Victim of Fate (13 page)

"See, he still likes you," Trina said.

Alto offered a weak smile. "I suppose it's
for the best. I was beginning to think I'd found the only unicorn
that preferred men over women."

Winter whipped his head up and snorted. He
stomped his hoof a few inches from Alto, and then lowered his head
and glared at the man. Alto let a chuckle slip and immediately felt
better for it.

"I'm sorry, Trina, it's just been hard. My
friends are gone and I don't know if I'll see them again. They've
got Sebas, too, but I had Winter until today. Now he's abandoned me
too."

"I'm sorry," Trina said from her perch on the
unicorn's back. "I didn't ask for him or anything, he just kind of,
well, he chose me."

Alto nodded. "I know. I don't begrudge either
of you. You're a beautiful princess, why wouldn't he pick you? You
deserve someone like him."

Trina's lips fell open. Alto shrugged and
looked at the ground. "We're supposed to be headed into the
Northern Divide again. Tristam and Kar have been talking about some
ancient dwarven mines they think we can find. If they've been lost
or overrun, he says what we find is ours to keep."

"I thought you said this forest where you
fought the monsters was south of here, in Kingdom lands?"

"It was," Alto said, looking back up at her
for a minute. The fiery halo of sunlight made his stomach twist
until he looked away again. "On the morning of the day we left,
Karthor came to us sharing the cry of help from a village overrun
by the creatures from the forest. We went there first."

"Oh." Trina fell silent for a moment before
saying, "Alto, why won't you look at me?"

Alto risked a glance and found his gaze stuck
fast with hers. "Because I've got no right to be looking at you.
I'm the son of a farmer and not good for much more than doing that
or spilling blood."

"Is it that, or is it the favor you wear on
your wrist that keeps making you look away? I don't think there's
anything simple about a man that can retake a city and befriend a
unicorn."

Alto's eyes went to the pale ribbon on his
wrist. Aleena had given that to him. Aleena was right for him. She
was no one special, just a girl trying to find the right man to
provide for her and to live a good life. A simple life. Alto looked
up at Trina, his lips parted to tell her just that but the words
wouldn't come out.

"It's just as well," Trina said in a cool
tone after he hesitated one moment too long. "I've heard the
rumblings of others. I am what you Kingdom men would call a
princess. Courted or not, I can only marry another noble."

Trina pulled on Winter's mane and turned the
unicorn around. She twisted back to cast a hard look at Alto. "And
there's nothing noble about a man who would wear one woman's favor
while courting another."

* * * *

Alto made his way back to the palace. The
young warrior had no goal and ambition; he simply didn't know where
else to go in Holgasford. There were taverns and halls where he
could find refuge in a cup, but he'd vowed to keep a clear head. He
had coin enough for his simple needs, even finding a place to sleep
if need be, but sleep was the last thing on his mind.

Alto found himself walking around the royal
hall while servants and officials milled about taking care of
whatever jobs they needed to do. Alto looked up when he saw an
older woman who looked familiar walking towards him. She smiled at
him as she approached, stopping him and making him realize how
pretty she was.

The woman's hair was blond streaked with
gray. She had it pulled back into a single braid to keep her hair
out of her crystal blue eyes. Alto realized where he'd seen her
before; she'd been sitting to Teorfyr's left. That explained her
familiarity, as well as the now obvious resemblance to Patrina.

"I thought you would be riding with Patrina?"
Lady Kenna asked as she walked up to him.

"Um, yes, Your Highness," Alto stammered. "I
mean, no, I'm not. I went with her but she preferred to ride by
herself."

She offered a half smile and turned. "Come,
Alto, walk with me." Alto fell in beside her, and she began to walk
down the hall. "Do you mind me asking how old you are?"

"I'm seventeen, my lady," he answered.

She nodded. "The same as my daughter. Her
birthday was only a month ago, did you know? No? Well, that's no
surprise since you've not seen her in many months. No fault of your
own, I'm certain."

Alto opened his mouth but the jarl's wife
continued without giving him a chance to speak.

"She speaks highly of you, you know. Even
when she's fuming and red in the face going on about you, she's
saying that she thinks even more than she says." She turned to
study Alto's face for a moment as they walked. "You've impressed my
husband, and that's no simple task for a Kingdom man. Now you've
tamed a unicorn and brought it as a gift; it seems there's no limit
to your abilities."

"My lady, I didn't—" Alto fumbled when she
turned away from him and headed for a door. He rushed around her
and opened it so that she could step through and into the cool
night air. He followed and looked around at the small garden filled
with flowers that had already been trimmed back for the winter.

"I think I like you, too," she continued.
"But I hold Patrina's heart sacred. It is more valuable than any
sword, horse, or ship in my husband's realm. I will protect it with
my last breath if I must."

She stared at a basin of water with crystals
of ice forming on the surface of the water. She turned to Alto and
stared deeply into his eyes. Alto found himself entranced and
unable to look away. "Tell me what your desires are."

"I want to be worthy," Alto said without
thinking. He grimaced and tried to turn away but found he
couldn't.

"Worthy of my daughter's heart?"

"Worthy of anything," he said. "My father's a
farmer with seven children. I can farm and they looked up to me for
it, but I want more from my life than that. Everywhere else I go, I
find I don't know enough to do much of anything. I'm learning to
fight but there must be more to life than that of a warrior."

"A warrior spirit is the key to success at
anything, young man," Lady Kenna said. "To find happiness in life,
we must all be willing to fight at times, whether it's with a
sword, our wits, our words, or our hearts."

Alto found he had the presence of mind to bow
his head respectfully to her wise words.

"Tell me about the girl."

Alto jerked his head up. Lady Kenna nodded
down towards his wrist. Alto's cheeks flushed with heat without him
needing to look. The damned scarf Aleena gave him. Why did he keep
forgetting to take it off?

"Her name is Aleena," Alto found himself
admitting. "She's nobody, though."

"If she's nobody then why do you wear her
favor?"

Alto did glance at the ribbon this time.
"She's just a serving maid at her father's inn. It's near our
headquarters, in Portland."

"There is no dishonor in being a serving
maid," the lady reproached him.

Alto nodded. "I guess. I mean, if you say
it's so, then I believe you. It's just..."

"You can't compare her to Trina," Lady Kenna
advised. "Do you love her?"

Alto gaped at the jarl's wife. "Love her? I,
uh, um, I don't think so. She's nice and she seems to want to take
care of me."

"Is that what you need? To be taken care
of?"

Alto stiffened. "No, my lady. I can take care
of myself."

She smiled at him. "I believe you. You've
rescued my daughter, befriended a unicorn, and ended a siege while
not yet seeing twenty winters. I think you can take care of a great
many things. But be careful, young warrior, there are times when
even the strongest among us needs the help of another."

Alto nodded at her wisdom. He could never
have killed Barador if the other Blades of Leander hadn't helped
him get inside Highpeak. He'd never have met Winter if his friends
hadn't helped him reach the forest. Even his confusion and foul
mood would have consumed him if it weren't for his run-in with Lady
Kenna. Alto grinned and said, "Sort of like you talking to me now,
my lady?"

The lady smiled and clapped her hands in
delight. "Oh, you are a smart one. Yes, I think I see a glimpse of
what Patrina sees in you. But remember my warning: Patrina is more
precious than any jewel in the world. If you don’t love the
barmaid, does that mean you love Patrina instead?"

Alto closed his mouth after a moment of shock
at her blunt question. "I have nothing but honorable intentions for
your daughter."

"I respect your avoidance, but tell me, just
what honorable intentions do you have?"

Alto opened his mouth and then frowned as he
closed it. The conversation was more than awkward; it had turned
downright uncomfortable. He’d rather be trapped in the forest than
forced to answer Lady Kenna’s questions. The way she looked at him
reminded him of Trina; she had a keen stare that cut straight
through him. "I don't know. I'm not a noble," he answered, hoping
to escape on a technicality.

"There is no law that says you must be," she
said, dashing his impetuous hopes. "But if you seek my daughter's
hand and are not of noble birth, you must secure her permission and
that of her parents. Whether the jarl favors you or not will not
matter if I remain unconvinced. He may rule this land, but I rule
his heart. You will learn soon enough that there is no steel or
magic in this world stronger in this world than that."

Alto bowed his head. "I believe you. I will
make you proud of me, my lady."

She shook her head and lifted his head with
her hand on his chin. "Make yourself proud first, my young friend.
Then find a way to win both Patrina's heart and her mind. It's no
simple task; the two often are at odds with each other."

Alto's grin matched the lady's. He knew Trina
well enough to know that already. "Thank you, Lady Kenna."

She smiled and gestured at the door behind
him, dismissing him. Alto turned and retreated into the hall, and
then hurried through the building and into the connecting hallways
in search of the jarl. He was on his own, it seemed, and that meant
he was free to pick his own path. The surety of a proper future
seemed obvious enough to him now; he needed only the jarl's
approval.

A few servants and one guard later, Alto
found himself waiting a brief audience with the jarl in his private
study. An aide opened the door and gestured for him to enter. The
jarl rose, surprised to see him, and bade him rise from where Alto
had knelt on one knee.

Alto rose up but only enough to draw his
magical blade and sink back to his knees. He planted the point in
the floor and bowed his head against the hilt. "Jarl Teorfyr, this
sword was made to serve the Kelgryn. If you'll have me, I would
offer my own service as well."

Alto heard the man chuckle and he waited for
Teorfyr's decree when the sound of running footsteps distracted
them both. Alto turned and saw a guard stumble to a panting halt.
"Jarl," he gasped, "it's Lady Patrina—she's been taken!"

Alto jerked to his feet and noticed only a
moment later that he held his sword ready to strike. "Taken? How?
By who?" Teorfyr snapped.

"Men wearing cloaks grabbed her in the
darkness. Her steed came back without her and has been going crazy
in front of the palace. Tried kicking the door in, he did!"

"Winter's looking for me," Alto said. "He
thinks I can help."

Teorfyr looked at him and nodded. "Then as
your first task for me, I bid you lead the charge to get my
daughter back!"

"None of it makes any sense!" Kar
protested.

"Are you as thick-witted as the boy was?"
Tristam spat at him. "They had no gold left that they didn't need
to rebuild their village with!"

"I know that. You hope to spread more word
about what a wonderful person you are to get more work in the
future. More likely you'll get more beggars wanting you to buy them
wine and give them a place to sleep," the wizard muttered.

"There's a difference between charitable and
foolish," the leader of the Blades growled. "I know the difference
and you'd do well to remember it."

"You lost a man and a horse," Kar reminded
him. "Ironic that the two weren't related, but the point remains
that Alto is gone and not a one of us thought to go back for him.
Then to not accept even a meager compensation? That's not the
Tristam I know."

"Alto was a bad influence," Tristam said.
"The boy had such ideals; he made me feel bad at times for knowing
how the world works."

"For accepting how it works and not trying to
change it, that is."

Tristam nodded agreement to the wizard's
reasoning from the saddle of his horse.

"Is that why you wouldn't take their money?
Guilt for leaving Alto behind?"

"I didn't hear anyone else offering to rush
back for him!"

Kar held up his hands and spoke calmly, "No,
you didn't. Why is that, do you think?"

"We protect our own as best we can," Tristam
reasoned. "When they fall, there's no more to be done for them.
They're off to meet their ancestors then; what happens to their
body is of little concern."

"Funerals are for the living," Kar conceded.
"But when we last saw the boy, he was alive and swinging. Even
called out that he'd meet us at the horses."

"He didn't, proof that them demonic animals
was too many for him to escape."

"They were hardly demons," Kar reproached.
"Aberrations of nature, certainly, but that's achievable with
mortal magic. Powerful magic, in some cases, but they were of this
world."

"Is there a point to this, wizard?"

Kar nodded. "There is. I—"