Champions of Serenity: Destiny Fulfilled

Chapter 21

Mid-afternoon sunlight filtered into the cave, brightening it with the hope of life. Airidon and Fini were talking quietly as they dressed a buck for roasting. Korol was sitting in the corner, playing with a pair of colored stones in his hand as he stared at the charred spot in front of the cave. Shrina, Tyra, and Jehro were out in the forest gathering roots and spring berries for the evening meal. Tris was looking over the maps and reports Korol brought back concerning the town of Galogosch.

Laughter filled the air as the three returned from their gathering expedition. Jehro carried a basket filled with Elven wild berries, saying something to both Shrina and Tyra. Shrina giggled and held her basket of white, golden, and orange, tuber roots close to her stomach to keep from spilling them. Tyra was chuckling and carrying a basket filled with tender water cress and spring greens.

Fini and Airidon looked over their shoulder at the laughing trio as they slung the spit over the fire and coals for dinner. Korol glanced away from the dark spot on the ground to the three of his companions and wondered what was so funny. Tris didn’t even bother looking up from the papers scattered across the floor by her.

“Hey, what’s so funny?” Airidon asked, walking out to join them, taking the baskets from the two women.

“Nothing much, Airidon.” Tyra said, thanking him for taking the basket. “Jehro was just telling stories about his travels. He was telling us about the son of a wealthy merchant in Tealshire who traded a purse of gold for what he thought was a shipment of fine ale. What was delivered was a cart full of fortified Centaur manure.”

Shrina giggled again as she prepared the roots for dinner. Handing the kettle of cleaned and sliced roots to Fini, Shrina shook her head. “I know this may not be appropriate, but I was just thinking….”

“What was that, Shrina?” Fini asked, taking the pot and seasoning it.

“Meckin used to say that Centaur manure was second only to Unicorn for growing the prettiest roses. He would have thought that foolish merchant boy was rather cunning to get such a precious cargo for so little, even if it wasn’t what he expected.” Shrina said softly, and then gave Fini a small smile at the surprise on his face. “What, you think I didn’t take the time to really get to know him?”

“Actually, Shrina, I think you know all of us better than we think you do. I haven’t forgotten the mistrust you had of us when we started joining the group. I’m just surprised that you would bring up that aspect of Meckin when most of us think about his more…. animalistic… characteristics. One doesn’t usually think of roses when one thinks about Meckin.” Fini said, returning her smile.

Korol moved in close when he heard Meckin’s name being said. He looked at Shrina with a new respect and nodded. “This is true, Fini.” Korol said, speaking for the first time that day. “Meckin knew the strangest facts, though. He once told me of a dispute he settled in Rehven when he was only fifteen. He and his brother Jonas started their trading caravan when Jonas was fifteen and Meckin was twelve. They started small and as their reputation built around northern Nasinih, others joined with them until they became quite the caravan.

“Anyway, one day, another trader came into Rehven with a load of what he was calling Nymph wood trinket boxes. The ladies all gathered around to see them because as you all know; nymph wood possesses the most uncommonly beautiful markings.” Korol was saying.

“No, Korolwyn, I don’t know. I’ve never seen Nymph wood. What’s it like?” Tris asked, joining the others around the fire.

“Well, Leader Tris, it comes in shades from a rich red to a pale pink with hues of yellow, orange, and brown in the whorls. It can’t be carved; it can only be magically shaped by the Nymphs themselves. And some claim that it blushes when it’s stroked.” Tris nodded and motioned for Korol to continue.

“This trader put out his display of trinket boxes and touched one to show that it did blush and was true Nymph wood. I believe Meckin said it was almost peach in color because of the deep orange whorls against the pale pink wood. The ladies all gasped and gathered in closer to make their selections. The trader was asking ten gold pieces per box and most of the men thought that just a little too dear for something so small.

“That was when one of the men noticed none of the other boxes were blushing when they were touched. He granted they were all beautiful and unique in color and design, but he contested the assertion they were true Nymph wood. Meckin and Jones were set up across the way and overheard the argument and Jonas sent Meckin to help settle it.

“Seeing a fellow trader coming, the trader complained to Meckin that this man was trying to slander his merchandize to try to get a better price. The man, the local butcher, showed the box in question to Meckin without saying a word.

“Meckin looked the box over, looked over the other boxes, and then looked at the two men. Everyone in the town square waited to hear what Meckin would say. He had gained, in the past three years of trading in Rehven, a reputation for being truthful, even if it hurt his own business.

“Pointing to the original box, Meckin said it was the only true Nymph wood in the collection. He held up his hand before anyone could say anything and continued to say that the other boxes were made from Dryad pruning. That caused a silence in the square because not many people had ever seen Dryad wood and no one really knew what they were worth. So again, they asked Meckin what his thoughts on it were.

“Meckin, being the man he was, smiled and said that they were worth double what the trader asked for by the rarity of the wood but only half what the trader asked for in workmanship. In the end the trader got his ten gold pieces per box, but he had to change his sign to read Dryad wood instead of Nymph wood. The ladies didn’t buy as many boxes because they didn’t know about Dryad wood and the only Nymph wood box was bought by the butcher.” Korol said and chuckled. “Meckin said that if the care had gone into crafting the other boxes as went into that single Nymph wood, the trader could have made a killing charging twenty gold pieces per box. He never saw that trader again and neither did Rehven, at least, not that they told Meckin.”

“How did Meckin know the difference between the two woods? I wouldn’t have and I’ve cared for both Dryads and Nymphs.” Fini asked, stirring the roots so they wouldn’t burn as they cooked. Jehro was stirring the berries in another pot, seasoning them. He had given Fini a dark look when Fini attempted to take over cooking them and seasoned them himself.

Korol shrugged, “he never really said. I’m guessing that he had seen them in the past.”

“Everyone, I have an announcement.” Jehro said, setting down the spoon and pulling the berries off of the fire after a final testing of them. “Before I make the actually announcement, I have to set up the scene a little. You will understand why when I’m finished, so please don’t interrupt me.” When they all agreed to listen to whatever he had to say, Jehro ran back to his room and then came out with two brightly wrapped packages. He set them down between his legs and began.

“A few weeks ago, there was a day when Tris seemed very…. melancholy. She went to visit an empty glade to talk to an empty tree and try to find some peace. While she was there, something happened that no one but Noshtra, Drianne, and Tris know and they aren’t talking about it. The result of whatever happened was that Drianne returned to Sandeenai and Tris was for lack of a better word, euphoric.

“Of course, having the gifts I have of empathy and telepathy, I received some very strange readings from her. So I went in search of her and found her chasing a butterfly.”

“I wasn’t chasing a butterfly, Jehrones, it simply happened to cross my path the same time you did.” Tris said, sitting back and crossing her arms and ankles, watching him. She had a mischievous smirk on her face and a decidedly dangerous twinkle in her eye. “I just wanted you to be accurate, my friend.”

Jehro nodded and turned back to what he was doing at the hearth. He had baked some sweet bread earlier when Fini had made the bread that morning. He was now cutting his special loaf into slices and setting it on plates. Then he spooned a very generous helping of the berries and syrup over the bread.

“As I was saying, she was chasing a butterfly when I saw her. I tried a couple of times to get her attention. Now, if it were Shrina, I would be used to the jumble of thoughts flooding through Tris at that moment, but this wasn’t Shrina so it had me understandably confused. I will admit to being overwhelmed and I stumbled back into the nearest tree to support me. That got Tris’s attention.

“When she finally realized I was there, she asked me what was wrong. I asked her what was going on and to please stop trying to confuse me. I pleaded with her for some kind of order from her, like I am used to and to stop acting like a lovesick teenager. Her response, you might ask? ‘Don’t you know following the thoughts of a woman is next to impossible and for the record, I am still a teenager, I will be eighteen in two weeks’ time.’

“So, two weeks from then would have put it the day of our first assault on Handsome in Kreben. Understandably, we were unable to do anything about it then. Also, considering that Tris grew up here, without the benefit of set traditions and such, she probably doesn’t know how most people celebrate their birthdays. That being said, I would like to be the first to wish Tris a happy eighteenth birthday and wish her all the best in the upcoming year.” He handed around the dessert he had made to everyone in the astonished circle. Then he handed Tris the two brightly wrapped packages. “Happy Birthday, Tris.”

Shrina was the first to find her voice. “Why didn’t you tell us it was your birthday, Tris? Are you trying to keep it secret?” Shrina demanded, setting her treat to the side untasted. “Well, are you going to open your presents?”

Tris looked at the gifts and then to Jehro. “Come on, Tris, open them. I am curious to see what Jehro thinks is perfect to give you.” Airidon said, taking a bite of the food. “Oh gods above and below, Jehro, this is…..wonderful.”

“You are welcome, Airidon, but I’m curious to see what Tris thinks of it.” Jehro said.

With all eyes on her, Tris lifted her free hand in compliance and took a bite of the sweet first thing. She chewed it thoughtfully a moment before letting it slide down her throat. “Very interesting seasoning choices, Jehro, but it’s marvelous.” Jehro beamed and then gestured toward the presents. Watching Jehro a moment, Tris selected the larger of the two packages to open first. She took her time looking at the wrappings and chuckling over the words written on it.

“Hurry up, Tris. The paper isn’t for reading; it’s for tearing and ripping.” Shrina said when it seemed to take forever to see what Jehro had given Tris. Shrina had picked up her dessert and quickly devoured it, licking her lips and wondering if there was more.

Chuckling a moment, Tris nodded and carefully removed the paper and folded it up, tucking it into her cloak pocket for future reading. Then she opened the box and pushed the wrappings away. “Oh my…..” Tris lifted the delicately carved statuette from its cocoon. As the light hit it, Korol hissed in surprise.

“Do you know what that is, Leader Tris?” He asked in awe.

“That is better than even I could do, Jehro, amazing.” Airidon said simply as he looked at it over Tris’s shoulder.

“It’s beautiful, Jehro,” Tyra said.

Fini didn’t say anything; he simply wiped his eyes and sniffed. His eyes moved from the glowing wood to the woman who held it.

“Jehrones, did you get the wood from Drianne?” Tris asked, gently running her finger over the smooth surface. It was a replica of when Tris first appeared before Jehro after changing from the falcon into her true shape. It had been made from Dryad wood, polished until it glowed and was delicately tinged blue, green, and purple.

“When I spoke to Drianne about what I was doing, she told me to take part of the deadfall from her during the winter. She even helped me find the right water grasses to bring out the natural color swirls in the wood.” Jehro answered.

“Well, our friends are all correct, Jehrones, it is beautiful, rare, and very well crafted. I will treasure it always and will find a place of honor so that everyone can also enjoy it.” Tris said and then lifted the smaller of the packages and frowned a moment. She looked to Jehro and asked him a silent question. Hiding a smile, she tucked it, unopened into her cloak.

“Hey, that’s not fair, what is it?” Shrina demanded.

Tris shook her head and smiled a moment. “Sorry, Shrelannasha, but this one is between Jehrones and me. You will have to satisfy yourself with seeing one of the gifts. Jehrones, thank you for the gifts and the treat. It was a nice way to start our new venture.”

“What new venture, Leader Tris?” Korol asked, suddenly suspicious.

The others watched Tris a moment as she deliberately finished the last of her treat before answering. Fini and Tyra exchanged a speaking glance and Jehro rested his hand on Shrina’s to keep her quiet.

“We have pledged to rid Sandeenai of Handsome, Korolwyn. Nothing has changed that pledge, so we must plan our next attack.” Tris finally answered, setting her plate to the side to be cleaned. Then she looked at each of them in turn. “I know that it won’t be easy and with the loss of Meckin, it makes things even more difficult, but that can’t stop us. If it did, what kind of champions would we be? Do you want to be remembered as the ones who almost won but gave up when things got too hard? What about Hervin Gessup? He almost died because he believed in us. What about all those in Savine who died because of what they did for us? What about the Wer, the ones that have almost been entirely wiped out because of Handsome’s relentless attacks on them? Are we just going to turn our backs on all of them? Tell them we had our own problems and couldn’t be bothered? I said it once and I’ll say it again, I would rather die trying than give up and live the rest of my life in fear and self-loathing because I gave up.”

Airidon nodded and put his hand on Tris’s arm. “We understand, Tris, and we are with you. It just hurts having to do this without Meckin. What is our plan this attack? It’s Galogosch this time, correct?”

“Yes, but I had something different in mind for Galogosch than for Kreben.” Tris said and pulled out the maps Korol had drawn of the town.

“As you notice, the mercenary fort in Kreben was set a few miles outside of the town. It was easy to cause damage to the fort without doing harm to the town and the people living there. In Galogosch, it’s a different story. The fort is built right up to the town, in fact, it’s part of the trade district of the town. As you can see, the garrison living there only sleeps and keeps their supplies within the fort proper. The offices for those we need to kill are in the town, as well as the catalyst stone.” Tris pointed to each of the main points she was making on the map so that they all could see it. “If we attack like before, half the town will be destroyed. We cannot afford to have the people of Sandeenai think of us as the enemy, which would make this a choice between one evil or another; a single ruler verses seven. We have to get the people on our side, let them know that we are fighting for them not fighting to conquer them.”

Airidon walked around the map table, his hand cupping his chin as he thought about it. “You want us to go in during the day, expose ourselves to possible attack, and take out the select few we need to destroy to cause the most damage, get the catalyst stone, make friends with the town people, and get back here in one piece and as quietly as possible? Tris are you losing your mind? We can’t do that.”

Before Tris could respond, Shrina shook her head. “Actually, Airidon, we can. It’s a tactic I used when I was in the killing for hire line of work. I wouldn’t want the people of a town to kick me out because they were afraid of me, so I would make sure I was seen spending a lot of money in their town. I would make the first kill in the open, so they all could see, and usually it would be someone the whole town disliked and was glad to be rid of. Then I would quietly let it be known that if there were others in the town that needed taken care of, I would be happy to help out, for a price. In this case, we go shopping, make friends with those whose livelihoods are at stake with the outcome of this war we are waging, openly kill those we need to, and enlist the aid of the people living there to cover our backs while we make good our escape. Those people don’t like the mercenaries being there anymore than we do, especially not mercenaries that go squealing to Handsome every time the town does something it isn’t supposed to do.”

“That’s brilliant, Shrina, we incite rebellion, do what we need to, and get out. But won’t Handsome take out his anger on the town, putting them in the danger we are hoping to avoid?” Jehro said as he pictured what would go down.

Airidon shook his head again. “Actually, Jehro, he won’t. He’ll know it was us who killed his people in place within the mercenary fort. And he’ll know it was us who stole his power catalyst. He won’t be looking at a minor rebellion that he will be able to put down after he deals with us; we just have to be open enough that his attention is on us and not the town. The thing that he won’t understand is that once the people of Sandeenai as a whole discover that it is possible to rebel against Handsome, more and more will start to do it and it will quickly get to a point where he won’t be able to stop it, even by destroying a whole town as an example. It is brilliant, Shrina.”

Tris didn’t say anything, she just sat back and let them plan, a half smile on her face. She almost wished she could go with them and do more than deal with the evil in the magic she would be cleansing. It didn’t seem fair that the people of Sandeenai would never get to see just what it was she was doing for them and in the end, she would still be feared because she wasn’t ever seen fighting Handsome in the small towns. Oh well, she thought, it wasn’t for the glory she was doing this, it was for freedom.

Korol moved over to sit next to Tris. When the talking started to get loud about who would be doing what, he just shook his head. When he heard the soft sigh coming from his leader, he turned to look at her a moment.

When he had first seen her, she wearing a human disguise, trapped by a spell put on her by Handsome. He didn’t think much of her then; she was very common looking, even if she was pretty. He had watched in amazement when the others in the Circle had broken the spell and she had changed into the breath-taking young elf looking maiden which was her normal form. The others still didn’t know he was with them, had been with them since their return from Catira. He remembered how young she looked, how vulnerable for that split second as she came back to herself. Then he watched as the softness had left her and she looked up into the faces of the others. Meckin hadn’t been with them either at this point and even though the six of them felt like a group, they didn’t feel complete.

It had taken all of his quick wits to follow them when they vanished from the forest outside of Savine. It had taken him a day in the city to locate them again and once again become their shadow. He hadn’t stopped to wonder at the time why he was so drawn to these people, especially to the emotionless woman-child who appeared to lead them. With the softness of emotion gone, she still looked young, but she no longer looked vulnerable and that had bothered him for some reason.

Now as he watched her watching the others he could almost see a touch of that vulnerability back in her face and around her body. He smiled at the thought of Tris being vulnerable, he now knew better, but just for a moment, he wished she would be again so he could protect her like she protected all of them. Reaching out, he gently brushed a strand of hair away from her face, tucking it behind her ear.

She turned to him and lifted an eyebrow in question at him. “Korolwyn?”

He grinned at her, watching as she shielded that part of her he thought of as softness which he now understood was her trying to experience emotions, something most Elves and Demons never attempted to acquire, let alone use.

“I was just remembering the first time I saw you, Leader Tris. I didn’t know who you were or why the other five were trying so hard to find you. It was just outside of Savine, when they broke the spell on you and you changed from that bland barmaid back to yourself. And yes, I know, you didn’t know I was there, but I had been following the others since before they went to Catira and waited for them to return and then followed them in their search for you.” Korol smiled at the memories, looking into the past rather than in the here and now. A tap on his shoulder brought him back to now and he smiled again at Tris. “Sorry, I was lost in thought. Anyway, Leader Tris, I was thinking how well you wear emotions and how I wished you did it more often.”

That surprised Tris and she frowned, shaking her head, trying to figure out what Korol had meant. She was jarred from her thoughts by Shrina demanding her attention.

“Tris, I get to go this time, don’t I? I mean, I don’t want to have to send a shopping list, I want to do my shopping in person.”

“Yes, Shrelannasha, you are going this time. Although you have mentioned it several times, I really don’t know anything about this shopping you speak of, but go and enjoy it to your heart’s content. Finbrahner and Jehrones are the ones staying with me here. But we have had enough talk tonight; we can talk more in the morning. I’m going to bed now.” Tris threw one last confused look at Korol, kissed Airidon’s cheek, and went back into her sleeping cave.

“What was that look for, Korol?” Tyra asked, pouring herself some more of the evening tea.

Korol shrugged. “I really don’t know. I just told Tris she wore emotions well and that I wished she would do it a little more often. Then she got that pole axed look on her face and went to bed.”

Fini chuckled softly. “That, Korol, is because she still likes to pretend she doesn’t have any. Between her time as Dina and her connection to that other world and the human she is paired with, Tris has come a long way from when we first met her outside of Jentro almost a year ago. Give her time and she might even forget that there was ever a time she lived without them. Well, good night all; see you in the morning.”

A loud blast rocked the cave in the silence of the early morning hours. It was followed quickly by a scream and loud curse. Dust filled the air throughout the cavern, clouding the vision.

Tris jumped from her bed, sword in hand and raced into the main cave, Airidon right on her heels. Jehro and Shrina stumbled from their sleeping cave, also armed and ready for anything. Korol appeared with a dagger in each hand, his eyes darting around the darkness.

Fini carried Tyra from their cave and sat her down on one of the logs they used for sitting. She had a small cut over one eye and an ugly bruise forming on her right cheek.

Tris knelt in front of Tyra and closed her eyes, opening them and looking through a purple haze. Gently, Tris laid her fingertips against Tyra’s face and allowed the magic to flow between them, healing Tyra. When she was done, she sat back and made sure Fini wasn’t harmed either.

“Just what the hell happened?” Shrina demanded when Tris didn’t say anything to Tyra after healing her.

Tyra looked at Tris when she answered. “I don’t know what happened. I was asleep, dreaming about the upcoming battle in Galogosch and then next thing I know, Fini is carrying me in here.” Tris nodded. “You expected this to happen?” Tyra asked.

“Actually, Tyrandeannah, I expected it much sooner.” Tris said softly and touched the back of Tyra’s hand. “You are a full wizard; you have two forms of magic. Up to now, you have only been using the spoken word. Just before Kreben, you mentioned the second form, but you haven’t been working on it. I knew it would get out of hand without training.”

“There is a four foot deep crater in our sleeping room, Tris, and you expected it? And didn’t warn us?” Fini asked, his hands on his waist and a scowl on his face.

“Not a four foot crater, Finbrahner, but something to happen. And I couldn’t have warned you or it would have made Tyrandeannah more stressful and either locked the second form or released it in a more explosive manner. Now that Tyrandeannah has unlocked the second form, it needs to be trained.”

“Wait a minute…..” Korol said, holding up his hand to give himself a minute to think. He looked around at everyone in the main cavern, taking note of Airidon’s scowl, Jehro’s look of disgust, Shrina’s hands on her hips, Fini’s barely repressed worry, Tyra’s fear, and Tris’s calm. “Now, let me see if I understand this correctly. Tyra blew up part of her sleeping cavern because of a dream she was having, waking all of us as a result. Fini could have been killed if Tyra had rolled over and touched him instead of the ground. Tris knew that something was coming but didn’t say anything to make sure that it wouldn’t be too bad. And now Tyra needs some special training to make sure nothing like this happens again. Did I get it all?”

Tris nodded. The others just shrugged.

“Okay, then let’s get back to sleep and let Tyra and Tris deal with this. We don’t need a majority vote here to decide that Tyra needs to get a handle on her magic and Tris is the best one to help her with it. I’ll see you all in a few hours when the sun wakes me.” Korol said simply and then went back to bed.

Tris followed Tyra and Fini into their sleeping room and helped guide Tyra through the steps to repairing the damage caused by her touch. Then she wished them good night and promised that in the morning, she would take Tyra away to help her learn quickly.

Chaos chuckled to himself. He wondered what else could go wrong in Tris’s plans of bringing Dreybrenic down. First she lost Meckin, and he still puzzled over that mystery, now it’s Tyra and learning a new way to use magic. He almost felt sorry for Tris and then remembered the deep anger that burned in the Demon Elf and how he didn’t want that turned on him. She couldn’t do any lasting damage to him, but she could make life very uncomfortable for him for a long time.

Turning he looked at Dreybrenic. His servant was foolish enough to believe the Circle no longer a large threat. He was planning a large summer festival in which he would let the people of Sandeenai know of the Circle’s demise. In his mind, it would crush the small rebellion that was started when rumors of the Circle began the following winter. Chaos just shook his head and knew that Dreybrenic would learn of his mistake too late to fix it.