Brian Anderson - The Sword of Truth

“Wise plan,” Kaylia said. “I’ll scout ahead for now. You won’t see me again until you leave Harvesting Shallows.” With that, she took off through the woods and disappeared.

“Elves are strange folk,” said Millet. “I’m not sure it’s a good idea to let her travel with us, my lord.”

“I doubt we could have stopped her,” said Lee. “Besides, Gewey’s the one who agreed to let her come along.”

Millet glared disapprovingly at Gewey.

The day was uneventful. They passed a few people on the road, but no one took special notice of the three travelers. When they arrived in Harvesting Shallows, it was an hour after sunset. Lee and Gewey got a room at an inn while Millet stabled the horses. When they got to their room, Lee checked Gewey’s wounds.

“Your arms are completely healed,” said Lee with satisfaction. “And at this rate your chest will be healed in a few more days.”

Gewey had almost forgotten his injuries. The wound on his chest itched from time to time, but other than that, he felt fine.

When Millet arrived, they unpacked their things and headed down to the common room to eat. Gewey was thrilled to be allowed out of his room.

“I don’t want you talking to anyone,” warned Lee. “We’re still trying to go unnoticed.”

Gewey nodded his head enthusiastically. “Don’t worry, Lee. For the rest of the night, I’m a mute.”

Lee gave Gewey a sideways look. “Just keep your conversation confined to the three of us.”

Millet couldn’t help but smile. “He reminds me of you,” he whispered into Lee’s ear.

Lee chuckled softly.

The common room wasn’t as nice as the one in Gath, but there was a lovely young woman in the corner singing folk tunes, most of which Gewey knew. The crowd was also a bit more common than in the last inn, but that was fine by him. He didn’t like pretending to be rich and stuck up. In his mind, he was still just a simple farmer, though he hadn’t realized until that moment just how proud of that he was.

“Where do we go from here?” asked Gewey over a bowl of hot beef stew.

“We’ll keep to the west road for now,” said Lee. “The additional company has forced me to rethink the plan, but it looks like it’s going to turn out for best. We’ll move more slowly, but we’ll draw a lot less attention.”

Millet nodded in agreement. “Sir, if I may, sooner or later our lady friend will get curious about the true nature of our trip. How do you plan to deal with certain…revelations?”

“What do you mean?” asked Gewey.

“What I mean is, although she may know the true nature of Lord Starfinder, yours is something quite different. From what I understand about her kind, it may become a problem.”

“I don’t follow,” said Gewey. “Why should my ‘nature’ be a problem for her?” Until then, Gewey hadn’t been sure how much Millet knew about him, but clearly Lee had confided everything.

“What Millet means,” said Lee “is that your kind is not exactly held in high regard by hers. When she finds out, there’s no telling how she’ll react. It’s one of the reasons I didn’t want her with us.”

Gewey looked confused. “It would help if I knew what you are talking about.”

“When I told you about the war, I left out an important detail,” said Lee. “Man was losing until the gods intervened. They gave mankind the means to turn the tide; needless to say, this left a bad taste in the mouths of the elves where your kind is concerned.”

“I see your point,” Gewey said thoughtfully. “How do we handle it?”

“With great care, I would think,” said Millet. “She may be dangerous, but given her current choice of traveling companions, she may not take it as poorly as we fear. Frankly, I’m surprised she let me live.”

Lee contemplated the situation. “For now we need to keep things to ourselves,” he said, finally. “Short of killing her, there’s no way to be rid of her. Besides, she may be of use in the days to come.”

“We’re not killing her,” Gewey snapped. “I gave my word.”

“Calm down, boy,” said Lee. “I have no intention of killing her, and if I did, I doubt it would be easy. She said she killed at least fourteen bandits before she was captured, and I believe her. I tried to catch her myself for two straight nights and couldn’t, and I’m not someone you can easily avoid. No…I think killing her is out of the question. Still, we need to be careful until we find out what she really wants.”

“Isn’t it obvious?” Gewey asked. “We saved her life, and she feels she owes us.”

“I don’t think it’s as simple as that,” Lee replied. “Traveling openly with our kind is risky enough considering the way humans feel about elves. However, should her people discover it, I don’t think they would be happy-and that’s putting it mildly. If she simply wanted to return the favor, she could follow us unseen and wait for an opportunity. No…I don’t think it’s a matter of a simple debt.”

“We could just ask her,” Gewey suggested. Lee and Millet both laughed.

“Yes, young master,” said Millet. “That may be the solution, but I doubt she will be very forthcoming.”

“Millet’s right,” said Lee. “She won’t tell you until she’s ready. But do ask if you feel the need. You never know; she might surprise us.”

The conversation steered toward more pleasant topics as the warm stew filled their bellies and lifted their spirits. When they were finished, they retired to the room. There were only two beds, and Millet insisted on sleeping on the floor. Gewey protested, but Millet wouldn’t listen.

“I may look soft, Master Gewey,” said Millet. “But let me assure you that I am not. Besides, you are still injured, and Lord Starfinder is far less able to deal with hardship than I.”

Lee smiled, rubbing his eyes. “Don’t try to argue with him, Gewey; the man will stay up all night badgering you if you try.” Lee stretched his arms and yawned. “If he says he’s sleeping on the floor, that’s what he’ll do, and there’s nothing on earth that can stop him. Believe me, I’ve tried to change his mind before, and you saw how well that went.”

Millet looked displeased. “If you’re referring to me following you and master Gewey, need I remind you that I had told you even before you left that I had no intention of letting you go off and get yourself killed. I daresay that you are quite incapable of managing without me.”

“I wouldn’t presume to dispute you,” said Lee. Millet smiled. “Very wise, my lord.” Gewey decided it was best to let Millet have his way and went to sleep. The morning came, and for once Gewey had risen before Lee.

However, Millet was nowhere to be seen.

“Wake up,” said Gewey, shaking Lee.

“What is it, boy?” he asked groggily.

“Millet’s gone.”

The door opened. “I’m not gone,” Millet said, carrying a platter with three bowls of porridge and three cups of fresh milk. “While the two of you have lazed around wasting the day, I procured us a wagon and two fine horses to pull it. And I’ve restocked our provisions and had them delivered to the inn.”

Lee rolled out of bed and took the milk and porridge. “You see, Gewey? The man’s a freak of nature. Who else could get all that done before breakfast?”

“Indeed,” said Millet, and offered Gewey his breakfast, which the boy took gratefully. Gewey noticed that their gear had been packed, and three sets of pilgrim’s robes had been laid out for them. He could see why Lee held Millet in such high esteem. The sun was barely up, and he had already done a day’s worth of work.

Millet was the first to finish his breakfast and put on his robes.