The Unwilling Aviator (Book 4) (24 page)

"Sorry," he replied.

"Apologies for later," she insisted.

The glider was less forgiving as their front tipped downward and they plummeted toward the ground. Fred quickly pocketed his staff and shifted to the right while Ruth moved to the left. They shared the front and back rungs. It was a small space, and made even smaller when Ruth transformed into her gargoyle form, and Fred was poked by her wing. She stretched out her tail behind herself and looked to her friend.

"Pull the front up!" Ruth commanded him.

Fred and Ruth leaned back and shifted their weight to the rear of the glider. Their front raised and leveled them off, but another gust swept over them and threatened to tumble them backward. Ruth turned her tail like a rudder and they weathered most of the breeze, but not all of it.

"We must shift our weight together," she told him.

"All-hey!" Fred yelped as she climbed on top of him. She guided him to the center and lay her body on top of his. Fred's mind shifted to more pleasant thoughts when her breasts pressed up against his back.

"Match my movements and we will try to land," she instructed him.

"A-all right," he replied.

Ruth leaned left and right as the wind blew and Fred mimicked her movements. They tilted the front down slightly so they slowly descended eastward. In a few tense minutes they pulled their legs from the rear rung and set their feet on the ground. They walked for a few yards and came to a stop among the rubble from the cloud. The pair threw off the glider and Fred dropped to his knees, relieved at having survived the insane winds of Kite.

CHAPTER 27

They had rested only a few moments when they heard a noise to the east. They turned and saw dozens of guards and twinners on horses galloping toward them. Ruth quickly changed back to her human form, but she could do nothing about her female appearance.

Small groups of three broke off from the main herd at each of the gliders and assisted the injured and shaken. One of the groups, led by the twinner Honorous, stopped at Fred and Ruth, and they were surprised to see a woman standing beside him. "Are either of you hurt?" Honorous asked them.

"No, we're fine," Fred replied.

The twinner nodded to Ruth. "What is this young woman doing here?" he asked Fred.

Fred smiled and wrapped an arm around Ruth's shoulders. She blushed and stared at the ground. "She's my squire," he told them.

The two guards exchanged glances and one of them opened his mouth, but Honorous shook his head. "Any complaints will be brought before the officials, but not now," he told his men. He turned his attention back to Fred and Ruth. "We have been ordered to take all uninjured squires and aviators to the Senex to decide what is to be done."

Fred and Ruth rode back with the men and had their first look at the damage done to the city by the cloud. Branches and rocks dotted the streets and roofs, and here and there sat a boulder or tree. In the far eastern corner they saw some of the spools were half ripped from the ground and one of them had fallen into the city. People crowded the streets helping one another pick up the mess and assess the damage.

Their group followed others down the stairs and then westward to the Senex. The aviators and their squires were seated on the benches in the depression outside the Senex. Advesario was among those unharmed and seated on the benches, and he sneered at Fred when the young man dismounted. The man glanced at Ruth and did a double take.

Advesario jumped to his feet and pointed at her. "What's a girl doing here?" he objected.

"Remain seated where you're placed," Honorous ordered him.

Advesario glanced between Fred and Ruth, and a light clicked on behind those vacant eyes. "She's his squire, isn't she? He's got a girl for a squire!" The dozens of men in and around the depression jumped to their feet and erupted in outrage.

"No women allowed!" one of them yelled.

"Get her out of here!" another shouted.

The men crowded around Fred, Ruth and Honorous with Advesario egging them on. Advesario crossed his arms and grinned triumphantly. "No squire, no qualification. That means Crash is disqualified!"

"Quiet, if you please," a stern, loud voice broke over the crowd. Everyone turned and watched Regis step out of the Senex building and stride through the group of men to the three in the middle. "Haven't you enough decency for your injured fellow aviators and squires to not fight among those of you who are able to stand?" he scolded them.

Many of the men hung their heads, but Advesario had no shame. He pointed an accusing finger at Ruth and Fred. "Crash here has a girl as a squire. That means they're disqualified," he insisted.

Regis turned to the pair and surveyed them. "Is it true that this young woman is your squire?" he asked Fred. Fred reluctantly nodded. "And you knew this, and yet still took her on as your squire?"

"She's better than me at flying," Fred told him.

Advesario snorted. "That's not very hard to be," he protested.

Honorous glared at Advesario. "Jealous, Advesario?" he wondered.

"Why should I be jealous?" the aviator sneered.

"My men and I watched everyone land and they were the last, making them the winners of the tournament," Honorous replied.

Advesario bristled. "A woman a winner? By Phaeton we won't allow that, will we, boys!" A cheer erupted from the crowd, but was cowed when Honorous' firm eyes swept over them.

"You won't let a woman be a squire, but what about an aviator and twinner?" he challenged them.

Advesario curled back his lips. "What would we want to do that for?"

"You already have," Honorous replied. He tossed aside the robes that he wrapped around himself and revealed a wrapping of bandages around his chest. They held in place two small, but definitely feminine, breasts. Honorous smirked as their mouths dropped to the dusty ground. She turned to Regis. "I'm sorry to have deceived everyone for so long, but I didn't think anyone would understand."

"A-a girl!" Advesario wheezed. His eye twitched and he whipped his head to Regis. "Remove her from the twinners!" he demanded.

"The position of twinner is one for life. There are no exceptions except where a breach of duty is involved. I have not breached my duty," Honorous reminded him.

"B-but you're a woman!" Advesario protested.

"Man or woman, I won a tournament, one you were in, if I recall," Honorous shot back.

Advesario opened his sputtering mouth, but Regis stepped between them and held up his hands. "Let us have a moment to clear our minds, though I might add he-pardon me, she is right. The position is for life, and Honorous has not violated her duty as a twinner, merely as an aviator," Regis argued.

"We won't tolerate that, will we, boys?" Advesario called out to his fellow aviators. The crowd was less enthusiastic. Honorous was a well-known and respected twinner, and they hesitated to move against her. Advesario's face reddened with rage. "You idiots! Do you want women to be in our tournaments?" he mocked them.

"That may not be a bad idea, and one that can certainly be put before the Senex," Regis spoke up. Advesario turned to him in shock and rage. "Calm yourself, recover from your wounds, and pray for your injured aviators and squires," he advised.

Advesario clenched his hands by his side, turned and stormed through the crowd. The remaining aviators turned to Honorous, who glanced between Fred and Ruth. "Congratulations on some fine flying. I watched your landing of that glider. It couldn't have been done better, or with better cooperation," she praised them.

"It was all Ruth," Fred spoke up. He pushed her forward to stand in front of Regis and Honorous.

Ruth blushed and bowed her head. "Thank you," she whispered.

Honorous smiled and turned to Regis. "Do you really think those old men will allow them as winners knowing she's a she?" she asked him.

Regis looked around at the calm faces of the aviators and squires. "Only if their fellow fliers will allow it," he admitted. His eyes swept over the crowd looking for an answer to his statement. "What say you all? Do these excellent fliers deserve the trophy for flying well?" The men glanced at each other, unsure how to answer.

Ruth turned to them and clasped her hands together. "Please?" she pleaded. Her big brown eyes and quivering lip melted the hearts of the rough and gruff fliers.

"Ah, let 'em have it. Not like we can't try again this fall," one of the men spoke up.

"Yeah, we can give it a try again," another agreed.

"Here here!"

"Yeah, give it to 'em!"

Ruth's face beamed with pride as the aviators and squires chimed in with near-unanimous agreement. There were some in the crowds who scowled and slunk down, but they were in the minority and didn't press the matter. Honorous patted Fred on the back, and her strength was enough to cause him to stumble forward. He turned to her and rubbed his shoulder.

"You're pretty strong for a girl," he quipped.

She smirked. "How do you think I won the tournament?" she pointed out.

Regis held up his hands and silence fell over the crowd. He had a wide smile on his otherwise stoic demeanor. "The case is not yet settled. The Senex will meet tomorrow to decide the fate of these two fliers. What is most important at this time is your fellow fliers and the city. The debris damaged many of the houses and even now clutter the street. Everyone would be glad for a helping hand to clean the debris," he told them.

The fliers dispersed to assist the city people, and Ruth turned to Fred. She paused and glanced past him, and her face lit up with a wider grin. "Someone wishes to speak with you," she told him.

Fred furrowed his brow and turned to see Pat and Ned quickly striding toward them. Pat rushed past Ned and wrapped Fred in a bone-crushing hug. He blushed until she pulled them apart and smacked him on the cheek. Fred frowned and rubbed the red spot. "What was that for?" he asked her.

"For not being more careful," she snapped.

"But it wasn't my fault that storm came up," he protested.

"Of course it is. Trouble follows you wherever you go," she reminded him. Her face softened and she smiled at the confused young man. "But I'm glad you're okay," she finished.

"As am I," Ned chimed in as he came up to stand beside Pat.

Fred raised an eyebrow and glanced between the two. "How did you know we were here?" he wondered.

Ned chuckled and tapped the top of his staff against Fred's chest. "I can track my soul wherever it goes," he told the young man.

Fred's face fell. "So you know where I'm at all the time?" he questioned him.

"Precisely," Ned agreed.

"Wonderful. . ." Fred grumbled.

"There you are," a voice spoke up. The four turned to see Canto, Sins and Percy stroll toward them. Two of the three new arrivals were filthy from head-to-foot. Sins was as clean as always.

"What happened to you?" Pat asked them.

"We've been doing work while you've been standing around here doing nothing," Canto complained.

"When we realized nothing could be done to help Ruth and Fred from the air we assisted in removing the debris from the streets. We hoped not to find you two in the rubble," Percy told them.

"We were swept ten miles to the west," Ruth replied.

"That's quite a distance. Were others thrown that far?" Percy asked her.

"Several, but we were the last to land," she told him.

Percy raised an eyebrow. "Does that make you two the winners, and our mission a success?"

"The Senex wants to meet to talk about it, but maybe," Fred spoke up.

Ned chuckled. "Fred brings success on the heals of trouble."

"We shouldn't expect success until the Senex makes its decision," Pat pointed out.

"Then while we wait might I suggest we rest?" Ned suggested.

Canto arched and cracked his back. "Ah second that. It's not easy moving all those damned trees."

"You insisted on being the mule," Percy countered.

"Ah didn't know it'd be to pull every tree off every roof," Canto growled.

"My friends, let us argue in the comforts of our rooms," Ned insisted.

The group stopped their arguing and returned to the inn. Ti anxiously awaited their return on the doorstep of the inn, and her face brightened when she saw them walk into the square. She hurried toward them and smiled at the group. "I have some congratulations and thanks to give to you," she told them.

"For what?" Canto asked her.

"For possibly winning the tournament and for helping everyone in the city remove the trash," she replied.

"Congratulations and thanks for another time, if you please," Ned begged her. "For now we only wish for our beds."

A shadow crossed over Ti's face and she glanced over her shoulder at the inn. She dropped her voice to a low whisper. "Perhaps you had better take the back door. Hugh may seek the money you owe him," she pointed out.