The Unwilling Accomplice (Book 5) (2 page)

The young woman before Ned stirred, and her eyes fluttered open to reveal a pair of golden eyes like those of ripe wheat. They widened when she glimpsed all the strange faces gathered around her. She was the picture of a beautiful doe with her shining hair and serene, albeit confused expression.

Then her face darkened and she wrenched herself from Ned's hands. She jumped free of the group and with great agility landed five yards from them. One of her feet stumbled on a rock, but she quickly righted herself and glared at them. The woman held her open hands out on either side of her with her fingers stretched toward the ground. A blue flickering light like a clear flame erupted from her palms and her eyes flickered from companion to companion.

"Who are you?" she snapped at them.

Ned slowly arose and smiled at her. "You are among friends," he assured her.

Her scowling expression told them she didn't believe his word. "Where is my hawk? Where is Anduvis?" she frantically asked them.

"Here he is," Ruth spoke up. She held up the box with the still bird.

The stranger's eyes widened and the flames in her palms jumped and blazed. "What have you done to him?" she accused them.

"We have suspended him for you, Princess Telana Hawain," Ned replied.

The woman started. She squinted at Ned and her mouth slowly dropped. "Edwin Tisule!" she gasped. Percy snorted, but quickly composed himself.

Ned smiled and bowed his head to her. "At your service," he greeted her.

CHAPTER 2

"Princess?" Pat repeated.

"Yes. I am the princess of Crutchen," Telana confirmed. She lowered her hands to her sides and the flames were extinguished. Her eyes fell on her bird in the box. "But what is this? A Chronos Box?" she guessed.

"Yes, we noticed the creature's wounds and this young lady here offered the use of her box for the occasion," Ned explained as he gestured to Ruth, who blushed and bowed her head.

Telana walked over to Ruth and glanced between the box and the young woman's face. The princess' eyes shone along with her smile. "I thank you very much. It seems you have saved dear Anduvis."

"We were glad to help," Ruth replied.

Telana shook her head. "I will not accept such a modest answer. I must do something to show my appreciation," she insisted.

"Even after we upset your horse?" Percy wondered.

Telana blushed and looked at the ground. "In my haste to return to the castle I neglected to watch for any travelers. It is my fault for the accident, and I insist on making amends for the trouble I have caused and the help you have given me even though I deserved nothing of it."

"There is a very great favor you may do for us," Ned spoke up.

"Anything. Ask it and it shall be yours," she promised.

"We would like permission to destroy the Region Stone within your realm. Can you obtain that for us from your father?" he asked her.

A strange glint passed through her eyes. "I am afraid that is one request that is beyond my ability to grant, for the stone is already destroyed." The companions were stupefied by her announcement.

"Destroyed? By whom? How?" Percy asked her.

"By my father, King Theowin, and through the use of the Singing Sword," she revealed. "He heard the great misery the other stones had caused their inhabitants and destroyed our stone before our beautiful city met the same fate."

The friends glanced at one another, and Ned chuckled. "It seems we can ask no greater favor than what your father has already performed," he replied.

"Then what are we to do now? It seems we have no reason to visit Crutchen," Percy wondered.

"But you must come with me! I plead with you to allow me to show you some favor by staying a time at the castle," Telana begged them. Her eyes flickered to the skies and she hugged the wooden chest closer to herself. "And I would be ever grateful for the companionship back to the city."

Ned raised an eyebrow. "Is there something the matter?" he asked her.

"I. . .I am not sure," she admitted. She looked down at her wounded, frozen pet and pressed one hand against the gashes on her other arm. "Anduvis and I were hunting small birds in the woods close by when we were attacked by a large eagle. I have never seen such a creature before in these woods and I wonder. . ." She trailed off in her suspicions, but Ned frowned.

"You suspect there is something not quite right with this attack?" he guessed.

She nodded. "Yes, exactly that."

Canto scoffed. "Ah don't know as saving the world is as high a task as getting ya back to yer city," he mused.

"The world is saved one life at a time, and a few days' rest wouldn't harm us nor bring about the destruction of the world," Ned argued.

"I agree. Some time to rest after our last farewell from a city would be very much appreciated by myself," Percy spoke up. "Besides, we now have four stones destroyed. That means only one remains, and Canavar will be without a way to create chaos throughout the world."

Canto slumped his shoulders and half turned from the group. "Ah don't know about this. We're always getting into trouble in these cities," he grumbled.

Ruth smiled and put her hand on his shoulder. "Pat would be grateful for time to practice with you," she pointed out.

The dwarf melted beneath her touch. "Ya know Ah'm going, ya needn't think Ah'm not," Canto assured her.

Ned and Percy assisted the princess onto her feet, and Sins stepped forward with the reins of her horse in his hand. She smiled and bowed his head to him. "Thank you for catching my horse," she told him. Sins stiffly bowed his head in return, and Canto raised an eyebrow. This little show of gallantry was very much unlike the stoic assassin.

Telana mounted her steed while the others did the same. She turned toward the road and led the way at a quick trot toward the city. As Ned had informed them, the city of Crutchen lay a few miles down the path. The forest didn't thin until they reached the very gates, or rather, moat of the city. Then the road opened to reveal the towering city of the elves.

High walls of stone surrounded the area on the opposite side of the moat and the city itself was terraced like Tramadore, but with green grass and trees in more abundance than the houses. The terraces were fifty yards wide and encircled the large hill upon which sat a white-stone castle. The majority of the terraces led like steps upward, but there were pockets where a terrace was lower than its predecessor. Streams separated parts of the terraces and there were countless bridges over them. To the right of the group and in the far back was the blue sea and a large port nestled in a sheltered cove with large sailing ships anchored off the shore and bringing in small loads of cargo. Other, smaller ships disappeared behind the city to anchor at the piers.

The moat was crossed by a drawbridge of hewn wood that was wide enough for eight horsemen abreast to trod upon. At the opposite side was the curved arch of the gatehouse, and a pair of elves stood on either side of the entranceway watching them. Fred tilted his head back to look at the shining castle atop the hill, and a glistening of blue light in front of the hill caught his attention. It was the flicker of a magical barrier like the one that had protected the stone of String, except the barrier was much larger. He glanced from side-to-side to find an end, but the barrier wrapped around the entire city. It started in the center of the moat at the deepest depths of the waters to rise upward as a dome over the tall hill.

The princess slowed to a trot and led her guests over the lowered bridge. The clomp of their horses' hooves was interrupted by a sudden cry from Ned who rode behind her. He pulled his horse back and clutched at his chest with one hand. There was a pained expression on his wizened face and he grit his teeth. Ruth and Pat stepped up beside him and the gentle gargoyle held onto his shoulders to keep him from falling off his horse. Fred noticed that they had reached the barrier around the city, and before Ned its light shimmered like an arisen wave angered by a sudden burst of wind.

Telana reined in her horse and the two guards hurried forward. "What's wrong?" she asked them.

"It seems my magic is too powerful to pass the barrier," Ned replied through clenched teeth.

Telana frowned. "The barrier is meant to protect against disguises and the dangers of Canavar. A castor of your power should be able to pass through," she countered. Percy pursed his lips together and clutched at a saddle bag that lay close to his hip.

"Perhaps the barrier needs some adjustment. Be that as it may, I cannot pass," Ned told her.

"And Ruth can't get through, either, not with her, er, condition. She'd get mighty heavy if she passed through there," Canto spoke up.

The guards reached the group, but remained on the other side of the barrier. They recognized their princess, and respectfully bowed. "Is there a problem, Princess?" one of the guards called to her.

"Yes. We need you to raise the barrier across the bridge," she commanded them.

The pair of guards bowed. "As you wish, Princess," the guard replied. The guards moved to either side of the barrier and clapped the bottoms of their staffs on the bridge boards. The barrier parted like two gates opening, and was wide and tall enough through which the company could pass.

CHAPTER 3

Telana led the companions onward past the arched gate and into the green city. A rounded courtyard stood on the other side of the gate and in front of them was a wide stone stairway that led to the next terrace. On the left side against the stone walls was a large, low building with small square windows and the scent of horse manure floating from its interior. In the center of the building was a pair of large barn doors which were opened to reveal glimpses of roomy stalls and the neighing of horses.

Beyond the low building and also to their far right were several smaller stone paths, too small for horse and rider, that led into the myriad of streets. The homes and businesses were square with rounded sides and made of colored stone. They had several floors with arched windows and planters outside those windows filled with a variety of brilliant flowers. There were more planters outside the thick wooden doors of the buildings, so many that there seemed to be a carpet of pansies, geraniums, and the like. Thin willow trees grew from the cobble stones beneath their feet and cradled the roofs in their branches. The visitor was left with the feeling that they had left the gloomy forest and entered paradise.

The residents of the paradise strode to and fro across the courtyard and up the stairs to the higher levels. Around the courtyard were booths and stalls showing off shining wares such as many-colored bowls and scarfs that were sewn with such deft that they appeared to wrap themselves around the necks of those who tried them on. Mothers walked with their children in tow, and laughing and chattering was the norm. Carts were driven in and out of a cave entrance on their right, each way laden with different goods. Some of the carts stopped at the stalls, but most clattered across the bridge and onto the roads to travel northward or southward.

Fred's eyes widened when he beheld the shopping elves gesture with their hands and raise fruit from the stalls to slip into their baskets or bags. The seller elves did the same to the boxes heavy with their goods, lifting them off the ground and stacking them neatly on their carts on on their tables. The floating objects were surrounded by the same glowing light as they had seen come from Telana's hands.

Ned sidled up to him and chuckled. "Did you think humans were the only ones capable of magic?" he teased.

"But they don't need a staff?" he guessed.

"No, our magic comes from within ourselves while the castor magic is a gift from nature and thus needs a focus. That focus is the staff," Telana spoke up. The princess dismounted and the others did the same. She nodded toward the low building. "Those are the stables. Your steeds may be housed there at my father's expense," she offered.

Ned bowed his head. "That is very kind of you, and our small purse will accept your hospitality," he replied.

Telana led them to the stables and an elf who stood by the open doors hurried forward to greet them. He bowed his head to Telana. "Good morning, Princess," he greeted her.

"Good morning. I wish for you to put up these fines steeds for a short while," she requested, gesturing to all their animals.

"Very good, but-" He paused and glanced through them at Fluffy, who wagged his nub of a tail and drooled. "If we knew one would be coming we would have made room, but I am afraid our largest stalls, those best fitted for a cantankus, are taken," he informed them.

"Perhaps he may be made comfortable on the balcony near the castle?" Ned spoke up.

Telana looked over Fluffy. "Is he well-trained?" she asked him.

"As well-trained as can be expected," Ned admitted.

Telana sighed, but gave a nod. "Very well, he may stay at the balcony, but only the balcony," she agreed.

"Then we will gladly care for the horses and ass," the stable elf agreed. He clapped his hands and a half dozen other elves hurried out the doors and took the reins.

Telana handed the reins of her own horse over to the stable elf and turned to the others with the Chronos box clasped tightly in her arms. "I would show you my beautiful city, but you must excuse me. I must see if the falconer at the Feona Library can heal Anduvis," she told them.