I pushed that back into the recess of my mind, not wanting to focus on the past and my mistakes. I needed to focus on the future and make sure to rectify them. Every time I think that I had Emerald figured out, she surprises me, still making me want her, even when we fight or have a difference of opinions. I had only felt that way once before, but Mika and Emerald were night and day.
Mika was this young beacon of hope and love. Always wanted to try something like it was brand new to her, always putting in a hundred percent effort into everything she did. She would sing and dance and get drunk with the best of us. Her voice, to this day, was still the most beautiful thing I had ever heard. She would smile every moment that she had. She was the light in my darkness, but darkness could never live in the light. I learned that the hard way.
Emerald, on the other hand, was the exact opposite of Mika. She was a warrior, trained in every way, a commander of control and fierceness. I couldn’t even imagine Emerald dancing and singing, but I could imagine her cutting throats and gutting the wicked. She had a blood lust within her that called to me, begged me to come out and play, to share in our pain and make it pleasure. Where Mika was light and joyous, Emerald was dark and sinful. She was already in the darkness, calling me to come join her, to revel in our sins and make them something different from each other.
Emerald was everything that I wanted and hoped for, but I still needed to work through the ache in my chest whenever I stared at her for too long. Fuck whatever Zayden and Rykon were trying, I knew they weren’t into what we liked and that was my only edge over the others. She needed that outlet, just like me. I was counting on me being the only one to be able to give it to her.
With a renewed clear mindset, I picked up the boar’s legs again and heaved it over my shoulder, excited to show Emerald my kill and have her take the first bite once it’s cooked. There was something inherently manly, something that made a man feel fulfilled when they fed their woman.
I heard Zayden yell and Rykon grunt from not far away. I ran into the clearing, not knowing what to expect, but I wasn’t expecting to see the fae all scattered around. Beings with hair all in various colors, skin in various shades of golden all the way to mahogany, sprinting around towards my companions, I barely caught sight of the arm band with the sigil of two daggers inside of a crown, which meant one thing. These were the shadow fae. The trained assassins of the fae kingdom, the same group that Keve was a part of, told me about, and they were all over our camp.
Rykon was over to the side, dodging one of the fae that was calling knives out of thin air and lobbing them towards his head. He had a few cuts on his arms, but nothing that was more than a scratch. He was fighting against a shadow fae with no weapon and that was impressive.
Zayden was nearer Emerald, about a couple yards away from her against a tree, while she took on six shadow fae on her own.
I knew I should immediately step in and help. I could be a valuable asset in a situation like this, but I was stunned stiff, watching this dark green warrior goddess wield a rope and knife like it was ten swords at her beck and call.
She threw the knife in one direction, slicing down an opponent right through the throat, yanking it back with a hard pull. Instead of catching it to hit another target, she shifts her head to the side, letting the knife shoot backwards and hit the assassin coming at her back straight in the eye.
She looped her elbow around, tugging on the rope while winding it around her body as she sliced and impaled everything within distance. She was killing each fae at least five feet before they could get to her. She created this sphere of death around her, making her impenetrable with how she let gravity take its natural course as she yanked and wound the rope around her torso, moving out of the way at the last second of the knife trajectory, covering the fatal blow to her opponents until it was too late.
She looked like a dancer moving her body up, down and sideways, winding it around her body, calling her opponents closer even as they climbed over their dead comrades to get to her, knowing it might be their doom if they chose to dance with her.
She was in the zone, blood splatter covering her face as she focused on everyone around her. Zayden cried out as one of the fae tried to take him out. I will hand it to Zayden, for someone with no combat training, he was a slippery one. I watched as he got out of their grip twice, jumping around in the trees and swinging around branches, using his balance and height to his advantage, but he still wasn’t a fighter. As soon as another fae entered the fight, they easily grabbed him. I took a step in his direction as one held up his head and another one had their knife to his neck.
Not a moment too late, Emerald turned, already having killed most of the surrounding fae, as she threw two of her knives at the fae who held Zayden. The knives sliced through the knife wielder’s head, sticking out the side as it pierced his skull. The second fae was holding his eye, knife sticking out of it as he cried out. It was so deeply wedged that the fae immediately let go of Zayden. Both fae bodies falling out of the tree with a loud thud.
I noticed movement behind Emerald as she turned towards Zayden and his attackers. A devilish looking fae with blonde hair with orange streaks and a crescent-shaped tattoo around his left eye, pointed his bow and arrow right at Emerald, taking advantage of her distraction. I only had a second to act. I lifted the crossbow at my side, pointed it at the fae who was trying to hurt my woman, and I pulled the trigger.
The short arrow shot out, Emerald having a split second to look at me and notice that I shot from behind her and she ducked. The arrow he released missed by an inch as it hit the ground, quivering from the force. I heard a thud as my arrow hit the branch he was perched on, but he wasn’t there anymore. Damn it!
Suddenly, everything stopped. No one attacked us, and the forest grew eerily quiet. I looked over at Rykon, who had the fae he was fighting earlier dead at his feet with one of the fae’s knives in his hand. I nodded to him in acknowledgement and he looked me over, making sure I was okay as well.
Emerald was still looking around in the trees, trying to find something, or someone, knowing this wasn’t over yet. Her fists were clenched and ready as she kept looking around for the threat. The sound of footsteps came towards us from across the stream and we all swung in that direction, lifting our weapons and hands for a fight. It was the eye tattooed fucker I failed to kill, still smiling like he won this round, but by the looks of it, we four were all still standing while there was a litter of fae bodies scattered around us. Well, more around Emerald.
He raised his head, all his attention focused on Emerald. “Comete, nathis menish. Nameto tara sha meklump petesha.” The eye tattooed fucker called out in a low sultry taunting voice. Like they were friends or lovers, and this was all fun and games. I didn’t like it.
She glared at him as she coolly responded, “Tara minika petesha kalipe menish.” My eyes flew out of my head as I realized she knew fae tongue. The others looked at her with equal shock and awe.
The fae’s grin grew like he was pleasantly surprised. “Nesh teka tu, makala wal tara ye menish. Oka a ruthe. Melop mennakala pentre tara bekera voles. Neka, nish alcolo.” He lifted his hand, beckoning her to come to him. He looked down at her body with desire in his eyes. Apparently, I didn’t need to fucking translate that because it was the same look a regular man would give.
She laughed. It was a cruel and mean sound that broke from her lips as she crossed her arms. “Ruthe? Mennakala? Gethoto rana tara cala perokolo.”
His face tightened at whatever she said at the end, his white-toothed grin turning into a ragged snarl. “Sentaha meneka tara, mo noko to.” Then he pointed at her, the intensity of his gaze making his words feel like a promise. Then he turned around, whistling to a few fae who dropped out of the trees behind him, covering his back as he called over his shoulder. “Menewheya, raka to tara.” Emerald glared at him something fierce but didn’t reply.
A mist that wasn’t there before came forward and covered their retreat as the three of us circled around Emerald, watching them leave.
“Who the fuck was that?” Zayden asked.
“Are we just going to let them leave?” Rykon asked at the same time. When she didn’t answer either of them, I asked my question.
“Are they going to come back again?”
She was still glaring at the spot they had left from, shaking her head as she turned towards her stuff on the far edge of the clearing on the other side. “We need to get going. Find another camp. I will answer your questions on the way.” We all agreed as we broke apart to gather our things.
Rykon came up to my side, his hand out for his crossbow, and I reluctantly gave it up. I had grown a little attached to the weapon while I hunted for our dinner. Dinner! I snapped my attention over at the spot where I left the boar and let out a sigh when it was still where I left it, fully intact.
I went to grab it as Emerald and Zayden sauntered up to us. “I mean, when you whipped that knife over your head with the rope and cut down three fae in a row, that was amazing!” If Zayden could still be that animated, then he must be fine, but he had a point. Watching her fight was amazing. She used techniques I would’ve never thought to use. Her quick thinking and execution of sizing up our opponents made it so we survived this battle. It made me hopeful that we might survive whatever we faced beyond the mountains and into the badland.
