IT WASN'T LONG before a hand curled around Ravenna's wrist and she was being dragged through the crowd by a politely smiling Vyses. The chaos that ensued around them made it hard for her to think. A chorus of cheerful screaming echoed through the air around them and faces plagued with overwhelming smiles and happy tears flooded her vision. It was disorienting.
Lyth appeared beside her. His hand grabbed at her forearm as his small body struggled to remain ahead of the crowd. She glanced down at him, feeling somewhat sorry for the kid. Despite how inhuman he seemed at times, he was still a child caught up within a huge mess of her own creation.
The moment they reached the main gate, the crowds began to disperse, allowing them to breathe. Men scrambled to the tops of the walls, cheering as they opened the massive wooden gates before them. As they stepped through, to the outside world, another crowd greeted them. This crowd was smaller, yet their smiles were brighter and their cheers were even louder.
Vyses somehow managed to get ahold of two horses. The horses given to him were different from the horses that they'd used before. These were younger, faster, and a gracious gift from the townsfolk. Their saddles were adorned with ribbons, with flowers. Several small knapsacks were attached to the horses, overflowing with food and supplies.
Ravenna allowed Vyses to help her onto her own horse. Then he climbed onto his own horse, with Lyth following right behind him. She followed him through the remainder of the crowds, toward the forest. Once the trees had engulfed them, Vyses waved a glowing red hand.
"Where are we going?" Ravenna asked him.
"As far away as possible," Vyses answered. "The Blood Knights will return soon to investigate and we don't want to be here when they arrive."
She nodded and allowed him to take control of her horse. In the darkness, she could see a small glimmer of reddened light overtake her horse's eyes. Her grip tightened on the reigns and she leaned forward as the beast moved faster, the world blurring around her.
As they rode, Ravenna plotted.
She had already decided that the kingdom needed to change. The political powers had failed them, content within the comfort of their lavish homes and riches, leaving the small and feeble to suffer. The very men that were assigned to protect those individuals were corrupted.
In order to ignite a change, however, something drastic needed to be done. Ravenna had already gained the king's attention, simply with the murders that had already occurred. The Blood Knights were proof of that. Yet it wasn't enough. The king had merely sent his men to do the dirty work of taking her down, while he remained within the safety of his whores and other luxuries. The king needed a wakeup call. A massive one. The only idea that she could think of was to start a war, however. A rebellion against the king's rule. A fight between the comforts of old and the newness of reformation. If enough people could rise up, could voice their hatred for the guards, for their current situation, then the king might listen.
The issue laid within the people, however.
Whatever drastic measure taken to gain the king's attention, to trigger a change, would most likely invite the threat of death. Even with Ravenna's powers, she couldn't protect every citizen. Without the guarantee of their life, she couldn't imagine the people rising with her. Otherwise, they would have already tried to fight against the guards or rebel.
It wasn't long before the darkness of the night transformed into daylight. Once Vyses felt that they'd put some good distance between them and the town, the horses slowed to a stop. He climbed off of his horse and helped Ravenna off hers. "Let's give the horses a break for a bit," Vyses said. "Walking won't hurt us."
"We should find another town," Ravenna remarked as they began to walk forward. "And a warm place to stay for a bit."
Vyses frowned at her. "So you can kill more guards?"
She narrowed her eyes at him. "It needed to be done," she said, her voice cold. Her hand reached out, fingers absently stroking at her horse's mane. "The guards are corrupt. This whole kingdom is. Something needs to be done to fix it."
Vyses crossed his arms over his chest. "And what exactly do you propose that we do to change it, lass?"
Ravenna pursed her lips. "I am going to need an army."
That made Vyses stop walking entirely. He turned toward her, his eyebrows furrowed. "An army?" he repeated, sounding incredulous. "What would you do with an army?"
"I would challenge the king, of course," she answered him honestly. "I think that, if we went from town to town and liberated the citizens from his rule, it would make the king take action. It would make the king leave the castle and actually see the horrors that his guards have created."
Vyses remained silent at that.
"I just don't want innocent people to lose their lives," she said. "They've already lost so much."
"How would you go about getting an army?" Vyses asked her. His expression had relaxed, his eyes filled with curiosity. "Especially while on the run?"
Ravenna huffed. "I haven't gotten that far yet. Let's just find a safe place to stay first. Where we won't be at risk of being discovered. Then we can figure out all of the smaller details."
"As you wish," he said.
Vyses lead them through the trees, toward a small stone path that weaved through the earth. "This road leads to another town," he told them. "We can find shelter there for the night. I doubt we will be able to stay long, though. I don't think that we are far enough away just yet."
"That will work," Ravenna said. A strand of her light hair curled around her fingers. She sighed and added, "You'll also need to reactivate the cloaking spell. As you said, my hair will be a dead giveaway if the guards catch up to us."
Vyses nodded. With a wave of his hand, the hair in her hand faded into a darker brown color. She reached to her forehead, relieved to find that her crown had vanished again.
As they moved closer to the next town, Caelan's spellbook seemed to press harder and harder against her side, still hidden within her dress. She needed an army to defeat the king.
And his spellbook might just have a spell for that.
I'm so sorry that this chapter is a little shorter than usual! I wrote it months ago and I really don't remember why I cut it off so short, aha! But I can't fix it, as it was also posted months ago to Tapas and would conflict. On the bright side, the next chapter should be posted soon! Probably sometime this weekend.
I also apologize for how late this chapter is. I meant to upload it on Monday but got caught up in senior project stuff. I am stressed to the extreme right now. Also, just a heads up that I might not respond/be as active as much for the next few weeks. Considering I actually legit failed my midsemester review, I really have to sit down and actually focus on school work right now. I really, really need to graduate and just *screams*