Faith, Hope, and Charity

Korban

In the distance, two golden dots glow in the sky. They grow bigger as the shadow that obscures the moon grows larger. I pull out my knife when large wings block out the moonlight. The creature's back bulges upward and four legs droop down beneath it. Tress shepherds us off to the side as the beast slams into the ground. Its wings brush up against the snow as it straightens up. The beast's back begins to move and then it detaches. A moment later, someone is standing in front of us.

He looks to be about eighteen. He's wearing a brown leather coat ringed with fur and pants of the same leather. Padding has been sewn into the coat, giving it the appearance of armor. He has dark brown hair, dark eyes, and tawny skin like ours. At his side is a sword sheathed in a scabbard. The creature, a griffin, is the color of soot and larger than a rikat, with wings that stretch taller than the height of the tavern. It's eyes glitter like two gold coins and two feather horns stick out of its head. Its beak is tucked close to its sage face, as if it were analyzing me.

The boy puts out his hands towards me and says, "It's okay. I'm not going to hurt you. My name is Korban; I'm a griffin rider."

My knife is still brandished. Tress guides my arms to my pocket and then steps forward.

"I'm afraid my traveling companion is slow to trust. My name is Tress. This is Charity and her two sisters: Hope and Faith. The young man's name is Unice. We are refugees from the city of Nakhot and the slave caravans of the desert. We sought you out hoping you could help us."

By now, Korban has straightened. He nods, "Don't worry. I will."

He looks around at us all and bites his lip.

"What is it?" Faith asks.

"Stoneheart can only carry one other person. I'll have to go back and get more help."

"Then that is what you must do." Tress says.

He still looks unsure, then he points to Unice. "I'll take him with me. He'll freeze."

"Then go."

Korban gestures to Unice and he walks over to meet him.

Suddenly, the rod begins to glow with smoldering orange and a shriek rips out of the darkness. The griffin rears up on its hind legs and lets out a piercing shriek of its own. Korban draws his sword and Tress brandishes the rod. Hope has flattened herself against the rock, covering her ears. Faith is crouched beside her, doing the same. I snatch my knife and hold it in front of me. The shrieking grows louder and louder and then the familiar cloud of shadow is open us.

It flies into our midst and slams into the ground, tendrils of shadow exploding into the air. Tress's rod shines in the darkness, pushing the tendrils back. A moment later it recedes and flies into the air. Unice is gone.

"Unice!"

The griffin arches its back and shrieks again. Tress waves the rod around, watching as the light brightens and dims. The light of the rod begins to fade. Tress runs in every direction, watching the rod. When she finds the way that it brightens she immediately surges after them. Korban leaps atop his griffin and it leaps into the night sky. I run after Tress, clutching my knife.

"Charity!" Faith screams.

"Find a place to hide!" I shout back as I round a corner of stone.

Tress is firing bolts of orange light into the dark. When one of them collides with the stone, the rocks disintegrate in a plume of ash, sand, and dust. The griffin flies over me with the glimmer of steel on its back. I catch up with Tress just as she fires the lucky shot. The bolt illuminates a cloud of darkness, causing it to evaporate a little and exposing the tan of Unice's tunic. A moment later, Korban and his griffin begin attacking the shade.