Bloodless Knights (27 page)

I
felt revived, but wondered where Trave was. Did he make it? I gently pushed
Vivian slightly away from me to look around. He was seated on the rocks not far
from us, with his head in his hands, probably nursing an awful headache. In the
near distance, I saw Benson Light Tower, jutting over large boulders that
decorated the beach.

Vivian’s
cold hand brushed my face, “I thought I would lose thee just now. But poor
Asher; he saved thy life, Tristen. The dragon was flying directly at thee and
Asher put himself in the path. That’s the best mate ye could ever have.”

I
knew what Vivian was trying to say, without actually saying it; I shouldn’t
have mistreated Asher. He had only done what he felt was best for his wife. I
closed my eyes and hoped that Jadorion was still safe with the ladies at the
abandoned cottage. I hated to think that all the people around me were having a
bad fate.

“Thou
art right, Viv, I shouldn’t have been awful to my best mate. I hope wherever he
is that he is alive. If he is not, well, I hope he will forgive me when I slay
the beast to avenge him. But I’m hoping for a slim chance that he is with
Brendan.” I pushed a piece of Vivian’s hair from her face as I studied her. The
lady’s cheeks were pale and thin. Although she was as lovely as ever, something
seemed lost in her eyes. “What has happened since we’ve been apart, my
darling?”

She
looked away from me and focused on Trave. I turned to see he was still in the
same position but something new was behind him in the distance. A man wearing
an ivory cloak, carrying a long wooden walking stick, climbed over the rocks
and limped across the dirt toward us. He didn’t appear to be threatening but
Vivian stared at him viciously and stood up.

I
tried to stand as well, but it was difficult. Vivian reached a hand toward me
and as I placed my hand on hers, she pulled me right off the ground. I noted it
wasn’t helpful for my manliness to be lifted by a petite woman stronger than me
- then realized I didn’t care.

Once
Vivian was satisfied I could stay upright without assistance, she rushed toward
Trave as if she most certainly didn’t trust our approaching guest. I guessed
who the visitor was and walked toward him, leaving behind Vivian’s “Be careful”
warning.

As
I got closer to the man, his square jaw became more defined. His long nose
jumped from his face. Most noticeable, was a deep curved scar across his cheek
that I recognized as his souvenir of the Treg war.

“Flint
Vercutty! It’s been a long time, mate.” I hurried, as quickly as my frozen
bones would take me, toward the overseer of the tower. He smiled at me.

We
embraced and added a firm pat to the others back. He stated, “Tristen, my boy!
Yourn all grown up on me.” He gently pushed me away from him. His dark-brown
eyes scanned my face. “I came over to see what damage that dragon did over
here. I saw him come and go so fast! I knew there had to be a reason. Did ye and
yourn buddies scare him away?”

I
shook my head, “Hardly. The beast took away my dear mate. Flew away faster than
I knew what happened.”

Flint
glanced behind me at Vivian and Trave and nodded their direction, “Who are
they?”

I
turned to see two black capes, with Trave’s fierce eyes watching us intently
and Vivian scribbling in her blasted journal. “Those are my companions, Vivian
and her brother Trave.”

“Ah,
I see. Well, get yourn mates and let’s get ye all some dry clothes and hot
food. Ye knoweth how Liza loves to cook plenty of food. She’ll be glad to see
ye, son.” Flint patted my arm and smiled, exposing a few missing teeth.

At
the word, “son”, I was reminded of my father and although Flint wasn’t many
years older than I, it seemed I would rather call him “father”, than the man
who actually was.

Loud
chopping greeted us as we neared the lighthouse. I expected to see young men
taking apart wood for the beacon fire, but a female with shoulder-length
straight brown hair was hacking away at logs.

Liza’s
long brown skirt swayed around her as she swung the axe. The sleeves of her
thin blouse were pushed up over her elbows. A white gossamer coif kept her hair
from her face. When she saw us approach, she placed the axe against the side of
a brick dwelling. She wiped her hands and face with her ivory colored apron,
exposing a large bump of a child. I thought of Asher’s expecting wife, Felicia,
and immediately felt overwhelmed with sadness.

As
we walked toward Liza, the intuit woman searched the faces of the people
following her husband. When her eyes paused upon me, she had a flash of
recognition and beamed at me.

“Tristen
Dow! What a wonderful surprise! I haven’t seen that mug forn years!” She slowly
waddled toward us and put out her hand to me.

I
took her rough hand in mine and kissed it softly. “My lady. It has been a long
time, but not long enough that thou shall chop thy own logs – especially now.”
I tried to avoid looking at her swollen belly, but couldn’t help myself. “Where
art thou helpers?”

Liza’s
thin lips smiled when I had kissed her hand, but when I mentioned employees,
her lips curled down, “Well, with all that’s going on, the town needs all the
men working on the ship.”

“Ship?”
I abruptly turned to Flint. Liza also turned to her husband and kissed his
cheek.

Flint
tiredly glanced at Liza and took her hand. “Aye, ole’ Tendril said since the
boats are gone he just wants one big ship for transport and fishing. As time
goes on he will add other ships. He’s got a crew in the forest helping him and,
from what I hear, the ship is nearly finished.”

“Who
are yourn friends, Tristen?” Liza politely asked, after studying Vivian and
Trave.

I
introduced everyone to one another and after Liza shook their hands, she
invited us inside. “Ye must be frozen half to death!”

I
had been cold for so long, I hadn’t realized that my clothing was frozen. I
looked at Montour Mountain with absolute disgust then followed the Vercutty’s
into their humble home.

The
interior of the home was almost exactly as I remembered. All of the furniture
had been built from pine - by Flint - with his extraordinary carving skills.
The long dining table seemed lonely and vacant. The house was tidy with little
to look at, but it smelled divine of baking currant cake.

Vivian
inhaled deeply, “Ah, I love a good currant cake. This one smells especially
heavenly.”

Liza
smiled at Vivian and grabbed her by the arm. She led her to the large oven at
the end of the room. Flint walked toward the back of the room to his bedroom
and returned with some clothing.

“I
hope ye can make do with these clothes, Trave. Ye are a bit taller than I, but
I had a helper who left these here a while back; hope they work.” Flint handed
a pile of clothes to Trave. His beard had little icicles draped from the ends.
I wanted to laugh, until I realized that I probably looked just as ridiculous.

Flint
handed me a linen shirt with some wool slacks and socks. He and I were about
the same stature; I was sure his clothes would fit me. I took them from him and
removed my armor and frozen clothing. As I stood re-dressing, I noticed Vivian
glance toward me. I sweetly smiled at her and she returned a sly, toothy grin
that sent chills through me, causing a shiver.

“Oh,
where are my manners?” Liza asked, as she glanced at Vivian’s wet green dress.
“Let me get ye a change.”

“Oh,
no, madam. Please, let me get them. I don’t want to trouble thee.” Vivian
glanced at Liza’s overgrown stomach.

Liza
smiled kindly at Vivian, “It’s no trouble dear, I need to look-in on my napping
little Zacharias. I will fetch them while I do that.”

“Who
is Zacharias?” I asked, after pulling a tight blue tunic over my chilly body.

Flint
answered, since Liza had already disappeared from the room. “He’s our
three-year-old son. Quite a handful, but we love him.” He grabbed a hat and
opened the door, “Going to finish that wood – not a woman’s work.”

I
grinned at Flint as he walked through the door. Then gazed toward Vivian; her
face was sad. Trave watched her, like only a concerned brother could.

After
Trave and I had changed our clothing, we joined Flint. He immediately put us to
work, hauling wood and whale oil to the light. Once we finished, we helped him
clean the windows in the tower. The oil and soot from the beacon fire caused
the windows to dirty quickly; we used a pungent smelling solution to remove the
grit.

When
we finished tidying the house light, we headed back to the cottage. Not much
was said between the three of us. I was too introspective to discuss anything
with my comrades. I knew the worst part of my trip was yet to come. I still had
to deal with my father and a dragon that wasn’t going to kill himself. Cleaning
a guiding-light was the least of my concerns.

When
the door opened, a waft of delicious smells tempted us to step inside. The long
table no longer appeared lonely as it was covered with food and dishes to eat
it on. The ladies both smiled at us as we entered the room.

A
cute little toe-head boy sat on a bench, eating a piece of thick crusty bread.
He smiled when he saw Flint. “Daddy!”

Flint
picked up his son and threw him in the air. He was answered with a squeal of
delight.

Liza
brought a dish of sweet breads to the table and came close to me. She
whispered, “Where did ye find yourn lovely royal lady?”

I
stepped away to see her eyes. I must have had a strange look on my face because
she added, “What? Ye knowest not, my lord? Only a royal gal would have hands
that soft.”

I
was confused. I decided I still had much to learn of Vivian. I had felt her
soft hands myself and wondered how I hadn’t been smart enough to figure out
that they were indeed the hands of a woman who did not do manual labor – like
the hands of my own mum. I watched Vivian, whose back was toward me. Her long
hair flowed down her back, drying in messy waves. I desperately wanted to know
all her secrets and knew I couldn’t rest until I did.

I
turned my eyes from her. Trave was glaring at me. I feigned a smile at him
because it was always a game for me to show kindness in the hate-arena. Nothing
angered an enemy worse than old-fashioned goodness. Trave ground his teeth
together, bringing a real smile to my face.

Flint
saw our exchange and patted me on the back, “Ye can all sleep in the
assistant’s shack; it’s plenty comfortable. Then tomorrow morn I’ll have some
of our horses ready for ye. We breed ‘em now, so there are a few to choose
from. I assume ye’ll want to be on the way to where yourn going.”

I
nodded my head, “Aye, we’re going to my kingdom to see my father. It’s time to
turn myself in.”

Flint
pulled a chair from the table and motioned toward it for me to have a seat,
which I did. He sat next to me.

“I
heard about that business. I knoweth not what yourn father is thinking,
offering up gold on yourn head like that. What did ye do that a good spankin’
won’t fix?” Flint grabbed a hot roll from a basket on the middle of the table.
Although he didn’t smile, the rest of the room giggled.

Trave
joined us at the table, followed by Vivian. She sat next to Zacharias and
lightly touched his cheek. He grinned at her.

Liza
carefully seated herself, after placing a pitcher of ale on the table.

“Tristen
didn’t do anything, Mr. Vercutty. His father is pure evil; naught else.” Vivian
interjected, and then coyly added, “Excuse me for interrupting there, but
Tristen doesn’t completely knoweth the extent of his father’s wickedness.”

I
looked questioningly at Vivian. She shrugged her shoulders and stated
matter-of-factly, “Ye don’t.” She loaded her plate with all meat; now it made
sense to me why she was an absolute carnivore.

“Well
what do
ye
knoweth of it?” My voice sounded a bit angrier than I had
intended it to. I reached for a large piece of cheese and shoved it greedily
into my salivating mouth.

Vivian
grinned with a smile that melted the icy edge off me, “Thou shall knoweth soon
enough my dear.”

Trave
nodded, “Tristen, thy father is a horrific person. I will gladly help thee take
him out.”

The
dark and bitter man’s words surprised me. I assumed he would sooner help me off
a cliff than help me with anything that would benefit my life.

Liza
and Flint were silent during our exchange but they kept glancing at each other;
I couldn’t help but feel they also knew more than I did.

“Flint,
have thee any news regarding my kingdom and the happenings there? I wonder if
anyone has heard a thing about my mum.” I grabbed a large piece of fish from a
lovely and intricate plate.

Flint
glanced again at Liza then pressed his hair from his forehead with the back of
his hand. “No, sir, I haven’t heard a word from yourn kingdom. In fact, it’s
been quiet there; not really sure why.”

His
words gave me chills. While everyone chattered, I sat in silent contemplation
and finished my meal. I was desperate to know what happened to my mother, but
fearful at the same time; I couldn’t handle more death.

After
dinner, I asked to be excused to go to the bunkhouse. “I’m simply exhausted,” I
had told Liza, knowing she probably felt more tired than I.

I
sat on one of the bunks; chin resting on my palms, thinking about how to
proceed next. My thoughts jumbled together. First I thought about my mum
telling me to destroy the dragon. Then, my brother telling me to destroy my
father, and nothing was clear in the world.

Suddenly
the door flung open and Vivian waltzed through it. I expected to see Trave but
she shut the door behind her. The lovely creature sympathetically gazed at me
as she stood near the door.

“Oh
my darling, I can see thou art worried how things are going to happen now, but
I have a plan to get us into the castle. It will be brilliant! Nobody will
suspect a thing and we can get rid of thy terrible father once and for all.”
Vivian seemed to float across the room as she sat herself on the bunk next to
me.

“We’ll
have plenty of time to figure that out anon, my lady. For now, there are a few
things I would rather talk about.” I scratched my beard that still itched. I
couldn’t wait for a proper shave. Vivian’s eyes questioned me and I wrapped my
arms around her and continued, “I’m sure thy plan is perfect. I’m lucky that
thou art pretty and smart. However, while we finally have some time alone, tell
me what thou did when we were apart? Did thou return to Mr. Hat?”

At
the mention of the name, her eyes went fiery and dark like they had when I
surprised her on her crazed running-fest in the forest. She started humming her
familiar tune but I stopped her with a finger on her lips. “Tell me, my lady,
why dost thou hum and also tell me about the “shifting”. What secrets dost thou
still keep from me?”

Vivian’s
sweet lips went slightly upward, “No Tristen, I didn’t find Mr. Hat. In fact, I
have been searching for him and that is what has caused this mess I’ve made. In
due time, I will explain more. Please don’t make me relive the past few days
just yet; I would rather put them behind me for now. As to the humming I do,
it’s for Lugina. As I already told thee - she protects me. When she senses a
rise in my heartbeat, or unsettlement and panic of any kind, she gets ready to
emerge. I must keep her calm if there’s no need to worry.”

I
couldn’t help myself and had to ask about her journal. Her reply was simply,
“When Lugina does things and I turn back to ‘me’ there is only a short time
frame that I remember what happened when she was protecting me. I learned early
that I needed to keep record of things she had done so I could read it anon and
knoweth what happened when she took over.”

“I
see. So the shifting thing is something thou hast done all thy life?” I ran my
fingers up and down her spine.

Vivian
turned her head slightly and gazed at me, “I was sixteen-years-old when she
appeared. I will never talk about why it happened, biddeth not about it. The
point is it traumatized me enough to bring forth a beast like no other. Promise
me, Tristen;
please
promise me thou won’t tell anyone my secret. Imagine
the danger on my head if anyone knew.”

“Don’t
stress that pretty head, my sweet lady. Thy secret is forever safe with me.” I
pulled Vivian closer to me, wishing I could go back and protect the woman from
what had caused such pain. I wanted to ask her if the trauma had anything to do
with the scars on her back, but decided I would have to ask that at a later
time. I ran my fingers through the gorgeous creature’s soft hair. She rested
her head on my chest and relaxed in my arms. We fell asleep holding each other
tight.

#
# #

“Wake
up love-birds; it’s time to get movin’.” Trave barked from a bunk across the
room.