The Golden Amulet (PJO, Sequel to The Silver Ring)

Chapter 64

My mind was racing with questions. How did they know where we were every time? If there were so many Chaos soldiers in Aurelia, that would probably mean Chaos, Psi, and Jessica were too—but where were they? Were they pillaging the city—or were they just occupying it?

But my questions wouldn't be answered here. Instead, I would have to save my life.

I was pushed out of my thoughts when the sound of armor clinking came as the soldiers advanced. They moved at a slow, steady pace with confident smirks on their faces—as if they knew we couldn't escape.

I agreed with them fully. Every one of the Chaos soldiers was at least twice the size of me and their muscles were the sizes of watermelons. Even worse, Charlotte and Fauvel were considerably large for horses—significantly cutting down the room we had between the two buildings . . .

Suddenly, an idea came to me. Even better, we probably didn't even have to fight the soldiers.

"They won't hurt the horses, right?" I asked Omega.

"I don't know," Omega admitted, keeping his eyes on the soldiers. "I would normally say yes, but that was when I used to order them around. Now, if they're led by Jessica . . . it's unclear."

Don't worry my lord, Charlotte put in. If they attack me, I'll kill them.

What about me? Fauvel asked. I don't have powers! You'll protect me, right?

We'll see, Charlotte told him. It all depends if you annoy me or not.

"Protect me for a second," I told Omega, then approached Charlotte. From the corner of my eye, I saw Omega shift his stance to protect as much of the alley as he could. Still, he couldn't guard both sides at once, so I had to do this quickly.

Meanwhile, the soldiers increased their pace as though they knew what I was trying to do. My heartbeat quickened. They were drawing closer with each ticking second.

I ushered Charlotte to the wall of the inn, making her stand parallel to it. I then looked up, gauging the distance to the roof. Twenty feet. I cursed, and my hands trembled. There was no way I could climb up.

The soldiers were only a few yards away from us. Within seconds, they'd be within fighting range.

But then Omega realized what I was trying to do. In one fluid motion, he sheathed his sword, climbed astride Charlotte, and stood up. The primordial then leaped up, grabbed the edge of the inn's roof, and pulled himself onto it in an impressive show of skill. He brushed some dirt off his clothes and smirked at me. "Advantages of being tall," he said.

But I was now in trouble. The soldiers had reached me, and instead of following Omega, I was forced to turn and confront them. In a flash, Riptide was in my hand.

Fortunately, I wasn't alone. Fauvel attacked the soldiers behind me. He trampled a few of them, kicking and neighing angrily, How dare you try to hurt my masters!

So I was left to fight the six soldiers that I had met in the inn. I had hoped that they would be weak and hurt and tired after what had happened in the inn. Instead, they seemed angry more than injured as they lurched towards me with their swords up.

As our swords clashed, the leader of the squadron—who turned out to be the brute that'd squashed his comrades underneath him—growled at me. "There's no hope of winning this, boy," he told me. "Give up and we'll spare you. You and your measly horse are no match for us."

I was about to argue when I glanced backward—and the words died in my mouth. The soldiers had subdued Fauvel. One of them had grabbed his reins while the four others grabbed his hooves. They hadn't captured him without injury, though. Most of them had horse hoof size dents in their armor, while one soldier was on the floor, unconscious with a lump the size of a grape on his forehead. Fortunately, it didn't seem as though they had any intention of killing him. 

But this had stolen my attention for too long. I looked back at the soldiers who were fighting me—only to find a sword hurtling towards my face. 

I brought my sword up to block it, but the strike was too strong. I lost my balance, backpedaling as I desperately windmilled my arms. I had almost found my balance again when my foot struck a rock. 

It was a big one and it didn't budge as I tripped over it. All at once, my survival instincts took over. Instead of face-planting into the hard ground, I felt my arms wrap around my head as I did a backward somersault to my feet.

I just stood there for a moment, impressed by my dexterity. Maybe I'm fit out to become a gymnast . . . 

Psst! Milord! Over here!

I spun around to find Charlotte right behind me, who hadn't moved an inch. Not only did my somersault save me from caving my skull in, but it also allowed me to retreat back to my escape route. It only took a slight glance back to confirm I had enough distance to follow Omega, who was still on the roof.

I had only climbed onto Charlotte when I heard an angry roar that barely sounded human followed by the sound of metal slicing through the air. I looked back, and my breath caught in my throat.

Six swords were sailing right at my face, courtesy of the squadron that had been fighting me.