Accepting the bundle, Animir gave them a quick survey, satisfied that they were very close to the right amount, if not exact. “Thanks,” he replied, throwing them over his shoulder to hang on his back. Seeing that his friend was going to be there a while, he left the stall and wandered down the way.
Moving slowly, without any real purpose, he peeked into the different booths to discover the wide variety of goods and services that could be found there, not to mention the different species all gathered in the one place. He passed a few elves of reigning descent, none of which gave him a second glance, and many more who were serfs among the City of Jerranyth.
When he happened upon a shop run by a pair of dancers from the queen’s royal court, he paused, a broad smile on his lips. “Now I have seen everything,” he quipped, stepping onto their carpeted floor. “Why and how did the pair of you come to be here?”
Looking up at him in surprise, the couple moved closer together, fear on their faces. “You a bounty hunter?” the male asked in a shaky voice.
“No, no,” Animir laughed. “I’m just a traveler. Happened into the city yesterday.”
“No one happens into Whitefair,” the woman sneered, pressing herself into her husband’s grasp for protection.
“No, I swear it,” the taller elf clarified, licking his lips. “I have left the queen’s city behind me. I’ve made some new friends, and we’re headed north,” he explained.
“North?” The other male appeared doubtful, then remembered his shop. “Would you be interested in some material then? Make a nice winter coat for yourself,” he offered, drawing his eye to the rows of material that lined the walls of his stall.
Stepping forward, the elf examined the variety of colorful cloths, each wound into thick rolls, which the locals used to make their robes for protection against the heat and sun. Walking aimlessly through them, he felt certain they had no need of any or means with which to purchase them. In a back corner, he discovered a stack of animal hides; leather tanned for cold weather clothing.
“How much?” he asked, doubtful they would be able to afford it.
“I can sell you three yards for twenty gold pieces,” the shorter elf offered.
“How much for the lot of it?”
“You want it all?” the female gasped.
“Yes. How much for all?”
“What have you got?” the male sneered, sensing desperation might drive the price up, or down if he weren’t careful.
Placing his hand flat against his chest, Animir could feel the necklace pressed against his skin; a small white stone at the end of a string. Tiny compared to the larger version that Lady Cilithrand had presented to Oldrilin. Still it was more precious to him than anything else that he owned.
Reaching inside his shirt, he lifted the shimmering stone, pulling the string to break it. Holding it out, he opened his hand as he offered it to the couple, maybe the only two in the entire market who would appreciate its value. “This is all that I have.”
Staring at it with wide eyes, the woman looked up at him suspiciously. “Where did you get it? Is it clean?”
“Yes, of course,” he scowled, daring to look at it briefly before turning his gaze away. “It belonged to my father. It is the last of our treasures.”
“And why do you trade it?” the man growled.
“I have no use for such trinkets,” Animir replied quietly. “My house has been ended, as I am the last of my line. I was forbidden to use magic, and my power is weak. I daresay beyond repair.” Cutting his eyes over at the couple, he gritted his teeth, “Do you wish to trade or don’t you?”
“Yes, yes,” the woman agreed, warming to the idea. Reaching for the stone, she curled her aged fingers around it. “We have been away from Jerranyth for many moons,” she explained. “Galiodien still sat upon the throne when we left. We danced in his halls for many moons.”
“He was a great leader,” Animir agreed, blinking against his tears as she took his sacred crystal. “Treat it with care,” he commanded.
“Will you carry this alone?” the male inquired, eyeing the size of his purchase.
“Can you deliver it for me? I am staying with a friend by the name of Meena Gavaan,” he suggested.
“Meena,” the older man breathed, his eyes wide. “Yes, we will see that it arrives by this afternoon.”
“Good, and thank you,” Animir replied with a smile, turning to leave and find out if his friend was ready to return to the others.
Flight of Fancy
Using the water that had been left for them, Ami stripped down and washed herself head to toe. Thinking of the bath she had enjoyed in Jerranyth, she laughed for a moment at the simplicity of the porcelain bowl before her.
Using a small cloth, she dipped and then wrung it before she ran it over her sticky flesh. Dust polluted the water quickly, as they had spent days marching across the desert to even get where they were. And we’re only half way across, she sighed, judging from what Meena said about Whitefair’s position.
Thinking of the older woman, she wondered what it would be like to grow up as a wielder of magic, especially one who must hide their gift from others. In a way, that’s the way that Animir must have felt as well, she surmised. She knew the Mate was not pleased Meena wanted to join them, but she herself felt as if the wan belonged with them. An outcast, a lost and forgotten soul. “She’s one of us,” Ami whispered aloud. She could feel it in her gut.
Shaking out her clothes before she returned them to her cleansed body, Amicia took her brush and mirror out onto the patio, where the others sat fanning themselves gently beneath the shade. “Come now, surely this isn’t so bad,” she teased.
“No, but it ain’t the best,” Bally replied in a surly manner.
“What’s eating you?” she demanded, pulling the braid from her hair and sitting on the long bench to brush it out.
“He’s upset that Piers made him stay here instead of explore the city,” Rey chuckled, watching as she completed her grooming.
Across from him, Lin grinned, “Amicia Rey’s special friend.”
Caught off guard, he sat up straighter in his chair, giving her a dark glare, “You are all my special friends, Lin,” hoping she wouldn’t say anything else.
“It’s ok, Oldrilin. I know about his infatuation with my hair,” the girl laughed, parting it so she could replace the braid. “You want to do this for me?” she offered, cutting her eyes over at him.
“Sure,” he agreed with a chuckle, taking a seat next to her.
Smiling at Baldwin, Amicia soothed, “Don’t be cross, Bally. From what Meena says, this isn’t a great place for looking around.”
“Pfft,” he spat, “all of Eriden is filled with evil little creatures. I don’t think there’s a great place here to be found.”
Zae’s eyes wide, she threw her arms across her chest, clicking her tongue in disgust.
“I’m not talking about the glen,” he corrected, rolling his eyes as he got to his feet. “I mean, they can’t protect us from everything.” Moving to the top of the stairs, he stared down at the street, watching as people came and went.
“I’m sure the mate knows that,” Ami laughed. “Besides, you’re not the only one who would have liked to have a look around, so you needn’t feel special.”
His features twisted in a heavy pout, the cabin boy held back his retort, as it would have only hurt her feelings; besides, she wasn’t the one he was angry with. A few minutes later, his eyes grew wide as he continued to watch the crowd.
Turning slightly towards the table, he whispered, “Hey, Rey. Come here,” motioning with his hand for his friend to join him.
Finished with the braid, the taller man stomped up next to him. “What?”
“Shh,” Bally commanded, indicating the path below. “Watch. In a minute or so, a guy in a dirty white robe is going to pass, going that way.” He pointed to the left. “He’s carrying a long parcel under his arm.”
Almost upon his finishing speakin
g, the man walked by, not looking in either direction.
“How did you know that?” Rey hissed, his heart pounding.
“That’s his fourth trip by that I’ve seen,” his friend whispered back. “Maybe we should get Lin inside.”
“No, if they are watching us, they already know she’s here.”
“What are you two whispering about?” Amicia demanded, standing to join them.
“I think we need to leave,” Rey suggested quietly, turning to face her. “Go inside and see if Meena has any more of those wrap things that we can use to hide Oldrilin inside.”
“We can’t leave,” Zaendra interrupted. “The Mate told us to stay here, and we are going to do as he says,” she informed him, still angry about the jab at her homeland.
“HEY!” Bally shouted taking two steps down the stairs to block them.
Pivoting, Rey could see the men coming up. “Get her into the bedroom, now!” he instructed with gritted teeth.
Moving to help his friend block access to the upper deck, he waved. “Geoffrey, isn’t it? I thought you wouldn’t be back until tomorrow night, when we’re ready to leave.”
“Yeah, well, I decided to renegotiate our payment arrangement,” the other man said with a scowl.
“Oh, that’s too bad,” Reynard frowned, shoving his hands in his pockets and shifting to help hide the door as Oldrilin slipped by behind him. “Meena isn’t here right now, but we’ll let her know that you came by.”
“This doesn’t concern Meena,” a bald man at the bottom of the stairs called up to him. “I hear you’ve got a siren up there.”
“A siren,” Amicia gasped, joining her friends. “Now where would we have gotten one of them? They’re water creatures, aren’t they?”
“Only by preference,” the bald man laughed. “They got legs when they want them, sure enough.”
“Oh, you speak as if you’ve seen one,” Rey replied, not about to move over and let them by.
“Why as a matter of fact, I have,” he laughed. “Let’s all have a seat there on the patio and talk about it.”
Leaving them, Amicia stepped through the door and looked around. Her heart pounding, she pushed herself to think. How can we defend ourselves against these thugs? She could hear the debate escalating outside. In panic, she ran her hand across her chest, searching for her merdoe.
“Maybe I can reach him,” she whispered, pulling the shell from between her breasts. Clenching it within her fist, she searched, crying into the darkness.
“Piers!”
Hearing no reply, she tried again, a tear running down her face. “Mate, please, help us!”
“Ami?”
Across the city, in the midst of the crowd, Piers pulled his robe on to cover himself, shoving the new spear he had forged at Animir to carry.
“Ami’s at the house, is she not?” the elf asked in surprise.
“Yes, but I can hear her calling to me. I think she’s using the telepathy,” Piers replied, pushing his way through the throng. “I need to get somewhere quiet where I can hear and concentrate.” Fighting between the bodies, he located a small alley and took a few steps in.
Closing his eyes, he drew a deep breath and focused on the girl. “Amicia, are you there, love?”
“Piers, oh thank God!”
“Ami, what’s happened?”
“Men are here trying to take Oldrilin!” she replied. “Oh, shit!” she screamed aloud, a hand clamped on the back of her neck and pressing her face against the left-hand wall of the kitchen, just inside the door.
The trio had pushed past their young guardians, knocking them flat on the patio. “Give us the siren, and no one’s gotta get hurt,” Geoffrey growled.
“If you take her, someone’s going to get hurt,” Rey countered, getting to his feet.
Holding Amicia firmly, the bald man took charge, commanding, “Check the bedroom.”
The third man hadn’t said much and appeared to be the muscle of the trio as he stepped inside, calling, “Yeah, I got her.” Giving Zae a backhanded slap, the nymph collapsed. Screaming shrilly, Lin’s tiny voice became muffled when he covered her in a large bag, scooping her up as if she were a wild animal to be trapped and claimed.
“Please don’t take her,” Amicia begged. “Anything we have is yours.”
“Anything?” the bald man laughed, pressing his face against hers.
“We don’t have time for that,” Geoffrey warned. “Her friends’ll be back, so let’s take what we came for and get the hell out of here.”
“Maybe next time,” the man teased, licking her ear before he let her go. Rushing down the stairs, the men turned right and disappeared.
“Oh my God,” Ami breathed, wiping the slobber out of her cartilage. “Piers, are you there?”
“I’m here. I’m almost to the house,” he replied.
“They took her! They have Lin. Geoffrey, some bald guy, and a third. They have her in a sack, as if she were –”
“Shh,” he soothed. “We’ll find them. Get our stuff together and be ready to get the hell out of here. Do NOT leave that house, any of you. Do you hear me?”
Looking around, she found Zaendra crying, lying across the bed. No one else was there. “It’s too late for that,” she called into the darkness. “Rey and Bally are gone. I’m sure they’ve gone after them.”
“Shit. Ok, stay there, and we will be there shortly. We’re coming to you.”
Sitting next to Zae on the bed, Amicia held her, each of them crying. “It’ll be ok,” the older girl soothed. “They will find Lin and get her back.”
“I h-h-ope so,” the nymph stammered. The two had become quite close during their months together in the glen, and it terrified her that she might lose her best friend in such a horrific manner.
Arriving at the top of her stone steps, Meena glared at the overturned table and a broken chair. “Shit,” she muttered under her breath, then pulled the curtain back as she darted inside, her robe floating around at her swift movements.
“Girls!” she clipped loudly, seeing the pair sitting on her bed. “Oh, thank God,” the older woman squealed, sitting in an attempt to hug both at the same time. “What the hell happened?”
Before she could reply, Piers and Animir cleared the top of the stairs. “Where is everyone?” the Mate called, peeking inside.
On her feet, Ami ran out, pushing him onto the patio as she flung her arms around his neck. Hugging her tightly, he stroked her back as he soothed, “It’s going to be ok, love. We’ll get her back, I swear it.”
Leaving Meena sitting on her bed, Zaendra joined in the hug, her smaller body trembling with fright. “They took her, Mate! Lin is gone!”
“What’s going on?” Meena asked again, glaring at the four of them in turn.
“Someone’s taken Oldrilin,” the Mate informed her. “That Geoff guy from last night. I didn’t see them, but he had two other men with him.”
“Oh yeah,” she scowled, the anger boiling in her deep brown orbs. “I knew this would happen. That bastard has crossed me for the last time.”
Stepping back inside, she returned a moment later with a long staff. “You stay here. I’ll get her and bring her back.”
“Not a chance,” Piers replied angrily. “She’s my responsibility.”
“Oh,” Amicia interjected, wiping at her eyes. “You don’t even like her. When did she become your responsibility?”
Glaring at the girl, their leader clenched his jaw. “The night we took her from Riran in a hail of dragon’s fire. Look, we don’t have time to argue. I just need to know which way they went. I can do the rest,” he assured, locating his sword, then turning to the elf. “Do you stay to watch them or go with me for the rescue?”
“I should stay behind,” Animir agreed. “We’ll need to pack and be ready to leave.”
“Aye,” the Mate replied, wiping his beard anxiously with his arm. “Get everything together. Did you get the water stone?” he asked of their host. “We haven’t
filled the waterskins, so it will be the difference in our survival.”
“Yes, I have it,” Meena informed him, her voice thick, “but you don’t know where they will take her. I do. And I can help fight.”
“With that?” he indicated her staff with a shrug. “Sorry, love, too risky.”
“I’m not asking your permission,” she replied, pushing past him and heading down the stairs, stick in hand.
The Great Escape
Clomping down behind, Piers turned right to follow her, skipping a few steps to catch up. Beside her, he demanded, “Ok, where have they taken her?”
“There’s a slave trade on the south end of town. Exotic creatures and the like. He more than likely will put her up for auction, since that will net him the most profit,” she explained, her skirt catching as her legs slid past one another in the heat. Pulling her hood to cover her head, she never broke her angry stride.
“So, we just bust in there and demand he give her back?”
Stopping abruptly, she faced him squarely. “You have a better idea?”
“Yeah. We have a look around, come up with a plan, and try not to get ourselves killed!”
“Great plan. What about your other friends, Rey and Bally? If they followed them, we can meet up with them. Four is certainly better than two,” she clipped.
“Aye,” he agreed, looking around anxiously. “All right, take me to this meat market, but do not let us be seen. We’ll watch for the boys and go from there.”
It turned out locating the pair had not been difficult. Uncovered and brandishing two swords and an axe, they had cleared a path and gathered a good deal of attention. Entering the courtyard where the sale would take place, Piers picked them out and pushed his way towards them.
“Get out of my face!” Rey screamed, raising his weapon as a threat to an old man before him.
“What’s going on here?” Piers demanded when he had reached them.
“This guy says we’re not allowed in here,” the younger man shouted. “But they’ve taken my friend, and I’m not leaving here without her!”
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