“You’re an arrogant ass,” I say quietly. I’m certain I hear a breath coming out of him that almost sounds like a laugh.
I glance at Raef, who’s watching the whole interaction with a grin on his face. “He is,” he agrees.
“Let’s get moving or we’re not going to make it back before night,” Daegan remarks as he climbs atop his horse. Everyone in the entire kingdom knows not to travel in the night. Once upon a time, the night would be illuminated by a moon and thousands of tiny stars that looked like little lights in the sky. I’ve seen many paintings of it, and it looks ethereal, magical. I’d like to see it one day.
But now, the night gets so dark outside of the towns that you can’t see a few body lengths in front of you. It’s as dark as shutting your eyes. Torches or orbs will only help you so much. Dangerous, mysterious creatures roam the lands at that time, and it is not wise to be caught out in the country.
I check my time orb and find that the flame has gone down significantly. “Shit. We might not make it back to the castle even if we ride fast for the remainder of the day.”
“Well, let’s at least try to make it to that inn. I’ve been almost killed one too many times for my liking today,” Raef says.
Chapter 17
The flame in my orb is about to run out. Night is nearly upon us.
“It’s just over that hill,” Daegan hollers, leading the way as we ride as fast as we can. The world is quickly shifting from gray to black. We did not make it back to the castle, but we’re very close to the inn.
At the top of the hill, the darkness fully sets in. Luckily, we can see a light in the distance not far from the bottom.
We ride harder.
As we descend the hill with haste, I hear a horrible roar at my back. Something is behind us, giving chase. I don’t dare look back and shine a light. It will only slow me down. But I can hear them. There are several of them, and they’re moving faster than our horses. They’re gaining on us.
Another roar.
The three of us now ride side by side. I shoot a powerful spray of scalding water behind me blindly, and it’s met with the sound of a few growls. Whatever it is didn’t like it, and it slowed them for a second, I think.
“Go!” Daegan yells, then turns so fast I don’t have time to argue.
Not a moment later, I feel an intense heat, and I sense the orange light of flames behind me. But I don’t stop. We’re almost there.
We don’t waste a moment as we push through the gate in the wall which is unmanned and luckily unlocked.
We can’t tie the horses up out front like this morning, but there’s a barn next to the inn with a short hall that connects to the main building. We should be safe inside.
As we reach the front, though, I realize we don’t have to worry about that. The mysterious beasts are no longer chasing us.
Raef reaches down to open the door, and we ride inside the torchlit barn. But looking back, we can’t see Daegan. He’s been swallowed by the darkness. The silence out there makes my stomach feel like an empty pit. It’s eerie.
Then suddenly, the sound of hooves on dirt echo from somewhere out beyond us in the dark, and the wave of relief from both of us is evident as we hold the door open to the barn and wait for him to come through the gate.
I hope he’s not hurt. I never even caught a glimpse of what horror was chasing us.
A moment later, Daegan emerges through the opening in the wall, his eyes instantly landing on us, and he rushes to slam the heavy gate door shut before meeting us in the barn.
The only noise that fills the room is the sound of heavy breathing. From all of us. I dismount, and then Daegan follows. His feet slam on the ground much louder than mine did.
“Well,” Raef begins, a bead of sweat dripping down his brow, his gaze flicking between us, “I hope those weren’t the ‘two travelers’ we’re supposed to befriend.”
I can’t help myself. I look at both of my sweaty, mud-covered new allies, the smirk on Raef’s face, and I release a loud, boisterous laugh. I hear the deep rumble of Raef’s laugh join mine as Daegan runs a hand over his face, shaking his head. It brings tears to my eyes, and I have to turn away to wipe at my cheeks. I can’t remember the last time I laughed like this. I think I’m delirious.
I release a few more giggles, trying to suppress them and compose myself as I walk toward my horse to gather my things. When I grab my bag and then turn back around to face them, Daegan and Raef have already collected their gear and they’re busy tying up the horses.
When we step inside the inn, we’re greeted with the sounds of string instruments and lively chatter.
“Cuttin’ it close, aren’t ya?” A rather burly syloc is watching us from behind the large wooden bar. I can’t see his hooved feet, but his unique ears and horns peeking out through his wild brown hair clue me in enough.
My lovely allies say nothing, so I approach the bar. “Do you have a couple rooms for the night?”
