Chapter Seven

Killian

I t's the best option we have right now since it's not like we can ask a passerby for directions to the nearest place to stay, and more often than not, in small villages like this one, the taverns do it all. We ride around the back of the tavern to where the stables are, but unsurprisingly, there isn't a stable hand there to take our horses from us.

"I'm not sure I like this," Khaos mutters, his eyes scanning our surroundings shrewdly. "I'd suggest that we leave the horses untethered in case we need to leave in a hurry, which I'm starting to think is quite likely."

"Agreed," Grey replies as he gets off his horse and pats its neck.

"They'll stay put without being tethered to something?" I ask. So far, we've tethered them to the trees where we've bedded down for the night.

"They'll stay put unless they get spooked," Khaos replies, as he too dismounts, "and it takes a hell of a lot to spook them. Usually, they just eat the things that scare them."

"Well, there's a slightly disturbing image," Loki comments, stretching his back as he lands on the floor.

"Only because we're used to Fae horses who only eat plants and shit," Rival points out.

"Good point," Loki replies.

Once we've made sure that the horses are safe and are able to bolt if they need to, we all head toward the door that leads into the tavern. I've already reminded myself where each of my weapons are, and my shadows are ready to be called upon if they're needed. My magic is extremely close to the surface anyway, and it will stay that way until Farren is back with us and safe.

I'm used to willingly walking into situations that are going to get me killed, so I make sure that I'm the first one through the door. That way, I'll be hit first if they're hostile, and I can assess the situation before the others even make it through, which allows them precious time to escape and save themselves. At least that's the theory, I know that if I get attacked they aren't going to leave me behind.

As soon as we walk in, all movement in the tavern stops as everyone turns to look at us; I try to put them at ease with a smile, the smile that Farren likes to refer to as my kiss arse one. Unfortunately, it must be broken because as one everyone suddenly leaves.

Glancing at the bartender, who is watching us with a scowl, most likely due to us scaring off all of his business, my smile turns slightly sheepish, which seems to surprise him, "Something I said?"

He seems to consider whether he's going to answer me or not as he looks over at the others standing behind me and comes to some sort of realisation and tension drains out of him.

"They think that you work for the princes," he explains, "it's never a good thing when the princes are around."

Grey tenses, "They're that afraid of the princes?"

The bartender looks at him like he's been hidden under a rock before answering anyway, "Everyone is. The princes have made sure that. We need Hades to come back, but at this point, everyone is starting to lose faith that it will ever happen. I think he's dead."

I can feel the anger coming off of Grey at the bartender's words, and as his magic starts to build, I know that if he's not careful, he's going to burn through his glamour, and the bartender is going to get even more of a shock and have a ton of fucking questions.

Khaos grips Grey's shoulder tightly warning him to reign it in, and then says, "With the amount of power the princes seem to have gained in Hades absence, I imagine that Hades wouldn't be able to simply come back even if he was okay."

Khaos is clever in the way that he phrases his words, and it does what he intended to do and gets more information out of the bartender.

The bartender immediately starts to shake his head, "No, he would need an army and a fucking big one at that. Underworlders are either loyal to the princes or far too terrified to defy them. The Helliers are sent out regularly to take unwilling people Underworlders with them. We have no idea what they did with them, and they're never seen again. "

"They're abducting people?" This time, it's Khaos's anger that fuels the question.

I can't say I blame him; the armies were his responsibility, and from what I've picked up from both him and Hades, Khaos was a fair but ruthless commander, and he believed in only the best. He wouldn't have wanted soldiers who didn't want to be there, and he wouldn't have taken anyone against their will.

The bartender once again looks confused but nods his head in confirmation.

"I think we all hope that Hades appears when he can and in a way that means he can successfully take out the princes," Storm replies.

"Here, here," the bartender replies, "you boys look like you've been travelling for a while and I can't imagine that you've had a very good welcome here."

"I can't say that I blame anyone since the princes are so awful, and they thought we worked for them." Reaper replies gruffly.

"Hmm," the bartender hums in reply as he starts pouring ales, "here, I can offer you a drink and we have a stew on the go if you're hungry."

"Yes, please," Loki replies before anyone else can, and I think that it's because he needs to feed; it has been a while since he fed from Farren, but he adds, "I smelt that stew as soon as I walked in and it smells awesome."

I need to keep an eye on him. He's not showing any of the usual signs of hunger, and it makes me wonder if it works differently in the Underworld because, by this point, he really should be at least starting to get hungry. I'll watch him closely, just in case. The last thing we need is a hangry vamp.

The bartender grins, "Thank you. Take a seat, and I'll bring you over some bowls."

We pick up our drinks off the bar and then find a table big enough for all of us to sit comfortably. I have to admit that I've finished half of my ale before it occurs to me that it might be something unique to the Underworld that we shouldn't drink. Since Khaos and Grey didn't warn us though, I'm just assuming that it's okay.

Either way, it's too late now.

"Are you okay?" Zev asks Grey.

Grey glances up from his still full glass and shakes his head, "No, my people should never have to live in fear, and if it's this bad here I shudder to think what kind of condition the soul side is in."

"Fuck, that's going to be an issue." Storm agrees, a deep frown darkening his features.

"As soon as we have Farren and we know that she's okay, we will work out a plan to stop the princes and restore the Underworld," Zev says.

Grey looks at him, his eyes narrowing slightly as he asks, "We will?"

Zev nods firmly, and Grey's shoulders slump.

"What's wrong?" Khaos asks this time, "I thought that you'd be relieved?"

Our conversation is interrupted as the bartender brings each of us massive bowls of meat stew, a huge plate of still warm bread rolls, and a wedge of butter.

Once he's gone, Grey answers Khaos's question, "I am relieved that we're going to fix this; my Underworld needs me, and it's my responsibility, but," he pauses.

It suddenly occurs to me what's wrong, "But if we help you fix it, we will need to leave at some point. We're a part of the Warrior Games; the Fae realm needs us, and the Underworld needs you, so we will need to leave, and more importantly, so will Farren."

Grey gives one sharp nod, letting me know that I've hit the nail on the head with my explanation. The rest of us all share a look but stay silent, there's fuck all that we can do, that's the reality of the situation. Grey is needed here, and we're needed in the Fae realm; it would be ridiculous if he attended Black Onyx Academy even if he could leave the Underworld unattended, which he can't.

"We'll figure something out," Zev says, but he looks worryingly unsure about his reassurances.

Grey has very quickly become one of us, and Khaos isn't too far behind, which is weird since we've only really known him for a few days, at this point though I just assume that the Fates are pulling the strings and that we'll eventually understand what's going on.

I would miss them both, and I'd find it difficult just to leave them behind. I don't even want to think about what Farren's reaction will be.

We all eat in silence for a while, and I'm so glad that Loki answered before anyone else could decline because the food is absolutely delicious, and I'm not just saying that because we haven't eaten anything but what we've hunted for the past few days.

"I don't think we should stay in town," Mayhem suddenly says.

"Why?" Storm asks around a mouth full of food.

"Because we're making the locals extremely uncomfortable and causing them distress, it's really not a problem for us to make camp in the woods," Mayhem replies.

"I think you're right," I agree, "these people have clearly been through enough, and I don't want to cause them any extra stress just because of our presence."

"Agreed," Grey replies firmly. "We'll eat and then head out."

"Do you think he'd package some up for us?" Loki asks hopefully.

"I think, considering we scared away all of his patrons if we pay handsomely enough, he wouldn't mind," Reaper grins, tearing off a hunk of bread. "Hopefully, he has some more bread, too."

"It's settled then," Rival says, "we'll ask if we can take some food with us and then head out."

Everyone nods in agreement.

We end up having a second round of both food and ale, and the bartender is more than happy to allow us to take some food with us, especially since we pay handsomely for it. As we're leaving, he stops Grey.

"If Hades were to be found, there is a following that is still loyal to him and aren't swayed by the princes lies or live in fear of their wrath," the bartender pauses as he looks over all of us with a knowing glint in his eye, "we would gladly fight alongside him to fix the wrongs that the princes have wrought in the Underworld."

"That is good to know," Grey replies, gripping his forearm, "what is your name?"

"Bezeal," the bartender replies.

Grey nods and smiles, "Nice to meet you."

"We need to get going if we're going to find somewhere to settle down for the night," Khaos says.

We say our goodbyes and head back out, finding our horses exactly where we left them and load up. Once we're out of the village and making our way down a dirt road, I start up the conversation again.

"Do you think he knew that you were Hades?" I ask.

Grey shakes his head, "I doubt it. There's no way that he could possibly know."

"Isn't it more likely that he thought that we're a strange enough group that he automatically assumed that we may know something?" Zev asks.

"Our reaction to what he was saying was strong enough that he wouldn't think that we were on the princes side, so it is possible," Reaper agrees.

"And we were asking questions about things that we would have known about if we were natives of the Underworld," Loki adds.

"Regardless of whether he knew who we, or more specifically you, are, we need to remember him. We're going to need as much help as we can to sort this out, and I have a feeling that we're only scratching the surface of what the princes have been up to in your absence," Khaos warns.

Fixing the Underworld seems like a gargantuan task to me, and I have no idea where we'll even start, but I know that we're not going to allow Grey to fight this battle alone. I just have no idea how it's going to fit in with the Warrior games that we have no choice but to be a part of and finding the key fragments so that the princes can't open the door to the Underworld and allow some of the more deadly creatures to escape into the fae realm and then potentially into the others as well.

"Anyone else feeling snacky?" Loki asks.

"Dude, we just ate," Khaos replies with a smile and adds, "but yeah, I could eat."

"Can we at least find somewhere to spend the night before we eat more?" Storm suggests, rolling his eyes.

"Fine," Loki jokes.

"Guys, shut up a minute; Ryu senses something," Reaper orders.

I instantly become more alert as I study our surroundings. We're still on the hard-packed dirt road, but as it is now extremely late and pitch black, we haven't come across anyone else travelling. On either side of the road are densely packed trees, and if I'm being honest, we're in the perfect place to be ambushed or assassinated.

At first, I don't sense what Ryu does, but that's hardly surprising since his senses are so much stronger than mine, and he always senses things before the rest of us do. A full minute after he's mentioned it I sense something closing in on us from both sides of the road, we are definitely being ambushed.

"Do you want to see if we can outrun them?" I ask.

"Hell no, I want to play," Storm grins, drawing his sword and twirling it in his hands.

"I was hoping that you were going to say that," I reply.

There's no time for any more conversation as creatures burst out of the tree line, not worrying about stealth and going straight for the kill. None of them stop to assess the situation, and we're thrown into the fight immediately. I dismount my horse since I have no idea how Underworld horses react in this kind of situation, and I'm not bonded to it, so it will always choose its own life over helping me, which is entirely natural but means that I'd rather not fight from their backs and would prefer to do it with my feet firmly planted on the floor where I can't get thrown or anything else.

As soon as my feet hit the ground, my tail stabs out behind me, killing an attack as my shadows warn me of someone attacking me from the left. I allow one of my shadow beasts free and draw my sword, preparing to attack. I trust that the others are all capable of looking after themselves, but I will check in on them to see if any of them need any backup after I've dealt with this one. I have no idea how many creatures are attacking us, but they're soon going to wish that they hadn't chosen us to attack.

As I swing my sword, the moonlight illuminates the creature that I'm fighting, and there is absolutely no doubt in my mind that it's a Wraith. It shouldn't be possible. Grey said that there were none in the Underworld. It's not something that I can dwell on right now though as this one seems to be intent on eating my face.

I mean, seriously, it's not just aiming for my neck, which would be relatively predictable and standard practice; it's specifically trying to eat my face, and for some reason, that just freaks me out more. He seems ravenous, and because he's so distracted by his own hunger it means that he makes mistakes and my sword is quickly slicing through neck, the head thumping as it hits the floor.

Shockingly enough, as soon as he's dead, another Wraith takes his place; this one grins at me; it seems better trained and is sparring with me well, embedding spells into his sword that means I have to counteract with my own magic in order to stop him from killing me. He must have been very well trained in his past life.

Finally, I get the upper hand and knock his sword out of his hand; my shadows wrap around him, dragging him to the floor and pinning him there as I bring my sword up, ready to sever his head.

"You may end me, but you won't stop the uprising; the princes will set us free, and we will devour the realms," the Wraith hisses.

Through my surprise that he has enough mental function to be able to speak, I manage to reply, "Mate, that's a creepy choice of words."

Before he can reply, my sword slices through his neck like butter, and I kick his head away from his body. There's no time for me to question the fact that a Wraith could fucking communicate and what that could mean, as I see one twice the size of the ones I fought barrelling straight toward Khaos who is already fighting off three of his own Wraith's. Running toward him, I realise that Khaos is truly enjoying the fight and has a massive smile on his face as he battles, he easily fits in with the rest of us purely because of his bloodthirsty nature.

I'm still too far away to get to the barrelling Wraith before he's going to get to Khaos, and if he manages to get to him, then Khaos is going to get overwhelmed within seconds. Still running, I call on my shadows and set them free, feeling Storm's shadows join mine as he must see the same thing that I do. Our shadows wrap around the Wraith and help to stop its progress, giving me enough time to catch up to him and intercept him so he can't get to Khaos; I quickly dispatch him and then look up, seeing that they've all been killed. Not only do the guys have at least two Wraiths dropped on the floor around them, but Meri and Poca must have been following us fairly closely because they're standing over a few as well.