And then the lock on her cage clicked and the door swung open with a gentle creak.
The sound of the creature’s roar, followed by the shaking of the cage as she burst from its confines, was anything but gentle. She knocked over the closest men in one pounce and then leapt into the air with an enormous buffet of her long, leathery wings. The men shouted in dismay, all scrambling for their weapons. The oxen bellowed and bolted, dragging the cage along behind them.
As planned, Tellie and Kelm darted behind Errance for safety who was already backing them up towards the ridge. Yet their movement was hampered by the pure shock of the daisha’s attack, and they watched in half amazement, half horror as she swooped down amid the flurry of arrows, grabbed a man in her paws and then carried him back up into the sky. Within moments, he was a small dot flung towards the ocean. The daisha hovered for a moment in the air, unconcerned of the arrows showering her, and then dove again. The men panicked then and fled after their horses, dropping their weapons in an attempt to improve their chances for escape. The daisha followed them, her roars seeming to contain some sort of insults. After a moment, she tilted one wing and banked back the way she had come. Towards them.
“Back,” Errance said, and then again, louder. “Back!” He shoved them behind him, raising his hand towards the oncoming beast, but right before she reached them, she dipped and struck at the ground.
There was a sharp scream.
Whether by instinct or pure fear, Tryss abandoned all semblance of camouflage and appeared under the claws of the daisha. The creature thrust off from the ground, nose tilted towards the sky, the chema girl caught fast in her paws.
Tellie and Kelm cried out as one, but Errance dropped his sword and launched forward. He leapt as the daisha lifted off, only just catching the end of her back paw. She squawked in surprise, flight stumbling.
“Put her down!” Errance shouted.
The daisha screeched, but with a clumsy flap, she returned to ground, Tryss pinned beneath her, and Errance rolling clear of the landing. The creature shook her head, then her neck snaked towards Errance viciously.
“Idiot!” the creature roared. “What was that? I was saving your life!”
“She’s not an enemy!” Errance pulled himself up into a crouch as he faced her. “She was the one who opened your cage, if your nose had half a brain!”
“Half a—! You little kit, don’t you know who I am?”
“Don’t you know who I am?” Errance yelled back at her snapping jaws.
She paused. After a moment of cold silence and colder consideration, she pulled back onto her haunches, paw easing its press on Tryss. Her light blue eyes narrowed.
Shakily, Errance got to his feet. His face had gone white, but his eyes were filled with desperation, not fear. “Don’t you?” he asked, voice collapsed into something soft and tremoring.
“I already know you’re an elf,” she said. “I have half a brain in my nose to know that. And I know who you remind me of.” Her ears flattened, as if she didn’t like what she saw. “Are you some relative of Errance then? What are you doing all the way out here?”
He exhaled slowly. “I’m not a relative. I am Errance.”
She recoiled, letting Tryss go. The chema girl scrambled away, but the daisha did not even notice her. She began to pace, her tail flicking the sand angrily. “That’s—liar. You—he died. Everyone knows that. I was there that night.”
“But you didn’t see it, did you?” Errance said, and his voice was strangely gentle. “When you flew, you didn’t stop until you were too tired to keep going, did you? And you probably huddled in a tree for safety. If you went back, you found everyone slaughtered.”
“Stop it!” Her teeth clashed, her eyes were wide. “I was just a kit, I barely even knew how to fly!”
“I know,” Errance said. “I’m not blaming you, Daisha, I’m glad you fled. I always wondered if you survived.”
For a moment more, she hesitated. And then a low wail keened from her throat. “Errance.” Her wings and ears both drooped, and she crept forward in hesitation. “It is you, isn’t it? It…it is!” Her head closed the remaining distance with blinding speed, nearly knocking him over. “Great STARS, Errance, how is it you?”
He gasped for breath, pushing her great, fondling head away from his face. “I could ask you the same question.”
“That is NOT fair, you’re the one who’s supposed to be dead.” Her attention whipped briefly towards Tryss and the children who all jumped in fright. “And why are you with these smelly little creatures?”
“It’s too complicated to explain,” Errance stammered. “I was imprisoned, that’s all.”
“All! I’ve thought you dead for this long and that’s all!?”
“Yes,” he said, trying to stay on his feet as she wound about him like a happy dog. A creature of her size behaving anything like a dog made it rather hard to stay upright. “I’m trying to get back home now and—these are my companions and…guide. But what about you, why were you captured? Why aren’t you in Aselvia?”
The daisha suddenly stopped frolicking and lifted her head to its highest extent, staring down the road, her ears perked. “We should retreat into the mountains,” she said at length. “In case those louts return for a second match.”
Errance glanced in the same direction as the daisha and nodded.
Tryss struggled to get to her feet, breathing hard.
“Tryss, are you all right?” Tellie ran to the chema’s side, giving the daisha a healthy berth. She wasn’t quite ready to face the reality of the talking—actually talking—monster yet. It was better to stay focused on what she could handle.
“Did I crush the skin-blender’s bones?” The daisha asked, sounding more curious than concerned.
“She’s already been sick,” Errance said. “Took a scratch from a shard.”
“In these parts?” The daisha stuck her nose towards Tryss, sending both girls cowering backwards, and drew a long sniff. “Ah. The Shadow Infection. It will eventually run its course, but it does cling to chema kind.”
“So you’re familiar with it?”
“Darling, I’ve been living up North where chemas and shards both are common. So yes, I know a thing or too.”
“What about a cure?” Kelm hazarded.
The daisha’s head swung around to him, diamond pupils narrowing.
He flinched, but did not look away.
“There is an herb that could help drive the sickness out sooner,” she admitted after a long moment. “The chemas call it some fangled word, translates as kiss or something, and it grows up in the mountains. We might be far enough up North to find some.”
“Could you look?” Errance asked.
She sighed, wings dropping. “We just reunited, and you’re already sending me off again? Fine, fine, but you had better find a good hiding spot in these mountains while I’m gone.” She crouched towards the ground, muscles coiling, but Errance stepped towards her, an uneasy look on his face.
“You’ll come back?” It wavered between the sound of command and question, but there was desperation to it either way.
She gave him a toothy grin, as fond as it was frightening. “My dear. You’re alive, and I’ve found you. There is nothing that is going to keep me away.” Her wings pounded against the earth, sending grit flying and branches shattering. They covered their faces as her takeoff buffeted them for a while longer and then settled in a cloud of dust.
“Well, you heard her,” Errance said.. “We’ve got to get further up into the mountains.”
“Hold it!” Tryss snapped. No color had returned to her skin since she’d been attacked, and now she was shaking. “You’re going to trust that creature? Just like that?”
Tellie stared, also wanting an answer. After so much distrust, it didn’t seem possible Errance would just accept the new company. He stood still, face a perfect blank. Even she could come up with reasons not to trust this beast. Perhaps she was bait the Darkness was us
ing, after all, it was convenient for them to run into her here at this time. Even if he did know her once, who could say what she was now? It had been so long, and they had been but children, so was that any basis for trust….
“Yes.”
Tryss blinked and took a step backwards. “I…” Her voice faltered.
A new expression set Errance’s jaw. A determination. A choice.
If it was now that he would choose hope over doubt, faith over fear…if he for once wanted to believe in something good rather than something evil…who were they to discourage him?
Tryss’s shoulders sagged. “All right,” she said, with a helpless flutter of a hand. “If she does bring back some herbs that will help me, I’ll be grateful. But I don’t still understand why she singled me out to begin with.”
“Chemas and daishas have never had good dealings with one another. And the last of her kind was wiped out by a chema ambush when she was but a kit,” Errance said coldly.
“Another sin I must be blamed for.” Her mouth tightened.
“It’s not…it’s just she may not trust you for a while.”
Tryss gave a sharp laugh. “The feeling is mutual. But whatever her character, I suppose none of us have much choice except to humor her at this point.”
The sun was beginning to set by the time the daisha returned. As instructed, they had gone further into the mountains, and there they found a cave nestled amid the forest. It was deep enough to start a small fire without fear of being seen. The trees were the first indication of the daisha’s arrival, rustling as she circled above them. She landed in a nearby clearing, then came stalking through the trees. A small goat hung limply from her mouth, and she dropped it by the crackling fire with a pleased snort.
Tellie drew back her feet, staring at the dead animal. Wonderful. The daisha even hunted like a beast. It wasn’t hard to imagine her crushing them in those strong jaws.
“Did you bring the herb?” Errance asked.
“So direct, and for a little skin-blender too.” She shook her thick mane. “Yes, yes.” She lifted a paw, clenched tight around wilting greens, and deposited them next to Tryss’s huddled body.
After the creature had swept away, Tryss began sifting through the plants. “Tellie, Kelm, come help me with this,” she said. “I’ll show you how to make a poultice.”
They scrambled over in an instant. Whether or not she actually needed help, who could say, but distance from the daisha seemed a good idea.
Not that it mattered, her mission complete, the creature was now only fixed on Errance. They sat across from each other by the fire as the elf began skinning the goat.
“What do you think of her, Kelm?” Tellie whispered.
The boy peered over his shoulder. “I…I’ve heard some stories of the talking beasts who flew across the sky, but I never actually thought…it’s just—”
Yes, exactly. Of all the things encountered in their unexpected adventure, this was by far the hardest to take. Far easier was it to believe in beautiful elves and demons with endlessly dark eyes as opposed to a furry, winged animal that actually talked with a great deal of intelligence.
Oh, yes, that creature talked. Endlessly. If Tellie had ever worried she talked too much, she felt less guilty now. And Errance listened. Listened ever attentively! He didn’t do much of his own talking, and after a while, Tellie’s curiosity began to creep up.
“Excuse me,” she said, scooting a little closer towards the fire.
The daisha stopped mid-sentence and looked at her. “Yes?”
She wasn’t sure if it was bravery or brashness that had inspired her to attract the creature’s attention. “I was just wondering…if we could be introduced.” Clearly, Errance wasn’t going to do it for them. “I’m Tellie, and this is Kelm and Tryss. What is your name?”
“The Daisha. Make sure the ‘The’ is attached, I won’t respond otherwise.”
“That’s it?”
“That’s what?”
Tellie turned to Errance in amazement. “Errance, didn’t you or Rendar name her?”
“Oh, they tried,” The Daisha scoffed before he could answer. “Some flowery elvish name, I’m sure, best forgotten. As soon as I was old enough to talk, I made it clear I wanted to be known simply as THE Daisha. If I was to be the last of my kind, then let the whole world know.”
“How sad,” Tellie said.
The Daisha turned a diamond eye her way in a reproving manner. “Not at all. I’m quite satisfied being The Daisha.”
Tellie blushed. “That’s not what I meant. I mean…how sad you it is that you’re the last of your kind.”
“Oh.” The Daisha suddenly looked sorrowful and she released a gusty sigh. “Yes. It’s very sad.”
“How lonely you must get.”
“Yes. Very lonely,” she said, more sorrowful still.
“Do you get hungry?”
“Yes,” The Daisha moaned. “Very, very hungry.”
“That’s a surprise,” Kelm muttered.
The Daisha fixed him with a hard stare. “Excuse me? What do you mean by that, young man?”
Whitening, Kelm stumbled over his words. “Ah, it’s just that…just that…”
“He means you’ve gotten fat,” Errance said.
The Daisha’s jaw dropped. Her head swung towards Errance. “Well! Excuse me! Just because you have a trim little waist doesn’t give you any right to mock mine!
The other three cast nervous glances Errance’s way. Surely he would excuse himself or apologize. It seemed most unwise to offend a creature of her proportions.
Errance stared at The Daisha and for a moment his face constricted as if he sucked in his breath.
And then he laughed.
Tellie, Tryss, and Kelm stared in stunned silence. His laughter rang like silver stars, full of amusement and unashamed joy. It was beautiful and uplifting, and it paralyzed them.
The Daisha looked more offended than ever, but the elf didn’t seem to notice or care.
Tellie couldn’t believe her ears or eyes. Was this the same Errance, the elf who questioned everyone’s moves and actions like the world was out to kill him? He whom, when she’d first met him, had looked like he’d never smiled in his life? No. No, this was the child in her dream.
“You promised me a flight when you were big enough, you know,” he said, still grinning as his laughter died away. “Now I daresay you’re too big to lift us both off the ground.”
“Really! As if! I could carry you to Aselvia and back this very night!”
Errance’s smile faded. “But not all of us.”
“All four of you?” The Daisha stared at the others, looking especially sharp at Tryss. “Certainly not!”
“It’s all right, I wasn’t planning on flying there anyway.”
“But you need to return to Aselvia at once!” The Daisha cried. “Everyone must know you’re alive! And if your pursuers are still after you—”
“It’s fine,” Errance snapped. “We lost them a while ago. We’ll just travel together, there’s no need to sweep me away. As you can see, I’ve already recovered, so there’s no reason to rush.”
Tellie tried to close her gawking mouth. For just a moment she’d felt a jolt of fear that this winged beast would take Errance away from them. His refusal warmed her heart, and then confused her the next instant. Already recovered? Since when was he treating his imprisonment so lightly? Did he not want The Daisha to know?
The meat had been roasting over the fire during the conversation, and Errance tested it with a knife. “Food’s ready.”
They scooted closer and accepted their portions, blowing on the roasted skin.
“Want some?” Errance asked The Daisha.
“Ah, cooked meat is a rare luxury for me these days, but no, I am afraid I am—” her eyes narrowed “—watching my weight. Apparently.” She cast an appraising glance over the other three. “This is certainly strange company you keep. So you told me you’d been captured by our enem
y in Tertorem. How’d you end up with them?”
“Kelm and Tellie escaped prison with me. We encountered Tryss’s village in our flight, and she…she helped care for my wounds.”
“Did she.” Embers gleamed in The Daisha’s eyes as she studied the chema girl. Clutching her freshly bandaged shoulder, Tryss glared back. A sudden softness filmed The Daisha’s eyes and she cleared her throat in a raspy purr. “Well then. I suppose she has my thanks. How is the herb, little skin-blender?”
“My name’s Tryss,” she said shortly. “And it’s fine. I think it’s helping.”
“Good.” She turned back to Errance and continued to converse with him, leaving the others to silently finish their dinner and prepare for the night.
The cave floor was full of stones and roots, and worse still, Tellie had to choose between using her cloak as a cushion or a blanket against the mountain chill. But after several minutes of uncomfortable shifting, she nestled into stillness and watched the firelight dance in strange shapes upon the stone walls.
Their new companion would take some getting used to. A discussion hadn’t come up, but it seemed already determined that she was coming with them. And somehow, the distrust had faded over the evening. She made Errance smile. She made him laugh. In such a brief time, she had done what none of them could. It seemed both unfair and reasonable at once. She was part of his golden past, an untainted memory. And Tellie couldn’t begrudge his new happiness, it would be too selfish.
I hope The Daisha doesn’t snore was her last coherent thought before she drifted into slumber.
In the dreaded hours between night and morning, Kelm found himself wide-awake. Considering the impressiveness of their new comrade, it was a surprise he’d ever gone to sleep at all. The fire had died away into drowsy embers, and he saw the slumbering shapes of Tellie, Tryss, and the gigantic Daisha. But where was Errance? He pushed himself up and looked towards the entrance of the cave. There against the canvas of starlight woods, he could see the dim silhouette of a figure. Cautiously, he crept towards the person, hoping it was the prince and not some unwanted visitor. The night’s pale light illuminated the person’s features as he drew near.
Moonscript (Kings of Aselvia Book 1) Page 30