Erik And The Dragon ( Book 4) (7 page)

Dimwater put a hand to her mouth to hide her grin, but Erik noticed it
and had to look away to keep from laughing himself. Lepkin handed the book back to Tatev and went to sit next to Dimwater.

“Either
way,” Lepkin started. “We will have to find Tu’luh before we go east chasing after stories. Especially if we are to go through Gerharon.”

“What is Gerharon?” Erik asked.

Lepkin started to open his mouth but Dimwater put a hand on his knee and stopped the words in the man’s throat. “We can talk about that when the time comes,” she said simply. “For now, let’s concentrate on the task at hand.”

Lepkin nodded. “Tatev, where is Marlin now?”

“He is purchasing some supplies and preparing the others to go north to Fort Drake.”

“The others?” Lepkin replied.

Tatev nodded. “Yes, I am staying with you. I have knowledge that will be useful.”

Erik had to give Lepkin credit. He knew that his tutor didn’t have much patience for Tatev, neither did he for that matter, but Lepkin was able to keep an impassive expression on his face as he nodded and lay back on the bed, stretching out behind Dimwater.

“Tatev,” Lepkin began, “Erik has just learned some things about the Sahale race. Perhaps you would be so kind as to take him outside and discuss that in some detail.” Dimwater nudged Lepkin with an elbow. “I would appreciate it if you could also illuminate Nagar’s history for him, and explain why he joined with Tu’luh.”

“Very well,” Tatev said happily. “Any
other specific aspects I should focus on?”

Lepkin shook his head. “If you are going to remain with us, then you can help Erik learn as much as possible that will assist him master his gift. I am sure you will hit all the relevant points.”

Erik’s shoulder slumped. He was more than a little curious about the topic, but he was not excited about the chosen tutor. Still, when Tatev turned to leave, Erik put a smile on his face and went out the door with him.

“You sure rushed them both out the door,” Dimwater commented.

“I have something to ask you, Lepkin,” Lepkin said. Lady Dimwater turned around to look into his eyes and smiled warmly as she reached out and stroked his hair to the side. “We don’t know what will happen when we find Tu’luh,” Lepkin said. “But, for whatever life I have left, I want to spend it as your husband.” Lepkin took Dimwater’s hand in his. “We have already lost so much of what we could have had together. I don’t want to miss anymore. Now that Orres is no longer an obstacle, I don’t want to wait another day.” Lepkin slid off the bed, cradling Dimwater’s hand in his. His voice cracked nervously. “Will you marry me?”

“I am, and have always been yours,”
she said.

“Marlin could o
fficiate the ceremony,” Lepkin said. “He could do it tonight.”

Dimwater shook her head and put her fingers on Lepkin’s lips. “No, not here,” she said. “In Tualdern. I always envisioned us getting married in the grand city of the elves,” she replied.

Lepkin grinned quietly and nodded his head. He bent down to kiss Dimwater’s hand, then he stretched upward to kiss her mouth gently. “In Tualdern then,” he said. Then he gave her another, longer kiss, pressing into her lips firmly and wrapping his arms around her waist, pulling her body close to his.

Just then the door burst open
and in walked Marlin. The couple startled and turned to see a smile flash across the man’s face and he held his arms open wide.

“It is good to see you both reunited at last,” he said.

Lepkin blushed.

“
Impeccable timing,” Dimwater said coyly.

“Oh?” Marlin asked as he strode into the room. “Was I about to miss something?”

Lepkin shook his head. “We have decided to be married in Tualdern,” he said. “And you are going to do the honor of officiating.”

Marlin folded his arms and shook his head with a big grin plastered across his face. “Well, it’s about stinking time!” he said.

Al woke early and dressed quickly. He crep
t through the halls quietly. He had already told his warriors what the plan was, and now he desired to leave without another one of them stopping him and insisting on being his bodyguard.
As if I need one!
Al thought to himself as he passed through the doors and into the early, cool morning light. He saw Gorin and Lady Arkyn waiting for him.

“Get enough beauty sleep?” Gorin chided.

Al arched a brow and tugged at his beard. “You do know you are speaking to a
king
right?” Al quipped.

Gorin shrugged. “I don’t recognize kings shorter than me,” Gorin shot back with a wide grin.

“That would be all of them,” Al said as he eyed the tall, mountain of a man. Then he chuckled. “But, I guess that’s your point.”

Gorin smiled appreciatively and the three of them made haste for the gate.

“Grand Master Penthal left about two hours ago,” Lady Arkyn noted as they wound their way through the streets.

Al nodded. “He was never one for procrastinating,” the dwarf said. “I am just glad he is on our side.”

“Will I fit in your mountain?” Gorin asked out of the blue.

Al huffed. Gorin’s tone was joking, but the look on the man’s face hinted that perhaps the warrior was seriously contemplating the question. “You aren’t
that
tall.” Al waited a moment and then added, “You will have to hunch over a bit through the first tunnel though.”

Gorin grumbled under his breath, but Al let it go.

A guard hailed the trio and waved them over to the smaller side gate as they approached. He wished them safe journeys as they exited Drakei Glazei. They went to the stable and Lady Arkyn produced the charter given to them the night before and handed it to the king’s guard there.

“How many will you need?” he asked.

“Just three,” Lady Arkyn said.

The guard nodded and looked to Al. “Can you ride a full sized horse?”

Al folded his thick arms across his chest. “Is a frog’s butt water-tight?”

The guard frowned sourly and turned away, then halted and looked back to Gorin. “I’ll see if I have a draught horse for you,” he commented wryly.

“A frog’s butt?” Gorin asked after the guard was out of ear-shot.

Al nodded. “It’s a common enough expression,” he said.

“Where?” Gorin asked. Al started to respond but Gorin waved him off. “Nevermind, I don’t actually want to know.”

Al shrugged and the three of them waited quietly for the guard to return with the horses. When the man brought the steeds out they quickly mounted and settled what they could into the saddle bags. Lady Arkyn rode a chestnut colored horse, while Al sat atop a black and white paint horse. Gorin sat on a great brown draught horse with tufts of white fur flaring out from behind each hoof. The beast was almost as muscular as the hulking warrior, and only made him look all the larger as he straightened his back in the saddle and adjusted his warhammer.

“Wait for me,” came the almost inaudible shout. The three turned and looked up the road to see a shirtless man running toward them awkwardly. “Wait!” he called out again.

“By the divines,” Lady Arkyn gasped.

“Peren!” Gorin announced happily. He reared his mount in the air and the great horse neighed and turned to gallop off toward Peren. Lady Arkyn and Al urged their horses to keep pace, but inevitably the larger horse pulled away from them and reached Peren a few seconds before the others.

Gorin leapt down from his horse and went to crush the man in a hug, but he stopped short and kept his distance. “What in the name of Hammenfein happened?” he asked.

Al and Lady Arkyn glanced to each other when they saw the burns.

“I mostly managed to escape,” Peren said as he lifted his arms and examined the burns.

“You should not be out in the elements with uncovered wounds,” Lady Arkyn said.

Peren smiled. “I’m just happy to be walking among the living.”

“How did you escape?” Al asked.

“Not sure,” Peren said. “I was staring into the firedrake’s gaping maw and everything seemed to blur together. It was as if time almost stood still as I reflected on my life. I called to mind all of the spells I could think of, but none of them seemed to be strong enough to reverse the firedrake back into his original form. Then, all I remember thinking about was how before it had changed into a firedrake, it had been a cat hunting a rat. Then I thought how ironic it was that I caught the cat only to end up being the mouse.” Peren shrugged and shook his head. “The next thing I know I woke up in a mouse’s body. Somehow I had changed myself into a mouse.
I was inside my own shoe, and the battle was over.”

“Figures,” Gorin said. “If anybody would sleep through a fight, it would be you.”

Peren shrugged. “I assume we won, if the three of you are here.”

Lady Arkyn nodded. “We lost most everyone else,” she said. “But we defeated the enemy.”

“What of Lepkin?” Peren asked.

“He is well,” Al said.

“There is a lot to tell,” Gorin said. “But first, you need to tell us why the firedrake you made turned on our own men.”

Peren shook his head emphatically. “It wasn’t me,” he said. “I turned the rat into a wyvern easily enough, but the cat resisted my spell entirely. It was someone else, someone with far greater powers than I have.”

“No matter now,” Lady Arkyn said. “We slew the enemy’s army in its entirety.”

“Save the two Lepkin allowed to escape,” Gorin pointed out.

Peren nodded. “Where are we going?”

“We?” Al asked hesitantly. “You should probably go in and see the healers.”

Peren shook his head. “I may have been a mouse for a while, but I am still a man, complete with backbone and ready to move on. Lady Arkyn here can patch me up as we travel.” He thumbed at the blonde half-elf and grinned proudly.

“Perhaps you should stay and rest,” Gorin said. “King Sit’marihu has a point.”

“King?” Peren echoed curiously. “I thought your brother sat upon the throne?”

“No longer,” Al said.

“Interesting,” Peren mused. “In any case, I’ll be going with you. What is our mission?”

Gorin held his arms out to the side and shrugged to Lady Arkyn. “He’s as stubborn as a mule.”

“I can help with the burns,” Lady Arkyn said. “But I won’t be much use if you get infected. The burns cover a lot of your body.”

“They are not as bad as they look,” he said. “I have some healing ability myself, and I have worked on them as I traveled here.”

“You will need a horse,” Al said.

Peren pointed behind them. “Looks like he is bringing me one.”

The others turned to see the king’s guard pulling a fourth horse by the reins. “I was going to prepare a fourth anyway, in case you needed an extra,” he said. “Looks like I was right.”

“Thank you!” Peren said as he strode past the others and clambered atop the horse from the right side. The horse pulled away a bit and forced Peren to stretch his torso. The man grimaced a bit, but kept silent and didn’t utter a single complaint as he struggled to get atop the mount.

“Usually you are supposed to climb up on the left side,” Gorin pointed out.

Peren exhaled slowly as he straightened himself in the saddle and gestured for the others to take the lead.

Al nudged his steed and the others all fell in with him as he ran his horse south by south east, along the same road he had traveled not too long ago from Roegudok Hall. They rode steadily at a quick pace over the well-traveled dirt road as it wound its way through emerald forests and rolled over gentle hills of tall, olive colored grass littered with purple bonnets and red poppies under the azure sky. The bright, warm sun was tempered by the cool mid-summer breeze, making the journey pleasant and comfortable as could be hoped for. The few farms they passed came and went, some adding the odor of barnyard animals mixed with the scent of freshly hewn grasses or the late fruit blossoms that had come after the last freeze of the season.

When night came, they barely stopped long enough to eat before jumping back on their horses and continuing on. Al could see easily enough in the dark, as could Lady Arkyn. They forged the way while Gorin and Peren followed close
ly. The white crescent moon reached high into the night sky, darting in and out behind thick silver clouds that all but covered the light from above. Only then, when their animals drooped their heads low and their hooves began to slow and walk in zigzagging lines, did they stop and make camp. Lady Arkyn and Al quickly set about gathering boughs and low hanging branches from evergreen trees to fashion beds from while Gorin cleared the ground near a copse of birch trees.

Peren worked on his body with some of his magic, healing it as best he could, but it was obviously slow going, and the day’s journey had not helped him any.

“You should have stayed behind,” Gorin said when he finished clearing the space.

“What, and leave all the fun to you? I don’t think so,” Peren said. “I’m fine.”

“Here,” Lady Arkyn said as she and Al arranged the boughs on the dirt. “It isn’t much, but it will help keep your body warm and the smell will be better than the dirt.”

Gorin looked to the branches and put his hand on the soft, tender pine needles. “I prefer the ground,” he said as he pushed his branches away. “You can take mine, Arkyn.”

The half-elf shrugged and took the branches, adding them to her own pile. She saw Peren looking down at the branches with a long, unfocused stare. “In my saddle bag there is a cloak,” she said. “You can lay it over the top to help keep the needles from poking your wounds.”

Peren smiled slightly and nodded. “Thanks,” he said. “But I think I will just lean up against the trees over there.” He took the cloak from the saddle bag and gently placed it over his legs as a blanket and leaned back into a couple of the young birch trees.

“Well,” Al started. “Glad to see our work is appreciated.” The dwarf flopped down onto his bed and slid his hands under the back of his head. “We should be there before lunch tomorrow,” he said. “Then we can prepare the army.”

“The army?” Peren asked.

Al snorted. “Gorin, you take first watch, and fill Peren in while you are at it.”

“Yes, King Sit’marihu,” Gorin said tongue in cheek.

“See, you are coming around after all,” Al chuckled. Then he promptly went to sleep.

*****

Al stirred and scratched an itch on his left shoulder. The movement took him out of a dream that he could not quite remember and he sat up in his bed of branches. A small fire crackled nearby with a pot sitting in the flames. The dwarf put a hand to shield his eyes until they adjusted and then he reached for his axe when he saw a man squatting near the fire.

“Easy friend,” the man said as he held his empty hands out to the side. “I mean you no harm.”

Al jumped to his feet and glanced around the camp. He saw Gorin sleeping on the dirt and Peren was still slumped against the birch trees. Lady Arkyn was nowhere to be seen.

“She went out after a wolf that was snooping around the camp,” the stranger said.

Al gripped his axe and eyed the man warily. “Who are you?” he asked.

“The name is Ferishe, I am a trapper,” he replied. He pointed over his shoulder to a pair of mules laden with furs and steel traps. “I was just passing through when I noticed your camp. I asked if I might put on a pot of coffee and share the space with you. Your lady friend said it would be alright.”

Gorin snored loudly and turned onto his side.

“How was it sleeping next to that all night?” Ferishe asked.

“Not as bad as waking to find a stranger in my camp,” Al replied evenly.

Ferishe nodded. “I can leave if you like.”

“That isn’t necessary,” said a soft voice from the road. Al looked beyond Ferishe to see Lady Arkyn strolling back to camp. “The wolf is gone now,” she said.

“You have my thanks,” Ferishe said. “I could have chased him off myself, but I am more than ready to rest my bones.” He drew back the hood to reveal a deeply wrinkled tanned face. Deep creases outlined the side of his mouth, and crow’s feet extended out from the corners of his eyes. “I am a good trapper, but I like to steer clear of wolves, if given the choice.”

Lady Arkyn nodded. “It was the scent, you didn’t clean all of your hides as well as you should have,” she noted. “The smell of blood is what brought the wolf.”

“Thanks for the warning,” Al said to Arkyn sharply. “I wake with you gone and a stranger leading wolves to our camp.”

“Just one wolf,” Lady Arkyn corrected. “I asked him to leave.”

“Asked?” Al echoed.

Lady Arkyn nodded.

Gorin snored loudly as he sucked in a breath, then the sound stopped abruptly and all three looked to him, waiting for him to exhale.

“Should someone poke him?” Ferishe asked.

Just then the giant man exhaled noisily and rolled onto his back, smacking his mouth a couple of times.