Swallowing at the reasoning, Desa took a deep breath before asking softly. “And may I ask what reason that is?”
“It’s a bright spot in my life. She realized what happened, and she told us as quickly as she reasonably could. Unlike you, or my mother, or anyone else.” Phynis said calmly, looking at Desa.
“That’s not fair, I-” Desa began.
Phynis raised a finger to cut Desa off, her voice growing soft as she asked. “When did you notice that I was being more careless about my security?”
“Ahh...about halfway back to the capital.” Desa admitted reluctantly.
“And did you tell my mother about it?” Phynis pressed, her eyes icy.
“Yes.” Desa swallowed as she looked down. “I...should have told you.”
“You should have told me.” Phynis agreed, just as soft as she continued. “Instead, I now have to wonder what else you’ve kept from me. Because unlike me, you didn’t have a mind-altering rock stuck in your head.”
“But I haven’t kept things from you! I’ve done everything I could to keep you safe!” Desa protested, raising her head abruptly. “I just didn’t want to worry you if it was just shock from the capture and branding.”
“And how am I supposed to know that? How am I supposed to trust that’s all it was?” Phynis asked, gesturing northward as she snorted, her tone pointed. “You met with my mother what, eight times that I know of? I met with her once. And she appears to have completely disregarded my suggestions and requests. I asked her about the priesthood of Vanir, and about sending priests here. She said she’d consider it, which obviously didn’t happen. And her lack of attention? It might be because of the stress she’s been under with the various attacks, but I can’t be certain anymore.”
“That wasn’t intentional, Phynis! We were just trying to do what was best for both you and the kingdom.” Desa protested, a hint of desperation running through her. “I didn’t mean to shut you out! I was just so busy with preparing for the expedition that I didn’t even realize that you hadn’t met with Her Majesty. She just kept adding responsibilities, and I was scrambling to keep up.”
“Be as that may, I can’t fully trust you anymore.” Phynis replied with a shrug. “So I’m going to go sit with Sistina. I’m going to talk to her, trying to get her to learn to use words more easily. And I’m going to let things happen as they may. It’s a new chance at happiness, since my old chance has been destroyed by Kelvanis.”
“But…” Desa tried to protest, but Phynis walked out of the room before she could think of how to respond. And all that Desa was left with was the taste of ashes in her mouth as she realized just how badly she and the queen had handled Phynis’ feelings.
* * *
Sistina blinked as Phynis sat on the grass next to her, tilting her head in a bit of confusion. After the better part of a week being absent, the princess’s sudden appearance was surprising.
“I finally told Desa off, and told her I was coming out to be with you anyway. And that I was going to try to get you used to speaking more.” Phynis replied easily, grinning. When Sistina wrinkled her nose in distaste at the idea of talking, the princess laughed softly. “Don’t be like that! It’ll help. If you could speak more easily, you could have explained what had happened to me in a tenth of the time that it actually took. It would’ve been less frustrating for both of us.”
That was a fair point, Sistina had to admit. But she frowned at Phynis anyway as she continued slowly reshaping the lower levels of the dungeon she was creating. A few more days and she would have it pretty much complete, though building appropriate traps and adjusting the monsters would take more time. She’d finally gotten her domain to envelop the fire node down below, which would help with some of the changes she needed to make as well. But no matter what, it was taking more time than she wanted.
Finally Sistina reached out and tapped Phynis on the forehead and tilted her head, slightly curious as to what the princess was thinking. She was fairly sure that Desa didn’t want Phynis being in love with Sistina, and she could entirely understand if Phynis was unsettled by the whole mind-control thing. On the other hand, she’d been so busy that she wasn’t able to focus on watching everyone inside her domain in much detail, so she wasn’t sure what they were thinking. She’d also been trying to give them some privacy, since it wouldn’t be fair to watch all of them.
“Oh, the changes to my mind? I’m not happy about most of them, but I’m fairly certain they never intended me to fall in love with you. And that being the case, I think I’m happier with it in place. You’re...I don’t know how to explain.” Phynis stared at Sistina, a smile on her face, considering for a minute.
When Phynis leaned forward and pressed her lips against Sistina’s lips, it startled the dryad so much that the tunnel she was repositioning suddenly clenched shut, the stone twisting tightly and cutting off the tunnel abruptly. She hastily let go of the mountain as the warmth of Phynis’ lips pressed against her own mouth, and Sistina found herself losing her grip on the rest of her domain, as the whole of her concentration focused down on this body. Her lips parted, and she found herself pulling the elf deeper into the kiss, her own eyes closing as she reveled in the riot of sensations.
Phynis gave a soft whimper of happiness, and the warmth of their bodies melded together slowly as they pulled at each other, their tongues gently flitting and jousting. And then, almost as suddenly as the kiss had begun, Phynis pulled away. Sistina found herself mentally reeling as she swayed in place, while Phynis’ cheeks were a bright pink and a radiant smile illuminating the elven maiden’s face.
“I see that you don’t entirely object to me being here, either.” Phynis teased, giggling softly. Sistina nodded in response, trying to pull her senses together again. The sheer potency of her own reaction startled her, and had kindled desires that she hadn’t even known she could have before. Oblivious to Sistina’s internal thoughts, Phynis seemed to consider before she asked, her voice growing nervous. “May I stay with you?”
Blinking in surprise, Sistina considered a moment before nodding to her. Why wouldn’t the princess be able to stay with her? She was staying in the cavern, after all. But then Phynis clarified, smiling sadly.
“I don’t mean just right now. I mean...for as long as I like? I’m not sure I want to leave your caverns. Ever.” Phynis explained in a soft voice, and Sistina suddenly realized what the young woman meant.
Desa wouldn’t be pleased if she allowed Phynis to stay here for however long she wished, but that wasn’t a true concern to Sistina. If she had to, Sistina could force the other woman to let it go, but she was loathe to do that. No, the true reason she hesitated was because she knew that she would outlive Phynis by centuries or more. And it wouldn’t be fair to the young woman.
But Phynis’ eyes were filled with an odd awareness of that, and in spite of her hesitation, Sistina made her decision. She nodded and smiled gently before speaking, a faint promise permeating her reply. “Yes.”
Chapter 32
“What kind of road is this supposed to be?” Joseph groused, picking himself up with a wince. “I have enough trouble not tripping over my fat feet without a bunch of potholes jumping out of nowhere every few paces.”
“Didn’t you see the engineers a few miles back?” Penelope asked in a wicked tone, a slight grin on her face. “They were trying to make the trail into a passable road, if you didn’t notice.”
“Doesn’t matter. It’s a shitty excuse for a road.” Joseph retorted, stretching his ankle carefully. A twinge of pain shot up his leg, and he scowled, then murmured. “Grace of Tervor, Purify My Body.”
His mana surged at the prayer and a golden light surged through him with a wave of warmth. The pain melted away in the face of his magic, and he nodded in satisfaction. Some days it was good to be a cleric.
“You done coddling your leg, Joe, so we can get a move on?” Darak asked impatiently, the dwarf less than amused. “We’ve no idea how much farther it is to th
is dungeon.”
“That’s because you’ve got rocks in your ears, Darak.” Nirath replied calmly, the elf leaning on her staff as she looked up at the mountain ahead of them.
“Hmm? Why do you say that?” Darak asked, blinking at her interjection. Joseph hid a smile at her tone. It wasn’t often that the elf insulted the dwarf, and she usually reserved it for when he was being a particularly rock-headed idiot.
“Because both of us can hear what sounds like axes and the like from a ways up the valley. We’re probably almost to wherever the road those mages were working is going.” Penelope explained, a patronizing smile on her face as Nirath nodded in agreement. “And given all the construction, I’m betting that it’s where the dungeon was found. Most nations build towns around them, remember?”
“Well, if you can hear it, it can’t be far away. I want to get off this damned ‘road’ and somewhere we can rest for a night.” Joseph replied with some relief, looking up at the road with renewed enthusiasm, imagining a nice, soft bed ahead of him. It probably wouldn’t be soft, but a man could dream.
“And that’s the man I like. Always so happy to see the food at the end of a long trip.” Penelope teased him, grinning broadly.
“Hey!” He protested, but all of the others laughed at him, then continued down the sorry excuse for a road. Joseph made it all of twenty feet before grumbling as another pothole leapt up at him.
* * *
“Hey, Rick?” Phillip’s interruption distracted Rick, prompting a soft swear word.
“One minute, Phil! I’m almost done!” Rick retorted from the bushes. Didn’t the man know not to interrupt when someone was relieving themselves?
“We’ve got people coming up the road, Rick. They’re not the road-builders, and they look odd. Actually, they look dangerous to me.” Phil replied urgently, ignoring Rick’s protests.
“What? Give me a second! I’m almost done.” Rick quickly finished up and wiped himself clean. Buckling his belt, Rick hurried back to his post next to Phillip.
The two of them were sentries guarding the trail heading back toward Westgate, but so far it’d been an easy post. There hadn’t been any traffic except messengers, laborers, and supply wagons for the past week. A few other people had trickled in, of course, but those were mostly those who were going to run the tavern and inn. At least the barracks was done, and the tavern had finally received its first shipment of alcohol and food, which had much improved nights around the guard house. Which made the group that Rick saw coming up the road all the more surprising.
Leading the group was a dwarf, a man maybe a few inches short of five feet and broader in the shoulders than Rick was, and Rick was not a small man, which made that even more impressive than it otherwise would have been. The dwarf had a dark brown beard braided down the front, and was wearing a suit of full plate, an expense which made Rick’s skin crawl. Even a basic suit of full plate was worth just over eight years of his pay, assuming he didn’t spend a single coin. But even worse, he could also see faint runes set into the armor, which meant that the armor was enchanted, increasing its value even more. Rick couldn’t wrap his mind around a number large enough to value something like that. Almost as a side note, he noticed that the dwarf had a massive two-handed axe at his back that Rick would have sworn was too big for anyone to wield without losing their balance. Well, maybe a minotaur or ogre could use it, but those were rare!
Behind the dwarf was a tall, rangy woman with chestnut brown hair and broader shoulders than Rick had seen on a woman before. She was six feet tall and far more muscular than he’d be comfortable fighting, based purely on how easily she was moving in her own full plate, which gleamed a silvery color that he faintly recognized as one of the mystical metals, mithral. Her armor had the similar runes, and a hand-and-a-half sword hung at her back with a glittering ruby in the pommel, while a crossbow hung at her hip. The sight of yet more obscenely expensive equipment positively made his stomach twist in envy.
Compared to the front pair, the man who came ambling after them was utterly mundane. He was stocky for a human, at about five and a half feet, and he had dark hair and a neatly trimmed goatee. He was wearing lightweight pale leathers trimmed in blue and gold, and the glitter of a holy symbol around his throat proclaimed him as a follower of Tervor, god of adventuring, glory, and life. He had a mere mace at his side, but the head of it seemed to flicker with inner flames as Rick looked at it.
Last of all was an elf, but not a dawn or dusk elf like were native to the region. This woman, with pale skin and black hair, was a type of elf Rick had never seen before. She was wearing simple trousers and a white blouse under her long trench coat, and she carried a staff topped with a glittering green jewel, even as she gently guided a donkey carrying an almost overloaded series of packs. He almost puked when he saw glittering runes set into the donkey’s pack saddle!
“Well, shit.” Rick swallowed hard, then glanced at Phillip. “Adventurers?”
“Probably.” Phil agreed. “I’ll go get Lord Evansly. Don’t piss them off. I like having you as a partner.”
“Good idea.” Rick replied, anxiety growing as he stood up straighter.
* * *
“Hmm...looks like you’re right, Pen. Those buildings can’t have been complete for more than a couple of weeks.” Darak said, looking at the buildings as the smaller of the two human guards went running off. “The finished ones, I mean. Look like decent construction at least. I think I’m seeing a dwarven touch here.”
“I’m glad you approve.” Penelope replied dryly. Darak glanced back and saw her looking over at the elf behind them. “Nirath?”
“The stone indicates it’s quite close.” The elf replied calmly after dangling the seer stone for a moment and examining the radiance within it. “I believe we’ve arrived.”
“Great! You, guard! What town is this?” Darak asked bluntly, looking over the guard and barely suppressing a snort of derision. The man wouldn’t last ten minutes in a dungeon.
“Uh, it doesn’t have a name.” The man seemed taken aback by Darak’s approach, but visibly steadied himself as he asked. “May I ask if you’re adventurers?”
“We are.” Penelope replied before Darak could, and the dwarf harrumphed in faint annoyance. It was always fun teasing guards, but Penelope usually interfered.
“In that case could you please wait for a few minutes? My partner went to get Lord Evansly. He asked to be informed if adventurers arrived. He also wanted to meet with any of you.” The man asked, and Darak’s eyes narrowed.
“Why?” He asked suspiciously.
“I don’t know. He just wanted to meet with any adventurers when they arrived.” The guard explained quickly, raising his hands defensively.
“Well, he can-” Darak began, but Joseph interjected first.
“Darak. He’s just asking to meet us. Didn’t the guildmaster want to meet us before letting us into the guild, too?” The priest asked calmly, seeming far more relaxed now that he had buildings in sight again. Crazy city dweller priest.
“I suppose we can wait for a bit.” Darak muttered grudgingly, and settled back. He did smirk at the guard releasing a breath of relief, though. Sometimes it was the little things that brightened his day.
It took a few minutes of annoyed impatience, but then the other guard with a male elf that had oddly darker skin and white hair. Darak assumed this was one of the dusk elves that Nirath had mentioned lived out this way. The man was definitely wearing nicer clothing than the guards, and was much better groomed. He still wouldn’t last ten minutes in a real dungeon.
“Welcome, I’m Captain Aric Evansly, the commander in charge of building this town. I’m an officer in the Army of Kelvanis.” The elf spoke quickly, his voice fairly resonant. He was slightly taller than Joseph, but not by more than a couple of inches. “As more of a formality, may I ask whom all of you are and why you’re here?”
“We’re members of the Western Adventuring Guild, Captain Evansly.” Penelop
e spoke smoothly, smiling as she nodded her head. “I’m Penelope Quicksilver, and we’re here because our guildmaster divined the existence of a new dungeon out this direction.”
“And I’m Joseph Lightcaller.” Joseph added with a polite nod.
“Darak Rockblood.” Darak grunted, his eyes narrowed at the elven man as he tapped one foot slowly, trying to suppress his impatience.
“Nirath Sylrian.” The elf spoke calmly, her eyes level as they regarded the captain, who shifted slightly.
“I see. Well, your guildmaster works fast, then.” Evansly replied dryly, shaking his head in obvious disbelief. “We only found out that there was a dungeon here a month and a half ago, and it was an accident. My superiors told me to welcome any adventurers as well, and let you know what we saw inside. I’ll warn that my soldiers saw very little while they were in there, though. As for lodging, all that’s built so far is the barracks, tavern, and inn, so we don’t have much to support any delves.”
Ancient Ruins (Ancient Dreams Book 1) Page 24