Of course, it had to rain. Ardula glared at the sky as she nestled her tightly-swaddled infant deeper into her cloak. She reached to pull up her hood, then stopped as she remembered it had been torn off at the last town. Sighing deeply, she pushed back her hair as she felt fat droplets begin to spatter on her face. Ahead, the golden gate of the Elf Kingdom rose out of the ground. There were about seven guards silently watching her draw nearer. Embarrassment reddened her face and she realized how bedraggled she looked compared to their spotless armor. I promise I'm not looking for handouts. She muttered under her breath. The guards remained silent as she approached. Peering through the bars, she saw a neatly groomed cobblestone road lined with trimmed bushes. In the distance, a few small houses dotted the horizon. The guard station seemed to be the largest building for quite a few miles. Their carts were parked neatly in rows, just inside the walls. Everything was so much nicer than home. Ardula finally made eye contact with the nearest guard. He was several heads taller than her. But then again, so is every elf. She thought with a smile.
"I'm looking for my child's father. He should be within the walls." She said to the guard. Proud, she noted the lack of nervousness in her voice. It's amazing what fending for yourself will do for your confidence.
The guard raised an eyebrow. "I don't think you'll find any Drow in here, miss."
Ardula felt her confidence waver. "Yes. Well. He isn't a Drow." Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a few of the other guards turn to look at her.
"This a half breed?" The first guard reached roughly for her baby with cracked, dirty hands.
Ardula adjusted the swaddling, pulling the bundle just out of his reach. "I suppose you could say that. I just wanted her father to meet her. That's all"
The guard snickered as he leaned back against the wall. "Sorry. You'll have to get some credentials before we can let you in. Good luck with that."
"But I've traveled for days! I don't plan to stay long!"
"No Drow allowed without credentials. We could go check the rules on half-breeds, but I doubt you want that." He laughed loudly and a few other guards chuckled.
"Then maybe you could bring him out to meet her?" Ardula asked hopefully, ignoring the jab.
"Oh yeah, sure." One of the other guards piped up, "We'll just go search the whole city for your boyfriend." A few more guards laughed, and the speaker looked pleased with his wit. "What's his name? Maybe we've heard of him."
Ardula suppressed her annoyance. "Malikk." The guard's smile was immediately replaced with a look of bewilderment and every remaining guard turned to look at the bundle Ardula held. Uncomfortable with their reaction, she took a step back and clutched her baby tighter. "Is…is he nearby?"
The guards glanced at each other but didn't answer. The first guard flashed a hand signal and two of them lunged forward and gripped Ardula's arms so suddenly she almost dropped her baby. A third ran off to raise the gate and two more took up positions alongside Ardula. "What's going on?" She protested as she struggled against their grip. "You're going to make me drop her!" The first guard nodded and they relaxed their grips slightly. "Do you know where to find him?" Whatever answer they might have given was drowned out by the earsplitting screech of metal on metal as the gate was opened. Her baby immediately began wailing. Surely such a wealthy kingdom could afford a quieter gate. She shook her head as she gently bounced her baby. The guards around her winced, but she couldn't tell if it was from the gate or the wailing. Her baby had very healthy lungs.
The guards escorted Ardula into one of the carts inside the walls and took up positions around her. She struggled to soothe her baby's cries as the cart lurched forward, pulled by a pair of monstrous horses. Ardula glanced back uneasily as the gate screeched closed again. She had no idea why the guards reacted the way they did, but she came a long way to introduce her baby to its father and she didn't want the trip to be in vain. So, she sat quietly and concentrated on her baby as she waited to see where the guards would take her.
They passed through so many towns, Ardula finally lost count. Each one seemed more beautiful than the last, until they hardly seemed like towns anymore. Ardula had never seen a city before, but she figured the communities they passed through must surely qualify. The guards kept the horses at a hurried pace and took many routes that were obviously shortcuts, but they still hadn't reached their destination by nightfall. Ardula needed to feed her baby. She glanced uncomfortably at the guards on either side of her. One was the guard who offered to search the kingdom, and the other was a female guard who had yet to speak. Ardula loosened her cloak slightly. Neither guard reacted. She reached up and tugged on the collar of her shirt. Again, nothing. Taking a deep breath, she unlatched the loop and adjusted her baby so she could latch on and begin nursing. The rumbling of the cart drowned out most of the suckling and snorting sounds she loved to hear her baby make, but she was grateful for its cover. Silence would have made her much more uncomfortable.
They traveled for hours, taking back roads and shortcuts devoid of travelers. Just when Ardula's eyelids had become so heavy she worried she might drop her baby, the cart came to a sudden halt. They had arrived at a small building alongside another gate. This gate was much more delicate and refined than the last; each post was topped with a golden spiral that looped down and wove itself back and forth between the posts to the right and left. The driver of the cart leaned out and muttered something to the guard stationed at the entrance of the small building. The guard ducked inside and a moment later, the gate opened. As the doors swung aside, Ardula sucked in a breath. In the distance stood the most magnificent building she had ever seen. The rainclouds dispersed a few towns ago, and now the sun shown down like a spotlight upon the golden tresses of the palace before them. A dense ball of lead settled in each of her limbs and her vision grew dim. She knew where they were going. The cart lurched forward again and Ardula sunk against her seatback. Sensing her alarm, the guards on either side grasped her arms. She knew there was no going back.
They reached the palace doors and were met by a new platoon of guards. Ardula was emptied hurriedly from the cart and immediately surrounded. Without a single word of explanation, the platoon marched forward, taking Ardula with them into the palace.
They emerged into a glorious throne room. Pillars lined the walkway at evenly spaced intervals and vaulted up to a ceiling so high it must have been impossible to clean. At the center of the room, a grand throne sat in a delicate nest of gold and silver metalwork. As they entered, its elvish occupant rose grimly. He flicked his fingers and the guards dispersed, leaving them alone except for two that took up positions at the door. Ardula stared at him in silence. Slowly, the elf king took a single step toward Ardula. He paused regally, then took another step. Ardula shifted her baby in her arms as she watched the process. It was undoubtedly meant to be intimidating, and indeed it was. She fidgeted uncomfortably until he reached her.
"Is this the child?" He asked in a surprisingly quiet voice, peering down from his height.
"Yes, sir." Ardula stammered, trying to find her voice. "I-I'm not sure why we were brought here. I only wanted to introduce her to her father, Malikk."
"May I hold her?"
Surprised, Ardula looked down at her daughter. Something inside her tensed when she thought of this man holding her baby. But she wasn't in a position to refuse. "I suppose."
The king reached for the bundle and Ardula shifted to allow him to grip. He held up her baby and allowed the swaddling to fall to the floor. Ardula watched in fear as ice blue eyes scrutinized her child. The unusual combination of races had given the infant a soft beige skin color that was too light to match her mother and too dark to match her father. Large, grey eyes peered back unfased at the elf king as he examined her thin tuft of silver drow hair; short, pointed elf ears; and finally, the shriveled left leg Ardula had worked so hard to hide. The elf's eyes narrowed as they flicked back and forth between it and the healthy right leg.
"Deformities are common among half-breeds." He laid the infant against his shoulder and paced back toward his throne. Ardula followed him, wanting to limit the distance between herself and her baby.
"Yes sir, I have been told. I know it's unconventional, but if I could just see her father for a moment I'll be on my way and you won't be bothered any longer."
The elf sat again on his throne and placed his slender hand against the infant's bare back. "Malikk is dead. He passed about a month ago."
Ardula blinked. "Oh…I didn't know."
"I take it you weren't very close."
"No sir. I didn't really know him. He was just one of my customers." Ardula flinched as the elf king scoffed. "But I know he was the father!" she added quickly. "He's the only elf that's ever come to me!"
The elf's lip curled. "I have no doubt of that. Malikk always had…unusual taste."
Ardula glanced up at him. "You knew him?"
A dark cloud descended upon the elf king and his entire demeanor shifted. He rose again to his full height and pinned Ardula with the full force of his hatred. His grip tightened on the baby she began to stir. "I knew this whelp's father well." He spat at Ardula. "Well enough to expect exactly this kind of disappointment from him as a final parting gift." He jostled the baby and Ardula gasped as she reached for her. "This half-blood, this final act of shame." He held the baby higher and raked his hate-filled eyes over her. Sudden realization dawned on Ardula. Her legs failed her and she collapsed to the floor. She knew who her baby's father was. The doors of the palace flung open and guards poured in, as if summoned by their ruler's agitation. The king looked down at Ardula in disgust. "Malikk was my son and the only prince of my kingdom." He turned back to the baby and bared his teeth at her as guards shoved Ardula to her feet. "And that means this mutt is the heir to my throne."
Ardula wailed. Guards pressed around her, grabbing her robe, her hair, her limbs. Her precious daughter was handed to an elf in a hooded cloak. She couldn't see what happened next because she was drug from the throne room and the doors slammed behind them. A guard bashed her forehead against the wall and she passed from consciousness.