Avalyne Series 01: The Queen of Carleon (13 page)

‘
Those mountains are cursed,’ Syanne frowned, her anxiousness for Arianne’s welfare compounded now she knew where the young queen of Carleon was headed. ‘There have been many dark tales spoken of it.’

‘
What sort of tales?’ Arianne asked, wondering if she really wanted to know. It was not as if anything that Syanne told her would change her mind to go there.

‘
Stories of travellers crossing those mountains disappearing, never to return.’ Syanne stated. ‘Something dwells there that feeds on the flesh of elf or men. Do you really want to risk the danger?’

‘
I am already in danger,’ Arianne returned, ‘and I grow more so the longer I am kept from completing my quest. I have no choice my Queen. My son’s life hangs in the balance.’

Syanne let out a deflated sigh and resolved to say nothing more because
it was clear Arianne was not going to be deterred from her course. In her place, Syanne did not know if she would act any differently. There was nothing she would not do to protect her children and she could not expect Arianne to do any less.

‘
The Queen of Eden Halas is at your service Queen of Carleon,’ she said finally. ‘Whatever you need, we will provide it if we are able.’

‘
Thank you,’ Arianne embraced her warmly, grateful for Syanne’s help.

Whether she
would think herself capable of facing whatever lay in wait for her at the Frozen Mountains, when she finally arrived was another matter entirely.

*******

Syanne was correct, Celene was eager to leave by the time Arianne finally found her at the Hall of Healing.

‘
I hear you have endeared yourself to the healers,’ Arianne chuckled.

They were in a room not to dissimilar to the one Arianne had spent the night except this one provided a spectacular vista of the forest with its tall, wide trees that resembled pillars holding up the sky. The Yantra river seemed to flow with less fury, as if it were meandering past them stealthily for fear of waking up the sleeping giants. The trees revealed the spread of elven community with platforms and steps constructed at midsection, far from the ground but not quite reaching the peaks. 

‘They fret too much’ Celene frowned even though the poultice applied to her shoulder was pleasantly soothing. She would never admit it though. ‘In that they have in common with the human healers.’

‘
Human healers would have tossed you out the door by now. Elves fortunately have more patience,’  Keira declared as she stepped into the room behind them. 

‘
You will be happy to know that they consider even you more pigheaded than Dare,’ Arianne said sweetly.

Keira uttered a short laugh at that.
‘Well that's quite a feat. You should be very proud.’

Celene gruffed and eased back into her bed, taking a deep breath of the aromatic air of the Hall of Healing. She was the only occupant at present which accounted for why the elven healers were all agog with excitement at having a patient to tend to. Still, she was not so stubborn that she did not recognise the care they had given her. For someone who was poisoned by a spider's venom, she
had slept well from the incense they had burning in her room which left the scent of cinnamon in the air and lulled her into a pleasant sleep.

‘
I should be ready to travel in a day,’ Celene assured them both. ‘I just need today to let my shoulder recover.’

‘
We will see,’ Arianne said, committing to nothing.

‘
We cannot afford to wait,’ Celene pointed out not about to be talked into lingering longer.

‘
No we can't but you still need your rest,’ Keira threw in, ‘you need to protect us and you're in no fit state to do so at the moment. This is as much for your benefit as it ours.’

‘
Exactly,’ Arianne said. ‘Another day will not make any difference. Celene, my need is urgent but I will not have you kill yourself on my account. Take the time to rest and we will be off again.’

The Lady of Gislaine despised being fretted upon by healers, no matter how
injured she was. Most of her injuries often took place during combat and she abhorred being reminded that she had been bested in battle by having others fuss over her injuries. The only good thing that had ever come out of her visit to one of these places was Ronen.

What chaffed her
even more was the fact that after all those years hearing Dare talk of Eden Halas, she was finally within its borders to see for herself but was unable to because she was confined to this bed.

‘
Fine, fine,’  Celene conceded defeat. ‘I will stay here if there is no other alternative but I cannot promise to be
pleasant
.’

*******

With Arianne in counsel with the King and Queen of Eden Halas, Keira took the opportunity to wander through the forest city of Eden Halas. Unlike Eden Taryn, this city was not constructed in recent years. Eden Halas had stood for thousands of years and it showed in the magnificent architecture of the city. Keira observed the ancient carvings of stone and wood that adorned the place as she moved through its winding open air corridors. It was a shame that Tully wasn’t here. He would enjoy this.

She stood at the railing of a balcony and peered into the spectacular view of the forest, taking a deep breath of the woody scent and the faint trace of wild flowers she could detect in it.

‘How are you enjoying our city?’ She heard someone step onto the balcony behind her.

Keira glanced over her shoulder and saw that it was King Halion who they had met briefly the night before. While he had Aeron's
dark hair, his features were more severe than his beautiful youngest son. He was very much the king and he wore he wore a tunic of blue silk and a long coat that had gold trim. A gold band adorned his head.

‘
It is beautiful, my Lord.’ Keira answered, reminding herself to mind her words. This was not Dare who appreciated being addressed the same was when he was a wanderer. This was an elf who had been king for thousands of years.  ‘A true marvel, ‘ she complimented.

He took up position next to her and
stared into his city, a small smile of pride crossing his lips as he surveyed the landscape. ‘When I first came, there was nothing, just the trees. I had not intended to stay. I was travelling south and just so happened to stop here for rest but once I did...’ he peered past the railing to a particular spot next to the river, a place that seemed to have more sun that most due  to a break in the canopy overhead. The clearing was small but the extra sunlight allowed the bloom of white flowers across the short grass. ‘I stood right there and looked out into the forest and knew this was the place to build a home.’

‘
Intuition is a difficult thing to ignore,’ Keira commented. ‘Sometimes  a place feels right, even if there is no sense to it.’

‘
Agreed,’ he threw her a sidelong glance. ‘That is why my intuition tells me there is more to you than meets the eye.  There is something about you that is unfamiliar and odd. If you were not with Arianne, we would not have allowed you into the Veil.’

Keira stiffened and shot a look at the king, wondering how she ought to respond.
‘I am sorry for your discomfort. You are not the first elf to react this way.  I’ve been told its because of the burrowers. It left something inside me that is dark and seems to bother only you elves.’

‘
Indeed,’ he eyes her suspiciously, not entirely convinced. ‘No matter, you are here and Arianne trusts you. I will put my faith in the Queen of Carleon if not you. In any case, I would know what is the reason for Arianne’s journey. Dare and I may disagree on many things but even I know he would not send his wife without an appropriate escort on a journey that has so far yielded peril.’

To lie to him seemed extremely discourteous after the hospitality shown to them but telling him the truth was brea
king Arianne’s confidence. Arianne’s quest needed to continue for all their sakes.  ‘It is not my place to say why Arianne chooses to travel. If you need an answer, you will need to ask her.’

Halion frowned but did not appear all that surprised by her answer.
‘You do her a disservice by keeping her secret. It is not safe for an elf maid especially one who is Queen of Carleon to be wandering about the wilds with only two women as her companions.’

‘
One of those women fought at Astaroth,’ Keira reminded, ignoring the derision in his tone, ‘surely that’s safe enough.’

‘
I mean no offense to the Lady of Gislaine but I would be remiss in my duty to her mother if I did not inquire why Arianne is so far from home. Balfure was not the only evil in Avalyne. There are far meaner things that creep in the deep places of the earth and some closer than we think. The destruction of one terrible being can sometimes is usually followed by another eager to take his place.’

‘
Do you know of another?’ She probed wondering if the king had intelligence that he was keeping to himself.

Halion smiled faintly as if he knew what she was about
but admitted nothing, unwilling to part with anything unless there was there was an equal exchange to be made. ‘Not exactly but if your lady intends to travel the wilderness alone, she should beware of what lurks in the shadows or,’ he stared at her pointedly, ‘in the light.’

*******

Celene had never met Aeron's brother Hadros but she had heard enough of him to know that she would not much like him when she met him. Her suspicion was proven correct when he stepped in her room in the Hall of Healing after Arianne had left and she had sent one of the elf maids trying to tend her wounds after her clothes instead.

‘
I am told that you wish your clothes so that you can depart,’ he remarked as he eyed her trying to get out of bed. Upon seeing him, Celene retreated back to bed convinced that he would only try to stop her if she continued her present course.

Like Halion, his hair was
dark and it hung about his shoulders either loose or in a braid. His features were not as fine as Aeron's and to her he seemed older, though it was difficult to say for certain with elves. His tone however was patronizing and that immediately brought out the worst in Celene.

‘
Only when I am forced to stay in bed over injuries that are inconsequential to me,’ she retorted, waiting impatiently for her clothes to arrive. At the present, she was clad in a simple white shift and felt all the more self-conscious for it.

‘
You are still injured. You should rest,’ he pointed out, standing by the door with his arms folded. His gaze was one of reproach, like she was a child and upon further thought Celene supposed she was in comparison to him but she did not like being reminded of it.

‘
I was injured,’ she corrected him, ‘but I am well now and I need no other treatment. What healing I required after Eden Halas will take place on route, I do not need to be in a bed for that.’

‘
You are travelling with Arianne,’ Hadras stated firmly. ‘She requires protection from what lies in the wilds of your world. If you are her only protection then you endanger her by your stubbornness.’

Celene bristled at the accusation. She did not like this elf nor the assumption he made that she would place her own needs above that of Arianne’s.
‘As I am a guest in your father's kingdom, I will try not to take offense by that remark.’

Hadras showed
no repentance at her statement.

‘
I merely state the obvious,’ he said haughtily. ‘If anything befalls the Queen while she indulges in this foolishness then we will all suffer.  Does that not warrant you behaving sensibly?’

‘
I
am
behaving sensibly,’ she retorted with some petulance and knew there was  a kernel of truth in his words, however, she was not about to admit defeat just yet. ‘I will leave nothing to chance when it comes to Arianne or her baby’s safety. I am injured yes, but the one to best judge how I will be capable of tolerating those wounds is me, not you.’

‘
This will not do,’ Hadras looked at her coldly. ‘She should have a proper escort, not a…’ he faltered when he saw that he was about to say something unforgivable.

‘
A
woman
?’ She accused and then realised that was not what he intended to say. Not woman, she thought, eyes narrowing as she understood. 
Human
.

‘
Hadras,’ Arianne’s voice filled the room and they both turned to see the Queen of Carleon returning to the room with Celene’s travelling clothes in her arm. ‘I think that will be all.’

‘
I was….’

‘
I am well aware of what you were doing,’ Arianne replied with such glacial hardness to her voice that it was easy to believe she was a queen. ‘I thank you for your concern and bid you to leave us, Celene and I have much to discuss.’

Hadras appeared as if he wanted to respond but since much of his conversation with Celene had been heard by Arianne, there was little he could but to withdraw. It was just as well for Arianne did not think that Celene would have been able to restrain her displeasure much longer.