Shadow Moon Book 5: An Eternal Flame
المؤلف
Rain Itika
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59.7K
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She never asks to matter. Life keeps insisting. An unknown young woman moves through a dangerous world with grit, sharp humor, and a rule she lives by: survive alone and hurt no one. With no memory of her past and too much power for comfort, she keeps her heart guarded and her magic closer. Fate, however, is nosy. Shadows stir, old bonds resurface, and a strange circle of gifted allies pulls her into something much bigger than herself. Every step tests her vow to stay distant, even as belonging starts to feel tempting. The world leans toward chaos, and she stands at the center, unwanted and unavoidable. Is she a shield, a spark, or the storm no one sees coming?
Madness and Retreat
BOOK 5: AN ETERNAL FLAME
Chaos erupted everywhere as voices shouted demands while others yelped out in pain. The stench of iron filled their noses as blood seeped into the ground, making the dirt mushy and dark. The fighting had only just begun, but the dead were piling up fast.
Steel clashed against steel as swords defended their masters, plunging into soft flesh, easily ending a life.
Curly dark hair flew with the wind as the head spun in every direction, her blade raised, ready to attack those who would harm her. Sweat coated her forehead as light eyes zipped through the crowd, eyeing up her next opponent.
“There are too many. We cannot hold this position. We should retreat,” a desperate voice yelled from behind her.
Turning toward her comrade, she replied, raising her voice over the sound of battle. “No, we need to fight or die trying. Our king has demanded this.”
“But we shall surely die,” another choked.
Before she could respond and demand that they fight, a sparkling steel reflection from the torches drew her attention, affording her enough time to raise her own sword, stopping the incoming slash from the other side.
A helmet covered the man’s face, his white-and-red shirt indicating he was the enemy. Calling on her strength, she shoved back, the shocked man stumbling back, only for a moment as he regained himself, jerking ahead at her.
He was a worthy opponent, but her skills were better. In seconds, the slain soldier’s lifeless eyes stared up at the clouded sky, the bloody wound on his neck gushing his life force back into the earth.
“This is madness.”
Eyeing her fellow soldiers behind her, the woman faced the onslaught, spotting more of the enemy than of them. The boy was right, but they were trapped with the tall gates at their backs and an army out for blood before them. A decision was made, but would it be too late?
“Retreat,” she shouted into the night. Her men listened as they stepped away from the fighting. Some turned their backs, getting stabbed from behind as they desperately tried to get to safety.
“Open the gate,” someone demanded, but the thick wooden gate remained closed.
Men banged against the doors, their blood-covered hands clawing the dark wood, leaving trails of red running down.
“They have abandoned us,” noted the man next to her, his voice breaking from the exertion of the fight.
Watching the desperation in her men, the woman raised her sword as she faced the oncoming horde, knowing tonight she would die, but as God was her witness, she would take as many of the enemy as she could. “Charge,” she roared.
Running into the crowd, she slashed and punched her way deeper into the chaos, ready to end them. But a sudden burst of pain froze her. Looking down, she saw a wooden tip protruding from her chest, blood clinging to her clothes as it spread.
Death had come knocking, and she was finally free from the hardship of life.
As her hand reached to pull out the spear, the whole scene changed. Gone was the fighting horde. Gone was the darkened night, and in its place was a cloudless blue sky meeting an endless ocean on the horizon. Voices chanted from below her, their crude words blending together.
The noose around her throat bit into her soft flesh, restricting her breathing and her own voice. A sharp pain hit her leg, and glancing down, she saw blood trailing down her bare leg, a rock by her foot with the tip wet, her blood coating it.
“It was so worth it,” croaked a man to her left.
Fighting the restraints binding her wrists to her back, she managed to wiggle her body in his direction, meeting the familiar gaze of her second. “So worth it,” she spat out, the rope tightening with each small movement.
“Today, we witness justice served as we execute the pirate known as The Scarlet Lady and her band of misfits,” the man on the edge of the platform said, a scroll open in his hands as he read the charges. “Treason against the king, theft of cargo, kidnapping of royals. These are some of the charges brought against you.” He glanced over his shoulder at them, making contact with her, a vicious grin splayed on his handsome face.
“The price is death. May God have mercy on your souls.” Rolling up the parchment, the man moved to the side, exposing the death-hungry crowd as they started to cheer.
Death would finally welcome her as she gazed up; the dirty mob was not the last sight she wished to see before it all ended. With a jerk of the lever, the first man dropped, his body jerking as the rope tightened around his neck, eyes bulging from his reddened face. A mere second passed before he stopped moving as his body swung back and forth.
“May we meet again,” her second whispered just as he dropped.
Silently praying for a swift death, she returned her gaze to her home: the ocean. A pirate’s life was one she did not crave, but it was what she had. All that she had accomplished was her own, and dying for her beliefs felt right.
A flock of birds hovered in the sky as the wind blew with them, and a slight smile covered her mouth. The drop came instantly as her dress whipped up before her weight dragged it down, the rope digging into her neck. On instinct, she fought back, but it was useless as she opened her mouth, willing in air, but it never came.
The roar of the crowd vanished as a buzz sounded in her ears, and spots covered her vision. Not long now, she knew. Fluttering her eyes closed, she welcomed the endless black void, but before it came, a rough wind slammed into her body, sending her flying backward and into a soft chair.
“Are you doing all right?” her friend asked in the window seat.
“Yes,” she replied, her fingers digging into the armrest on both sides as another jerk shook the metal tube she willingly entered.
“Now how have you gone this long and not flown before?” the blond-haired girl asked as a smile lit up her face. The pure happiness of her friend’s smile drifted to her, calming her slightly. But the relief only lasted moments as her back slammed into the soft chair, the violent move knocking the air from her lungs.
Warm fingers curled over hers, and looking over to her friend, she saw her own fear reflected in the light eyes of her best friend. Victoria had jumped at the opportunity to join her on this flight as she headed across the country for a job interview.
But after she had learned about it being her first time, Vic gladly took the chance to support her, whatever she needed.
And now she needed to be reassured, but the fear in her face sealed the dread that she felt currently. A voice in the back of her mind screamed that she was about to die, but it could not possibly be.
On multiple occasions, she had been reassured about the safety of air travel. The cab driver, the front desk clerk, even the man drinking coffee next to her in the lounge had said you were more likely to die traveling to the airport than in a plane crash.
Well, the joke was on them, because they were about to become a part of a statistic.
Closing her eyes tightly, she tried to will her heart to calm down as she dragged in deep breaths of air, but the violent rocking of the plane forced them open, allowing her to watch as the other passengers began fearing for their own lives.
Beyond the murmurs and tears, she could hear a child wailing as its cries echoed above her head. Suddenly, a loud click went off above her head, and she looked up just in time to see oxygen masks dropping from the ceiling.
Remembering the safety tutorial, she grabbed the mask, pulling the string and slipping it over her head. An alarm began sounding ahead, the stewards frantically running up and down the aisle to help the passengers. More people began fretting about as their fear grew.
But all she could do was watch them fight the inevitable. Her time had come—she knew this much—but she refused to fear the end, for it came for everyone eventually.
Darkness engulfed the plane as the lights flickered off, replaced by red flashing bulbs by all the emergency doors. Looking over at her friend, she regretted inviting her now. All Vic wanted to do was be helpful, and instead she got to die.
The girl clutched her own chair as her head sprang in all directions, her eyes scanning the plane, hoping for something, anything—but it wouldn’t come. She knew it, which is why she grabbed Victoria’s hand and squeezed it, providing reassurance when she needed it the most.
“I am sorry,” she said to Vic, but the mask blocked the sound.
Suddenly, their bodies slammed against the chairs as the plane dropped in the sky, the velocity forcing them into that position as they froze. Fighting the air pressure, she managed to turn her face toward her friend, catching a glimpse of the outside through the window. Bright orange flames licked the window as the wings burned.
Victoria was about to follow her gaze, but she stopped her by tightening her grip on the girl’s hand. Their eyes collided, stuck together as they silently communicated to each other. They knew their time was up, and they were grateful to have each other at the end.
The screams of passengers became louder than the roar of the plane as it fell—their fear…
