Shatter (Rise of the Empress, #2) by C. S. Doraga

Author:C. S. Doraga
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: young adult adventure series, fantasy fiction young adult, youngadult fiction fantasy, coming of age fantasy books, coming of age books for teens, books for teens fantasy, teen fantasy book series, magic, dragons
Publisher: Dragon's Nest Books
Published: 2023-11-14T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

Redrinna paused in her self-imposed drills as the moon drifted out from behind a cloud, faintly illuminating the sleeping forest around her. She lowered her sword after a moment, deciding she could use a brief respite. After all, she was supposed to be guarding against the demon, and she wouldn't be able to confront it if she'd already exhausted herself. Slipping her sword back into its sheath, she scanned the village a few times, hunting for anything out of place.

The demon hadn't gotten the meal it'd wanted, so it was going to come back sooner rather than later. So far, since the demons had first appeared, Chatan said that eight people—all women and children—had been snatched a couple weeks apart, and none of them had been seen since.

As Redrinna studied the village from the midst of the trees, her gaze settled on the shadowy outline of the clinic. It was darker than the massive oak framing it, but there were a couple candles flickering in the pitch-black windows. Somewhere in there were the victims of the demon's paralysis powers, ten men in all. They had to be fed in order to stay alive, but they were like vegetables once ripped from the soil: lifeless and unresponsive.

Redrinna hadn't seen them for herself. She was sure the families of the victims wouldn’t appreciate her barging in on them to satisfy her curiosity, so she'd stayed away.

Despite some people's sudden friendliness to her, most of the village now stared at her like she was a stray they didn't know what to make of. Only Mika and Chatan kept seeking her out—which was weird—but even Ohanzi, the grumpy old man who'd shot her the most glares out of everyone, wasn't being grumpy anymore. He wasn't exactly being nice either, but he let Mika wave to her now.

Briefly, for just a minute, she wondered what it would've been like if the genocide of the Torijin people had never happened at all. If the Empire itself had never been brought into existence, maybe then she and these people would've been friends without a second’s hesitation. Perhaps they could have met without the need to hold each other at knife point. Then again, perhaps not. If it hadn't been for the past, maybe they never would have met at all. In truth, she was still wondering whether or not the fact they'd ended up meeting was good for either of them yet.

Then she shook her head. Thoughts like those were unproductive.

Right as Redrinna was about to start on a walk around the village's perimeter, a familiar, calming presence touched her subconscious, making her freeze. It was then she realized everything had gone quiet—not the kind of quiet when the demon had appeared, but a soothing kind of quiet. Was this...another spirit?

Turning, she nearly jumped out of her skin. An enormous bison stood a short distance away, its massive head framed by some scraggly, low-hanging aspens. A fuzzy, golden glow emanated from its light brown coat, giving it a similar appearance to Matte.

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