The Noble Queen-A Shadow Slave Fanfic

Chapter 805: Two Much to Handle

Being much farther ahead, Nectar reached the land beyond the ash sooner than her Master. Noble watched as the little creature scoured the land for signs of someone or something that might indicate the Hermit's presence.

The floating Saint had become quite reliant on her little relic. Not only was she a second set of eyes, but the little bee could also guide her towards its location like a beacon. Because it was already in the place Noble wanted to be, she only had to head toward her, skipping the need for navigation.

'Like the bread crumbs in reverse. She takes me places I have never been.'

Noble silently activated her Bread Crumbs Memory just in case. While she could still feel the emotions of her family pretty strongly, the rest of Ravenheart was slipping out of her view both literally and emotionally. It was better to have a backup plan in case she stayed out too late.

Behind her, the dull green markers of her flight painted an invisible path home.

'That's better.' Noble heaved a sigh of relief.

The world around her quieted. A few weeks ago, the silence around her would have been close to paradise, but now it felt lonely.

'How quickly things change.'

Once the initial shock had passed, Noble found that getting used to her new power happened quite quickly. Was that the test of every Saint or just a byproduct of gaining power so quickly?

'Perhaps it is both...'

Noble shrugged as she flew over the plains. Soon, they gave way to a basin between the two hillsides called the Cinder Sea. The soil there was fertile, but too far from the geothermal heat of the ash plains or the city of Ravenheart.

The grey, colorless landscape was intermittently frozen, making it impossible to grow crops consistently. That hadn't stopped some people from trying and failing miserably.

Now, only a few abandoned pieces of farming equipment, mostly covered in grey silt, were the reminder of the farmers' folly. The greatest asset the Cinder Sea had to offer was its low, flat landscape that provided space for a wide road.

The pass was the only place where a path could be carved for many kilometers in either direction. And so the hardworking road builders had dutifully constructed a way for travelers to go between citadels.

It seemed that the journey was now being disrupted by someone delivering a very ominous message. The road had only been completed and connected between citadels for a couple of months. Had the construction somehow encroached on this mysterious Awakened's territory? It seemed that whoever it was hadn't wanted Noble to come searching for them.

Or maybe they knew her stubborn nature, and this was a trap? Either was possible.

Noble mulled over all the options as she caught up with Nectar. The little creature had caught hints of trails, but with the frozen, icy ash, there were no footprints to follow if the squirrel had been there.

'There's the road.' Noble spotted the wide path that was a few shades darker than the ash surrounding it. The raised road was made to absorb the limited sun, allowing any frozen precipitation to run off and prevent an icy buildup.

Noble hovered over the dark surface. Even without touching the surface, she could feel the temperature differential. It would provide a pleasant warmth from the surrounding area when traveling.

But Noble wasn't here to sightsee.

'Where are you?'

With Nectar by her side, she floated down across the pavement at a leisurely pace. Her emotional sense extended, feeling for anything that might be watching her. A quarter of an hour passed without any excitement. Then another half an hour went by without a whisper from another soul.

Boredom began to take hold of Noble's mind. She struggled to stay interested when everything around her looked the same unappealing shade of grey.

'I don't know why I expected it would be so fast.' Noble felt a little silly.

It had all seemed so straightforward when she left home that morning. And after her fortuitous encounter with the storyteller, Noble had felt almost certain she would have no trouble locating her goal.

But as the sun continued to move across the sky, the Saint began to wonder if she had been too hasty.

'The message was from two days ago. Maybe they moved on from here.'

Perhaps she had misjudged things. Was the message a farewell?

'Another hour and then I will head back home.'

Noble made the promise to herself. She had thought that her previous preparation had been enough, but she had underestimated just how large an area she would need to cover. With a lack of tracks and her emotional sense not picking up any signatures, Noble had little recourse but to keep moving.

Nectar sensed the change before Noble. As soon as the little bee flitted off, Noble activated her second sight.

Something was moving toward her. It wasn't the Hermit, but the little agent of chaos that Noble had seen once before through Nectar's eyes. Rather than waiting for the creature to reach her, Noble sped across the cinders toward the echo.

It came to a sliding stop in front of her.

Through Nectar's eyes, it had seemed large and foreboding, but now Noble realized just how small it was. From tip to tail, the creature was not even half a meter long, though it still dwarfed Nextar by a large margin. Up close, its face looked like a mouse, with big, wide, inquisitive eyes staring up at Noble. The creature had a small piece of paper in its mouth.

"Matilda?"

Responding to the name, the echo tilted her head. She looked up at Nectar, who buzzed a little higher. The little bee did not want to be caught a second time.

But Matilda seemed uninterested in capturing the relic. She dropped the page, turned to run, and then disappeared into a rain of sparks.

Noble picked up the page, rushing in the direction from which the creature had come as she read the note.

"Go home to your Sheila and the boys."

The writing was the same as the note she had seen earlier that day.

'There is that word again...' Noble noted the reference to Rain. 'Too bad. I'm not giving up when I'm so close!'

The Hermit was somehow far enough away that she could not sense him. If she hurried in the direction from which Matilda had come, then hopefully Noble could get a glimpse of the emotional signature of her master.

Noble rushed forward at blinding speed. Her heart raced, barely willing to let herself think about who might be behind the mysterious legend of the Hermit.

A set of emotions entered Noble's senses. The woman frowned.

'It can't be.'

Half a minute later, Noble caught a glimpse of an image she never thought she would see.

Ducking behind a small rise in the Cinder Sea, Noble tried to make sense of what she saw.

A young man and a delicate lady were exchanging blows, sending each other across the icy landscape.

There was a problem, though.

Neither of them was human.