowly fading, revealing healthy flesh.

  Edward groaned and sat up, still covered in blood, but very much alive, conscious and, as near as she could tell, unharmed.

  "You're okay," she said in amazement. Even though she had seen his strange and miraculous healing before, it was remarkable to see just how effective it was against such fatal-looking injuries.

  Edward didn't answer. His eyes were scanning the area, searching for any further threats. Finding none, he wordlessly picked up his gun. He examined it for a moment before putting it back in its holster. Then he picked up the sword. Apparently that had come through with them as well.

  "Sorry about that," he murmured, and Rose was fairly certain he was addressing the sword and not her. He wiped the dark blood off it and placed it in a sheath on his back.

  “You… are Edward, aren’t you?” Rose asked tentatively. Somehow he was very different from what she remembered. Fuller, healthier, and while he was still lithe, his body seemed far more toned and muscular.

  He met her gaze. “It’s been a while, Rose.”

  “What are you talking about?” Rose asked him. “We saw each other maybe two hours ago.”

  His eyes darkened, and he glanced away from her. “Sometimes an hour for someone is a lot longer to someone else.”

  Rose wasn’t sure what he meant by that. “You’re being awfully cryptic.”

  Edward didn’t answer, leaning against one of the trees for support. Even though physically he appeared fine, he looked exhausted.

  “Are you all right?” Rose asked.

  “I just need to restore my energies,” he muttered, closing his eyes.

  Rose got up and leaned on the tree beside him. “So… the talking sword is new,” she commented. “And the gun.”

  “A lot’s happened since we last saw each other,” he answered with a heavy sigh.

  Feeling frustrated, Rose tugged at a strand of her hair, the pain of it helping to ground her. Fine, if he was going to give her the runaround, she wouldn’t bother… As her hand came away from her hair, it was covered in dark ooze. Her hands, her clothes, it was all over. Her body shook as she felt cold and yet she was sweating. Her breathing was coming in short gasps and her heart felt like it was trying to escape her ribcage.

  She looked around, hoping to see or feel the reassuring presence of Kyan, but there was still no sign of him. Her eyes drifted to Edward, who was looking at her, eyes questioning. Maybe even… concerned? It was a small comfort. A reminder she wasn't completely alone. She remembered his words in the alleyway. You’re not alone. I’m right here.

  Taking a deep breath, she asked, "Do you know anything about Guardians?"

  "A little, but not much."

  "Would I... Would I have a way of knowing if mine is..." She couldn't bring herself to say it. She didn’t even want to think it.

  "I couldn't say," Edward told her. "I don’t know much about creatures from other planes."

  Now that the adrenaline was dying down, Rose felt heavy, buried under the overwhelming sadness and guilt she was feeling. Kyan being overrun replaying in her mind. Wondering if she had moved faster or gotten to Edward sooner, would that have made a difference?

  And what happened
to Kyan? He’d always been with her, looking out for her, even though maybe initially he hadn’t even wanted to. The idea of him being gone after all these years was unbearable.

  “You weren’t supposed to be at that camp,” Edward said.

  “Don’t blame me. I was brought there to meet with Dimitri,” she answered readily, wanting a distraction from more painful thoughts. “Why were you there?”

  “I was helping a handful of stragglers escape. I would've been fine if that monstrosity hadn’t gotten my throat.”

  Rose gave a small shudder, trying not to remember that. “I knew something was weird with you, but I couldn’t figure it out.” She looked up at him. “Back on Earth, you recovered from jumping off a building. And you’ve mana burned yourself several times, but acted like it was nothing. How is it you’re able to recover from injuries so fast?”

  Glancing down at her, he held up one of his hands and waggled his fingers. “Magic,” he answered with a completely straight face.

  Rose let out a snort, half wanting to laugh and half wanting to cry. She turned away from him, pulling her hood up to hide her face. “Fine, don’t tell me.” She packed up the first aid kit and slung her bag over her shoulder.

  A breeze was beginning to pick up, and she thought she smelled something bitter on the wind. It wasn’t a smell she was familiar with. That’s when she noticed that, not far from them, the trees quickly thinned out, and she thought she could see buildings.

  “I think there’s a town, or village, that way.” She pointed to it.

  Edward looked, then grimaced. “There was.” When she only stared in confusion, he sighed, then pushed himself off the tree. “Stay close.”

  Rose walked alongside him, doing her best to tread lightly and make as little noise as possible. As they drew closer, a scene of tragedy unfolded before her eyes.

  What had been a village was completely deserted. Houses and buildings had been burnt down, and those still standing were no longer inhabitable. The ground was stained with dried blood, but there were no signs of corpses.

  Nearby was a large stone statue that had been overturned. Rose gasped as she recognized it. It was the depiction of a small woman, a gnome, riding a wild hog. Rose had been through this town before, with Vincent and his company. She couldn’t remember why the statue had been made, but she remembered as a child seeing it and finding the idea of riding a pig to be fun, and something she should absolutely try someday. She remembered meeting several people, some taller than her, but others that were her size.

  There had been a market stall where colorful bugs were being sold as jewelry, and Rose had been both horrified and intrigued by the gold painted spider adorning the stall owner’s shirt. The town had been so bright, so lively then. Now, it was reduced to blood and ash.

  “You’re shaking,” Edward said.

  His voice momentarily startled her, but she quickly said, “I’m fine.”

  He gave her a skeptical look that clearly said, ‘Are you really?’

  Rose sniffed, wiping away a couple tears that managed to leak out. The possible loss of Kyan had been bad enough. Seeing this made her feel like she’d also lost a precious childhood memory.

  “Maybe not,” she admitted. “But sometimes it helps to say I am.” She swallowed, then asked, “What happened here?”

  “Same thing that happened to the camp,” Edward said, his expression grim. “This village was attacked. Most were able to escape. The encampment was set up to help the remaining refugees, but…” He sighed heavily. “They’ve all but scattered at this point.”

  “I see.” It seemed a lot had changed while she was gone. The Umbra she remembered had been full of wonders, not rife with troubles.

  The two of them fell into another stretch of silence. Once more, Edward was the one to break it. “We shouldn’t linger here. We need to go.”

  She nodded, eager to leave such a grim setting. “Where are we going?”

  “Dimitri’s castle.”

  Chapter 8

  Just as Vincent had predicted, it took roughly a month of travel. It was easily the best month of Rose’s life. Being the precocious twelve year old that she was, everything was new and exciting. She got to see wondrous things and meet new and fascinating people, none of them human. Because apparently, humans didn’t exist in this world.

  Each day she got to spend with Vincent, Seylvin, Lara, and Kog. She spoke with them, laughed with them, told them stories of her world, while they in turn regaled her with tales of battles they’d fought with beasts and bandits. They told her of magic, and Vincent, the only one of the group who was a practitioner of the arts, would happily demonstrate his ability, ruffling her hair with a gust of wind, or starting a campfire by conjuring up flames in his hands.

  Seylvin’s singing never got better, but she grew fond of it. He even told her about the plantlife, like Fae Fire, which was the glowing fungus she’d seen before. It released spores that clung onto surfaces, so if an animal stumbled into one, predators could easily pick it out in the darkness.

  On the few occasions they were attacked by the wildlife -nothing nearly as scary as the bear-cat, thank goodness- Lara was always the first one into the fight. She was also really good at hunting. Kog showed Rose how to skin a rabbit -oddly enough the rabbits in the Umbra had horns and were large-. It took a few times for her to get over her nausea, but eventually she was able to watch him and only feel a little icky.

  The burning man didn’t show up again, and Rose had to wonder who he was and why he’d helped her. She had her suspicions, but couldn’t be sure. His presence had felt familiar though, like an old friend. When she’d asked her four companions if they knew of any creatures that burned with blue flames, none of them seemed to know anything. So, she eventually put it from her mind and tried not to worry about it.

  Being with the four of them, Rose couldn’t remember being happier, and she found herself not terribly eager about going back to Earth. However, at the end of the month, they arrived at the place she’d come to know as Dimitri’s castle.

  Rose was sound asleep inside the wagon when she was awoken with the announcement they had arrived. She wasn’t even given any time to explore. As soon as the wagon was parked in the courtyard, Vincent escorted her straight inside. It was about what she expected from a castle; stone walls and floors, wooden doors, and burning torches on the walls for lighting. Vincent took her up a spiral stone staircase, then down a long hallway, stopping at a door.

  He knocked on the door, and a stuttering voice gave him permission to enter. Stepping inside, he gave a theatrical bow to the people present.

  “Good day to you all! Pardon my intrusion, but we have a guest.” He stepped aside, waving a hand to Rose who stood stiffly in the doorway, feeling both awkward and nervous.

  There were many people in the room, and nearly all of them looked strange. A hairy figure who appeared more wolf than man, his fur jet black with patterns of dark brown, and amber eyes. A large, rotund man whose skin appeared yellow and whose arms and legs were thick with muscle. His eyes were dark and beady, but not unkind. Then there was a smaller man, stocky with thick, round spectacles and a well groomed beard.

  The only one who didn’t look strange to her was an older man with gray and white hair, and a long beard. They were all sitting around a large table in the middle of a discussion, before she and Vincent had interrupted.

  The old man stood up and approached them. He looked at Rose for several moments.

  "Hm..." His hands suddenly came up. "Boo!"

  Rose flinched in spite of herself.

  The man laughed croakily. "My apologies, my dear. I was just having some fun." His voice was deep, but also soft and airy. "My name is Dimitri. And you are?"

  "Rose... sir," she said, giving a slight bow.

  "A pleasure to meet you, Rose.”

  Rose glanced around the room. There were a lot of people, and all of them were staring at her. It made her want to disappear into the floor.

/>   Vincent must have sensed her discomfort because he said, "Don't let these barbarians scare you, Rose. They don’t bite. Well, Lymore might."

  The wolf-man gave a loud snarl that caused Rose to take a quick side step behind Vincent. The elf chuckled, as if this was a perfectly normal thing. The wolf-man, whom Rose assumed was Lymore, stepped forward and she tensed, readying herself for whatever scare or injury was to come. He leaned forward and began sniffing loudly, his furry muzzle inches away from her. He huffed, sending a breeze of hot air in her direction and straightened up. He was so tall, and the unfriendly scowl he bore made him even more scary looking.

  “Human,” he muttered, his voice carrying the undercurrent of a growl.

  “Lymore, please, you’re scaring the child,” Dimitri said calmly.

  Lymore gave another huff and stalked past them and out the door. Rose’s gaze followed him, and even after he left, she was on high alert.

  “It’s all right, my dear,” Dimitri told her. “You’re quite safe here. Please, allow me to introduce you.” He gestured to the large man. "This is Addrick, don't let his size intimidate you. That gentleman over there," he pointed towards the back of the room to a man Rose hadn't noticed until now. Like Addrick, he was large, but he was on the leaner side, and his skin was dark green. She also noticed small tusks protruding from his upper lip similar to Kog. "That is Marrik." He lowered his voice. "Probably best to avoid talking to him, he's a bit touchy."

  Rose gave a silent nod in response.

  "And then this is Vindo," he said, gesturing to the smaller, bearded man with glasses and ruddy complexion.

  Rose stood awkwardly, not fully meeting anyone's gaze. She wasn’t used to having the attention of so many people on her at once. At least not strangers. She stayed close to Vincent, his warm smile and comforting aura helping to relax her.

  "Dimitri," Addrick spoke up. "Have a look at her. Do you see it?"

  "Let's see..." Dimitri looked closely at Rose. "Ah, yes. How interesting. Yes, very interesting."

  "What is?" Rose asked nervously.