by L. R. Flint
Argiñe was again riding with me as we rode into the haven so I was thankful that, when the people noticed Alaia, my newest comrade was not in the center of their attention. Everyone who was not busy gathered around Izar’s horse to greet the dragonlady and let her know that she had been missed and worried over in her absence. Even many of those who had been busy left their various jobs and, as we approached, joined the growing crowd which moved slowly toward the East side of the haven.
Balendin began shouting of my heroism with the meir cats and from the other side of the crowd Alesander began singing my praises over the slaying of the demon Lord. If my skin had been any lighter, my face would have turned red as spilt blood. Argiñe tensed behind me as the crowds enclosed us in their numbers, the people praised and congratulated me on my successes. I looked back at her to see her dark eyes flickering across the many ranged faces. “It is alright,” I said. “They will not attack us.” She still did not relax, so I continued, “We are amongst friends.” The warrior finally nodded her head, satisfied by my words.
Because of the crowds it took us a while to reach the Eastern half of the haven and a few unlucky people managed to get pushed into the river as we made our way over the bridge. Otherwise, the throng was well behaved and dissipated once we neared Basajaun’s dwelling. He welcomed Argiñe warmly and then asked of Alaia what the rest of us had already learned.
Alaia began, “A dark and terrible storm of wind had been brewing the day that I left Caernadvall, and in my hurry to reach Baso Argi I decided to risk flying. As I took off from the Wall, the winds gripped me and I was unable whatsoever to control my flight. I am not sure how long it took the winds to carry me to the Eguzki desert. I was tired, beaten, and hungry when Argiñe found me, near death, under the fierce heat of the sun.
“Sometime during the storm, my wings were torn to shreds by hail, and though our friend Argiñe is a great healer, it was impossible to completely mend them, so I could not make it back on my own.” With a grateful look on her face for the warrior who had done all she could for her, Alaia said that that was all that had happened, up until our arrival.
After the tales had been told and everyone’s questions had been answered as far as they could, we all departed to our homes. Alaia insisted that Argiñe was welcome in her home and the guards bid each of us farewell. The four elves had become close friends to each of us and it was sad parting ways with them, not knowing if—or when—we might have the chance to meet again. Having been distracted by the crowds and recited accounts, I had forgotten to ask Basajaun if I could leave for Caernadvall and, although my friends had been momentarily absent from my waking thoughts, they were very much present in my dreams.
~ ~ ~
Three dark figures crept through the shadows caused by the buildings and immobile objects on the streets of Caernadvall. They crept toward a hut and after entering it, their muffled voices floated quietly in the night air. Eventually the three shadows left the hut, only to find that they were expected. A group of ten of Zigor’s Guards surrounded them. They knew that they were outnumbered and so did not bother to fight.
The Guards' leader said a few words—though he had to growl them again when none of the three would give a reply. Finally they answered the Guard’s question and he grabbed the arm of one of the youths. Leaving the other two, he and his men walked away, disappearing into the darkness of the night.
The two left behind just stood there, shocked by what had just happened, and wondered how on earth the Guards were able to know what they obviously did. Suddenly realizing that they were standing in the middle of the moonlit street long after the law said they were supposed to be indoors, Ekaitz and Eskarne disappeared amongst the shadows.
~ ~ ~
When I awoke I could not help but feel angry. Other dreams had followed the one concerning my friends, but it had securely latched itself into my mind. I could only hope that the dream had not actually come to pass, and that it had only been brought on by my fear of the event in it actually taking place. I heaved myself from the low bed and walked into the main room of my home. Izar did not answer my call so I guessed that she was either asleep or had left already, resuming her job as a messenger.
I grabbed only my sword and headed toward the elf Lord’s dwelling to see if I could speak with him for a moment. Basajaun had just exited his home and was headed for the West half of the village when I approached him. As soon as he noticed me, he motioned for me to join him. “Did you sleep well?” he asked. I supposed, from the look on his face, that he could see the dissipating anger in my eyes.
“Yes,” I answered truthfully. “But I was wondering when you thought would be a good time for me to return to Caernadvall for my friends.”
“Ah. Your worries over the eldest of them trouble you?”
“Yes.” I looked away from him and at my beautiful surroundings, telling myself that it was not the elf Lord’s fault that their rescue had been put off, and to not be angry with him. I returned my gaze to Basajaun’s face. “I have a strong feeling that I may already be too late.”
The elf pondered my words for a moment, then said, “If you must leave us, then you may, but I would ask that you wait at least until tomorrow—to get some amount of rest—and that you think over a few companions to take with you.” I nodded my head, acknowledging his council.
“I will. Thank you.” I bowed my head and parted ways with the elf, turning toward the fields where both archers and swordsmen were busy honing their skills to a point far beyond deadly.
~ ~ ~
My sister found me a number of hours later, still practicing with my sword against the nineteenth person who had challenged me that day; sweat dripped from my brow and stung my eyes as I avoided Mattin’s blows and then dealt my own. We eventually came to a truce because neither of us could outfight the other. Mattin, through my tutoring, was finally gaining greater endurance and I was already worn out from the endless duels. As soon as our duel was over, Izar walked to us and asked what had been bet that time.
Mattin blushed slightly at her hinted reference to our infamous duel. I got a sneaking suspicion that the elf liked my sister, though if he did I would not have been surprised—Izar was kind and she had the striking beauty of our mother. So many of the male elves our age favored her, and just about everyone else admired her good looks, her courage, and her wisdom.
“No bets this time,” I chuckled, but then grew serious. “I am leaving tomorrow.”
Mattin raised an eyebrow. “But you just returned from rescuing Alaia.”
“Yes,” my sister said.
“It is not another rescue mission, is it?”
Izar looked at me and I said, “Again, yes. It is to Caernadvall, this time, that I go.” Mattin decided that nothing more than a simple ‘Oh’ needed to be said. “You are still planning on coming with me, are you not?” I asked my sister. She nodded, and pulled out her sword, with a teasing smile on her face, for me. I groaned. “Are you serious? Do you have any idea how long I have been here already?”
“How many times was he beaten?” Izar asked Mattin, ignoring my complaints entirely. The other boy just smiled slightly; he knew—that she knew—that I could not easily be beaten. I slowly slid my sword back from its sheath and took my favored stance, facing my sister. The small section of my thoughts that employed common sense was telling me not to duel her and give my tired muscles a respite, but I could not turn down a duel—especially against my own sister.
As I slid back into the routine of blocking and stabbing—always looking for the chance to overpower Izar—my muscles started screaming in protest of having to be used. For the sake of my pride I should have just turned down my sister’s offer because—after probably five minutes that seemed much, much longer—I blacked out and fell to the ground, giving Izar an automatic victory.
As it was, I think I should have stayed unconscious for much longer than I did, since being in such a state seemed to be becoming the norm for me. An ironic thought th
at passed through my mind, when I finally came to, was that I was most likely going to pass out when I finally had the chance to confront Zigor. I could see myself charging toward him, my battle sword raised above my head for the imminent kill. I would then trip and crack my skull on the stone pavement of Caernadvall’s streets, or have my weapon blown away from me with a blast of pure magic and then some unexpected object would make thudding contact with my head and I would collapse in an unconscious heap on the ground. Zigor would then approach, with evil glee, to put an end to my life, and the freedom I stood for. Luckily though, that was no more than a stray thought that flitted through my mind.
24 LEAVE-TAKING
Izar was crouched over me with a worried look on her face as I opened my eyes and I could just barely see Mattin's face over her shoulder. Though he hardly showed it, he was actually worried that I had been hurt pretty bad. “What happened?” I asked; my muscles protested when I tried to sit up, but I forced them to cooperate.
“Are you alright?” Mattin interrupted.
I nodded and Izar said, “You should have told me you were exhausted.”
“I have fought before when I was that tired,” I growled, protesting that my sister was babying me. It was a lie, though. I had never actually fought at that level of exhaustion and she glared at me, knowing it was a lie.
“Why would that have happened, then?”
“How should I know?” I mumbled, avoiding the answer. “Are you going to teach me to swim now?” I asked, not so subtly changing the topic as I stood up—only a smidgeon dizzy. Izar looked at me like I was crazy and I could not see Mattin’s face to discern his expression.
“You just passed out from overexertion and now you want me to teach you how to swim?” she said incredulously. “You will drown for sure. I am not Sendoa, Izotz; I cannot haul someone around while swimming under my own weight,” she reminded me.
“The water might relax his muscles,” Mattin offered, trying to keep my sister and I from getting into an actual fight, since that was what it looked like might happen, in his mind anyway.
“Please?” I added. She glared at me for a moment before finally giving in.
“Alright, alright.”
“Are you coming?” I asked Mattin as we started walking away. He shrugged and followed. We trailed the river North out of the haven, and shortly after it bent toward the East it opened up into a large, deep-blue lake which I had never known existed. As soon as we reached the shore’s edge Izar dropped her weapons on the ground and started stripping off her outer layer of clothes. I mentioned my disapproval over her lack of modesty but she only laughed.
Once the only clothes she wore were her undergarments, she waded out into the water until it was up to her waist and then she dove in. I looked at Mattin, hoping that I was not the only sane one amongst us—but he was imitating the actions of my sister. “Are you not coming?” he asked, as if it were perfectly normal to strip to your underclothes in front of other beings. Seeing the look on my face he started chuckling. “You have never even seen anyone go swimming?” he asked.
“Nope.”
Izar surfaced and when she saw me still on the land she swam back and walked over to where I stood. “Is that at all normal?” I asked my sister, meaning her daring choice of attire.
She rolled her eyes. “Yes. Clothes are not easy to swim in—they get waterlogged.”
“Yes, well,” I began to argue, but she just stepped up to me and grabbed at the bottom of my tunic. “Hey,” I shouted, and backed off.
“What? You are not still wearing the underclothes from Caernadvall are you?” I glared at her. “Well, the ones from here are meant to be used for swimming, so you have nothing to worry about.” It took me a little while, but eventually I gathered the courage (or possibly resigned myself to the disgrace) to take off my outer layer of clothes.
I waded into the cool lake water until it was up to my waist. “Now what?”
“You learn to swim and hope you do not cramp up and drown.” I must say that her words were not very encouraging.
“Start him off with floating,” Mattin suggested as he surfaced a few feet in front of me. Once I had convinced my sister that my muscles were not going to seize up any time soon, she finally began to teach me how to float. At first I found it awkward to be able to just lay there on the surface of the water, but I got used to it—eventually. As soon as Izar was sure I could float and not just for a short enough period of time to have cheated, she taught me to swim, which took incredibly less time than the floating had.
By the time we were ready to stop swimming and return to Baso Argi, I was diving to the bottom of the deep pool with the others, and was convinced that I could spend my entire life in the water if I had not needed to leave for Caernadvall the following morning.
~ ~ ~
When I swept the cascade of willow leaves from the doorway and stepped into my home, I found Koldobika sitting on a low chair in the main room. He had a mocking smile on his face as I entered. “What?” I asked cautiously.
“Well, I could not find you this morning and the only choice left to me—without causing a panic amongst the people—was to scry you.” The amused smile still lighted his face and I groaned inwardly at the implications of what he had said. He nodded in greeting to Izar when she followed me through the screen of leaves.
“When exactly was this?” I asked hesitantly.
“Oh, shortly before you learned how to swim—or float, I should say.” I glared at the wizard, until he began to chuckle and then I could not help but follow suit.
“Why were you searching for me?”
“Basajaun informed me that you will be leaving in the morning for Caernadvall.”
~ ~ ~
I sat up quickly in the scanty light, which was light enough for me to see by and then I pulled on a shirt before I went to wake my sister. I returned to my room where I quickly dressed into appropriate travelling attire, then grabbed the weapons I had taken with me on my last rescue mission, and slipped silently out of the house and into the pale moonlight. I waited for Izar and then we headed toward the South end of the village. As I neared the place where I had first entered the haven with my sister, I sensed the presence of a few other beings. “Who is there?” I called, sensing there were at least five people hidden in the trees.
Basajaun slipped from the dusky shadow of a tree. “Who else came?” I asked.
“How in Lietha can you sense when there is more than one person? Well, without there being at least twenty.” I gave Izar a look that essentially meant ‘I have no idea, so do not ask’. “How many people do you sense?” she asked, testing me.
“Six,” I said, “Including you, but not me.” Izar chuckled and shook her head; I could not tell if it was in amazement or if I was actually wrong, though I only sensed seven of us, total. As soon as I spoke those words, Koldobika, Argiñe Bakar, Alaia, and Mattin all stepped from behind the thick trunks of different trees. The number of people I had sensed was correct.
“Not all of you can come,” I said. “This is just a quick in and out—if we have too many people we are not likely to pull it off.” I almost missed Mattin dipping his head slightly in disappointment.
“I am only here to see all of you off—or, at least those of you who do go, if you want few,” the elf Lord said to me. I nodded my thanks. “But I would ask that you take Mattin with you—he feels that he owes you this.”
I thought it over for only a moment; Koldobika’s knowledge of magic could be useful, as would the two ladies’ mastery of their weapons, but then, so would Mattin. “You may come with us,” I said to my new friend. I noticed a barely perceptible touch of gratitude mixed in the look on his face, and then I turned back to the other three who had planned to go with my sister and I. “I am grateful that you would offer to come with me,” I said. “But I cannot have so many come this time.” I looked at Izar. “We have to go now.”
My sister nodded and my two companions and I began to leave.
As we stepped through the boundary of the haven, I turned and waved farewell to those still watching us. Then I turned and we started to run. Easing into the speed for which elves were famous, we flew swiftly across the miles of the forest’s floor. We stopped that noon for a quick meal in the secret tree-loft, and afterward continued our Eastward journey; we continually drew closer and closer to Caernadvall, and the land of our possible, yet—that time at least—unlikely doom.
~ ~ ~
The dusk settled deeply beneath the heavy branches of the oaks as we continued running over the spongy moss of the Oihana’s darkened floor. While the night’s enclosing darkness thickened, we stopped and decided on a tree that would be serviceable for the night. We climbed high into the branches of the tree and perched amongst its limbs; we had decided to try and get as much rest as was necessary, and because we did not have a very large company it was far less convenient to sleep on the ground, where we would have to take turns keeping watch.
We woke early and descended to the ground where we ate a hurried breakfast and left the tree behind, continuing on the last day that it would take us to reach our destination. Other than when one of us pointed out something of interest, we kept on in complete silence, until noon. It only took us a few minutes to eat, but just before we left I alerted the others to the fact that we had three pursuants.
"How long have they been following us?" Mattin asked.
