Heir to the Empire

5. Escape the Shadow

Sleep had been impossible to come by, and as the dawn was fast approaching, it seemed like it was unlikely to be achieved. Every time she shut her eyes, all Loldirr could think of was the tormented look on the eyes of the three men she had just killed. When focusing on the things in the village she loved, it instantly turned into a grotesque version of her limbless guardian and the Billingsea's swinging from a tree.

She had found Willis where they had agreed within the forest. They ran beside the river until there was little to no light left, hoping that they would lose any potential pursuers. When they did eventually curl up together to try and get some sleep, Loldirr was instantly awoken by a twig snapped by some eager nocturnal animal.

It was freezing cold too. Snuggling up to Willis had got him rather excited and flustered, but for her, it was a necessity. They couldn't light a fire as not to draw unwanted attention, and to survive another day, they would need to use each other's body heat.

She had spent most of the night sobbing quietly not to disturb Willis from his slumber. The various thoughts of Greenhaven in ruins, the men she killed, her dead guardian, the letter he sent.

That letter. So many questions, so few answers. How could she be the last of the Aex-Igh family line? Why did Edric, no, Grand Duke Edric Darke risk everything to train and nurture her? Why Greenhaven? Why were these band of rogues after her? How do they get to Gryffinfall? What about Willis?

She gritted her teeth in frustration, knowing that her guardian Edric had done nothing except cause even more anxiety in his death than what he had done in his life. He had taught her, trained her, educated her but never loved or admired her, at least he didn't show it. Now he had left her to fend for herself in this cruel world.

'He did warn you!' A small voice echoed in the back of her head.

Sunlight tried to fight its ways through the branches as dawn was peering over the horizon. It was time to get up and wake Willis from his sleep.

"Willis, it's time for us to go," Loldirr said with little conviction. She just wanted to curl up in a ball and forget everything that had happened, but she couldn't take that risk.

There was a mumble from Willis as he partially stirred, it wasn't until Loldirr pushed him repeatedly and violently that he awoke.

The look on his face was one of fear. Loldirr realised she had probably pushed him a bit too aggressively. Everything in her being wanted to apologise to him, but she needed to instil a sense of urgency.

"We're leaving before anyone can find us. We'll carry on down the river as it goes roughly west until we can find a settlement or nightfall. We'll need to move quickly just in case someone found our trail."

Still sleepy-eyed, Willis struggled to get up. His eyes still red from anxiety.

For a couple of hours, they had followed the river, watching it as it became more rapid. Neither of them spoke much, and that was how Loldirr wanted it. She had been completely lost in her thoughts, trying to process all that happened so far.

All her years at Greenhaven, she had never ventured outside of the forest; therefore, she had no idea where to go and what she would find as she progressed further. When they eventually reached a fork in the river it was now time to decide which way to head, continue west along the main river path or to go upstream north to gods knows where.

Looking across the tributary, Loldirr spotted a raft bobbing up and down attached to a rope that spanned across the river. It was hooked on the opposite side to a sturdy, healthy tree.

The butcher's son probably used this route to reach the nearby trading outpost. Hopefully, he had avoided the massacre and was still on one of his excursions.