by Zora Marie
The woman looked them over. One of her eyes sat lower than the other and seemed to have lost its sight long ago. “Happy to help the women who fought to save our lives. Need anything else?”
Lighnif paused in thought for a moment. “Clean water if you have any.”
“Be right back.” The women winked and slipped out the door.
“Come on, off with the armor.” Lighnif loosened the ties and dragged Zelia’s weapons and armor off of her.
Zelia removed her tunic and there was a slight gasp from the old woman as she stood with the door half open.
“Well, let’s have a look at it.” Lighnif untied the bandage and waved for the woman to bring the water.
Zelia winced as the bandage pulled from her side. She ran her hand through her hair and stopped part way through as she looked down. Black and blue veins ran out from around the inflamed hole in her abdomen. I should have healed by now, but this…
Lighnif rinsed the wound out. “Looks better than it did. Eadon will be able to do more for you once we get back, we lost the healers who came with us in the battle.”
It must be the powers I used. I knew I’d be drained, but this is different. She shook the thought and forced a smile as Lighnif dried her side.
“You’re doing well for a novice. Eadon will be proud of your work.”
A smile flashed across Lighnif’s face as she wrapped Zelia back up.
“You really think so?”
Behind her, the door creaked open and Alrindel slipped in.
“Oh, sorry. Didn’t realize anyone was in here.” Then he realized who’s scarred back was in front of him. “Zelia?”
She slid her tunic back on and pulled her long brown curls out of the collar as she turned to face him.
“Yes?”
She could tell by the tone of his voice that he hadn’t known. She watched anger and a flood of other emotions boil beneath his surface.
“It’s not as bad as it looks.”
Alrindel pulled her close with a hand at the back of her head.
“Even if it’s not half as bad as it looks, it’s too much. You should never have gone through everything you have. I... I…”
“There’s nothing you could have done. Besides, what I went through made me who I am today.”
She closed her eyes and laid her cheek against his shoulder.
“Everything okay?” Koin asked from the half-open doorway.
Lighnif nodded as Alrindel turned towards Koin.
“Did you know about Zelia’s scars?”
Koin shook his head as he glanced at the dirt floor.
“Not until a few days ago when we noticed her side had gotten infected from the arrow she took during the battle.”
Skylar stopped with his arm on the doorjamb above his head. “I knew it. There’s not much privacy to be had on the side of a mountain.”
Zelia shook her head at Skylar’s remark.
“We should all eat and get some rest,” Koin said. “We’ve got a lot of ground to cover in the morning.”
Skylar rubbed his neck. “Let me guess, laygoose bread again?”
Alrindel grabbed Skylar’s shoulder as he passed through the doorway.
“Right as always is the bounty hunter.”
Skylar brushed Alrindel’s hand away. “Oh, shut up.”
Zelia shook her head and scooped up the rest of her belongings. Boys. But how can you not like the sweet taste of elvish bread?
Koin passed out rations as they sat in the thick green grass under the open stars. He gave each of them half a piece of laygoose bread.
The laygoose bread crumbled as she bit a piece off. The smell of honey and cinnamon filled the air.
“So, what path do we want to take from here? We can go through the woods to the main gates or we can follow the well-worn paths to Riverdain and hitch a ride on a barge going upriver,” Koin said once they had all taken a few bites.
Lighnif rubbed her leg just above her wound.
“We should go on to Riverdain. Some of us are still healing and the path there is easier,” Alrindel said.
Skylar paused from cleaning his fingernails out with a knife.
“Sounds good to me, there’s a bounty on a guy in Riverdain. Maybe I can pick him up along the way.”
“Always thinking about work.” Alrindel gave Skylar a light shove.
“What?” Skylar tossed up his hands with a grin. “There’s a tavern there, and that attracts all kinds of characters. Besides, squirt here interrupted my tracking of some trappers back at the pass.”
She rolled her eyes. “Yeah, characters like you. Besides, those trappers will be long gone from those woods by now. They upset the forest and won’t be trapping much of anything for a while. If it makes you feel any better, I’ll help you find the two that are still living come spring. If I had to guess they’ll be in The Trading Town once they find they’re unable to trap anything.”
“What did they do to upset the forest?” Lighnif asked.
“One of them trapped a griffin and tried to break his wing just to be spiteful. I let him go, and he snuck up on us with some of his friends that night. One man with him was the same man who had challenged me in The Trading Town the day I returned to the mainland. He was rather upset that I drew a dagger instead of a sword to fight him. Eragon had stepped in to defend what he thought was a defenseless little girl.” A smile flashed across her face as another thought jumped to mind. “Eragon was quite surprised to hear me speak Elvish.”
“Back up a second, that griffin wouldn’t happen to be one of them from The Hold would it?”
“The one that dropped me in the middle of the Darkan forces is the one I saved that day.”
“So how did the one trapper end up dead?”
Her face fell, and she watched Bête Noire graze a little way down the hill.
“His companions held knives to my friends’ throats to force my hand, so I cut off his hand and he bled to death. We left the other two trappers hogtied and hanging from a tree. I left them a knife so they could free themselves, though they would have a rough trip to the ground.”
Skylar swept a piece of hair out of her face. “You showed them more kindness than anyone else would have.”
“And that explains how you met Eragon and Saria. Have you ever not made friends someplace?” Alrindel joked.
She covered her mouth with the back of her hand and let out a long yawn.
“Couldn’t have said it any better myself. It’s time we all got some rest.” Koin lay back on the thick grass with his fingers laced behind his head.
With another yawn, they all drifted off to sleep.
40
The next morning, they ate their laygoose bread as they walked. Zelia convinced Lighnif to ride Bête Noire for at least a while, on the premise that she needed to walk. She loved to walk with the Elves as they always moved with purpose in their step, never dragging their feet. Even injured, they walked at a pace faster than most as they sang their happy tunes to pass the time.
It was midday when they came to the next village. They helped here and there, and then set out again, this went on for the next few days as they traveled towards Riverdain.
Just as they prepared to set out once more, a young freckle-covered boy ran up to Zelia.
“Wait! I have something for you!”
The small child reached up, standing on his tippy toes, and put a small blue flower in her hair.
“Thank you for saving my mommy,” the boy said.
The boy’s mother stood in the doorway of their ruined home with a proud smile.
Zelia moved the boy’s dirty blond bangs out of his eyes.
“Thank you. Now, you’ll take good care of her for me, won’t you?”
The little boy glanced back to his mother as he ran his foot over the charred remains of his village’s crops.
“I don’t think I can, I’m not strong like you are.”
She rummaged through her pack and pulled out a wolf pup’s tooth tied in twi
ne and put it around the boy’s neck. “Strength comes in all shapes and sizes. Even the smallest act of kindness can show great strength. Never question your worth or lose sight of all that is beautiful in this world.”
She gave him a faint smile and walked off as he marveled at the wolf tooth in his hand. When he looked up and realized she had left, he ran back to his mother, proudly displaying his new prized possession.
The others stood watching the boy when she rejoined them. Alrindel glanced at the flower in her hair.
“So, what was that all about?”
“He thanked me for saving his mother.”
“Someone has an admirer,” Skylar teased. “So, what was that you gave him?”
“Just the tooth of a wolf pup, I found it while we were traveling with Dain’s pack.”
“Careful there, don’t want to give anyone the wrong impression.”
Skylar messed up her hair, and she knocked his hand away.
“Sorry, we can’t all be as heartless as you,” she teased. “So, where do you hope to find your bounty when we get to Riverdain? I would like to make our time there as short as possible.”
“Figured I’d start where I always do, The Tavern.”
Alrindel rolled his eyes. “That’s just an excuse for you to drink.”
Skylar shoved Alrindel. “That may be true, but that’s also where I usually find my quarry.”
Alrindel walked backwards in front of him for a few paces.
“Fine, a wager then? If he’s not there, you haul my next kill from the hunt back.”
“And if he is, then you come with me on my next bounty expedition,” Skylar spoke with a honeyed tone.
“Deal.” Alrindel spun back to Zelia’s side with a new pep in his step.
The sun was setting as they came into Riverdain. She stared up at an iron barred window as they passed the only building that didn’t seem to be falling apart with time. ‘Town Hall, Court House, & Jail,’ she read the sign hanging above the door.
“The mayor is corrupt,” Skylar whispered in her ear.
“Then why don’t we do something?”
“Because that is not our decision to make,” Koin answered. “I’ll come get you when we have a ride upriver.”
Alrindel nodded, and they turned down a little market street. It was already getting dark and the street was rather barren. Music drifted from a building at its end, where the glow of lanterns shone through the tiny windows.
People glanced at them as they entered, but quickly returned to their drinks and dancing. The bartender greeted Skylar as he leaned against the wooden bar at the back of the building.
“What’ll it be today, Bounty Hunter? The usual?”
“Two meads and uh,” Skylar faced Zelia, “what do you want?”
She hopped onto the stool next to him. “I don’t need anything.”
A man draped his arm across Skylar’s shoulder, flicking his pudgy fingers. “Taking in strays now are ya?” He stepped forward and placed his grimy hand on her shoulder. “She’d make a nice toy with a little work.”
Zelia grit her teeth as she looked down at his hand, then up at his disfigured face. One eye was half covered with a pudgy flap of skin while the other eye drooped.
“Remove your hand from me or I just may remove it from you.”
The man grabbed a handful of her hair and pulled her head back. “Someone should teach you some manners, you little tramp!”
Skylar reached for his sword and Alrindel drew an arrow, but she didn’t need the help. She kneed him in the crotch and the man doubled over. She grabbed her golden staff from its holster as she slid off the stool.
Between the pain from her side and seeing village after village of ransacked homes and burnt fields, this poor excuse of a man drew the last straw.
“I’ve had quite enough of men like you. Tell me, do you have a death wish or something? You’d think one would assume that someone carrying weapons would know how to use them.”
She spun the staff around and gripped it with both hands as it connected with the man’s head with a hollow CRACK.
His head bounced off a nearby table before he fell to the ground in a heap.
Alrindel relaxed his bow, and Skylar moved his hand away from his sword.
“Anyone else wish to try me tonight? No? Good.” She spun the staff, collapsing back to its traveling size and slipped it back into the holster on her back.
Skylar leaned back against the counter. “Nice hit.”
She watched the man over her shoulder as he rubbed his head and staggered back to his seat. “Less bloody than using a sword, yet just as satisfying.”
Alrindel shook his head. “You rubbed off on our innocent little sister.”
“I for one think it’s a good thing.”
“Hey! I was careful not to kill him and I’m not exactly our dear Bounty Hunter’s little sister.”
“You’re still smaller than me, short stuff.”
She shook her head as Skylar and Alrindel took the first swig of their drinks, then a gruff voice sounded from the doorway. “Whose black horse is standing out here untied?”
She spun around to face the tall man draped in rough black fabric.
All the men about the tavern held their heads low and stared into their drinks, avoiding the man’s gaze as he scanned the room.
He overlooked her until she spoke, “That’d be my horse.”
The man smirked as he swept his hood back to reveal golden eyes that gleamed like a wolf’s, but there was something more to them.
“That’s a lot of horse for such a little lady.”
“Trust me, she gets along just fine.” Alrindel faced the stranger.
“This runt with you?” The broad-shouldered man looked Alrindel up and down.
“Only I get to call her that.” Skylar turned.
The man’s expression changed as soon as Skylar turned.
“Well, you don’t say! It’s Skylar the Bounty Hunter! I thought you’d jumped the Faithful Mountains for the winter.”
Skylar’s serious expression broke into a grin. “And I thought you’d headed off into The Wild for the winter. Guess we’re both full of surprises.”
They hugged each other with a pat on the back. Then sat down and Skylar ordered another mead for his friend.
Alrindel rubbed his thumb and middle finger together as he turned back to the bar. “Going to introduce us to your friend?”
The man grinned as he jabbed a thumb in their direction. “Yeah, who’s the runt and the elf?”
“Nikolas, runt here is my sister, Zelia,” he messed up her hair, “and he’s my brother, Alrindel.”
“Now, I had heard about your elf brother, but this is the first you’ve said anything about a girl.”
“That’s a rather long story.”
Nikolas leaned on the bar. “How long of a story could it be? She can’t be over sixteen winters old.”
She and Alrindel smirked at his comment.
“Unless she’s an elf.” Nikolas raised a bushy unkempt eyebrow.
Zelia swept her hair behind her ear. “No, I’m not an elf, though I did spend many winters with them long ago.” She spun a gold coin across the bar to the bartender. “As you well know, appearances are not always telling.”
“Did you tell her?”
“No, but her knowing doesn’t surprise me.”
Alrindel sat forward. “Know what?”
“He’s a wolfblood and something else,” she replied in a hushed tone.
“Oh, them.”
“So, maybe you can explain to me how the two of you met?” Zelia asked.
Nikolas scratched his short, rough beard. “As I would like to know more about you. Not often someone recognizes what I am, but what do you mean ‘and something else’?”
She searched his eyes a little closer, noticing again the black streaks that ran through his golden irises. Fregnar, she thought the name of the god of death, but thought it best to wait until they were awa
y from prying ears.
“You about done here? We have a ride home if we leave within the hour.” Koin came up behind them.
Nikolas looked Koin over. “Another friend of yours Skylar?”
“More family than friend. I’ll be back in a second.” A man in the corner got up and started for the door, but Skylar grabbed him and slammed his head on the table. “You thought you could just run off? Well, usually I’d give you a fighting chance. But it would seem I have a deadline so off we go.” He bound the man’s hands without heed to his curses.
Zelia cringed as she slid from the stool. All the pain she’d been ignoring and pushing back flooded in at once.
Koin grabbed her and searched her eyes. “The infection spreading?”
Nikolas put the back of his hand to her forehead.
“She’s burning up. What the hell kind of infection takes someone from looking fine to this?”
“We need to get her home.” Alrindel scooped her up without waiting for her response.
“I’m fine. I’ll be fine,” she muttered and grabbed at her side. She pulled herself closer to Alrindel and bit her lip with her eyes clamped shut against the pain. She concentrated on steadying her breathing and heart rate.
She wasn’t sure how he did it, but Nikolas convinced Koin to allow him to come with them upstream. The Elvish barge captains worked hard to push the overloaded barge upstream at a faster pace than usual.
“Get Eadon!” Skylar called out when they neared the docks the next morning.
By the time they tied off, Eadon had started down the short wooden dock. He glanced at Skylar and Alrindel, then down at her. Koin and Lighnif explained what had happened and what they had done as they followed Eadon to the main house.
“Zelia?” Eadon’s tone was soft with an undertone of pain.
“Umhm.”
“We have to get the armor off.”
She nodded and pried her hand away from her side. They removed her armor and laid her on the bed. Alrindel and Skylar held her down.
“I’m sorry Zelia, but the arrowhead is still in you.” Eadon looked as if he could have cried. “I have to remove it, or the infection will continue to spread.”
She gave a slight nod and a moment later something cold and sharp cut into her side, sending both a spike of pain and a shiver up her spine.
