Cronica Acadia Page 19

  “You have provided accommodation far above any obligation you had to me,” said the princess. “Your deeds will be known to my family.”

  “Thank you, Your Highness,” said Donald.

  Doppelganger was smitten. It just seemed like she said everything right. He guessed that was the advantage of growing up in a royal family where you were schooled in the social graces from an early age. For the first time in this world, he was ashamed of his lowly status. If he were a dragoon, then she might look at him differently. The master classes were highly respected, the closest a commoner could come to being royalty.

  A young she-dwarf from the stables brought over a pony. “There is only one pony in the stables, but you are welcome to it,” said the reeve.

  “How are we all supposed to ride on that?” exclaimed Nerdraaage.

  “It’s for the princess,” said the reeve, scowling.

  “I do not see the advantage of riding when my party travels by foot,” she answered.

  “It affords opportunity for escape, Your Highness!” answered the reeve.

  “Your kindness is appreciated, but I will not leave these brave four to die in my place,” she said. And then, smiling, to Ashlyn she said, “We walk together. My sister and her companions.” There were a few more words of farewell, and the princess and the Keepers departed the front gates.

  “I never liked escort quests,” Nerdraaage said softly to Dangalf. “I never escorted an NPC that didn’t want to walk right through the enemy camp.”

  “She has free will,” said Dangalf. “Hopefully she’ll go around the enemy camps.”

  “There are no enemy camps on the road to Templa Taur,” said Dymphna reminding them all of how well elves could hear. “Only wild beasts and highwaymen and perhaps assassins.” There was an embarrassed silence. “May I know your names?” she said.

  Doppelganger almost blurted out his name—he wanted to, but then he thought better of it. He would not answer until she looked at him and addressed him directly. Then he would know if she had even a hint of interest in him. Only to her direct question and pleading eyes would he give up his name. Yes, it was a good plan.

  “I’m Nerdraaage, and this is Doppelganger,” said Nerdraaage. “Dangalf and Elftrap,” he said, pointing to the others.

  “Actually it’s Ashlyn, Your Highness.”

  “Ashlyn,” said the princess. To the others she explained: “If you did not know, it means ‘dream’ in our tongue. I used to wish that it was my name.”

  “What does your name mean, princess?” asked Nerdraaage.

  “It has no such literal meaning. I was named for an elven princess who was flayed alive by a troll king.”

  “Well,” said Nerdraaage confidently. “That probably won’t happen to you with us here.”

  Dymphna again stifled a laugh as she had in the reeve’s office. “You are very encouraging, Nerdraaage,” said the Princess. “All of you please address me as Dymphna. At least while we are between towns.” They nodded agreement. “Do you have a birthday, Doppelganger?” she asked.

  “Of course,” he answered. “Don’t you have a birthday?”

  “I suppose I do. But for elves they pass without notice. I am fascinated by the fanfare on the anniversary of a human birth. Such bravery in the face of your mortality.”

  “For us,” said Dangalf. “It’s more a celebration of life and not mortality.”

  “I don’t see how you could separate one from the other,” said Dymphna.

  “I probably won’t be able to after this,” said Dangalf.

  “When I was young, I asked my tutor why some humans had so much ambition. And he said it was because they lived such short lives. And then I asked him why so many more humans had no ambition at all. And he said it was because they lived such short lives.”

  “Sounds like your tutor needs to make up his mind,” scoffed Nerdraaage.

  Dymphna laughed. “That was not his only shortcoming. For he failed to tell me just how funny dwarves are!”

  “I had not considered how these differences in lifespan are another chasm between our races,” said Dangalf. “Between mortal and immortal.”

  “I never liked the word immortal. Elves are quite mortal. Some use the term immortal, but indefinite I believe is more suitable. I would be felled by an axe as quickly as a human. Probably much more so. But there is otherwise no limit on the span of our lives. But even human wizards learn to magically extend their lives.”

  “You’re learning to be immortal?” Doppelganger asked Dangalf.

  “Well, like the princess said,” Dangalf explained. “More indefinite than immortal.”

  “You are all from far away,” said Dymphna.

  “How did you know that?” asked Doppelganger.

  “I am a seer,” she said.

  “A seer,” whispered Nerdraaage to Ashlyn. “A pacifist. She’s going to be no help in a fight.” Ashlyn shushed him.

  “You are from no land that I have beheld,” said Dymphna. “Not even on a map or in a dream. Beyond Oceania even.”

  “Yes,” said Dangalf. “You see very well.”

  “It is my calling,” said Dymphna. “My family is quite displeased that I do not heed it.”

  “Why don’t you?” asked Dangalf.

  “Because you see not only the good but the bad. I remember when I was little I had such a clear vision as if I was awake. And my room was full of butterflies. That was my father’s name for me. Butterfly. And then my ancestor Dymphna came to me. And I saw what had been done to her, how the trolls had made her into a butterfly. She had come to warn me about something, but I would not listen to her. It was too terrible even to look upon her. I swore it to be true, but no guards saw anyone come or go. And I showed them all the blood in my room, but they said it was my own. I never took another lesson after that. I knew I could not bear to see some things.” And three of the Keepers found this to be a very odd story, but Doppelganger became only more smitten.

  LI

  In time, Ashlyn was able to slow her pace so that Dymphna and Doppelganger were out of earshot. Dangalf and Nerdraaage lagged with her. “It would be a lot easier to protect her from the enemy if she wasn’t glowing in the dark,” said Ashlyn.

  Dangalf and Nerdraaage chuckled. “That invincibility spell should wear off soon,” said Dangalf. “Such a powerful spell,” he marveled. “Too bad it kills you to use it.” Death spells. He would learn some in time, though he dreaded the knowledge—dreaded the circumstances where he would have to consider using one.

  “She’s so pretty,” said Ashlyn. “I wish I looked like that.”

  “You’re beautiful,” protested Dangalf. “Stunning even.” Neither noticed Nerdraaage rolling his eyes as he decided to start lagging behind Dangalf and Ashlyn.

  “Really?”

  “You’re much better looking than her,” said Dangalf. “She’s a wispy blonde. You’re like Snow White.”

  “Snow White?” said Ashlyn.

  “With your dark hair, your red lips, your alabaster skin,” said Dangalf, finally allowing himself to speak aloud what he had only thought. “I’ve never seen a more beautiful creature in this or any other universe I’ve been in.”

  Ashlyn smiled briefly. “She is such an obvious princess, though. She’s so delicate. She’s fine boned,” said Ashlyn.

  “Fine boned!” said Nerdraaage with a chuckle.

  “She’s a seer,” said Dangalf reassuringly. “A pure ectomorph. You’re a druid. A hybrid class. Of course you’re going to be thicker. Have a little more padding.”

  Ashlyn folded her arms across her chest and sped up her pace to leave Dangalf behind. “What?” asked Dangalf as Nerdraaage howled with laughter.

  Doppelganger and Dymphna remained oblivious to the antics behind them. There was obviously a great deal of attraction between them, but for now it was light and fun. “I heard the dwarf talk about escorting me back to my homeland,” said Dymphna. “What does ka-ching mean?”

  “It me
ans our blackguard has not learned the basic stealth technique of whispering,” said Doppelganger.

  “You do not want to tell me? It must be very bad.”

  “Ka-ching refers to a financially rewarding endeavor.”

  “The dwarves make me laugh,” she said.

  “I thought dwarves and elves were rivals?”

  “That is mostly jealousy on the dwarven side. According to lore, the elves are the most beloved of Woden.”

  “The elves are the most beloved?”

  “Well,” said Dymphna smiling. “It is elven lore.” She was so beautiful and refined. Doppelganger had to pick among a thousand different questions he wanted to ask her. He picked the one that seemed most pressing. “Why would two assassins be sent after you?” asked Doppelganger.

  “It makes no sense,” said Dymphna. “They say self-divination is an illusion, but from what I have seen, I play no direct role in any major event.”

  “Indirectly?”

  “It is possible,” she agreed. “That I am a catalyst or vessel for something greater that me. But that will be harder to divine.”

  “I wish we had waited for the dragoons,” said Doppelganger. “I think it would have been safer to try to defend you within the walls of Hammersmith.”

  “I sensed it was the right time to leave,” said Dymphna. “Are you not enjoying our time together?”

  “Of course. But I won’t be able to forgive myself if anything happens to you.”

  “Well,” said Dymphna. “If it makes you feel any better, if anything does happen to me, I think it will happen to you also.”

  “Doesn’t make me feel a lot better,” said Doppelganger, and they both laughed. “At least you still have your protection. What does it feel like?” he said looking over her glowing magical shield.

  “It is not unlike…” Dymphna struggled to explain. “Do you remember, when you were a child, and you ran as fast as you could, and you were able to run across the top of a lake or river?”

  “No,” said Doppelganger. “That’s called drowning when human children do it. Unless the water is frozen. And that often leads to drowning as well.”

  “I’m sorry,” she laughed. “I have become too heavy also to run across water. But you must tell me what this force feels like from the other side.” She held out her robe to him.

  “I did not think I was allowed to touch an elven princess,” said Doppelganger.

  “A human mercenary?” said Dymphna in mock horror. “You most certainly are not allowed! But the spell will prevent you from actually touching me.”

  “If I’m not going to touch you,” said Doppelganger. “I might as well not touch your face.”

  She smiled at him and lowered her eyes as he reached his hand up to her face. The fine hairs on his hand stood up as it neared her protective aura. Suddenly the protection spell ended, and he touched the royal face.

  Dymphna’s eyes widened in shock, but she did not pull away. Instead she put her hand over his hand. But it was not an affectionate gesture. In fact, she looked right through him.

  “He’s not supposed to touch her,” whispered Dangalf.

  “Shite,” said Nerdraaage. “Looks like we better get ready for another wedding.”

  Dymphna grew silent when she released from Doppelganger and began walking at a more determined pace. Doppelganger asked her what had happened. She begged for peace so that she could interpret the vision.

  LII

  They passed the last farmhouse and the presumptive safety of the greater Hammersmith area. Nerdraaage said he would “walk point” after a term he heard in a war movie. He marched ahead of the others, unappeared and visible to only the most sensitive creatures. He was to give a birdcall if any threat approached.

  They had walked far, further then their travel plan had provided for, and it was dark. They were not tired, but finally it was hunger that made them stop. Dymphna led them to a fresh-water spring that was far enough from the road to allow them to build a small fire.

  They sat and ate. Doppelganger and Nerdraaage did their customary amount of damage to the food supplies. “We made good time,” said Doppelganger.

  “At this rate, we will be in Templa Taur in three more days,” agreed Dymphna.

  Ashlyn took a large bite of bread and was chewing it when Dymphna sat next to her and smiled. She saw that all Dymphna ate was a leaf, and it took her three bites to eat that! Ashlyn prayed that the princess would not make her speak with her mouth stuffed with bread. She chewed as quickly and quietly as she could. She was disgusted with herself for her indelicacy. She was a she-elf after all. But she had been dining only with dwarves and human males.

  They drank and laughed easily. Dangalf and Nerdraaage lit up their pipes. Dangalf took a hit and handed his pipe to Ashlyn, who waved him off. Nerdraaage stood up and half-stumbled the short distance to Dymphna and handed her his pipe.

  “We do not smoke,” said Ashlyn reproachfully.

  Dymphna held the pipe excitedly. “I will try it if you will, sister,” she said. Ashlyn held her hand out to Dangalf, and he turned his pipe over to her.

  The two she-elves looked at each other and placed the pipes in their mouths. Dymphna inhaled. Ashlyn closed her eyes and inhaled. Her pipe crackled from the cold air being drawn over the burning leaf. Dymphna let out a tiny puff of smoke. Ashlyn held her smoke a long time before exhaling it luxuriously.

  “You’re very good!” cheered Dymphna.

  “Thank you,” said Ashlyn without opening her eyes.

  Dymphna offered the pipe to Doppelganger. “No thank you,” he smiled.

  “May I go again?” Dymphna asked Nerdraaage.

  “I should have brought another pipe,” said Nerdraaage as he sat down heavily next to her.

  They continued to smoke and drink and laugh. They even convinced Nerdraaage to sing a dwarven song without having to ask him:

  In the shadow of

  Our ancient redoubt

  They paid the price

  Of great renown

  The Battle of Nemetia

  The Battle of Nemetia

  He sang of the eighteen thousand dwarves who died in just three days during their unsuccessful defense of Nemetia, but it was still a peppy little number and did not sour anyone’s mood. “Who would have thought the company of humans and dwarves to be so pleasant?” said Dymphna. “Nerdraaage, you made the funniest face this morning.”

  “I did?”

  “It’s the only face he has,” exhaled Ashlyn.

  Dymphna did her best to relate the story through her laughter. “You asked how all five of us would ride one pony, and the reeve told you that the pony was for me alone, and you looked at him as if to say, ‘Who is she to ride while I walk?’ It was all I could do not to cry out with laughter. I cannot wait to tell my family.”

  “Well, we believe that dwarven royalty is no better than a common elf,” Nerdraaage said proudly.

  “You said that backward,” said Dangalf.

  “What?”

  “Never mind.” And they all laughed.

  Dymphna eyed Ashlyn’s technique in amazement. “You have smoked before,” she finally said.

  “You are a seer!” said Ashlyn, and they all laughed.

  “You strangers have no idea how unusual you are in this land,” said Dymphna.

  “What do you mean?” asked Doppelganger.

  “Elf with dwarf with human,” said Dymphna. “Red School with White School. It is unprecedented. You ignore the natural antagonisms that exist between your races and classes as if they weren’t there. Is this how things are where you come from? Elf, dwarf, and human living in harmony?”

  “Not exactly,” said Dangalf.

  “We’re the Keepers of the Broken Blade!” shouted Nerdraaage.

  They hadn’t really considered how unusual they were in this land. But it was true that they had not seen other mixed groups. After all, theirs was a bond formed in a digital world where they played divergent characters but they we
re all human. The class and race differences in the game were superficial. But here, races and classes had vastly different experiences and ambitions.

  And now here they were, running all over the land together as each got his training while the others idled. Those who were already trained were coming to the realization that this was an inefficient imposition.

  Dymphna raised her cup before them and, slurring slightly, said, “By royal proclamation it is called for that the Keepers of the Broken Blade endure forever.” They all touched cups joyfully, but Dangalf couldn’t help but feel a certain melancholy. He had not before considered that the Keepers might not endure forever.

  LIII

  They continued on to Templa Taur at first light the next day. They walked in the formation they had ended in last night: Nerdraaage on point, Doppelganger and Dymphna in the middle, and Dangalf and Ashlyn bringing up the rear. Dangalf and Ashlyn spoke easily again as Ashlyn had realized how she had overreacted to Dangalf’s innocent and accurate body-type comparison. She had to, but hated to, admit her reaction was entirely female.

  Suddenly Dymphna ran ahead of Doppelganger, and like an excited child she clasped a spinning feather as it drifted to earth. She took it to Ashlyn and asked, “May I?” And Ashlyn consented, but to what she was not sure. Dymphna wove the beautiful silver feather into Ashlyn’s hair. To the others she explained, “The feather is a sacred symbol to our people. It is said you cannot move on to the next world if your soul is heavier than a feather.”

  They reached the crossroads for their third time in this world. Each time they were a little better off than the last. Dangalf had introduced the Triangle of Achievement on their arrival as a model for their survival in this new world. The first step, Preservation, and the second step, Comfort, were achieved. They were now decently clothed and they had weapons and skills and coin for food and lodgings. They had started with nothing, and that is the hardest place to start from. And the first improvements to their situation had come slowly. He smiled as he remembered an anecdote about Nerdraaage when he had been first paid for his work at the stables. He excitedly went to the tanner and bought a dwarven coin purse and after buying it realized he no longer had any coins to put into it. But now they had gold coins rubbing against their silver and copper. If they were to lose all their coin tomorrow, they could build fires and hunt. And they had skills to earn more coin. They were now well into the third step of the Triangle, Bonding. They had had an advantage in that step by coming to this world together, and they had made further improvements. Doppelganger, Dangalf, and Nerdraaage were all members of their particular schools. Nerdraaage had just married into one of the best clans. But even before then, when they had nothing and smelled of shite, they had worked hard and dealt honorably with the people they had met, and friendships had arisen in each town they visited. And now to top it all off, they were escorting—more than escorting, becoming simpatico with—an elven princess. If anything, they had overshot Bonding and leapt headfirst into the fourth step, Recognition!