Warrior's Soul (Book 3 of The Warrior Chronicles)

Chapter 2

Stop! Leyla, please don't go! Help me! I'm sorry! I'm sorry...

Leyla woke with a start, her arms wrapping around the tree trunk in front of her. It was the same nightmare, over and over. Raphael calling her name. Her mother running, just out of her reach. Bone Eaters appearing out of nowhere. Axes flying. Her mother screaming...

Taking a shaky breath, Leyla wiped the sweat from her brow and untied the double sword belt which kept her from falling off the branch while asleep. She was still tired, but the thought of seeing the same scenes again pushed her to move.

"Help!"

The shrill scream sent a shiver down Leyla's spine. For a moment she wondered if she had fallen asleep again, if perhaps she was stuck in the nightmare after all, but the feeling of the cool early morning breeze and the rough bark beneath her fingers convinced her otherwise.

"Help! Please! Someone!"

Her body tense, she twisted on the high branch to see where the sound was coming from.

The shouting woman came into view. Her clothes torn, her face distorted with panic and fear, she was pulling her young daughter behind her as she fled from the three men chasing after them. Leyla's eyes turned to the men, her nostrils flaring as she watched them move.

Chests bare, hatchets in their hands and faces covered in scars and fresh blood; there was no mistaking what they were.

Bone Eaters.

Grabbing her sword from where it was wedged beside her, Leyla pushed off the branch, landed on her feet and ran. Images from her dreams flashed in her mind as she she watched the mother lose her grip on her daughter's fingers. "NO! PLEASE DON'T HURT HER!"

Leyla pulled her sword from its sheath, swinging without hesitation as a Bone Eater reached for the little girl. Blood burst from his arm as he screamed in pain: "AHHH!" The sound woke the last drowsy cells in her body and Leyla pushed the shivering girl towards her weeping mother a moment before the other Bone Eaters descended.

She ducked out of the way of a flying axe, jumped and stabbed. The second Bone Eater went down without a sound. Seeing his companion's eyes roll into his skull, the third man circled her while the one whose arm she had wounded lunged. Leyla avoided his grasp easily, kicked him forward then slit both mens throats with two swift moves of her blade.

"Aaaa-Oooo!" The war call came from a small distance away where six more Bone Eaters were running in their direction.

Let them come. Leyla adjusted her grip on her sword, then looked towards the mother and daughter cowering behind her. She tried to shout at them to run, but the words would not come out. It had been too long since she last spoke! Out of time, Leyla kicked at the leaves by her feet, motioning for them to leave, then turned back to the first of the new arrivals.

Steel met steel as Leyla blocked the axe attack and twisted, making the weapon fly out of the Bone Eater's grasp. He  screamed in frustration then went silent as her blade pierced his heart. Moving from one attacker to the next, Leyla jumped onto a fallen log, using its height to her advantage. Fighting two against one now, she kicked one in the face, stabbed the other, then used the spare moment to see how close the last three attackers were.

To her surprise, they had been cut off by a rider who now jumped from his horse and joined the fight.

Making quick work of the last of her attackers, Leyla ran to assist the Rider. He was quick, his sword wielding style a strange blend of Warrior and something unfamiliar as he fought all three men at once.

Leyla stepped in front of the burliest one and grabbed the Bone Eater's arm when he tried to bring his ax down into her chest. Fool. The man's bloodshot eyes widened, his chapped lips parting as he fell to his knees. Propping her boot on his shoulder, Leyla pulled her sword out of his abdomen and watched his eyes close for the final time.

Silence settled over the forest as the last of the Bone Eaters stopped moving. Leyla turned, making sure the mother-daughter pair had gotten away.

"I guess you didn't need my help?" The Rider was looking over her shoulder to where half a dozen bodies were strewn. Leyla took in his short brown hair, green eyes and boyish grin without interest. She didn't know why he got involved and she had no desire to know. Her gaze moved to the Bone Eaters lying closest to them and the strings of bones around their necks and wrists. Bloody Bastards.

"For a young lad, you are an exceptionally skilled fighter," the Rider went on, following a few steps behind her as she bent to collect the bones from the corpses. "Although you don't seem to be much of a talker. Which village are you from?"

Leyla ignored his question and moved onto the other bodies, retrieving all the bones she could find. They felt heavy in her hands and her stomach clenched as she wondered if any of them might belong to her mother.

Grabbing one of the Bone Eater's axes, she found a soft patch of earth and began digging.

"What are you doing?" The Rider came up behind her and watched as she placed the bones in the hole she dug. "Is that a grave? Really?" He sounded amused, then his footsteps receded. Leyla ignored him. This was the most she could do for the people whose remains had been used as accessories by their murderers.

Covering the last of the bones, she was looking around for some kind of marker when the Rider crouched down beside her. The scent of Cedar wood bark and soap drifted over her as he reached forward. "Here." He placed a few rocks onto the grave, stacking them on top of each other into a small pyramid. "It's what we use when we bury a friend in haste." His lips curled into a half smile. Leyla frowned when his curious gaze met hers.

"Fighting like a Warrior with your small frame, then burying the bones of strangers..." The Rider stood slowly and adjusted his sword belt. "You are truly a strange one boy."

Leyla brushed the dirt off of her hands as she came to stand. She was not interested in his opinion of her.

"Anyway, Bone Eater scouts have been burning villages in the South, so you'd be best to head North and steer clear," the Rider said while walking back to where his horse waited obediently. He gave the animal a quick stroke before jumping into the saddle with practiced ease. "Good luck, boy. Kum Al Sa."

Leyla watched the Rider leave while the No Lander farewell rung in her ears. Kum Al Sa: Stay in Peace.

While she appreciated the sentiment, Leyla had no intention of heading the Rider's words. Revenge was burning in her veins, making her feel alive for the first time in days.

She had finally found a destination.

Tightening her scarf, Leyla headed south.