LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter Four
Carter lay on his stomach, face resting on his folded arms, as Dearbhaile ran a warm sponge over his lower back.
“Everyone in the club has all eyes on us,” she said with a smile.
“Indeed. Bring the action with hominy.” He raised his head and watched her over his shoulder.
Her beautiful auburn hair hung down over her bare breasts, obscuring her nipples and areola from his sight. A green leaf covered her groin. She dipped the sponge into a bucket of fragrant, steaming water and ran it over the entirety of his right buttock with a whimsical smile. As the sponge approached his thigh, he farted.
A blast of hot air on his bare ass brought Carter rolling to his feet, arms up in a defensive posture, and eyes popping open a few seconds later.
A brown and white cow lowed at him. He stared at it blankly. A thought struck him. ‘Why was I able to feel the cow’s nose?’
Carter glanced down at himself. “Where the fuck are my clothes?”
###
Anna Jacoba tapped her clutch-mate’s shoulder. “Jeroen, there’s someone in our cow pasture.”
He turned and peered out the window to where she pointed. “Why is he naked?”
She shrugged, causing the mid-morning sunlight to bounce off her blue scales. “Maybe he molested the cow?”
Jeroen turned to her and narrowed his eyes. “You’re disgusting.”
“What? I’ve heard it happens.”
He shook his head and walked out the door of their home, lifting his bar mace as he did. He noted the nude male was a human as he got closer. Those of elvish blood smelled different from humans and going from the two-toned skin and lack of fangs, he was full-blood human. From the way he shifted his weight to the front of his feet and angled himself slightly, the human knew how to fight, and didn’t mind doing so unclothed.
Jeroen stopped well out of the human’s reach, but well within his own. He took note of the scars crisscrossing the human’s body as well as the one which split his beard in two. ‘Some of these are claw and fang marks. Whoever he is, he’s strong to have survived all this.’
“He smells powerful,” Anna Jacoba said.
The naked human shrugged his broad shoulders. “Sorry. I’ve not bathed in… Wait. What day is this?”
“Chokkan’s Day,” she said.
“I meant the date.”
Jeroen said, “The fourth Chokkan’s Day of Wincarum.”
The man closed his eyes. “What the hell happened day before yesterday?”
Anna Jacoba stepped closer. “What are you? Why are you naked? Where are you from?”
He opened his eyes. “I am a simple warrior named Lavitz. I am from Dragon Keep, and I don’t—” He cocked his head to the side. “Why are you shaking your head?”
“You’re more than a simple warrior, human. I’ve never felt power like yours before. Therefore, I ask that you stop lying.”
He folded thick arms across his barrel chest. “Never felt power like mine?” His eyebrow went up. “I have no idea what that means.” Lavitz flicked his gaze over to Jeroen. “Would you happen to have some clothes I could borrow? It’s rather disconcerting to be interrogated while nude.”
The small turquoise scales near Jeroen’s nose rippled. “Maybe after you’ve bathed.”
Lavitz nodded. “Fair enough. May I know your names?”
“I’m Jeroen, and this is my clutch-mate, Anna Jacoba.”
“Jeroen, I do not trust him,” she said in Draconic. “There is a deadly power within him. I do not think it is of this world.”
“I will accept your word on it, sister. My guard will remain up.”
###
Adora rode up and dismounted. A groomsman hurried up and took the reins, leading the horse away to be cared for. The towering form of Sir Alistair Germorié strode up to her. She stopped her march further into the camp for him. He could easily catch up to her, but she wanted an update now. The Avalanche was her general in the field and her closest advisor off it. He halted and clapped his fist to his heart.
“Sir Alistair.”
“My Queen.”
“Report.”
“There’s an encampment of orcs five wheels to the west. Four wheels to the north is a herd of undead lead by a shrouded being, possibly a necromancer, possibly a cleric. Due to how it’s wrapped, it’s either a mummy or a vampire. To the east by seven wheels is a coterie of cultists attempting to open a bridge.”
“To the Abyss, or someplace else?”
“Unknown, Your Highness. We’ve lost four scouts trying to find out.”
“Damn it.” She sighed. “Alright. What do you have in place?”
“Runners on the hilltop overlooking their position with spyglasses. I am about to order harriers to harass the orcs and a platoon of clerics to do as much damage to the undead as possible.”
“Why so many clerics?”
“At last count, the undead numbered five thousand.”
“Shit.” She nodded. “A platoon makes sense. I’m sorry for questioning.”
“You’re my ruler. It’s your prerogative.”
She resumed walking further into the camp. “Where’s the food tent?”
“The center, Your Highness.” He fell in beside her, his much longer legs allowing him to easily keep pace with her. “Majesty, may I speak freely?”
‘That’s unusual in public. I wonder what’s on his mind.’ She glanced over at him. “Of course.”
“We could certainly use the aid of the Chronomancer. Were you able to locate him?”
Adora took a deep breath before shaking her head. “No.” She twisted to the side to avoid a red-clad messenger darting past. “You-know-who is still on his hopeless errand, too.”
“Is Sir Lavitz about to make another excursion into the Abyss?”
She gave a tired chuckle at his hopeful tone. “Sorry, he is not. Looks like there will be nothing to distract the demons this time.” She halted as a line of trebuchets crossed ahead of them. “Sir Alistair, call the drover leading these weapons.”
The Avalanche saluted and then bellowed to a burly man with two stripes on his chest. He nudged his dappled stallion over. After clapping his fist to his heart, he dismounted. “Your Majesty. General.”
“Sargent, order four of these trebuchets to the hilltop overlooking the cultists.”
“You want us to bomb them to the Abyss, Your Majesty?”
She nodded. “I do. Will you see to it?”
His once more clapped his fist to his chest. “Personally and at once, my Queen.”
“Thank you.” She waved him on and then ducked into the cook tent. She grabbed a plate and one of the cooks filled it with camp stew. “Will you join me, Sir Alistair?”
“It would be my honor, Your Majesty.”
When his plate was filled, Alistair followed her out the food tent and over to her own. They sat at the lone table after she cleared away the various maps, pens, ink and other detritus. Their gauntlets unstrapped and laid to the side, they ate the simple, yet filling meal. After a few bites, Alistair set his spoon down and folded his fingers together above his plate.
“Adora, why do you do this to yourself?”
She swallowed the spoonful of stew. “What do you mean?”
“Don’t pull that with me, young lady. Dodging the question didn’t work when you were my apprentice, it’s not going to work now you’re my queen.”
She put down her spoon and rubbed the bridge of her nose. “I love him.”
“I know this. And yet, you wait on him as if that alone will change things.”
She slumped back in her seat and idly rocked her spoon by its bowl. “I can’t do anything else. I have a war to wage.”
“Which is yet another issue. The Walker of Worlds is a formidable ally, and you don’t have him here.”
“I can’t force him to be here.”
“Did you ask him?”
“Yes.”
“How?”
“What do you mean?”
“Was it a, ‘We really need your help, Walker,’ or was it more of ‘You’d be a big help, Carter?’”
She mumbled.
“What was that, Adora?”
A sigh escaped her. “The latter.”
Alistair nodded. “I thought so.” He leaned back in his chair and folded his arms, causing the steel of his vambraces to screech over the plackart of his cuirass. “You have to speak your heart and mind. As great a warrior the Walker of Worlds is, he’s not a mind reader.”
She quirked an eyebrow and gave him a faint smile. “How do you know?”
“Because he’d have come talk to you as I’ve thought at him many times.”
“Why haven’t you spoken with Carter before now?” She leaned forward and rested her chin in her palm.
“Because though he is my king, I do not know him as well as you do.”
Adora stood and picked up her plate. “I only know a little about him.” She ducked under the flap and back into the bright sunlight. Squinting her eyes as she glanced back, she saw The Avalanche had followed with his own dishes. “Did you know he’s five years younger than me?”
“I did not, Your Majesty.”
“Yeah. Imagine that.” She headed back to the food tent. “You know, when the Crimson Walker killed my father, I blamed Carter for the longest time.” She caught his questioning gaze. “It was chasing him, you see, when he ran into the throne room. I had never seen one before, just read of them in ancient stories. The Crimson Walker was the first thing I’d ever seen unaffected by dragonfire.”
“Angriz was unable to stop it?”
“Of course not.” She ducked into the other tent and rinsed her plate in the water left for that purpose. Setting it on the stack of others, she continued. “As far as I know, only an angel is able to contain it.”
Alistair lead the way back out. “Only contain it?”
She nodded. “Indeed.”
“The king says that a lot.”
“He says he picked it up from Angriz.”
“And you seem to have picked it up from him.”
“Carter says we tend to unconsciously adopt the habits, mannerisms, and quirks of those we greatly respect or love.”
“Interesting.”
“He’s very wise for his relative youth.”
“He’s made multiple excursions into the Abyss.”
“Yes, but he’s always survived.”
“Your Highness, everyone always survives. Until they don’t.”
“What are you getting at?” She narrowed her eyes. “You don’t approve.”
Alistair shrugged. “My approval doesn’t matter to the king.” He slid his hands into his gauntlets, fastening them into place.
“He still searches for his love.”
Alistair’s eyebrow rose. “Is it love, or obligation which causes him to search?” At her shrug, he continued. “If it were a genuine love for the Keeper, then why marry you?”
“It was to help safeguard my throne. Remember when Weimarcht tried to take over four years ago?”
“I do. He waited until both Angriz and myself were out of the city.”
“Yes, and after Angriz proposed a tournament to,” she wiggled her fingers, “test the suitors’ worthiness, Carter somehow slipped into the city and entered it after saving Angriz’ life.”