by Renee Greene
“Let’s go,” he insisted as soon as he could.
“But I haven’t healed your back,” Reselda argued, “You can’t go like this.”
“I have to,” he insisted. “We’ll be found soon, and Nea’s fire can’t blast through a mountain.”
They all hurried up the stairs and ran toward the main door. Dylan did stand out in the crowd. Not only was he the only human, he had his shirt off and whip stripes across his back.
Most of the people were trying to put out a huge fire outside, but Koth noticed him. He came over to stop Dylan, but Nea blasted him with fire.
“Run!” she ordered the others. “This way.” She pointed over to where Cullen was standing in the flames.
Dylan had no idea how he was going to run through the flames, but he obeyed.
When they reached the flames, Cullen thrust his hands forward and doused a path. Dylan, Pyria, and Reselda all coughed as they ran through the flames, and Reselda screamed, as she was terrified of fire. Most pixies were because of their wings.
They ran through the woods headed southward, away from the main ruins.
When they reached a safe distance away, they stopped. “Are you all right, Dylan?” Nea asked. “Do we need to stop and heal, or can we keep going? I want to get back to the castle.”
“Give me a minute,” Dylan said through coughs. He, Pyria, and Reselda were all coughing from the smoke. “How did you not burn?” he asked Cullen as he coughed again. Obviously Nea was fire proof, but Cullen shouldn’t be.
“I can coat my body with water, making a water bubble around me to protect me from the flames,” Cullen explained. “I can also get the air from the water to breathe. I actually breathe underwater very well.”
That was interesting, but Dylan coughed in response. “Can you make water for me to drink. It will help with the coughing, and I’m so dehydrated.”
“Of course,” Cullen answered. “Cup your hands.” Dylan did cup his hands, and Cullen kept filling them until Dylan had sufficient.
Reselda healed quickly from the smoke inhalation, not surprising for a pixie. She then put her hand on Pyria’s mouth to help her coughing heal and then kissed Dylan. His coughing stopped instantly.
She offered to heal him more, but he really wanted to get out of the area. They walked south, wishing they had horses, or at least supplies. Dylan was starving and weak, but insisted on keeping going. If they could get to the castle, he could eat.
They hadn’t gone far when they heard a horse coming from the south up the dirt path. They hid in the woods to watch, all with their weapons drawn.
The horse suddenly stopped, and something flew around them.
“It’s Dylan!” Vanessa suddenly cried out. “Dylan.”
The horse trotted over, and they saw Bryan was on it. Vanessa and Rayne grew to full size.
“Let’s get off the path,” Nea suggested. “We’ve made too much noise, and I don’t want to attract attention.”
They did all move a safe distance from the path and then greeted everyone.
Vanessa ran over to Dylan, seeing his bruises and the stripes across his back. “You’re wounded,” she cried. “Let me help you.”
It seemed like a good place to take the time to heal, and he did need it, so he agreed.
“I’ll heal you,” Reselda offered. “I do enjoy kissing you.”
“If you prefer her to,” Vanessa offered.
“No,” he corrected Vanessa. “I would very much enjoy your help. I have missed you. I’ve been worried. But if you help me, will Rayne be jealous?”
“Rayne?” she asked. “Why would I care if he is?”
That wasn’t the response Dylan had expected, not that he was complaining.
“Sit,” she offered. “You are easier to heal if you are more relaxed.”
He sat down. He couldn’t lean on a log because his back hurt too much, so he leaned back on his hand.
Vanessa saw the bruises on his chest and the stripes on his back. “This is after that pixie healing you?” she asked.
“It was much worse,” he conceded. “I almost had my neck sliced.”
Vanessa started to rub his chest, but then thought his back might need it more, so she rubbed his back, but he tensed and held back the cry of pain.
She knelt in front of him and suggested, “I don’t even know where to start and it hurts you for me to touch you. I could heal you with a kiss better.”
“If it’s only to heal, you don’t have to,” he responded. He then smiled and admitted, “If you want to kiss me, I won’t complain. I would very much enjoy it. I have missed you. It was thinking of you that kept me going.”
She sat close beside him, so they could turn and embrace each other easily. She was the one supposedly giving the kiss, but her heart started racing as his arms moved around her. He was so strong, but so gentle. They moved closer, and she sparkled as he pulled her up against his chest.
He moved closer and gave her a kiss. Technically, she was giving him a kiss to heal him, but the kiss was so much more. He was so brave and so heroic.
The kiss wasn’t short, but no one made any comment. He’d been through so much.
As Vanessa healed him, Nea went over to Bryan and asked, “What are you doing?”
“Coming to rescue you,” he answered. “Apparently, I was too late.”
“No,” she corrected. “We are all still alive. Honestly, you are right on time. What we most need now is food. Dylan has hardly eaten since he came. I’m sure we all have stories to tell. What happened on your world? I see you succeed and made it back.”
“Let me get the food for Dylan, then we can all exchange stories,” Bryan suggested.
“One thing first,” Nea corrected. “You need a hero’s kiss.”
“But you haven’t even heard my story yet,” Bryan noted.
“Then I need a hero’s kiss,” Nea suggested. “I saved Dylan, Pyria, and Reselda. Well, with Cullen’s help.”
Bryan stared at her. “You want me to kiss you?”
“Oh, it’s not like I haven’t kissed you before,” she teased. “You like it. You know it. Stop fighting it, and just give me the heroine’s kiss.”
Bryan stared awkwardly at her, but then stepped up, put his hands on her shoulders, and gave her a quick kiss. “I kissed you,” he stated afterward. “I actually kissed you.”
“If you call that a kiss,” she teased. “We do need to work on your kissing skills. Perhaps I can help you practice.” She then gave him a very nice kiss, and at first he was awkward, but it didn’t take long to learn his lesson.
“You are a quick learner,” she noted after the kiss, “but I may still make you practice more.”
He stood staring at her.
“Your awkwardness is adorable,” she noted. “Do I really make you that uncomfortable. I’m part Dryad. I am entirely comfortable around men.”
He said nothing, but just stared at her.
“Come,” she said with a laugh, taking his hand. “Let’s get the food out of the saddlebags and hear everyone’s story.”
They did get food, and Dylan asked Vanessa to hold his hand to slow his eating down, knowing that if he ate too quickly that hungry that he would be in pain. The mere rations tasted amazing to him.
They all told the stories of their adventures. Rayne was surprised that when they told of the part where he found out he was being used that the others didn’t condemn him but were just happy he’d figured it out. Pyria explained that she’d been used too.
The afternoon was relaxing. They all needed it after the adventures they had been on, but after a few hours, Bryan walked off and stared the direction of the castle.
Nea followed him. She walked up behind him, put her arms around his waist, and asked, “What’s wrong?”
He turned around and took her hands as he explained, “I’m worried. Something is going on in my world. Mahon is going to do something horrible to draw me and Vanessa back and sneak Rayne through. I’m worried abo
ut King Giles’s kingdom too. You heard the reports of him preparing his men for a full scale war. I’m in way over my head.”
“I wish I could go to your world with you,” Nea admitted. “I know I have the connection to you. I can’t lie. Trust me. My feelings are real.”
“The connection isn’t the problem,” he countered. “I am not letting you sacrifice yourself for me. I have powers. I’m still learning to use them, but I will use them. I am protecting you. I’m not going to let you get hurt if I can help it.”
She hugged him tightly, buried her face in his chest, and cried. Honestly, Bryan had no idea why, and he had no idea what to do for her, but he did hug her back and once again assured her, “I will protect you, Nea. I feel strongly about you too.” He sighed and added, “I wish you had been able to save my father.”
“I would have,” she cried, “but I have no idea where he was. He wasn’t in the main cavern.”
Chapter 16: Dylan Learns He is a Fool
When they all returned to the castle, King Giles called a huge meeting for the next day, so he could get flying messengers out to deliver the message to everyone invited. Mostly pixies took care of carrying the messages, as they were quick fliers.
Bryan wasn’t happy about waiting at the castle. His dad for months had been captured. He didn’t know where his father was, but everyone who had seen him had seen him tied to a chair and blindfolded. Yet he knew charging in without a plan was not wise.
Nea walked up to him and took his hand. He stared at their hands.
“I know. I’m holding your hand,” she playfully teased. “You don’t have to tell me. Now, try to focus. Look at my eyes.”
“You’re holding my…” he stopped himself. “Sorry. What do you need?”
“It’s not what I need, it’s what you need,” she corrected. “You need to study magic, and practice. You are going to have to use your magic, and it will need to be strong.”
“Honestly, it scares me,” Bryan admitted. “I have done good things with it, but I also could cause great harm. What if I intend to do something good, but people end up getting hurt or dying because of it?”
“That is a chance we all take,” Nea pointed out. “Most people live their lives very routinely, and that is fine, but some of us have skills and must use them for good. You have been blessed with a great gift. You must learn to use it. Where you are afraid of using your magic and people getting hurt, you could also have people hurt because you can’t control your magic or don’t know how to use it. You can’t live in fear. Just do what is right.”
“You are right,” he decided with no emotional outburst or great dilemma. “That is logical. Let’s go study magic. I did bring a book of Alizar’s.”
“Guard that carefully,” Nea warned. “There are people who may be able to exploit that knowledge.”
“I doubt they can read it,” Bryan pointed out.
“There is always a counter to any magic,” Nea reminded him. She suddenly asked, “It wasn’t stolen when the sprites robbed us, was it?”
“No,” he assured her. “I didn’t think it wise to bring it into Evander’s land.”
“But they took your pocket knife, didn’t they?” she asked next.
“Yes,” he answered.
She squeezed his hand and asked, “Wasn’t that a gift from you father?”
“Yes,” Bryan stated. “I’m not overly sentimental. My father can give me another knife if he desires.”
She put her hand on his face. “I think you are more sentimental than you admit to.”
“You’re touching my face,” he noted.
“And you like it,” she teased. She gazed into his eyes and pleaded, “I can’t cross the arch. Can you live in Elliad?”
“My place is in my world,” Bryan noted.
She stared at him with great confusion.
“What?” he asked.
“That statement is true and false,” she answered. “How can a statement be both true and false? Your place can’t be your world and not be your world. They are true opposites of each other. That’s a contradiction.”
“I don’t know,” Bryan admitted. “I just know that my world needs me.”
“Elliad needs you too,” Nea pointed out.
He scrunched his eyebrows curiously and suggested, “Maybe I belong in both worlds. I will have to figure that out. Right now, I need to work on mastering my magic. It is intriguing. There is great power in words, but the strength needs to come from me. Perhaps I should start working out more than the walking I do. I walk often.”
“I love walking,” Nea added. “Honestly, I am so impressed with you just as you are. I don’t think you need to change a thing.”
“False,” Bryan stated. “You think I need to learn more about wizardry and become a stronger wizard.”
“You know what I mean,” she scolded.
He stared at her. Did he?
“Should we get working?” she asked. “Do you want a kiss for luck?”
“How would a kiss bring luck?” Bryan asked.
She laughed and gave him a quick kiss.
“I do feel lucky,” he admitted afterward.
She chuckled. “I think you are getting more comfortable with me.”
“If you want me to be comfortable, maybe you should give me definite rules on when it’s all right to kiss you, and when it’s not.”
“You can kiss me whenever you want,” she answered.
“That is not true,” Bryan stated. “I do need to do other things too.”
She laughed out loud at him. “I concede. Maybe I should clarify that you may kiss me anytime you want when we’re alone.”
“False,” he stated. “Again, at times I do need to actually work with you.”
Again she laughed. “I concede. Just ask.”
“But then I would be saying little else,” he noted.
“I concede,” she admitted through the laughter she could not stop. “I’ll think about a good answer for you. Now, should we go learn wizardry?”
“We should,” he agreed. “Honestly, I’d rather kiss you.”
That was definitely true. “They aren’t mutually exclusive,” she teased. “You can kiss me and then we go work on your wizardry.”
“I can just kiss you,” he stated. “You mean, for no reason... just kiss you?”
“Yes,” she assured him. “You know me. I enjoy it.”
“You are a flirt,” he noted.
“True,” she stated. “And you love me flirting with you.”
“True,” he agreed. He suddenly stepped over and gave her a kiss, like he had to do it before he lost the nerve.
“That didn’t hurt, did it?” she teased afterward.
“Kissing doesn’t hurt,” he noted.
“You know what I mean,” she quipped with a playful slap to his arm.
“I do,” he agreed. “Now, we should go work on wizardry. It’s very fascinating. I can read the book to you.”
She held out her hand and offered, “Let’s go.”
He took her hand and asked, “Can I do this whenever I want too?”
“Yes,” she answered. Then she corrected, “Anytime we don’t need our hands to be doing something else.”
*****
King Giles had a huge meeting the next day. Not only were Vanessa, Bryan, Dylan, Rayne, Cullen, Pyria, and Nea invited, Rex Fafnir, Niall, and Melia came from Pixieland. Lord Dakarai, Lindir, Lilian, her father, Lady Locklyn, and King Giles’s generals were there too.
He had them all sit around a huge round table. Perhaps that is where legends of Sir Arthur come from, but Giles did not have a huge round table to show equality or make a political statement. It’s just easier to see everyone and have a discussion if the table is round.
King Giles looked around. Everyone around the table was someone he knew he could trust except for Rayne and Pyria. He had taken Nea’s word on trusting Cullen, and Cullen had sworn an oath, and nymphs can’t lie.
“Pyri
a, Rayne, I need an oath,” Giles began. “I need reason to believe I can trust it too.” He looked straight at Pyria and accused, “I should have you sentenced to death for treason. You were working as a spy for Evander.”
She stood up, walked over to him, knelt before him, and told him, “I am truly sorry. I was wrong, and I understand if you have me killed. I deserve it. I was a fool and paid dearly for it. Yet, if you will give me the chance, I will try to prove myself worthy of that chance.”
King Giles looked around and asked, “Will anyone speak for her?”
“I won’t speak for her, but I will tell you that her statements are true,” Nea stated. “She is sorry, although I’m not sure if it’s sincere repentance or sorry for the consequences. She was wrong. She does deserve punishment. She was a fool. And she will try to prove herself, but I have no idea if she will succeed or not.”
King Giles thought for a moment and asked, “If she makes specific statements like, ‘I will never spy again,’ or ‘I will never betray you,” can you tell me if that is true?”
“Not likely,” Nea explained. “I can tell if the person believes the statement all the time or if he is lying. I can often tell if someone’s statement is false even if they believe it. However, I cannot predict the future. If we came up with a plan and someone stated that we would do it and it would work and no one would die, I could not give the truth of that. How is success even measured? It can mean many things. If someone tells me he is in love, I can often tell that he thinks he is but is not. However, if someone says he is in love, I cannot say he still will be in ten years. If a couple says they will live happily ever after, I may say that’s true or false, but it can mean many things. What defines happy?”
King Giles nodded, “So if she says she will never betray us, you can’t say it’s true or not?”
“I may, who knows?” Nea answered, “but who knows what it means. For example, if she says she will never spy again, I may say it is false and you punish her. Yet, the spying she may later do may be for you. I am good with knowing if someone is telling a lie. I am good with knowing if someone believes something but it is false, but I cannot predict the future, at least not with any accuracy.”
