Fox O' Nine Tales: Larissa Of Foxwood

Chapter Eleven : Midnight Ride to the Wolf Steppes

A Fox O'Nine Tale

By R.W. Slavin

Book One: Larissa of Foxwood

Chapter Eleven : Midnight Ride to the Wolf Steppes

The second night of the long ride forged on and for seemingly forever on, Knight Nathaniel on his powerful stallion, midnight black, and Dr. Gwen on her swift Arabian, a beautiful bay mare, the two riders parting the endless sea of flowing saddle pommel-high grasses beneath the ghostly full moon, two hurtling fugitives awash in the shimmering pale lunar light.

Dr. Gwen wondered to herself just how long she might be able hold on to her galloping ride, but her horse seemed to have become almost an organic part of herself, so sensitive to her every slip and hesitation, the horse catching her and righting her in the saddle every time she began to fall. Gwen's mare followed the lead of Nathaniel's stallion, as if held to him by invisible ropes just off his right flank, thankfully rendering Gwen's reins unnecessary for guidance and free to function exclusively as desperate tethering handholds.

No time to think, thought Dr. Gwen, but I must think, to survive, must think! This thing that is happening has passed my every test of logic to make me fully believe: This cannot be a dream. I am not dreaming! But... the logic of a dreamer is dream logic. And dream logic proves every dream real. But I am a doctor, a psychologist, a professional expert on tricks of the mind - on dream states and tests of sanity and madness. And I am not insane. But... (and this, thought Dr. Gwen, was the most fearful "but" she had ever faced in all her life)... the truly insane, the psychotic, think themselves absolutely sane. As I think I am, sane as can be, right now. The headset I wore that night to monitor Alyssa's dream! Did it short out?! Blow up?! Was there a mind-blowing power surge?! Was my mind blown??!! Am I forever brain-fried, my body strapped to a bed in some hidden away mental hospital, my mind forever lost in a frightening dreamworld...?

Dr. Gwen shuddered violently and felt hot angry tears welling up in her eyes. The bay mare snorted and tossed back her head, turning just for a moment to share a look, as if, thought Gwen, in attempted reassurance - the mare's great flashing eye catching and projecting back the moonlight as a balm to soothe the fear radiating from Gwen's own eyes.

How did I come to be on this horse? I must remember every detail of last night, every detail of that castle, of the winding stone staircase that appeared just before the door of my "jail suite" (the staircase I had somehow "magically" missed in hours of hours of attempted escape), and the cavernous subterranean horse stables that the staircase led down and down and down to...

The stables beneath Foxwood Castle were indeed cavernous and enormous, the dozens of smooth stone horse stalls well-provisioned with mounds and mounds of fresh sweet-smelling hay. Dr. Gwen could see all the many fine horses quite well because the underground realm was so well-lighted by many massive flaming ensconced torches set high up upon the high walls - and because there were no gates of any kind to keep the horses within their stalls. In fact, there didn't seem to be any physical restraints of any kind anywhere.

Dr. Gwen was so instantly entranced by the sight of the magical place that she almost forgot momentarily about the tall and intimidating wolfman in a leather soldier's uniform who had led her down the winding staircase to this place, and who now stood just behind her. She jumped when he spoke.

"I trust the riding clothes fit you well? What you were wearing would have been quite uncomfortable and would have torn well before daybreak."

Dr. Gwen turned to face the wolfen commander, "Knight Nathaniel," and was a bit unnerved to see his large piercing blue eyes scanning up and down her form, even if he was only concerned with her being properly attired for a long ride on horseback. She realized she was blushing.