Avalyne Series 02: The Easterling

by Linda Thackeray

  While he took comfort in what he and the elf had discussed earlier that morning, he knew that even when Aeron returned to Sandrine, it would not the same as before. The days when the Aeron was a constant at his side was ending and though Dare was glad he had found his purpose, the King was also sad at what this meant for their future.

  ‘This departure is far sooner then I would have liked,’ Dare said to Aeron as he stood on the dock with the party that was seeing the Prince and Melia off on their journey down the Yantra.

  ‘The sooner I begin, the sooner I will be able to return,’ Aeron reminded but it was little consolation and they both knew it. He could feel the sand shifting beneath them and knew their lives were finally at a fork.

  ‘Not in the same way,’ Dare said quietly, emotion welling up inside of him. Aeron was his oldest and dearest friend. Aeron had been present for the most tumultuous period in his life and now that Aeron was embarking a new adventure to find his own destiny, Dare was saddened by an important chapter in both their lives was closing.

  ‘No,’ Aeron agreed with the same sadness. ‘Not in the same way.’

  The two men embraced warmly as brothers might do but knew that their friendship was closer than blood. When they parted, both tried to dismiss the emotions churning behind their eyes and Aeron was grateful to turn away from the King to make his farewell to the others present. He could not endure the heartache of any more tearful goodbyes.

  Fortunately, Aeron knew what to expect when confronted with the abrasive Kyou of Iridia. Kyou stood beside Dare and did not show his upset at seeing Aeron leave. They had said their goodbyes on numerous occasions before this and were accustomed to it by now. Both had responsibilities to their own people and knew that sometimes they had to go their separate ways to tend to other matters.

  ‘I wish that you could come with me on this journey, Kyou,’ Aeron replied as he looked upon his friends. They had travelled together constantly during the years following the Shadow War and it would be odd to look over his shoulder and not see the dwarf there. Still he had no doubt that they would always find time to go off on some foolish crusade together. Nevertheless, he would miss Kyou on this trip since the dwarf was an effective intermediary between himself and Melia

  ‘Surely you jest,’ Kyou retorted, raising a brow as he gazed past the elf at Melia who was speaking with Arianne. ‘Even I am not so foolish to be caught between the two of you.’ He teased knowing perfectly what Aeron was thinking, ‘Astaroth was less bloody then this is likely to be.’

  ‘You are a true friend,’ Aeron muttered, giving him a look.

  Kyou laughed and then patted the elf on the arm and said in a more serious voice, ‘be careful, Aeron. You are still my favourite elf.’

  ‘Why, thank you, Master Kyou,’ Arianne remarked sarcastically as she and Melia joined them. ‘I will not take offence at that.’

  As Kyou stammered to respond, Arianne turned to Aeron. She embraced him warmly, grateful that he was accompanying Melia on her quest but guilty for hastening his departure from Sandrine. It was obvious Dare needed more time than this to prepare for Aeron leaving them but she supposed no amount of time would make this farewell less difficult.

  ‘Safe journey, Aeron,’ she smiled at him.

  ‘Take care of yourself and your babe, Arianne,’ he replied with just as much sentiment as he leaned forward to deliver a gentle kiss against her forehead. ‘I hope to see you both when I return.’

  Melia’s guilt at watching the sad farewells taking place before her made her regret allowing Aeron to accompany her to Tor Iolan. The sorrow etched on his handsome face as he prepared to leave his friends for some time was obvious and she wished that he was not so insistent on accompanying her on this journey.

  ‘Be safe Melia,’ Dare's voice brought Melia's thoughts away from the Prince. ‘Tor Iolan is a dangerous place even with Aeron for company.’

  Although he did not know her well as well as Arianne or Celene, Dare did not forget the how she had rose to the occasional and helped his Queen during their confrontation with Syphia. For that, she would always have his friendship.

  ‘Thank you’ she replied, touched by the sincerity of his wishes for her well-being. ‘I will rely on the Prince to see me out of trouble.’

  ‘He is good for that,' Dare grinned sensing more than a little mischief in her tone.

  ‘Try not to kill him,’ Kyou added as he joined them, wearing an equally mischievous smile after she hugged him goodbye, ‘Though sometimes that princely arrogance warrants it.’

  ‘I am perfectly aware of that,’ Melia winked, more than accustomed to Aeron as a travelling companion after their last journey together. ‘However I will try to heed your advice.’

  Kyou laughed and allowed Melia a moment alone with Arianne as the hour of their parting was finally upon them. The watch guard and the Queen exchanged a long stare until Melia broke the silence between them.

  ‘I know you did what you thought was best so do not feel that I am angry with you. You thought of my safety and no one has done that for a very long time. Thank you.’

  ‘I hope you find what you seek, Melia,’ Arianne's eyes softened with emotion and took Melia's hand in hers with affection. ‘But if you do not find it, I hope you will try to find happiness at least.’

  ‘I will try to do both,’ Melia replied, hugging the Queen once more. ‘You are good friend, Queen of Carleon,’ she whispered. ‘Please take care of Serinda and give your son a kiss for me.’

  ‘I will be happy to do both,’ Arianne answered and watched as Melia and Aeron turned to leave Sandrine at last.

  ******

  Neither had a great deal to say to each other once the boat left the dock and took them down the Yantra River.

  Melia seemed deep in thought but made no attempt to reveal why they were journeying to Tor Iolan although Aeron was burning with curiosity at why she was so determined to visit the terrible place. This made Aeron realised that despite his attraction to her, he knew next to nothing about Melia other than she was a watch guard and formerly of Nadira. While he respected her need for privacy, he also wanted to help her and the urgency he saw in her eyes he was nothing to dismiss lightly.

  Unfortunately, since they were new to each other as travelling companions, trust was still a forming thing between them.

  ‘Am I to assume that you intend to remain silent throughout our entire journey to Tor Iolan?’ Aeron asked an hour after leaving Sandrine behind them.

  Melia relaxed visibly, aware that she was probably being a little unreasonable, not to mention childish in her behaviour. She was using her silence like a tantrum thrown by a wilful child and was somewhat embarrassed at being called out on it. She remembered that he was only here because he was worried about her safety and because Arianne had asked it of him. He could have very easily left her to stumble about in Tor Iolan, possibly to fatal consequences.

  Letting out a heavy sigh that dispelled not only her petulance but also her lingering resistance to his presence, she decided if this was how things had to be then she ought to try and make the best of it. ‘Of course not,’ she answered, staring at his back while he rowed down the river.

  Glad to hear her speak, he had expected to her silence to last a few more hours but was pleasantly surprise to hear that she had relented before that. Besides, a thousand years of living had taught him that women could not be deprived of speech for too long.

  ‘Will wonders never cease,’ he teased when he paused his rowing to glance back at her.

  ‘Do not make me regret speaking to you elf,’ Melia warned, her eyes narrowing in mock anger.

  ‘I doubt you would have been able to resist my charming conversation for very long,’ he smirked, glad that things were back to normal between them. Well, as normal as it could be, Aeron supposed.

  Melia rolled her eyes but she too was pleased that they were on more familiar ground. ‘If I can resist the Berserkers, I can resist you.’ She said sweetly.

&nbs
p; ‘You never did tell how us how you and Celene escaped from their hands in Sanhael,’ Aeron reminded, recalling how closed mouth she and Celene had been about that part of their liberation.

  ‘It is not important,’ Melia grumbled, not about to tell him that her great plan for escaping the Berserkers Captain was a false seduction designed to put the beast off his guard. She considered herself exceedingly fortunate that gamble had worked as well as it did because at the time she was terrified of the consequences if she failed. Nadiran women were educated about how Berserkers treated the female prisoners captured and she had no desire to see for herself.

  ‘Oh come now,’ he balked at her attempt to deter him. ‘It is a long journey to Tor Iolan, I must be entertained.’

  ‘If you want entertainment, you should have stayed in Sandrine,’ Melia retorted tautly. ‘I am not your court jester.’

  Aeron was not about to let the matter rest since her reluctance to tell him convinced the Prince that the tale must indeed be an interesting one. ‘It will pass the time,’ he insisted. ‘Besides, how awful could it be?’

  ‘You have no idea,’ Melia muttered under her breath.

  ‘I promise you,’ he replied, looking over his shoulder again so that she would see that he was completely sincere with what he was about to say. ‘No I give you my word, as a Prince of Eden Halas that if you tell me I will not breathe a word of it to anyone.’

  Melia let out a groan, wishing that she could throttle him about the ears except if she did so, it would most likely capsize the boat and that was probably not the best thing to have happen in the middle of the Yantra River. Still, the word of a Prince was not something to be refused when offered so earnestly.

  As much as they enjoyed trading insults, she knew it would be a real offence if she did not believe him. Even if he was not offended, which she very much doubted, Melia could foresee being asked this same question continuously throughout their entire journey. Since killing him was out of the question, because it was wrong, she reminded herself, Melia supposed how bad could it be to tell him?

  ‘Why is it?’ Melia asked no one in particular, exasperation oozing from every word, ‘that of all the elves in Avalyne that I could possibly find as a travelling companion, I have to be with the one who is the most infuriating?’

  ‘Luck?’ Aeron quipped, with a grin on his face she could not see because he had faced front again continued rowing.

  ‘Oh alright!’ She exclaimed, conceding defeat. ‘I will tell you only to have you stop asking me.’

  ‘Finally,’ he exclaimed with more than a hint of triumph in his voice. ‘You have my undivided attention. How did you manage to free yourself from a room full of the Berserkers? I have faced them in battle, that you escaped unscathed while in their power, unarmed, astonishes me.’

  ‘Well it is not that difficult to escape when one is a woman,’ she said cleaning her throat, ‘All I had to do was pretend to seduce him and he was so eager to be alone with me that he acceded to my request to send his men away. Once alone, I caught him in a vulnerable position and freed myself.’

  She noticed he had stopped rowing and had turned around so that he could meet her gaze. ‘Pray tell what do you call a vulnerable position?’

  At first it did not register upon her what he was asking her until she saw the dark frown upon his face.

  ‘Not that vulnerable!’ she slapped him on the arm, her jaw dropping open in outrage. ‘Do you think me capable of bedding a Berserker? Even to escape! Are you completely without wits? What do you take me for?'

  ‘I was mistaken!’ Aeron started to recant. ‘You said vulnerable position! What was I supposed to think?’

  ‘I meant vulnerable as in alone with me, distracted by the thought of pleasure with a human female, not the actual 'pleasure'! You know, this is why I did not wish to answer this question or wish it known how I escaped! Small minds like yours instantly think the worst!’ She ranted on furiously.

  ‘I am sorry!’ He apologized quickly though unable to keep the smirk from crossing his face. Despite himself, he could not help feeling some measure of pity for the poor deluded Berserker who had actually believed a woman like Melia would couple with him for any reason. ‘I must confess it is a very different way of securing your release. Certainly Dare and I never considered using that tactic.’

  ‘Well you are very pretty,’ Melia returned with a wicked smile. ‘It might have worked.’

  Aeron bristled at the suggestion, ‘that is not funny.’

  ‘I think it is,’ Melia chuckled seeing the distaste on his face. ‘In any case, I was never so terrified in my entire life. If I had failed in freeing myself, the consequences…’ she shuddered visibly at what she could not say and he was able to guess well enough to spare her the indignity.

  ‘Well you were fortunate indeed that it went as well as it did,’ Aeron agreed with her on the consequences before adding, ‘However, in the event that we do encounter a similar sort of peril I would request you do not resort to that same plan to secure our freedom.’

  Melia almost cast him into the river.

  Chapter Five:

  Night Attack

  They travelled for the entire day, until the sun began to set in the western horizon, turning the blue sky into a vibrant shade of amber. It would not be long before a blanket of stars was drawn over them and with night descending upon then. Deciding that it was best to pull into shore for the night, they steered the canoe to the banks of the river.

  Their limbs ached from their cramped confinement in the narrow boat and Melia, in particular, needed to feel the land beneath her feet. Of course she would not admit such vulnerability to Aeron and wondered what it was about him that made her so determined not to show weakness?

  They made camp along the Eastern Shore which was supposedly free of Berserkers activity now that Balfure was no more. While there still many of the creatures in the Northern Province, they were far enough away to be able to let down their guard for the evening. Nevertheless, Aeron insisted on keeping their boats within easy reach should trouble arise. Melia was in agreement with this because she was just aware of the dangers as well as he. Even if she did not know this region as well as the Prince, the end of Abraxes had left many of its denizen scattered and wandering the wilderness looking for a new home.

  When he returned to their encampment after scouting the area to ensure nothing stirred other than them, he was glad to see the fire that was burning. Although elves were able to endure the harshness of weather far better than men, he was still chilled by the cold night air. Furthermore, the aroma of roasting fish rattled a growl of hunger in his stomach when he took a deep breath of it. They had not discussed the cooking duties though he guessed accurately that expecting her to do it would only anger her. If the restrictions placed on the women of Nadira were as bad as she claimed, he would appear like a boor if he assumed it was her place to do it.

  That did not mean he could not amuse himself however.

  ‘Now there is a sight to put order to my world,’ Aeron stated playfully when he returned to camp and saw her preparing their meal.

  ‘What?’ Melia mused, more focused on the sprinkling of a little spice over the meal to give it flavour than giving Aeron her full attention.

  ‘Seeing you waiting for me with a meal cooked,’ Aeron smiled at her teasingly.

  She shot him a glare of annoyance and grumbled, ‘Do not get too accustomed to it. Tomorrow it will be your turn and I hope your culinary skills extend to more than just carrying cured meat in your pouch.’

  ‘Lady,’ he said with proud dignity as he sat down next to her. ‘The Prince of Eden Halas does not cook.’

  ‘Then the Prince of Eden Halas is going to go hungry,’ She returned swiftly.

  ‘You are a hard woman,’ he pointed out as she removed the fish from its skewer over the fire.

  ‘You have no idea,’ she arched one brow playfully as she handed him his meal on a plate. He was teasing her, Melia realised. ‘Be
careful it is hot,’ she instructed dutifully.

  ‘Thank you,’ he said graciously and they both relaxed away from the flames so that they could dine in comfort.

  ‘You saw nothing out there?’ Melia asked as they ate.

  This part of Avalyne was unfamiliar to her. During her searches for her mother, she had mostly explored the lands nearest the Baffin. She did not wish to reveal to him that she was a little anxious by this unfamiliarity because as a watch guard, she relied on knowing the land intimately and being able to anticipate all its dangers. This part of the Western Sphere was still a mystery to her.

  ‘Nothing,’ he shook his head in answer. ‘This area is not known to be plagued by Berserkers but I cannot say for certain if nothing will wander into our space. It is difficult to predict the behaviour of Balfure’s minions now that the Iron Citadel has fallen. Before Balfure was destroyed, we knew his minions would be found at his places of power. However, since he is no more, they are scattered and hiding. Thus I do not know if we are any more protected than if we had camped on the Western Shore.’

  ‘You fear they are moving into lands that are no common for them,’ Melia said in understanding, having encountered something of the same problem in the Baffin.

  The pattern of these foul creatures were no longer a constant now that they were leaderless and without direction. Their power in Avalyne was done but like the wounded animal about to die, they were perhaps at their most dangerous in these final hours then they had ever been when Balfure guided their every move.

  ‘Fortunately, if danger nears, I should be able to sense it before it arrives,’ Aeron offered.

  ‘That is good to know,’ Melia replied. ‘I do not wish to awaken with one of their poisoned blades to my throat.’