63

Currently keeping up the schedule of one new chapter every six days and should have the drafts at least up to 83 by the time of this posting.

Some of you already know the twist in the chapters after this, so look forward to it at the next update. ;-)

* * * * *

61 - When Harry Met Elzbieta

Ulric and the girls followed the boy, who had introduced himself as Rekka, to a relatively far corner of the Dal walled-in settlement where plenty of green grew at the foot of part of the natural wall of stone. Rekka pointed at a gap in the thick brush. 'There. That's where we crawl through to reach the cave.'

Ulric squatted and looked into the brush. 'Big cave?'

The boy shook his head. 'Adults can't stand up straight. You're even bigger. Only kids can crawl through the passage to the cave anyway.'

Valdys knelt. 'Are there any more things in there beside the carved stone?'

Rekka pondered for a moment. 'Some toys. A couple of wooden statues we carved.'

Valdys chuckled. 'Anything else that you or other kids brought?'

'No. I thought another kid might have brought that stone until I saw yours.'

Valdys put her hand on his shoulder. 'Can you fetch the stone for us?'

He nodded, and crawled from sight into the brush, returning later with the stone artefact in his hand.

Valdys took it from him and turned it over while Iphigenia brushed off the dirt from his clothes. 'It's indeed the piece we're looking for.' She gave him a bright smile. 'Thank you.'

He returned the smile. 'You can free my friends with this now?'

She nodded. 'Yes.' she said and looked up at Ulric. 'But I hope we can retrieve this after we have them safe and sound here at home.'

The party stood a little later on top of the wall where Tarrence and his team had fled over, and were joined by Zorech and Jomal. Iphigenia looked down the canyon ahead of them where the wind blew away from them. 'How do we let them know we have it?'

Ulric held up the piece between his fingers. 'I'm sure they're watching us.'

The proof came soon enough in the form of a message wrapped around an arrow, which hit the wall just below where Ulric stood. Iphigenia pulled it loose and unwrapped the small note. 'They demand the winds to be shut down so we can meet them farther down the canyon.'

Zorech glanced at Jomal, who barely shook his head. The commander cleared his throat. 'We do not yield to any demand of the enemy.'

Ulric sighed, grabbed Zorech by the back of his jacket, and lifted him over the wall with a terrified cry from the man as he stared at the ground far below. Ulric looked back at Jomal and growled. 'Either you do whatever you do to steer these winds and stop them, or I toss people over this wall, beginning with him and you.'

Jomal looked with open mouth and wide eyes between his commander and the bloodwolf holding him moments from a nasty death. 'But-' he said as he was interrupted by another cry when Ulric promptly lowered Zorech. 'All right! I'll give the order!' He turned to one of the guards and spoke to him. The guard muttered but Jomal snapped at him, and the startled guard ran to a small tower at the side of the wall.

The sound of thick and heavy wood scraping and creaking surrounded everyone moments later, and the storm wind through the canyon died down just before the guard returned. 'The storm doors have been closed.'

Jomal turned to Ulric. 'We sealed off the canyon junctions with the doors we use to steer the wind. Please let him go now.'

Ulric grinned. 'If I were a real bad guy, I would have.' he said, and lifted a very relieved Zorech back on top of the wall. 'I'll go down to meet with them. The others will stay here just in case you're thinking of doing something stupid. They're just as capable of showing you the shortcut to the bottom as I am.'

He lowered himself down the wall, changed his fur to scales, and moved along the canyon, keeping a weary eye on everything around him until he spotted Tarrence standing a little farther down the way.

The demon hound watched him with a straight face until Ulric stopped at a few paces from him. 'Show me.'

Ulric smelled the presence of the other demons hidden halfway up the canyon walls, opened a bag with the artefacts, and closed it again. 'The kids.'

'Safe with friends, for now.'

'No kids, no stone.'

'Want to risk their lives over it? They're not released before I have those pieces and there's some distance between us.'

Ulric grumbled softly when Valdys spoke to him over the link.

'We don't have a choice, my love.'

'I know. I just really don't like it.'

said Ulric, and tossed the bag towards Tarrence.

He caught it and swiftly slipped it underneath his clothing. 'You should give up on searching for the remaining pieces. Without these, you don't know where to look.' he said, and walked away.

'The kids!' growled Ulric.

'You'll see them coming soon enough.'

Ulric watched Tarrence until he seemingly swiftly disappeared in thin air. He clenched his fists in frustration when he heard kid's voices up ahead. He sighed with relief when the four kids ran towards him, but frowned when he realised they were crying in fear.

The horde of pale white goblins following them while brandishing their weapons had something to do with it.

* * * * *

Elzbieta listened to the lock of the door turning, and kept her back to the guard walking inside. 'The elders will see you now with their verdict.'

She followed the guards along the now familiar way down the stairs and corridors to where the elders resided. Everyone gathered there spoke in hushed tones when she arrived, then went silent. She ran her cold gaze over the elders, except Dolk. She ignored him on purpose because she knew he hated being excluded.

Henlet cleared her throat. 'We have deliberated, and if your conduct wasn't bad enough, the fact that you engaged in demonic sorcery that restored your lost limbs showed us clear enough that you are a danger to our society. We therefore can't even be lenient by granting a life sentence, but have no choice to sentence you to death. You will be executed tomorrow.'

Elzbieta tensed hard to resist trembling in anger, but from the way the elders refrained looking at her directly, they sensed her killing intent. She didn't await any further word and turned around sharply. 'To my room.'

The guards quickly stood to attention and walked her back to her tower room. She sat down and took a deep breath while a tear fell down her cheek.

'Darling?'

* * * * *

Ulric didn't hesitate for a moment. He bolted towards the children.

'Goblins! There's a whole lot of them attacking now!'

he said and snatched up the girl closest to him.

Iphigenia squinted at the far end of the canyon that was visible.

'Goblins!? Those bastards set a trap!'

She looked at Jomal and Zorech. 'Stand by to let the wind blow again, but not before I say so! There are goblins on the attack!'

Zorech yelled at his men at the far end of the wall.

The children had been released from different sides and Ulric spurted from one to the other while the raging goblins closed in fast. 'Hang on!' he said when he pushed the third child onto his back behind the first two. They weren't exactly gentle in the way they gripped his fur, but this wasn't the time for a gentle ride or teach them how to. He ran to the last child.

'I'm heading for the last one now! Stand by!'

The boy panicked at the sight of the large black wolf running towards him, and fell down and curled up crying. Ulric growled when he estimated the goblins would reach the boy at the same time as him, and forced himself even faster forward.

He pulled up the startled boy by the back of his clothes and pulled him across his neck in front of the other children. 'Hang on!' he said while he kept his eyes on the rowdy goblins mere metres away. The boy grabbed tightly on his fur, and he ran away from the lethal wave of the white demons.

'I have the kids and we're coming your way now! Let it blow!'

Iphigenia turned to Zorech. 'Ulric has the kids! You can open the doors!' she said and Zorech waved towards the tower. A moment later, the winds picked up when the huge doors throughout the canyon maze let the storm force wind through.

Ulric glanced back, glad to see he was faster than the pale goblins, and that they were bad at shooting arrows and hurling spears while they ran. The howling up ahead told him the wind was upon them and he ran close to one side of the canyon. 'Hang on, kids! The storm wind is going to hit us!' he said, and suppressed a yelp when they pulled harder on his fur and ducked down.

The front of the fierce gust hit him hard, but he kept running while the kids held on. The goblins in front flew back against the ones behind them. Ulric afforded himself a grin.

'It's working, the wind is pushing them back.'

He pricked up his ears at the noise from horns blowing. Goblins crawled aside and wedge shaped sleds moved forward in between the ranks. 'Oh crap.' Ulric muttered.

A row of the slanted wooden panels moved as one front forward quickly. Ulric ran as fast as he could against the wind again.

'They made deflectors to protect themselves from the wind and are on the move again!'

'Hurry, Wolfie!'

said Iphigenia.

'We'll see what we can do here!'

Although not as fast as he liked to, Ulric was glad he still outran the goblin army behind him. A stronger gust hit him hard and the boy in front cried out when he lost his grip and fell down. Ulric cursed as the boy tumbled along the ground, pushed hard by the wind towards the approaching goblins. He turned and ran after him as fast as he could without dropping the other children, but he quickly realised the distance between them and the goblins hadn't been enough to pick the boy up again without clashing with the enemy.

He arrived at the boy at the same time as the goblins and pulled all the kids underneath his body as he sprouted his wings for protection. 'Stay underneath me!'

The first goblins stabbed his wings when their horns blew again in alarm.

'Wolfie! Stay down!'

said Iphigenia from the first of the Dal's flying crafts rushing towards the goblins. The bowmen in front of the crafts fired their arrows and stone bullets while a third member of each crew dropped the grenades from Kaui's supply.

The explosions destroyed the wind deflectors and scattered the goblins with the help of the wind. Shrieks and cries in agony surrounded Ulric as another squadron of crafts flew through the canyon, this time with Valdys in the first.

'Hang on, my love! We're clearing the area around you!'

she said, and rammed a magical barrier into the goblins, hurling them back and away from Ulric and the children.

Ulric glanced around quickly, and pulled the children on his back while the goblins were trying to protect themselves from the aerial attacks. With the girls and boys secure enough, he ran off towards the settlement again.

* * * * *

'It is time.' said the elf guard.

Elzbieta took a deep breath while she gazed out the window, which she had done since she woke up. The food they had brought earlier was left untouched on the table. 'Yes.' she spoke softly.

The guards led her down the stairs once again, to the small courtyard used for specific ceremonies including executions, and her place in front of a thick tree. She turned to face the the four archers. One of the guards came with a rope to tie her wrists, but she folded her arms and her cold stare at her executioners stopped him. The captain of the guard waved him away and turned to Elzbieta. 'Do you have a last word to say?'

'I doubt you'll allow me to die with my sword in my hands as the knight that I am, so let me at least wear the gauntlets I have fought with all this time.'

The captain looked at the elders standing at the side of the courtyard, and Henlet gave him a nod in approval. He gestured at one of his men to fetch her gauntlets when a messenger hurried into the courtyard and went over to the elders. 'Forgive the disturbance, but I have word from the border guard. A canine demon riding a strange mount is heading our way at a speed much faster than a horse.'

Dolk turned quickly to the woman. 'A canine with black fur and red stripes on his back?'

'Yes. It looks like a bloodwolf, but it would be impossible for it to be one.'

Dolk clenched his fists and jaw. 'It must be the companion of Elzbieta, but they should be too far to come here in such a short time.'

'We don't know what the mount is, but it is moving very fast, and if it doesn't tire in a full day, it might have come from far away.'

Dolk turned to Henlet. 'If it's him, he's too dangerous to allow him to come here. We must stop and kill him before he causes any harm.'

Henlet glanced at the other elders, who agreed. She gave the messenger a nod. 'Put him down.'

Dolk gestured at the captain. 'Continue with the execution.'

Elzbieta donned her gauntlets and stood straight but relaxed. The captain admired her for her proud and fearless stance, with some regret to execute a knight he knew was one of the best in her years fighting for elfkind. He raised his hand.

* * * * *

The captain of the border guard heard the song note from the tat and read the message the little blue bird brought. He hummed and dismissed it, and turned to his second in command. 'Signal to all to kill the intruder.'

His second raised a red flag with a single white stripe up a pole reaching high above the tree canopy.

Arrows hit Ulric's scaled chest only moments later and he growled low. 'So that's how it is, eh? Let's show them what we're made of, Harry.' His mount roared with renewed vigour as it shot forward.

* * * * *

The archers drew and aimed their bows and the captain took a quick look over them to make sure all were ready. 'On my mark!' he said and paused for a heartbeat. 'Shoot!'

The arrows came close to her chest when Elzbieta smacked them away with one hand. Before the others realised what happened, she jumped up into the tree via a low hanging branch, climbed up, and jumped to a nearby balcony while Dolk yelled at the archers to shoot her. She ran through the room where a startled young maid dropped the linen she held, and followed a corridor to wide stairs leading down. Horns sounded alarm when two guards spotted her, and chased after her as she crossed another courtyard with a large fountain.

The elf city consisted of stone buildings and giant trees with huts built around the thick trunks and in between the long branches. Many stairs, passageways, and bridges connected the various parts, and Elzbieta ran through surprised elves moving along them. Guards blocked her preferred exit and she ran up a flight of wide steps. At the top, she spotted a wooden suspension bridge leading to one of the other trees, and sprinted across it while there were no guards or soldiers around.

She reached the other end and rounded the wide trunk along a walkway when a group of guards arrived at the top of steps leading down. She halted at once and looked around for an escape before the guards chasing her caught up with her. She grumbled when the only escape was a certain bone breaking jump to another walkway too far below her.

The guards in front stepped confidently forward. 'Give up, traitor.' said the one in front.

Elzbieta watched him for a moment, stood straight and smiled slightly, and he halted when doubt overcame him. A growing cacophony of shouts and crashes rose from behind the group. The two in the rear turned around at the sudden roar and cried out when a new attacker sprang from the steps, and knocked them aside and tore through the group.

Ulric halted his mount in front of Elzbieta and curled up one corner of his mouth. 'Care for a ride, beautiful elf damsel?'

She gazed at the strange all black mount, resembling a large feline predator, holding a kind of wheel in front and one behind it, and it growled softly like one. Ulric let go of the handlebar protruding from behind the feline monster head above the front wheel and pat the slender saddle in front of him. 'Elz, meet Harry, a specialised golem that Isa had been working on lately and I'll tell all about later. Sit here, then we can leave this hostile joint.'

An amused chuckle escaped Elzbieta, and she sat down in front of Ulric quickly. He kissed her neck. 'I'm glad we made it in time, my dear.'

She kissed the side of his muzzle while she pressed herself back against him. 'I trusted in you when you said you'd come for me, darling.' She pointed towards a stone, flat roofed building farther away. 'My sword is in that armoury there.'

Ulric grabbed the handles. 'Harry will take us there.' he said, and the half golem, half monster, half bike roared in confirmation.

Harry turned around nimbly with spinning wheels, and left a scorch mark as they shot towards the bridge leading them in the direction of the armoury. They came close when Elzbieta pointed at the soldiers at the far end. 'They're cutting the ropes!'

With a few strong hews from their swords, the ropes snapped and the bridge fell down. Ulric stopped and looked around. 'Any other way?'

Elzbieta smacked away a couple of arrows shot at them. 'Only a long way around, and they'll cut off the bridge at that end as well. It's part of defending the building.'

Ulric looked up at a walkway rounding another tree close to the armoury. 'I have an idea.' he said, and steered his growling mount up nearby steps, frightening the bystanders.

They crossed a bridge to the next tree, sped along the walkway, and Ulric gripped his bike between his legs as he aimed for the railing between them and the armoury. 'Hold on tight, love!'

Elves gazed in astonishment when the invader crashed through the protective barrier, unfurled large wings, and floated through the air.

The soldiers on top of the roof nearly dropped their jaws on the floor at the strange sight. When they realised it was heading towards them at high speed, they ran for the stairs going down.

Ulric pulled back close to the building and slowed their descend like a bird of prey on top of its prey. The rear wheel touched down first, and they landed without much impact.

Elzbieta and Ulric stepped off quickly, and he followed her down while they smacked down anyone trying to stop them. Elzbieta pointed to a locked gate, and Ulric growled loud as he rammed a sturdy bench underneath it, and lifted the door from its hinges and tossed it aside. 'Leverage.' he said as he gestured for Elzbieta to enter the weapon storage.

She retrieved her sword, and the two of them went up fast to their ride waiting on the roof, and Ulric drove it from the roof onto the roofs below, until they reached the ground and drove off through scattered startled elves while deflecting the arrows shot at them.

Dolk slammed his fist on the parapet at the top floor of the execution site. 'Don't think you escaped. I'll hunt you all down and have you pay for this insult.'

62 - Not So Itsy Bitsy

Muni cleared the thick jungle vegetation in front of him with one casual swing of his sword and looked back at Gigacks. 'Are you really sure it's this way? To me it looks like we're only going deeper into nothing but stifling heat.'

Gigacks gazed as blankly at the feline demon as a skeleton could with empty eye sockets.

Muni sighed and moved forward again, cutting a path through the untouched undergrowth. 'There'd better be an inn with plenty of cool ale available where we're going.'

Elyta picked one of the flowers with a mixture of light blue and pink shades from a vine, and carefully smelled it. She knew she recognised it as the main ingredient for a perfume with both intoxicating scent and toxic properties, and picked a few more flowers for later use. 'Do you have any idea what we're looking for?' she asked Tarrence when he stopped and pulled his water flask from his belt.