Calliope [Book 2]

Calliope let her body fall onto the bed. She buried her face in the feathered pillow and sighed. She had forgotten what this comfort had felt like. No more hard forest floors or a worn, leather saddle. She hadn’t realized how much her body ached until that moment.

She felt a hand on her shoulder and her eyes fluttered open. Mido sat on the bed beside her.

“You gonna sleep all day?”

Calliope sat up in the bed and yawned. “I wasn’t sleeping.”

“You’ve been out for over an hour now.”

“I was?” She didn’t even remember falling asleep.

Mido leaned into the pillow and sighed.

“What do we do now?” she asked.

“I don’t know. You’re the one that wanted civilization. Go out and civilize. I’ll be sleeping for a week.”

“A whole week, huh?”

Mido nodded. “And we’re leaving as soon as I wake up.”

“All right,” Calliope said, climbing over him and off the bed.

“Where you going?”

“To civilize.”

“Fine, hold on, I’m coming.”

“I thought you were going to sleep for a week?”

“I thought you were going to join me.”

“You don’t have to be with me every second of the day.”

“Yes I do.”

Calliope sighed and rolled her eyes. Mido smirked.

“Whatever. I give up. You exhaust me.”

“You exhaust me,” Mido retorted.

“Then sleep, dammit.”

Mido laughed and got to his feet. He took her hand in his and pulled her out the door. They made their way back onto the busy streets of Corvua. Mido let Calliope lead the way as she wandered in and out of crowds, her eyes taking in the sights around them. She wandered through merchants and stood on her tiptoes to watch the musicians entertaining the citizens. She watched the children laugh and play, just as they did in Librona, and her heart ached for the kingdom and the life she had known.

The sun set quickly, casting the city in shadow. Mido led the sleepy witch back towards the inn where they collapsed on the bed once more.

“It’s so nice here,” Calliope whispered in the dark. Mido grunted in reply.

“Don’t you wish we could stay?”

Mido rolled onto his side and looked into her golden eyes. “No,” he said simply.

Calliope sighed. “You’re stubborn.” She turned to stare at the ceiling. Mido smiled as he watched her.

“Go to sleep,” he said with a yawn, but Calliope’s eyes were already closed. Her chest rose and fell quietly.

#

The young man and his horse galloped into the little village, a torch in hand to light his way through the darkness. Mido looked up at the man on the horse as he spoke.

“The witch has attacked,” he shouted to the villagers.

Mido looked around for Calliope, but instead, his father stood at his side.

“Kill the witch!” he shouted, raising his sword above his head.

“Don’t go,” Mido pleaded with his father, but the man ignored his son.

“Where is the witch?” the messenger asked.

The villagers panicked as the man spoke.

“Bring the witch to us alive,” he said.

Mido noticed the emblem around the man’s neck. He recognized the symbol that marked the kingdom of Asmar.

“Avenge our king!”

Mido turned again and watched in horror as an Asmarian soldier thrust his sword through a young man’s chest. The man fell to the ground, blood seeping from his wound. Mido approached the man and turned the body over. He stumbled backwards, recognizing William’s face.

“Burn the witch!”

Mido bolted up in the bed, gasping for breath. He pulled his sweaty shirt off and threw it onto the floor before burying his face in his hands. Muffled voices caught his attention and he hurried to the window, peering outside onto the streets below. Five men on horseback galloped up and down the streets, torches blazing through the night.

“Where is the witch?” they yelled. Citizens poured from their homes, panicked and confused.

“Do not let her into your city!”

“Don’t let anyone out!”

Mido squinted through the dirty window, catching Asmar’s symbol on their saddles. His heart leapt into his throat and he held his breath.

“What is the meaning of this?” Four In’audisian soldiers approached.

“The king demands an explanation.”

An Asmarian approached, his face twisted in anger.

“Tell his highness that there is a witch loose. Librona has been harboring a witch for some time and she murdered our king.”

“Librona?”

“Weren’t they in a war?”

The man nodded. “With us.”

“There’s a witch?”

“Where did she go?”

“We tracked her through the woods beyond Librona. She could be right here in your kingdom.”

“Send word to King Gerard right away.”

“Lock the gates. Don’t let anyone in or out.”

Mido backed away from the window. “Fuck,” he mumbled.

“Mido?” Calliope peered at him through the darkness. The moonlight caught her golden eyes as they flashed at Mido. “Are you okay?”

Mido met her gaze but didn’t dare move, as if his movement would catch the attention of the people below. Calliope looked to the window, hearing the voices outside.

“Mido, what’s going on?”

Mido’s heart raced, but he forced his voice to stay even. “We need to get out of here.”

Calliope’s heart stopped. “What happened?”

Mido pulled her to her feet. “Five men from Asmar are here. Who knows how many more are in the kingdom.”

“Asmar?” Her heart jumped into her throat. “No,” she said, feeling faint. “No. What about Librona? Why didn’t they stop them?”

“There’s no time, Calli, we need to go now while we still can.”

“What are you talking about?”

“They’re closing the gates. Won’t let anyone in or out.”

They looked out the window, watching and waiting for Asmar’s men to leave the city. When the coast was clear, they hurried out of the inn, checking their surroundings quickly before hurrying to the stables. They kept to the shadows and opened the barn doors quietly. Lily nickered as they entered. Mido saddled his horse hurriedly and pushed Calliope onto her back, the saddle slipping a little beneath her. He tightened the cinch quickly one last time before mounting behind her and kicking Lily onward and through the city.

Lily’s hooves sounded like thunder through the sleeping city as they galloped towards the gate. Four guards stood at their posts as instructed by the closed gates. Mido’s mind raced as they approached. Two of the guards stepped forward, signaling for him to stop. He continued to urge Lily forward.

“Do something,” he muttered to Calliope.

“Do what?”

“We’re not stopping!”

Calliope watched in horror as they approached the soldiers at remarkable speed. She muttered under her breath and the gate flew backwards with surprising force, an exit for their escape. The two guards stood their ground until the horse got too close. They jumped out of the way of the stampeding horse as they bolted through the gates and away from the city.

“Stop them!” one of the guards yelled.

Calliope turned to see In’audis’s mounted soldiers galloping out of the city in pursuit.

“They’re coming, Mido,” she said, panicked.

“Well, do something!”

“No, Mido, I can’t.”

“God dammit, Calli, don’t bail on me now!”

Calliope bit her lip and turned back towards the soldiers. She squeezed her eyes shut, swung her leg over Lily’s rump, and launched herself into the air, landing swiftly on her feet. She lifted her head and her eyes began to glow. She shot an arm in the air and the ground shot up, blocking the path of the horses.

Mido pulled Lily around and watched as Calliope went to work. She threw her arms towards the ground and it began to tremble beneath them. The ground opened up a chasm before them, growing wider and wider. Calliope stumbled backwards and ran back towards Mido. Mido pulled her up onto the horse and kicked Lily forward once more. They galloped away from the trembling earth until the city was out of sight. They galloped without stopping through the night and well into the morning when they reached the treeline of a forest. Mido eased the panting horse into a walk and patted the mare’s neck.

“We’re not safe here,” Mido said. “The entire kingdom will be looking for us now.”

“Shit. How did this happen?”

Mido shook his head, feeling defeated. “I don’t know.”

“Where are we going to go?”

Mido sighed. “I don’t know.”

“We can’t do this without a plan!”

“The plan is to run, Calli. To run and to not get caught. Don’t you see that now?”

Calliope felt that all too familiar lump form in her throat. She had hoped there was some way to fix things, but she was clearly wrong.

“I can’t do this, Mido,” she sobbed. She slid off Lily’s back and stumbled on the ground. Mido hopped down and turned her to face him. He moved a lock of hair out of her wet face and met he gaze.

“We can do this. I’m here with you. It will be okay.”

Calliope shook her head. “No, it won’t be. It’s not. Librona is gone and it’s my fault.”

“We don’t know that,” Mido hissed. “Don’t say that.”

Her knees felt weak. “Asmar won’t give up until I’m dead.”

“They will be stopped.”

“They won’t be. Not unless they are destroyed.”

“Librona will do it.”

“Librona is fucked!” Her eyes seemed to glow again.

“Calliope, calm down.”

“King Sloan and Prince Lucas. Fallon and Tianna. William. Ian. Maria. Gone. Gone. They’re all gone!”

“Stop it.”

“You stop, Mido! Stop kidding yourself. They’re all dead. Dead!”

Mido let her go and let his arms fall to his side. “Calliope.” His voice was hoarse.

Calliope immediately regretted her outburst. Mido had been so strong and positive for her, but now she could see how much he truly suffered.

“I’m so sorry, Mido,” she whispered, the words barely making it out of her tight throat. “I’m sorry.”

Mido shook his head. “We need to go,” he said, turning away. He mounted Lily and waited for Calliope. Calliope didn’t move. She watched him with sad eyes. He peered at her. “Come on.”

“They don’t want you, Mido,” she said softly. “They want me. They’ll kill us both.”

“I won’t let them touch you.”

“I won’t let you die for me, Mido.”

“You know I will.”

“And where does that leave me? Alone. I’ll probably die anyway. I’d die without you.”

“So we’ll die together.”

“Stop this.”

“Calliope, let’s go.”

“No. I’m done. I’m not doing this. I’m not letting anyone else die because of me. This has gone on for too long.”

“Calliope, let’s not do this now.”

“Mido, I’m done. You will not run for me. You will not risk your life. I won’t let you. I can’t. I can’t do this.”

“Calliope, please.”

“I’m sorry, Mido,” she said quietly.

Mido met her gaze. She closed her eyes. A blinding light caused Lily to rear. Mido threw his arm over his eyes and clung to Lily’s neck. When the light subsided, Mido looked around, but Calliope was gone.