The Ageless Giant

by B K Suitter

  “Then one night, when the king and queen had all but given up hope, an angel came knocking at their door, disguised as an old man with graying hair and a shiny necklace.”

  “Why was he wearing a shiny necklace?” the curious little girl asked.

  Robert thought a moment and smiled. “It was a magic necklace and it made the angel appear as an old man.”

  “Why would an angel want to look like an old man?” Aliha asked.

  “Because angels can’t look like angels to humans,” Robert said and before the little girl could ask why, he told her it was a rule between God and men.

  “Anyway,” Robert said, feeling the story starting to drag. “The old man was carrying a baby,” and Aliha’s eyes lit up as she squealed and clapped her little hands.

  “Did he give the queen the baby?” Aliha asked, already knowing the answer.

  “He did. He said he had a long journey to make and he could not take the baby with him, and he gave us…er, the queen the baby.” Robert smiled big with his daughter.

  “I love that story, Daddy. I am so happy for the king and queen. Did it really happen that way?” Aliha asked.

  “It did,” Robert replied. “It really happened just that way.”

  The next morning, father and daughter woke early. They had a small breakfast of fried eggs, dried bread, and spiced apple cider, and were on the hunt shortly after, taking a wide path that led through the forest. Robert carried a bow and a hunting knife at his side. He had a quiver full of arrows strapped across his back along with a small pack that contained water and a bit of cheese and hard bread.

  They walked all afternoon, talking and enjoying the scenery. Robert didn’t really care if he brought home a kill this time; he just enjoyed being with his daughter, but when he broke the edge of the clearing, he stopped. He put his hand down in front of Aliha to keep her still and whispered a “Shhhhhh” to her. On the other side of the long clearing stood a buck the size of a large horse. Robert’s eyes were wide and white. The excitement of the hunt let loose throughout his entire body and surely his mouth was watering at the prospect of the kill. The deer’s antlers stood tall like the great animal itself, easily twenty points of sharpened bone sat atop its majestic head. Here was a true king of the forest.

  Its body was parallel to them and its gaze was into the forest, away from the frozen pair. Slowly, very slowly, Robert reached over his shoulder and drew out an arrow. He placed the long shaft to the bow and quietly drew back for the kill and was amazed the buck stood so still. Its attention was obviously captured by something moving through the forest, and Robert was glad for it. He held his breath and aimed, his eyesight running the length of the arrow and finding the deer.

  “Don’t kill it,” Aliha whispered, her voice cutting straight to the man’s heart. He held his position. He had to kill it, wanted nothing more than to let loose the arrow and kill it.

  “Please, Daddy,” Aliha said softly, and he fired, aiming high so the arrow flew up above the animal and into the forest. The giant buck jumped and then bolted into the thick woods, gone from Robert’s sight.

  A mixture of frustration in not being able to bring the buck down, and love for a sweet little girl that could not bring herself to watch the animal killed, played on the man’s heart. Robert looked down at his darling Aliha who had a tiny innocent smile on her face.

  “Let’s go home, Aliha,” her father said, and she agreed. But then her eyes went wide and the look of horror spilled across her tiny features and Robert quickly turned around. A vicious grizzly bear was racing across the clearing from where the deer had stood moments ago.

  Robert turned to grab Aliha, but she had already moved forward to wrap herself around his leg and he stumbled as their feet tangled up. Aliha tripped and went down, and Robert fell over her and knew they were both dead. He looked over his shoulder and saw the ferocious beast running up to them, roaring with a mouth opened wide and full of sharp teeth.

  Robert covered up Aliha, determined to keep her safe while exposing his backside, but suddenly the chaos of animals fighting broke out into a maddened frenzy behind them. Robert dared to look, and he witnessed the spectacle of four large wolves battling hard against the giant bear. They came from nowhere it seemed, to descend upon the great beast. The bear turned in circles as the wolves came at all sides and angles, teeth flashing and claws raking. The bear was mighty, and it gave as good as it received, size and strength matching speed and agility. One of the wolves looked familiar to Robert as he slowly crawled off Aliha and reached for his bow. He pulled an arrow from his quiver and helped Aliha to stand and they both backed away slowly.

  Then, one of the wolves cried out in pain as the bear fell upon it. The huge animal tore into the downed wolf, biting its head and tearing at the body with razor sharp claws. The large black canine jumped upon the bear’s back, biting at the neck while the other two wolves were clamping onto the animal’s legs.

  “Help them, Daddy!” Aliha screamed. “Kill the bear!” Robert heard the cries, but all he wanted to do was get his daughter out of there. They could get away while the animals fought, who cared what the outcome was as long as Aliha was safe. She yelled and pulled at his sleeve, begging him to help the wolves, “MY WOLF!” she cried, and Robert pulled loose from the hysterical little girl.

  “All right!” he yelled back and took a few steps forward and drew back on his bow. The bear shook and rolled, spinning in circles, shaking the wolves free. It stood on its hind legs, towering over the wolves and preparing to descend upon the doomed pack leader which was already covered in blood.

  The bear gave a mighty roar, its maw opened wide and Robert let loose his arrow. It sailed true, penetrating the beast’s mouth and shooting out the back of its large head, followed by a spray of blood. The beast stood quiet and still for just a moment, then it toppled to the earth, shaking the ground as it crashed upon the forest floor.

  The wolves circled the bear, quietly surveying the kill. Robert and Aliha just stood there waiting for the beast to rise, but it never did.

  “My dad then skinned the bear and took part of the meat home with us. He told me that you should never kill an animal unless you intend to use it for food or fur, and you should always bless the dead animal after you have taken from it,” Aliha finished her story.

  “Your father sounds like a Dishoni,” Daphaxian said.

  “What do you mean?” Aliha responded.

  “The Dishoni are very spiritual when it comes to animals, only killing to provide food and wear for the village – never for sport. It’s what makes them weak. You said he only took part of the bear’s meat, what did he do with the rest?” Daphaxian asked.

  “He left it for Timber and her pack,” Aliha replied.

  “Was that the first time you met Timber?” Gideon asked curiously.

  “No, there was another time when I was younger–” and Aliha was interrupted.

  “If it isn’t the brave Asarian,” said a tall man with disdain as he walked up to their table with two other men that followed close behind. They stood next to Aliha while facing Daphaxian who was sitting at the table chewing a piece of tough bear meat. The three men were Dishoni from the Black Crow tribe, and they had long, straight, black hair and faces that seemed carved of stone. Their skin was a reddish-brown, the color of men who spent much time under the sun, and it looked rough as leather. The hardened warriors covered their lean muscular bodies in animal furs and wore eagle feathers in their hair, and Aliha viewed them as both beautiful and dangerous.

  Daphaxian washed down the meat with a strong pull of ale and looked up at the tall Dishoni warrior.

  “Palanohi, what brings a Black Crow to The Cold Wyrm?” Daphaxian asked and he smiled his charming way.

  Gideon and Shanks sat quiet while surveying the three men. They both knew Aliha sat in harm’s way.

  “You bring me here, dog,” Palanohi spoke with an icy chill. “You took from me, so I come to take from you.”

  �
�What did I take?” Daphaxian sounded both amused and confused.

  “Our brother,” Palanohi hissed with anger.

  “I did enjoy that. Tell me, what do you plan on taking from me?” Daphaxian asked with a mischevious glint in his dark eyes.

  “Your scalp,” answered the Dishoni warrior and he put a hand to his wicked knife that was sheathed at his side. Daphaxian and Shanks both shot to their feet, their chairs crashing to the ground behind them.

  “I’m actually going to need that for a while,” replied Daphaxian in a dangerous tone and his hand wrapped the hilt of a dagger, but he did not pull free the blade.

  Palanohi stood still like a morning sparrow next to Aliha, who was glued to her seat, paralyzed with fear. The two other Dishoni warriors spread out with hands also on their weapons. Aliha stared at Gideon, who stared right back, neither of them daring to make a move and provoke the fierce warrior.

  Palanohi pulled forth his deadly knife with his left hand and he reached down and took Aliha underneath her upper arm with his other. He pulled her up from off her chair with a slow ease, his eyes tight upon Daphaxian.

  “Then I will take your woman,” Palanohi spoke with anger and Aliha stopped breathing. She just stared at the blade that was close to her face. Gideon’s heart stopped and nobody dared make a move.

  “She is not his,” Gideon said softly. “Please let her go.”

  Palanohi stayed silent, staring at Daphaxian and giving the man a small smile, daring him to move.

  “Please. She does not–” Gideon attempted to say more.

  “I do not care,” Palanohi snapped, and as he spoke a knife wielding hand quickly came around from behind his neck and another grabbed tight to his forehead. The hand drew the blade across Palanohi’s throat with a spray of blood in its wake.

  Daphaxian’s hands became quick as snakes as he reached out and grabbed Palanohi’s hand to secure the knife that was at Aliha’s face, and at the same time, he threw his own small dagger with his other hand and buried the blade deep into the chest of one of the other Dishoni warriors. Daphaxian then threw the knife that he pulled from Palanohi’s dying grasp and stuck it deep into the neck of the third Black Crow warrior.

  Gretta let go of Palanohi and all three warriors dropped dead to the floor at the same time. Aliha stared hard at Gideon as blood stained the side of her face and neck, and then she passed out into the arms of Gretta. Both the Ice Queen and Daphaxian laughed as if watching a dancing bear while Gideon and Shanks just sat back down, their faces white. Of course, Shanks had pushed his chair back and over when he abruptly stood, so instead of sitting in a chair, he ended up crashing to the floor. Gretta and Daphaxian laughed all the harder.

  **********************

  A thick plume of black smoke rose high from off the Iron Horse as it ran fast and hard on two iron tracks that stretched the length of the Northern Kingdom. The rail car pulled seven more behind it with the first one carrying nothing but coal, which was fuel for the metal beast. The next rail car was a flatbed, and it carried huge logs from the Timberlands, and three more train cars carried food and wine and other goods from the neighboring lands.

  The last two in the long line of rail cars held passengers traveling for Castle Coldstorm. In one of them slept Aliha under the watchful eyes of Shanks and Gretta while Timber lay at her side.

  In the other train car sat Gideon and Daphaxian. They were on comfortable couches arguing the same topic that had plagued Daphaxian since leaving Perlosia with Aliha. Gideon had spent the time at sea trying to avoid the man, or at least not wanting to be alone with him because he always had too many questions. Gideon was not ready to share Aliha’s true identity to the curious man mainly because Daphaxian was still loyal to King Uriah.

  “She looks just like the queen did when she was eighteen, and she has her name. Your mere coincidence is impossibility. Tell me the truth, Gideon, we are not enemies. Who is the girl and why do you insist on taking her before King Ironheart?” Daphaxian was insistent and relentless.

  “You are correct in your suspicions, Daphaxian. The girl is Queen Aliha’s daughter. After you and King Uriah left with the baby, Hadias, Aliha had a second child, a twin girl, and I took them to the Temple of Carami with the use of the magic. Queen Aliha was close to death, however, and the monks did not wish to raise a baby girl, so I took her to Perlosia and hoped to one day reunite her with her mother, who waits for us even now at the temple.”

  “The queen is alive?” Daphaxian asked with suspicion.

  “She is. She has been with me at the temple, safe under the protection of the monks. She has been afraid to return to Uriah and worries that if the king finds out about Aliha, she will be in danger,” replied Gideon.

  Daphaxian sat quiet, not sure if he could believe the healer. He was in King Uriah’s army, but he always loved Queen Aliha as a dear friend. He was most loyal to Shanks, however, who was his best and longtime friend.

  Daphaxian had been visiting Shanks in the North, trying to convince him to move back to Asarian City. He traveled with Shanks east to the Port of Icewater on business, and it was there that they came upon Gideon by mere coincidence. When the healer asked Shanks to join him on his long voyage across the Eastern Sea, the two men jumped at the chance for adventure. Gideon cringed, however, when Daphaxian agreed to tag along because he really wasn’t inviting the troublesome Asarian, but Gideon held his tongue and said nothing and the three left Icewater aboard the Ironheart the next morning.

  “I must reunite Aliha with her mother. Will you help me, Daphaxian? Because I saved Shanks’ life, and for the love you have for Queen Aliha, will you help me take Princess Aliha to the Temple of Carami?” Gideon pleaded with the man.

  Daphaxian thought quietly for a moment, which was unusual for him, then he slowly stood and nodded his head.

  “Yes,” Daphaxian replied, and he left Gideon alone in the rail car and joined the others for the long trip to Frostbite – the city just north of Castle Coldstorm.

  *******************

  Aliha slept in fits. Her nightmares were all too real and she dreamed of another time. She was in her favorite garden at her father’s large estate, pruning and weeding her favorite gathering of purple dragon lilies even though she was told many times not to.

  “I pay people to do that, Princess. Would you like me to put Mr. Greenthumb out on the streets so you can do his job?” Her father called him that because he didn’t care enough to know his real name.

  “I am not a princess yet, and I will not be his queen,” Aliha cried.

  “You are going to marry the king, Aliha, and I’ll not hear another word about it,” her father replied.

  “The King of the North and the King of the East,

  Give me to the South, the King of the Beasts.

  To give him a son to continue his wars,

  To drink from his cup, the blood that he pours.”

  Recalling the poem made Aliha open her eyes and she found herself lost on a comfortable couch. Gretta and Daphaxian were arguing about sword styles and techniques, and Shanks was sitting on the floor quietly running his hand down the back of Timber, who was asleep at his side. She closed her eyes and pretended to be asleep so she wouldn’t have to talk to anyone. She was scared and she was on her way to meet King Ironheart, a man she felt she already knew.

  7

  Year of the Frost Horn 2318 A.A.

  Torique pulled at the long oars, dragging the wide ends just below the surface of the cold ocean waters. His small boat slid amongst the waves and the experienced sea captain guided her towards the distant beach of the mysterious island.

  Torique’s wife sat in the boat with their daughter. They were enjoying the boat ride and were anxious to don the island. The man watched as his beautiful wife pointed out the large birds to the girl of eight summers. The carrion gulls were circling overhead, waiting for what was to come. Torique had witnessed it before in real life, which was why he was having the dream now. He dreamt the ev
ent almost every time he reached deep sleep, so he napped and rested more than he ever slept.

  The island grew larger as his tiny craft inched its way to the wide sandy beach. A dark thick jungle stood like a massive wall at one hundred yards in, and it stretched endless in both directions.

  Torique was usually in a hurry to depart his quarry onto the island just so he could end the nightmare and wake up screaming. The men and women on the boat with him were generally always the same in his dream. They were the people he had left on the island to die, and he had relived the event many times since.

  More than once his parents were on the boat with him. He dreamt his father and mother were rowing and they were taking him to the island. Torique was a small boy and he cried in desperate fits and begged them not to take him back there. They scolded him and told him it was his own fault. Torique knew they were right.

  High ranking officials in Dragonport offered Torique Waterrun the position of High Captain to an old ship, The Coral Rose. He and his family were moved to Fantior City to live, and while he was at sea, his family was well taken care of. The payment he was offered was quite substantial so he could not say no, although he wished he had. He would never again be the same.

  They were not far from the island and Torique was sick at the thought of leaving his wife, Elizabeth, and their daughter on the beach. He continued to row, knowing the dream would end, but he lagged at the oars, not wanting to see what would eventually happen. If only he could wake himself before he reached the island, and he willed himself to do so, but it was no use and he continued to row. Elizabeth was laughing with their daughter, Angelica, and begging him to hurry, calling him lazy.

  Torique watched the two wriggle on the hard, wooden seat of the boat. They were excited as the vessel reached near the sandy shore and they jumped from the craft and landed in the cold water that was only knee deep. He watched as they high-stepped onto the beach and then turned and waved him goodbye. Torique grabbed at the oars as he watched his wife and daughter dance on the gritty shore. He rowed slowly away from them, watching as the two on the beach reached up to feed the birds that were circling above waiting to feed on them.