Heir to the throne

Chapter 20

A dried tree branch snapped beneath the step of one of the invaders. The man's icy eyes were darting about with a fierce gaze as they spoke in their strange language to each other. They circled the area like a pack of wolves searching for their prey. Zyaan's stomach was in knots. The fear of not knowing what happened next was the worst of it.

"We need to run," he whispered to Adhi.

The Akai prince nodded to him as they crouched behind the boulder. Zyaan looked at his sleeve soaked in his blood. His head was beginning to feel heavy, but he knew that they would both get killed if the invaders saw them.

Counting down in their minds, they launched themselves off the ground and pushed as fast as they could toward the trees. A hail of explosions rang out in the forest, some projectiles hitting the ground close to their feet. But Zyaan had realized that the ones who had stopped to reload these muskets had taken some time to do so. If he and Adhi could bait them into firing, they would have to stop to reload their weapons, then Zyaan and Adhi could have enough time to escape.

The invaders called amongst themselves in their strange language. Zyaan didn't know why, but he believed they were calling for their swordsmen so that they could attack while the ones with the muskets reloaded. Their voices were strong and confident, lending to the apprehension that pulsed through Zyaan like poison.

The appearance of a precipice made him shudder. Behind them, the invaders were giving chase. They were strong men, brave men. Adhi's heavy panting matched his own. The precipice grew closer.

"Slide," Adhi said.

He grabbed Zyaan by the hand and pulled him down with him. They didn't slide but tumbled down the precipice like two logs, bumping into everything in their path. Tree roots ripped their skin and clothes. The rocks they collided with made their bones ache. The smell of dirt was close to Zyaan's nose, reminding him of when he and Tayn would go hunting for mud crabs near the seashore. He loved eating mud crabs. His mother used to cook them with lemongrass and ginger. He would sit on the open porch beneath the gloomy sky and snack on them.

The memory dissipated like a tendril of smoke as his body collided with the rocky ground. It could only manage to give him a little comfort in his current situation. He wished he was still home, hunting mud crabs with Tayn. His arm felt numb from the pain, and his conscience was swooning as he continued to bleed.

Moving faster than Zyaan, Adhi kicked up to his feet first and helped Zyaan up. He tottered, but Adhi steadied him with a sympathetic look.

"It's alright, keep moving. Be strong. I'll get you somewhere where we can stop the bleeding," Adhi said as they shuffled along the precipice. Vines and overhanging branches hid them from sight for the moment.

Zyaan collapsed to his knees. He was breathless, panting as he struggled to move. His limbs felt like straw. His legs had no more strength to walk, but he pushed on, knowing that to stop meant death.

Adhi grabbed him by his good hand and pulled him up. He wrapped his arm around him and threw Zyaan's arm over his shoulder.

"Come on. Do not give up. I can carry you, but it will slow us down."

Zyaan heard his words and understood they were sensible, but his body didn't want to cooperate.

Adhi stumbled on a tree root, and they fell forward. Still, the Akai prince managed somehow to keep Zyaan from hitting the ground. He tugged him up, and they continued, the shouts of the invaders growing dangerously close.

"Leave me here and go," Zyaan said to Adhi. "But promise me that when you sit on the throne, you will help my people."

"Be quiet!" Adhi snapped at him, his brown eyes glaring at Zyaan. "If we die, then we die together. I will not leave you behind."