FIREFANGED

Chapter 12 (Small Gifts)

Catching the last rays of sunset, we entered the outskirts of Berykholt. My horse carried a second rider, a Royal guard from the retinue of Princess Lorna Ylamil of Bastian. The elven hunting party had begun their rough trek back home, leaving two silver talismans and a dark elf bodyguard behind. The elf's name was Andarion. He was a cousin of Lorna and trusted for the bloodline they shared. He would not be missed at court outside of the Royal Family. His absence wouldn't be mentioned to anyone, but King Ylamil would notice and know what it meant, and that was enough.

Andarion was a talker. His smooth voice worked to soothe my negative feelings toward the dark elves and their shamanic practices. It turns out they're similar to humans when it comes to emotions and even more prone to deep personal attachments.

Raven had been exiled by her father, King Janus Ylamil, who knew that if she remained in Bastian, she would be murdered by the elven shamans in their dark ritual. Though she could never return, King Ylamil had never severed his feelings for his youngest daughter. He had secretly sent his middle daughter on a mission to make sure Raven survived.

Andarion had been a young adult when Raven was born and had helped raise her due to her human mother dying when Raven was only a year old. It was true that dark elves often shunned the impure, but that was usually ignored when it came to family, especially that of the Royal bloodline. They valued spirit as the building blocks of their Houses and lives, and their shamans acted as wardens or counselors.

Raven's mother had been an outsider, a mysterious and beautiful human, and it was suspected that the city's shamans had begun poisoning her slowly after her baby was born. Others thought that they had simply cursed her with one of their dark rituals and sent her soul onward to a different plane.

The demons threatened the dark elves of Bastian, and the attacks were getting steadily worse for them over the years, but that seemed to be the case everywhere along the Everest range. As Vigil Snow opined, demons never forget what works and what doesn't, and unlike the living, their knowledge never ceases.

Duncan thought there might be trouble for Andarion walking around Berykholt openly armed. People would have a difficult enough time accepting his race and his exotic looks. We agreed to post him as Raven's valet, discreetly armed. His glib manner would fit the position well.

Andarion could run night patrols with the scouts from time to time and bunk out in the North Tower. His inherent night vision and extensive knowledge of the Everest Mountains would be invaluable to the scouts. He and Duncan seemed to be of a similar age and had quickly built a rapport. After a few hours of riding together, they had somehow adopted me as their long-lost son and begun planning my demise. Well, it seemed like that anyway, as I was soon dying for the long ride to reach its end.

Upon our arrival back in Castle Berykholt, I left Andarion with the scouts. Duncan would find him some dinner and a bunk and introduce him to the rest of the crew. I asked that Andarion keep his weapons secured there and get cleaned up while I went to check on Raven and grab a late dinner.

Meeting Doctor Loeb and Sentinel Glenn in our shared living room, I gave them a brief update on the situation. I let them know that there would be a new face hanging around starting tomorrow and asked them to stop by the North Tower tonight to meet Andarion for themselves.

After cleaning up and changing into more comfortable clothes, I heard voices coming from Raven's room. I walked in on Lynda sitting by the bed, chatting with Raven about the best horses in the stable and which would be fitting for Raven as she learned to ride.

I knocked on the frame of the open door. "Ladies, I hope you have been having a restful evening."

I hadn't had much time in my life for the fairer sex—none, really—but having these two beautiful young women look my way and smile did a world of good for my self-confidence. It also helped me understand Sentinel-adept Keil's overdone interest in Lynda.