Animus Read online

  Animus

  By Kindra Sowder

  This Book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, re-sold, duplicated, hired out, or otherwise circulated without the publisher’s prior written consent in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without similar condition including this condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.

  Bad Reputation

  Copyright © 2018 by Kindra Sowder

  Edited by Edd Sowder

  Cover Art by Rue Volley

  Published by Vamptasy Publishing

  Chapter 1

  “Quinn!” a male voice called in the distance. “Quinn, where are you?”

  I knew that voice, and I knew it well.

  “Victor,” I whispered.

  I opened my eyes, the sunlight filtering through the smoke floating around me, piercing them painfully. I squinted and raised my hand to protect them. The fingerless gloves I had been wearing were burned in places, small holes dotting them. My ivory skin peeked through underneath, smudged with black soot. My body ached like I had been standing next to a bomb when it went off, even my name being shouted through the air muffled and unclear. I moved to sit up, my muscles screaming with the effort, and took in the scene around me. My dark hair whipped my face as the breeze thrashed the smoke around in circles.

  Trees were burned and lifeless, a few of them still on fire. The ground was covered in ash and I was surrounded by the skeletons of those that had betrayed us. We had come to meet with General Maddox Drayk of the army of Paderborn, a dominion located where the former city of Memphis, Tennessee used to stand. I had brought my dragon Apep and commanding Officer Victor Shroud with me along with a legion of only fifteen, as we had come to speak on terms of peace. My own men had turned on me, favoring Paderborn and their objective. I still couldn’t see Victor, and Apep was nowhere to be seen, but since she was covered in ash-gray scales, spotting her in this mess would be difficult.

  “Victor,” I cried, rising to my feet and stumbling a few steps as dizziness took hold. The world swayed around me but then settled as I took another step, shaking the dizziness from my head and closing my eyes. “Victor!”

  I heard footfalls coming toward me and then a hand closed around my outstretched arm. I opened my eyes to find Victor standing in front of me, gripping my arm to steady me, a wild look of terror and relief in his grey eyes. His breathing was ragged, his mouth slightly open to pull in air, and his slightly tanned skin was ashen. Victor’s blond hair was disheveled like he had been running his hands through it with anxiety while his all-black clothes and protective gear were in terrible shape.

  “General Ragnarok, thank goodness you’re alive. Are you all right?” he said as he watched me.

  That was when I felt a small rivulet of blood flow down my temple. I raised my hand and touched it, a stinging pain starting as my fingers grazed open flesh. I pulled my fingers away to find blood. I looked down at my filthy clothes. My leather slacks were scuffed and burned as was my black leather protective camise and black, knee-high boots. My long-fitted trench was the only part of the ensemble that was relatively unharmed beside being stained with blood and ash. My sword was still in its scabbard. I had not had enough time to remove it for defense before all Hell broke loose. The silver handle etched with black dragon scales shone in the sunlight, glimmering despite the filth that covered it. I pulled up the sleeve on my right arm, turning my wrist over to see the communication unit strapped around it -- used for the bare minimum so we weren’t tracked during transmissions. The glass screen was cracked.

  “Yes, yes, I’m all right. And please stop calling me General Ragnarok. We’ve known each other since we were children, for Christ’s sake,” I replied.

  I took his wrist in my hand and turned it over. His unit was in worse shape than my own.

  “Sorry.” His grey eyes penetrated mine then. “They betrayed us. How could they betray us?”

  “I can only guess they got one hell of an offer from General Drayk to do so. Everyone knows they were on the side of those that wanted to keep the Realm of the Long Channel open. One can only assume they offered safety from what they would unleash if they were to open it again,” I explained. My beloved dragon flashed through my mind. “Where is Apep? Have you seen her?”

  “Not after she saved us. I felt that I needed to find you first, and from what I’ve seen, we are the only two that are unharmed,” he answered.

  “I’m sure she is out here somewhere. She wouldn’t have taken off without us,” I said as I turned, attempting to locate her amongst the smoke and embers. Nothing. “Apep!” I cried. “Apep!”

  I turned and settled on a direction to begin moving to find her. From what I could tell, this destruction went on in every direction for at least a quarter of a mile, the fires still burning in the distance and overtaking the forest around us. Her fire had created a massive clearing in the middle of the forest once she had unleashed it, obliterating everything except those who she loved. I walked past Victor, jerking my arm away from him when he tried to hold me there.

  “Where are you going? There’s nothing else we can do here. We have to get back to Archer’s State and report this to the Sentinel’s Council.”

  “Then go, Victor, but I’m not leaving without her.”

  “This is crazy,” he said.

  I had only made it a few paces before I turned back to him, rage filling me, and stalked toward him. He didn’t move or even flinch despite my anger.

  “You can turn back and report this without me if you want, but I am not leaving without Apep. When she chose me, we made a vow that we would never leave one another, and I will not break it now. She trusts me.”

  “How are you even sure she’s still here?”

  “Because of that vow, and this,” I answered as I pulled up the left sleeve of my coat. There was a tattoo etched on the underside of my wrist that had been imprinted by Apep depicting circular flames in black. “We are one, in life and in battle, and I must find her. She would do the same if I were missing.”

  A roar sounded above us as Apep flew into sight -- a fierce, crimson dragon following closely behind. I watched in stunned silence as Apep took on the dragon of General Drayk, which seemed to be all that was left besides us. I knew she wouldn’t have left me. I smiled as I watched her in her splendor, spewing flame at the inferior dragon that couldn’t seem to defend himself properly from her attacks. How Drayk had been able to achieve the status of a general with such a weak dragon, I wouldn’t know. Once chosen, you had to work with your dragon to achieve general, strengthening both your body as well as your relationship. Maybe things worked differently in Paderborn than Archer’s State. It was a night and day difference watching them as Apep circled the small thing, going in for the kill in just seconds. Just seeing this, I wouldn’t have known that Paderborn was even in the same Dominion as Archer’s State.

  The slight body of the crimson dragon fell to the ground, landing not even ten yards from our current position. Apep flew down to us, snorting as the smoke surrounding us filled her lungs.

  “Apep! Oh, thank God,” I cried as I sprinted toward her, Apep kneeling down on the ground in front of me in a reverent bow, lowering her massive head to the ground. I slid to a stop near her head and dropped to my knees, pressing my cheek and hands on her, watching her large amber eyes blinking to see me. “Are they all dead?”

  Her thoughts entered my mind like a soft melody. Dragons and their Chosen could communicate telepathically. A dragon’s mouth and vocal chords were not structured to speak the words of the human race, so this was the only way to speak to one another to relay information.

  I’m not sure. If anyone besides us is still alive, they could still be in the a
rea.

  “What did she say?” Victor asked as he watched our interactions.

  “She thinks we’re the only ones left, but she’s not sure. If anyone is still alive they may be around so keep an eye out,” I answered as I pulled away from Apep, running my hand lovingly on her muzzle as I stood. “We are halfway between Archer’s State and Paderborn as we were instructed, so that’s roughly one hundred and fifty miles to reach home. We need to get moving just in case Paderborn decides to send more soldiers to finish us off. No doubt General Drayk had something on him to alert the Royals if something happened, and knowing how they operate, they would have them waiting in the wings just in case. There’s no telling where they are right now.”

  I searched our immediate surroundings, spotting nothing that meant we were in danger. Not even any of the creatures that had made it out of the Realm of the Long Channel were to be seen here. Not that I had expected it. They tended to stay as far away from Archer’s State as possible, so most had settled in the Western Dominion while others were scattered throughout Archer’s Country. The only ones that remained close to the Realm were the Halflings in Red Bank, but we did not contact them for any reason normally.

  The Halflings were creatures that were straddling the line between the living and the dead, dealing in highly effective poisons and necromancy. I had even heard of the Royals of Paderborn contacting them for such works in the past, but nothing more concrete than hearsay. Not that their involvement with them would be a surprise.

  “Quinn?” Victor said, pulling me from my thoughts.

  “I don’t see anything, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t coming. Let’s get a move on. Apep, are we good to ride?” I asked as I turned to the beautiful beast next to me.

  Yes, I am uninjured, she responded.

  I nodded and turned to Victor, whose eyes were now wide with terror. He had taken a couple steps away from Apep and me, his hands out in a pleading gesture as he shook his head.

  “No way am I getting on that thing. I don’t do heights,” he snapped.

  I rolled my eyes and looked at Apep, who did just the same.

  “Really, Victor? You’re a part of the Sentinel of Hydra and you refuse to ride? How the hell did you even make it this far?” I chided.

  “My good looks,” he sheepishly joked.

  “Come on, she’ll take it easy on you. She won’t even fly upside down or pull any stunts,” I teased. She didn’t do any of those things regardless, but he didn’t have to know that. He knew me well enough, but he didn’t know Apep. Not like I did. So, he easily believed me, his eyes growing even wider and his skin turning a sickly shade of green. “I’m kidding. Now, come on."

  His back stiffened and his body went rigid, his eyes darting to something or someone behind where I stood with Apep. His hand went to his sword’s golden hilt. I turned in just enough time to see a large figure vaulting over Apep’s back and in my direction, a carnal yell ripping through the air as the person struck down with their sword. His long coat billowed around him and I knew he was one of the Sentinel soldiers who had betrayed us. I couldn’t see his face because his hood was up, but I knew it with a burning certainty in my gut.

  I unsheathed my sword and turned, avoiding his blade that bit into the ground when he landed not even feet away from where I now stood. I jammed my knee into his chin and he fell backward, his sword still stuck in the cold ground at my feet. I didn’t take it like I should have. I left it there and pounced on the man on the ground, jamming the butt of my sword into his teeth hard enough to see blood. His hood fell back, and I recognized the man below me instantly. The deep eyes of Damien Blizzard were staring into my own and I became even angrier. He was a part of my garrison within the Sentinel of Hydra and one of the few that rode a dragon like I did. He had been attempting to rise through the ranks but could barely manage to truly bond with his dragon. He didn’t have a tattoo showing their allegiance to one another like the others and I did.

  “Why did you do this?” I hit him again, raising my sword above my head for a killing blow.

  I knew I would need to question him, but I couldn’t stop myself as rage filled me. Damien was a good man. but as I looked down into those eyes and his hard face, I saw something else entirely. Something angry, and enough to betray. I felt arms grab me around the waist and haul me off him, causing me to drop my sword to the ashen ground as I fought to free myself.

  “Quinn, no. You can’t kill him. We need him,” Victor said as he held onto me with all of his considerable strength.

  “Put me down,” I shouted.

  My feet touched the ground, but he didn’t let go. He leaned over my back, still holding me, and put his mouth next to my ear. Damien was still on the ground but was now propped up on his hands. Apep turned toward him, threatening a death by fire if he moved with a growl.

  “I know your first instinct is to maim and kill, but if we kill him now we will have no one to turn into the Council when we make the report,” Victor whispered.

  I sagged in his arms, knowing full well he was right and that I needed to cool off before I did something I would regret.

  “You’re right,” I sighed.

  Victor let go and I took a step away from him and toward Damien, pushing my hair back from my sweaty face. Sweat ran down my back in rivers, trickling down my spine like a waterfall and causing a chill to run through me as the heat in my body melted away. I picked up my sword and walked toward Damien’s that was still sticking out of the ground, taking it in my grasp. The metal was cool and inviting against my warm flesh. With a jerk, I pulled it out of the ground and twirled it in my hand, smiling as I watched Damien’s eyes grow wide with fear. I stabbed it into the ground at his feet and knelt, hand still on the hilt and leaning into it.

  “What did they offer you, Damien?” I asked, letting the hate in my eyes for what he had done flow through the air between us.

  Those at Paderborn had offered him something to earn his betrayal. From what I knew of him, even though he and his dragon had issues, he loved the Sentinel and would never betray us. At least, that was what I had always assumed.

  “I don’t know what you mean,” he answered as he sat up, placing an elbow on his knee in such a casual fashion it didn’t seem that he thought he was in any danger.

  This only angered me more.

  “You don’t know what I mean,” I scoffed.

  I sense a lie, Apep thought. I agreed with her completely. The only reason you betrayed the Sentinel was if someone had offered you something quite substantial to do so. It had to be the Royals of Paderborn. Or the Halflings.

  “The Halflings have nothing to gain from this,” I said, looking to Apep before letting my eyes drift back to Damien. “Only the Royals of Paderborn have outwardly stated that they want the Sentinel of Hydra out of the way to get to the Long Realm of the Channel. They only hate us. The Halflings hate everyone.”

  “You’re right, but they can be contracted to hate certain people,” Victor voiced from behind me.

  I turned and looked at him, not worrying that Damien may get away if I wasn’t watching him. Apep had a firm eye on him, after all.

  “A fine point, but they aren’t responsible for this. The Royals wouldn’t hire the Halflings to convince some of our own to turn on us. Those in the Sentinel are loyal. Well,” I turned back to Damien and my eyes met his, “they used to be.”

  “I am loyal,” he retorted.

  “Yeah? To who?” I asked him, letting the anger leach into my voice.

  His eyes turned away from mine and I knew that the lie was lingering just underneath the surface. I just had to bring it out of him.

  “Victor?”

  “Yes, General,” he answered.

  I shook my head. He knew I didn’t want to be called that but did it anyway. Was it to annoy me, or to show his loyalty in the face of Damien’s obvious infidelity? He had launched an attack on us not even moments after I had found my dragon and my friend. There was something behind that
.

  “What is the punishment for betrayal of the Sentinel?” My eyes never left Damien’s, but his gaze was unflinching.

  He had an amazing poker face. I had to give him that, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t make him fold. There was something he knew about me that I knew could work to my advantage. I had been the one to bring down the only man in the Sentinel before now that had turned on us a few years ago, sending him to the burning pit.

  “Death at the stake,” he answered after a few heartbeats. “The only man who had been punished in this way for his traitorous ways was Alexander Furor, who had betrayed the Sentinel in favor of the Royals of Paderborn. He had hired the Halflings to concoct a poison specifically to take down the General at the time.”

  I turned back to look at him again. Alexander’s turn against us was hard to think about, but what was even harder was being the one he had betrayed. I had only been the General of our garrison for a month or so, and he felt he deserved the position. Alexander fell to the offer of the Royals for a place among them that he felt he deserved in the new world order after they would reopen the Realm. Damien had heard the story and knew who that General was. When I looked at him again, he was staring at me. His hard expression caused my heart to jump into my throat. That was it.

  “Do you think they’d really let you in? The Royals of Paderborn are known for being traitors. They don’t keep promises or hold to oaths. They never have.” I cleared my throat and continued. “You know, when they signed the peace treaty with the Sentinel during the Civil War over the Long Realm of the Channel, they broke it as soon as our leaders turned their backs. They continue to break it. This is a great example. What makes you think they’ll let you live when you’ve shown that you’d betray those around you with just one offer?”

  “They wouldn’t,” he relented.

  There it was. There was the confirmation. He had done this for a higher station because I was able to rise so quickly, and he couldn’t advance at all. His dragon had chosen him, but he couldn’t solidify the bond like Apep and I had. It didn’t happen often, but it did happen, and it was that deviation from the norm that had pulled him away from the rest of the Sentinel.