POV: Kael
Mara shoved me out the carriage's back door while Sir Gareth was still talking to her driver.
"Go! I'll distract them!" she hissed.
"But—"
"GO!"
I hit the ground running and didn't look back. Behind me, I heard Mara's voice, loud and dramatic: "Sir Gareth! I demand to know why you're stopping a noble's carriage! This is outrageous!"
Her theatrics bought me precious seconds. I sprinted into the forest lining the road, branches clawing at my face and arms.
"She went into the woods!" a knight shouted.
"After her! Don't let her escape again!"
My heart hammered against my ribs. How many times could I keep running before my luck ran out?
"There's a village ahead," Leo said urgently. "I can sense... people. Lots of them. Maybe we can hide there."
"Hide? With my face on every wanted poster in the kingdom?"
"Better than getting caught in the open!"
He had a point. I changed direction, following Leo's guidance. Minutes later, I burst out of the tree line into a small village. Market day. People everywhere—shopping, talking, laughing. Perfect.
I pulled my hood up and tried to blend into the crowd, walking quickly but not running. Running would draw attention.
"Calm down," Leo coached. "Your heart is beating so fast I'm getting dizzy. Breathe. Look normal."
"I don't FEEL normal!"
"Fake it."
I slowed my breathing and pretended to browse a fruit stand. The merchant barely glanced at me. Good. Maybe this would work.
Then I saw them.
Three knights pushed through the crowd, checking faces. One of them held a wanted poster—my poster. They were methodical, working their way down the street, getting closer with each passing second.
"Back alley," Leo whispered. "Ten feet to your right."
I casually turned and walked toward the narrow space between two buildings. Almost there. Almost—
"You!"
I froze. One of the knights pointed directly at me.
"Stop right there!"
Everyone in the market turned to look. My cover was blown.
I ran.
The alley was narrow and twisting. I knocked over barrels and crates behind me, trying to slow the knights down. Their heavy armor clanked as they gave chase.
"Dead end ahead!" Leo warned.
He was right. The alley ended at a tall wooden fence. Too high to climb quickly.
I spun around. The three knights blocked the only exit, swords drawn. They walked toward me slowly, confident.
"Nowhere to run now, little thief," the tallest one said.
My back pressed against the fence. My hands shook as I drew Leo from my belt. The sword felt impossibly heavy.
"I'm not a thief," I said, voice trembling. "Sir Gareth is lying!"
"That's what they all say," another knight replied. "Now drop the weapon and come quietly."
"Don't drop me," Leo said. "Whatever you do, don't drop me."
"Leo, I can't fight three trained knights! I'll die!"
"No. You won't. Trust me."
"I—"
"Kael." His voice became gentle. Certain. "Close your eyes."
"WHAT?!"
"Close your eyes. Let me guide you. Stop thinking. Stop being afraid. Just feel. Feel me. Feel the connection between us. Let it flow."
The knights were ten feet away now. Nine. Eight.
"This is insane!" Tears streamed down my face.
"Do you trust me?"
Did I? This talking sword who'd been stuck in a cave for a century? This grumpy voice in my head who complained about everything?
Yes. Against all logic, I did.
I closed my eyes.
"Good," Leo whispered. "Now... dance with me."
The first knight attacked.
I didn't see him move. But I felt it—through Leo, through our connection. I sensed the sword coming from my right, high, aimed at my shoulder.
My body moved on its own. I sidestepped, raised Leo, and blocked. The impact rang through my arms, but I held firm.
"Perfect! Again! Left side, low!"
I pivoted. Another block. The metal-on-metal sound echoed in the alley.
"Now push forward! Make him back up!"
I pushed. The knight stumbled, surprised.
"YOU'RE NOT THINKING!" Leo cheered. "You're FEELING! This is it! This is how it's supposed to work!"
The second and third knights attacked together. In my mind's eye—or maybe through Leo's senses—I saw their movements like shadows. Predictable. Slow.
I ducked under one swing. Spun away from another. My feet found the perfect footing without me telling them where to go. Leo's blade deflected every strike with minimal effort.
"We're dancing," I whispered, finally understanding. "It's like dancing."
"Exactly! And I'm a really good dance partner!"
Despite everything, I laughed. The sound surprised me—and the knights.
"She's toying with us!" one snarled.
They attacked more aggressively. Faster. Harder.
It didn't matter.
Leo and I moved as one being. Every block flowed into a dodge. Every dodge positioned me for the next block. We weren't trying to hurt them—just defend, evade, survive.
"Disarm the tall one," Leo instructed. "Twist your wrist when his blade connects. I'll do the rest."
I did. The knight's sword went flying out of his hand, clattering against the alley wall.
"Now the one on your left. Kick his knee—not hard! Just enough to knock him off balance!"
I kicked. He went down with a grunt.
The third knight backed away, eyes wide behind his helmet. "What ARE you?"
I opened my eyes. All three knights were disarmed or down. Not a single cut on me. Not even a scratch.
"I'm just a girl," I said quietly. "With a really good partner."
The knight turned and ran.
The tall one scrambled to his feet, grabbing his companion. "Retreat! She's more dangerous than Sir Gareth said!"
They fled, leaving me alone in the alley.
I stared at Leo, heart still racing. "We did it. We actually did it!"
"WE did it," Leo emphasized. "Not me. Not you. We. Together."
Pride swelled in my chest—something I hadn't felt in years. I wasn't worthless. I wasn't a failure. When Leo and I worked together, we were unstoppable.
"Thank you," I whispered to the sword.
"Thank YOU. For trusting me. For not giving up."
I smiled and wiped my tears. Maybe we really could survive this. Maybe—
"Well, well. That was quite impressive."
I spun around.
A woman stood at the alley entrance. She wore dark leather armor and carried multiple weapons. A bounty hunter, definitely. But what made my blood run cold was the way she looked at Leo.
With recognition. And hunger.
"Stormbringer's Echo," she said softly. "I've been hunting legends of that blade for ten years. And here you are, in the hands of a child."
"I'm not a child!"
"You're not the sword's true wielder either. That weapon is wasted on you." She drew two daggers. "Give it to me peacefully, and I'll let you live. Fight, and I'll take it from your corpse."
"Run," Leo said urgently. "Kael, this woman is different. She's REALLY dangerous. I can sense it. We need to—"
"I'm not running anymore!" I raised the sword. "I'm tired of running!"
"Kael, don't be stupid—"
"Brave words," the woman said. "Let's see if you can back them up."
She moved.
Fast. Impossibly fast. Faster than the knights, faster than the bandits, faster than anything I'd ever seen.
"BLOCK HIGH!" Leo screamed.
I blocked, but barely. Her dagger screeched against Leo's blade, inches from my face.
"Roll left!"
I rolled. Her second dagger stabbed the ground where I'd been.
"She's too fast!" I gasped. "I can't keep up!"
"You have to! Focus! Feel her movements like you felt the knights!"
But I couldn't. She was too skilled. Too experienced. While the knights had been predictable, she was chaos—constantly changing angles, feinting, attacking from impossible directions.
A dagger sliced across my arm. Pain exploded. Blood soaked my sleeve.
"KAEL!"
"I'm okay!" I wasn't okay. My arm burned like fire.
"The roof!" Leo shouted. "That crate! Climb!"
I jumped on a crate, then grabbed a window ledge, pulling myself up to the low roof. The bounty hunter followed effortlessly, landing beside me in a crouch.
"Clever. But pointless."
We fought across rooftops, jumping from building to building. She was pushing me toward something—I realized too late it was the village square. Where everyone could see us.
Where Sir Gareth's knights were gathering.
I landed hard in the square. Merchants scattered. Children screamed. And suddenly, I was surrounded.
The bounty hunter stood on one side. A dozen knights on the other. And pushing through the crowd, face twisted with triumph, was Sir Gareth himself.
"End of the line, Kael," he said. "Surrender the sword, or everyone in this village suffers."
My hands shook. My injured arm dripped blood. I was exhausted, hurt, and completely trapped.
"Leo?" I whispered desperately. "What do we do?"
Before he could answer, a new voice rang out across the square. Young. Male. Confident.
"Actually, I think you're the ones who should surrender."
Everyone turned.
A boy stood on a rooftop—maybe seventeen, with messy hair and a cocky grin. He held a bow with an arrow already nocked, aimed directly at Sir Gareth.
"Who are you?!" Sir Gareth demanded.
The boy smiled wider. "Name's Riz. And I REALLY don't like bullies."
He released the arrow.