Children with Stars in their Veins (Chapter 48.2)

a/n: hey, thanks for checking out Starry Veins! This is the novel I wrote for Round V of LMS, and it's still a first draft! While I don't discourage any feedback, I prefer not to receive feedback on grammar! I'm not polishing this draft up yet, so I'm not as concerned about editing. I am, of course, open to all feedback, but I ask that you keep this in consideration! Thanks <3

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[Cassius]

“Cassius.”

He shook his head, picking up his pace back the way he had come. “Get into the trees. There’s no telling who it is anyway, and I don’t want anyone to see you. Not everyone knows nothing about dragons like Enoch.”

She hesitated, before turning and bounding away towards the pines rising towards the sky, massive, towering trees that shuddered their great boughs caught in an invisible breeze.

He couldn’t even see the tower when the strike of the horses’ hoofbeats came up beside him.

“Excuse me,” a voice said. “Sir, I was wondering if you might know the distance to the Blessed Gates from here?”

He didn’t glance up. “Uh—” He coughed, blocking his face with an elbow, then lowering his voice as he said, “Least a week’s ride, dunno. Haven’t been on a horse in a while.”

“Rough walking on foot,” said the same voice. “You need any help on your way?”

Cassius stopped and carefully peered up. The one speaking to him had pulled up beside him, horse and rider looming over him. They had pale ginger-ish hair, much blonder than Ember’s, and warm brown eyes. They were smiling amiably, and he offered one back.

“That’s all right, I think. I’m just getting to the watchtower,” he said, and nodding respectfully.

The other two riders watched him curiously. One was a short woman with a round face and hair pulled back in an inch-long braid of black hair, riding a chestnut with gentle eyes. The one at the back was a not-much-taller young man with a cropped, fawn beard that surrounded his mouth and narrowed eyes. He pulled something from his hip, a piece of paper, and looked at it. Then back up at Cassius.

“Well, you have a lovely day then,” the first rider said. They squeezed their heels into their horse.

He let out a quick breath as the two riders went back to a contained trot.

“Wait.”

Cassius glanced back up at the man again, tucking the paper away.

“What’s your name?” asked the man, guiding his horse closer. The paint snorted, then stretched out her neck when she was close enough to sniff Cassius.

He held his breath, not quite sure why, and averted his gaze towards the paint’s hooves. They were white. “Uh. Hyacinth.”

“Look up at me for a moment, if you would, Hyacinth.”

“Ezera?” The first rider had turned their horse and approached the young man. “Is there a problem?”

Cassius carefully glanced between the two, his muscles tense and shoulders drawn together. This was such a terrible idea. This was such a terrible idea.

Ezera leaned down towards him. Then he smiled and leaned back. “No, no problem. In fact, I think it’s the opposite of a problem. This is one of the kids. The cloudblood.”

The first rider frowned and looked towards Cassius.

He glanced towards the edge of pines, where he knew the tower lay beyond. He’d gone further than he’d meant to. Much further than he should have.

The first rider said something, but he didn’t hear it, not with all the blood rushing to his ears. The corner of his eye caught movement and he saw as Ezera suddenly lunged forward on his horse, grabbing for him.

Cassius ran.

“EMBER! ENOCH!” He toed the edge of the road, heart slamming against his chest.

A hand grabbed the back of his vest and he was violently yanked upwards. He kicked out, trying to fight the hand as he was dragged up onto a black and white patched neck.

“EMBER! EN—” Another hand covered his mouth and he shook his head to dislodge it. The hand didn’t leave his mouth, and the other situated him securely on the horse.

“The other one has to be nearby,” the short woman said nearby. She rode up in front of the horse he’d been dragged onto, and held a bow at the ready he hadn’t seen moments before. “Sounds like the girl from Chromium.”

“No,” the first rider said. “Didn’t you read the report? They’re were with a knight. We only need one.” They spurred their horse around, the way they had rode from. “He’s more than enough.”

Cassius tried to bite Ezera’s hand, but couldn’t get a purchase around his palm. He tried to fling himself off. The paint went in circles, reins dangling on her neck, as Ezera’s grip constricted around him.

A shrill cry rose up from the side of the road. Artemesa charged the woman and headbutted straight into their horse, who screamed and leapt forward. The horse took off, until the woman gained control of the reins and turned the horse around again. Artemesa whirled towards the paint, towards Cassius.

Artemesa snarled and leapt forward, and while she was in mid-air, he heard the whistle of an arrow.

Ezera let go of his mouth to grapple at the reins and yank the paint out of Artemesa’s path. Artemesa fumbled, stretching out a claw towards the paint and catching the man’s lower leg. At the same time, she cried out. Cassius forgot about fighting as pain lanced through his shoulder and he yelped in time with her.

An arrow was sunk into Artemesa’s shoulder, the joint where her wrings extended.

“Mesa!” he panted and tried to elbow Ezera. He hit air. Another arrow whistled and Artemesa cried out against. Pain lanced through a place Cassius didn’t even know existed, and he watched the next arrow tear a path through her beautiful, vibrant wings.

Artemesa snarled and turned on the woman with the bow. She took off at a full sprint and spread her wings. She hadn’t learned to fly yet, but she knew how to propel herself. The woman nocked an arrow and drew it back as Artemesa leapt into the air towards her. She let the arrow go as Artemesa knocked her right off her horse. The chestnut squealed, bleeding still from his side, and took off towards the first rider, who was riding hard back.

Another sharp pain hit him in the chest. But Artemesa was ignoring the arrows and pinning the woman to the ground. Without a hesitation, he watched her clamp her jaw around the woman’s neck. The woman’s hand, still clutching the bow, went immediately limp.

“Shit!” Ezera shouted. “Sollie!”

The first rider, Sollie, was rubbing some sort of ointment on their blade, staring at where Artemesa was still holding the woman’s neck in a death lock, like he’d seen Lore do so many times before to mice. Sollie put aside the ointment aside, narrowed their eyes, and drew back their arm.

“ARTEMESA!” He wriggled, ignoring the bruising pain that the movement caused. He kicked back against, and the dagger in his boot caught the stirrup, jarring his ankle bone. The dagger.

Sollie threw his blade, just as Artemesa lifted her head, her snout scarlet and dripping.

The sword, though not especially long or large, sunk into her shoulder, beside the arrow.

Cassius howled as Artemesa did and punched Ezera in the chest with the force of his pain. Ezera cursed and grappled him, still with one hand on the reins. Cassius felt his balance slipping and tried to pitch off the horse again. Tears burned his eyes and dripped down his face.

“Artemesa,” he panted, wriggling over up he was face-to-chest with Ezera. “Let me go let me go let me go.”

“Cassius.”

“Stop wiggling.”

He twisted to look over his shoulder. Artemesa had her head bent towards the sword and was breathing quick and heavy. With every flare of her nostrils, her head bobbed up and down a little more. Her eyelids shuttering, the glow of her eyes dimming the further they shut.

“MESA!” he screamed. “MESA!”

Ezera spurred the horse further, riding right past Artemesa as she crumpled to the ground. Cassius lunged for the dagger in his boot and curled his fingers around the hilt. Ezera caught his shirt and pulled him back, with the other hand on the reins, and then glanced down. “Oh sh—”

Cassius brought up the dagger and sunk it into Ezera’s left eye.

Ezera shouted, and now with an opportunity, Cassius slid out of his grip. His shoulder crunched under him as he hit the road. Black spots burst over his vision, but he still forced himself up, muscles aching and all a wreck. He got to his feet and his vision started to clear. Artemesa was a good thirty yards away. He began to run towards her.

He hardly got any closer when the thunder of hoofbeats came from behind him. He tried to push himself further, harder, faster.

Something cracked against the back of his head.

The last thing he heard was a distant scream of his name.

word count:

1,462