Knights of the Nine - Beginning of the End

Chapter 14: Long Road Ahead

"Come with me. You're a witch-"

"Sourceress."

"Yeah, so come with me. We can kill this dragon and save Condor."

"What makes you think my father would accept this?"

"He'll understand, I'm sure."

"I doubt it."

"Then leave without him knowing."

"You're making this sound dumb, besides my father would send his whole army to find me. They'll kill you, Derek."

"Not if they see that we killed the dragon!"

"Shhhh. Don't yell, you'll wake my sister."

"Sorry."

"Speaking about my sister, what'll she do? Can't stay here, her father will work her to death."

"I don't... know."

"I'm sorry, Derek. Truly am and I get that this could end all Condor."

"Then why aren't you joining me?"

"My father."

"He can shrew off."

"'Shrew' off? What's 'shrew' mean?"

"Basically screw off. Wha-why are we discussing this?"

"Just wondering."

"Coming with or not?"

The door slid open and the outside heat flooded the into the kitchen. Derek and Yennefer had left. Equipped with food supplies, camp, water, books, and oils, the two set off up north on horseback. The heat would turn to cold significantly quick, in a day or two.

Yen worried, she feared for her younger sister and feared what her father would do. She tried to force it to the back of her head, but some thoughts still floated around. Derek was ahead by a step and riding fairly quick. They left ten minutes ago.

"Wild guess, was it?" Derek asked Yen who was blanking off.

"What?" Yen recovered.

"You took a wild guess."

"For what? Give more information, Derek." Yen scoffed.

"For the dragon. You've no clue where it went."

"Not really. I've used a locating spell just before we left and it set near the northern coast. I think it aims to leave the continent." Yen said in a smarten tone.

"So there is some hope after all." Derek said to himself.

Derek pulled out his water bottle and drank. Once he was done he tossed it back to Yennefer, she drank some too. They were riding slower now, it was mid day, sun on top, soon to be ahead of them.

"So... where're you from?" Yen asked looking for conversation.

"Borden."

"A wine Kingdom. Explains why you know your wine."

"Yep. Father was a wine seller, didn't own a single Vineyard just sold it." Derek said looking ahead to the road.

"Oh." Yen glared off into the trees.

They rode on without talking for hours, not stopping for a bite of food.

"God, Derek? Can we stop, my ass is starting to ache!" Yen moaned, sounding very dramatic.

"How bad?" Derek looked back.

"Like a werewolf just stabbed its claws into my-"

"Alright. Turn off into this clearing here." Derek said pointing to an opening that lead to a field.

Derek took both horses and tied them up to a sturdy tree while Yen started a fire with a spell.

"Seriously can't use wood?" Derek asked sitting onto the grass.

"I will not risk getting a splinter or getting attacked by ants." Yen stated and she sat beside Derek.

"They're tiny creatures, do no harm."

"Does a Dable do any harm?" Yen said mockingly.

"Of course. Why're you comparing an ant to a Dable? They're nothing alike."

"Well, ones a baby dragon and the ants a... tiny... thing."

"Ha-ha! You're hilarious." Derek fake laughed.

Yen shot a smile into the fire. She leaned her hair onto Derek's shoulder. Derek suddenly thought of Sarah. He closed his eyes and rid the thought of her away, but next came Brandy then... no. He wrapped his arm around Yen's shoulder and gripped her tight.

"Any adventures worth telling for a story?" Yennefer asked as she closed her eyes.

"Time range?"

"Couple years ago, I don't know."

"Okay. Well four years ago there were the Gondortian attacks. Umm, me and a band of Knights went and hunted them down and killed off the Darkness." Derek said brushing Yen's black hair.

"Stop lying."

"Huh? Lying?"

"I can see right through your heart, Derek. There was way more than what you just said." Yen sat up and looked over at Derek.

"Yeah, I guess. Don't really wanna talk about it." Derek said not making eye contact.

"Then why bring it up?"

"How about when I was sixteen? Went out hunting for my first Golum and nearly died by an avalanche. Blocked off a bunch of houses and the king in Wintergale couldn't even get out." Derek said looking back to Yen.

"You could say they, uh, were snowed in." Yen laughed, tapping Derek's shoulder.

"No, King needed to give powder to the people." Derek shot back.

The two laughed at awful puns.

"Icey what you did there." Yen responded with a long smile.

The two made snow puns till they both grew tired and ran out of puns to think of. Yen conjured up a small blanket to wrap herself in. Derek scoffed at the spell and went to grab the camp materials. The horses were staring deep into the field, like there was something. It was too dark for Derek to see anything so he took the camp supplies and asked Yen.

"Yen, can you make it so my eyes can see better right now?"

"You scoff at my spells yet now you need one? Why not just drink the Brighteye potion?" Yen said, her voice tired.

"Yen, not now. Horses are spooked at something in the field."

Yennefer sat up quick and hit Derek with a spell. Derek could see, it was black and white. The sky black the ground and field white. Derek didn't like it, he preferred the potion way more. Derek walked back to the horses and saw that there was two baby bears and a mother bear. They were eating, but awfuly close to their camp.

Derek went back to Yen and told her to stay there. Derek took out a hunting bow and readied an arrow. He got closer and swallowed a lump in his throat. He released his fingers and the arrow flung.

Thwack

The mother bear roared and stumbled for a bit. The cubs all ran into the trees and away from their mom. Derek pulled another out from the quiver but the bear was almost to him already. He drawed and shot again, directly in the liver. The bear fell and breathed her last breath.

Derek got one of the horses to pull the bear to camp. He cut it up while Yen was asleep and he hung up the hide and strung up the fur. He placed the meat into a meat bag in his pack.

After three hours of cutting and sewing, Derek called it a night. He went into his own sleeping bag and fell asleep.