The Elf Thief

Chapter 15: Answers

Chapter 15 

Answers

The servant had just come to take them away when Dearekk fell. Staggering, he let out a gasp and fell to his knees in pain and Sonya dropped to his side. He pulled up his sleeve, showing a nasty cut on his bicep.

            “I got it back in the cave, the one with the spikes,” he gasped in pain. But there was a glint behind his eyes; he was exaggerating. As she knelt down to help him to his feet, he leaned over and whispered, “Meet me back here after dark, we both have some explaining to do.” And then he pulled away, leaving Sonya to be dragged away to her own room in the strange palace.

            She would meet him at nightfall.

            Trying her best not to stumble over the deep purple gown she was wearing, Sonya rushed to the main entrance. She had agonized over every precious second she had spent waiting for the sun to go down. She wanted answers and she was sick of waiting for them.

            As she stumbled into the hall, she saw Dearekk was already there. As she opened her mouth to speak, he quickly shushed her.

            “Not here,” he breathed, “We need to get someplace safer.” Beckoning her to follow, he began to walk out. She noticed that his arm was tightly wrapped in a white cloth, perhaps he wasn’t quite exaggerating when he fell.

            She followed him up the stairs and onto the amethyst walls. Guards stood a distance away, not close enough to hear their conversations, but not so far away as to miss anything that was wrong. Dearekk gazed out at the rolling hills in the distance as he leaned on the edge of the wall.

Sonya decided to ask her question first. “How did you know?” she tried not to blush when he turned his head to look at her, “I mean, how did you know that you were a halfling? You were so ready to leave your father, I mean the King,” she hastily corrected herself.

            Dearekk let out a bitter laugh. “He is not, nor ever was my father.” Looking out towards the plains again, he seemed to be lost in thought. “I don’t even know who my parents are,” he spoke in a whisper, “I only know that my fa-the King ordered them both to be killed. The King was planning to kill me if I ever found out the truth. He had sent a letter to the Duke of Raydale requesting more guards because he suspected I was close to discovering my true heritage.”

            Sonya tried to catch his eye, but he turned away. Yet she still thought she caught a glimpse of a tear in his eyes.

            “How did you know?” he choked out, as if he was desperate to try and hide the pain he was feeling.

            Sonya hesitated for a moment; did she really want to tell him? After all, she was still uncertain if she could trust him. Even after all he did, she still couldn’t forget the fact that he essentially killed Molko. “Your eyes,” she whispered, almost hating herself for telling him, “they have green right around the center; elf green. It can overtake the rest of your eyes, but only when you are in a deep state of rage,” then in a voice almost to quiet to hear, “like at the castle. What even happened there?”

            Dearekk let out a small sigh. “I don’t even know,” he spoke, “that sword was solid diamond.” This time he did turn to her, “What could shatter a diamond?” The fact that he sounded so shaken unnerved Sonya. “It wasn’t like it just broke. No, it shattered, like glass dropped on rock. And it never even touched his skin!” he hissed. “No blood, no screams, nothing. Just a shattered sword.”  He let out a shudder, “Something is wrong with this. There is something bigger than both of us going on. Something older, darker…” Suddenly his voice got deeper and his eyes became unfocused, as through he was staring at something far away, “Something from the Era of Dusk, when the world’s tongue was that of the Broken…”

            A soldier a ways away began to turn towards them, drawn by the sudden change of demeanor in the air. Quickly, Sonya reached out and gave Dearekk a hard shake, “Snap out of it!” she whispered, “Please, you’re drawing attention to us!”

            Instantly his eyes became focused again, and he looked startled. “What just happened?” he asked, looking genuinely confused. Sonya scrutinized him.

            “I think that cave did more to you than you think,” she whispered, trying her best to keep the mounting fear out of her voice. She must have not done very will because Dearekk stiffened.

            “I think we should get some rest,” he said unsteadily. “We have an emperor to persuade tomorrow.” He turned away from her, as though he thought he was hiding something from her. Then it struck Sonya.

            It seemed she wasn’t the only one who found it hard to trust.