“I’ve got to remember that that fool has wings,” Reven admonished, grabbing hold of Lara as he ran in the opposite direction with the girl dragging behind him. The hell hound slid, looking up to where its quarry vanished but that did not hold its attention long. The snarl it released made Reven’s stomach tighten as it refocused on him and Lara. “Move faster!”
She, at least, listened. She was small and moved faster than he did, quickly passing him up before scrambling up the side of broken sheds or fallen beams to the roof tops like some strange spider-creature. Ajana did similar things, clamoring over impossible landscapes that made the bard wonder at the capabilities of a woman. The snarl of the hell hound took that wonder away rather quickly.
Keep running, Beloved, I am here!
“It’s about bloody time!” Reven hollered back.
He did not need to look behind him to know that the hell hound would perish. He felt the heat of Azure’s own Power burn the demon spawn to a crisp. He was in no condition to maintain any of what he was doing, still feeling rather lethargic and heavy. The more he moved, the more exhausted he felt but stopping would only make things worse. “Where am I going?”
East! Azure answered. Toward the tall building!
Only one tall building stood in his field of vision, making it easy to follow the phoenix’s direction. So, the bard ran, stopping when there was nothing left to provide cover before having to cross an open-air market with a single abandoned canon between himself and the tall building - a church. It was the only thing untouched in the entire town.
Lara dropped down beside him, nearly giving the bard a heart attack. She made an apologetic face, now holding a quiver half full of arrows and half full of thin debris. It would due in a pinch, he supposed, especially given the size of the bow she recovered.
“That was on a roof?” he asked. She grinned back. He looked up to the sky but did not see Kaleo anywhere, the ash falling too heavily for him to make out much beyond shapes or things directly in front of him. That was going to make things difficult.
“Kaleo is there,” Lara said, pointing to the tallest point of the church. Reven peered but could not make the avian out.
“Are you sure?” he asked, looking to Lara. She nodded, directing his attention to the same spot again. It did no good. Reven still saw nothing but ash. “If you say so. Ok… gods I’m going to beat him bloody. Stay low, go to the canon when I say and stay there until I get there. Understand?”
Again, Lara nodded, waiting for Reven to signal her before scuttling across the open space to the fountain.
She’s safe, Beloved. Go. I will watch you, Azure added. Reven focused his Power on the crossbow again, creating another bolt of light before following Lara with much less grace than she until reaching the canon. Now, at the halfway point, he could see Kaleo on the roof of the church, crouched like a gargoyle over the town.
One more round of scuttling put them straight in the church’s shadow, the eaves of the entry offering some protection from the falling ash. Kaleo joined them, dropping down delicately beside Lara with a shake of his wings, now gray and filthy.
“They haven’t touched the church,” Kaleo pointed out.
“They can’t,” Reven countered. “It’s a holy site. In - both of you.”
Kaleo opened his mouth to argue but Lara tugged at his arm, moving carefully into the church with the sword she took at the ready. If nothing else, the girl knew how to handle herself.
“Clear,” Lara said, opening the door further. Reven nodded, taking a single step forward before feeling a sharp snag around his neck that pulled him backwards and ripped the air from his lungs, landing him hard on his back.
Chapter Twenty-One
“Dad!” Kaleo cried as the bard was ripped from the porch of the church back out to the open space around the canon. The word left his mouth before he could catch himself. He made to go after the bard until he felt Lara’s hands around his arm. “Let go!”
“Stop and wait!” she chastised. “Think! If you run out there, they will get you too!”
“She’s not wrong,” said another voice from behind Kaleo that made him whirl around with a protective arm out across Lara. He nearly fell over with relief when he saw Navid, running to the centaur with a giant leaping hug that was returned in kind. “Gods alive, boy, what are you doing here?”
“Looking for you!” Kaleo practically sobbed.
Two others that came out from behind the altar that Navid blocked - a duende man and a young man with pale gray skin; shadow-born if Kaleo did not miss his guess. The church itself was small, not meant for a large gathering, but it was intact which counted for more than just space. He did not know the god it was meant to praise, the tiny figurine on the altar unfamiliar to him. Whoever it was, he thanked them before turning back to the open door.
“Kaleo!” Lara barked, stepping in front of him. “Wait!”
“Move!” he snarled but she stood her ground.
“Who's he so desperate t'save?” the duende man drawled in a boorish rock-rolling lilt that made Kaleo’s ears twitch.
“Reven,” she answered which meant nothing to the duende. Navid, however, moved up beside Kaleo with the color drained from his face. He’d read Kaleo’s letter, knew the truth of who the bard was.
“Something grabbed him before he could step in. I don’t know what,” Kaleo said. “And I’m going with or without your permission.”
This time he shoved hard enough to move Lara out of the way, taking flight again as soon as he cleared the porch. He was not as accustomed to flying as he should have been. It was not terribly comfortable yet
