Raelia (The Medoran Chronicles Book 2) (11 page)

Alex knew better than to reach out to touch the animal— knowing her luck, she’d catch some funky disease from it— but she had to admit it was adorable. So much so that she was too busy watching it scavenge for food to notice that the bush was still rustling. A snarl was the only warning she had before a black shadow burst through the shrubbery and caught the squirrely creature in its teeth, snapping its body with a sickening
crunch
and swallowing it whole.

Alex shrieked and threw herself to the ground just as the animal lunged for her next. It was hideously terrifying; huge and hairy, with unnatural blood-red eyes and dilated black pupils. Talon-like claws ripped into the tree where she’d been standing, and when the animal turned to growl at her, she could see its razor-sharp teeth, each of which was about as long as her hand.

Alex scrambled to her feet when her fight-or-flight instinct activated and bolted blindly into the forest. She had no defence, no weapon, nothing at all. She didn’t even have speed to her advantage, since she could hear the creature quickly gaining on her. She wouldn’t be able to outrun it. But what else could she do?

At least the dense woodland was working in her favour, helping to slow the beast. She dared not look back; hearing the creature’s frustrated growls as it struggled through vines was enough to know that it was still close behind. Too close. She needed to get out of there. She needed to get…
higher
.

Alex glanced back at the creature as she tore through the forest. While its front legs held lethal talons, its back legs had no claws that she could see. She could only hope that meant it couldn’t climb, and with that thought she grabbed onto a thick vine and scurried up the closest tree. But she wasn’t high enough when the monster caught up with her, and before she could scramble out of reach, it jumped up and swiped its claws along her back, tearing into her flesh.

Alex cried out in pain and nearly lost her grip, but she managed to hold on and continued to heave herself up. She stopped when she was nearly at the canopy, and shakily rested against the thick tree trunk. Her back was screaming in agony, but she was more concerned about what to do next. The creature was prowling at the base of the tree, snarling and growling at her. She had no way to escape.

And then, out of nowhere, Alex heard voices.

The creature heard them too, and it turned away and looked in the direction of the noise. It jumped into a thick bush until it was concealed entirely from sight, its dark, hairy body camouflaged by the dense foliage.

Just as she was about to call out a warning, three people walked into view. Alex jerked back with shock and shrunk further into the tree, hiding amongst the vines and leaves.

Her reaction may have been dramatic, but it was also justified. Because one of the people was Aven.

Seriously, did she have the worst luck, or what?

“She’s nearby. I can sense her,” Aven proclaimed.

Alex shuddered at his announcement. Was he talking about her? How did he know she was there?

She peered at the silvery scar on her hand, feeling an unpleasant churning in her stomach at the reminder of when his blood had mixed with hers. Was it possible that…? No, she couldn’t bear to consider the thought that he was somehow able to sense her through the scar. It wasn’t possible. It couldn’t be.

“Are you sure?” Gerald asked. Even from her elevated position, Alex could easily recognise the tattoo-covered man she’d last seen fleeing from the Library with Aven.

“You doubt me, Gerald?” Aven asked dangerously.

“Of—of course not,” Gerald stuttered.

“He’d never be so stupid as to doubt you, my prince,” said the third member of the group, a woman Alex did not recognise. She was tall and refined, with blond hair and vacant, glassy eyes.

“You’re right, Calista,” Aven agreed. “He must know how unwise it would be to question my judgement.”

Gerald opened his mouth, most likely to apologise again, but Aven quieted him with a look.

“Silence. She’s here.”

Gerald and the woman—Calista—tensed. They both withdrew blades from belted scabbards and held them at the ready. Alex froze, wondering what they planned to do to her.

“Put your weapons away,” Aven said. “This is between me and her.”

They did as he commanded, and he stepped closer to the tree in which Alex was perched high above them.

“Come out, come out, wherever you are,” Aven goaded as he unsheathed his own weapon.

Alex gripped the tree trunk, her knuckles white. Aven hadn’t looked up so there was a possibility that he didn’t know where she was exactly. She wasn’t going to give away her position, no matter what.

But what happened next was so unexpected that she nearly let go.

In her fear of Aven, she’d forgotten about the dark beast, which soon made its presence known, lunging from the bush and slamming into Aven’s torso.

The Meyarin didn’t so much as blink. He raised his arm and slashed his blade into the neck of the hairy creature before effortlessly throwing the bulky mass aside with the weapon still imbedded in its flesh. Alex’s stomach roiled at the sound of the beast’s gurgling whine as it fell limply to the ground.

Aven patted his torn sleeve where the creature had clawed his arm, frantically inspecting his clothes and skin. Alex could see his silver blood dripping from where the monster’s talons had swiped into his flesh, but she knew his Meyarin genes would heal the wound soon enough.

“Quickly, Gerald,” Aven ordered, snapping his two human companions out of their shock. “We need to leave before Marselle discovers how close we are to his precious school.”

It was then that Alex realised Aven hadn’t come for her at all. He hadn’t been calling for
her
because she wasn’t the one he could ‘sense’—it was the
creature
he’d been hunting.

Alex let out a stuttered breath of relief but locked her body again when Aven cocked his head to the side, listening with his superior Meyarin hearing. He glanced around with a quizzical expression before shaking his head and turning his attention back to his companions.

While Alex focused on not making any sound that might draw his attention again, Calista reached into her jacket and retrieved a glass vial. She handed it to Gerald who knelt and yanked out Aven’s blade, pressing the vial against the slashed neck of the creature. The glass filled with a murky brown liquid as the creature’s blood gushed out of the fatal wound.

“That’s enough,” Aven said.

Gerald pressed a stopper in the top and made to hand the vial to Aven but the Meyarin hissed and backed away. “Remember what I told you, fool!”

Gerald’s ink-covered face paled and he hastily shoved the blood-filled container into his clothes.

“Is that all we need, my prince?” Calista asked.

“For the moment.” Aven looked down at the lifeless creature. “Such a waste. She had so much potential.”

Alex felt the hair on her neck stand on end at his words and she imagined herself in the same place as the animal, with Aven standing over her defeated body.

She shook the thought from her mind and watched silently as he drew out a Bubbler and threw it to the ground. Without another word he led the way through, and as soon as Gerald and Calista stepped in after him, the bubble-gateway vanished.

Alex exhaled deeply the moment they were gone. She couldn’t believe Aven had been searching for the very creature that had been chasing her. It was too much of a coincidence.

And Alex didn’t believe in coincidences.

“What are you playing at?” she whispered, wanting to know why the Library had sent her there. She, of course, received no answer.

She loosened her grip and considered her next move. There was no way she was going to leave the safety of the tree, but she needed to start moving and find her way back to Akarnae. Aven’s words about Darrius gave her hope that she wasn’t
too far from the academy, so she just had to figure out which direction to go in.

Ignoring the throbbing pain in her back, Alex started climbing higher up the tree. If she was close to Akarnae, then she should be able to get her bearings if she broke through the canopy.

Climbing was hard work. The higher she rose, the more entangled she became in the leaves and branches. But eventually she managed to push through and she balanced precariously on the swaying treetop, gripping for dear life.

Squinting into the distance, she was able to recognise the rising hulk of Mount Paedris, confirming that she
was
in the Ezera Forest and showing which direction she needed to go to reach the academy.

Shimmying back down, Alex halted her descent when she reached a place where the branches thickly overlapped, making them more stable. She began moving through the trees, crawling more often than walking. It was slow going, but with the advantage of height she didn’t fear any more encounters with hairy, snarling beasts. Or Aven, for that matter. She was sure he was long gone, but the last thing she needed was to have another close and personal run-in with him again so soon.

Soon enough Alex’s patience waned and her confidence grew, leading her to trust that the branches would hold her weight as she walked, ran, and often jumped from tree to tree. Holding onto the vines for balance and support, Alex felt like a Tarzan wannabe as she moved stealthily through the forest.

Eventually the trees began to thin, bringing her out of the woodland and to the edge of the academy grounds. Just as she was about to climb down to the ground, something caught her eye a few trees away. Her injured back was screaming in agony after all the climbing and jumping and she was desperate to
visit Fletcher for some of his miraculous healing salve, but Alex couldn’t resist investigating the object glinting in the afternoon light.

She leapt the last few branches until she was able to reach up and grab the object from above her head.

“What is this doing out here?” she whispered to herself, turning the shiny necklace over in her hands.

While the unexplainable resting place of the jewellery was a mystery, what surprised Alex the most, was that it was fashioned from Myrox—a stunning but rare Meyarin steel. The chain was a simple strand of the silver-like material, but it was the pendant that was truly enchanting. It was a miniature depiction of a beautifully crafted archer’s bow, with the arrow drawn and ready for release. The detail was incredible, and the glowing Myrox infused the ornament with a lifelike quality.

Alex wondered how such a prized possession could have ended up hidden so high in the trees. It didn’t make any sense.

She shrugged to herself and, unsure what else to do, undid the miniscule clasp on the chain and reattached it around her neck. She felt a little uneasy wearing someone else’s pendant, but at least this way she wouldn’t drop it or lose it in her climb down to the ground.

Branch by branch, Alex slowly lowered herself, wincing as she grappled with the rough bark. Her palms were shredded from all the climbing she’d endured, but that was nothing compared to the throbbing gashes across her back.

When Alex reached the ground she stretched out her cramping arms and legs before setting off through the last of thinning forest. Within a few short steps the academy came into view, and she felt like dropping to her knees in relief. The only reason she didn’t was because she wasn’t sure if she’d be able to get back up again.

It took her a while to walk around the edge of Lake Fee and hike across the massive field, but eventually Alex made it to the campus and she headed straight for the Medical Ward.

The sight that met her inside Fletcher’s domain was not what she’d expected. The Ward was so full of patients that she wondered if she should leave and come back later, but then her back throbbed its disagreement and she grimaced at the pain.

“Alex,” Fletcher greeted her, more frazzled than she’d ever seen him. “I take it you’re here for the same reason as your classmates?”

She frowned in confusion and looked around the room, noting that the patients were all fourth year students.

“What happened?” she asked, feeling a stab of concern as she searched for the familiar faces of her friends. She relaxed slightly when she couldn’t see them anywhere.

“Weren’t you with them?”

“No, I was… elsewhere,” she said meaningfully.

Fletcher’s eyes lit with understanding. “Oh. I see. Well, some of your classmates pushed themselves too far in their pursuit of a position in Hunter’s class. Nothing too serious, mind you, but they certainly weren’t being very careful.”

Alex looked around the room once more and noticed the various injuries. Cuts and bruises seemed to be the most common ailments, but she also saw a number of bandaged limbs.

“Since you weren’t with them, can I assume you’ll live until I’ve herded them all out of here?” Fletcher asked.

Alex swallowed, wondering how long that would take. But she’d already managed on her own while forging through the forest, surely she could wait just a little longer? Her pain spiked again at the thought, but she ignored it and nodded to Fletcher.

The doctor sent her a grateful smile and indicated towards a spare bed in the corner of the room. “I won’t be too long,” he promised, hurrying off to assist his other patients.

Alex stumbled over to the bed, careful to keep her back to the wall and away from curious eyes. She was wearing a black shirt, which helped conceal the bloodstains, but she was certain the material was ripped from the creature’s claws. She sat on the bed with her legs dangling over the edge of the mattress and waited. She couldn’t lie down and she couldn’t lean on anything—not unless she wanted to stain the white bed sheets or walls with her blood.

She was tired, she was hungry and she was in some serious agony now that she wasn’t doing anything to pump her adrenaline and keep her mind off her injury. If only she’d had the foresight to ask Fletcher for some of his pain relief medicine. Then at least she could have been more comfortable while waiting.

It took half an hour for the majority of her classmates to be discharged, but there were still a few left with whom Fletcher was finishing up. She wished they would heal faster.