When Althea was younger, she used to hide in the tall grass that encompassed her parents’ land. Her small stature made it the perfect hiding spot for any child at the ripe age of six. She could still remember the sound the grass made when her Father neared her hiding spot, his tanned face and dark eyes would scan the vastness of the land to search for his troublesome child. She would place both her hands over her mouth to keep a giggle from escaping her lips. Cupping his hands against his mouth he'd call her name:
“Althea!”
Katla nudging Althea cured her of her reminiscing. With the fear returning, she clenched her fists into the snow. The girls had taken to the edge of the tree line, lying flat on their bellies, watching the beast pace; it's pearl white eyes combing the tree line, searching for what it smelled. Katla dug her elbow into Althea’s side again, forcing her to move sideways away from the beast and towards the pinprick of fire lights in the distance. She began shuffling once the thing had started moving again, the noise of crunching snow beneath their bodies were masked by the beasts own movement.
The moment Althea had seen the beast her eyes would not leave it. Having arrived in this world the Knight had been keen on keeping information away from her. Althea had never expected more than the dangers of starvation and lack of shelter, but to imagine something in this world like this beast existing was something similar to the rumored beast that lurked the oceans for those that traveled back in Altair. But those were just rumors; the likelihood of meeting an overgrown squid in the ocean seemed much more realistic than the giant, tendrilled beast in front of her surveying the land.
Besides barking hushed orders, Katla had not made any attempt to explain what was going on. In fact, her wide-eyed gaze left Althea to believe that she needed the same explanation as she did.
As the women shuffled through the snow, a distinct and rhythmed drum hummed in the distance. Katla took a hold of Althea’s jacket, gesturing for her to listen. The beast raised its head in response to the sound and a low, guttural growl escaped the depths of its mouth. It opened its mouth wide, the outlined shape of its muzzle pulling back in a snarl, while the tar-like composition of its body rippled like hackles on its back. Althea listened to Katla’s shuddering breath as it filled her lungs. Her knuckles had turned white from gripping Althea’s coat so aggressively.
Althea swallowed hard as the beast dug its feet into the snow, and lunged forward towards the noise, its movements soundless. Althea searched for the beast as it moved farther away from them, but its dark figure camouflaged well with the darkness that encompassed the distance. The drums beat much quicker and more aggressively, and for a moment Althea thought she could hear cries in the distance, resonating from the place that carried the candelights. The drums came to a haunting halt when a loud, thunderous sound filled the air.
On instinct, Althea stood up, searching for what made the ear splitting noise. Her heart was thudding erratically in her chest, while her fear turned into panic.
“What are you doing?” Katla hissed, crouching beside her, “If that thing comes back we need to stay hidden!”
Althea shuddered at the booming noises in the distance, before crouching down next to Katla, “What is that thing?”
Katla put her face into her hands, “I...I don’t know. A Mara? But I’ve never seen one before. That thing is horrifying. How am I supposed to live out here on my own with these things roaming around? I’ll die for sure!”
“We nearly died, and that’s all you can think about?!”
Katla looked up surprised, before pursing her lips shut. A response was not needed, Katla knew she had only been thinking of herself. She had lived her 28 years having to focus on her survival, this was something she had grown accustomed to living in Spica. Still it aggravated her that a girl younger than her was lecturing her on the importance of placing the present before future.
“Something feels--” Althea stopped suddenly in mid-sentence. The ground beneath the women’s feet shook, the trees creaking with the sudden movement. Althea couldn’t explain the feeling she was beginning to have. It was an ominous feeling that had intruded in on her since the moment she caught sight of the Mara. Katla could see the discomfort spreading across Althea’s face again, but why, she hadn’t figured out yet.
A shrill cry echoed from the direction of the firelight, and both Katla and Althea stared in horror as the sky filled with a light red aura that faded out in mere seconds. “I’ve never seen conjurers at work.” Katla said breathlessly. She stood up, taking on a light jog.
Althea hurriedly followed her, picking up her knees to avoid dragging her feet through the snow. "Wait! Aren't you the one that said we should stay hidden? Shouldn't we stay there?"
"I changed my mind! I need to see this. Those conjures will get rid of that thing for us. Besides, Cahir said to meet at the Arcturus border, and that's exactly where we're going."
“What-what's a conjurer?” Althea asked breathlessly. She was beginning to realize she should have taken exercising much more seriously back in Altair. She promised herself if she made it out of tonight, alive, she would make an effort to run more if only for the sake of survival.
“They are an elite faction of Knight’s to protect the land owned by each King. They are few and far between, and are connected to royalty through blood. They are Dukes and Duchesses of the land, and are able to conjure up amazing powers through their spirit alone. Cahir was the first one I saw up close using it for such petty things like threatening that old, fat bartender. But to see it at this magnitude…” Althea could hear the giddiness in Katla's voice.
Althea could feel herself frowning. The world she had come to was beyond strange, she could hardly believe that this wasn’t a dream. She had wished she had woken up a long time ago if it was. “Are you talking about magic?” Althea could only think of that small red flame that moved in Cahir’s hand so elegantly in the tavern. She brushed it off as a parlour trick, but truthfully she was afraid that it wasn't. The entire tavern had grown quiet at the sight; not even one person could breath after Cahir’s threat.
Katla snorted, “Sure, if that’s what you want to call it.”
The closer they got to the lights in the distance, the louder and more intense the air became. There were definite screams that could be heard now. Pained screams that sounded like a slaughter was happening. Althea's chest was beginning to hurt, but she somehow found herself beginning to run faster. The lights emitting in the sky became more vibrant and violent the closer they got. The cries of battle rang out in desperation, but there was a discordant and unfamiliar cry that echoed even louder.
Althea slowed as Katla left her behind. She could see that shadowed monster bending to a will she couldn’t see. The limbs of the beast were pressed against the ground as its head reached upward as if struggling to live. Another cry escaped the beast's mouth, the pasty exterior rippling in waves the more the invisible holding crushed it into the snow. Bodies littered the ground around the beast, stains of blood and mangled bodies of Knights tainted the white canvas in front of Althea.
Althea leaned against a tree catching her breath, whether from the running or from the scene was debatable.
“Kill it!” A roaring voice radiated from the front lines of the men and women that stood motionless from the beast. The same vibrant red colors that she saw from the distance engulfed their hands and feet. Althea could tell they were struggling; from where she stood she could see them breathing heavily from the heavy beating they had received. “You useless scums!” the same voice called out from the crowd.
A man in his mid-forties stepped out from the sea of Knights brandishing a sword and stood in front of the beast. He had an air of authority around him, his blonde locks smoothed back, and his green eyes tired and murderous against his pale skin. His face was inches away from the jaws of the black Mara. “Hold it while I teach this thing a lesson. To come to the Arcturus' border is brave.”
“Yes, Commander!” the sea of Knight’s called out harmoniously as he lifted the blade from his side. The movement of his sword ripped through the monster’s jaw, another high pitched scream seemingly almost human ripped through the atmosphere.
Althea staggered, grimacing at the savage blow. The Mara became quiet and its limbs ceased any movement. The commander had become listless, the view of his fallen comrades was not enough for his revenge.
“Damned beast! You think rolling over and dying is enough?” The commander cried, raising his sword once again. Movement behind the commander caught Althea’s attention, one of the Knight’s hooded beneath the red aura teetered unsteadily and collapsed from exhaustion. Althea gasped, stepping out from the tree line when the Mara began to move. As if removing its chains, it stood up shaking off whatever had its hold on it, its tendrilled limbs taking a hold of the fallen Knight.
It was on instinct Althea ran out towards the beast, screaming for it to stop. Despair crying out in her shaking voice when the beast suddenly halted its movements. The white glittering eyes focused on her, and the weight of what she had just done was suffocating.
She stood motionless, biting her bottom lip raw. If she was going to die, she should commit to her stupidity. Her shaking hands rose above her head in surrender, “Put him down!” she cried, staring at the beast. To her right, the disbelieving gasps of the crowd of Knight’s that watched her was horrifyingly loud. She had survived drowning but suspected she was really pushing her chances of survival now.
The Mara began to move again, the limb that held the Knight moving away from what was left of the beast's mouth, slowly. Althea felt a mix of emotions in that moment: relief, awe, and confusion, but it was short-lived. The beast sent the Knight flying towards the crowd of Knight’s, the impact toppling them over like dominos.
When the beast began to move forward, the bravery that held Althea together ebbed away as quickly as it had arrived. The loose jaw of the Mara was dripping out black contents, much like what that beast was composed of. It made a gurgling noise coming from deep within its throat like it was laughing at her futile attempt to order the giant beast around.
“Didn’t I tell you not to cause trouble, and stray from the path?”
The sound of Cahir’s voice was calm and even, drowning out the internal screams and panic that fiercely drowned out all reasoning inside Althea’s head. “This will be punishment enough,” Cahir took a hold of her wrist, tightly. The sensation that she felt beneath his grip felt as if it was searing her skin.
The pain was enough to stop the fear, but a new panic was setting in. “Stop! What are you doing?” She took hold of his grip, trying to pry his fingers off.
“My apologies, just bear with it for a moment more.” The beast shuddered, grounding its limbs into the ground preparing to fight. “Lys,” Cahir muttered.
The air around Cahir was lifeless the moment he muttered those words. To Althea it was as if time had stopped all together. The Mara was allowed a single gasping breath before it collapsed to the ground, its own body sizzling out slowly into smoke.
Cahir released Althea’s wrist, a raw, red band wrapping around her wrist where he had grabbed her remained. He turned towards her, pulling the hood of her cowl tightly around her face. “Keep your head down.” He whispered, and turned towards the growing crowd of Knights that blocked their path.
ns 15.158.61.23da2
