Dralin

Chapter 17

“What a pretty little present Private Bobbell brought us.”  The man behind the desk stood.

Something pushed Pelya to the side just as another man reached to grab her.  The motion was enough for her to run to the door.  Right before she got there, it flung open on its own knocking the two men in front of it to the ground.

Pelya ran her fastest down the hallway and out through the door to the alley, which was also pulled open inexplicably.  She was going so fast that she ran into the wall on the other side of the alley, causing her to stumble.  For the first time, she turned and looked back only to see a glowing green web coming straight at her.  Pelya ducked and rolled to the left, but it stuck all over an arm and leg.  Some of it tore when she yanked, but it was strongly tethered to the wall and ground.

Then the shadows around it darkened and ripped the strands from her, scaring her even more.  Above her, a crow cawed.  She was sure it was the same one when she looked up to see it resting on a brick jutting from one of the buildings.

A man ran out of the door and into the wall, just as she had done, falling on his behind in the sticky substance.  Pelya barely evaded his outstretched hand as she dashed away, her heart racing in fear.  Looking over her shoulder, she saw the crow claw the man’s head, drawing blood and screams of pain.

Convinced that the crow was an ally, she ran as fast as she could.  Pelya was strong for her age and had done obstacle drills with the Guard.  The alleyway she ran down was a gritty version of those and she was truly running for her life this time.

Voices called out behind her while footsteps began pounding the cobblestones and echoing off the wall.  The alley split into two.  The crow flew over into the left one and cawed to her.  Pelya took that one, briefly noticing that the bird’s eyes were most definitely purple.

The alley took a sharp turn and she pushed against a wall to keep her balance.  When she saw green pollution in a puddle on the ground, she leapt over it, flying through the air and landing with a thud that knocked the air out of her.  Pelya got to her feet and kept running, but her chest began to hurt from exertion and fear.

A dark corner ahead suddenly became inviting, so she rushed to it.  One of the buildings in the alley was set deeper than those around it, creating a small space.  There were garbage and debris along the edge, but she was able to back into the corner.

Pelya heard the men coming down the alley and realized they would see her.  Alarm gripped her muscles, but just as she was about to bolt, she heard a whispering “shh” in her ear.  Shadows slowly caressed her arms and legs, causing her to relax involuntarily.

Three men came running at full bore.  They had a perfect line of vision to see her, but the shadows continued stroking her skin and Pelya could feel their cool touch even through her clothes.  She breathed calmly, letting her chest relax as the men ran past.  They didn’t notice her at all.

A moment later, the shadows stopped caressing and pushed her back into the alley.  The crow cawed from the left, so she immediately ran in that direction.  Pelya didn’t know what to think about shadows and a crow guiding her, but it was much better than what would happen if the thugs who killed Bobbell found her.  The thought sapped the strength from her bones and she stumbled to a halt.

The image of the sword piercing her uncle flashed in her mind, as did the sight of blood flowing from his lips while he mouthed words she could no longer hear.  Pelya burst into tears and fell to her knees.  Panic and fear ganged up to squeeze her heart tightly and prevent her from doing anything.  Her throat constricted, making her wheeze as she tried to breathe.

Pain shot through her scalp as her hair was pulled, causing Pelya to cry out.  The alley came into focus again and flapping wings beat about her head.  The crow yanked her hair again to get her to come fully back to reality.