The Atheil Chronicles: A Call to Fire

Chapter 14

"Get up, Princess." A hand shook her shoulders roughly, jarring her awake.
Ariana opened her eyes up slowly. Her mouth was dry and she licked her lips, trying to put moisture back into them. In front of her stood Morgrean.
He smiled down at her. "Have a nice nap?" He asked. She glared up at him and he chuckled. "Not going to talk to me again? It's a shame, you were such lovely company yesterday." He looked at her through slitted eyes. "Don't you want to know where we are today?"
Ariana looked around and bit her lip. Of course they had moved camp since yesterday, she thought miserably. She took in her surroundings, ignoring Morgrean. They were camped out in a rocky terrain with very few trees, though they got more abundant off to the left of the campsite.  The tree she was currently tethered to was tall and thin, with pale ashy bark that almost seemed to be peeling away from the trunk like paint. All of the surrounding trees looked exactly the same, clustering together in groups of 4 or 5 and then having a few feet between them. To the right of her was a pile of boulders, giving Ariana the impression that they were camped out next to a mountain's edge. The other goblins were nowhere in sight and the fire looked like it had been recently put out.
She let out a sigh and turned to Morgrean. "Fine, I'll bite. Where are we?"
"We're nearly in the Darklands." He said, indicating the surrounding area. "Those rocks over there mark the border."
Ariana glanced at the rocks. Now that he mentioned it, they did appear to form a sort of wall, like a border line. "Where are the others?" She asked. Despite having just woken up, she felt strangely woozy. As she looked at Morgrean, her eyes went out of focus.
"I sent Deslich to the King and the others are out hunting." He smiled and leaned down next to her. "We are completely alone." He trailed a talon down her nose.
She tried not to stare into his cold purple eyes, though, that wasn't really a problem seeing as her eyesight was acting up. "Why aren't you with them?"
"Because I'm not fool enough to believe that you would sit here like a good girl and not try to escape." He said. "Then there's the fact that I wanted you to myself."
Ariana felt a shiver escape her. "What will Malor do with me?" She asked. Her voice came out in a whisper, betraying her feeble attempt to remain calm.
"I don't know." He said, staring at her. "Don't fret, my lovely, I imagine that he has something in mind."
Ariana turned away from him and she could feel him smiling. It was extremely unsettling. She felt her stomach tighten. Her head had started to throb and she felt herself blinking rapidly. "I have to use the bathroom," she said, suddenly.
"What do you expect me to do about it?" He said, pulling out a knife and twirling it in his hand absentmindedly.
"I want you to untie me so I can go to the bathroom." She said.
"If I untie you, you'll just run away." He said.
"No." Ariana said. She pulled against the ropes and then slumped her shoulders. "Please, I really need to go."
Morgrean studied her face before leaning down and cutting the rope binding her to the tree. Her hands were still tied and he pulled her up to her feet roughly. She felt somewhat unsteady but she forced herself to stand firm. He untied the ropes on her hands and she pulled them forward, rubbing her sore and swollen wrists.
"Don't try anything." Morgrean said, putting his hand on her back and pushing her forward. "Goblins have incredible hearing, so if I so much as hear you try to wander off I will come after you. You will regret it deeply if you don't heed me."
Ariana swallowed and nodded. Morgrean watched her carefully as she made her way into the gray trees. When she could no longer see him, she stopped and went to the bathroom. When she was done, she leaned against the nearest tree weakly and closed her eyes. Her stomach was aching terribly from lack of food and her body was drained of energy. Her eyesight had gotten a little better but, for some reason, she still felt nauseous. Ariana knew that when she got back, she would immediately get tied to the tree again. She felt tears spring to her eyes and she slid down to the ground as her legs seemed to give out beneath her, putting her head in her hands.
She started crying, then; really crying. Big, fat tears fell into her lap and she didn't even try to stop them, she just let them fall. Her life was over. She hiccupped and squeezed her eyes closed. The first thing that sprang into her mind was her mom. She was out there, scared and alone and with no one else in this world looking for her. What was even worse was the fact that, if Ariana died or was held prisoner, her mom might never be returned home. She gulped, trying to hold in all of the emotions that the thought raised. If anything, she thought to herself, Ryonen would continue the quest. He would find her, for Ariana's sake.
Ariana knew that if she hadn't acted like an idiot and wandered off then she wouldn't have been captured by goblins. Even more, she knew that she would never be able to see him again, or talk to him, or be able to apologize for acting like a jerk the last time she saw him. Ariana brushed the tears from her eyes just as another round started.
She heard rocks crunching and wiped her face on her cloak, trying to dry it before Morgrean came and saw her crying. She had to let him believe that she was fine. She couldn't fall apart. Not yet, at least. She stood up with great effort and leaned against the tree to steady herself just as Morgrean appeared in front of her.
"What are you doing?" He asked, looking around her.
"Nothing." She said. "I was just stretching." To emphasize this, she stretched her arms above her head briefly before letting them fall to her side.
Morgrean stepped forward and grabbed her arm. "It's time for you to come back." He said, pushing her in front of him.
She stumbled forward and started walking, hating the feeling of his hands on her. When they got back to the campsite, Morgrean pulled out his knife and motioned for her to go to her tree. Reluctantly, she went over to the tree that she had been tied to before. She had to think quickly or else she would be tied back up and then all hope of escape would be lost. She put on her best distressed face, which wasn't all that hard since she had begun to feel even sicker, and looked over at Morgrean. "Can't you just let me sit here? I promise I won't try anything. My wrists hurt from being tied." It wasn't a lie, her wrists were rubbed raw from the rough ropes being tied so tightly around them.
Morgrean snarled under his breath and shook his head. "Prisoners don't get to request things like that."
Ariana thought for a second. How could she get Morgrean to leave her untied? She was wracking her brain for any kind of strategy that might help her when pure genius struck. She remembered the way that Morgrean had touched her arm the day before and the way he had said her name. It was insane, crazy, even, but she had to try.
Pushing back her pride, Ariana dropped her left hip and batted her eyelashes in what she hoped was a seductive manor. Considering she had no clue what she was doing, she desperately hoped that she was being convincing. "Can't I just stay untied for a little while?" She brought a hand up slowly and undid her braid, letting her long, wavy hair fall gently down her back.
Morgrean's lips pulled back slowly and she repressed a shudder as his eyes traveled the length of her body hungrily. When his eyes moved past her chest and to her face, she saw the desire light up in his eyes.
Ariana held his gaze, trying not to let her fear show. She watched a nature documentary once that said if you encountered a bear in the woods you weren't supposed to make any sudden movements, but you had to stare it down and act completely calm. This is what she attempted, now, as she stared into Morgrean's unnatural purple eyes and relaxed her stance. Her heart was beating wildly in her chest as he strapped his dagger to his waist and stepped closer to her. Morgrean took slow, deliberate steps toward her, moving like a lion closing in on its prey. She could feel sweat forming on her palms.
Morgrean stopped in front of her, his eyes watching her hungrily. "Perhaps I should just keep you for myself." He said thoughtfully, almost to himself. "It seems such a waste to hand over such a delectable creature, especially since the King will probably kill you, anyway." He licked his lips. "The things I could do to you..." He whispered, his voice making the hairs on the back of her neck raise.
She kept her eyes on his and leaned closer to him. "Like what?" She whispered. She was playing a dangerous game, but she was only inches away from having him close enough now. She could almost reach the knife at his waist. All she had to do was distract him a little bit longer.
Ariana saw the desire in Morgrean's eyes flare up and he took a hot, ragged breath. He brought up a taloned finger and grabbed a strand of her hair, wrapping it around his finger. The light auburn strands stood out prominently against the solid blackness of his taloned finger. Suddenly, he grasped her hair and pulled her head toward him forcefully. "You wish to know what I would do to you?" He asked, using his other hand to pull her body against his. He brushed his rough lips against her temple and down to her ear. "I would destroy you." He said, slowly. "I would make you mine. No part of you would be off limits to me. I would tear you apart and knit you back together just for the pleasure of doing it all over again."
Ariana sucked in a breath, cringing inwardly. Her skin burned where his lips had touched her and her stomach churned in disgust. For a second, her vision went black and then it was back to normal. It felt so wrong having his hands on her. It felt dirty.
Slowly, she moved her hand toward his waist and stopped when her fingertips brushed against the hilt of his dagger. She leaned in closer to him, her heart beating rapidly. "Go ahead and try." She said quietly, and pulled out his dagger. Morgrean's body tensed and Ariana knew she only had one chance. In those few seconds, time seemed to slow. Then, she plunged the dagger into his side with every ounce of strength she had left in her.
Morgrean let out a scream of pain and outrage. Ariana pushed away from him and barely registered the blood on her hands as she turned and fled into the trees. She had no clue where she was going, but she ran as fast as her legs would carry her. She heard Morgrean yelling behind her as she sucked in heaving breaths, weaving her way between the eerie gray trees.   
Ariana didn't dare look back as she ran. She could feel her legs starting to give out underneath her and she hoped that they would hold on long enough for her to get away. Her vision was blurry, at best, as she tried desperately to see past it to find an escape. Ahead, a wall of rocks rose up and she stopped as she reached them.
Shoot, she thought. She looked to both sides of her and realized that she had hit a dead end. The rocks surrounded her on both sides and the only way out was to climb the rocks up or turn back. Ariana wiped Morgrean's green blood off of her hands as best she could while she searched for a foothold. When she found one, she put her foot in and tried to climb, but her foot slipped and she fell down, scraping her knee on the rocks' ragged surface.
She tried again and, once again, she slipped. Ariana felt panic kicking in and she looked behind her. Morgrean could burst through the trees any moment and find her. She turned back to the rock and moved to a different spot. She got up about 5 feet before she ran out of footholds. She slammed her fists on the rock, forgetting in her rage that she was still in the air and tumbling down to the ground.
She stood up and kicked at the rock. "Shit!" She yelled, tears of frustration coming to her eyes. Just then, she heard a branch break behind her and froze. She heard ragged breathing and she knew that Morgrean had caught up with her.
Ariana whirled around and faced him. Morgrean looked furious. He was clutching the bloody dagger in his hands and he was bleeding profusely from where she had stabbed him. His purple eyes were focused on her and the rage in them was undeniable. "You stabbed me, you Bitch." He said angrily.
She flinched but held her head up high. "You didn't actually think I liked you, did you? You're absolutely disgusting. You sicken me." Ariana spat the last words at him.
Morgrean bared his teeth at her and growled. "You're lucky that the King wants you alive and unscathed, otherwise nothing in this world would stop me from torturing you within an inch of your life." He took a few steps closer to her. "You must really have some fight in you, because you should have been too weak to pull a stunt like this."
Ariana was still desperately trying to find something to defend herself, but she stiffened at his words. "What are you talking about?" She asked.
Morgrean stepped a little closer to her, obviously pleased to have her cornered. He laughed wildly. "That stuff I gave you to drink, it's not proper drink." At her silence, he continued. "It's poison to anything besides a Goblin." He said.
"You're lying." She said defiantly. But when her stomach gave a sharp pain and she reached for it, shocked, she knew he was telling the truth.
He had seen her reach for her stomach and a grin broke his face. "I'm not. It was meant to keep you calm, to keep you sedated so that we didn't have any incidences on the way to the Darklands." Now he paused, seeming to become thoughtful. "It is curious that it hasn't effected you much, yet. But it's no matter, because it is clearly beginning to manifest itself now."
Ariana leaned heavily against the rock, her eyesight going dangerously blurry before just barely focusing on him. "But why would you poison me?" She inquired. "You said yourself that you weren't allowed to harm me."
Morgrean gave her an offhand gesture, slinking forward just slightly. His wound seemed to be bothering him. "The King has the antidote. It's not that hard to put together if you have the proper ingredients at hand. Point is, it's an easy fix, once we get to the Darklands."
Ariana let his words sink in. So it has an antidote. But the question is...
Morgrean seemed to finish her thought. "You'll die if you don't get it soon." He said. Although he looked delighted by the idea, he also had a note of urgency in his voice.
She pondered what he had said. So, either Ariana went with him willingly, or forcibly, to the Darklands to be handed over, or she would die here. Obviously she didn't want to die, but...
"Don't be stupid, Ariana. You're coming with me either way. I don't care how I do it." He snarled the last part, his lips pulling back over his fangs. "The king won't mind a few cuts and scrapes compared to the alternative."
She made her mind up, reaching behind her to pull on a loose piece of rock. It fell into her hand and she brought it forward, holding it out like a weapon. "Don't come any closer." She said. She stumbled a bit but took a step back to support herself against the wall.
Morgrean laughed, making her skin crawl. "You think that you can stop me with a rock?" He asked.
Ariana didn't say anything, she just tightened her grip on the rock.
"After that little stunt you pulled, stabbing me and running away, I should drag you back to the camp by your pretty little hair. In fact," he said, "I think that's exactly what I'm going to do." Morgrean smiled and advanced on her slowly. "And I'm going to make sure you're tied up extra tight this time."
Ariana tried to take another step away from him, but her back pressed against the rock wall. This is it, she thought, sadly. She closed her eyes tightly, bracing herself for the inevitable.
"You won't touch her."
Ariana opened her eyes in surprise. "Ryonen!" She yelled. Her heart skipped a beat seeing him. She felt all of her grief and hurt fade away in that moment. He was here.
Ryonen pounced on Morgrean and swung his blade at him. Morgrean barely jumped out of the way in time. He crouched, holding the bloody dagger in front of him. The two of them circled each other slowly, their eyes focused completely on the other.
Morgrean snarled and jumped forward, his dagger coming within inches of Ryonens chest. It was a mistake, though, because Ryonen spun around and brought his sword down on Morgrean's exposed wrist. The sword cut through Morgrean's flesh like butter and his detached hand landed on the ground heavily. Morgrean let out a blood-curdling scream and fell to the ground, cradling his stump of an arm as green blood poured from it.
Ariana dropped the rock she was holding and took a step toward Ryonen, whose blade now lay against Morgrean's bare neck.
"Stop." Ryonen said, not even turning to look at her. "Ariana, turn around, okay? You don't need to see this."
Ariana's vision was blurring slightly as she swayed on the spot, but her determination gave her the strength to keep standing. "No." She said, her voice bouncing off of the rocks. "Don't, Ryonen. Please."
Without turning toward her, Ryonen said, "Ariana, this Goblin doesn't deserve your mercy. He would've killed you if he had it his way. He was going to hand you over!"
She was struggling now, her legs buckling. "Please." She said again. She couldn't stand the idea of him killing Morgrean. Not Ryonen. 
Now he did turn his head, his green eyes hard. For a moment, Ariana could see what he was capable of; the rage and anger that seemed to surge through him was like a storm cloud on a sunny day, throwing darkness into his light. "He's not worth it." He said, his sword still pointing at Morgrean's throat.
Ariana took another unsteady step forward and held out her hand. She furrowed her eyebrows at him; she would not let him be a killer. Not if she could help it. "Who said he was?" She asked. "I'm certainly not saying that he's worth it. But I am saying that you are." His eyes seemed to soften ever so slightly and Ariana took it as encouragement to continue. "For all of what this Goblin has done, do the opposite; be better than him." She looked at the heaving figure that was Morgrean, the blade against his throat, and disgust rolled through her. "Don't let his filth wipe off on you."
For a moment, she wondered if Ryonen was going to listen to her because his hand never wavered. But after what seemed like forever, he lowered his sword ever so slightly. Ariana let out a breath of air only to suck it back in as Ryonen swung his blade and hit Morgrean over the top of his head with the hilt of his sword. He collapsed instantly, his body crumbling like a pile of bricks. 
Ryonen turned to her, but she wasn't paying attention. Feeling a sense of lightheadedness, she dropped to her knees, vomiting.
"Ariana." She heard Ryonen say. In the next instance he was beside her.
She fell back heavily onto her butt and wiped her mouth with the inside of her arm. "Just give me a second." She said, closing her eyes slowly. Ryonen didn't say anything as she brought her knees up to her chest and pressed her forehead down on top of them. She took a few ragged breaths and tried to calm down.
"Ariana." Ryonen said. He put his hands on her shoulder but she didn't look up. "Ariana, please talk to me. I need to know that you're okay."
She lifted her head up and looked at him. "I'm so sorry." She said, suddenly, trying to focus on his face through the blurriness in her eyes.
Ryonens wrinkled his eyebrows. "Why are you sorry?" He asked.
"I acted like a jerk to you the last time I saw you." She said. "All I've been thinking about this whole time was that that was the last thing you'd ever have to remember me by."
Ryonen lifted her chin with his hand gingerly. "I forgive you." He said. "I will always forgive you." He stared into her eyes for a second and then worry returned to his face. "You look terrible. Are you hurt?"
"I don't know." She said, feeling tears spring to her eyes as she tried to hold them back.
Ryonens worried eyes looked her up and down for injury. He let out a breath. "Your hands." He said, softly. He picked her hands up from her lap and held them gently, looking at the red welts and chaff marks on her wrists. Dried blood caked the skin down to the elbow.  She saw anger enter his green eyes as he stared down at them. Then his eyes found the cut on her forehead and chin. "What have they done to you?"
"They had me tied to a tree." She said, bringing her hand up and wiping her eyes. She could feel a strange sensation running through her now, but she pushed it aside as she gazed into his face.
Ryonen took a deep breath. "What else?" He asked, sounding like he was trying really hard to control his voice.
She averted her eyes. "I got knocked out when they captured me." She said, feeling the aching of her face even as she said it. "One of the Goblins hit me across the face with the hilt of his sword." Ryonen brought a hand up and brushed a thumb across her forehead just below where she knew her cut was. She closed her eyes gently at his touch. "That one that you-" She stopped and took a breath. "The one you knocked out has been trying to break me for the past few days. He's been terrorizing me, so I had to-" She stopped, her voice coming out ragged and strained. Ryonen brushed the hair back from her face and she opened her eyes so she could look at him. "I stabbed him to get away; I thought he was going to take me again."
"He will never hurt you again if I have anything to say about it." Ryonen said.
"I know." She said, pulling her cloak around her. She was really beginning to feel funny, like a lightness was spreading through her. "There were others, though."
"How many?" He asked. "I didn't see anyone when I followed your trail."
"There were 5 of them altogether, Ryonen." Then she remembered what Morgrean had said. She tried to stand up quickly but she felt her head spin and Ryonen grabbed her arm before she could fall.
"Sit down, Ariana, you need to rest." He said.
"Ryonen, you don't understand. The others went hunting, but one of the Goblins was sent to fetch Malor. He's supposed to bring soldiers back to get me."
Ryonens whole demeanor changed. He picked his sword off the ground and put it in its sheath. "We have to go, then. Now." Ryonen looked at her. "Can you walk?" He asked.
Ariana shook her head. "I don't think so." She said. The lack of food and water was catching up to her, not to mention the poison. She was beginning to feel weak and light-headed-. She stopped, horror striking her suddenly with the thought; the poison. She opened her mouth to tell Ryonen about the poison when she felt a sharp pain in her stomach that was so intense that her body seized up before collapsing on the ground.
"Ariana!" Ryonen shouted, shocked.
She opened her eyes, trying to look at him, but all she could see was the light from the sky. It felt like she was looking through a kaleidoscope; the light was broken into thin beams that all seemed to be pointed toward her. She reached out her hands, searching. "Ryonen?" She asked, alarmed.
She felt Ryonen's hands meet hers and she gripped them feebly. Her muscles seemed to be weakening. "What's wrong with you?!" Ryonen asked.
"Poison." She muttered. She was starting to have a hard time talking, now.
"What?" Alarmed, Ryonen felt her forehead, which she vaguely realized was clammy. "When?"
"Yesterday, maybe? I think it was." She paused. "I don't know, Ryonen. It knocked me out as soon as they gave me it." She coughed suddenly.
Ryonen uttered what sounded like some curse words, but Ariana couldn't make out what he said. She squinted her eyes up at him and she could just barely make him out.
Ryonen furrowed his eyebrows, thinking. After a moment's pause, he moved his hand from her arm to her hand. "Then I'm going to have to carry you." He said.
"You can't carry me." She said. "I weigh too much."
"I'm stronger than I look, Ariana. Trust me." He squeezed her hand reassuringly. She got quiet and he put his hand on the small of her back. Suddenly, he picked her up and she was in his arms. "See," he said, "you're not heavy at all."
Ariana nodded weakly as he started walking and she wrapped her arms around Ryonens neck, glad for something to hold on to. As Ryonen walked on, she felt drowsiness starting to sink in. She blinked her eyes a few times, but she couldn't shake the blurriness that had once again taken over her vision. She tried to fight it.
Ariana heard Ryonen's voice from what seemed like far away. "Ariana?" He said, sounding warbled. "Ariana, stay awake. Don't fall asleep. You have to-"
She was trying to fight it, she really was. But she was so very tired...Her limbs felt too heavy. Eventually, she gave up and let her head drop, burrowing it into Ryonens neck and cradling it there. She breathed in his familiar scent and felt her body relax before the poison's effects finally overtook her.