Chapter 12: Creeping Darkness Chapter 14: Hamill Canyon
Chapter 13: Village of Silence
The others climbed to the top of another low ridge. I lagged behind, forcing my legs to move onward.
“My lady?” Seth asked as I tottered up next to Altha and him, breathing heavily. “You must rest.”
Innes, too, was panting in the thin air. “Whew… I didn’t think we’d be climbing so high.”
I took another step forward and almost slipped on a patch of loose gravel. Innes caught my arm. “Whoops!” I laughed a little self-consciously.
“As I warned you before, the footing may be a little treacherous around here,” Saleh informed us again. He was not panting. Of course, he was used to it.
“How much further is Caer Pelyn, Master Saleh?” Seth asked. I drew my narrow brows together and frowned at his back. I wished he would stop fussing over me when I couldn’t fuss over him.
“Less than half a day,” Saleh replied.
“In that case, then I think we should take a few moments’ rest,” Seth said.
Saleh glanced at me and the other people on foot, and nodded.
“Why do you people live so high in the mountains, anyway?” Innes asked, rather crossly.
“We have no need of material wealth, like those who live in the lowlands. In this, we are of one mind with the Great Dragon,” Saleh half-explained.
“The Great Dragon?” I asked.
L’Arachel cut us off. “I think we have a disturbance.” She pointed to several ominous winged shapes, some round, scuttling ones, and some slow-moving humanoid ones.
“I think we have a battle,” Innes corrected her, reaching for his bow. I drew my sword, adrenaline beginning to surge through my veins, restoring my energy.
“I’m concerned for Ewan, as well. If you would allow me…” Saleh looked up the path. I nodded. The sage hurried off, thunderclouds forming over him as he zapped all the monsters in his way.
We fought our way slowly, tiredly, and determinedly up the path towards a gate that became visible as we turned a corner in the canyon. In a small hut, we found Ewan, hiding from a revenant. He said all sorts of childish things to it, and eventually flamed it with a little fire spell.
On the plain in front of the gate, we were fighting fast and hard. I was battling a Tarvos, and had just stabbed it in the stomach, when I felt a heavy, sudden push which hurled me to the ground. I scrambled up again and turned…
And screamed as my heart stopped for a moment. Seth had pushed me out of the way of a diving gargoyle, taking the blow himself. The crude lance had stabbed clear through his left shoulder.
Innes shot the gargoyle out of the air. It collapsed a few feet away, a pile of tangled wings and thrashing limbs. I jerked forward and tried to catch Seth, but he was too heavy. I nearly collapsed under his dead weight; then Franz was there, helping me ease him to the ground.
“Our closest staff user, hurry,” I asked him, sending the young man running off. I cradled Seth’s head in my arms.
Natasha hurried to me. She raised her staff, which slowed the bleeding, and then she sent me away so that I didn’t have to watch the removal of the lance.
The next I saw of my faithful paladin was after the rest of us had set up camp, myself included. Innes tried to talk me out of it, as usual. Saleh had agreed to stop here and take us the rest of the way tomorrow; we were still two hours away from the village. I think he saw more of my fear than I wanted him to, but at the moment I was too distraught to care.
I went in to Seth’s tent, where Natasha was watching him.
“May I stay here?” I asked softly. “I want to be here when he wakes up.”
“Certainly, Princess,” she answered. “His wound has completely healed, but he’s lost a lot of blood. He’ll sleep for several hours yet.” She curtseyed to me and left, leaving me alone with my fears, my revelations, and my tears.
Tana came to try to drag me to bed, but I sent her away. It was long past dark, long past midnight, and still I carried my sleepless vigil. Would he die? Had Natasha’s power been enough to save him? Or would my waiting end in grief as he slipped away before my eyes?
I was lost in thought, staring at the little lantern flame, when…
“Princess?” Seth whispered weakly from his bed. I looked sharply at him, startled, as he sat up carefully.
“Seth, I must talk to you.”
“Yes, Princess?”
I stared at the flame for a moment. I lowered my head and swallowed, then began. “Oh, Seth, you were right. You are always right… I could not stop. I tried to stop, but I love you too deeply… It is too late. I’m sorry. It’s too late. When I thought I might lose you today…” I wept freely.
“Princess… it was no more than I should have done,” he answered softly. “I am now also healed. Would you have yourself die, and I live and do nothing?”
After only a moment, I raised my tear-stained face. “Yes. I don’t want you to die, Seth. You mustn’t die. I know I am not thinking correctly as a princess, but I don’t really care anymore…” I crawled on my hands and knees toward him, reaching out to him with my right hand. “Please… hold me…”
Unhesitatingly, he gathered me into his arms and held me close. I sobbed into his shoulder and he stroked my hair, trying to calm me.
“Princess- Eirika. I do not think you know the whole of my heart. I will tell you.” He paused. “I saw you five years ago for the very first time, and you were laughing with your brother… so beautiful… And with the years, your beauty and wisdom, your kindness and gentleness and generosity grew.” He tilted my head so that he was looking into my face. “I fell in love with you very quickly. I have loved you for a long time. I don’t know when I started… I think the blame for the problem we now face is mostly mine. I love you, and I wanted to spend much time with you… I did not anticipate that you would actually fall in love with me.”
“Oh, Seth, how could you bear it?” I whispered.
“I- I love you…”
“I love you, Seth…” Our lips met, and then we were kissing passionately. Tears still ran down my face, but they were slowed. My heart throbbed in my ears in embarrassment, floating in this pure, overwhelming love, this joy forbidden to our positions.
We parted, and I laid my head on his shoulder again. “You were… are my light, my sun, my stars…” he murmured, his voice deeper than usual. “As long as you smiled, I was happy. When you were near, I was happy. When I could not see you, I could only pray for your happiness… so I did that. It was hard, but I comforted myself with the thought that you would never feel the same way for me… that you would never have to undergo the same trial…”
“I’m sorry, Seth.” I looked up, hope in my eyes. “I will speak to my brother. He will make it right. And… I’m not a queen. My brother is older than I am, so he will be king. So…”
He somehow looked happy without smiling. “Eirika… We must be circumspect. No one must know. And when you must marry…”
“I will marry no one if I cannot marry you,” I declared, looking him directly in the face. “But, yes, we must not let anyone know. I won’t even tell Tana.” Seth did smile, flooding me with delight, catching at my breath. I kissed him. We stood, still holding each other.
“You don’t look very happy, yet,” Seth said anxiously. I laughed and pressed my cheek to his.
“I’m very happy. I’m so blissful I can’t believe it… I truly am happy, Seth.”
“I… Tomorrow, it will be like this never happened.”
“No.”
“Until we are alone.”
“Yes. Goodnight, Seth.”
“Goodnight, Eirika…”
We came to the village early next morning. Seth was quite refreshed, and Tana told me I looked much less tired, stressed, worried, sad, and frightened. I laughed at her and she laughed at me, taking me flying above our company for the first time since the day we rescued Prince Innes.
The elder of the village, an ancient, wise woman, greeted us courteously after ascertaining our views on their philosophy: that princes and paupers, in their country at least, were equal. Even Innes made no complaint.
The elder seemed to think I still looked weary from the day before, so we all came to her dwelling and drank herb tea brewed by Saleh, the elder’s grandson. We discussed dragons, the fall of the Demon King, Myrrh, Saleh’s missions to the lowlands. As the elder heard that Myrrh – the Great Dragon – was travelling to Grado with my brother Ephraim, she seemed seized by panic and ordered Saleh to find and guard her at all costs. L’Arachel persuaded him to travel with us at least to Jehanna, since his route would lead that way before turning south to the Empire. He accepted gravely.
As we were leaving, a couple of hours later, the elder called to me and Innes and Tana. “Please take care of Saleh. He’s not very personable, but he’s the only grandson I have.”
“We understand, Elder. And thank you very much for your kindness,” responded Innes, of all people.
“I don’t think he’ll need our help much,” said Tana, cheerfully.
I smiled reassuringly at the Elder. “Master Saleh is a good, kind person and a formidable sage. We are honoured to have him travel with us. And thank you for everything you have done for us, Grandmother.”