Chapter 114: The Road Home
The road stretched beneath the horses as the expedition made its way back toward the heart of the Empire.
Kael rode near the front.
The wooden box containing the strange fragment remained secured beneath his coat.
He hadn’t opened it since leaving the province.
He wasn’t sure whether that was caution or instinct.
Behind him, the soldiers traveled quietly.
Torren eventually broke the silence.
"How long until we reach the capital?"
Kael glanced toward the road ahead.
"Two days if we keep this pace."
Torren groaned.
"Two days."
Lyra looked at him.
"You wanted to come."
"I wanted to investigate the river. I didn’t realize investigating it meant riding for days afterward."
One of the soldiers laughed.
Torren looked back.
"You find that amusing?"
The soldier quickly looked away.
Kael allowed himself a faint smile.
The journey had become quieter after leaving the province.
No strange noises.
No missing villagers.
No movement beneath the river.
For the first time in days, Kael could think about something other than what had been hidden beneath the water.
Then he noticed something ahead.
A broken wagon.
Kael raised his hand.
The entire group slowed.
The wagon stood crookedly beside the road.
One wheel had been torn away.
Several wooden crates were scattered across the dirt.
Kael dismounted.
"Stay here."
Torren followed him anyway.
Kael looked at him.
"You heard me."
Torren stopped.
"I’ll stay."
Kael walked toward the wagon.
There was no driver.
No horses.
The crates had been opened.
Some were empty.
Others still contained grain.
Kael crouched beside the road.
Footprints.
Several people had passed through.
Some were boot prints.
Others were deeper.
Kael touched the soil.
Fresh.
He stood.
"Someone attacked them."
Lyra approached carefully.
"Bandits?"
Kael looked at the tracks.
"Perhaps."
He followed the trail into the woods.
A short distance later, he found a torn piece of cloth caught on a branch.
Then another.
Then blood.
Kael stopped.
A faint sound came from deeper in the forest.
A child crying.
Kael immediately moved toward it.
"Wait."
The soldiers followed.
They found three people hiding beneath a fallen tree.
An elderly man.
A young woman.
And a boy who couldn’t have been older than ten.
The woman clutched the boy against her chest.
When she saw Kael’s armor, fear crossed her face.
"Please..."
Kael lowered his weapon.
"We’re not here to harm you."
The elderly man stared at the Imperial insignia.
"Soldiers?"
"Yes."
"Then we’re saved."
Kael crouched.
"What happened?"
The old man looked toward the road.
"Monsters."
Kael’s expression changed.
"What kind?"
"We don’t know."
The woman shook her head.
"They came from the hills."
"How many?"
"Five."
Kael looked at the blood on the woman’s sleeve.
"Are you injured?"
She shook her head.
"Not mine."
Kael glanced at the boy.
The child was trembling.
Kael stood.
"Where are the others?"
The old man’s eyes lowered.
"Dead."
Kael looked toward the road.
The expedition had already taught him there were problems the Empire couldn’t solve quickly.
Now he was seeing another one.
Monsters were appearing farther from the northern territories.
That was unusual.
Kael looked toward the hills.
"Did they follow you?"
The old man shook his head.
"We don’t think so."
"Then where did they go?"
He pointed toward the opposite side of the forest.
"They went toward the village."
Kael turned.
"How far?"
"Less than an hour."
Kael looked at his soldiers.
"Prepare yourselves."
The soldiers immediately checked their weapons.
Torren sighed.
"We’re supposed to be going home."
Kael mounted his horse.
"We are."
He looked toward the distant hills.
"After we deal with this."
The village appeared before sunset.
Smoke rose from several rooftops.
Kael immediately noticed something wrong.
The village gate was open.
Nobody stood watch.
The horses became restless.
Kael dismounted.
"Stay together."
They entered slowly.
The streets were empty.
A basket lay overturned beside a well.
A door swung open in the wind.
Then a scream came from somewhere ahead.
Kael drew his sword.
"Move."
The soldiers rushed forward.
A creature burst from between two houses.
It was larger than a wolf.
Its body was covered in rough gray hide.
Two curved horns extended from its skull.
Its mouth opened.
Rows of jagged teeth filled it.
Kael stepped forward.
The creature charged.
Kael met it head-on.
His sword struck its foreleg.
CLANG!
The blade bounced off the hide.
Kael immediately shifted his stance.
The creature swung its claws.
Kael ducked.
The claws passed above his head.
He drove his shoulder into its chest.
Ice spread across his arm.
The creature staggered.
Kael spun and struck again.
This time, ice covered the blade.
The sword pierced through the creature’s shoulder.
It roared.
Two more emerged from the alley.
"Three!"
Lyra shouted.
Kael pulled his sword free.
"Take the left."
Lyra nodded.
The soldiers split.
The village erupted into battle.
Kael slid across the dirt beneath the creature’s attack.
Ice formed beneath his feet.
He accelerated.
The creature turned too slowly.
Kael launched himself upward.
His body twisted in the air.
He brought his sword down across its neck.
The creature fell.
Kael landed heavily.
The second creature charged him.
He raised his hand.
Ice exploded from the ground.
The creature’s legs froze.
Kael stepped forward and finished it with a single strike.
The final creature fled.
Kael looked toward the soldiers.
"Don’t let it reach the hills."
Two soldiers chased after it.
The village became quiet again.
Kael breathed slowly.
He looked at the bodies.
Then toward the frightened villagers emerging from their homes.
Nobody cheered.
They simply stared.
An old woman stepped forward.
"Thank you."
Kael nodded.
"Are there more?"
She shook her head.
"We don’t know."
Kael looked toward the hills.
That answer bothered him.
He turned toward the soldiers.
"Search the village."
They spread out.
Within minutes, they found tracks.
Not three creatures.
Many.
Kael crouched beside them.
The tracks led toward the hills.
Then stopped.
He looked at the broken trees beyond them.
Something was gathering out there.
Kael stood.
"Torren."
"Yes?"
"How many villages are along this road?"
Torren thought for a moment.
"At least twelve."
Kael looked toward the horizon.
"And how many have soldiers stationed nearby?"
Torren’s expression slowly changed.
"Not enough."
Kael said nothing.
He looked at the frightened villagers.
Then at the road.
Then at the hills.
The expedition had begun with a river.
It had ended with something else.
A problem spreading beyond the reach of the Empire’s ordinary forces.
Kael mounted his horse.
"We’re leaving at dawn."
Torren frowned.
"Back to the capital?"
Kael looked toward the road.
"Yes."
"And the other villages?"
Kael’s eyes remained fixed ahead.
"We can’t protect every village ourselves."
He paused.
"Not like this."
Then he rode on.
Behind him, the village slowly returned to life.
But Kael carried one more thought with him toward the capital.
The Empire had armies.
It had guards.
It had nobles.
It had officials.
Yet there were still people waiting on roads like this one, hoping that someone would come when monsters appeared.
Kael didn’t yet know what the answer was.
But the problem had finally given him a question worth remembering.