The Four Tales

by Rebecca Reddell

  “I’m sorry. What I meant is, it worked. That’s the important part. Even if it makes no sense. Now, where is my father?” Sitting all the way up, Maezy tried not to feel hurt.

  It was another awkward feeling to have running through her since she didn’t know Brandalfr well. It wasn’t as though the spell really meant he was her True Love. That was ridiculous.

  “Probably on his way back soon,” Brandalfr looked at the clock. “He left an hour ago to work on business and hasn’t returned yet. His guard is in the hallway, if I need anything.”

  “O-oh. Well, he’ll be a complication.” Maezy slid to the edge of the seat and came knee to knee with Brandalfr. Her right and his right knocked together, and she wrenched her knee backward and stood.

  He stood as well. Towering above her, Maezy was conscious of how close he still was. Taking a step to the left, she cleared her throat and nodded to the door. Ignoring the strange fluttering in her bones, and shiver in her heart, she forced herself to act as normal as possible.

  “Are you ready to get out of here?” He held out a hand.

  “Yes, more than ready.” Reaching for her sword instead of his hand, Maezy felt air and cloth. Looking down, she observed the empty space. A spurt of anger jerked through her. “Great. He took my sword.”

  “I don’t think you’ll need it. We just have to go out this door, to the left, and there will be an exit. We only need to get rid of one guard as far as I know.”

  “I still want my sword back. Anyway, how do we distract or disable the guard?” Maezy told him.

  For a moment, he watched her. His tried to ascertain if she was doubting him, maybe? She didn’t know for certain. They just needed to figure out how to escape.

  “I thought I’d cast a simple disorientation spell,” he suggested. “Once we’re past him and out the exit, I may have to rely on some other spells to get us to safety.”

  “Got it. Um, wait.” Maezy reached a hand out but let it drop to her side before she touched his arm.

  Brandalfr turned to her, brows extending, and head tilted.

  “They don’t have extensive powers, do they? It’s one thing to read about what elves are capable of doing and another to experience it in real life,” she asked.

  “You don’t know about elf magic?”

  “I studied it a few years ago as part of my training. I just never had to worry about it. Until now.”

  “Maezy, this isn’t the time for a crash course in elvish magic!”

  “Still, give me a refresher.”

  “The most important things to know right now are that they can sense our presence before seeing us, can command nature to do their will to an extent – although Seekers hold the highest of these powers, and they have unparalleled skill with a bow and sword. So, duck a lot and run fast. They can outrun a vampire. Are you caught up enough for the present?”

  “Yes, I am. It helps knowing what we might really encounter. I wasn’t sure if you might know something I didn’t.”

  “Why would I know more?”

  “It was just a thought. Do you want to try distracting him?”

  “I’ll try the disorientation spell first. Hopefully, his sharp ears haven’t caught on to you being awake.” Brandalfr waved her back.

  He stepped up to the door and turned the knob without a sound before he inched his head around the doorframe.

  A few seconds later, he grabbed her hand and dragged her out the door. Shutting it, they walked down a hallway, open to the outdoors on both sides. Racing past the obvious openings, Brandalfr pulled her to the door at the end, opened it, and yanked her through.

  The door closing behind them, he directed her to the left again. Tree branches and overgrown bushes scratched her arms, neck, and face as they scrambled through the overgrowth.

  “Why didn’t we go one of the other ways? The walls were all open. They’d probably be clearer,” Maezy complained.

  “That would be the problem. I did a spell when I waited for you to return. I checked to see which would be the fastest and clearest way to get free. This seemed to be it.”

  Rushing, matching her leaps to his own, Maezy nodded. Her breath came in short gasps, arms pumped at her sides, as she tried to talk and run at the same time.

  Leaping, diving, flowing, looking as if he ran every day, Brandalfr reached over and grabbed her hand again. They made it through the woods, trees surrounding them, and definitely in the opposite direction from which she’d taken her mother. His hand squeezed hers, fingers tight around her own.

  “Through here! There’s a portal beyond this first clump of redbuds.”

  “It’s amazing how trees start to look the same everywhere. They had similar looking trunks on Earth.”

  “Through here,” he said, ignoring the comment about Earth.

  They reached the tree in five more vaults through the air. Maezy started to suspect Brandalfr could fly. Coughing, gasping out a breath, she bent over and inhaled through her nose.

  “This one,” he motioned to a tree on their right. The bark disappeared as a swirl of light sparked and tunneled into the trunk.

  Thunk! An arrow whistled over their heads.

  “I guess they found out we left. Let’s go!” Brandalfr grabbed her arm and jumped through the portal.

  They fell together and rolled. They were on their feet the next instant. Maezy felt Brandalfr grab her hand once more. His warm palm against hers. Walking fast, they headed into the smoky fog. Blackness settled over them, and Maezy felt a comfortable familiarity.

  “Wait! What do I need to think of?” She didn’t know if this is where they would separate or not.

  “Think of Lugestain Castle, Elvish Realm.”

  “Promise stone? Your home?”

  “Yes.” His tone didn’t invite inquiries.

  Maezy repeated the words in her head and whispered them aloud. She focused on the castle until the mist parted, and they stepped out of the fog. Ahead was a stone-castle structure, open on one side, showing the indoors. They rushed up to his home and stepped inside. Looking around another library, wood shelves and books lining them, two of the four walls were open to the outdoors.

  Feeling at home, Maezy steadied herself with a hand on the back of a chair. The room was airy, natural, and relaxing. Eyeing the pillow covered, wooden chairs and sofas around the room, she suspected this was a place Brandalfr had spent a lot of time in growing up.

  “It’s beautiful here. I love it.” She turned to face her new friend.

  She supposed she could think of him as such, after all they’d been through. “So, what are we doing here? Do you have a plan? I probably should return to mother. She won’t be happy I've been gone so long.”

  When he didn’t say anything, she turned to face him. She didn’t like the look on his face. He was frowning, and she wondered if he realized she was speaking to him.

  Head tilted to the right, she took a step toward him. “You’d probably like to know where your mother and sister are, right?”

  He nodded.

  “Independence, Missouri. Earth Realm. Be careful when you get there. It’s hotter than Hades. They must sit on the actual entrance to the underworld.” She smiled at him as she joked, but his face remained screwed into a grimace.

  She waved a hand in the air to catch his attention. “So, I guess I better get ready to go. Is this a good way to find a path?” She pointed out at the open land.

  He shook his head. His eyes were darkening. The chocolate brown intertwined with the honey color.

  Why am I so obsessed with his eyes? she scolded herself, even as a shiver passed over her. Something’s not right. Is he hearing something I’m not? Is father coming here?

  Her heart tripped, she bit her lip and stepped forward, hand reaching. “Brandalfr?”

  Eyes dark, lips turned down, he blinked at her before moving backward.

  “What’s the matter?” she asked.

  The words he spoke were low, an incantation, and she felt stuck. Unabl
e to move, breathe, speak, Maezy’s eyes widened. The sensations passed, and she was free once more.

  Retreating, she shook her head. Feeling confused, Maezy felt a spark of fear. “What did you do?”

  “I made sure you can’t leave here. You can’t leave me.”

  “What? What do you mean? Why?” Maezy cried out, looking around the room for a weapon.

  “Because you’re my leverage.” He cocked his head and lifted one shoulder in a half shrug.

  “Leverage? I don’t understand.” Maezy began to fear her mother had been right about not trusting him. Praying her mother wasn’t correct, she took a few steps backward.

  “You’re my leverage against your mother.” The statement was simple but answered nothing.

  “My mother? Tell me what is going on!” Maezy demanded, shaking her head.

  “Yes, your mother. You’re going to help me make Maleficent tell me where my father is, or you’re going to realm walk to find him. Either way, you aren’t leaving until he comes home.”

  II

  1

  “If I had my sword, I would cut off your head.” Maezy glared at Brandalfr. His friendship status had been reduced to nemesis in less than a day. “In fact, when this is all over, I probably will decapitate you.”

  “Maezy, you have to understand —,”

  “No! I don’t have to understand anything. I suggest you take this spell off of me and let me go. My mother has nothing to do with your father’s disappearance! Nothing!” She hoped her voice sounded convincing.

  “I would like to believe you, but I have good reason to think otherwise. Your mother was the last person to see my father.”

  “What do you mean?” Brows caving, her frown escalated.

  “I mean, I know for a fact the day my father disappeared, he was on his way to meet with your mother. He told me so.”

  “Then he’s a liar!”

  Sparks danced around the room, and a glass lamp shattered on a table. Jerking her shoulders up, Maezy reached for her sword only to find it was still gone. Eyes turning back to Brandalfr, she found his had turned black.

  “My. Father. Is. NOT. A. Liar.”

  “Well, my mother didn’t do anything to him. So I suppose we are at an impasse.” Maezy stuck up for her mother even as doubt crept in.

  There had been a lot of pauses and unanswered questions when she’d tried to get answers from her mother in the dungeon, and her mother did know Brandalfr’s father. Didn’t her father say something about Osvaldr leaving the same realm from which Maleficent lived?

  That could have been years ago though. Right?

  “You are going to go on a realm walk. To her. If she won’t give you the answers you need, then you will need to find him.”

  “If I refuse?”

  “You won’t ever leave here.”

  “You are a –”

  “Never mind what you think of me! I need to find my father. If you don’t cooperate, I will find someone who will. This is the easiest way for me to find him. I need your help.”

  “You could have just asked. I would have said yes. You didn’t need to kidnap me like my father.”

  Head jerking back, his eyes widened. “I’m not trying to be like your father.”

  “You failed. You were becoming my friend, and I would have helped you. If you had asked. Now, I just want to kill you.” Maezy’s eyes locked with his.

  Her anger was keeping her heart from hurting. If she focused on punching him the nose, it calmed her. Blood. Possibly a breaking it. A smile sneaked up to the corners of her mouth.

  “I didn’t think you’d help me if you knew I believed your mother to be involved. Will you help me then?”

  “After you just put a spell on me and kidnapped me? I’d rather put my sword through you.”

  “Then the spell stays until you decide to help me.”

  Glaring, each held the other’s gaze without faltering. Neither blinked nor glanced away. Seconds ticked into minutes, still they refused to surrender.

  Swallowing, Maezy squinted in an attempt to keep from blinking. She refused to let him win even this small stare-down. Keeping her as a prisoner and accusing her mother spurred on a desire to shove something sharp and pointy into him. For a second, she was distracted at the loss of her beloved sword. Another fault to lay at his door.

  “Also, I’m blaming you for the loss of my sword. I’ve had it since I was five, and I expect you to try one of your locator spells to get it back for me.”

  He started to smile but swallowed instead. “I’ll be happy to help you if you help me.”

  “Really? Bargaining again? Need I remind you I got your mother and sister to safety?”

  “I helped you get your mother out of the castle.”

  “You got us captured in the first place!”

  Cocky jerk! I can’t believe he would do this! What was he thinking?

  “It wasn’t my fault. Your father threatened me. I’m sure you can understand the position I was in at the time. Also, I did get you out of there.”

  “Well, remind me to tell my father he needs better security when he holds people hostage. Or are you planning on working with him in the future, since you’re so good at it?”

  Sighing, Brandalfr broke the connection first. He shook his head. “I’m sorry,” he muttered first before a few other words broke through her in a pulse.

  Maezy felt the spell release her. Shoulders slumping for a few seconds, she stared at him wondering if this was a trick. Her anger still pulsated through her and fisted her fingers at each side.

  “You’re right. I can’t act like your father. I’m not even sure if his army will search here first. We have to get out of here. I’ll show you where a realm door is, and you can go back to your mother. I need to get to my mother and sister.”

  “That’s it? You’re going to let me go?” Maezy wanted his reassurance.

  “Yes. You made an excellent point. I don’t want to be lumped into the same category as your father. I’ll find another way.”

  “Did the Elf King promise to help you find your own father?” she asked.

  He nodded, his gaze focused on the opening which looked out onto the front lawn. “He said Maleficent would tell me where to find him.”

  “If that was enough incentive to get you to help him, then why did he take your sister and mother?”

  “At first I refused. He dangled the carrot of my father being found as if I would say yes to helping him. I knew who he was and what he does. His trophies are popular.” He sighed and crossed his arms.

  Leaning against a glass door, he shrugged. “I was tempted. He had information I wanted so badly, I could taste it. My father has been gone for over a year. I’ve been trying to locate him, using every spell, but they’ve failed. I don’t know where he is.”

  Maezy felt her anger dissipating. She uncurled her fingers and mimicked his stance. Leaning against the wall opposite of him and with enough distance between them for her to be logical, she waved a hand for him to continue.

  “He might be dead,” he whispered.

  She could feel his sadness. It was blanketed the air between them and made her eyes sting. Blinking, she shook her head and refused to cry.

  He’s still in the wrong.

  “Then, he came to me a second time. It was after a long day of searching for my father. I’d gone through a few paths and realms but still couldn’t find any trace of him. Ingvar told me he already had my mother and sister in a secure location. If I didn’t hold up my end of the deal to find you, I’d never see them again.” He shook his head.

  “That’s awful. He shouldn’t have done such a thing.” Maezy could feel herself softening.

  “Wow. I didn’t know how much I was acting like him until this very moment.”

  Maezy heard the sincerity in his voice. Lips drooping and eyes downcast, Brandalfr spoke to her without looking her in the eyes. She wondered if he just felt guilty for kidnapping her or if there was more.

 
“I’ll help you,” she said, before thinking it through.

  “You will?” His eyes flew upward.

  “Yes, I will.” She held his gaze and nodded.

  “Why?” he asked.

  Head tilted, Maezy shrugged. “I guess I want to help make sure you find your father. You made sure I got out of my father’s. I suppose I need to return the favor.”

  “You already recused my mother and sister, Maezy. I haven’t forgotten. Even if it seemed as though I had.”

  “You helped me rescue my mother, and you got me out.”

  “You wouldn’t have been captured to begin with, if not for me,” he argued.

  “My father tricked you into it.”

  “I allowed him to do so.”

  “It feels as if we’ve covered this ground before.”

  Eyes connecting and smiles spreading, Maezy put out her hand first. “Truce?”

  “Truce.” They shook on it.

  The clapping had them jerking their heads to find King Ingvar standing in the doorway. “Touching. Did you really have my daughter believing you wouldn’t let her go until she helped find your father? Brilliant, Bradalfr! I knew I had misplaced my faith in you. Playing both sides. You are more like me than I had imagined.”

  “What’s going on?” Maezy turned to Brandalfr searching his wide eyes for an answer.

  “Don’t you see, my dear? Brandalfr found a perfect way to free you from your sleep and make you consider himself your ally.”

  “What?” Maezy glanced from one to the other.

  “Maezy, I didn’t –”

  “That’s enough!” Hands clapping twice, elf soldiers appeared and surrounded them.

  Two each grabbed them. Arms held on either side, without her sword, Maezy couldn’t react. Her mind worked to filter out the truth from the lies and come up with an escape route.

  Did he really just play me?

  “Good work, Brandalfr. I knew you used her to help find your mother and sister. However, can you guarantee I don’t know where they are already? Alas, there is also your father to consider. She can still help find him as well.”

  A low chant echoed in the background. Words tripped over themselves and floated through the air. Maezy felt the same paralyzing sensations as when Brandalfr had first put the spell on her to confine her to his castle. It held her suspended for several seconds. She couldn’t breathe, and then it began to rescind.