“You don’t say?” she mocked, an eyebrow raised.
“Can you think of anyone better?” he asked in return with a smile.
She shook her head and laughed, pulling him into an embrace. “Thank you,” she whispered softly into his ear.
“No, thank you for always being there at my side and giving me the courage to do what’s right. I couldn’t have done any of this without you,” he responded, holding her tightly within his arms.
“What is that digging into my waist? Are you seriously…?” she asked suddenly, moving away from him.
“It’s my coif. We kind of dismissed my squire before he could finish taking my armor off,” he insisted with a grin.
“So now you need a squire to get out of your clothes?” Willow teased and he felt his blood stir in response.
His smile widened. “Of course not, all I need is you.”
Her face softened as she took him in her arms and held him firmly against her. His lips touched on hers and the passion of their kiss made him forget everything else in the world but her.
When they finally broke away, she grabbed his hand and pulled him towards their chamber door. “Come on, Sir Tristan, let’s get you out of that armor and end this night properly. I’ve yet to put this new body of yours to the test, this is as good of a time as any.”
“Are you sure?” he asked with concern, eyes inadvertently dropping towards her enlarged waistline. He didn’t want to hurt her or their child.
“I’m pregnant, not a piece of glass. I won’t break if you touch me,” she cooed back, yanking him through the doors and out of reach of the fast approaching night sky.
Chapter 5
Ambushed
I
Tristan stood on the balcony leading to Erik’s study, his eyes sweeping the forested city beyond. Erik had sent for him earlier that morning, and now the King was standing by his side; gazing at the western horizon. Amysta had taken it upon herself to show Willow around and the two men had a moment to talk alone for the first time since their arrival.
“You know, I never truly understood why Willow’s people gave all this up. It’s so peaceful and quiet here,” he commented, eyeing the stylish elven architecture woven through the trees below.
“They did what I wish I could,” Erik sighed, “they thrust themselves into the world of Man and actively took a part in the shaping of the world. Something I’ve been gradually trying to get our people to do since this crown was put on my head. I admire their ability to adapt and change, which just goes to show that this shouldn’t be as difficult as it’s been.”
He nodded, he could understand that part. “Still, it is quite beautiful, and I can’t see leaving that behind for the grit and grime that most human settlements are filled with. Sure, we have our own style, but most of our dwellings are for utility, not beauty.”
Erik smiled. “Are cultural differences and architectural styles really going to be the focus of our conversation this morning?”
He laughed and shook his head. “I apologize, just a lot to absorb. I don’t want to really discuss it with my fiancé, for though I don’t understand their reasons, I’m glad they did what they did. It led to meeting the love of my life.”
“It’s a rare thing, knowing who you want and being satisfied with that decision,” Erik noted, waving his hand at the city below. “Elves can be a fickle people, the long lives shortening their patience with others that don’t share their same beliefs; their likes and dislikes. It makes for finding a companion, quite—challenging.”
“I just lucked out, I guess,” he grinned. “I don’t know where I’d be today if it weren’t for her. You called me courageous, but all I was really doing was trying to protect her and the life of my child.”
Erik placed a hand on his shoulder. “Isn’t that what most of us are doing when it comes right down to it? Protecting the things we love? Whether it’s your home, your work, or your family, are we not each striving to protect them from the destruction threatening from without? That is what binds us all to a common purpose.”
He nodded in agreement, taking a moment to take in the serene scenery, allowing his eyes to relax and see the city as a whole rather than its individual parts. “Seeing all of this fills me with a sense of dread.”
“How so?” the elf pursued; turning to follow Tristan’s gaze.
“The idea of the Phoenix’s army outside the city walls, of this beautiful place going up in flames, of what it would mean if it were lost forever,” he answered softly.
“That’s what we’re trying to prevent,” Erik commented with a grim twitch at the corner of his mouth.
“I know and while I have faith that we will, part of me wonders what real chance we have if she throws everything at us all at once,” he remarked.
It was Erik’s turn to grow quiet as his eyes swept the Kingdom he lorded over. “I feel that too, but I cannot allow myself to give into it. They look up to us to protect them, to do everything within our power to preserve their way of life, and self-defeatism will only usher the thing we fear ever closer. Don’t give it life.”
“Kind of hard with that unmoving storm out there,” he glowered, eyeing the lightning flashes in the distance.
“It should tell you something that it doesn’t move, that it remains fixed on that point of the horizon,” Erik observed, nodding his head towards the west. “If it were within her power, you know she’d have that raging over our heads instead. That it doesn’t, gives us some hope that her powers aren’t as great as she makes them out to be.”
“She’s powerful enough,” he blurted, remembering the events of the last couple of weeks and how drastically his life had changed.
Erik eyed him closely. “True, but we’re not exactly defenseless either. Elven armies are marching from the north and east to reinforce us and the druids are working with the army to improve our defenses. You have brought me Excalibur and woken me from a state that would have ended my mortal life. You have healed me and filled me with renewed purpose. I don’t feel that shadow of dread hovering at the back of my mind any longer, you have dispelled that with your acts of courage and faith.”
“I still fear for my daughter’s life, but I know that she’s out there somewhere. When this battle is over, I will march upon the Deadlands and bring her back home where she belongs,” the King remarked. Erik rarely talked about his missing daughter and by the fresh pain on the elf’s face, he could see why.
“And I will do everything I can to see that happens as well,” he added, just not sure yet in what capacity he’d be involved. Merlin was on his way here and he was sure the mage was not done altering his path.
Erik nodded his thanks and they took a moment to process each other’s commitments and concerns.
“Any news of my brother?” he asked suddenly, eyes shifting back to the Elven Lord.
“Last I heard they are still a few days out,” his companion answered, gaze turning towards the southwestern part of the horizon. “They are making steady progress, but the supply trains are slowing their advance. You that anxious to see your brother?”
He fidgeted, he hadn’t really put any thought into it other than realizing such a meeting was eventually going to happen. “I don’t think he’ll even recognize me,” he commented softly. “So much has happened since we last saw each other. I’m not sure where things will stand when we are finally together once more.”
“He’s your brother,” Erik stated simply.
He gave a short laugh. “Exactly.”
“I know that’s not the only reason you asked about your brother’s army, why not speak your mind? We are old friends after all,” the King said with a smile.
“That ever bother you? Those memories of what was and the doubt about whether it’s truly your emotions or some remnant trying to voice some past echo; to breathe life once more?” he asked. He knew that if anyone could understand what he had experienced, it would be the Elven King by his side.
“My experien
ce was more profound than yours, so I take your meaning and understand. But like you, I have been made whole and I’m at peace with it now,” Erik replied.
“That wasn’t really an answer,” he chuckled.
Erik laughed. “Part of being around politicians, I guess.”
“I try to avoid them at all cost,” he added with a smile. It was hard not to be comfortable around the older elf. Past lives aside, he could feel true friendship building between them.
“I wish I could, got a bit of cleaning house to do on that part as it is. Still, I love the diversionary tactic. I still think there’s something dwelling in that mind of yours in which you’ve been hesitant to speak,” the King pushed, giving him a knowing look. “Why not get it off your chest and be done with it?”
He sighed. He hadn’t known when or if to broach the subject, but it looks like that moment had arrived despite his reluctant comments. “I was going to get there eventually.”
Erik motioned with his hand for him to continue, not allowing him to steer away from it any longer.
“Willow and I were supposed to be married next week and with all that is happening, we thought it best to happen sooner rather than later,” he finally blurted out, blood rushing to his cheeks. He had just met the King two days before and he was still getting accustomed to the other elf’s reactions and moods.
“Is that all?” Erik asked with a raised eyebrow. “You just want to know if I’ll preside over your wedding?”
The elf broke out into laughter.
He rolled his eyes and looked away. “It’s not that funny. We are going to be parents soon and she’s concerned about our daughter being born out of wedlock.”
Erik’s laughter died off and he gave Tristan a brief smile before he began talking. “First of all, I’m honored that you have asked this of me and I’ll gladly see the two of you married. But there are things you must understand if I am to do this, or I’ll have no choice but to decline and ask you to wait until your own clerics can perform the ceremony.”
His heart hammered in his chest at the Elven King’s words and he found himself unable to speak as his throat had closed up.
“Elven marriages are unlike the ceremonies you’ve heard of or experienced in your past. The Elves of Griedlok adapted our rituals to better suit human customs and I doubt you have any idea what you’re in for if you two are married here,” the elf said with a serious tone of voice.
“How bad can it be? The result is the same, is it not?” he finally managed with a croak.
Erik shook his head slightly. “I said that elves were fickle creatures when choosing their mates, but not what happens when they do. Elves love for life. When they choose to commit themselves to a person, it’s with the knowledge that the decision they’re making will be final and absolute. They will never love another person in that way again, even if their mate dies and they spend the rest of their lives alone and isolated. Although not overtly magical in nature, our spirits are still influenced by the magical ancestry of our past. If I perform this marriage, it would be by our old elven customs and the two of you will be magically bound to one another for the rest of your lives.”
“As I have had occasion to visit your people, I know that this doesn’t apply to your race as well, and such a commitment shouldn’t be taken lightly. If you decide down the line that the two of you aren’t suited for one another and you find another woman to fall in love with, you will destroy Willow to the core and leave her an empty husk of anger and regret. I cannot allow that if you are not truly committed to her. I will not willingly take part in it. And no, I’m not attacking your character or beliefs, but Man has the tendency to change over time and are always wanting the things they cannot have. It happens to the best of them.”
He thought back to the Trial of the Heart and the confrontation with Melissa. It was true that he had an attraction to her before that trial began, but upon making that choice to refuse her, he had been magically changed from within. Now he was beginning to wonder if it weren’t similar to exactly what Erik was describing.
He told the King what he was thinking about, going over the test and what had happened upon his completing it, and Erik’s face softened as he nodded with understanding. “Yes, that’s exactly how it feels, like no other woman will ever matter, and you are comfortable being around them because you will never look at them the way you do your wife.”
He nodded, gladdened by the King’s understanding and softer demeanor. “The wedding will not alter or change what already is, I will love her and only her for the rest of my days.”
Erik smiled and clapped him on the shoulder. “That’s all I needed to hear. I take it you want to wait for your brother to arrive for us to do this?”
He hadn’t actually considered that part, but yes it would be nice to have John there. Too bad Jenna wouldn’t be by his side. “Actually, I wanted to make sure her father was present when it happened. Though she wouldn’t say it, it would mean a lot to her if Bordin was there when we were married.”
“Thinking of her comfort before your own, you truly are in love with her my friend,” Erik chuckled, nudging his shoulder and looking out at the city once more.
He was about to add something when Jarel suddenly burst into the study, the blue haired druid hot on his heels. “Sire, your presence is requested in the throne room. We have guests.”
Erik turned abruptly and addressed the out of breath aide. “How could we have guests in the throne room, how did they get through the gates without me being notified?”
The druid shouldered himself past the aide that was struggling to answer the King’s questions and looked at them with a large grin on his face. “My Lord, the Fairies have arrived.”
II
Melissa looked at him as he signaled them to come to a halt. They had been riding for the majority of the morning and most of it had been in silence. He had spent the time analyzing the nearing future and that’s when he realized that something was wrong.
“What is it?” Melissa asked him and Merlin turned to look to the north.
“The others are in trouble,” he told her after a pause. They hadn’t heard from Kylee or Riska since the night before, which hadn’t really troubled him as he was used to the ranger’s prolonged scouting trips. It never crossed his mind that something might have happened.
“Reyna, you and Kore take point,” he motioned to the two warriors as he turned his horse and kicked its flanks, setting forth at a full gallop.
The two warriors took the lead as Melissa rode swiftly by his side. That he hadn’t seen this coming troubled him. Not many things could obscure his vision and that usually meant the Phoenix was making a move against him.
He tried to focus on the events that were transpiring around them, but he was drawing a blank whenever he tried to draw Kylee and Riska into the picture. It made him increasingly more nervous the further they rode, the multitude of possibilities too troubling to contemplate.
Slowly, signs of a conflict came into view and he slowed his horse in anticipation of what they were about to find. The warriors had slowed as well and Melissa’s eyes were scanning the area, her lips moving while casting a spell.
“They are three life signs ahead,” she finally told him and he nodded his head in response.
Reyna and Kore dismounted, their weapons drawn and held ready. He followed suit and whispered to the horse to remain behind while he made his way forward.
The black knight swept left as Kore went right. There had been a battle of some kind and he was having trouble locating who or why. Ajax, Riska’s mount, was watching them approach, crouched and ready to leap if they showed any sign of aggression. Laying on the ground behind the beast’s hind legs was his rider, Riska, lying prone and spread-eagled; apparently unconscious.
A whimpering sound drew his attention and as he shifted his gaze to his left he saw Melissa moving forward to the sound’s source. She knelt next to Kylee’s wolf companion and he winced at the multiple arro
ws protruding from Tuskar’s body. Melissa was running her hand over the body, summoning her magic in order to probe the wolf’s wounds without actual contact. He glanced at the cougar crouching nearby and saw several arrows piercing the leather saddle as well.
“The arrows were dipped with toxin, only lethal when given in large doses. I’m sorry Merlin, there isn’t anything that I can do,” the woman told him as he came to stand over the fallen wolf.
Although he hadn’t shared the link that Kylee had enjoyed with the beast, it still pained his heart to see Tuskar in so much pain. He had been a member of the group just as much as any other and the labored breathing increased the ache in his heart. Kneeling by the wolf’s side, he watched as Tuskar’s eye rolled to look at him, the pleading within that single eye breaking his heart.
“I’m sorry, my friend,” he whispered softly, putting his hand on Tuskar’s head. Summoning his magic, he entered the wolf’s mind and began to replay the events that led up to their arrival.
Kylee and Riska had been ambushed in the night, dark humanoids cloaked in black, firing arrows from the shadows. Riska had fought valiantly until he was eventually overpowered by the attackers, knocked unconscious and left for dead. Tuskar had taken multiple shots and Kylee’s rage had driven her to attack the cloaked figures with unbridled fury. The wolf hadn’t seen what had happened to her, but through their link he had sensed that she was overpowered and bound, then spirited away just as quickly as the attack had taken place.
Kylee was alive, for the moment.
He stroked the wolf’s head, a tear leaking from his eye. “You will see her again, wait for her on the other side. Hopefully it’ll be awhile before she gets there,” Merlin said in a soothing voice, then summoned his magic and pinched a nerve in the wolf’s brain.
Phoenix Rising (the New Age Saga Book 3) Page 9