"No, the Dragon Path is quite an easy game", the Highlander said. His nimble fingers fiddled with a deck of cards in his hands, shuffled and cut. "Both players start with nine cards in their hands. In their own turn they can place one card onto the 'arena'. Like this."

Slowly the Highlander drew a card from his deck and placed it onto the table. It had a picture of a white dragon in it. "This", the gambler explained, "is a young Light Dragon. The number here indicates its strength. These arrows tell you in which directions it can 'attack'. But since it was in the table first, it'll be only a defender. Now, the turn of the other player." The Highlander drew another card, a Dark Dragon. "Just what I needed. This card is stronger than the first one, so I can 'kill' it by placing this dragon here." With those words he put the card next to the Light Dragon. "The other one is now dead, so it'll get turned over… like this."

The tavern of Shining Sword had always an air of tranquility in this time of day. There were only a few customers, a couple of locals, a group of mercenaries playing cards with a chatty Highlander and a lone Forest Clansman sitting huddled in a corner. The barkeeper sat behind his counter, leaning against the wall and snoring quietly.

One of the mercenaries drew a card and turned it over. It illustrated a giant of a man, dressed in a black armor and a crimson cape. "A special card? Who's this?"

"Oh that? It's the Dark Emperor, the strongest of all Dark Dragons. There's only one of them in the deck." The Highlander took his magnificent, wide-brimmed hat from his head and smoothed his oily hair backwards. He was dressed in clothes of the best quality. A bright red silk shirt, sea-blue pants, shining black boots and a vest made of blood-red velvet. There was also a fine, white scarf tied around his neck. "They say that Emperor Zog was a real person in the history. He commanded the mighty dragon army a long time ago, his goal no less than conquering the entire world."

Quickly the mercenary placed the card onto the table as if fearing the ancient emperor would suddenly come to life. "Sounds scary."

The Highlander laughed. "Oh, nononononononooo. I think the whole Zog character is just an invention of taletellers. He sounds too romantic to have really existed. So… shall we play?"

On the other side of the room, Wolfmund turned his gaze back into his mug of ale. He knew that he should be going soon. As long as the Forest Clansman lingered near the place where he had betrayed his family, there would be great danger. But even so, he simply couldn't bring himself standing up. If he wouldn't report the death of Star-edge to the Shadow Society soon, they would become suspicious. He regretted that he had ever agreed with his partner to visit Coursair.

But if Aryn would survive, it was well worth of it.

"Shaft, I presume?"

Wolfmund flinched at the sudden voice. The fact that somebody had managed to get so close a trained assassin alarmed him. The man before him was dressed in a wide, brown robe, which hid his frame. The only features visible from the shadows of his hood were a sharp chin and thin lips, which were drawn up into a mild smile.

"Soaring Lord", Wolfy acknowledged the newcomer by using his assassin name.

The robed man shook his head. "Soaring King. I got promoted, remember?"

"What do you want, Jei?"

"Information", the assassin replied quietly, pulling himself a chair from the other side of the table. "I've heard that you know Aryn Seaholt pretty well."

Though Wolfmund kept his face completely neutral, he shuddered inwardly. "I thought you knew him well, too."

Jei nodded. "True, but I haven't seen him in years." He kept a short pause before aiming a cold glance at the Forest Clansman. "Unlike you."

Wolfy shrugged. "What do you mean? I haven't seen him since he left our home village. Wasn't he supposed to be dead or something?"

"Shaft, you are only a Second Circle", Jei said. "I'm of the First Circle of the Society. You are to obey my commands." A poison-coated edge appeared into his voice. "When did you see him last time?"

Fortunately the Forest Clansman had a hand under the table. It was the only reason he could draw his dagger without attracting the attention of the Soaring King. If he could just – "I told you. I haven't."

That annoying smile reappeared onto Jei's lips. "Keep it sheathed."

Wolfmund lifted one eyebrow. "The what?"

"The dagger."

The Forest Clansman didn't move or indicate any kind of feelings. However, his heart skipped one beat. This Jei was good. Wolfmund's reply was slow, quiet and very clearly vocalized: "This is the last time: I… haven't… seen… him…recently."

Jei tilted his head. "I take it that Star-edge hasn't seen him, either." His eyes threw darts of ice at the Forest Clansman. "Has he?"

On that moment, a part of Wolfmund died. It was as if he had already stepped over the edge. If Jei, a member of the First Circle of the Shadow Society, knew that much, there was no hope for Wolfy. Very few things mattered to him anymore. "How could he?" he answered casually. "We are partners only in business."

On that moment their attention was drawn by sudden racket from the other side of the room. A table tripped over, a deck of cards and several mugs of ale spread up onto the floor.

"CHEATER!" one of the mercenaries bellowed, picking up chair and flinging it towards the Highlander gambler. "You said that there was only one Zog in deck!"

The gambler dodged the chair easily. "Who? Me?" A fatally offended expression suffused his face. With a nimble move he sidestepped a dagger flying for him. "Nonononoo! Honesty is my middle name! How could I be such a low thing as a cheater?"

Apparently the mercenaries didn't agree with him. Drawing their swords, picking up vacant chairs and bottles they started advancing at their prey. The wild shouting of the barkeeper was completely ignored. "You… you… RAT!"

Suddenly the lean Highlander jumped upwards, somersaulted and landed onto a sturdy table. Taking his great hat off his head, he favored the mercenaries with a deep court bow. "If that is the case, I believe this show is over. Thank you for your – whoops!" A bottle crashed into a wall behind him, "time and especially for you money!"

This drew forward another rain of insults from the mercenaries. Howling with anger they attacked – too late. The Highlander took a little front-running, leaped head-first through an open window and landed – considering the smacking sound and the smell – into wagons ferrying fresh dung out from the town.

"I am sorry that this had happen, Shaft", Jei remarked quietly as the group of warriors filed out from the tavern, chasing their elusive prey. "Even if you won't be helping me, I'll go and get Aryn. Nothing will stand between me and him. Nothing, understand?" He didn't expect any kind of answer. He knew that there would be none. With an indifferent nod of his cowl-covered head the assassin stood up and walked out from the Shining Sword.

Just as Jei had anticipated, Wolfmund said nothing. The assassin had hardly disappeared from the doorway as the Forest Clansman suddenly grunted with pain.

* * * *

Aryn set a pace which was almost twice as quick as what Nina had gotten used to. They almost ran towards south along the main road. This puzzled Silen, since open and well-used area gave them no shelter from watching eyes. Once did the Windian soldier ask Aryn about this. The bodyguard silenced him with a dark glance.

Though their journey was now faster, it was also much more tiring. Soon Silen was puffing heavily, his chain mail jingling with every step. Nina was completely covered with sweat in no time, within a few hours she couldn't do any more than just stumble forward. Aryn was no different. Sweat sparkled on his forehead and his usually flowing, light sleeves hung heavily against his arms. But even so he did not slow down. The edges of his features had been re-sharpened, his face was grim and determined as his long legs carried him forward, stride by stride.

It was already well over midday when Silen finally nerved himself to disturb the bodyguard: "Aryn." Since he got no reply the Windian soldier grabbed Aryn's shoulder and held his grip firmly when the protector attempted to shake the hand off. "Aryn, listen to me, damn it! We have to stop now."

The glance Aryn aimed at his friend was fearsome. His moss-green eyes were blazing with anger that had been building up inside his head over the morning.

"Look", Silen said, determined to get the protector back to his senses, "The prin – Nina cannot take much more of this. It's the same with you: you're going to kill yourself if you whip yourself like that."

"You heard Wolfy, didn't you?" Aryn snapped back. "I'll be dead anyway. Does it matter how I shall go?"

"You're still alive, Aryn!" Silen almost shouted into the protector's furry ear. "We can still make it. Don't you care about it at all?"

Aryn slapped the Windian's hand away from his shoulder. "The only thing I care about", he growled, "is the number of assassins I can kill for Wolfy."

Silen blinked his eyes while these words rang into his ears. Aryn had always been so calm, always adapting into new situations. Never had he been this angry. Silen took a deep breath before replying: "So you are going to ignore our duty? You are going to ignore her, too?"

Aryn threw a glance at Nina. She had taken the advantage of the pause and was sitting in the ground, huddled against a large rock that gave a little shelter against the sun. The Windian girl was doing her best to calm her panting. The pause in her guardians' arguing made her look up just in time to meet the protector's gaze.

They looked at each other for a long time. They said nothing, yet what moved between them was more than any heated argument could ever be. Aryn had already lost the count how many times he had been doing it, but once again he found himself wondering if that mark of sorrow would ever go away from the Windian girl's eyes.

Then, wearily, the protector sighed and closed his eyes. "What the hell life is worth if everything goes wrong. All we care about is ourselves, feed ourselves, gather riches for ourselves, even punish ourselves. It's always ourselves, even with the price of causing pain for others." He sighed and ran his hand through his hair. "You're better than I am, Silen. This is stupid… No, I am stupid. Always will be." Rubbing his forehead he lifted his gaze and scanned their surroundings. "Let's find some shelter and get some rest. If there even are any hunters after us, they'll be moving faster than we do, anyway."

* * * *

"I was born about two months later than Wolmund did, so we were around of the same age", Aryn said as he accepted the waterskin offered to him by Nina. "There were a few others of our age in our village, but they had formed their own gang and didn't really like me or Wolfy. So, I and he formed our own little gang. His parents didn't care much about him." He sighed and passed the waterskin to Silen. "My parents and I were practically his family."

The bodyguard had been unusually talkative ever since they had settled into a little dent in the ground, surrounded by several trees. They ate their food cold, since a campfire would have been far too risky to build. It would have taken too much time anyway, since, as Aryn had reminded them, they wouldn't be resting for long.

"When I left our village, I really wished that he would be alright", the bodyguard said quietly as he leaned his back against a tree. He shut his eyes tightly, as if attempting to change the reality with his willpower alone. "But I'd rather have seen him crawling in a muddy ditch than among the ranks of assassins." He shook his head. "Not the Shadow Society, of all things…"

Silen looked up from his bread. "What is this Shadow Society? I've never heard anything about it."

"Me neither", Nina added.

Aryn sighed and rubbed his temples. "Not a wonder. It's an organization of assassins, all kinds of them. Backstabbers, cutthroats, poisoners, archers, you name it they got it. Though its members act both alone and in groups, they usually work in pairs. They are highly loyal to their Society." He aimed a grim gaze at Silen. "But they are still a guild of murderers and killers, Silen. Never forget that."

Nina felt a slight shiver running down her spine. Quickly she focused her attention back into her bread and piece of dried meat.

Unlike the Windian girl, Silen seemed to be much more intrigued by the bodyguard's words. "How do you know so much about them?" he asked.

Aryn shrugged. "What do you think?" he asked. "I'm a professional bodyguard. My job has led me crossing blades with them a few times. When you are going against people like them, you've got to learn to know your enemy or die." He snorted and shook his head bitterly. "They don't especially love me there. There's been a passive bounty over my head for a few years now. They have never actively hunted me, though."

"Do you think they'll find us?" Nina asked after a moment of silence. "What shall we do then?"

Though both of them were expecting Aryn's answer, Silen and Nina were surprised by the grim coolness the bodyguard spoke his words with: "We'll kill them. They won't stop otherwise."

After a moment Aryn stood up and scanned their surroundings. "Let's get moving soon. There's only one way we can travel, to south, and they know it, so we'll have to get as far from Coursair as possible. I don't know much about this area, so I don't know if we can evade them anyhow." He gave Silen a tired smile as he slammed the Windian soldier's shoulder. "But at least we're going to try, eh Silen?"

"We're not just going to try", the soldier replied proudly. "We're going to make it."

Nina sighed as she chewed the last mouthful of her food. The life had become so complicated lately. Why had everybody found her interesting so suddenly? It was as if everybody knew that she was the princess of the kingdom of Windia. And now they were hunting for Aryn, too, probably because he was traveling with her.

In other words, Nina thought, I drew him into this.

It was a painful realization.

* * * *

Two figures walked down the road from Coursair. Both of them had a very light step, their soft-soled boots made no sound on the stony road. Dressed in almost ordinary clothes, nobody could distinguish them from normal mercenaries, the profession which was everything else but uncommon in the area of Coursair, the city of warriors. The only difference was the determined pace of these two. Their movements were fluid and silent as they strode down the road. It was like stalking of a cat, like gliding of a raptor in a hunt. It told that they were no mercenaries.

They were assassins.

Of course they could conceal this telltale mark whenever they wished, but here, where nobody was watching, why to bother? Though their prey was well ahead of them, the hunt had already begun. These two focused their thoughts only into that single matter. Both of them were of the First Circle of the Shadow Society. Nothing would get between them and their prey.

"Hey!" Hain shouted and waved his hand. He was sitting in the saddle of a coal-black horse that had appeared onto the road below the two assassins. "There you are!"

Jei Adamanto rolled his eyes under his hood. "Not him again", he muttered.

"Some things cannot be evaded", Miss Shade replied calmly.

Hain urged his mount up the road and yanked the reins so that the horse stopped just before the two assassins. "I was fearing that you had already gone", he said, leaning forward in his saddle. "Good day to both of you." He had an urge to add 'especially to you, Miss Shade', but his sense advised otherwise. The tan-skin surveyed his companions-to-be with his eyes. Honesty, he liked what he saw.

Jei had changed his robes into a very voluminous, dark-gray cloak. He was quite tall, Hain noted. The assassin was carrying a long, finely crafted naginata on his shoulder, its blade glimmering in the sunlight. Slowly Jei lowered his hood, letting his dark-brown hair fall onto his shoulders. "What are you doing here?" he asked with his lazy tone.

Unlike Jei, Miss Shade had decided to go without her cloak. Silently Hain thanked his luck for that. She was dressed in normal – though very well fitting – leather clothes. Their color made it hard to determine where the leather ended and the Forest Clanswoman's brown fur started. (Though Hain was willing to give several good guesses and wouldn't have minded an opportunity to see how many of them hit the mark.)

"Me?" The tan-skin looked a little surprised. "Well, I was planning to go and recover my target after you've got yours. I brought a few friends for the hunt, too." Smirking, he waved his hand.

A group of horsemen, all dressed in assorted clothes and armors appeared down the road. They carried bags of supplies and weapons of all kinds, from swords to sturdy axes and long spears.

"Nine, no, ten", Jei counted casually. Then he snorted. "Looks more like a parade than a hunting group."

"Our 'friend' here shows sense", Miss Shade noted with her emotionless tone. "He understands the rules of the streets." A tiny, cold smile appeared over her muzzle. "Never turn your back to an assassin."

"Hey, I wouldn't be still alive if I wouldn't know the rules", Hain replied.

The tan-skin turned his horse and beckoned with his hand. "I have mounts for you two, too. We'll be following you and won't get in your way when you get down to work. You do know where they've gone, don't you?"

"Yes."

Hain chuckled as he guided his horse down the road. "Let's not waste all day, then."

* * * *

He was the night itself as he slowly opened the door into a crack and crept inside. Dressed in a completely black garb, he melted perfectly into the shadows as he sneaked further into the small bedroom. A black dagger gleamed in his hand, its edges were razor-sharp and coated with poison that could slay a grown man within seconds.

His target was within sight and completely vulnerable. A young girl, a beautiful young girl sleeping in her bed. Her hair had stolen their color from fresh honey. The moon caressed her with its gentle glow through an open window. She was a little angel, the beauty of her features were boosted further by a little smile playing on her lips as she nestled herself under the warm blanket.

The assassin did not even think about it. Somebody had paid for this girl's death, and so she would die. The assassin never retreated from his contract. Eagerly he lifted the dagger over the girl's throat, pressed… and cut.

The girl flung her eyes open as her life welled out from her. She tried to scream, but no voice came out from her throat.

The assassin smiled as the white sheets turned red.

* * * *

Aryn's eyes were filled with tears as he suddenly opened them. Wrenching himself into sitting position, he quickly looked around, searching for a cloth, a bandage, anything that would stop the young girl from bleeding to death.

His eyes happened to focus upon another young girl, huddled under her blanked as she peacefully slept in the dark grove the bodyguard had chosen to be their place to spend a night. Even through darkness Aryn could see her beautiful golden hair, in a disorder because of the night's sleep. The sight was both comforting and painful.

Letting out a deep sigh the bodyguard buried his face into his hands. How many times already? Sixth? Seventh? It had started on the day Aryn had accepted the mission offered by King Kenny of Windia. And every time it got worse.

Not very surprisingly, the gods did not listen. They never did.

Doing his best to push the matter out of his mind Aryn stretched and glanced around. True enough, Silen was standing in guard in the shadow of trees. He had not yet noticed that the bodyguard was awake. Aryn decided to let the soldier be for a moment longer. Turning his gaze into the east, he noticed that the sky was already turning purple. It was almost dawn.

Rolling his blanket into a bundle the bodyguard set it aside and stood up. "Hey, Silen", he called quietly.

The Windian soldier looked over his shoulder. A little smile had lit up his round features. "Good morning, Aryn. Nothing new to report, Sir"

Aryn rolled his eyes. "You're not in army, you know." Yawning, he ran his hand through his hair. "We'd better get going soon. I think we can eat breakfast while walking."

"Shall I wake the prin – erm." Silen chuckled. "I'll never get used to it. To me she shall always be the princess of Windia. Shall I wake Nina?"

Aryn shook his head. "Let her sleep a little more. We can break up our camp ourselves. Not that there is much to break up, here – " Suddenly his back stiffened. His fur-covered ears twitched as if hearing something. They certainly heard something. Or rather, it was not a noise, but more like a feeling. It was a warning.

"What?"

Aryn clenched his fists. "Damn! Wake the girl. Quickly." As he looked up at the soldier, his features had assumed their additional edge again. His eyes burned like those of the silent stalker he called his pet. "We're leaving. Now."

* * * *

There was no sound as his boot touched the ground. He had all the time in the world as he knelt in the little grove. First he examined the area with his sight. No tracks. Not a wonder, that.

He closed his eyes and released his other senses, searching, probing, feeling through the dirt, the ground, the leaves and the trees around him.

"Well?" Hain asked. Unlike Jei, he had not bothered to get down from the saddle. The tan-skin leaned forward and crossed his arms.

Jei did not answer. He was completely motionless on the ground, on one knee. He listened, scented, felt, tracked. Many hours earlier Hain had learned that this assassin was specialized in hunting his prey in the wilderness. Even during the nighttime he had not swayed from the trail. Like a determined bloodhound Jei had cleansed paths and directions, continuously slowing down to carefully check if their prey had attempted to lead them astray, but even so the hunting group had never stopped from gaining their targets.

"They slept here ten minutes ago, fifteen at tops", Jei suddenly said and stood up. Indifferently he brushed the dirt off his knee. "We have them."

* * * *

They ran.

Past trees and hills they went, using the landscape as shelter from sight as much as they could. Their path coiled between bushes and rocks. They went directly over the obstacles low enough to pass with a simple jump, the larger ones they hastily circled around. The sun had already risen, and the trio was thankful for that. Though its light was filtered through heavy, gray clouds hanging above their heads, at least they saw where they were heading. They could afford no mistakes, for there was no doubt about it now: they were being hunted.

The din of the horses' hooves beating the landscape had rung in their ears all the morning. Every now and then Nina threw a glance over her shoulder, fully expecting to see their chasers appearing into her sight. Though she could easily hear them, they were never close enough to be seen.

Yet.

Every moment passing brought the hooves' rumble a little closer, every moment their chasers gained a step.

"They should have caught us by now", Silen puffed as he helped Nina over a fallen tree.

"I once heard a saying", Aryn replied as he tossed glances in every direction, trying to decide where they would run next. "In a short distance, a man can outrun a horse. If we keep to the bushes and forest, where there are no other than short distances, we can slow them down. We can get more time." The bodyguard dashed forward again, weaving his way through the rocks and trees.

"Time?" Silen asked as he and Nina ran after the protector. "Time for what?"

"To find a place where we can defend ourselves. If we can just – damn!" Suddenly Aryn made a very strange maneuver. He stopped in the middle of his stride and waved his arms. Leaning heavily backwards the bodyguard attempted to change the direction of his momentum. His boots scraped the ground, kicking little rocks into the air. Aryn fell onto his backside about at the same time as these pebbles rattled against the rocky wall of a steep gorge before him.

"Damn", the bodyguard muttered as he pulled himself up again. "The Wounds of the Earth. Should've remembered them."

The landscape in the area south of the plains of Coursair was very indented. It was filled with hills, sudden dints and deep, treacherous gaps. Here a completely stable path could suddenly lead into a yellowish, misty maw of earth. Though most of these ravines were small, the largest of them, located further to the south in a place known as the Bridge Cape, was wide enough to split entire continents apart. Very few knew where the gorges had come from, they just were there, like wounds cut into the earth itself by some enormous claws. It was indeed said that the Wounds of the Earth was an ancient battleground of the Dragon Clan.

"Can't we get across?" Silen asked as he craned forward to look into the depths of the gorge. "It's a long way down."

"What do you think?" Aryn replied sourly. Frustration gave his voice an additional edge. Angrily shaking his head, the bodyguard looked over his shoulder, seeking for signs of their pursuers. "We can't stay here", he decided. "They can easily drive us down that thing!"

Though their situation looked grim, Nina was thankful for the pause. Every breath she took, every wheeze that came out from her throat, was an agony to the young Windian. The beating of her heart echoed against her skull. Her lungs burned, her whole body shouted for a rest.

Such a thing, she knew, was a luxury she could not afford.

Crouched forward, supporting her upper body by pressing her hands against knees, she struggled to get her breathing more even. Suddenly something caught her eye. It was stretching over the gorge a short distance from where they currently were standing. Though old, it still looked more than sturdy enough.

"Hey!" Nina puffed, "There's… a bridge… there!"

"What?" Both Silen and Aryn wheeled into Nina's direction, a baffled disbelief clearly visible on their faces. "A bridge? Here?"

"Really!" Nina answered, a sudden, unexplainable joy starting to bubble up her throat. Why didn't they believe it? "Look!"

Forgetting their situation for a moment, Aryn tilted his head and ran his hand through his hair as he looked at the bridge leaning over the gorge. "Well, I have no idea why somebody would build that good bridge here, away from all the roads, but let's thank the gods that it's here and nowhere else! Come on!"

The bodyguard was just about to sprint forward, along the edge of the gorge, when Silen suddenly said: "Listen!"

Both Aryn and Nina stopped onto their tracks and turned to look at the Windian soldier. "What?"

"Nothing", Silen replied grimly. "No rumbling of hooves. Nothing."

Aryn realized immediately what the soldier was meaning. "Damn", he uttered. It was surprisingly difficult to tell if the protector was angry or pleased with this piece of news. "They're on foot now. Got tired of circling around the obstacles and are coming directly for us." With new vigor in his steps, Aryn rushed forward for the bridge.

"Couldn't we break that bridge after us?" Nina asked as she trailed after her bodyguard.

"That's an old trick", the protector replied while leaping over a log leaning over the gorge. Then, as he turned to make sure that the Windian girl got over, a little, dour smile crept over his lips. "Old and useful. Sometimes you scare me, girl."

Nina almost stumbled. "Huh?"

"Nevermind, girl! Run!"

The bridge was definitely old. Its wooden parts were cracked with age, the ropes and pegs keeping the whole thing together creaked even with the slightest of movements. However, it was very well built and still very sturdy.

Too sturdy, as Aryn noticed soon after he had tested the bridge's strength. "This is too good to be broken quickly enough", he said as he led them across.

Most of the members of the Wing Clan were not afraid of heights. Though Nina was no exception of this, she still did her best not to look down into the gorge, which loomed below them like a yellowish, stony maw, eager to swallow anything unfortunate enough to slip from the bridge.

"Here!" Silen suddenly exclaimed, slowing down his pace and looking at the wooden parts under his boots. "The support looks weak enough here. We could break it quite quickly."

Aryn threw an angry glance over his shoulder. "We're in the middle of the bridge!" he said with an edged voice. Quickly he turned his eyes back to watch where he was stepping on.

Both Silen's and Nina's sudden, quiet chuckle, which sounded so out of place considering their situation, made the bodyguard slow down and look over his shoulder for a second time.

"Why do you think we Windians have these?" A broad smile had suffused Silen's round features as he and Nina exchanged glances. The soldier used his thumb to point at the white wings, folded neatly behind his back.

Aryn did not laugh, but at least his curt smile reappeared onto his face. "You've been walking with us for so long that I'd completely forgotten those!" He squinted at the other end of the bridge, looking for any sign of their pursuers.

Again, there was none. The forest was silent, deadly silent.

"How quickly do you think you can break it?"

Silen turned his back to the princess and the bodyguard. "It is risky, but I can do it. You two go ahead. I will catch you after it is done."

"Silen!" Nina couldn't resist the sudden urge to dash forward. "Be careful!"

With a grim, confident expression on his face, the Windian soldier put his palm onto the golden hair of the princess of the country he loved so much. "Don't worry, Princess", he said, "I am a Defender of the great Kingdom Windia. I wouldn't be worth of it if I couldn't take care of myself."

He lifted his gaze to meet Aryn's. "Take care of the Princess."

Aryn nodded. "That's my job."

Grabbing the hand of Nina, he started leading her away from the soldier as quickly as he could. Nina tried to resist first, reluctant to leave Silen behind, but then she, too, turned and hurried forward. The Windian girl threw a look behind her back just before disappearing into the shelter of the green leaves and branches of the forest.

Silen stood in the middle of the bridge and solemnly lifted his spear into a warrior's salute. He was about to race against the time. He still couldn't hear the sounds of his pursuers, but still, he knew that they were near. His warrior's instinct told him that. Realizing that he had already wasted too much of the precious time on meaningless matters, he bent down and set to his task.

* * * *

"Don't worry, girl", Aryn said as he led Nina forward. "If you constantly fear for the worst, it's bound to happen."

"But – but do you think that he's going to be okay?" Every step Nina took, away from the bridge, was more and more reluctant. On such a dangerous journey as she currently was, parting from a friend, even for a moment, was difficult. "What if –"

"Girl." The protector leaped onto a rock sticking out of the ground in their way. Then he turned to face the young Windian. "Silen may be young, but he is good at what he does and he does it without hesitation. Trust him. He's a good guard for you."

The bodyguard bent down and took Nina's extended hand, helping her up onto the rock. He muttered his next words so quietly that the Windian barely heard them: "Better than I am, anyway."

Nina decided that she had not heard those words. "But – "

On that very moment, the first clashes of steel rang over the forest.

Previous: Chapter XI
Next: Chapter XIII
Story Main Page

Visit Arcahan's Lair Main Page Return to My Stories E-mail Arcahan