by Gavin Green
Chapter 31
Lorcan sat on a dark, mossy log, miserable as the rain came down and drenched his clothing. His once vibrant long and wavy orange hair hung like a wet mop over his shoulders and face in his slouched position. From under those dripping strands, Lorcan's black eyes cast daggers at the giant dryad sitting across the campsite from him. Aldritch sat tranquilly on a stump and savored a Lore apple while the rain he conjured simply avoided him.
After the night his debt was transferred, Lorcan was taken from one Verden location to another, all by means of Aldritch's unnerving ability of shade-walking. The reason for their haphazard travels was never evident or explained; Lorcan guessed it was meant to disorient him.
During that time, Aldritch explained what he expected from his new charge. While technically free to do as he pleased, Lorcan was at the beck and call of the elder until his random obligations had been met. There was only a short time of freedom before he was called back for service. The wretched redcap believed that Aldritch made rain just to torment him.
From the temporary fae-bridge, the mismatched pair trekked across neutral Lore ground for a time, tromping through wild grass and sparse woods layered in a low, slithering mist. They finally stopped in a small clearing for a meal break, although Lorcan had surprisingly little appetite.
While the big fae nonchalantly ate his fruit, Lorcan viewed their surroundings with a scowl. The damp ground was uneven, the sparse grasses and weeds dull and listless. The trees were twisted, long, and held wide, half-barren canopies; they seemed to silently taunt him with their height. Through the soft but soaking rain, little could be seen of the way the two were headed through the wild brambles ahead. The sky was sullen brown and devoid of avian life. It was verification to Lorcan that some of the neutral lands sucked.
Lorcan thought that if Aldritch brought him out into the wastelands to use up one of the four debts owed, he was taking his time getting around to it. Finally, his impatience got the better of him. "You said we had to find the elders who held the last Circle gathering. I doubt they're out here."
Under heavy brows, Aldritch's light eyes stared at him menacingly. Letting his look be enough to say the redcap's tone wasn't welcome, the huge dryad eventually answered. "I said it was one reason for the journey." His rough baritone voice was just as intimidating as his stare. "I have a matter of my own to see to before I fulfill my own pact."
In an attempt to ease the tension, Lorcan tried to placate the elder with lighter tones. "You got a chore to do, fair enough. So, um, just wondering, but ... what do you need me for, then? Do you want me to throw a nudge or two to help things go your way or something?"
Aldritch gave another hard stare and said, "Do you think me unable to handle my own affairs?"
Lorcan held up a hand in placation. "Easy now, I never said that; I was just trying to figure this out. I'm sure you've got your personal business well in hand. But, as far as I can tell, we're not near any vast elder holdings, either. So if we're not going to find one of the Circle elders right away, and you don't need me to assist in your private mission," his voice rose in exasperation, "then by the cursed elements, what am I doing here?"
A tree branch swung down and struck Lorcan across the top of his head, denting the shape of his porkpie hat. The unexpected clout at the elder's silent command was meant more as a reprimand than to cause pain. After finishing the last bite of his fruit, Aldritch said, "Your tone irks me; that was a caution. To answer your question, you are with me to be a witness should I need one. And before you ask - yes, it will use up one of your obligations."
Rubbing his head while he set his misshapen hat in his lap, Lorcan commented genially. "Alright, a witness; I can do that. But if I'm asked to testify for whatever you're going to do, then I might need a little information beforehand, right?"
Aldritch took a moment of thought before explaining. "The Circle appointed a magistrate to investigate an Enigma breach in the Verden; your breach, to be exact, Lorcan. That magistrate is a Fair fae named Devlin Ryder. From information gathered from the Lady of Eight, I learned two important things. One, Sir Ryder is now in his Lore haven. Secondly, and more importantly, in his duties he attempted an action that I forbade." Aldritch recalled with pure clarity the warning he gave Devlin when they had met on the McCarthy lawn, and planned to keep the promise he made then.
Lorcan grinned at the news, if only for the fact that Aldritch disliked someone more than him.
"The magistrate's haven is near," the dryad elder continued. "I mean to mete out the punishment for his transgression." He stood and reached for his large, knotted staff. "Come," he said to the drenched and pathetic-looking redcap, "our time here is concluded."
Lorcan got up from the log, and while he tried to fix his sodden maroon hat, he asked, "No offense, but why were we just sitting around in the rain? We could have eaten while we walked for something as important as what you just said."
Always have been thought of as a deliberate fae, Aldritch differed from most others. While he would ponder a situation and a course of actions, it was many others of his type who would rush into the fray, following their wild impulses… not unlike the diminutive redcap who sulked before him. While he casually readjusted his long duster coat, Aldritch asked, "Have you ever heard the phrase, 'the calm before the storm'?"
"Yeah, it's been around for a while."
Giving Lorcan another serious gaze, the giant fae said, "It originated with me." He turned and began to stride out of the clearing. Over his shoulder, he added, "The calm is about to pass. And, I was hungry. Hurry along."
'My, oh my', Lorcan thought to himself with a wide grin as he scampered to catch up, 'this is going to be fun'.
