First Meal turned out to be another communal meal but this time it involved everyone in the Court. The large Dining area was different from the Supper room, however—there were no plants and no stream running through it. It was just a vast, echoing room filled with long tables where the Tenebrian nobles sat in little carefully chosen social groups or cliques. Elli wondered uneasily where she and Roke ought to sit, since they weren’t a member of any of the groups.
Luckily, after a moment of looking around the large room, they saw the Duke and Duchess waving them over.
“Have a seat, old boy,” the Duke said heartily to Roke and the Duchess smiled and beckoned to Elli invitingly.
They sat down across from the other couple and the Duke immediately called a servant over and started ordering foods Elli had never heard of before.
“My, that’s quite a lot of food, my dear,” the Duchess said to him as the server left.
“Well, our resident Zorel Entrancer needs to eat well to have energy for today’s task,” the Duke said. He looked at Elli. “I hope you got plenty of rest last night—though after that display the two of you were putting on at the end of Supper, I rather doubt it.”
He winked at Elli and she felt a blush creeping up her cheeks when she considered exactly how she and Roke had spent the night before. She still wasn’t sure if she ought to have touched herself. Though Roke’s idea that the Goddess wanted one to give oneself pleasure was an interesting one, the guilt of touching her secret spot had been drummed into her thoroughly. So possibly she had committed a terrible sin last night.
Or maybe she had simply found an outlet for all those desires and needs that had been plaguing her for years—ever since her body had matured and she’d gotten her womanly curves.
Either way, Elli was determined not to dwell on it today. She had a job to do—a difficult and dangerous job, if what she had heard was correct. Taming Demon was the only thing she wanted to concentrate on and she refused to let herself go down a shame spiral over the events of the night before.
“We rested well,” Roke said shortly, answering the Duke. “How about yourselves?”
“Oh, we slept as well as we usually do after attending a Supper with the Crown Prince.” The Duchess giggled and batted her long white lashes coquettishly.
At that moment, the server came back with their food. He sat several plates and bowls down in front of them, as well as some steaming mugs. Then he whisked away to serve a group of nobles sitting at another table.
“All right, what’s this?” Roke asked, pointing to what appeared to be a very large egg—almost as big as Elli’s head—which was sitting in a broad, shallow bowl. It had come with what appeared to be a miniature hatchet with a very sharp blade.
“Oh, you must try some—this is oolie,” the Duchess said eagerly. “My dear—would you do the honors?” she asked the Duke, who nodded.
“Of course, my sweet. Here we go then…”
Picking up the enormous egg, he cracked it with a sharp blow from miniature hatchet and then broke it open over the serving bowl it had come in.
Green and black slime with purple chunks poured out into the bowl and the air was filled with a putrid smell.
“Oh!” Elli gasped, putting a hand to her nose. “What is that? Rotten egg?”
“Yes, it is rather pungent, isn’t it?” The Duke laughed affably. “Actually, it’s a kind of breakfast pudding from our home world.”
“They take a tava egg when it’s first laid and inject it with goob larvae while it’s still soft,” the Duchess explained, eagerly spooning some of the gooey green and black glop onto her plate. “As the chick in the egg grows, the larva start to eat towards it, consuming the white of the egg as they move towards the chick. When they finish with that, they get to the chick and—”
“I think we get the idea,” Roke said, giving the nauseous mess that had come out of the egg a sidelong glance. “I’m assuming those, uh, chunks are what’s left of the poor chick?” He pointed at the purplish-gray chunks in the black and green slime.
“Actually, those are the mature larvae,” the Duke said. “They die after they’ve eaten the chick and then we just let the whole thing ferment inside the eggshell for half a cycle until it’s ready to eat.” He took a big bite of the disgusting looking ooze and smiled blissfully. “Ah! This one is at the peak of ripeness! I must remember to send my compliments to the chef.”
“Do try some,” the Duchess said to Elli. “It’s quite delicious.”
“It looks wonderful but I’m trying to eat light today,” Elli said, glad she had an excuse not to eat the awful slime that had come out of the large egg. She picked up a large pink fruit with a thin skin and a firm, crispy orange flesh. “I’ll just have this. I’m going to be working with the zorels so I want to be on my toes.”
“Ah yes—you’ll be meeting the redoubtable Demon today.” The Duke shook his head. “I’m afraid he makes my Wind Chaser look as tame as a baby felinus.”
“What do you know about the three grooms he killed?” Roke asked sharply, leaning forward. “What were the circumstances of their deaths?”
Elli knew he was asking for her benefit and she was grateful he was so concerned. But she wasn’t sure if hearing about how the zorel she was supposed to tame and train had killed other people was helpful or not. Nevertheless, she listened as she ate the firm, juicy fruit which she believed was called a krisper.
“Why, the circumstances were, they were trying to break him to the saddle, I believe,” the Duke said, frowning. “They’d just brought him in from the wild lands, don’t you know, and the head groom advised against it but His Majesty was insistent that his new mount must be broken so he could ride him on his name day, so—”
“Wait a minute…” Elli put up a hand. “From the wild lands, you say? I thought he was a purebred flamer?”
“Oh, he is, my dear—he is.” The Duke nodded vigorously. “You see, what happened was that he had escaped from the paddock of his breeder and gone wild when he was little more than a foal. And they never could catch him, you know—he’s that fast.”
“His Majesty was at the breeder’s stables, looking for a new mount that would commensurate with his status, you see,” the Duchess said. “And the breeder showed him ever so many bucks and does, all of them of the finest pedigree…”
“But what caught the Crown Prince’s eye was this pure black zorel galloping around outside the paddock,” the Duke said, taking up the tale again. “A magnificent fellow—nearly twice as big as a regular zorel and breathing flames quite three feet long from his nostrils.”
“The breeder tried to explain to His Highness that the zorel he wanted was wild and there was no taming him, for he had kicked his way out of the paddock and run free several cycles before,” the Duchess said.
“But of course His Majesty wouldn’t stand for excuses,” the Duke said proudly. “He sent all his men to capture Demon and break him to the saddle and I believe that is when the unfortunate deaths occurred.”
“How were they breaking him? Or trying to break him?” Elli asked, frowning. For herself, she didn’t even like the term “breaking.” When she trained a zorel to the saddle, there was no breaking or forcing involved. It was more of an agreement between the two of them. For once the zorel understood what she wanted, it was almost always eager to comply.
“The usual way, I suppose.” The Duke shrugged. “With pain prods and such.”
“Pain prods?” Elli was horrified. “But that’s no way to treat a living creature! Goddess, no wonder the poor dear got upset!”
“That ‘poor dear’ killed three grooms in a matter of minutes, Lady Ellilah,” the Duke said dryly. “He’s a brute—I recommend you don’t take him lightly.”
“Of course I won’t,” Elli said. “But at least now I know why he was upset.”
“So you don’t use pain prods when you break a zorel to the saddle?” the Duchess asked, raising her snow-white eyebrows.
“Absol
utely not,” Elli said firmly. “I never use any kind of pain.”
“Well, then this morning’s exhibition should be very interesting to see.”
The fruity voice behind her could belong to only one person. And from the way that the Duke and Duchess immediately got up and bowed low, Elli knew it must be the Crown Prince.
She and Roke rose and bowed as well before looking up to see that the Prince was draped in pale gold velvet and silver lace. His flat, frog-like face looked odd perched on top of the large, ruffled collar he wore which was quite three feet in circumference.
“Good morning, Your Majesty,” Elli said respectfully.
“Yes, to you as well, my dear. May I say that you’re looking exceptionally well this morning.”
The Crown Prince gave her a lingering look that made Elli want to cover her chest with her arms. She wished that the Tenebrian dresses weren’t quite so revealing!
“Thank you, Your Majesty,” Roke growled, answering for her. “But I believe you were saying something about an exhibition this morning?”
“Oh yes—well, word has spread about our new Zorel Entrancer’s fabulous skills with even the most intractable beasts,” the Prince said. “So more than half the Court is coming down to the royal paddocks to see what miracles Lady Ellilah can work with my naughty Demon.” He tittered as though this bit of information was most amusing.
“Won’t having so many people watching spook the beast?” Roke asked anxiously.
“That depends on his personality,” Elli said seriously. “Zorels are like people—some of them are genuinely shy. But if Demon is half as magnificent as he is reputed to be, he might actually like putting on a show. Zorel bucks can be dreadful egotists.”
“By all the Gods, listen to how she speaks of mere beasts!” The Crown Prince gave his fruity laugh again. “My dear, even if you fail and you’re clawed or trampled or flamed to death, I must say that I will consider myself lucky to have known you and been entertained by your wit.”
“Ellilah isn’t going to die,” Roke growled, his eyes flashing a dangerous red. “And some would say that it’s inviting bad luck to suggest otherwise.”
“Well pardon me, I’m sure, for being amused!” The Crown Prince shot him a hard stare.
“I wasn’t trying to be amusing, Your Majesty,” Elli said quickly, hoping to defuse the situation. “I was being serious—zorels really do have their own personalities and they can be quite intelligent. I’m looking forward to meeting Demon.”
“Well, you’ll have your chance soon, my dear,” the Crown Prince said, smiling at her again. “I’ve ordered the royal grooms to let him out into the paddock to run a bit before the exhibition at ten this morning. You can go down and ‘work your magic’ on him then.”
“Oh—it might actually be easier if he was still in his stall when I first meet him,” Elli said quickly. “I need to be able to get close enough to look him in the eyes and let him know I’m not a threat.”
“Oh?” The Crown Prince frowned. “Very well then, I’ll have them put him back. But do be certain you’re at the paddocks by ten.” He shook one stubby, beringed finger at her and then swept away in a swirl of velvet and lace.
Twenty-Six
“I don’t like this,” Roke growled as they strolled through the open courtyards down to the royal stables located behind the palace. “Don’t like it one damned bit. We should leave while we have a chance, Ellilah. My ship isn’t parked that far from here. We could circle around and be there in no time.”
“Without the Healing Lattice? I don’t think so.” Ellilah frowned at him. She had a stubborn look on her lovely face that told Roke his pleas were falling on deaf ears, but still he had to try.
“This beast sounds genuinely dangerous,” he pointed out. “And I was sent by the Goddess to protect you.”
“And I was sent to get a piece of that Healing Lattice and this is the only way to do that,” she said firmly. “So I’m sorry if you don’t like it, Roke, but you’ll just have to deal with it. The same way I’m dealing with wearing trousers for the first time.”
She nodded down to the black riding trousers Roke had bought her and insisted that she wear during her first training session with Demon. They looked remarkably good on her, hugging her lush curves and emphasizing her full hips and behind in a way that would have had Roke drooling if he hadn’t been so worried for her safety.
A men’s white shirt and the sturdy but stylish riding boots he’d bought her completed her outfit. All in all, Roke thought she looked every inch the “Royal Zorel Entrancer” she was purported to be. He just wished he was as sure of her skills as Ellilah seemed to be.
They walked through another walled-in courtyard and out into the open area behind the castle. There, over a short rise, they finally saw the royal stables and paddocks. Directly in front of the stables was a fenced-in training ring and in the ring was the hugest, fiercest looking zorel Roke had ever seen.
The beast was pure, midnight black from its feathered forelock to its long, tufted tail. The only breaks in the black hide were the long, twisted ivory horns—each sharpened to a murderously fine point—which rose from the massive skull, and the sharp ivory fangs visible at the end of its long muzzle.
The fangs were visible because the huge creature had opened its mouth to roar—a deafening warning claxon of sound which appeared to be aimed at the two Tenebrian grooms who were dancing around it with sizzling pain prods. One of them had gotten a rope around the animal’s thick neck and, using the rope and the prods, they were trying to push the immense creature back to the stables.
But Demon apparently didn’t want to go back to the stables, because he was snorting and pawing the ground with his long foreclaws. His eyes were burning red and warning puffs of black smoke were coming from his dilated nostrils.
“Get back, y’great beast!” one of the grooms shouted, pressing the electrified end of his pain prod to the huge zorel’s side. “Back to the stable w’ye!”
“Somehow I don’t think he’s going to listen,” Roke remarked dryly. But when he looked down to see why Ellilah hadn’t answered him, he saw that the curvy little priestess was gone.
“Ellilah? Where in the Seven Hells are you?”
Then, looking up again, he saw her.
She was racing for the training ring and, as Roke watched—frozen in horror—she crouched low to slip under the tall fence and slide inside.
Twenty-Seven
“Stop! Stop that right now!” Elli shouted angrily, grabbing for the arm of the nearest groom. “How dare you shock him like that?” she demanded.
The Tenebrian groom looked down at her in obvious surprise.
“Why, Crown Prince says he’s got to get back in the stables, on orders of the Royal Zorel Entrancer—whatever that might be. Only the bloody great bugger don’t want t’ go, does he?” He shoved the sizzling prod in Demon’s face with one hand and yanked on the rope around his neck with the other. “You’d best get outn’ the ring lest you want to get killed, Miss,” he added. “Whoever you may be.”
“I’m the Royal Zorel Entrancer!” Elli snapped. “And I say stop shocking him!”
She grabbed for the man’s arm but just at that moment Demon reared and sounded his claxon cry again. Then, bending his head, the angry zorel blew a solid stream of fire from his nostrils right at the groom—and at Elli, since she was directly beside him.
It’s coming right at me—I’ll be burned to a crisp! Elli barely had time to think before a strong arm looped around her waist and yanked her to safety, just as the fiery jet descended.
She didn’t escape unscathed—the fierce pain of a fresh burn raced along the top of her forearm and the back of her hand. But she knew—in a rush of dizzy dread—that if she hadn’t been pulled away at that exact moment, she would have suffered a worse fate.
The only proof she needed was the Tenebrian groom, now wreathed in flames, as he screeched and screamed and ran madly about the training circle like a liv
ing torch.
“Put him out!” shouted Roke—for it was he who had grabbed Elli and whisked her away in the nick of time. “Throw water on him, someone—the water trough is just there!”
He was pointing at the large rectangular trough at the far end of the training ring, just past the gate which led to the stable yard. But the Tenebrian nobles, who had gathered to watch outside the tall wooden training fence, weren’t paying him any attention. They were staring at the screaming groom and Elli saw money changing hands—apparently the nobles were making bets on how long he would live before the flames consumed him.
“These fools are useless—I’ll have to do it myself,” Roke growled. He started to push Elli under the lowest bars of the fence, where she’d come through in the first place. “You stay out of the way. I’ll go help.”
“No!” Elli grasped at his arm urgently. “No, Roke—you mustn’t!” she exclaimed, holding him tight.
“What are you talking about? That idiot groom will die if I don’t put him out,” the big warrior growled.
“And you’ll die if you get anywhere near Demon right now,” Elli told him. “He’s in a Fury.”
“Yes, I can tell that,” Roke snapped. “But as long as I stay near the edge of the fence and keep clear of him—”
“No, you don’t understand.” Elli shook her head. “When a zorel goes into a Fury, no one and nothing can calm him down and he will kill anyone in his territory. In fact, we both need to get out for now.”
She squeezed under the fence and waited expectantly. Roke cast a last glance over his shoulder at the hapless groom, but the Tenebrian servant had fallen down by now and was only twitching. Demon was still rearing and tossing his head and now he rolled his red eyes, his gaze coming to rest on Roke, who was still in the training ring.
“Hurry!” Elli said anxiously. “He’s still mad with the Fury. You have to get out of his territory, Roke!”
As though to prove her words, Demon lowered his head and rushed towards them, black smoke billowing from his nostrils.
The Priestess and the Thief: Kindred Tales 30 Page 13