Episode 4: Part 2
She wasn't quite sure what had happened after running into the Wild Hunt, but when she awoke, Noelle Moraeu rolled over and opened her bleary eyes. Had she been hit by some sleeping enchantment? Maybe she had passed out in fear? Her mind was still a bit fuzzy. Once the sleep cleared from her eyes, Noelle felt the warmth of the morning sunlight on her cheeks and she found herself deep within an autumn wood. To her shock, she found her wrists and her ankles had been bound in rope, both of which had been tethered to a sturdy tree nearby. Fortunately, a thick wool blanket had been thrown over her to keep her warm during the night. Nearby the tree, she saw several tents had been raised in a makeshift campsite, all of which bore the same orange colors and heraldry of the Erlking's riders.
What was she doing here in the camp of the Wild Hunt? Was she a prisoner? Why didn't they just kill her? Right now, it was hard to think clearly and Noelle fought to keep her heart steady. She had nearly been killed the other night by the headless rider and now she was separated from her friends… a prisoner of some dangerous faerie people. She had to focus right now and calm her mind. She had always been fond of meditation and now was a perfect time to fall back on that.
As she took several calming breaths, her anxieties began to lessen as she heard a large creature snuffling and pawing at the ground behind her. To Noelle's surprise, she saw that one of the horses of the Wild Hunt had come up to her and was studying her intently. This one almost seemed unafraid of the girl and it looked to be more curious. He was a dark brown steed and he whinnied slightly while tentatively leaning down to get a closer look at the girl.
Despite her fear, Noelle slowly reached up with her bound hands and gently touched the horse's nose. As she did, she spoke softly to keep it calm, trying to convince it that she was a friend, "Hey… easy there. That's it… I'm not going to hurt you…"
As she continued to pet the animal and speak soothingly to it, Noelle did not even notice the approach of the Elven warrior who left his tent and approached slowly. When she heard the jingling sounds of armor, she stopped and turned to see the Erlking, this time without his imposing helmet. He was a pale Elf with long dark hair and rough hard lines on his weathered face which gave the impression that he was indeed a fierce and experienced hunter.
"You're awake…" he said brusquely, "And I see you've met Tristan."
Noelle hesitated, unsure of how to respond so she gave a small nod, "He's… a beautiful horse."
The Erlking snorted to himself and reached out to touch the steed as well, "His rider Adaon fell just a few days ago hunting a great demonic boar. Over the following days, Tristan was an unruly beast… until just now. You seem to have a way with animals."
"I… uh, thank you… I like to think so," Noelle replied carefully, "I'm... actually in training to take care of these creatures."
"Is that so?" the Erlking replied thoughtfully, "Because it looked to me like you were impersonating a Tuathan knight yesterday when you were fighting that Dullahan."
"Sorry… Dullahan?"
"Yes," the Erlking nodded, "A dark fey… Unseelie… they are murderous horsemen who ride without their heads attached to their necks."
Noelle gulped, "I had to try and defend myself. That thing could have been a servant of Balor, right? I'm sure you know that he's come back to attack the mortal world."
The Erlking frowned, "I had heard rumors… though it vexes me that this may be happening in the middle of my annual hunt."
Noelle looked about and saw several more warriors in the hunting party emerge from their tents and attend to their own mounts. She had to try something. "My lord… if Balor is our common enemy, then we are on the same side. Please… let me try to help you."
Again the Erlking gave a stern look towards her, "You make a claim at the powers of the Tuathan Knight of Autumn… powers that flow from my own Court. To think yourself worthy of even wearing that mantle, especially after having been defeated so soundly is something I take offense to. That is why we have captured you."
Noelle shuddered, "And what do you plan to do with me?"
The Erlking gave a wry smile, "Simple my dear… we were going to have a little sport with seeing how far you can run before we hunt you down ourselves."
The Autumn Knight felt the horse whinny again as it pressed its snout into her shoulder, "My lord…I'm begging you… uh, give me a chance to prove that I'm worthy."
The Erlking considered her words for several long moments before an amused smile crossed over his face.
"Very well… so-called Knight of Autumn. I will make a bargain with you. You may take the horse Tristan, and leave this campsite. By the end of the day, I will expect you to destroy that Dullahan for me. Do this, and you can have your freedom, along with a great reward for the monster's bounty."
Noelle nodded slowly, "Okay… but what's to stop me from just taking your horse and running?"
The Erlking crossed his arms with a smile, "Honor, my dear Knight. When we fey make pacts and bargains, our word is binding. It's the same idea of the magical geas built into your ring. Break a fey pact, and terrible curses may befall you… and remember, we are still excellent hunters as well."
Noelle gulped again and gave a nod as she shook the Erlking's hand. A slight magical tingling sensation filled her fingers before he freed her from her bonds and handed her the reins of the magic horse with a smile, "Good luck Autumn Knight… you will need every bit of it if you wish to survive the day."
The horse gave her an expectant look and waited for her to climb up into the saddle. With that, the horse began to trot out of the camp and into the open woods. As she made her way down a shady path, Noelle gripped the reins tightly and tried to think of a plan.
She had bought herself a little more time to live, but as to where she was going to go from here, she didn't know. For now, it seemed that the horse knew where it was headed so if it had placed some trust in her at the campsite, then she would have to place some trust in it now.
That morning, Connor and Laura sat chatting at a table inside the Student Union waiting for their two other friends to meet them for lunch between classes. Their small talk was soon interrupted when they spotted Quinton enter the Union courtyard carrying his bookbag and his skateboard. As the Spring Knight took a seat and set his things down, he gave a slightly puzzled frown, "Huh… where's Noelle? I thought she said she was going to meet us."
Laura idly tapped a plastic fork on the Tupperware container that held her own lunch while she glanced at her watch, "Yes... if it was anyone else, I'd say they were being rude… do you think her exam ran late?"
Connor bit his lip slightly, "Maybe, but I doubt it. It wouldn't take this long… even for a midterm. I'll try and give her a call."
He pulled out his phone and tried to call a couple times only to be instantly sent to her voice mail. As he set down his phone, a concerned frown crossed the face of the Summer Knight.
"Uh… you don't think something happened to her on the way home last night… do you?" Quinton suggested hesitantly.
Laura crossed her arms with a thoughtful frown of her own, "I haven't seen her around the dormitory this morning… maybe we ought to go looking for her? Everyone is free this afternoon, right?"
Connor nodded, "Okay… sounds like a good plan. Let's finish our meal and then take a little walk through the woods leading towards town."
After lunch, the three friends left the Union and set off towards campus town. The small village area that offered most of the stores and restaurants for students was located only about a mile away so it was not a long walk. Based on the designs of the urban planners, the most direct route to town for students was a scenic walking path that was built at the edges of the large local forest preserves. It was a popular route for students and everyone enjoyed the shady lanes and grassy parkways that were free of cars and other urban hazards.
As the three knights walked down the wooded path, they kept their eyes open for anything out of the ordinary, despite the carpet of autumn leaves that had already fallen along the road.
Up above, the skies began to grow overcast with clouds as another cool gust of wind nipped at the noses of the knights and Quinton took a look around, "You know, the more I think about it the more I realize this path could be a little creepier late at night."
Connor fixed his roommate with a mild frown before sighing to himself, "If something bad happened to Noelle, then this is all my fault. I should have argued more and walked her home from the pub."
He was surprised when Laura idly walked ahead and surveyed the leafy walking paths, "Don't waste your energy beating yourself up. We all share some responsibility in that, and we shouldn't be worrying about something that might not have happened anyway."
It was a logical, reassuring statement and the boys couldn't help but notice the veiled way that the Winter Knight was also expressing some concern for her own comrade.
Laura's own confidence wavered though as she stopped and bent down to retrieve something that was sitting in the road. As she brushed aside some leaves, Laura picked up a cellphone and examined it as the boys gathered around her.
"Did you find something Laura?" Quinton asked.
The Winter Knight rose with a troubled look on her face, "Yes… I think this might be Noelle's mobile phone."
To their dismay, they saw the missed calls from Connor's phone show up on the screen confirming their suspicions. As Laura continued to try and get any more information from the phone, Quinton took a few steps back and examined the area, "What happened here?"
"Maybe she was taken?" Connor speculated darkly as he began to fear the same fate as the Druid Dierdre Finn. "Or maybe a Fomorian did this?"
Laura tucked the phone away and rolled her eyes, "Come on Connor. Are you suggesting Eliza's tall tale about a headless horseman on campus was true?"
"You shouldn't be so quick to judge things you don't understand," came a sinister female voice.
The three knights tensed up and peered about the surrounding woods which had grown more dark and gray from the gathering clouds overhead. Moments later, they spotted a mounted figure emerging from a cloud of mist that had settled along the base of the forests. It was a female rider with a sinister skeletal horse. She was draped in back clothing and carried her own disembodied skull under her arm which wore a malevolent grin.
"I'll be damned… the horseman... it is real," Quinton gasped as the three recoiled in growing dread.
"You there! What have you done to Noelle?" Laura shouted out in a challenge.
The horsewoman sniggered, "The same thing I'm going to do to you three."
She drew her bony vertebrate whip out and gave it a crack on a nearby tree to split several branches. With another shriek, she charged forward to attack as the three knights summoned their armor and weapons. The Dullahan skillfully rode past Connor causing him to miss and turned to bear down of Quinton. The Spring Knight held his ground and blocked the bone whip with his short sword as she lashed out at him.
Seeing he had a momentary advantage, Quinton ignited his off-hand sickle with thunder energy and moved to counterattack, but the dark horse snapped its teeth and caught the weapon in its mouth. Quinton gasped in surprise before the monster named Sarissa reared her horse and threw him aside with the momentum of the beast.
As Quinton rolled away on the ground, Laura dashed forward readying her icy rapier to strike. Before the knight could make a thrusting attack, Sarissa lashed her bone whip upward to snare a thick tree branch and pull herself up out of the saddle. Laura's eyes went wide in surprise as she missed her target and stumbled off balance. No sooner had she turned around was when the Dullahan in the tree ignited her head with ghastly flames and threw it at the knight.
The head struck the ground in front of Laura, exploding in a great burst of magical fire that stunned both the Winter and Spring Knights while sending them crashing to the ground. Sarissa leapt down from the tree and landed back in the horse's saddle before reforming her ghoulish head in her hands with a puff of dark magic. Seeing his two friends in trouble, Connor charged forward to try and help while they recovered from the stunning blast.
Despite the Summer Knight's powerful charge, Connor's sword blow was stopped as the bone whip snared the blade and wrapped around the forte. The Summer Knight gasped in surprise as he tried to pull his weapon free, but the Dullahan used the momentum of her mount to pull Connor away and throw him into a nearby tree. The knight hit the tree trunk and fell to the ground in a dazed heap. Unfortunately, both Laura and Quinton were still too shaken from the Dullahan's last attack to offer any aid either.
"Hah… pathetic," Sarissa sneered in contempt, "The three of you were just as inept as the girl in orange."
The Dullahan readied her bone whip and prepared to rain some finishing blows down on the three when she heard the thundering of hooves nearby. She stopped and looked around as the sound of a horse's angry whinny echoed through the trees, coming from all directions. Before she knew it, the Dullahan whirled around to see a fully armored Autumn Knight upon a fey horse of her own.
Laura was the first to blink in surprise and shake her head, "Is that… Noelle?"
"No way…" Quinton added as she struggled to rise.
The Autumn Knight trotted closer and slowly drew her own curved sword. Inwardly, Noelle had no idea what she was doing right now and she was scared out of her mind, but her friends were in danger so she knew she had to do something. "Not so fast Dullahan! I'm not going to let you hurt anyone else!"
The dark horsewoman sneered in amusement, "Oh? The little knight is back for more? If the Erlking didn't kill you, then you must be luckier than I thought."
"Which is more than I can say for you," Noelle called as she spurred her horse forward to meet her enemy.
Sarissa whooped and the dark horsewoman clashed weapons with Noelle in a passing attack. The Autumn Knight recoiled from the shock and gripped her mount tightly after having almost been knocked off the saddle. Her horse was already galloping around a tree and turning back for another pass. She had to trust her horse and let instinct guide her now.
As the two fighters charged and clashed again, Noelle saw Sarissa go for her whip so the Autumn Knight caught her forearm and threw both of them off their horses into the ground. The two combatants crashed into the dirt and rolled off each other, losing both their weapons in the scuffle while the dark fey's horse was driven off by the Autumn Knight's steed. Seeing her own curved falcata sword lying nearby, Noelle scrambled to grab it and charge it with wind energy before hurling it at her foe.
To Noelle's dismay, the Dullahan dodged the whirling projectile sword at the last moment and snapped her own whip up with a quick motion. Noelle felt the whip tie around her neck and she struggled against the tightening lash as Sarissa forced her to her knees.
"You stupid girl... did you really think you could outride and outfight me?"
Noelle gasped as she struggled against the whip around her neck before giving a strained smile, "No... I just had to outsmart you."
The Dullahan scowled in confusion before she turned to look in the direction Noelle was gazing. At that very moment, Sarissa saw the Autumn Knight's charged blade boomerang back around. Sarissa didn't have any time to scream as the weapon split her evil skull and obliterated it completely.
The Dullahan's remaining body gave one last frightening shriek before it collapsed and burst into a cloud of black wispy smoke. As Noelle staggered to her feet, her horse Tristan trotted over to her. She removed her helmet in relief and shook out her mussed chestnut brown hair while the other knights hurried over to greet her.
"Damn Noelle! That was pretty awesome!" Quinton laughed in giddy excitement as he stopped to admire the horse. "Where did you learn to ride like that?"
"I guess I'm just a natural," she laughed sheepishly while more praise was heaped upon her by her comrades.
As the horse gave a pleased snort and pawed the ground, Laura cleared her throat with a soft smile, trying not to look too affectionate. She placed a hand on the Autumn Knight's shoulder, "You really saved our necks and played a blinder right there Noelle… well done."
Noelle couldn't help but grin at having earned open praise from the Winter Knight herself. "Haha…thanks Laura."
"No, thank you!" Connor cheered as both he and Quinton lifted her up on their shoulders for a moment to celebrate. "You were the one who saved our butts today, remember?"
Noelle gave another delighted laugh as they set her back down, but everyone froze when several fey horsemen in orange cloaks emerged from the woods around them. The other Knights tensed up and gripped their blades but Noelle raised her arms to calm her friends.
"Relax everyone… just trust me and stand down."
Connor kept his eyes on the horsemen as they closed in and formed a loose ring around the knights, "Friends of yours?"
"In a manner of speaking," Noelle replied grimly before turning to face the leader of the Wild Hunt.
The Erlking cantered forward on his horse and surveyed the area, fixing a long gaze on the spot where the Dullahan had been destroyed. Finally, the Lord of Autumn gave a satisfied nod and turned to Noelle, "Well done Autumn Knight… it seems you're more talented and courageous than I originally gave you credit for."
Noelle bowed her head in a quiet show of respect, "Thank you my lord. I'd like to introduce my friends, the rest of the Hibernian Knights. Everyone, this is the Lord of Autumn and Master of the Wild Hunt… this is the Erlking."
The others gaped in surprise before bowing their heads too. The Erlking nodded in acknowledgment before turning back to Noelle. "May I ask your name?"
"Noelle… Noelle Moreau."
The Erlking nodded again and produced an object from his saddlebag. It was a beautiful ivory hunting horn.
"Lady Noelle, by the terms of our agreement, you are free to go. You've proven your worth and valor to me. As such, I agreed to reward you for keeping your end of our bargain."
He tossed her the horn and said, "This represents your membership into my Wild Hunt and ensures the safety of yourself and your companions from the Sidhe of Autumn."
"I… wow… thank you," Noelle said humbly as the Erlking gestured to some of his other riders. They approached with three other free mounts and handed them off to her.
"If you and your companions are going to be fighting the Fomorians, you're going to need a means to reach the battlefield quickly. Take these mounts and call upon them whenever you need them. They are magic creatures, strong, smart, and as fast as the wind itself."
With that, the Erlking turned his mount and signaled for the other riders to depart. He gave Noelle one last approving nod before disappearing into a cloud of colorful leaves. The Autumn Knight smiled and took a moment admire her new treasure. She had proven herself against a frightening monster, earned the respect of a fey noble, and given her team a new mode of transportation. Despite the near brushes with disaster, all had turned out well.
"Way to go Noelle, you really came through for us today," Quinton said cheerfully as she let him examine the hunting horn.
"Yes… but we were all very worried about your safety," Laura added matter of factly, "Maybe now Connor can stop with the self-flagellation too."
Noelle gave an amused smile as she turned to the Summer Knight, "You were really worried about me?"
Connor gave a sheepish grin and shrugged, "Well… sure. I mean, I felt kinda responsible. You're always worrying about everyone else, so I guess today was just our turn to worry about you."
The Autumn Knight smiled again as she hooked her arms through Connor and Laura's, "Come on everyone… let's go home. I need a hot meal, a shower, and a nice long nap."
"While you're at it, you might want to email your professor too," Laura pointed out, "Didn't you have a midterm exam today?"
Noelle's smile quickly faded and for the second time that day, her eyes went wide with sudden horror, "Crap!"
A/N:
All's well that ends well... sort of. Next up, another irregular day in the life of our Spring Knight Quinton Wallace. As always, thanks for reading and see you next week!