Moving along

Soran had nearly caught up to his horse when someone rushed up to toss an arm around him. He blinked at the youth beside him while trying to figure out who he was, and were he came from. Thinking hurt like hell at the moment because of his aching head. He really wanted to close his eyes and fall asleep for a while, but refused to let his brain shut down completely. Something told him he needed to stay alert because danger might be lurking nearby.

After several minutes of struggling to remember things, Alexander’s name finally flashed across his mind. As soon as he realized the youth was a friend, he relaxed and leaned into his embrace while they made way their way to Shadow. Although Alex told him he was going to use a levitation spell, panic gripped Soran when his body began to rise. His fear vanished once he sat safely on the horse in front of Alex, who wrapped a protective arm around him to keep him from falling.

By the time they reached the staircase of clouds more of Soran’s memories had returned. He swayed a bit after dismounting, but Alex held him until he felt steady enough to stand on his own without fear of collapsing. The awful throbbing at the back of his head subsided somewhat, and his vision stopped wavering. His green eyes fell upon Alex when he spoke to him softly.

“Soran, I suggest you stay on the ground where it’s relatively safe and let the rest of us go up and rescue Cas and Jeremy. However, if you feel you’re steady enough and your head has cleared enough to ascend that cloudy staircase then I can’t stop you from doing so.”

He nodded slowly then watched Alexander climb the magical stairs. His hand flew to his sword when he saw the two huge Rocs in the distance, their massive wings carrying them closer to his friends quickly. Seeing one of the birds suddenly engulfed in fire puzzled him until he remembered that Kato and Alex were able to cast spells. Shortly after the second Roc became imprisoned within a net, Soran spotted his horse several yards away.

Carefully, he took a step forward, increasing his pace once confident he wouldn’t pass out before reaching his destination. Demon appeared quite calm now that there weren’t any Rocs around to threaten him. Soran strode right up to the beautiful animal, taking the reins into his hand before resting his head against Demon’s neck. Just as he was about to doze off, the sound of voices made him turn. He led Demon to his companions who were now on the ground. Thankfully, no one appeared to be injured.

The smile that came to his lips upon meeting Rowan’s eyes fled instantly when the elf abruptly turned away from him and started barking out orders. Rowan seemed to change after committing to a relationship with him. He’d acted somewhat stiff and tense around him since they woke up this morning. Soran got the distinct impression that Rowan wasn’t too happy about the commitment he’d made last night.

Following the elf’s orders, he handed Demon’s reins to Jeremy and mounted Vixen. He noted the touch of irritation in his teacher’s voice as he and Xue discussed the fate of the Roc still held captive by the net, and felt like he was the cause of it. I didn’t force him to make a commitment he wouldn’t feel comfortable with! He cared too damned much for Rowan to see him stifled by a relationship he really didn’t want.

Rather than wrap his arms around the elf after he mounted in front of him, Soran rested his hands on his own thighs. He glanced at Cas and smiled wistfully when he saw him kiss Eremis’ cheek. It must be nice to be so deeply in love with someone who returned that love. When his eyes shifted to stare at Rowan’s back, he let out a soft sigh. His birthday had started off greatly, but it seemed like it was going to end on a sour note. He rubbed his aching head, forcing the pain aside because he had an awful lot of deep thinking to do.

As Jeremy mounted Demon, he overheard Alexander talking to Xue about releasing the Roc. “Don’t know how she feels about it, but personally I think you should wait until we’re safely away from the thing before you set it free.” After stating his opinion on the matter, he rode up alongside of Kato.

“That was some impressive fireball you tossed at that ugly Roc. I think magic’s pretty interesting, especially since it doesn’t work on my world. Science rules there.” He lit up a cigarette then rattled off a bunch of questions to Kato about how magic worked and how long it took to become a practicing mage.

Eremis’ mood brightened now that the danger had passed. It felt incredibly wonderful to hear his lover thank HIM for rescuing him, even though he really didn’t do very much. Kato and Alex were the real heroes. Without their spells the Rocs would have been quite difficult to deal with.

They continued to chat about Moltare and all the things they’d encountered on their journey so far as they rode along. Deep down, Eremis continued to hope that Cas would get his fill of the adventuring life, and would be anxious to settle down to a normal life once this mission ended.

The sun was beginning to set when they left the mountain range behind them and led their horses down a wide path that cut through a dense forest. Everyone stopped abruptly when two giant eagles soaring overhead spoke into their minds using some kind of telepathy.

“Welcome, ground-walkers. You are entering the forest of the druidess, Darlanta. If you come in peace, follow us…if not, leave now.”

The birds led them to a plush valley surrounded by tall trees. A large cabin was built close to a steam. Several goats stood just outside a barn, and a sabre-tooth tiger rested in front of a thatched hut. The animal stared at the strangers, its gaze lingering on Xue for a while before it yawned, displaying rows of shape teeth.

One of the trees in the distance suddenly shimmered. A moment later, a tall rather pretty woman, in her thirties stood in it’s place. She was dressed in a long shift of forest green that matched her eyes, and flowers were worked into her waist length brunette hair.

“Greetings, travelers. I am Darlanta, a druidess who takes care of this forest and its creatures. Since I sense no evil among you, you’re welcome to rest in my valley. There is no need to introduce yourselves because the eagles mentally picked up your names and told them to me.” A brown bear stepped out from behind another tree and followed behind Darlanta as she moved closer to her guests.

“You may set up tents if you like,” she said, smiling down at Xue before letting her eyes pan the faces of the others. “You can cook your own food out here, or join me in my cabin in an hour for vegetable stew and fresh baked bread. I enjoy having visitors and look forward to getting to know you all a bit better later on. But right now I must tend to the goats. If you’ve a mind to freshen up enjoy the stream. The water is pleasantly warm, and it helps heal minor injuries thanks to Natilasla, a unicorn who dips her magical horn into it each morning.”

She pulled a flower from her hair, and handed it to Rowan once he dismounted. “I haven’t had an otherworldly elf visitor in a long time,” she said quietly, before turning and heading off to the barn with the bear hurrying after her.

“Anyone up for some skinny-dipping?” Jeremy asked as he ran toward the stream, shedding his weapons and clothing along the way.

Eremis laughed. “I don’t know about skinny-dipping but washing up sounds like a good idea.” He dropped his horse’s reins and grabbed Cas’ arm, pulling him toward the water.

Soran stared at Rowan, whose eyes followed Darlanta to the barn. He drew in a deep breath then nudged the elf, gaining his attention. “I’ve decided that I don’t want a relationship with you anymore. From this moment on we’re nothing but friends. You’re free, so you can stop being so damned tense and start acting like your normal, happy-go-lucky self again.”

Before Rowan could say anything, Soran stormed off into the forest. He needed a few minutes alone to get his emotions under control before he joined the others in the stream. Breaking up with someone you were starting to fall in love with proved a lot harder than he thought. He plopped down under a tree and buried his aching head into his hands, and tried to think of anything but Rowan.