In all his life, there are some outstanding memories of excitement Adder can recall. There's the time he received a beautiful set of bone knitting needles from Helia for his 14th birthday, the first time he caught a rabbit by himself, his first kiss with Eben, Merlyn hatching, and now, he would be adding meeting the Zarek Bastarius to the list. Adder is ecstatic, to stay the least.
If only they had met under better circumstances...
"Watch it! That hurts!" Zarek yelps. He's laid out on the grass, cloaks removed to reveal a dark-colored wound that goes from his collarbone to his hip.
"Stay still, I've seen men die from less," Eben says.
"Not inspiring confidence!"
"Adder, distract him. I think magic is involved here..."
Adder sits up, twiddling with his claws. "I—uh—Sir Bestarius—"
"My God, is this my life? Just call me Zarek. I'm not your father."
"Of course—I—-I'm a big fan of yours."
Zarek laughs, flinching as Eben lays a glowing hand on his chest. The tattooed serpent slithers onto Zarek's skin, seeming to investigate the ominous wound on his trunk. Zarek watches with intense interest, light reflecting in his eyes.
"Big fan? You must be my biggest fan. What are you, 15 feet long?"
"Oh—uh—I've never measured..."
"You were so small when I met you. You were a rambunctious child, then. Fresh out of the egg and filled with energy. I still remember how you wrapped around my arm—nearly turned it purple!"
"About that...you've been to Nǣdre Tor?"
"I have, a long time ago, when you were a child. Is...Sheppard still around?"
"That bastard is long gone," Eben grins.
"Thank God!"
"I guess he didn't make a good impression, then."
"No, he didn't. Are you his son?"
Eben balks, laughing. "No! Gods no—-"
"Really? I'll have to add you to my next book. This is a huge discovery, another half-elf! I was thinking you might've just inherited the ears. But with that magic, I knew you must be the genuine article. Would you be willing to sit for an interview?"
Eben stares, flabbergasted. His ears twitch, and he immediately covers them with his cloak. "Let's discuss this later. You've been cursed. I don't know how to lift it."
"Oh. That's not good."
Daisy, who'd been sitting nearby with her head in Ferns lap, sits up. "Understatement, my good sir. Curse or not though, we need to start moving. We're still not safe here."
Fern unlatches a satchel, scooting closer to where Zarek lay. "I brought some supplies just in case. Let's patch him up and get moving. The further we can get from the hunters the better."
She uncorks a bottle of astringent, pouring it over her hands before the affected area. Zarek hisses in discomfort, squeezing his eyes shut. She doesn't miss a beat and continues to dress the wound. She makes quick work of it, nimble fingers practiced from years of assisting and managing the sickbay.
"Alright can you stand? Or do you need help?"
"No, and I don't think either of you little things can manage it."
"Adder, can you get him then?"
Adder nods. Gently, he lifts the man into his arms, surprised to find that Zarek is incredibly calm, considering the situation. His heartbeat is steady, and the only fear he seems to have is of being dropped, holding onto Adder's shoulders with a tight grip. It makes Adder a little giddy to realize this man holds no fear of him.
"You'll have to share the caravan with me. I'm sorry, it's going to be a tight fit."
"What am I, a randy drunkard? Squeeze me in, I hardly care at this point which monstrous entity I'm rooming with."
The party makes their way into the caravan. True to his word, Zarek falls dead asleep the moment Adder places him inside. Eben saddles up Fairy and they start down the road, back toward Naedre Tor.
Adder tries to stay still in the caravan, but this whole situation is a bit surreal. Why didn't Helia ever tell him about Zarek? She knows Adder adores his writing, why would she hide the fact that she'd met him? Did it slip her mind?
The thoughts plague him the entire day until finally, the caravan rolls to a stop abruptly. Adder pokes his head out the window. "What's happening? Why aren't we moving?"
"We'll have to stop here for now. The Evergreen is blocking the path," says Fern.
"What?"
Adder looks ahead on the trail. True to her word, a green sheen of a barely perceivable wall blocks the path.
"I guess we're setting up camp early."
Setting up for the night is a simple affair. Adder moves Zarek to a bedroll as Eben begins to build a fire, Daisy prepares dinner, and Fern checks Zarek's injury. He startles awake at the prodding.
"Ack!"
"I'm sorry, I was just checking on you," says Fern.
Zarek grumbles, hands slicking back grey-dotted hair. "So it wasn't a dream. I'm still with the rag-tag party of monsters."
"Yes, we've stopped for the day."
"Already?"
"Unless you want to go toe to toe with the elves," Daisy huffs, pointing.
Zarek looks over yonder. "Oh. The Evergreen."
"Yes, and I don't intend on getting slaughtered for trespassing onto their land."
"Should we be so close? What if they sense Eben?" asks Adder.
Eben laughs. "If they can sense me they know my power. You think they'd be stupid enough to attack unprovoked? I'll show them."
"The rumors about their bloodthirsty defense of the border are false, anyway. Humans risk it all the time hunting in the Evergreen," says Zarek. He laughs, pointing his thumb at Eben. "Not to mention the other activities they get up to."
"May we not discuss my conception in polite company?"
Zarek snorts. He accepts a roasted skewer of rabbit from Daisy, biting into it. He only consumes half before putting the stick back down. "That makes me think, why are you all out here?"
"It's a long story," Adder sighs.
"I make my money in stories, kid."
"We found an abandoned harpy egg. It hatched and now we are trying to find the child's flock. To reunite her with her kind."
"Oh! Interesting!"
"All for naught, I guess," Eben scowls.
"Not quite—you practice magic, yes?"
"I do, obviously."
Zarek rummages around a fine leather satchel, pulling out something slender and white. A large speckled feather.
"I was planning on using it as a reference for my book. We could use it for a locator spell."
"We?"
"Obviously, once I recover, I'll go with you. I didn't get nearly enough info before I was interrupted, and the harpies didn't exactly tell me where they planned to head in emergencies."
Fern waves a glimmering paper in the dark. "We have some enchanted letters left over, if you need them. Should we tell Helia all that has happened?"
"Yes, perfect. She can have the ingredients prepared by the time we get there. Do you know how to use it?"
"How do you think we sent word of the village? Of course we know how to use them, what dolt doesn't know how to write a letter and throw it in the fire?"says Daisy.
"Well when I was younger I didn't know you needed to address the letter first. The first one I sent ended up across the room instead across the country. We never could afford magically enhanced items."
Eben takes the gleaming feather into his hand, studying how it reflects the firelight. "Good...this trip wasn't a total waste, then."
"Okay okay. Plans are made and bellies are filled. Now all of you, get ready for sleep. I need to rest if tomorrow is as hectic as today," Daisy grouches.
Not daring to argue, Adder begins to help prepare the camp for the night. Eben casts a protective spell around them as Daisy smothers the fire and throws away the scraps of their dinner.
Adder coils up with Eben, watching the embers crackle out as he listens to the heartbeats of his party slow and calm. He tries to follow their lead, but with such a hectic day, his mind refuses to stop whirring incessantly. He sighs, scrubbing his face with his hands.
Suddenly in the dark, Adder hears a shuffling from Zarek's bedroll. "You awake over there, lizard?"
Adder turns to the left."Yes, do you need something?"
Zarek sits up with a grunt, holding his stomach. The fine lines of his face are outlined by the low fire, exhaustion evident on his face.
"No, I just heard you moving around. Can't sleep?"
"Yes. It's been a taxing day. I'm sorry, I'll try not to disturb you further."
"You could pray. That's what I do when I'm distressed."
"As expected from a man of the Gods. Which Deity do you serve? You've never mentioned it in your books."
"Epistemeus. The God of truth."
"Oh, a new God?"
"Exactly. I'm spreading the word, hoping one day he can join the Pantheon."
"Is he a kind God?"
"No. He's a bastard."
Startled, Adder starts laughing. "A bastard?! Don't say that!"
"What's he going to do, smite his only priest?"
"He might, if he's truly as horrible as you say."
"He's not horrible. Just a bastard," Zarek says fondly.
"I see."
"And what about you? Who is your God?"
"Giakora. She's protected me my whole life."
"So Nǣdre Tor has returned to the claws of the Goddess of spring?"
"Yes. Thank the Gods, the Great Deciever's grip has been banished by her hand."
"Don't diminish the evil in man's heart by blaming a God. It was Sheppard who brought your village to ruin, Adder. I would know, I was there the day he took power. Escaped by the grace of my lord."
At the sudden somber shift in tone, Adder coils in on himself a little. "What happened? Helia doesn't like talking about it..."
"I was writing my book about Gods, and I came to learn about Giakora. However, by the time I got there, her presence was waning."
"Why?"
"I couldn't explain the dynamics of Godhood to you properly, but by that time, Sheppard had already gained quite a following. Helia was still the head of the village, but the people favored Sheppard for his silver tongue."
"He was very convincing."
"Don't need to tell me. I met him. Your mother was convinced, too. She loved him very much."
"I know," Adder whispers.
"She wanted to take back control, but she was too faithful to him to push the issue. In the end, he took her role as priest by force. He killed all those villagers. Do they know now? That it was him?"
"Killed?"
"The petrified villagers. He was the one who made sure you wandered into the town that day."
Adder's stomach turns uncomfortably. "I suspected it but—but do we really know for certain?"
"Gorgon eggs are highly praised as a pseudo 'cure-all.' Considering the hub of commerce your village is, especially for monster-related goods, I wouldn't be surprised if someone was selling you as a potion ingredient. Not to mention, the timing was too convenient and Gorgons don't live in this area of Aaridiversi..."
"They don't?"
"I actually wrote about it in my fourth volume of Of Monsters and Myths. Gorgon's live in warm, arid climates where they don't have to enter brumation. They only ever venture out of that area during times of extreme desperation, and even then, never this area. They have strict religious beliefs relating to their land."
"But—I have that volume. It never mentions Gorgons. I assumed they were just...very secretive."
"I don't know what to tell you. My memory isn't that degraded yet, I definitely wrote about it. I even put in a good word with a trader to get a copy to Helia."
Adder's stomach drops. "Helia never even told me she knew you."
"Oh—oh my..."
"She lied to me she—she hid this from me!"
"Me and my big mouth—look, I wouldn't go assuming things."
"She kept me there, trapped on purpose! Like—like Sheppard!"
"Adder."
Adder quiets at the stern tone. Zarek lays back, face turned upward. Weary eyes study the constellations as he gathers his thoughts.
"I don't know Helia like you do, but in the short time we spent together, she seemed like a good person. Can she really compare to Sheppard?"
"No—I—I don't know."
Zarek sighs, closing his eyes shut. "Just rest. There's no use fussing over it right now. I'm sure there's a logical reason she's kept this from you."
"Yes. Of course."
He curls tighter around Eben, gritting his teeth. He would not stand for this. He needs the truth.