Kat Bastion - Forged in Dreams and Magick

I jumped at a shift in the air current to my left, my heart slamming into my chest. Velloc stepped out of the fog. His expression seemed grave but not distressed as he stared at me.

Panic welled up.

My pulse raced.

Nothing made sense.

Constants that I’d clung to in the masquerade of my life crumbled into illusion. My mind had already accepted as fact that the box remained present throughout time, facilitating my travel between my worlds. The greater forces at work transported me from place to place— not the box .

The parameters had suddenly changed with the box vanishing into thin air, my miniscule understanding of everything and everyone surrounding the box made glaringly obvious.

In anger, I shoved Velloc’s chest hard, knocking him back a step. The man I trusted most had betrayed me. The foundation I’d tried so hard to build, to have solid ground beneath me, had been rocked by a singular act.

“How could you? You threaten to take the box from me, and while I’m asleep, you give it to another? Who was he? Why?” I glared at his chest, clenching my jaw, feeling as if my entire being was about to detonate, exploding from my heart out.

His finger hooked my chin up, forcing me to look into his eyes. “I gave no one the box.” His terse words bounced off the ice dam in my mind.

“ Riiight . You expect me to believe he just strolled in and stole it from you as we slept. That’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard.” As my acid words dripped out of my mouth, they floated into my ears. The impossible had become very plausible in past weeks. Even I had to take a step back and wonder how much more fantastic the journey could get.

He tilted his head to the side, his eyes never straying from mine. “Isobel, it is true. I startled awake to find the box gone. My first thought? The tribe I’d stolen it from had taken it back. I rushed out, alarmed for the safety of our village, armed for a fight, but saw only the one man. As for how he got past us, I have no explanation.”

My gaze drifted down his completely naked body. He gripped a spear in one hand and knife in the other. Velloc’s state of undress and weaponry supported his claim, and relief flooded in, displacing my anger.

I exhaled, crumpling into his chest, feeling defeated. “Velloc, I’m sorry for doubting you.”

He wrapped solid arms around me. “It’s already forgiven, Isobel. I understand why you panicked, but know that my love for you would never allow me to deceive you.”

Velloc was asking for my unwavering trust, and yet we both needed to have it in one another. A soft voice, a plea, left my lips. “Velloc, we have to go to the tribe you stole the box from.” If what he’d said was true, another woman like me would be there. With no other viable lead to follow, foraging along the same route the box had previously taken seemed my only option.

He sighed. “Yes. We do. If I’m to have a happy wife, we do. Drust, however, might have me killed for stealing his box and returning empty-handed, asking again for what I’d pirated. The Lugi don’t handle offenses brought to light very well. Given the risk, my agreement makes me worry that I’ve wandered into a realm of madness.”

I laughed. “Yeah? Well, it’s good to know I’m not alone. Insanity craves company.”

Velloc shook his head, laughing as he ruffled the hair at the top of my head. He grabbed my hand, and we jogged back to gather supplies.

At a full gallop, Velloc led us on a different path than we’d taken before, heading due east. The direction enabled us to cover more ground with less tributaries and mountains barring our way. The few waterways we did encounter had only the faintest markings of a trail, thick foliage masking most of the path on the rarely taken route.

In a day’s hard ride, we reached the coastal tribe of the Lugi after pushing our horses just below their limit. Adrenaline had successfully conquered the tired in me, but with all the physical and mental stress I’d had over the week on such little sleep, I knew exhaustion would soon be the victor.

We approached the sprawling village. Hundreds upon hundreds of stone dwellings and teepees spanned across the landscape and stretched back into the woods. The impressive size made our village look small-town to their big-city. An inlet from the North Sea cut down the middle of their community. Wooden footbridges crossed the waterway in several locations.

Velloc boldly led our horses straight through the heart of the activity. Both women and men stopped to take notice of our arrival. Some wore animal skins similar to ours; others wore colorful fabric tunics and ornate jewelry and belts. Their blue-tattooed markings were somewhat different, many resembled birds. Recognition filtered into my brain. Lugi—the raven people.

Scents of cooking meat filled the air as dusk dimmed the night sky. A procession formed, people following us either out of curiosity or defense. I opened my senses to their emotions and detected plenty of animosity amid the curiosity.

One long fire pit stretched along the path we walked. Game and foul roasted at various intervals on long wooden spits. We stopped our horses at the far end of the fire next to a man pulling cooked meat from a deer leg with his fingers. He fed it with tender care to a beautiful woman.

Velloc leaned toward me, speaking low. “This is Drust, chieftain of the Lugi .”

Velloc swung his leg over his steed and dismounted, nodding for me to do the same. I slid from my mare, stepping close to his side.

Drust looked built for war but remained relaxed as we approached. His long, wiry, brownish-red hair had been tied back. He dressed in garb similar to ours, only his coat of fur was clasped at the neck by an ornately crafted chain made of chunky gold links.

The woman had sleek, black hair, high cheekbones, tan skin, and bright, blue eyes. On her slender form, her striking dress had thin, braided straps of gold and black threads that held up a low-cut bodice and flowing, black skirt. A gold torque highlighted her long neck, and a golden cuff decorated one wrist and an opposite bicep.

I whispered to Velloc, “Is that the woman the box brought to him?”

He nodded in reply as we approached the couple. They leisurely turned their attention to us. The man regarded Velloc, squinting as he set and clenched his jaw. The scrutiny transferred to me, both of them giving me a thorough head-to-toe-to-head inspection. I’d been clothed in skins and fur, but nothing hid my wild mane of long, blond hair and curvaceous body in the midst of mostly dark-haired, leanly built people.

“You risk your life by coming here, Velloc,” Drust said, his low, gravelly voice steady.

I glanced at Velloc, catching his sardonic smile. “I risk my life at no time by coming here.”

Drust guffawed. “You have the confidence of a fool.”

“I know my abilities—my strengths to your weaknesses. Care to test and see which is right?” Velloc asked.

The man paused, stroking his sparsely bearded chin with a finger and thumb as he stared at Velloc. “No. We will spend the time catching up. I’ll deliver you to your tribe strapped to the back of your horse later.”

Velloc smirked.

Drust bristled, shook his head, and laughed again. “Come. Sit.” He pointed at another log positioned perpendicular to them on his right. Velloc took a seat next to the chieftain, and I sat next to Velloc. Drust growled low, glaring at the crowd that had gathered around us before they scattered.

Their leader regarded me with piercing, steel-gray eyes before shifting his attention to Velloc. “Tell me your assessment of the Romans.” Drust pulled more meat off the leg he held, feeding his woman. She pulled the bite from his hand with her teeth and kissed his fingertips.