Nimah had expected some entertaining reactions to their retelling of the whole affair. She wasn't entirely disappointed. Lady Byrne and King Gideon remained impassive, which was a bit of a letdown but predictable. Alicia tried, but a confused frown started growing on her face the longer they talked. Eve covered her mouath a few times, her mismatched eyes going wide at the particularly terrible parts, but said nothing. And Bo...
Well, Bo looked like he was having a heart attack just thinking about what had happened to them. It was pretty funny, though Nimah did feel a little bit bad. Only a little. It wasn't like she'd planned to do this just to get that reaction out of him.
"So," Lady Byrne said when their story was over, "you...went to where the dragon was to get away?"
"It was the only thing I could think of," Lord Laine said. He sounded almost apologetic, though Nimah thought she noticed a bit of a smile in his voice. He had been really excited about the dragons. "It worked, at least."
That got a reaction from Lord Gideon—a brief, almost startled laugh. "You're a very optimistic person, Lord Laine," he said.
"I try to be, when it's warranted." There was a spark of curiosity in his eyes whenever Lord Laine looked at King Gideon, like there were a thousand questions he wanted to ask that he was holding back. Too polite to ask, she guessed. Nimah was glad she'd had no such reservations when they'd first met. It may not have been proper, but she'd rather have her curiosity sated. "I'm not sure if anyone has noticed we're the ones who took him. I'm sure it won't take them long to figure out if they haven't already."
Lady Byrne nodded. "You're right. We should prepare ourselves for an assault or perhaps an offer of a deal." She glanced out of the room. "Hopefully my brother's generals will be more willing to bargain than he is."
That was a pickle. Nimah genuinely didn't understand what Lord Reardon was trying to achieve by staying silent. He'd seen that they had at least one dragon. Alicia must have mentioned that they had more. What was he trying to achieve? Maybe he's just being spiteful. He looked like the spiteful sort, even when it would just end up hurting him. Not that he was Nimah's problem anymore, strictly speaking. It was out of her hands. She wouldn't even know what to do with him if she were responsible for him.
Maybe I could annoy him into surrendering. It was an amusing enough that she had to bite back a smile.
"I thank you for all your help, truly," Lady Byrne said. Her face was still impassive, but there was a hint of genuine gratitude in her voice. "You have taken a great risk to help my family. We're in your debt."
"We are," Alicia agreed. "We'll get you home as soon as possible. Especially you, Lord Laine. I know he knows who you are an if they do figure out where he's gone..."
Lord Laine shook his head. "Don't go out of your way to take me anywhere. I'll be all right for now. This place is impenetrable, right?"
"That's what they say."
Nimah just hoped there was some truth to that. Things could get ugly when the enemy realized their lord was missing. At least they won't be able to get us through the rug. Even if they found it, it would be useless to them. Though King Gideon was short two rugs now.
He'd be fine. He could afford two rugs.
They went for food not long after that. They hadn't been fed much after they were tossed into the dungeon and had no breakfast whatsoever, so the meal they were given—while a tiny bit bland—was welcome. "So, did that go better than you thought it would or worse?" Nimah asked Solomon teasingly.
He thought about it. "No one died," he said finally, "so better than my worst case scenario, But worse than my best case scenario."
That was fair. It really could've gone better...though they also could've gone worse.
"I still can't believe you were near that dragon attack," Bo said. "You could've died."
"That's true, but we could've died several times even before the dragon," Nimah said. Bo's response was to groan noisily and bur his face in his hands. "But! But we didn't!"
"That doesn't exactly make me feel better, Nimah."
"It should. You get to put up with me for a little while longer."
"Lucky us," Solomon muttered. She saw him smile, though, just a little bit. He must've really been relieved to let something like that slip.
Kit put down the piece of bread he was carefully dismantling and signed something. Solomon laughed—another slip—and signed something back before translating. "He doesn't think Reardon will bite. I asked him if he wanted to start a betting pool." That explained why Solomon had chuckled. It was pretty funny, though Bo didn't seem to find it quite so much.
"You're not entirely wrong," Bo said to Kit. "He probably won't. I think all the Reardons are naturally stubborn, and he does still have us backed into a corner. He might think that advantage outweigh the fact that we have dragons. And more troops coming, once we can figure that out." He drummed his fingers against the table, lost in thought for a moment. "I should talk to Alicia. See what the next move is..."
The sentence trailed off like he was going to say something else. But instead, he got up and walked away, leaving the thought where it was.
"...he's got a lot on his mind," Nimah noted.
"Well, he's back in his job." Solomon looked past Nimah's shoulder and tilted his chin at something. "Hey, did you ever get that one's name?"
Nimah looked over her shoulder. Solomon had been gesturing at Lord Laine and his guard. The guard, whose name Nimah had never learned.
"You know, I never did," Nimah admitted a bit sheepishly. "Or the mage."
Almost immediately, Kit put his bread back down and signed something. It was a lot of individual hand gestures, and it took Solomon longer to translate them than usual. "The guard's name is Erik," he said finally, "and the mage's name is Llewyn. How did you-?"
Kit made one gesture. It was one that Nimah didn't need translated because its meaning was fairly obvious. There were only so many things that pointing at his ear could mean.
I listened.
Well, when he put it that way, it seemed like the obvious solution.
+++++
He thought that having captured Lord Reardon would make him feel better. As it turned out, that was not the case. He'd felt fidgety and anxious. It was like the feeling you'd get when you knew there was something you were supposed to be doing, but you couldn't remember what it was. Or if there even was anything you were supposed to be doing.
Fortunately, for him, King Gideon was doing more than helping to save the kingdom. He was alo helping to save Bo's sanity.
"We were going to scout out an area to bring in the troops," he said. "How familiar are you with the area?"
"Moderately. I can get around well enough." Bo tried not to pick at the hems of his sleeves. He'd taken the wrappings off his hands now that he didn't have to hide his tattoos. It was a bit of a relief, but at the same time, after all the weeks he'd spent with them on, he felt naked and exposed. "If Eve is okay with coming along, that will help. I can ask her..." Wait. I don't know where she is. "...once I can find her."
"I think I saw her go deeper into the keep. She was interested in seeing if there were any dwarves."
That made sense. Bo was surprised that she hadn't wandered off to see them sooner. "Should I meet you at the courtyard once I've found her?" Bo asked.
"One of my people, actually, but yes. I have other matters to attend to."
Bo was briefly curious, but shoved that curiosity aside. He had his own task to attend to. There was no time to be nosy.
Eve hadn't gone too deep into the keep, fortunately. It had its own small mine attached, unconnected to the main mines by any human accessible tunnels, but the dwarves always found their ways. Eve was sitting underneath one of the torches, listening to the far-off sounds of their tapping. "Do you know what they're saying?" she asked as Bo approached.
"No. I really need to learn once all of this is over." While It seemed more likely that they would get through this intact, a part of him was still worried they might not. Paranoia was exhausting, it really was. "There's something we need your help with, if you're feeling up to it. It would involve going into the woods?"
Eve stood up, dusting the dirt of f her skirt. "Why do you need to go into the woods?"
"They're trying to find a place to bring in the extra troops. I'm only a little bit familiar with the area, so I thought..." Bo shrugged. "Safety in numbers?"
Eve nodded. "What are the elves like here, do you know?"
"Reclusive, generally. I know they're not a big enough problem that we've had to actively worry about it." He paused. "I mean, comparative to elves in general."
"That's good to know. I'll come with you. I think it would be good to get some air. It's all right in here, but..."
"It's still like being trapped in a rabbit warren surrounded by hunting dogs?"
That earned him a slight, though admittedly bitter smile. "Yes. Like that."
Bo was glad he wasn't the only one who thought so.
They walked to the courtyard from there. Three people were waiting for them. Two Bo recognized. The first was a member of King Gideon's court, and one was a member of the Raven Court. The third was not immediately familiar to him. After some staring and thinking, Bo recognized him as the mage who had come with Lord Laine. No hadn't learned his name yet, but he'd also barely spoken to any of them since they'd been back. He hoped he hadn't come across as standoffish. He'd take coming across as shy and withdrawn over that. At least those were true. "Llewyn was volunteered to come with us," said the member of the Raven Court, a King's Guard—well, he supposed it was Queen's Guard now—by the name of Edmund. "This is Sean. He'll be leading the way."
Sean was short, almost the same height was Bo, with the same golden eyes every dragon had and more freckles than Bo had ever seen on one person. "We'll have to go on foot," Sean said briskly. "I don't have any way of getting big enough to carry all four of you. Not unless one or two of you is comfortable being carried in my talons."
"No, thank you," Bo said immediately. He felt guilty being so negative so quickly, until he saw both Eve and Edmund emphatically shaking their heads. Only LLewyn seemed open to the idea, and it was difficult to tell if he was really okay with it. More resigned to the possibility and curious as to what the experience might be like, if Bo had to guess.
"We, uh, we're fine with walking," Bo finished weakly. "I've done plenty of it lately. What's a few more miles?" He laughed weakly, and immediately hated himself a bit for it.
Fortunately, Sean didn't seem fazed; he only nodded briskly and turned to start walking. "It's this way. Mind your step."
Walking through the woods was getting a bit too familiar. There was less of a path than there had been in the Wilds. Both Eve and Sean cut through the forest as though they were a part of it; Bo was genuinely a bit worried they would disappear into the trees and be lost forever. He had to scramble a bit to keep up, but he managed. Edmund was doing all right; even Llewyn was keeping up okay, though he was trailing furthest behind. Bo slowed to wait for him at one point. "Are you doing all right?"
"Glad for the fresh hair." Llewyn pushed a few strands of his hair out off of his face. "This place must be lovely in the winter."
Bo shrugged. "I suppose so. I've never really been one for cold weather."
Llewyn glanced at Bo's hands. "Understandable. You like playing with fire?" Before Bo could answer, he heard Llewyn whisper something and felt a sudden, growing sense of cold around his wrist. When he looked down, he saw a thin layer of frost starting to form on the hem of his sleeves. "I think that you and I may be diametrically opposed."
It was such a serious thing to say, but Llewyn was smiling as he said it. Bo wasn't sure what to make of the whole situation; in the end, he just smiled awkwardly and kept walking.
Good job. Well done talking to other people, Botan.
The clearing wasn't too far from where they had that exchange. By the time they caught up, Sean was starting to explore the perimeter. Eve was standing on the opposite end of the clearing from where they'd entered. Bo left the others to explore the area and went to join Eve. "Everything all right?" he asked.
Her response was delayed as she started intently into the woods, head tilted like she was listening for something. "It's quiet," she said finally. "But not in a bad way. I just don't think anyone is here."
"That's fine by me. Do you think it will bother them when we bring an army through?"
"Probably. But the conflict as a whole is likely bothering them already. There's not much that can be done about it, except to stay out of the woods as much as possible..."
The last word trailed off. Without warning, Eve reached out and grabbed Bo's arm. "What?" Bo hissed, his heart rate suddenly racing off. "What?"
"Something's coming. Do you hear that?"
Bo heard something, but he thought at first that it was just the rushing wind. It was difficult to tell if there really was a hushed urgency to the sound, or if it was his anxiety fooling him. Eve's certainty that something was coming made him think it was the former. "They're saying something about a pack," Eve continued, her eyes darting around. "Do you have wolves on the island?"
"No." Bo started backing away from the edge of the forest; Eve followed, keeping a grip on his sleeve. "Ah...gentlemen?" Bo called as he edged towards Sean and Edmund, trying and likely failing to mask his nerves. "We may have a problem."
Edmund drew his sword immediately. Sean was less quick to draw any weapons, though Bo did see him start actively searching for threats. "What kind of a problem?" Edmund asked quietly.
"Not sure. Eve just heard..."
The trees and underbrush rustled rapidly. It wasn't the movement brought on by wind–it was more like something was running through. Bo thought he saw whoever or whatever was causing it out of the corner of his eye, but when he turned to look, there was nothing. That alone was enough to make his anxiety worse; turning back and seen Sean's eyes practically blazing did not help with his fear. "You're right," he said, his eyes fixing on a spot in the distance. "We do have a problem."
Oh, no, no, no, of course, this is what I get for leaving the keep...
Eve immediately moved behind Bo. Llewyn moved closer as well. "I don't mean to make things worse," Bo said shakily, "but I'm a bit worried I may burn the forest down if I try anything. So...tactical advice is welcome."
"I won't," Llewyn pointed out. The air around him seemed to grow colder as he spoke. "How's your defense magic?"
"It's, ah, it's all right?"
"All right will do."
Edmund didn't seem convinced by that. "Do you know how many are coming?" he asked.
Sean shushed him. The dragon-in-human-form crept closer to the edge of the forest, reaching out one hand to rest against one of the bigger trees there. Bo could've sworn that he saw Sean's fingertips sink into the bark, as though he were pressing them against sand. "Be ready," Sean said.
That's not reassuring.
But Bo didn't have time to express that opinion out loud, because the sound of movement became very clear, very quickly. Bo stepped back and held up his hand. The magic instinctively moved towards the offensive runes on his hands, but he caught the mistake quickly. Shielding, we're defensive this time, don't burn the forest down, oh please, Magic Giver, don't let me burn the forest down.
The figures were just barely visible. Their armor was practical, colored more to blend into the forest than to show allegiance to any one side. But there was a specific coat of arms on the breast plates, the unmistakable tree-shaped engraving that marked them as soldiers of the Green Isle.
Of course they're working for Lord Reardon.
Bo felt Eve's grip on his arm tighten. As it did, the brush in front of him started to thicken, moving as though the branches where tangling and knotting together like rope. Bo faintly heard the figures muttering in shock as they tried to keep moving forward. If they didn't like that, then they really must not have liked it when Llewyn held out his hand and breathed a word that sounded like the wind moving through frozen-over branches. The brush began to freeze over, making the already-knotted branches an almost solid mass of sharp edges.
Well, they definitely know we're here now.
They knew and had drawn their weapons. Bo's own spell fell from his lips as he summoned the shield, just in time to catch a few arrows. One of the soldiers drew a sword and started hacking his way through the branches. With another hissing, whistling word, Llewyn made the frost grow, going from a thick coating to an extra layer of thorns on the branches. It didn't slow down the man too much, but Bo would take whatever advantages they could get.
Speaking of advantages...
Bo glanced Sean's way. The dragon had made no move to become...well, a dragon. He seemed to only stare ahead intently, his eyes fixed on their attackers like a barn cat about to pounce on a mouse. A second glance confirmed that the bark from the tree had started to move down Sean's arm, but that was a far cry from actually taking on his draconic form.
Whatever it is you're planning on doing, now would be a good time to do it...
Despite Eve and Llewyn's combined efforts, one of the soldiers was still hacking his way through the brush rather efficiently. The other two soldiers not armed with bows weren't far behind, and the lack of mobility hadn't stopped the three archers from sending volleys of arrows for Bo to deflect.
Maybe now...?
The first of the soldiers cleared the edge of the brush. The air around their group chilled further; Eve ducked behind him and Edmund stepped forward with his sword at the read.
The other two cleared the brush.
Now, please!
As if Sean had heard Bo's thoughts, as soft rumbling came from Sean's direction. When Bo looked at him again, he saw that Sean was seemingly being absorbed into the tree–or, rather, that he was pulling the tree into him, wrapping it around his physical form like a blanket. The short-range troops froze. Everyone froze, the sight creating an impromptu peace based on shock and awe.
Bo had already seen this exact process once, and the reverse process once before that. It didn't make the sight any less shocking.
The on-the-smaller-side but no less intimidating dragon? Also still shocking. And a bit terrifying.
All three of the soldiers had the good sense to run. Unfortunately for them, Bo's previous mental analogy about barn cats was more apt than he'd realized. The dragon pounced, claws outstretched, mouth agape.
Needless to say, they didn't get very far.
The sound of their screams and flesh being torn was cut through with the sound of other people shouting and screaming. The other three, damn it...should they let them go? Bo turned to ask Edmund to ask, just in time to see him making a break for the treeline with Llewyn fast at his heels. "Uh..." Bo glanced at Eve, then at the other men. "Uh..."
Prisoners. We need to take at least one of them prisoner. "Wait!" Bo yelled, breaking away from Eve and running after the others. He had to jump over the dragon's tail to do it, nearly falling flat on his face in the process. He didn't know if Eve was following. It was probably fine if she didn't. She was with a dragon. He was the one who was running towards men armed with bows.
Again.
Bo caught up in time to see that Llewyn was in the process of freezing one man's feet to the ground while Edmund engaged the other one in a sword fight. The third one was starting to gain some distance. Bo reacted, instinctively remembering his strategy in the cave as he held out his hand and...
Break.
The man collapsed suddenly. Bo was, for a second, worried that he might've genuinely killed the man. His fears were alleviated when he saw him get up and struggle to keep running forward. Oh, good. I got his leg after all.
Bo kept running without thinking, holding out is hand and focusing again as he did.
Break.
The man went down again, this time crying out as he did. When Bo caught up, one of the man's legs was ben at an unnatural angle. The other seemed fairly intact, but that didn't mean the bone wasn't broken. "You," Bo gasped, trying to look serious while also trying to catch his breath, "are not going...anywhere..."
The man went to draw his sword. Bo took a step back, holding out his hand again and starting to summon some flames. "I said you're not going anywhere!" he yelped.
It was not the most dignified reaction, but shockingly, it worked. The man removed his hand from his sword, apparently just worried enough by the prospect of getting a face full of flames that he didn't care how non-threatening Bo might've been. Thank the Magic-Giver for that. The man's gaze was defiant, but it looked like he was shaking with pain. For a moment, Bo was tempted to apologize. He it back the urge and glanced over his shoulder at the others. Edmund was standing over a soldier that was either unconscious or dead. Meanwhile, the third archer was almost completely encased in ice, but still struggling to break free. Bo looked down at his own captive again in time to see him look at a point past Bo. His eyes had gone wide at whatever it was he saw.
Oh, what now?
When Bo looked over his shoulder, he saw the trees starting to move, parting as much as they could without being completely uprooted. Two figures emerged from the trees. Eve was the first, holding out her hand, presumably the reason the trees were moving.
Sean, still fully draconic, followed behind her, a low rumble of warning coming from his chest.
The image was incredibly threatening, even though both the people coming towards them were on Bo's side. The two definitely conscious man seemed to agree, especially when Sean stuck his nose near the frozen one. His rumble turned into a snarl. There was blood streaking his teeth. The sight made Bo's stomach turn. He could only imagine how they felt, knowing that the blood belonged to their compatriots.
The man Bo was standing over spoke: "I'd like to discuss the terms of my surrender."
That's a very smart plan.
+++++
They now had four prisoners.
Lord Reardon still wasn't speaking. One of the men Bo and the others had brought back was unconscious from a blow to the head. He had been given enough healing to keep him from suffering any ill effects upon awakening, but no one knew exactly when that would happen. The second man was refusing to say anything, only responding to questions with sarcastic or insulting comments. The third man hadn't spoken, but according to Bo, he had been the most willing to surrender.
Perhaps that might mean he was willing to talk about why he and his fellows had been there–especially if Alicia offered him some clemency. She wasn't sure how much clemency she could offer, but she could at least spare his life.
The soldier was under less guard than the others, probably because they figured he wasn't going anywhere. Both of his legs were strapped into braces, a result of Bo having snapped both of them. Despite his immobility, Alicia was sure to keep her distance, just to be safe. "Can you tell me your name?" Alicia asked him gently.
The man looked at her and then looked away, glaring at his legs as though he could repair them somehow. "Listen," Alicia said, "I don't think I need to tell you that you're in a bad situation.
The man snorted. "No, I missed that," he said bitterly. "Are you going to appeal to my good heart or my sense of self-preservation?"
"I was going to try both," Alicia said honestly. She clasped her hands behind her back, trying to hide the anxious way her fingers knotted together. She had been trusted by her stepmother to do this. She had to find out what was going on outside these mountains so she could make sure their plans would work. "Am I wrong in assuming you are not interested in continuing this bloodshed? You know who we have on our side. You must know that warring against us will result in the devastation of your armies."
The man grimaced and glanced towards the door. "...you're not going to feed me to that thing, are you?" he asked.
"No, we're not savages. Besides, I'm not sure if we even taste good to them. Also, his name is Sean. Don't be rude." Alicia smiled; she saw the man smile, just for a second, before his face turned neutral again. She pressed the advantage anyway. "If you can answer some of my questions, then we could possibly avoid escalating things. And it could help you get out of the trouble you're in." Alicia looked around the room, found a stool, and moved it a bit closer to the man's bed. "So, maybe we should start over," she said as she sat down. "What's your name?"
The man looked up at her, then up at the ceiling. It looked like he was contemplating his options. She didn't say anything; she only watched him, waiting patiently. Finally, he sighed. "James," the man said, his voice resigned and wary. "Don't tell anyone I'm the one who told you, all right? I'm not disloyal, I just...I want this to end peacefully. As peacefully as it can. They say House Byrne is reasonable. Is that true?"
"It is," Alicia said, trying not to sound too eager. "I want the same thing you do, I promise. Who knows about Lord Reardon?"
"Most everyone by now, I suspect. Everyone in the capital knew, and the informed all of us stationed at the mountains first. They couldn't confirm that you had taken Lord Reardon, but since Lord Laine was there and that they had left the castle on information from him...well, it seemed likely."
"How badly do they want him back?"
"Depends on who you ask. Some of the generals sent us to see if there was a way to enter the Keep and perhaps retrieve him. But...not everyone thought it was worth the risk. They wanted to try negotiating."
Oh. That was interesting and potentially good news. "Why hasn't anyone tried to contact us if they wish to negotiate?" she asked.
"They wanted consult with someone who had more clout. That's what I heard some of the others saying before I was sent off to join the scouting party."
"Someone with more clout? Who?"
"The Lord's sister, I believe. Since he has no children or spouse, she would be next in line to the throne."
Adrianna had mentioned that they might try to negotiate with her sister. Now that possibility was seeming like an inevitably.
"They wanted to know if we should negotiate or continue the siege under her command," James continued. "I think some people were planning on leaving as soon as possible to try and reach her."
Oh.
"That's...very useful, James. Thank you." She thought about asking him if he knew any of their battle plans, but she doubted it. He was just a foot soldier. He likely only knew his immediate orders and nothing else. "I may have more questions for you later, but until then..." She stood up. After a second of consideration, she risked stepping closer and held out her hand. "Thank you for your help, James."
James looked at her hand, then up at her in surprise. After a confused pause, he reached out and gingerly shook her hand. "Well, you're not going to feed me to a dragon," he said, "so it's the least I could do."
Alicia's smile widened. "Of course. As I said, we're not savages."
Her smile had faded by the time she left the room.
This could be bad. It could be good, of course–maybe Alicia's aunt would be more reasonable than Lord Reardon, even if it was just to save her brother's life. But, then again, it seemed just as possible that perhaps she would be just as ruthless as him. That she would be willing to risk the troops to get him back, or disregard his life entirely in the name of finishing what he'd started. They may have traded one tyrant for another.
Alicia remembered how her stepmother had admitted she didn't know how her sister would react to the possibility of negotiation.
Honestly, that worried her more than anything.