Page 51 of Her Ivory Flame

The first week was the roughest for her, and he didn’t mock her or offer any of his usual snide remarks. It was unusual for him, butshe wasn’t going to question it and pushed through her emotions all alone.

Her nightmares had come back in full force since Silas wasn’t with her and it freaked out the patrol guards the first night. They had come barging in her room thinking she was being attacked only to find her screaming in her own bed. After that they didn’t bother entering, or if they did she didn’t notice.

She mounted up on her mare after checking her cinch and waited for Kaden who was only a few seconds behind. She barely saw him settle in his saddle before she nudged her horse forward and started towards the edge of town where the Tavern was situated.

They rode side by side through town, people once again staring at her and she did nothing but look ahead. She didn’t want to know their faces or see the awe in their eyes from the rare site of her. She knew she would have to get used to it since she was now queen, but right now she didn’t feel like one and wasn’t going to pretend otherwise.

They got to the alley where they needed to turn down when they heard commotion coming from the main gate.

“Everyone get inside!” A guard yelled and people started running towards the main gate from the meadow.

A creature screamed in the distance, one she had never heard before and she locked eyes with Kaden quickly. They nodded to each other and took off down the path running towards the approaching crowd.

“Get inside now!” the guard yelled again and she could hear people screaming while running frantically by them.

That was when she saw the figures come over the horizon of the meadow.

On the hillside across from them she could see a dozen grotesque figures coming towards the people running to town. Even from this distance she could see the bat-like face and slimy red skin glistening in the sunlight. Their silhouette was like nothing she had ever seen, broad shoulders, mutated limbs and long fingers with sharp claws.

“Trenchers?” she asked Kaden as they continued to ride towards the gate.

“Yes,” he replied and kept his eyes on the hillside where the creatures kept advancing.

They stopped at the entrance, half a dozen guards helping the last few people through the gate.

“Shut this gate and sound the alarm.” Kaden demanded and turned to her. “Stay here.”

“No!” she yelled back. “I won’t let you go out there alone.”

“I can’t risk losing you.” His eyes held an unusual panic she had never seen from him and it threw her off guard.

“I’ve been training for this Kaden, we can finally see if my power is the solution.” She pleaded and he just stared at her for a second, his face void of emotions.

“Fine, but if you get into trouble, you run,” he growled and pulled his sword from his back.

She nodded in agreement and pulled her sword from her hip, the jewel pulsing in warning of danger nearby.

There was no time to dwell on this decision, whether it was a good or bad one she didn’t know. One thing she did know was she wouldn’t let Kaden fight a dozen creatures on his own and she followed as he urged his horse into a run towards the impending attack.

She was a warrior, she would either fight like one or die trying to protect the people around her. She knew Valhalla was waiting for her and did not fear seeing her family and friends again.

The creatures kept their pace towards them, her horse sensing what was coming but still obeying as they rode forward. Kaden was in stride next to her and before long they were halfway across the field, the enemy only a couple hundred yards away.

As if in unison, they slid their horses to a stop and jumped off them in haste with swords at the ready. She threw her reins on the horse's neck and the mare didn’t need encouragement to take off running away from the danger coming their way.

She glanced at Kaden and she let the image burn into her mind for the few seconds she could spare. His shoulders were tense but there was an odd calm to him, like the silence before a giant storm and she couldn’t help but admire it.

Very few warriors she fought with had that kind of talent - to calm themselves completely in the face of danger and she was never one of them. She could push past her worry and fear, but never rid herself of it completely like he could.

Her heart raced but she kept her breathing even as she watched the creatures gain ground, their bodies moving faster than she would have thought possible on two legs. The closer they got, the worse their look became and she realized they were truly made from the dead corpses of fallen soldiers.

“Try your magic, but beheading them is the only way to make sure they stay down.” Kaden spoke only a few feet from her but didn’t look in her direction.

“In case this goes horribly wrong and I fail again,” she breathed. “Thank you Kaden, for at least trying to help me.”

She saw him spare a glance in her direction, a nod of acknowledgement was all he spared and then looked back at the enemy closing in.

Her eyes finally looked ahead and grabbed one of her daggers she had strapped to her thigh. She didn’t know if it would work but she would try anything at this point, so she summoned a small amount of her magic to wrap around the dagger and watched the flickering flames surround it.