“I will be right out,” Stephen says before Vile can knock. “Grab a drink and have a seat.”
A pot of hot water is whistling on the stove, so the armored halfling pours himself a mug and adds a pinch of aromatic herbs. The tea warms his body and he flexes his furry toes while taking a seat on a barstool. He patiently waits for Stephen to open the bedroom door, the black-haired man wearing only a pair of loose breeches. Vile can see Trinity sprawled on the bed with a red sheet over her, the chaos elf breathing softly. She rolls over and waves her hand to slam the door with enough force to shake the tent.
“She might not be joining us,” Stephen casually says, wiping away the scratch marks on his chest. “I may have been a tad rough with her majesty. No permanent damage, but she’ll need to sleep it off.”
“Perhaps we should wait for her,” Vile suggests, removing his eye-patch to reveal the gaping hole. He pulls a moist rag from his pocket and cleans the edge of the socket, taking some joy in the disgusted look on his ally’s face. “I’m not comfortable with what you do, so consider this me returning the favor.”
“Fair enough, little General,” the other man says with a sneer. He sits in a large, cushioned chair and a steaming mug of tea appears in his hand. “Trinity would have nothing to add if she joined us because I only plan on explaining the situation and giving you orders. There’s no discussion here. Your role in our trap is rather simple, but it might be beyond your skills. Think of it as a challenge.”
“There’s no need to taunt me. I’ve already agreed to help,” the halfling replies, reaching for a cookie off a nearby platter. “Your father talked to me and I assured him I would do my best.”
“Good old father rallying the troops. One has to wonder why the gods deem him evil when he shows such compassion to his minions. I shall never understand his kindness.”
The bedroom door creaks open and Trinity walks out, a brush fixing her hair as she adjusts her green robe. The crimson sash tightens around her waist, making sure the garment remains closed. She goes to the kitchen for a tankard of ale, finishing the drink in one long chug. Glaring at the staring men, the chaos elf gets a refill from an ice-covered keg on the marble counter. She grabs a handful of grapes and takes a seat on a rug made from thick snow tiger fur, curling her legs beneath her.
“You seem to have recovered quickly,” Vile mentions, shivering at the palpable aggression the chaos elf is aiming at Stephen. “Are you sure you don’t need time to rest?”
“I’ll handle the pain,” she growls, popping a grape into her mouth.
“Always a fighter,” Stephen teases, flashing Trinity a smile.
He is knocked off his chair by a lightning bolt to the temple, curls of smoke rising from his burnt flesh. With a bored sigh, the black-haired man hops to his feet and shakes his head until the damage disappears. A cruel sneer crosses his face, which causes Trinity to tense up and move to the edge of the rug. Her enhancer gems glow in anticipation of his retaliation, but he simply retrieves his fallen cup and goes back to his seat to continue the conversation.
“As I was about to tell you, dear General, I don’t need your military knowledge and combat prowess for this mission. I want you to shadow the champions and let us know if our plan is working. Trinity has used her contacts to learn that our target is leaving Gaia as we speak. I will personally move you into position when you have rested and packed some supplies. I suggest you travel light.”
“I have enough supplies to last me and the skills to forage and hunt,” Vile declares, curiously eyeing his allies. He pockets a handful of cookies, ignoring the stifled laughter from Trinity. “You mentioned only a single target. Is there a specific champion you want me to watch?”
“We’re focusing on Luke Callindor,” the chaos elf answers before finishing her ale. She smacks her lips and gets up for another drink, rubbing a growing bruise on her back. “The Dark Wind has been created specifically for him, but we’ve never tested it. That’s why we need someone watching him and letting us know if the curse is taking affect. Your reports will tell us if we need to utilize one of our backup plans.”
“I personally think we should hit him with a full dose to be safe,” Stephen admits, juggling a vial of black mist on his knuckles. “Though I doubt Nyx would be willing to behave if he dies too quickly.”
“This is for the woman?” the halfling asks in surprise.
The grinning man flicks the vial into the air and watches it vanish in a blink of light. “Nyx is more than a mere woman. She is the light to dear Trinity’s darkness. With both of them under my tender grasp, I can conquer Windemere in months. All I need is leverage to control her, which is why I want Luke Callindor infected and weak. I’ll promise his recovery if she pledges her obedience and bonds her aura to me. It’s more extreme than what I’ve done with Trinity, but I have a feeling I need more of a leash on this one.”
“I still say you’re tempting your own destruction,” the chaos elf mutters over the lip of her mug. “Best to kill the forest tracker now and force Nyx to attack recklessly. We can destroy her if she’s not thinking clearly. Your father would prefer that.”
“Even more of a reason to do the opposite.”
“Aren’t you too old to be the rebellious teenager?”
“Yes, but I’m talking about the big picture wherein I take my father’s throne.”
Trinity laughs and throws her finished mug into the sink, the basin filling with soapy water as soon as the cup hits the bottom. “Except you need the champions to face your father in order for him to regain that throne. That is unless you want to oversee a rotted continent and the realm of demons, which even the Baron has admitted to being too chaotic to truly rule. Grinding chaos elves under your foot is one thing, but demons need to be appeased and ruled with power and presence. You have the power, Stephen, but you carry the presence of a pompous egomaniac. I suggest you stick to your games while leaving the real work to your father. Am I right, General Vile?”
Putting his eye-patch back on, the halfling leaves the barstool and goes to get his boots from the entrance. He frowns as he touches the wet leather, dropping them back on the ground and wiping his hands on his dull red chainmail shirt. He ignores the calls for his return and wanders the other rooms, his mind lost in thought. Vile stops in the small pantry and takes a flask of Calican gin, shuddering when he tastes the strong brew. He sighs when he feels dry boots appear on his feet and a shadow looms over him.
“Are you unable to follow my orders?” Stephen kindly asks, a sinister glint in his sapphire eyes. “I hope you didn’t lie to my father. You know how he hates dishonesty.”
“I might not be as skilled as my son when it comes to stealth, but I can do the job. I was simply waiting for my boots to dry.”
“Well they’re dry,” the black-haired man states. With an iron grip, he grabs Vile’s hand and presses a jade pin into his flesh. “Talk into this and I will hear you. The pain will pass in a few seconds.”
The halfling grimaces as he pulls his hand away, the pin resembling a bleeding mole in his palm. He is about to say something when Stephen snaps his fingers and a burst of darkness envelopes the soldier. The next thing Vile knows, he is standing behind a thicket on the side of a dirt road. It is an eerie night with only the blue light of Tavon, the winter moon, shining on the leafless forest. He sighs and slips his hands into his pockets, grabbing a pair of enchanted buttons that warm his fingers.
“Times like this I wish I had a favored god to pray to,” he whispers, watching his misty breath drift through the night. Checking the sky to get his bearings, General Vile takes another swig of the gin that Stephen was nice enough to let him keep. “Maybe one of you will see fit to guide my way and see me to the end of my mission. Then again, you know who I serve, so it might be best that we ignore each other.”
*****
Sari is admiring the magic dresses Nyx has made for her when a gentle knock at the door makes her smile. She lays the blue top and yellow skirt on the
bed, fighting the temptation to put half of it on to greet her beloved guest. Instead, she settles for answering the door in her underwear and knee high boots of velvet and leather.
“Hello, my-” she begins, freezing when she sees that it is not Luke in the hallway.
“I’m sorry,” Delvin says, covering his eyes and turning away. “I wanted to talk to you about something and didn’t think you’d be changing.”
“I was going to wear one of my new dresses,” Sari answers, leading him into the room by his elbow. She pulls his hands down, causing the warrior to blush. “Don’t be so bashful. I’m only in my underwear. I thought you were Luke coming to have a little fun before we lose our privacy.”
Delvin clears his throat and adjusts his chainmail, shifting uncomfortably as the gypsy stares at him. “Luke is busy arguing with Nyx about the horses. She wants to ride his griffin form and he’s not agreeing. Timoran and Fizzle are trying to keep the debate civil, but I’ve already heard a few spells go off. I can wait outside while you get dressed and retain your shame.”
“Does it look like I have anything to be ashamed of?” Sari asks, crossing her arms and tapping her foot. “Honestly, look at me. My body is gorgeous and I’ve no problem wearing clothes that show it off. You city folk need to loosen up when it comes to this kind of thing. I should walk around in my underwear to teach everyone a lesson.”
“There’s a winter breeze in here and you’re shivering. I thought naiads were able to withstand the cold.”
The gypsy rubs her arms and breathes on her hands to make them warm. “Apparently, I can only hold out for so long. Guess I need the cold weather dress. Nyx said she made one for each season and bought a few normal ones. I was really looking forward to wearing the blue dress that showed off my belly and enhanced my bust.”
“I don’t think you really need that,” the warrior interjects. He blushes when she smirks and leans closer to him, his eyes quickly paying more attention to the ceiling. “You said you were proud of your body, so why enhance it? I shouldn’t be getting so worked up here. It isn’t like I haven’t seen a scantily clad woman before. Seen a lot more than that.”
Sari reaches out to pat Delvin on the cheek before spinning on her toes and returning to the bed. She digs through the pile of clothes, stuffing the warm weather outfits into her belt pouch with very little tenderness. Frowning, the gypsy holds up a dark green dress with white trimming and a simple, one-layer skirt. The garment is heavy enough to keep her warm, but it is not very flashy like the colorful clothes she prefers.
“You know why you’re flustered, right?” Sari asks as she pulls the dress over her head and looks at herself in a full-length mirror. With a groan, she takes the outfit off and tosses it into a nearby wardrobe. “I’m a close friend of the woman you love, so you see me as off-limits. If you had no interest in Nyx, you’d be admiring my beauty without fear. Should I assume your visit is about her?”
“I only wanted to know if she’s talked to you about me.”
“Not much, but only because I haven’t been around lately,” the gypsy replies. She puts on a dark red dress, smiling at how it looks with her blue hair. “She mentions you as another champion and how you saved her from Stephen. Nothing that would lead me to believe she’s interested in you, but we haven’t had many personal conversations lately. Once we’re on the road and sharing a tent, Nyx and I will have some girl talk. Though if Luke asks what we do, tell him I let it slip that we give each other massages. He’s so adorably gullible.”
The warrior takes a seat in the corner and fidgets with the tassel of a nearby curtain. “Is that why he has a fiancée and a girlfriend? Sorry, that’s the best way for me to explain it. There’s some child-like appeal to him that draws people in. Maybe I should loosen up and go with the flow like he does.”
“Don’t let Luke fool you, Delvin. He’s nervous about the day he has to choose either me or Kira. For now, he’s putting on a brave face,” Sari explains, shoving the rest of her clothes into her magic pouch. She goes to a long dresser that is covered in daggers of various sizes, which she casually checks and slips into the hidden pockets of her skirt. “I couldn’t tell you what attracts Kira to him, but I like how he’s fun and honest. You get what you see with Luke, which is sweet and rare. Even though he’s striving to be a great hero, he’s retained this country boy mentality. I think. Luke is simply Luke and you shouldn’t try to be him. Besides, if what he had was appealing to all women then Nyx would be in the running for his heart too.”
“You don’t think they ever considered a romance?”
The tower shakes as a spell goes off outside, causing Delvin to rush to the window and prepare for an attack. Far below, he sees fire on the side of the building with Luke, Fizzle and Timoran watching it die out. A pile of what the warrior at first assumes is snow shifts and collapses, revealing Nyx as she drags herself out of the mess. Dripping with foam, the half-elf is glaring at the tower, but whoever she is angry at is standing out of sight. Her rage turns to Luke, who leaps away from her tackle and continues dancing away from her wild punches.
“I don’t think it ever crossed their minds,” Sari says, joining Delvin at the window. She smiles at the skirmish that has turned into the half-elves hurling snowballs at each other while using Timoran and Fizzle as shields. “I admit to being worried at first, but I realized that the two of them have something special. If Nyx had to pick one person in the world to call family, she’d pick Luke without hesitation. Even over me, who has known her the longest, and those who raised her. Those two really are inseparable.”
“I’ve heard about their first adventure together,” the warrior admits, turning to casually examine the simple room. He finds himself wondering how long it will be before he gets to stay in a real bedroom, a thought that seems to always appear before he returns to the road. “None of us can truly understand the betrayal and suffering that they felt. I hate to call it a natural progression, but they went with the emotions of shared events and developed a powerful bond. Maybe that’s the key. Stop the flirting and let things run their course.”
“That’s a terrible idea,” the gypsy declares, grabbing the last of her gear and heading for the hallway. She holds the door open for her companion, playfully snapping her fingers to hurry him along. “With Nyx, you need to stay out there. She’ll mistake your silence and distance for losing interest. Flirting keeps your intentions known and forces her to consider her own feelings. You didn’t hear this from me, but you’re dealing with a virgin who has never had a boyfriend. She’s admitted to this, so you need to play the game carefully.”
“Nyx is a virgin?”
“Pure as the spring rains.”
Delvin startles Sari when he punches the wall, his gloved hand coming away with scuff marks on the knuckles. The gypsy prepares a calming spell on his lips, but lets it vanish when the warrior takes a deep, cleansing breath. Leaning against the stone, he shakes his sore hand and flexes his fingers. A few spots of blood have seeped through the glove, forcing him to remove it and examine his skinned flesh.
“Guess you realized why Nyx is still focused on Stephen. She’s hiding her fear with her temper, but you can sense that she isn’t right when she talks about him,” Sari says. She draws a long dagger from her boot and spins it in her hand, a cold look in her emerald eyes. “I think all of us want a piece of him. Luke and I spent a few nights discussing what we would do. I’m sure you’ve had dark thoughts along the same lines. Probably smarter to only talk about it now and not go out of our way to find the bastard.”
“As much as I hate Stephen, he’s too powerful for us to defeat,” Delvin agrees, sighing and continuing down the hallway. “Still, I refuse to run if he shows up. He’ll have to kill me to get to Nyx.”
“That’s the mentality I want to see in my friend’s suitors,” Sari declares as she skips ahead and walks backwards, gracefully taking the stairs. “Just keep that emotion out there, Delvin. If Nyx has even a glimmer of interest then I promi
se she’ll return your advances one day. Either that or you’ll wear her down and get a real date out of her simply to shut you up. That’s when you come to me and I’ll help you pull off the most romantic dinner in the history of Windemere. I know you can cook, but I’ve got a few culinary tricks up my sleeves that will make it a truly magical night.”
“Thanks.”
Sari bends backwards and cartwheels over the last two steps, pushing off the ground and landing on her toes. She bows and gestures for Delvin to walk ahead, the warrior gently applauding as he passes.
“I think I’ll help you right now,” the gypsy states as they reach the front door. She bounds into the garden, whipping up a curtain of snow to get everyone’s attention. “Hey, Nyxie! Delvin saw me in my underwear and said I have nothing to be ashamed of!”
“How is that helping!?” the brown-haired warrior exclaims. A blast of force knocks him back into the tower where he lands with a loud crash.
Sari skips back to the front door and grins at the young man. “She noticed you and proved that she’s a little jealous. Besides I wanted to have some fun at your expense. Need to put you through your paces, new guy.”
“Then I should return the favor,” he growls while standing and securing his shield to his forearm. Sticking his head out the door, he meets Nyx’s furious gaze with a smirk. “Sari told me about your . . . lack of experience. I won’t say anything more than that.”
“Like she’s going to understand that,” the gypsy mutters with a derisive laugh. Sari is flipped upside down by a gust of wind, her skirts used to hang her from a flagpole that grows out of the tower. “Well played, Mr. Cunningham, well played.”
Curse Of The Dark Wind (Book 6) Page 6
