Chapter 282 The Guard

Chapter 282: Chapter 282 The Guard

Talia’s POV

We continued walking, and the cells stretched out before us. They were mostly empty, and dark, and cold. The torch in my hand flickered, casting long shadows across the stone floor.

Kaelen’s hand was warm in mine, but I could feel the tremors running through his fingers. The silver was taking its toll, and he was trying to hide it.

"Kaelen," I said. "Are you okay?"

He nodded, but his voice was strained. "I am fine, Talia. Keep moving."

I wanted to argue, but I did not have time. My mother was somewhere in this dungeon, and we had to find her before it was too late.

We passed more cells that were just as empty, as dark, and as cold as the others we had passed. The silence was suffocating, and pressing in on us from all sides.

Then I heard something.

I focused and listened, and realized that they were footsteps. They were heavy and slow, and they were coming from somewhere ahead.

I stopped walking, and I grabbed Kaelen’s arm. "Kaelen, wait."

He stopped. "What is it?"

I listened, and I heard them again. They were really footsteps, and they were getting closer.

"Someone is coming," I said.

Kaelen’s jaw tightened. "It must be a guard."

I looked around, but there was nowhere to hide. The corridor was long and narrow, with cells on both sides, which only meant that we were trapped.

Kaelen stepped in front of me. "Stay behind me, Talia."

"Kaelen, you cannot fight," I said. "The silver has weakened you."

"I can still fight," he said.

"Kaelen..." I tried to argue.

"Talia," he said firmly. "Stay behind me."

The footsteps grew louder, and a figure appeared at the end of the corridor. Just as kaelen had said, it was a guard. He was tall and broad, with shoulders that filled the narrow passage. His chest was thick with muscle, and his arms were covered in scars. There was a sword hung at his hip, and a dagger was strapped to his thigh.

From his smell, he was not a wolf, he was something else. Something Malachai had created, which I read from the library. His eyes were cold and empty, like there was nothing behind them but obedience.

The guard saw us, and his eyes widened. "Intruders!"

He reached for his sword, and Kaelen moved.

Despite the silver burning through his veins, Kaelen lunged forward. He did not have a weapon, but he did not need one, because his body was a weapon.

He slammed into the guard, driving him back against the wall. The guard grunted, but he did not fall. He was too large, and too strong.

Kaelen punched him in the face, and the guard’s head snapped back. But he did not go down. He swung his fist, and Kaelen barely dodged.

I watched, frozen for a moment, then I grabbed the torch and swung it at the guard’s head.

The flame caught his shoulder, and he roared, but he did not stop. He shoved Kaelen back, and Kaelen stumbled, with his legs giving out beneath him.

"Kaelen!" I screamed.

I did not wait for a minute. I dropped the torch and launched myself at the guard, with my fists swinging. I had trained with Kaelen, and Cain back at Blackmoor Valley, and I had trained hard. My body remembered the movements even if my mind was clouded with fear.

I slammed my fist into his ribs the way Kaelen had taught me too, and he grunted. I hit him again, and again. He staggered back, surprised by the attack, but he recovered quickly. His hand shot out and grabbed my arm, twisting it behind my back. I cried out in pain, but I did not stop.

I kicked backward, catching him in the knee. He stumbled, and I twisted free. I swung my fist at his face, and I felt his nose make a crack sound beneath my knuckles, and blood spilled down his lips.

He roared, and he backhanded me across the face. The force of the blow sent me flying into the wall. My head cracked against the stone, and I saw stars.

"Talia!" Kaelen shouted. He was on his feet, swaying, but standing. He lunged at the guard, driving his shoulder, and claws into the man’s chest. The guard stumbled back, and Kaelen followed, throwing punch after punch.

But the guard was too strong. He caught Kaelen’s fist and twisted, and I heard Kaelen cry out in pain. Then the guard pushed him to the ground.

The guard looked at Kaelen on the ground, and I saw the realization dawn on his face. "You are wolves, and the silver... it has weakened you."

Then his hand moved to his side, and he reached for his sword, and I saw the blade glint silver in the torchlight. The blade was completely made of silver.

Kaelen tried to stand, but his legs would not hold him. The silver was too much, and he was too weak.

The guard raised his sword, and I knew I had to act.

"Kaelen, get back!" I shouted.

But the guard was already moving, and his sword was coming down toward Kaelen’s neck.

I opened my mouth, and I felt the magic rising in my chest. It was weak, and barely a flicker, but it was there.

"Stop," I whispered. But nothing happened. The guard did not even flinch.

I did not wait or try again, because I knew that my magic was very weak here.

I pushed myself off the wall and ran at the guard. My body was screaming in pain, but I did not care. I could not let him hurt Kaelen.

I leaped onto his back, wrapping my arms around his thick neck. He tried to throw me off, but I held on. I dug my claws into his throat, trying to cut off his air. He stumbled backward, trying to crush me against the wall.

But I held on.

Then he grabbed me by the back of my shirt and threw me off. I crashed into the ground, and the air left my lungs. I gasped, trying to breathe.

Kaelen was on his feet again. He grabbed the guard from behind, with his arm around the man’s throat. The guard reached back, his fist connecting with Kaelen’s face. Kaelen did not let go. He held on, even as the guard slammed him into the wall.

The guard was too strong. He threw Kaelen off, and Kaelen crashed to the ground.

The guard turned to me, with his eyes cold. He reached for his sword again, and I saw the silver blade glint in the torchlight.

The sword swung toward Kaelen fast, and I knew that I had to try my Silvertongue magic again, and I had to push harder.

I opened my mouth, and I felt the power surge through my throat. "Stop!"

But there was nothing, because the guard was still coming, and the blade was inches from Kaelen.

“No!” I whispered to myself. “I would not let Kaelen die. Not here, and not like this.”

With desperation filling my chest, I opened my mouth to scream.