Chapter Two

Chapter Two

 

 “Cail, put that sword down! Heavens above, boy. Why do you always think that someone might be out to get you?” Raeg closed the door behind him and tossed some clothes in the man’s lap. “There’s a cloak for you. There’s also one of Tryo’s old shirts that should fit you. When did you eat last?” he asked abruptly, eyeing him.

Cail pulled a shirt sleeve carefully over his wounded arm, trying not to wince. He looked up at the question. “I think…yesterday morning?”

Raeg slapped a hand over his eyes, causing Elio to stifle a giggle. “Cail--! Can’t you…why….?” He let the hand drop and shook his head. “I don’t understand how you stay alive but for your stubbornness. And it’s no wonder you’re thin as a post.” He sighed heavily, then said, “Let’s get you upstairs. You’re going to eat and go to bed. No, the armor can stay here. Just put it in that crate, Elio, off the floor.”

Getting Cail out of the cellar without being noticed was a tricky business, but many of the customers were too engrossed in their own conversations �" or too drunk �" to notice the wiry figure move his way to a table near the fire, away from the rest.

That night, for the first time in countless nights, Cail had a warm filling meal and a soft bed to sleep in.

As much as he enjoyed the dinner, however, he slept on the floor, being so accustomed to the hard ground of the forest. He’d be leaving soon anyway, and there was no point in getting used to comforts he didn’t have.

- - -

Regardless of his sleeping arrangements, the next morning found Cail well rested. Raeg inspected his wounds and changed the bandages, applying more Telki salve to the burns, but everything was healing well, and quickly. Thank the stars Cail wasn’t Trolisian, Raeg thought, or he wouldn’t heal so swiftly.

Fast recovery from injuries and his uncommon strength, despite his lean frame, were some qualities he received from his Magin mother, along with his dark hair and skin. His narrow black eyes and thin face, among other things, he inherited from his Kemai father.

The most curious trait that had been passed down to Cail from his father was the fact that his feet remained completely silent, whether walking or running, regardless of terrain. It was a gift that had aided Cail on many a journey through the thick forests of the planet.

Raeg had questioned Cail about this, but the young man didn’t know anything besides the fact that a magic gift had been placed on his father in childhood. Why it hadn’t passed to his half brother Olakip, he hadn’t a clue.

The inn keeper insisted that Cail take it easy, but by lunchtime Cail couldn’t stay in his room any longer and headed downstairs. There was a small crowd of customers in the commons area; there would undoubtedly be more come nightfall. Most of them were lodgers, and Cail surveyed them as he took a seat by the fireplace.

Several were native Trolisian merchants, clothed in plain, modest garments, no doubt traveling to Tamm or Lora to sell their wares.

One lodger, curiously enough, was a Naityge, a race not frequently seen among the travelers that visited planet Trolis. It was a very tall, fur-covered male with broad horns and his ears pierced with thick gold rings. The thought flitted briefly through Cail’s mind that, should trouble arise, the Naityge might be difficult to deal with.

Cail also saw a couple Tibmagians, who blended in well with Trolisians from the west with their longer, brown-colored limbs.

He sat there for a the better part of the afternoon, passing the time watching people come and go, distinguishing those who might cause him problems from the rest. He also repaired the metal plating that was attached to the outside surfaces and toes of his boots; months of walking had rendered them rusted and bent. Elio brought cards at one point, and Cail played games with the boy until his errands called him elsewhere.

Nearing sunset, Cail sought fresh air. After making his way past tables slowly filling with new customers, he slipped through the front door and immediately drank in the crisp evening air. When he released his breath, a small cloud of vapor formed, and he watched it until it disappeared, drawing his gaze to the forests beyond the road. He loved the forest; it was clean and provided him with refuge, food and water - everything he needed.

But as much as he loved the wood, he couldn’t help but think how much blood he’d shed in forests like the one he was staring at, and how many other people �" defenseless people �" must have lost their lives to Ihreakin that prowled the shadows there.

Many thoughts like this ran through his mind as he watched the sun sink behind the bare-limbed treetops, turning them crimson and gold. How often his thoughts strayed to his brother, whom he’d only seen in glances through the years. He wondered why Olakip hadn’t waited for him, had never expressed any interest �" was he angry with him? Not angry enough to completely leave him, or else he would have fled the planet. He recalled how much Olakip had resembled their father when he had seen him three years ago.

Suddenly his thoughts turned dark, remembering the cruel way his parents had been taken away from him. Anger flared up inside him, first aimed at the one responsible for his parents’ deaths, then turned towards his brother again. Cail had just been a child when it had happened. Olakip, eleven years his senior, had left him alone in the care of Raeg, whom he had barely known at that time.

Cail wished Olakip was here now, so he could shake him, hit him, ask him why in heaven’s name he had left and why he hadn’t sought him out since.

“Cail?”

Cail turned quickly, unclenching hands that he hadn’t realized had turned into fists.

Elio was standing there, his small head cocked to one side.

“What is it, Elio?” Cail asked.

“You’d better come inside. It’s going to storm.”

Cail looked up at the sky. Trolisians had a sixth sense about these things, something about their skin. Sure enough, dark clouds were moving in the far west, and when he sniffed the air, he could smell the impending rain. “All right, I’m coming.”

Elio slid a small hand into Cail’s and led him inside. As he did so, Cail saw several people down the road, heading in their direction. The inn would be full tonight.

And so it was. By the time the first raindrops fell, the inn was noisy with customers of all races and walks of life.

Cail recognized some of them to bear the marks of slavers, their purses bulging and whips coiled about their waists. He had a strong urge to ask Raeg if he could throw the men out, but currently there was no law on Trolis prohibiting slavery. It gave him satisfaction to see that Raeg wasn’t nearly as friendly to them as with other customers.

Suddenly the heavens opened on the outside world, and the inn went quiet, everyone listening for the imminent thunderclap.

When it finally broke, the crash was so tremendous that several people cringed in their seats, looking uneasily at the raftered ceiling above. Elio had brought Cail a mug of warm Landoyn wine and now sat down hurriedly at the noise, scooting close.

The wind began to pick up in earnest, whisking around the corners of the inn and down the chimneys so that the fires wavered and flared up.

Thunder sounded again, and Cail saw green lightning flash in the small round window by the door. In its fleeting light, he saw that the wind had started to blow so hard that the sign outside was threatening to fly off its hinges.

When another thunderclap boomed, accompanied by the crash of the front door, the resulting sound was so loud that it caused many to jump in surprise. A woman, dressed in a long blue hooded cloak darted inside and threw her weight against the wind-blown door to close it again. After it was shut, she leaned against the door, eyes closed, breathing heavily.

Soaked to the bone as she was, she nevertheless attracted Cail’s attention. And though she was pretty, it was not her fair face that caught his eye. It was her clothes. They were tones of soft blues, ivories and gold; her boots were white, with gold accents. This woman was from the Sivitel side of the universe, which was home to more technologically advanced planets like Layor, Ghree and Ryedan. Her clothes were out of place among the subdued greys, blacks and browns commonly found here in the Patriil side.

Cail watched her, wondering vaguely what had brought her to Trolis. She wasn’t a trader, and she had come alone. He doubted that if she had been accompanied, those with her would have stayed outside in this storm. And if they were tying up their animals in the barn, they would have at least sent one other person with her.

She drew deep, shaking breaths, her eyes glancing around the inn, but most had turned their attention once more to their own affairs. She walked forward a few steps, and only with those small motions, Cail knew.

An Elf, he thought. Her movements, though few, had betrayed a distinct grace and lightness of step that Cail had only seen in the race of Elves. As she lowered her hood, wiping dripping locks from her forehead, he looked for the long slender pointed ears. He was surprised when he saw nothing but small rounded ones peeking out from underneath her mass of braided curly hair.

A Human? he mused. That was odd. Humans tended to stay to their own planet. They hadn’t developed the technology to reach beyond their own system yet, or so he’d heard. As odd as a Human was, a half Human, half Elf was even more so. Elves didn’t marry outside of their own race very often.

Raeg, watching from the counter, noticed the same features Cail had, and approached her. Elves were highly thought of throughout the universe, regardless of Sivitel or Patriil side. “Hello miss,” he said politely, bowing his head. “Would you like a table?”

“Y-Yes please,” she answered softly, shivering.

“Allow me to take your cloak. Nasty weather, I’m glad you made it inside.” The woman allowed Raeg to take her cloak, and he led her to a table right next to the fireplace. He hung her cloak on a nearby stand to dry. “This fire’ll get you nice and warm in no time. Now then. May I get you something to eat and drink? A room for the night, perhaps? I believe we have a few rooms left yet.”

Cail watched Raeg talk with her, sometimes nodding, until he left to undoubtedly reserve a room and fulfill her order.

Normally a customer from the Sivitel side, though rare, would not attract his attention so. But there was something about this woman that stirred something within him. Perhaps it was because she was Elven.

Or perhaps it was because she was frightened.

The fear on her face was obvious to him. He’d seen that fear many times, when he’d run across travelers in the woods, terror stricken as they fled from slavers or hungry Ihreakin. Had this woman run into some of them in the woods? Perhaps her party had been attacked, and she had been the only survivor. She wasn’t hurt or marked in any way, but she could have escaped while others fought them. That would certainly explain her distress.

Her hazel-grey eyes, haunted and wide, kept sweeping the room, lingering on faces, then suddenly turning away when someone met her gaze. She constantly was twisting her hands together, which seemed to be trembling. In fact, her whole body seemed to be trembling, though it was a possible side effect from the cold and rain.

Raeg came back to her table with something hot to drink and a large towel. She bowed her head in thanks, and he left. She watched him go, then patted her face and hands with the towel, wrapping it around the ends of her hair to soak up the rain water. As she removed the towel, her eyes rose and met Cail’s. They widened and lowered hurriedly, and she pulled her drink towards her, as if trying to distract herself by staring into its contents.

Cail again wondered what she was so afraid of, but it could be any number of things where women were concerned. He averted his eyes as Raeg approached the table with two plates of food �" one for him, and one for Elio.

“Thank you, da,” Elio said, smiling up at his father.

Raeg chuckled and ruffled the boy’s curly hair. “Keeping Cail company, are you?”

Elio nodded as he raised his soup bowl to his mouth.

“All right, Cail?” The inn keeper asked, turning to him.

“Fine,” Cail said, breaking the loaf of bread in two and placing one half beside Elio.

“You notice that woman?” Raeg asked quietly, bending down as he put their drinks on the table.

“Of course I did. Hard to miss someone Elven.” Cail replied.

“I knew she was Elven! What do you suppose she’s doing here? She looks like she might be in some sort of trouble.”

“If she is, there’s nothing we can do about it.”

“Really, Cail. You can be so callous.” Raeg fixed him with a look of aggravation and left.

Cail settled back in his chair and lifted his soup bowl to take a drink.

“Do you really think she might be in trouble?”

Cail looked down in mild surprise at Elio’s whispered question. “I don’t know, little one.”

“Well, at least she’s safe here,” the boy said, nodding as if to reassure himself.

“Yes, she is.” Cail said quietly, lifting his bowl again.

“The rain’s let up,” Elio said suddenly, wiping a sleeve across his mouth. He looked up at the ceiling. “It’s still windy though. I hope it doesn’t start to storm aga�"”

With a loud bang, the front door of the inn flew open. Over the heads of the other customers, Cail could see that it was two men. Both wore black hooded cloaks, but they removed them as they stepped forward into the room.

One was very tall, with bright red narrow eyes and a thin, pale green face. All of his limbs seemed to be unnaturally long, even his fingers were twice what would be considered a normal length. His hair was long as well, and fell in thin greasy locks around his shoulders and down his back. He had no ears that Cail could see, only stubbly horns protruding from his forehead into his hairline.

The other was a great deal shorter than the other, much more muscular and widely built. He was also green skinned, but his eyes were a bright blue with slitted pupils. His head was large, hunched between his shoulders, and he constantly wore a scowl upon his features.

Both of the men wore armor, black with dull metal shoulder plates. Cail looked upon these plates curiously, for they bore an insignia -- a strange shape that in part resembled a trident. The symbol seemed familiar to him, but he could not remember where he had ever seen it.

The tall man turned once again to the door and made a tugging motion with his arm. Cail strained his neck to see what he might be pulling at, but could not see over the crowds. He stood, and Elio similarly got up from his chair.

There were sudden shrieks and yells from the front of the room, but it wasn’t until the customers parted, hurriedly getting out of their seats and backing against the walls that Cail saw why.

Elio gasped loudly and backed into Cail, who instinctively shoved the child behind him.

            Snarling and frothing at the end of its thick chain was one of the very creatures that had attacked Cail the previous day.

 

Author's Note

What do you think of the transition between chapter one and chapter two? Is it too abrupt?