Freya

We walk deeper into the cave. It feels as though it stretches on for miles based on how long we've been walking. But after we stopped, the terrain grew difficult, especially with the dark. I'm not sure we would've covered much ground at all.

Walls press on either side of us, the ground scattered with large boulders to traverse. Alaric moves first, hands reaching for mine after each obstacle. His electric pulse up my arm is the only reminder of what direction is forward.

I've never been a fan of crawling insects; I try hard not to think about what I would see if there was light in the passage, ducking my head with a shudder when it brushes the roof.

"Hold there a moment," Alaric says, piercing the silence of the cave.

I pause, our breath echoing around us. A few moments later, the skidding of ground fills the cave, followed by a small 'thump'. My heart picks up at the unsteady sound of the earth.

"I'm fine," his voice is farther away, lower. "Just a bit of a drop."

"How much is a bit?"

He hesitates. "A metre, at most. Sit down and slide down the rockface. It's smooth."

I bite my lip, taking a big step forward. The ground is ice cold through the fabric of my dress as I sit down, shuffling forward as the rock face flattens and then slopes. It's a terrifying thing, giving in to the darkness and blindly letting myself fall. With a deep breath, I push forward.

A force rocks into my body, propelling me several steps backwards. I lose my footing, stumbling back over a rock with a yelp.

Thankfully, I land on my back rather than my head. A rock digs painfully into my side. I let out a small groan.

"Freya?"

"I'm okay."

I push to my feet, taking a hesitant step forward this time. My body tingles from head to toe like a current of lightning has shocked through me. "The forcefield," I murmur. "I... I think we've reached it."

Pause.

After a few moments, Alaric scrambles but over the rockface, his presence closer. "I didn't realise it would stretch underground," he says.

I press my hand against it, intrigued by the feel of the forcefield rippling against my palm. "We've reached the edge of the village."

"I can't say anybody has ever tried to evade my forcefield by going underground."

"Alaric, I can't go any farther." I blink at him. "Not unless you let me."

He pauses. It feels like forever until he speaks. When I first hear the breath of a word, the murmur of his answer, a scream echoing through the cave cuts him off.

"Did you hear that?" I speak into the darkness. Before Alaric can respond, the scream grows clearer, more articulate. Each syllable trickles through the cave towards me. A scream of my name.

Lei.

~

Casimir

We hear the scream long before we reach anybody. Deep in the forest, far from the village, it bounces off the tops of the trees, scattering in pieces across the ground.

Killian and I meet glances for a split second before sprinting in its direction.

It wasn't a scream of fear, or of pain. It was a scream of warning. And the warning was to Freya.

The forest passes in a blur as we shoot through it, condensation from the low branches soaking the tips of my trousers. Adrenaline pushes me forward. But in the back of my mind, fear lingers. What was the warning for? Was this Alaric person harming her? Is the cloud near? I think of the horses we left with Jaycee. If the cloud finds them before us, our hasty escape from Dadun will become more of a crawl.

My concerns over the cloud shift as I skid to a stop, nearly running straight into Killain. His arms swing out, shoving me to the side as Sanaa appears to my left.

A split second passes where I catch a glimpse of the creature that blocks our path forward. Bloodthirsty eyes, red-stained jaw, thinning patches of fur.

An infected. In Elel.

A shudder crawls through me as I reach for the hilt of my knife, freeing it from its sheath.

The infected charges towards Killian. He dodges its advance expertly, his movements graceful as he appears on its other side. Beside me, Sanaa crouches low, eyes narrowed as she faces the beast. It growls, stamping its front paws into the earth.

Moonlight filters through the trees, casting eerie shadows as the beast lunges towards me. I brace myself for its force. No rational thought lies behind its eye, only hunger. I have no interest in dodging.

As the beast leaps off its hind legs towards me, I twist around, ducking so it misses my head by a fraction, exposing its underbelly. Lodging my dagger in its chest, just beneath the ribs, the shifter lets out a yelp as I yank it down its abdomen, warm blood spilling over my wrist.

The shifter lies on its side, chest rising and falling rapidly. I don't spare a glance at Killian and he moves closer, back to mine, Sanaa's back to his. Our chests rise and fall as fast as the fallen beasts as we defend our stance.

"Keep an eye out. Where there's one..." Sanaa says, voice low as we stand back to back. "There's usually more."

Their growls echo all around; I can't tell how far or close they are. The blood staining my hand has grown cold, icy around my fingers. I scan the treeline for any sense of movement.

"Let's keep moving," Killian says eventually, rolling back his shoulders. "Casimir, take the rear."

With a curt nod, I wait for Sanaa to step ahead. She does so without protest, her eyes narrowed as she scans the path before us. Her petite frame and soft features do not deceive me. Strength lies in her limbs, cunning intelligence in her mind. But she is the only living royal of Torinne left.

She is the guide of their rebellion, the flame to their rage. Killian, Lei, myself, we're all disposable. Small pieces of a bigger puzzle. But Sanaa? They can't afford to lose her.

We pick up the pace, grips on weapons clenching as the sounds of struggle filter through the trees. Killian breaks into a sprint, halting with little warning.

We break through to the clearing. Two infected shifters prowl the earth. Behind them, two figures stand trapped against a rock face.

"Lei," Sanaa murmurs from beside me, crouched low in the bush.

"Stay here," Killian orders Sanaa. He glances at me. And despite the dire situation, the fact that Lei is alive, a dangerous excitement glints in his eye.

"You ever used predator and prey in the deserters?" he asks. I raise a brow with a curt nod. "I've never been much of a prey man, myself."

Fighting the urge to roll my eyes, I rise to my feet, taking a deep breath and stepping out into the clearing. Standing tall, the scene envelops me from all angles. Unarmed, an angry and bloodied Lei stands trapped against the rockface. The man next to her defends the both of them with a small machete.

Distraction. That's all I'm supposed to be. But as I eye the two shifters, I figure I can at least cause a little more disruption than a 'distraction'. I dart towards them, catching the exact moment Lei notices me. Her eyes widen, entire body freezing just as I bury my dagger in the side of the smaller shifter.

It howls, spinning around. This captures the other shifter's attention. It charges, primal instincts driving it with savage ferocity. But even the shifter is too fast for me, pounding down on my wrists as it presses me into the earth, my dagger scattering from my hand.

Ragged gasps escape my breath as the shifter snaps its jaw. Its nails dig into my wrists, drawing blood. I grit my teeth just as its body grows limp atop me.

Killian rolls it off me with a thump, offering me a bloodied hand. I take it, launching to my feet. The man defending Lei drops his machete, breath ragged as he takes us in, eyes settling with a recognition when he sees Sanaa emerge from the trees behind us.

"Killian?" It's Lei who speaks, her voice smaller than I've ever heard it.

He half grins, opening his mouth. Before words can escape, Lei marches over to him, swatting his arm. "You... you died."

"You can't get rid of me that easily, Lei."

She stares at his face, eyes blinking as if she doesn't believe what she's seeing. Killian raises a hand, presses it tenderly to her cheek. "Freya was right," she murmurs. "Dammit she was right." Her face pales. "Freya."

"Where is she?" I demand. "Is she with you?"

"She went into the cave with Alaric," Lei says. "And one of the shifters went in after them."