Tag: Dwarves

36. Lucas

On By MaryIn 2023, WritingLeave a comment

My mind mostly blanked from nervousness, and I felt like I was sweating a lot, but it all went down rather smoothly. We were led to the doors that we needed to enter from, lingered for a moment as the man that had led us there stepped to the door and conferred with Raella briefly. Perhaps to make it easy for us, Raella had them start with Greyjon.

“Greyjon Pellort of the Elven Empire, Captain and Weapons Master of Kimber City!” the man cried out, his voice carrying across the bright hall. Greyjon flashed us a grin and straightened to his full height, stepping out and walking down the stairs. Moments after that, the man announced, “Chase Glenn, of the Elven Empire, of the village of Vilunti!” Chase scrunched her nose, clasped her hands in front of her skirt, and stepped out to follow Greyjon down the stairs. “Zolambi Demn, of the Elven Empire, Master of Primordial of the Imperial University!” Zolambi followed, not sparing a glance for us.

Raella seemed to be lingering to go last, since she was feeding the man our titles. She gestured for Lyre to go next. “Lyre Ik’Abalin the Warlock, of the Elven Empire!” Lyre looked a little flustered at his title, but descended the steps, holding his head high. “Peyton Hobbs, of another realm, Chosen of the gods!” Peyton flashed me a confident grin as she stepped out onto the stairs, completely in her element. “Cassandra Murphey, of another realm, Chosen of the gods!” Cassandra paused a moment – I wondered if she wanted to be announced as Chosen of T’Keran, but she had never shared that information with Raella. She followed Peyton, smiling thinly, deeply flushed from the attention. “Lucas Kearney, of another realm, Chosen of the gods!” I stumbled forward, feeling awkward. The lights were almost blinding and I had a momentary fear that I would go sprawling down the stairs, but I managed to find my footing and followed Cassandra down the steps.

“Asterollan Shar, of the Kingdom of Wryaes, Chosen of the god of Truth!” I had to keep myself from twisting around to look at Asterollan as I learned these little details about him. I realized I hadn’t heard the names of any of the human kingdoms since I’d been here. I had managed to reach the bottom of the stairs, where I was joining our group where they were lining up in front of a dais that held a pair of thrones, where the Dwarven King and his Queen sat and watched us, their gazes openly curious. They were dressed resplendently in gold and white. “Alexis Saint, of another realm, Chosen of Myrapen, the Eternal Flame, goddess of Fire!” Lexie’s longer title and the specific naming of a god seemed to garner quite a lot of attention – I could hear people whispering around us. Now that I was standing in line, I chanced a glance back up at her – she descended the stairs, a slight frown of concentration on her face like she was just as worried as I had been about falling. She reached the bottom step without issue though, and grinned at the surrounding company.

“Raella Harn, of the Elven Empire, Master of Ancient Divinity of the Imperial University!” Raella descended the steps, her chin held high. She stepped out in front of our group, and after a carefully timed beat, slipped into a deep curtsy. We followed suit behind her – I watched Lexie half bow and then try to carry the motion into a curtsy from the corner of my eye, and had to suppress a laugh.

“We are honored to be guests of yours this evening, Your Majesties,” Raella said, her tone smooth and gracious.

“You honor us,” the Queen spoke first. “For the first time in centuries, we have been recognized as your equals.” There was a slight edge to her tone that suggested that she did not forget that they had previously been second class citizens of the Empire before the Fracture.

“We hope that our kingdoms and your Empire might be able to enjoy a long and fruitful relationship,” the King spoke next. “And we are honored to host the heroes who will save the world with their actions.”

We each thanked them for their kindness in hosting us, bowing or curtsying again. When this formality was done, the King clapped his hands and stood from the throne, to descend and begin to socialize with the others present, and Raella gestured for us to follow her. I don’t know how long the next part took, but we were walked around the room, offered refreshments, and introduced to many different individuals harboring many different titles – Ambassadors, Dukes, Duchesses, Marquis, Countesses, Earls, Barons, Princes, Princesses. There were also many that were just called Lord or Lady something or other, as well as a handful of scholars and merchants. I was never good at names so I smiled and nodded and hoped that no one would seek me out for further conversation.

Peyton was in her element, and Lexie also seemed comfortable with socializing – they greeted people in a friendly manner, seemed to commit names to memory almost instantly, and made pleasant small talk with ease. Cassandra seemed less comfortable and I noticed she suspiciously did not use names at all, but she was friendly and approachable and many people were asking her questions. Lyre mostly stayed close by her side, like a silent, shadowy bodyguard. Asterollan had somehow managed to disappear quickly, and I spotted him on occasion skulking in corners with a drink in his hand. It made me jealous that I couldn’t extricate myself in the same fashion.

Once Raella was satisfied that we had been introduced to everyone of import, she released us with, “Have fun, but not too much fun.” There was music playing and some people had paired off to dance, including the King and his Queen. I could even see that Lexie was in the process of demonstrating some kind of dance for a small group of younger dwarves. After so much socializing, I wanted some fresh air, and spied a balcony that overlooked the palace gardens. I immediately retreated to the spot. I was nervous that I would find a couple trying to escape to a romantic moment, but it was still early enough in the evening that no one had gotten that cozy yet. When I realized I was truly alone, I leaned against the balcony railing with a relieved sigh, staring out at the garden, and the moons above.

“Really? You retreated that quick?” I glanced over at Peyton as she leaned against the balcony next to me, the corners of her lips quirked up in amusement.

“It’s not really my thing. You seemed to be having fun though.”

“Yeah. It is my thing. I kinda missed it.” I laughed lightly, looking back up at the sky. “They’ve started dancing in there.” She left the statement open, like she expected me to ask her to dance.

“That is definitely not my thing.”

“Oh? What about for me?”

I turned to give her a look that mustered as much “Hell no” as I could manage, and she laughed. “I don’t even know how to dance. Which is not an invitation to teach me,” I interrupted as she opened her mouth to speak.

She smirked. “Well, how about an awkward middle school slow dance? Right here on the balcony. We don’t even have to go back in.” She pushed away from the railing and held a hand out to me. I hesitated, staring down at her hand like it was a viper. “Don’t leave me hanging, Kearney.”

I sighed heavily and straightened, taking her hand. She guided it over to her waist, and as I placed my other hand on her waist as well, she placed her hands up on my shoulders. I wasn’t really paying attention to the music at all, and I mostly let her lead, following her steps as we swayed softly in a loose circle. She was studying me intensely, and I was absolutely swallowed into her eyes for a moment. I couldn’t really escape without making it awkward, after all.

“See, this isn’t so bad.”

I shook my head, making a short huffing noise. “It is bad. It is exactly as bad as I thought it would be.”

The mirth seemed to fade from her expression for a moment as her head tilted. “You always seem to avoid me,” she said.

“I don’t think I do, actually.” She frowned. “I think… we’re both deeply private. And that clashes a bit. Two people that don’t connect well with others aren’t likely to connect with each other.”

“You think I don’t connect well with others?” she quirked an eyebrow at me, pulling back slightly to stare me in the face.

I sighed, and shook my head. “I think you’re personable and charming and sociable. But you keep everything surface level friendly. It’s kind of… superficial?”

“You think I’m superficial?” she asked now, clearly mock affronted. I could see the amusement sparkling in her eyes at my assessment.

I rolled my eyes in response. “No, I think you’re mysterious,” I drew out mysterious in a wavering tone, like I was talking about spooks and ghosts. She laughed and leaned back in, close enough that I couldn’t look into her eyes anymore.

She was quiet for a long moment. We had stopped stepping so much and were mostly standing in one place, swaying back and forth softly, probably out of time with the music. She was close enough that I could hear her breathing, and I tried not to swallow too audibly while thinking that she smelled nice. Like flowers. Or was it something in the garden? From this close, I could see that a few strands of coppery hair had come loose from the bun, drifting around her neck – but in a way that still looked perfectly put together. She felt soft and warm where she was pressed against me. “I don’t mean to be so distant with you,” she said in a soft whisper.

She leaned back to look me in the eye.

I struggled to find something to say in the moment. My mind oscillated between an abrupt “I do” and a lame “Okay” but I realized both of those options were very bad. Very very bad. So super very bad. Shit.

The bright side is, she must have been so used to dealing with guys that could schmooze and choose the perfect words in the moment that my lengthy silence and visible panic was at least entertaining to her. I watched the smile spread slowly across her face as she studied my expression. Her hands had shifted back up and I felt my mind go completely blank as her fingers brushed the back of my neck. “So don’t be?” I finally managed somewhere in that blankness.

For a moment, she seemed surprised by my answer. We stood together, the dance forgotten – I stared deeply into her very blue eyes.

Then she said, “Your hands are very close to my ass, sir.”

I quickly pulled my hands up, away from her body and into the air above my head. “What?” I said in confusion. “I don’t think they were?”

“They weren’t. I just wanted to see your reaction.”

Before I could respond with all the exasperation I felt at her teasing, I heard Lexie drawing out, “OooooOOOOoooh!” as she stepped out onto the balcony to see us standing so close together. Peyton’s hands dropped away as she stepped back, smiling at me mischievously. “Are you guys sharing a moment out here?” the younger girl asked.

“Of a sort,” Peyton said nonchalantly, finally breaking eye contact to look at Lexie.

I felt like I must be the same color as a beet. “I’m gonna go find a drink,” I said, walking back into the lighted ballroom.

“Wow, what did you do to him?” I could hear Lexie ask Peyton as I left, but I didn’t linger to hear the answer.

There were a few separate tables spread with simple foods and servants were walking by carrying trays with drinks. “Can I have one? Or do I have to place an order?” I asked a female dwarf that was walking past me, pointing at a crystal glass with some kind of green liquid in it.

“Help yourself,” she said pleasantly to me.

“Thank you!” I grabbed two glasses and downed them one after the other, then placed them back on the tray. Whatever it was, it was cold and creamy and faintly minty.

She looked at me curiously, faintly amused but doing her best to hide it. “Would you like the other two on the tray?” she offered.  I downed them also. “By the way… those are quite strong. You might want to wait awhile before drinking anything else.”

“Ah. You ummm… couldn’t have warned me about that before I had four?”

“You look like you needed them.” And she walked off to replenish her tray.

I sighed heavily, turning to look toward one of the tables in the corner. I wondered if I should at least put something on my stomach to throw up later, and wandered over to see what the selections were like. As I walked up, I saw that Asterollan was picking at some of the offerings on the table. I went to stand by him, happy to see a familiar face, and could see that Lyre and Cassandra were in his line of sight. They were talking to a dwarf that looked familiar to me – I realized he had been a part of the delegation that had escorted us to Saph Anchor. The one with the glasses and the messy brown hair that always seemed eager to speak to us before.

I looked over the food on the table. Some of it seemed familiar and some of it seemed uniquely bizarre – something that looked quite a lot like deviled eggs was set next to some strange blue paste formed into delicate flowers on crackers. I pondered the options, realizing that my mind was already feeling fuzzy from the drinks. Strange – they hadn’t burned like alcohol at all. From somewhere in the hall, I heard hushed murmuring as something caught peoples’ attention.

I grabbed one of the deviled eggs, biting into it – it was a bit spicier than I’m used to, but quite pleasant. I glanced around to see what everyone was fussing about to see that there were more guests arriving to the ball. The man that had announced us earlier now stepped out onto the dais of the stairs we had descended, and called out, “King Guilphrey Vanguard, First of His Name, of the Kingdom of Wryaes!” the dwarf called out. “And his accompaniment!” The announcement immediately caught Asterollan’s attention – his head snapped up to the stairs, his expression darkening. I noticed Lyre do a similar thing, his body going stiff and his face becoming paler.

A human man stepped out onto the top of the stairs. He was wearing armor, and though it was shiny I had the feeling it wasn’t ornamental. He wasn’t very old – maybe closer to Cassandra’s age. He had black hair and dark eyes that glittered in the light as he turned his head slowly, taking in the entirety of the ballroom. The guards on either side of him wore tabards of blue and grey, with a wolf’s long grey body stretched across the blue side, over full armor. They had swords at their hips, that they rested their hands on in an almost casual manner. There was also an elf standing just behind the man, a woman with long silvery hair and a face tattoo that covered one eye and spread across her face and down her neck in tendrils in a pattern that I couldn’t make out from where I stood. She stared out calmly across the room.

The people in the ballroom parted to make way for the King and Queen to step forward gracefully, ready to accept this apparently unexpected guest. Raella and Greyjon shadowed them, staring up at the man as well. I couldn’t hear what was happening from where I stood, but I did notice that Asterollan was moving, walking over to Cassandra and Lyre swiftly. “I’ve seen the wolf tabard before,” Cassandra was saying as we approached, a frown of worry creasing her brow.

“Yes. They’re from the same kingdom we escaped from,” Lyre was telling her. He glanced over at Asterollan with a suspicious frown.

Asterollan nodded as he came to a stop in front of them. “That’s the king.” He frowned over at where the human king and Raella appeared to be exchanging some tense, if quiet, words. “We should be ready to leave, just in case this gets bad.”

“Oh… Asterollan. Lucas. There’s something important I just found out.” Cassandra placed a hand on the shoulder of the dwarf she had been talking to. He jumped, a little surprised, and pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose. “This is Jon Umberling. He was just telling me… well. You were right.” Cassandra looked straight at me, her expression somber. For a moment, my alcohol-addled brain tried to figure out what I had been right about. “We’re sacrifices.”

35. Lucas

On By MaryIn 2023, WritingLeave a comment

We travelled quickly, escorted by the dwarven delegation that we still hadn’t been fully introduced to. In fact, Ambassador Kernel seemed to insist on keeping our camps separate, which most disappointed the dwarf with the messy brown hair and glasses, who seemed exceedingly eager to chat with us. Saph Anchor turned out to be the location of the Dwarven King’s palace, which was set at the base of the Seiling Mountains. There we arrived in the city of Kamruk, which was massive compared to the elven cities we had passed through. Almost every building was made of stone and shining metal, and adorned with stained glass, and everything looked so clean and well maintained. It was beautiful. The palace itself was also a masterwork, half built into the mountains themselves. The other half included towers that looked to be competing with the mountains they were built into for height.

Ambassador Kernel led us to the palace as we were to be guests of the Dwarven King. “In fact, there is going to be a ball this very evening in your honor. I do hope you’ve come prepared for that? If not, perhaps more suitable clothes could be arranged, though it is short notice…” I grimaced as he spoke. A dance? I already absolutely hated the idea.

“We have come mostly prepared, though we do have a few exceptions.” Raella glanced over at Lyre and Asterollan, a slight frown on her features. “We have two men that need to be fitted with something appropriate, and one woman that we have prepared a garment for, but may need to provide some alteration to.”

“Then we will send for the King’s personal tailors.”

With my height, I had been worried about whether I would be stooping a lot in buildings made for the much shorter dwarves. The palace was suitably massive though, and we all had plenty of room to move through as a group as we were shown to our rooms. Palace servants brought the trunks that had been hauled all the way from the University in the wagon. As we settled in, I was pleased to see that the beds and furniture were all made for people our size. “These are probably the rooms for visiting dignitaries from the human kingdoms,” Greyjon noted.

My room adjoined a large shared common room that included many cushiony chairs and a massive desk. There were three other rooms that also adjoined it – Cassandra and Lyre had taken one for themselves, and Peyton and Lexie had their own rooms. Raella had asked Asterollan to stay with me in my room. “There’s a chaise in the common area. I’ll just steal a blanket from you,” he told me with a shrug when we saw that there was only one bed.

Raella, Chase, Greyjon and Zolambi were given a similar rooming situation with their own shared common room. They were right down the hall from us. Raella had one of the trunks delivered to our common area and pulled it open, yanking out packages of fabric wrapped in paper, and a few smaller wooden boxes. “We have here some basic make up for anyone that wishes to use some, as well as hair and skin creams and some perfumes and oils of a very fine quality,” she said, practically slamming the wooden boxes down on the desk. Then she began to shove some of the packages of paper into our hands. “And these should be the garments prepared for you for the dance. You should all go wash up immediately and prepare yourselves, we only have a few hours before we are expected to attend. The dwarves will provide hairdressers within the hour. They will have recommendations on current dwarven styles. You are welcome to ignore them if it is not to your liking. You are representing yourselves, as the Chosen of the gods.”

“What if we don’t like the dresses?” Lexie asked.

“You are free to ask the King’s tailors for alterations. But you are also representing the Empire responsible for summoning you here. Elven fashion is much more sophisticated anyway.” I glanced at Peyton, who happened to look over at me at the same time – we both did our best to suppress our grins at Raella’s tone. “The rest of us will also have to go and prepare for this evening’s dance. Once we are ready, I will come to give you a briefing on what to expect and how to act. And then we will escort you to the dance itself.” There was a knock at the outer door. “That should be the tailors. They’ll help you two choose out appropriate clothes,” she said, nodding to Asterollan and Lyre.

Raella swept out as several individuals came bustling in, carrying already prepared suits for Asterollan and Lyre to try on. I retreated to my room with my packaged clothes and summoned warm water for the tub, a stone structure that was set into the wall behind a folding partition. As I settled in and began scrubbing, I realized there was a faucet. Curious, I twisted the knob.

Apparently the dwarves had plumbing.

I finished washing up quickly, and after some mild coaxing, got Peter into the tub so that I could rinse him off as well. He did not seem pleased, and I feared possibly hurting him with soap, so I kept it short and used only plain water. Once out of the tub, he shook himself vigorously and began rubbing his legs over his body and face, grooming himself.

After drying off, I pulled out the clothes that had been provided. The pants and jacket were a deep black, the material crisp and heavy. Intricate needlework in gold and red provided a pattern along the collar and front buttons and along the hems of the sleeves. I had worn suits before for special occasions, but nothing quite like this.

The undershirt was a silky cream color and was ruffled with extra material to hang out the front of the jacket. I wandered out to where a few tailors each were working with their charges in the common room. Cassandra was being fitted into a long teal dress with buttons down one side – it was slim through the waist but hung loose past that, the buttons pulling the fabric of the skirt away to reveal a second, deeper blue swath of fabric that matched the colors of the sleeves and collar. I managed to get the attention of one of the tailors working on her dress, and asked about removing the ruffles from my undershirt. It didn’t take them long at all, thankfully.

I pawed around in the wooden box for some cream to rub on my skin so I didn’t look like a dried-out fish, and dabbed a bit of a minty smelling oil under my clothes and jaw. Then I found something I could smooth my hair back with. Feeling as prepared as I could be, I perched on the arm of a chair and watched the other preparations. Peter came out into the common room and sat in the chair I was perched on. Many of the dwarves kept looking at him out of the corner of their eyes, some of them even seeming quite terrified, but they said nothing.

Lyre looked incredibly uncomfortable. They had also fitted him in something black, very similar to what I was already wearing if longer in the tail, but unadorned beyond a silver sword brooch that someone had pinned to the lapel. His undershirt was black with hints of silver tracing like pinstripes in vertical rows, but only seemed to glint when they hit the light just right. It looked like he had already had the chance to bathe as well. He stood off to the side, leaning against a wall and looking awkward at the bustle of activity.

Peyton and Lexie each had some mild modifications they wanted made to their dresses, and they each dug around in the wooden boxes, taking a few items with them back to their rooms. Asterollan’s clothes were golden with red scrolling and a white undershirt with the same ruffles that had been present on mine before. He went to go use my room to bathe when he saw that I was done.

As the tailors finished up, several women bustled in, bee lining for the rooms. I got the sense from the chatter I could overhear that they were helping with hair and makeup – they brought their own supplies as well, but did come out to dig around in the boxes on the desk on occasion.

Asterollan stepped out first, looking mildly annoyed. His hair had been pulled back into a simple ponytail, and he was attempting to swat away the attentions of the woman that was gushing over how she could really style it into something wonderful. He looked regal, like a storybook prince stepping out of a fable, the scar on his face making his frown austere.

Lexie popped out next – her hair was quite short still, but had apparently gotten long enough to be braided into a series of cornrows. I wasn’t sure if the dwarven women already knew the style or if she had to walk them through it, but they had created a delicate curving design and she seemed ecstatic with the result. Her dress was a shimmery white accented with yellow and orange, with slightly puffed sleeves. It flared just beneath the bust. Her makeup was very light, except for the orange eyeshadow that made her eyes pop. She grinned and twirled as she exited her room. I clapped. “Very cute,” I said.

“I feel like a fucking princess.”

“Now if only you sounded like one.” She stuck her tongue out at me and flopped down next to Peter, patting him gently behind the eyes.

“Peter needs like… a bow or something.”

“You are not putting a bow on my spider.” She pouted. Asterollan, who was just in my line of sight as I was speaking to Lexie, straightened suddenly, his face becoming carefully composed as he stared. I followed his gaze to watch Cassandra step out of her room. Her makeup was very light – her hair had been braided along the sides of her temple and pulled back into a loose ponytail, with teal ribbons tied through the braids. The color of the dress really suited her, but someone had also managed to find a series of delicate looking gold chains for her to wear. Lyre was smiling at her, absolutely enchanted, and she grinned shyly at him.

“You look beautiful,” Lyre said. She stepped over and took one of his hands in hers.

“You’re not too bad yourself,” she murmured to him, and he turned slightly pink.

I glanced back at Asterollan curiously, who was looking away now, a frown creasing his brow. “Aww, I didn’t get any jewelry,” Lexie said.

“They probably don’t trust you with it. You’re just a kid, you’d probably lose it.”

“I am NOT a kid.” Lexie puffed out her lower lip, her brow furrowing. Then the expression disappeared, melting into a delighted one. “Wow, you totally look like your movie-star self!” she said, staring past me.

I twisted around to see Peyton stepping out of her room.

She did indeed look ready for the red carpet. Her hair was pulled back into a bun, and her makeup was exquisitely done – her eyes looked larger and bluer somehow, and her lips were a bright crimson. She was wearing a deep red dress, the neckline swooping dangerously low. It looked modern in its design, fitted around the hips and flaring above the knees. It was sleeveless, though there was a sheer fabric that attached to the shoulder straps and covered her upper arms, and curled around behind her like a very short cape. The sheer cape glittered, and I realized it was covered in some kind of glittery amber-colored gemstones. I felt my breath hitch a moment, which caused me to have to clear my throat, and as I realized my eyes were dipping more toward where the neckline ended, I looked away.

And then almost instantly, I looked back. She was grinning at Lexie. “I feel like my movie star self,” she said. Her eyes shifted over to meet mine.

I looked away again. “Yes. You look very pretty,” I managed to say, after clearing my throat again.

“That’s an understatement,” Lexie said under her breath to Peter, tickling him under the mandibles.

The team of people that had been helping us get ready were gathering their supplies and trailing out of the room just as Raella swept back in with the others just behind her. Raella was dressed in a slim fitting golden dress with a high collar, that had a triangular opening at the bust. She had favored gold make up, which made her golden eyes stand out. Greyjon was wearing a suit very similar to Lyre’s and mine – deep black, though his undershirt was a pale grey and was laced up to his collar, with the strings of the laces hanging over the front of his jacket. He had medals and military insignia attached to his lapels and shoulders, though I wasn’t sure what they signified. Zolambi was dressed in deep blue wizard’s robes – they looked much like the jackets the rest of us were wearing, but went nearly to his shins. Where they draped down his chest from the shoulders, the fabric was velvety and had a floral pattern. Chase was dressed in an almost poofy velvety green dress with a grey inset along the front, and her long red curls had been pulled back into a half bun. Her makeup was also very lightly done. She must not have wanted her freckles to be covered up.

Raella nodded as she looked us all over. She raised an eyebrow at me. “I’m afraid your spider must stay here,” she said.

I patted Peter on his back. “Sorry buddy, stay in the room. I’ll bring you back a good snack,” I promised, speaking quietly to him. Peter trilled and jumped to the ceiling, carefully picking his way across from above and darting into my room obediently.

Raella watched him disappear before she began to speak. “This ball is less frivolity and more political occasion. We have only just recently established our relationship with the dwarves as equals. For the first time in many centuries, the Elven Empire has broached their isolationism. Our mission benefits the entire world, and the dwarves know that. But there is still some lingering animosity toward the Empire.” Raella paused. “As the Chosen of the gods, you are not officially representatives of the Empire, but I would appreciate if you did not do anything to embarrass us. We,” Raella made a brief sweeping gesture to show that she meant her fellow elves, “are your wards, and representatives of our people. Any embarrassment you cause will reflect poorly on us, and perhaps hurt our burgeoning relationship with the Dwarven countries. Please keep that in mind. Now as for matters of decorum…”

For the next 30’ish minutes, Raella launched into a lecture about ball etiquette. Since we were the guests of honor, we were to arrive by a certain door and descend some stairs, where we would be announced to the entire room full of the Dwarven upper crust who had managed to be invited. We were supposed to greet the King and his Queen first, to bow or curtsy as directed, and Raella would handle talking to them. Then Raella wanted us to follow her as she introduced us to some of the upper nobility from the other Dwarven Anchors. After that, we would be allowed to mingle or eat or participate in dances as we pleased – so long as we didn’t get raucous and drunk.

A dwarven man with smoothed back black hair and gray eyes appeared at the door, clearing his throat to interrupt Raella’s long list of things that would embarrass her. “Well,” she said. “It’s time for the ball.”

34. Lucas

On By MaryIn 2023, WritingLeave a comment

The remaining journey to Glyss passed quickly and quietly. It almost fell into a more comfortable routine. I was getting better sleep now that I knew the auditory and visual hallucinations were real, and I kept a more careful eye for them. When I saw the figure of light, I was careful not to turn my head directly toward him, instead studying him out of my periphery. Sometimes he appeared to be riding alongside us on a shining horse of silvery white that was as bright as he was. He wore shining armor, and sometimes I could just make out the hint of flaming wings extending from him and the horse, wavering tendrils of light, bright as solar flares. I would catch moments when Peyton or Asterollan would spot him and twist their heads around, or do a mild double take, only for him to disappear. Whoever he was, he did not want to be looked at directly.

I realized that the strange smell of burning electronics or ozone seemed to follow in Cassandra’s wake at times. Sometimes she would pass me on the road and I felt the mild tingle of static run down my arms. She didn’t seem aware of it in the slightest. I began to study Lexie to see if there were signs of Myrapen’s presence, but nothing made itself known. She was not as hovering or watchful as the other gods, I guess. Lexie still had trouble with fine control in her spells, but raw power was never an issue. That may have just been Lexie though – she still couldn’t catch anything to save her life either.

Sometimes in the evenings if I was alone, I would sit and quietly speak to Peter. In a way, I was indirectly attempting to communicate with my own god. I would still hear the laughter on occasion, but nothing ever directly responded to me.

Glyss was a larger town, with two sets of walls separating an upper ward from a lower ward. The city had grown since the original town had been built, and the nearby dwarven border made the municipality cautious. In Glyss we made our way to the inner ward, and instead of staying at an inn we were invited to stay in the home of the city’s leader. He was an older man that looked almost stereotypically like a wizard, with a long slate grey beard and hair and twinkling blue eyes. In fact, he looked remarkably a lot like Master Zern.

He was introduced to us as Javyk Zern. “Wellem is my younger brother,” he said when Peyton asked if there was a relation. He was very enthusiastic in greeting us, shaking each of our hands with both of his and staring us so directly in the eyes as he did so that it was almost disconcerting. “Yes, yes, make yourselves at home. Feel free to wander the estates or settle into your rooms. Dinner shall be served in the hour. Oh! A giant jumping spider. Quite rare in these parts!” Peter seemed a bit nervous to be approached, but once the old man began tickling him behind the eyes, he warmed up to him instantly, leaning into the old man’s touch.

“You’re not scared of him?” I asked, a little surprised. Every wall guard and innkeeper we had met so far had to be argued with and perhaps bribed to allow Peter to pass through. When we walked down streets people eyed him warily.

“Hmm? No. Many consider the smaller varieties lucky. Perhaps the larger one is just extra lucky!” When he got to Asterollan, he peered at him curiously. “I wasn’t expecting an extra human. What brings you so far into Elven lands?”

“I think I have much to discuss with you before dinner,” Raella said, cutting in before Asterollan could provide his own answer. “The gods appear to be returning to our world.”

“Really?” Javyk looked thoughtful at the news, then nodded. “Yes. The retainers will show you all to your rooms, and we,” he looked meaningfully to Raella, “shall sit and discuss this in my library.”

The house was large enough for most of us to have our own rooms, though Lyre and Cassandra opted to stay together in one. The rooms were nicer than an inn, similar to what we had experienced while staying in the tower at the University. We were planning to leave first thing in the morning so there wasn’t much settling in to do. Instead, I flopped down on my back on the large bed, relishing in how soft the mattress was. Peter jumped up, leaning against my side. I absently patted his nearest leg. If I didn’t look at him, I could almost imagine I was being cuddled by a bristly dog.

Lexie wandered into my room after a while and, completely uninvited, flopped down on her back on the other side of my bed. “My bed has a canopy,” she said.

“That’s nice,” I replied.

“I always wanted a canopy bed. Back home.”

“Maybe when this is all done you can have one here.” I had been ignoring the possibility that we might not have a life here after this was all done, and could almost believe the words as I spoke them. I tilted my head back to look over at her. She was staring absently at something that I couldn’t see. “Have they done anything new?” I asked.

She shook her head. “Nope. Same old routine. Float around us, stay out of reach.”

“Hmm. Not that I mind, but why did you come in here to bother me?”

“Oh, I was trying to check everyone’s rooms out. Greyjon said it was inappropriate to walk in on a man, Asterollan was meditating and kept ignoring me, and Cassandra and Lyre had locked the door. You just happened to be next.”

I sighed. “So one man tells you that it’s not appropriate to walk into a man’s room, and you continue walking into men’s rooms?” I asked.

“You hardly count.”

I expected that, so I ignored it. “And Asterollan?”

“He was meditating.” I didn’t see how that answered the question, but I didn’t argue the point.

Peyton walked by the open door and spotted us, stepping in to lean against the door frame and cross her arms, an amused expression on her face. “Is this some kind of party?”

“It’s just a soft bed,” I grumbled. Peter trilled softly.

“Mine has a canopy,” Lexie told her enthusiastically.

“I always wanted one of those as a kid.” Peyton walked over and flopped down next to Lexie. I was starting to feel a bit crowded. “Dinner is soon.”

“Wonder what kind of food a place this fancy serves,” Lexie said, popping back up. She walked over to the door and glanced back at us. “Are you guys coming?”

“In a moment. It’s a soft bed,” I said.

“I just lay down,” Peyton groaned. Lexie rolled her eyes, made some mumbled comment about old people, and walked out. “Ouch,” Peyton said, having heard the comment as well, and laughed.

I closed my eyes. I hadn’t been alone with Peyton in a long time, and realized she probably didn’t know that the strange figure of light she caught sight of sometimes was a god. “So have you been seeing things too?” I asked.

She shifted on the bed, I suspected to look over at me. I smirked, but said nothing as I waited for her reply, my eyes still closed. “So I haven’t been going insane.”

“No. Cassandra says the figure of light is Asterollan’s god. If you avoid looking directly at him, he stays longer, and you can kind of observe him from the periphery.”

“And the child?” I opened my eyes now to look over at her with a frown. When she realized I didn’t know what she was talking about, it was her turn to smirk. “There’s a kid that shows up sometimes very briefly, and then disappears. I’ve seen her sometimes in town, but mostly when we’re out on the road. Standing by a creek or out in the middle of a field, or sitting in a tree.”

“I think I hear her laughing sometimes. But I haven’t seen her very often,” I admitted. I sat up, careful not to disturb Peter, who was trilling in a soft even way that suggested he was sleeping. “Cassandra says that she and Asterollan have both talked to their gods. Cassandra knows the name of hers too.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. But it seems like she hasn’t told Raella or anyone else yet.”

Peyton was quiet. I resisted the urge to turn to look at her. “I wonder what they want us to do? Is it the same as what we’ve been told we’re here for?”

I stood up and stretched a bit, then turned to face Peyton. She was staring at me, her eyes wide and blue and as easy to fall into as the sky. I looked away, uncomfortable with the eye contact. “I don’t know. But we’re going with them for now, right?”

Peyton nodded. “For now. Yes.”

We both wandered down for dinner. It wasn’t quite a formal affair – the servants or attendants or whatever brought us our food when we arrived to eat, and we weren’t expected to wait for anyone. Raella and Javyk must have still been talking privately, and Lyre and Cassandra were nowhere to be seen. Lexie was already halfway done with her meal. I watched the way her eyes flicked up above my head as Peyton and I entered – I had grown used to it by this point, but the first several times it had happened, it was hard not to twist my head to follow her gaze, even knowing I would see nothing.

The bed was almost too comfortable, and I spent a lot of the night twisting and turning in it. I was dead tired the next morning, barely able to drag myself along as we gathered ourselves for the final leg of our journey through the Empire.

Javyk accompanied us. “Just as far as the border,” he said. “I have my own duties here and can’t leave, but I’ll be passing you into the care of a dwarven ambassador.” The road looked well traveled and maintained, but there was very little traffic along it. I could see the border wall before we reached it – a massive stone construct. Where the wall met the road, there was a gate with guard towers. Standing at attention on either side of the road was a regiment of soldiers, and standing at the gate was a group of dwarves.

I had expected the stereotypical vision of burly bearded men, short but stout, fully armored, wielding battle axes and perhaps speaking in a Scottish accent. My first impression was that I was seeing a group of children, but as I approached I realized they were adults – just very small. In fact, they reminded me more of tall halflings or gnomes. The tallest only came up to my elbow. They had pointed ears, though not as sharply upswept as an elf’s ears. And while some of the delegation did wear armor, and a few had beards, they did not look uniformly as dwarven as I had imagined.

They spoke Blest, but had a softer accent that sounded vaguely American southern mixed with Irish. For a moment, I felt foolish as I realized that of course I would never really find a recognizable accent here. It made me faintly homesick for a moment.

The leader of the delegation was a man that, despite his height in comparison to ours, held an air of unquestioned authority. He had wispy blonde hair and hazel eyes and stared at Javyk Zern as he approached with us. “Hello, Ambassador Kernel,” Javyk greeted cheerfully. If anything, Kernel’s expression darkened more at the sight of him.

“You’re not coming into Amethys Anchor with us, are you, Zern?” the dwarf called out as we got closer.

“Oh no, I’ve got too much to do back home. I’m simply here to make introductions and pass our people into your care.” Kernel looked visibly relieved. We dismounted and stood in front of Kernel, where Javyk introduced us one by one. Kernel didn’t seem very impressed, but the younger man standing next to him – with messy brown hair and green eyes magnified behind very large glasses – looked incredibly excited to see us, practically bouncing on the heals of his feet, and appropriately ooh’ed and aah’ed at nearly every title that Javyk seemed willing to lay at our feet – from Raella, Lead Professor of Divinity of the Imperial University, to Greyjon, Captain of Kimber City Military. The young man practically squeaked in awe as Javyk introduced Lexie as, “Chosen of Myrapen, the Eternal Flame, god of fire.”

Kernel did not seem like the sort to enjoy the tedium of decorum. Javyk, on the other hand, was taking great joy in drawing it out, and I suspected he was doing it just to piss Kernel off. It was kind of amusing to watch the shorter man go through various shades of pink and red as he tapped his foot in impatience, his arms crossed. Once Javyk was done, Kernel immediately suggested that we be on our way without offering to make similar introductions of his own people.

Raella and Javyk spoke privately for a bit, and then we were climbing back onto our horses and preparing to travel again. And all too quickly, we were passing through the gates, with Javyk waving enthusiastically behind us as we left. Some of the dwarven delegation rode ahead, and a few of the more armored ones followed along behind. Some were mounted on ponies, short enough for them to easily ride – others were mounted on a strange breed of dog that I had never seen before that stood easily as tall as the ponies. The dogs had long fur, some being more grey and some more tan, although the one that Kernel rode was a deep black.

One of the dogs growled slightly at Peter, baring its teeth in an alarmingly menacing way. Peter gave a short, affronted chirp at the sound – I started to try to angle my horse between the dog and my spider, but Peyton beat me to it, frowning in an impressively imperious manner. The dog’s rider rubbed the dog behind his ear and whispered something to it, calming it down. “Apologies, my lady,” the rider said, shifting his mount a bit further away.

“Thanks,” I mumbled to Peyton as I trotted my horse up next to hers. She smiled at me as I motioned for Peter to get on the wagon. Peter obliged, jumping up on top of the wagon and crouching down on the fabric that covered it, settling in for the journey.

“So the dwarven country is called Amethys Anchor?” I overheard Cassandra asking Raella.

“More accurately, there are several dwarven countries. The one that immediately borders the Empire is called Amethys Anchor. There is also Emeran Anchor, Deman Anchor, and Rewbe Anchor, though those are much farther south and we aren’t likely to travel to them. We’re making our way to the Seiling Mountains, in Saph Anchor, which houses the entrance to the great mines that will bring us closest to the Seal.”

“Is it the Seiling Mountains because of the Seal?” Lexie asked curiously.

“Well, it may have gotten its name from it, yes.” I had the sense that Raella was ready to gear up on telling us everything we’d ever need to know about the dwarven kingdoms, and allowed myself to drop back away from the wagon before I got caught up in the lecture.