| Sect nine: the promise By Richard LeBlanc For what felt like days the two had traveled through the unforgiving desert. But before they knew it the two were out of the dune-like mountains of sand and were camped out on a seemingly endless savanna - under the watchful light of a full moon. "When all of this is over - if I never see sand again I will be happy," Julia remarked. Drake quietly laughed. "You think that's funny?" she asked. "Yes - I do," he admitted. "If you don't mind my asking - why didn't you bring that dagger with you. Looked to be a pretty potent weapon," he asked curiously. Julia shrugged her shoulders. "It was. But I think - it was the key to seal," she replied. "Seal?" he asked curiously. "You said that the place was warded - such wards are protected by seals. If the seal is broken - so is the spell. I think someone panicked and tried to use the weapon for some reason," she replied - looking up at the sky. "I'm sorry if I'm babbling," she commented. "No need. You sound as though u know a bit about magic," he stated. "The village elder - he dabbled in the stuff. I overhead some things from him. For the most part magic just scares me," she replied - looking over at him. "You think I'm a witch?" she asked. "I wouldn't say witch," he teased. "I'm serious," she retorted. He sighed and looked down at their campfire. "I don't know. You look like an exceptionally beautiful woman - but then there is your pet wolf over there - and the fact that you took a daemon down almost single handed," he began but stopped. "Why ask?" he rebutted. "I don't know my family. What if - if I am? Would - would it matter?" she hesitantly asked - doing her best to avoid eye contact. "I have always been wary of those who dabble in the arts. A lot of trouble comes from trying to master things better left alone," he began - looking over at her. "But - even if you did have that in your blood - I doubt it could change how I feel about you," he replied. She looked over and saw that he was looking at her. "And - how - do you feel?" she asked hesitantly. "Hard to say really. Never felt this way about someone. Always been too focused on my mission of vengance. Too full of hate. Then I saw you - and it was like - nothing was real until that moment," he began. She listened - almost hypnotized by his words. "I know it must sound silly," he added. She readily shook her head. "It doesn't sound silly!" she eagerly protested. "It doesn't?" he asked. She began to blush. "I - I feel that way too," she replied as she shook her head. "What's wrong?" he asked. She sighed. "When I was growing up - I saw these older girls and how they acted around boys. Swore that I would never be that way - and yet here I am," she muttered. He moved over and sat down beside her. "That a bad thing?" he asked. She looked over at him and smiled. "No - I'm just not used to feeling this way," she admitted. "What way is that?" he asked curiously. "I don't know - love?" she asked. "Sounds about right to me," he replied. He leaned over and lightly kissed her on the cheek. She pulled away. "I do something wrong?" he asked. She lowered her eyes and shook her head. "No - I'm - I'm just sort of - new - to all of this - you know?" she modestly replied. He leaned back and sighed. "If you don't want," he began. "I - I do - I just," she interrupted but stopped. "I've - never done this before," she added. He smiled at her and laid down so that he was looking up at the moon above. "Do you know the stars?" he asked - changing the subject. She shook her head. "Lay down and look up at the sky - I promise I'll behave," he reassured. She shook her head and relaxed beside him. She watched as he pointed up at a cluster of stars. "That - is the golden chariot. The legends say - that when god left this world - he rode off into the sky," he stated. "You made that up," she retorted. "No seriously - if you connect the stars together - they form a chariot," he explained. "Oh - I think I see it," she replied. "And over there - by the moon - is the dragon. The legend says that the last of the great dragons - sensing the change in the times flew away," he stated. Julia looked away from the stars and looked over at him. "How do you know so much about the stars?" she asked. "Where I'm from - we believe that when a person dies - he or she becomes a star. The more important the person - the grand the design," he answered - looking over at her. "Where - is your father then? If I may ask," she hesitantly asked. He smiled and pointed over to a cluster of stars. "Over there - but the design won't be complete until I finish what I have started," he answered. Julia looked over at the cluster but couldn�t see a design. "What is it supposed to be?" she asked. "I don't know," he replied. Julia yawned and closed her eyes. He was going to point out another design when he noticed that she was already fast asleep. He smiled and put a blanket over her and slowly walked over to where his horse was. Perched on his saddle was a black falcon. His smile faded. "Leave," he whispered. The bird didn't move. "I'm not going to do it - I can't," he added. The falcon seemed to scowl at him. "I - won't - do it," he all but hissed at the bird. The bird ruffled its feathers. "I don't care - do as you must," he muttered. The bird flapped its wings and flew off into the night. Drake sighed and shook his head. His horse looked over at him. "This is going to get messy," he said to his horse as he looked over at his sleeping companion. Early the next day - Julia began to wake up. It was then that she noticed that Drake was no where to be seen. She was about to call out when she saw that his horse still remained. She sighed and sat up. "Drake?" she called out. Almost instantly Drake bounded up from the other side of his horse - weapon ready. She was mildly startled - but managed to look calm. "You okay?" he asked. "I thought you left without saying goodbye," she stated. "I wouldn't do that," he reassured - putting his weapon away. "Why did you sleep over there?" she asked. "Was just checking on my things sometime last night when I sort of conked out. Want me to catch us something to eat?" he asked curiously. She nodded and looked around at the tranquil landscape that surrounded them. "You like?" he asked as he walked over to where she was sitting. "Everything is so peaceful and calm. Reminds me of home," she replied. "You miss home?" he asked - stringing up his bow. "More than words can say," she admitted. "We can go back when all of this is done," he suggested. She sighed and lowered her eyes. "Or not - what's wrong?" he asked seriously. "After I left - my village was attacked," she answered - her voice growing distant as the images and scents flooded her mind. She shook her head to reenter reality. "Nothing is left," she added dryly. "I know what that is like. All you can do is forge forward and hope for the best," he reassured. She smiled and sighed. "I know. So how far is Torann from here?" she asked curiously. Drake looked around and pointed in the direction that was north. "Maybe a day or two. Should seem quicker now that there is better scenery to look at," he commented. Julia looked in that direction and could only see a seemingly endless plain. "This whole journey seems to be racing by faster than I can remember," she stated. "First time away from home will do that to you. Wait here - I'll be back with something to eat," he replied. "You know how to cook?" she asked in modest disbelief. "Where I come from - you know how to cook - or you go hungry," he answered with a wink. On that note he walked off to hunt for some game. Julia watched as he walked away and smiled. It was then that a black falcon landed on the horse and scowled at her. At first she didn't notice - but then it called out. She looked over saw the bird with its wings stretched out. "If you are looking for Drake he went hunting," she said. The falcon flew over and landed on a rock before her. "You aren't looking for Drake?" she asked. Before she could react the bird lunged forward and bit her hand. "Ow!" she exclaimed. She was going to kick the falcon away when it flew off. Julia watched as the bird seemed to vanish into the clear blue sky. She then looked at her bleeding hand. She was going to look for something to bind the wound when it began to heal. Within seconds there was no trace of what the bird had done to her. "You okay?" Drake asked. She almost jumped out of her skin. "Sorry - I'll make more noise next time," he reassured. She calmed down and looked at the coyote he had killed. "Got us breakfast," he pointed out. "Will it take long?" she asked. He looked at the animal and mentally evaluated the task. "Not too long - why? That hungry?" he asked. "A little bit," she admitted. He dropped the dead animal to the ground and made his way over to his horse. He reached into one of his saddlebags and pulled out a small cloth bag. "When we were at the oasis - I picked us up some fruit. Thought you might get hungry along the way," he stated - tossing the bag to her. "I thought this was for emergencies," she pointed out. "If I couldn't find any game - that would be so. Enjoy - I'll have that beast ready in about two maybe three hours," he reassured. She shrugged her shoulders and began to nibble on the fresh fruit that was inside. True to his word - a few hours later - he had the coyote cooked and served up. "It may not look like much - but I have made better with worse," he pointed out. "Not the greatest sales pitch," she remarked. "At least try it before you judge it," he politely requested. She sighed and took a bite. Much to her surprise - it tasted excellent. "You like?" he asked. She nodded and began to eat more. "So Torann is two days north?" she asked. "If that. You make excellent time on that little monster of yours," he remarked. The wolf growled lowly - she scowled. He raised his hands defensively. "Joke! Joking - honest," he reassured. She smiled and shook her head. "I will forgive you - if you tell me how you made that taste so good," she replied. He quietly laughed as he gathered his things together. "I will tell you on the way - fair?" he asked. "Fair," she answered. The two gathered their things together and climbed on their wolf and horse and were once again on route to Torann. Almost a day and a half later - the two were out of the savanna and were on a scenic plateau. All around them were the remnants of a great civilization - one far older than the one they sought. "What is this place?" she asked as she looked at the moss covered monolithic stones. "No one knows. There are some that say it was a race of giants that lived here - others say that it was made by the gods. There are no known records of the place - so it is a mystery," he replied. "Is it far from here?" she asked. "Can you hear the ocean?" he asked. She closed her eyes and concentrated. In the far off distance she could hear the sounds of waves smashing against the shore. "I can," she said as she hopped down from the back of the wolf. "Then we are almost there. Torann was built by the cliff. It was perfect for repelling invasions. Plus the outer walls were almost impassable. Plus the magic wards and so forth - nothing save the demon host could have taken the place down," he replied as he dismounted and walked over to where she was standing. "So we are close," she began as a cracking noise stopped her. "What was that?" she hesitantly asked. Drake looked around. Before either of them could react - the ground beneath them opened up. The two began to fall into a dark pit. To be continued... |