Sir Danth was sitting at the end of the table with his arms folded. He was leaning his chair back on its rear legs, using his metal boot to balance against the underside of the table. “I don’t know, Milady. My emotions aren’t as strong as they were when I was alive. It is hard to tell if I’m relaxed or not.” It was a cryptic answer that caused the rest of them to consider the idea in silence.
The dark knight continued, “I find myself staring into space without thinking about anything. I am not on edge, but cannot say that I am relaxed either. Sometimes I wonder if I truly exist.” Sorrow rang through his voice and he let out a great sigh. “I feel much better since I have been traveling with you, but a large part of me still feels alone. I am not human anymore, nor am I any other race. It would be useless for me to love as I cannot enjoy the touch that comes with it.”
“That’s very depressing, Sir Danth,” Tathan said after a moment’s pause.
“I rather thought so myself,” the knight replied cheerfully, a sudden change of tone. “I do dark moods very well. Always have, really. The ladies seemed to like it, finding my moodiness attractive.”
“Ah, yes,” Tathan replied, sitting up. “They do like a man when he’s morose. I found that when I frown and stare into the distance while thinking dark thoughts, a lady will pay close attention and try especially hard to make me happy.” A corner of his mouth twisted in a grin.
Sir Danth let the front legs of his chair fall to the ground and leaned forward. “Yes! That is exactly right! Women love a dark, moody man. I found many of the ladies at court vied for my attention.”
“It’s also a good way to get a back or shoulder massage. They want to work out the tension,” Tathan said with a raised finger.
“Are you two serious?” Liselle asked indignantly. “You act moody to get women to pay more attention to you?”
They turned to look at her without the slightest hint of shame in their body language. Sir Danth answered, “Well, being moody isn’t really an act. I am dark by nature. It’s just that I’ve noticed it has certain advantages.”
“Exactly,” Tathan agreed with a gesture toward the knight. “Just like him, I really do have dark thoughts. They don’t call me ‘Tathan of the Shadows’ for nothing after all.”
“Well said,” Sir Danth told him with an approving nod.
Tathan nodded back appreciatively. “Thank you, and to you as well.”
Liselle twisted to look at Vevin. “And do you also act moody to get my attention, dearest?”
Vevin was very good at sensing danger, Tathan noticed. The blue fire beginning to form in Liselle’s eyes probably gave him a clue. “No darling. I’m almost always happy, especially when I’m with you.” There was a big grin on his face. Liselle looked at him suspiciously through lowered eyebrows.
“Well said to you, Master Vevin,” the knight responded with approval. “Perhaps a bit cowardly, but well said nonetheless.”
Tathan burst into laughter. Liselle’s head whipped around to Sir Danth. She narrowed her eyes and pursed her lips dangerously. The fire in her eyes was bright. The knight obviously had no regard for peril. Meanwhile, Vevin looked upward in an expression of innocence.
“It was a very good response and I truly believe he’s happy when he’s around me just as I am with him,” she replied petulantly. Liselle sat forward and asked, “How do you know that women don’t act moody to attract men?”
Without hesitation, Sir Danth answered, “Because when women act moody, men run away.”
Tathan was laughing so hard he fell to the ground. Sir Danth was chuckling, immune to the glare of the beautiful lady. Vevin remained as still as possible, every muscle in his face bent toward keeping it straight so as not to draw the ire of his lover.
The boys were saved from Liselle’s wrath when a group of young Druids brought their lunch to the table. Tathan picked himself off the ground and began eating, ignoring the narrow looks his cousin sent him from time to time, though he did chuckle randomly throughout the meal.
When they were done eating, Liselle turned on the bench to lean against Vevin. Liselle’s flower moved to touch Vevin too, showing that even the flower approved of their relationship. He wrapped her in his arms as she smiled and relaxed into him. The rain had stopped briefly and the sun peaked through the clouds to warm the clearing. “So, Cousin, the plan is to head back to Puujan and get information, yes?” Liselle asked.
“Yes. I was thinking we would spend another night here. Hopefully when we leave tomorrow, the rain will have cleared and our journey will be dry,” he answered, also smiling. Tathan really did feel relaxed and it was nice. “Then, in the morning we head to Puujan.”
He saw a female Druid pass by the clearing. It was the same woman he had spent time with the last time they stayed and she was smiling coyly at him. He caught Liselle rolling her eyes as he stood to follow her. “Don’t judge me, Cousin,” he said with a smirk.
***
The next morning brought heavier rain than the previous day, but the companions chose to head out regardless. The hooves of their horses turned up mud as they plodded along and the odor of wet horsehair filled their noses. Tathan liked rain, though he tightened his jacket to keep the worst from soaking his shirt. It helped to hide him and whatever emotions he was feeling at any given time.
At the moment, he was wistful. The pretty Druid he had spent the night with asked him to stay with her that morning. What she honestly wanted was for him to stay much longer than just one morning. A part of him had wanted to take her up on the offer. He had spent his life traveling from one city to another, mostly alone. He had known women but rarely stayed for any length of time.
The part of him that wished to settle down was very small though. He still had that childhood drive to see the world. Tathan didn’t know if he’d ever be done traveling. Still, a wife and children seemed like a good idea sometimes, but only sometimes.
He glanced at Sir Danth next to him who was intently looking into the forest as though he saw something. It was the third time Tathan had noticed him doing it, but didn’t feel like asking why.
Rain didn’t touch the knight. That magical armor of his had some sort of invisible force around it, protecting him from the elements. Tathan had seen various magical armors that protected from rain, cold, heat, swords, arrows, and just about anything a person could imagine. What he had never seen was armor that had all of those in one dark, knight-sized package.
Sir Danth’s armor had been made by the best craftsmen of his ancient kingdom. They cast just about every enchantment into it that Tathan had heard of and many he hadn’t. The knight told him that he’d fallen asleep while the craftsmen were describing a lot of the enchantments, so even he wasn’t sure what all it was capable of.
Tathan glanced back at Liselle and Vevin who were riding next to each other, holding hands as usual. He rolled his eyes inwardly. Tathan was happy that his cousin had found someone to love, but they were just so sappy about it.
The rain didn’t touch Vevin. When Tathan had asked the dragon about it, he simply raised an eyebrow and replied, “I am a dragon. Nothing touches me without permission and I have not given the rain permission.” Vevin had been straight-faced and serious. Tathan once again counted himself lucky that their purple friend was on their side.
Liselle’s jacket protected her from the worst of the rain as his did for him. At first, he had worried about how she would handle it, but discovered she liked the moisture. If it was something a flower would like, it seemed to be good for Liselle as well. Very few people would ever see anything out of the ordinary to indicate she was anything other than human. The relationship to flowers could only be noticed if one knew about it already and even then, a person would have to study her to see the tendencies.
Tathan made a habit of studying people. He watched their ways and mannerisms. It helped him to figure people out and he succeeded most of the time. His companions weren’t most people however. They were each unique and extraordi
nary. At times, he felt as though he were in the company of greatness and wondered what the future held for such amazing individuals.
They were off to save a princess from caverns deep within the world. She would most likely be heavily guarded in an impossible location. Once they rescued her, the companions would have to sneak the princess past hostile forces who would be hunting them. Then they would have to figure out how to get her to the Kingdom of Mayncal, which was far south of the Iynath Empire on the other side of the vast Caaldith Mountains.
He turned to look at his extraordinary companions once more. They were all lost in their own thoughts. As the rain began to fall heavier, Tathan tightened his jacket once more. He had no doubt that somehow, someway, they would rescue the exotic princess of a faraway land.
***
The companions arrived in the Druid village five rainy days later. Tathan didn’t see the look Vevin and Liselle exchanged upon passing the outer diameter of the peace spell halfway between Brondaggiin and the village.
The Druids were friendly to them as they took the horses. Fortunately, Bromin and his friends were not in the village at the time, though others told the companions the dragon fear had worn off. Instead of leaving her bow, Liselle gave it into Vevin’s safekeeping along with the jewels the Mother Tree had given. She wasn’t certain what he did with them, but he assured her that they were safe and he would give them to her anytime she liked.
After getting a good night’s rest, they continued on foot. The sun finally decided to show its face to the world once more, warming their path. By evening, they were back at the wall of Puujan, heading to the entrance.
Chapter 9
“Hello there! I didn’t expect to see you again. What in the world happened?” Sergeant Soam asked. Tathan wondered if the same group of guards was at the gate all the time. He had never seen anyone else.
Once again, Tathan changed his mannerisms and tone of voice to portray a different image. The rest of the party was content to fade into the background and let him do all the talking. “Them stupid Druids!” Tathan exclaimed, spitting out the words in anger. It caused the guards to jump. Sir Danth muttered something incomprehensible and shook his head while Vevin acted mad. Liselle followed their cues, folding her arms and glaring at the dirt in front of her feet.
“They let us get deep into the forest when the path suddenly disappeared.” Tathan waved his arms around in the air angrily and stomped back and forth. “The next thing we know they’re shooting arrows at us and rabid animals are coming out of the trees to harass us.”
“No! Those bastards!” Sergeant Soam yelled. The other guards shook their heads in disgust, instantly buying the story.
“Aye! We were able to escape the attack with our lives, but couldn’t see them to fight back,” Tathan continued. “The path behind us was still open, so we ran. The trees closed behind us, refusing to let us go anywhere but back here.”
“They do that,” one of the guards interrupted. “The first time Druids attack, they don’t hit you. From what I hear, they like to chase people down and hunt them for sport.” The other guards nodded.
While the statement irritated Tathan, who knew the Druids helped people who wished to leave, he showed nothing of his feelings. “Aye, I’ve heard the same,” he said with a nod. “We decided not to kill them, being as we didn’t want to fight the entire forest, but we’ve wasted almost two weeks in that overgrown garden.”
Sergeant Soam put a thick, friendly hand on Tathan’s shoulder. “Don’t beat yourself up over it, friend.”
“I don’t know what we’ll do now,” Tathan said with his head hung. “I didn’t want to do any more work for the Rojuun, but it looks like I’ll need to get through the caverns to the other side if I want to leave.” He waved toward the mountains. “It’s either the forest or the mountains. The Caaldith Range is even more dangerous and impassible than the Willden.”
“Aye, no one would survive that journey,” the sergeant agreed. “There’s a road through the caverns you can travel from Puujan to . . . I forgot the name of the city on the other side. It’s a long journey, but better than trying to climb over the mountains.”
Tathan frowned and folded his arms. “If I come across the Rojuun, won’t they want me to work for them some more?” he asked. “They won’t just let me walk through.”
“From what I understand, it’s all explored tunnels, guarded by Rojuun,” the sergeant reassured him. “As far as getting stopped by Rojuun, you probably will be. I don’t know what to tell you about that.”
“Perhaps no one will bother us,” Tathan said with a half-hearted shrug. “Do you know how long it takes to get from one end to the other?”
“No idea,” the sergeant replied. “Me and the boys were teleported from a city at the edge of the Iynath Empire. We never even traveled the tunnels, which is fine by me.”
Tathan found that information interesting. “I don’t like being teleported much more than I like trudging through caves,” Tathan said with disgust. Actually he found it fascinating, but that wasn’t important. “I think I’ll take my chances in the tunnels.”
Sergeant Soam laughed at that. “Aye, it’s an uncomfortable feeling if you ask me.” The other guards nodded in agreement.
“Thanks again, Sergeant. You’ve been a lot of help,” Tathan said with a hand on the sergeant’s shoulder.
“May your journeys fare better in the future,” Sergeant Soam responded, returning the gesture.
With that, the companions walked through the postern gate into the city of Puujan once more. The last daylight was disappearing from the sky, while the aroma of evening meals wafted through the air. The wings of the city were tranquil and glowing in the light of the two partial moons. Tathan absent-mindedly observed that a baby’s cry sounded through the hum of city life.
A short while later they were at the White Tree Inn where Hulda greeted them enthusiastically. She brought them a meal with drinks in short order then sat down. Tathan told her the same story he told the guards at the gate.
“Well, that sounds like a dreadful experience,” Hulda said sympathetically. “I can’t believe the Druids treated you like that. They didn’t bother us at all when we came through the forest to Puujan. I thought for certain they’d let you back through.” The heavyset innkeeper took another drink of her ale.
“We did too,” Tathan said. They had finished their meals and sat around the table, relaxing. Their bellies were full . . . except for Sir Danth who remained stubbornly hollow. Tathan stretched his legs in hopes that some of the weight from his belly would settle to his toes. “Now we need to head through the tunnels in the other direction. Sergeant Soam told us there was a way underneath the mountains. Have you heard of it?” he asked.
“Aye, I’ve heard of it. Not many people go from one end to the other though,” the innkeeper told them. “You’ll notice Puujan isn’t fully inhabited. Perhaps someday it will be, but there just hasn’t been much need for people here.”
“Why are people here at all?” Liselle asked with genuine curiosity.
“The Druids allow some foraging from the forest and there’s a couple of mining villages nearby, but the main profession around here is crafting,” Hulda explained. “Several marble crafters work from a small quarry in the mountains. A lot of jewelry is made from metals and gems the Rojuun supply as well.”
“I saw some the one day I was in the market,” Liselle said, remembering. “It seemed very well made.” She hadn’t seen much jewelry in her life, having lived in the sheltered valley. “I thought such nice things were only for princesses and such.”
Tathan raised an eyebrow in admiration of his cousin’s deft mention of a princess. He looked toward Hulda to see if she would take the bait.
She did. “Say, that reminds me. Have you heard that the Princess of Mayncal was kidnapped?” Hulda asked, leaning forward in her seat.
“No. Really?” Liselle asked, also leaning forward. She slid an elbow on the table and prop
ped her chin in her hand.
“Well, I’m sure you’ve heard about the kingdoms of Mayncal and Brindlyn and how they’ve been fighting for centuries . . .”
“I think so,” Liselle replied, twisting her face in thought. “There always seems to be two countries that have been fighting for centuries. It’s so hard to keep track of them.”
Hulda laughed at that. “Very true, as you say. Anyway, the Princess of Mayncal and the Prince of Brindlyn were to marry and bring peace to their kingdoms.”
“I would imagine it’s hard for two people to get married if one is kidnapped,” Liselle said dryly.
“Good one!” Hulda said, clapping Liselle on the shoulder and nearly knocking her off the stool. The look of shock on his cousin’s face was priceless, causing Tathan to laugh. It was nice to see someone else get a taste of friendly abuse for a change.
Hulda continued the story. “Aye, it’s hard for a princess to get married if she’s kidnapped. And it’s hard for two countries to achieve peace if the marriage can’t happen.” The innkeeper looked around to make sure nobody was listening before leaning forward. The group leaned in as well.
“Rumor is that the princess is in a Rojuun city, being held securely,” Hulda said in a low voice. “The kingdom of Brindlyn thinks Mayncal is hiding her and the kingdom of Mayncal believes Brindlyn has kidnapped or killed her.” She leaned back again. “If something isn’t done, it’ll escalate into open violence.”
“They will definitely go to war,” Sir Danth said. “It is the way of kings and has been since kingdoms first began.”
“Why would the Rojuun kidnap a princess though?” Liselle asked innocently. “They don’t seem all that bad to me.”
“Honestly? I don’t know that they would.” Hulda leaned forward again as did the companions. “It sounds like something the Empire of Iynath would do. I’d bet a gold uun or two they kidnapped the princess and gave her to the Rojuun to keep safe. Nobody would be able to rescue her from their territory.”
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