309 Shadow and Storm (Part 1)
Bjorn tightened his grip around Ania’s limp form, struggling to keep her from slipping out of his grasp as they hurried through the dense forest. ‘We must get as far away as possible before those blasted elves resume their hunt.’ Ania’s head rested heavily against his shoulder. To Bjorn, she looked as though she were barely stable. Allyce, who was running close behind them, glanced over Bjorn’s shoulder anxiously every few steps.
“Keep going,” she urged, barely whispering. Her hand never strayed far from her bow as she scanned the shadows for any sign of an ambush.
Bjorn would have preferred it if Allyce had used her wings to scout from the air. But he understood it would go against their objective of remaining undetected. If the elves spotted her, there was a high chance they could pinpoint himself and Ania’s location on the ground.
They didn’t even have the luxury to stop. Not when the elves were surely combing through the fort by now. ‘Everything will be fine if we can just reach the reinforcements.’
Bjorn nodded, though his arms ached from carrying Ania’s weight. ‘Just keep moving,’ he told himself, pushing through the burning sensation in his muscles. It was as if the world itself were conspiring to slow them down. Every shadow and twisted root were doing their best to trip them up.
“How bad is she?” Allyce asked. Even though they both knew the answer.
“Barely hanging on,” Bjorn muttered in a low voice. “Exile’s miracle saved her life, but she’s still not out of the woods yet. It’s like she’s wavering between this world and the next.”
Allyce’s mouth hardened into a grim line as she stared ahead. “Then we don’t stop,” she said, more to herself than to Bjorn. “We’ll get her out of this. We have to.”
An owl hooted somewhere nearby, sending a chill down Bjorn’s spine with its eerie cry. As the trees thickened, their branches reached out like skeletal fingers. Their branches grasped at them in the dark as the undergrowth became wilder. ‘This won’t do. We’re slowing down too much.’ He glanced at Allyce, her breathing barely steady as she pressed on. “Do you think Skalr…”
“He’ll make it,” she interrupted. Her words were sharp, but he could see the fear flickering in her eyes. “He has to. It’s Fjora I’m worried about.”
They fell into silence after that. The only sounds were their muffled steps on the forest’s carpet and the distant rumble of thunder. Bjorn frowned as he glared at the sky where storm clouds gathered. ‘Exile must be angry.’
He could sense Exile’s presence was nowhere close to them. Even though he still felt comfort from the sky, it wasn’t the same as knowing his God was beside him. Another crack of thunder broke the silence. Louder this time, and Bjorn flinched. Allyce caught his reaction, and her alert gaze swept across their surroundings.
“Do you feel that?”
Bjorn nodded. There was something in the air. A sort of electric tension, like the pause before lightning struck. Exile’s miracles often left such a sensation, but this was different. It felt more like a warning. Bjorn tightened his hold on Ania as he tried to decipher the meaning behind the change in atmosphere.
“We should find shelter,” he replied. “I think this may be Exile’s way of telling us the elves are closing in. They’ll track us faster out in the open. There’s no way we can outrun them in this forest.”
Allyce silently agreed with him. Though she was a bit pissed off. If Exile wanted to tell them something, why didn’t he contact her directly? Even back in the fort, he felt distant for some reason. She couldn’t understand the sudden change. Her eyes searched the forest for any sign of a cave or somewhere else they could conceal themselves until dawn. The moonlight barely broke through the canopy, making it even more difficult for the pair to see in the gloom.
“There.” Allyce pointed towards a thicket up ahead several minutes later, where the roots of a massive tree created a large hollow. It wasn’t much, but it was better than nothing.
Bjorn carefully lowered Ania into the hollow with Allyce’s help. Kneeling beside her as he wiped the blood from her delicate features. Bjorn’s expression was a troubled mask as he paid more attention to her condition. Ania’s complexion was pale, and her breathing was faint. He could even feel the warmth of a fever setting in under his touch.
“She’s not going to last much longer like this,” Allyce murmured. “And we don’t have time to wait for her to come around on her own.”
Bjorn clenched his jaw as his mind raced to find a solution. They were too far from any town, and they didn’t even have any supplies with them.
‘Lord Exile,’ he thought, ‘if there was ever a time for another miracle…’ However, the thunder overhead remained distant. No surge of divine power answered Bjorn’s innermost thoughts. If anything, the world seemed to feel even colder to him.
He sighed, looking at Allyce. “We have to keep going. Find higher ground, maybe. Perhaps there’s somewhere we can get a better vantage point and see if there’s any sign of a village around here. Even a fire to keep her warm may be enough.”
Allyce nodded. “Let’s rest here for a while first. We’ll be no use to her if we exhaust ourselves. Maybe the storm will throw the elves off our trail. If we get the chance, I’ll take to the sky to find somewhere we can get her some help.”
Bjorn grimaced as the clouds unleashed the first heavy raindrops on the canopy above. He drew Ania closer, trying to shield her from it as she lay unconscious. Meanwhile, Allyce kept her bow drawn and her eyes alert for any flicker of movement.
Thunder rolled in waves, and deep booms shook the air around them. It echoed around the forest as if Exile was displaying his fury. Bjorn felt nothing but frustration building within his chest. They had relied on the gods after they returned, trusting them to watch over them as they acted on their guidance. But now, the silence was suffocating.
Bjorn’s fingers drifted absently to the dagger at his belt. ‘I just have to have faith in the Gods. Perhaps they’re testing me? It’s not my place to question them.’
Allyce’s voice cut through his thoughts. “We can wait. We need a fire. Just something small. If we can’t get a miracle, we can keep her warm at least.”
Bjorn nodded. He silently left their hiding spot and searched the forest floor nearby, gathering anything useful. In the dim light, Bjorn felt like he had stumbled into another realm. One where shadows reigned, and only illusions of the real world bled through. Every snap of a twig underfoot sent his heart racing, and he couldn’t shake the sense that something was watching from somewhere in the forest’s depths.
Returning to the hollow, he arranged the makeshift kindling. His hands moved quickly as he sparked up a small flame. The fire sputtered to life, flickering faintly against the darkness. Allyce huddled closer, letting the warmth seep into her as she kept her back to the fragile light to prevent becoming blind to the night’s blanket smothering the world.
“Do you think she’ll even live until we make it to reinforcements?” Allyce asked with doubt lacing her voice.
Bjorn looked down, studying Ania’s fever’s progression. It was hard to see her like this. A woman so fierce and unyielding not long ago now looked ever so fragile. Her lips slightly trembled like she was caught in a dream… or nightmare. He reached out, brushing a hand gently against her forehead. “Do you really think Lord Exile would let her die?” Bjorn said in a rough voice. This simple statement was enough to silence Allyce’s doubts. After all, she wouldn’t have pledged herself to Exile if he were an uncaring God.
Minutes passed, stretching out into hours. Allyce shifted uneasily, her gaze darting to the sky. “I don’t like this, Bjorn. The storm’s still going strong. There’s no break for me to leave to find help. You’d think the storm would stop if the elves had already passed us by.”
Bjorn nodded as the same tension clawed at his heart. “If it weren’t for Ania, we’d keep moving. But if we leave now…” He trailed off. Bjorn didn’t need to finish the thought. They both knew she would only last a little longer unless something changed.
As if sensing his thoughts, Ania’s eyelids flickered. Her hand twitched, and a faint groan escaped her lips. Bjorn leaned closer, hope blooming in his chest as he whispered, “Ania?”
However, her eyes didn’t open. Ania furrowed her brow as her breathing became ragged. It almost looked like she was struggling against something to the pair watching over her. Bjorn looked to Allyce, their expressions mirroring their growing concern.
“Do you think she’s having a nightmare? It’s as though she’s fighting something off in her sleep.” Allyce said as she caressed Ania’s cheek.
Bjorn reached out, taking Ania’s hand in his own. “Come on, Ania. You’ve fought off worse than this. You need to wake up.”
A sudden gust of wind swept through the forest, bending the trees unnaturally. The fire flickered and was on the verge of going out. Allyce turned to Bjorn with a pale look on her face. “That wasn’t the storm. I think something’s out there.”
Bjorn stared into the darkness outside, his grip tightening on his dagger. The forest had grown still despite the howling winds. ‘This isn’t right.’ Bjorn thought as his heart pounded against his ribs.
“Do you see anything?” he whispered, his voice barely audible above the wind. Allyce shook her head, her eyes narrowed despite the fear that gripped her like a vice.
Another crash of thunder rang out, louder than before. A bolt of lightning followed soon after, illuminating the nearby area. But the pair wished it hadn’t, as their blood ran cold at what they saw waiting in the dark.