Icebound (Legends of the Shifters Book 2)
Read Icebound (Legends of the Shifters Book 2) Online
Authors: J.B. North
of the Shifters
Two
By J.B. North
Icebound (Legends of the Shifters: Book Two)
Copyright © 2015 by J.B. North
This
ebook
is licensed for your personal
enjoyment only. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form whatsoever
without the written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief
passages embodied in critical reviews and articles.
Cover art by Widhi Saputro
For Aunt Kristy,
the
book
fanatic that inspired me to read.
Table of Contents
-Chapter One-
Icy
rain poured from the foreboding clouds, drenching and darkening the color of my
fiery feathers. I squinted through the rain, wavering with the extra weight of
water on my already exhausted body. But I couldn’t stop. I had to get to King
Ciaran’s castle. My brother was still in there, wasting away in a rat-infested
cell…if he wasn’t already dead.
I
remembered seeing the bodies down there. The ones that were too still and
stinking to be alive.
I won’t let him be one of them
.
I
just hoped he was hanging on until I could help him escape.
It
had been two days since I left the Isle of Ginsey. I hadn't stopped once, even
though my wings begged me to give up and land.
I
can’t give in
.
Not until I see the turrets of the castle
.
My jaw
ached from gripping the plant of eternal life as delicately as I could. I was
tempted to drop it, to watch the rain batter it as it tumbled to the ground,
but I couldn’t bring myself to open my beak. Roland died so I could have the
plant. To let it slip away would betray his dying wish.
I
pushed through the rain, but my muscles threatened to give up on me, stiff with
cold and overuse. Darkness tinged the corners of my vision. I shook my head to
keep awake.
Then,
I caught a glimpse of the walls that surrounded the city of King's Crest.
Relief swept over me. I finally made it.
I
would have liked to press on to get to Kurt, but my wings refused to hold me
for much longer. I sailed downward, forcing my eyes to stay open as I landed
heavily on a wooded hillside.
Breathless,
I shifted form for the first time in days. After being in the phoenix body for
so long, my knees trembled beneath my weight.
I
let the plant drop to the ground on the leaves beside me as I sunk against a
tree trunk. I was soaked and cold, but my body had already decided to shut
down. Before I faded out completely, I reached over and clutched the plant in
my hand.
It
was as if I were holding a piece of the sun. Heat coursed through my body,
flooding me with calm.
Maybe
Roland was looking down on me right then, from the “forever” he had talked
about. Maybe the brilliant angel that he'd mentioned was standing next to him,
keeping me safe.
I
let that thought comfort me as I closed my eyes.
Tomorrow.
I would try to find Kurt tomorrow.
* * *
* *
I
awoke to pain, but it wasn't just the soreness that cramped every single muscle
in my body.
It
was a ripping feeling in my chest, as if someone was slowly dragging a serrated
knife through my heart. I managed to open my eyes long enough to see that there
was no one around me and no blade stuck through my chest. The strange pain I
felt came from the inside.
I
curled into a tight ball, holding back a tortured cry as best I could. If there
were sentries nearby, the last thing I wanted them to know was that I existed
and that I was weak. I wouldn’t be able to defend myself while enduring a pain
this excruciating.
The
invisible knife traveled upward, dragging along my collarbone and creeping down
my shoulder. I squeezed my eyes closed, waiting for the pain to ebb.
Then,
just as quickly as it had come, it was gone, leaving me gasping for air.
I
lay motionless for a while, giving myself time to catch my breath. I stared at
my trembling hand in the fallen leaves, deeply breathing in the soothing scent
of damp earth. It took a few moments to summon the courage to push myself to my
knees, but I did eventually, trusting that movement wouldn’t trigger the pain
again.
I
pulled my sleeve to the side and studied the scar that now zig-zagged over my
freckles with a grimace. I ran my finger along the ugly, jagged line. The area
was so numb I could barely feel the touch. I sat back, horrified. What could
possibly have made this scar appear?
Only
one thing came to mind.
Frantically,
I looked around for the plant. It took seconds to realize that I still had it
clutched safely in my hand, but I uncurled my fingers to find them somewhat
sticky with clear, green-
ish
goop. The stem of the
plant was slightly nicked and bruised where my beak had clamped down on it.
With a sinking feeling in my stomach, I understood what had happened. I’d
severed it when I landed clumsily the night before.
For
a moment, everything—the wind rustling the leaves, the birds singing, even my
own breathing—went silent. I just stared at the little plant, studying how the
flowers were starting to curl and turn brown at the ends.
A
pang shot through my heart, deeper than any physical hurt. This plant should
have been for Roland. Its power wasn't supposed to be running through
my
blood.
And did this mean I was immortal?
As
I took in a few steadying breaths, the scar began to tingle, pins and needles
running along the length of it. I expected the pain to kick in again, but
instead, my body began to feel lighter. The sensation was much like what I'd
felt a few days ago, when I'd been granted strength to beat the iron giant.
The
plant was already making me stronger.
I
raised a shaking hand to my forehead.
It can’t mean I’m immortal.
After
witnessing the angels in the fourth and final test and Roland’s last breath,
the swing of death’s scythe barely intimidated me. And yet, I knew my life
could be used for good. Kurt was still trapped, my friends still waited for my
return to the conservatory, and I still had a prophecy to fulfill, whatever it
may be.
But
forever is a long time.
My
spinning thoughts came to a halt when I heard a whisper of movement. I listened
closely, but it seemed like my pounding heart drowned out the world.
Then,
leaves rustled behind me, too forceful to be wind. I spun around.
Three
guards stood there, one woman, two men, their crossbows pointed directly at my
chest. They moved smoothly, circling me.
I
held my hands in the air, feeling the pressure of three sharp arrow tips,
though each of them were five feet away. “What do you want?” The only sign of
my distress was the high-pitched crack in the last word.
The
woman narrowed her eyes. “We need you to come with us.”
I
refused to be captured by King Ciaran's men. Not again.
I
shifted into half-form and tucked the plant away in my pocket, where my
mother's necklace still hid.
“Hands
up! Don’t move!”
Power
surged through me as I looked back up, my anger rising. “
No
.”
The
air reverberated with tension and the sound of ringing metal as I drew my sword
and struck at the nearest guard’s weapon. I managed to take him by surprise,
sending the bow hurtling a few yards away.
Whatever
satisfaction I felt wasn’t long-lived. I heard the click of a crossbow as it
released an arrow and watched out of the corner of my eye as the whistling
spear spun toward me, sinking deep into the flesh of my left arm. I bit back a
cry, my sword thudding to the ground. The seething anger that coursed through
my blood somehow managed to diminish the pain as I pulled the arrow out of my
arm, growling through the agony.
The
woman eyed me warily. “This can end now. Don’t put up a fight and I guarantee
you’ll live another day.”
I
dropped the blood-tipped arrow to the ground. “I’m
not
coming with you.”
And
then she pulled the trigger.
Without
even thinking, I reacted, catching the arrow right before it plunged through my
ribs.
The
three guards stared at me with wide eyes as I panted, and before anyone could
do anything else, I tossed the arrow away and swept down to retrieve my sword.
Now the woman had her own blade drawn, a wicked looking thing that resembled a
curved machete.
I
flew into action, first attacking the man whose arrow had pierced my flesh,
releasing all of my energy into a blow across the metal breastplate that
protected his chest. To my surprise, my blade cut cleanly through the armor and
into his torso. With a strangled cry, the guard crumpled to the ground. Had I
used normal human strength, the blow would have delivered a dent and a bruise,
not death.
In
the back of my mind, a single thought kept running through my head.
I
just killed a man. I killed him.
I
didn't have time to think about it. Not yet.
I
turned to the other guards and advanced. The woman struck at me first, so I
parried the attack to the side before I grabbed her sword arm, stepped in close
where her weapon wouldn’t reach, and elbowed her in the temple hard enough to
render her unconscious, but not dead.
For
goodness sake, I hoped that she wasn't dead.
She
thumped to the ground behind me as I turned to the last guard, the one that I’d
struck at first.
His
hands were shaking as he fumbled to reload his crossbow, having already pulled
the string taut, but still attempting to get the arrow into position. I jerked
the bow out of his hands and rested my blade against his throat. His Adam's
apple bobbed against the metal as he swallowed tightly, eyes wild with fear.
“What
does your king want with me?” I interrogated.
He
took in a shaky breath. “The king’s borders mark you as a foreigner. Foreigners
must be captured and brought to the king.”
I
narrowed my eyes. Borders?
“Not
this one,” I replied, and with the hilt of my sword, I knocked him out cold. He
collapsed to the ground.
I stood
back and looked around, the reality of the situation finally settling in. I’d
just injured two strangers and killed one. Before this, I hadn’t killed anyone.
I stared at the dead guard for a while, bile rising up in my throat.
That
man had a life, and I took it with one swipe of my sword. What if he had a
family that loved him? A wife and children?
I
banished the thought. It was too much for my already aching heart.
My
arm wound helped to distract me. The throbbing pain was diminishing quickly, a
sure sign that the plant's power was doing its job. As I watched, the rip in my
flesh slowly knitted back together until the only proof of its former existence
was the crimson stain that still soaked my arm and my dress. I sighed with
relief when the pain went with it.
I
searched each guard’s bags for anything of value and found a small amount of
food and some coins. I was about to leave them when an idea formed in my head.
The
woman couldn't have been that much bigger than me. If I were to dress up like a
Ginsian guard, it may smooth over my attempt to get into the castle undetected.
It
was the best plan I'd come up with yet.
I
made my way back over to the woman and began to strip her armor, scanning the
forest for anyone else that might be lurking about. There was no one in sight,
human or animal.
Once
I shifted back into first form and had all the armor in place, I continued
toward the wall of the city. There was no gate nearby, so I trailed along the
crumbling stone, snacking on the bread and cheese I’d stolen from the guards. I
never found an actual entrance, but there was a section that seemed easier than
the rest to scale. I climbed over the mess of eroded rocks and dropped to the
other side, squinting through the trees. I could just make out a cluster of buildings.
I
ran forward, armor clanking with every stride. The woman's boots were the only
thing too big for me, but by curling up my toes, I managed to keep them on. I
rounded one of the buildings, and made it to the cobblestone of the city
street. To avoid the attention of the commoners, I slowed to a quick walk.
As
I passed a man and his child, they cowered away, eyes averted. Most people
skirted around me, some even disappearing down alleyways before I got to them.
As I neared the castle gate, the number of villagers dwindled, replaced by more
soldiers than I've ever seen in one place before. The gate itself wasn't
surrounded by beggars like before, but was instead guarded heavily by rows of
armored individuals.
I
steeled myself as I walked past the lines of guards. I kept feeling like
someone would stop me at any moment, but surprisingly, I got through without
any questions. I passed through the gap in the gate and focused on the castle
ahead. Unlike the last time I’d been here, a large black flag hung on the stone
of the castle that read:
WE
WILL CONQUER
.
I
shuddered and skirted around a statue of King Ciaran that was being chiseled
out of rock.
As
I climbed the steps to the large front doors, I counted seven guards crowded
around it, standing silently side by side. I strode forward boldly
The
guard in front stepped toward me. “What is it, soldier?”
“The
commander sent me to guard the corridor,” I replied, hoping that would be
enough.
The
man scrutinized me, eyes searching my face. Eventually, he shook his head and
grumbled, “We'll let you through this once, but you need to go through the east
entrance from now on.”
He
motioned to the other guards, and three of them moved away from the door to let
me through.
“Beginners,”
one of them snickered to the other.
On
the other side, two more guards stood beside the door. I nodded to them and
continued walking down the hall.
The
memory of being led to the dungeons by King Ciaran seemed cemented in my mind,
so it wasn't hard to navigate the castle.
I
erased all emotion from my face when a couple guards hurried past, their armor
clanking. I managed to hear a few words of their conversation.