Strange Beasts || Novella

XIV

The City was unlike anything Raina imagined it to be. The first thing that hit her was the overwhelming smell and noise. Akkian made them wait until nightfall as it meant the night market would be running which was usually far busier and filled with far more questionable characters than those that ran throughout the day.

They walked on through attempting to keep to themselves. Akkian occasionally had to fend off sellers who would approach them, but for the most part, they had little difficulty as they made their way. It was almost too easy, a thought that both Akkian and Raina seemed to be sharing at that moment.

Considering how quickly Fassa's minions had found them earlier, it was surprising just how quickly they had managed to get into the City walls. It was at that point that Raina should have pulled Akkian to the side, but of course, she had to follow the orders and keep her head down.

The Castle was now in view, tall domineering, every part of it somehow both consuming and radiating darkness at the same time. There was nothing about it that made the children feel particularly safe and in fact Raina took to clutching the small dagger she had concealed a little tighter.

"Halt!" A voice called.

"Keep calm, remember the plan," Akkian said without moving his lips. Then to the oncoming guard he offered a small wave.

"Is there an issue?" He asked as the man approached them staring at the two cloaked children sitting on the back. Raina let her foot gently nudge her brother's to remind him that he was not alone.

"What reason have you to visit at this hour?" The guard asked in return. His voice sounded familiar but Raina didn't want to look up to check in case she risked getting caught. A small hissing sound grabbed her attention. A two headed dark scaled viper slithered from behind the guard's neck, too small for the Knight to notice, but definitely easy to spot by the two children.

Something about the viper seemed all too familiar. It too, took interest in the Beast that they were travelling on, namely the two passengers it carried. Raina clutched onto the silver mane, her mind racing. There was no way she could alert Akkian without drawing more attention to herself, but a gold shimmer in the viper's eyes was enough for her to realise why they looked so familiar.

"Do you trust me?" Raina whispered in her brother's ear. Rami stiffened at her voice, but gave a small nod. "Find Grammy. Follow Akkian's instructions and I'll come find you okay?" she continued. Every part of her didn't want to separate from her brother, but after finding their grandmother, her second priority was maintaining his safety.

"Rainy," Rami breathed in reply, but Raina wasn't allowing any objections. Once she set her mind to a plan, there was no changing it. She slipped her hand into her pocket and felt some of the small pin like daggers that Akkian had given them both in case of capture. Now Raina was never one who claimed to be the best at sport, but here she relied on her own incompetence as she aimed at the guard's head.

"Find Grammy. Use the distraction. I'll find you. I promise." She said in reply. Truth be told, she wasn't certain if that was entirely true. But all she did know was the danger they were about to face was far greater than what was indoors. She hoped that the distraction would cause more guards too look her way instead of follow her brother.

The viper hissed again, trying to find another angle so that it could look into the hoods. It was then that Rami spotted the golden glint in its eyes and immediately recognised it as his sister did.

"Rainy they're the Beasts that followe-"

But Rami wasn't allowed to complete his sentence once again. In that moment the viper made eye contact with Raina recognising her for who she was. A few things happened at the same time here. Raina whispered a farewell to her brother and lunged off the Beast giving it a good nudge to go onwards. She aimed herself at the guard and much to Akkian's horror, plunged the small danger in his shoulder. It wasn't enough to stop him completely, but it did allow the viper to be thrown into the air in response.

"Raina?!" Akkian yelled over the commotion, but above them the Beast was already transforming; it's master materialising from the shadows. Hands scrambling, Raina pulled onto the Knight's cloak and dragged him in the opposite direction away from the castle. Panting, they both found a small second of respite behind a stall selling some oddly smelling daisies.

"What happened to sticking to the plan?!" Akkian demanded furiously slamming his fist against the ground. Raina glanced at him with a small shrug. They barely had a moment to themselves for she wanted to keep the attention in the market and away from her brother, but the child still managed a small smirk.

"I changed it."

Whilst all this was going on, Rami urged the Beast onwards, his sister's words ringing in his ears.

I love you Rami.

Be strong.