Till Death Do Us Part

21. Into the Storm

The thunderstorm started unexpectedly. One moment they were floating high through the clear night sky, and the next, the ferocious wind blew over heavy clouds, and before they knew it, heavy raindrops lashed at them like a whip.

Zephyr left wing was tattered by the arrows, and he flapped it desperately, trying to keep them stable against the relentless wind. Skylar pressed herself closer to Gawyn and shouted into his ear, trying to outcry the roaring storm.

"Zephyr can't keep going like that! We have to land now!"

"I know! Hold on! It won't be pretty!" Gawyn patted the gryphon affectionately. "Take us down, buddy!"

Zephyr outstretched his wings, and for a second, they just floated through the air. But the next moment, they were diving down with frightening speed. Skylar clung tighter to Gawyn, trying not to scream when cold air and rain rushed at them as they plummeted towards the ground.

When Skylar was sure they would crash, Zephyr beat his wing to slow their descent, but his feathers were too torn to work correctly. The gryphon shrieked in pain the moment before they hit the ground. The impact threw the raiders off his back, and Zephyr ploughed a few yards through the muddy ground.

Skylar hit the ground hard and felt a sharp pain when all the air was snatched from her lungs. She lay in the mud, looking at the heavy clouds and letting the rain lash at her. But the miserable whine of the wounded animal brought her back to her senses.

She groaned and forced her aching body to get up. Gawyn was limping in her direction, leaning heavily on his sheathed sword.

"Are you all right?" he asked. They were both equally soaked, bloodied and exhausted.

"Yes. You?"

"I'll live."

They stumbled toward whimpering gryphon. Zephyr's broad chest was rising with his heavy breaths. His left wing looked even worse than Skylar imagined. The feathers tattered by arrows got torn away during exhausting flight through the thunderstorm, leaving only ruined stumps.

"You poor thing!" Skylar gasped, falling to her knees and hugging a huge head. Tears blurred her vision. "You shouldn't have flown us this far!"

Zephyr gargled and nudged her shoulder with his beak gently. Gawyn stroked his heaving side. 

"We can't stay here in the open. We have to find shelter."

Skylar looked around for the first time. They landed in a small clearing in the middle of the vast forest. She knew it was going for miles in all directions on the east side of the Eaglepoint. But the darkness of the night and relentless rain made all the surroundings look dark and unfamiliar.

"How are we going to do that? I can barely see for a few feet. Not mentioning we are all battered up," she cried.

"When we flew down, I saw a rocky mountain not far from here. I'm pretty sure we can find a cave or two there to at least get off this storm!" Gawyn shouted back so she could hear him over the roaring wind.

"All right, let's move on then!"

They had to help Zephyr to get on his feet as he, too, was in bad shape after the crash-landing. Gawyn led them deeper into the forest. They made their way slowly and painfully, leaning on each other for balance and often stumbling in the darkness. But fortune must have finally smiled at them as they found the rocky hills, and from there, they located a cosy cave, just deep enough for all of them to fit and not get wet.

Zephyr limped to the cave's back and plopped heavily on the ground pressing himself to the far wall. They were all drenched, and when the adrenaline was finally dropping, the cold got them shivering and their teeth chattering. 

Skylar found some dry leaves and sticks inside the cave and made a small fire to keep the worst of the chill away. They peeled off the soaked clothes and huddled together, leaning on Zephyr's warm, furry side, while the gryphon covered them with his undamaged wing as if it was a feathery blanket.

They sat in silence, staring into a faint, creaking flame. When Skylar's body had finally stopped trembling, she asked, "What are we going to do now?"

Gawyn moved a bit back to look at her. "Tell me what happened."

And so, she did. She told him everything from the moment they parted ways, in great detail, even though she got choked by tears when she got to the moment of Alarat's death. He didn't interrupt her, though his brows were knitted, and his mouth formed a very thin line. But he kept stroking her back in calming circles.

"You shouldn't have helped me." Skylar sniffled, wiping her nose with her hand. "Now, we are both branded traitors."

"What would you have me do?" Gawyn scoffed. "Serve the woman who murdered my brother?"

"But you didn't know it at the time. Elinora used my sword and made it look like I was the murderer!"

"Well, I know you," Gawyn said and gently traced his fingers along her cheek. "And I know you would never do anything like this. You're not the type for scheming," he added with a smirk.

Skylar smiled, but it faded quickly. "Even so. I know what protecting this kingdom means to you. And now, we are outlaws. If the Queen's men find us..." she stopped when Gawyn put the finger on her mouth, silencing her. His eyes flashed with anger when he gently traced her split lips.

"They bound and beat you up," he said, and his voice was heavy with emotions. "Did you think I could just ignore it?"

A quiet sob escaped Skylar's mouth, and she leaned her forehead against his, letting the tears fall freely. "I love you, Gawyn. I love you so much."

He tightened his embrace and kissed away the tears from her eyes. "I love you too, Sky. The whole kingdom be damned. If that's the price I've got to pay for keeping you at my side, I'll gladly pay it."

They sat together in silence for a while, savouring each other's warmth.

"I'm so sorry I couldn't save him," Skylar whispered after a moment.

Gawyn tightened his embrace. "There was nothing you could do to stop it. I, on the other hand..." he added with a strained voice.

Skylar looked up at him. "What are you talking about? You weren't even there."

"That's the point. I should have been there. The disturbances around the palace? It was nothing more than a ruse to lure me out. And like a complete fool, I fell for it," Gawyn added bitterly. "I shouldn't have left you alone there. If I have been there...."

"You can't know what would happen." Skylar took his face in her hands, looking into his tormented eyes. "It was not your fault."

"He was my brother and the King. I have sworn to protect him!" Gawyn said fervently. "I knew there was an agent in the palace. I knew Elinora was plotting something. But I didn't imagine she would resort to killing Alarat. If only I act faster..." His voice was breaking.

Skylar pulled him close again and hugged him tightly, while his whole body trembled when the weight of the events and the implications finally caught up with him. Zephyr squeaked miserably, sensing his friend's distress, and leaned in to press his big head against Gawyn's back. They stayed like that long into the night until their bodies gave in to exhaustion and fell into a shallow and restless sleep.