Wake of Devastation, Lost in Desperation

"What do you mean, Eurydice isn't here!?" The messenger boy looked at me sadly and handed me the note. I read through it and growled, my wedding bliss forgotten. The golden ring on my finger tightened as my hand curled into a fist.

I walked over to Chester and slapped him. "I told you to talk to her, not push her away!"

"What--?"

"Eurydice ran away! Ugh! Mayora! Get me a horse. Flora! Please help me into my chain mail. Merideth, can you try to find Eurydice?"

"Sayer," Michael said, catching my wrist. "What's going on?" I glared at Chester.

"Eurydice ran away to kill off the pawns."

"Eurydice is strong. I think she can wait--"

"No, Michael," I said. "There's something Eurydice hasn't realized." I pulled my hand away and hurried after Flora. Michael watched me go before calling the other knights.



"She can't kill off Morcaus yet," I said as we stormed through the quiet forest. "That means she has to head for Nove Hrady."

"She's right," Merideth said. "Eurydice is heading for Nove Hrady."

"But why?" Bradley asked.

"Why can't she kill Morcaus?" Robert asked.

"If I'm right, the way we kill them goes in order of importance," I explained. "An exiled weaponry teacher was first. Second was a knight from the North Western Kingdom. Morcaus was next in line to be king while Michael was in Nove Hrady."

"So he's last?" David asked. I shook my head.

"So if he's not next, then who is?" Michael asked.

"A lying psychic," I replied. Everyone glanced at each other. "The one who told Sir Dylan's footman you were elves, who lied and said I was to marry Chester in the hopes that you would kill him. The psychic whose only truth was that we would have to save Nove Hrady and Zratil les."

"We? All of us?" Joseph asked. I shook my head.

"We, Eurydice and I."

"Sayer--" Michael started. I shook my head.

"As much as I love you, Michael," I said, "Eurydice means the world to me." I pulled my horse to a stop and got off. Michael stopped next to me and I smiled up at him before taking his sword in my hands and lunging for Chester. He fell off his horse in surprise and I towered over him, my sword at his throat.

"Sayer!" everyone cried in alarm.

"You swore you wouldn't let any harm come to my sister," I spat, ignoring them. Chester stared at me with fear in his eyes and a blank expression on his face. "You swore to me. I told you to fix things and you made them worse. What did you do, yell at her?"

"Sayer," MIchael said, grabbing my wrist and flipping some of his hair out of his face, "Eurydice is getting farther away. We should be moving." I pulled away.

"Not until he fights me." Chester's eyes widened.

"You can't be serious--"

"Get up and fight me!" I screamed. "This is the only way I'll give you another chance. Fight me and beat me." I stepped back to let him up and Michael placed gentle hands on my waist.

"Sayer," he whispered in my ear.

"I won't change my mind," I said.

"Not that. Let me fight him. Changing or not, Chester's lethal to you. I can't watch you fight him."

"He's your best friend," I replied. "I can't let you--"

"Sayer," he begged. "Please, my love." I turned to look into his dark eyes. "You're my wife now."

"I'm not helpless," I defended.

"No, but the least you can do is let me defend your honor and all that chivalrous stuff." I smiled against my mood and handed him back his sword.

"Give him hell," I said, stepping away. Chester watched me, wide-eyed, and groaned when Michael turned to face him.

"You've got to be kidding me. Michael, damnit, get real! We have to find Eurydice--"

"What do you care?" Michael goaded. "You pushed Eurydice to this. You hurt her, and expected her to hang around. She was better off getting married to Alexi--"

Chester swung, and Michael dodged cleanly, smiling triumphantly. "Shut up, Michael. You know I didn't want to see her marry him."

"And yet you ignored her once you saved her," Michael went on. "Once she was out of Alexi's grasp, you acted like she didn't exsist."

"Eurydice has always exsisted in my world!" Chester swung again and Michael stepped out of range.

"You insulted her and pushed her away and expected her to stay by your side."

"I would never insult her!" Another swing.

"You toyed with her emotions and her pride."

"I love Eurydice!" Another swing, and Michael parried and tossed Chester's sword aside.

"Then prove it."

"And Eurydice said you would be hard to find." We all turned to see someone standing not far away on a large root. She was small, but her stance reminded me of Eurydice. Arrogant and intimidating.

I stepped toward her and she drew out her sword and pointed it at me. "I don't have orders to kill you," she said. "But if you get in my way, I will."

"Who are you?" I asked.

"I'm Eurydice's cousin. She was supposed to help me with the pawns, but she refused. That left me no choice but to come and kill the knights."

"Who told you to do that?"

"King Jakobi did," she said innocently, in such a way that she thought we must have known. The final piece of my puzzle clicked into place, but before I could voice it David dropped down from above the stranger and caught her arms. She froze, hissing.

"What's your name?" I asked her.

"Kenya." I stared at her, then looked over at Merideth.

"How much time until she reaches the castle?"

"She'll be there by midnight, without horse." I winced.

"Look, Kenya. I'll strike you a deal. If you don't kill us, we'll help you defeat the pawns. And then you're free to take Eurydice with you." I glared back at Chester. "No one but Eurydice will stop you. You have about three seconds to decide, otherwise I will have David leave you here, broken, and we will go and fight for Eurydice, whom I'm sure is now positively in danger." She glared at me. "Three, two..."

"Fine! I'll go! But if anything happens to Eurydice, I'll slay you all!"

"Don't worry," I said, glaring at Chester again. "If anything happens to Eurydice, I'll minus your load by one."