All Things Impossible: Heartstealer, page 18
"But, but-"
The captain nodded, and moved on. "Thistle?"
The chemman pointed to his ankle.
"Thalon?" the knight asked.
"Only this." The boy rubbed his cheek where he'd been scraped by a paw.
"Der?" Jakkobb looked down.
She blinked. Her vision wasn't in focus. "Um. Yes, sir." She tried to push herself up off the dirt, but collapsed after the second try.
He hid his expression as he looked at her back. He could only speculate how deep those massive claw tears went, especially since the beast had landed with a running jump. "Der, stay down."
"Yes, sir."
"Good." He straightened up. "Spike..."
The unicorn had turned his back to the biggest bear and raised his tail. He looked up at the knight. What? Horses do this all the time.
"No, they don't! That's disgusting - Spike, stop that!"
Der heaved herself to her feet while Jakkobb yelled at Spike. Dizziness attacked her like an army, and she nearly toppled back over.
Tom reached back to his belt and pulled out his flask and took a long draught. When he capped and replaced the flask, he reached down and plucked his bloody and ruined shirt. "Another perfectly - Der?"
She smiled vaguely and took a step toward him.
He caught her by the shoulders. "Well, you're a fine mess." He quickly plucked some bloody bits from her forehead. The Pallens sword dropped out of her hand. Over her shoulder, he peered down her back and cursed. "I know the chemman has my healing vials, go take one, or three."
She shook her head. "Give them to Kelin."
"No. I'm watching over you. Sit down."
"Shove off." She tried to stagger away from him. Her knees began to shake like grass in a windstorm as her adrenaline faded. "Go saddle the horse."
"What horse? It's dead, remember? Now, lie down, you're wounded."
She backed away from him, using her stubbornness as a crutch.
He shook her shoulders. "Of all the bull-headed, contumacious fools in this kingdom... Someday, someone is going to name a siege engine after you!"
She smiled and tried to push him away, but didn't have the strength at her strongest. "Stay away from me."
"I wish I could." He frowned. "Hm. I think you're weak enough now." His luminous green eyes bored into hers. "Fall asleep."
Der tried to bat him away. Her eyes closed as she shook her head. She felt her eyelids clang shut, but she forced them open again.
"Stubborn..." He grabbed her chin and forced eye contact again. "You're hearing only my voice. It is the only thing to you in the entire world. Now, fall asleep." He caught her as she fell, soundly slumbering. "Next time, I think I'm just going to hit you over the head."
"If there is a next time, you won't have the hands to try," Jakkobb said, still holding his bloody axe. Thistle and Kelin stood on either side of him, weapons still drawn.
"What? She's too stubborn for her own good."
Kelin looked at the knight. "Alright, he's right about that, but I don't like it!"
"Now what do we do?" Thalon asked, industriously cleaning his long knives. The large claw scrape still bled across his cheek.
"There's that last village half a day's walk from here." Jakkobb hadn't moved his eyes away from Tom. "We're all wounded and we need to rest."
"I can get her there faster," the vampire snarled. Spike pawed the ground behind him, scraping his bloody hooves across the grass.
Jakkobb shook his head. "She's not the only one. We'll all go. Then, once we're there and decently healthy, we'll talk."
"I'll be healed in a few hours, the rest of you won't."
"And, neither will she. She's too wounded to travel and you know that. Since you need her alive, you won't risk it."
* * *
"There are too many tracks." Thalon knelt on the road.
"I know." Tom scowled beneath his hood. He carried the sleeping Der as lightly as if she were a leaf. Thistle, Kelin and Der's wounds were healed by the vials. Thistle and Kelin had scoffed at the danger. However, the little bottles of miracles did nothing to help blood loss or exhaustion. Mora dozed on Spike's back while Kelin rode his own horse beside her, keeping a watchful eye. Der's mount that Mora had borrowed had never returned. No one had the strength to attempt to find it.
Thalon crossed his arms. "Why are there this many people on this road? That village can't be too big."
Jakkobb shrugged. "I don't know, do you humans have any wheat festivals or something?"
Kelin licked his lips. "Uh, I've never been here. I don't even know if they grow wheat here, sir."
"What's the name of this place?"
"Daedle's Locke," Tom answered. "It lies right on the river, but it's north of a knickpoint, so there's no shipping on it. The avulsion was south of here."
"A what?" Mora asked.
"I'll just say a waterfall - not a very large one either, but enough to deter any rafts and boats."
"How do you know this?" the knight asked.
Tom shrugged. "I decided to map the area awhile ago. I was bored. It only took a few years to do."
Daedle's Locke bulged into view like a blister on the landscape. The town walls stood besieged by a shantytown of canvas tents. Hundreds of people milled around with no discernible pattern to their actions. Most of them, however, seemed to hover around the river.
"Malfax will be worse than this now," Jakkobb murmured.
Tom smiled cheerfully, fangs and all. "Wonderful, we're walking into a pot of water and it's heating up rather quickly. I wonder, how long until it boils over the river?"
The knight sighed. They walked in silence for a moment.
"Inn's going to be full," Thistle observed.
"Leave that to me," Tom ordered quietly.
They sifted through the open palisade of the village. Traders wheeled their carts around in spaces that filled in with people when they passed. Daedle's Locke had more people than it could fit, and still more streamed in. The inn wasn't hard to locate, it was the only two story structure.
A small beagle barked as loudly as he could when the vampire entered the common room. Tom covertly glanced around, and satisfied no one was watching, hissed at the dog. It squealed and scurried back to the kitchens, tripping its hind feet over its tail stuck fast between its legs. Tom smirked to himself and set Der down on a bench. Then, he found the innkeeper and "talked" to him.
He returned to the others. "I secured us the room upstairs in the back." He took Der back and led the way.
"Won't there already be people there?" Thalon asked from somewhere behind Tom.
"For the moment. I'll 'talk' with them too." He kicked open the unlocked door into the room. Several surprised men looked up at him. "Everyone, look at my eyes." He jerked a thumb over his shoulder. "You, out." They walked past him in a pleasant daze out into the corridor.
Jakkobb's hand fell over his axe handle. "I don't like it."
"This is better than sleeping in the street." He laid Der out on the only bed in the room, and paused to check her pulse and breathing. "You know, she's actually peaceful when she's unconscious. You should keep her that way more."
"She's not my pet, vampire."
Tom snorted. "If you say so, elf. I'll be downstairs. Don't try anything." He left the door open as he walked past the captain. Once downstairs, he ordered the man in the darkest corner out.
He barely had five minutes to rest his back against the wall when Thalon crawled into the bench opposite of him. Tom met him with a stoic expression while his hands quickly rolled up the paper boasting a hand drawn portrait of a laughing, brown eyed girl.
"Dad says if you ever kick me again, he'll have your heart ripped out with a silver stake."
"Mmm. Then you should leave me alone and not tempt me."
"Aye." Thalon's shoulders barely crested over the top of the tall table.
Tom tilted his head to the side. "You must be half elf, half chemman, and I thought I was an outcast."
Thalon's small face bunched up. "What do you mean by that?"
The vampire shook his head. "Nothing, child."
Thistle appeared on the bench next to his son.
Tom sniffed. "There's wood and silver on you now, I can smell it. You procured them quickly."
The chemman shrugged nonchalantly.
"She swore an oath to me."
Thistle shrugged again.
"Ah. Well, it might not matter to you, but it matters to her."
"We want to know why you stole our friend," Thalon piped up.
Tom shook his head.
The boy looked up to his father, who nodded slightly. He grinned when he turned back to Tom. "You first stole Der in Malfax, and before the were-bear fight, Der mentioned you were doing this to help a girl. Now, Dad and I have heard of a dying girl in a village west of there. Lives in a one room cottage with her grandfather well outside of the village proper."
Tom dropped a heavy hand flat on the table and glared. Finally, he asked, "How did you know?"
Thalon shrugged. "We're spies now. It's our duty to know things - that's what the king said. She's bad; the town healer says that she won't make it."
"She will. I'll see to that."
"You'd better hurry up."
"Be quiet, boy. I've calculated my time."
"But, you don't have long!"
Thistle put a hand on his son's head and Thalon immediately closed his mouth.
"I have a query now," Tom said. "Why are you friends with this crowd? They aren't your kind."
"Why do you care for a dying girl?" Thistle countered. With that, he slid out from his seat.
* * *
Kelin and Mora slipped around a small knot of people. To Kelin, this town seemed more crowded than the capital, Second Acron, a year ago. They walked beside a young woman pointing at the sky. "I say Horthen saw it yesterday as huge as..." and then Kelin and Mora were past.
"What's that about?" Mora pressed a little closer. The noise around them swelled like any large city and it was easy to forget that this was just a tiny river village on the brink of war. Of course, there were rallies and shouts against Urael, the great oppressor, but inside the village square, most people meandered around blindly, and other people were there to make money from them.
He smiled. "I heard it in the common room at the inn. Rumors about a huge gold dragon on the horizon. But, they don't make sense. Jakkobb says there aren't dragons anywhere near this kingdom anyway, and he would know." He cast a sideways glance at her, and his grin spread. "You make that new dress look amazing."
Mora blushed. She ran her hands over the forest green dress again. The only break in the color was provided by the leather belt that crossed her waist. "It just doesn't feel right."
Kelin tried to look at the dress instead of the way it revealed her slender curves. "Well, you look incredible. I promise. In fact, you looked a little strange in your robes, not just because they were torn and stained. Nobody wears robes away from cities. Now, you look normal. It's a new day for you."
She half smiled. "Well, there's not much about my old life I actually enjoyed. In fact, ever since I met you, I've been thinking about my former life, and that wizard bastard who sent me to those slavers."
"You want revenge?"
She shook her head. "No. I thought about it, but no. I think I just want a new life and I just want to forget everything."
"Forget it? After everything? Surely that's impossible!"
"I don't know." She turned her face away. "I just - I just want to let it go. Since I've met you."
He put a hand on her shoulder and smiled. "I think that is very wise." Then, some of Der's practicality that had rubbed off on him pulled one of the bells in his mind. "Stop. You were sent to the slavers? Intentionally? You said they captured you."
Mora gasped, and immediately stammered, "Look, I didn't want you to know. My teacher turned on me when he sold his soul. Please, I just want to forget all of it. Like you said, it's a new day." She forced a weak smile.
He gazed at her for a long moment and then sighed. "I'm sorry. I won't ask." He ran a hand through his hair. "I wish what you went through had never happened to you. I wish that I'd never been tortured either, but I'm learning that without that horrible, awful thing I wouldn't be here where I am today. You and I wouldn't be here, together. Still, I wish that I had met you without those scars you bear because then I think that you wouldn't be so afraid."
She tried to smile. "Afraid of what?"
"Anything. Everyone. I've been there, Mora. I understand. And then," He gulped and fought against the sudden knot in his throat. "Then, I wouldn't be afraid to tell you... Ah-hem." He felt his entire body wince. "I know how scared you are, and I wouldn't even dare think of talking to you - about you and me - after what you been through, but..." He felt his face starting to steam and his tongue suddenly fall limp.
She kissed him. He almost backed away in surprise. Through his surprise, he wrapped his arms around her and let the warm waves of emotion carry him out to sea. He kissed her back, and suddenly, he didn't care about the staring onlookers, her past, the vampire, or even this imminent war. In this moment, everything was right.
* * *
Der tiptoed down the stairs. Tom still sat in his corner, writing to himself on parchment with a sleek feather pen. His portable inkwell sat neatly on the table. The rest of the common room was almost empty despite the crowds in town. She couldn't explain why.
He didn't look up while his pen continued to osculate the parchment. "You're supposed to be asleep."
She took the other bench. "Well, I slept. What are you writing?"
He covered the paper with his arm and set the pen down. He waited for the ink to dry, and then rolled up the paper carefully in his hands. "My personal affairs."
She sighed, and then straightened. "I have a question."
"You usually do," he muttered. He rubbed his face briefly. "Well, what is it?"
"Why do the undead need to eat? Walking corpses or vampires or whatever. I mean, you're dead. Things have to eat to stay alive, and well, you don't. And why blood? Is it part of the curse or something?"
His emerald eyes narrowed. "Why do you want to know? And no, I'm not telling you."
"Through understanding comes peace," she quoted a common phrase.
"No, you'll just use it against me."
"How can I do that?"
His mouth slipped a little open. He closed it with a click. "I'm not telling you that either." He leaned back and folded his arms. "Why do you want to know?"
She shrugged. "I'm just curious."
He stroked his chin. "Curious. No one's ever just curious - not that I've encountered." He watched her intently for a moment. "Perhaps you are. Fine. Although bereft of what you define as life, the undead still must maintain corporal coils. Bodies need to feed. The body needs energy and the ability to heal and those always come from feeding - animal or human or elf or dwarf, alive or undead. Understand?"
She nodded.
"Those puppets that the chemmen used, well, they're just reduced to the most base instinct - feeding. The chemmen certainly wouldn't allow them to retain their thought processes, not when they could turn back on them. It all boils down to survival - partially, anyway." He finished packing his belongings into his belt pouch. "We're done with this conversation. Now, we've got to get some new clothes. Our only ones are ripped and conspicuously red." He pulled his gloves on.
"I'm not going out with you. You'll kidnap me again."
He looked up. "I don't have to. You promised me."
"I know, but I'd like my friends to come too."
He shook his head. "No. I will steal you away again if I must. When you can walk for more than an hour without fainting. We are in a hurry, after all. Besides, the last few days of a warmer autumn are almost gone, it'll be cold soon. We need new clothes."
"Does the cold actually bother you?"
"No, not really, but I have to dress to blend in. I'm not immune to it, if that's what you're asking. For the both of us, walking around in bloody rags doesn't bode well." For now, they had their dark cloaks drawn over their ruined shirts and trousers.
"I left my coin purse upstairs."
"If you insist," he sighed. He waited for her at the bottom of the stairs. She stopped at the height of the landing and stared at him.
"Do I look funny, Derora?"
She shook her head. "No, you look normal, but you're acting funny."
He half grinned. "No, I'm just keeping you off balance. How are you?"
"Stiff and tired, but I'm alright."
"Good. It's been a very long time since I've protected someone in a fight, and you had to play hero and nearly get your stupid self killed."
"I saved Mora's life. She's not my favorite person in the world, I'll admit, but I'd do it again."
"Derora, I need you alive, not her. I won't allow you to do that. Even if I have to kick you again."
A grin sprang onto her face. "Oh, that's right! Please, Tom, will you teach me that kick? I mean, I was behind you, and you brought your leg up that far and-"
"What?" he interrupted.
"Teach me how to kick like that. That was incredible!"
He shook his head. "No."
"But, I want to know."
He waved his hand in frustration. "Go ask your chemman. I'm sure he knows how to do that too."
She crossed her arms. "Fine."
He covered his mouth with his hand and laughed softly.
"What?" she asked more sharply than she'd intended.
"You're pouting."
She instantly uncrossed her arms. "I am not. Now, will you please teach me?"
He shook his head.
She snorted. "You broke your promise, you know."
He stiffened. "No, I didn't hurt you. You probably don't even have a bruise. After we're done with this quest, and my promise fulfilled, I can show you what I can do with that kick," he said with brittle brightness.
"Stop trying to frighten me. I see right through your façade."
All expression evaporated from his face. He folded his hands together on the table. "It is not a façade, child. I think that you just can't understand this, so you let your imagination lie to you."
