Lovers' Veil

"So?"

"So it's lethal to you; you can't touch it. You said it yourself before. Please give me back my sword."

"No."

Rhyannon stepped forward once more, asking, "Do you recognize me? Do you know who I am?"

The clurichaun's mouth opened, as if to continue yelling. His bleary eyes squinted at her before lighting with recognition. A moment later, he went to his knee in a bow.

"Princess Rhyannon Ensorcelledlight," he said, awed. "My most heartfelt apologies for the way I spoke to you!"

"Yes. And my companion and I need the weapon you found. As we told you, it belongs to him. We need it for protection. Please return it to him. Do so and you'll have done a great service for me and will richly rewarded."

The clurichaun hesitated only a moment before standing aside and waving a tiny hand at the cloth-wrapped bundle. "It's yours," he said.

Leofrick retrieved the package and unwound the cloth. Rhyannon joined him in an outcry of joy at the sight of the blade as the weapon was revealed. Even the vile feel of the iron's nearness couldn't suppress her elation.

He has the means to defend us again!

Composing herself, forcing herself back into the role of Princess Royal, she switched her attention back to the clurichaun, focusing on him.

"You have done well," she said, "and may have just saved both my own life and that of the man I travel with, the man I love. Please, give me your name so that I can find you again later to bestow your reward upon you."

"Beacan," the clurichaun said excitedly. "My name is Beacan of the Clan of Weylin."

She nodded her thanks to him, saying, "Beacan of the Clan of Weylin, soon as I am able I will send for you. Come at my summons and you'll be rewarded for your actions here today beyond your wildest expectations." Before the clurichaun could reply, she turned back to Leofrick, saying, "We must hurry on."

He nodded and they turned away.

"I'm glad to have been of service, Princess," the clurichaun called from behind. In a softer voice, one he likely believed only he, in his drunkenness, could hear, he added, "Glad, too, to be rid of the heavy weight and that cursed iron."

Leofrick slid the blade home in the scabbard and glanced over at her. "Where's the cloth my sword was wrapped in?"

"Why?" she asked, grinning.

"I was going to wrap it around my waist."

"Why?" Her grin widened.

"As clothing."

"There's no need."

"For me there is. Where's the cloth?"

"I left it back there for Beacan."

"Why?"

"Because it belonged to him. He gave you the sword, not the cloth it was wrapped in."

He sighed, the noise only serving to increase the width of her smile.

They walked for a time, neither speaking, simply concentrating on gaining the coast and the town of Saltlea. Rhyannon began to pay special attention to the landscape around them. Though the ground itself was still flat, the boulders they saw around them were becoming steadily larger and more numerous. Rather than finding single rocks, they were now seeing clusters and piles more and more frequently.

"What's wrong?" Leofrick asked. "You look jumpy."

"I am. This part of the plains are known hunting grounds of tazelwurms."

"What are tazelwurms?"

She gave him a sideways glance as she replied, "Giant carnivorous worms with a pair of short arms and three-fingered hands. Each finger is tipped with a very long, sharp talon."

"Oh," he muttered, paling a bit.

"They hunt underground," she continued. "When they sense prey on the surface they just...explode...up out of the ground and grab the prey with those talons. They begin to feed while the victim is still alive."

At her side, Leofrick grew more visibly nervous, his eyes widening a bit and moving in rapid, darting motions, as if he was trying to look everywhere at once.

"Most of them have been killed off," she said, "due to the danger they pose. Tazelwurms are killed on sight whenever possible."

"Why are you taking us through their hunting grounds if they're so dangerous?"

She loosed a brief snort of nervous laughter, a sound she would have kept to herself in the company of any other. "It's not something I want to do, believe me. But this is the quickest way to Saltlea. And I hope that if my father and Leurre figure out what route we took, they'll go around a longer path to avoid the tazelwurm hunting area. If so, then we'll have an even larger lead on them."

He shook his head, still looking around, keeping close watch on the landscape. "I don't like the thought of some underground predator leaping out of the dirt and grabbing me at any moment."

"You think I do? If not for Father and Leurre, we'd be going the long way and avoiding this area by a wide margin."

He nodded, sighing. "Understood. Think we can walk a bit faster, though? After what you've told me, I really want to get off these plains."

She agreed and they sped their pace. In the hot sunlight they were forced to dip into the water rations given to them by the gnomes time and again. She feared they would reach the end of their water long before they reached the end of the plains. When the tall ridge appeared on the horizon she angled in its direction, suggesting that they climb up into the rocks and spend the night. Though they had a while before darkness fell, they needed the shade and the rest. Tazelwurms, she explained, couldn't tunnel through the rocks and, if any found them up there, would be forced to climb. She assured him that if such a thing happened, the awkward creature would make so much noise scrabbling over stone that they would have ample warning to escape. He was reluctant to stop until the plains and the threat of the tazelwurms were well behind them. At the same time he saw the wisdom in stopping for the night and acquiesced.

Upon reaching the massive pile of crushed rock and fallen stone, she led the way up, picking the path of least resistance. Once well off the ground, she sought out a relatively level spot with enormous boulders rising up on two sides.

"We'll be safe here," she assured him. "We're high enough up to be out of easy reach of any tazelwurm, yet we're protected on two sides and have a clear view the rest of the way around to make it easier to keep watch."

"No fire, though," he said. "Because it's so open anyone looking for us would see our campfire long before we knew they were out there."

"Right. Not that we have wood for a fire, but still, right." She grinned, giving him a quick hug as she spoke.

He unbuckled his belt and laid his sword and the supply packs carefully to one side, keeping the weapon out of accidental touching range. Taking food and drink from the packs, they shared a meager meal of bread, cheese, fruits and a few nuts, washed down with water that had warmed from the time in the sun that day. As they ate, she saw that he was watching her very closely.

Grinning, she said, "Don't worry, I feel fine."

"I hope so, but I'm not fully convinced."

She slid over, cuddling against him, saying, "I'm not fully-healed, but I feel much better."

He kissed her and said, "I love you."

She returned the kiss. "I love you, too. Even though you do look silly when you're walking around naked but for your sword belt."

He grinned and pressed his lips to hers once again before grabbing one of the supply packs and pulling it to them. He eased her backward until she was lying flat, her head pillowed on the canvas pack.

Beginning at her lips, he slowly kissed her, working his way down her body, planting soft, gentle kisses every couple of inches. When he reached her pubis, her already aroused body reacted instantly and she felt her nipples grow harder as her pubis grew moister.

Making eye contact with her, letting her see the mixture of devoted love and raw animal lust in his gaze, he eased her legs apart. Returning to the kisses, he worked his way gently over first one inner thigh, then the other, his lips only just brushing her feverish skin.

She moaned, wiggling her hips, trying to bring her damp sex into contact with his mouth. He continued to tease her, kissing her, working his way close to her pubis before moving away again. When she continued to squirm he lightly placed his hands on her stomach, holding her still. Once she was motionless, he slid his hands upward, taking hold of her breasts, kneading them gently. She closed her eyes, breathing heavily, feeling her heart beat faster. Her breath came in short, panting gasps. When she felt his fingers working on her hard, sensitive nipples, plucking at them, those gasps turned to whimpers of pleasure.

She begged him to allow her release. Rather than make a verbal reply, he continued the exquisite torment for long minutes until her skin burned even hotter with the fever of lust and desire and her head rocked from side to side as she uttered a series of small whimpers.

Finally, at last, she felt his lips on her sex. She let out a high-pitched shriek of delight as his tongue probed her lightly. Within moments, he moved to her clitoris, sucking it between his lips.

She screamed with pleasure, not thinking to try and stifle her outcries, bucking her hips until his hands slid from her breasts to hold her still once more. Her head thrashed from side to side as her orgasm ripped through her overheated body.

When she finally calmed and caught her breath, he worked his way back up her body with another series of gentle kisses. Reaching her mouth, he kissed her deeply before grabbing the second supply pack and using it for his own pillow, lying with her, holding her tightly to him.

She felt the stiffness of his brawny erection jabbing her leg as he pulled her to him. Giving him a coy look, she rose up a bit on one elbow and let her gaze roam down his lean, rippling musculature until she was staring at his cock. The sight of it made her mouth water.

"That can't be comfortable," she whispered, reaching down to toy with his pulsing erection.

His breath caught at her touch, but he drew her tightly against him again, saying, "I'd love for you to return the favor, but we need to rest. You especially! We still have a long walk ahead of us tomorrow and I know you're still not feeling well."

"I want to," she whispered before pressing her lips to his, sliding her tongue into his mouth, tasting him.

Just as she wrapped her dainty fingers around his meaty cock a ruckus caused them both to sit up, startled. He held her protectively, one hand reaching slowly for his sword.

On the plains below them was a sight that made her queasy with fear. A large group of armed and armored soldiers, a fairly equal mixture of elves and Attorcroppes, were being led in the direction of the coast by two figures on horseback at the lead of the procession. One was her father. The other was the changeling, Leurre. Close to Leurre, a trio of Attorcroppes held tightly to thick chains, straining against the pull of the creature at their other end - the Ve'reor.

The Ve'reor was long and lean, rippling with a wiry musculature. Its skin was smooth and hairless, yet very dark, shining in the sunlight. Its head looked too small for its size, tapering to a muzzle that was parted. Even from where she sat, Rhyannon could see the glint of long, sharp teeth and hear the huffing of its breath as it tried to drag its handlers along faster than they were willing to move. The creature was leading the hunting party in the direction of the ridge she and Leofrick rested upon.

Panicking, she pulled out of his embrace and sat up straighter. "The Ve'reor! We shouldn't have stopped! We shouldn't have-"

He interrupted, saying, "No, we-" He cut off in mid-sentence, staring out beyond the hunters. "What is that? You see it? That ripple in the dirt, what is that?"

Holding her breath, she followed his line of sight and quickly spotted the line of roiling tan soil and small stones that tracked directly toward the hunters.

"Tazelwurm!" she gasped.

In the next instant the huge, dark tan, segmented worm burst out of the ground, grabbing the Ve'reor with long gleaming black talons. A round mouth, bristling with rings of backward-angling needle-sharp black teeth gaped open.

The Ve'reor bellowed and contorted itself into seemingly impossible positions, raking the tazelwurm with teeth and claws.

The tazelwurm tossed the Ve'reor aside, the force of it yanking the chains from the grasps of the three Attorcroppe handlers.

Rhyannon drew back, pulling Leofrick with her, saying, "We have to go. Now."

"It's so much smaller than the worm," he said, resisting her incessant tugging. "And it's already hurt."

She pulled harder on his arm, nearly screaming when she spoke. "It isn't hurt, only mad! It's also free of its keepers. The tazelwurm attacked the Ve'reor. The Ve'reor will fight the tazelwurm, kill it, then charge up here after us. It's on our trail, it knows we're here. We must leave. Now. Our only change is to put as much distance between ourselves and it as we can while its preoccupied with fighting the tazelwurm. Now come on!"

Reluctantly, he allowed her to turn him from the spectacle of the fight below. Retrieving his weapon, he belted it on and grabbed up their supply packs. She led him along the ridge, hearing the bellows of both the tazelwurm and the Ve'reor behind.

Please, Goddess, let the tazelwurm survive long enough to give us a good head start.

Chapter 25

Prince Leofrick Wykeham listened to the sounds of the fight raging behind them as they hurried away. Despite trying to maintain a calm composure, a brave face, for Rhyannon, he was terrified. The tazelwurm was enormous and completely alien in appearance to anything he had seen or ever imagined existed. The Ve'reor, though far smaller, was even more horrific; the way it twisted and warped its double-jointed form sickened him. Taken together, the pair of creatures made his knees watery. The combined screams and howls from behind made him shake, making it difficult for him to keep pace with Rhyannon as she set off quickly.

"Will the Ve'reor's handlers be able to regain control of it?" he asked, hoping for news to help him calm a bit and steady his nerves.

She didn't slow as she replied, "I hope so, as it would slow the Ve'reor down. But I doubt they'll be able to. The Attorcroppes, nor the elves for that matter, will be able to go up the rock fall anywhere near as quickly as the Ve'reor. If it gets to the ridge ahead of them, they'll never catch it." She shook her head, walking even faster. "I knew it was tracking us; we never should have stopped."

"What do we do when the sun sets?"

She slid down a shallow incline, sending a flurry of dust and stone ahead of her. "Keep going and pray to the Goddess that no tazelwurms find us."

"I don't think that's a good idea," he said, sliding down after her.

"We stop and we're as good as dead," she told him, rounding a colossal boulder. "With the Ve'reor so close it'd run us down in minutes. If it'd gotten free of its handlers without the tazelwurm to keep it busy for a few minutes we'd likely already be dead. Our only hope is to move quick as we can and try to reach Saltlea ahead of it. We do that, we can find a boat to take us out to the Seafeather Islands. Once in the islands, we can hide out from that monster that's chasing us."

"For how long?"

"Probably not very. Father and Leurre will figure out where we've gone easily, I'm sure. The Ve'reor might not be able to track us over the water by sight or scent, but it can still follow us by sensing my magick. We'll have to move from island to island quickly and try to confuse it and buy us some more time."

He followed her down another, steeper, incline and between a pair of rock falls. As he trailed after her, he said, "You mentioned your magick again. In all the time we've spent together I've yet to see you use magick."

"Every being on this side of the Veil has magick. Some just have a greater link to it than others do. My own magick is strong, but subtle. I can help things grow and heal. I think that's why I not only survived the ogre's attack, but healed up as quickly as I have."

"But there's nothing you can do against the Ve'reor?" he asked, still fighting his weak knees to keep pace with her.

"No. Even if there was, you saw that thing, you saw how fast it can move. Even if I have some sort of talent with magickal combat I still might not be able to do anything against the Ve'reor; it may well simply be too fast."

Rather than waste breath on a reply, he simply concentrated on staying with her. Every few moments he looked back, always expecting to see the Ve'reor barreling toward them in a shower of stone bits and dust. He expected to hear the beast's snarling howl with each passing second.

Before too long they reached the bottom of the ridge opposite their pursuers and increased their pace to a near run as they set off across the open plains once more. She needlessly reminded him of the need for haste. He only nodded, glad of the fact that he could no longer hear the spine-chilling sounds of the clash behind them.

After they had trotted through the plains for a time he asked, "How long until we reach Saltlea?"

"If we can keep this pace up, and stay on this track, we should reach it just after dawn in the morning."

Already winded, he said, "We can stay on this track, but we can't keep this pace up all night."

"I know," she said, her voice holding deep regret. "The only reason I've not already been forced to stop is because I'm using magick to sustain my energy to keep going."

He frowned, asking, "Won't that just make it easier for the Ve'reor to find us?"

"We're leaving a trail of footprints in the dust," she said. "It doesn't need the scent of my magick to find us. Anyway, the magick is part of me and I leave the feel of it in the air anywhere I go. Using it makes that residual feel stronger, but not using it doesn't eliminate it."

He slowed his pace slightly.

"If we slow down, we're dead," she said, drawing out ahead of him as she maintained the faster pace. "If the Ve'reor is free when it catches up with us, it'll tear us both apart. If they have control of it again and simply use it to track us, I'll be taken back to my father's castle, held prisoner until Samhain and forced into the marriage with Leurre. You'll still be killed on sight. We can't slow down, beloved."

He touched the hilt of the weapon at his side. "I have my sword back."

"Yes. That's our only chance of defending ourselves from the Ve'reor. But as I said before, you saw it. Do you think you can handle something that strong and nimble? And what if it's not running free when it catches us? What if, rather than just the Ve'reor, you have to also fight armed elves and Attorcroppes? What if Leurre joins the fight? What if my father joins in? Can you really defend us against all of them at once?"

"But the iron-"

"It lethal to them all, yes. But the Ve'reor is so strong and fast it may well kill you before it dies of any wounds you inflict upon it. And if the whole force catches us, do you really think you can kill them all before one gets close enough to kill you? I've seen your skills as a swordsman, my love. Yes, you're very good. But are you that good? And what if they catch up to us in the dark? Can you see in the dark as well as they can? Because every one of our pursuers has outstanding night vision."

His only reply was to run until he was at her side again, then slow to match her trotting pace. His breath was ragged and a stitch was forming in his side.

We can't keep this up much longer.

Looking over his shoulder yet again he was amazed to see how far in the distance the rocky ridge they had stopped in now was. It appeared tiny and close to the horizon.

After a while they slowed only enough to break into the supply packs, both of which were being carried by Leofrick, and quickly down some food and water. When they finished, he slowed his pace more.