The Knife's Edge (33 page)

Maris grabbed his cuff, “Tell them to get down!”

“Down! Get down!” he bellowed, using his amplified words.

Men, woman, and children, fell to the walkway’s surface, pressing their bodies against the flowing gold. The dragons roared and swooped down, snatching several men and women too slow to get down, piercing them upon the point of their talons. Gray turned to Ayva and Darius at his side. Ayva gripped his hand, and Gray’s heart pounded as the dragons circled.

Maris spoke calmly, “Time to act, Eminas. We will all die if we do not move. We must get to the other side. Give the command now!”

Gray summoned his voice. “To your feet! Spread out and get to the other side!” The command rose above the chaotic chorus of screaming. He turned to Ayva and Darius. “Keep low and don’t stop moving!”

Ayva grabbed his arm. “Wait! We’ll follow you!”

“Lead the way,” Darius said.

“Stay close.” He turned and unsheathed Morrowil as he dashed into the fray. There was a bestial cry and he watched as the dragons descended, diving from every angle. Ayva and Darius at his side, he ducked and dodged slicing talons. A maw snapped towards him, lunging for Ayva. He cried out, slicing down with Morrowil, but the beast pulled back and beat its colossal wings. The wind buffeted Gray, throwing him but Darius grabbed his arm, pulling him forward. They sprinted onward, the wind of the heights thrashing from all sides.

An old man stumbled, and then let out a strangled gasp as a huge, sword-length talon protruded through his chest. The old man looked down, his face a mask of shock. Before Gray could react, the dragon lifted the man from the ground and flung his carcass into the chasm. Another dragon flew overhead, and he dove to the ground assaulted by a gale of wind. The dragon’s thick beating wings took men and women from their feet, sending them to the ground.

Lying flat on his stomach, anger and panic surged inside him and he gripped Morrowil tightly as he leapt to his feet. He watched the villagers dash for the opposite ledge, spread out along the golden walkway. Ayva and Darius were nowhere to be seen. He seemed to be the last one. He looked behind to make sure and dread filled him.

A dragon hovered above a child. It was the little girl who had sounded the alarm. The beast reached, clawing for the girl and Gray gave into the nexus. He threw his hands out, pulling with every bit of his power. Thick bolts of air struck the beast and it staggered. The creature released a guttural roar, diving at the girl again, but the bolts gave him just enough time. He dove first, grabbing the girl in a roll and coming up swiftly.

Ahead, more dragons rained down. One swooped low, its talons colliding with a group of running men and women, sending them clear off the golden bridge. Their screams echoed as they fell. Several dragons picked off stragglers, the loud clang of their talons against the golden walkway pierced his ears, ringing like steel.

He turned back to the huge beast as it faced them, blocking their path. Without taking his eyes off the creature, he spoke softly to the little girl, “I need you to be brave,” he said, glad his own voice came out steady. “Can you do that?” Her big eyes and small face stained with tears looked back at him, and she nodded. “Good, now climb onto my back and hold on tightly.”

The dragon clawed the walkway, snorting and hot steam billowed from its flaring nostrils. The little girl climbed onto his back. Gray checked to make sure the nexus was still there. It sat, waiting. He drew it, asking for more power, and letting it fill his limbs. The girl’s arms tightened in fear around his neck as eddies of wind surrounded them, coating their skin.

And Gray ran.

The beast roared and charged, ripping through the air. Its huge talon swiped at him, impossibly quick for the beast’s size. He skidded to a stop. The razor-sharp spears missed by a hairsbreadth and a gap formed between the creature’s trunk-like hind legs. He dove, the power of the wind aiding him, but the creature was already moving. Its huge maw snapped at the little girl on his back. In midair, the heat of the creature’s breath was on his neck. He cringed, yelling as he slid. The barbed teeth pinged off the little girl as if hitting a coat of steel armor. The dragon recoiled. The effort of the shield sapped Gray, and he let it drop. But he was already through the gap and running.

He heard the beating of wings and glanced over his shoulder to see the beast rise into the air and follow. Gray poured wind around his legs and arms, forcing it to his will. The threads came together seamlessly before he knew what he was doing, and he flew like the wind. At his side, he saw the horses. They stampeded, nostrils flared in panic. Their fear gave them wings as they galloped at full speed, yet Gray kept pace until he reached the train of villagers and joined the crowd.

Through the spread of people he saw Mura. Ayva and Darius were at his side. The hermit wielded his obsidian scimitar, fending off a snapping dragon. Further ahead, Rydel was miraculously riding one of the beasts. His dagger was pressed into the dragon’s thick, scaled neck as the beast beat its immense wings, trying to toss the nimble elf. The other dragons came from all sides, showering them with talons and deadly fangs, killing left and right. Gray’s eyes scanned as he sprinted, until he found what he was looking for—Maris.

A hundred feet ahead the Ronin stood at the golden walkway’s end. His hands shook, lifting towards the sky. Gray watched as suddenly, bouts of rock fountained from the mountain overhead, catching a dragon as it rose. It shrieked as its wings were smashed and it fell to the abyss below. Ducking and dodging, Gray reached Maris. The Ronin spared him a look. Maris touched his arm and Gray gasped, sucking in a breath as energy filled his limbs. When he opened his eyes, he saw the Ronin sagged—the weight of what he had just done clearly visible.

He helped him to his feet, shouting over the chaos, “What did you just do?”

Maris gripped his collar, pulling him close, “I gave you what’s left of my power. You can do more than I. Now, go, save them!” He yelled, pushing him away.

Gray let the little girl down, handing her to the Ronin, “Watch over her,” he said, and then turned. He let the nexus fill him. The power was overwhelming, far greater than ever before. It blinded him, and his knees nearly buckled as it coursed through him. With his vision bathed in golden light, he ran.

As the dragons struck from all sides, he raised his hands and golden white shields struck back. The first dragon connected, crashing into the shield as if crashing into a wall. The monstrous weight of its body thudded against the shield like the slap of meat, snapping bone and tendon. Gray grunted under the weight, but ran on. More dragons dove, attacking the running villagers, and he flung out his hand again. Filled to bursting with the power, more shields sprung to meet them. Their talons pinged, ringing like steel against steel; and where the claws struck, rings of gold spread like sunbursts.

Two dragons dove from both directions, claws aimed for a cluster of women and children. Gray erected a giant shield over the huddled mass, and then channeled the voracious winds upward. The dragons’ wings caught the upward draft of air. Their paths shifted and they slammed into one another, breaking bones and falling onto the waiting shield. A rush of cries sounded from behind. He twisted. The dragon from before, the largest beast, clutched a man in its talons. He sprinted. In his hand, he compressed a ball of air until it was denser than an orb of steel. The beast’s jaws engulfed the man’s head. Gray screamed a bestial cry that matched the dragon’s roar and let the hardened sphere fly. It streaked through the air, thudding into the huge dragon, and pierced its scaled hide through the chest. The beast groaned, dropping the man in its claws and then fell, smacking the bridge and spiraling over the edge.

The mountain rattled once again. He turned back and an avalanche of rock crashed into the last dragons, puncturing their wings and pummeling their thick bodies. The creatures fell, tumbling endlessly into the icy chasm.

A quiet settled.

Gray fell to his knees, breathing heavily as he scanned the crowds.

Ayva and Darius rose to their feet. Closer still, Mura withdrew his obsidian sword from a dragon’s corpse with a dour look, flicking black blood from his blade. Karil and Rydel were at his side. Safe… and Gray breathed a sigh of relief, though as he looked around, he felt a wave of guilt and sorrow. The villager’s sobs reached his ears, many kneeling at the walkway’s edge, eyeing the empty abyss.

In the end, there were no cheers or shouts of victory, just the heavy howl of wind.

Threads

S
NOW GUSTED AND
G
RAY HELD HIS
cloak closer as he rode beside Maris. To his right was the cliff’s edge. It was a sharp drop of ice and snow, devoid of trees. As usual while scouting, he and Maris rode ahead of the villagers. It was a ritual that he had come to enjoy. But this morning, something seemed different about the Ronin. The man had said little since they had first set off. Now, a dark silence sat between them.

It had been two days since the golden walkway and the horror of the dragons, and though the grief of the scene had not left, Gray did not think that was the reason for the silent tension. Something else troubled Maris, and he feared it greatly.

More icy wind assaulted them and Fael’wyn snorted in annoyance. He was grateful that Fael’wyn and the others horses had instinctively followed them across the golden bridge, escaping the claws of the dragons. He stroked his mount’s neck. He knew Fael’wyn must be as tired and cold as he was. Hold on, he thought, at least for a bit more. When we get to the Shining City, then you can have all the food and warmth you want. Fael’wyn’s ears pricked and he nickered softly as if acknowledging.

Ahead, the Ronin stopped. Gray pulled his reins to a halt.

“I can’t continue with you,” Maris announced abruptly. Gray was speechless. The Ronin’s hood was down, unveiling his flame of white hair. Dark brows hooded his slender eyes, but his face looked sterner, more resolute than normal. He often reminded Gray of a fox. His cloak was draped to one side of his big stallion and he could just make out the insignia of a leaf, what he now knew to be the sigil of the Great Kingdom of Eldas.

“Why not?”

“Ahead lays your path, but mine is elsewhere. You must know, I am truly glad and honored to have been at your side for this long in your journey. You have learned more in a matter of days than most learn in many years.” Gray averted his gaze, unable to take the rare gem of praise. He did feel as if the days of training under Maris, hard as they were, eventually bore the fruit of success, hardening him, and his power. The nexus and the wind were becoming more familiar each day. He grew stronger; wielding more than he thought was possible. He didn’t want it to end.

“But why now, when we are nearly there?”

“That is why I must go now, before we reach the Shining City.”

“I don’t understand,” he said, confused. “Besides, the villagers need you, you can’t simply abandon them.”

“They have you now to watch over them.”

Gray wanted to say something to make the man stay, but he didn’t know what—in truth he feared there was nothing he could say. “You can’t go,” he said at last.

“It is still strange hearing such things. It’s been a long time since anyone has wanted the presence of my company.” Maris gripped his shoulder. “Trust yourself, Gray. The nexus burns like a fire within you.”

Gray’s cold fingers tightened on his reins. “Without you, I’m alone. I’m different.”

The Ronin raised a brow. “I believe I know more about being an outcast than you, and you are not one. You, out of all people, have taught me that we are never truly alone. Besides, the rogue and the girl? They have lost their homes and the ones they love too.”

While he knew it was true, he felt a thread of frustration, like an ember burning just beneath his skin. He didn’t know how to explain it. “You don’t understand. It’s this power, it’s this title, it’s all of it… with you here I am—I feel more normal.”

Maris spoke in the silence, “But you are not normal.”

“And that is exactly what I fear.”

Maris spoke into the silence, “I know what you fear, but you are not Kail, Gray.”

The simple words struck a chord, and his jaw clenched as he looked away, unable to meet the man’s stare. “And what if you’re wrong?” he whispered. “I have the same powers, the same sword, why not the same fate?”

“You may share similarities, but you are nothing like the man. Besides, your friends do not see darkness, but light.”

“But they have not seen what I’ve seen,” he answered. “I’ve seen the darkness inside me.” He grabbed his sword and shook it in his fist, “I’ve seen this blade, my blade, according to you, wet with another’s blood, and I know nothing of it!”

“You have a choice before you, Gray. To live in your past or embrace the present, you cannot do both.”

“It’s not so easy,” he replied.

“I said it was a choice,” said Maris. “I did not say it was an easy one.”

He turned his gaze on the Ronin. “Have you forgotten your past?”

Maris’ gaze turned stony. “My past is much longer than yours, wrought with thousands of years of death and destruction, but also with memories of life and joy. I will not stand here and tell you that those memories are buried and gone. I still grieve the lost, and in my darkest hours, I wish I could relive certain moments and change their outcomes. So in the end, I am much like you, but what I can tell you, is with every dark inhale I may take, I let out a breath of life. I do not fear my darkness anymore.”