Danae had slept all day.
It was midnight now, when he came to her.
Dressed in his black Pandion armor, Talen creaked into her room, and she sat up
straighter, and looked into his hollow eyes, and shivered. The coldness in the room
reeked of death and the wind outside screamed. He was dead; there was no doubt
about it.
His brown eyes gazed at her, no expression upon his face as he knelt down to her.
"T-Talen?" She said, her eyes wide and watering.
He was pale, his lips blue, and his eyes void of all feeling.
"Come with me?" He whispered.
She felt his cold breath upon her face, and began to weep, "I cannot!" She cried, "I
have something to do before I leave!"
"Will I see you again, Aphrael?" He slightly frowned. His voice was so hollow.so
empty.
She shook her head, "No. You are dead, I am not, and I wont be for a while. Go rest
Talen, you need rest."
He curtly shook his head, "Not yet, I still have something to do." Standing up, he
drew his sword and said, "After this, I shall rest, awaiting you until you will come."
With that, he plunged his sword into Aphrael's abdomen where their child thrived to
live.
"NOOOOOOOOOOO!" Aphrael screamed.
*******************************************************************
"Danae!" Ehlana cried, "Wake up!"
Aphrael opened her eyes and quickly checked her stomach. It was perfectly fine and
sighed in relief.
"Are you alright, sweetheart?" Ehlana asked her daughter, pushing her dark hair
away from her face.
Danae shrugged, "Fine, it was just a-a nightmare."
She got up from her laying position to sit down weakly with the help of her mother.
"I've been here for a while," Ehlana said, "and you just started thrashing around."
Danae smiled weakly.
"So, uh, how is everything?" She asked.
Ehlana sighed slightly, "The war with the Zemoches at the border are retreating, but
word got back to us that they needed more men so Khalad just dispatched another
hundred knights. Oh, Vanion is back though." She smiled, "He's in the chapterhouse
so he'll be coming here shortly."
Danae smiled at her mother.
"Your father told me about it," She indicated her daughters swelling stomach with
her pale gray eyes, "and I must admit," Ehlana smiled, "I had a feeling that it might
be him since you adored annoying the poor boy since you were a child."
Sadly, Ehlana looked down at her hands, unaware that Danae pursed her lower lips
to keep her from crying and took a slow, quiet deep breath. "Where's Mirtai?" Danae
asked.
"She's outside," A smile lit the woman's pale face, "She is also with child! Adorable,
isn't it?"
Danae smiled knowingly, "Really? What a surprise!" She faked.
Ehlana leaned forward and planted a kiss on Danae's forehead, "I have to go now,
but I do not allow you to get up from this bed!"
Danae chuckled shallowly as her mother stood up. "Yes, ma'am!" She said, giving
Ehlana a salute.
As Ehlana left silently, Danae shivered again, at the dream she had of Talen.
Was that dream telling her that her beloved had died?
Or was it a warning of some kind?
*******************************************************************
It was a summer of hatred as Zynna gazed around herself.
Like all the dancers of the Zemoch people, she wore her black hair in a high ponytail,
her high cheekbones red with the cold. Her full lips were painted bright red, her
snowy gray eyes standing out by the dark eye make-up. Upon her young sixteen
year old body which was already full of all the requirements to be a Zemoch dancer,
she wore a red skirt that hardly clung to her hips and reached to her thighs, hardly
hiding her shapely legs that bore golden strings which entwined itself about her legs
from her red sandal high heels. Her top was a mere tube that covered her breasts,
leaving her shoulders bare, two red gloves on each hand that reached to her elbows.
Her tube top was connected with her skirt by several golden-chained beads that
draped her bare stomach, and her back.
But as she entered a tavern, banging music of drums and some other obscene
instruments played in the corner as she glanced about with distaste, but saw a buff
man behind the bar counter. "Hey, fat man!" she yelled.
The man turned to her, angry.
Smiling sweetly, she said, "I was sent by Rozed," when the man's eyes widened, and
he nodded, she added, "before I do anything, I want to be paid first."
"Uh," The man was fat, and stupid! Zynna rolled her eyes. "I owe you two gold
coins; so one in advance, the second AFTER---okay?"
Zynna smiled, so he wasn't so stupid!
"Sure." She shrugged, stretching her hand out.
The man firmly placed a gold coin in her hand, which she bit, just to make sure it
was real. It was.
Placing the coin in a hidden pocket in her flowing short skirt, she said, "What do you want me to do?"
"Dance." He grunted.
"For whom?" She asked.
Gazing at her, he said, "Anyone who finds you interestin'." Then he turned his back
on her.
Offended, she spun around and paraded herself around the tavern until a young
drunk noble man called her over. "I'll give you two silver's if you dance for me," He
smiled at his two drunken friends.
"I need a music to dance to!" She yelled to the odd music players in the corner of
the tavern.
When they gave the music, she danced seductively, then, taking the noble man she
made him stand, and then began to move against him. He watched her with half
closed eyes as she slithered around him, then, as the music got faster, she flew
away from him to the middle of the crowd that had been formed, and danced for
them, making sure of staying in the man's sight.
Finally, when the song ended, she approached the noble man and said, "Two silvers
wasn't it?" stretching out her hand, she smiled.
"Sure, my purse is in my carriage outside, want to come with me to get it?" He
leaned a little forward and peeked down at her cleavage with hunger in his eyes.
Shrugging, she nodded.
Leading her out, they moved a little away from the tavern until she saw a white
carriage.
Mounting it, the noble man called to her to go in, "No, I'll wait out here." She said.
"I'll give you a gold coin if you give me company in here." He said.
Frowning, she mounted in.
But the moment she entered, he slammed his door shut, and threw himself on her.
"Whore," he whispered in her ear. Crushing his lips onto hers, he forced her to lay
down on the carriage sofa and hurriedly tried to open his pants, his hips thrust in
between her spread thighs. "My name is Kyman," He introduced himself, "And you
are?"
But she just screamed over and over she let out a scream, and began to cry, when
suddenly, her screams were answered.
The buff man from the tavern burst in and grabbed the drunk man from off of Zynna
and threw him out of the carriage, then left to deal with him outside and Zynna
quickly regained herself. When she got out, she saw the tavern man straddled the
drunk man and pounding him in the face continuously, the noble man's blood on his
knuckles.
When the man lay unconscious, the tavern man stood up, a pouch of money in his
fist and silently tossed it to Zynna, "It's his money" He spat on the bloody man lying
on the floor, "Now go home-- or to Rozed." Then muttered, "You're too young for
this."
Nodding, Zynna scurried away, frightened beyond her wits.
"WHAT?" Rozed roared when she told him what happened, "That foul piece of shit!
We'll see how he can rape anyone without his dick!"
Zynna smiled, yes, she thought, that noble bastard disserves that.
Rozed was a strikingly handsome man with black hair and black eyes, but had it not
been for his personality, she would have fallen in love with him, even if he were
twice her age.
"Go on home, dearie, I'll take care of the bastard myself." Rozed was VERY
protective of the woman that came into his services.
She turned to leave when a man, Yathabi, Rozed's cousin, came running into the
room and said excitedly, "They need more men to go to Elenia to fight, but the thing
is, we're running out of men in this country, so Lord Sync wishes us to take our
women!"
Rozed stared, "Women? To fight knights and barbarians?! What is he--CRAZY?"
Yathabi shrugged, "I'd say so. But he wants them by tomorrow noon to be ready.
Rozed,"
He said thoughtfully, "You have women who can fight, right? Then send them!" he
said when Rozed nodded, "It'll be good, because Lord Sync said that we'll be
rewarded of how many women we send."
"What if he wants them for his own pleasure?" Rozed asked, unaware that Zynna
was still in the room.
"It'll be their honor! He is a God Rozed."
Rozed looked doubtful, "I'll go!" Zynna cut in from the silence of the room.
"No, Zynna! Get out of here, you're to young."
Offended, she stormed out of the room.
But noon that day, wearing comfortable clothing, a thick cloak, and a bag of other
clothing and food, Zynna lined up to go to war with Elenia, her hair in a simple braid,
and smiled.
*******************************************************************
Khalad watched the novices practicing in the courtyard and sighed. A letter in his
hand was crumpled, and tear stained, and when he looked up, he saw Vanion looking
at him.
"What does it say?"
"I-It's from Lyzan." Khalad muttered, "My cousin, he's been injured badly. But he
says that our wounded have been taken prisoner's to the Zemoches, and our
prisoner's kill themselves the moment we even look at them." Sighing, Khalad closed
his eyes and added, "And Talen's missing. Sir Aorbain claims he saw Talen running
upon his horse with no armor and no weapon."
Vanion had paled, but his voice, as always, was strong and clear. "We'll get him back
from the Zemoches. Talen's a strong boy, he'll survive..."
But in her realm, Aphrael gazed down upon the images of Khalad and Vanion and
sighed.
No...
Talen was dead. She was sure of it.
His presence in the world was gone and none could bring him back.
"I will see him again," She said in a determined voice, "Even if it costs me my life."
Softly, she placed her hand on her swelling abdomen and sighed.
Being the Goddess she was, she already knew that Talen had sired a baby boy. It
was small, hardly able to be detected yet, but she knew, and felt joy in it, then
sighed, thinking already of what to name the unborn halfling.
It was midnight now, when he came to her.
Dressed in his black Pandion armor, Talen creaked into her room, and she sat up
straighter, and looked into his hollow eyes, and shivered. The coldness in the room
reeked of death and the wind outside screamed. He was dead; there was no doubt
about it.
His brown eyes gazed at her, no expression upon his face as he knelt down to her.
"T-Talen?" She said, her eyes wide and watering.
He was pale, his lips blue, and his eyes void of all feeling.
"Come with me?" He whispered.
She felt his cold breath upon her face, and began to weep, "I cannot!" She cried, "I
have something to do before I leave!"
"Will I see you again, Aphrael?" He slightly frowned. His voice was so hollow.so
empty.
She shook her head, "No. You are dead, I am not, and I wont be for a while. Go rest
Talen, you need rest."
He curtly shook his head, "Not yet, I still have something to do." Standing up, he
drew his sword and said, "After this, I shall rest, awaiting you until you will come."
With that, he plunged his sword into Aphrael's abdomen where their child thrived to
live.
"NOOOOOOOOOOO!" Aphrael screamed.
*******************************************************************
"Danae!" Ehlana cried, "Wake up!"
Aphrael opened her eyes and quickly checked her stomach. It was perfectly fine and
sighed in relief.
"Are you alright, sweetheart?" Ehlana asked her daughter, pushing her dark hair
away from her face.
Danae shrugged, "Fine, it was just a-a nightmare."
She got up from her laying position to sit down weakly with the help of her mother.
"I've been here for a while," Ehlana said, "and you just started thrashing around."
Danae smiled weakly.
"So, uh, how is everything?" She asked.
Ehlana sighed slightly, "The war with the Zemoches at the border are retreating, but
word got back to us that they needed more men so Khalad just dispatched another
hundred knights. Oh, Vanion is back though." She smiled, "He's in the chapterhouse
so he'll be coming here shortly."
Danae smiled at her mother.
"Your father told me about it," She indicated her daughters swelling stomach with
her pale gray eyes, "and I must admit," Ehlana smiled, "I had a feeling that it might
be him since you adored annoying the poor boy since you were a child."
Sadly, Ehlana looked down at her hands, unaware that Danae pursed her lower lips
to keep her from crying and took a slow, quiet deep breath. "Where's Mirtai?" Danae
asked.
"She's outside," A smile lit the woman's pale face, "She is also with child! Adorable,
isn't it?"
Danae smiled knowingly, "Really? What a surprise!" She faked.
Ehlana leaned forward and planted a kiss on Danae's forehead, "I have to go now,
but I do not allow you to get up from this bed!"
Danae chuckled shallowly as her mother stood up. "Yes, ma'am!" She said, giving
Ehlana a salute.
As Ehlana left silently, Danae shivered again, at the dream she had of Talen.
Was that dream telling her that her beloved had died?
Or was it a warning of some kind?
*******************************************************************
It was a summer of hatred as Zynna gazed around herself.
Like all the dancers of the Zemoch people, she wore her black hair in a high ponytail,
her high cheekbones red with the cold. Her full lips were painted bright red, her
snowy gray eyes standing out by the dark eye make-up. Upon her young sixteen
year old body which was already full of all the requirements to be a Zemoch dancer,
she wore a red skirt that hardly clung to her hips and reached to her thighs, hardly
hiding her shapely legs that bore golden strings which entwined itself about her legs
from her red sandal high heels. Her top was a mere tube that covered her breasts,
leaving her shoulders bare, two red gloves on each hand that reached to her elbows.
Her tube top was connected with her skirt by several golden-chained beads that
draped her bare stomach, and her back.
But as she entered a tavern, banging music of drums and some other obscene
instruments played in the corner as she glanced about with distaste, but saw a buff
man behind the bar counter. "Hey, fat man!" she yelled.
The man turned to her, angry.
Smiling sweetly, she said, "I was sent by Rozed," when the man's eyes widened, and
he nodded, she added, "before I do anything, I want to be paid first."
"Uh," The man was fat, and stupid! Zynna rolled her eyes. "I owe you two gold
coins; so one in advance, the second AFTER---okay?"
Zynna smiled, so he wasn't so stupid!
"Sure." She shrugged, stretching her hand out.
The man firmly placed a gold coin in her hand, which she bit, just to make sure it
was real. It was.
Placing the coin in a hidden pocket in her flowing short skirt, she said, "What do you want me to do?"
"Dance." He grunted.
"For whom?" She asked.
Gazing at her, he said, "Anyone who finds you interestin'." Then he turned his back
on her.
Offended, she spun around and paraded herself around the tavern until a young
drunk noble man called her over. "I'll give you two silver's if you dance for me," He
smiled at his two drunken friends.
"I need a music to dance to!" She yelled to the odd music players in the corner of
the tavern.
When they gave the music, she danced seductively, then, taking the noble man she
made him stand, and then began to move against him. He watched her with half
closed eyes as she slithered around him, then, as the music got faster, she flew
away from him to the middle of the crowd that had been formed, and danced for
them, making sure of staying in the man's sight.
Finally, when the song ended, she approached the noble man and said, "Two silvers
wasn't it?" stretching out her hand, she smiled.
"Sure, my purse is in my carriage outside, want to come with me to get it?" He
leaned a little forward and peeked down at her cleavage with hunger in his eyes.
Shrugging, she nodded.
Leading her out, they moved a little away from the tavern until she saw a white
carriage.
Mounting it, the noble man called to her to go in, "No, I'll wait out here." She said.
"I'll give you a gold coin if you give me company in here." He said.
Frowning, she mounted in.
But the moment she entered, he slammed his door shut, and threw himself on her.
"Whore," he whispered in her ear. Crushing his lips onto hers, he forced her to lay
down on the carriage sofa and hurriedly tried to open his pants, his hips thrust in
between her spread thighs. "My name is Kyman," He introduced himself, "And you
are?"
But she just screamed over and over she let out a scream, and began to cry, when
suddenly, her screams were answered.
The buff man from the tavern burst in and grabbed the drunk man from off of Zynna
and threw him out of the carriage, then left to deal with him outside and Zynna
quickly regained herself. When she got out, she saw the tavern man straddled the
drunk man and pounding him in the face continuously, the noble man's blood on his
knuckles.
When the man lay unconscious, the tavern man stood up, a pouch of money in his
fist and silently tossed it to Zynna, "It's his money" He spat on the bloody man lying
on the floor, "Now go home-- or to Rozed." Then muttered, "You're too young for
this."
Nodding, Zynna scurried away, frightened beyond her wits.
"WHAT?" Rozed roared when she told him what happened, "That foul piece of shit!
We'll see how he can rape anyone without his dick!"
Zynna smiled, yes, she thought, that noble bastard disserves that.
Rozed was a strikingly handsome man with black hair and black eyes, but had it not
been for his personality, she would have fallen in love with him, even if he were
twice her age.
"Go on home, dearie, I'll take care of the bastard myself." Rozed was VERY
protective of the woman that came into his services.
She turned to leave when a man, Yathabi, Rozed's cousin, came running into the
room and said excitedly, "They need more men to go to Elenia to fight, but the thing
is, we're running out of men in this country, so Lord Sync wishes us to take our
women!"
Rozed stared, "Women? To fight knights and barbarians?! What is he--CRAZY?"
Yathabi shrugged, "I'd say so. But he wants them by tomorrow noon to be ready.
Rozed,"
He said thoughtfully, "You have women who can fight, right? Then send them!" he
said when Rozed nodded, "It'll be good, because Lord Sync said that we'll be
rewarded of how many women we send."
"What if he wants them for his own pleasure?" Rozed asked, unaware that Zynna
was still in the room.
"It'll be their honor! He is a God Rozed."
Rozed looked doubtful, "I'll go!" Zynna cut in from the silence of the room.
"No, Zynna! Get out of here, you're to young."
Offended, she stormed out of the room.
But noon that day, wearing comfortable clothing, a thick cloak, and a bag of other
clothing and food, Zynna lined up to go to war with Elenia, her hair in a simple braid,
and smiled.
*******************************************************************
Khalad watched the novices practicing in the courtyard and sighed. A letter in his
hand was crumpled, and tear stained, and when he looked up, he saw Vanion looking
at him.
"What does it say?"
"I-It's from Lyzan." Khalad muttered, "My cousin, he's been injured badly. But he
says that our wounded have been taken prisoner's to the Zemoches, and our
prisoner's kill themselves the moment we even look at them." Sighing, Khalad closed
his eyes and added, "And Talen's missing. Sir Aorbain claims he saw Talen running
upon his horse with no armor and no weapon."
Vanion had paled, but his voice, as always, was strong and clear. "We'll get him back
from the Zemoches. Talen's a strong boy, he'll survive..."
But in her realm, Aphrael gazed down upon the images of Khalad and Vanion and
sighed.
No...
Talen was dead. She was sure of it.
His presence in the world was gone and none could bring him back.
"I will see him again," She said in a determined voice, "Even if it costs me my life."
Softly, she placed her hand on her swelling abdomen and sighed.
Being the Goddess she was, she already knew that Talen had sired a baby boy. It
was small, hardly able to be detected yet, but she knew, and felt joy in it, then
sighed, thinking already of what to name the unborn halfling.