Cursed by Malignant Magic (Once Upon A Curse)

Chapter 5

Chapter

Five

T he low murmur of voices pulled me out of my slumber once again. My head felt heavy and throbbed in time with my heartbeat.

For a brief moment, I was convinced I was back in Ehuna’s wagon, that everything since then had been a vivid dream. But as I shifted, a stray leaf on the ground tickled my nostril, reminding me that it had all been real.

My body screamed in protest as I slowly inched onto my hands and knees, each movement sending sharp pains shooting through my muscles. Cold, damp leaves pressed against my skin as I struggled to find my balance. But before I could even reach a standing position, a wave of dizziness overcame me, forcing me to drop my head down and rest it against the leaves.

I hated the shivering in my bones, almost as much as I hated the fact that I could barely pull myself onto my knees. Even through my haze of aches, I could hear the voices that had awoken me, and considering the way my luck had been so far, I was not at all confident that the people speaking were anyone I could trust.

If I lay here, I was liable to get even more hurt than I already was, which was the only reason that I managed to push myself up on my hands and knees once more. I was too spiteful to die, even if the pain made me want to lie back down and take my chances of slipping back into unconsciousness.

Up, up.

Finally on my knees, I fumbled with the massive rock in front of me to haul myself upright, or at least close to it. I suppose I was just lucky that I hadn't landed on top of that rock instead of on the ground. The bird might not have been intending to kill me until we got back to wherever it had planned on taking me, but if I’d landed on that rock, I’d be split open like a nut.

True, I wasn't sure landing on the ground had done any great favors either, but at least I was still alive and mostly unharmed.

As I struggled to my feet, using the giant rock for support, I did a quick mental and physical assessment. My head throbbed mercilessly, a familiar sensation that I had grown accustomed to. My magic, usually a comforting presence in my chest, now felt strange and twisted, like a kicked puppy trying to find its way back home. But at least it was still there, pulsing faintly.

A sharp sting on my leg caught my attention as I noticed a jagged scratch that was partially concealed by the gaping rip in my pants. My right wrist throbbed with tenderness, likely from trying to break my fall. Every breath I took accompanied a dull ache in my chest, but it wasn't enough to make me think any of my ribs were broken.

Despite the pain coursing through my body, I was relieved to realize that I would probably live through this ordeal.

I narrowed my eyes against the fading light, turning towards the distant voices. I strained to catch their words, trying to make sense of the unfamiliar language.

The sun, which had been high in the sky when I was captured by the bird, now sank low on the horizon, casting the world in a hazy golden glow. The last remnants of the sun seeped from the sky, painting it in deep purples and oranges.

Over the last day or so, I had been unconscious for nearly all of it, something that Ehuna would never let me live down if I managed to get back to her.

No, don't think like that.

I shuffled toward the voices, hating that the only hiding place I could see was in their direction. I wanted nothing more than to turn on my heel and run, but right now, that was a terrible option. Not only was I in too much pain to move quickly, I also had no idea where I was, nor did I think my mind was up to figuring it out.

The best thing for me to do would be to hunker down here for the night and try to find my way back in the morning, or hope that my magic would settle down enough that I could try to call for help. Unfortunately, that meant I would have to shelter near whoever was out there, and I was not entirely sure I could hide from them for long.

But I had to try.

As the sun dipped below the horizon, tall trees swayed in a gentle breeze. The deciduous leaves glowed with vibrant sunset hues—saffron yellow, burnt orange, and deep sienna red. It was as if they were lit from within, ready to burst into flames at any moment. The evergreens stood stoic and dark amongst the fiery display of colors, their olive and pine branches outlined in soft gold. As the darkness crept in, the shadows at the base of the trees grew deeper and more ominous.

Two figures in shimmering blue and gold Montrose—our enemies—helmets stalked through the trees, leaving me scrambling for cover. I shuffled behind the giant rock, my scratched leg protesting. Hardly the best hiding place available in a forest as big as this, but they were already close enough that I didn't have much choice.

Their voices were not overly loud, certainly not loud enough for me to understand what they were saying, but I could tell that they were both female. Not that that meant anything, other than my magic perking up with interest, which made me flush. Surely I was not so desperate that I would be attracted to some random woman in the forest, although I had a bad feeling that was exactly the case.

I needed more friends, or more affection, because this was getting ridiculous.

One of the figures paused, her head lifting like a wolf catching a scent. I shrank farther behind the boulder, praying that she hadn't somehow caught sight of me.

The voices started up again, much closer, but I squinted as I realized something strange about the voices. There was only one voice, made to sound like two.

The crunch of leaves sounded behind me. I whirled, my vision filling with the hilt of a gleaming sword.

Once again, everything went black.

Thankfully, the blackness didn't last long, or at least not as long as the last time. It seemed like only minutes before I came to again, my arms aching as I was dragged backward. My heels scuffed the ground as I struggled to get my feet under me, weakly trying to pull away. My head lolled backward in exhaustion, my body drained from the events of the last day.

Two helmeted figures led the way, their heads held high as they confidently navigated through a dimly lit hallway. The rough, calloused hands on my arms belonged to two towering men, both far larger and bulkier than me. Even at full strength, I doubted I could take them out.

My drained state left me feeling helpless. As if mocking me, my magic once again surged out of control beneath my skin, black lines swirling and pulsating beneath my gauntlets.

Neither of the men seemed to notice my crackling magic, their attention focused solely on navigating through the maze-like corridors of their stronghold.

"Captured by the enemy. I really do have the worst luck," I mused under my breath, more for myself than anyone else.

One of the men holding my arms yanked me sharply into a cell, and I hissed in pain, pulling one foot up just enough to make him stumble. His grip tightened on my arm, yanking so hard it felt like I was in the bird's grip again, before a voice behind us snapped a command I couldn't quite understand.

Thick, rusted chains dangled from one wall, glinting in the dim light of the cell. They seemed to sway slightly, as if they were alive and waiting for their next captive.

I shuddered, the stench of despair filling my nostrils. There was a small hole in the wall, but not large enough for me to see through as I was hauled toward the wall where the chains seemed to reach for me, dirty straw curling under my boot heels.

I wrinkled my nose, but I wasn't so distracted by the smell that I couldn't yank an arm free and jab my elbow into one of the men. He shouted, and the other one lunged. More flooded in through the cell door, and the next few minutes passed in a mess of struggling before I was finally overpowered and my gauntlets removed.

The chains clamped into place on my wrists, the cold metal biting into my skin, and I pulled a few times just to see if there was any give in them. I found a little but not much.

One of the guards yanked on a chain with a vicious smile, pulling my arms out to the sides so that nearly all of my weight hung from my wrists.

My shoulders burned. I cried out and gritted my teeth to stifle another shout of pain.

The men shuffled out, leaving me in silence. I wanted to call after them, to taunt them, but I had done enough damage to my situation already.

The rattling of the chains echoed throughout the cell every time I moved, accompanied by the occasional whimper or moan of the other prisoners. The sound of my own breathing seemed deafening in the otherwise silent space. The taste of fear was palpable in this cell, almost like a metallic tang on my tongue. It suffocated me, making it hard to breathe, and the twinges of pain in my rib cage didn’t help.

It was just one problem, one pain among many. Just like before, the only way out of it that I could see was to fade into unconsciousness. I was too weak to struggle more or to escape, and there was no one to fight at the moment. Better to save my strength for when it would do me some good. I let my head fall forward and my eyes close, my mind wandering in a vain attempt to distract myself from the haze of pain and magic that filled my body.

The one part of me that had some semblance of thought left wondered if so many injuries would kill me. A magical explosion from some unknown foe, being snatched by a massive bird, then knocked out by someone who I could only imagine was the enemy.

And none of this would have happened, or at least not the last few parts, if I had listened to Ehuna and done what I was told. Ehuna was never going to let me live it down, but that was hardly my biggest problem right now. If anything, I would happily let her rail at me for days if it meant I got out of here.

For now, I could only hope and regain my strength so I could escape.