Notes for this chapter
Hen llinge (Elder Speech) translation:
sor'ca = sister
Keaira stirred and blinked a few times, the light shining through the window hurting her eyes. She grunted and cursed silently. At first she noticed the strong headache, then her left shoulder which felt like somebody has put gunpowder inside of it and set in on fire. And then as she stirred again she felt her entire underbelly explode in a firework of pain. She quietly groaned and opened her eyes wide... What the... Oh no, did I just really allow that to happen last night...?! She closed her eyes again noticing for the first time since she woke up the muscular arm holding her chest in a tight grip, the strong leg lying across her thigh, the big warm body spooning her back and the hot breath on top of her head. She sighed and quietly cursed again.
"Do you curse every time when you wake up instead of saying 'good morning'?" a hoarse voice whispered into her ear and she could hear him chuckle while saying this.
She slowly turned her head to the side and looked up at him. Neach was propping his head with his hand, looking down at her face with a wide smile.
"I can't believe this... This isn't happening... I obviously drank too much yesterday..." she closed her eyes while frowning. "Tell me this is just a dream..."
"I hope not. And if it is, then please don't wake me up from it..." he replied with a smirk.
She turned her head away, eyes still closed and grunted again:
"This isn't funny, Neach. I'm really not sure if sleeping with you was the best idea... This... is not what I've planned. Not what I've... expected to happen."
She felt his arm move away from her chest, touching her cheek and turning her head back to face him again.
"Do you regret that?" there was something strange in his voice.
She opened her eyes again and looked into his, surprised by what she saw in them. There was... Pain? Fear? Anxiety? Uncertainty? He was staring back at her, not moving. Waiting for her to say something.
She gulped: "Well, I..." she started, but saw his lips form a thin line and his gaze growing cold.
No, no, no! Screaming angrily at herself in her mind. Didn't it feel so... right? Might not be the right time, the right place, whatever... but he just... feels right! She bit her lower lip, frowning heavily. Gods, I've turned into an emotional wreck – again!... What's wrong with me?!
Her sight was nervously skipping all over his face. Despite all her doubts she realized in that moment, that she's never felt so good, so familiar and so at ease with any of her previous lovers. Oh, to hell with it – I like him too much to fucking care if anybody thinks this is wrong!
She took too long to find her resolve and to answer him. Kea saw him turning his head away, his leg moving away from her thigh, gulping hard and staring out of the window, preparing to stand up and leave the bed. Despite the terrible pain in her shoulder, she quickly turned and laid her right hand on his chest, propping up on her injured left arm and painfully groaning with gritted teeth. He stopped moving, turned his head back to her with a stone face, but she could see the pain in his eyes.
She took a deep breath: "No, I definitely don't regret that last night! I'm just... worried... of what lies ahead of us... It could get... complicated... That's all. But I don't regret anything." she whispered and could see a warm smile slowly spreading through his face. He laid back on his side facing her and reached out to touch her face, when she continued:
"Maybeee..." she started and his hand stopped in mid-air, the smile on his face freezing, but she grinned:
"...I regret having too much of that honey mead, because my head is currently exploding..." he started to spread his lips into a wide grin.
"And maybeee... I regret having my shoulder wounded so badly, because it REALLY hurts as hell..."
He cupped her face in his palm, put the other hand under her back and laid her down onto the bed to take away the pressure from her left arm.
"And maybeee... I regret just a tiny little bit to be so 'damn tight', because I'm sore and somehow my pussy feels like it has been split in half." she finished still grinning, while he threw a leg around her, moving his body above hers and bending his head down towards her lips, whispering:
"I'll see what I can do about the first two things, but I'm afraid there's only one solution for the third problem..."
"And that is...?" she whispered back against his mouth, caressing the scar on his ear.
"You need more practice to get used to my 'big toy'." he chuckled as she grinned to his last words and then he devoured her lips in a passionate kiss.
When she woke up the next time, Neach was still sleeping lying on his back, with her head on his chest. She realized, that she's now the one possessively clutching his torso in a tight grip with her leg draped across his waist and smiled. But the headache seemed to be even stronger now, so Kea carefully and slowly disentangled herself from his body in order not to wake him up and got off the bed. Using a washcloth and some of the soapy cold water from the bath tub she quickly cleaned herself and dressed in her dried new clothes, tying the knife's sheath back to her thigh and simply braiding her long hair on her back. He stirred in his sleep and she stepped closer to the bed, intently watching if he wakes up. No. Good... Is that a smile on his face in his sleep? She grinned, then remembered, that she wants the maid to bring him some food, so she covered his waist with one of the blankets while smiling. He looked amazing, so relaxed in his peaceful sleep.
As quietly as possible she unhooked the door bar and left the room closing silently the door behind herself.
As Keaira came down the stairs, she could see, that the tavern is already half full with many of the guests eating lunch. Lunch?! Ooooh myyyy...
She noticed Niall sitting at a table in the right corner, where the Scoia'tael were all sitting yesterday, holding his head in a hand and staring at the mug in front of him. He looked... tired. Just as she was about to approach him, Deagan entered the tavern through the front door. Looking a bit tired as well... She smirked. Thank gods there's no mirror in the room, 'cause I don't wanna know how I'm looking... Probably tired...
Deagan saw her and waved. She pointed with her hand to Niall and they both sat down at his table at the same time. Barely sitting, Deag turned to Niall on his right:
"Why so glum, Niall? Didn't sleep well? Too much honey mead yesterday?" asking with a wide grin.
Niall's head shot up, first he looked at Keaira accusingly, then at Deagan with a frown as he saw him grinning and replied obviously annoyed:
"No, it's not the honey mead, Deag. But I really didn't sleep well. Because THEY..." and with that he pointed his finger towards Kea, who was sitting opposite to him, "...were LOUD! I mean REALLY loud!"
Deagan only very slowly turned his head towards her and she could see how heavily he's biting his lower lip trying to suppress a laugh. The corner of her mouth strongly twitched as she tried to keep a serious face, but when she saw Deagan's obvious efforts trying not to bite off his lip, she burst out in loud laughter together at the same time with him.
"Yeah, yeah, very funny!" barked Niall angrily. "I would wonder if some of the other guests haven't complained about it as well..."
This only caused them to laugh even harder, although Keaira tried to apologize to him, but was not able as she was rather busy catching her breath in between of the multiple laugh attacks.
A waiter approached their table and both her and Deagan finally calmed down and ordered some food. Niall seemed to have just had his lunch as the waiter took an empty food plate from the table.
"Anything else?" asked the waiter.
"Yes, can you please bring more water?" said Niall looking at Keaira while handing over to the waiter an empty jug.
"And one more thing please..." said Keaira while turning to the waiter. "Can you please ask one of the maids to clean the last room on the second floor? Plus – it would be great if you could bring some food to the room as well. With a big jug of fresh water, please."
The waiter nodded and left for the kitchen. She turned back to the table and nodded to Niall:
"Thanks for ordering the water for us. And sorry... you know... for the 'noise'..." she smirked and saw the same kind of smirk on Deagan's face as well.
"So, did you have a good night?" asked her Deagan and winked.
"Did you?" she asked instead of replying and winked as well.
"You could say so. Guess it's good we're not leaving today, because I'd probably fall asleep right in the saddle."
They both grinned widely. Niall stood up:
"I'm going to take a nap..." and left the table without looking at them. Which was good, because they both again heavily tried not to burst out in another laugh attack. That would certainly not make him happy.
The waiter returned with their order and placed everything on the table. He also placed in front of each of them a cup with some kind of tea: "Courtesy of the house."
Keaira raised her head looking questioningly at the waiter, but before she could ask anything, Deagan said with a smile:
"Feverfew tea. Good against headaches."
She smiled back at him and then turned again to the waiter to stop him before he could leave:
"Is Mister Verndahl here?"
"No, he's currently out, but should be back any minute."
"Could you please let me know, when he returns and has some time? I'd like to speak to him."
The waiter nodded and left.
"Call me Deag, please." Deagan raised the cup with the feverfew tea in his hand and grinned.
"Really? A toast with a feverfew tea?" she laughed, but raised her cup as well: "Then you have to call me Kea."
They both silently ate their lunch and she drank most of the water from the jug alone. Together with the feverfew tea it helped surprisingly quick. The headache slowly disappeared.
"Is Neach still up there?" Deagan asked after they've finished their meals pointing with his finger towards the ceiling.
Keaira slightly smiled: "Yes, he was still asleep when I've left."
He watched her for a while with a faint smile: "He really likes you a lot... He was quite anxious yesterday..."
"I know, he yelled at me like a madman in the evening." she rolled her eyes.
"Yelled? Neach?" Deag had a surprised face.
"Yes, quite a lot... Which was actually the first time Niall came knocking on our door, because he heard us..." she smirked a little.
"I see..." he smirked back at her and then his face turned serious:
"It's been... years... since I heard him yell at somebody..."
She studied his face for a while, then replied with a small smile:
"Guess, it's been years as well since you've seen him smile in his sleep..."
Deagan returned the smile and nodded.
"Where's Eirnin, by the way? I haven't seen him since yesterday afternoon." she asked while taking another sip of water from her mug.
"He left. With Cian's group – the other Scoia'tael who were here yesterday. He didn't want to come with us."
She raised an eyebrow: "Left?" Then she looked at him curiously: "Deag, how much did Neach tell you about the reasons I'm here?"
"Everything... It was shortly after we've separated near Tretogor."
She leaned back in her chair, tilted her head back and stared at the wall behind him: "Oh no... He wasn't supposed to tell anybody..."
Deagan cleared his throat, so she looked back at him.
"I'd like to come with you. Away from this world I mean... Niall as well."
"Deagan, I'm not sure if that's possible. My orders were quite clear..."
"Can't you... ask? If that's somehow possible..." there was a plea in his eyes she couldn't ignore.
"I'll see what I can do." she replied earnestly just as the waiter arrived at their table:
"Mister Verndahl is waiting for you in his office."
"Care to join me, or are you going to take a nap as well?" she smiled at Deagan.
"Guess I've slept a bit more than Niall." he grinned. "I can take a nap later. What are your plans for the afternoon?"
"Some shopping and... I'll need to send a report home, so... I could ask about you and Niall." she replied and saw the hint of a smile cross his lips.
He nodded: "Then I'd like to accompany you."
Keaira thanked James again for his help and took her armor jacket from his office. He pointed her to a shop where she could buy a good winter cloak and to a hunter and craftsman who could repair her jacket. They had to promise him to join him all for the dinner as he was quite insistent and before they could leave, he stopped Keaira at the door quietly whispering:
"One last thing... ehm... I've received some minor 'complaints' about... ehm... 'noise' from some of the guests on the second floor..."
Her head shot up looking at him with great unease, but she saw him winking at her:
"Seeing as we have some free rooms again for tonight, I've currently moved the other guests to the first floor..."
She could hear Deagan chuckle behind her. James looked at him and added: "Although I've left you in the room right next door..."
"That's all right, I probably won't be staying over night here again... I don't mind."
Keaira turned and gave him an amused look: "Not sure if Niall will be so pleased though."
Now they were already all three widely grinning when James added: "Well, there's a good brothel not far away from here – you could 'mention' it to him..."
She and Deagan left Verndahl's office chuckling all the way as they've walked into the village.
They've found a very good high quality winter cloak for her in one of the shops and she left her armor jacket at the craftsman's shop asking him if he could enhance it while repairing with some additional pauldrons. He agreed and told her, that the jacket will be ready for her in the evening, so they've paid upfront and left. Keaira also bought a new blouse and button-up shirts for herself asking Deagan if he needs anything, but he just shook his head and thanked her.
They walked out of the last shop in the village chatting and having a good time.
"Deag?"
"Yes?"
"Do you know a secluded spot somewhere in the woods around here?"
He raised his eyebrow with a stunned expression in his face and she laughed aloud seeing it.
"Not for what you mean, Deag!" and still laughing continued:
"I need to send the report and I have to make sure nobody sees me, when I'm doing so. It has to be somewhere out in the open with not too many trees or buildings around, so I can't do it in our room inside the tavern."
He grinned widely: "Sure, it would be a longer walk though – do you rather want to get our horses from the tavern?"
She nodded: "I'll need my belt anyway, so we have to drop by in the armory as well."
He frowned slightly, not fully understanding her intentions, but said nothing and they've returned to the Green Oak. She retrieved her sword belt from the armory and Deagan took one of his swords just in case they run into some trouble.
When they've entered the stables she smirked as she saw the young stable boy.
"Hey sweetie! Do you want to earn another coin?" she asked the blushing boy, who just looked to the ground and nodded.
"Good. I'd like to ask you to pick up my armor jacket from the hunter in the village in the evening and bring it to me back here to the tavern. Will you do that for me?"
"Yes m'lady."replied the boy shyly when taking the offered coin. Even Deagan had to grin about the boy's behavior.
They've saddled up their horses and Deagan helped her, so that she doesn't have to use her wounded left arm. It still hurt, but much less than in the morning. She left the things, she has bought in a bag in the stables being sure the stable boy will keep an eye on them and they've left the tavern again with Deagan leading.
"Deag – might be a stupid question now, but... what's actually your full name?" Keaira asked him while they were trotting through the forest.
"Deagan aep Easnillen." he replied with a smile.
She looked at him surprised: "Are you related to Ciaran?"
He nodded: "He's my younger brother."
"Hm, strange coincidence... He's Iorveth's right hand and you're Neach's..." Keaira said pensively.
He remained quiet for some time, then spoke with a serious voice:
"That's why I went to the Ravine the first time – before we have met. I haven't heard from him in a long time and after I've been told what happened in Dillingen..." his voice trailed off.
"Were you looking for him?"
He just nodded, then remained silent for a while again. Clearing his throat he continued after several minutes:
"I've climbed down..."
She looked at him again and saw the pain in his eyes.
"He wasn't there. Looking at... the bodies... I've realized they've only taken the commanders. Nobody else was there, so I figured he might have made it and maybe he's still alive. Like I am."
She clenched her teeth and stared ahead of them.
"Deag? Would you like to find him? I mean – he is on my list anyway, so..."
"Yes, I'd like to. If possible... When I heard, that Iorveth escaped, it crossed my mind, that they might catch up with each other... somewhere... So my hope is, that if we find Iorveth, he might be with him. Or at least Iorveth might know something about his whereabouts..."
She nodded and they remained quiet for the rest of the ride until they've arrived at a large dry river bed.
"This might look now very strange to you, but – this is really no magic or any tricks – it is normal in my world – it's the way how we communicate over large distances..." She tried to explain to him, when she stood next to a large rock in the middle of the dusty river bed and checked the surroundings.
Deagan only nodded without saying a word and patiently waited a few feet away from her.
She was a bit nervous not knowing how he will react to the modern technology she was about to use, but then – she had to do it and if he and the others will reach Gwaeloth, they'll be confronted with it on a daily basis. They'll have to adjust. And learn. A lot. Might not be easy for them. She knew it. Keaira saw, that he's a bit tense and decided to wave him over and let him see at close range what exactly she's doing. Deagan approached her warily and stood next to her. She looked at him and smiled:
"This..." she started as she turned over the buckle holding her belt and removed from the underside a very small metallic object in a rectangular shape, "...is a tool... a device... that will allow me to receive and send a message to... the person on the other 'end'. Anyone with a similar device like this." and she held out the small square in front him on her opened palm, so he can take a look. Now he understood why she needed to retrieve her belt from the tavern's armory.
Kea placed the object on top of the flat boulder in front of her and carefully pushed a tiny hidden button on its side. A loud beeping sound could be heard and within a second a blueish screen appeared above the device. He twitched and unconsciously wanted to take a step back, but she stopped him with her hand on his arm and smiled encouragingly:
"It's all right, Deagan. I'll try to explain. You might not understand completely, but I'll try to keep it simple, okay? This thing cannot do anything to you or to me – it is just for communication and nothing else..." she waited until he didn't relax a bit and only then proceeded.
"Hm, so how to describe it... Well... This small device can change some particles... to create this screen... and then..."
He frowned heavily and she sighed, scratching her head.
"Okay, let's start again a bit differently... You must imagine it a little bit like sending messages here in your world. If you want to send a message to someone – you either write it on a piece of paper, give the paper to a messenger and the messenger takes it all the way to the other person, who takes the paper and reads your message. Or you can say your message to the messenger, who has to remember it and then the messenger goes all the way to the other person and repeats every word he has memorized." He nodded.
"So – this..." she pointed with her hand to the screen, "... is my 'messenger' and I'm going to speak to it, so that it can remember my words and bring them to the other person... But I can also use it as a piece of paper if I want and write something on it and the message will be delivered in written form then. If I communicate through this tool, you must imagine it as two messengers working together. I send my message with my own messenger, he meets somewhere on the way the messenger of that other person and either gives him the paper, or repeats to him my words. Then the other messenger returns to his... hm... master... and delivers the message. Does that make sense?"
He cleared his throat: "Yes, it does. It just looks so... strange."
She smiled: "I know, but believe me – it is a very very comfortable way to speak to someone very very far away."
He shortly smiled back and nodded again.
"Tell me, how long does it take here to deliver a message?" she tried to make him ease up a bit more by involving him into her explanation.
"Hm. That depends on the distance of the two people, how quick the messenger and his horse are..."
"But it would be still hours or days at least to have the message delivered and then it would take the same amount of time to receive the answer. Correct?" she interrupted him.
"Yes, naturally."
"See and that's where this device is much better than any of your messengers. It will deliver my message is just mere seconds or minutes and I can receive an answer in just the same short time span as well."
He raised curiously an eyebrow: "That sounds..."
"Unbelievable?"
"No. Very practical." he grinned.
"I see you start to understand the advantages of modern technology." she grinned back.
"All right. I have already send a message previously back to my homeworld, so first I'm going to look, if they did not reply back in the meantime." she bent towards the screen and then turned to him once more,
"I can only communicate with them if the device is active like now, but they can send me a message in the meantime. In your world it would mean, that they send out their messenger with a message for me and he is now waiting somewhere on the way until my messenger does not arrive to receive the message. "
He nodded in understanding again.
"Good. So let's send first our messenger to them empty handed and see if he comes back with a message. The only thing, which is different, is that you don't actually see him leaving. But you can hear that beeping sound – that basically means, he's on the move... "
And with that she touched an icon on the lower right part of the screen. Another beeping sound could be heard and this time Deagan didn't wince anymore.
Kea straightened up and waited. She wasn't sure how long it'll take this time. The last time she had to wait almost for twenty minutes, because none of their spaceships was close enough to this solar system. She needed one nearby to pass the message on to Gwaeloth through a ship's transmitter quickly.
"How long does it usually take until the messenger is back? You said it could be seconds, or minutes. That's a difference. Just like hours and days here in our world. Right?"
He slightly surprised her with his smart question and she was happy to see how quickly he starts to understand.
"Think Deagan – when I've asked you how long does it take here – what did you answer?"
He smirked and nodded: "I get it - depends on the distance."
"Yes, partially correct. Only my messenger is much much faster and can cover far larger distances in a shorter time than any of yours. I'm now trying to reach somebody very very far away, so it might take a few minutes. The other important part is, that both of these 'special messengers' need... a certain... 'special place', where they can meet and exchange the messages."
She wasn't sure if now's the time for explaining to him also spaceships and transmitters. Might be a bit too much information at once...
"So it also depends on the fact, if such a special place is somewhere near, along their way, or if they both need to go a bit further away to reach it..."
"I feel like a small stupid child now..." he said and she wanted to protest, but he continued right away:
"But you can explain things very good. I understand, that it is not easy to explain it to somebody like us. It must be the same as for me... hm... Like if I would meet with an ancient caveman who has never before seen something made out of metal, much less a steel sword – and I would have to explain to him how the sword is being manufactured and how it can be used... So... I appreciate your efforts of trying to explain and to show me."
Oh gods – how did I call them before? 'Medieval savages'?! Shame on you, Kea, shame on you...
The device suddenly beeped again.
"Does that mean you have a message?" he asked now obviously interested.
"I don't know yet, Deag. It might just say, that there's no message at all, because none was send to me. Let's have a look." she bent down to the screen and touched the same icon as before. A long text appeared on the screen and she could feel him moving behind her and stepping closer to look at it as well.
"That's... elven... but I don't recognize the language... Although it's seems familiar." he spoke quietly.
"It's in muiren llinge – my native language. Let me read it and then I can translate it for you if you wish." she replied while already flying with her eyes over the unusually long text message.
He was studying her face while she was reading and saw first her jaw harden strongly, then she raised both her eyebrows in a surprise, then frowned again. And then at the end he could see a wide smile forming on her face. Kea straightened up and exhaled after reading the message completely. She turned to him and opened her mouth to speak, then saw him grinning.
"Why are you now grinning like that, elf?"
"You should have seen your face while you were reading."
"Oh... I sometimes forget myself when I'm reading." she smirked.
"Your face was like an open book now."
She rolled her eyes: "Now you sound like my brother!"
"You have a brother?"
"Had..." she frowned a bit.
"I'm sorry..."
"That's okay. Want to know the latest news?" she winked.
"The good or the bad one's? Obviously you've received both..." he looked at her seriously.
"Forget the bad one's – they have nothing to do with us here. Or - not that much – to be precise... It was just to keep me up-to-date with what's happening at home. But I like the good ones." she winked again.
He curiously raised an eyebrow and curved one corner of his mouth into a small smile.
"The good news is, that I don't even have to ask anymore, if you're allowed to come with me. I've been practically ordered right now to do so and if there is somebody left from the Scoia'tael experienced and trustworthy enough who would be... ehm... 'suitable', I'm allowed to make him an offer... Soooo... would you like to hear an interesting offer?" she grinned at him.
He suddenly pulled her close and gave her a bear hug, making her speechless for a moment.
"Thank you, Kea!"
"Ugh, I can't breath, Deag! And you're squeezing my wounded shoulder!" she mumbled into his chest and chuckled. He quickly released her.
"Sorry..."
"No need to apologize and I'm also not the one to thank to. You'd have to thank my superior. Actually... would you like to do that?" she asked him smiling wide.
He now definitely looked like a small happy child, when he frantically nodded. It was very rare to see an elf showing openly so much emotion. But there was far and wide nobody else to see it, so he probably simply didn't mind.
"Okay. Let me speak first and give them my message and then you can speak after me and... say whatever you like... Just - keep in mind, that you'll meet that person when we return to my homeworld, so... no inappropriate jokes, right?" she winked and they both grinned.
She touched another icon on the screen and spoke calmly towards the screen making her standard report and summarizing in a few words, that she has killed Aodhan and that they'll continue now to Brokilon. Then she quickly said, that Ciaran aep Easnillen might be still alive and that she is adding two new names to her list. After that she turned to Deagan and switched to hen llinge again:
"You can introduce yourself and Niall now if you want, Deag."
He looked a bit uncomfortable speaking to the strange device, but like her before he also very calmly and quickly said his and Niall's full names and shortly described their positions within the Scoia'tael summarizing their experiences and skills. When he was done, he nodded to her.
"That was good, Deagan! Very professional. I have to say I like your first report." Keaira smiled at him and touched the icon for sending messages. The device beeped again. She stretched her hand out towards it in order to deactivate it, but then stopped in the middle of her movement, shortly thinking.
Keaira turned to Deagan:
"Deag?"
He watched her, waiting, but slightly frowned seeing the expression on her face.
"I need to ask you... I need you to promise me something."
"I don't like the sound of your voice now, Kea."
"Please. I cannot ask Neach... I need somebody whom I can trust, but I cannot ask this of him. I'm afraid he wouldn't want to listen. Not after all that 'yelling' yesterday..."
Deagan sighed already guessing where this is going to: "I understand."
"Deag, if something happens to me, I need you to do two things please."
He gulped, but had otherwise an emotionless mask on his face now and nodded shortly.
"You'll take my belt with the swords, you activate this device, send a message saying who you are, describing where you currently are and somebody will come for you. Don't worry about speaking in Elder Speech, somebody on the other end will have it translated very quickly and make sure you receive an answer in your own language. Then..."
"Kea, please..."
"No! I need to make sure, that you're all get out of here safely regardless of what happens to me, so let me finish." she spoke with a strict voice, so he remained silent.
"Then, when you're on my homeworld, you will take this belt with the swords and bring it to Ariven Daelys Cyred'ther aep Briaroth – remember the name please!"
"Kea, honestly – I hope I won't ever have to do this..."
"But if you don't Deag, then all my efforts here, all I've done, would be in vain... And I want to help my people, Deagan. If getting you all out of here is what they need, then I have to make sure I don't fail at this task. Even if I'll die... Do you understand that?" she looked at him and her lips were squeezed.
He was watching her silently with a stoic face for a long time, then slowly nodded:
"Show me how to activate it and send and receive a message again."
They were silent most of the time during their ride back to the Green Oak. The sun was already setting, shining through the trees, bathing the grass and the bushes in a golden light. The autumn leaves on the trees were rustling in the wind. She felt just now finally at peace with the whole situation.
"I must say I like it here." she smiled towards Deagan.
"Here as in this forest or here on our world?"
"I like this world."
He raised an eyebrow: "You mean a world, where there are constant wars and where the humans and the elves are killing each other all the time?"
"No, that's not what I've meant. It's so... quiet here... I feel so... free here... You can ride for days on end through the woods, be out here in the nature, inhale the fresh air... without air pollution and constant noise in the background and security cameras and DNA-scanners and spies watching your every step and the political games of the Council and..." she stopped in mid-sentence as she saw the look on his face. She had to giggle.
"You'll understand once you're on Gwaeloth..."
He smirked: "Listening to you - now I'm not sure if asking to come with you was such a great idea..."
Keaira laughed: "Don't worry, Deag. There are many other worlds in the elven territory and you can choose on which one you'd like to live – that's part of the offer for you. I actually know one, that is very similar to this one – doesn't have many inhabitants or built-up areas and the nature there is absolutely beautiful. Almost untouched by civilization. Plus - except for two or three months it's constant summer throughout the year there..."
"Sounds good."
"I know. I've recently purchased a large piece of land there. Before I left for this assignment. I've been saving money for that for years... I'd like to build a house there... Already found the perfect spot for it..." she smiled to herself while looking up at the trees.
Deagan watched her and smiled as well.
"You're alright, sor'ca..."
She turned to him and grinned: "Now you really do sound like my brother! But thanks for the 'sister' – I know you almost never call any humans like that..."
He grinned back, then looked at the setting sun:
"We should spur the horses. It's getting late and Neach will probably not be very happy, that we're away for so long..."
"Yeah, he's kinda... possessive, isn't he?" she wrinkled her nose in another wide grin.
He looked at her questioningly and this time didn't return the grin.
"What?" Kea frowned.
"Nothing... But... If you describe him like this and mention he was also 'yelling', then he might like you more than I thought..."
She watched him quite surprised, but he didn't say anything more, just spurred his horse into a gallop and she quickly followed.
After they've left their horses in the stables and their swords in the armory, they've entered the tavern. She could see Neach and Niall sitting together at a table with James Verndahl, so she just waved and pointed to her bag with the new goods she's bought, showing that she's bringing them up to the room. Coinneach nodded and Deagan joined them and sat down.
When she came back, there was already food on the table and Neach pulled away the chair to his left and offered her to sit next to him.
She sat down and nodded thankfully. There were jugs with wine, beer, honey mead and water on the table, Keaira took an empty plate and put some food on it, starting to eat immediately seeing that the rest of the group already started as well. For a while she was just listening to the conversations the others had while eating. It was nice to see them all relaxed, even Niall seemed to be in a much better mood.
"Can you hand me a mug over, Deag?"
"Sure. What would you like to drink, Kea?"
"Informal already?" asked Niall with a grin.
Neach raised an eyebrow and looked at Deagan first, then at Keaira.
"Yes, we had a nice chat this afternoon." she smirked.
"Over a cup of feverfew tea." chuckled Deag.
"And some shopping. Thanks for the tips, James." she smiled towards Verndahl, then turned back to Deagan:
"Not sure if I want again that honey mead. Not that it wouldn't taste great, but I'm not really fond of the idea of having another cup of feverfew tea tomorrow morning..."
"Morning?! It was lunchtime!" interrupted her Niall with a grunt.
"But I still wasn't the last one to get up..." she winked towards Neach, who chuckled.
"So, what will it be then?" asked Deagan again with the hint of a smile.
"Wine, please."
"Then I think you'll still need a feverfew tea in the morning, Keaira..." said James with a laugh.
"We shouldn't drink too much though, I'm planning to leave tomorrow." Neach said suddenly and surprised them with his serious face.
"What's the hurry, Neach?" Deagan was watching his face.
"I have some news from James." Coinneach replied by pointing with his head towards Verndahl at the table's head. "We know where Iorveth could be..."
Deagan blinked and quickly looked at Keaira.
"What's wrong with you two?" asked Niall suspiciously watching their faces.
She cleared her throat: "Neach, why didn't you tell me, that Deagan and Ciaran are brothers? I've told you already more than month ago, that Ciaran is on my list..."
"It didn't cross my mind! I had... other 'problems' at the time!" he replied angrily.
"It's alright Neach, forget about it." Keaira answered quickly trying not to upset him more, but wondering about his strange behavior.
"We have some news as well, but I'd rather tell you later." said Deagan and glanced over to James.
Coinneach understood and only silently nodded, but his face remained a bit sour.
"And the news about Iorveth?" Niall tried to divert the conversation back to the topic.
James and Neach explained quickly to the rest of the group what they know.
"Good news then – we might even find Ciaran, Deag! Didn't you say, that he wasn't..." Niall started, but stopped after seeing the look on Deagan's face.
"Ehm... guess we should not discuss that here as well..." he quietly added and remained silent, sipping a bit from his beer.
The following silence was a bit awkward and Keaira was thankful, that it was interrupted by the blushing stable boy, who entered the tavern with her armor jacket in his hands and brought it to their table. She thanked him and thoroughly checked the repaired jacket and the newly added pauldrons. They were covered in dark brown leather with the same intricate elven ornament on the edges as her jacket had on its back. She carefully traced it with her fingers.
"Wow, he really did a great job..." looking fascinated at the ornament matching the jacket's embroidery and smiling.
The stable boy left again and she noticed, that both Coinneach and Deagan are staring at each other with a hard glare.
"Guys... I suggest either we change the topic now, or we call it a night." she advised and Neach turned to her:
"I was thinking about splitting up the group. Two of us should head to Flotsam and two should continue to Brokilon."
"I see. Not a bad idea – it might save us some time. But the two groups would have to meet again somewhere."
"We can figure that out later. I'm just not sure who should head where to." said Neach again to her.
"Iorveth might need a bit more 'convincing' as he's quite... determined to... fight the humans here." he frowned while trying to explain to her Iorveth's attitude as diplomatically as possible. "But he might listen to me... and some good arguments."
"Ciaran is just the same." added Deagan. "If we talk to them both at once, it might be easier."
"All right, so it's clear then – you two head to Flotsam and I go with Niall..." she started, but was interrupted by both Coinneach and Deagan with a loud and fast "No!" almost in unison.
Her gaze was jumping between the two of them, then she just slowly laid her cutlery back onto the table and stood up:
"You know what? I think it's best I'll get some sleep now and leave you here to figure it out on your own... James – thank you again for everything, please excuse me now." she politely bowed her head to him, took her jacket and went upstairs.
She saw a fresh bath with steaming hot water prepared in their room again and a large fire burning in the fireplace. A maid has knocked on her door shortly with a tray in her hand asking if she'd like to have some wine and water, obviously send by James Verndahl. Keaira smiled and accepted the offered tray, giving a tip to the maid. Then she closed the door, poured some of the wine into a mug and stepped into the bath.
It didn't take long and she could hear multiple steps on the floor and then the door on the other room being closed. She relaxed for a while in the bath tub, but frowned when she heard a loud argument from the other room. Kea couldn't understand what they're talking about, but she recognized Deagan's and Coinneach's voices. After a few minutes the argument subsided and the voices were muted. She finished her bath, dressed in her new blouse and her pants and checked her bags. All the money was where it should be, so she rearranged a bit the contents of her other bags, putting all her clothing in one to have it at hand and preparing the rest of the baggage for the next morning. She could see in Neach's bags, that he has some new clothes as well and she smiled.
The door behind her silently creaked and Coinneach entered, closing it behind him and locking it with the door bar. He went over to the table, poured some wine into the other mug and gulped down everything in just one go. Then he immediately poured another one, took a swig and turned to her:
"What's going on, Keaira? You disappear with Deagan for the whole afternoon and then I hear you've asked him to call your people if something happens to you and to bring your swords to some elf? Why did you ask HIM to do it?"
"I see he told you the news already... And what's wrong with you, Neach? You frown at me when I talk to him, you almost have an open argument with him downstairs in the middle of the tavern, then you actually have one in the next room – and quite a loud one, then you..." she stopped and suddenly smirked.
"Are you... jealous?!"
He stepped closer and was playing with her braided hair avoiding eye contact: "A little..."
She rolled her eyes. What an understatement...
He looked at her smiling almost shyly: "I like it, when you have your hair like that."
She smiled back at him:
"Neach, he's just a good friend. He reminds me a lot of my brother."
Putting her arms around his waist and pulling him closer, looking up at him, she continued with a serious face:
"You have to face the truth, Neach. There's a good chance, that something happens to me, or to us both. I wanted to teach him how to send a message to my world if that happens, so that somebody comes and picks you all up. I want to make sure you'll get out of here no matter what. Because that's why I'm here..."
He wrapped his arms around her and hugged her firmly, nodding, caressing her cheek with the back of his fingers and murmuring:
"I guess I'd go a bit mad if something happens to you..."
"I know... And that is why I've asked him and not you. I hope you understand." she whispered back.
He nodded again, then sat down on the bed's edge and pulled her down to sit on his lap.
"But why did you ask him to give your swords to some elf? Who is that, Kea?"
She sighed: "Because these swords are not mine, Neach. They belong to Ari. You remember the teacher I've mentioned? The one who taught me archery?"
"The 'Master of the Old Arts' you mean?"
"Yes." she nodded. "He also taught me swordsmanship amongst others. I could have taken my own swords, but they're not retractable, so I could only take two with me and this belt allows me to carry up to eleven. He borrowed me his own swords the night before I left, because I can handle them very good and they give me an advantage here... Especially having so many – I have eight in total now with me. I probably wouldn't attack the guards on the road to Drakenborg otherwise so directly and definitely not all at once."
"I see... I think I'll take a bath now. Did you already...?" he asked with a wink.
"Yes, I took a bath already in the meantime. While you were arguing with Deagan..." she smirked and saw him slightly frown.
She stood up and he went over to the bath tub, pulled his clothes off and sat down in the water. Keaira took the mugs from the table, took a sip from her own and brought the other one to Coinneach. He took it from her hands, drank it all and after handing her the empty mug back, he leaned against the tub's side, watching her.
"You said he gave you the swords in the night before you left..."
She looked at him cautiously and cleared her throat: "Ehm... yes, he came to my apartment..."
Neach narrowed his eyes studying her face: "Kea... is there something..."
"No!" she replied hastily, then looked down to the ground, went over to the table again, took a chair and sat down next to the bath tub.
"Well... almost..." she sighed.
"I've asked you yesterday...!" he sounded annoyed. And hurt again.
"Let me explain, Neach. Please..." she looked at him with a serious face, so he nodded and remained silent, waiting.
"I... like him. He's a good friend. I'm aware, that... he'd like it to be something more. But as long as he was my teacher, it was unthinkable... We..." she gulped and sighed again feeling uncomfortable to talk about it.
"A few years back, once after a training, we were drinking together. A lot. We talked for hours about private stuff. He... kissed me... And then he walked away apologizing, that he should not have done it. I was... angry... at him. I wanted him... But I also understood the situation we're in. So we haven't talked about it ever again. And I've never told him about my feelings."
"Do you still want him?"
She looked at him. He was tense, his otherwise full lips forming now a thin line, jaw hardened - just like in the morning.
"I'll be honest with you Neach – sometimes I still think of him. But... it's not with the same feelings anymore. I moved on and... I've met you now..."
They were looking at each other with serious faces for a while until a knock on the door hasn't interrupted the silence.
"This... might be for you..." he said with almost a sad voice and started to wash himself.
She looked at him surprised, but went to open the door. It was the maid again, handing her over a small bowl with a pleasantly smelling ointment. Keaira took it and thanked her, still looking quite amazed.
She closed and locked the door again and when she turned, she could see, that Neach has finished his bath already and was drying himself with a sheet in front of the fireplace.
"Neach? What is this?" she approached him slowly. He was standing there naked and motionless, looking into the fire.
"That's for your shoulder. I've visited a local healer this afternoon and asked him to prepare it for you..." he replied with a hint of sadness in his voice.
She was standing behind him, stunned, watching his back. Then she gently touched his arm and forced him to face her.
"Thank you!" she whispered, gulping hard and blinking a few times to suppress the sudden tears, that formed in her eyes.
He smiled very lightly, cupped her face in his palms and planted a soft kiss on her forehead.
"You're welcome, Kea."
He stroke her cheeks with his thumbs and then slowly unlaced the front of her blouse, took the hem and carefully pulled the blouse over her head.
"I'd like to take care of your shoulder now." he whispered while unlacing her pants as well and pulling them down. "And then I'd like to make love to you."
She smiled at him: "Hmmm, just like last night?"
"No..." he smiled back and she raised an eyebrow, but he continued in a whisper: "Last night was not 'making love'..." and he kissed her lips gently.
He sat her down in the middle of the bed and knelt to her left, then he carefully started to apply the ointment onto her left shoulder, touching it only very lightly. When he finished, he laid the bowl aside and bent his head towards her hair, inhaling her scent while he wrapped his arms around her. She closed her eyes and he started to kiss her – slowly, gently and taking his time, roaming with his hands softly all over her body.
She was overwhelmed with emotion from his gentleness, from his caresses and tenderness that night and only understood how deep his affection is for her, when he quietly whispered into her ear shortly before bringing her to yet another orgasm: "Say you're mine, Kea... Please..."
She came while moaning his name, holding on to him tightly and then almost cried when she whispered back: "Only yours, Neach."
When she woke up the next morning, he was again spooning her, softly stroking her belly.
She turned her face to him with a smile: "Good morning."
He looked at her with mock surprise in his face: "What – no cursing today?"
She grinned and caressed his cheek: "No. Thank you for the wonderful night..."
He smiled and kissed her lightly: "Let's go downstairs for breakfast and decide what we're going to do."