“Mr. Gryff, may please I go with you?”
“I don't know, Lydia is with cubs and the flight might be dangerous.”
“She is fine, the flight will be safe and she weighs nothing, ” Lydia said. I glanced over to her and rolled my eyes.
“Yes, you may come, but you follow my word exactly or you will never get any favors from me again.”
“He means it, Lily. Gryff will not like to play your games. Be direct, no tricks, and do exactly as he says.” Donnie said to her backing me up. Not that I needed it, but it was nice to hear from him.
“Alright, Donnie, quiet day for you. I expect the eastern wild lands to be swarming with orcs for the next week. So don't go out there for those smelon trees. We got enough to last until collection day. Which if no one shows up we will be doing very well and need to take fewer risks. I want you to help Velia today. Be mindful, and work hard. I will see you soon.” I told him.
“Yes sir,” and with that, he was gone.
Lily followed happily behind me in my shadow as I approached Velia and Elan. They stood behind a makeshift desk that had an ink container, pen, and paper on it. They were reviewing a list when they looked up at Lily and me.
“Lily, what has you in such a fine mood?” Velia asked her.
“Mr. Gryff said I can go to Lakeland with him.” She beamed in reply.
Velia gave me a ‘why would you’ stare. I could tell she was curious.
“I am going to marry her off after I adopt her,” I said. Velia gasped, Lily hit me, and Elan chuckled.
“You would adopt me? Only to marry me off?” Lily asked with conflicting emotions.
“Lily you were the first friendly face I saw on Vin. You still are a starving little girl, with patchwork clothing, and boots two times too big for her feet. The Duke will probably push someone's daughter at me for marriage. I am pretty special after all, but so are you. If I can get you into a good family, you could live in a big city, with three meals a day. You could play instead of work, learn instead of toil, and be a kid. So yeah, I will adopt you, then I will use whatever power I can to get you a better life than you have out here on the frontier.”
She absorbed my words and thought about them.
“Another piece of paper to buy then Elan,” Velia told the man.
He handed her the paper and Velia scribbled away at it.
“I bought paper for these list with your coins, I hope you don't mind. We had a lot of lists and some too long to etch into bark. Elan gave us a good deal on them.” Velia said. Of course... Elan had the best deals. “The first list is specialist needed to build, improve, train, and upgrade the village. This list is the goods and tools the village could use. It looks like everyone added something to this list, it includes Melina's items. They all gave coin that should cover the costs but only you will know if they over or underpay. It is a long list but it has been a while since the town was able to do a big trade. Most were upset they missed the Cern trade.” Velia said. She handed me a list that was three pages long and it came with a large purse of coins. I was definitely going to need to hire a merchant to tackle this amount of stuff. Velia shoved another list into my hands.
“This list is for the livestock we would like to buy. Livestock for sale may be short in Lakeland but know a city that big will still be actively trading. If they don't have it they can probably get it... For a price. If you get on the Duke’s good side, those prices should not inflate too badly. Some of these lists could be longer but this should be enough to start. This last list is an inventory of what you are bringing to sell. Some of these items, like the orc heads, may fetch more coin further south. Here is your purse, I kept a few silver in case we need it while you are gone.” She handed me my purse which I tied to the inside of my belt. I wanted to laugh when she said the lists could have been longer. I can show her a long to do list.
Velia then got down on both knees and handed Lily a piece of paper. She whispered something into her ear, then touched their foreheads together. Lily cried and hugged Velia tightly.
Lily, paper in hand turned to me. “I would be honored to be your daughter and will happily go with you to see the Duke.” She said and handed me the paper.
“I accept. No reason to get all mushy, this will help you immensely, plus how often do ten year girls get to ride a griffin.”
“Never,” “Never ,” both Lily and Lydia said in unison.
“Alright, Lily go run over to Lydia and wait for Gryff,” Velia said.
Elan stepped up with a piece of paper of his own. “This is a petition signed by the majority of Fernlan residents and its current leader. Me. It calls on the Duke to elevate your status to a Knight of the realm. Rarely is such a request denied? I hope to call you Sir Gryff upon your return. It is the least we can do for you.” He handed me the paper, shook my hand, and left me alone with Velia.
“This pile of paperwork is getting big, what else have you got for me?” I asked her.
“I know we have not had as much time together as we would have liked. I also know we enjoy each other’s company, and we have intimate desires. A few times I have let suitors out of my grasp for fear of the future. I have hope now and I will not sit idly by. Here is our marriage proposal. If you would have me, all you need to do is sign this, and then have a clerk of the realm affirm it. The Duke himself can too but he is probably too busy. I mean the amount of paperwork a Duke must have to do is...” She was nervously rambling and I paused her with a finger on her lips.
“Are you certain this is what you want? I am uncertain what the future holds for me. If you bind yourself to me, I doubt it will be all good days. I also worry some future lady may cause you undue strife. I literally told you that I will use the Duke’s proposal to get Lily a better life. Are you okay with that?” I asked as I gazed deeply into her eyes.
“That is exactly why I offer myself to you. You see an opportunity to help someone else and you take it, knowing others will think poorly of you by adopting an orphan. You will be swarmed with similar proposals as more people learn of you and what you offer. I know I will not always be as pretty, or as well learned, but I will be a faithful, loving, understanding wife. I will stick by you, not for politics or greed. Hopefully to bear your children and help guide you to a long happy life. So take the damn piece of paper, sign it, and then kiss me.” Velia said. She held out the paper and pen to me. I placed it on the desk, then signed it. I added it to my pile which I set on the desk.
I raced around the piece of wood and picked her up in my arms. We kissed until I felt other parts of me start to swell. Velia felt the throb of my erection starting to rise and broke the kiss.
“Later, for now, I need to ask a favor. I ask you to consider adding Pipi, and Micka as sister wives. Pipi and I have been attached at the hip and… fellow bed warmers for a while. Also, I consider Vern a son. I know... It is a big ask and a lot to take in. If you say no I will not hold it against you. Micka made it clear that she desires you and is a good woman. If you marry a noble lady, for example, one of the Duke's daughters. Well anyone after that woman not of noble birth, will be looked on as a concubine and not a real wife. Honestly, they will look down on us regardless probably, these things matter in the noble circles and more importantly in the sister wives' hierarchy. We have deemed you a worthy husband and even though we have not blossomed a deep love with you yet. Keyword yet, we know we will. Marrying you now will greatly improve our standing in your household.”
I exhaled heavily and threw my hands in the air in frustration. Why must things be like this? Everything moves so fast here it can make a man dizzy.
“Pipi yes, Micka no. Pipi yes because she is honest, caring, and our talk last night makes me feel more than lust for her. Micka no because of Donnie, I respect the young man too much and no offense to the situation, I don't know her well. I also do not want twenty wives.” I
told her.
She nodded and gave me a hug. “I will bring Pipi over for you to tell her the good news while I explain to Micka the situation. It is better I do it, than you. She will fight to get you to say yes, and the last thing we need is a confrontation that I can avoid. Please know she may request help to move to Lakeland if they allow some of us to resettle. Her young man has a woman that watches after him, and a man who takes him out into the wild lands. He is no longer a little boy and she will probably seek a new life elsewhere instead of lingering here.”
I went about studying the list of goods and tools the villagers had made for me while I waited for Pipi. I couldn't believe it was three pages long. Ore, tools, nails, bottles, potions, bags, and it just kept going.
“Gryff?” The soft voice of Pipi brought me out of my thoughts.
“Pipi, I see you have a piece of paper for me. Are you sure about this?” I asked her.
Her hazel eyes bore into mine and she closed the distance with a solid kiss on my lips. “Yes, husband. I know you will be good to us. Vern will come around and I promise to be everything you need me to be. I understand that I will share a busy household and promise to be truthful, loving, and caring. I will do my best to make you happy when you seek it and give you space when you need it.”
I took her paper and signed it then added it to my pile.
I kissed her cheek, grabbed my paperwork and made my way to Lily and Lydia before anyone or anything else got in my way of leaving.
“I am not calling you dad, Gryff. Just so you know.” The little girls said in a sassy teasing tone.
“Deal, now get serious. Get on Lydia, we need to go before we get tasked with other stuff that is on everyone's to do list. Lydia go grab that large sack over there with the stuff we need to sell. Then take us over where the creek meets the river and follow the river south to Lakeland.” I said.
I climbed on the griffins back and noticed an outline of where a saddle had once been attached. I didn't know where to grab so I clutched a clump of feathers in each hand. Her body was too wide for me to straddle her back like you would a horse so I sat with legs spread across as wide as I comfortably could. Lily got on behind me and clung to my waist.
We slowly lifted into the air. Lydia grabbed the sack of orc parts, boars head, and random items villagers asked to be sold. We then banked gently, which I found to be easy to handle. I didn't know what to expect but staying firmly on her back was not a challenge. The entire village had gathered to watch us depart. Even a few griffins looked on, roused from their napping. We waved goodbye to Fernlan and were gone.
Who knew riding on the back of a soaring bird thirty feet long and ten feet wide would be so amazing. The way the wings beat the air into submission. The fresh wind on my face. The forward speed soothed my tensions. I took my time and enjoyed the feeling. The tall pines turned to birches and willows as we soared over the river. I saw the dam and looked for an ambush only to find none. There were a few goblins messing with the fishing lines I had robbed. They danced in excitement at seeing us and tried to get their bows to fire in time but we accelerated with a burst of speed and were gone.
Lydia beat her wings fast as we glided above the river rapidly progressing southward. We stayed slightly above the trees. The water was murky in some places and clearer in others where fresh streams entered the river. There were gentle bends where the watered slowed followed by downhill fast sections. The river stayed wide enough for a big boat. I saw lots of game trails and only a few Horde trails. It seemed like in the six months since humans had been pinned in, wildlife has prospered. If the orcs were being fed by the humans then there was no reason to hunt. I justifiably was upset how much was out here out of our reach.
The other thing that kept catching my eye as we flew were the past signs of humanity. Farmhouses littered the landscape. Some burnt down with silos still standing. Others looked completely fine but the fields unchecked and the wild fighting to reconquer the land. Abandoned boats remained tied to docks, while others were half sunk or only a mast breached the water. It was depressing, so many humans had made a life out here either to die or seek refuge in safe zones. We even saw a distant small fort that had archers on it, named Canad on the map. An abandoned outpost with no destroyed buildings gave me pause. It had no signs of life inside it, yet no signs of destruction. Too bad griffins could only land in safe zones or else I would have taken a detour.
The entire trip I had my map out and I was making notes and marks. I immediately added another item to my list. A larger more detailed map. Also some other way than an inkpot and pin. In case you guessed flying and using an inkpot... there may be some black feathers on the Lydia now. I glanced over my shoulder and Lily was ecstatic. The happiest I have ever seen a kid with wide eyes and a beaming smile.
The sun was at its peak and we had been flying for a few hours when I stopped seeing any signs of the Horde in large numbers. It was almost like the expansion of Horde settlements reached an endpoint. We were getting fairly far from the start of the human safe zones. I saw fewer game trails now, and at one point saw a team of four human hunters. As we flew over they waved our way. I waved back. They noticed I was a man and jumped for attention but we were quickly gone.
The tall gray stone walls of Lakeland were dirty with moss. Every hundred feet stood a tall square archer tower. A large oval roost dominated the city's skyline as the premier structure of height. A small moat was created by making a thin detour off the main river to encircle the defenses. A drawbridge was lowered. Not too far from the drawbridge in the fields, a lone circular stone structure stood out of place.
The fields took half the interior space the barrier provided and grew all sorts of vegetables. They went south of the city on the west side of the river. And carried on until what I had to assume was the boundary line. There was no section of trees for expanding like we had in Fernlan. Across a wide bridge on the east side of the river was the stables. Animals of all sorts were raised there. The number of different barn types, sizes, and utility was impressive. There must be thousands of animals being cared for. Every last bit of the space was being used. Lakeland was utilizing the land far more efficiently than Fernlan.
Inside the thirty foot gray outer walls were the slums. The buildings were compact and small in this section of the city. As we tingled through the barrier I was assaulted by the stench of humanity.
“For the love of all the gods everywhere, you live on a river, clean your city and yourselves,” I muttered to the air. Ugh. The slums took up the majority of the inside space. A second shorter wall was made of a tan colored smooth stone.
The second defensive interior wall was polished and clean. As were the large houses inside the new section. They were still close together, but the difference in effort, care, and size was pretty astounding. Plus this section didn't make me want to vomit as we drifted over it.
The city came to a peak where a mighty palace stood on top of a rising slope. Gardens were neatly placed inside an eight foot wall of polished white marble. Statues of heroes past, griffins, horses, and a water fountain decorated the lawn. The Palace itself was made of the same white marble as the walls. Gargoyles adorned the slanted roof and balconies stuck out of every room on the second floor. Large windows allowed viewing of the city and for the light to shine inside. At the front of the palace was a large staircase bordered by two statues of wolves.
“Lydia land us there please,” I asked her.
“It will upset them but I care not .”
We landed right in front of the stairs with a flair and a loud thud. I looked around to see a bunch of crossbows pointed at me. I raised my hands up and slowly stood. Okay, clearly crossbows were on Vin. I would bet they were called arrow thunkers or something dumb. A lady in an extravagant teal dress was getting ready to berate me when she realized I was a man.
“Lower your weapons he clearly means no
harm. Standing there weaponless with his hands up and a behaved griffin around men. By the gods, I never thought I would see the day. Oh, and she is with cubs. Stay back, men. Lower your weapons, I will not repeat myself and step back.” The lady was clearly used to being obeyed and these guards were clearly not used to an unknown griffin landing on the palace grounds. They slowly lowered their weapons and backed up.
I slid down from Lydia's back then caught Lily as she followed behinds me. I checked to make sure I had all my lists... Check... Purse... Check... Okay now to grab the sack of goodies to sell. I went under Lydia and got the bag that had blood seeping out of it. It was minor amounts, as most of the heads and body parts had dried out. The lady in charge waited for me to get myself situated.
She stood with poise and a neutral face. There was no warm smile here. Based on the nice dress and telling the soldiers what to do she was someone important. Once I stepped away from Lydia and was clearly in the open I set the sack down and did a curtsy.
“What in the seven hells was that?” The lady scoffed at my gesture.
“Not sure my lady. I figure you are someone of importance and was trying to show respect. I am not from Vin and I am afraid I lack all the knowledge of its customs.”
“I am lady Rain third wife to our great and noble Duke Riza. A traveler not from Vin who can ride griffins, and make them not enrage around men. Today suddenly got more interesting. Anything else you can do Sir?”
“Gryff of Redland. I am sorry for my lack of proper manners and protocol. I have business with your husband. I bear grave news of the city of Cern, and tidings from a village north of here called Fernlan.” I said to her. Lily patiently waited by my side and kept quiet. The guards with their shiny armor and sharp weapons had spooked her.
“You two.” Lady Rain said to two guards. “Escort our guests and ensure they behave while I guide them to our lord in his receiving court.” She gave a wave for us to follow her and started to walk into the palace.
Gryff The Griffin Rider Page 13