Night Lords

Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Panting from exhaustion, I stayed on the ground, shivering from lack of energy and the shock of what had just happened. After a few minutes, I managed to sit up and dragged myself to a nearby tree to lean back on. Hearing footfalls and the crashing through trees, Greatorex and Tasha arrived. A little worse for wear with burn and cut marks on their exposed skin, they stared at me in a mixture of horror and awe. 'What was that blue light?' Greatorex asked.

I shrugged. 'I don't know. It came out of me when I...' biting my lip. I forced myself not to cry. I pointed in the direction Macillin was taken. 'They got the child.'

'What child?' Tasha asked, her tone unusually softer than her normal quips.

Taking a deep shuddering breath, I replied, 'A boy I befriended from the village came here to see a Deemon. An air Deemon carried him off and killed him.'

Tasha and Greatorex glanced at one another, and she ran off in the direction I pointed. Greatorex knelt down beside me, checking my limbs. 'What happened to you?'

'The human child came here,' I said, trying to emotionally detach myself from him. 'I was already surrounded by air, fire and earth, Deemons. They went after him, but I managed to get hold of him first and tried to get back to the village. An air Deemon took him off me and the others... they pinned me down, they worked as a team.'

'They hurt you,' he said, holding up my right arm. I glanced down and saw the numerous lacerations that were slowly knitting themselves together from the pale moonlight that was pushing through the clouds above. 'What happened after they pinned you down?'

'The boy was killed, and I just felt like giving up. The Deemons were taunting me, telling me how they were going to kill the boy and make me watch. I felt something strange that sort of pulsated within me, and before I knew it, this strange blue light shone from me, and the Deemons around me turned to ash. But I was unable to save Macillin.'

A few moments later and Tasha arrived carrying the broken body of Macillin. She placed him gently on the ground and, bending down, closed his mouth and eyes. 'He wasn't eaten,' she spoke in a soft, matter-of-fact way. But it was still sad to see his small body by her feet. 'We should bury him.'

I shook my head and, gingerly, managed to stand, but I felt very wobbly. 'No, I'll take him to the village.'

Greatorex frowned. 'That's not a smart idea.'

'Our village has customs. He has family who will be worried about him. With his body, they can bury him correctly. Please let me do this. It is my fault he has been killed. I will take responsibility for his death.'

Moving slowly to his body, Greatorex put a hand on my shoulder. 'This is not your fault. We cannot save all of them. Tonight, has shown us that things are changing for Deemons and for us. I have never heard of a light shine from our bodies that kills Deemons instantly.'

'What?' Tasha asked, shocked, but Greatorex shook his head slightly not to ask questions.

'And I have never known Deemons band together to fight us. That is something we must find together on our travels.'

Picking up Macillians body, I turned towards the village and started to walk. Greatorex and Tasha were behind me, following at a distance but still keeping within eyesight. They didn't ask me to run. To be honest, I don't think I could if I tried. I was very tired, emotionally and physically. Perhaps I could sleep as Night Lords do with Greatorex and Tasha watching over me.

I reached the village gates nearly two hours before sun up. The watchers on the tower called down, and the gate was opened. With my heart pounding and poor Macillin's body going cold, I waited until someone was called to come and greet me.