The Story of Seven Saviors

< Faeryn Slater >

Ardian Axlan stands beside me as I approach the bottom of the main mountain, the center one in the mountain range, the Wolfmere mountains tall, yet not taller than the one in the middle. Ardian looks at me, a strange look in his hazel gaze. His scarred, brown skin is slick with sweat and morning dew, as is his long, black hair. 

Melinoe and Satori step up beside us, with Fynnick and Weylin walking ahead. Satori looks at us, a reassuring smile crossing her face. Satori's dark blue eyes seem to glow as she faces us. Maybe the Priestess’s eyes are indeed glowing, I just don't know. Who's to say? But either way, it makes Satori seem all the more ethereal. 

“Damn it, fuck!” Fynnick shouts. 

“Think the shuffling of stones here will be enough to alert the guards, or do you think the shouting will?” Ardian asks sarcastically. 

“Shut the hells up, Ardian!” Fynnick shouts. 

“Alright, calm down,” says Melinoe. “Fyn, calm down. What do you need to move the rocks that block this cave entrance?”

“Maybe some help from a mage?” Fynnick asks, his voice angry. 

Melinoe sighs and steps forward. She raises her hands, her dark skin and golden eyes glowing, a swirling red light dancing around her like a veil. She flicks her wrist, and the rocks shatter, turning to dust. 

“Fuck me!” Fynnick says. “How did you do that?”

Melinoe grins at him. “I'm just full of surprises.”

The six of us walk through the gap that Melinoe just made, and we walk in silence, her casting a golden bunch of orbs that float around us to illuminate the space. Satori laughs beside her, holding her hand. 

I glance at Ardian, who glances my way. “What?”

“Did you ever notice that?” I whisper, nodding toward them. Ardian looks at Melinoe and Satori and a small smile crosses his face. 

“Why do I have the feeling I'm gonna be the only single one?”

“What do you mean? Sarka and I aren't with anyone, either.”

Ardian scoffs. “Yeah, like you've never noticed the way that Sarka looks at you.”

I look at him, shocked. He laughs softly. “What? You didn't notice that, I'm guessing?”

I slowly shake my head. Ardian sighs and shakes his head. I feel a sudden burst of anger. I can't help myself when I say, “What's it matter to you, Ardian? Are you jealous?”

He must hear the bite in my voice. But he shakes his head. I turn away from him as we walk along in the cave. The six of us walk along without saying much, but the air is charged. I can sense something off about this place. Like unseen eyes are watching each of us. 

The tunnel curves as we walk, the shimmering orbs that Melinoe summoned dance about, a strange swirl of multicolored light. The six of us stop after a while, standing before a slope in the ground. I look to Melinoe, who raises her glowing hands and casually jerks her hands, making some more space for us to walk up the slope. The rocks which blocked the slope just vanish, turning to dust. 

“That sounds handy,” I say to her. “Being able to do that.”

Melinoe smiles her crooked grin at me. “Ah, yes, it is.”

We walk up the slope, the lights twitching as we go up. I clench my fists as we ascend, and as we walk, the silence stretches on. I look up ahead of us, past Fynnick and Weylin, who have been guiding us toward the part of the mountain where the assassins’ Keep is. 

The moment we see a light at the end of the tunnel, I see the shining light ahead that morphs into the entrance to the keep. I turn to Ardian, who walks up beside me. He frowns at the massive iron doors that seem to melt out of the mountainside itself. 

“Do we have a plan?” Ardian asks. 

“They have wards up,” says Melinoe. 

“Well, good thing I know where a hole in them is. And conveniently, it's not far from where they're likely keeping Sarka,” says Fynnick. 

Fynnick then gestures for us to follow. So, we do. We walk along in silence, toward the side of the walking path that wraps around the mountain. We are not stopped or seen, as it seems all the assassins are gone. Or inside. 

So, then we stop before a small door in the mountainside, and I walk up to the door, standing beside Melinoe. She waves her hands, which glow again and she waves them again, her hands trembling as she does so. She then stops, and we hear a lock click. 

Melinoe nods at us, and then, she opens the door. The six of us slip into a narrow passageway. She dims the swirling orbs and we walk into the dimness. We walk through the darkness, and I feel like those eyes are watching again. 

Finally, we reach the end of the hall and I am shaking hard now. I don't know why. I look over at Satori, who is beside me. She looks up, her dark blue eyes shimmering in the dimness. 

“What's wrong?” Satori asks me. 

“I … I don't know,” I whisper. 

Melinoe looks back at us. “Get ready. There might be a fight ahead.”

We step through the door. And into hell.