Blood for Blood

An elven warrior fights to free his brother and defy a cruel king. Hoping for feedback.

Chapter one
Ventos

The barks resonated through the forest as the hounds were loosed His calves burned from the numerous hours of running, but Ventos dared not stop for fear of being mauled. He vaulted over fallen logs, slipped past trees, yet struggled to evade the hounds. The soldiers fired arrows into the bushes, oblivious as to where he was. Ventos halted and scanned the area. The soldiers were gaining on him, and he knew he could no longer run. He gazed up at the trees, his mind racing, then began to climb. He ascended with ease and was up in a matter of minutes. Below, the soldier’s spoke to one another, and their torches swayed in the wind to resemble fiery people.
“Where the hell is he,” one soldier said. “He was here a moment ago!”
“Don’t forget what we’re dealing with, Osbert. Wood elves are very smart, and if we aren’t wary, he could kill us within seconds.”
Ventos’s head snapped up as a raven dived at him and issued a raucous caw. A shapeshifter, he thought. Ventos clamped its beak shut, and it clawed at him with its talons. A sharp crack echoed through the air, and the raven fell limp in his grasp, its neck bent at a grotesque angle. Ventos released it, and it plummeted to the ground with a resounding thud. The soldiers were long gone by now, and the only sign of them was the two fires in the distance. Ventos descended the tree as an icy breeze issued through the forest.
They were not far and seemed to be making a detour to the castle. He hastened after them, his footfalls hushed upon the dried leaves and twigs. The voices grew clearer, and he slowed his pace to listen.
“…And we can tell the king we killed the elf,” Osbert said. “I’m sure that’ll brighten his mood. What do you say, Raymund?” He nudged the other soldier.
“But what if the elf shows up to kill the king again? What would we say then?”
“Then we’ll tell the king it was a different elf. Besides, they all look the same. Just look at the one back at the castle. He looks exactly like this one.”
Ventos drew his dagger, and his eyes rested upon Raymund.
“You go ahead,” Osbert said. “I’ll catch up in a minute.”
Raymund trudged away, while Osbert approached some bracken, then undid his breeches. Ventos leapt forward and buried the dagger in the soft flesh of his throat. He let out a low gurgle as blood rose to his mouth, then Ventos pulled the dagger out, and blood spattered the trees and bushes. The corpse fell into the ferns, and the blood continued to pump out of his neck. Ventos wiped the blade clean and approached Raymund. The soldier let out a gasp of surprise as the cold steel pressed against his throat. He let out a low whimper and slowly reached for his sword.
“If you move or make a sound, I’ll kill you.”
Raymund’s hand returned to his side. Just then, the hounds stalked out of the darkness, and issued low snarls at Ventos, who gazed back, unphased. He withdrew Raymund’s short sword as the tallest beast crept closer, its lip curled back into a snarl.
“Call them off, or I’ll have no choice but to kill them.”
“They won’t take orders from me, elf,” he replied, a hint of panic in his voice. “They only take orders from Osbert, who I assumed you killed.” It wasn’t a question.
The large hound pounced at Ventos. He slashed at it with the short sword, and it fell with a crash, blood gushing from its throat. The other two hounds’ glance from the motionless body to Ventos and snarled at him. However, they did not attack, but lay down beside the beast, and emitted low, mournful howls. Ventos and Raymund gave the hounds a wide berth and neared the forest’s edge. It was a tiring walk, and all the while, Raymund hissed curses and threats beneath his breath, but Ventos paid it no heed.
Through the trees, he made out the outline of the castle. Torches shone upon the walls, and the stone glistened. Soldiers patrolled in the towers, and Raymund sighed, relieved. Then a Howl reverberated from within the castle, followed by many more.
“What is that?”
“I don’t know. The king keeps all sorts of things locked up.”
Ventos sheathed the sword and dagger.
“You’ll speak for me, and don’t do anything unwise, or I’ll kill you before you can blink.”
Raymund gave a curt nod as they left the cover of the forest and approached the castle gates.

Chapter Two
Malvin

A sharp pain seared across his arm, and Malvin turned to see one of the soldiers grinning at him, his blade scarlet. The other guards jeered at him, but the king watched, his eyes blank.
“You’ll break soon enough, elf. If you won’t then the other one will. My guards are searching for him as we speak, and if you don’t give us an answer why you’re here, we’ll kill you.” He chuckled and sat back in his throne.
“As if you’re going to let me walk out of here alive,” Malvin replied. “I know how you humans think. You have no honour in you at all. I hate to see your kind ruling these lands.”
“How… how dare you,” he spluttered. “I rule in these lands!” His face turned a deep shade of purple. “You must not mock me!”
“I can say what I please. I’m allowed to speak my mind.”
A sharp pain erupted in his back, and he fell to his knees as blood dripped onto the marble floor. He fought to control the anger that bubbled inside him, threatening to explode at any moment. Then he stood and glared at the king. The smile upon the king’s face faded as he gazed at Malvin, appalled. Then he chuckled.
“You’re made of tougher material than I thought,” he murmured. “Very well then. Guards, take him back to his cell, and make sure he doesn’t get up to anything.”
One of the soldier’s bent down, and removed the shackle around his foot, then led him to the dungeons. It was a long walk, and all the while, Malvin brewed up a plan. They reached the last step, and strolled past the cells, filled with goblins, Wargs, witches, and some pale white dire wolves. Their cage was slightly ajar, and they gazed at Malvin with pleading eyes.
Malvin thought for a while then slipped free of the soldier’s grip and opened the cage. The guards hardly had time to act as the four wolves leapt at them. The men fell beneath their weight, and fought to get them off, but to no avail. Blood spattered the walls and the beast’s fur, and Malvin took his chance to slip past, unnoticed.
“I wonder if this secret entrance is being guarded at all,” a soldier said as two of them entered the dungeons.
“I’m sure there’ll be others waiting for us. The king said there would be.”
They rounded the corner and froze. Malvin picked up a fallen dagger and hacked at the nearest guard. He crashed to the ground, blood spurting from his chest, and Malvin turned to face the other guard, a fiery look in his eyes. He leapt forward and sank his blade into the soldier’s stomach. He gaped at Malvin, then crumpled to the ground.
Malvin went to hurry off, then a heavy weight fell upon his back, and he tumbled to the ground. He was rolled over and gazed into the cold blue eyes of the wolves.

Chapter Three
Ventos

“Open the gates,” Raymund called up. “It’s us, Osbert and Raymund!”
“What’s happened to the elf,” one guard asked. “Is it dead?”
“I killed him! It was a close call, but alas, he’s dead!”
“The king will be pleased! He’s got the other elf in the castle!”
The gates creaked open, and Raymund entered, Ventos close behind. Off to their left was the barracks, but further up, he glimpsed multiple alleyways.
“Over here,” Ventos said, and shoved Raymund behind a wall.
“Please Ser. Don’t kill me. I… I have a family.”
Ventos chuckled. “I won’t kill you, Raymund. I’m not as cruel as your king makes out.”
He took the rope from Raymund’s sword belt, then tied him up, and inserted a piece of cloth into his mouth.
“Don’t tell anyone. By the time I’m gone, you’ll be needing a new king”
Ventos exited the alleyway and strode up the path toward the castle. The two guards gazed at him, warily, and refused him entry. Ventos drew his dagger and lashed out. Both men fell against the wall as blood gushed down their front. He pushed the gate open and entered. There were no guards in sight, and the king gave a wan smile, unaware of the danger. Ventos stopped a few feet from the throne and removed the helmet. The king almost fell from his seat as he gaped at the elf.
“It cannot be!” His voice was hoarse, and weak. “I was told you’d been killed!”
“Your guards were foolish enough to think so. Now where’s my brother?”
The king grinned. “He’s in a cell awaiting his death. You’ll be joining him soon enough.”
Ventos leapt at him and pressed the dagger to his throat. The king issued a low whimper and quivered as the blade bit into his skin. “Where are the cells?”
“They’re down those steps. Now release me!”
Ventos dragged the dagger across his throat, the blade grating bone. The king fell to his knees, blood spewing from his throat. He twitched upon the marble floor as blood rose to his mouth and dribbled down his chin. Then the twitching subsided, and he lay still as stone. Ventos stepped over him and cleaned the dagger off on the hem of the king’s cloak. He set off down the hall and froze. A howl echoed up from the dungeon and Ventos clutched the dagger hilt with such force his knuckles turned white.
Th hall became ice cold as multiple creatures padded up the steps. Ventos’s breath frosted in the air, and he waited for whatever they were. Frost rose, and spread across the floor, concealing it. Then a snarl issued from near the stairs, and a pale white wolf appeared, its cold blue eyes boring into Ventos. Two more of the beasts appeared, and he braced himself for the attack. Then another wolf appeared, yet this one had a rider. Ventos gasped, speechless.
“Hello brother,” Malvin said. “Did the king put up a fight?” he gestured to the corpse on the ground.
“Went as easily as anything.” The wolves glared at him, their eyes wary. “Where did you get these?”
“I set them free.”
One of the wolves padded over to Ventos, sniffed him, then knelt. He hesitated a moment, before climbing onto its back. It raised itself to full height, and Ventos sighed.
“Come on. There’s a way out through the dungeons. One of the guards said so.”
“If the guards know about this, there will be some there.”
“Well, it’s always best to take the risk. Besides, we can deal with a few soldiers.”
Ventos willed the wolf around and followed Malvin down the steps.