Bladed Wings Page 10

  I turned to look at them both and noticed that Trina’s ears had indeed grown into slight points and Michael looked different than when I had first met him.

  “Alright, I think that we all have some explaining to do.” I said finally.

  They both turned to look at me as thought they had forgotten that I was there.

  “Lill’s right as usual. She deserves to be told. But I must beg your patience a little while longer as we should set up camp before the mist settles,” Michael said, smiling at me.

  I grudgingly agreed and we all set about collecting wood for the fire. Trina left for some time and returned just as the fire was crackling to life, holding a skinned rabbit, which she set about roasting over the flames.

  “Trina how did you…” I started.

  “Later Lill.” She said turning the animal in the flames.

  It was Michael who spoke first, sweeping the bone he had been eating into the fire.

  “I believe it would be easier for all of us if I told my story first. Lilly I have already told you parts of it, and I am sure Trina has guessed other parts herself. However I do apologise to you Lilly as I have sworn not to reveal certain things and I ask that you choose your words wisely Trina as I am sure there are secrets that you cannot share also.” Trina nodded to show that she understood.

  “Ok, firstly. You may have guessed already that Trina and I are not like most people. I am in fact an elf, well part elvan.”

  “Pft, don’t be ridiculous Michael. Elves are funny little green people in children’s stories.”

  Trina rolled her eyes but looked amused all the same.

  “Well some of us are green, but most just look like everyone else. I won’t go into it right now though. Did you ever notice anything different about your father?” He asked, not meeting my gaze.

  “Well no not really. People always said that he was handsome, but,”

  “Yes he was very good at blending in.”

  “Wait are you saying that my father was an elf? And I suppose your going to tell me that mum was what… a fairy?”

  “No your mother is human and a mage in her own right. She stumbled upon our midsummer ball nearly one hundred years ago and your father instantly fell in love. Which is rare for an elf. He loved her so much that when the other elves were forced to move from their homes across the sea, he decided to stay with your mother, who was pregnant with you at the time. We always kept a close watch on you all to ensure you were safe and that our secrets were kept.

  “When your father was killed, I was sent to watch over you and your family in case you ever needed our help. The plan was that I would be able to assist you until they could reach you. So naturally when you went away to school I had to follow as you and your sister were soon to come into your powers. Your mother was safe whilst she lived in the manor, well so we thought…”

  “Wait are you saying that I am an elf too? But I can’t be my parents had me tested for magic when I was five like every child is. They would have told me…and mum. Why did no one ever tell me that she was a mage, everyone wants mages work, we could have made a living from it when dad died instead of being shipped of to the middle of no where. ”

  “Believe it or not. But that was some pretty impressive magic you used tonight and in the library yesterday.”

  “What? But I didn’t use magic on that man, did I?”

  “Come on, you blew apart the door pretty well. And I have never seen a human run as fast as you did.”

  Now that I thought about it, I did feel different that night. I had always assumed Michael had kicked the door open, but now that I really thought about it he was at least two metres away when it opened.

  “So…so, you’re an elf too Trina?”

  “Yeh sort of. I’m part elf like Michael. I however didn’t know that you were. I had heard a rumour before I left about an elf that was in this part of the country, but I wasn’t expecting to run into you.”

  “But then why were you here?” I asked.

  “I sort of ran away. I’m an orphan, my parents were killed just after I was born and I was raised by a group of women who treated me like I was made of glass. One day I just got sick of it and set off to see the world. However, I didn’t get far without an adult and I was soon being watched by the police in more than one town. Not to mention being stalked by masses of men.”

  “What, why?” I asked.

  “Elves have a sort of charm you see,” Michael put in. “It attracts the opposite sex. Humans lust for us if we don’t put extremely strong shields around ourselves.”

  “Yes, but I was young and naive and didn’t know that,” said Trina digging in the dirt with a piece of firewood. “Anyway, in the end I found a school that was away from any towns and was an all girl school where I could easily avoid the police and any unsuspecting boys,” she continued.

  I couldn’t help but giggle at the thought of being chassed by masses of boys. True I had gone through more boyfriends in the past year than anyone in my year but I never suspected it was due to an inhuman attraction.

  “Hey, is that why everyone was madly in love with you Michael?” I asked with a grin.

  “Ha yeh, it took me a few days to work that one out too. But it was my first clue to knowing who you were mate,” said Trina.

  “I got teased mercifully by the other male staff member, because of it,” Michael said his face glowing in the dim light of the fire.

  “You seem to be taking all of this very well Lill,” Trina pointed out.

  “I have dad to thank for that,” I said. They both looked at each other clearly confused.

  “Ever since I was a baby he has told me stories before I went to sleep. Stories about elves and mermaids, spirits in the trees and a hidden city called Violus. To hear that they weren’t just stories but where memories of his life just makes so much sense,” I smiled as I remembered one story that he told me when I was five.

  “One time after he had left my room thinking that I was asleep, I crept out the window and tried to make friends with the tree on our street corner. Mr Jenkins who owned the fruit store found me. He didn’t stop laughing the whole way home. He was good friends with dad, they used to stay up all night talking.” I realised that I was babbling and stopped myself. Michael and Trina were both smiling at me. I cleared my throat and changed the subject.

  “But there are more important things to discus. One is that my sister just attacked me. The second is that apparently I have magic powers…and did you say that my parents met a hundred years ago!” Michael actually laughed at the look on my face.

  “Yes, elves live many hundreds of years. Being close to your father made your mother age more slowly as well I suspect. Although an elf has never fallen for a human before so It’s never been tested,” he explained.

  “But don’t forget the other important matter at hand. The fact that you have an arch enemy who is trying to kill you and is sending an army of sorcerers after us.”

  “Thanks for that Trina, that makes me feel so much better.” I lay down and tucked my feet into my dress to keep them warm as I thought about what all this meant.

  “My letter.” I said suddenly remembering the letter that I had sent to grandmother.

  “What letter?” Trina asked.

  “I, I sent a letter to my grandmother a few days ago and haven’t received a reply. She wont know where to find me now.”

  “Was it about your mother?” Michael asked. I nodded not looking at Trina who I knew was dieing to know what was going on.

  “Lill, if its that important to you I can get a letter to her when we get to a safer place. Ok?” He said.

  His voice betrayed him and I knew that he wouldn’t be able to send any messages without putting us all at risk of the Lady intercepting it. But I appreciated it all the same. The other two sat in silence watching the glow of the fire fade as a damp fog settled around us in the dark.

  “Lill,” Trina whispered me some time later, “Im glad that I met you. And
don’t worry, I won’t let them get to you. Michael and I will be with you all the way.”

  “Thanks Trina,” I whispered back.

  I awoke to the sounds of horses trampling through the undergrowth and dogs barking in the distance. Michael and Trina were hastily putting out the last embers of the fire and erasing our tracks with branches. Within minutes we had left the clearing and were once again on the move.

  The sounds behind us grew louder and where joined by shouts and blasts.

  We were barely two hundred metres away when our pursuers arrived at our abandoned camp. A harsh screech issued through the forest and was immediately met by the frenzied barking of the dogs.

  We stopped and glanced behind us. We could see the faint out lines of maybe fifty horse men and twice as many on foot. The Lady had gathered an army.

  “Trina, want to stretch your legs?” said Michael from beside me.

  “Love to.” She took three steps than leapt, landing on a branch ten metres above the ground. She turned and winked at me before disappearing into the canopy.

  “What…?“

  “She is going to try and lead them away from us, how fast can you run in that gown?”

  “Fast enough if the occasion calls for it.”

  “Trust me. It calls for it.”

  He set off at a sprint in front of me, turning to make sure that I was following.

  Hitching up my dress, I praised my decision the previous night to only wear low heels.

  Michael set a cracking pace through the undergrowth slowing occasionally to allow me to catch up before darting back into the trees.

  I turned and found that I could now make out the riders’ tarnished amour glinting in the sun. Abandoning all modesty, I ripped my dress up the side, removing it and flinging it into the trees. Without the restricting fabric I was able to keep pace with Michael. He seemed relieved to see that I was able to keep up, but did not slow, even when the trees grew so close that it was all I could do to keep from tripping.

  My petticoats snagged on low branches and were soon nothing but rags flapping around me. My shoes gave me blisters that burst and leaked warm fluid down my ankle soaking my stockings.

  It seemed like hours had passed and still the horde pursued us. Thankfully they had not gained any ground on us, leading me to believe that the cries and shouts that rang through the forest every few moments signalled Trina’s attempts at slowing them were working.

  Our pace had slowed to no more than a jog, Michael was not showing any signs of slowing but I was struggling to take each step.

  My body was covered with scrapes and cuts from brambles that spotted the forest but I knew that stopping completely was not an option. A rustle of branches above us signalled Trina’s return.

  “I was able to slow them but nothing more, they are disciplined and strong. Normal men would have perused an attacker, these simply closed their ranks.”

  “Yes that’s what I had feared. It appears that the lady has rallied her followers into an army. How many are there?”

  “Two hundred give or take, they also have magic workers shielding them. I was barley able to get within firing range because of their wards.”

  “Ok, we need you with us now. If they keep at this pace they will be within range within the hour.”

  I took the opportunity as they spoke to stuff torn pieces of fabric from my already ruined petticoat into my shoes to provide padding for my broken skin. I cringed when i looked at the damage. Barley an inch of skin was clean of blood.

  “Lilly can you still run?” Said Michael a hint of concern showing in his voice as he looked at my feet.

  “Do I have a choice?” He met my gaze as i looked up at him from under my hair, we both knew that I couldn’t last at this pace but there was no choice.

  Trina ran along side us on the ground rather than in the trees as before. It surprised me just how graceful they both where. Neither was out of breath or showing any sign of being tired. I widened my stride to match theirs and found that the long steps allowed me to move faster with less strain on my legs but with considerably more pain for my feet.

  I was nearly relieved when a harsh cry above us only moments later signalled that we where out of time. Let it be quick, I thought as a hawk circled above our heads marking our position. We continued to run, faster now even though we knew we could not beat them.

  An arrow hissed through the trees we dived to avoid the flurry of arrows that followed, Trina dove behind a tree narrowly missing being struck with a long black arrow that spun past her grazing her calf.

  Only then did we stop and draw our weapons, standing shoulder-to-shoulder waiting for them to reach us. Blood begun to run down Trina’s leg but she didn’t try to stop it.

  A band of five horsemen came at us through the trees.

  The first was fallen by a burst of light from Michael. Whilst the soldiers were momentarily blinded Trina raced forwards slashing first at one soldier’s leg with the end of an arrow that she had retrieved from the ground, than killing another’s horse by thrusting the arrow through its chest, the mount fell crushing its rider beneath it. The horse next to it reared to avoid the fallen gelding loosing its rider who hit the ground to our right. Michael was on him in a second cutting his throat with a sword that had grown from a dagger that he pulled from his belt, than stepping back to his position beside Trina and I. We backed up frantically searching for some cover from the advancing soldiers. To our left was low, thick scrub, the same to our right. My heart raced in my chest as I backed up looking for any place to hide. I spotted a narrow animal trail leading off up a steep incline a few metres behind us to the left. Seven man advanced towards us again on foot, the two that held bows raised them ready to shoot, the line of trees that separated us from them suddenly burst into flames holding them back. I looked at the track again trying to see were it led, if it was a dead end we wouldn’t have time to find another way out. An arrow hissed past the flames disappearing into the trees behind us. My breath caught in my chest and I knew that next time we might not be so lucky.

  “Up here.” I said trying to keep my voice from shaking. The track was edged by large rocks and loose stones, something that Trina said was a good sign as it may lead to a rock face that we could put at our backs when they came at us again. We were only half way up the trail before the soldiers came in for their third attack. Michael pulled me behind a large rock that would provide us with some cover. Trina and Michaels bodies pressed beside mine made me feel calmer but I still shook with fear. A shower of arrows ricocheted off the rock and around us. Michael pushed me down lower behind the stone, half covering me with his body to protect me from any stray arrows and pieces of chipped rock.

  “Here they come,” Trina whispered crouching beside me clutching a sword she had retrieved from one of the fallen soldiers. The crunch of boots grew closer, just when I thought that they were upon us Michael sent a blast of light out stunning them, before he and Trina leapt out meeting the soldiers with a clang of metal. Michael was swept into a furry of bodies and metal as the soldiers’ streamed up the trail.

  There were so many people moving around us that at first I didn’t notice that the men seemed to steer away from me as they approached choosing instead to swipe at Michael and Trina.

  Four more men fell at their blades, as I watched my friends fight to protect me and found my fear was quickly disappearing. I longed to destroy these people for daring to try and hurt my friends. Michael was meeting their attacks blow for blow. He moved with speeds that I had never seen any person move at before.

  Another man fell to Trina’s attack as she glided swiftly to the side avoiding a flurry of attack from three soldiers with spears. Thankfully the trail was too narrow for the horsemen who were forced to leave their mounts at the bottom of the slope and proceed more slowly on foot. I drew my dagger from its holster on my leg and saw that it was at least five inches longer than it was the night Michael had given it to me. The battle drew closer to where I cr
ouched hidden waiting for the best moment to come out.

  I waited as another storm of arrows flew overhead then crouching low, I dashed forwards and came up behind the group that was advancing on Trina, throwing myself upon one of the men swiping first at his arm than his chest. I threw myself against him knocking him over, his head cracking as it hit a sharp rock on the ground. Our luck ran out as I noticed a horse and rider emerge from the shrub to the side of the trail, I knew that more were to follow. I didn’t stop to think, I grabbed the fallen soldiers sword trying not to look at his mangled head. I stood and threw the blade as hard as I could. I spun through the air almost slicing the man in two. I didn’t give myself time to absorb the scene. As he fell from the saddle I jumped up from the other side pulling the gelding away from the body of its previous rider. The horse snorted and pawed the ground in distress, I willed it not to spook speaking in what I hoped was a soothing tone I hurriedly looked around to find my friends. Michael was holding his own in a group of nearly ten soldiers. Bodies littered the ground around him.

  Trina looked up and saw me cutting my way towards her trying to protect myself and the horse was made simpler by my sword that had now grown another five inches since I had taken the saddle. Trina thrust her sword through the chest of the soldier she had been fighting, then placing one hand upon my horses rear for balance leapt into the air, kicking another soldier in the side of the head denting his helmet and knocking him unconscious. She ripped the fallen soldier’s sword from its stealth and came to stand beside me, a line of blood appearing on her arm.

  A soldier leapt from a tree beside us lunging for Trina with a dagger that glinted with blood.

  Without pausing I spun in my saddle sliding down under the horses neck and thrust my dagger out. The man fell as my blade met with the back of his leg. I felt his blood hit my skin and he gave a great howl, instinctively lowering his arms to cover his wound.