The Iron Locket (The Risen King) (22 page)

"Absolutely." Zela was a few feet to their left. She patted her horse affectionately. "They are a special breed, raised on the plains of..." She trailed off and raised her head, sniffing. "Do you smell that?"

Aiofe's nostrils flared in response, catching a whiff of smoke. She took a deeper breath. She could smell the flames, taste them on her tongue. There was no doubt in her mind where the fire was. Coughing roughly, she quickly slid her leg over the horse's neck and leapt to the ground.

Arthur was right beside her, his hand gripping her arm gently. "Wait, do not run up there unprepared."

She yanked away from him. "My house is on fire!" Her voice echoed off the trees, but she didn't care. Turning, she darted through the woods, the power of the locket and her own blood mixing with her fear to give her an extra boost of adrenal.

"Aiofe, wait!" Arthur's call was fading behind her. She stumbled momentarily in a panic of deja vu. It was long enough for him to catch up to her. His horse had been left behind, snorting frantically as its master raced through woods it couldn't navigate so easily. "Stop," the knight breathed as he reached her, taking her arm gently once more. "Just wait a moment."

They were at the edge of the woods now. Aiofe leaned against a tree, panting heavily. She could see the roof of the cabin. It was bright orange. Flames danced out of her bedroom window, licking toward the sky. She sagged against the tree, a harsh sob escaping her lips as she pressed a hand over her mouth. Her vision blurred with fat tears and her body started to shake. Arthur slipped an arm around her and pulled her close, brushing her hair gently with one hand.

A cry echoed from across the lawn and Aiofe was off once more, racing up the small incline. She was halfway there before she noticed the bodies near the house. Two of them sat crumpled against the porch guarded by gray beasts that Aiofe had never seen. A third person was a few feet in front of it, on her knees, hands behind her head. The long white hair flowed in the light breeze from the fire behind her. A tall woman with dark hair paced in a circle around her, sword drawn and pointed at her victim.

Aiofe stopped and drew an arrow, her shaking hands failing to nock it the first two times she tried. By the time she had it on the string, the tall woman had stopped moving. She was staring at Aiofe with a smile on her face. As the young woman watched, the faery raised a booted foot and kicked her grandmother in the shoulder. The old hunter went sprawling across the grass, crying out in pain. Aiofe's arrow ripped through the air, but the faery was ready. With a flick of her sword, she deflected it away expertly, sending it to thud uselessly into the burning house behind her.

"Leave them alone," Aiofe cried as she pulled another arrow from her quiver. "Your battle is with me."

Leanansidhe laughed. "One of my battles, yes. But I am going to kill them, too. The only real question is who do I kill first." She spun around and pointed her sword at Maureen. "What about grandmother? Put her out of her misery so she does not have to watch her darling granddaughter die?" She whipped around, her hand ablaze. "Or maybe I will just kill you first."

The ball of fire sizzled as it flew through the air. Aiofe barely had time to blink before she was face first in the grass. Arthur rolled off of her, bringing his sword up as he stood. Shouts echoed from near the woods and several mounted riders broke from the trees. The steeds tore across the grass, divots flying up behind them. Zela's hand was crackling with a sphere of energy and she sent it shooting toward the other faery. Leanansidhe ducked, rolling to the side.

Aiofe slipped her knife from her belt and scampered over to where her grandmother lay. "Are you okay?" she asked, her heart pounding with fear.

Maureen smiled weakly. "I'm fine, dear. Help me sit up."

By the time Aiofe got her into a seated position, the others had reached them and a battle was beginning. The gray creatures howled and launched themselves at the attackers as more of them swarmed around the corner of the house. Percival was locked in a fierce battle with the largest of the group, his sword clanging loudly against the beast's arms as it tried to fight through the knight's defenses. Kay leapt off his horse beside Arthur, bringing his sword to bear as three of the things surrounded them. Zela and Leanansidhe squared off, the blond faery wielding a ball of lightening while the brunette played with fire.

"Aiofe, quickly!" The girl followed her grandmother's frantic pointing. Several of the gray beasts were gathered around the two bodies by the porch. Her grandfather lay unmoving behind another man. He had a sword in his hand, the witch's blade her grandfather kept locked in the garage. Smoke wafted up from where his skin touched the hilt. She squinted at him, taking in his blond hair and rough beard. She had seen him before, more than once.

She threw her knife and it met its mark, sinking deep into his shoulder. He grunted and stumbled back a step, but his eyes never left the beasts around him. She could have sworn that his determined grimace took on a sad note.

"Aiofe, my bow." Her grandmother was pointing to a pile of wood a few steps away. Aiofe ran to it and snatched the bow off the ground. Taking an arrow from the quiver, she aimed at one of the beasts near her grandfather. It sank deep into the gray flesh and the creature crumpled to the ground. As she pulled another out, the blond faery swung the blade, slicing the head of another beast clean off. She finished off the last with the bow, burying an arrow in its neck even as it ripped the blade from the faery's hand.

The blond faery stumbled toward her a step, his hand out. "Aiofe," he whispered as he fell to a knee.

She glared at him sideways, turning to her grandmother instead. Slipping an arm around the old woman's waist, she hoisted her to her feet and dragged her over to the porch. She could feel the heat from the flames licking at the upper stories of the house, but it had not yet reached them. For now it would do.

"Grandad," the young woman said, reaching down to shake the old man. “Grandad, wake up.”

Alo's eyes fluttered open, rolling around until they locked on his granddaughter. A small smile tugged at his lips. “Aiofe, you're alive.”

“Of course I am,” she said, matching his smile. “Let's get you up.”

As she leaned down to wrap his arm around her shoulder, a heavy weight plowed into her legs, sending her tumbling to the ground.

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Arthur swung his sword, slamming it into the arm of a gray beast with all his might. The blade sliced the skin, but did not penetrate to the flesh. The creature howled and swung at him. Arthur's backward leap set him off balance and he stumbled as the beast charged him. As he brought his sword up to deflect another blow, a blade came in from his right, piercing the softer skin under the creature's arm. It wailed briefly before toppling over.

"Need a little help?" Kay asked as he and Arthur took up back to back stances against two more beasts.

"Sure, if you have the time." Arthur grunted as he swung, missing his attacker's head by two inches.

The pair rotated, parrying and attacking in turns, holding the beasts at bay. As he turned, Arthur saw Percival, going toe-to-toe with a creature almost as tall as he was. The young man held his own, though, along with the help from his horse, and Arthur could see several leaking wounds on the beast's tough flesh. Several horses were locked into a fierce brawl with more of the gray beasts. Arthur worried briefly, but the gray bodies gathered on the ground were proof that the steeds were not simple-minded pack animals.

Behind Percival battled the two faeries, one wielding flame that set everything in its path on fire, the other dual-wielding wind and lightening. As Leanansidhe loosed a flaming ball toward Zela, the faery princess twirled her left hand quickly, a mini cyclone forming around her fingers. It shot toward the fire with deadly accuracy, wrapping it up inside its cone. Arthur watched as the windy cage shot skyward into the heavens until it was no longer visible.

"This is not the time for daydreams, my brother." Kay grunted as one of the creatures connected its fist with his ribs. He stumbled to the side and fell to one knee. As the creature pounced, Arthur brought his blade down. The point sank into the flesh at the base of the beast's neck. It fell, thrashing feebly on the ground, but it could not stand.

Arthur turned to face the remaining creature as Kay rose to his feet. The dark knight stood hunched slightly, his free arm across his ribs. The knights split apart, one on either side of the gray beast. It turned quickly, trying to face both ways at once as the knights harried its flanks, poking holes into its skin every time it turned. As it faced Arthur, Kay made to dart in, but he stopped, his attention pulled away to something behind Arthur. The king raised his blade, warding off the heavy blow from the beast, unable to see where Kay was looking. Before he could move, Kay took off across the grass, running at full speed.

The beast in front of Arthur took advantage of the change in situation, using its powerful legs to leapt at the knight. Arthur wasn't prepared and the only thing he could do was bring his sword in front of him. It saved him. As they fell to the ground, the hilt smashed into his breastbone, pushing the air from his lungs. The blade, however, guided by the force of impact with Arthur and the ground, pushed through the thick skin on the creature's chest, tearing through its heart and out its back. Arthur lay beneath the heavy beast, panting rapidly as he tried to inhale air. He tilted his head back, trying to find his friend.

Kay was running across the lawn toward another creature. It took Arthur a moment to realize what the creature was doing. A flash of red hair underneath the beast made the man's heart pound faster. Kay reached them, bringing his sword to bear. He slashed down, slicing a chunk of skin off the beast's shoulder. It tumbled off Aiofe and scrambled to its feet even as she crawled around behind Kay. The dark knight swung, blocking the beast's blow. It lunged, grabbing at his ankles, but in doing so, it exposed the weak point on its neck. He thrust the blade down as its hands connected with his legs. The creature pulled, knocking him over, but his momentum shoved the blade deeper, severing the creature's spinal cord.

Arthur shoved at the beast on top of it, grunting with the effort. It rolled off and he freed himself, climbing to his knees. When he looked up once more, he saw the dark faery stalking across the lawn, a ball of flame in her hand, murder in her eyes. She stopped, raised the hand, and shoved the fire through the air. Arthur quickly traced its path to find its intended target. Aiofe lay on the ground, moaning and trying to get to her hands and knees after being crushed by Kay. The other knight was on his side, panting and clutching a leg that was bent at the wrong angle.

"No!" Arthur shoved himself to his feet even as his heart began to break. There was no way he could reach his friend or his love in time.

Even as he watched with despair, Kay grabbed Aiofe by the back of the jacket. Dragging her bodily across the ground, he used his good leg to shove himself up and over her. The fire connected with his back before he hit the ground, piercing through the armor and crawling into his hair, and onto the grass below. The wail of pain that tore from his lungs was unlike any Arthur had ever heard. He raced toward his friend, his sword forgotten, everything else around him a blur.

Movement to the side caught his attention. A blond man lay on the ground, a blade in his shoulder. In one swift motion, the man ripped the blade from his body and threw it with such force, he fell over. The knife soared through the air toward the wicked faery. She was intent on the knight burning on the ground and did not see the deadly weapon until it sank into her hip up to the hilt. She screamed and fell to a knee. By the time Arthur reached Kay, the dark faery was on a horse, pounding across the ground toward the woods. Arthur knelt beside his friend, using his bare hands to pat out the flames that ate away at the man's hair and face.

"Do not touch the flames." Zela was behind him, her hand on his shoulder. She pulled him away gently and used her wind to kill the flames, then she knelt beside the knight to examine him.

Arthur reached over and wrapped his arms around Aiofe, pulling her into his lap. He brushed a strand of hair from her face. "Are you alright?"

She nodded feebly, sinking into his embrace and resting her head on his shoulder. "Is he going to survive?"

Zela looked up, her face drawn. She shook her head gently. "His insides are melting. He will not last more than a few minutes. I am sorry." She lay the knight's head on the grass and stood, walking to the porch where her brother lay crumpled on the ground.

Aiofe crawled from Arthur's lap and the king moved to his friend's side. Kay's eyes were wide and rolling. Arthur lifted his head and placed it on his lap. "You have been a good friend, my dear knight. The best brother a man could ask for."

Kay blinked rapidly, trying to fix his eyes on his king. "Tell..." he started, blood burbling from his lips. "Tell Lancelot... who is... the hero now..." A grin broke across his face as his gaze finally settled on Arthur's. For a brief moment, they shared a deep brotherly bond, then the light in his eyes faded and the last breath left his lips, this time forever.

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TWENTY-SIX

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