****
Jade stuffed the Bagia into her pack and glanced over her shoulder. The entrance to the oak shelter darkened with the approach of angry soldiers. Placing a hand on the wood either side of the split, she spoke to the great tree in Elvish. With a deep, creaking groan, the tree shuddered in response.
Yells of surprise sounded outside as the opening began to creak closed. Jade kept her hands on the walls, willing the tree to heal itself faster; to close the entrance enough so the soldiers couldn’t get in.
A spear jabbed through the hole. Jade gasped and just managed to swivel her body aside. It missed her stomach by millimetres. The leering face of a Roman soldier appeared in the narrowing gap. She backed away. The opening was too narrow to admit a man now but he could still see her.
He laughed coarsely. “That’s ok, girlie. You stay right there. We’re getting axes and we’ll have you out soon enough.”
Frightened and angry, Jade stepped forward and poked two long fingers through, into the man’s squinting eyes. He screamed and fell back into the arms of his companions. The crack closed a few more inches. Desperately, she looked around. She couldn’t allow the tree to be injured. The Dryads would never forgive her if she let the Romans hack at it with axes.
Leaning her forehead against the wood, she asked the great life another question and gave it certain instructions. There was a suggestion of slow thought and agreement, followed by a brief, confusing sense of one-ness; a moment when Jade actually felt like she was part of the tree. She completely understood the problems of too little sun and too much rain; the annoyance of small burrowing insects and the joy of sheltering living things; the sorrow of watching their warm, brief lives pass; the sleep of winter and the rebirth of spring. Her own problems seemed insignificant.
Smiling, Jade lifted her head and looked about. A small door had appeared in the timber next to her.
A deep, snarling roar reverberated through the Dark Woods, startling her in the act of reaching for the doorhandle. She peered out then flinched back at the sight of a full-grown ogre emerging from the forest behind the Romans. Standing well over four metres, its gnarled, wood-coloured skin looked as tough as old oak. Each of four muscular arms ended in six-fingered hands tipped in razor-sharp claws. A small head sat on broad shoulders. Its eight beady, black eyes were placed strategically so it could see in all directions. Most frightening of all was the mouth full of jagged sabre-teeth designed to slice through skin and bone without effort.
Jade shrank into the darkness as the Romans formed up ranks. They didn’t seem very happy when their officers ordered an attack. A pilum and dozens of arrows bounced off its thick skin, serving only to enrage it. The ogre casually picked up the closest soldier and shook him until things cracked and he stopped yelling.
Jade’s stomach heaved.
The monster picked up a second soldier, using him as a club to bowl over a half-dozen of his companions.
The Romans broke rank at last, ignoring their officers in favour of running for their lives. The ogre stayed, sitting down amongst the dead. He chortled and growled, surrounded by a pathetic pile of scarlet and leather, flesh and bone. He picked up an arm and sniffed it.
Jade closed her eyes to the carnage, grateful that she had an escape route that didn’t involve going past that beast. Even so, she would have nightmares for days. She patted the wood thankfully then slipped through the portal. It closed behind her and disappeared.
Jade entered the Dryad realm with fear in her heart. Yes, the great oak had called to her, even accepted and helped her. The Dryads would already be aware of that. Surely they would be hospitable to a half-elf if their trees were. She wasn’t certain of her reception, though. Her character’s human mother had kept her away from the great forest and its inhabitants. She didn’t even know who her Elvish father was. She was just hoping and praying that the tree-faery folk would accept her as kin – or at least let her pass through unharmed. If they didn’t…
It was frightening to feel so alone. The others’ lives were, literally, in her hands. If she failed then they would all die.
Swallowing her fears down as best she could, Jade drew a shaky breath. Clenching her hands around her staff, she trod through a dimly-lit tunnel. The walls were hard to see. They seemed to be wooden but she couldn’t be sure. Each time she looked directly at them, they appeared shift and move until her eyes almost crossed in an effort to focus. Even eerier was the feeling that she travelled great distances with every small step. The ground slid beneath her feet. She truly was in the Anoeth – the Timeless Land. Jade shook her head and tried hard to ignore the weirdness.
Gradually, the tunnel brightened and the walls and floor assumed the more comfortable appearance of packed earth. Ahead, a narrow wooden door appeared. Even its handle and hinges were wood. She stopped at the doorway and took a deep breath. Nervousness fluttered in her stomach.
Lifting the latch-handle, she eased the door open and peered around it. Beyond lay a large, lofty, windowless room decorated in soft autumn shades and lit by a gentle, golden glow from some unknown source. The walls were of living wood. This room was, somehow, inside the great oak tree.
Throwing her shoulders back, Jade stepped in and closed the door gently behind.
“So,” a soft, yet layered, voice by her side made her jump and gasp, “my tree tells me you claim sanctuary in our land, young one? You have brought our enemy to our doorstep; to my beloved tree. I had to call a Guardian to dispose of them. By what right do you now ask for our help?”
Jade looked at the tall, extraordinary woman beside her and instinctively did the right thing: she dropped to one knee and bowed her head in utmost respect. This was, without a doubt, the grande dame of the tree-folk. She had to be the dryad who guarded the giant oak.
“My Lady,” she choked, “I...I meant no disrespect. I am sorry if I’ve placed your tree in danger. I heard her in my mind and didn’t know where else to go in this forest.”
The dryad cut her off but not unkindly. “I understand, girl but state your case quickly. I felt your passage through my Forest. The only reason you still live is that you spared the Strangler when you could have killed it. For this you have been left alone by the Dark Folk and admitted to my presence. Speak or I shall have you returned to the Romans who await without – or what’s left of them.”
When Jade could not find her voice, the Dryad spoke again, a little less harshly.
“I am Aurfanon. What may I call you?” Her name translated to Gold Queen.
Jade risked another quick look at this fascinating lady.
At first glimpse, she had seemed young and stunning with golden skin, amber eyes and rippling hair the rich red of autumn leaves. Now, as Jade looked again, she could see physical signs of age – a few strands of grey in that luxurious hair; a few crows’ feet wrinkles around the almond-shaped eyes. The dryad stood straight and firm with a reassuring aura of strength and wisdom but she was old beyond human understanding. Even though she wore only a simple, long dress of white linen and a wreath of golden oak leaves in her hair, the dryad carried herself like the queen she undoubtedly was.
Jade managed to get her brain engaged and replied, giving her character name rather than her own.
“My Lady, I am called Jade gan Eleri of the Cyfriniol forest. I seek only safe passage across Anoeth to escape from Roman soldiers who seek to capture and torture me.”
The lady stiffened. She was silent a moment and Jade wondered if she’d said something wrong.
“Rise, child,” the dryad said after a moment, “and sit with me awhile.”
Confused and relieved, Jade stood and followed her hostess to a nearby pile of cushions. Easing her backpack onto the floor, she crossed her legs beneath the low table standing between her and the dryad queen.
The door
opened and another, younger dryad entered, bearing a tray. She glanced at Jade but didn’t speak. Aurfanon waved her out once the tray rested on the table. Jade eyed the array of enticing foods and tried not to drool. The queen did not invite her to eat, so she resolutely turned her eyes away.
Aurfanon watched her with open curiosity.
“You said your name was Jade gan Eleri? Jade, daughter of Eleri?” she asked. Jade nodded. “Is your mother Eleri, Spellweaver of the great Cyfriniol forest? Eleri daughter of Brychan, the hunter?”
Jade nodded again, blinking in shock as she searched her dual memories and confirmed to herself the names of her mother and maternal grandfather. How could the queen possibly know that? Yes, she was a half-elf but she never expected to be even recognised by the Faery, let alone have her human ancestry known to a dryad queen.
Aurfanon smiled faintly and waved a hand at the loaded plates before them.
“Eat, child.” She reached out and patted Jade’s hand. “Then you must tell me of your troubles and I will see what I can do to help. I knew your mother a little.”