The Paladins of Naretia

by TP Keane

Chapter 29

  Aria was glad that the dwarf no longer directed all of his animosity toward her. Bernard, instead, was occupied with keeping a watchful eye on the grey-elf that rode the Beastie in front of him. The mammoth creatures moved with a belying speed, an advantage to having six legs. They groaned and vibrated with a deep, soulful sound that resembled the rapid beating of a drum inside their chests. Aria felt the vibrations travel up her legs and into her own chest as she sat astride the Beastie she shared with Ol?rin and another dwarf. But that was the only discomfort she felt as the animal's six legs ensured a smooth ride.

  "Marvellous creatures, aren't they?" Ol?rin said from behind her.

  "Kind of scary actually," she replied, holding on tightly to the sharp prongs either side of her, even though she had no fear of falling off.

  "Despite their ferocious looks, Beasties are actually a very docile creature. It is only by the persuasions of the dwarfs, and their chains, that they become deadly," he said, glancing toward Aramus who had decided to fly instead. "They mate for life, these Beasties, and will defend their mate and young with their lives. An honourable trait for such a scary monster, yes?"

  "I suppose so," she said, knowing full well that he wasn't just talking about the Beasties.

  She followed the old wizard's line of sight and was surprised to find that he was no longer watching Aramus fly. Instead he was looking toward the northern horizon where a wall of ice could just be made out.

  "The water in the Stonyfields is a little higher than normal for this time of year, don't you agree, Your Highness?"

  "A little, what of it?"

  Ol?rin didn't answer for a long time. Instead, he squinted against the bright light of the mid-day sun like he was trying to see something very, very, far away. The Stonyfields consisted of large canyons that scarred the hoary stone, like old battle wounds on an ancient soldier. Even from so far away, Aria could hear the thunderous sounds of the water coming from the glacier, as it tried to deepen the scars. But in her seventeen years of life, little had ever changed in this place.

  "As queen, I'm sure you are familiar with the landscape of the northern ice fields?"

  "I am," Aria replied, turning her head around to look at him questioningly.

  "Good. Aramus, come here," he said, ignoring her probing stare.

  Aramus dutifully glided next to the Beastie.

  "I am an old man who does not like to fly," Ol?rin said, gesturing for Aria to go with Aramus. "We are approaching the Giant's Chasm, but before we get there, I would like you to fly ahead with Aramus and check that the water level hasn't been made unnaturally high."

  "Unnaturally?" Aria said, tentatively stepping on the back of the Beastie before wrapping her arm around Aramus's shoulder.

  "I am hoping that I am wrong, but I believe that the dragons under the ice have been disturbed by Dantet's seal being broken, and their fires are melting the ice that surrounds them," he replied.

  Aria was about to scoff at the old man when she felt Aramus wrap his arm around her waist and lift her off the Beastie's back. The sudden surge of air over her face as they took to the sky, and the loss of anything stable under her feet, made her take in a sharp breath instead. Together, they soared toward the icy plains of northern Naretia.

  It took over an hour to reach the colossal glacier that stretched as far as the eye could see. Aria had always thought that the stark difference between the grey stony landscape and the towering wall of ice, resembled a line drawn across two different realms. One was bountiful and rich with life, while the other was barren and unwelcoming. She had always felt an unease around the border to the north, like she wasn't supposed to cross it. But now, high above the ground and safe in Aramus's arms, Aria surveyed the endless expanse of white for the first time. A nervous thrill inside of her was half-hoping that Ol?rin was right, that there were dragons living below the glaciers.

  Water flowed more quickly than Aria had ever seen before, but the crevasses and peaks of the frosty north refused to give up the secrets that lay beneath. After an unfruitful exploration, Aramus turned and headed back toward the Stonyfields.

  "He doesn't really believe that there are dragons, does he?" Aria asked Aramus as she scanned the glacier behind them. "They're just fairy tales, myths from imaginative minds with nothing better to do."

  "Ol?rin has a tendency to believe in the impossible," he replied, turning his gaze toward Aria. "After all, he believes that he can cure me."

  "You don't believe that he can, you think it is impossible?" she probed. Aramus's gaze avoided Aria and, instead, followed the horizon as they soared back toward their companions.

  "I don't know," Aramus replied eventually. "I used to believe that he could. Youthful innocence perhaps, but for a time he was the only hope I had of not being? well, this. Now, I'm not sure anymore. Too many things have changed, and even if he can cure me of the curse, I might always look?"

  Aramus's voice trailed off and the sorrow that filled Aria, crushed her chest. The sting of tears burned at the edges of her eyes, even though Aramus's were dry, and she was sure her feelings came from the necklace.

  "There's nothing wrong with, with this," she said, gesturing to Aramus.

  "Really?" he said with a disbelieving smirk.

  "Yes, really," she replied, letting go of him with one hand to brush away some of his black hair and look him squarely in his eyes.

  Aria felt herself slip when she did, and Aramus grabbed her around the waist with two hands, pulling her in closer to him. Despite her fear of falling, Aria's hand never left the side of his face and her eyes never wavered. Instead of flying forward, Aramus pivoted upward until they hovered in place. His powerful wings disturbed the air around them and tussled her hair. He leaned in, his face so close to hers now that she could feel the heat of his breath on her lips. She watched, as a fire rose in her belly and her heart quicken. He opened his mouth slightly to say something, but nothing came out. His slatted, amber eyes searched hers intensely and, for a moment, everything around them seemed to slow down.

  "Aria, I?" Aramus whispered, running his hand up her back until it rested gently between her shoulders.

  Aria felt a jolt of electricity surge through her body as he pulled her in closer to him. His Adam's apple bobbed as he swallowed deeply, and she felt a small tremble in his fingers. Aria took a small breath in as she felt his lips brush against hers. After a moment of hesitation, he kissed her.

  She closed her eyes and kissed him back, running her fingers through his hair. A heat built under his skin, not as hot as the day he attacked the elves, but still there nonetheless. Never in her wildest dreams, or nightmares, did she ever think that she would someday kiss the man who had murdered her parents.

  That thought stayed with her as she felt him pull her in closer. The image of his fiery eyes stayed with her too as she desperately tried to ignore it. But she couldn't. Her heart felt the weight of her parent's dead eyes as they watched from her psyche, and it made Aria pull away.

  "I, I can't," she said in a whisper, leaning her forehead against his.

  Aria felt Aramus's body tense under her. His shoulders became rigid, and even the beating of his wings took on a more terse sound. But she felt nothing from the necklace; no disappointment, no sadness, no anger.

  "Do you think you could ever love me?" he asked so quietly that Aria wasn't sure she heard him. "Do you think that anyone could ever love a creature like me?"

  Aria felt a small part of her heart break for him. Aramus hadn't asked to be born like this, he didn't volunteer to be controlled by the Dark God. All he had ever wanted was to be normal, of that much Aria was certain. But no matter how much she tried to move past the image of him standing over her parents decapitated bodies, his eyes ablaze with a terrible fire, she couldn't.

  "I think I have come to forgive you, Aramus," she said, lifting his chin with a hooked finger until his eyes met hers. "I have even come to care about you too. And if you had told me
some weeks ago that I would be saying these words to you, I would have cut off your head thinking you were mad. But that gets me wondering that, if in such a short time I could have come to care about you so deeply, maybe I might also come to love you too? in time."

  Aramus gave a half-grin but the sadness in his eyes was evident, even if she still could not feel it.

  "But you could never forget? No matter what your feelings for me might be, you would never be able to forget the wrong that I have done to you, would you?"

  "I'm not sure? I?" Aria grasped for an answer, but there was only one. "No, I don't suppose that I could."

  The words were so final, like hearing the sickening thud of an axe through someone's head and knowing that there was no hope of avoiding death. There was no way around it, and she didn't want to lie to Aramus. The memory of her dead parents was too deeply ingrained in her mind to ever be forgotten, and along with it came that devilish image of Aramus.

  "I understand," he said, tearing his eyes away and looking behind her instead. "There are some things that cannot be overcome, and I am grateful for the chance to have at least tried to make up for my mistakes. I can't say I'm not disappointed though. You are beautiful and strong. Out of all the girls I've met, you were the only one who I thought might? "

  "Aramus, I?"

  Aria was cut off by Aramus shushing her, which shocked her somewhat. But the sight of his eyes locked on to a target somewhere below them made her realise he wasn't being rude because of her rejection.

  She followed his gaze, and in the darkest shadows of the canyons Aria spotted a movement. She couldn't make out the form of the creature no matter how hard she squinted. Whatever it was, it was large, bubbling in the shadows, and was making its way toward the surface of the Stonyfields through the gawping gullies of the Giants Chasm. It took a determined pace toward the stone bridges which crossed the hungry canyons; the very same ones Ol?rin and the rest of their party were traversing in the distance.

  "What is it?" Aria whispered.

  "I don't know, I've never seen them before. But they don't look like the cute and cuddly kind."

  "I can't see anything, bring me closer."

  Aramus swooped toward the wide mouth of the canyon and glided at the precipice of the darkness below. The gloom seemed unnaturally dark for the high sun. Aria saw the shapes of monsters she had only ever heard of in fairy tales, claw their way up the side of the canyon walls, filling her with terror. It was the two white tusks glinting in the sunlight either side of their mouths, some broken or missing, that gave them away.

  Wide hands with long hooked claws dug into the grey stone walls, dislodging chucks of shale. A set of equally ferocious clawed feet secured the creatures as they surged along the walls of the gully. Their grey skin almost blended them into their surroundings, like a chameleon. Their approach was quiet for such a large mob. The only noise she heard was the scuttling of their claws and the falling stones dislodged by their movements. The bubbling river of deadly creatures, moved like raging whitewater, and she knew it wouldn't be long until they reached Ol?rin.

  "No, it cannot be," Aria whispered, fear taking most of her breath away.

  "What?" Aramus asked. "What are they?"

  As the first few emerged into the brighter light, Aria knew she was not mistaken. Green eyes searched the surface of the Stonyfields, elongated noses sniffed for the scent they had been given to find, and craniums, too small for their owners impressive size, obeyed the silent commands Aria knew they had gotten from Dantet. Hundreds, maybe even a thousand of these creatures scurried across the crumbling wall of the canyon, like spiders. The party of dwarfs and Beasties Aria could just make out in the distance, were unaware of their approach.

  "Take us back to Ol?rin," she said, grabbing Aramus's tunic. "NOW!"