Masquerading

11. Eldri of the Orlies

LEIF tumbled unceremoniously to the ground when finally released by the small but strong hands that had held him. He'd been dragged into a cavernous lair, likely under a large tree given the roots that hung in his face. Sitting up, Leif came face to face with a terrifying sight. Orlies.

Fluffy, adorable creatures half his size, they looked like a cross between a sheep and a bear with six ears of varying size that twitched incessantly as they listened to things. Those ears heard everything. While they appeared harmless and too soft to be barbed, Leif knew better than to be taken in by their looks. And there were too many of them, surrounding his friends as if they were to be meals in the next few seconds.

They were orlies, so that was more than likely.

But the orlies held for a reason he could only hope meant they were awaiting an elder. Leif made a solid attempt to reach the front of the room, but was brought to his knees in front of a little hunched orlie with blueish-white fur. He sat on a litter made of bones that four orlies had just set down. The elder took one look at him and split its face with a sharp-toothed grin that terrified Leif. All the other orlies laughed, high-pitched and gravelly, and Leif fought the urge to cover his ears.

"Please. Please don't," he whispered, pained at knowing what they would do. "Please don't say it."

The orlie opened its mouth to say something, and Leif made one more desperate attempt to save himself and his secret. "Please hear me out. I have something to say that might change your mind."

The orlie seemed intrigued by his desperation, and sat back, stretching a small hand out to placate the others into waiting.

"I am Prince Leif. May I address you as something?"

The orlie eyed him shrewdly; names meant trust and loyalty earned, a thing orlies were not quick to hand out. " You may call me Eldri, as all those younger than me do."

"Eldri of the Orlies," Leif bowed. "I have known orlies in my land. I have loved orlies, and cared for them."

Some orlies tittered in annoyance; what could this human possibly know of their kind?

"I know you are loyal, and that family is valued above all else. So I will tell you that the orlies I know, who are trapped far away from this home of yours, are safe and loved. One day, I hope to be able to send them home."

The elder orlie, with his ears all pointed at Leif, stared through to Leif's soul, as orlies were known to do. With a single nod, he gestured for Leif to continue.

"It is true, Eldri of the Orlies, I am not myself," Prince Leif whispered, hoping the other men would not hear him. "I am now not myself, but otherwise always am. The me you see now is because I was allowed an opportunity to see things another way, but..." he choked on a sob, his fingers trembling at his sides, "now I seek to rescue the person who gave me that chance."

Eldri bowed his head in thought for a moment and, when he raised his head, offered a smile much softer than the one he had worn earlier. "You are a truly noble person, Prince Leif. I will grant that you, and you only, be given safe passage from our land, so you may rescue your loved one. I know you will honour your promise to release ours."

Behind him, Killi's strangled voice uttered one word; "Go!"

"Don't look back at us, Leif." Kyden's voice shook with emotion. "Just go. Feyrie be with you, Leif."

Leif closed his eyes, a tear slipping down his nose. This would be something he would forever regret doing. Gathering his strength and his voice, he looked at the orlie once more. "Most wise and kind Eldri of the Orlies... I must reject the mercy you have blessed me with. I will not move forward without my party."

"No!"

Leif continued as if he hadn't heard Kyden's choked out cry, "For the taste of my flesh, I ask but one favour; that you see the safe return of the Princess of the Freesias to my land."

"No!" Killi and Tavis protested with Kyden.

Eldri looked past Leif to Kyden, Killi and Tavis with a sour surprised expression. "You would sacrifice your life for these men you barely know?"

"Yes."

"They are not worth your sacrifice. I will give you time to reconsider."

The mass exodus of orlies from the cavernous space left the four men relatively alone. Feeling weak for the choice he'd made, Leif slumped to the ground. He should have taken the opportunity to save the Princess, but he would not have been able to live with himself should any of the others perish. The thought had choked him so entirely that he'd been unable to speak his refusal at first.

Kyden's still-tied hands awkwardly stroked Leif's shoulder. "Leif. Go, please, save her. We are alright with it. I swear it to you. I should have died three times already, and I'm certain now I survived so you could get out of this."

Feyrie's eerie bastards, Kyden was not making it any easier! Leif could not imagine leaving Kyden here to die; a feast for the orlies with their rows of tiny pointed teeth. He could not imagine leaving any of them, certainly not if they were going to die in his absence.

"Leif! Please, tell the elder you will go."

Curse Kyden and how much he cared for the Princess and himself. Pushing his body off the ground, Leif's tear-stained face was visible only a second before he pressed himself into Kyden's chest and broke down. It broke his heart that Kyden would give his own life so that Leif could have the Princess. He knew that was what ran through his mind.

As if to prove him right, Kyden muttered the words against the top of his head, his voice catching. "Leif, you have fought so hard for her. Don't give up now. Not for me... nor for Killi, nor for Tavis. We are not worth it, as the elder said."

Leif growled uselessly into Kyden's now wet shirt, frustrated that he could think for even a second Leif considered him—any of them—unworthy.

"I will die for you, Leif, but don't let it be for naught."