Ashea returned to her room in a daze. She set her bow and sword down on her bed and approached her vanity. Laying in the middle was the dagger that had been pulled from her father’s side. The pommel bore the image of the water wolf, the sigil of the Dacian Royal family. Their Elite Guard, the personal guards and assassins for the family, were the only ones issued such a dagger.

She turned the steel in her hand. For so long she had wanted to find the owner of the blade to take her revenge. After so many years she had given up hope of finding the man, but the idea of leaving altogether or leaving the Paladai felt like more than giving up. It felt like a dishonor to Alran’s memory.

Staring at her reflection in the vanity mirror her father’s grey eyes stared at his tawny skin. The only thing of her mother she could see was her dull, black hair. In the cameo by the mirror, her mother’s dark locks looked lustrous and flattering with her pale skin. She wished she had taken more after her mother, if only to not be constantly reminded of her father.

Kade was right. She needed time to think, to clear her mind. She set the dagger back down and picked up her drak whistle that lay nearby. She then strapped her father’s sword to her waist and slung her quiver and new bow across her body.

Luken would most likely argue that she was over armed, but there were more dangers in the woods for a Paladai than a normal man. Ever since their exile, Hunters, mercenaries trained specifically to kill Paladai, had been cropping up everywhere in hopes of taking one down, mostly for the bounty King Ari offered.

Grabbing her saddle bags, Ashea stopped in the kitchen to pack some food and grab a treat for Zeru, her father’s drak. Draks had incredibly long lives; some had supposedly lived to be over one hundred years. Zeru was now seventy one years old, but his age did little to damper his ferocity. Besides being overly protective of their riders, draks were territorial, which meant they couldn’t be kept in stables inside the compound.

With her packs filled she stood outside the main gate to blow the whistle. Each whistle was made with between one and four barrels of varying lengths and widths to create unique sounds for each drak. Ashea’s created an undulating, high pitched sound as she blew across the top of the whistle. It only took a few moments before Zeru came shrieking out of the forest. She could see why the average person would be terrified of them. Once upon a time she might have found a large screaming, reptilian horse-looking creature with talons the size of a man’s hand and sharp teeth an alarming sight. Now, Zeru’s green hide speckled with blue was a welcome sight.

“Good morning, Zeru,” she greeted with an outstretched hand. He nuzzled her hand with his nose, a sound somewhere between a purr and growl emanating deep in his chest. “I have something for you.” She pulled an apple from her bag and held it up for him. Despite what people thought about them being carnivores, which wasn’t always too far from the truth, draks had a sweet tooth. Zeru’s was for apples.

His serpent tongue flicked in and out, staring at it impatiently, waiting for his opportunity to snatch it from her hand. Preferring to keep her fingers attached this morning, she dropped it to the ground, which it never had the opportunity to touch before Zeru dipped his head down and his tongue darted out to catch the fruit, swallowing it with one bite. When he tried nosing at the bags in search of more, she swatted him away.

“You are such a glutton. Behave yourself, or I get the rest,” she threatened. He snorted his disapproval but didn’t make another attempt for the bags. She gave him a reassuring pat to his shoulder before hefting the bags across his back and tied the cinch under his belly. Now came the hard part: mounting. Draks were not small creatures. The tallest horse Ashea had known stood about fifteen hands at his shoulders. Draks always stood a minimum of eighteen hands. Zeru stood at nineteen. Since jumping was out of the question without running at him, she motioned for him to lower down to use his elbow as a step up.

After settling herself on his back, they took off at a brisk walk through the trees. In a way, it was refreshing to wander without needing to be in a hurry to get to a city for an assignment or needing to patrol the roads waiting for a passerby to be attacked, which could become boring quite quickly depending on the day. There was something about being in the dense woods, the sounds of birds flittering through branches, small animals skittering through the underbrush, that carried more calmness than any place she had ever been to. City dwellers in Avar claimed the temples to the gods were more relaxing, but those marble halls carried the silence of a tomb. In the woods there was life, creation. Plants didn’t have to be gathered and crushed into incense to perfume the air; they just existed, the sweet and the spicy, the smell of the earth. This was living.

Minutes melded into hours until the sun was nearing its highest point in the sky. Ashea would soon have to start making her way to the glade where she was to meet Luken, but she would enjoy one more pleasure today. Deep in the forest, fairly well hidden, was a group of hot springs. She had only discovered them several years ago, and finding an excuse to wander toward them and actually enjoy them was a rare thing.

She laid her weapons carefully so they could be easily reached before quickly stripping her clothes and untying her hair, tossing the leather strap on the pile of fabric, and slid into the smallest of the steaming pools of water, relaxing against the side of the pool, her eyes closing to better relish the comfort. The hot water immediately began soothing away what was left of her tension caused by the morning’s dream and subsequent activity.

Maybe Kade was right. Maybe it was time for the Paladai to leave. The odds of finding her father’s murderer at this point were next to impossible. Even if they did find the exact man, it didn’t change the fact that they would have been working under Ari’s orders. They couldn’t move any further against Ari without starting a full scale war, which could either see Avar as collateral damage or another potential enemy if Ari manage to convince them to become an ally.

As much as she hated the idea of running away, the Paladai had outlived their purpose here. It was time for them all to move on. As much as she wished she could try to honor the wish of her father to not be a Paladai, staying behind in the land where he was killed was more than she could bear.

A sudden snapping of branches brought her to attention. It couldn’t have been Zeru; draks were all but silent when they moved. She began to move toward her sword when a pair of squabbling squirrels began running through the bushes and up a tree trunk. Relaxing again, she brushed it off as paranoia. Comforting as the forest was, it still had a mystical effect that could inspire fear as easily as peace.

“Well, lookee here, boys,” a voice suddenly said from the trees.

She bolted up again, instinctively reaching for her blade. A well placed arrow landed in front of her hand, effectively keeping her from her weapons. Abandoning that for the moment, she looked up at the group of men forming around the spring. There were seven of them, and only one of them had a bow. If she could get close enough to the man with the bow, it would be simple to deal with the rest of the rather pathetic looking group. They were decently built, but it was hardly impressive. Their clothes were encrusted with dirt and sweat, giving off a pungent odor as the man she assumed to be their leader stepped forward.

“It looks like this little girl took a wrong turn,” he crooned with a yellow toothed smile. It took everything she had to not curl her lip at him. If she was to get closer, they would need to think she was actually afraid of the ragged posse. She tried to cover herself, feigning the frightened, modest girl. Honestly, if it was between her life and her decency, she would rather keep her life.

“What do you want?” she asked, making sure there was a small tremor to her voice.

“We just want to…help you, little girl,” he said, kneeling down not far from the pool.

Still too far away, she hissed inwardly. A little closer and she could use him as a shield from the archer.

“I don’t need any help.” Where are you, Zeru?

“You must, if you think traveling these woods alone is safe.”

A sudden flash of steel erupted from the forest, startling the men, and drew the attention of the archer. Perfect. Moving quickly, she sprung up out of the water, taking up her sword in one fluid movement, and struck down the horrid man. As several of the other men returned their attention to her, they brought up their swords. As if it would do them any good. A parry here and a slash there left three more of the bandits dead at her feet.

Her mystery “rescuer” had managed to incapacitate two of the remaining men while the third was still hacking wildly at him with a hatchet. The stranger didn’t seem to be completely inept with a sword, but she doubted he would have been able to handle all seven by himself. The man with the hatchet landed a punch on the other man’s face, sending him to the ground. Well, this could end badly, she mused. Tired and bored with the confrontation, she ran up behind the man as he raised the hatchet for another swing and drove her blade through his chest. She gave the blade a twist as she ripped it from his body, his corpse crumpling to the ground.

Kneeling down to her rescuer she asked, “Are you all right?” He averted his gaze, his hand covering the area where he had been hit, which effectively hid his face.

“I am, madam, though I would rather continue this conversation with your clothes on,” he replied.

It took a moment for her to remember she was still naked. Oddly enough, she still had little care about who saw her. She supposed a normal person would get excited at this point and have the immediate compulsion to cover themselves. Kade must have effectively broken that side of her, since she hardly felt the urgent need she knew she should have. Pushing that thought aside she grabbed up her top and skirt and tied them about her body before sliding her whistle on and her bow across her back.

“You can uncover your eyes now,” she said, turning to face him again.

He did so timidly, as if afraid she was lying to him about her decency. When he finally did look at her, she found it hard to deny he was quite handsome. He appeared to be about her age with a strong jaw, cleft chin, and crystal blue eyes that held a certain naïveté rarely, if ever, seen in Paladai men. His dark, curled hair fell just below his shoulders and was tied at the nape of his neck.

Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.

“Are you all right?” she repeated.

“Yes, of course,” he said, picking himself up and brushing off his clothes, a simple brown leather jerkin over a white shirt with a black riding cloak. “If I may ask, why is a woman such as yourself traveling alone and dressed so…” She gave him a challenging stare, waiting for him to finish the question. “…provocatively,” he finished.

“In case you hadn’t noticed, I am more than capable of handling myself,” she scoffed as she surveyed the bodies. “And the way I dress is my business.”

“Forgive me. I meant no disrespect. However, you hardly seemed in the best position when I happened upon you,” he said, his courage seeming to resurface as he closed some of the distance between them.

“Another moment and he would have been where I needed him. Your aid was minimal, at best,” she said, crossing her arms over her chest.

“A simple thank you would suffice,” he said, a hint of a smirk crossing his features.

“Not likely to happen.”

“Are you always so stubborn?”

“Only with men like you.”

“And what kind of man would that be?” he asked, his tall frame towering over her. As if that was supposed to be intimidating.

“The kind who foolishly thinks he’s a hero.” He stared down at her with mild amusement in his eyes. He was brave, she had to give him that, but all men were before they found out the truth. “If you will excuse me, I have somewhere to be,” she said and blew her whistle to summon Zeru, who definitely was not getting another apple today.

“Interesting whistle. Reminds me of the kind Paladai use for their draks,” he commented.

“Really? I wouldn’t know,” she replied sarcastically as Zeru stepped forward silently behind him, breathing down his neck. He turned slowly, but when he saw Zeru, she was sure he would faint, maybe even scream. He did neither, but he did go pale as he turned back to her, his eyes wide when he realized what was happening.

“You…y-you’re a…”

“You’re gaping like a fish. It’s not very becoming,” she said as she turned to replace her leather slippers on her feet.

“If I had known who you were, I never would have presumed—”

“That I was weak and defenseless? I will admit this: you made for a good distraction, but that was all. Now, be on your way before Zeru decides to make a snack of you.” He wouldn’t actually do it without being told, but it was too much fun to threaten him.

He took several steps away from Zeru, who was now baring his teeth. “Please, I mean no harm, but I am lost. If you can point me in the right direction, you will never have to see me again.”

It was no wonder he was lost. There was no trail for at least three leagues. That meant he was either a fool or…

“Why are you so far from the road, Dacian?”

Judging by his hesitation to deny the accusation, it was the truth.

“I have family in the Avarian capital. I was told the roads were dangerous. I thought I knew the way. Apparently I was wrong,” he admitted. It was a bit farfetched but not unheard of. Her own father was an Avarian who married a Dacian.

“As you can see, these woods are thick with undesirables. Paladai guard the roads. Head that way,” she said, pointing west. “Follow the trail east. You should be in the capital in three days.”

“Three days? How…I’m sorry. I’ve imposed on enough of your time. I’ll be on my way.” He couldn’t seem to move fast enough to get to a horse he had tied to a tree not far away and run off. There was something odd about the man, but he was gone now, which meant he was no longer her problem to deal with. That suited her just fine.

“And where were you, Zeru? You know better than to wander off,” she scolded. Zeru hardly seemed bothered. He yawned at her and started nuzzling at her hand, a sign he wanted another treat. She slapped him away. “If you were here when you were supposed to, you’d get your apple. You weren’t, so back off.” He whined and growled, but gave up and lowered himself for her to mount.

With Zeru running, the trip from the springs to the glade was a short one. When they broke through the trees she could see Luken waiting, a picnic already laid out on a blanket. How he had managed the trip and gotten here so quickly was quite the mystery.

“Your horse must have the speed of a drak, if you got here so soon, Luken,” she said as she approached the site.

“I may have told a small fib this morning. I hope you’re pleasantly surprised.”

“You’re getting better at lying. I used to be able to catch you in a heartbeat.”

“Does this mean I’m forgiven?”

Looking at the picnic and the effort he had obviously put into it, it was hard to be mad with him. Still, she was not about to let him have an easy time of it. No one, especially Luken, was allowed to worry her for no reason and get away with it.

“You still have some groveling to do,” she said as she sat down on the blanket to pluck up some of the fruit that had been laid out.

“Oh, really? Who was it that dropped a hornet nest on my head?” he asked, sitting next to her.

“It didn’t fall on your head. It landed on the ground.”

“Yes, it did. At my feet. I think nearly getting killed by angry bugs is fair payment.”

“That was years ago. I’ve already made up for it.”

“It was three months ago,” he pointed out.

“Are you sure?” she teased. She remembered the day well enough. It was a stray arrow that had brought the nest down, and Luken was laid up for a week after.

“Very,” he said, grabbing a sweet roll from a basket. The smile that broke across his face was a good sign he held no grudge for the incident, though he did have every right. It only took another moment for both of them to break into laughter. How they managed to stay friends for this long with multiple incidents like that was beyond her. Whatever the reason, she was grateful.

Nearly an hour had passed, and as they began to gather their things and clean up the site, Zeru began fidgeting and making low growling sounds.

“What is it, Zeru?” she asked, patting his shoulder reassuringly. He snorted and began pawing at the ground, a signal he heard or smelled something wrong. “Luken, leave it. Come with me,” she ordered as Zeru lowered himself. She held her hand out for Luken who climbed up behind her. Zeru then took off, running silently through the trees toward whatever it was he had sensed.

When he slowed, she could hear the sounds of men’s voices beyond a patch of greenwood. She motioned for Luken to be quiet as they snuck through the underbrush until they could see the men. Carefully peeking out, she now saw what it was that had upset Zeru.

Now you decide to use your damned hearing? Stupid drak, she thought as she stared at the stranger from before, who was now tied spread eagle to a tree. With him were the two men he had not killed as well as more of their friends, who must have stayed behind. The thought had crossed her mind to deal with them after he had left, but she was in too much of a hurry to get to Luken, and she thought she would never have to see them again. There was one mistake she would not be repeating today. If they were foolish enough to get caught again, they didn’t deserve to keep their lives. One of them had a knife and was using it to taunt the man while he described the torture he would endure for spoiling their sport.

“I’ll move around behind them, cause a distraction,” Luken whispered.

“No. You stay here. I’ll handle this.”

“There’s ten of them, Ash, and they’ve got a hostage. You try to take them out head on by yourself, they’ll kill him. Stop arguing; let’s work together.”

She wasn’t given a chance to say anything to the contrary before Luken was maneuvering through the foliage. This had so much potential to go wrong. Pulling her bow from her back, she nocked an arrow and waited until she could see Luken on the other side of the group. With a nod, Luken made his move and jumped from the bushes, grabbed the nearest man, and snapped his neck.

With their attention drawn toward him, she loosed an arrow on the man nearest the stranger. Now they were confused. Good. She took the opportunity to land one more arrow into the next closest man before running from her spot in the brush to bash another man in the jaw with the grip of the bow.

The men were now in a frenzy, unsure of who was the bigger priority to subdue. It made little difference. They had their weapons, but Luken was prepared and disarmed them before ending their lives. He might not be able to wield a blade to save his life, but he was good with his hands.

Quickly abandoning her bow, she drew her sword and made quick work of the remaining men. Some would argue their deaths came in cold blood. To Ashea’s mind, if you were foolish enough to attack a man with the knowledge a Paladai is near, you earned whatever punishment you received. Besides, the world was a better place with less stupid in it.

“You can’t keep yourself out of trouble, can you?” she said to the man before cutting him down. He had a bloody lip and a new cut above his brow to go with his black eye but appeared otherwise free from serious injury.

“I wasn’t looking for it this time,” he groaned. “They must have followed me after we separated.”

“You know him?” Luken asked.

“Unfortunately,” she replied dryly. “Be on your way, Dacian. If I have to come rescue you again, I might decide you aren’t worth the trouble.”

“I thought…Paladai…had no love…for Dacians,” a raspy voice came from one of the bodies. She turned to the source of the voice, one of the men from the spring, and grabbed him up by the collar.

“Only the nobility are left to scum like you. You should have picked your target more carefully,” she chided.

“You Paladai…are bigger fools…than we thought. He’s…a palace…messenger,” he ground out with a patronizing smirk.

“You lie.” It couldn’t be true. How could she have missed it? He didn’t wear the tunic of the Dacian court, no emblem anywhere on his cloak. He certainly didn’t carry himself like a simple messenger.

“Check…saddle.” He gurgled a final breath before his eyes went cold and blank with death. Dropping him, she turned on the stranger.

“Is it true?” she asked.

“You honestly believe him? A man who would say anything to save his life?”

No more games. She grabbed him by the throat and pinned him to the ground, her sword point at his chest ready to pierce his lung. “He had no life to save. Tell me the truth, or by the gods, I will kill you and leave you for carrion.”

He choked and gagged for breath until he finally said, “It’s true. I am the king’s messenger.”