Tales of An Escapade

Second Chapter

  "Do you think he is right?" asked Elliot. His hands were fidgeting with the straps of the saddle and he looked at Anevay.
   "I do not know," shrugged Anevay. "He may be right, but he could be very off."
   "I think he may just be trying to exploit your status as a princess," replied Anevay's friend,     "and he may just be too scared."
   "Jarco never fears," mumbled the princess while she mounted Ordo. The stallion snorted and shook his head.
   "You shall be returning soon?" asked the King, who patted Ordo. He remembered he had gifted this gorgeous, black stallion to his beloved daughter for her twelfth birthday about four years ago, even if she didn't speak with him at that point.
   "We need to inform Aris about this twist of events," nodded the princess.
   "We will return," smiled Elliot. "We will see you soon."
   The King greeted them and watched as the two youngsters galloped and disappeared out of view. The stronghold returned to its normal routines again, but that was soon to be interrupted anyhow.
   Maybe the two royals drove their horses to the maximum, but they did return to Hilltop in a short day. Out of breath, their horses gladly visited the nearby pond and went to take a rest there. It wasn't too far away from the house, so they never had to worry.
   "Mother!" shouted Elliot. He swung open the front door and expected Aris to just be cooking a nice cake or be asleep in front of the fireplace, but he was harshly welcomed by a large orc talking to Aris.
   "Oh, Elliot," she simply said. "Meet Ghordo."
   "Nice to meet you, Ghordo," mumbled Elliot confused. Ane entered the room too, and she was also a bit confused by what she was witnessing. The orc and the elf were just talking like two old friends who were catching up on all the rumours.
   "You two!" exclaimed Ghordo. His voice was bellowing and it had very much gravel to it. His dark, leathery skin was covered by armour that merely was put around his bottoms and around his thick, strong arms. He had long, dirty hair that covered his back. The only weaponry he carried with him was a cleaver, stuck in his belt, and he also had a quiver and a large, steel bow. This was no one else but the ancient, legendary Ghordo, master of his race, the best at his job. The orc Ghordo has been living in peace with everyone, even the horned creatures, and because of his century-long life, he had experienced the first outbreak of devils.
   "Sir Ghordo," mumbled Anevay.
   "I need to talk to these children, Aris," said Ghordo. His spiky teeth weren't that attractive, but they spat out the southern accent well. The stretched vowels, the pronounced r's, the flat tones, it all pointed to the south.
   "My son is but a young man and Anevay is a princess, she is needed here," refused Aris.
   "Your son is no human, he's vital to this quest. The princess can summon all the lost warriors we need thanks to her excellent necromancy," countered the orc as he turned to the children. "Come talk with me outside. Your mother doesn't need to hear any of this."
   Aris remained in confuse. She remembered when people still respected her status as an honoured elf, but when she threw that away to become a happy mother, she should've expected it. She still had the gorgeous looks of the elves, but her power weakened.
   "I think you've all heard 'bout the recent –"
   "Yeah, the core of the earth has been opened," nodded Anevay. "What is going on?"
   "Well, princess. Four people the oracle has chosen, and two of them are you. You can skip the trip to the oracle, but I think it's necessary if you'd like to find out more about the entire event. Find those two other comrades, and head to the –"
   "How are we supposed to find them?" interrupted Elliot.
   "Stop interrupting me, children," snarled Ghordo.
   "Sorry." Elliot looked down, feeling even smaller than he already did next to a very tall orc.
   "Head to Iccarslot and talk with Korlos," continued the orc.
   "Korlos? As in Korlos the troll of wisdom and age?" frowned Anevay.
   "Correct, princess. He can explain the road to the oracle."
   "A friend promised us to help us already," said Anevay, thinking about Jarco.
   "He can join you on this trip. However, children, don't forget that you'll meet many more people on your way. Be careful as to whom to trust. Not everyone is as kind to the rescuers of earth as I am," the orc answered very mysteriously. "I will leave now. I'll see you in Iccarslot, hopefully." The orc stepped away without further ado and just disappeared out of sight as he walked down the hills. At that point, the horses returned, as if Ghordo had sent them to force the 'children' on their quest. The sun was slowly setting, signing the coming of the night.
Elliot headed inside the house to talk with Aris, who now was indeed baking cake.
   "I heard everything," she said. "It is fine. Go and be a hero, son. Be safe."
   Elliot received a kiss on his forehead. He wondered if she was just trying to stay strong or whether she was completely apathetic, but he just proceeded to go upstairs. Anevay locked the front door after she had put the horses in the stable and greeted Aris kindly. Also she kind of questioned why Aris was so surprisingly cold about the situation, but little did they know that Aris herself was still a very important pawn in this entire historic tale. She never told her children that she fought together with Ghordo, Korlos and Rok, a very infamous dwarf, protecting the Northern and Southern Bay. She never told them about her past, or about her husband. The time wasn't ripe yet, and Aris wondered if it'd ever even be.
   Ane hopped on Elliot's bed while he lazily leaned over the windowsill, feeling the fresh night breeze caressing his face. The lampions that had been lit up swiftly drove off to another mountain while spreading a smooth wave of light wherever they came. Both of the two children glared outside the window, their eyes following lampions slowly. The night had come quicker than usual, but maybe that was their imagination.