The Guardians

Chapter 44

Orin hadn't expected the ambush. He and two other Guardians were the only ones left standing. He was bleeding freely from a wound to his side and Viktor was favoring his left arm. Kara was weakening from the use of magic, her quiver now empty. They were losing this skirmish. Sixteen men were assaulting them now. Orin cut down another man. Fifteen now. His brother fell and ten descended upon him while the rest attacked Kara. He was no match for them and he went down in a crush of bodies and lost his sword. Suddenly they backed away and their commander stood before him. A soldier stood next to him with Kara's staff pressed against her throat. She looked as if she could barely stand and her eyes were half-closed. The spellcaster looked as if she were struggling to stay conscious.

"You have a choice, Guardian," he said. "We can kill you here or at Arlan's estate."

"I'd rather die like a man." He drew a dagger from his bracer and launched at the man. He planted the dagger into his abdomen as pain exploded through his torso from the three swords impaling him.

"Orin!" He heard Kara scream.

He fell, his blood spilling from his wounds like running water.

"No!"

"Leave him!" one of the soldiers said. "He's dying anyway. See to the commander."

Orin drifted out of consciousness.

Everything was quiet now with the exception of the birds. Viktor painfully sat up, pressing his hand against the wound across his abdomen. He managed to regain his feet and he staggered to the others. The man who'd once been loyal to Arlan lay on his back, his head not far from his body. Three of the Guardians lay at various places, all dead. Fear gripped him when he couldn't find Kara. He found Orin, barely alive. Viktor knew he wasn't going to be able to carry the big man. Not as wounded as he was.

"Orin?"

The Guardian's eyes barely opened. "They took... they took Kara. Get back to Saren," he whispered. "Tell them what happened." Then Orin succumbed to his wounds.

Viktor was the lone survivor of the ambush that hadn't been captured. Hopefully, it would stay that way long enough for him to warn the others.

~~~

Kara awoke tied across a horse. She remembered the loss of energy causing her to black out after Arlan's men impaled Orin. Then fear snaked into her heart. They were no doubt taking her to Arlan. Her heart raced, knowing that if he knew her for a Guardian of Veloce he would kill her. After he tried to drag whatever information he could from her.

Gaia, please do not let me betray the others. she prayed.

The horse stopped and she felt the binds that kept her on the horse loosen. Her wrists and ankles were still bound when she was roughly dragged off the horse. Someone grabbed her hair and pulled her head back. She gasped in pain and then froze when she felt cold steel against her throat.

"Try anything, I'll end you, Witch."

Kara was too terrified to move as someone freed her ankles. She saw where she was.

"Move," the soldier ordered.

Kara did as she was told. She stumbled several times as she was still weak from using almost all of her magic. As she had feared, she was brought before Arlan. Her knees gave way at that moment.

"I take it one of our traps worked?" Arlan asked.

"She runs with Guardians. Three of the men were Guardians of Veloce. One was a deserter from your army." One of the soldiers held out Kara's staff. "She's a spellcaster as well."

Arlan was studying her. As was a woman that reminded her of Lyra. If Lyra had brown hair and wore scant clothing. She leaned against her own staff, studying Kara as a wolf would her prey. The Guardian managed to suppress a shiver. There was a coldness in the spellcaster's green eyes that rivaled Arlan's.

"So you decided to bring me one of the Guardians' spellcasters to me." Kara has been afraid he would recognize her. "Before she goes to the gallows, I want to see what she knows. Put her in the dungeon with the other two."

The spellcaster's smile made her blood run cold with fear.

He motioned to her staff. "Put that in the armory."

Kara was numb as she was dragged away to the dungeon.