To Claim the Elvin Princess: Apprentice (5 page)

8

Rasten had dreaded entering an airport with neither money nor, in Amein’s case, even a single piece of documentation. That she seemed as unconcerned as could be only made him worry more.

“Stop being concerned! You’ll see how easy it is!” she had insisted, and when they approached the ticket counter, he got his first hint that she was correct.

“May I help you?” The woman ticket agent asked. Rasten, who stood close behind Amein, nodded, while Amein busied herself with the small pouch she carried. It seemed much like a very small purse.

“Two tickets to London please...we made reservations on line,” he added, handing the woman a piece of paper, which he had printed off from his computer.

“Of course, may I...” she got no further, as Amein caught her eye, while making a series of small gestures, and then blew a tint bit of sparkling dust into the woman’s face.

“What...” was all she said, staring at Amein, who leaned close and whispered. The woman was soon busy, saying nothing else, and soon handed them their boarding passes.

“Thank you!” Rasten said, still amazed.

“Have a nice honeymoon!” the woman called to them as they stepped away, and when the next person in line stepped up, she looked oddly puzzled a moment, before shaking her head, and saying, “May I help you?” She had no memory of even seeing Rasten or Amein.

“Honeymoon?” Rasten asked quietly. Amein leaned close.

“It is always best to suggest something normal, and not something odd or impossible. The mind adjusts itself to support and maintain the enchantment, if it seems plausible. To do something harder, takes more effort and power. I have no desire to wear myself out more than necessary; we will likely have to fight our way through more than one gate!” she whispered.

Their trip through security was also aided by Amein’s sorcery. Her pouch, which was holding several unobvious and suspicious materials, would have set off alarms, had it been examined. Instead, the agents could not even register her or Rasten, nor what they might be carrying, and they slipped through unmolested, not even removing their shoes. A couple of other flyers noted this, but had no desire to make a fuss and risk being cavity searched for their trouble.

They had a short wait at the gate, before being called for boarding, and while sitting, looking at the tickets, he sighed. “Why didn’t we ask for first class seats?!” he moaned. Amein looked at him like he was being slow. “Don’t want to make it more likely to be scrutinized?”

“Wonderful!” she sighed.

They handled the gate agents much the same as they had the ticket agent, and were ushered on with no delay.

“You want the window seat?” he asked, stowing his backpack in the overhead bin.

“Are you afraid of heights?” Amein asked.

“No...I like being high, where I can see a long distance. Why?”

“You take it. I’m used to such views, and you will be too in time. It takes a bit to get used to riding on a terranak at height, with only a lap belt to keep you from plunging to your death!” she whispered and giggled at his sudden frown. When they were settled, he leaned close, where they could whisper.

“How high can one of them fly?”

“Higher than you can stay conscious! It can be dangerous, if you are careless! The terranak can breath at much greater heights than we can.”

“How fast can one fly?”

“They can cover many days march in a half day. When one dives from on high, they tuck their wings, and fall like a stone. You can not even breathe against the rushing wind! It is most exciting!” she declared, her face alive with an intense glow.

“How many times did you pee yourself before you got used to that?” he asked. Amein rolled her eyes.

“Many more than a warrior princess might like to admit! But Elf girls aren’t the only ones with wet pants at first!” she declared smugly.

“Wonderful! Remind me to take a leak before I get on one of them!” Rasten sighed, as Amein giggled.

The flight was uneventful, even though it was long. Both of them slept a large part of it, being still worn from their previous night’s play, and knowing that they would likely get little sleep once they arrived.

“How are we getting to Stonehenge?” Rasten wondered as the walked through the Heathrow airport.

“We’ll take a cab...one will be happy to drive us there!” she suggested, nibbling her lip and raising her brows slyly. “We can stay at the closest town...there’s a nice inn there. If we have to, we can walk to the Gate; it only a couple of...” she hesitated, trying to choose a measure that made sense.

“Miles...no...they use kilometers here. You have no idea what those are, do you?” Rasten wondered.

“Of course not. We can walk it in less than an hour; I did when I arrived!”

They picked a cabbie driving a newer car, and when Rasten asked if he’d drive them to Amesbury, the man laughed and shook his head, not so inclined. Amein elbowed Rasten aside, and leaned in the cabbie’s open passenger window, smiling cutely.

“Please, not even for a cute girl?” she asked, before blowing a bit of her enchantment dust at the unsuspecting driver.

They were soon on their way, the driver thrilled to go for such a nice long drive, telling them all about the passing sights as he drove. Amein looked at Rasten, giving him a smug, but guilty grin, and as he shook his head, she merely shrugged.

“One does what is needful at times!” she whispered. 

When they reached Amesbury, Amein was more than prepared to use her sorcery on the innkeeper, but Rasten stopped her.

“No, I brought what money I had, and changed it at the airport; I can pay for a room, and for dinner. No reason for me to take it along, is their?” They were standing on the sidewalk outside the inn.

“No.” she sighed simply.

“Amein...I’ll never set foot here again, will I?” he asked, the idea of leaving the only world he’d known suddenly disturbing him. She slipped quickly into his arms.

“No, you’re going to your true home, where you will live and someday die. Your life here is finished,” she said simply, hugging him tightly. When she looked up, her eyes were teary. “Now you get to be a hero, and win the Elvin Princess!” she whispered.

“That isn’t what’s making you cry, is it?” he demanded.

“No, it isn’t, but please don’t ask me what is. Not now! We have too much to worry about!” she sighed. Rasten stared at her a long moment, as she held her breath, before he kissed her.

“Alright, I’ll trust you!” Her sigh of relief was easily detected, and as they turned to go inside, Rasten gave her butt a firm slap.

“What was that for?!” she demanded.

“You know!” he quietly whispered, amused by her sudden blush and guilty look.

They were soon in a small room, and decided to nap, both to kill time and to rest before dinner. They tossed off their clothes, but Amein kept her snug panties on.

“Afraid we might not rest?” he suggested, gesturing at them.

“I’m just being responsible and prudent!” she sniffed. When she passed near him, Rasten grabbed her, and slipped his hand down the front of her panty, and swiped her puss. Pulling it out, he stuck his fingers under her nose as she moaned.

“Don’t!”

“You don’t want even a little attention?” he teased.

He quickly found himself on his back with Amein impaled on his erect organ. “You’re sneaky!” she complained, but seemed unable to complain more, rapidly losing herself to the sensations.

They had two intense and fast orgasms, before washing themselves off. Amein put her panty back on, scolding Rasten. “No more of that! We need sleep more than sex!” she grumbled, but was soon snuggled close against him, looking smugly pleased.

“You’re cute when you’re bitchy,” he whispered, which garnered him a half hearted slap on his chest, followed by a sharp tug on his chest hair.

“Ow!”

“I can do more than just
bitch
, as you call it!” she advised him, before slipping into sleep.

They didn’t wake until almost eight, and hurried to get dressed, so they could eat. They discovered that the restaurant at the inn was both good and reasonable, and enjoyed a quiet dinner, before returning to their room to wait.

“Why does the moon need to be up?” he asked at one point.

“It just does,” she declared. Seeing his frown, she laughed. “I just use magic or enchantments...I’m not a sage or master of them, who would know how they work, or why! Can you tell me how your machines work? No? But you have learned to use them, yes? It is much the same with us; I shall take you to meet our clan’s...sorcerer? Emareili is very adept, and could teach you much; likely more than you’d want to know!” she laughed.

“Is it hard?”

“Everything you must learn and master is hard! I’m sorry!” she sighed.

The walk to the stone circle was easy, the rising moon, full making the open countryside seem beautiful and enchanted. They were passed by a couple of cars, but were off the road as much as possible, and no one stopped or bothered them. At the circle, the moved cautiously, to first make sure no one else might be present, especially teens up to no good. Finding no one, Amein oriented herself, and went directly to one of the tall standing stones.

“What are you doing?” he whispered.

“I hid my sword and things here!”

“Where?”

“In the stone,” she replied, working to touch and manipulate the massive rock. She mumbled a long string of words in High Elvin, and when she touched the stone again, a section opened, as if it were hinged. The moon light revealed a roomy chamber which held two swords in their scabbards, along with a pack and some other items.

“Here, put this on!” she instructed, handing him the slightly longer sword.

“Are you crazy?! I’ve never used a sword!

“Do as I say! And then put this cloak on! You may need to use the sword, experienced or not! You can always pretend you’re chopping wood, if you need to do something!”

When they had everything in hand, Amein closed the stone, which made even the lines of the chamber disappear.

“Come! It is time!” she insisted, tugging on his hand. They ran to the center of the circle, where Amein marked out a circular place, two paces in diameter, using the tip of her sword. “Have your sword ready!” she added.

“Stand back to back! You will feel only a slight sensation, much like a static charge building up, and then we will be in darkness, before reappearing inside the next gate. Be ready to defend yourself. There are no friends where we go, anything you see, kill it!” she instructed. “Now be still!” she added, before he could say anything.

Rasten felt his hair rise, as she chanted an odd incantation, and then she tossed up a bit of her magic dust, which seemed to explode in the moonlight. There was the flash of blackness, and when he could suddenly see again, he noted a large animal with very big teeth, lunging at his throat.

9

Shocara was pleased to have almost two hundred fliers for the attack but had more reasons to worry than to be content. While her clan’s men had practiced getting their terranon’s under the forest cover, the ones from the Kerini clan had no such practice. If they failed to get the large creatures hidden, and an Elvin patrol spotted them, they were likely doomed to fail, if not to be wiped out.

To make matters less stable, the Kerini had arrived ready to fight, but when appraised of Shocara’s intent, had nearly refused, shocked at the very idea. She had spent nearly three hours cajoling and wooing their leader, to convince him to co-operate. That his resolve was minimal only gave her more to be concerned about.

In spite of this, they had gotten underway, eager to be doing something that at least had the potential for harming the Elvin. Half of the men were hauling a large and heavy bit of sorcery, which Karturic declared able to do much damage to any structure it was placed close to. The men had seen a tiny version of these placed by a large tree, and when a long string affixed to it had been set afire, it had caused such an explosion that the tree was severed and toppled over. That they were carrying devices many times larger than this test one gave them hope that they might do grave damage to several Elvin structures.

Shocara’s warriors had flown as low as possible, barely skimming the trees, to make themselves hard to spot, especially from afar. They had landed twice, to have a bit of food and drink, and to relieve themselves, before taking flight again. It was near dusk when Shocara signaled them to land, and the effort to get the terranaks concealed began. This took nearly an hour, during which watchers scanned the skies constantly, worried that an Elvin patrol might pass close and spot them. Shocara was pleased that none were observed, and finally relaxed, well hidden with all the others.

Atrucin, who with two others, had scouted the Elvin city, had used the small amount of daylight to draw a map of Alarinad in the dirt, so that as many as possible of the fliers would have at least a vague idea of their destination, and some of the landmarks that would provide their bearings. If they were forced to disperse in the dark, the men all had to find their way away from the city on their own.

After eating a small meal of dried meat, the warriors went to sleep, knowing they would likely get little after this night, especially if they had to fly all the way back to their own lands without stopping.

Shocara had difficulty relaxing enough to sleep, torn between excitement and terror.

Will this be my last night of life?
she wondered, peering up between the trees at the stars, knowing that they were taking a much bigger risk than she had been willing to admit. The Elvin were astoundingly skilled on terranaks, and if they could give the alarm, and mount up a sufficient group of their fliers, the Eridians would be caught on the ground, and killed in a hail of arrows. If they lost their mounts, and were forced to fight on foot, against an ever increasing number of Elvin swordsmen, they would all die. Still, this seemed no more terrible then a slow death, as they fell one by one.

I would hope that if none of our people escape, to tell our tale, perhaps at least the Elvin will have reason to respect us, and keep our memory alive!

In the morning, the group had time to kill, wishing to arrive at dusk, with their mounts as rested as possible. They would have wished to be close, and fly only a short distance, but due to the settled nature of the area around the Elvin capital, this was impossible, at least without being seen.

When they took flight, it was with determination and quiet resolve. They repeated their low flight, but split up in small groups of three to five, and spaced themselves out, so that anyone on the ground looking up might only see a tiny band of unidentified terranons passing by. They reformed while flying out over the large lake that bordered the southern edge of Alarinad.

Shocara was pleased, the sun slipping down below the distant hills, promising them a good bit of twilight. Even more to her liking was the fact that the sky was cloudless, and a few stars were starting to shine. They would at least have a way to navigate, should they be separated.

Coming in from the lake, the band of fliers rose up, to gain a better vantage. The city was rushing at them, the Elvin lights coming alive. Shocara felt herself overwhelmed by a sense of wonder, Atrucin’s warning touching her; the city seemed endless and amazing, and she felt tiny and insignificant flying into it. This made her angry, and hardened her resolve. She could see only a few Elvin fliers in the remote distance, silhouetted against the sunset colors.

Looking towards the higher parts of Alarinad, where the large and imposing buildings sat, sprawling up a tall hill, she looked to the west, and saw another area of imposing structures, ringing a large open area. By the glowing lights, she noted large crowds of Elvin moving about unaware.

She called to the closest fliers, giving them instructions, eager to head straight at this place, and to land swiftly.

The Elvin on the ground likely had only moments, between hearing the loud rush of the Eridian’s terranak’s wings, as the mass of warriors dropped from the darkened sky, into the grassy lawn. Shocked and terrified, several of them were slashed by swords, as the Eridians leaped down and attacked anyone they could reach. Leaving a small group to defend the Terranons’ Shocara led half of her warriors towards the closest building, while others unloaded her father’s devices, and followed behind.

Shocara ran into the closest building, which seemed huge and amazing. She managed to engage two Elvin with swords, wounding both in short order, and passing on. Her group swept through the length of the building, a large meeting hall, and as a couple of her men worked feverishly to place the devices they carried, Shocara headed into the next building. She ran through a half dozen trapped Elvin, women and children mostly, and reappeared outside, as a second group led by Hacarim emerged from another with a handful of warriors.

“Hurry!” Shocara screamed, as an arrow landed near her, and stuck in the grass.

She scanned the surroundings, looking for the archers who might plague them, and spotting one on a staircase, she pointed and called to her own men. A well placed arrow caught the Elf and ended his resistance. “This way!” she called, going across the plaza, to invade yet another building. They found only a handful, and cut down those who ran too slowly. She nearly lost her footing when three large explosions erupted from across the open plaza, the shock of the blasts difficult to take.

“Hurry!” she screamed, worried that the noise would cause their mounts to take flight, but she was soon reassured, finding the men that had stayed behind to guard them, holding on to the terranon’s harness.

“Mount up! We will move to another place!” she called, and all were soon in the air. The plaza below was filled with smoke, and three of the buildings were heavily damaged.

Shocara flew on a minute, before spying another large open space, filled with Elvin, who had come outside upon hearing the loud and distant explosions. The Eridians dropped down screaming, leaping from their mounts before the terranaks were even settled. The mass of Elvin were helplessly trapped, surrounded by wild warriors, intent on inflicting a maximum number of casualties. Terrified Elvin, some clutching children, fled in all direction, trying to avoid the fatal steel of their enemy. Many fell, to bleed, their minds stunned by this assault; no attack on Alarinad had occurred in a thousand years or more.

In spite of the screaming, Shocara kept her ears attuned for the beating of terranak wings. When she thought she heard such, she called loudly for her warriors to mount up and abandon the ground for the relative safety of the sky. She thought they might all escape, but one of her men took an Elvin arrow before he could fasten his lap belt, and fell from his mount. Another had their terranak pierced by an arrow, and the creature dropped back to the ground like a stone, which let a crowd of angry Elvin disarm the rider, and capture them. Shocara briefly noted this, but had more pressing problems, being confronted by a half dozen Elvin fliers, intent on avenging their losses.

“Break and fly!” she screamed, before jerking the reigns of her mount, to avoid colliding with an Elf trying to aim her bow at her. The arrow missed her head by inches, and she put all of her effort into evasive flying, diving low over the buildings, before again climbing. She could see none of her warriors, and hoped they had all succeeded in shaking any pursuit.

Shocara had flown many times, with only the stars to guide her, and she was confident that she was headed properly. Only when the moon started to rise did she note a few others here and there, and they slowly gathered together. The position of the glowing orb gave them no assistance in spotting any pursuit, so they concentrated on maintaining a steady pace. Their mounts were likely to be exhausted by the time they reached their own lands, or could find a safe place to rest.

It was impossible to speak with anyone close, without shouting, so they rode in silence, each with their own thoughts. Shocara was hopeful that their casualties were as few as it seemed they might be, and felt like the attack had gone well. She had cut down several of the accursed Elvin, but the more she considered this, the less the fact seemed to please her. The Elvin never killed Eridian women or children, and her doing so suddenly seemed unworthy of pride.

How can this be? They are our enemy!
she thought, for the first time in her life considering that the Elvin were not just innumerable hordes of warriors, but beings with families and children. This seemed a daunting and painful new concept, that touched something deep within her.

If the Elvin killed our children, our ones who do not fight, how horrid would we regard that? Why should we expect the Elvin to think more kindly of our doing so to them?
It dawned on her that should she be captured, she would likely be given the worst possible end, for having done this.
I must avoid being captured or be prepared to suffer at their hands!
An even worse thought was the knowledge that none of the Eridians knew what the Elvin did to captives. None ever returned.

Torture can only last so long, before your body breaks and you die! Imprisonment is far worse, as you can last long past madness, especially if you are kept alone. Being a slave is humiliating, and no doubt unpleasant, but one can endure it, until a chance to escape arises,
she thought, bothered by the lack of knowledge regarding their captive fighters.

Maybe they simply kill them,
she thought, knowing she would welcome such a fate more than any other. It never occurred to Shocara that there were other possible fates which the Elvin might inflict on her. She judged the Elvin mostly by her own peoples’ standards and ways.

Should I be in danger of capture, I would be wise to use my blade on myself!
she thought, certain that this would be less terrible, but unsure if she had the will to do such an act.

Her idle thoughts would have seemed irrelevant, had she known that three Elvin fliers were following them, concealed in the blackness, but positioned where the moon silhouetted her small group handily.