In Shadows We Rise

Chapter 23

Reia

"I don't intend on asking," Sorin announces before jumping out of our hiding place. "Wait!" the rest of us say in unison but it's no use. The guards have already seen him.

Atticus is the first one to go after his friend and I fall into motion behind him. I can hear the group following.

The guards are ready for us and outnumber us greatly so I find myself tangled up in a fight with two guards at the same time. I know I should refrain from exposing my powers just yet so I fight them with my dagger.

That proves itself much harder than anticipated since my opponents each have a sword but they seem young and inexperienced. I disarm one, then hit the butt end of my dagger against his head to turn his lights off. I notice the second guard swinging at me from my right just in time to twist myself away. His blade slices shallowly through the skin below my shoulder but my powers react to the pain. They want to come out and return the favor tenfold. I grit my teeth and keep slicing and blocking until I manage to knock this guard out as well.

I get a moment to breathe and take in the scene around me. It's easy to see whose side is winning and I'm not part of the winners. I see how a guard is choking a struggling Naiara. Just when I'm about head there to help she blacks out and the guard releases her to crumble on the floor. Calista catches sight of that and abandons her own fight to rush over. I've never seen her with quite such a lethal expression and it's now that I know for sure that they are not just friends or family. They're in love.

"Look out!" I yell when a guard appears seemingly out of nowhere and lunges at Calista. I'm running her way but the guard has already been able to disarm her. He forces her to her knees roughly and holds his sword against her neck, ready to strike her down if needed. Calista's eyes are still glued to my unconscious friend.

I'm pulled into a new fight myself and don't get to check how the others are doing. I'm scared, not just for me but all of us. I curl my fists, summoning my powers there, when someone yells, "No!" I catch Atticus' eye and know he means me. He's fighting next to his sister and they're the only people I've ever seen so much in sync with each other. I get distracted, if only for a moment, and one of my opponents twists my wrist painfully. A sound between a scream and a whimper escapes me as I clutch it with my other hand. More hands reach for me and I'm forced to the same position as Calista, the tip of a sword pressing threateningly against my back, positioned to pierce my heart if enough pressure is applied.

Xander has been overpowered as well and Sorin is fighting five at the same time. Flames shoot out of his hands in every direction but his opponents must have the same power since they seem unaffected. I can tell he won't last much longer and try to meet Atticus' gaze again.

He and his sister seem to be the only ones managing, even though they're surrounded by guards and more keep coming. "Let me help!" I yell at him. He can't seriously prioritize keeping my powers a secret from these guards to saving his family.

"This one is unmarked!" one of my captors yells. The one standing above Naiara arches an eyebrow in amusement at the same time as Siron loses his battle. He's lying on the ground, still conscious but barely, and guards keep kicking him occasionally. He can't even edge away in any direction and I even want to protect him at his moment. I'm about to unleash hell on these guards when someone says my name.

"Raia. That's your name, right?" My eyes dart to the guard I saw standing above Naiara just a second ago. One of his companions has taken over for him and he's now strolling over to me. The fights have stopped, mostly because five of us have already lost but even the siblings are still now. They're standing back-to-back, surrounded by a circle of guards. Everyone is looking at me, even Calista.

"I take that as a yes. I wasn't expecting to find you here but this is rather convenient. There's a price set on your head, you know. One I'll be happy to collect."

"Yeah?" I challenge him, pulling at my powers again.

"I know what you can do, Portatrice di Morte. Quite the name you've made for yourself, might I add. The thing is, if you move so much as a muscle, you're friends die. We don't want to risk that, do we?" Atticus finally meets my eyes, and a silent question passes through us. The man in front of me follows my gaze and seems pleased.

"So you're the one that calls the shots. Good. Let me propose a generous offer since I take pity on you and your current situation. You either try something heroic and incredibly stupid and get all your friends killed or you simply stand down and we'll let you live. We'll just take this one," he points at me, "with us."

"No," Atticus says without hesitation. The guard muses and flicks his hand in the direction of Xander's captor. Said guard presses the tip of his sword into the skin of my friend's throat deep enough to draw blood and Xander winces. He's about to move further when I yell at him to stop.

It's stupid, I know. Still, I took that stupid oath and I won't let anyone die for me. Consider me too proud for that.

The man before me uses his sword to slowly tip my head upwards, forcing me to meet his gaze. He studies me and everyone seems to hold their breath. I'm looking at him defiantly, refusing to cower beneath him and he smiles.

"Easy on the eyes too, isn't she?" he breaks the silence and a few of his guards laugh in agreement. They make comments that make my skin crawl and my powers rage within me. The guard whose sword is beneath my chin holds up his hand to silence everyone. I guess we know who their leader is.

"Do we have a deal, then?" he asks Atticus. His jaw is set and his hands are curled into fists. He doesn't answer this time and I know he won't turn it down again. He needs to do what's best for his family, I can understand that.

"It's fine," I say for both of our sakes. I force myself to go on even as my throat is clogging up. "Mint."

He doesn't meet my eyes.

"You'll let the rest of us go?" Atticus says.

"They'd present me with nothing but trouble. It's just her I want." My heart is racing as Atticus still doesn't meet my eyes even as he's deciding about my fate.

"Mint!" I repeat more forcefully. The Rebel's leader ignores me and slowly, agonizingly slowly, nods once.

The guards' leader claps his hand. "Very well. This is how we'll do this. We're taking you into the carriage with some of my guards. Make a wrong move and I'll let you watch your friends bleed out. Bring me one of the shackles!" he yells. My mind is racing. Shackles?

I don't question his words for long since I feel a heavy piece of metal clamp around my wrists. With that alone, it feels like my powers have been sucked out of me completely and I feel my body slump slightly. What is going on?

The answer comes to me a second later. The shackles. They're blocking my powers. I shouldn't be surprised that there's such a thing, how else would prisoners be moved? Still, growing up as an unmarked person, I never thought about things like this. Suddenly having powers made me feel invincible. Having that taken away now makes me feel weaker than ever before.

All the rebels are staring at the ground as I get pulled to my feet.

"No," I mumble. This is all wrong, he promised me protection. Least of all he promised not to let anyone take me. "Atticus, mint!" I scream, growing more desperate. "Please! You promised!" Two guards are dragging me towards the carriage and I turn my head to look back at the rebels. "Please!" I shriek.

"Oh, for gods' sake. Shut up or I'll add it as a condition for me not to kill the rest of them," the leader says. I clamp my mouth shut and taste something salty on my lips. When did I start crying?

We stop before the door to the carriage. One of the guards climbs inside ahead of me, then reaches for my bound hands to pull me up. One of his companions behind me slaps my butt in the process and the other guards laugh. I want to yell for Atticus again. Beg him or scream at him but he's made his choice. Instead, I let the guards push me into a corner of the dirty old carriage and try to fade into the darkness. It doesn't work so I just press myself further against the wall and let the feeling of betrayal tear at my heart. I can feel the eyes of the other prisoners on me but don't look up. Let them see what they want to see. Monster or a possible savior, it doesn't matter. We're all on our own here.