The roaring continued and out of the corner of my eye, I saw Kade getting angry. He looked at me and shook his head.
"This is stupid," he mouthed. He wasn't the only one doubting the plan, I was nervous as hell but the solution we just accepted was probably the best one of all. If we were going to die, we might as well go down trying.
I shrugged over at him, only to gain an exasperated eye roll.
The stag settled down the crowd again and gained their attention. "So... I suppose you agree to the terms. Anyone who disagrees may leave," he announced. I felt so relieved when everyone stayed. "Great," the stag added, turning to me. "I leave it to you, goddess." He even gave me a small bow, which I happily did in return. Then with no other words, he sprung into the woods and disappeared among the darkness.
That's when I almost broke down. I don't know how to control these creatures! What if they turned on me?!
I only made eye contact with a few of them as I scanned the gathering... and none of them seemed flattering. Clearing my throat, I prepared for another short announcement.
"First of all, I would like to thank all of you for agreeing to this. Your determination is greatly appreciated by me and my colleagues. Also, I should go ahead and mention that Salazar plans to attack soon, possibly tomorrow or the day after. It is unsure so we need to always be on full alert. Our first objective is to free the great wizard Galendale from the angel warded castle that is less than a day's journey away, depending on how quick and long we move. We'll rest momentarily for tonight and then continue traveling later or very early in the morning. Sound good?"
A rumble of growling agreements went up. I smiled and clapped my hands together. "Alright! This is a very large crowd so we'll have to be considerate of each other and each other's space. No attacking one another or killing off a certain group. Save that energy for Salazar's army, okay?"
More agreements.
I nodded excitedly, even though I was mostly overwhelmed. "Let's get going then."
I slowly glanced at the wendigoes behind me and they somehow got the right idea. Scar took the lead and started to push through the crowd, clearing a narrow path for me and the others. Kade was directly behind me and I could already hear him leaning over. "There's no way you can control all of these creatures. Supernaturals aren't as obedient as you think." I turned around and started walking backward, smiling up at him mischievously.
"Trust me... I've noticed," I whispered. I saw his hidden smile but he tried to hide it with another eye roll. "Freelancer... it's about time you see what an Astor can do." He accidentally let his smile show and bit his lip.
"I've seen what an Astor can do," he whispered seductively. I giggled slightly and winked at him.
"No, you haven't," I whispered back, turning around again so he couldn't think of a smarter reply.
"Bella, I have to give you credit... you're honestly badass," Maeve claimed as she ran up to me. She eyed the crowd following us, creatures crawling on trees, some low to the ground, some even flying. Others looked more like humans and walked normally. Watching them gave me strange excitement.
"I really don't know how that little speech even worked. I didn't think supernaturals could be so... bloodthirsty," I whispered.
"You'd be surprised," Odis butted in. "There are things back there that I'm surprised didn't attack when they saw us again."
"Don't let your guard down," I heard Delilah add in a meek whisper. "If they start to see you as weak or unable to lead... they might get ideas."
"The point is: be stern but don't piss them off," Maeve said. I took their advice to heart and locked it in place, I could use all the help offered to me.
The conversation kind of fell away after that. No one said anything until almost a half hour later when we finally found another spot to settle at. We didn't have any blankets or practically anything for comfort, only the trees, grass, and each other. Lucky for me, I had a great guy like Kade.
After I'd made an announcement to our large crowd, everyone and everything found their resting positions, making it obvious that they weren't too hyped about sleeping together. A lot of room was taken because of everything trying to space out. Some creatures, in fact, didn't even sleep-so Odis and the others informed me. They were great for keeping watch (although I was sure nothing would attack us now). But I still didn't feel safe around all these creatures and had the hardest time falling asleep... as did the others.
My eyes endlessly scanned their nightmarish faces, noticing even a few ghouls here and there. There weren't anymore wendigoes, though I had no problem with it. But there were other creatures that could definitely haunt my nightmares if I ever fell asleep again. I couldn't even keep my breathing under control, not to mention gain the confidence to drift off.
Instead I spent my time leaning against a tree with Kade who watched the crowd with as much intensity as I did. He had his arm around me which enabled me to feel his tension.
"You need to relax a bit," I said hypocritically.
"I don't like this," he whispered. His nose twitched and he spoke without looking at me. His other arm fell over his stomach as he laid his head back against the tree and sighed. "It's getting worse. If these things start getting ideas... I won't be able to do anything."
I didn't have to ask what he meant by "it". He was obviously referring to his sickness. It only made me feel worse about my decision, especially when I saw how pale his skin had gotten.
"We'll fix this... I promise," I whispered, laying my head against his side and giving him a reassuring pat. He just sighed again and fell into another spell of silence.
Moments later, out of the corner of my eye, I saw something approach us. I couldn't tell what it was at first, considering we hadn't taken the time to make much light, but when it was just inches in front of me, I could see its features quite clearly.
It was some sort of bat creature, nothing like the gargoyles, but more of a larger form of an actual bat. It had the wings, smooshed face, ears, claws, and so on. It wasn't as docile looking as the bats I'd seen in pictures, though. It was mutated, its claws extended and dangerously sharp, its rows of teeth uneven, and eyes that were seemingly tired and bloodshot red. It couldn't even close its mouth completely because of the teeth protruding at odd angles. Its dark brown fur was matted and there was a bite torn out of its left ear.
I wasn't very scared because I'd secretly pointed it out earlier and asked Odis for his input on it. His explanation was pretty simple: a wizard experiment gone wrong. I could believe that, considering I'd just described the bat as a mutant.
The part that startled me was when it started speaking in a low, groggily voice, like a fifty year old smoker with a throat that needed serious clearing.
"Goddess... may I ask you an important question?" he growled naturally, considering that was apparently the only way he could speak. He spoke to me of course, but the whole time he watched Kade with a cruel, questioning gaze, and leaned away from his direction. Kade stared back with a sudden anger and offense.
"Uh... s-sure," I stuttered, confused as to where this was going. Finally the bat looked at me with his tired eyes.
"You say we are together... to fight against a demon, yes?" he asked. I nodded slowly. "A demon that is a direct descendant of the Devil... something truly unholy and impure." When he paused to glare at Kade again, I was too much of a chicken to tell him to get to the point.
He actually moved to have his face directly in front of Kade's, forming a certainly uncomfortable situation. Kade apparently didn't know how to react.
The bat wrinkled his nose and snarled at him fiercely. "I sense something about this one. You're pure, goddess, so why do you associate yourself with him? He has the Devil in his eyes!" At that moment, his voice increased to a borderline yell and more eyes drifted over to us, including Odis and Maeve's. I already heard whispers amongst the crowd.
Kade twitched his nose and barely refrained from shoving the creature. "You better watch who you're talking to! I am a descendant of the Great Warlock-"
"And Satan," the bat interrupted harshly.
"You know nothing," Kade whispered instantly.
"Devil eyes," the bat insisted. Soon, the term was being repeated in the crowd and I started to panic.
"Hold it! Hold it!" I yelled, standing up suddenly. "Stop this. I can assure you Kade is not something impure that would ruin or dull our chances against Salazar. He is pure, trust me. He's on our side and wants more than anything to bring down this demon. Stop with this non sense about Devil eyes. No offense but I bet a lot of you have no room to speak."
"There's plenty of room is these woods," the bat said innocently. I pointed a finger down at him and shook my head frustratingly.
"That's not what I meant." I paused for a moment while everyone waited. "We're all in this together... there's no need to start turning against one another now. Okay? Now can we please calm down and refrain from making assumptions?"
There was the low rumbling of agreements that went into the air as everyone returned to their business. The bat seemed a little hurt and guilty when I sat against the tree again.
"My apologies," he said. "Our duty was to protect and I just thought-"
"It's fine," I interrupted. "Let's just forget that this happened." I tried to smile but it didn't spread to the bat. He just nodded slowly and disappeared back into the crowd.
"Really?" I heard Kade say lowly. "You think I'm pure?" He sounded genuinely surprised and unconvinced that I was telling the truth.
"Of course I do!" I snapped strangely. "Your past has nothing to do with the kind of person you choose to be right now. I don't care what you've done but right at this moment... I know you're pure." I laughed and then said, "You're no less pure than me."
He tried to say something back but someone cut him off. It was another growling voice, one that made me tense and nearly slam my head against the tree with anger.
"You're very foolish, girl. When will you see that you're choosing the wrong boy?" The figure stepped out from the shadows, enormous wings following the six foot creature-probably closer to seven foot, actually. He revealed his menacing teeth and kept his distance of about fifteen feet.
"Why is the crybaby's pet here?" Kade barked. Xur's smile dulled but he tried not to show it.
Eyes darted in our direction and screeches went up into the air as the crowd recognized the horrid gargoyle and his unholiness. I was sure every one of them knew that a gargoyle was never a good sign.
Out of nowhere, one of the many ghouls jumped at him but Xur was quick. Being way larger and stronger, he caught it by the neck, snapped it, and then leaned forward and let out the angriest screech I had ever heard. Nearly all of his teeth were displayed and he looked so terrifying, I could almost hear my heart pounding against my chest. If I was still a little kid, I would've balled my eyes out from fright.
The crowd shifted back just a tad and everything fell silent as his amber eyes brightened and he glared with satisfaction. All of a sudden, three more gargoyles appeared in the air and landed side by side, their small sizes incomparable to Xur's.
He threw the dead ghoul away like a bag full of trash and growled as he looked at me. "Some army you have here," he laughed. "But I am a little surprised that something as pathetic as you managed to get a team like this. How'd you do it?"
"Why are you here?" I snapped. My eyes could barely stay away from the dead ghoul. I don't know why I felt sympathy for it, maybe because the others stared at it with so much sadness and fear.
"Oh, right. You're stubborn, I almost forgot," the gargoyle said as he started to pace around. Anytime he got closer to the crowd, they stepped back even more. I didn't see his buddies moving behind us the whole time until I heard grunts of disapproval and noticed Kade, Odis, and Maeve being restrained.
Right when I turned my head to look, though, a sweaty hand clamped around my throat and my head was slammed forcefully to a tree. Xur pushed me up so my feet dangled and my oxygen began to deplete. Even though I scratched at his hand, I never changed my position... just waisted more breath.
"Right now I'm the messenger... but I'll rip you to shreds once this war starts," he growled in a whisper, narrowing his eyes threateningly. "You just wait."
I started to gag and kick at him but he was too far away. "Anyway, Salazar told me to find you and tell you that you haven't got much time. It's currently about three in the morning... you have twenty four more hours until he drops the hammer and you all die."
"We... won't," I spat in a single cough. "You'll s... see." He laughed and lifted his other hand, extending his claws that were just as long as my fingers. One went to my throat and pierced the skin just below my jaw, deep enough to make me scream and waste my last bit of breath.
"Let her go!" Kade shouted as he jerked against the gargoyle holding him. The creature extended its claws too and cut him across the stomach, obviously deep because he yelled with pain.
Xur laughed again and dropped me carelessly against the tree. I was grateful for the air that entered my lungs, but I was more focused on covering the bleeding wound on my neck.
Chuckling, he said, "I was instructed not to kill you but damn did that feel good." His friends released the others, Kade collapsing to the ground just like me. "This was fun," Xur added. "We'll meet again soon, darling. No worries." I glared at him as he turned to the crowd and his enormous wings spread behind him.
"You've chosen the wrong ally. Your leader is weak and you're going to die within the first minute of our war. If I were any of you, I would've chosen to stay out of this. You'll regret partaking in it," he announced with a toothy grin.
"Your insults are meaningless. A goddess is something to respect and she'll show you how well of a leader she is. We, as well as she, are not weak!" The bat creature from before shouted from the front of the crowd. I felt proud to hear his words, but I couldn't display a smile to show it.
Xur was angered by this and started to approach him with readied claws. I don't know what fueled me but my hand went into the air just as the bat flinched away. Xur froze and started to panic when he couldn't move. I didn't think the trick would work but I was so relieved when it did, as well as the bat who glanced gratefully at me.
Xur was able to look at me from the corner of his eye and growl. "You touch another one of them and I'll risk getting torn apart by your buddies to kill you. Now leave!" I snapped, the tone of anger I used even surprising me. My hand fell from weakness, but I tried to make it seem like a purposeful thing so he wouldn't get any ideas.
Luckily, he didn't and him and his buddies regrouped. With one more snarl he said, "I'd wish you good luck but I don't mean it," then took flight with the others and disappeared over the trees.
My droopy eyes looked back at the crowd who were strangely staring at me with new respect. I wondered if it was because I saved the bat or maybe because I was about to risk my life for them, but after a few seconds I didn't care anymore.
I was just grateful that quite a few of them came forward to help me and Kade. Some were nightmarish, others normal looking. But looks didn't define whether they were bad or good.
I knew, right then, that I had a team I could trust... and one that trusted me.
________________________________________
Time to get out of the woods :p