But right now, all I can do is focus on setting the precedent for my political career. These are the most critical months of my reign over Celestia. I must not only impress my people, but our neighboring nations as well. Now is a time to prepare my introductions and clear up my intentions, not a time to flit around like a teenage girl trying to catch her crush’s attention.
Like I said, we’re already married. I have his full attention. That sort of thing becomes automatic when you share a bedroom. And he certainly has my attention, with that sly smile, spontaneous nature, and unshakable attitude of his. I can’t help but stare at him now from across the fire, watching the way the flames dance in his eyes. With his long sleeve outdoor shirt open in the center, I can see all the definition in his upper body, even as he’s completely relaxed against the bark of a tree. He’s not tensing up at all, and yet, in the soft orange glow of the fire, I can count all six abs, determine the contour of his pecs, and make out the edges of his lats. It’s not fair; somehow, Aurelio is even hotter by fireside than he is haloed in the last light of day. My knees go weak at the sight.
“Seriously, girl, get a hold of yourself,” I grumble to myself.
Shaking my head to clear it, I go to tie Aticus to a nearby tree, only for him to completely panic. He rears up on his hind legs and whinnies in terror. I fall to the ground, my heart seizing in my chest.
“Alessia!”
Just before Aticus’ front legs can stomp my lights out, Aurelio bowls into my side, throwing me across the small clearing. I land at the foot of a huge oak tree, where I stumble to my feet, my vision fuzzy from the tumble. I can just make out Aurelio’s form across the clearing, where he soothes Aticus to no avail. Aticus neighs—which sounds more like a scream—and takes off running.
“Aticus!” Aurelio shouts.
The horse doesn’t address him. He continues to run, and only a few seconds after him, Cricket and Luca follow suit. My lightheadedness fades away as I run back toward Aurelio, Daelia already by his side. Her eyes crackle like lightning storms as she assesses the terrain around us.
“There’s a monster nearby,” she announces.
“I gathered that when the horses ran for their lives,” I say.
“No, it’s not that. Do you feel the chill in the air?” Daelia instinctively reaches for the hilt of her sword. “It’s a powerful one.”
“I feel it,” Aurelio says.
A chill runs down my spine as a sudden chilly breeze rips through the clearing. “Yeah, I feel it now, too. But I thought they only attack during the night?”
“Look at the sun’s position in the sky,” Daelia says, pointing at the horizon.
I follow her outstretched hand, and my stomach flips to see that the sun is low enough in the sky to hide behind the treeline. The shadows are thicker than the patches of light now. It’s prime-time for monsters to wake up and begin feasting. I draw my sword just as Aurelio pulls a pair of daggers out of his utility belt.
“What do you think it is?” I ask.
“Only a few monsters can affect an immediate vicinity with their presence, and they’re all pretty terrifying for the average adventurer to encounter,” Daelia explains. “It could be a demon, an elf, or a wendigo. There aren’t any will-o'-the-wisps or oni in this area, but you can keep them on your radar, just in case we’re in for a surprise.”
“I highly doubt it. We’d have to be in a marsh or near a cave system for those two,” Aurelio says. “I’d bet my life on a wendigo.”
“I assumed as much, too,” Daelia agrees. Her grip tightens on her sword. “Prepare for the worst, and you’ll either be ready, or pleasantly surprised.”
I can’t argue with that logic. I lower my center of gravity, narrowing my eyes at the lengthening shadows. The chill seeps into my bones until I’m shivering. My teeth threaten to chatter. Even the faint light appears to dim, like the monster has an ability to blot out the sun. The singing of the birds ceases; the butterflies are nowhere to be seen; even the swaying of the trees comes to a halt. It’s deathly quiet, and it’s eerily still. To say it’s unnatural is an understatement.
“Get ready,” Daelia whispers. “This is the quiet before it pounces.”
My heart hammers in my chest. Aurelio, Daelia, and I back up until our backs are touching. I have an ancient magic technique at the ready if I need it. Our weak points are covered, and our weapons are drawn. Now, we just need the thing to expose itself.
“Aurelio, watch my—” Daelia starts.
She doesn’t even finish her sentence before a blood-curdling shriek rents the air. It’s a cross between a dragon’s roar and an old man crying out in pain. Time itself freezes as the creature suddenly appears, only inches away from Daelia, whose sword won’t strike fast enough to defend herself.
“Daelia!” I shriek.
But just when I think the creature will pounce on her, Daelia moves faster than I can comprehend, her body as blurry as the creature’s as she strikes at its outstretched claws, cleaving its hand right off. The creature roars, and before I can get a good look at it, it retreats to the edge of the clearing, a blur of darkness that could easily be mistaken for a specter of death, with no real shape to the chilling monstrosity.
“Stay back!” Daelia orders.
She leaps at the creature with a battle cry that strikes fear into even my heart. It rings in my ears even after she’s struck at the creature, her slashes, pivots, parries, and overhead strikes blurring together the longer I watch. She moves inhumanely fast, even faster than I can manage, her sword a bright blur of blue, purple, and orange as she lashes out at her opponent, spell after spell, beating back the demonic creature.
“I can barely see what’s going on,” Aurelio says. “Is she winning?”
“She must be, if she hasn’t cried out in pain,” I suggest.
