Ra' van (Book Three of the Items Trilogy)

by H. Lee Morgan, Jr

  “C…Can you teach me the words again?” She asked with a quivering voice and her eyes shone with a deep respect.

  “It would be my pleasure, princess.” Jakz said contently and squared his shoulders. Lily sat straight as well and listened again as he sang again and after another verse she began singing along.

  Alex listened to her rich feminine voice coming into harmony with a song she only knew by music and now the words fell in place. Her talented, musical voice became so engrossing that it woke both Crest and Shade and although they didn’t know the words they listened with rapt attention to the song with eagerly pointed ears. All seemed right with the world as she sang and Alex was her biggest admirer.

  At the third verse of the second repetition of the song Ava flitted down and began chirping. Shade rumbled deep within his chest like a profound bass and Crest joined him with perfect harmony. Alex too began singing and before long everyone except the silent bay sang the song in their own unique way, but it wasn’t a disaster in the least.

  Coming to a close, Lily’s flushed cheeks only added to her heartfelt smile. “Jakz, thank you so much for this. You do not know how long I’ve searched for the words to that particular song.”

  Jakz inclined his head and stood. “Alright kids, get some rest. I’ll take first watch. Lord Alex, I’ll wake you after midnight to take the remainder.”

  It was nearly shocking that Jakz would say that, to have a prince work for something to tedious, but Alex was grateful to not be treated like a child or given special treatment. Alex smiled and said his thanks before saying to those who couldn’t understand human language “Let us sleep. We have more ground to cover in the morning.”

  When midnight came Jakz did as he said and roused Alex. To remain awake Alex silently walked the perimeter of the camp without making a sound. Bare feet were great for keeping stealth. When stepping on a twig or branch in shoes would give away his position, bare feet can feel the ground more acutely and make it easier to avoid making a sound. Every hour or so he would flare heat within his nose to make sure no scents crossed Shade’s musky boundary. None dared come close. In the darkness Alex felt more alive and awake, but daylight hours were what many others preferred. He could see in the darkness as well as Shade, while if it were anyone else they would be unable to see ten feet before them without stumbling over roots or ending up hurting themselves.

  Sounds of the night slowly began to fade as dawn approached, but even before any signs of its imminent coming Shade roused and expertly extracted himself without waking anyone. Alex watched as his brother moved his large body as if it were nearly weightless. Together they walked the perimeter in silence, simply enjoying each other’s company and proximity.

  Ava too roused herself when a cool wind ruffled her feathers and found herself alone. She swiftly found her favorite perch, the hardened, shoulder formed leather that strapped to Alex’s left shoulder. She then proceeded rubbing her soft cheek against the top of her partner’s head and contented herself by looking into the final hour of night.

  Lily awoke, feeling a chill from being alone in her bedroll and found the others beginning to wake as the dawn made itself known. It didn’t take her long to find the man she loved as it was impossible to not find him.

  Shade stood majestically, facing southerly and Alex stood to the left with Ava standing on his shoulder and nearly a head taller. Crest too had also awakened and stood to the right of her mate. Although she is a lord in her own right, Shade was absolutely a monster, but a beautiful one.

  Soft rumbling came from where they stood at the edge of camp. Alex turned as Lily stood and made her way over. “Sleep well?”

  She shook her head and he saw her shiver slightly. He raised and arm and gladly came into his side for the embrace. Like no one else, Lily continually felt herself drawn to her husband and was exceptionally glad for his feverish warmth that he always runs. It isn’t long before his warmth seeps into her. Eventually she asks “So what were you four talking about a minute ago?”

  She watched and Shade turned his large, intelligent golden gaze upon her and Crest stepped forward to look beneath his to see her partner as well before Alex pointed to the canopy. “Look there, the tree leaves are turning colors.”

  “And?”

  His rugged smile made her warrior’s heart flutter like a maiden’s. “Back when Shade and I were training we were too busy to witness the change of seasons. Aye, we couldn’t miss the snow, but where we grew up the leaves never changed. Both Crest and Ava love to see the array of leaf colors, but they know it won’t last long.”

  “How soon?” she asked, knowing full well he understood the context.

  He looked up and began chirping. Ava’s curved beak opened and chirped back, then Crest made a series of soft barks. To Lily he said “These ladies say we have about six to eight weeks before first snowfall. Already they feel the change in the air and its calling them to action. They wish to frolic, mate and eat much before winter sets in full. We must be quick before the creatures with a hibernation instinct gets triggered.”

  “We still have nearly a week, it shouldn’t be a problem.”

  He nodded and raised his voice. “Time to wake up!”

  He gave her a gentle squeeze before they walked back to break camp.

  Within a half hour they ate cold rations, packed and were ready to go.

  Just as Ava predicted, their pace increased tremendously at the beginning of the third day. With the forest more open they made better time. By nightfall Alex, and Shade ran through the night and came upon a large herd of deer. To make for an honorable kill Shade growled, giving the prey a chance to flee. It was quick, but they hunted the three oldest and plump deer, Shade with his deadly claws and twelve inch sabers and Alex with his Furion speed and sword quickly and painlessly ended any fear or suffering. Shade carried his kill effortlessly in his maw while Alex simply tossed the two herbivores over each shoulder and went back to camp.

  Both Shade and Crest consumed a whole deer, after being cooked, while Alex and the others took the smaller of the three and ate well. By morning all that remained was enough meat from the deer for the next few days. The bones of the carcass was split between both Shadow Fangs. The two of them enjoyed the treat while also loudly cleaning their dagger-like teeth at the same time.

  By the fifth day they came across several large oak and pine trees that have large claw marks that were displayed like a warning. Shade nodded when he remembered the scent while Alex told everyone that they finally entered Crush’s lands. He smiled and remembered the laws he placed and Crush did as commanded and clearly marked his boundaries to ward off any humans.

  At least one thing had gone well.

  By the end of the day Shade suddenly came to a stop after he entered a natural clearing and Krum’s hard head slammed into Alex’s back. Seeing the suddenness of her mate’s stop she too halted abruptly and made a warning growl while flattening her ears. Everyone else stopped and became wary until a sharp look from Alex silenced Crest. She took the rebuke well, but kept her ears flat.

  “What is it brother? Crush isn’t anywhere nearby.”

  The body language Shade exhibited wasn’t threatening, more like surprised. He remained silent for a moment before he raised his nose and scented the air and ground. He rumbled “Strange, I smell humans, but the smell is a week old at most. Why would they dare enter a Grizon’s territory knowing full well the markings he left?”

  With a small whoop, Alex had Krum remove his hand. He complied and made it easier for Alex to drop to the ground. “I know not.” Turning to the others his voice tingled. “Shade caught an old scent of humans. They should have avoided this place altogether. Stay here while we see what they were doing in the clearing.”

  A quick nod of recognition came from the others as they scanned the open area.

  Fall leaves lay scattered over the ground while old, charred remains of a fire sat in the very center of the natural clearing. Alex gave Shade a nod whil
e Ava took off from his shoulder to see if she can spot anything from a higher elevation. Someone must have had a good reason to enter an established Grizon land or were desperate. Shade told Alex he didn’t sense anyone nearby, but a clearing such as this should have had more creature scents without any human contact for a week’s time.

  Dead leaves crunched beneath Alex’s feet and Shade’s paws. Other than the burnt wood of a campfire, nothing seemed obviously amiss, but something nagged at Alex. Shade too had the look of caution as he paused here and there to sniff.

  As Alex took another step towards the old fire a sudden snap came from beneath him. He looked down as suddenly the ground under him gave way. Then came the unmistakable look as dozens of sharp wooden spikes waited hungrily as Alex plummeted into a trap.

  Chapter 6

  Not like this! He screamed mentally.

  Fear of being impaled gave way to self-preservation as the sharp spikes waited for him to fall. In a moment his life would end without truly being successful in anything. Without thought and relying solely on instinct, heat suffused Alex’s limbs and reaction time since all that stood between safety and imminent death was a split second. With a raging heartbeat Alex reached down not a moment too late and firmly grasped the shaft of two spikes, but that wasn’t enough as his lower half’s weight continued dropping. Stretching his big toe away from the longest one he pinched them on another set of spikes with all the force he could muster.

  The descent stopped as his muscles locked and thankfully not a moment before one of the slightly longer spikes grazed the hollow of his throat, but didn’t break the skin.

  “Alex!” “Prince!” “Brother!” and other startled cries shrieked to him.

  “Stop!” He roared, knowing he would be safe for the moment.

  Shade immediately locked his limbs at the command, nearly throwing Krum from his back. Crest didn’t halt as Lily kicked her ribs. Shade had to jump in her way for both females to realize the urgency of the roar.

  Alex, unable to see anything but the spikes and the pit he found himself in roared again as the fiends and animals still kept their riders from approaching and falling victim to another similar situation. “Don’t come, there could be more traps! I’m not hurt, but I cannot gain enough leverage to get out on my own.”

  “I’m coming!” Ava cried in fear for the second time at feeling helpless after seeing her Furion partner in danger. She dove down and entered the trap to latch her talons onto the back of his tunic and cape. Try as she might, her wings were unable to lift him at all. She cursed her average size, but she knew it would be impossible even for her gigantic parents to extricate him from the pit. Knowing it was fruitless she disengaged her talons and flew up to meet her other brother’s golden eyes and she too saw worry in the gaze that matched her own. “Shade, I cannot get him out, but you can. Dive in your shadow and break the spikes. There are many, but if you’re quick Alex will be safe for a moment.”

  A look back was all Krum needed from Shade as he grunted and leapt the distance to transfer himself upon Crest’s back. Shade then easily enfolded himself in his shadow and once fully incorporeal he ran to the edge of the pit and used the walls to get close enough before finding an open area large enough to extract his head alone. His powerful maw proved to be effective in grabbing the lower ends of the spikes and with a twist of his head snapped the branches, but he remained careful enough to leave the four poles Alex gripped well enough alone.

  While Shade worked furiously Lily jumped down from her partner’s back, not knowing what was happening and made the attempt to race to the hole, but Ava swooped too close and startled her. She shook her sharp head and made high pitched noises, but Lily understood enough that Ava wanted everyone to remain still. Not knowing the fate of her husband she yelled towards the opening nearly a hundred feet away. “Alex, are you alright!” … nothing came. “Speak to me, FOOL!” she yelled almost to the point of hysteria.

  “Busy Concentrating!” He ground out as his hands began sweating from the intense heat rolling off his skin. It was all he could do to keep his vice-like grip on the shafts without burning through and knew he had only a few short minutes remaining before they either became too slick to hold the smooth bark or start a fire and make the wood too brittle to hold his weight. While he held on he watched Shade furiously snapping the two inch thick sticks as if they were little more than twigs.

  After a few tense moments Shade looked up in relief and growled “I’ve broken enough for you to come down, but still, be careful.”

  Seeing the void underneath his body Alex carefully pushed against the poles his hands used and allowed his toes to release. With a quick twist to avoid the spear at his throat Alex dropped nearly ten feet to the moist bottom of the hole and was able to catch his breath and look at where he stood.

  The pit’s crafters designed it to be perfectly circular, about fifteen feet across and nearly twenty down. No doubt an item created the hole, seeing as how there wasn’t any dirt or mounds from the normal excavation process. Ten foot tall wooden lance-like spikes covered much of the ground, allowing just enough space between the weapons to be more effective. Whomever dug this was a professional. Alex looked up and saw that he fell in the center of the trap, where the structure was weaker, and not at the edges. He thought. This trap is large enough for a fiend lord and if he or she fell and somehow managed to survive the deadly array of spikes, they would be unable to get out without intervention. A strong, foul smell drew Alex’s attention to one of the broken spikes and the smell came from the sharp end. Feces coated the spike and would make for a slow, agonizing death as an infection would set in quickly if the animal didn’t die immediately.

  “What’s happening!” Came Marlin’s yell.

  Seeing as how his breath returned Alex jumped and used skills honed from his grandfather’s teachings to effortlessly scale the pit and jump on the surface. Many sighs drew his attention to where all stood still. Almost as if that was the signal they rushed forth, but he yelled “Everyone stop!” his voice stayed clear and sharp, causing everyone to halt. He raised the stake and said “I fell in a trapper’s pit! There could be more so stay where you are! I’ll come to you.”

  Shade’s shadow came out and one eye emerged to look at him. He listened to Alex for a moment before seeing him make two powerful jumps to reach the others. He too remained in his shadow and returned to his physical form where it was safe. Too many were talking at one time but before he growled for silence he felt Ava lovingly rubbing her head against his again, from her favorite spot.

  When silence was finally established Alex wiped the sweat from his brow and then stated “I’m unharmed. It was pure luck that it was me instead of anyone else. That trap needs to be destroyed, but I fear there are more. I’ve read about these trappers and I have little doubt they are poaching.”

  “What do you want to do?” Marlin asked while gazing across the medium size clearing.

  “We stay here and use long branches to brush the leaves. I didn’t realize till a moment ago that there are far too many leaves covering the land to be natural. While we destroy the pit Shade can call Crush or whomever now rules to meet us at this location.”

  “Then we must get started.” Announces Jakz.

  After repeating to the others who didn’t understand human language Shade pierces the air with a howl of command to summon the ruler of the land, knowing his howl will be clearly heard for many leagues around. It would be faster than searching blindly through a large forest. Alex and Lily, as the only two with swords, cut four long and leafy branches and distributed them. While the others brushed away leaves and stepped with absolute care Alex, Shade, Crest and Krum approached the large pit. Krum climbed upon Alex’s back as he jumped in the void of stakes. While Alex used his sword to easily fell the sticks Krum collected them and made sure they were stacked away. When the sticks were piled they returned to the surface and watched as the two Shadow Fangs turned their backsides to the opening and began
tearing into the earth with their forepaws. Finding an outlet for his fear of his partner’s safety, Shade enjoyed digging. Chunks of dirt began flying into the void and suddenly a powerful thump rolled through the ground, forcing all eyes to Alex as he punched the ground with such a monumental effort that a large section of the pit’s straight walls became loose and collapsed.

  “Found another!” Niranene shouted from twenty yards away.

  While Shade and Crest continued making a path should someone get trapped Alex followed cleared paths and saw the network of rope, wood boards and dirt in the ground where Niranene found and uncovered another hidden void. With a large rock, Alex forcibly threw it and shattered the weak barrier holding the camouflage to reveal yet another trap of the same design and size. “Good work!” He complements her and has Shade go down and make another void for him to drop down in and break the deadly array of dozens of sharp sticks.

  An hour goes by and Lily too finds one last trap that is smaller, but of same design. Several hours pass by, but the three excavations are no longer a danger to any creature of the forest.

  As dusk began settling in everyone sat around the center of the clearing and relaxed in front of a fire, utilizing the fire pit the poachers used. All were tired from finally making the surrounding area safe.

  “We are not alone.” Crest said ominously.

  “Where?” Alex growled, not hearing anything out of the ordinary.

  She raised a paw “There.” and all but the normal humans looked to where she indicated. In the darkness of the forest a set of eyes flashed from the firelight. “It is of our kind.” She said as the wind shifted and she caught the scent. “This one is wary, but came to Shade’s call.”