Oath and Kingdom [The Swordbreaker Archives]

Chapter 36: A Plan of Action

Amrila and Maylorn made their way through the forest.  Amrila seemed to be at ease, she must have been familiar with these woods.  They were pretty far north now, near a road that lead to the citadel from the north, as Amrila described.
Vespera flew below the branches of the trees, many of them high over their heads.  Maylorn began to notice the trees here were getting larger and larger, as if the forest here was much older.
At the same time, he realized Amrila was growing tired.
"Why do you seem tired all of a sudden," Maylorn asked her when her horse slowed enough for him to draw ahead.
She looked at him, surprised she fell so far behind.  "I have to consistently use my magic here."
"Why?"
Amrila sighed.  "This forest was already full of demons before Tennet released the others.  They are a different kind of demon though."
"What do you mean?"
Amrila looked somber.  "They were attracted here by a massacre.  They like to torture souls."
Maylorn felt his stomach drop in fear.  "So you are using your magic to keep them away?"
Amrila nodded.  "I came here as a child when we went to Haendar.  Everyone was plagued with horrifying visions and things following them that they could not see.  Except me.  They left me alone, at least in that sense.  They would try to talk to me, knowing I could somewhat understand them."
"That is a lot for a child," Maylorn stated.  "How did you deal with it?"
"Not well.  Just before that, I was traumatized by one.  But they were attracted to me my entire life.  I still do not know why, but many suspect it is because of my lineage.  That somehow that ability skipped a bunch of generations but I was born with it."
Maylorn was surprised.  "So, in other words, no one alive knows how to help you?"
She nodded.  "And no I do not think I can talk to my ancestors about it.  They are long dead, and souls rarely remain that long."
He watched her eyes begin to droop.  He could sense how much her magic drained her.  "Say, how about you stop and rest and I will hunt for our next meal."
Amrila nodded in agreement.  "I will keep the spell going.  Just do not wander too far, or you my find yourself stuck."
Maylorn nodded, taking her bow and arrows from her.  He dismounted as she stopped the horses, dismounting and tying them to a tree.
He wandered around for a while, feeling Amrila's magic with him.  Vespera followed him, ensuring she could sense where he was.
It took a little time for Maylorn to spot something, but finally an animal appeared up in the low tree branches.  Some sort of cat, about the size of a wolf.  Maylorn pulled back on the bowstring and aimed, quickly releasing the arrow knowing the cat would suspect their presence.
It connected with the cat's head, slicing through it.  The cat collapsed on the ground, another small animal following.  It was torn apart and bloody.  The cat's prey.
Vespera flew up to it and took the small animal, swallowing it whole.  Maylorn took the cat, throwing it over his shoulder and made his way back to where Amrila was making camp.
The low sunlight offered a little warmth in the waning day as Amrila made a small fire.  She looked dazed, exhausted by the consistent use of magic.
Maylorn threw the cat down and took out his knife, gutting the cat quickly.
Amrila looked up at him.  "I am surprised you managed to take down a panther.  They are usually aware of you before you are of them."
"It was eating," Maylorn replied.  He quickly dressed the cat and prepped it for cooking.  Amrila still looked impressed.
They watched the fire quietly as the sun set.  It was difficult to see through the top of the trees, some leaves remaining on the higher branches.  Yellows and oranges created the canopy above.
"These trees are mostly dormant, but they are large enough that they retain some heat from the summer months in their roots and can absorb a lot more rays of the sun than normal trees," Amrila stated as she watched Maylorn study the forest.
"Is this the only place they grow?" Maylorn asked.
"Yes.  They have been alive longer than anyone can remember.  They grow from here all the way up to Tunturi and to the edge of Callmandonia.  My home is within the trees.  Our main hall is in the oldest tree, so big it can conceal an entire city within its trunk."
"And do you?"
Amrila shrugged.  "Some of it.  We have also expanded beneath it and into the neighboring trees.  It is our main hub, where the people gather.  No one lives within it except for the royal families and their guards."
"So, why does no one else live in this forest?  I mean, numerous Animus would thrive in a place like this."
"They were driven out by Orcs ages ago and never returned.  There were Aves, Felid, and Haplor living here before.  Then-"
She suddenly stopped, her mind buzzing with thoughts.
"Then what?"
She sighed.  "Numen lived here.  For almost one hundred years.  They were attacked and murdered.  That's why the forest is filled with spirits and shadows.  They are mourning them, and trying to help them move on from what I believe."
"But that was over one hundred years ago."
"I know." Her mouth drew into a tight line.  "The Numen were hurt by betrayal.  It takes a long time to get over something like that.  The world hated them without reason."
Maylorn nodded.  "A lot of people believed they would turn on us."
"What do you believe?" Amrila looked up at Maylorn with a serious look.  As if she was testing him, but also curious about how he felt about them.  As someone who never knew the Numen, but knew war, he could see things differently than she did.
"They were wronged.  From things I have heard, a lot of people believed they were rather stupid.  I do not think that.  I think they were kind at the very least, and wanted to coexist with the world.  Unfortunately, the knowledge people understood they had in their homeland posed a threat to the North, and the North convinced the rest of the world that they were dangerous."
Amrila released a breath.  Maylorn had not realized she was holding one.  He watched the tension flow out of her.  "A lot of people assume things about them.  I have had the privilege of learning some of their history, and I have seen their kindness and want to help anyone they can.  Sure, they had more technological advances than we did, but they were not far ahead of us.  In fact, if we went down the same path ages ago, we would all be equals."
"The same path.  What do you mean?"
"If we all listened to what our world had to offer.  It is just being noticed now by the scholar community."
"Because of your Numen friend?"
She nodded.
"Do you think people will eventually realize how wrong they are?"
She shook her head.  "Unfortunately, many societies see everyone else is wrong.  Even the scholars are not able to convince people otherwise.  But still, if we can convince other scholars, then maybe the scholars can advance the world a little further."
Vespera squawked loudly at the fire.  Maylorn looked to where she was pointing with her beak, and quickly shifted closer, grabbing the meat from the fire before it burned.
He offered Amrila a piece of it, and took some for himself, letting the remaining meat cool on his blanket.
"So," Maylorn tried to break through the sudden silence as they ate.  "Have you learned anything from the book?"
Amrila chewed on the meat and swallowed.  "A little.  There is one demon in particular I think they may try to summon.  It explains why they are stealing children."
"What is it?"
Amrila took another bite of meat, taking her time to chew and swallow it before answering.  "They called it Gideon's Child."
"What?" Maylorn stared at her, baffled.
"There is another name for it, which it cals itself, but trying to pronounce it is hard enough.  They called it Gideon's Child because Gideon was the necromancer who summoned it.  With his own children."
"Oh." The thought send a shiver up Maylorn's spine.
"The demon is believed to be able to bring back the dead.  But of course, it requires a soul for a soul."
"I expect nothing less of a child eater," Maylorn tried to make light of the thought, but it still haunted him.
"But, I am still confused.  It is not the same demon described to be summoned in that forest before."
"Which demon is that?"
"It is called Venhilith, or The Cursed One.  It brings destruction."
"Do you suppose that is why?  They are not really looking to destroy anything."
Amrila nodded.  "I suppose not in a literal sense.  If I knew more about what they were actually doing to start this prophecy, then maybe we would have a better chance of stopping them and sending the demon back."
"I think we can stop them, no matter what it is they bring into this world."
Amrila sighed.  "I hope so.  Our path from here is going to be dangerous.  I cannot keep the spirits from following us there.  They will know what is happening."
"Then let them come.  I know you do not wish to put me in danger, but you will have to sleep sometime."
She nodded.  "I already planned for that.  I set a perimeter around the camp.  I stopped using my magic a little while ago."
She looked beyond Maylorn in the darkness.  He turned, seeing a shadow lurking a few feet away.  It was human-shaped, but tall and leaning to one side.  Almost like an animal preparing to pounce on prey.
"That is not. Like the ones we have seen before," Maylorn stated.
"Its a Numen spirit.  Possibly morphed with one of the shadows."
"How do you know?"
"I have seen Numen," She said as a matter of fact, but he could sense the amusement in her voice.  "It has the same stature as one."
Maylorn took a deep breath, turning back around and willing himself not to look around them.  "How long will it last?"
"Until something breaks it.  It is unlikely without any wind or animals around.  As long as you do not sleep walk near it."
Maylorn's brows furrowed.  She smiled, throwing blankets over herself as she prepared for some sleep.  "You should rest now, before you get bombarded with terrors."
Maylorn grumbled, pulling a blanket over himself.  He closed his eyes, allowing the fire to warm his face a bit longer before falling asleep.

When he woke the next morning, Amrila was already awake.  She was packing away most of the meat, but she left some on the blanket for him.  Maylorn quickly took it and ate it, trying to rid himself of the grogginess.
As he ate, he realized they were now surrounded by shadows and spirits curiously watching them.
"I can give us a little time before it is too exhausting to fight them off," Amrila stated.  "Maybe a few hours at most, but we can make the most of it, and rest after."
"We cannot keep going like that though. Will we make it in time?"
Amrila looked at him, confused. "Of course.  They do not have the same abilities I do, so I am sure it will take them some time to get there.  At this pace, we will get there in a few days."
"So, go a few hours, take a nap, go a few hours, eat something, go a few hours then rest for the night.  Is that what our pace is?"
"Pretty much." She smiled.  "But we will go fast when we are on the move.  I have a feeling a storm will come through soon."
"That's great." Maylorn quickly packed his bags and readied his horse, mounting before Amrila finished.  "So, how much of this stuff do you have?  How long until we run out?"
"About a week at most," Amrila stated as she climbed on her horse.  "Now let's go."
They were off, running at intense speeds.  They ran in silence for a long time, focused on their path ahead.  Maylorn could see the shadows and spirits within the forest, some following and some watching them.  They seemed attracted to the pair of them, but kept their distance as Amrila warded them off.
They followed them for quite some time at inhuman speed.  Watching these things was like being caught in a nightmare.
Until it was.
Amrila's horse slowed in front of him and Amrila collapsed to the ground, unconscious.  Maylorn dismounted and rushed to her, but the spirits got to her first, trying to protect her from Maylorn.
That's when the shrill sounds started.  Screams and moans so terrifying, it knocked Maylorn to his knees and the horses ran for it.
Maylorn willed himself to move closer to Amrila and shake her shoulders.  The screams tore into him, making him feel small as they cast themselves over him and between him and Amrila.
Their lack of faces made them even more terrifying.  They were like blank canvases.
Maylorn shook her again, this time hard.  She awoke, collected herself and pushed the spirits back.
"Holy shit," Maylorn turned to her, breathing hard as the pressure from the spirits released from him.  "Are you alright?"
Amrila inhaled, nodding.  "One of the more powerful spirits got through and knocked me out.  I am sorry."
Maylorn finally caught his breath.  "Do not apologize for that.  Something was going to happen eventually.  As long as you are okay to continue."
Amrila nodded, looking around them.  "Where are the horses?"
Maylorn pointed west.  "They went that way."
Maylorn helped her stand.  They made their way to the horses' tracks and found them a small ways out.  They stood up against a tree, eating some leaves that dipped low enough to reach.
"They got over that quickly," Maylorn stated.
Amrila looked panicked, "Uh, they probably should not be eating that."
"Why?"
"Its a fairy hole.  Notice how some of the moss is still green?  It means a group of fairies are living there."
Maylorn ran up to them and quickly pulled them away from the trees.  Even with their eating, they did not seem to disturb anything.
Maylorn returned to Amrila and they started on their journey again, stopping after they made it a few miles away from where the spirits attacked them.  "Let's stop for now.  I think we have had enough for a while."
As they tied up the horses and sat down by the trunk of a tree, Maylorn noticed how quiet Amrila had become.  She had not even looked at Maylorn since being attacked.
"What happened when you passed out?  You have been quiet."
She took a deep breath, then released it.  "It showed me how it died."
Maylorn stared at her, knowing she did not seek comfort, only understanding.
"There was a dragon.  It burned part of the forest.  Whatever Numen escaped death by their attackers died in the fire."