There came a giggle from the small girl in Rhys’ arms. Suddenly the pazzleberry pie disappeared from Elric and reappeared in her hands.
“Where did my pie go?” yelled the elf, looking around, spinning in a full circle. “This isn’t funny. I want pie!”
Everyone laughed.
“Give me that, Lily.” Medea took the pie from her daughter, causing the little girl to cry.
“I think she’s hungry,” stated Rhys.
“Yes, we should all eat.” Alaina motioned to Persimmon. “Won’t you stay and join us for the meal?”
“I’d like that.” Persimmon appreciated the kind invitation.
“I want you to show me that crystal orb later, if you don’t mind.” The witch, Medea, motioned with her eyes to Persimmon’s pouch. “I’ve never seen one before and would love to know exactly how it works. You’re a witch, right?”
“Yes, I am,” Persimmon answered, feeling nervous admitting it since she’d had to keep it a secret for so many years now.
“We have to talk. I have so much to tell you,” said Medea excitedly.
“Yes. Good. I’d like that.” Persimmon cleared her throat. “Perhaps I can ask you a few questions later as well.” She hoped that Medea could help her understand why her power of moving objects with her mind only appeared after she had matured. Persimmon didn’t know much about being a witch since growing up she never had any real powers. Well, just one. But it was something she wasn’t willing to talk about with anyone because it rather frightened her.
“Persimmon, do you have somewhere to stay now that your mother is gone?” asked Alaina.
“No, I don’t,” she admitted. “I am alone. I lost the house when Mother died nearly a month ago,” explained Persimmon. “I couldn’t pay the rent. That’s why I decided to look for my father. You see, I didn’t know where else to go.”
“Oh, you’re going to live with Elric now?” asked Alaina.
“I’m not sure.” Persimmon felt a heaviness in her heart. “I’m afraid my father never wanted anything to do with me. I highly doubt that he’ll allow me to stay here with him now. You see, I barely know him. I’m not even sure I really should have come to Mura at all.”
“Nonsense,” said Lira, overhearing her and breaking into the conversation. “You are of my blood and you will live with me from now on.”
“In the Elven Queendom?” she asked, feeling intrigued and almost liking the idea for a moment. She didn’t know much at all about elves but would love to learn all about them since she was part elf, too.
“Nay, not in Glint. I’m talking about right here on this side of the mountain. At Evandorm Castle.” Lira motioned with her arm to the grand castle before them.
The kingdom was on the southeast end of Mura, and butted up to the Masked Sea. Persimmon had caught a ride on a boat with a tradesman from Lornoon. That is why she ended up here instead of on the other side of Mura. Evandorm had a cropping of small buildings and homes inside the protection of the castle walls. The villagers set up stalls in front of their homes which she imagined was for selling and trading their wares to others in Mura or tradesmen from different lands that came to visit. It seemed to be such a happy place to live. So colorful and lively. A cobblestone courtyard led from the large keep, and in the center of the courtyard was a tall, bubbling fountain filled with wild birds that came to drink. It felt safe and comfortable here. It was a true honor to be asked to stay, and she wasn’t about to refuse the offer. However, she still had so many questions about Mura and things she did not understand.
“I’m confused,” said Persimmon. “So, Lira, you are queen of two castles then? Evandorm and the Elven Queendom of Glint?”
“Nay, just one. I gave up my throne at Glint to my Aunt Sasha when I married Zann,” explained Lira. “I am Zann’s wife now, and he is King of Evandorm. So this is my new home.”
“How interesting,” said Persimmon, not understanding how any woman could give up her throne and her entire queendom for a mere man.
“Will you please stay?” asked Lira, excitement growing in her eyes. “I’d love for us to get to know each other better. After all, we are sisters. I’ve never had a sister before, and we have so much to catch up on.”
“Yes. Yes, we do.” Persimmon felt a restlessness deep inside her. This wasn’t her home. Not really. Then again, she had no home anymore, so what would it matter where she laid her head? Even back in Lornoon, she hadn’t lived with her mother. If she would have had her way, she would have stayed close to her mother and never left her side. But, unfortunately, that is not what happened. “Yes, sister. I’d be happy to stay with you at Evandorm Castle. It would be an honor,” she told Lira, getting a feeling without even attempting to use her gazing crystal that something dangerous was about to happen in her life.
Three
Stone Nightstalker dismounted his horse and cautiously got down on his knees, still gripping his crossbow, ready to use it at the spur of a moment. He was always aware of every noise and motion around him. It was his ability to be so observant that landed him the job of the king’s bounty hunter in the first place. He spotted something on the ground in the dark. Something that could possibly lead him right to the man he was tracking. His dog, Fang, sniffed the area around them, and trailed off in a different direction.
“Did you find something?” asked his good friend, Aithrod in a low voice. He dismounted his steed and wrapped the reins around a branch of a tree. Aithrod was a loner, same as Stone. Neither one of them had family left anymore on Taelgonoth. The past few years had been hard.
It was a dark night with only a crescent moon gracing the sky. Clouds passed over the scant light, leaving the normal man blind to his surroundings. Darkness never bothered Stone. He had the night sight of an animal, able to see in light or dark, it didn’t matter. He liked the skill. It was a true asset in his profession. His father before him used to have excellent eyesight as well.
“I did find something,” Stone answered, slowly removing one leather gauntlet and using two fingers to pick up a small stone. There were footprints in the soft dirt right beside it. Bringing the rock up to his face, he shifted it back and forth, blowing off the dust. Sure enough, a faint glimmer of green emerged from the stone.
“What is it?” Aithrod, with his eyes glancing back and forth, hurried over and hunkered down next to Stone. Aithrod was a good friend. Actually, Stone’s only friend. Stone and Aithrod had grown up together, their fathers being friends as well. Aithrod joined Stone a few years ago to do bounty hunting for King Helix Kapion of Taelgonoth after the deaths of their families from a plague.
Aithrod held a tall staff that was Stone’s. It was his weapon of choice. Stone was a fighter, not a murderer. He liked to bring back the fugitives alive, unarmed and unharmed. King Kapion saw to their punishments. Or their executions. Aithrod was there only as Stone’s helper but had learned from Stone many of his tracking ways. Plus, the man was the only person Stone really trusted.
The king, among others, had told Stone that he was the best bounty hunter, not only this side of the Marion Marshes or in the Brackens Forest, but in all the land of Taelgonoth. He was a nightstalker, as his family surname implied. That is, he hunted usually by night because that is what he preferred. It gave him an advantage since that is when most thieves and bandits came out. Stalking bandits, thieves, and even strange creatures at times, Stone’s work never ended.
Not here.
Not in a land filled with treachery and deceit.
Taelgonoth wasn’t always a filthy, backstabbing, demoralizing place to live. But since the recent plague, everyone and everything changed for the worse. People panicked. Riots and looting were a common thing, since everyone always seemed to want more.
The days when goodness outweighed the bad were gone. Stone’s late father had once helped the king by keeping order in Taelgonoth. His father, Stewart Nightstalker, as well as Stone and Stone’s late brothers had been a strong team when they worked together. With them working together to conquer the bad, Taelgonoth had been a fair and just place to live. But not anymore. There were so many murders and robberies as of late that there was no resting for Stone and Aithrod. Even the king had turned deceitful lately. Still, he was the only hope of bringing the land back to what it once was before all the troubling times.
Stone’s work pleased King Helix. So much so that he told Stone after this mission, Stone would be betrothed to his daughter, Annabelle. Since Stone no longer had a family and was twenty-eight and unmarried, he figured this would be a good move for him. He’d settle down and have children and teach them his trade. He barely knew the girl, but as soon as he returned successful from this mission, that would all change. He’d be married, and live at the castle with the nobles. The king might even possibly give him a permanent position at court. It would never replace the family he’d lost, of course, but it would give him somewhere to be settled and to call home.
“I found one of the king’s stolen gems as well as the footprints of our thief.” Stone glanced down to study the evidence of where the thief walked. “It looks like there are two of them. I don’t see hoofprints so they must be on foot. And I know these prints.”
“What do you mean?” asked Aithrod.
