Chapter 19

  Blood. So much blood.

  Orion's eyes are fading.

  And screaming. Always screaming.

  I jerked awake with a gasp that tore at my throat, my whole body drenched in cold sweat. My heart hammered against my ribs like it was trying to escape.

  For a terrifying moment, I didn't know where I was. The nightmare clung to me like and I could still smell the blood, still hear the dying gasps.

  Then the wooden ceiling. Clean walls. The sharp scent of herbs and something that reminded me of antiseptic.

  This wasn't the forest.

  I tried to sit up and immediately wished I hadn't. Pain exploded behind my eyes like someone had driven a spike through my skull. My whole body felt like I'd been trampled by a herd of angry bulls.

  "Easy there," a voice said from somewhere to my left. "You've been out for three days. Don't try to move too fast."

  Three days?

  I turned my head slowly, wincing at the wave of pain, and saw a middle-aged woman in simple brown robes sitting beside what looked like a cot. She had graying hair pulled back in a practical bun.

  "Where am I?" My voice came out as a croak.

  "Safe," she said, reaching for a wooden cup on the small table beside her. "Here, drink this. Small sips."

  The water was cool and tasted faintly of mint. I drank greedily until she pulled the cup away.

  "Slowly," she warned. "You've been unconscious for days. You need to take it slow.”

  That's when the memories hit me.

  The camp. The bandits. Henrik falling. Marta screamed as she ran with Emil in her arms. Arrows whistling through the air. My monsters fighting desperately.

  And Orion.

  No, no, no...

  The cup slipped from my fingers as it hit the floor with a dull thud, water splashing across the wooden boards.

  The woman—a healer, I realized now—reached out to steady me as my whole body started shaking. "It's alright. You're safe now. You're in Oakenford, at the temple clinic."

  "My monsters?," I managed to get out between the tremors. "The others—where are they? Are they—?"

  "One of your great wolves, fortunately survived. It's being cared for."

  There was relief. Nox survived.

  Now that she mentioned it, I could feel my connection with Nox and Fei...

  Fei was flying above, circling endlessly. Gods, how long has he been doing that? The steady pulse of his presence in my mind felt frantic, protective. He'd probably been keeping watch over me this entire time.

  I turned my attention back to Fei, who was still circling endlessly above the town. Through our mental link, I could feel his exhaustion, his stubborn refusal to rest while I was hurt. He'd probably been flying for three straight days.

  If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

  Fei, I called out through our connection. Land. Rest. I'm safe now.

  There was resistance at first—a protective instinct that didn't want to leave me unguarded. But I pushed the command gently, reassuringly.

  Finally, I felt him banking toward the ground, his massive wings carrying him down to what I assumed was the courtyard. Relief flooded through me as his presence settled, no longer that frantic, desperate circling.

  Then I turned my attention to Nox. Feeling that he was alive brought such intense relief that tears started streaming down my face. The connection was weaker than usual—he was hurt, exhausted—but he was there. Still breathing. Still with me.

  "Thank god," I whispered, pressing my palms against my eyes.

  The healer watched me with gentle concern. "Your eagle has been circling our town from above since you arrived."

  "What happened?" I asked. "How did I get here?"

  "Your eagle brought you here to our town, together with your wolf and two others. I have to admit, when the guards first spotted that massive eagle approaching our walls, we thought we were under attack. A D-rank monster flying straight at us with people in its talons? Everyone was ready to sound the alarm." Her expression softened.

  "But then we saw how gently it landed, how carefully it set you down. And the way it stayed close, refusing to leave your side..." She paused, wonder creeping into her voice.

  "The eagle wouldn't let anyone near you at first. Just stood there, wings spread, protecting you until we convinced it we were trying to help."

  "Your wolf was the same way. Injured as he was, he still tried to position himself between you and our guards. Took hours before they trusted us enough to let us treat your wounds."

  Then she paused again, studying my face carefully. "What happened out there?"

  The question hit me like a physical blow. Images flashed through my mind as the nightmare came flooding back in vivid, horrible detail. The bandits pouring out of the forest like hungry wolves. My monsters fighting desperately, outnumbered and overwhelmed. The sound of steel cutting through flesh. The screams.

  And then... darkness. Rage like nothing I'd ever felt before, consuming everything, burning through my veins like fire.

  "Bandits," I said, my voice barely above a whisper. "They attacked our camp. We were just... we were just trying to get to Oakenford. They came out of nowhere."

  “Orion—one of my wolves—he... they killed him. And then…”

  I trailed off.

  The Basilisk.

  It was a massive, serpentine monster I'd designed during my time in the forest. One of the monsters I'd designed in that void-space when I was bored or curious about my limits.

  But when Orion died, when that rage consumed me…

  I turned my attention back to the healer.

  What was I supposed to say? That I'd somehow created a massive serpent in my rage?

  "I don't remember much after that," I lied.

  The healer smiled gently as she reached for my hand.

  "Trauma can do that. Block out the worst parts to protect your mind. You survived. That's what matters."

  But I did remember. I remembered everything now…The way the basilisk coiled around the bandit leader, the way those bastards had screamed and scattered like children. The smell of venom eating through steel and flesh.

  I'd created a monster born from pure hatred. And it was beautiful.

  I was interrupted from my thoughts when the healer squeezed my hand gently. "I'll let you rest now. I need to tend to the others."

  Others.

  My heart lurched. "Speaking of the others..." I asked hesitantly, almost afraid to hear the answer. "Who... who made it out with me?"

  "Emil—the little boy—and a young man named Jorik. They woke up yesterday. They're fine now…." Her expression grew more serious. "Alive, but not unscathed."

  "What do you mean by that?" I asked, though something cold was already settling in my stomach.

  The healer hesitated, her eyes flickering away from mine. "You'll... you'll see soon enough." She stood up, smoothing down her robes. "Rest for now. Your body needs time to heal."

  "Wait—" I started to sit up again, ignoring the spike of pain.

  But she was already moving toward the door, her shoulders tense in a way that told me everything I didn't want to know.

  "Rest," she said softly, without turning around.

  Then she was gone, leaving me alone with my racing thoughts and the terrible certainty that there were answers I wasn't ready to hear.