"They weren't paying much attention to me." He looked down at the Elven corpses. "It was easier than I expected."
"Kaiyer," Alexia's voice called from one of the wagons seventy yards away. I excused myself from the two men and walked toward her.
"I made a mistake." She pointed at the wagon that had concealed the archers. It held dozens of large glass bottles carefully stored under a floorboard, along with a separate covered container that was filled with feces and mushrooms. There were also stacks of cinnamon and cloves.
"What is in the bottles? Water?"
"Yes," she said.
"Tricky."
"I should have listened to you." She shook her head in disappointment.
"It turned out okay. I didn't really have much of a reason. Just a gut feeling. It shouldn't have been that easy." I put my hand on Alexia's shoulder and gave it a reassuring squeeze.
"I'll do better next time. So will my scouts." She smiled faintly at me.
"You always do. Where is--"
"Haarrrrooooo!" the bald man yelled from the ridge behind us. His voice bounced off of the sides of the small canyon and immediately got our attention. The big man bounded down the edge of the cliff like a mountain goat and his group of soldiers followed him.
"What took you so long?" Alexia and I said almost in unison. He gave us a grin that accented the scar across his face and then patted the dust off of his leather armor. I could then see and smell the blood on him.
"We ran into forty of them heading south. Looks like they were going to meet the caravan. I thought about sending someone back to warn you, but I needed every hand. A few are salvaging weapons and supplies from their horses. I didn't lose anyone." He looked at the carnage and then smirked. "Looks like you did just fine without me."
I nodded and did the math in my head. We did not obtain as many supplies as I had hoped, but we got horses, goods, armor and weapons. We also had the loot from the Elvens Thayer's warriors had killed. It had cost us a life, but we gained sixteen recruits.
"Let's not keep our family waiting. Take the weapons and armor, but leave the corpses for the condors," I shouted to the men who were picking through the bodies and readying the wagons for transport. It would be a long haul with the caravan back to our new home, and we would have to worry about covering our tracks and evading two clans now. Every single step we made toward progress was met with more risk and hardship. Nothing would come easy for us.
At least we were free.
Chapter 8-Kaiyer
"Don't keep me waiting, O'Baarni." Isslata's voice had a playful, singsong quality to it, as if she was taunting someone to join her in a dance. In a way, she was.
"Kaiyer, are you well?" Nadea's hands closed around my right bicep.
"Fuck," I muttered under my breath. "Was I just standing here? For how long?" I feared that these flashbacks were getting longer.
"What do you mean?" Nadea's brown eyes met mine and she looked confused. "Did you remember something?" I nodded and opened my mouth to tell her when Isslata interrupted from the cliff wall.
"I imagine screams of dying humans would echo beautifully off of these ravine walls, O'Baarni." I raised my hand toward the beautiful Elven woman to indicate that I heard her, then I turned to Nadea.
“I’ll tell you later.” I took a few steps on the ledge and crossed one of the narrow wooden bridges that spanned thirty feet over a steep drop to another group of tents. Nadea followed me, and though I could have leapt up the face of the canyon and reached Isslata in seconds, I decided to travel like a normal human.
This path bought me time to think of ways out of this situation. Unfortunately, Nia's soldiers were in various states of readiness for battle and they moved off of the ledges to let us pass with a few fearful whispers about their future. The talk distracted me enough from my thoughts to prevent me from coming up with any ideas.
The torch fires that the Elvens carried had dimmed to a non-magical brightness. Isslata was surrounded by a dozen warriors with bows trained on Nadea and me. The golden-haired woman stood ten feet from the ledge overlooking our camp, and there were three Elvens holding torches to give her extra light.
"That wasn't so hard, was it? I like it when men come when I call them." She giggled, but none of her guards even smiled. She normally wore her golden hair back into a single loose braid that ran almost down to the top of her ass cheeks, but tonight she wore twin braids on each side of her head, with orange poppies tied into the metallic strands.
"What do you want?" Nadea's voice came out as a screech filled with hate, loathing, and fear. I heard her heart beating like a hummingbird’s, her breath was ragged gasps. Runir must have misunderstood what had happened between these two women. It was obvious that Isslata had done something horrible to Nadea. I was already worried about how Nadea would react to finding out I had been with Jessmei and Isslata. Her hatred of the golden-haired Elven did not bode well for me.
"I wish to speak to the O'Baarni, human." She smiled at my friend and licked her full lips. Then she turned to me and leaned her head sideways slightly. "Tell your pet to shut up and calm herself, or I'll have to fill that river down there with some blood."
"I'll speak with you. What do you want?" I crossed my arms and glared at the Elvens that held their bows pointed at my face. Their armor all matched Isslata's in that it had flowers etched in the chain linkage, with golden accents on the dark blue plate pieces.
"My troops have set up a tent where we may speak. This way." She beckoned with her pointer finger as she used to when inviting me to follow her to bed. I stepped after her and into the circle of Elvens. They flanked Nadea and me for the short duration of our walk, some eighty yards into the darkness where they had set up a pavilion.
"Sit down, please." Isslata pointed at the two chairs closest to the exit flaps. Farther inward were a few stools grouped together. Isslata took one, positioned it across the tent five feet from me and then sat on it with her legs crossed. None of her guards followed us into the tent.
Isslata looked at my face and licked her lips with emotion that I could only guess was lust or hunger. Then she glanced at the dark-haired woman in mild surprise.
"You look different." The Elven's eyes narrowed suspiciously. Nadea crossed her arms and pushed her teeth together in a silent snarl.
"You wished to speak to me. Here I am." I tried to cut the tension between the two women with my words. Isslata and Nadea stared at each other for a few more moments until the Elven woman looked at me. Her face changed into one of mirth again.
"We have an agreement," she said plainly. It took me a few seconds to figure out what she meant.
"You were supposed to bring me Nadea as proof that she was alive and then release her." My mind flipped through various reasons why Isslata would show up here with a small army only to bring up the deal we had struck three weeks ago.
"Tell him." Isslata pointed at Nadea without looking at her.
"Fuck you," Nadea growled as Greykin would have.
"You have no idea how close we came to that." The Elven sat back and laughed. Nadea's face seemed confused for a few seconds before her eyes turned to steel again.
"He asked you to bring me to him, not to try and rape me."
"I didn't rape you, silly human. But you admitted that I was taking you to him. See?" She looked over at me and raised a pretty eyebrow. "I would have brought her to you had not something destroyed the entire East Wing of the castle. Quite tragic, actually. You wouldn't happen to know anything about that would you, O'Baarni?" Her lips turned up into a wicked grin that I knew too well.
"We had a deal. You didn't bring me Nadea, but we can all agree that you made an attempt. Where does that leave us?" I asked to avoid her question.
"I have orders to return with you. The empress is in Nia. I wanted to remind you of our agreement because you will need my assistance and presence when you are being questioned by her." She nodded after she was done speaking and then she sniffed the air with a co
nfused look on her face.
"You smell different also, girl. Why?" She looked at Nadea with a puzzled expression. Her tongue came out and licked the edges of her lips slowly.
"He isn't going with you." Nadea's jaw was tight and I saw her fists clench in rage.
"You are his pet, not the other way around, human." She laughed and turned to me. "Sometimes I like to use nice words when I ask for things. I learned that tactic from Alatorict. However, I enjoy killing. So I brought a battalion of our soldiers in case my nice words didn't work on you, O'Baarni. Which way would you prefer?"
"You'll let them live if I come with you?" I knew my limits, there was no way I could defeat all of her warriors.
"I have no use for them. I think the empress does though." She tapped her chin with her gloved hand and smiled coyly.
"What do you mean?" Nadea asked.
"If the O'Baarni comes with me, I have something from the empress to give to you. If he chooses to die here with you, then I'll keep it." Isslata's eyes stared into mine. The gold flecks in her irises danced in the torch light.
"I will come with you. I don't want to go to the castle, though." I thought about the massive spider structure and held back a shiver of displeasure. There were too many memories tied to that place. I turned to look at Nadea and her eyes began to water.
"Agreed! You won't have to set foot inside of the castle. The empress has made her camp outside the walls of the city until we can determine what caused the East Wing to collapse." Isslata clapped her hands together in mock joy. "Ahh don't worry pretty little human." Her voice grew thick like honey when she saw Nadea stare at me. "I'll take good care of your pretend Destroyer. Perhaps you'll be able to see him again someday? Maybe if you pray to your Spirits it will happen?" Her words twisted to mockery at the end.
"That is enough, Isslata." Her words just enraged Nadea further. "You said you had something for her?"
"Yes." She reached behind her belt and pulled out a small wooden cylinder with flowers, trees, and birds engraved with a green dye. "I was supposed to give it to the human if she was still alive." She reached across the gap between us and handed it to me. I spun the small container around in my fingers, held it up to my nose to smell it, and then gave it to Nadea.
"It isn't poison. If we wanted to kill the human, we could have. She has her purposes, just like you do O'Baarni." Isslata leaned back slightly on her stool and crossed her arms. Nadea examined the piece of wood and then found the lid. She twisted it off and poured out a tightly wound scroll. I looked over to Isslata while Nadea unraveled it and the Elven warrior gave me a wink and seductively licked her lips.
"It is from the empress," Nadea said with a slight trace of awe in her voice.
"You are incredibly stupid. I just told you it was from her. Really, O'Baarni, I can't see why you throw your lot in with this one. She’s pretty, but you aren't even fucking her. You must explain it to me on our ride." Nadea glanced away from the scroll and glared at the Elven woman with so much hate that I thought she might draw her sword.
"Stop harassing her," I barked. Suddenly my temper flared and I came too close to lashing out at Isslata. It would have been a horrible mistake since she was perhaps my only ally on their side. I would need her to navigate whatever conversations I would have with their empress. Isslata was out for her own interests and had somehow decided that I was the horse that would carry her to whatever destination she had imagined for herself.
Isslata looked at me in surprise and then bit her lower lip. She glared at Nadea and folded her arms before speaking again.
"Read the damn message, girl," she whispered.
But Nadea had already been studying the letter intently for a few seconds. I figured she would give it to me when she finished, but I heard her heart beating faster when she got toward the end. After a minute she put down the scroll and squeezed the bridge of her nose with her left hand in an effort to relieve the stress and anger she was feeling.
"So what will it be?" Isslata asked.
"I don't know!" Nadea replied.
"Don't get mad at me for the content of the letter. Get mad because I am taking your O'Baarni from you."
"What does it say?" I asked as I held my palm out to Nadea. She looked at me with sadness and passed the note to me. The paper smelled of sage and lavender. The script was beautifully written in this new language Paug had taught me.
Duchess Nadea of Nia,
It is unfortunate that our first correspondence must be in this manner. I would prefer something more intimate but, troubling times unfortunately call for these methods.
I have followed your exploits through various proxies and carry a deep appreciation for your accomplishments. It is no small feat to summon forth one of the O'Baarni, organize a kingdom's resistance, escape a treacherous dungeon, and then wage an insurgent war against a superior force.
You have successfully defeated the Losher army, but now that I have arrived in your fair land, I have no desire to keep you as my enemy. I would prefer that we reach an agreement that benefits each of us and your kingdom moving forward.
I offer you a choice between two options that are much more attractive than the eventual result of the path you are taking.
Choice One:
I would allow you to return to Nia with your army. You and your father will still maintain all of your holdings. I wish to set up a new Advisory Council with both of you. I will need your help rebuilding this country and I cannot point to a better patriot than you. Very little of your life will change save that your family's income will increase from your new roles, and your country will have the unlimited magic and resources that come from my people. We can work on specifics once you return to Nia. I hope you choose this option.
Choice Two:
You leave this country with your army. I believe Brilla will accept you with open arms, but Gradar, or one of the other Northern countries could probably benefit more from your leadership. If you decide on this option, I will buy your lands from you for the sum of eighteen thousand in gold. This shall be delivered to you in the country of your choosing. You will never set foot in Nia again.
I apologize for forcing this decision on you and understand that it will take some time to consider. I've asked for Isslata to return with an answer, but she can leave a runner here with you if you need longer. If I do not receive an answer within a week, I will assume that you have declined both of my offers and shall act accordingly, but with deepest regrets.
I have the fondest wishes and hope for our future,
Telaxthe
Empress of the Ancient People
"There is a traitor in my camp," Nadea said when I looked up from the letter.
"Why do you say that?" I asked with a puzzled expression. I couldn't imagine a human betraying his kind to the Elvens, but Nanos had.
"How did she find us here?" Nadea glared at Isslata.
"We've always known where your army was, human." The Elven laughed.
"Bullshit. If you knew, then you would have killed us sooner." Nadea shook her head.
"Ahhh. That was Alatorict's idea, actually. I wanted to just kill all of you. But that would have left us the Losher to worry about. Instead, he kept an eye on you and didn't tell our allies. When you attacked their supplies too many times, they decided to take our gold and go back to their homeland. You should have seen the meetings he had with their chieftains. They were quite angry with us, but there was nothing they could do. You knew the land better, and according to Alatorict, our troops were otherwise occupied chasing after the O'Baarni and couldn't assist them."
"Fuck." My friend sighed in defeat and shrugged her shoulders. Her face was a mask of pain.
"Alatorict thinks that the failure of the Loshers to get a foothold here will lead to the collapse of their country's brief peace treaty. Soon they shall be fighting amongst themselves again and no real threat on our border." Nadea nodded at Isslata's words. I knew nothing about the Losher's culture or political history, but
my human friend didn't seem to doubt the statement.
"Is eighteen thousand in gold a lot of money?" I wondered out loud.
"Yes," Nadea whispered. "Even if I squandered the funds, it would last for a few generations. In my father's hands, it could last forever." She looked thoughtful for a moment.
"Can I read it?" Isslata held out her hand.
"Fuck no." Nadea snatched the letter from me and rolled it up again. Isslata gave an exaggerated pouty face that turned into an evil smile.
"What should I do?" Nadea asked me with a sigh.
"She cannot be trusted," I began before Isslata interrupted me.
"The empress always keeps her word. Unlike your kind, O'Baarni." Isslata flashed her teeth at me in anger. She spun from feral to maniacal to serene so quickly that I wondered if she had many different personalities in her head.
"Can we speak alone?" Nadea asked Isslata. Her voice was calm and had lost all traces of anger. The shift in emotion seemed to give the Elven pause. She looked at me, then Nadea, and back to me.
"Ten minutes. Then I am taking the O'Baarni. I have a mission to complete." We both nodded and the Elven woman floated out of the tent. I strained to hear her footsteps walk away. When I was confident she was out of earshot I motioned for Nadea to speak.
"If I return to the castle, I can stay with you." Nadea's hands wrung the scroll case nervously. "If she is telling the truth, I might still help my people here. My father and I can have our life back. This letter, she sounds," Nadea took a breath and thought of the word, "civil and agreeable. It seems that she really wants to work with me."
"It is a lie, Nadea." I shook my head. "She'll kill you. She will say anything to get you to agree. The empress wants you in her hand so she can crush your resistance." I held my hand out, palm up, and closed it into a fist. The knuckles in my fingers cracked to accent the point.
The Destroyer Book 3 Page 14