Savage Rising: Eternal Forest Saga - Book 1

Chapter 14

Cherin couldn't believe how different his little brother looked. Zehlyr had always been somewhat puny. It was what made him so easy to tease over the years. The young man standing before him now had clearly proven himself in the Wilds. His muscles were thick and defined, his shoulders broad. His skin was covered in scars and his hands were calloused. Everything that adorned his body, from the clothing to the bow and arrows, was clearly self-made. The shock of seeing little Zehlyr alive again after all these years was an unexpected blow to his pride. He couldn't help but wonder if he would have fared so well after so much time in the Wilds.

Likewise, Cherin looked very different than Zehlyr remembered. Coming upon him and his band from Meadowgold in the Wilds, Zehlyr was surprised he even recognized him. He was older looking, sure, but it was much more than that. The bronzed, leathery look of his skin was a testament to just how hard the years had been. He looked thin, with sunken cheeks and sharp joints. This was a man never sure where his next meal would come from. He looked nothing like the big brother he'd left standing in the rain three years ago, and yet he was.

Zehlyr took a few cautious steps forward. His bow was still at the ready, with an arrow trained on the head of a woman he recognized clearly. His relationship with Cherin was rough, but Viyana had tried to kill him once before; she had tried to kill Azalea. Even now, she stood before him with a bloody sword grasped tightly in her hands. Her eyes focused on his every step. Cherin looked like a different person, but she was exactly as he remembered.

The last time he'd seen her, she was face-down in the mud, unconscious from a lightning strike. He'd taken her sword to slay Lord Sansehr. Looking back on that day, he couldn't help wondering if he should have just put an end to her there when it would have been so easy. Of course, he knew his younger self wouldn't have been able to do such a deed.

"Viyana, right?" Zehlyr asked.

Viyana took a step back, widening her stance as if preparing to do battle. "It's Lady Viyana now," she said sternly. This was not how she had envisioned this meeting going, but running into these two out of the blue and in the heat of battle threw all previously made plans out the window.

"A title now? Someone's moving up in the world," Zehlyr followed up.

Viyana took a few steps to the side, causing Zehlyr to move in the opposite direction. "I see you've acquired some skill with a bow."

"Three years in exile," Zehlyr responded. "I've developed quite a few skills in that time."

"As have I," Azalea said from across the forest. She also had her bow at the ready, though her arrow was trained on Cherin. The only way she and Zehlyr had survived this long was by working together. They were perfectly coordinated. The battle had left her finely made dress ripped and stained. The sleeves were torn at the seams on her shoulders and there was a large split down the back. Such an elegant garment was never meant for war.

"What brought you here?" Zehlyr asked. "Trying to find us?"

"Indeed," she replied.

Azalea pulled back the string on her bow a little farther. "We're not going down without a fight."

Cherin was still clutching the sword in his hands but had no real intention of using it. Moving slowly, he lowered his body to the ground and placed the blade against a small shrub. "We're not looking for a fight," he said.

"Then why did you come for us?" Zehlyr asked.

"Isn't it obvious?" Azalea said as she lowered her bow a little. "They've heard about the Grove and came to take us back to Meadowgold."

Viyana sheathed her blade. "So, it's true," she said. "You are the Sorceress from the Wilds that's been keeping the dwarves from the effects of the drought."