Faith is Fallen (Broken Fantasies Series)

Chapter 17

Author's Note: A big thanks to everyone who's read, voted, and/or commented so far.  You are gems.

Valerius walked through the thick woods, frowning at the way an army in the distance destroyed the peace and solemnity of the natural world around him. He turned to give them a wide berth, when he stopped cold, his blood alive with sensation—a fellow magic user, and a powerful one at that. Why, he'd never sensed anything so powerful in his life!

Now, this, he had to investigate.

He turned in the direction of this magical powerhouse, realizing with a deeper frown that the annoying army lay in the same direction. "Well, doesn't that just figure."

He snapped his walking still at attention, and marched forward, whistling a jaunty tune.

#

Reaching the edge of the forest, Valerius peeked out. "What a pack of barbarian behemoths." And with a wicked grin, he stepped forward, walking straight into the army's numbers, continuing his jaunty tune from earlier.

At first, some of the warriors looked at him strangely, as if deciding if they should attack. It was probably a testament to his peculiarities that they seemed undecided. Then, with a wink and a wave of one hand, he turned all of their weapons into snakes.

He laughed a jolly—okay, maybe maniacal—belly laugh as he strolled through the camp, watching as grown men shrieked and danced around the slithering serpents. Other more stalwart men tried stomping on them, but they weren't your ordinary snakes, and they were as strong as they steel they'd been summoned from.

Eventually, they all scattered, leaving him among catapults, camp fires and discarded detritus. He walked calm as could be through it all, still whistling his jaunty tune, a great big smile on his face for his little prank.

Oh, how he loved a good prank!

#

Cara waited until Conall got two steps from the door before looking finding a way back to the wall again. What could she say? She was curious. And she had every intention of being on that wall to greet whoever showed up. With or without Conall's permission.

She took a side exit she'd found two weeks ago, and made a mad dash across to the wall, surprised by the quiet that greeted her. When she got to the top of the wall, no one noticed her. They were all staring at the other side of the wall, so it was no sweat to lean between two men to get a peek herself.

In front of the gate stood a single man. The entire army seemed to have dispersed while Conall had been dragging her back inside. So much for the danger. The man seemed tall, or at least held himself in such a way that it gave the illusion of height. From her angle, she could see little else, but she could sense it. That man had magic.

#

Niall watched as the entire enemy army ran away like a bunch of little girls. He didn't know whether to cheer or laugh, so he did neither. Conall hadn't returned yet, off doing God only knew what.

A single man in strange garments walked up to the wall, and called out to them in English. "Ho, there!"

"What business have you here, sir?" Niall called back.

"Is that any way to treat someone who's handled your little siege problem for you?"

Niall frowned, not being able to deny that truth. He didn't know who this man was, but his appearance did seem to have spelled the end of the siege.

#

The man spoke in a language she didn't understand. English, maybe? She'd started to pick up a bit of the language, but true understanding would take time. Cara leaned forward, opening her mouth to speak up, when arms came from behind her, pulling her back, and keeping her quiet.

"Oh, no you don't. You are not exposing yourself to some unknown, clearly dangerous, element," Conall said.

Cara squirmed until she could face him, then walloped him on the arm again.

"Ow."

"And seeing how he turned back an entire army but has tried nothing against us, I think we should give him the shadow of a doubt."

"Cara," he pleaded.

"No. And try to silence me one more time, and I'll hit you somewhere it'll have you rolling on the ground for a good, little while."

Conall let go, but stood at her back.

"Hello, there," she called down in Gaelic.

The man turned her way, tilting his head like a dog for a moment before nodding. "Gaelic, yes? I'm not as familiar with that language, but I can speak it."

"What business have you here?"

"Did you not just hear your dog ask the same question?"

"And does it being asked twice make it more or less valid?"

"Touché," he said, bowing deeply. "I am called Valerius, and I mean no one here any harm. I am merely traveling and came upon your situation here. I do realize that you could have handled the situation just as easily, but I do so love my practical jokes."

Then everyone turned to her, the man's statement putting together puzzle pieces she would much rather they never find, let alone put together into a recognizable picture.

"Please, come in and be welcome," she said, leaning back into Conall for comfort, safety. She didn't fear the man on the other side of the gate, but his statement did suddenly make her feel exposed.