EPIC: Fourteen Books of Fantasy (279 page)

A packed leather bag was shoved into Eric’s hand. Eric tried to speak, tried to interrupt this madness, but he was in near-shock and could not make a sound.

“Now listen carefully to what I’m going to tell you,” his dad said, holding Eric’s face with both hands to be sure he was looking right at him. “You have to go to Taron. You will show that necklace to one of the high-ranking guards. You will
insist
on speaking to Queen Ilirra. She will know what to do next. Tell me you understand!”
 

Eric shook his head up and down. Tears streamed down his face. His numb mind was not even sure what he was even saying yes to. It was all happening so fast.
 

Henry shoved a lantern into his son’s free hand.

Aena rushed to Eric’s side, grabbing his arm tightly.

In a voice that was far calmer than it should have been, Henry said, “Those things, they are after
you
. They know what you are and how important you are to humanity. They will leave when you are gone. You have your instructions, now go!” He then pushed the young couple into the passageway.
 

“But Dad—” came Eric’s broken reply through his sobs.
 

Then came the all too emotionless reply. “Eric...I’m not your dad...I
never
was.”

The panel slid shut.

Eric stared at the closed stone panel as he held the lantern, which was the only source of light in here. He felt a gentle tug on his shoulder.

“Come on, forget it, we have to go,” came his companion’s soft, comforting voice. “You heard what he said. Those things will leave if we just go. The sooner we leave this area, the more people you can save.”
 

Oh, he heard what his father had said all right.
Not my dad
?! The words bounced around his head but refused to sink in. How can a person find out that their whole life is a lie and just accept it? Just go on as if nothing ever happened?

Eric placed one foot in front of the other as Aena led him along. Little flashes of reality sparked in his mind as they walked, like fireflies in the dark that only made their appearance known for a second before fading. It was easy to forget you ever saw them
. A secret doorway in my own house...dark creatures killing my friends because of me...not really my father...did Jacob survive?
He experienced fleeting thoughts that had no place in a sane person’s mind. They were too much like the darkest nightmares for him to accept as any form of reality.
 

The stone tunnel was small and narrow, not wide enough for two people to walk side by side. Aena was able to walk straight up, while Eric crouched a bit due to the low ceiling. Light from the flickering lantern played tricks on their minds as it continued to cast eerie living shadows on the walls. Every little movement appeared threatening when on the border of one’s vision.

They continued on until the stone gradually changed to a combination of rock and mud. Tree roots lined the dirt floor, so they each had to watch their step. At the end of the path was a flat wall of dirt blocking the way. It appeared a dead end at first glance, although it was easy enough to figure out that the dirt wall pushed outward easily.
 

When they exited the tunnel, they found they were well outside the town, in a small cave that was barely ten feet deep. Eric knew this hideout well, for he had sought refuge in here before, when he wanted to be alone. He closed the dirt door from this side and examined it. From the other side, the passage was obvious, but here, you could never tell there was a secret door.
Has this really been here my whole life and I never knew
? Yet another shocking yet unimportant thought to rattle around in his head.
 

The wind was still blowing strong, as it had been for hours. The sky remained threatening, but they had to push on, as it was best to get as much distance between the town and themselves as possible. Taron was so far away… they had no horses, no money, just whatever equipment had been packed into the leather sack, which Eric had not even checked yet.
 

Then a sudden clarity came over Eric. He had never strayed from the rules by which he lived, and he was not going to start now. Those things were after him? Then he needed to travel as far as he could tonight to lead them away from Bryer, to protect the ones he loved. Answers to the barrage of questions filling him to the point of exploding could be found in Taron? Then that’s where he needed to go.

The two companions trudged on, fighting the swirling wind as leaves and dust bombarded them from all directions.

Jade rode on into the night. Her necklace continued to pulse with a faint yellow light. She could feel its knowledge, its wisdom. She knew she was getting closer. There was some kind of three-way bond between herself, the necklace, and who she had been charged with protecting.

All of a sudden, that
feeling
took a dark turn. Again, it was not any sort of image that popped into her head, but she knew her dependent was in trouble regardless. He was in danger, and his life was more important than hers.

The necklace pulsed angrily now, like a rabid heartbeat. It was imploring her to move at a breakneck pace.

Into the night sped the assassin as her black robe flapped behind her like the wings of a demon. However, with the power of death that pulsed through the assassin, a demon would be less formidable.

There was flint and steel in the leather bag, so Eric was able to start a small fire before the rain started. His companion and him both knew a fire could easily attract unwanted guests
,
but after everything they had been through, they just didn’t care. The rain was really coming down now, and they wanted to try and stay somewhat warm.
 

Aena had found a waterskin, small pot, and some tea in the sack as well. It was exactly what they wanted right now. Aena poured two hot cups from the pot she brewed and handed one to Eric. They sat in silence for a moment, sipping away. “So what are we going to do when we get to Taron?” she asked in a soft voice. “I mean, we don’t have any money, and there is only a little food in that sack. There isn’t even a change of clothes.”
 

Eric kept sipping his tea in silence for a moment, considering the question. “I’m not sure, to tell you the truth. I just know it’s important to get there. As long as we have each other, I’ll think of something.” He set down his tin cup and placed his fingers on his temples, rubbing in circles as his head began to throb.
 

“What the— My head.” He tried to stand up, but his legs would not support him. He stumbled to the side and fell, kicking his teacup over in the process. Eric looked over at Aena as he lay on the ground. There seemed to be two of her circling each other. Then the two images of her began laughing as they moved towards him.

“How sweet,” the far-away voice echoed. “We will be together? Well, I have a better idea. The Dark Lord wants you alive, and for that I will be given eternal life!” Eric shook his head violently, trying to stay focused. The two images finally came together as one, but the single image was now holding a dagger and still moving towards him. He tried to inch away, worming along on his elbows and backside.

“I’ll have to remove your feet and hands to make you less dangerous, of course. But don’t worry, that’s nothing compared to what the Dark Lord has in store for you!”

“N-no…st-stop,” he muttered as he tried desperately to stay conscious—a battle he was on the verge of losing.

Right as she positioned herself on top of him, Aena suddenly whirled around, blades in hand. A sharp
clang
rang out
as she deflected the speeding dagger that was hurling towards her head. She followed the action with two backward handsprings and landed in a low crouch, crossed daggers defensively in front of her face. Eric was fighting hard to stay conscious by slapping himself in the face repeatedly. Again he saw two figures in black robes, but they were facing each other this time and did not seem to be the same person, although their snakelike movements were awfully similar.

Crackling lightning lit up the immediate area, revealing two hooded reapers circling each other, both wielding a dagger in either hand. Each shifted their daggers from pointing down to pointing up and back again by rolling them individually across the backs of their hands, as they stalked one another in a tight circle. Only trained killers with marvelous dexterity could have made the shifts look so effortless. For all Eric knew, they were fighting over who would kill him first. He had to move, but his body was shutting down.
How could she do this to me
? He watched helplessly as the reapers continued to circle, switching blade angles constantly, searching for a weakness in the other’s defense.

One struck out at the other in two viper-like slashes, each parried solidly by a set of daggers, followed by return strikes that were just a fast. The probing shots continued as each one tested the speed and skill of the other with quick strikes sent out as feelers. Then the dance of blades began, each pair of arms whirling and pumping in an intricate series of thrusts and parries.
 

Each of the cloaked figures appeared to have eight arms, as it seemed impossible only two could move with such tenacity. The steel-on-steel blows were so heavy that a shower of continuous sparks fired off in every direction. Each time the sky lit up with a flash of lightning, the scene showed a portrait of violence, that exact moment frozen in time forever. As the display of whirling blades raged on, it became clear that one of the figures was taking more slashes than the other, although they had both taken several. Individual blade collisions could no longer be deciphered from one another.

The cloaked figures rolled their bodies with the blows to keep the slashes from doing no more than grazing, while countering hard as the other did the same with unimaginable speed. It was impossible to believe humans could move like this.
 

One reaper began to really press the attack as the other’s body jolted, then jolted again with fresh, deep cuts. At last, the first reaper parried both his opponent’s daggers out wide while dropping his own, then grabbed the cloak of the other figure, doing a backward somersault while locked together tightly, and ended up on top.

The reaper on the bottom slashed up once, twice, three times, each one dodged by lightning-quick reflexes as the other continued to squeeze and twist the neck of his victim. A loud, sickening
crack
echoed through the night, and then it was over...
 

His head spinning, nausea flooded through Eric. He knew this was it—he would be out within seconds, certain never to wake up. The remaining reaper limped towards him.
 

Blink
 

It was closer now, almost on him.
 

Blink
 

The figure pulled its hood back to reveal a beautiful face with crystal-blue eyes. “I’ve searched my whole life for you...Gate Keeper.”
 

Blink

Eric’s world faded into darkness.