To Claim the Elvin Princess: Apprentice (33 page)

59

When night had fallen, Shocara began to pace. It had finally come to her that they would have no way to know when or even if the Elvin might arrive to attack them. While it seemed reasonable that they would wish to move quickly to take advantage of the darkness, she had to consider that the Elvin might not be so foolish. As the time dragged on, this seemed more likely.

“Are we supposed to stay awake all night?” Hacarim wondered, as they waited.

“I don’t know! I assumed they would wish to move quickly, while still fresh and eager to use the darkness, but perhaps they sense a trap, and will now wait! They could have been here by now...perhaps we should try to sleep some. If they wait until light, we would be dead on our feet! Set up guards to watch and tend the fires, rotating them, so all can get some rest. We need to be prepared for anything!” she sighed, frustrated that the Elvin were not cooperating with her plans. 

The men will think me a fool, if the Elvin do not come! What if they simply burn our village and return to Alarinad?!
she thought, terrified suddenly, having not considered such a possibility. She tossed and turned on the hard damp ground, finally managing to sleep, but her repose was filled by evil dreams.

She awoke while it was still dark and listened, but heard nothing. A strong wind was blowing from the south west, and made hearing more difficult, especially from the east. This had concealed the rushing sound of the Elvin terranaks, flowing from the north like water, swinging low and wide of the encampment and landing well away from the eyes of the watchers, had there been enough light to see well. The sky to the east was brightening rapidly, as half of Rasten’s warriors dismounted, and moved off through the trees, the damp leaves muffling the sound of their foot falls.

“We need to get someone on the tower, to watch for the Elvin!” she called to one of those standing watch. A lone Eridian soon moved towards the forest edge, where his terranon was waiting. He was visible to Rasten, who had reached the edge of the trees, and was crouching, as his warriors moved into position.

“Take him!” he whispered to Kimarien, who had strung his bow. In spite of the dim light, the Eridian was soon visible as a shadow against the brightening sky, as he prepared to swing his leg over the saddle. Kimarien’s arrow hit him perfectly, and moaning slightly, he fell backward and dropped to the ground.

Shocara had gone off to pee, and soon noted that the flyer had not departed.

“What is keeping Jaric?” she wondered, stepping back to the closest fire, to address those standing. There was much stirring, but all were still tired and groggy. One started to jog towards where the other had gone, when he suddenly screamed, as another Elvin arrow pierced him.

“The Elvin are here!” Shocara screamed, as Rasten and the others ran headlong at them.

The Elvin unleashed a barrage of arrows, which caught several of the Eridians who were standing. Shocara ran through the camp, kicking men who had not yet woken, screaming loudly to get them up and with swords drawn. She grabbed one young one, and pointed at the forest opposite the side the Elvin were emerging from.

“Run and wake all the men hidden in the woods...they are our only hope!” she hissed, and turned back, drawing her sword, not looking to see him run off.

“At them! Fight!” she called, rushing to meet the closest Elvin. She hoped to make quick work of him, but found herself well met, the elf wise and well experienced. One of her men joined her, driving the elf back, and she used this chance to look around, to evaluate what they faced. They seemed well matched, until she noted a mass of Elvin flyers landing off to the south, these one’s running to join the fray.

Her warriors were being pushed back slowly, until those in the forest burst forth, eager to come to her aid. This gave her warriors momentum, until the extra Elvin could join the battle.

“Form a wedge!” she called, and her call was repeated, passed from man to man. All understood she wished to pull into a tight triangle, whose base was close to the forest, so they might retreat back towards their terranaks, and escape if needed. Against such a tight formation, even a mass of Elvin might struggle to break the lines, or disrupt their enemies retreat. Rasten, seeing this, was eager to stop such a maneuver.

He waved to his new forces, arriving, running to meet them.

“Come! Let us circle round the Eridians, and squeeze them a bit!”

He was soon running through the forest, leading a hundred Elvin, wanting to circle and stop any Eridian retreat. The Eridians, seeing this, had a dozen sheath their swords, and resort to their bows, intending to  hamper the Elvin advance. They were soon frustrated, the trees catching most of their arrows, as the Elvin dodged and weaved to make themselves harder to strike. The Elvin bowmen had better luck, pausing behind trees, to steady their aim, and gain a clearer target. A dozen Eridians soon fell, which helped to make the Eridians even more desperate to flee.

“Kimarien! Take men and go for their mounts!” he called, and the elf split off with a dozen, and headed straight ahead, to try and reach the Eridian terranaks first. The Elves were much fleeter of foot than the heavier Eridians, and soon left the slow moving barbarians behind. Rasten gained enough position to be able to fall on the Eridians from behind, forcing them to now fight on two fronts.

This caused the barbarians to bunch up, still being pushed back by the Elvin from one side, but up against Rasten and his Elvin on the other. The fighting was brutal and difficult, the forest hampering everyone’s ability to swing a sword freely. Several Eridians fell to the Elvin’s skill, but Rasten suddenly found the tables turned, Kimarien and his ones arriving being chased by five times as many Eridians, who had been with the terranons. It was now the Elvin fighting on two fronts.

“Close up and push this way!” Rasten screamed pointing north with his sword. The Elvin worked fiercely to follow his lead, finally breaking away from between the two masses of Eridians. “Don’t let them surround us! Move toward their camp!” he called, working steadily to his left, while still fending off the Eridians in front of him. Seeing the clearing getting closer, He pushed off to the fringe of his group, to better see what was happening in the camp itself. He noted the Eridians still standing, being led by Shocara, shoulder to shoulder, and holding the Elvin well at bay.

“Follow me!” he called, and a dozen ran with him, heading straight at the place where Shocara was positioned. He called for the ones fighting there to give ground quickly, and this opened a gap, where he and his fellows could squeeze through, falling on Shocara as a group.

Rasten gave no thought to anything but meeting her sword, but soon found himself in a battle to just stay alive. Her skill was superb, being quick like Amein, but she had more native strength than an elf might display. He soon found himself alone with her, the other Eridians pushed back. Rasten called out orders, wanting his warriors to push hard for the advantage. Noting that she was being left behind, Shocara thought to turn and flee, but Rasten swung a kick at her, which caught her and knocked her down.

He leaped towards her, stepping on her sword, and had a dagger slashed crossed his belly, that only his mail saved him from. Shocara managed to land her boot into his crotch, and scrambled to her feet while he tried to keep from falling over from her blow. He barely managed to fend off her sword strike, and as his vision cleared, they returned to their battle.

Shocara suddenly turned and ran into the forest, with Rasten on her heels, She veered away from the mass of Elvin and Eridians, going deeper into the trees.

Rasten half expected her to turn, but was not expecting her to grab a strong sapling, and use it to spin around to confront him. Her sword thrust was turned by his mail, but his side absorbed the huge blow, making him gasp.

“Perhaps you’ll like that?! she laughed wickedly. Rasten swung at her, but caught the tip of his sword on a low hanging tree branch. He was able to stop her counter strike, barely, but was soon chasing her again, as she turned and ran away.

He pursued her more cautiously, starting to feel tired. Shocara was also showing signs of fatigue, and breathing hard.

She soon turned again, having noted that the Eridians were pushing the Elvin steadily back towards the camp.

She lunged at Rasten, determined to best him, but he managed to land a ringing blow against her sword, which snapped only a few inches from the hilt. Shocara found the point of his sword against her throat, as he pushed her back against a tree. They stood, eyes locked, Shocara’s enraged. They were both winded, almost too tired to move. Rasten intended to secure her, to make her a prisoner, but he heard his name being called. Pushing slightly harder with his sword, to keep her pinned, he turned to glance, wanting to see what was happening.

Shocara bowed her throat back, and slammed Rasten’s sword aside with her broken one, using the guard and small blade fragment to move it away. Before Rasten could react, she slammed the side of his head with the hilt of her sword, dropping him like a stone.

Shocara wasted no time, dropping to her knees, and pulling two leather ties from her pockets, tying Rasten’s hands quickly together with one, and his ankles with the other.

Her view of the fighting showed that the Eridians were still pushing the Elvin back, and she ran to guide them. When the Elvin signaled each other to retreat, Shocara called loudly to stop her warriors from perusing them. They had lost many men, but had inflicted many deaths on the Elvin also.

With Rasten missing, Kimerien had taken command, eager to withdraw, and stop the bleeding. There was no way to call this a victory, and the Elvin knew it, even though they had inflicted many casualties.

“Where is Lord Rasten?!” Kimerien demanded, as they prepared to hurriedly mount up.

“I last saw him fighting that female!” someone called.

More checking turned up no sign of Rasten.

“What should we do...leave him?” a voice called.

“He’s likely dead...he was fighting Shocar! We can’t lose more people, trying to find his body! I’d rather die, than have to tell the Princess...” he sighed, pulling on the reins.

Shocara had walked through her warriors, seeing how many were lost.

“We did well...I think we killed more than they did!” Hacarim suggested, looking exhausted.

“If they didn’t burn our village, we have won. Come, see what I captured!” she suggested. She led Hacarim and a few others into the forest, hunting for Rasten. She found him, half unconscious, still lying where he had fallen.

“He’s important...the Elvin followed his commands! And he’s mine!” she said, with a smug laugh. “Strap him on my terranon, like a dead game animal! I shall have much delight abusing him!”

***

The saga continues in:

To Claim the Elvin Princess:

Warrior

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To Claim the Elvin Princess: Warrior
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To Claim The Elvin Princess

Book Two:

Warrior

A Novel By

Jack  Bessie

1

Rastin was supremely thankful that he had lied regarding who he was. He had traveled from Sardac to Shocara’s village strapped over Shocara’s terranak. He had been dragged off the beast, rudely dragged into the village and stripped, before being tied to a pole. He had been well abused, beaten and whipped a bit, before the Eridians had tired of his stoic manner, and had locked him in a small building. Both his wrists and ankles were well secured with coarse rope, and lying on his side, arms behind his back, he could do nothing that might help him escape.

The camp had been quite busy, and he had been fed some bread and given a bowl of water, much as an animal might be fed. He considered this annoying, but was thankful to even be alive. His side ached, from Shocara’s sword strike, the mail keeping him from be hacked in two, but the force of the blow much like a hammer. Part of the warriors had flown off somewhere, and returned two days later, as had the Eridian women and children. The Elvin had only burned a couple of storage buildings, which had much pleased the Eridians. Rasten could only listen, and try to guess what was afoot, trying the comprehend the speech of the Eridians  through the log walls difficiult.

It was nearing dusk, on the evening of the warrior’s return, when two large and stout Eridians arrived, to drag him from his place. He was cleaned off by an Eridian female, using cold water and a rough cloth, before being taken and tossed on a pile of furs in a small cabin. His clothing had been taken from him on his arrival, and he had been naked during all four days of his captivity.

The furs felt amazingly soft, compared to what he had been lying on, and he merely relaxed, while waiting for something else to occur. The interior was dark, there being only one window, had there been any light outside to let in. He heard the door open, and a female order someone to be watchful. The door closed, and he listened to this person walk across the rough plank floor, avoiding his place. After a few small sounds, a light burst forth, as a lamp was lit. A second one was soon burning, and by this light, Rasten could see who was present; it was Shocara.

She stepped close, to look down on him, her face hard to read, the shadows hiding much of her features. She carefully knelt, examining his nakedness.

“Do you know who I am?” she wondered, poking his strong muscles with a finger.

“You are called Shocara, Princess!” he replied in his dubious Eridian. This surprised and delighted her.

“You speak our language? How is that so?”

“I wished to learn, so that I might better understand your people. One should not fight an enemy they have no understanding of,” he declared.

“You are deeper than I expected! Why does a human fight for the Elvin?!” she demanded. Rasten hesitated to reply, worried that declaring himself half-Elvin would only make him more likely to be abused. This possibility occurred to Shocara also.

“You are not...you are half-Elvin?!” she snarled, suddenly angry.

“I am what I am. Do you wage this war only from a hatred of the Elvin?” he asked. This made her pause, frowning.

“We fight to avenge all we have lost!” she hissed.

“But each time, more die, and more are wounded or lost. How will it ever end?” Rasten asked. He quickly found a dagger at his throat.

“It will end when all the Elvin are gone, and we are free of their oppression!” she insisted. Rasten looked at her as though she were a slow child.

“Princess, do you not know how badly you are out numbered by the Elvin? You could kill a hundred...a thousand  for each one of you lost, and perish long before the Elvin dwindled! They only wish to be at peace with you!”

“Then why do they keep killing us?”

“Because you keep attacking them?” Rasten sighed. Shocara laughed at this.

“Perhaps what you say is true...but we know no other way to be! We are warriors, and our valor is all we have!”

“What shall you do with me? Trade me for some of your people or other things?”

Shocara thought this amusing.

“We hold a death rite for any Eridian who is captured, since none ever return. You will go nowhere. We can always use a strong slave!”

She watched him for several moments, before speaking more.

“You are important!”

“I am just a warrior,” he said and shrugged. Shocara slapped his face hard.

“Do not lie to me, and treat me as a fool! The Elvin followed your commands! You are no ordinary warrior!” she hissed, viciously.

“The Elvin have many who might lead, depending on what task is at hand. I am as capable of following orders, as giving them!” he replied, his cheek burning from her hand. Shocara again watched, before hopping up, and going to the other side of her small cabin. She returned with his sword, drawing it fully. She examined it well in the lamp light, marveling at the engraving, which ran the full length of the blade. Even after fighting herself and other warriors, the edges were razor sharp, and showed no wear.

“You tell me this is the sword of a common warrior? It is a work of great beauty, which our people can scarce dream of! I have seen many of the swords of the Elvin warrior...this is not a common one. You are special! Are you a prince?” she asked, watching him closely.

“No...I would have to do much to earn such a title!”

“What do you mean? You are not a child of royalty?” she demanded. Rasten chuckled at this.

“Dear Princess...the Elvin have no such thing! All titles and positions are granted for the doing of great deeds. Often the children of leaders are much less than able to lead! The Elvin avoid that trap, allowing only the proven ones to hold positions of honor!”

“My father led us for many years!” she replied, “do you think me less able, for being his daughter?” she asked, eager to put him in an awkward place.

“You seem quite creative and willing to try original things. The Elvin respect that, and would hope you might consider even more new ideas!”

“Such as?”

“Peace. You like my sword?”

“Of course...I shall keep it! I wish that all my warriors might have such a thing!” she laughed.

“They could...were you willing to stop this senseless war, the Elvin would teach you all of their crafts, from the working of stone, to the making of swords!”

“I find that unlikely...why would they trust us to not turn against them?”

“Princess...” Rasten sighed, exasperated by her stubbornness. “There are hundreds of worlds where the Elvin vanquished other’s who had done wicked things. Those peoples are now free and friends, well trusted, and comrades in arms! Your people could have the same relationship!”

“One of my people returned to us, carrying the same words. Have you been on these other worlds?”

“Not many...I am only recently arrived here, and...”

“You are Sayarin’s son!” she exclaimed, poking him with her finger. Her eyes were wide and she evinced a wicked delight. “And you are mine!” she added, her delight and pride boundless. “Will you deny that you are?!” she demanded, looking like an excited young girl. Capturing such a one would well secure her position as a worthy Eridian warrior.

“What if I am?” Rasten demanded. “You could trade  me for much wealth!”

“You think they might well ransom you? Or would they sacrifice you and simply kill all of our people!” she snarled.

“Princess...they don’t want to kill any of you! Why is that so hard to understand?”

“Perhaps because we know no other thing than war! We certainly have none of your riches or wealth, none of your skills or sorcery. Our people wear out and die, their lives hard and miserable, even without the fighting!” she complained.

“Shocara? That is so needless! The Elvin wish to free you from your misery and want, not make it worse!”

“Yet you came to attack us with a large force of warriors! How was that to be helpful to us?” she laughed.

“We thought it needful, to recover our females. You’ve hidden them again?”

“Of course! I do wish to return them, but considered them useful, should you have your way with us!”

“The Elvin would well regard you, should you send them back unharmed...”

“I’m sure they would!” she laughed. “but that does little to help our lives be better!”

“Princess...there are great tracks of land on this world, untouched and unoccupied, far greater than what your people have ever held, and it is rich land also! A hundred times your present population could live there comfortably,” Rasten suggested.

“And where is this land? Why would the Elvin give us such a thing?!”

“It is south east of your lands, past a range of mountains. It extends a vast distant easterly, before it ends at a...” Rasten stopped, realizing there was no word in Eridian for
ocean.
“You saw the lake by Alarinad?”

Shocara nodded. “It is water, like a thousands lakes!” he said, hoping she might understand.

“I can not imagine such a thing! Have you seen it?”

“Not this one, but on the world of my birth, I saw several. They are so vast, you could not cross on a terranak!” he suggested. Shocara looked enchanted.

“I should like to see such a thing!” she sighed.

“Take me back to Alarinad, and I can take you to view it!” Rasten suggested. Shocara patted his cheek.

“You are funny...I like that! Your ass is going nowhere! All will be thrilled with my catch!” she declared, clearly pleased. She sheathed the sword, and stood up, laying it on a small, rough table, before bending over to get something else. She returned with Rasten’s mail, sitting back down cross legged, and holding it up for him to see.

“Do you know how these are made?”

“No...the Elvin smiths make them. I gather they take much work and time.”

“They are made of zumarka! That makes them valuable, doesn’t it?!”

“I suppose. The Elvin think little of that...they use it because it is light and strong!”

“It is accursedly so! Our blades can scarcely penetrate it! The Elvin would teach us how to work this also?”

“Of course...should we be at peace, you might have Eridian youth become apprentices, and learn all of the Elvin crafts! Many others come from far worlds, to study and learn, both here and on the myriad Elvin worlds. You are jealous of the Elvin, their skills and ways, are you not?”

“Perhaps. It seems unfair, that we have so little...” she sighed. “So answer me! Why would the Elvin give us such valuable land, as you speak of?”

“Princess...the Elvin are not native to this world...do you know that?”

Shocara frowned. “What does that mean?!”

“It means they came here from elsewhere, far longer ago than you can imagine! They chose this place to be their capital, because it was nearly at the center of all their worlds. Only your people and the Sacarini lived here, in small settlements. Your people were far away from where they chose to settle, probably to avoid the others; they were pretty aggressive and wicked. They eventually annoyed the Elvin too much, and were dealt with sternly. The Elvin wished to leave your people alone, to let you be as you pleased. But every time you’ve grown and spread out, you’ve attacked the Elvin. That gets you beat back and reduced, until the cycle repeats!”

Shocara seemed amazed to hear such a tale regarding her people, their own stories and legends telling none of this. 

“You suggest that the Elvin know our history...more even than we do?”

Princess...the Elvin came here to settle...” he stopped, confronted by the lack of a word for
millions,
Eridian having no such. “it’s like a thousand times a thousand, years ago. Their history spans far more than that!”

“And all those years, they just ignored us?! Until we started to attack them? Why did they not help us long ago?!” she demanded, this seeming a huge slight to her barbarian sense of things.

“Shocara, had they done so long ago, you would not be Eridians...you would have long ago surrendered your skill at arms, and would be like the humans who live amoung the Elvin. They hoped you would stay yourselves, strong and proud, but would develop the desire to grow and gain what they could give you! They do such with all people they find. The Elvin wish for the many peoples to be comrades, not subjects and slaves!”

Shocara thought this much to her liking, but was still feeling slighted somehow.

“So the Elvin don’t belong here!” she declared, crossing her arms and looking pouty.

“Dear Princess...almost a billion Elvin exist here, and have now for more years than you can count. They aren’t going anywhere!” Rasten laughed. He soon had a dagger at his throat.

“You aren’t either!” Shocara hissed, angry, before she grinned, running her hand over his naked muscles.