Bound In Blood (Bound In Blood - Book One)

Chapter Thirty-One

Darkness had fallen upon us before we made it to the summit. The wintery wind travelled down the mountain, chilling the other two to the core. They shivered, hugging themselves in an effort to keep warm. I wished I could help them but my skin was colder than the emptiest of voids. Steam came from their breath but they pushed on, not letting it stop them. They were as determined as I to find our sibling.

The terrain was rough and steep, taxing on our energy reserves; Romanus and Hermia's especially. Their breathing became heavier as we made our way up the mountain, their legs quivering with the effort. We had been assassins, not mountaineers.

"D-d'ya t-t-think the college is r-really up t-t-there?" Hermia asked through terrible shakes and chattering teeth.

"I hope to the gods so," I told her. "It's bound to be. Just a little further and we'll see it for ourselves," I assured the both of them, desperate not for them to lose faith.

"S-s-s'long as them d-d-damn scholars d-don't try n' k-kill us," Romanus said with a melancholy attitude.

"Even if they do, we can stand our ground. We're built for... combat. Nothing can keep us from Alex," I told them, trying to convince myself in the process.

"R-r-right," Romanus agreed.

"W-we've a n-n-nightwalker on our s-side! Ain't n-no one gettin' in our w-way!" Hermia exclaimed with excitement. "They d-don't stand a ch-chance."

"Exactly. We've nothing to fear." However, confident as I sounded, I was still anxiety-ridden for whatever we may have had to face. I may have been a nightwalker but if what Scarlet had said was true, they were mages who wielded unimaginable power. How could one compete? That wouldn't stop me, though. I was far too determined to find my friend and put the situation to rest to be scared into hiding.

I quickened my pace up the track, not letting anything hold me back. Hermia and Romanus could hardly keep up, struggling to get their footing up the slippery slope. As we were nearing the summit, the roof of the college finally coming into view in the near-distance, we heard a tremendous roar erupt. I held my palms at my ears, the sound unbearable with my enhanced hearing. Even the other two seemed bothered by it.

"W-what... w-was that?" Hermia asked nervously.

"I don't know," I said with a shake of my head. "Is it like anything you've ever documented?" She shook her head.

"N-never heard anythin' l-like it."

"Y-you reckon it came from t-the c-c-college?" Romanus asked.

"It wouldn't surprise me. With all that they have hidden away, it's not improbable that they'd keep a few beasts, too."

Fear ran through my body as I envisioned whatever could have unleashed such a mighty roar, tearing through the mountain. It was definitely larger than a saphrolgyte. Stronger too, I would have guessed. It was like the growl of a lion only so much stronger.

"We shouldn't let this deter us. Whatever it is, we can take it," I told them firmly.

"E-even if it h-happens to be a d-d-dragon?" Romanus asked. I didn't even want to think of scuffling with a dragon. My skin was not built to withstand flames, to say the least. It could have the three of us in its mouth in half a second. We just had to pray this was not the case.

Further up the mountain, we heard cries. Cries of pain and fear. Something within me ignited and I couldn't hold myself back any longer. I tore up the mountain, leaving Hermia and Romanus behind, desperate to save whoever it was. I reached the peak in only a few moments and what I saw at the top had me bewildered beyond belief.