Chapter 4

Much to Geran's pleasure, when he got to the Cherek embassy, Barak and his son were both there as well the Cherek ambassador. The two towering Chereks greeted Geran enthusiastically and pulled him into a seat where there was a miraculously appearing mug of beer beside him.

"So what are you doing here, Geran?" Barak asked jovially. The crown prince did not have to look inside the keg to tell that the three Alorns were quite a way through already.

"We need to get back to Riva a bit quicker than planned. The ship we had organised to take us back won't be here for at least a week and we'd rather be in Riva by then." Unrak looked curiously at the young man he was supposed to protect.

"What's the rush Geran?" He asked. Geran got this impression that Unrak hadn't been nearly so far into the beer as his father and the ambassador.

"While in the woods of the Dryads we picked up an elf who wants to escape her father, who doesn't sound the nicest person out there at all. According to Alaea, that's the elf by the way, her people are really not sea going people so, since we offered to help her escape her people, we decided that getting her to Riva as soon as possible is the best way to protect her. It is particularly important to get her there quickly as her people can travel three days without rest and travel really fast. There is also the point that her father will go absolutely apeshit when he finds out she's gone and well, I think Alaea wants to be as far as possible from her father when that happens."

Barak laughed out loud at the explanation.

"Our young prince has a chivalrous streak! Are you sure you don't have any Arend in you?" Geran glared at the big man.

"The guy that had been sent to watch over her was the one her father wants her to marry and I really don't like him. What sort of self respecting man yells at a woman and actually bruises her skin?" He'd found out that on the journey from the woods of the dryads when Alaea had rolled up her sleeves to help cook. The bruises were mostly faded but still there enough to be see. Both Geran and Ce'nedra had been livid. The expressions on the Chereks' faces went hard. Though far from the first civilised people, brutalising your intended was not on.

"The seabird is in port right now. It will take a little while to round up and sober up the crew but we can leave by tomorrow evening, if you lot are ready to leave by tomorrow's evening tide." Geran nodded, pleased. Once they were on the high seas and in a Cherek ship there was no one who could get to them.

XXX

Two days later, Geran and Unrak stood together watching Alaea. She was standing right at the front of the ship, wind whipping through her hair as she held on to the railings. Geran smiled slightly as he noticed she had let go of the illusion that made her appear human slightly so she glowed softly. She looked like a cross between the figurehead from the front of a boat and the spirit of the sea. More than once one of the sailors stopped to stare at the beautiful sight before blinking and carrying on with their work.

"She's beautiful, isn't she?" Unrak commented softly. Geran smiled at his friend. After a pause Unrak spoke again. "You've heard that many sailors believe that the sea is a lady?" Geran nodded. "Many of them think she is the lady sea's physical form. They think you have brought the most amazing luck upon the ship by bringing her aboard. They would fight to the death for her I think. You have to admit that she looks like it."

Geran smiled and paused before answering.

"She once told me that her kind are beings of nature and they reflect nature. Round here, that nature is the sea and as such she presently reflects it. I think she enjoys sailing by the way." Unrak grinned and laughed. Alaea's enjoyment of sailing was indisputably obvious.

XXX

Geran could tell his father was surprised to see the addition to the party that arrived in Riva's harbour, not to mention the fact the party was at least a week earlier than expected. Geran watched with interest as the two evaluated each other as they walked up to the citadel.

Once they were there, Garion and Kail both sat down to receive the explanation for Alaea's presence. Shortly after that Ce'nedra whisked the she-elf off to do something girly. Neither Geran nor his father bothered to ask what. Once the females were safely out the way Garion turned to his son.

"You fancy her, don't you?" His father commented. Kail, Barak and Unrak all grinned as Geran blushed deeply. Garion grinned. "I think it will not take too long for us to have a new crown princess, presuming that the lady is favourably disposed?" Geran blushed even harder.

All three males then started to give him advice on wooing her, much to Geran's embarrassment. There was not a day on which the arrival of dinner time was more welcome.

XXX

A few days later, Geran was able to extract Alaea from his mother's grasp and took her down into the city. Partly to escape the way many of the Rivans watched Alaea curiously, new people within the city itself being rare, he led her into Jorsan's shop. The glassmaker, one of his father's friends, smiled as he looked up at the two visitors.

"Your highness," Jorsan bowed at Geran before kissing Alaea's hand with another bow, "and the Lady of the Sea." Grean got a lopsided grin as he raised his eyebrow at that term of address. "That would be the unofficial title the people have given your Lady, Barak's sailors have been talking enthusiastically with various people. Its generally believed that the lady is the spirit of the sea."

Alaea giggled slightly.

"Seriously?" Jorsan grinned, apparently pleased that he had made her laugh. He seemed even more pleased when she went to examine the various glass figurines on display. Though they were by far not the only things sold, Geran knew that Jorsan loved producing the glass figurines.

As Alaea looked at all the glass figurines, Geran examined the glass jewellery in another cabinet. He spotted a delicate pendant of swirls of colours that shimmered in the light in an abstract design. He communicated with Jorsan by expression and, realising exactly what the prince wanted the piece for, Jorsan took out the pendant and wrapped it silently.

Once that was done, Geran turned back to the elf. She was examining a statue of a tree which was done in a somewhat stylised way and had little glass 'petals' in all sorts of colours. The lovely statue shone in the light. Noticing him standing next to her, Alaea rose with a smile.

"It is like the trees at home, though our leaves are not so varicoloured." Geran raised an eyebrow slightly; he had never seen a tree exactly like that one, whatever the colour scheme. He home must have been stunningly beautiful though.

Alaea reached up slightly a kissed his cheek gently.

"Shall we go on?" She asked softly, leading him outside. Geran followed carefully ignoring the look on Jorsan's face at the blush that lit his face.

XXX

A few days later, Geran's family (and Alaea) were sitting around doing nothing in particular, when a messenger brought in a letter. As Ce'edra looked expectantly at her husband, Garion opened the letter. He smiled as he looked up again.

"It's from Zakath, just a moment." Alaea went back to her tablet weave. She looked up again when Garion next spoke. "Well, that will be fun." He commented dryly.

"What is it dear?" Ce'nedra asked, glancing up from her own embroidery.

"Zakath has decided he wants to take us up on the standing invitation to the Alorn council again." Geran looked at bit surprised. In the approximately 16 years since his rescue from Zandramas, the Mallorean emperor had only taken up the invitation once before, not that many years before. It had taken the better part of a decade to stabilise Mallorea after the turmoil caused by the Sardion and Zandramas. The first visit of the Mallorean emperor had been just a bit tense, that having been the first time in history an emperor of Mallorea had visited the home of the Orb of Aldur. Only the fact that Garion had made it well known that Zakath and his wife had been immediately involved in the rescue of Geran from Zandramas had prevented any serious problems with Zakath being there.

All the same Geran grinned, he liked the sardonic man who doted on his strange wife. He suspected that Cyradis and Alaea would get on well, from what he remembered of the former seeress. Suddenly he grinned.

"Do you think he will bring cats this time?" There was a general laugh amongst those old enough to remember his previous visit. Alaea raised an eyebrow enquiringly. "Zakath is a cat person and he has a female tabby, now the daughter of the original one, who provides him with a litter about once a year and he is constantly trying to find good homes for all the kittens. Last time he brought ones for mother and all of my sisters to keep as pets. I didn't get one since I have Wolf." She smiled as he gestured to the grey animal at Geran's feet. The wolf in question opened his eyes for a second blinked and went back to sleep against his human. Alaea laughed gently, she liked Geran's unusual pet.