Slaves of the Night

Chapter 6

Essie

The woman screeches in our faces, and as she does a million black ghosts fly from her mouth, attacking our faces, scratching them, and tearing at our clothes.

Rax and I raise our hands, me my ring, him his dagger, and we shoot spells to block them but it's only so effective. After half a moment we are both on our backs in the snow as it melts around us in the force of the attack.

The woman screams again, more spirits fly from her and she rises into the air. I hurl a knife and it pierces straight through her chest, falling to the ground below. As it does, she vanishes, and her spirits with her.

"Nice one—up, here---come inside you'll freeze," Rax drags me to my feet even as my legs go numb with cold. My skirt was thrown up and ice is clinging to the skin of my calves.

Rax pulls me roughly inside the Guard house. Instantly I'm warmer, but not enough to stop my teeth from chattering.

"Here---this is my room get out of those soaking things," he says, propelling me in a closet. "You'll get frost bite. Immediately. Getting damp like that is dangerous----- to that affect I am also changing so stay in there."

"You're not limping," I say as I regain enough breath to speak.

"I was gonna talk about the ghost; but, sure, let's go there."

"I knew your limp switched legs," I told Kaisa.

"It does not!"

"You were limping on your right then your left later on that's switching legs," I say, stripping off my wet dress and shoes and socks. Thankfully the little creature is about my size, I pull on wool pants, a soft thick shirt, a large sweater that seems to be braided with ---metal. "Is this to repel attacks?"

"Yeah there's mail in half the sweaters—take whatever," he says, mumbling something about not switching legs.

"Why fake a limp?" I ask, searching for an appropriate scarf. There isn't one so I find one of his black fur lined hats.

"I fell off a horse didn't I? Broke the leg, healed the leg except nobody need know I healed it," he growls, "You can come out when you're ready we both need coats from in there. There's one out of lynx --should keep you warm enough."

"Thank you," I say, bringing him his leopard seal coat. He is changed into essentially the same outfit. He's busily strapping back on his knives and swords, with magic mostly his mangled hands barely handle the buttons on his coat. He is standing of course quite up right. "Where are we going that we need coats?"

"I doubt if Maija's spirit is the only thing that drifted on through the veil tonight," he says.

"Does this happen---often?"

"Enough."

"Like spirits just come back?"

"No—someone or something has to open the veil—it's thinner when there's more magic, but even someone, say you or me, using too much magic can open it a little. The faerie folk are usually to blame, honestly," he says, shrugging, as he gets his weapons on. "I for am going to go and look outside the walls. Sometimes things come out of the water and head toward the castle."

"So this is what you do? Wander around all night as Olavin's resident monster slayer---despite your magic being illegal?" I ask, frowning.

"I suppose. It's not as exciting as all that usually," he says, shrugging.

"That's a pretty damn thankless job when half the monarchy and most of the country would have you executed," I say, frowning. These are the people who stuck his hands in boiling oil.

"As I said the Prince is aware of what I do," he says.

"That's not a lot of good when he didn't get you out of having your hands burned," I say, frowning. He's not telling me everything. There has to be another motive here.

"Maybe it's enough. In case you hadn't noticed I don't much like talking to people. This keeps me busy and not spending my free time lamenting my existence. Now, come on, if you're warmed up," he says, nodding for me to follow, "There should be gloves in the coat pockets—I have them everywhere."

"There are," I say, getting them out and adjusting the coat so I can still reach my own knives easily. "Did Maija know about you?"

"No."

"Has she been coming back since she died?"

"Pretty much."

"Is that what she does? Attack people?"

"No. She's trying to take the girls---the princesses."

"And do what?"

"Take them to the spirit world with her."

"So kill them?"

"Effectively, yes. She should be gone for now. You did a fair amount of damage she won't be strong enough to return. And theoretically their moderately useless father should be watching them."