by Kim Dragoner
“We’ll need to be makin’ pyres for the dead,” Dunmor suggested in a low tone. The smirk on his face continued to linger as he looked around at them.
John glared at him, but did not respond.
“It would be the best way,” Thomas said quietly.
The following morning, pyres were built for Dunmor’s brothers, though John only worked on the pyre for Chatburn’s body, setting it well apart from the others. At sunset, a few words were said and a prayer was offered up after they laid Chatburn on the pile of wood and stones and then set it ablaze. John looked on, saying his final goodbye as the blanket-wrapped body of his squire disappeared within the flames, and then turned away, more determined to find his father and return him home so that it would all not have been in vain.
The following morning, after another restless night, the wounded brothers of Dunmor were sent on their way and Dunmor was mounted on Chatburn’s mare in order to lead them to the cavern of Nimueh.
“I don’t need to remind you that you’ll be the first to die if you lead us into a trap,” John growled as Dunmor and Thomas rode forward to take the lead.
“You don’t understand, Sir John,” he said in a mocking tone. “I won’t lead you into a trap. You’re eagerly riding right toward one by facing Nimueh. Your death and the spoils that will be mine afterward will go a long way toward assuaging my grief.” He spat out the last as though it had a foul taste and then touched his heels to Chatburn’s mount and went to the head of the column.
Unless called upon to lead them through a fog, Alpina was content to stay back and ride with John.
“Thank you,” John said after they had been on their way for some time. Alpina had not offered words of condolence, but, instead, only her silent presence beside him. “I don’t know how to say how grateful…”
“Then don’t say it,” she replied quietly.
John turned and looked at her. He no longer felt uncomfortable when he looked into her piercing blue eyes, though he wasn’t certain at what point that had changed.
The trail narrowed and they traversed a sheer rock wall, clinging to its face, high above a narrow stream that wound its way along the canyon floor. It required all of the attention of both rider and horses to prevent any sort of misstep, the result of which would send them plunging a thousand feet to their death. In the silence, the only sound was the sound of hooves on stone echoing along the canyon walls.
The trail came to an end on a wide shelf in front of a cavern from which the stream flowed and plunged into the canyon below.
“Here you go,” Dunmor announced, drawing up on Chatburn’s mare. “The cavern of Nimueh. I’ve fulfilled my end of the bargain.”
As little as John wanted to admit it, Dunmor had done his duty and the honorable thing was to let him be on his way; however, he would not do it on Chatburn’s mare.
“Very well, then,” John replied. “I will keep my end of the bargain as well, but you will return to your brothers on foot.”
Dunmor smiled at him. “I’ll go back along the trail a ways and wait. I’ll no doubt be ridin’ out of here on that flea-bit mount of yours.”
Chapter Seventeen
“I’ll conceal myself so that I can have a look around,” Merlin announced once Dunmor had left them and they’d dismounted, starting into the wide cavern leading their horses. “The spleuchan will be hidden here somewhere and I’ll need to get my hands on it before Nimueh knows that I’m here.”
“We are to face the witch without you?” John asked. He had little experience dealing with witches, but he was pretty sure that a sword was useless against magic.
“Use your wits, Sir John, and strike a bargain with her. That will be enough to stall her until I can come to your aid.”
“Thank you so kindly,” John replied in a sarcastic tone. “A lot of things can happen very quickly where witches are involved. Perhaps it is you rather than Dunmor that has led me to death’s door.”
“Your cynicism is astounding, young knight,” Merlin chuckled. “It’s better that Nimueh doesn’t know that I’m here either, so keep that little secret to yourselves, if you would. I won’t be far.”
Before the last word was out of his mouth, the wizard was gone.
“Well, then,” he said, pressing forward, “I suppose we’ll go it alone.”
Again the group was silent as they crept step by step further into the cavern and again, the only sounds were the echo of horses’ hooves on the stone floor and the soft gurgling of the stream that flowed along beside them. Their way was lit by the soft glow of crystallized stalagmites on either side. It was an eerie journey and they were all on edge, not knowing what might be waiting around the next bend to leap out at them. All of them, save Alpina, kept a palm on the hilt of their swords.
Further in, the cavern opened up into a wider room with a deep pool which shimmered with the reflection of glowing crystal stalactites, which twinkled like numerous stars in a tight cluster all along the ceiling. It was, however, the sight that they beheld in the very center of the pool that made them freeze in place.
There, on a narrow, stone island, was a tree cradling a block of ice and within the ice was Jofrit, Knight of Camelot.
“It’s my father,” John whispered.
“How can we hope to free him?” Alpina asked.
“I’d hoped that Merlin would be here for that part,” John answered. He turned toward Thomas. “Any ideas?”
“I’d hoped that Merlin would be here for this as well,” Thomas replied.
“I can swim out there with a torch and melt it if you like, Sir John,” Dufton offered.
“That’s a fine idea, Dufton, but I doubt that you can keep a torch lit in the water and it’s too far to toss a lit torch to you.”
Dufton shrugged.
“Perhaps we could crack the ice by throwing stones,” Thomas suggested.
They looked around at the floor, but not a single stone was in sight.
“Damn the witch and her tidiness,” Alpina grumbled.
“Stones, a torch or Merlin,” John muttered.
“Well, now,” a crackling, female voice called out, echoing all around them. “I seem to have visitors. I thought I smelled warm flesh coming down my grand hallway.”
They all looked around them, searching for the source of the voice, but there was no speaker in sight.
“Those are the faces of confused mortals,” she cackled. “Who might you be?”
“I am Sir John of Leeds,” John replied, trying to keep his voice steady. “My companions are Sir Thomas of Manchester, his squire Dufton and Lady Alpina of Auchavan.”
“Auchavan, you say? Leeds and Manchester too? My, haven’t you traveled far on some grand quest. I’ll bet that I can divine your mission,” she cackled again. “But first, let me introduce myself.”
With a brilliant flash of light that caused the four travelers to draw back a little, the witch appeared before them.
“I am Madam Nimueh,” she announced with flair and then cackled with delight. With a twirl of the wand in her hand, she made an extravagant chair appear and took a seat upon it as though she were a regal monarch. “Let me guess, Sir John of Leeds, you are here for your very cold father, are you not?”
She waved a hand toward the block of ice and smiled broadly. “Quite a prize, don’t you think? And so well displayed beneath the soft glow. I’m rather proud to display a knight of Camelot in my main hall. Of course, I don’t get many visitors, you must understand.”
“I would like to strike a bargain for his release,” John answered, taking several steps forward.
“A bargain, you say?” She leaned forward. “I just love a good bargain. What ya got?”
“We have gold, Madam Nimueh,” John replied.
“Gold?” Nimueh cried out. She sat back in her chair and laughed as though she’d gone out of her mind. When she finally regained control of herself, she leaned forward again. Her expression was grave. “What need do I have of gold?”
“No, young knight,” she said, slipping out of her chair and looking deep into his eyes. “It will require something of greater value than gold.”
Nimueh began to walk among them, examining each of them closely and then looking into John’s eyes to judge his reactions. He wasn’t sure what she was expecting to see, but he tried to keep his expression neutral. She examined Alpina with some interest and gasped a little bit as she took in Blackbird, and then moved on to Thomas and Dufton in turn. As she moved back toward John again, she smiled broadly and cooed at the sight of Ganador.
It was difficult to stand still without lashing out at her as she admired Ganador. “A fantastic animal; what do you call him?”
“I call him Ganador,” he replied through clenched teeth.
“Spanish?” she asked.
“My father brought him and another colt named Guerrero back from Spain at the same time. They were a matched set,” John replied.
“Sir Jofrit was negligent in letting me know that fact when I took Guerrero from him. How lucky I am that now I will be able to have that coveted matched set,” she began, returning to her chair. “I would make a trade for this marvelous creature so he can be reunited with his brother.”
“Impossible!” John shouted. He’d held in his temper long enough.
“Those are the terms!” she snapped. Flames came up in her eyes as she clipped off the last word.
What was he to do? John wanted to set his father free. It was the reason that he’d made the long journey into the savage land. It was the reason that Chatburn had lost his life. Bringing his father back was the hope of his mother and it was the desire of his heart, but to trade Ganador for his freedom…
“You drive a brutal bargain, Madam Nimueh,” Merlin said, appearing suddenly beside John.
“Merlin? You brought this wizard into my midst?” Nimueh screamed. She stood from her chair and waved her wand to make it disappear.
“I’ve come to assist the young knight in seeing his father home safely, if that’s what you mean.”
“We’ve set our terms,” Nimueh returned. “There’s no need of you here.”
“On the contrary,” Merlin answered. “I know that you are not always just in your dealings. I’m here to make certain that you don’t go back on your word.”
Merlin turned the bag that was over his shoulder from behind him to the front so that it was in full view. The bag was double the size of John’s fist and the outside was covered with a sparkling, silver fur.
“The spleuchan, how did you get that?” she cried out.
“You’re not the only one with powers in this cavern,” he replied. “Now, release Sir Jofrit and I’ll return the spleuchan.”
“Impossible!” she cried. “My terms have changed.”
“Just as I thought they would, and exactly the reason that I came along,” Merlin replied.
“You’ve upped the stakes by stealing the spleuchan from me,” Nimueh retorted. “I require more now. I will take her,” she said, pointing to Alpina.
Chapter Eighteen
“Look at me,” Alpina repeated.
John looked up into her penetrating, crystal-blue eyes. His heart was breaking and there was little that he could do about it. He’d just agreed to trade Ganador for the release of his father, but since Merlin held the spleuchan, Nimueh had demanded something else in return for it.
“I can’t allow it,” he said. “We’ll fight her. We’ll…”
Alpina pressed a finger to his lips. “And you’ll lose everything.”
John bowed his head. His heart had become heavier than he could bear at the thought of giving up Ganador. He was certain that his heart would explode if he gave up Alpina.
“Take me in place of Lady Alpina.” Thomas stepped forward, interrupting the private discussion between John and Alpina.
Nimueh laughed. “Very noble of you, Sir Thomas, but Sir John will have to give up what he loves most.”
“Then that would be me,” Thomas argued. “I’ve been with him since we were boys. We are like brothers. We’ve shed blood together and our love runs deeper than that of any other. He has only just met this tart along the way.”
“Oh my, Sir John, did you hear what he just called the woman that you love?” Nimueh cackled.
“Take me in her place,” Thomas demanded.
“I don’t want to break up the family,” Nimueh laughed.
“Then you will taste my steel,” he said, grasping the hilt of his sword.
“Thomas, no,” Alpina snapped. “I will go of my own will. No one will die on my account.”
“My lady,” Thomas replied, “I would gladly die on your account.”
“A dearer brother than you would do no less,” she smiled. “But it must not be. You must trust me.”
Thomas bowed his head and agreed to trust her and she turned back toward John.
“But you can’t,” John whispered. It was nearly impossible to speak around the thickness in his throat and the racing of his heart. “What she said is true; you are the woman that I love.”
“And you are the man that I love as well,” she replied in a low tone that no one else could hear. “Do you trust me?”
“Of course I do, but this…”
“I’ve no bad feeling about this,” she replied. “Between us, there will be deep happiness. Do you trust me?”
“I do, but I can’t allow this.”
“You must allow this,” she replied. “There are many twists to this enigma that have yet to be played out, but since we know how it ends…”
She didn’t finish the sentence, she only smiled at him and looked deep into his eyes. Within them, he saw not only the deep love that they shared, but hope. John closed his eyes and sighed heavily and then bowed his head. “I trust you,” he whispered.
“Then do as I tell you,” she said. “Put your saddle upon Lon dubh and do not quit her. She will serve you well. There’s more to her than a shiny black coat. As soon as your father is released, ride out of here as hard and fast as you can. Do not look back until you are beyond the trail on the canyon wall. Do you understand?”
John wasn’t sure what Alpina had in mind. There were many mysteries about her that he did not understand, but he knew that he trusted her. “I understand.”
“Upon Lon dubh’s back, you cannot be harmed,” she added, and then leaned in for a long, sweet kiss.
John was still reeling from the confusion and the kiss when Alpina stepped away from him and turned toward Nimueh.
“The deal is struck,” Alpina announced.
“Your turn, Madam,” Merlin called out.
With a wave of her wand and an incantation, the block of ice upon the small stone island, which served as a prison for Sir Jofrit, began to lift from its resting place and float through the air toward them.
“Switch your saddle, right now,” Alpina whispered.
John did as she requested. He felt as though he was giving up everything for his father’s release. He’d secured victory and completed his quest, but the price was one that he could not bear. He’d learned a thing or two from the war against Mordred, however, and that was that cutting one’s losses and retreating, sometimes brought ultimate victory. That hope, the hope in Alpina’s eyes and his trust in her was all that he had left to hold onto.
Before the block of ice came to rest on the stone floor before them, John had taken the saddle from Ganador and tightened it onto the back of Lon dubh. He turned to Thomas. “Be ready to ride the moment my father is free,” he whispered. “Ride as hard as you can without looking back until we’re beyond the trail on the canyon wall.”
John glanced at Merlin, wondering why the wizard had remained silent and never once offered to use his power to assist him. What good had it been to bring him along if he was only going to stand by and watch John lose everything dear to him
? The taste of bitterness toward the wizard began to rise up in his mouth, but he pushed it aside as he saw the ice begin to melt away and he witnessed his father coming to life again.
Unable to contain himself, he rushed to his father and wrapped his arms around his cold body, which still had a thin layer of ice to melt away. “Father!”
“John?” the soft, hoarse word was the first to come from his lips.
“Well, now, look there,” Nimueh mocked. “Father and son together again. Wasn’t it all worth the price, sonny boy?”
John ignored her mocking and helped his father remain on his feet. The knight’s limbs were still unusable for the moment and Thomas rushed to help John keep Sir Jofrit on his feet.
“We’ve got to get you on a horse, father,” John whispered. “Can you ride?”
“I can ride,” his father assured him. “As long as it’s slow.”
“We don’t have that option,” John replied. “We have to ride fast and the trail is a tricky one.”
“Then I will ride fast,” his father announced with determination.
With his father steadied on the back of Chatburn’s mount, John turned back to Alpina, flashing a glare in Merlin’s direction as he took up the reins of Ganador and went to her. Merlin returned his glare with a wink and John wondered what the wizard was up to. Surely he wasn’t mocking him at such a time. Screwing up the last reserves of his courage, John led Ganador to Alpina and placed the reins in her hands. He started to open his mouth and tell her that he would come back for her, but he was cut off.
“Trust me,” she smiled and then kissed him one last time and then whispered in his ear. “Now ride away. Do it quickly.”
Letting go of Ganador, stepping away from the embrace of the woman he loved and turning to mount Lon dubh took every last ounce of his determination, but he was soon seated on the back of the black mare and turned for one last look at the two things that he loved the most.
“Your terms have been met,” he spat in Nimueh’s direction.
“Then go,” the witch replied.
As John turned to ride, Thomas, Dufton, his father and Merlin started off at a rapid pace, but John, though picking up speed, could not help looking back and drew up on the reins of the mare as he saw the witch waving her wand over Alpina. He turned the mare to start back, but Alpina screamed at him.