[wattys 2018 shortlisted]
Humans see her as a dangerous threat -a witch that must be executed. With the uncontrollable ability to form ice at her fingertips, Ravenna is forced into hiding amongst the humans, stealing to survive. That is, until she h...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
RAVENNA'S FINGERS TAPPED against the table in front of her. Anxiety sizzled through her. It was hard to breathe, hard to focus. Her mind kept darting from one thought to another. Ice soldiers surrounded her, pressed within all the crevices of the dining hall. Almost every chair around her was occupied. She and Vyses had worked all night to create their massive army, only stopping to take a break when rays of sunlight began to filter through the windows of the castle.
She closed her eyes and leaned back in her seat, her arms folding across her chest. Slowly, she sucked in a deep breath and forced it back out.
Would their soldiers even be enough?
Someone cleared their throat. Her eyes fluttered open. Vyses stood had taken a seat in the chair across from her. His eyebrows were arched. "Are you alright?"
"I am fine," she assured him. She spied the food that he'd prepared spread out atop the table. "Is this breakfast?"
He nodded. "We should go ahead and eat. Lyth should return to join us soon." He hesitated for a moment, his gaze focused on her face. "I have to admit, lass. I am very curious to see what he has to say about the King's army."
"I am too," she agreed. She eyed one of the soldiers that sat beside her. It sat, back ram-rod straight, in its chair. It was unmoving, immobile as a solid block of ice. "I hope all of the soldiers will be enough."
"They will be," Vyses said. He smiled reassuringly at her. "Our soldiers are much stronger than humans. It will just as it has been with the guards in each town that we've freed, our soldiers are no match for them."
Ravenna let out a quiet sigh. A strange rustle sounded from behind her. She glanced back over her shoulder, just in time to see a bright, crimson colored light appear. The light stretched, morphing into a tall, rectangular shape. Lyth stepped out of it.
"You're back!"
He blinked at her, his expression stoic. His gaze shifted to Vyses. "I did as you asked," he announced.
"What did you learn?" Vyses asked.
Lyth eyed the ice soldiers that stood around him. "I believe that the King's army consists of five hundred men, roughly. There were several rumors floating around. A few of his soldiers are trained, pulled from the kingdom's official military reserves. Others are merely random citizens who were drafted to fight. The army left the Capitol about a day ago, and has roughly four days of travel before they reach our borders."
Vyses smirked. "Extended times of peace and comfort do tend to make humans ignorant," he remarked. "We will easily out number and over power them. We have nothing to fear."
Ravenna instantly felt more relaxed. It was good to know when the fight would take place, instead of constantly having to anticipate a surprise army outside the city walls. She stood and stretched out her arms. "I think I will go explore the market," she announced.
