Part 8: Chapter 6.
A/N: The next couple of chapters will switch back and forth between what's happening at the present time and what happened during Alex's campaign to unite Rivellon. The chapters taking place in the past will have "Campaign" in the title.
-oOoOo-
"My Lord! You're alive!" a soldier cried out when Alexander and Kathy landed.
"Of course I'm alive. I made no secret of the fact that I was not staying to rule Rivellon. Why? How long have I been gone?" Alex said.
"Only a few days, sire. But I should tell you-"
"My wife and son?" Alex interrupted.
"Are mourning. We all thought you dead. General Gregory is to be tried for your murder as you were last seen with him before you disappeared."
"Send a messenger immediately to stop his trial," Alexander ordered before looking at Kathy. "And bring up a horse for my companion. Let's see if it will bear her." He stepped away from her. Horses would not bear him; something to do with him smelling like a predator. They got nervous in his presence and bolted if he tried to ride them. A horse was brought up and Alex was pleased to see that it reared when she tried to touch it too. "We'll walk then."
"Why can't we just-?" Kathy asked.
"Because you're not riding me either," he cut her off, not wanting to admit that he couldn't transform. Also so that she wouldn't suggest taking a soul from one of his men.
"We're all glad to have you back, sir," another soldier said to him.
"I'm still leaving, son. My leaving once my task of uniting Rivellon was always foreordained. It just wasn't supposed to be without my wife and son. But know that I will be alive and well elsewhere should Rivellon need me again." He added that last bit on the spur of the moment—inspired by the legend of King Arthur sleeping in Avalon for when England needed him most.
-oOoOo-
"You owe me a soul," Kathy said as they walked.
"I promised you the soul of one of my prisoners. Which happen to all be in my Capital. Which also happens to be the same direction I'm traveling," he replied. "Say, how fast can you run without tiring? At this pace it'll take days to reach our destination."
Kathy scoffed. "You pathetic humans could never match my speed."
"Well, lucky for us, I'm not human," Alexander reminded her and took off at an easy lope.
Soon, Kathy had caught up and was passing him. He put on his own burst of speed to overtake her. They went back and forth a couple of times until they were both at the top speed the path they were on would allow. Several hours later, Alex pulled ahead just so he could slow them both down. "We're almost there, we should slow to a human pace." They slowed to a jog and then to a walk.
Soldiers came to attention as he approached the gates. "My Lord Dragon! We- we heard-"
"Yes, I know what you heard," Alexander cut them off with a wave. "But clearly I am not dead. Now I wish to see my friend, General Gregory." Alex had to repeat that refrain to several more groups of guards before he reached his castle where he was shown immediately to the dungeons. He really wanted to see his family but first he wanted to make sure Gregory was alive and well—and he also wanted to get rid of the demon before his wife saw her.
"My Lord Dragon! You're alive!" Gregory called from his cell when he saw Alex.
"Release him!" Alexander ordered to the guard. Once he was free, Alex gave him a big hug. "Yes, I'm alive, my friend. I know I mentioned that I would be leaving once Rivellon was united. Unfortunately, the spell that was holding me here was a bit too eager and tore me away without my wife or my son."
"Enough of this. He will do," Kathy said and grabbed for his friend.
Alexander grabbed her and slammed her up against the stone wall by her throat. "Gregory is a friend of mine. And he's no longer a prisoner, and thus not part of the deal." He turned to the soldiers who were looking on uncomfortably. "Leave us!" Once Gregory and the guards were gone he released her.
"I could just send you back without your wife or son again," she warned.
"And I could just kill you and not let you have a soul," Alexander warned back. They stared for a bit before Kathy finally looked away in defeat. Xander pointed to a random prisoner. "Here, this man is a condemned murderer. You can have his soul; he won't be using it after next week anyway."
The ritual took about 20 minutes to complete. By the end, the man in the cell was raving mad. Kathy wiped her lips and put up her human disguise again. "Farewell, Alexander Harris," she said.
"Farewell, Kathy Newman," he replied.
The same black hole appeared. She stepped into it and was sucked away. Then there came a pounding on the outer cell block door. "Let me in! I don't care what he said! Let me in this instant!"
"Let her in!" he called out and was almost instantly hit by a tangled mess of hair and tears and limbs and kisses; all mixed together with a couple fists to his still armored chest. Suddenly, it occurred to Alex just how long it had been since he had changed his clothes—exactly as long as it had been since he last slept. He was suddenly exhausted and fairly smelly, too, from his long run with Kathy; but for now, he was content to just hold Audrey and make soft shushing noises as she cried herself out.
Finally, she was softly hiccuping, so he spoke. "We probably should have talked to the Patriarch about our wishes instead of just assuming that we'd have to ask to be sent back."
"We will this time," she said.
"If he'll send us all back again. Otherwise, we'll stay here."
Audrey cupped his face. "Will you be okay with that? Leaving your world behind? It sounds wonderful."
"You're my world. You and Jesse. I'll be happy as long as we're together," he assured her.
"Me too. But come," she commanded, taking him by the hand. "You need a bath and I am not letting you out of my sight for even a minute." She gave him a wicked grin. When they got to their rooms, she ordered the guards not to disturb them under any circumstances.
-oOoOo-
Clean and exhausted, they fell together onto the bed and Alex slept.
-oOoOo-
Alex woke to the feeling of being watched. He cracked his eyes open to see two bright, blue eyes staring back at him. "G'morning Daddy. Are you awake?" Jesse said in a child's stage whisper.
"I don't know. This could just be a wonderful dream," Alex smiled and threw an arm over his son.
"No it's not," Jesse argued even as he giggled at being drawn forcibly into a hug.
"Well, okay then. I guess I'm awake," he said and pulled his son in for a 'beard kiss' while his son struggled weakly to get away.
Jesse laughed as his dad's beard tickled him. Jesse was happy that Daddy was back but he hadn't been as sad as Mommy had been because he knew that Daddy would come back. Daddy always came back.
"Okay, sport. Do you know where your mother is?"
"She's sending a messenger to Zanderlor," Jesse answered. Alex grinned at the way his son mangled the wizard's name so it was even closer to his old one. He never corrected him when he mispronounced it that way.
"Well, okay then. Let's see if we can't rustle up some grub. I'm starving."
-oOoOo-
There were only two people in the whole of Rivellon that ever learned the whole truth about Alexander's disappearance and subsequent reappearance. He told the full story to Audrey and Zandalor, including not having his Dragon Stone any more and seeing his friends again without much time passing there.
"That is promising. Hopefully we can get you back with only a few hours passing there." Zandalor said cheerfully.
"Hopefully, but the sooner we leave, the better. My being here is upsetting politics around here again and I'd rather leave them to their own devices," Alex said.
"But we can't just sneak off in the night, either," Audrey pointed out.
"No. People will want to see the Dragon take off one last time," Alex agreed. "I don't suppose you can do a glamor?" At the wizard's confusion, he explained. "An illusion. Make people see what isn't really there. Show them the Dragon taking off and flying higher and higher while the rest of you head off in wagons, with an extra trunk big enough to hold a Dragon Knight."
"I know not," Zandalor admitted. "But give me a few days to experiment and I will find out if it's possible."
"Meanwhile, I'll get together supplies for our journey. Horses, wagons, food, and some gold and silver to take with us," Audrey said.
-oOoOo-
Alexander had really wanted to see the dragon image that Zandalor had agreed to conjure for them—if only to see what he really looked like to human eyes—but the wizard had begged off, saying that he was too tired from experimenting and that the dragon was going to gain altitude at an impossible rate to hasten the end of the spell.
Instead, Alexander hid in the last wagon of the convoy—far enough back from the rest of the animals that his smell wouldn't spook them. It was made known throughout Rivellon that Alexander had merely left to prepare a place in another world for his family and had forgotten to mention that he was coming back for them for the final journey, which they were taking now. Which was true enough. It was also made known that they would leave from the cliffs where Zandalor and Alexander had trained all those years ago. It was flat and barren up there and there would be no way for looky-loos to get close. All any tourists would see would be some wagons disappear (as Zandalor transported them elsewhere) and a fancy light show.
Because the three Harrises were going to see the Patriarch.
