Of Ash and Amber: The Last Lyandan Wolf

Chapter2

Her father stood before her, a silver blade protruding from his belly. His lips moved, but only a faint “Iya..” escaped him. Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth as the man withdrew his blade. Her father’s knees buckled, and he crumpled onto the dirt.

Indiya’s lips and chin quivered as her eyes remained fixed on her father's limp body. Tears blurred her vision. For a moment, the world seemed to slow, the chaos around her fading into the distance. Then the tension snapped. Her knees buckled, sending her crashing to the ground. She scrambled forward on all fours, and pressed a trembling hand onto his chest.

There was no movement beneath her palm. She cupped his face in her hands.

“Papa. Say something please,” she choked out.

A shove sent her rolling across the ground, her dress streaked with mud. She covered her mouth as a cough tore through her chest.

One of the men was dragging her father’s body by the legs. Heat surged through Indiya. She pushed herself to her feet and moved towards him. A tug on her dress stopped her. A hand clamped around her wrist, forcing her to turn around. One of the strange men stood behind her, a mocking grin spread across his face. A white-crested badge caught her attention on his uniform. Two words were stamped across its center: Silver Claw.

“A girl wants to save her dead daddy,” he said, mimicking a baby voice. The other men erupted in laughter. The skin around her wrist reddened as Indiya struggled to free herself. He beckoned to another man, who handed him a pair of shackles. The clank sent a jolt through her.

A burst of orange light flickered across the village. Heads turned. One of the carriages the men had arrived in was on fire. Several men rushed towards it, tearing pieces of cloth from the carriage to beat at the flames. Using the distraction to her advantage, Indiya ripped her wrist from the man’s grip and ran.

Boots pounded behind her, but she kept running through the valley. Smoke blurred her vision as she raced through the darkness. The footsteps eventually faded behind her, but she kept going, her chest heaving and her legs growing weak.

Ahead, a broken tree trunk came into view, the one she had always used for hide and seek. She crawled inside and curled herself into the hollow.

Indiya strained her ears for the sound of approaching footsteps. None came. Blood trickled down her knee. She looked down at the wound, unable to remember where she’d gotten it.

This must be the upper ranks Papa spoke about.

Her father’s voice echoed in her mind. Then came the image of him collapsing in the dirt. He was dead. And she watched it happen. Helpless.

A rustle of leaves snapped Indiya out of her grief. She froze, hoping the threat would pass. But the rustling continued, drawing closer. She searched for a way out, but the tall, slippery grass surrounding the tree trunk would slow her down and make too much noise.

A shadow fell across the ground in front of her. Indiya held her breath as a face slowly appeared above the edge of the tree trunk. A boy covered in soot and mud crouched before her.

“Jeri,” she gasped. She threw her hands around his neck. Jeri hugged her back, his arms settling gently around her.

“I’m so glad you’re okay, Indiya. The whole village is in ruins. Houses and the grasslands are in flames, our people are being chained and thrown into carriages.”

“My Pa sent me to tie a horse to a tree by the stream. When I came back, everything was in chaos. Someone started chasing me, so I ran down here to hide.”

His gaze dropped to the blood on her knee.

“Are you okay?” he asked with concern spread across his face.

“Yes. I need to find my Ma and your Pa. We can’t leave our family behind.”

Jeri hesitated, then nodded and helped her to her feet. They crept across the meadow, using the flames and moonlight to navigate through the darkness. Voices drifted across the meadow. They ducked behind a cluster of shrubs.

Peeking over the leaves, they saw villagers being loaded into a carriage, chains wrapped around their wrists and ankles. The villagers that resisted were kicked to the ground and spat on.

There was her mother. Tears brimmed in Indiya’s eyes as one of the men shoved her mother, sending her to her knees.

Indiya’s heart hammered in her chest. Before Jeri could stop her, she clenched her fists and charged towards the line.

“Mama!”

Heads turned towards her. Her mother’s wide, terrified eyes met hers for a brief moment before a heavy boot slammed into Indiya’s ribs, sending her sprawling across the ground.

The same man who had gripped her wrist earlier towered above her with a sword in his hand.

“You’re a pest, you silly girl. Do you know what we do for pests?” he asked, raising the sword above his head, a malicious smile on his face.

“We kill them.”

Indiya closed her eyes, bracing herself for the blade as she lay helpless on the ground. The man brought his sword down.

A heavy thud sounded beside her. Indiya opened her eyes. The man's head was gone.