The feel of the water brushing past my feet was relieving. Although winter, the water through the river had always been quite warm due to the underground channels it moved through. I decided to take some time away from everyone again and go into the forest alone. With Nill and Bert around, it wasn't like they needed me to cook, compared to those two I had to concede my defeat. Now it was just me alone eating a pack of sandwiches I had made.
I reached for another one only to find it missing. There was no one around and with the current me I could even vaguely feel the presence of any small creatures.
"These are quite good," her voice came from directly beside me.
I managed to hold off being surprised, "You could have asked for it instead."
Taylor grinned and bit into the sandwich again, talking with a full mouth, "I am a thief." She kicked off her shoes and placed her bare feet into the river. "Oh? It's not cold at all."
"Do you think I'd be here if it was?" I looked at her annoyed.
"Well you kind of are a masochist."
"I am not," I denied immediately. It wasn't like I enjoyed going through all the pain of dying.
Taylor just laughed and splashed her feet in the river, "So what are you doing here? Lara and everyone were looking for you. I think Earnest wants to fight you again and Servius was getting lonely."
"Ah…," I had forgotten about Servius. Well I knew he was in Axel but after talking with Ronalt I had let him drop from my mind. "He's not leaving is he?"
"Not yet," Taylor finished off her sandwich and held out her hand for more.
I sighed and pulled out some snacks I had taken for myself. She ate them quite happily. "Hey Taylor… do you think I should tell Ronalt about the Servius and Kerchest?"
She stopped her chewing and swallowed, "Are you sure you should be asking me for advice?"
"Is something wrong with that?" I turned to her. "You're a good friend and more experienced than I am." Her expression clenched. "What's wrong?"
"I'm conflicted," she sighed. "Never mind that." She tapped a finger on her chin in thought, "Let's see… Ronalt is a pretty stiff guy but he's not too bad. I think it should be fine."
"What if he's forced to tell someone else? If the Queen pushes him…."
She shook her head, "I don't think he would. He's straight laced to the extreme. Without your permission the only way someone could get it out of him would be through more 'dramatic' means."
"Dramatic?"
"Torture, blackmail, mind control, drugs, mind invasion, there are a few things."
"You just said some pretty scary things…."
"Well they could do the same thing to any of us. Trust me when I say they're not pleasant." She huffed with half a smile, staring at the water as if it was a distant memory.
"You have experience with that kind of thing?" I had to ask.
"On both ends," she nodded.
"I see…." There was a splash and water shot onto my face. I turned to Taylor disgruntled, "What are you doing?"
"If you trust me you can trust Ronalt. In all likelihood it would probably be me who spills the beans."
She was right but I didn't like the way she said that. My leg kicked up and covered her in water. "That's payback."
"Really now?" her presence beside me began to fade and just as I realised something pushed me forward. I whipped my hand around and grabbed her pulling the both of us into the river. The two of us fumbled on top of each other before Taylor splashed to the surface and laughed, "Great now we're both wet."
"That's your fault," I smirked.
"To be honest I didn't think you'd be able to grab me. You're getting more perceptive."
I splashed more water on to her, "It comes from hanging around with you too much. Now let's get back to Axel. The water here might be warm but it's still cold outside…." Hopefully we wouldn't catch a cold.
*
Lara stood above us overbearingly, "Just what were you two thinking going for a swim on a cold day like this?" We were in Mattias' home in front of the fire place. Lara had spotted us on the way in.
I sniffed and rubbed my nose, "Lara if I needed to be scolded like this I could ask half the women in Axel for that." I really didn't need another mother like figure.
"If Rain had agreed to my plan we could have warmed ourselves earlier," Taylor mumbled.
My eyes narrowed at her, "Like hell I'd do that."
"It would have worked," she sneezed. "Trust me. Nothing beats the cold like bare skin rubbing together."
"Enough both of you!" Lara glared at us. "Getting sick now doesn't help us."
"Something like this I could blow away in a few minutes," I rubbed my nose again. In fact there was already some premade potions we could take.
Lara sighed, "Just don't make it any worse."
Like I had said after getting warmed up and drinking medicine our sniffles were quickly expelled. In fact I felt even better than before. After a few more minutes by the fire I left to look for Ronalt. He was in the inn drinking alone. I could see why, from the atmosphere around him no normal person would come close. It felt like he could snap at any moment. By now I realised it was just because he was in deep thought.
"Yo Ronron," I sat down next to him with an extra drink for him.
He turned to me with a thick glare, "Ronron?"
"Too much?" I asked.
"Yes," he replied bluntly with no room for negotiation. "Did you need something or are you just here to drink?"
I looked around the inn. It was practically empty and our table was far from others, still it would be safer in a private room, "Follow me we need to talk."
Ronalt stood up glass in hand as I lead him to the back of the inn. He didn't say anything but from the tone of my voice he knew it was important. I opened a solid door and gestured Ronalt to enter. Inside was a small room with a single table and booth. The walls here were thicker and although not many people used it, it was always nice to have somewhere to hide away from others.
Ronalt sat down and I opposite of him. Each of us stared at the other and slowly sipped at our drinks. As the seconds passed the tension grew making it harder for me to start.
"Is this about what I said before?" Ronalt asked heavily. "What I said to you may have been too much for you to bare but I believed you had the right to know."
I let him finish and tapped my glass, "It's partially about that." My eyes met his and locked on. "Ronalt before I begin can you promise me without any doubt that you will keep what I tell you a secret?"
He stiffened, "There are always circumstances but I promise to do so. Without your permission I will hold whatever you have to say in my heart and to no one else."
"Even if your mother the Queen asked?"
He paused, "Even then. I owe you that much Rain and I do not believe what you have to tell me is with sinister intent."
"Okay then. So I've been colluding with the demons." I just went and said it.
"What?" he was clearly shocked. "Then Greytree, the invasion, is that how you knew?"
"Ah sorry," I had to calm him. "I probably shouldn't have started it that way. What happened in Greytree was just like I told you, a dream I had. The truth is I didn't even know I was talking to demons till about last week."
His eyes narrowed, "Go on."
"Axel is a nice place isn't it? The people here have nothing to do with the conflicts going on in the rest of the continent."
"Yes…."
"And there are places in the demon territory that are the same."
"I would believe so…." He was beginning to get an inkling to what I was saying.
"Do you remember my friend Servius? He was with us when we came back from the border forest."
"The one with the thin eyes," he nodded.
"He's a demon, or specifically a scaleskin," I waited for Ronalt to react. His expression hardened but that was all. "He's a good person and a friend I've known since a child. Long story short, Axel and his home village Kerchest have for the past decades had an amicable trade agreement. Though I didn't know they were demons until recently I consider them important friends, family even."
Ronalt churned his glass gently and then drained it, "I'm going to need another of these."
"Yeah same here," I finished off mine as well. I left Ronalt alone and returned shortly after with a tray carrying a variety of numerous drinks. As we drank I explained what happened over the past few days, detailing the Imperium and the life in Kerchest. I wanted him to understand that they weren't a threat.
As I ended he nodded, "So you tell me this because you believe that they could be our way into the Demon territory?"
"Yes," I clenched my glass harder. "They owe me a favour but this comes on the condition that you tell no one how we got in and both Axel and Kerchest are left as they are."
Ronalt looked at me with clear eyes. Despite working his way through most the beverages I had brought in, his mind was clear. He breathed in, "Rain you have given us a new chance. I will do as you say. It truly was a blessing that you have joined us once more."
"Please don't hold me that high," I laughed. "When I fall it'll just hurt more."
"And in that case I will personally help you stand again." He raised his glass to mine, "To a brighter future."
"To a brighter future." Our glasses clinked and I could see the relief in his expression, the tension in his body began to fade. I trusted him, and to think before I had tried to kill him. Though if this really all went to hell, I could always just die.
*
"Are you sure this is okay?" Servius whispered to me. "I mean the other people were okay but the big guy and the swordsman look kind of scary."
"Don't worry their pretty okay," I replied with a smile.
"When you smile like that I can't help but feel worse…," he sighed.
The two of us where at the front of the carriage about to leave Axel. We had just said goodbye to everyone, something that took much longer than I had intended. Pina was hooked up to the usual carriage and quite happy to be off again. Our supplies were verging on too much as the compartments of the carriage were practically spilling over. Some of it were more gifts for Kerchest but most of it had been my parent's intentions for a safe journey. Combined with what the Queen had given us at the beginning we were very well stocked.
Ronalt stood beside the carriage as everyone boarded. The only one left from Axel was Mattias. He handed something to Ronalt and whispered words I couldn't here while smiling. From where I was I couldn't tell what it was and my curiosity peaked. Just as I was about to investigate he walked over to me.
"Rain, I know we just said goodbye but how about one more hug?" Mattias opened his arms.
"Just one more you old man," I jumped from the seat and embraced him. "I'll be back home soon enough."
"Yes, stay safe. Know that we'll pray for your return," he rubbed my head and handed me a box. "Also here, the horns you took from the Imperium members were a bit damaged but I've managed to fix them."
"Thank you," I was relieved. With this we had enough disguises to go round. Otherwise I was considering drawing on everyone to make us blend in. He took a step back and I looked to Ronalt. "Everyone in?"
"We're good to go," he nodded and entered the carriage.
I sat on the driver's seat and took Pina's reins in my hands. It had been a while since I had used the carriage and I had to admit it was much more comfortable than the old box we had used before. I waved to Mattias and Axel as Pina set off. My heart beat heavily. There was no telling what was coming our way. Whether this went well or not, if we succeeded or failed, just how many more times would I die? I was going for zero. Zero would be great but after coming this far I really doubted it. Reliving the same weeks over and over again, slowly learning and becoming more capable. As much as I hated it, it was better than being gone forever. I firmed myself.
"The view from here is really nice," Lara's voice came from above me. I turned my head up. "What? It gets boring staying inside the entire time."
"Push," Taylor tapped her back and she almost fell from the carriage.
"Taylor!" she complained loudly.
She waved it off, "You wouldn't have fell and it's not like it would hurt much."
"That's not the point you scared me!"
"And that's what makes you so cute," she latched on to Lara. Lara just sighed tiredly. One by one they ended up all coming out and sat on the roof. Lara, Taylor, Ardent, Marley, Earnest and even Ronalt's hulking figure. A normal carriage would collapse but the wood didn't even creak. Servius didn't know how to react and I could only smile. At least it was better than before.
End Part 1.