Page 49 of Rising Out of the Darkness
“It knows it’s welcome and it cannot be tamed.”
A snort erupted behind me, followed by the loudest sigh I’d ever heard. The wind even ruffled a few of my hairs.
“Alright, that’s enough procrastinating.”
“Yes, sir.” I mimicked his deep voice and turned around to salute him. His eyes had darkened, and a dangerous smirk danced across his face as he leaned forward.
“You’re going to regret that sass, Wildfire.”
“Gods, Declan! That hurts, you insufferable ass!”
His eyes blazed as he wrapped his fingers around my knees, squeezing hard. “Good. Now, focus.”
I growled inwardly, but tried again to rebuild the wall in my mind in the way that he had taught me. Before we had taken a break in the afternoon to feed the horses, he had described the process of building a ward to me.
To build the wall, Declan had told me to reach down to the deepest parts of my soul. My soul had figured out a way to keep those shut away from the rest of the world. Now, it was up to me to use that same strength to construct a mental blockade to shut out those who might choose to hurt me.
Since then, we had been at it for hours and my brain felt like it had been hit with a thousand punches. Each time I thought I had finally got it, he would send his emotions towards me and my ward would shatter to pieces.
A bead of sweat rolled down the side of my face as I gripped the sides of the saddle horn. I slammed my eyes shut and focused once more on building my ward.
Inside my mind, my wall manifested into a tidal wave, different from the swell of shadows inside of Declan’s mind. Each time we practiced, I began to memorize the feel and shape of the wave, as I made it tower over my mind. The towering wave gave me a sense of strength I’d never felt before. It crept into my bones, and I opened my eyes.
“Give it a try,” I whispered.
“I already have.” He smiled, peeling his fingers off my knees. A playful smirk danced about his face as he folded his arms across his chest.
“Why that look?”
“You still keep surprising me.”
“The feeling is mutual, sir.” I winked before turning back around.
The sun had finally set beyond the horizon, but there was still enough light from the moon to see some of the landscape around us. Grass and fronds towered over the marsh pools spread about. Some trees curved and bent in awkward angles, while others were darkened by decay. Mist rolled low over the ground, which added unease to the already eerie landscape.
Declan pulled at the reins, and we began to slow.
“We’re going to sleep here?” I whispered.
“Wildfire, we will be fine.”
I mumbled under my breath. “Sure, we will.”
Declan dismounted the horse and lifted his arms towards mine. Placing my hands over his shoulders, I swung my leg over and his hands gripped my hips as he helped lower me to the ground. They fled from my body the moment my toes touched the surface.
Clearing his throat, he reached behind me, grabbed my satchel and thrust it into my hands. He nodded towards the other guards already beginning to make camp. Then he turned without a word and stormed off. I took that as a silent order for me to make my way back to the camp alone.
Thick mud caked my boots, squishing beneath me with every step that I took. A glacial chill ran down my spine at the thought of the few hours I had left before we entered the City of Shadows. Before my freedom would no longer be mine and my fate would lie in the hands of the king.
I found a spot up against a tree while the others made camp for the night. Guilt and shame left a dull, pulsating sting throughout my body. My mind wandered back to my small town, my father, and my life before. Since I’d been gone, they had been without anyone with knowledge about making elixirs that could aid healing. Although my skills were novice at best, I’d still left them stranded, without care.
I massaged the pressure building in my forehead. Ophelia’s husband flashed in my mind, reminding me of the elixirs he would no longer have in my absence. Why had I never taken an apprentice to help me with healing these past two years? Now, they had no one.
The forest spun around me as regret tugged at my stomach, leaving me uneasy. The rest of the town would suffer because of my selfish mistake. I clung to the hope that my father would find a replacement. One more weight that I would add to his shoulders, as if the burdens he carried weren’t already heavy enough.
Thankfully, I was distracted from my spiraling thoughts by the crackle of a fire. I pulled myself aways from the tree and forced my body towards the warmth. It was too late to hunt, but thankfully some of the other guards had thought ahead andcaught some extra hares for tonight. They were tossed into a pot for another stew.
It was no surprise when my stomach grumbled as the delicious smells began wafting out of the pot. The guard stirring the pot of stew lifted his gaze towards me with a grin, then continued stirring. A few moments later, he quietly handed me a bowl and a spoon before continuing to pass out the rest.
