“I’m sure you all have felt the tension over the past few weeks,” Crucifus went on. “Things are changing at last and I am happy to tell you that I believe there are good tidings on the horizon.”
“What of the strange creatures roaming the Western Realm?” Chardis asked, his voice more raspy than the larger dragon’s.
“They are distressing, for certain,” Crucifus said. “But I have recently returned from the south. At the Keyhole Pass where the Mossy Woodlands meet the Mountain Veil, I discovered a powerful human. A female with bright magic.”
“A human?” Flambra asked. “Can they be trusted?”
“Humans hunger for power to enslave,” Seartus, a large, silver bearded dragon said. “How is this good tidings, Elder One?”
“It is good because I have searched her heart,” Crucifus said. “The magic led me to her. The tension we felt was the beckoning of her power. I spoke with her and it was I who gave her the touch. She is a great healing sorceress, and I believe she will restore the Western Realm.”
“Be careful,” Seartus warned. “Do not let your own desires blind you to the dangers of empowering a human.”
“Why do you distrust them so?” Chardis asked.
“I have known their kind. I have watched them wage war beyond the Mountain Veil,” Seartus confessed. “They have a great capacity for evil.”
“But also for good,” Crucifus said. “Humans do not live as long as the magical races. They do not often venture beyond the mountains, but this one is different. She is a bright spark that will, I believe, ignite a renewal, healing the wounds of the past and drawing all the races together.”
“That is a grand dream, Elder One,” Seartus said, the long, silver whiskers swaying in the breeze as he spoke. “But we must remain vigilant that this human doesn’t turn toward the darkness, as Mastiphus the Terrible once did. I am one of the few who survived his purges, and the memory is still clear in my mind of the terror he spread through the Western Realm.”
“Was the touch recent?” Flambra asked Crucifus.
“Yes, very,” the big, red dragon admitted.
“Then she has yet to discover the extent of her strength,” Flambra said.
“She is still pliable,” Chardis agreed. “We can help to guide her.”
“If she is reasonable,” Seartus argued.
“She is,” Crucifus assured the pride. “We must send forth a party to welcome her, and show her the way forward. I will lead this group.”
“I will go,” Flambra said. “I would meet this bright child of human kind.”
“I too will go,” Seartus said. “Someone must keep a watchful eye if she is as powerful as you propose, Crucifus.”
“Anyone else?” the big red dragon asked.
There was a pause. Most of the dragons in the pride were younger creatures. Most had never known a sorceress, or envisioned a world where magic was accepted and welcomed among all the races of the Western Realm.
“I will go,” Chardis hissed. “I can hunt.”
“You are most welcome, Chardis,” the large, red dragon said as the others nodded approvingly. Chardis was small in stature, but the other dragons trusted the black dragon’s instincts.
“The four of us will fly south to meet the lady sorceress as she returns through the Mountain Veil with her little one. We will report back on her progress and share our insights. Peace unto you all.”
“Peace and good hunting,” the group replied.
Crucifus watched as the others jumped into the air, their wings beating hard as they rose up to catch the thermal updrafts that sent them soaring higher than eagles. Their bright, colorful bodies were a sharp contrast to the dull, gray sky that was thick with clouds.
“Shall we go?” Flambra asked.
“It is time,” Crucifus said. “We fly south.”
The big, red dragon jumped high into the air. It felt good to use the muscles in his legs and to feel the exertion as he flapped his wings. Flambra took up a position to his right, and Seartus fell in on the left. Chardis resumed his place just above Crucifus, and they flew south away from the gloom above the mountains and into the bright sunlight that lit the High Plains in a golden light.
Chapter 7
Feray’s group of travelers reached the Evergreen Forest after a full day of travel. Everyone was tired, except for Luc, who was full of enthusiasm. The three adults had trouble sleeping after the attack on their camp, and Feray had pushed hard to reach the forest once the sun was up. She levitated herself, Luc, and Via across the wide Kinsey River, while Orin led the horses and Rolo across.
They made camp just inside the forest, hoping that the wide river would keep bandits away from them overnight. Orin built himself a large fire by the water’s edge, drying his clothes and watching the group of men who had been following them since leaving Glory Keep. Orin knew the river wouldn’t keep the men from following. He also knew that if they crossed the river under the cover of darkness he would need to deal with them.
“Why are you staying away from our camp?” Feray asked, after Luc had been seen to and was settled down for the night with Rolo. She came walking out of the trees and looked across the wide river.
“I didn’t want them to follow us across,” he said, nodding toward the small fire that was glowing at the tree line on the opposite side of the river. “Not tonight. Besides, I wanted to dry my clothes. I couldn’t really do that in camp.”
He was a big man and the blanket he had wrapped around his waist looked as though it barely reached around him. He stood by the fire, letting its heat keep him warm. His back was to her and she could see the scars from a lifetime of beatings. Old wounds that left rough, unsightly scar tissue on his wide, strong back and thick, round shoulders.
“We can make our way back to the Wilderness now,” Feray said. “We’ll be safe in the Evergreen Forest. If you want to return to your family, I underst-”
“Why do you want me to leave?” he asked suddenly.
“I don’t want you to leave,” she said, surprised by his question.
“You keep suggesting that I leave, as if I have something to go back to. I don’t. I do not have a family, or friends, or a future to return to. I made my choice. I am going with you, unless you don’t want me.”
“Of course I want you,” Feray said. “It’s just, every time you’ve sworn your oath to me it has been under duress. I don’t want you to come because you feel honor bound, or because you don’t have any other option. From here, if you wanted, you could slip downstream and lose those men tracking us. You could have a life in the West March or the Lower Downs.”
“No, I couldn’t,” Orin said. “My father would find me, if he cared enough to look. But that’s not what I want. I’m not just bound to you, Feray. I want to be with you, and Luc of course. I want to return to the Wilderness. I want to explore every part of it.”
She smiled. He was saying everything she wanted to hear and she could feel a heat creeping up inside of her. It wasn’t what she wanted, but it was there nonetheless: passion, a deep, feminine desire for the man with no hands. She felt a terrible guilt and shame knowing that she wanted him, but she couldn’t deny the feeling. It was strong. Not overwhelming, not yet, but strong enough to know that it was real. She feared that it might grow too hot, too strong to resist, but she also feared that it might fade, and that thought made her sad as well. It was confusing and difficult to navigate when she had so much trouble discerning her feelings in regard to Orin.
“I’m glad you want to be with us. And we are more than happy to have you. I too want to explore the Wilderness, to meet the magical races and see the wider world. I like having you close, Orin. I want you to know that.”
“What do you mean?” he asked.
“I just mean…” she wasn’t sure what to say. She hadn’t expected him to respond with a question. “It’s just, you know, I like knowing you are there.”
“You feel safe when I’m nearby,” he suggested.
/> “Yes,” she said.
“Is there more to your feelings than that?” Orin asked.
Feray looked at him. He was still staring out across the river and she was glad he couldn’t see her blushing. She felt the blood rushing to her face and her heart was beating hard. Part of her wanted to declare her feelings for her warrior companion. But another part of her wanted to deny it all, to pull herself from the ledge where she was at risk of falling in love.
“I… I don’t know what you mean.”
“I think you do,” he said. “I’m in a strange place, Feray. I know your husband passed away recently and under different circumstances I would be more than willing to give you time, as much as you need. But I have never been with a woman before. I never really believed that was possible and yet here I am, with two beautiful women. I have to make a decision and I don’t want to do anything that will endanger the bond between us.”
“You love Via,” Feray said, feeling stab of pain deep in her heart hearing him talk affectionately about the younger woman.
It was something she suspected, and she didn’t blame Orin, but she was hurt by the fact just the same. She couldn’t give in to her own feelings, but she didn’t want to be passed over either. Perhaps, she thought, it was better if her protector were just that. A guardsman, a reliable companion in case of trouble, with no romantic feelings to fumble over, but she wanted more than that.
“I know the girl has feelings for me,” Orin stated, still not turning to look at Feray. “I wouldn’t call anything love at this point. Not that I even know what love is. I’ve never been loved and have certainly never been in love with anyone. I fear that I am incapable of love. Perhaps it is better if I hold myself back, but I’m not sure I can. I know I don’t want to. But I’m torn.”
“Torn?” Feray said, with a little too much enthusiasm. “Over what?”
“Between the two of you,” he said, finally turning to face her. “Surely you see that. I would follow you to the ends of the earth, Feray. I would give you my entire heart, holding nothing back. But you are not ready, and Via is so eager. I don’t know what to do.”
“And I cannot tell you,” Feray said. “I don’t know when or if I’ll ever be ready to love again.” She stepped close to him, her hand rose up and stroked the line that ran across his strong jaw. The thick whiskers on his face felt stiff and manly. She wanted to kiss him, to feel the width of his shoulders as he held her close, but she refrained.
“So what are you saying?”
“Follow your heart,” she said. “You have a good heart, Orin. You are a man of honor. Trust in that. Our bond is strong. We want the same things. It is not so fragile that I would turn you away if you choose to love someone else. I have no claim on your heart.”
She smiled up at him. It felt good to wish him the best, whether that was her love and affection, or someone else’s. She just wanted him to be happy.
“I’m still torn,” he said, catching her hand as she stepped back from him. “How can a man want two things at the same time?”
“What man doesn’t,” Feray said with a smile. “You have the freedom to choose, Orin. I will honor and respect that choice, no matter what it is.”
“Even if I choose to be with Via?”
“Of course,” Feray said, hoping that she sounded convincing.
“I have never known anyone like you,” he said. “The only kindness I have known was pity, the only respect was born of fear. This is all so new to me.”
“It’s new to me too,” Feray said, her eyes watering with tears she tried desperately to hold back. “I never thought I would love anyone but Marc. I thought we would grow old together. But he is dead and I am still here. We must find our way forward. Perhaps together, perhaps not, time will tell.”
“I don’t want to do anything that will ruin the bond,” he said again. “It is so important to me.”
“You can’t ruin the bond by loving someone,” Feray said. “If you choose Via, so be it. I will only ever wish you the best.”
“If I did, my pledge to serve you would not change. Nothing can keep me from protecting you and Luc, even if it costs me everything.”
“Then you have nothing to fear,” she said. “Follow your heart.”
She turned away as a tear slipped down her cheek. It was clear what he wanted. He wanted her to be ready for him that very moment, but she wasn’t. She desired him, but she wasn’t ready to love again. And he deserved love. If she gave herself to him before she was ready, she would only be giving him half her heart. And she feared that while she could grow to love him, if they moved too fast she would never be able to forgive herself. She was still broken up over losing Marc and until she was whole again, she couldn’t ask him to live with her brokenness.
She went back into the tree line, moving between the thick trunks and ducking under the evergreen boughs. The tears fell silently and she didn’t try to stop them. It was cathartic to weep over her brokenness and for the missed opportunity with Orin. In time, maybe they could be more than friends. She hoped so, but she wouldn’t let herself stand in the way of what he could have with Via. The girl was young, but she was the same age Feray had been when she married Marc. Orin was older than Via by at least ten years, but what did it matter in the grand scheme of things. If they made each other happy, that was all that mattered.
“Where have you been?” Via asked when Feray stepped into the clearing where they had made camp for the night. Rolo looked up at her, yawned, and set his boxy head back on his thick paws.
“I was checking on Orin,” Feray said. “He is by the river.”
“Why?” she asked.
“He’s watching the men who have been following us.”
“No, I mean why were you going to Orin? Are the two of you…” she let the thought hang in the air between them.
Feray looked around. Luc was asleep near the fire. The boy had no trouble sleeping, he was fine on a blanket and seemed oblivious to the rocks and roots that always managed to dig into Feray’s back when she slept outdoors. Rolo lay next to Luc, his eyes closed but his ears up to catch the slightest noise that he deemed out of place. All around the small campsite the forest was dark. Feray couldn’t sense any animals nearby, and the magic she felt around her was strong, but quiet. It didn’t swirl or flow. She had the sense that she was sitting in a deep pool of water, with no outside influences to make the water move, which only made the questions between herself and Via seem more serious.
“Are we lovers?” she said, finally voicing the question she knew the younger girl was anxious to ask. “No, we are not.”
“I just thought… I mean, Orin is really amazing and I didn’t want to intrude.”
“Orin can make his own decisions about who he wants to be with,” Feray said. “He is a free man in every way.”
“Do you think he would mind if I went to him?”
“No,” Feray said, trying not to sound discouraging. “I don’t think he would mind.”
Via got up and walked quickly away from the campfire in the direction of the river, leaving Feray alone. She wrapped her cloak tightly around her shoulders and moved over to lie beside Luc. He looked peaceful as he slept and she wished she felt as calm and confident as he appeared. There were too many unknowns in the future for Feray to feel confident, and until they were through the Mountain Veil she wouldn’t feel safe from King Olmas. Still, it wasn’t the danger she felt from the Raven King or the unknown in the Wilderness ahead that made her restless. It was the uncertainty about Orin that left her feeling as if something were missing in her life. No matter what she did her desire for the big warrior continued to grow. Not that those feelings were unwelcome, but she didn’t want to complicate things. If he chose to be with Via, she would have to temper her desires and respect his choice. And if he rejected the younger girl in favor of Feray, she would have to deal with her guilt over moving on from Marc so quickly. Neither option seemed favorable to her as she gazed into the fire. Perhaps t
he magic would nudge her in the right direction. All she could do was hope, but as she tried desperately to fall asleep her mind kept turning to Orin and Via alone by the river. She couldn’t banish the mental images her imagination continued to conjure up even though each one seemed more painful than the last.
Chapter 8
Orin heard the girl approaching. She was not as quiet in her movements as Feray, although she was walking through the forest on a very dark night. Across the river the fire built up by the men following them had died down so that it was only a red glow among the dark trees in the distance. His own fire was still bright and warm. Orin could only hope his clothes would be dry by morning. He would need to move them on the sticks they were draped across. The stakes were driven into the soft turf near the fire, close enough to dry the clothes, he hoped. The last thing he wanted was to leave wet spots that would annoy him once they set out for the mountain pass in the morning.
“Orin?” the girl said.
She was close behind him, and Orin was very aware of the fact that he had only a blanket around his waist and another across his massive shoulders.
“Via,” he replied, “shouldn’t you be getting some rest?”
“I can’t rest without you in the camp,” she said, moving around him so that she could see his face. “I don’t feel safe without you near.”
“Rolo is a better sentry than I am,” he said. “And the horses too, not that we have much to worry about on this side of the river.”
“What about bears or wolves? I’ve heard stories about wild animals hunting people in the Evergreen Forest.”
The Man With No Hands Page 5
