The figure nodded again. “Accepted.”
I smiled a little.
“Question the Third: Why do you go?”
My mind went blank. Why was I doing this? I didn’t have to do this errand for Caelestis—she’d said she’d hold the next mist gate open for me no matter what. Then I knew why.
“I guess it’s because it gives me a sense of purpose while I’m here, to help those who seem to be in need of my type of help.”
The figure said nothing, and I started sweating again.
At last the figure said, “Accepted,” and my knees nearly collapsed in relief.
The cloak indicated wordlessly that I was to lead Saffron onto the barge. Once my horse and I were settled, a grey sleeve waved, and the barge left the bank smoothly and sailed in a straight line across the river. Coming up to the other bank I saw what I first thought was the same figure as the one I had left, but I realized it had to be a second one since people, or whatever, undoubtedly crossed the river going both ways. The second grey cloak never moved as the barge pulled up gently onto the beach. The boat might just as well have been empty for all the attention the figure paid to it.
I grabbed Saffron’s reins and led him off as soon as it was safe. Scrambling into the saddle since there were no convenient mounting blocks around, I nudged my horse towards the path through the light, sparse woods that started where the beach left off. I moved as quick as I could to get away from the creepy cloak.
CHAPTER 7
After an hour I left those trees and entered another fresh-smelling, grassy meadow. It had been a very peaceful ride since crossing the river. I’d seen a couple of deer in the second forest and all manner of smaller animals, but nothing dangerous or even out of the ordinary. Maybe some of the animals I’d seen were different colors than the ones I knew from home, but that was probably all—I hoped. This new meadow was just as big as the other one I’d crossed earlier, but with two additions: there looked to be some black-headed grain mixed in the mountain grasses, plus some blooming red flowers as large as Saffron’s head scattered around. I gulped at the sight, wondering if the bees that pollinated them were as big. I pressed onward down the road. I caught sight of some grass rippling off to the right, like something traveled hidden from sight deep inside. I kept a lookout on it as I passed it, but to my relief saw the waving grass heading away from me.
I heard a faint hail from a male voice. “Hey! Excuse me! Could you wait up a minute?”
I scanned around, and saw someone run across the meadow towards me from ahead and to the right. The tall grasses completely hid his lower half from view as he bounded forward. From what I could see he had a bronze-colored face, short dark hair, and wore a black and grey tunic. He also had a black cloak flattened on his back by what looked something like a hiker’s backpack with a curved piece of wood sticking out of the top. I reined up Saffron and wondered if I should mention the waving grass. I decided not to just in case I had interpreted the movement wrong. No point in creating what might be a false panic.
The figure became clearer the nearer it got, and I was both relieved and a little disappointed. It was a human man, or maybe a teenager, and not anyone fantastical. But my feelings changed in an instant when a terrible roar sounded. A monstrously big green-furred cat leapt up from the grasses in the meadow and bowled him over!
I felt immediate horror and guilt, and urged Saffron into a gallop towards where the teen and the creature had flattened the stalks. I was scared, but I knew I had to help him since I hadn’t warned him. I heard the growls of the monster, and the frightened and angry sounds of someone facing unexpected peril, grow louder in the seconds it took to reach them. Thankfully Saffron all but guided himself at an angle that would take me past the struggle.
The teen held the creature by its face fur, keeping it just far enough away to avoid his face being chomped on. His yells of rage and fear blended with the snarls of the huge cat. The teen jerked his face to the side to avoid the creature’s foul-smelling saliva dripping in his eyes. He whipped his lean body around under it in an effort to not be clawed and shoved with his knees and legs to prevent the great cat’s hind feet from tearing his guts out. Not knowing what else to do on horseback, I drew my new saber. I hoped that maybe I could figure out how to skewer the cat from up here without getting myself or my horse clawed in return. The blade made a true, sharp ringing sound which pierced the air even above the growls of the slavering creature.
The cat-monster looked up, and I took a chance to lean down and swipe at its face. Incredibly, I hit it across the left eye! It stopped its attack and screamed in pain as blood poured out of its eye socket. The teen slammed both of his booted feet into its stomach and kicked it off to the side. He rolled to his feet and drew a pair of dirks from sheathes hanging at his belt, looking ready for anything. But the great cat scrambled to its paws and bounded away, roaring and leaving only a trail of blood behind. Half amazed that the creature had ran off, I jumped off Saffron, being careful to not poke either him or the teen with my sword.
“Are you all right? Did it bite you?” I asked as I stood protectively near the black-haired teen and kept a sharp eye on the animal as it retreated.
“Nah, I’m fine, I’m fine; it didn’t bite me, thank god. What the hell was that?” he replied in a scared and angry tone as he put away his dirks.
Instinct based on my fantasy adventure stories made me grab at him, because if that thing had been hiding in the grass, what if it had a mate hidden there too? I pulled the guy with me as I ran back towards the dirt track to get into the clear, and he ran with me without question, drawing his weapons again. Saffron followed us to the trail, where adrenaline let me swing with more ease into his saddle. I motioned to the teen to stand close by as I scanned the area from my vantage point for anything else that looked threatening. After a couple of minutes had gone by with no movement anywhere, insect song started up again. I let out a breath I hadn’t been aware I’d been holding.
“I think it’s gone,” I said as I sheathed my saber.
The teen relaxed and put away the long knives again. He was lucky; not too much blood from the cat thing had gotten on him and his clothes. He eyed his shirt, but he must have thought it not worth changing since he only reached for some of the nearest stalks to wipe himself clean of the slobber and blood.
After he’d gotten his breath back, he said unevenly, “Thanks for the help.”
“You’re welcome.”
I felt a little awkward now that the danger was past, so I leaned forward to stroke Saffron’s neck. Since I had to continue on my errand, I wondered how I could politely leave him. It didn’t seem right just to say something like ‘Okay, I’m glad you’re safe, now goodbye’. But I didn’t know what I could say.
“I was beginning to doubt that there was anybody real or alive out here. You’re the first person I’ve seen since—well, the first person I’ve seen,” he said, taking the initiative; apparently relieved at my presence now that he was no longer on the defensive.
“Oh?” I asked noncommittally, patting my horse’s neck.
“Well, actually, I am looking for ….” His voice trailed off as he rubbed his hand through his black hair, and a perplexed look crossed his bronzed face.
“Yes? What are you looking for out here in the wilderness?” I asked with a trace of impatience.
“Well, this may sound a little weird, but I’m looking for a chica—umm, a girl—from another world. Her name is Analise Baxter, and I was told I could find her around here somewhere. Have you seen anybody that you might consider, well, unusual?”
I stilled my petting, hiding my surprise with an effort. I sat up straight in the saddle.
“No one that I would consider unusual. Why do you want this ‘Analise’ anyway?” I asked with as little expression as I could manage.
“Well, I’ve been told she understands this world better than I do, so some mujer named Quiris who calls herself a ‘lesser goddess’,” he said, usin
g air quotes with his fingers, “sent me to find her. You’re the first person I’ve seen in these mountains since Quiris, uh, left, so I was wondering if you could help me? It just figures, you know,” he went on, lowering his voice in confidence, “where I come from, Analise and I are sort of on unfriendly terms, but since we are both from the same place ….”
Unfriendly terms? I’d never seen this guy before—how could I be on ‘unfriendly terms’ with him? Then a light bulb went on in my head. This had to be the thief from the park who’d been chasing me! It just figured that it had to have been him who’d made it across, and not the cute sunbather. I wondered if I should just take off on Saffron and get away from him. After all, this guy had hounded me and said he’d wanted to hurt me only yesterday. But the sunglasses, furry hat, and the severely pulled back and sweat-dried braid I’d worn when he first saw me must have disguised my looks enough that he didn’t recognize me, or he wouldn’t have been talking to me nicely.
I examined him again. He certainly wasn’t wearing the clothes I’d seen him in last, so he must have gotten some magical help after crossing the mist gate like I had. Probably from this Quiris he mentioned. I frowned inside while keeping a bland look on my face. Curiosity made me want to know more about what had happened, and maybe I could even find out exactly what he’d intended yesterday. Eventually I decided to stay and ask questions, but I made the decision to try and speak like I’d heard how Oakalyn and Caelestis had spoken until I knew whether or not he could be trusted.
“Unfriendly terms? You mean, you are foes?” I asked loftily.
He shook his head. “No, no, nothing like that. Well, not for now, anyway, but that’s another story. Quiris told me that Analise would be a natural ally because she’s human. But so are you, aren’t you?”
“Well of course I’m human! But I am not every human’s ally. Why should she be yours after the way you tried to hurt her?” I exclaimed.
I mentally smacked myself for giving myself away like that.
“If she hadn’t butted in, then she—hey, wait a minute,” he interrupted himself, brown eyes narrowing in suspicion as my words caught up with his brain. “How’d you know that?”
I thought fast. “I made an assumption. You did say you were on unfriendly terms, didn’t you? Well, that implies to me that you are foes, and enemies try to hurt one another.”
His face relaxed at my reasonable reply. “Oh, right. Well, that’s over for the moment. I’m here now, and I’m trying to make the best of it, so I’m looking for Analise.”
His reference of ‘for the moment’ and something in his tone as he spoke made my internal alarm go off. I narrowed my eyes in turn, no longer having any qualms about leaving him.
“Look, I’m sorry, but I haven’t seen the one you seek. Why don’t you try that way?” I strove for as pleasant a voice as I could as I pointed back down the path behind me. “But I warn you: stay to the trail wherever you can.”
“Why?”
“Because …,” I floundered for a moment. “Because the trail is partly charmed to help keep travelers from casual harm.”
I didn’t know if this was a lie; I just hoped it was as true here as it had seemed to be in Oakalyn’s wood.
He heaved a big sigh. “Since I dunno where I’m going, and I dunno where she is right now, I was wondering—hoping—I could travel with you? While I look for her? I could use the company, I’ve got almost no equipment of any kind, and I’m kinda lost. And it sure is creepy-looking here.”
He gestured with one bronzed hand at one of the huge red flowers for emphasis.
“No,” I said, raising my hand in denial. “I’m in service to the Goddess Caelestis, and I’m traveling right now to aid some people at her behest. It’ll be dangerous, and you wouldn’t want to get hurt, so you should just go on your way.”
He perked up. “Caelestis? Hey, I recognize that name! Quiris said that she was working for someone called that. So since it seems I’m stuck here for now, I think I ought to try and get in good with Quiris and this Caelestis. Won’t you let me come with you and help you? Please?”
I remembered that the Goddess had told me that I would receive help from unlikely sources and to not be afraid of them. And if she wanted me to complete this task for her she would send help sooner rather later, wouldn’t she? But surely Caelestis hadn’t meant him! But if this guy was telling the truth, though, then Caelestis just might have had this Quiris send him my way. Oh, but wait—maybe I was supposed to be a help to him instead of him for me? It would make sense that he’d be directed to me because I’d’ve bet the goddesses knew I couldn’t abandon somebody who probably had no wilderness training. Not that I had much, true, but I’d at least had the summer camp growing up. And with my luck, he probably didn’t. But I didn’t want to tell him who I was in case I was wrong, and in case he’d been lying about not wanting to hurt me now.
I sighed. “Very well, you may come for now, but please try and stay out of the way when things get rough, all right?”
“Sure thing. So, hi. My name is Jason Vasquez. What’s yours?”
I paused again. What name should I give him, since I didn’t want to give him my own?
Inspiration struck. “My name is … hidden for the purpose of the quest. Just call me Paladin for now.”
Jason quirked an eyebrow. “Paladin? Really?” He shrugged one shoulder. “Okay, ‘Paladin’ it is.”
I could hear the air quotes he used when saying that word, though at least he didn’t make the sign with his fingers.
“So, where are you off to? What is this thing you have to do, exactly?” he asked.
“I am to free some people who have been wrongfully imprisoned. It is my quest to travel north, find them, and aid them,” I replied firmly.
“Really? Just like in the movies? That makes no sense, chica. Why would you want to do that?”
I just looked at him stone faced.
He threw up his hands. “Fine, whatever. Do you happen to know of someplace nearby where I can get something to keep up with you, like a dirt bike or motorcycle?”
“Dirt bike? Motorcycle? What are those?” I screwed my face up like I was puzzled.
“Oh, yeah, I guess you wouldn’t know about those kinds of things. So, do you know where I can get a horse or some other kind of animal I can ride?”
“No, I’m afraid not, and Saffron here can’t carry us double because we are too heavy for him,” I lied. I didn’t want to share a saddle with him. I pulled surreptitiously on the reins to make the golden horse dance a little. “My mount is getting restless, so if you’re coming, then you’ll have to walk.”
Jason looked resigned as he straightened his shoulders and adjusted his backpack for a more comfortable fit. “Alright, ‘Paladin’, lead the way.”
I nudged Saffron into a walking speed that would allow Jason to keep up, and we headed down the dirt track through the meadow in silence. The grass-and-wheat meadow gave way to another forest where the trail sloped downward. Not long before sundown this in turn gave way to a lower grassy plain studded with the occasional scraggly tree, small and large hillocks, and boulders and rock spires. During the ride, I peeked over my shoulder from time-to-time and marveled at the stamina Jason showed. Oh, he was definitely tired, but he hadn’t complained much. I felt a sneaking respect start to grow.
With the sun setting soon and a light wind picking up I suggested, “Let’s stop for the evening by those large, uh—shiny purple?—boulders over there.”
At the bottom of a gently rising hill, the huge rocks shone an iridescent purple in the fading light.
Jason nodded with weariness, not noticing my surprise at the appearance of the rocks, and said, “Yeah, we can use them as a windbreak to make ourselves a little more comfortable.”
The guilt-and-respect feelings that had grown on me over the afternoon peaked as I hid my amazement. Maybe he knew something about the outdoors after all? How a presumably city boy knew that, I didn’t know and didn’t
care. But if he had some wilderness training then I could leave him to fend for himself. On the other hand, I knew nothing about camping in the rough. If he did then I’d let him stay—at least until I’d learned how to camp cook. I dismounted from my horse at the rocks as Jason plopped himself down on the ground nearby. I felt sore and wobbly in the legs from all the riding I’d done, but hid it from my companion by getting off Saffron’s far side. I busied myself with the horse’s care until I felt steadier.
Jason startled me by saying, “Hey, Paladin, if you’ve got the supplies, I can cook dinner.”
Feeling some relief since it seemed he did know camp cooking too, I steeled myself to walk around Saffron’s head and motioned Jason to come over. I gave him the remains of the picnic basket from Caelestis and opened the saddlebag that had the provisions. I hoped that he really did know how to use the things in the saddlebags better than I did. I was dismayed when he didn’t move to add anything to the meal from his sack. It seemed he had not been treated with as much kindness as I had been, and I would end up depleting my supplies faster feeding both of us. Hopefully I wouldn’t run out before we reached Meritzon, the town Caelestis had told me to head for. I walked off my stiffness by going out and scrounging for twigs and stout sticks to make a campfire that could last all night.
I made two trips. The first time I brought back enough for a small fire so Jason could start getting things prepared for us to eat. The second time when I came back loaded down, the sun had just set and a great-smelling hot dinner of a mash-up of chicken bits, grain and something else I couldn’t readily identify was ready. I kicked myself for missing the opportunity to watch him cook, but was grateful to sit and eat my portion.
When dinner was done, we stretched out in the grass on opposite sides of the campfire. Jason tried a couple of conversational starters, but even though I itched to ply him with questions about Quiris and how he knew about camping, I answered only in monosyllables because I was afraid of letting something slip. Getting the message that I wasn’t in the mood for conversation, he dropped into silence.
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