Shadow Assassins (The Second Realm Trilogy) (10 page)

Not yet. Camira wasn’t going to stand by idly while Marco was devoured. She pulled her bow up and notched another arrow into position.

“Let him go!”

The faerie let loose with an inhuman screech as it turned its head towards her.

“What are you doing?” Marco cried, horrified. “Don’t shoot my friend!”

“That is no friend of yours, Marco,” she said. “This is the creature I warned you about before, the one that takes on the forms of those close to you before devouring you as food!”

The confusion in Marco’s gaze was clear. The same went for his voice, as he asked, “What are you
talking
about? This is Evangeline!”

“I don’t think so.”



Marco was horrified. Camira was going to shoot Evangeline! He pushed his friend out of the way and blocked Camira’s path with his own body. Let her shoot him, if she wanted to kill someone that badly.

Camira looked absolutely exasperated. “Get out of my way.”

“No, not until you lower that arrow.”

“Ask your friend who she is yourself! The deceptive creatures of this forest cannot speak any understandable language! Even with your mage speak, you will not be able to understand her!”

Marco wanted to ask how she knew he was using mage speak, but it must have been obvious, since he wasn’t from around here. Instead, he turned to Evangeline. “Well, you heard the woman. Go ahead and prove her wrong!”

Evangeline only glared at the woman. Her face had too angry an expression for her. Usually, when Evangeline’s anger reached a certain point, she had trouble keeping her composure. She would want to transform into her demon side. That wasn’t happening now. The Evangeline before him just looked wild, ready to attack.

It didn’t make sense.

“Well?” he asked, his voice hitching higher in panic. Was Camira correct, was this woman before him not Evangeline? It might explain that kiss he had experienced...

Before conflict could carry any further, two arrows flitted from the trees to the far right of Marco. Evangeline gave a horribly inhuman cry and fell to the ground as the arrows made a new home in her side and belly.

“Evie!” he cried, stepping closer.

“Get back!” a harsh male voice yelled.

He turned. From behind the tree, two men approached. The two males were bare chested, except for a small metal plate that crossed over the upper half of their chests in elegant, swirling designs. Their pants were likewise light in color and had the same metal design going, like a sort of armor plating. Marco instantly noticed the pointed ears on both, but one drew his attention more. He had waist-length black hair tied back with a leather thong. Feathers adorned his hair, matching the same feathers that were nestled in the arrows he shot.

“D’jerik,” Camira whispered faintly.

The elf called D’jerik stepped forward and swiftly shot two more arrows point-blank into Evangeline.

Marco would have protested, if he hadn’t have seen what became of Evangeline. Instead of bleeding out, she was warping, turning into a strange and somewhat feminine creature shorter than Evangeline, anorexic-skinny, as he called it, with green skin and hair the color of the forest around them. Strange,
slitted cat’s eyes shone with pain and anger.

He flinched.
This
was the creature he had kissed?

“Oh, God, what
is
that?” he cried, fighting the sick feeling crawling up his throat.

D’jerik’s companion answered.
“Faerie. Disgusting creature, isn’t it?”

“D’jala, to me,” the first man said.

The second elf man called D’jala hurried to D’jerik’s side. He hurriedly pulled a knife from the belt at his waist and slit the creature’s throat. The creature stopped protesting, falling to the ground like a puppet whose strings had been cut.

The first man glared at Camira. “Not a wise move, to be running from the village, Camira. Your father is looking for you.”

Camira’s eyes narrowed. “I’m not running away.”

The hostility that Camira held for D’jerik hung thick in the air between them. This man, D’jerik, was the man she had been promised to marry. He was the type of man Marco thought most women would go for. Tall, muscular and in his white and silver armor, he looked like he could kill with ease. Instead of swooning over him like Marco suspected many women did, Camira looked disgusted.

Made him feel better about what had happened to him.

That feeling disappeared fast, though, as D’jerik raised his bow to Marco.
“Camira, to me! Get away from this disgusting human.”

“
Excuse
me?” Marco said, offended.

“I will do no such thing!” Camira protested.

“I do not have time for arguments, woman! To me!”

Marco could see why Camira wanted nothing to do with this man. He wasn’t exactly Prince Charming looking to sweep up his fair maiden.

“I think not!” Camira yelled over him. “This human has been good to me. We were making our way out of the forest before you got here.”

“This
human
needs to back away if he does not want my knife through his gut,” D’jerik growled, completely ignoring what Camira had said.

Alarmed at the sudden hostility, Marco backed off. He didn’t dare say it out loud, but he wondered to himself who had pissed in this guy’s cereal...or whatever the elf equivalent of cereal was. He d
oubted the elves ate Cheerios.

D’jerik’s ice blue eyes shone with obvious satisfaction as he saw Marco back off. In the same commanding voice, he ordered Camira to come home.

“Alright,” Camira said. “
But
only if we help Marco first.”

That was obviously not the answer D’jerik was expecting. He glared towards the human Camira spoke of.
“This human?”

“Yes. He is not from around here and needs to get to Moonriver Academy. He has been gracious enough to help me. I think it’s only fair that we return his kindness. Allow me to help him!”

Marco watched the two argue. He had a feeling that if he spoke up to interrupt, the male elf would drop him with an arrow without even blinking twice.

“We do not help humans,” the male elf said.

“He is no ordinary human, D’jerik. I have seen his powers. And besides that, he helped me.
I owe him.
”

D’jerik let loose with a juicy foreign-sounding curse. Seething, he turned his back to her.
“Fine. We’ll escort him to Moonriver
only
if you come back to the colony.”

After she nodded and they made an agreement, D’jerik nods at his companion. Silently, D’jala pulled a length of rope from a heavy-looking pouch on his belt and pulled Marco’s hands behind his back. Marco gave a protest but Camira was shouting over him, demanding why Marco was being tied as though he were a prisoner.

“I do not trust humans,” was the simple, cold reply she received.

Marco called to Camira, letting her know he was okay with it. It was a small indignity, but if they agreed to help him get out of this forest, then he would put up with it. Having three armed elves around would be more helpful than if he was alone and armed with only his pocket knives and dagger.

“We have a small war party outside the forest confines,” D’jerik said gruffly, shoving at Marco to get him to walk. “We will ride towards Moonriver after we get out of this godforsaken forest.”

Relief flooded Marco as they left the forest. As they walked, he couldn’t help but look back towards the spot where the fallen faerie
lay. Having an escort of three deadly elves was definitely better than traveling alone, considering what they had done to save him.

Being tied was a small indignity, but he would go along with it.
For now, at least.

Night fell over Moonriver Academy for the Supernaturally Gifted. The students kept to their normal routine, unaware that anything out of the ordinary was happening. Dirk was growing uneasy as he watched the crescent moon rise over the night sky. He still didn’t know where the Shadow Assassins were, or if they were okay. Nighttime could be rough in some parts of the Second Realm. If they were really still on Aurialis, they might have had a better chance, but he feared for them if they were on the Isle Dark. The Isle, with all unwanted magic users and criminals, had become a sort of prison over time, for those who were not wanted. Some criminals were imprisoned there. Some dark magic users, drawn by the lure of the Isle Dark, went there voluntarily. Either way, it was not a good place to be. If the Assassins were indeed on the Isle Dark, he feared greatly for them.

He stood out in an open field with a handful of teachers and other school officials who had been alerted to the current situation. Grounds keepers had been searching the school's territory for the Shadow Assassins all day but the only person who had been found was a rogue student who was trying to skip class. No Shadow Assassins.

As the teachers re-grouped together to discuss what to do, none of them noticed three figures slip by them.

The three figures slipped around them, circling around the stables, hiding behind trees until they finally reached the open gate that led to the outside world.



“Dammit, there are too many teachers around to steal the horses again,” Dante growled. She hadn’t dared to speak until she, Dimitri and Moonshadow were out of the school grounds.

Sneaking off of school property was hard enough on a good day, when the grounds keepers weren’t patrolling and other protective magic wasn’t activated. In their search for the missing guests, the teachers had lowered their protective spells that prevented strangers from entering Moonriver Academy, or from students from exiting. It made it easier for Dante and her companions to sneak out.

“Where are we going, Dante?” Dimitri dared to whisper, his voice barely louder than the night breeze.

“Back to the Emeralde Kingdom.”

“Do you know how
far
that is on foot?” Dimitri protested in a hissing whisper. “On horses, maybe we could make the journey during the night, but not on foot! What are you thinking?”

“I am so tired of people asking me that!” she snapped. When she saw her friend flinch, she softened a bit.
“Sorry, Dimitri. But I don’t know what else to do. I can’t let those people suffer any more than they are now. We have to help them.”

“I agree, but on foot?”

She sighed impatiently, then reached into the pocket of her jacket. She pulled forth a small pouch that jingled with the sound of many coins. “No. There’s supposed to be a Gypsa caravan nearby. Maybe we can borrow a horse or two for the night. Gypsa traders will sell their first born child for a few gold coins, after all.”

She saw him shudder at the prospect of doing business with the Gypsa, but he nodded.

“Okay, let’s go.”

They set off on foot down a worn dirt road. They were silent for most of the time, except for small bouts of conversation on where they were going. They stopped to rest when their legs wore themselves out,
then set out after. They traveled by moonlight alone. This was not a well-used trail so there were no torches to outline the road. There were no settlements, just wild countryside. Dimitri jumped when an animal made a sound too close to them.

Dante figured they had been walking for an hour when they saw a faint orange glow ahead of them. It had to be the Gypsa caravan she had heard a teacher talking about. The Gypsa were banned from school grounds. It was only a rumor, but they had heard of how the Gypsa kidnapped people and sold them off to deadly tournaments where opponents fought to the death, on the Isle Dark. That and they sold trinkets that were rumored to be cursed, and potions that could be used to harm the body. The Gypsa had been banned from Moonriver Academy, so they continued along their established trade paths, as if the school didn’t exist.

As they approached the camp, Dante saw Gypsa around in their odd assortment of clothing. The Gypsa traded with whoever wanted to do business. They dealt in gold and in trade, resulting in a wide variety of fashion and culture. Two men dressed in the robes of Emeralde Kingdom nobility stood guard outside their encampment.

“Halt!” one of the men called to them, raising a crudely-made bow. “Who are you to be traveling so late and among Gypsa trade path?”

“We wish to borrow two horses for the night,” Dante said, as Dimitri cowered behind her.

“We do not lend horses,” was the simple denial.

“We only wish to borrow the horses for a few hours’ time, to make for faster travel. You will have them back before you set off again in the morning. We are prepared to pay.”

The man lowered his bow at the mention of payment. “What do you wish to pay?”

She waited until she had fully approached before she pulled two gold coins from the pouch. One gold coin for each horse.

The man was not impressed. “Five cut.”

Cut
was what the Gypsa called for the relatively standard gold coins that were used as currency. Around Aurialis, there was no universal currency, but the Gypsa had been around the continent enough to establish that each of the territories’ currencies were close enough. Cut meant that the coins had to be of enough consistent size and shape that they could be close enough to other forms of currency.

“Five is a bit much, isn’t it?” she frowned.

“You want fast travel, not me. Five cut or keep walking.”

She bit back the insult that threatened to leave her, about how the Gypsa were all money hungry. No good would come out of insulting the man she was trying to barter with. Instead, she pulled the pouch open and pulled more coins out.

The man’s eyes lit up as five gold coins were pressed into his dirty hands. He invited Dante and her companions into their camp, before leading them to a makeshift stable.

“I want these horses back before the sun rises,” the man grumbled. “No later than that, or I’ll have your heads for it.”

“Before the sun rises,” she echoed. “You got it.”

The man said nothing else as he handed two mares over by worn leather reins. Dante didn’t care. She mounted the horse and waited for Dimitri to do the same. When they were both ready, she marked where the camp was in her mind and set off.

The horses took off at a run to help them travel faster. The great black wolf Moonshadow ran beside them, keeping a small distance between himself and the horses. The horses were scared of him.

“Was that wise?” Dimitri called to Dante. “Doing deals with the Gypsa?”

“We just have to get back before dawn,” she said. “Not hard at all. The Gypsa will at least keep their word.”

“That’s what I’m afraid of,” he grumbled.

“Don’t worry about what everyone is saying about the Gypsa selling people into slavery. It’s probably just a myth.”

“Probably,” he echoed in disbelief.

They rode on until they stumbled into another farming village outside of the Emeralde Kingdom’s walls. The Emeralde Kingdom only stretched so far but the King reigned over several smaller villages that depended on the kingdom for trade. Like the previous village they had visited, this one was being attacked. They were nowhere near the village entrance and Dante could already hear the screams.

Dante got off of her horse. She handed the reins to Dimitri. “I’m going in. These horses aren’t ours so I won’t dare risk them in battle. Stay here, okay?”

Dimitri’s eyes narrowed momentarily, clearly not okay with being left behind, but he nodded. “Take Moonshadow.”

Immortals and familiars rarely parted company for long. Younger Immortals couldn’t stand their familiar traveling very far from them, citing pain that was actually physical in the absence of their animal guide. For their excursions, Dimitri and Moonshadow parted ways for short amounts of time. Dimitri was nervous to begin with, but being without Moonshadow made him jumpier.

“Are you sure you don’t need him?”

“It will calm the horses,”
Moonshadow said.
“Let’s go.”

She nodded. “We’ll be back.”

Moonshadow turned to his human.
“Be safe, Dimitri.”

“You too.”

With that, Dante and Moonshadow sprinted off.

The screams of the village got louder as they approached. As Dante and Moonshadow approached the village, they saw an all too familiar scene. Knights on horseback terrorized the villagers who fled from their homes, still dressed in night gowns or other clothing that clearly suggested that they weren’t a threat. That didn’t stop the soldiers from chasing them, demanding for them to stop and surrender for crimes they didn’t commit.

A low growl escaped Dante. She felt hot anger rippling through her, influencing her demonic side to come out and play. That was the rush she was looking for. She let loose with a horrible howl as her demonic side came out to play.



Dimitri heard the commotion from the village and knew Dante had transformed. There was no other explanation for the sudden screaming. The horses seemed spooked at the sudden noise but he calmed them. They weren’t exactly convinced to settle down, but then again, he wasn’t their normal handler.

He still didn’t agree with doing business with the Gypsa, but there was no point in arguing with Dante. Dante was so set on fighting this war in what she called her little “resistance movement,” that she would have just left him if he had disagreed with her. Not exactly what he wanted. He couldn’t have snuck back into the castle, not with all of the teachers around.

“Dimitri?”

Speaking of which.

Dimitri practically jumped out of his saddle at the familiar voice. He turned and saw Dirk on horseback, looking thoroughly annoyed at seeing his student so far away from home.
Caught.

“What are you doing out here?”

“I...that is, we...” he didn’t know what to say, exactly.

“
We?
Does that mean Dante is with you, as well?”

Dimitri cursed in his head, not daring to say it out loud. He didn’t have to say anything in order for Dirk to know that Dante was out there. The screams of terror and sounds of destruction were enough proof for him.

At the thought, Dirk seemed to pick up on the noise. “Is that
her
in that village?”

Dimitri sighed heavily.
“Yeah. This was her idea.”

He wasn’t the only one cursing. Dirk let loose with a string of curse words before he nudged his horse into motion. The last thing Dimitri heard was Dirk shouting, “Stay where you are, Dimitri! If that horse moves one hoof out of place, I’ll know it!”



“Academic probation?”

Dirk was not impressed at Dante’s attitude. She paced around his office restlessly.

“You heard me,” he said, his voice level.

“But why? I didn’t get hurt or anything. I was helping people
survive
–”

“You could have gotten killed!” he snapped. “You snuck out of school property after curfew. As noble as you are, Dante, there are still rules of the school to be dealt with.”

“In a time of
war?
”

He ignored the dramatic candor of her voice and kept his judgment. She had been hard enough to deal with when he had pulled her out of the village. He was thankful that her transformations took so much energy from other; otherwise, he feared that she would have turned that demon strength upon him. She had argued with him all the way back to the Gypsa campsite, where they had returned the horses. While he rode his horse, he made Dante and Dimitri walk on foot, where Dante had complained more, limping the whole way from her battle wounds. Dimitri had taken the news of his own academic probation relatively well, if not with some disappointment. He had probably expected the punishment. Dante, on the other hand, was still angry over it, and had followed him back to his office once they had arrived back to the school.

He wasn’t in the mood to put up with her. The Shadow Assassins were still missing and he had finally gotten permission to cross back over to the First Realm, to inform Dr. Fyrn. Not a meeting he was looking forward to.

Dante ceased her pacing and slumped into the chair across from his desk, huffing impatiently. In a calmer voice, she said, “By the way, did you hear the Gypsa when we were leaving?
There’s apparently elves in the Feynid Forest.”

“I wouldn’t trust the Gypsa as a reliable source of gossip,” he said. “The Oraldine elves seldom venture out of their territory. I don’t think they’d ever willingly go into the Feynid Forest.”

Her frown grew more pronounced as he spoke.