The Elder Blood Chronicles – Book Three(78)

“Can you do anything about this wind?” Jala asked, her voice nearly a scream as she struggled to be heard over the gale.

Valor shook his head slowly and leaned back to speak to her. “It’s a weather casting. I’d have to break the spell to end it. Until I know why they want a blizzard, I don’t want to ruin their casting,” he explained. “Where are we?” he asked in a slightly louder voice as the wind picked up once more.

“In Glis,” Jala replied with a shrug. “This is where I sensed that he is,” she added to clarify her reasoning for being here.

Marrow tensed beside her and dropped to a crouch. Jala looked down at the Bendazzi and then quickly around them. Beyond the blinding snow and the mostly obscured trees she saw nothing else. Ears twitching, the Bendazzi scanned the area before letting out a vicious snarl. The spines on his back sprang forward and his tail lashed in threat.

“What is it?” Jala gasped, her eyes still searching in vain for whatever the Bendazzi was sensing.

Duck! Marrow’s voice echoed off her skull with the force of a command and she staggered forward into Valor’s back, pushing them both into a snow bank as a massive black furred claw crashed into the ground where they had been standing. Marrow sprang forward with a snarl toward their attacker as Valor rolled back to his feet.

“Wait, Korv, you know me!” Valor yelled, struggling to free himself from his tangled cloak as the attacker lunged toward him again. The creature resembled a bear in most respects but stood straighter with a more human posture than any animal could manage. “Korv, it’s Valor Hai’dia!” Valor bellowed as he dodged beneath another swiping blow from the brute.

“Valor dead. Not Valor,” Korv snarled, his words mangled by his current form. The bear-like muzzle apparently lacked the essential elements for clear speech.

“I’m not dead, Korv, I’m right here. Please stop and listen!” Valor objected, holding both hands up in front of him to show he was unarmed.

“Valor always in metal. You not,” Korv returned, his next attack delayed as he struggled to find the white Bendazzi in the blizzard. It was obvious that the Shifter knew of Bendazzi and even more obvious that he considered Marrow a bigger threat than the unarmed man before him.

“My armor was damaged and my sword lost, but it’s me, Korv,” Valor insisted taking the break in the assault as opportunity to shift his position. With careful steps he placed himself between Jala and the Shifter, taking care to keep his back toward Jala at all times.

“Korv, stand down and let them approach the gate.” A woman’s voice broke through the wind in clear perfect notes. Jala shifted in the snow bank, struggling to get a look at the speaker.

“Blue!” Valor gasped, his voice filled with relief. His shoulders sagged as he backed another step toward Jala and offered her his hand.

She accepted it gratefully and dusted the worst of the snow from her coat. With chattering teeth she glanced back behind them once more, then to Valor. “Blue?” she asked in confusion.

“Blue Bess, a friend of mine. She is our savior here trust me. Korv wouldn’t dare cross her,” Valor explained as he tugged on her hand for her to follow.

Jala stole a last look at the bear as it backed away from them and disappeared into the blizzard, then scanned the area until she spotted Marrow’s form as he returned to her side. “Thank you,” she whispered as she ducked her head from the worst of the wind and followed blindly after Valor.

The wind continued its ferocious assault for several more feet, and then dropped abruptly. Jala looked up in shock and stared at the immense wooden wall before her and the dark trails of chimney smoke beyond it. They had been within ten feet of a village and she hadn’t even realized it.

“If you truly are who you claim to be, you will have no trouble proving it to me.” The woman’s voice came again and Jala looked around until she located the speaker perched above the gate. To say she was beautiful was an understatement. Long silver hair tumbled down across her shoulders, the ends tipped in a snowy white. She wore an elaborate vest of velvet and brocade sewn in green and gold that was cut short enough to reveal her flat well-muscled stomach. The matching pants and thigh-high boots were of the same quality and the first impression she gave was truly breathtaking.

Blue’s dark eyes were filled with amusement as she regarded Jala’s slack-jawed stare and Jala quickly looked away, only to glance back once again when the woman turned her attention back to Valor. It wasn’t so much the magnificent clothing or the woman’s natural beauty that held Jala captivated, as it was the tracery of small blue runes that covered the woman from her neck down on every surface of skin visible. There was obvious magic in the markings but Jala couldn’t tell exactly what their purpose was without a scrutiny she was sure the woman wouldn’t appreciate.