Just One Knight

by Bridget Essex

  There’s only darkness above, but here in the woods, the magelamps cast enough light around to show…

  That we’re standing in a rather alarming-looking forest.

  Well. “Creepy” might be a better word.

  I blink and glance sidelong at the nearest tree. I used to be told stories of something quite like this tree when I was little, when my mother despaired and tried to use spooky stories to try and get me to be behave (they did not, in fact, work. I was a headstrong child). The tree appears to have branches that curl into frighteningly claw-like “hands,” and if I wasn’t so sure…well. I’m not so sure. I’ll be frank:

  With the holes in its trunk, the tree appears to have a grotesque and frightening face.

  Complete with bark “teeth.”

  I clearly must be imagining things, but I step a little closer to Tahlia, just in case. With the addition of the mist and fog swirling about us, there’s really no better way to describe my current situation than “creepy.”

  But then it, unfortunately, gets a little creepier.

  “We’re in Fury Wood,” says Tahlia, in answer to my question. She glances around, and then she lifts her chin up a little higher, adjusting the clasp of her cloak so that it sweeps closed tightly over her breast. “Stay close, milady. There are all manner of beasts in these woods, and most are not so friendly as me.”

  “I’d hardly call you friendly.” I glance up at her, but it appears that she is, in fact, not joking. I gulp down air a bit, and then take another step closer to her. Her mouth tries to twitch upward at the corners, but she does her best to clear her throat and keep her lips contorted into a stern grimace.

  “Don’t tease her, Tahlia,” chides Yeri, holding her magelight aloft. “Milady Cinda, you’re safe with us. Just don’t stray out of the light, and you’ll be fine.”

  I glance down at the ground, and at the very, very small amount of ground that the light, in fact, covers.

  This doesn’t make me feel better.

  “What’s out there?” I manage, waving my hand to indicate the forest. Bay swings down from her mount and adjusts her own cloak a bit closer over her shoulders.

  “All manner of beasties and briars.” She gives me a wide smile. “And you’re a delicious morsel that they’d just love to eat up.”

  “I’m not afraid.” I say it instantly, and though my knees are knocking, I’m proud to note that my skirts are too thick for that knocking to be noticed. I stand straight and tall, and I lift my own chin as I glance around this forest.

  It’s creepy, yes.

  But—and this is the absolute truth here: I’m not afraid.

  Excited, yes. Nervous, sure. But afraid isn’t in my bones or blood as I cast a glance around this strange forest I’ve never seen.

  Because I’ve never seen it.

  My whole life has been spent within the walls of Arktos City, and tonight, I chose to leave.

  There’s nothing to fear in this forest.

  There’s only…possibility.

  At least, I think these noble thoughts until there’s the crunching sound in the woods. And then those noble thoughts fly out of my mind as quickly as startled pigeons, and I say “eep!” (yes, I actually say “eep!), and I practically jump onto Tahlia’s back I’m so startled.

  It appears that nothing startles Tahlia, however, not even a woman almost leaping on her, for she turns and catches me smartly in her arms, gripping me tightly, even as she chuckles, completely unable to hide her smile this time. Yeri and Bay both laugh on my account, too, but I don’t have much time to be put out at them, because I’m peering over Yeri’s shoulder at the shadowed ring of trees around us…

  And what exactly is striding out from between those trees.

  Or who.

  “Thank Goddess,” I whisper, trying to climb down from Tahlia’s arms with as much dignity as I can muster, tugging at the front of my dress and patting my hair again as if these small actions will make me even a little more presentable.

  I feel my heart rise inside of me as I watch the figures stride out of the thick, gloomy fog, because who’s walking toward us now is none other than the knight, Talis.

  She pauses when she sees me, and it appears that she sees nothing else for half a heartbeat but me. There’s relief that moves across her gorgeous face, followed by contentment, at least for a small amount of time. The mare she’s leading (with the donkey, Cossie’s, reins attached to the mare’s saddle) is having a hard time catching her breath, her wide sides heaving, her neck—what little of her neck you can see from the massive amounts of thick mane covering it—is flecked with sweat.

  Talis must have raced here, following us.

  For me.

  I can’t help it, I can feel the blush rising in my cheeks, and as I glance at Talis, I’m remembering that we were interrupted in the middle of something quite lovely. This bit of adventure wasn’t exactly predictable in the evening, but even though we were interrupted, even though the night has gone in a direction I couldn’t have imagined…I’m so glad she’s here now. I’m so glad Talis came for me.

  She’s here to rescue me, and that just does something to one’s heart. And other regions, if one must be truthful.

  I could have gotten away from Tahlia, but if Talis wants to rescue me, well.

  I can’t think of a better way to spend an evening than celebrating said rescuing…

  I think all of this in a flash before I’m surprised (and a bit startled again) by something following after Talis into the pool of light given off by the magelights the bandits hold aloft. Because Talis is followed by her mare and her donkey…

  And by someone else.

  Another massive warrior mare moves through the fog to stand sentinel beside Talis’s horse, snorting and champing at her bit and tearing up the forest floor with her sharp hooves as if she really could think of better places to be this evening.

  And on her back…I blink, remembering. Ah, this was Talis’s friend from the tavern. Lellie, another knight. She’s gripping tightly to her mare’s reins and sits on the back of her horse like a noblewoman, her eyes narrowed as she stares down at Tahlia gripping me, her mouth drawn into a thin, hard line.

  There are two knights now, in this small clearing, with the three bandits and yours truly. Surely now this adventure will be at an end, and Talis will tell Tahlia to unhand me and take me back to Arktos City.

  And it’s terrible, I know, but to be perfectly truthful?

  I’m a little bit sad about it. I didn’t think the adventure would be over so quickly, I didn’t think I’d be whisked back to Arktos City in such a short amount of time, and I’m so grateful for Talis coming to find me, and there’s much in my heart when I look at that gorgeous knight.

  But did the adventure have to end so quickly?

  I stare up at the knight, and as we lock eyes, I grin at her, giving her a little wink.

  No, I don’t want the adventure to end, it’s true.

  But I have no idea what I’m in for yet this night…

  Talis grips her mare’s reins with a clenched hand as she lifts her chin, her eyes flashing in the dark. “Tahlia. Give the lady back. I came as you wanted. I’m here. Let’s end this now, before—”

  “Oh, no,” says Tahlia, raising her own hand, a finger pointed to the skies as she shakes her head sharply. “You’re in no position to demand anything, Talis. You forget, you’re here because of her.” And then Tahlia reaches out and curls her fingers about my waist, drawing me backward to rest against her front again. At least this time she doesn’t shove a blade at my throat.

  I need to be grateful for the little things.

  “You and I both know you’re not going to hurt her.” Talis’s voice is weary as she watches Tahlia with hooded eyes. She raises her hands to the bandit, palms open. “What do you want?”

  “You know what I want,” Tahlia whispers.

  And they stay perfectly silent for a long moment, the two women, eyeing themselves across the space bet
ween them and not moving a muscle, either one of them. A cold, gentle wind moves unhurriedly across the clearing, rustling last year’s dead leaves that are starting to rot into the forest floor. No one moves, not even the horses, but there’s tension in the air. Everything is steeped in that tension, every one of us, and it rises to a dramatic crescendo until…

  “Look, are you ladies going to come inside or continue to stare sternly at one other with your gorgeous jaws clenched? I do enjoy a woman in armor looking all stern, and I could probably look all night…but I’m assuming you all have places to be that aren’t in the middle of my wood.”

  The voice is dry and barely holding back a chuckle, as if she’s laughing at her own joke. For it’s a woman’s voice, and it sounded like it was coming from surprisingly…high up. As in, off the ground.

  As in…in the trees.

  “My apologies, mistress Rowan. We didn’t mean to cause a scene.” Tahlia lets me go and straightens up with a grin, her face tilted upward. Talis and the rest of the women, too, turn and look up into the treetops.

  What in the world? What can they see that I can’t? I stand up on my tiptoes, craning my neck, trying to catch a glimpse…

  And that’s when I see her.

  A green woman.

  A woman who is literally green.

  And rather devoid of clothing as well.

  “Mistress Rowan.” Talis gathers her mare’s reins in one hand, and then does a sweeping bow, her armor creaking as she stands straight again, glancing up at the nude woman with a fond smile. “How have you been?”

  “My goodness, Talis…it certainly has been a long time, now hasn’t it? It’s good to see you again, my dear.”

  All I can tell about this woman is that she’s missing clothing and she’s as green as a head of lettuce—she’s a bit too far away to make out more. But as she begins to descend the tree, she comes into better view, and I can see more of her. Like the fact that her hair, long and flowing down to knee-length and covered in flowers and blossoms, appears to be made of…bark? It’s hard to see in the semi-light that the magelamps cast, but it also appears that the tree she was standing on is forming steps for her as she descends to the forest floor.

  I stare at this green woman, my mouth open, and then I realize exactly how rude I’m being. I am, after all, from Arktos City, and I’ve seen a thing or two in my day. Just because I haven’t traveled out of the city itself doesn’t mean I’m a rube.

  “You remember Bay and Yeri, I’m sure,” says Tahlia, indicating her two fellow bandits. “And this, here, is Cinda. Cinda this is mistress Rowan, owner of the Nymph Tree.”

  “Charmed,” I mumble, then dip a curtsy because Talis bowed low. This causes the green woman to widen her eyes, and then she chuckles at me—but it’s not a mean sort of chuckle. Her voice is warm, and if I didn’t know better, I’d think there’s a soothing quality to it. Almost like the sound of wind in the trees, soft as a lullaby…

  “Cinda. Nice to meet you,” says Rowan, waving her hand. “Now, are you ladies going to come inside? I’ll get you rounds on the house, since it’s been so long. And, Talis, if you’re not in too much of a hurry, I’d love to hear how life is treating you. I’ve missed you, my girl.” The woman steps forward and snakes an arm around the knight’s shoulders. I didn’t realize until this moment exactly how short the green woman is. Her head only comes up to mid-chest on the knight.

  Talis gazes down at her with obvious affection. “I would, Rowan, but the night is not young…and I have to get Cinda back to Arktos City.”

  “Pity.” And the woman lets go of Talis, her eyes sad. “But come back and see me sometime, all right? Don’t be such a stranger. You look so much like your ma…”

  At that, Talis’s jaw tightens, and Rowan falls silent, almost as if she’s realized she’s said the wrong thing. The green woman puts the back of her hand to her mouth and clears her throat, and then she’s waving us all forward, shaking her head. “The mounts will be fine out here. I’ll see they’re taken care of. I’ll see you inside, ladies.”

  “Inside? Inside where?” I mutter, but Tahlia has her arm at the curve of my waist, and she’s practically pushing me along.

  “Have you ever been to the Nymph Tree?” she asks mildly, and when I shake my head, she chuckles, her grin deepening to one that’s a little wicked. “Well, then, you’re in for a treat.”

  “Just be prepared, Cinda,” says Talis, her voice warning.

  Prepared? Prepared for what?

  Tahlia pushes me forward, and I look up, my eyes growing wide.

  For Tahlia is about to push me head-first into a tree.

  I try to dig into my heels, but it’s too late. I squish up my face, hold my breath for the impact…

  But there isn’t one.

  Because at the last possible heartbeat, the tree…

  Well.

  It sort of…moves.

  The bark that was in front of me seemingly melts away. As I descend a wooden staircase, I realize that the bark that was on the tree formed itself into a doorway, just like it formed into steps for the green woman to climb down from its branches…and it is the same tree that the woman descended from, I realize.

  We descend now, down, down the tight, spiral staircase deeper into the depths of the ground. The wall beside us remain wood, and with no lines indicating planks…I think the walls are solid wood.

  They’re the inside of the tree.

  There are occasional niches carved out into these wooden walls, and each of these niches is filled with a different-colored, flickering magelight that gives just enough of a glow to the staircase so that we don’t stumble on the steps. These aren’t the magelights like the ones that Bay and Yeri are holding aloft, spheres of glowing energy that the women created out of easy magic. No. These spheres are made of older stuff, and the colors flickering behind antique stained glass remind me of the few gems I’ve seen in my lifetime.

  They glow.

  We descend, and at about the time my calves are declaring that they don’t intend to work for much longer, we reach what we were aiming for.

  I had no idea, of course, what we were aiming for, and every time I thought it might be a good idea to bring it up or ask a question, I’d look from Tahlia’s face to Talis’s, and I’d purse my own lips tightly and not speak a word. The tension remains, real and constant, thick and doughy enough to make a delicious bread.

  So when we reach ground floor of the tree (which just sounds silly even saying it…), I’m about ready for relief from the dramatic cloud I’ve seemed to find myself in.

  I shouldn’t be surprised, of course, that, at the very bottom of a spiral staircase within a magical tree is an equally magical tavern.

  Of course there is.

  I should have just assumed.

  But I didn’t, and when we reach the foot of the stairs, I’m looking about me with my jaw hanging open like any country bumpkin (and again, for the increasing record, I am not a country bumpkin).

  Huh. This…is unexpected.

  I’ve lived in Arktos City all my life, and I’ll have you know that it’s the capital of Arktos, and Arktos is, in and of itself, quite a prosperous and important nation, so there’s all manner of important things that happen within the city walls, with many, many different types of people who come to visit. I’ve seen all manner of beast and person and everything else one could imagine (and some, of course, that one could not).

  But it seems that my life in Arktos City, thus far, couldn’t have prepared me for what I see now.

  It’s hard to take in all at once. For one, the light is very dim, and though there are the colorful magelamps behind the stained glass lanterns still ringing the space, they don’t give off that much of a glow. The low light, combined with the soft, wispy strains of someone singing, and what sounds like water washing against a shore…well, it’s almost unnerving. That is, until my eyes adjust.

  And then it’s very unnerving.

  Because, next to the do
orway we’ve just entered through, there’s a pool of water that seems to be embedded deeply into the wood. And in that pool of water lounge what…appear to be…I mean, I think they are…

  “Merladies,” says Talis, touching her two fingers to her forehead in a minor salute to them as she moves around the pool with a smile. “How are you this fine evening?”

  “Talis? Oh, it’s Talis!” gushes the nearest one. She’s…well pretty would be an understatement, and so would so gorgeous my eyes can’t even believe themselves. She’s curvy, with long, wavy blonde hair that tumbles over her shoulders in soft folds and layers over her large, lovely breasts in such a way that her hair appears to be framing her nipples. Almost by design. Her eyelids are as shimmering and iridescent as her tail flukes, and the scales that cover her lower, fishy half glint almost rainbow in the low light as the mermaid rises out of the pool and wraps a hand around Talis’s thigh.

  “You’ve been gone so long. Did you miss me?” the mermaid murmurs breathlessly, her chest heaving as she gazes up at the knight with big, beautiful blue eyes that glow with adoration.

  The knight glances down at the mermaid, and it’s with fondness that she brushes the back of her hand across the mermaid’s cheek, and she nods, but she takes a step backward, disentangling her leg from the mermaid’s grasp.

  “Of course I did. I missed all of you lovely ladies. We’ll catch up later, all right?”

  “You must promise me that you will not leave without saying goodbye. Now I need it. Your promise.” The mermaid pouts winsomely, and Talis gives her an indulgent—albeit distracted—smile.

  “I promise.”

  The rest of the merladies nod and smile, but fairly soon, they’re all congregating at the edge of their pool, whispering together. Their whispers sound like water rushing over something, a sound that—with all of its sibilance—makes the hair on the back of my neck stand to attention. I give the pool a wide berth and follow Talis deeper into the tavern.

  Tahlia, I note, does not get the same warm reaction that Talis got from the mermaids. In fact, when Tahlia passes them, as one, the ladies turn and hiss at her, their bright pink and red lips up and over their teeth.