CHAPTER 13 ~ STUCK

AIDEN

“You shot me,” I managed to say.

“Yes, and it would have been easier if you had simply agreed to stay,” she said as she walked over to me. “Who is your captain?”

“You want information now?” I exclaimed through clenched teeth.

“Give it too me and I’ll help you get that out. I’ll even bandage it for you,” she offered quite calmly.

“You must be kidding. I can do it myself.”

“Sure you can, but it will be so much more painful. Of course, you can always have the griffin help. Maglynar, was it? Your choice,” she said in a helpful tone that I wanted to kill very badly.

She raised her hand and tapped the arrow lightly. I yelled loudly and glared at her. The tap sent daggers of pain all over my right side and into my brain.

“Hmm, that seemed like it hurt.”

Kill her now was my only thought.

“It will hurt worse if you try to do this yourself, give me what I want and I promise to be gentle.”

Did she know what that was? What did it matter anymore? This hurt. And it wasn’t as if I had any real loyalty to Ricald or Elangsia. I just wanted out.

“Ricald. My commander’s name s Ricald.”

She stepped back suddenly. “What?” She whispered.

Why react like that? “Ricald, his name is Ricald.”

Her mouth firmed into a thin line and she stared down at me with such intensity, I wondered if she was trying to shoot me again with her eyes alone.

“How long have you worked for him?” She questioned her voice tight.

“Over a year and some odd months. Look, this hurts!” I exclaimed.

“Then answer quicker, you baby. Why did Ricald send you now?”

“Like you thought. Some big battle is about to happen. Elangsia is getting reinforcements, hardened men, wild men. Sounds like a lot of them.”

“Wild Men? Did he use that exact term?” She asked urgently.

“Yeah, I think so.” It was getting harder to think with the pain. Speaking was taking all my effort and my breath was coming in shorter and shorter gasps. Black was swimming before my eyes. Duard had never pulled anything like this. Now, I wondered why.

“Why do you work for him?”

“Huh?”

“Ricald, why work for him?”

Why? There was a reason, right? Why? My head was swimming. I closed my eyes trying to focus. “Training. Need to get better.”

“Open your mouth,” the command was gentle and I was too out of it to do anything but follow. Something hard and nasty was placed into it. “It’s a stick. Bite down, this is going to hurt.”

More intense pain jolted through. It spread over my body like out of control wild fire, burning every place it could touch, but hottest at my shoulder. Numbing hard pain flooded into my mind and covered all my senses. It swallowed everything around me and I allowed it too.

Then I felt something next to my good side.

“Come on, lean on top of me.” Her voice was gentle now, soothing even.

I felt her put my arm over her shoulder. Slowly she helped me to stand. Something warm and soft came to my bad side.

“Good boy, Maglynar. Guide him inside. That’s it. You have to walk, Mercenary.”

I felt a foot move, perhaps it was my own. The pain was too great to think.

“No, not there…. Yes…no, don’t do that…. Let me…..good…..Sleep.”

It was all I heard.

***

“Where have you been?” The words floated around me.

“It’s been three days!” I couldn’t quite place them.

“Well, while you were off preening your ego, I needed to get a message to Tancred!” The voice was the same person.

“I know where he is! Emergencies only, remember?” The girl, it was the girl.

“Who’s working for who here?” But who was she talking too?

“Fine! Have it your way, go see Mother then! We have to make sure the King is informed as soon as possible!” What was she talking about?

“Yes, I’ll wait. But you better be quick! That means no flirting!” Huh?

“Egan! I was serious!”

I drifted away into sleep again.

***

KRISTALYN

I watched from a nearby chair as the mercenary slept. He actually looked peaceful when he wasn’t growling and had that lowered brow of his firmly in place. His short black hair had a chopped look to it, as if he could care less and his jaw showed a shadow of a beard, which wasn’t a surprise for how long he had been out. The shadow didn’t quite cover an inch long scar running down his lower left jaw. His dark tanned skin added to the effect of his face. Just what that effect was, I wasn’t going to analyze. I had only seen his eyes clear once, and even then they had been clouded with pain. They were darker though, an unusual shale blue, I had no doubt they would be devastating if some unsuspecting girl was given the right look. But he didn’t strike me as one to do that too often. He was definitely a hardened warrior. I glanced at the griffin sleeping as close to the bed as he could get. I wondered briefly what inspired so much loyalty from the animal. They were generally vicious creatures, yet this one seemed different, at least when it came to the mercenary. I got the feeling Maglynar only tolerated me because it knew I was helping.

“Why am I helping again?” I asked out loud.

Kuroiden looked up from his spot next to the fireplace. He looked at me steadily for a moment then yawned.

I laughed softly, but then sighed as I looked back at the mercenary. “But it is important, Kurio. He wants to kill the Hunter and you know I can’t let that happen.”

Kuroiden yawned again then stood and lazily stretched before coming to rub me knees. I petted the large black panther absently.

I really didn’t have a reason to help him. It would have been easier if I had shot to kill, but I had needed that information! Now I was stuck with him and Traket would be gone for days. I had to decide what to do. My fist tightened. Ricald was behind this. But then, wasn’t he behind everything that happened to my family?

The mercenary groaned and shook slightly. I waited patently and in a few moments he opened his eyes.

“So, the mercenary finally awakens, huh?” I commented casually, putting the chair back with the table.

“Where…” he started to ask.

“You’re back in the cabin. Five days later, but back in the cabin.”

“Wait, how long?” He struggled to sit up and his movements caused Maglynar to move quickly so he could see. “Some help you are,” the mercenary muttered, looking at the animal.

“You should be more grateful. He hasn’t left your side the whole time,” I said as I brought him a drink of water.

He took the water and looked back at Maglynar. “You didn’t move? What did you eat?”

Maglynar screeched a reply. I watched curiously as the mercenary responded, “That’s what I thought. Nothing comes between you and your stomach.”

“You can understand him?” I asked.

“He normally makes his needs known. He’s stubborn.”

“So are you,” I replied.

He took a drink and then looked at me more fully. I was right, those eyes were strong. “Why are you still here?”

“Would you prefer I had left you to die?” I asked.

“I would have,” he stated calmly.

I didn’t doubt him. “Well, I didn’t. What does Ricald really want?”

“Oh, you kept me alive for more information,” his eyes were amused. I didn’t like the look.

“Does it really matter?” I wasn’t about to let him know I couldn’t kill him in cold blood after that first shot. He’d think I was weak and I didn’t need the trouble.

He shrugged, and then groaned as his shoulder jerked. I laughed out loud and ignored his glare. “You might not want to do that for a while. Now, about Ricald…”

He was silent for a long time. If he hadn’t been looking right at me I would have said he had fallen back asleep. Finally he responded, “What do you have against Ricald? You reacted to the name earlier.”

I grimaced mentally. I probably had reacted much bigger than I should have. I guessed Ricald had been behind the assassination attempt. I shouldn’t have let my surprise or anger show so clearly. Hadn’t I already learned showing emotions get’s one killed? “That’s my concern not yours, you just need to answer the questions.”

“Why? Because you helped me out? You shot me in the first place! I don’t owe you a thing.”

“Maybe not, but you’ll be here for a long time, so you might as well tell me what you know. Where is Ricald now?”

He stared at me. “What are you babbling about? I can walk out of here now.”

“Physically, maybe. But you’re assuming I’m just going to let you go.”

“Then what are you planning?” He asked, swinging his legs off the bed, careful to keep from jostling his shoulder too much.

“You’re staying. That’s all you need to know,” I replied swiftly.

He barked a laugh. “Really? And where do you think your going?”

I didn’t answer.

“You’re close to this Hunter, aren’t you? Are you planning to go warn him?”

Again, I didn’t respond, he was too close for comfort.

“I hate to be the one to break it for you, Girl, but I’m not staying here. I have a mission to complete and I’ll do just that.” He paused for a minute, “even if I have to go through you.”

I realized with a gut retching feeling that he meant it. What was I going to do? I could only stay myself for possibly another week, but even that was pushing it. With the battle now confirmed, the Hunter would need me at his side. Traket was gone for days and I couldn’t get a message to him even if Egan was back. Besides, this mercenary would certainly kill him. I didn’t need his death on my hands. I could leave Kuroiden behind, but he wouldn’t hold them off for long, not against Maglynar anyway. What options did I have left? I had to think, I was missing the right one.

“You know it’s true,” he said quietly. I looked up at him. He was taller than me by a good couple of inches. “I’ll kill whoever you put here to guard me without hesitation. Their lives mean nothing to me. I only care about my goal.”

How many had he already killed in his quest for the Hunter? And why didn’t he come after me? He had said he won’t kill a girl when we had first fought. But was that really true?

“Where is the Hunter?” His voice was forceful.

“You’re a fool if you think I would ever tell you that!” I exclaimed through clenched teeth. He couldn’t fight me yet, he was still too weak. I could easily tie him up and just leave him. But it would only slow him down. I had to protect Tancred! That was my mission! And I wasn’t going to fail... not at any cost.

“You don’t have to use real words,” he grinned.

I looked at him confused. “What are you getting at?”

“You’ve already told me,” he said it so calmly, but my heart restricted. Had I really made that vital mistake? What could he possible have figured out?

“If you’re so smart, then explain it,” I snapped.

He laughed. “You knew about the big battle before I told you or at least you had a suspicion. Now, how had you heard of it if not from Ricald? You asked where he is, so you can’t know the army’s location, which means you’re not getting your information from there.”

He almost sounded like he was figuring this out on the fly. Was he trying to prove he could think strategically or something? His eyes had a mischievous, but far away look to them. He wasn’t actually speaking to me, at least not in his mind. But who then?

“There are only two places to get information about military operations. One is the military itself and two is the source of the orders.” Now, he was looking right at me, triumphantly.

He knew!

“Your precious Hunter is in Ruma gathering information, right under their noses.”

No! I struggled to keep my face calm. We needed that information. If he was able to stop Hunter from getting it, or worse, if he killed Hunter, our people would be destroyed and so would I.

“Look, you don’t have a lot of options here. Anyway you cut it; I’m walking out that door and heading to Ruma. When I do, you can either be dead or alive. I’ll leave it up to you, but I’m not staying.” His voice was ominous.

“Kuroiden!” I called. He leapt between the stranger and the door. “You are in no position to fight. I can easily out maneuver and out think you. I wouldn’t advise being to hasty just yet or making empty threats. Sit down, you’re not going anywhere.”

“Whether I sit now or not won’t make a difference in the end,” he stated calmly.

He was right. What was I going to do?

“Come with me.”

I looked at him in shock. Excuse me? What had he said?

“Come with me. See if you can stop me. It will be amusing and it’s also your only chance.”

***

Hey! I finally saw comments! Cool ones too. I'm glad you are enjoying it. I love having Maglynar with Aiden. It keeps me interested too, of course Aiden is far less than pleased. I'm sure Maglynar will grow on him..... eventually. Anyway, someone asked about Zoe's story in relation to mine. Yes, they are taking place in the same country. After that, well, you'll just have to read to see how connected they are! Right, Em? Britt, you really forgot there would be a heroine in Aiden's story? That is hilarious!! Guess, Aiden's not doing too bad yet, if you can wait for Kristylan to show up! But I really can't, and if I take too much longer Em and Jamie might just kill me. As for it not being Tancred, who in the world is that? Aiden knows about the Hunter and he's about to meet him, but a Tancred? (Hmmm. (LOL, someone's been reading too stories at once! Isn't that fun! But what it gets better!!) So, you have predictions for the next chapter? Well, hopefully I live up to expectations, but I'm not overly concerned with predictions. :-) I guess it's time to see if you all are correct or not! Enjoy Chapter 12! You will more than Aiden ;-)

CHAPTER 12 ~ THE HUNTER…

I waited another two. Slowly, I left the shadows and snuck up to the side of the house. Keeping myself low, I followed the wall around to the tree on the southeast corner. I took my time creeping around it, careful not to make a sound. I didn’t need to give the Hunter an early warning if it could be helped.

There was no lock on the front door, an amateur move. It was possible he had set up a detection system inside, I had only encounter one once in my career. I drew a dagger and lifted the latch slowly. Once I had a crack in the door, I took the dagger and slid it into the opening. I ran it up the ledge of the door and felt a slight tug about two thirds of the way up. He had put in a detection system. If the door was opened without removing the string, it would cause something extremely noisy to fall, waking up the occupant. Carefully, I pressed the string against the door frame and holding I steady gave a small tug. One side of the string fell silently to the floor. Gently, I ran the dagger up the rest of the door frame and across the top, but felt no more resistance. Obviously, the Hunter was confident his trap would work.

I pushed the door open slowly, causing as little noise as possible and being wary for anything else that might be set to catch intruders. Once the door was open just enough, I slipped inside, and closed it silently behind me. I didn’t want any extra moonlight in the room. Two windows already gave off adequate light and anymore might wake a light sleeper. The hump on the bed confirmed the Hunter’s location. I stepped to the far side of the room, avoiding the moonlight beams directed at the floor. Swiftly and silently I moved towards the bed.

The Hunter’s head was almost totally covered with his blanket. I stretched one hand down and gently picked up a corner. In one swift move I would have to remove the blanket and bring the knife down for the killing blow. One quick cut and it would all be over. I would win my freedom at the cost of Aerilya’s.

I couldn’t let the thought pause my actions. I jerked the cover back and brought my knife down with a precision force. It halted millimeters from the Hunter’s neck, though whether I had stopped it or the second dagger I did not know. In the space of that second I found myself looking fully into wide sparking green eyes. A second dagger blocked my own. A low growl from behind me tore my gaze from the green eyes to find a large black panther staring me down. When the Hunter pushed back with his dagger, I was too shocked to stop myself from taking a step backwards. Using his free hand, he tore off the blanket and stood to face me.

“Some assassin,” his voce was low, but it sounded young.

The panther leapt to stand between us. I adjusted the grip on my dagger and watched them both. Suddenly, the panther went to the left at the same time the Hunter dogged to the right. I moved quickly up the middle and turned mid-move to block the Hunter’s attack. Using my momentum, I yanked his thin arm to put him between myself and the angry cat. It didn’t stop the beast though, who landed, turned, and quickly launched again. The Hunter twisted out of my grip like a wrath and I dropped to the ground, narrowly avoiding the panther’s font claws. Against them both I was going to lose. I let out a loud whistle and turned to face the Hunter again, who was racing in for a low attack. I blocked it, but not before he managed to knick my arm above the wrist. He was fast.

I tightened my grip, so the blood wouldn’t cost me my hold and went in for my own attack. I aimed for his retreating back, but he twisted in mid air to allow himself to block my move with his own dagger. The Hunter was fast, but not strong, and I pushed my advantage. The cat screamed and raced in to help, but before he could make it to us, Maglynar blocked his way.

The griffin didn’t bother with the door, but burst through the roof shattering debris on all of us. The actions scared the panther, who left on the bed and glared at the intruder. He had taken his sweet time in getting here.

The distraction was enough for the Hunter to back away from my attack, but not before I landed a swift cut of my own. I watched his movements as he backed up toward his panther and then glanced at Maglynar. I had called the griffin with the whistle, knowing as soon as he had finished his food he would follow me, being to stubborn to stay where I put him. For once, it was a good trait.

I felt the pain in my ankle, but never saw the attack. The dagger lay embedded in the wood behind me. The Hunter’s arm still raised from throwing it, when I looked back at him. I nodded my head once. Good move, but it would be his last. No one could survive a griffin attack.

“So, you’re the assassin? Was this the best Elangsia could do? Have your griffin step aside and I will finish you off quickly.”

I tightened my grip on my dagger, the blood was causing it to become slippery. Something was wrong. He had the speed, but he seemed to lack strength, and he seemed to be too young and small. Granted, not all of the stories could be true, but each time this Hunter spoke, I got the feeling I was missing something. I needed to see better. I moved my hand so the dagger was in one of the moonbeams and casually moved so that I could bounce the light onto the Hunter’s form.

“A girl?” I felt the words form on my mouth, even as I tried to process what was taking place. The figure before me was no man. He... er… she had used the shadows to her advantage, but without the belief I was fighting a man, the fact she was a woman could not be hid. “You are not the Hunter.” I managed to say.

She raised an eyebrow at me. “Oh? And how to you know that?”

“You’re a girl.”

She sneered. “A girl, huh? And why could the Hunter not be a girl?”

From the stories I had heard, there was no way. “You couldn’t handle the missions I’ve heard that the Hunter has done.”

She laughed shortly. “I could and I have. Every day. Now, are you done mocking me? It would a real shame to kill someone who is standing defenseless. But I will if I have too.”

She had spirit. But I had a bigger problem. Despite protests, she wasn’t the Hunter and even if she was, I couldn’t kill a girl. In all my time, there were only two types I had yet to kill: women and kids. I didn’t want to start that now.

“Are you just going to stand there?” Her definitely female voice mocked.

“You are only a girl and despite protests, not the Hunter. I can’t kill you, even if I would like too.” I mocked back.

Her first tightened and her cat crouched lower, preparing to leap. “Why did you come after the Hunter now?”

I shrugged, “It’s my job. And I’m going to have to complete it. So, would you be a nice little girl and tell me where the real one is?”

“Right here,” she responded, flinging a second dagger at my head.

I dropped low to avoid it and Maglynar screeched his anger loudly. I stood slowly.

“Not interested in straight answers, are you?”

“You’re not so forthcoming yourself,” she shot back.

She was right. We could do this dance all night long. She was more stubborn than my sisters and that didn’t bode well for me. I needed answers and I was rather inclined to get them quickly. If she had set this trap, the rumors of the Hunter being in the area were completely untrue. That meant he was probable far from here. The question was where? And how was this girl involved?

I straightened and put my dagger away as she watched curiously. We weren’t going to get answers standing across from each other like hard driven warriors, when I had no intention of fighting the girl again. I had to try a different tactic.

“How about a trade?”

“I’m listening,” she answered, motioning for her cat to sit.

Maglynar cocked his head at the creature and then followed his actions. The griffin didn’t have a mind of his own, except when it came to food or being stubborn. I decided to ignore the animals and let them have their own staring contest.

“Information for information,” I proposed.

Her eyes narrowed. “No good. You’ll take whatever I tell you and go after the Hutner.”

So, now she was at least admitting she wasn’t really the Hutner. It was a start. A slim one, but I’d take what I could get.

“And you’ll try to stop me, but at least we’ll both have the information we want,” I reasoned, which meant I was going to have to restrain her somehow.

“You won’t be able to restrain me,” she commented, seeming amused.

What? Could the girl read minds? “Oh?” I asked, stalling for time now.

“No matter what information you give me I cannot allow you to leave here with the intention of continuing your search and destroy mission. That will have to end here.” There was no hesitation in her voice.

“So what are you planning on doing?” I asked.

“Whatever I have too,” she responded, calm and cool. She was not easily shaken either.

“So we fight till we are both dead?”

“If that what it takes. But I will not be the one dying here. And before you go, I’ll need to know who sent you and why now.”

“Well, if your so smart you should already know who sent me.” I reasoned. I was doing far too much of this reasoning stuff lately. It was far better just to take the opponent out, dealing with information was not a game I enjoyed. Killing them flat off was so much easier.

“Elangsia, obviously. But did the order come from the top or from somewhere else?”

I shrugged. “That is for me to know.”

“Your commander ordered you too. Okay, but who ordered him?” She mused about loud.

How had she figured out I was in the army? I was in my older traveling clothes.

She laughed. It wasn’t an unpleasant sound. “Don’t look so surprised. You have the bearing of military, though that can’t be said for all in Elangsia’s army. They fight with little but their very small brains to guide them.”

I had to agree, but I wasn’t going to do so out loud. It was better to keep her talking. “Yet they are the ones who will win.”

“Not while I’m around they won’t. We may be small, but we are strong where it counts.”

I laughed at that one. “Your hearts will do you little good in a fierce battle.”

She frowned at me. “Heart is something I wouldn’t expect a mercenary to understand.”

“Do not assume you know me, kid,” I responded sternly.

“Oh? Does this mercenary have a heart?” She mocked.

“No, I gave it up long ago. But I know what trouble they cause and I wouldn’t recommend it.” I spoke coldly, as the pictures of each of my siblings flashed through my mind.

“You speak from pain,” she commented. “Perhaps I should give us light so I can see your expressions if we are to continue this conversation.”

The change in topic was unsettling. I had yet to really see her face and expressions did tell more than words, however something about the way she said it made me leery. I watched as she moved to the table and put a match to a candle. Within seconds a soft glow filled the room. Quickly she light two more candles and then stroked the fire back into a bright light. Now, I could see more clearly. The firelight lit her blond hair a glow. Her bangs were brushed to the left side of her face, while the rest of her long hair was pulled into a ponytail at the nape of her neck. I knew from before that her eyes were an unusual green, though I still couldn’t see them all that well in the lighting. She was about the same height as Zoe. She had on a forest green tunic that reached just past her hips, tied up with a brown rope with long ends, darker green tight pants, and brown leather boots that covered her calves. Her build was one not to miss.

I waited while she too examined me. Finally, her eyes came back to meet mine. “You’re not from around here.”

I shook my head no.

“Then why become involved? It’s hard to imagine the slavers got to you.”

“No.”

“Then why fight for Elangsia?”

“I didn’t see a reason not too.” I said causally.

“What?” She exclaimed. “They are hard people with no thoughts for anything but their own wealth and land. They take free men, women, and children and force them to become slaves without hope. They don’t even treat their own people right, let alone those they capture. They are without mercy and without heart.”

“You seem to feel pretty strongly about that,” I commented.

She frowned and crossed her arms, “I have reason too.”

“Elangsia must have done something to you personally to cause that kind of emotion. Is that why you are working for the Hunter or is it something more basic? Is he your lover perhaps?”

“My… what?” She almost shouted.

Both animals looked up from their staring contest to gaze at us humans. The cat leapt down from the bed and crossed to her side, glaring at me. Maglynar just looked at me confused. The griffin was hopeless.

“No, he certainly is not,” she finally managed to get out.

I laughed silently. Okay, if it was that funny and repulsive, they must be related. Siblings, perhaps? It would explain her deep desire to protect him. But it still didn’t give me his whereabouts. I needed to somehow extract that information. “But you do know where he is.” Direct approach, maybe?

“I’ve said before I won’t tell you that. Why did your superior send you after the Hunter now? There was ample time to make a move before. Something must be going on.”

I stayed silent and watched her. She seemed to like figuring things out out loud. If so, who was I to stop her?

“Something big that they want the Hunter out of the way for. A battle perhaps?” She cocked her head, much like the griffin, as she asked.

It was the way she said it. It could have been the next logical step, but somehow it seemed like she knew or at least suspected there might be a big battle coming. It was said innocently, but at the same time as if she was confirming information. What was going on here? What had Ricald sent me into?

“A battle?” I questioned back and the shrugged. “That seems logical.”

“So then there is one?”

“You did say that.” Suddenly it hit me, though why I managed to figure it out, I have no clue. “If you think there might be a battle, practically a large one, I’ll bet your Hunter thinks so too. And that means, he’s on a gathering mission of his own.”

This time, it was she who stayed silently. I was on the right track.

“Now, where would you go to gather information about an upcoming battle?” I was enjoying watching her face as I spoke out loud. Emotions, I couldn’t quite gather, and stillness too turns passing over it. “The major army camps would be too obvious, and you would have to be pretty deeply involved for a while to get good information. Your Hunter doesn’t have that kind of time.” Travon’s face appeared in my mind and I wondered briefly how he was doing. It didn’t look like I would be making it back after one month as I had promised. My thoughts turned to the map on Ricald’s tent wall. There was only one other place on that map that made any sense to me. “Ruma. He’s gone to the capital.”

Her brief expression of dismay was all I needed to see to confirm my words. The legendary Hunter was spying in Elangsia’s capital, Ruma. He was either smart or crazy, I wasn’t sure which, but now I had a direction.

I made a mocking bow. “Thank you, my lady. I will be going now. My work here is finished. Come on, Maglynar.”

I turned, without waiting for the griffin, and headed out the door.

“Hold it right there!” Her strong voice came from behind me.

I looked behind me to see her standing in the doorway, an arrow pointed at my chest. Where she had hidden the bow and arrow to retrieve them so quickly I had no idea. But I was decidedly less than amused.

“You wouldn’t do that,” I stated calmly.

“Then you don’t know me very well. You will not go after Hunter. Period. You can either choose to stay here under guard or I can kill you, but if I were you I’d choose option one. It’s not as messy.”

Where had that griffin gone? I glanced up to see his rather large form sitting on top of the roof. He didn’t look like he planned to move anytime soon.

“Look, I have a contract I have to get out of, either I kill your Hunter or I’m stuck. If I don’t kill him I’ll have a very angry captain to deal with, and that’s not something I’m willing to do. Sorry, but one arrow isn’t going to kill me.” I turned and started walking again, calling for Maglynar to move it as I did.

The white hot pain was so intense, I lost my breath and for a moment my ability to think. When I looked down I saw an arrow running through my shoulder. I put a hand on the extremely painful area and turned to look at the girl standing in the doorway with an empty bow. She really had shot me.

***

CHAPTER 11 ~ PROBLEMS

THREE WEEKS LATER

“Maglynar! Get out of there or I am going to shoot you!” I yelled at the animal, completely frustrated.

He was growing at an astronomical rate, but the thing was still a pup. And that meant he was into everything, absolutely everything. Currently, it was a shallow muddy pond. The griffin was completely covered in mud and thoroughly enjoying himself.

“I’m warning you, Maglynar, get out of there!” I commanded again.

The griffin paused in his frolicking for exactly one second, before rolling over in the other direction. I threw up my arms disgusted and started walking, with any luck the animal would stay behind. Not that the tactic had worked before.

I had a good few minutes of peace before Maglynar flew over head of me, raining down drops of mud.

“Argh! You stupid animal!” I called up, but he was ignoring me.

Suddenly, he turned and dove into the woods. Immediately, I drew my dagger and crept forward. He played a lot, but his warnings were undisputed. He had been correct every time he had heard someone near by. His encounter with humans was the difference between Travon and I and the army murdering his parents. When he had first come out of the cave, the little warrior had gone mad with the smell of blood and his parents. It had taken us forever to get him away from the area and calmed down. Apparently, the experience meant he hated all humans, but Travon and I, which wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. However, it did make it interesting when he got it into his mind to attack. The first week of my search had been lost on training him to detect and hide from humans, instead of detecting and attacking.

Now, I crept to his side and place a hand on his head.

“Where?” I asked softly.

He arched his neck to the right of us. I nodded and commanded ‘stay’ before heading in that direction. A hundred paces or so later, I discovered two men hunched over a fire.

“Hello,” I called and entered their circle.

They looked up quickly.

“Hello, stranger. Can we help you?”

“I seem to have gotten mixed up. I need to get to the closest village, could you point out the direction?” I asked calmly.

“You’re not from around here, are you?” The second asked.

I shook my head, “Nope. Why do you ask?”

The two glanced at each other. “Slavers travel in these parts. Strangers get pulled more than anyone else. You should be careful,” the first spoke.

“It’s better not to travel by yourself,” the second added.

“I’ll keep that in mind.” I answered causally.

“You want to sit for a minute? The nearest village is in that direction, but it’s about a two days walk,” the first offered.

“Sounds good. Thanks.” I said, sitting down.

“Where are you from?” The second questioned.

“Over the mountains. You?” I asked.

“Vedrick. It’s about four days from here. Small village,” the first answered.

Their tag team answers and questions were starting to grate on my nerves.

“Why’d you leave?” I asked.

“Not enough food. We’ve been out hunting trying to collect more, but we haven’t had much luck.”

Strange. I hadn’t had any trouble. They hadn’t collected any by the looks of their mounts. They weren’t being honest, but calling them on it wouldn’t get me any information. And I didn’t need people getting suspicious of my intentions this deep into Aerliya territory.

“I just came from off that way. There seemed to be enough for my purposes. Maybe you should try it,” I suggested helpfully.

“Thanks,” the first nodded.

“You mentioned slavers in the area. Why does your government allow it?”

“They don’t. Well, not on purpose anyway. We are having a hard time stopping them,” the second admitted.

I frowned, feigning concern. “That can’t be safe. No one should be able to own another human. Freedom is one of our most important gifts.”

The two nodded. “We agree. That’s why we warned you. They don’t get everyone they try to take. We do have the Hunter.”

“The who?” I asked curiously. Finally, I was getting somewhere!

“The Hunter. He is a servant of our king. A real hero. He helps to free slaves taken from our own land and he spies on the Elangsia,” the second offered the information.

“Wow, quite a job,” I murmured.

The two nodded, but neither said anything.

“Does he need help by any chance?” I asked, causally.

“Why?” The first asked suspiciously.

I shrugged. “Like I said, I’m not from around here. But I do know what it’s like to be a slave. Anyone opposed to that is a friend of mine. Maybe I’ll stick around and help this Hunter guy out.”

The second nodded, “He can always use help.”

“Can you tell me where to find him?” I asked next, wanting to hold my breath.

“No,” the first spoke quickly. “But you can usually get wind of his activates if you visit the tavern at Haverts. It’s the village we told you about earlier.”

“Sounds great. Thanks.” I slapped my leg and stood, suddenly restless. “If it’s two days away I’d better get started. Thanks for you help. Don’t forget to head back that way for some meat.” I pointed behind me.

“Will do,” the first said skeptically.

“Nice to meet you,” the second added.

I nodded my head and disappeared back into the woods. It was time to collect Maglynar. We had a destination to hit.

***

Five taverns later, I was not so excited about hitting the next destination. Talk at tavern’s was cheap, and while some talk flowed more easily than others, news about the Hunter seemed to be a closely guarded secret. Even his actions against Elangsia were not spoken off. Almost all the information available was that he was the well respected hero. It was more than a little tiring.

Maglynar howled behind me. I sighed and turned to look at my constant companion.

“Now what?”

He screeched indignantly.

“You can’t come and that’s all I’m saying.” I turned to keep going, but the immediately following crash made me turn back quickly.

Maglynar sat on top of a very broken tree. I crossed my arms and looked at him in annoyance.

“You had better hope no one heard that, or I’m going to kill you myself.”

Maglynar cocked his head at me and let out a defiant screech.

“No. I’m going to the next town alone. You cause to much commotion. Now be still, or you will regret it.” I ordered, out of patience.

Maglynar cocked his head at me, but didn’t reply. I took it as acceptance. He had spotted the town early just up ahead. I didn’t need him frightening off everyone before I could get the information I sought.

I trudged out of the woods and into town quickly. The tavern was at the center was in most tons. People crowded the streets talking, laughing, and getting in my way. I ignored the little kids begging and entered the crowd tavern. Quickly, I made my way to the bar, sat, and ordered some ale. Within minutes, the lukewarm drink was in front of me and I was focused on the conversations all around. It was a bigger town and the ale flowed freely, which might mean looser tongues. That was something I desperately needed right now.

If anyone ever says that men do not wage their tongues as much as women that person is a fool. The conversations reaching me were pitiful. Everything was discussed, who’s wife was cheating and what the guy would do when he caught her, who had the best crops, what the first born son was up too, who had mastered a new weapon, and more. None of it was interesting to me however, which was a disappointment.

“’Scuse me, mister,” a young voice called from my right hip.

I glanced down to see a small blond headed boy standing there. “What?”

“Are you the Hunter?” He asked, brown eyes wide.

“The Hunter?” I looked at him again in surprise. “Don’t you know him?”

The boy shook his head. “Nope, mister. But he brought my best friend, Jerkome back. I gotta thank him.”

“Did he?” That was interesting. “When was this?”

“Earlier.”

Helpful kid, I thought sarcastically. “Where is Jerkome now?”

“His mom took him home. He wasn’t suppose to leave,” Jerkome said seriously.

“Gartune! Get back here right now!” A low timbered voice ordered.

Gartune’s head ducked quickly as he scurried to the bartender’s side. I watched the scene with interest.

“I don’t you not to bother customers. The Hunter ain’t comin’ through ‘ere!” The bartender grabbed the boy and shook him as he spoke.

“But he did! And Traket said he was here now!” Gartune insisted on protesting.

The bartender shook him harder. “Shhhh! He ain’t! I don’t know what possessed Traket to talk to a scrawny kid like you. But that man ought to keep his trap shut!”

Gartune’s eyes were wide by now, but he was quickly nodding his head as if the bartender spoke ultimate truth. The kid didn’t believe a word of it, but he wasn’t going to let the old man know that. Smart kid. I had to find this Traket. Within seconds the bartender had sent the kid away and minutes later I followed.

Causally, I made my way to the back of the tavern. Outside, the sun had finally started to drop, but there was still plenty of light. I glanced around the backyard and headed for the barn. Inside, it didn’t take long to find the kid snuggled on a pile of hay in one of the corners.

“Hey, kid,” I greeted causally.

He looked up startled. “Hi, mister.”

“That was rough,” I commented. “You’re a strong kid.”

The boy nodded.

“Who is Traket?”

“He’s my friend.”

That was helpful. “How come?”

“He tells me stuff. I’m no little kid to him. Even if he’s really old.”

“Stuff like what?” I asked.

“Like stories ‘bout all kinds of things. He tells me secrets too.”

“About the Hunter?”

Gartune lowered his head, but nodded.

Now we were getting somewhere. “What did he tell you about the Hunter?”

Gartune looked at me silently. I knelt down, so we were on eye level.

“Traket wouldn’t have told you unless he trusted you to tell the right people. I’m that person. The Hunter is my friend and I want to find him. It is important I get to him quickly. Can you help me?”

Gartune looked torn.

I tried one last tactic. “I can thank him for you. You know, about Jerkome.”

“You’d do that for me?” Gartune asked, in wonder.

I nodded. “I’ll even tell him you sent the message. He’ll be glad you thanked him. He doesn’t get that too often.”

“He doesn’t?” Gartune asked, shocked.

“No,” I shook my head seriously, “Most people don’t take the time.”

“Traket said he was staying in his hunting shack.”

Finally! “Do you know where that is?”

He nodded proudly. “It’s by the stream. Me and Jerkome walked a whole two days to get there with Traket! We did real good!”

“What way did you walk?”

“Up.”

North then. “Gartune, this is really important. Are you sure the Hunter is there? Should I check with Traket?”

“He went home. I’m sure.” Gartune made is sound like home wasn’t very close.

“Thanks, Kid. You did good.”

It wouldn’t take Maglynar long to fly over and check it out. If someone was there, I could follow. It may have come from a kid, but it was the best lead I had. I was going to use it.

***

Maglynar had spotted the Hunter immediately, my problem was I didn’t have proof it was the Hunter, since I had never seen him. It had taken me a full day to settle down Maglynar far away from the cabin, where his annoyed screeching and squawking couldn’t reach the ears of the Hunter. The idiot hadn’t wanted to stay for any reason. I had ended up letting him kill two elk and a large wolf in order to get him to stay. With food ready to eat, the griffin had finally been appeased.

I brushed a bush twig out of my face, annoyed, and shifted my position. The cabin was deep in the woods, but it a small stream did run directly behind it, just as Gartune had promised. An earlier trip around the cabin had revealed only one door in the front and a window on each wall. A tree hugged the front most corner so closely, it looked like it was part of the wall itself. It gave an extra barrier to the front door. I didn’t have a floor plan, but it looked like it was a single room. My main question was where the bed was located. If it followed normal pattern, it would be in the back left hand corner. I needed to move fast, I didn’t trust the legendary Hunter not notice someone was out here watching him.

The cabin door opened and an older man walked out into the dimming light. He glanced around and then called back into the cabin, but I couldn’t here what he said. He laughed, nodded his head, and pulled the door shut behind him. He picked up a bag that had been sitting on the small front step, slung it over his shoulder, and walked down to the stream, heading out of sight. He had to be Traket.

That left only the Hunter. He had to be the one inside. Maglynar had only seen two humans. That left only one. I watched the house for anther two hours, before I was forced to move closer because the moonlight was all I had to see by. Another half hour passed, before the light when on inside, it was late, but it had at least come on. A single shadow moved inside the room. Staying in the shadows I moved even closer. Soon, I was outside one of the windows. A person sat at the table inside eating a small meal. His face, unfortunately, was constantly in the shadow. However, his clothing looked like one who was very familiar with living in the woods. Glancing around further, I finally spotted the bed located just where I had thought. There were no surprises here.

Ducking down, I crept back into the tree line to wait. It was almost too simple. Once the Hunter went to bed I would take him out. I didn’t want to get too cocky, a legend was not someone to mess with lightly, but this was one legend that was about to end.

The thought gave me a slight pause. What would it mean f I did succeed in killing a legend? Would I finally be ready then to meet Duard? Somehow that didn’t match, maybe if I was meeting the Hunter in face to face combat, but not this way. And right now, the main object was getting out from under Ricald. Still, it was a shame to lose such an opportunity to test my skills. I was essential slaughtering Travon’s hero. He knew I was killing the Hunter, he didn’t need to know how. The light in the cabin went dark. One more hour and it would be time to move.

***