The uncontrollable power lurking beneath Princess Alethia's skin can either be the savior of the Four Kingdoms or its destruction.
Princess Alethia was raised on three principles: (1) Mercy is for the weak, (2) Emotions are an unwanted distraction...
A/N: Last part of Dunes of Death! Don't forget to vote, comment, and follow if you're feeling frisky :)
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Sephirah turned back in her saddle as they crossed through the open gate, spotting the Kantian man who was soaking wet along with the girl. The healers were gone, and he was standing alone near the perimeter of a dense forest. His face still had a permanent scowl. She was honestly surprised he had bothered waiting for them; she had half-expected him to leave.
Drawing back on the reins as she neared him, Sephirah brought her horse and the trailing one to a stop. Aydin followed her motions, his horses at her side. The Kantian man put the limp girl across the saddle of the horse tied to Sephirah.
"Is she alive?" She asked softly, looking at the girl's barely moving chest.
The man grunted before hurriedly moving toward the horse Aydin had untied from his own. Aydin threw the man a dark glare that was returned. Sephirah huffed out an irritated breath. "Let's go."
Behind them, a new round of corpses was coming after them. Sephirah clicked her tongue, and her bird took to the high skies. She pressed her heels against the sides of the horse, and they took off again. Sephirah kept the crossbow nocked and laid low in the saddle, chin pushing the horse's mount.
Branches of the trees snatched at her jumpsuit, ripping it open. Blood trailed down the shallow scratches, leaving a stinging sensation behind. Her vision was a hazy field of vivid green from the lush foliage and wavering brown as branches shifted. Sephirah tried to keep her breathing controlled, concentrating on not falling out of the saddle from the jolting motion of her horse.
In her peripheral vision, she noticed the girl sliding. Hastily, Sephirah risked leaning back in her saddle, grasping the girl's shirt. Aydin shot past on his horse as they zig-zagged through the trees. A loose branch nearly slapped her in the face, catching her forearm instead as she threw it up for protection. She tightened her grip on the crossbow, feeling it bend against the force of the branches.
The noise of the pursuing footsteps dimmed as they galloped ahead. Soon, the only sound was the thrashing of the leaves and the hooves of their horses. They crashed through the forest as if on a rampage.
They continued at full speed until the horses were slick with sweat, and their tongues lolled out of their mouths. Aydin pulled back on his reins. Sephirah followed suit, holding up a hand to indicate to the man behind them to do as well.
Aydin led them to a small clearing before sliding off his horse. His forehead gleamed with sweat, and he ran a hand through his white hair. Sephirah got down from her horse, a knot in the small of her back throbbing painfully. She stretched, twisting to one side and the other, bones popping in her back.
The Kantian man had stepped off his horse and was already lifting the girl out of the saddle. Sephirah looked away from him, propping the crossbow in a spot behind the pommel bag and laying the quiver sideways on top of it. She began taking off the saddle, the horse's head dipping toward the ground, large eyes moving around rapidly.
