The Elemental Jewels (Book 1) (22 page)

“I was afraid they were going to attack me,” he explained.  “But they’re not dead, I’m sure.”

“He’s right, they’re alive, and there’s no sign of any harm to them,” one of the officers said, as he bent over the unconscious men.  “There’s not a scratch on them.”

Ariana suddenly stood in the doorway, pale faced, looking about the room with a wild light in her eyes.  she ran across the room to Grange, then grabbed his arm.

“You’re okay?  They didn’t hurt you?  What happened?” she asked.

“There were two of them,” he motioned down at the figures on the floor.  “But everything’s okay.  I’m fine,” he reassured her.

One of the men on the floor opened his eyes, then sat up, in a state of confusion.  He looked around at the chamber, then saw his companion also on the floor.

“What are we doing down here?  We were out on the dock, waiting to board the ship – that’s the last thing I remember,” he said.

Grange and Ariana stepped away from where the two men were recovering.

“You killed two demons?” she asked.

“It wasn’t hard,” Grange said.  “They were hard to see at first.  They were almost completely hidden inside the men, but the men were acting strangely, so I was watching them closely when I saw the demons’ feet stick out.  I was afraid I might hurt the men trying to cut the demons.”

“There may come a time when you will have to kill the men to drive the demons out,” Ariana said soberly.  “There will be demons that will be completely inside their victims, invisible to the outside world.  Fortunately, there aren’t many that are so dangerous, and none have come after you yet.

“We’re going to have to increase your training,” she decided forcefully.

“Ariana!” Grange raised his voice, making heads turn, as people looked away from the two confused men who were standing.  “Ariana,” he repeated in a lower voice, “when do we have time for more training?”

“We could stop sleeping,” she said thoughtfully, then grinned as she saw the look of horrified incredulity on his face.  “Don’t worry, young hero, we’ll find a way.

“Now play some more music and make people forget about all of this.  Then we’ll go dance upstairs. But don’t play too long; the party will be over soon,” she told him.

Grange watched her walk away, as one of the ship’s staff members came over to talk to him.  “These blokes say they don’t remember a thing.  They’ve got nothing against you, and we found these,” he held up the two knives the men had brandished against Grange.  “These are the ship’s own knives, and the men say they don’t know how they came to possess them.

“We can have them thrown off the ship, or arrested, if you want us to,” the man explained.

Grange looked over at the still-befuddled men.  “I think they just had a fit of some kind.  They should be okay to stay, as far as I’m concerned,” he told the officer

“That’s very kind of you, young sir,” the officer said.  He turned and went over to the two men, then he and the other staff member escorted the men to the stairs, and up to the deck for fresh air.

A number of the guests came to Grange and asked if he was alright, then asked if he would play more music, and so he did.  He began to again re-play the tunes he had played at the beginning of his stint in the large cabin, as his audience settled into their seats to further enjoy the music

He played for only ten minutes before he saw Lord Selebe come down the stairs and enter the crowded space, accompanied by an attractive young girl.

“Grange, there you are!  You’re absolutely destroying the party, you know,” the nobleman said sternly as he approached Grange, causing the musician to cease playing music, shocked by the announcement.

“I tried not to hurt them, my lord,” Grange said apologetically

The nobleman reached Grange’s side, then burst into laughter.  “You look so serious!” he exclaimed.  “I was teasing – except that you are keeping an unfortunate number of people trapped down here where we didn’t think anyone would come, so the party deck upstairs looks absolutely deserted.

“This is my sister, the subject of this party, the Lady Selene,” Selebe introduced the lovely girl to Grange.  The young noblewoman has tightly curly hair, arranged in a long cascade over one shoulder of a strapless dress she wore.  Her eyes were a bright green, and Grange found himself staring at them intently for a moment longer than he knew was polite.

“You can speak to her, you know,” Selebe prompted with a grin.

Grange blinked, then blushed.

“Look at how much the red shows on his pale complexion!” Selene laughed with a gentle tone that made Grange feel she was laughing with him, not at him.  “That is so charming.”

“I’m so pleased to meet you, my lady.  Thank you for allowing my humble music to be part of your party,” Grange finally spoke, as he bowed low in front of her.

“You’ve surely played enough,” Selene said, “for today anyway.  There’s a very pretty girl upstairs who sent us down to fetch you up to the deck to give her at least one dance.

“Wouldn’t all of you like for this boy to have a chance to dance with his lady-love?” she turned to the audience and asked.

The men and women in the room clapped and laughed politely in response.

“Go to her Grange,” Selebe told him.  “I’ll stay down here and sing to all these people as your replacement,” he laughed.

“Happy birthday, my lady, thank you, my lord,” Grange told the pair of visitors.  He began to walk towards the stairwell, and received a round of hearty applause as he left up the stairs.

He blinked in a state of momentary blindness when he reached the bright and sunny top deck, where Ariana stood with a mischievous smile.

“Well, Grange, what a surprise!” she exclaimed.  She turned to the band that stood with idle instruments and waved her hands.  The musicians immediately began to play a slow dance tune.

“May I have this dance?” she asked him with a mocking bow.

Grange blinked, then laughed, then opened his arms, and began to slowly shuffle around the dance floor among a few other couples, with Ariana in his arms.

“These aren’t the steps I’ve worked so hard to teach you at all those apple orchard dances,” Ariana protested.

“I hardly ever danced at those dances because I was always playing the music,” he reminded her.  They were standing close as they moved, their bodies touching each other, and Grange felt himself starting to blush once again

“May I have this dance?” a man’s voice asked over Grange’s shoulder.  He turned to see that Selebe and Selene had followed him up to the deck.

“And may I as well?” Selene asked.

Ariana released her hold on Grange, and gracefully swept over to the nobleman.  The two of them stood apart by several inches, then began to glide gracefully away.

Grange looked at Selene, and blushed again.  “My lady, I cannot give you a dance as well as those two.  I’m sorry to disappoint you,” he said as he hung his head.

“Oh nonsense,” she snapped.  The noblewoman placed his hands where she felt they properly belonged, then placed her own hands in the proper locations on Grange’s shoulder and hip, and the two began to slowly turn, with awkward steps.  “Just relax, and feel the rhythm,” she told him.  “Your feet will figure it out.  I heard you playing that music down there, so I know you’re a natural when it comes to rhythm,” she smiled graciously.

They moved around the floor, and Grange fell into a tempo of movement that grew smoother and steady, until the music ended.  Selene politely clapped for the musicians, and Grange joined her, then the two of them walked over to where Ariana and Selebe were standing.

“Your services today have been so very appreciated,” the nobleman said.  He placed a small leather pouch in Grange’s hand.

“We’ll have to have him put on a performance at home sometime Selebe,” the birthday girl said to her brother.  “You’ll come to our home, won’t you?” she seemed pleased with Grange’s music.

“He’d love to, my lady,” Ariana answered immediately.

“I’ll promise to go to all the festivals and dances and taverns to hunt him down and invite him again.  I’ll make that sacrifice for you,” Selebe told his sister.

“You would even force yourself to go to twice as many festivals and taverns for me if I asked, I’ll wager,” his sister laughed with a dancing flash of light in her eyes.

“Now that you bring it up,” Selebe let his answer dangle.

“It was so good of you to come,” Selene told them both.  “Thank you for such beautiful music, and for bringing such a beautiful woman to adorn our deck,” she said.

Grange and Ariana bowed, then left the ship and started walking back towards the city.  The sun was starting to sink in the western sky.

“We’ll have to go straight to the festival where your band is playing,” Ariana advised him, and they did.  He played with the band and received his payment, then returned home and slept soundly.

Chapter 13

The next month went by in a blur of activity, as Grange worked under the demanding schedule that Ariana imposed on him.  They made one adjustment within the first week; the afternoon swim lessons in the bright sunlight produced a painful sunburn for Grange’s fair features, and so they went swimming in the mornings, then worked at weapons in the afternoon, before going to play musical assignments in the evening with Guy’s band.

Then, one evening, when Grange returned to his apartment, Garrel surprised him.  Garrel had taken up steady employment at Lord Selebe’s estate, working in the stables.  “His lordship came to see me today,” Garrel announced to the others in the apartment.  “He would like for Grange to come and perform more music at the family palace a week from tomorrow.”

“You should do it,” Ariana prodded Grange.  “It’s always good to make the nobility happy and to keep them on your side.”

Grange agreed, and Garrel was instructed to pass along the news.

A week later, the foursome began to walk towards the palace of Lord Selebe’s estate.

Grange was quiet on the walk, as he ruminated about his relationship with Ariana.  He was still entranced by her beauty, awed by her abilities, and suspicious of her nature.  He was also resigned to the fact that it was a relationship that was never going to be anything more than the comfortable pairing it had settled into; there was no hint or hope or expectation of any change in the status of the two of them despite his secret yearning.  Grange still slept uncomfortably close to the unclothed Ariana at night, both attracted by her allure and repelled by her indifference to his desires.   And so, as they walked through the city streets, he was thinking about her, unaware that it was the last day he was to know her as she was.

Garrel had learned shortcuts and back roads that allowed them to make a quick passage to the mansion grounds, though they passed through mucky alleyways in the process.

“My dress hem is splattered with mud!” Deana protested when they emerged from the last alley and approached Selebe’s home.  Garrel shrugged his apology, and they walked on.

There were several carriages waiting to drop their occupants at the door as Grange and his friends arrived, and were allowed to enter a side door. 

“Have something to eat, young master,” a kindly housekeeper proposed, leading them to a table in the kitchen.  “From what I’ve heard them all say, once they set you to work making that music with your little whistle, there won’t be any time to put a bite in your mouth.”

The group sat and ate amid the bustle of the kitchen and wait staff who were bustling to deliver all the food that was expected for the noble guests of the household.

“Old Prince Rupert is boasting on the young artist here,” one waiter said as he passed by the table, giving Grange a quick pat on the arm.

“You all should get out there and walk about a bit to see the house before the show starts, especially since you are the show.  There are some lovely statues to see out in the gardens,” the man suggested.

Deana jumped at the suggestion.  “Let’s go walk through the garden,” she suggested. 

On the way out of the kitchen though, Selebe happened to find Grange. 

“There you are!” he exclaimed.  “I’m so sorry they shuffled you off to the kitchen.  We had seats for you at the main table.  You were going to sit with Selene, and I was going to attempt to sweet talk your lovely companion,” he winked good-naturedly at Ariana as he spoke.

“But now it’s time for the concert,” he continued.  “Since the weather is so lovely, we’ve arranged for the seating to all be moved out to the shady lawn on the north side of the house.”

One of the passing house servants snorted in annoyance at the task of moving the furniture for the group, but Selebe affected not to notice.

“So come along. My young musical genius, and spread the delight of your music to this broad swath of the upper crust of the court society,” Selebe said.

“Oh, don’t try to intimidate the boy!” Selene said, coming through the kitchen door to join the group.  “Hello darling,” she leaned into Grange and kissed the air by his cheek, startling him.  He responded by turning his head to do the same, but he mis-anticipated her movement, and their lips smacked soundly.

“It appears your customs are a bit more friendly than ours,” Selebe said with a raised eyebrow.

“My apologies, my greatest apologies,” Grange was flustered by the incident, and he began to blush.

“Oh Grange!” Selene laughed it off, as Ariana gently slipped her hand into his.  “Look at you!  I can tell you’re embarrassed!  He can’t hide a thing with that light complexion of his, can he?” she asked Ariana.  “You have him at such a disadvantage!”

“There are four or five things he can hide, but that’s all, my lady.  He does face a challenge.  And he’s got a bit of color now – you should have seen how pale he was when we first met up in the mountains!” Ariana agreed.

“Come along Grange, bring your friends and let’s go entertain the court,” Selebe refocused the group on the need to go.

They passed through the halls of the home, moving in the same direction as the house staff and the many guests who were headed to the lawn.  Selebe took them through an empty hall.  “This is our residential wing,” he explained as they hurried along.

“There’s no crowd here, except for all those sweet young ladies-of-the-court you try to woo,” his sister added.

They passed out of the hallway through a set of glass doors, and were suddenly next to a wide sea of chairs and sofas that had been moved out into the shade of a pair of massive oak trees.  A smoothly manicured lawn ran for a long stretch of space to a hedge and a tall stone wall beyond.

“Over there,” Selebe pointed to a small wooden platform standing in front of the hedge and the wall.  “That’s your stage for this afternoon.”  He patted Grange on the shoulder.  “Ladies, come with me,” he held out arms, and escorted his sister and Ariana, while Garrel and Deana followed, as they headed to seats in the front row of the audience.

Ariana stopped, disengaged, then walked quickly back to Grange.  “There’s something unusual here.  Do you feel it?” she asked.

The boy shook his head.  “Unusual bad?” he asked.

“No, not bad, maybe.  Just,” she paused, then shook her head.  “A different pull from the source,” she mumbled.  “You go up there and have fun,” she urged, then leaned in and kissed his cheek, before returning to the waiting group.

Alone, Grange walked forward to the stage, while the seats filled steadily with the house guests.  He took a spot on the stage, as a kind servant brought a jug of water and a glass for him.  Grange thanked the man, then turned his back to the audience and began to warm up.  He knew the audience could hear him, but he felt more isolated nonetheless for not seeing them while he prepared for his musical performance.

Satisfied that he was as ready as he could be, Grange turned and walked to the front of the small stage.  The seats were filled, and there were even a few of the younger crowd who were sitting on the grass, all looking in his direction.  He took a deep breath, as he realized that it was the first time he had been asked to perform for such a large crowd, one that was present solely to focus on him.

He took another deep breath, then focused on his flute, and started playing the first dance tune he had learned while traveling with the High Meadows crowd of apple pickers.  It was a lively tune, one that he had learned by listening to Breeze hum in his ear in an apple orchard, and he hoped it would enliven the crowd and set an energetic tone.  The first bars of the music ran off his fingers and out towards the crowd, with no noticeable reaction, until Garrel started to softly clap his hands in time to the music.  Deana joined him, and then Ariana and Selene did as well a moment later.

As soon as the hostess began to clap, many of those around them began to clap as well, and the level of clapping quickly took on an infectious enthusiasm that spread in breadth and volume.  Grange continued to play the up tempo tune through its standard length, then through a short improvisational period, and then through a closing section of the traditional tune.

When he finished and lowered the flute, there was a moment of silence, then a round of applause that was warm and sincere.

Grange smiled in relief, and the crowd clapped for the happiness they saw in the smile, then immediately grew silent as he raised the flute to start his second tune.  He nodded to Prince Rupert, who he spotted sitting in a front row seat on one side, as he began to play the first tune that Rupert had taught him, when Grange had thought the elder man was simply a staff person on Selebe’s ship.  A strange, old man sat next to Rupert, watching Grange with bright eyes under bushy eyebrows, a tiny man, one who was thin and wrinkled and short.  He created an indelible impression, and Grange found that his eyes strayed often to look at the man.

Grange played the tune just as he had interpreted it for Rupert, with a dash of improvisation once again as he played.  The heads of the audience members gently rocked from side to side in accompaniment to the music, and Grange felt pleasure in seeing that they enjoyed the music he played.   It was remarkable, he thought, that he had been a pickpocket who had just by happenstance played music with a band one night in Fortune, and now he was performing in front of an audience of nobility in the far away city of Palmland.

He finished the song, then played the next, as he watched a number of servants pass among the audience members, delivering beverages to all who were present.  As that song finished, the servants lined up in the back of the audience, watching the proceedings.

Grange next played another of the songs Prince Rupert had taught him, then played one of the local Palmland dance tunes that he had learned with Guy’s band, but as he did, he noticed that the audience members were growing inattentive and sleepy.  Heads began to nod and eyes closed as he was disappointed to see the lack of enthusiasm his music suddenly evinced.  Only the old man by Rupert’s side was completely alert; everyone else seemed to be wilting.

The staff members at least were attentive, he noted with a touch of relief.  They were still awake, and even moving closer, coming nearer to better hear the music.

That seemed a bit odd to Grange, for there were no competing sounds from the audience members, nothing to disturb or interrupt the sound of his music.  He felt a sudden premonition of fear, and his music faltered.

Watch out!  Watch out!
he heard the jewels scream. 
Where is she?

The servants all dropped the trays of glasses they held, and pulled knives from under their coats.  Grange heard a sound behind him, and turned to see a trio of men scaling the tall brick wall, dropping down into the lawn.

So many!  It’s a trap! Ariana, awaken!
The jewels screamed.

Grange dropped his flute and pulled his sword free.  He could suddenly recognize the portions of demons that were exposed behind the heads of all the servants.  The demons were coming for him en masse, a dozen or more altogether it appeared.  His arm suddenly erupted in pain, and the jewels discharged themselves, as they ripped through the material of his sleeve and flew outward, transforming into their small female forms in midair.  There were four of them, all armed with the tiny swords.

“Take him alive,” one of the demon-possessed servants ordered the others.  “He doesn’t have to be in good shape, so don’t be delicate, but take him alive,” it rasped the orders, as its eyes, and the eyes of the others began to glow with the same frightening light that Grange had seen in Breeze’s eyes, the night he had walked the girl home through the forest.

Run Grange, Run!  We will hold them back!
The jewels screamed in their tiny voices. 
You must escape.

“This one,” one of the possessed servants said at that time, pointing over to where Ariana slumped in her seat.  “That one is a power.”

“Kill it,” ordered the demon that had ordered Grange taken alive.

The boy heard the sound of footsteps on the small stage behind him,

“Protect her!  Protect her!” Grange ordered the jewels.  “Don’t let them harm her!”

He turned and raised his sword, thankful for the training that Ariana had compelled him to endure.  Two demonic attackers were in front of a third, and Grange stabbed his sword at the demon that rode the man closest to him, making the evil creature scream and withdraw, while the man slumped to the ground.

Two of the jewels descended upon the second attacker, pricking the demon with their tiny swords, distracting it and the man it controlled, so that Grange had time to slash his sword and kill the demon.

“I told you to protect Ariana!  I command you to do so!” Grange shouted at the jewels, as he saw the other pair of tiny figures engaging the third man who had dropped down over the garden wall.

We must protect you!
The red jewel came to flutter in front of his face.

“No!  Her!” he shouted the command, as he waved his hand at the red sprite, knocking it aside as he stepped into the battle with the third demonic attacker.

The white jewel flew at the demon as well, distracting it as it used its long-bladed knife to block his first stab. Grange took advantage of the momentary distraction to sweep his sword recklessly back, not only killing the demon, but also slicing into the neck of its host, sending a spray of the man’s blood upon Grange and the stage.