19. Timas
Chapter 19
Timas
I have a contingent of Fae at my back. The Noble Guard, Milori, Garrick, and a couple dozen soldiers. It’s a small force but a lethal one. Neeve and her two companions are also joining us; they have replaced their fancy gowns with pants and long tunics. Something about the change in attire makes them look more formidable. It makes me wonder how often they even wear gowns when they look far more comfortable in this much more practical clothing.
We’ve been travelling all day, the horses are tired, the soldiers are tired, and even though I want to push through the night, I know that it is better to stop and rest. If we are all dead on our feet, we won’t be able to take on whatever resistance we find at the Night Court. A roadside inn comes up on our right. It is not a very large building, but it is a place to get food and rest. We won’t all be able to fit inside, but we have the necessary supplies to camp outside if we need to. As we approach the inn, we notice a hitching post and troughs, so we maneuver the horses to them. As I hop off my white stallion, a small human boy rushes out to greet us. He stops dead in his tracks when he sees us. I try to give a warm smile, but we must be a sight to see. The Fae people are tall by nature, and it’s not common to see so many this far inland.
“Hello, little sir.” Milori turns his charm up to the maximum. “Don’t suppose you have enough food and water for all our horses, do you?” After a brief moment of delay, the small boy finds his feet and smiles timidly.
“We have enough for about ten horses but I can get more food from the neighbouring village. It might take me a while, though.” Milori bends down on one knee and sticks out his hand. The small boy reaches out and shakes it, in a typical Human greeting.
“That sounds wonderful. We hope to be staying the night here. Oh, and here.” Milori pulls out a small satchel of coins and hands it to the boy. His eyes go wide as he timidly takes the offered bag. “That’s all for you. For your hard work. We will pay the owners for the food and water for the horses.” He smiles big and nods his little head. Milori scruffs up his hair as the boy turns to run away. After he stands, he looks over at me. I didn’t ask a question, but he feels like he needs to explain.
“He reminds me of myself. Mother and Father didn’t always have enough, so I helped out at the local tavern. Hard work for such a young boy.” I give a nod because there is no reason to delve into his past, especially standing outside some run-down inn on the side of the road. Stepping through the door of the inn we end up in a small room with several doors and halls leading off it. There are two tables on either side of the room with bench seats on each side. A bar sits against the back wall with an older man standing behind it. Milori walks up, still with a smile on his face, to greet the man.
“Good evening, sir. We are looking for some rooms. How many do you have available?” He eyes us with suspicion, I don’t blame him. How often do you see a large group of Fae people wandering the Human Kingdom? He seems to take in our group and the clothing we are wearing.
“You lot from some fancy place? Not many people stop here with such fancy clothes,” the innkeeper says in a raspy voice. Milori does not want to give too many answers.
“Something like that.” He pulls out another satchel, which is larger and heavier than the boy’s bag, and puts it on the bar top. “We need rooms and food. We also have a fair few horses that need tending, the young boy outside is sorting that for us. Here’s the money.” The old man’s eyes nearly bug out of his head. We are certainly overpaying, but Milori is not only paying for the stay but also for him not to ask too many questions.
“Right! Of course. We have five rooms available and I’ll tell the missus to get a big pot of stew on.” Milori nods his head in agreement as the old man takes the satchel of money.
Only a few of us are able to stay inside. I could have had my own room, but Milori staying with me in the bedroom with two singles seems like a better idea, so some of the other Fae travelling with us can stay inside. The rest have set up a camp not too far away from the inn. The innkeeper, Gerald, has already started dishing out stew to my men outside. I don’t want to eat before them. I’m staying inside so they can at least eat first. The old man had a smaller room off the main room allocated for us to eat in. Milori, Garrick, myself, Neeve, and her companions sit around a table, hot stew waiting for us with a large tankard of ale.
We sit and eat with minimal conversation. No one really wants to talk about what is going on, but I have so many questions running through my mind, so to ease the growing number of questions, I ask them to Neeve.
“What is it we should be expecting tomorrow?” Neeve puts her spoon down and looks at me. We are sitting at a long rectangular table with me at the head on one end and her at the other end. Exhaustion comes over her features. For the first time, I can see how truly tired she is. The bags under her eyes are deep purple; perhaps she wore colouring on her face to cover the exhaustion, but the long day has wiped it away.
“Many of the reports I have received talk about the conditions of my people. After my family was presumed dead, Oberon returned to the Shrouded Forest and claimed the throne as his own. Immediately, he killed anyone loyal to my father or who might start an uprising against him. The people have a curfew, according to the reports. They are required to work eighteen-hour days, and I have also heard there are physical punishments for not meeting standards. They are near starving, and many of the weak have died because of the rations.” She pushes out a breath and then continues. “Oberon is an evil tyrant. He wants power and to be worshipped. He is delusional and convinced he can kill you, though his power can not even match my own. Had I been able to take on his loyal guards, I would have fought my way in and killed him myself. Even with my own power I can not fight against the amount of Noble Fae that will die for Oberon. When we arrive, make known to the people that they are not going to be held responsible for Oberon’s actions. They will more than likely step away and let the fight happen, but I ask you to consider who you are fighting, because so many of them are afraid and have been coerced into the position they are in. Whatever happens tomorrow, Oberon will not be left breathing.” Neeve and her companions stand and leave the room, and I can imagine the pain and guilt she must be feeling knowing she has left her people in such a horrible situation. After her departure, the silence that hangs around us feels heavy. The only sound that can be heard is wooden spoons clanging with wooden bowls.
“Well that was awkward. I don’t think she has many friends.” Garrick breaks the silence, and just as quickly, Milori punches him in the shoulder hard. “Ow! What was that for?”
“For being a completely insensitive oaf! Who says something like that after finding out about such tragic circumstances? Were you not hugged enough as a child?” Garrick retaliates with a punch to Milori, but Milori dodges it easily.
“Orcs don’t hug, you culturally insensitive fool.” I’m not sure what Garrick’s point was in making that comment, but it broke the tension, and maybe that was the point. It’s a horrific situation, but we can’t sit in the devastation of it. We need to be prepared for the fight ahead. Standing from the table, I head for my room.
“Nice going, you made Timas leave.” Milori says.
“I did not!”
Exiting the room with the two “children” bickering, the innkeeper, Gerald, stops me on my way upstairs.
“Your Majesty. I’m so sorry to interrupt you, but a message has arrived for you.” A message? He hands over a yellow orb that I recognize immediately, but how did this innkeeper come into possession of a messenger orb? “I’m not sure exactly what it is, but I was told to give it to you.” He backs away like he is scared of it, which is laughable, but it’s not an item used in the Human Kingdom, so I’m not surprised. I carry the orb upstairs to the room I am currently occupying. Once the door is closed, I place the orb in my palm, and it gently hovers and pulses. Sigrid’s familiar voice flows out of it.
“Emilia, I don’t know when this will get to you, and I hope I did this right and it is recording me but I found out why the King has allied with Gormash. Rumour has it that the princess is missing and many believe that she was kidnapped by Gormash to force the King into upholding their agreement. The High King’s Court is very tense right now and the King is on edge even more so than usual, according to some of the staff. You were right to look for information. I don’t know where this poor girl is but from what I understand, she isn’t exactly appreciated by her family and tries to keep to herself which has obviously sparked more rumours about her. She’s more a tool to be used by her father. Anyways, I will head back to the palace within a couple of days. I do not believe there is more to learn here and frankly, I am sick of being treated like a second-class citizen. I will be happy to sleep in that lovely bed of mine. Remind me to thank Timas for that wonderful room. Be safe.” The orb stops pulsing and puffs into a light mist that covers my palm. Sigrid. Emilia sent Sigrid to the High King’s Court to find out information. Guilt fills me to the point I might explode. Emilia thought of looking into a potentially problematic situation to prepare and gain knowledge for me. Twice now she has looked out for me. Pain rips through my heart. She is my other half, and she has been taken away from me. She sees things I don’t: how did I live without her for so long?
The door to the room opens, and Milori walks in. “Garrick cannot possibly be that dumb,” he mutters.
“I don’t think he is. I think he was trying to bring levity to a tense situation.” Milori looks at me for a moment in contemplation.
“I didn’t think he was smart enough to do that.”
“You literally just said he can’t be that stupid and then said he was stupid. Make up your mind.” He just shrugs and comes closer, noticing the orb mist in my hand.
“Who sent you a message?” My friend is immediately replaced by the Captain of the Guard.
“It’s from Sigrid. Emilia sent her to the High King’s Court to find out why he is allying with Gormash. There might be a chance the princess was kidnapped and is being used to force the High King’s hand. Emilia must have assigned the orb to be readable by myself or her, and seeing as she is unreachable, it came to me.” Milori ponders this new information for a moment, then continues.
“There are rumours about the reclusive princess; I have heard that she hides away and tries very hard to keep herself separate from the High King and her brothers. Last I heard, she was staying in an estate outside of the city living a quiet life. Though recent news has said she was going to be betrothed to a noble and not a very nice one if my information is correct.” I’m slightly surprised he knows so much about what’s going on in the High King’s Court. “My job is to know everything that is going on, don’t look so surprised by this.” He’s right. Wiping off my hands, I walk over to the open window where I can see my men milling about. This time tomorrow, I will have Emilia in my arms, but before that, I will kill the man responsible for taking her away.
Just hold on, Emilia, I’m coming.