Chapter 32:
Where have you gone?
With the satchel of herbs held tightly in his grip, Meredith quickly and quietly made his way back to the small, forlorn cabin. Though Meredith had only picked a few, barely enough herbs to make medicine for two, a sinking feeling in his chest caused him to abandon his herb search in order to get back to the cabin. Yet as he approached the cabin, Meredith felt the sinking feeling overwhelm him, making him feel a wave of dread take over his body. These feelings were only solidified as he approached the cabin door, the herbs still in his hands. The door had been pushed wide open, and water had seeped in from the open door, covering some of the wet shoe imprints left behind from a mysterious person’s previous entrance. There were traces of an unfamiliar presence lingering in the air.
“Silas?” Meredith quickly ran inside, the hood of his cloak dropping down from his head as he ran. As his foot entered the cabin, he froze, seeing no sign of Silas, nor of the cloak he had been wearing. Meredith’s eyes then moved to the shoe imprints. At first, he had thought Silas had stepped out to look for him, but Silas’s condition was too poor, and he would not be able to leave on his own like that. After looking at the foot imprints again, he found they were too big to have possibly come from himself or Silas.
What happened here? Meredith appeared calm, but his face paled at the realization someone had taken Silas. Silas would be unable to protect himself in his state. Anything could happen to him, and he could easily be killed. Thinking this, Meredith looked at the herbs in his hands, tempted to throw them down in infinite anger, but he lifted his hand for only a moment before he lowered it again, feeling too disgusted to do so.
Meredith was in a similar condition to Silas, and he knew he would have to make a potion before he could even think of going to look for Silas. The mana trail in the room was there, but Meredith was too weak to attempt to follow it through the forest. For now, he could only contact Eva and see what they could do together. Even with his lack of mana, he still had a communication stone he and Eva had prepared before he had set off with Silas to deliver the package from Eva.
For emergencies. Eva had said to him when she slipped the strung stone over his head.
If this isn’t an emergency, emergencies simply do not exist. Meredith thought to himself. Reaching around his neck, Meredith pulled a long, twine string and lifted it from outside his shirt. Attached to the end of the string was an amber colored stone, knotted tightly with twine. When Meredith’s fingers brushed against the stone, it lit up with a warm yellow light, warming the tips of Meredith’s fingers. As he lifted the stone to his chin, there was a loud buzzing sound, followed by a familiar voice that entered the room through the stone.
“Meredith?” Eva’s smooth voice came out of the stone, her tone cool, but Meredith could hear the worry and curiosity in her voice. “What happened? You were late for your check in too.”
Meredith’s lips thinned as he rubbed his aching forehead, “Eva, the sparrow has left the nest.”
Eva swore quietly to herself before she responded, “I figured it was something like that. What happened?”
“It’s Silas. We used up too much mana trying to escape the crown prince, so we had to rest-”
“So what happened?” Eva said shortly, cutting off Meredith, “Is the package safe?”
“Forget the package for a minute, Eva!” Meredith snapped back, “Silas is missing. Someone captured him.”
Eva paused for a minute before replying, “Do you know who it was?”
“No,” Meredith said, shaking his head in frustration, “I can barely keep this communication link open. I’m almost out of mana too.”
Meredith could hear something rustling from Eva’s end of the link. She then replied with a sigh, “Send me your coordinates, then rest. I’ll send some men to you. They will retrieve the package. Once it’s secure, they will help you track Silas’s location.”
“Absolutely not, Eva. First I need to find Silas. Then I’ll deliver your package.” Meredith said sharply as his breath shortened, his mana dropping to dangerously low levels.
“We’ll discuss this after you’ve been able to rest. I’m getting your location right now, so keep your stone active.”
“No, Eva. We discuss it right now.” Meredith closed his eyes as his head began to spin, his back pressed up against the cool wood wall, “I know what you’ll do. You’ll secure the package, then leave Silas to die.”
Eva sighed before replying, “You know this is bigger than just one person. The package must make it safely to its destination.”
Meredith cut in with a cold line, stopping Eva. “No, Eva, I don’t know. But you should know what it’s like to lose family.” He shook his head and tightened his grip on the stone before he said shortly, “Once Silas is safe, we’ll regroup and deliver the package.”
Eva tapped her gloved fingers on the table next to her as she sat with her legs crossed, her frustration with Meredith building, “Fine. I’ll send someone to bring you to Cailith, and we’ll reconvene there to make a plan.”
There was a short pause from Meredith before he spoke up into the communication stone and said,“Thank you, Eva.” Meredith sighed to himself in relief, thanking Eva with a bitter smile.
Eva laughed lowly to herself as she said, “Then, Meredith. See you soon.”
The conversation was quickly cut short by Eva, and Meredith could only stand in silence, holding the stone in his hands as he looked off to the side, sighing to himself as he placed the stone back inside his shirt, a pained expression crossing his face.
For now, all I can do is recover my mana.
Meredith slid down on the ground, forcing himself to open his satchel and grab out his mortar and pestle. Without much regard, he threw the herbs into the mortar and began to crush the herbs into a powder with the pestle. At least he would be able to quickly use them this way to replace the mana lost. Smashing down on the herbs, Meredith’s face was bitter with anger and frustration. He could only let it go by weakly smashing the herbs with his hands.
…
There was one particular path to Cailith that was often used by travelers that rested on the edge of the woods. Though there were said to be shortcuts through the woods, many travelers were afraid of elves hiding inside, preparing to kill human travelers once they got lost inside the expansive forest. Alywin knew some of the trails and shortcuts, and he had discussed them with Theo before he and Clarence prepared to leave the kingdom, but he was not expecting to use one of them so soon.
“We need to cut through the forest. He’s an elf, so he would go through here.”
Alywin felt powerless to speak up to Clarence at the moment. The chill around the prince was permeating the autumn air like a knife, making the chill in the wind colder than it had while they were still in Meuridge. Clarence looked normal from an outsider’s view, but Alywin found the small smile resting comfortably on Clarence’s face strange. It did not contain the innocence of the prince, but rather a smile that reminded Alywin of himself.
“Hold on a second.” Alywin stopped Clarence and said,“There’s a path through the woods here. Theo marked it on the map.” Alywin stopped his horse as he unfolded the map. Clarence slowed his horse down to a stop next to Alywin. He leaned sideways towards the map, making some of his hair brush Alywin’s cheek.
“We’re about halfway to Cailith. We can take a break after we get through the woods.” Clarence and Alywin had been traveling for over half the day, and they had been traveling as quickly as their horses would allow them without exhausting them. As much distance as they had made, it still did not feel like enough to Clarence, but Alywin could only follow along, coaxing him to rest at times.
The prince traveled like a possessed man, continuing forward with a strange determination. As soon as Clarence’s eyes laid on the map, he nodded his head and stared at the additions Theo had added. Clarence made a few small remarks as the two moved close together on their horses to look at the map. As Clarence leaned in, Alywin glanced over to Clarence. Alywin took in the sight of Clarence’s familiar appearance. His blue hair, his long, strong nose, his boyish cheeks that always had a slight blush. All of these features were so familiar to Alywin, yet they looked so foreign on Clarence now. Alywin felt like he was looking at a stranger in Clarence’s body.
With a few moments of looking over the map and solidifying their plan, Clarence pulled away and sat upright in his seat. When Clarence moved his head, his hair brushed past Alywin’s cheek again with the tips of his hair, seeming not to notice, maybe not to even care. Usually, he would be embarrassed and apologize for such close contact, but today, it was as if nothing mattered.
“How long will it take us to get through the woods?” Alywin was startled out of his thoughts by Clarence's voice. It made him pause for a second before he looked down at the map again and said with some certainty.
“It should take us around half a day if we rush. If the terrain is poor, probably closer to a full day.” Theo only marked the path. He had not added any notes of the terrain inside other than noting the path had not been used in years by neither elves nor humans, and it would be a quick, safe way for them to travel, so long as they were careful with their horses. Knowing Theo, he carefully considered what he wrote.
Clarence tapped the sides of his horse and began to move forward at a faster pace, while Alywin stuffed the map away back in his bag after he folded it quickly. The trail through the woods was not complex, and they were comfortable using the path to direct them.
With any luck, they would be able to find any traces of the elf from the brothel and catch him alive. Their trip would be pointless if the elf was dead.
No one can harm a single hair on that elf’s head but me. The light blue of Clarence’s eyes was dyed a dark blue, full of killing intent as the sound of horse hooves reverberated through the entrance of the forest. The farther they traveled in, the darker the underbrush became, and soon they were hidden by the vibrant plant life and the shadows of the branches hiding the sunlight.
…
The feeling of weightlessness and bouncing was the first thing Silas felt as he opened his blurry eyes, still feverish from the lack of mana in his blood. His mind spun in circles as he tried to find his bearings, but all he could see was a blurry arm wrapped around his waist from the sides, holding him in place on what felt like a horse.
This can’t be Meredith. Meredith was the same height as Silas, and he would not be strong enough to support Silas’s weight while riding the horse, like now. Knowing this, Silas’s eyes flew open and he began to flail his arms and wiggle in place, attempting to shake off the grip of the person so he could escape.
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you.” A deep voice rang out beside Silas’s ear, and he froze in place, remembering where he had last heard the voice before.
By the gods, it’s-
“Captain Beau Laurent.” Silas stated, forced to face forward by the large man’s chest. With the back of his head resting against it, it made him feel as if his back were pressed against a brick wall, solid and wide. It made Silas feel slightly self-conscious of his own frame, shrinking in comparison to Beau’s. It was like the man could tighten his arms and crush the air out of Silas’s lungs. “What is going on?” He could only thicken his resolve and ask this question in his weak, gravely voice.
The captain continued to stare forward, not paying any mind to the sick elf. “We are going back to the capital, where you will be tried before the Yursinean court.” His voice was formal, but cold, leaving Silas to weakly lay against him, aggravated at the situation he had found himself in.
Of course it had to be that dull-witted captain that found me. By the gods, I would rather have died than be taken back to be killed by those filthy humans. Silas’s mouth was bitter as his mind, and he responded to the captain with a similar frigid tone, “What for?”
Captain Beau Laurent paused for a moment as the horse continued to move forward, “For treason and conspiring against the Yursinsean Kingdom.” His response was succinct, as if he had been preparing for the moment to say that.
Silas rolled his eyes, hidden by the hood covering him. His body was still too weak, and he would not be able to do anything for now in his condition, so he adjusted his back to a comfortable position and sat and watched their surroundings with a watchful eye. As long as he was able to work out their position, he would be able to run back and find Meredith. All that mattered was that he was able to escape and get the package delivered to Eva’s men.
Even if Meredith was able to deliver the package, which he would not do without him, Eva could still blame Silas for being caught by the enemy, and his family’s safety could be put in jeopardy. He did not trust Eva, and the fact that she had the power to harm the ones he loved made him even more wary of the woman. He would have to tread carefully while in the captain’s custody, until he was able to escape.
“Don’t even think about running away.” The captain could sense Silas’s movements and knew Silas’s idea. “I can easily smell your mana and find you again. You,” Beau lowered his head, the top of his head brushing against Silas’s neck with an uncomfortable prickly feeling. “Smell different from the other elves. You smell like moss and herbs.” Captain Beau took another sniff before adding, “You smell kind of like an old person?” The captain sniffed again before he lifted his head slightly, humming to himself in thought.
A vein in Silas’s forehead throbbed as he uttered low, “Sniff me again and I’ll cut your fucking nose off.” Silas did not like to swear, as he found it vulgar, but he could not stop the words from pouring out of his mouth. Rather than feeling vulgar, it came out aggressive and forceful sounding, more so than Silas’s usual gentle tone.
The captain stopped for a second, having already raised his head back to position, before he laughed a deep, hearty laugh from his belly. Beau laughed until there were tears in his eyes, and he had to wipe them away before he could stop himself from laughing.
“Oh, you’re funny.”
Silas snorted in response, feeling too irritated to respond properly. As much as he wanted to rebuke the barbarian behind him, he held in his thoughts and bit his tongue to keep himself from going mad. There would be no point to it anyway, Silas thought to himself, his brows knotting.
“We’re almost there.” Beau said as he glanced up, which caused Silas to follow his gaze in curiosity of where they were going. A huge metal gate stood a few hundred meters in front of them, with intimidating, tall walls, “Cover your head and keep your voice down.” Beau said, his voice slightly gravely as he began to pull the cloak over Silas's head. Silas began to weakly protest, trying futilely to lift his arms, but Beau easily grabbed his arms with one hand before yanking the cloak roughly over Silas.
“Wh-what are you doing?” Silas asked, attempting to wiggle out of Beau’s strong grasp.
“We’re entering Cailith in a moment.” Beau began, leaning in towards Silas’s covered head, “And I don’t think I need to tell you how the people of Cailith feel about elves. Remember the elven attack two years ago? That burned down half of the town?” Beau laughed heavily, “And imagine what they would do to you if they found out an elf was among their midst? At least I’m willing to give you a fair trial.”
“Then why take me through here? Don’t you want to know what I know?” Silas mumbled through the thick cloak, “You won’t get it if I die.”
“That’s why I’m telling you to shut your mouth.” Beau said, directing his horse to the gate, “You won’t make it much farther if we don’t stop, but if we stop outside in the forest, you might take that chance to run off, even as sick as you are. This is the best choice to make you behave.”
As the two approached on the white horse, the guards snapped to attention.
“Good morning, sir.” The soldier closest to Silas and Beau said, “Can I see your citizenship token? And whatever package you’re carrying?”
With a roll of his eyes, Beau pulled out a small cloth bag from within his armor plate and tossed it to the soldier, who caught it with a surprised expression on his face. He opened it with a furrow of his brow, before gasping and bowing deeply. The soldier then then quickly stood up and passed the small bag back to Beau.
“Open the gates!” The guard shouted as he stepped aside, “Have a wonderful stay in Cailith, Captain Laurent.” At the mention of the name, the other soldier standing outside snapped to attention.
“It’s an honor to have you visit us, Captain Laurent.” The other guard said with a snapped bow.
“It’s an honor to be here.” Beau said, his tone calm and mellow, as he cracked the reins with one hand to stir his horse forward, holding Silas in place with the other, “So much to do here.” He mumbled out as the grip on Silas’s waist tightened.
...
Thank you all for reading! Your support has kept Hunny and I going :D We've both been feeling a little melancholy, so getting work done has been hard as of late. But, we are working into chapters 34 and 35, so we're actually ahead ♥
What do you think of Beau? A new character will be added next week, so expect my son, Holland Joey! I love him to bits, and I think you all will too~! Ah, he's a wild bean (ㆆᴗㆆ)
Edit: If you would like to help Hunny and I, please feel free to leave a comment/ review, rate the story, like the chapter, or even donate at our ko-fi ♥ Every little bit helps! Thanks always for your support!!
