The Lady of Toryn Anthology (Lady of Toryn trilogy) by Charity Santiago
Authors: Charity Santiago
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one foot and then the other to pull the grimy
shoes on before grabbing her shuriken and sword and strapping them on.
Snatching up her saddlebags and hauling them over her shoulder, Ashlyn motioned
for him to stay behind her.
She stepped out into the corridor a little uneasily;
it was strange that their scuffle hadn't woken anyone else in FLD, but she
figured that maybe the stone walls of the inn were solid enough to be
soundproof.
They needed to get to the airship to get Suki, and the
airship was docked just west of Cosmea. Ashlyn had considered stabling Suki in
Cosmea but had decided against unloading her from the airship just yet- she
didn't want to have to coax and argue the scared horse into the ship if there was
any need to leave unexpectedly.
Kou stayed close behind her as she moved down the
corridor- close enough that she could feel the warmth radiating off of his
body, and for a moment Ashlyn felt uneasy. She didn't want to betray Skye’s
trust again, particularly not if she had to gamble the risk on a complete
stranger like Kou. But if she didn't, and any of her friends- Restlyn, Aik,
Aaron, anyone- were hurt in the effort to gain access to Toryn, she'd never be
able to forgive herself.
She eased down the stairs slowly, making sure that
there were no after-hours tenants running around the tavern. This late at
night, it was ridiculously easy to sneak outside, which both bothered and
relieved her.
On one hand, she didn't particularly want Skye to
catch them and have to go through another round of trying to explain why she was doing what she was doing.
On the other, it irritated her that it was so simple
to get in and out of the inn, especially when sleeping members of FLD lay
helpless in their beds. They were all lucky that she was the first person Kou
had found- who knew what he would have done if it had been anybody else?
As she stepped through the tavern door, Ashlyn paused,
trying to get her bearings. Kou bumped into her from behind, and steadied
himself with a hand on her shoulder. She shrugged it off.
"Not so close," she whispered to him
impatiently, and glanced around, straining to see if there was anyone lingering
in the darkness before she took off for the Cosmea entrance.
Her sneakers made no noise on the hard-packed dirt;
her breathing was low, even and almost inaudible. The creaking of her
saddlebags was the only sound in the still night.
She heard a sharp intake of breath behind her, and
then the sudden jolt of something plowing into her. "Wha-?" she started,
but the wind was knocked from her as she was propelled forward by a hundred and
sixty pounds of determined ninja. There was a deafening clap, like thunder, and
Ashlyn yelped as a sudden heat singed the backs of her legs. Kou rolled over,
dragging her with him, away from the fire spell that had nearly struck them
both.
This was bad. Very bad, Ashlyn amended, feeling
silly for thinking something so absurdly obvious while they were under attack.
Their assailant was either a fellow FLD member or a Toryn assassin, and she
wasn't sure which option was less appealing. If they were caught by FLD, Skye
would surely not trust her ever again and the opportunity to sneak into Toryn
would be lost. If a Toryn assassin got to them…even if they did by some chance
recognize Kou and decide not to kill them, Ashlyn's cover would be blown.
She craned her neck around to see who had cast the
spell, but the blackness was like a cloak over Cosmea. How the attacker had
managed to see them well enough to use a fire stane was completely
beyond her.
Kou leaped to his feet, pulling her up with him.
"Run."
He didn't have to tell her twice. Ashlyn descended the
steps three at a time and hit the ground at a sprint, Kou a solid shadow at her
back. This place was familiar to her, comfortable, and although it had changed
some in the past few years it was still the terrain that she had hiked numerous
times in her quest for stanes. That should give them the upper hand for
shoes on before grabbing her shuriken and sword and strapping them on.
Snatching up her saddlebags and hauling them over her shoulder, Ashlyn motioned
for him to stay behind her.
She stepped out into the corridor a little uneasily;
it was strange that their scuffle hadn't woken anyone else in FLD, but she
figured that maybe the stone walls of the inn were solid enough to be
soundproof.
They needed to get to the airship to get Suki, and the
airship was docked just west of Cosmea. Ashlyn had considered stabling Suki in
Cosmea but had decided against unloading her from the airship just yet- she
didn't want to have to coax and argue the scared horse into the ship if there was
any need to leave unexpectedly.
Kou stayed close behind her as she moved down the
corridor- close enough that she could feel the warmth radiating off of his
body, and for a moment Ashlyn felt uneasy. She didn't want to betray Skye’s
trust again, particularly not if she had to gamble the risk on a complete
stranger like Kou. But if she didn't, and any of her friends- Restlyn, Aik,
Aaron, anyone- were hurt in the effort to gain access to Toryn, she'd never be
able to forgive herself.
She eased down the stairs slowly, making sure that
there were no after-hours tenants running around the tavern. This late at
night, it was ridiculously easy to sneak outside, which both bothered and
relieved her.
On one hand, she didn't particularly want Skye to
catch them and have to go through another round of trying to explain why she was doing what she was doing.
On the other, it irritated her that it was so simple
to get in and out of the inn, especially when sleeping members of FLD lay
helpless in their beds. They were all lucky that she was the first person Kou
had found- who knew what he would have done if it had been anybody else?
As she stepped through the tavern door, Ashlyn paused,
trying to get her bearings. Kou bumped into her from behind, and steadied
himself with a hand on her shoulder. She shrugged it off.
"Not so close," she whispered to him
impatiently, and glanced around, straining to see if there was anyone lingering
in the darkness before she took off for the Cosmea entrance.
Her sneakers made no noise on the hard-packed dirt;
her breathing was low, even and almost inaudible. The creaking of her
saddlebags was the only sound in the still night.
She heard a sharp intake of breath behind her, and
then the sudden jolt of something plowing into her. "Wha-?" she started,
but the wind was knocked from her as she was propelled forward by a hundred and
sixty pounds of determined ninja. There was a deafening clap, like thunder, and
Ashlyn yelped as a sudden heat singed the backs of her legs. Kou rolled over,
dragging her with him, away from the fire spell that had nearly struck them
both.
This was bad. Very bad, Ashlyn amended, feeling
silly for thinking something so absurdly obvious while they were under attack.
Their assailant was either a fellow FLD member or a Toryn assassin, and she
wasn't sure which option was less appealing. If they were caught by FLD, Skye
would surely not trust her ever again and the opportunity to sneak into Toryn
would be lost. If a Toryn assassin got to them…even if they did by some chance
recognize Kou and decide not to kill them, Ashlyn's cover would be blown.
She craned her neck around to see who had cast the
spell, but the blackness was like a cloak over Cosmea. How the attacker had
managed to see them well enough to use a fire stane was completely
beyond her.
Kou leaped to his feet, pulling her up with him.
"Run."
He didn't have to tell her twice. Ashlyn descended the
steps three at a time and hit the ground at a sprint, Kou a solid shadow at her
back. This place was familiar to her, comfortable, and although it had changed
some in the past few years it was still the terrain that she had hiked numerous
times in her quest for stanes. That should give them the upper hand for
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