After the Fire (After the Fire: Book the First) Read online

  After The Fire

  by

  J.L. Murray

  Copyright © 2013 by J.L. Murray

  All Rights Reserved.

  First Kindle Edition published Feb. 16, 2013.

  Hellzapoppin Press, Honolulu Hawai'i.

  Cover art by J.L. Murray

  Table of Contents

  One

  Two

  Three

  Four

  Five

  Six

  Seven

  Eight

  Nine

  Ten

  Eleven

  Twelve

  Thirteen

  Fourteen

  Fifteen

  Sixteen

  Seventeen

  Eighteen

  Nineteen

  Twenty

  Twenty-One

  Chapter One

  The forest was moving. Eleni could feel it.

  She crouched down and surveyed the valley, raising her head to sniff the air. Snow was coming soon; the crisp air smelled clean and cold. It was early this year. She scanned the landscape, her eyes sweeping over the impenetrable thickness of the wood, the trees thinning gradually as they approached the dark, sleeping village. Eleni continued, over the iron wall that surrounded the town, along the tall grasses of the meadow. She froze as she saw the grasses twitch, far back, where the forest thickened.

  Eleni started as a black she-wolf emerged, dark as a shadow, and looked up at her perched on the side of the hill. The wolf's eyes glinted, gold in the darkness. They watched each other for a long moment, then the wolf suddenly broke into a run, heading straight for her. She watched as the animal bounded up the slope, its powerful muscles easily closing the distance, then stopped just short of Eleni. Her muzzle shone with wetness and she smelled of blood.

  “What took you so long?” said Eleni, her voice hoarse. She was not used to speaking aloud. The wolf snorted, almost derisively, then turned and stood next to her, fur brushing her shoulder, joining her in looking out over the forest. The usual night sounds emerged from the deep wood: a howl in the distance, the chittering of a rodent, the rustling of leaves. Eleni heard a twig snap and the wolf's ears twitched. A low growl rumbled in the wolf's chest. Eleni looked toward the sound. It was out of place, as though a two-legs stepped on it and then froze. Eleni could see at night almost as well as the wolf, but it was the feeling that told her something was very wrong.

  Eleni moved along the ridge, keeping her body close to the ground. She could feel eyes on her, following her. It was in the wood, close to the village. Not an animal, but something dark and hungry. Eleni nodded at the wolf and the animal instantly turned and slinked off in the opposite direction. Eleni watched her circle around the ridge and head down the slope. The wolf moved slowly and steadily, and could easily be mistaken for a shadow.

  Knowing she had been seen, Eleni stood up, pushing her tangled hair away from her face. Small tendrils of steam rose off her body as she walked down the incline, towards the area where she felt the creature. She heard another twig crack, then a scurrying in the brush. Eleni walked quickly and just inside the first stand of trees, saw movement on the ground. She held out her arm and a bright illuminating flame rose from the palm of her hand. Eleni saw it and curled her lip in disgust.

  “Drekavac,” Eleni said under her breath. The creature's skin was mottled pink and hung loose at the joints. It was completely devoid of hair and its face was round and soft-looking. The eyes glowed green and Eleni sighed as she saw it open its dripping mouth, knowing what was to come. The scream echoed against the mountainsides, a high-pitched shriek that made even Eleni flinch. It went on for what seemed like an eternity until Eleni raised her hand, forming the fire into a ball.

  The drekavac's eyes bulged with fear. It scuttled along the forest floor on long, spider-like legs covered in fleshy skin, making hissing noises as it went. A growl issued from the other side of the creature and it shrank back from the wolf, moving toward Eleni again. In its panic it stumbled, falling over its own legs.

  “There are no babies here,” said Eleni. “There's nothing for you to eat. Go back where you came from.”

  The drekavac hissed at her again, and the wolf bared her teeth, her growl growing deeper and more menacing. The creature's eyes rolled around looking for a way past Eleni, into the village beyond. It opened its mouth and shrieked again and, righting itself, clambered toward Eleni, great pincers emerging from its jowls. Eleni pushed the flame forward and kept pushing, creating a bright orange jet that surrounded the monster, blackening its mottled pink skin. The drekavac thrashed on the ground, the fire that was consuming it scorching the fallen leaves. The screaming ceased abruptly as the beast collapsed, its bones dry sticks, its charred flesh shrinking into embers.

  Eleni approached the smoking corpse. With her bare foot she kicked wet leaves and earth onto the creature, making the sparks hiss as they touched the moisture. She gagged on the stench. Dark creatures always smelled like defecation and rot when they died, but it was worse when they burned. Satisfied that the flames would not spread to the trees, Eleni turned to the wolf.

  “Now we hunt,” she said. The wolf leaned against her affectionately, panting happily. Eleni ran her fingers through her thick, coarse fur. The two, as if sharing the same thought, at once began to walk deeper into the forest, Eleni's gait just as wild and fluid as the wolf at her side.

  They spotted the boar shortly after the moon had arced over the trees above them. Eleni had several ermine and a rabbit laced together over her shoulder. Another rabbit had been given to the wolf. The boar was rutting with its long tusks at the roots of a tree by the creek. The tusks were as long as the squat creature's body. It looked ungainly, but Eleni knew it could be at her in moments with its tusks in her belly.

  The wolf growled and the pig looked up, its small eyes searching. Eleni hunched down, watching through a stand of bushes. She didn't care for the taste of pig, but no matter. It wasn't for her. She would eat the ermine. She crept around the bushes, not wishing to startle the animal. If he startled, she would have to chase it. And it was too close to dawn for that.

  The wolf was quiet now and simply trailed behind Eleni, mist exhaling from her snout like clouds of smoke. The breeze blew Eleni's hair behind her. The boar couldn't smell them, but she could smell it. Wild and earthy mingled with the pungent smell of scavenger shit. She wrinkled her nose. She couldn't understand why anyone could stand the meat of such a creature, but the villagers loved it. They celebrated whenever Eleni brought one home. She could hear their reveling from her little metal room.

  She set her bundle down under the bushes and crawled along on her hands and knees. She could hit the animal from this distance, but she might set the close-growing trees afire, and she couldn't risk that. So little of the forest had remained after the fire.

  She moved smoothly through the underbrush, the earth cool under her calloused hands and knees. The boar was digging at something, but Eleni couldn't tell what. She stopped behind a tree, looking back around to see the wolf was standing guard at her bundle. That was good. She would rather lose the boar than lose her own dinner. And the wolf's belly was closer to the ground, making her an easier target for a sharp tusk.

  Eleni slowly moved to peer around the vast trunk. The boar was digging furiously now. Eleni frowned. A blue glow was illuminating the pig's dirt-encrusted snout. It made a grunting noise every time it lunged at the dirt. Eleni edged smoothly toward the animal, her body now exposed as she moved in for the kill. She made a fist, getting ready to strike. She could feel the fire inside her arm, moving toward her hand, ready to be released. She ached to let it go, b
ut she had to be closer.

  Suddenly, the boar stopped digging. It raised its snout and sniffed the air. Then it stuck its face back into the hole. There was a moment where its body seemed to tense, as if startled. Then it began to squeal, its cries muted by the dirt. Its legs scrabbled, kicking up dirt. It was stuck in its own hole. Eleni didn't miss a beat. She let her legs propel her forward, then she opened her hand and released the fire. It surged forward, both painful and freeing at the same time, a feeling Eleni knew all so well. It felt as if she were breathing again after holding her breath for a very long time. She let the flame flow, thinning its stream gradually, until the boar wasn't screaming or scrabbling any longer. Its body twitched, then fell away from its head, the neck already cauterized by the fire, the bones and singed meat at the wound smoking and crackling.

  Eleni relaxed and went over to examine her prey. Moving past the carcass, she squatted to examine the head still lodged in the ground. The animal had carved out a huge hole , encompassing well past the sides of its head. Maybe its tusks had become stuck on a rock or root. She grabbed the big head by its ears and tugged hard. The head came out quite easily, knocking her off balance and making her fall back into a sitting position, the head in her lap. Then she saw the glow again, a faint blue that intensified as she looked at it, growing brighter and brighter, until she had to shield her eyes. The light rose up out of the hole, radiating as bright as a sun, its center a blinding point of white that flickered like lightning in the mountains. Eleni imagined a strange bird made of light from the way it was hovering in the air, the edges of light seeming to shift like the slow fluttering of wings. It made her eyes ache, but she couldn't look away.

  It hovered above the hole for a moment, almost seeming to appraise her. Then it began to buzz and, so fast that all she saw was a bright blue blur, it shot through the air like an arrow and hit her square in the chest where she sat. Eleni couldn't move. There was a wiggling sensation right over her heart, as if it were burrowing into her. She could hear the wolf barking and snarling madly around her. She couldn't breathe. Then the burrowing stopped and slowly, steadily, a new and strange sensation spread out from her heart. She realized vaguely that this must be the feeling of cold. It was unlike anything she had felt before. She could feel the ice spread through her arms, belly, legs, and then to her fingers and toes. She could hear her teeth chattering.

  She knew suddenly that this was dying. She was being killed by the creature inside her. These were her last moments. She forced her head slowly to the side to look at the wolf. The skin of her neck crackled as she turned, like a crust of ice on a snowbank. There was no sense to this. Dark creatures weren't made of light. She looked her wolf in the eyes. She wasn't barking or snarling any longer, but simply staring into Eleni, her golden eyes providing a spark. The wolf's unblinking eyes bored into her, and she knew then that she had to fight. Fight or die. And she knew how.

  Eleni forced her fingers closed one at a time with creaking, crackling noises. She gasped at the pain and stiffness. And as she gasped, she could suddenly feel air filling her lungs again. This gave her strength, and she felt her hand clench into a fist. She narrowed her eyes, staring at the hand, the knuckles turning blue. She could see veins of ice spreading over her skin like a blue armor. She forced another breath into her lungs and when she blew out this time it was not steam or vapor, but an acrid, bitter smoke.

  Eleni watched the ice recede from her wrist and up her arm. Slowly, her knuckles turned back to their normal color. Gradually, excruciatingly, she brought the fist toward her body. She felt the agonizing pain of the cold tickling every nerve in her body. She breathed deeply again and felt the cold dissipating from her toes up to her knees. She was fighting it, and knew in that instant that she would win.

  With a groan she finally brought her fist to her chest. She exhaled again, the flames warming her lips. She felt the pressure in her fist building, growing more uncomfortable, needing to release. She opened her hand and put her palm to her bare chest, just over her heart.

  She let go.

  She felt the fire release itself through her hand and back into her body. She felt a twitch in her chest as the familiar warmth wrapped around her heart. Eleni pushed the fire deeper and groaned as something clenched inside her, grasping and clawing at her insides. The sensation seemed to tremble, and then she felt the cold inside her lessen. The warmth spread to her chest, then her belly, then her arms and legs. The frost melted from her skin, no longer veined with blue. Her teeth still chattered, but she was alive. She removed her hand from her chest, her arm feeling as if the bones had turned to water. She felt a bubbling where her hand had been and looked down to see a blue watery mist coming out of her chest. It hovered without form in front of her for a moment. Then it disappeared with the wind.

  Eleni sank back onto her elbows, breathing hard. She didn't understand what had just happened. The blue light had been unlike any dark creature she had ever seen. And no creature in the forest had ever gotten the better of her, not even as a child. The wolf approached her and began lapping up the melted frost on her arm. She smelled burnt meat and hair, and saw the boar's head still in her lap, now charred to a crisp. She shoved it away and it rolled along the ground.

  “You could have warned me,” said Eleni to the wolf. She was answered by a doleful look. She stood up. She was feeling shaky, but not as weak as she had felt a moment ago. Her teeth still chattered, but it wasn't the violent, desperate chattering of being slowly frozen from the inside out. Eleni shuddered, but not from the cold. She never wanted to feel that way again.

  She walked over to the pig carcass and hefted it up. She nearly fell, but steadied herself. Without its head it wasn't very heavy. And she had always been strong, especially after starting her nightly activities. Walking slowly over to the bushes, she began to lower herself down to pick up the bundle of smaller prey, but the wolf slid under her and grasped the bundle lightly in her jaw. Eleni sighed with relief. She didn't know if she'd be able to stand back up with the weight of the pig on her shoulder. The wolf started moving back toward the village. It would be dawn soon.

  As they approached the village she felt the prickle of eyes upon her. The wolf growled as they spotted an oddly-shaped silhouette in the clearing. At first Eleni thought it was another creature from the forest, but then it moved and she realized it was a person leading a horse. Krasna's last horse had died ten winters ago, so it was not one from the village. He had seen her, though, whoever he was; she felt it. She gauged the distance to the gate. She could make it past the figure quickly if she dropped the boar. She still felt too weak to attempt to run with the weight on her shoulder. She thought about going back into the forest, but one look at the sky told her that was not a choice. It wasn't about her. If she wasn't back by dawn... She didn't want to think about what could happen.

  Eleni made a fist and felt the familiar pressure. She could still defend herself. Her power was weaker than usual, but it was still there. The wolf was standing, still as a statue, at her side, staring at the figure coming across the clearing.

  “You are quiet,” Eleni said to the wolf. The wolf looked at her, the bundle still in her mouth, the golden eyes calm. The figure approached them. Eleni could smell wind and rain and horse sweat, could hear the quiet padding of hooves on the soft grass. The man was big. Bigger than Cosmin, the biggest man in the village. She put her hand out in front of her when he approached.

  He had a bushy beard and wore a strange, thick cloth around his waist, his leather boots coming up to his knees. He was thick and strong by the way he walked, and under the brim of a woolen hat Eleni could see his eyes sparkling. He smiled.

  “That's something you don't see every day,” he said. He had an accent Eleni didn't recognize. It wasn't from the south, where Eleni's mother was from. And it was very different from the villagers' drawl, more clipped and guttural. Eleni glared at him suspiciously. The man looked down at the wolf, who was being eerily quiet. He looked back to Eleni. �
�Are you all right?”

  “I'm fine,” said Eleni. Her teeth chattered and she cursed herself inwardly. “Are you a Reiver?”

  “Do I look like a Reiver?” said the man.

  “I don't know,” said Eleni. “I've never seen one.”

  “Then how do you know they exist?” said the man. His horse snorted and he let go of the rope. The horse took a few steps nearby and began to graze on the grass.

  “Because Reivers stole our sheep,” said Eleni. It felt odd to be talking to another person. The only other person that said more than a few words to her was Alin.

  “Your sheep?” said the man. “Your family's?”

  “They belong to my village,” she said.

  The man took off his hat. His hair was dark and mussed. “I'm not a Reiver,” he said. “I was looking for something, but I lost it.” He frowned. “Where are your clothes?”

  Eleni looked down at herself. The weight of the boar's carcass on her shoulder was making her ache. She could feel the morning coming. Any second now the light would be coming over the mountain. “I have to go,” she said. She started edging around him.

  “Wait,” he said. “I won't hurt you. Here,” he said. He took off his thick, woven outer coat. He took a step toward her. She made a fist and a ball of flame appeared in her hand when she opened it. The man stopped. His eyes shone in the morning light. He looked from Eleni's hand to her face.

  “You can't hurt me,” said Eleni. “Men have tried before.”

  The man's voice was quiet when he spoke. “I don't want to hurt you. I just want to give you my coat. You're shivering.”

  “I'm not cold,” she said defensively. “There was something in the forest. It got inside me.”

  The man raised his eyebrows. “Was it blue?”

  “Yes,” said Eleni.

  He stared at her. He rubbed his beard with his knuckles. “No one has ever survived a strago,” he said. “It took me out of my way. I've been tracking it for several days now. How did you get it out?”