Chapter 20 - Ceremony and Departure
"Well?" Ambori inquired brightly as he reached the bottom of the staircase. "How do I look?"
Dressed in a brand, spanking new outfit (consisting primarily of bright orange pantaloons, a flamboyant pink shirt with bright red sleeves and boots, a yellow cape and vest) Ambori pranced about in a neat little pirouette and doffed his bright yellow hat with the long white plume. The big smile on his face showed that he was rather proud of his new threads.
The look of shock on the faces of Hal, Ceorn and Garn showed that they were rather put off by the bard's total lack of taste.
Garnthalisbain was the only one not rendered speechless by the painful aural display. "You look like a walking bonfire."
Ambori bowed respectfully to the mage and whipped out his lute from some hidden fold in his cape, playing a quick riff upon it. "Why thank you. I'm so glad that you like it."
Hal glanced from side to side. "I don't think we do," he said, confused by the bard's response.
Ambori shrugged. "That's okay. I wasn't really asking to see if you cared. I just wanted to see the looks on your faces." He smiled and began to quietly play one of the songs he'd learned at the ball.
Ceorn sighed and loaded yet another bundle up onto their new cart. "Well, so much for any chance of a stealthy-like approach."
Hal took the large bundle from the kelt and placed it in with the rest of their new equipment. "You can say that again." He grunted with surprise as he took the next parcel. It was large and irregularly shaped. It rattled slightly when he shook it. "What's in this one? Lead?"
Ceorn laughed. "What? Are you sayin’ you don't think you can carry that one?"
Giving the smaller man a blank look, Hal casually flipped the heavy parcel up onto one shoulder and easily placed it in one of the few remaining empty spots in the cart. "I was just curious. It didn't look that heavy."
Hopping easily up into the flatbed cart, Ceorn chuckled, the breath steaming out of his mouth in the moderately chilly winter air. "Never judge a book by its cover, Hal."
Garn knew his large friend so well that he could visibly see Hal pause, remind himself that Ceorn wasn't really talking about a book and changed his next question from: "What does that have to do with the parcel I just lifted?" to:
"Fine, then what's in it?"
Ceorn shrugged. "Beats me. Probably some extra metal for fixin' armor and the like."
It was as if a light suddenly went off in the back of Hal's head. His eyes opened wide and a twisted grimace spread across his open, youthful face. "Armor?" he asked.
"Yeah, armor," Ceorn repeated. Giving the big man a strange look. "Why do you ask?"
Hal pursed his lips in what Garn found to be a very humorous expression, nearly bursting out in laughter. "Oh, no reason," Hal said.
"You did remember to get fit for your own set of armor, didn't you?" Ceorn asked. Hal refused to meet the kelt's gaze, choosing instead to examine the luminous beauty of the aquamarine colored sky oh so high above. Ceorn covered his eyes with one hand, shaking his head with dismay. "Please tell me 'at ye at least brought along a shield for yourself." At that, Hal adamantly shook his head. Ready to explode, Ceorn grabbed the big man's shoulders and burst out. "Why in the hell not?"
Hal placed one hand on his friend's chest to calm him down. "I wasn't trained on how to use one," he explained. "All the weapons I know need both hands for it to be effect... affectu... right."
Ceorn took a deep breath and came back under control. "All right, lad. I’m not tryin' to question your bravery 're anythin'. I just wanna make sure you know what you’re doin'."
Hal shrugged, a distant look in his eyes. "Yeah. Me too."
Hearing the footsteps of more people descending the stairs, Garn turned to see the young twin Nichos led the way down the stairs as fast as his stubby little legs could take him. He called out Hal's name with a smile and waved frantically when the big man looked up at him. Seranna came next with the boy's sister Nicalla in her arms. Both twins had really taken a liking to Sir Terius and his family, so much so that they had no problem staying in their custody until the situation over their mother’s health became resolved - one way or another.
Last down the stairs was Tasha alongside her brother Nicodemus. He was dressed conservatively in his standard uniform, ready to slip into his armor suit and go on patrol. Tasha had a new outfit consisting of close-fitting gray denim slacks and dark leather riding boots. A thick, bleached white woolen pullover with a neckline that reached the bottom of her chin; a dark leather vest and a long, gray cape. Her shortsword was at her waist and she had tied back part of her hair while choosing to let the rest hang free. Giving it a sort of half ponytail.
Garn just shook his head out and ran his fingers through his thick, past shoulder length dark hair. I've always preferred the more natural look for myself, he thought with a smug grin e.
Ambori hopped adroitly in front of the new arrivals and drew an elegant, bucket-hilted rapier from its scabbard with a flourish. He bowed deeply before the new arrivals and saluted with his blade, grinning like an idiot. "Good day, ladies. A pleasure to see you today."
Tasha just looked him up and down and gave him a dirty look. "What did you do," she asked. "Dress in the dark?"
Ambori opened his mouth to try and mount a comeback but Garn delivered the scathing line: "What difference would that have made?" before Ambori could say a word. This, consequently, left him standing there in front of the ladies with his mouth wide open and an expression of absolute desolation on his face.
Tasha pat him gently on the cheek and walked past him. "Close your mouth, Ambori," she said over her shoulder. "You wouldn't want to kill anyone with that breath of yours." There was an audible click as the defeated bard snapped his mouth shut.
Garn smiled happily. It was barely noon and his day had already been made.
Nichos was up in his usual place high on Hal's shoulders, jabbering away and smiling. Subtly, Garn smiled again at the sight after making sure that no one was looking of course. While he would never admit it to anybody, Garn had a soft spot for little kids, and after all that the twins had been through in the last couple of weeks, it did the mage's heart good to see them happy and able to enjoy being kids again.
Lady Seranna stepped up next to the mage and lowered the girl, Nicalla to the ground. Nicalla looked up at the mage curiously. Not realizing what he was doing, Garn looked down at the little person with the smile still on his face. Then he abruptly dropped the smile and glared down at the child. "What?" he snarled. Nicalla jumped and huddled next to Seranna, hugging his skirt.
"That wasn't a very nice thing to do, Garn," Lady Seranna admonished with an unusual disapproving look on her face.
Suddenly feeling bad but unwilling to admit to it, Garn stepped forward and looked the Lady right in the eye with a very slight grin on his face. "Yeah, I guess so," he said while at the same time slipping a sweetmeat from one of his many pouches and giving it to little girl. She accepted it with a little squeal and munched on it ferociously as Garn stepped away, ruffling her hair playfully as he did so.
"We're packed up and ready to go, Tasha," Ceorn called out, interrupting her conversation with Nicodemus. "Where's this new friend of yours? We can get underway as soon as he gets here."
Tasha frowned up at the kelt. "When he gets here, you'll know. Trust me."
"Do you really have to go, Hal?" Nichos asked in a disappointed little voice. He was off the big man's shoulders and was simply just sitting on the cart's ledge. Hal stopped what he was doing and squatted down in front of the boy, nodding his head in a sad affirmative. Nichos began to snuffle just a little bit. "Why?"
Hal ruffled the boy's hair with a smile. "Because I have to."
"Why?" he asked again.
"Because if I don't, there are a lot of people, like you and your sister who might get hurt if I don't," Hal explained. "I don't want that to happen, so I gotta go."
Nichos rais
ed his chin and puffed out his chin. He spoke in as deep a voice as he could muster. "I can take care of myself. You don't need to worry about me or my sister."
Hal smiled. "I'm not worried. That's why I want you to do me a favor while I'm gone." Nichos nodded anxiously that he would. With a very serious expression, Hal leaned in close to Nichos’ face and stage-whispered "I want you to keep an eye on everything here until I get back, okay? I know that there're all these big guys in armor that are going to do that too... but I'll feel better knowing that you'll be on guard as well."
The boy's eyes widened and a big smile spread across his face as he realized the responsibility that Hal was placing on his frail little shoulders. He nodded again solemnly and promised that he'd make sure that everyone would be kept safe.
Garn shook his head and smiled slightly once again.
There was the sound of someone clearing their throat. Turning his head, Garn saw that the ebony wemic, Skarlett Black had arrived.
He was wearing a plain white robe and the symbol of Arixeas, the Beast Lord around his neck. The mane of hair had been meticulously groomed and his tail swished from side to side. Over one shoulder was a large travel pack and around what passed for his waist hung an immense, iron battle mace.
Both of the children screamed in fright at the four legged man-lion. Ceorn uttered a foul oath of surprise while Ambori was so alarmed that he abruptly stopped playing his lute and scrambled up into the relative safety of the cart. Tasha immediately set about calming the children down while Hal dropped out of the cart and calmly walked towards the wemic, his expression unreadable.
Skarlett Black looked the short distance down and nodded his head politely to the big man. "Greetings," he said in that groundshakingly deep voice of his.
He nodded. "You're the cleric?"
Skarlett nodded. "Indeed." He glanced back at the rest of the party and grimaced with remorse. "I must apologize for alarming the children. I realize my appearance must be somewhat... frightening."
Hal shrugged. "I suppose. They'll get used to it."
"You don't seem to be alarmed though."
Hal smiled. "I met a wemic once when I was younger. He was travelling across the lands and pointed me in the direction of the Vineyard Grove, saying that I might find assistance there." The big man sighed. "I never got the chance to thank him for that."
The cleric grinned. "I see." He extended one arm and Hal took it, clasping the hand in friendship. "Skarlett Black, Priest of Arixeas at your service."
"Hal of the Vineyard Grove, and not my service." He gestured back over his shoulder. "It would be Lady Tasha's service."
Tasha stepped up next to them then with a sheepish look on her face. "Sorry about all the fuss... " she tried to explain, but Skarlett held up one hand to silence her worries.
"No need," he began with a smile. "Trust me, I get it all the time." With that, he padded over to the cart and handed his parcel up to Ceorn, who after several more seconds of staring, finally took it and placed it in with the rest of the gear.
Introductions went out all around. The twins were now permanently huddled next to Seranna and refused to say another word or barely even look at the wemic. Hal tended to their horses, checking to make sure that all of the straps had been tightened and that their bridles set comfortably. Tasha continued to speak with her brother while Ambori and Ceorn tried to get better acquainted with Skarlett.
Garn however spent his last few minutes before hitting the road resting against one wall in quiet contemplation. Over the past month of intense travel and exercise, the mage had actually become stronger and more fitter. That wasn't to say that he would ever relish the thought of going on a journey or that he was suddenly free of any and all health risks. But it was safe to say that he was now physically more equipped to deal with such things.
At that moment the Lord Chancellor, Havar led his Queen, Teixiara down the steps. She was gently carrying a small wrapped bundle in her arms. Off a safe distance behind them followed the Queen's retainers and ladies in waiting.
Tasha broke off her conversation with her brother and walked up to the Queen, giving a slightly off balance curtsy, but a curtsy all the same. "Your Majesty," she began. "To what do we owe the honor?"
Queen Teixiara frowned slightly. "There's hardly any need for you to be so formal, Tasha," Her Majesty began, her lips quirking up into a grin. "We're just here to see you safely off on your journey."
Tasha grinned. "Using the Royal 'We', Your Majesty? I thought that you didn't want to be so formal?"
Teixiara laughed and shifted the bundle in her arms. "I'm not. Of course I am including Our distinguished Lord Chancellor," Havar bowed slightly, a humorous expression on his face. "And I also wanted you all to meet the youngest Prince of Southmoor." At that point, Teixiara unfolded the top part of the blankets and revealed the sleeping face of a curly blond baby boy.
All were careful not to make too much noise, but it was all for naught when Prince Terran's gray-green eyes blinked open and, upon seeing all of the strangers about him, he began to cry.
Seranna smiled knowingly as Teixiara tried in vain to calm the child down. "The first is always the hardest," she informed her Queen.
Teixiara grimaced, lines of weariness appearing on her face, the only visible sign of her fatigue. "I keep telling myself that," she said.
Hal stepped forward with Nichos and Nicalla in his arms. They soon forgot their fear of Skarlett and became enthralled at the sight of the crying babe. Both 'oohed' and 'awwed' at the Prince, pointing with their stubby fingers.
"Were we ever that small?" Nicalla asked at one point.
Hal pretended to think about it for a moment, then he glanced at her out of the corner of his eye and nodded. "I think so," he whispered conspiratorially.
"Were you ever that small?" Nichos asked Hal with a big grin on his open face.
Again, he pretended to think about it, eyeing the baby up and down, looking way down at his feet. He shook his head as he looked at the boy. "I doubt it." Both of the twins began to giggle.
At the Queen's suggestion, Hal lowered the twins to the ground as she did with the young prince. Very quickly, Nichos and Nicalla began to make faces and funny noises at Terran, trying to make him smile.
"You seem very good with children, Hal," the Queen commented. "When you get done with your journey, would you like to act as one of the members of the Nursery?" she laughed then at her own joke.
Hal thought about it for a moment or two then smiled. "Well, I don't know... " he began. "It would depend, but I'd like to. I really like kids... we understand each other."
Garn clapped one hand up high on Hal's shoulder and smirked. "I always said he had the mind of a child."
Ambori laughed. "That's for sure," he said, trying to regain some sense of dignity after the intense verbal drubbing it had taken.
However, Garnthalisbain had no intention of letting that happen. "Better the mind than the fashion sense, bard-boy." Ambori once again found his jaw swinging somewhat freely from the rest of his face.
Tasha and Teixiara discussed the details of the journey for a few brief moments. The Queen asking if all of the money, supplies and everything else loaned to them was adequate. Tasha assured her that it all was more than superb.
Seranna looked up to the sky critically. "If you're lucky, this calm weather will hold out for a couple more days. The last thing you want when you make it to the prairies is to be caught there in the middle of a snowstorm."
Tasha nodded. "Garn thinks that it will."
"It better," Hal muttered. Garn cast him a dirty look and Hal spread his hands out in a defensive stance. "Hey, just because I'm the oaf around here doesn't mean I like to freeze!"
Queen Teixiara gazed at the large man with faint disapproval. "Why do you cut yourself down so much, Hal? Do you see some sort of point to it?"
He shrugged. "It's easier to say things about myself than to let someone
else do it... It kinda takes challean... charng... the fun out of it for them."
Tasha touched his arm softly. "You don't need to worry about that from us, Hal." Without even saying a word, Hal swung his gaze over to Garn. Tasha amended herself. "Well, at least not from all of us."
"Hey! I've been nice lately! I've even been defending this dumb behemoth for the last few days!" Garn exclaimed, feeling deeply insulted.
Hal sighed at the mage's comment and looked balefully at the Queen. "See?" Teixiara tried not to laugh.
Havar tapped his walking staff on the steps to get everyone's attention. "Forgive my intrusion, but it is now past the noon hour. The sun is at its apex and the warmth it provides will not last for very long."
Tasha nodded her head. "We'd better go," she said before curtsying once again to the Queen. "Thank you again for everything. We will return as soon as we retrieve the Book and then... " she trailed off, not knowing what they were going to do then.
Teixiara grasped her hand and smiled. "Go with the Gods and Our Grace. Timoth sends his regards but he and Terius are busy in conference, wondering what to do about the advancing armies headed our way." Seranna added her own good wishes on top of that and gave each one of them a brief hug.
Hal looked down then and grinned slightly. Angling his eyes downwards as well, Garn saw that Baby Terran was slapping repeatedly at Hal's foot, with a big, happy grin on his face. The twins giggled at the sight. Hal squatted down onto the balls of his feet and just stared at the infant. The baby stared right back and elegantly raised his arms, patting at the back of his own head. Hal smiled.
The twins rushed into Hal's arms for one last hug and he whispered something into both of their ears. Both were once again trying not to cry (and Garn made a note then for future reference, children often experience violent mood swings) as Hal let them go. Then, after receiving the Queen's approval, Hal took up the baby in his arms and stood. It was very amusing to see the tiny baby in the massive arms of the overly large Hal. Terran just stared at him with those bright gray-green eyes of his. Hal smiled.
"That’s really cute," Tasha commented with a slight smile.
With a small bit of reluctance, Hal handed the prince back to his mother. "Not to seem rude," he said still grinning just a bit. "But His Highness smells a bit ripe. You might want to see if something can be done about that." Both Seranna and Teixiara laughed at that one.
With no further good excuse left for them to stall, they prepared to set out. Ceorn and Ambori mounted the steeds set out for them and got settled in. Ambori still seemed a bit downcast but pulled out his lute and played a song to cheer himself up. Tasha stepped up and swung a leg over the horse set out for her as Skarlett stomped his legs a few times to get the blood flowing, his tail swishing back and forth several times.
Hal gave Garn a polite hand up onto the cart's riding seat before hopping up to sit next to him. Before grabbing the reins he checked to make sure that both his axe and Stormbringer were safely strapped down but easily accessible. Assured that they were, he took up the reins and waited for Tasha's signal to depart.
Nicodemus watched Hal's check with a concerned look on his face. "I wish that I and some of the others could go with you, Tasha."
Before she could respond, Ceorn, Ambori and Hal all said in unison: "Me too!"
Nicodemus chuckled. "I'm serious though. You take care of yourself out there, sis. I don't want to have to tell Father that I let you die on this journey by not being there to protect you."
Tasha smiled down at her older brother, a tears welling up in her eyes. "I'll be fine, Nico." She leaned down and hugged him close. They shared a brief, whispered conversation before she pulled away, clearing her throat once and swinging her arm forward. "Let's get moving gentlemen. I want to be back here by spring at the latest!"
Ceorn let loose with a keltic war cry while Ambori burst into song. Skarlett shook his head at his new travelling companions and tried not to sigh to audibly. He took position next to Tasha while the kelt and bard took the lead. Hal and Garn brought up the rear with the cart. Behind them they could hear the enthusiastic goodbyes from the twins and the somewhat restrained ones from Seranna and Teixiara. Beyond waving, Havar didn't really seem to notice their passing.
After crossing over the drawbridge, they reached the inner annals of the city. Townspeople gave them some strange looks but respectfully stayed out of their path. There had been many reports of alarm and confusion at the castle from the Southmoorians after the incident with the light and the King had decreed that the people be told as little as possible to keep them from panicking. As it was, they remained muted and calm as the party trotted past.
As they rode Hal glanced over his shoulder on more than one occasion. At first Garn ignored it. But after about the seventh time, the mage became frustrated. "What the hell are you looking at?" he asked.
Hal’s face was subdued. A slow flush spreading across his cheeks. "I just... I didn't get a chance to say goodbye to Renora this morning.”
“You didn’t get a chance?” Garn’s voice was heavily skeptical.
Hal shook his head, checking over his broad shoulder again.
“All morning.”
He shrugged. “You know. Packing. And stuff.”
Garn sighed and looked back at the castle himself, his keen eyes scanning the walls. He was just about to give up when he noticed the flash of blue-black hair contrasting with the marble-white of the castle's walls. Garn pointed. "Right there, Hal. The second window down from the top on the right tower?" Hal peered at it and nodded. Garn turned his gaze back to the road ahead as the big man tentatively waved. Then he too swiveled back to the front and took to hand the task of steering the cart.
They rode in silence for long moments. Garn nudged a pointy elbow into Hal’s beefy side. "Hey. Are you going to be okay?"
Hal nodded. "Yeah," he muttered.
"You sure?"
"Not really."
Garn didn't press him further and settled back into his seat as they began their journey for the Book of the archmage Korum.