Chapter 7
The next day, the little party continued their ride deeper into Tephraya. The path they were following led through some craggy rocks, and the dirt and water-starved shrubs were giving way to cactus and sand.
Kathryn was wearing the white, airy cotton robe Cal made for her. The headscarf allowed her to cover the lower half of her face against the wind and the sand. Kathryn was surprised by just how much wind there was. She hadn’t remembered that from when she’d visited Tephraya briefly to negotiate the treaty.
Ren and Brenin were wearing tan breaches and a somewhat flowy white shirt along with a headscarf. The older man grumbled, “Feels like this scarf is smothering me.”
“You’re not being smothered,” Chance assured him cheerfully. “I can tell from here. You’ll make it.”
Brenin rolled his eyes and readjusted his scarf for the hundredth time. They rode for a while in silence. At some point, the well-trod path disappeared entirely under the sand, and there was nothing in any direction for miles.
They stopped, and Chance pulled out the map and the SouthNorth, a little device with a needle that pointed to show directions. “There’s a well, but it’s a full day away. We’ve got plenty of water though. As long as the well isn’t dry, we won’t even feel parched. If it is dry, the next well is another two days away, and then it’s another day to Tephrayana. That’s the capital city, in case you’re wondering, Ren,” Chance said pleasantly as he put away the map.
Ren was scanning the horizon. The wind made an eerie sound that put him on edge, and he was even more watchful than usual.
Still, it was Chance who heard the other noise first. He held up a hand and the others pulled on the reins to stop their horses. Ren began, “What is it?”
Chance put a finger to his lips. “I hear voices,” he said quietly. “Someone is nearby, and they’re not being particularly careful of being noticed. We should be cautious.”
Kathryn reached for the small pouches at her waist that held her few remaining opals. “Let’s give them a wide berth. I’d prefer not to fight anyone,” she began.
Suddenly, a scream pierced the air, followed by a sound that shook the ground underneath their horse’s feet. This was a roar of some terrifying creature. The hairs on the back of Ren’s neck stood up, and he gripped the handle of his sword.
“What was that?” he said tersely.
Kathryn’s face had gone white. She’d never heard that sound before, but she knew enough about Tephraya to guess. “A Screlagor,” she said. “We have to get out of here now!”
When she glanced at Brenin, she saw that he understood the import of her words. He actually looked pale. He yanked his horse around in the opposite direction of the sounds, as did Kathryn and Chance. But for some reason, Ren held back.
“Ren, we have to go!” Brenin said sharply.
“But that sounded like a child.” Ren turned his head towards the sound. “I’m going to take a look.”
“Ren, don’t! Do you have any idea what a Screlagor is?” Kathryn exclaimed, but he was already dashing towards a high dune not far away from them, in the direction of the sounds.
The horrible roar was repeated, this time closer, and Kathryn covered her ears, trembling with terror. She screamed after Ren, “Don’t!”
Chance gripped her arm. “We have to go, Miss Kathryn,” he said sharply.
Ren pulled his horse to a stop at the top of the dune and looked down at the scene below. There was a group of about thirty people, uselessly huddled together in fear. They seemed to have no weapons, and a quick glance told him they weren’t warriors or marauders. They were families.
But almost immediately, the roar came again and he jerked his eyes away from the small group to see the Screlagor. For a second, it was as though his heart stopped.
It was larger than 50 men, with front claws so big that it could cut a man in half with one snap. The creature was shaped somewhat like a scorpion, but it had massive armor plates all over its body and gigantic horns on its head. Its eyes glowed a menacing yellow, and its mouth opened to let out another devastating roar that made Ren’s ears throb.
Ren glanced at his sword. It wouldn’t even make a dent in the creature’s armor plating.
The Screlagor was about 200 meters away from the group. But as he watched, it dove into the sand, burrowing rapidly with its front claws and kicking up a dust cloud that sprayed into the air. Then it burst out of the sand only 50 meters away from the families, roaring as they screamed in terror.
Ren urged his horse forward, only for Brenin to grab his arm.
“Don’t you dare,” Brenin seethed. “That thing will kill you!”
“I can’t leave them!” Ren retorted.
“Ren-”
“Brenin, you’re the one who told me I have to make my own choices!” Ren grabbed the spear from its socket on the side of his horse.
Then he realized Kathryn was at his side, touching his hand. “Only distract it,” she said simply. “I’ll do what I can to help. And watch out for its tail. It can send electric bolts.”
“Are you insane-” but Brenin’s protests were lost to the wind as Ren galloped down towards the beast, which was preparing to burrow underground again.
“You’re all crazy,” Chance muttered from where he was sitting about three hundred meters away.
Ren was actually scared. In fact, he didn’t think he’d been this scared even when he was facing Xian, as his own bravado had always made him believe he could defeat the man. But this was different. This creature wasn’t someone he could anticipate or overpower.
The Screlagor was even more terrifying up close. As he galloped towards it, it turned its head, and one of the glowing yellow eyes met his.
Then it threw its head back for another roar.
A crossbow bolt whipped through the air only a couple feet away from Ren, and he jerked his head around to see Brenin standing at the top of a dune with a crossbow in his hands.
“Knew you’d come around, old man,” he muttered.
The frightened families didn’t move for a second; they only stared at the lone man who had apparently come in a suicidal attempt to save them.
Ren shouted at them, “Run!”
Galvanized by his voice, even if they didn’t all understand the words, they scrambled to their feet and struggled across the sandy earth to escape the monster, which was now thoroughly angry.
Ren couldn’t believe how fast it was. Its six giant back legs could cross the sand much faster than his horse, and as he turned to lead it away from the escaping families, the monster plunged forward and crashed into the sand just a few feet away from him.
The sand under his horse turned and crumbled, and the animal whinnied violently as it stumbled, throwing Ren to the ground.
He rolled to his feet, coughing and turning to face the monster. He saw its tail glow briefly and heard the rattling sound as it prepared to strike, and he set the spear at ready, knowing full well it was worse than useless.
But then he saw the monster’s glowing eyes turn black. Kathryn was using blinding opals. If Ren had had time to glance in her direction, he would have seen that black tendrils had spread across her face, and her eyes were black, but she was trembling. Kathryn wasn’t at all sure she was strong enough to keep confusing the creature, which was now rolling violently in the sand to try to clear its vision.
A stronger mage could have created an illusion that would frighten the creature into retreating, she thought bitterly. The best she could do would be to effectively blur its vision.
Why did Ren insist on being so stupid?
But there wasn’t time to think. She could only pour all of her effort into what she was doing. Brenin saw the opals in her hands rapidly turning clear and useless. He raised the crossbow again with a grim face.
He saw Ren struggling to keep his footing as the sand underneath him shifted and moved. Then the Screlagor swung its tail, and right in front of their eyes, the crackling stinger hit Ren in the chest.
They saw him fly through the air and then land in the sand a dozen meters away. Kathryn wanted to scream in horror, but no sound escaped her lips. Brenin reached for his horse’s reins, fully intending to go down there and rescue his boy or die trying.
They realized Ren was still alive when he struggled to his feet, bleeding and with his hair standing up on end from the electricity. Amazingly, the spear was still in his hand. He pulled his arm back, preparing to throw it like a javelin.
“It’s moving too much; he won’t hit it,” Brenin began.
Kathryn reached into a different pouch for her boulder opals. As she touched them, the sand around the creature suddenly enveloped its legs and hardened, holding it in place. She knew she couldn’t keep it up long; the effort made her feel like her body was tearing apart, and cracks were already appearing in her lips and her hands.
Ren threw the spear, and it jammed into the creature’s eye. The Screlagor let out another horrific roar. Then it plunged into the sand, burrowing directly down.
Brenin raced down the dune as fast as he could go through the thick sand. Grabbing Ren’s arm, he dragged him away from where the creature had disappeared. Together, they ran back to the horses.
Kathryn managed to keep herself upright until they arrived. Then her legs collapsed underneath her and the whole world went black.
Ren gasped, “Your highness! Kat!” He caught her and fell to his knees, panting.
Brenin pulled him to his feet. “Get on her horse. We’ve got to get out of here.” Ren’s horse had disappeared into the sands.
They rode away as fast as they could, but the creature didn’t follow them. It seemed to have had enough for the day.
Chance rushed to meet them, his face displaying genuine worry when he saw that Ren’s chest was rapidly turning purple and there was blood trickling from his mouth and ear. Then he noticed Kathryn and he pulled his horse up sharply, demanding, “Is she…”
“She’s alive,” Brenin interrupted.
“So are they.” Chance nodded in the direction of the families, who were huddled together and looked exhausted and fearful.
Ren said, “I’m pretty sure none of us speak Tephrayan.”
“As a matter of fact, I might have picked up a bit here and there,” Chance said cheerfully. He dismounted and approached the little group.
One of the men stood up and snapped, “Don’t come any closer!”
“Oh, great! He talks like us,” Ren said cheerfully. “Are you all okay?”
“Stay away!” The man seemed both angry and frightened. He drew a small knife from his belt and held it up menacingly.
Brenin muttered, “That’s some gratitude for you.”
“They were slaves,” Chance said softly. “They don’t trust anyone.”
For the first time, Ren saw the marks on their wrists and ankles and the scars on their bodies. His face turned grim. “Oh,” he said. “C-can they help Kat, do you think?”
“Miss Kathryn will be fine,” Brenin said shortly. “Come on. We should go. There’s no point in trying to help them further.”
“But they’re alone in the middle of the desert,” Ren protested.
Chance grabbed his arm. “Did you think you’d ride into the capital with them?” he hissed. Out loud he said, “All right, we’re leaving.”
As they rode away, Ren couldn’t help but glance back over his shoulder. He saw the families just standing there with eyes of suspicion and even hatred. He bit his lip and looked away.
Kathryn remained unconscious throughout the entire night and only woke up late the next morning, when the heat was already stifling.
Ren saw her stir and hurried to her side with a water skin. “Kat?” he said. “You all right?”
He lifted her head so she could drink. Remorse and fear overwhelmed him as he saw how weak she looked. Her skin was dry and chapped all over her body, and the black tendrils hadn’t completely faded from her face.
But she smiled at him. “I’m fine,” she said. She could hardly believe what had happened. She could hardly believe Ren had survived, but there he was, looking at her with those worried eyes.
She realized his upper body was wrapped in bandages, and there were quite a few cuts and bruises on his face. She reached up to touch his cheek and tried to speak again, but her mouth was too dry. He helped her drink more water.
She said, “Did you manage to save them?”
“Sure did, thanks to you. But I had no idea it would hurt you like this,” he said.
“It doesn’t hurt.” She struggled to sit up. “What about your horse?”
Ren’s face fell. “He didn’t make it.”
“That’s a problem,” Brenin observed grimly from where he was sitting a few feet away. “We’ll have to buy another at the next town if we can.”
“I don’t have enough opals left,” Kathryn began.
“I’ll buy it then. I brought some money. But don’t go killing any more horses, boy, you hear me?” Brenin snapped. “They aren’t that easy to come by.”
“Yes sir,” Ren said sheepishly. Then he lowered his eyes. “The truth is, I think I owe all three of you an apology.”
Brenin had apparently been trying to hold in his rage for quite some time, because now it exploded. “You sure do! What were you thinking? You put all of us in danger; nearly got the lot of us eaten by a monster! Why don’t you ever think before you go off rescuing strangers?”
“I’m sorry. In that moment, all I could think of was that I’d heard a child. I didn’t want any more of them to die,” Ren said.
“What do you mean ‘any more of them’?” Chance asked curiously.
“Well, during the war…” Ren trailed off, but they all understood.
Brenin snapped, “You seem to think you can protect everyone. But you can’t. Sometimes, there’s nothing you can do to save people.”
“I know. I know! I just didn’t think any of you might be hurt. I didn’t know about the side effects for you either,” Ren explained, turning to Kathryn. “If I had, I wouldn’t have-”
“Don’t.” Kathryn laid a hand on his arm and smiled. “You don’t have to be sorry for making your own choices. And you shouldn’t apologize for the choices that I made for myself. Let’s forget about it. This is only a minor setback. I’ll be well enough to travel soon, and we’ll get a new horse for you.”
Brenin looked annoyed, but he said nothing more.
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