Contract with a Star (On Hold, Possibly Forever)

The Kidnappers and the Star

            It took the teenagers two hours to wake up. When they did, they were in an infirmary, on sterile beds and with their weapons out of sight. Rena was nowhere to be seen and they had almost gone through the window to find her when they were stopped by a voice that was only vaguely familiar.

            “The king wants you.” His pompous tone was gone; he was clearly agitated about something. The official that had taken them to Rena’s was standing in the doorway, hands clasped behind his back. “Follow me.”

            He walked at a crisp pace down the deserted halls, and although Tanya and Aiden had taken tours of the castle before, they had no idea where they were going. These were private paths. When the man stopped before an unadorned door, Aiden took the lead and barged in, eager to get it over with. The sooner the king sacked them for being terrible guards, the sooner they could go after Rena.

            Aiden was met with two blades to his neck. He did not move, so they did not move. Tanya pushed him inside and almost got his head cut off, but the Guardians had good instincts and let Aiden tumble through the door and onto the soft carpet before him.

            Good King Veret Asnin raised an eyebrow at the people the entire country depended on. Rena trusted them though, and that had to be good enough.

            “I’ve already sent a patrol after her. I’ll need you two to get her out safely while the kidnappers are distracted.” There was no time for introductions or reprimands; they had to get Rena back.

            “What?” Aiden was utterly confused and pulled out of his comfort zone by the king’s presence.

            “Rena is the single most important person, object, weapon,” the king waved his hand in dismissal over the terms, “In this country. I can only send a small amount of people after her without raising suspicions. Your job is to protect Rena when the attack begins, because you’re going to be the only one she trusts. If you can get in there and get her out without raising suspicions; congratulations, you all get to live. But, honestly, I don’t care if all of you die; if Rena dies, we’re all dead anyway. Now go to the gates, there will be a Soldier with your horses to lead you. She’s headed west, no matter what the false trails may tell you.” They were dismissed. On their way out though, the Guardians at the door handed their weapons back silently, judgment in their eyes.

They made their way out, and found Eleian, Miv, and Cheval waiting for them at the gates. Cheval obviously knew something was wrong; he was shaking his head and snorting. They mounted and started off, Cheval following after.

Rena had a mouth full of a sweaty shirt when she woke up. She could feel the person holding her running, and she wondered why they weren’t riding horses. Rena tried to pull herself up to get a look at her kidnappers, but when she moved her wrists, she could feel the silver entwined in the rope. She screamed, and the man holding her grabbed hands and pulled down. Rena’s face rammed into the back of his head. The blow dazed her, and she shut up.

When the man dropped her, she held on with her legs and attempted to choke him. He swung her around and came face to face with her. The look in his eyes terrified her; when he shook his head, she shook her head too, agreeing. He managed all this without pausing in his run.

The first time they stopped, she took her time to look at the four men that were her main guards. They were all wearing normal commoner attire, and their faces were rough. There was something off about them, and Rena realized what it was when the one she was looking at scratched his nose. None of them had real contract marks. They were not from the Forest Star country.

“This is exhausting. I wish we could have learned how to ride one of those horses. Hell, I wish we had horses in the Sea. Damn convenient.” The one with black hair and a crooked nose said.

“Hell is right. Those demons can stay in this star forsaken land. Far too hot here.” The nose scratcher with dirty glasses countered.

“We should get going. Those horses are much faster than us. Besides, the star’s power won’t work for much longer. The Forest Star’s contract was to keep out all enemies. Lady Star is using a lot of energy to bypass it.” There was a small, rat like one. Rena made a special note of hatred when she saw a small pipe and darts on his arms.

The large man that was carrying her did not say anything. He simply stood up and the conversation ended. Obviously he was in charge, because everyone packed up quickly and they started off again.

The second time they stopped. Rena learned more. The people protecting her had the hardest time not talking about every little thing. They obviously had no idea why they had gone to that much trouble to get her; they only knew that the Sea Star wanted her. They did not dare offend their star and Rena found out why when someone outside of the four did. They left his broken body and moved on. Rena was sure that the leader could feel her heart beat against his back when he beat the man, but he did not mind that she buried her face in his shoulder.

The third time they stopped, it was almost morning. They had let Rena off of the man briefly to do her personal business, but when her feet touched the ground she collapsed into what was an unnatural sleep for her but seemed plausible to the kidnappers. As she slept, she dreamt her first dream.