Gaia Town - The Tales of Taranis and Fearghas - 4. The King

Eyes narrowed, Ailill took a step forward until he towered over Fearghas. "King Nevan of the Fae wants to kill my grandson?"

'He has the right. Taranis is a second generation Fae-Elf hybrid; they have brought great disasters on the world in the past. His very existence is against the law and the punishment for this offense is death,' Fearghas answered, completely unimpressed by Ailill's anger.

Taranis pushed his grandfather aside but Ailill held him back by his arm. "Taranis–

Taranis shook him off. “Let me.” Kneeling down he grabbed Fear’s head with both hands. "What about my brother! Did he send another assassin for Cai?"

‘I don't know, we never spoke about your brother.’

Taranis jumped back to his feet. “Grandfather, I have to leave. I must see Cai.”

Ailill put a hand on Taranis’ shoulder. “Your brother is well, Taranis.”

“How can you know this?”

“You came here to find out about Cai and what is going on in Ando. Right? You know we have our ways to get information.” He briefly tightened his grip on Taranis’ shoulder. “Now let me talk some more to your friend.”

“He isn’t my—“

“Shhh.” He looked at Fearghas, who had flattened his ears against his head, and stood between them with hunched shoulders and closed eyes. “Don’t say things you might later regret.”

Ailill watched Fear closely. “What is the punishment for disobeying the King’s orders, Fearghas?”

‘Death.’

“Yet, you didn’t kill Taranis.”

‘No. The law is not valid. His magic is pure Elven; I couldn't sense any traces of Fae magic even though he is a hybrid. He won't become a raging lunatic.’

"Ah, I understand." Ailill nodded. "But you did not report your findings to Nevan so that a hearing could be convened where Taranis could be pardoned?"

The wolf scoffed. 'A hearing… You don’t know Nevan well, do you? He would have killed me and sent another assassin.' Fearghas locked eyes with Taranis. 'Thinking I was biased.'

Hearing Taranis take in a sharp breath behind him, Ailill asked, "Were you biased?"

'Maybe.'

"Because your sense of justice told you the law is not applicable in Taranis’ case?"

'Yes.'

"Or because you became my grandson's friend?"

'That would have been unprofessional.'

Ailill stared at Fearghas, then nodded. “Of course, I apologize. It’s almost a year since Nevan sent you out. Maybe he thinks you’re dead and there is another Wolfener already looking for Taranis.”

‘He knows when his wolves die, believe me. Elves are difficult to hunt down, and it is impossible to get to them if they are in Aranthe. Nevan knew only vaguely where I might find Taranis. I was extremely lucky to run into him so early.’

"I see. And now I have to decide what I'm going to do with you."

"Kill it!" Oran stepped forward. "It is a Wolfener, an assassin, sent to kill Taranis. It can't be trusted."

Ailill didn’t look at Oran but watched his grandson closely. Seeing the flash of panic crossing his face when he heard Oran's words, his decision was made. He shook his head. "No, I think not." Turning to Fearghas he asked, "Will you accompany us peacefully to meet our King? Be aware I can't promise that you will live. There is a real chance the king will end you himself as soon as he hears you were sent to kill Taranis."

'I gather you can't promise that Oran's sentinels won't kill me 'accidentally' if I stay outside of Aranthe?'

A hardly discernible rustling came from behind them and Ailill smiled almost cruelly. "No."

'Then I take my chances with you and the Elven King.'

There wasn't a visible border but Taranis knew immediately when they had entered Aranthe because he felt strangely light and it was as if the air was easier to breathe.

The group walked through the forest until they came to a steep slope. They couldn’t see the ground below because the valley was filled with a wafting mist. When Ailill approached the edge of a cliff, worn stone steps became visible. He gestured for Oran and Fearghas to precede him before he himself climbed down. Taranis and one of the sentinels followed closely behind, well aware that others were watching them, prepared to take action if Fear attempted to escape.

When they reached the bottom the mist was gone. Instead, a clear blue sky stretched over them, with only the occasional white cloud drifting by. The air was filled with the scent of wild flowers and strange spices. Some distance away a river meandered lazily through the valley.

Fearghas sniffed, his ears flickering, and he looked around until he found a village built in a spiral around a tall tree.

Following Fear's gaze Ailill said, "This is Aranthe, home of the Elven King on Bauritish. Let's hurry, he knows we're coming by now and is probably already waiting for us."

When they came closer Fear saw that the house in the center of the spiral had at least five floors and was built around the tree. The two guards at the entrance put their hands on the hilt of their swords when they saw him.

Once inside, they had to walk upwards through a long circular hallway, its inner wall formed by the trunk of the tree. Reaching the top floor Aillill lead them into what appeared to be an anteroom. He asked them to wait before he disappeared through richly carved double doors, which opened again shortly after and a dwarf hurried past, ignoring them completely.

Taranis leaned with his shoulder against the wall, watching with some amusement as his grandfather's consort clenched and unclenched his hand around the hilt of his sword. "Relax, Oran. Fearghas won't try to escape from here."

"Maybe not, but now that he has nothing to lose anymore he could try a last attempt to fulfill his King's task and thereby get himself killed so he can escape interrogation. I only want to make sure that I am the one who runs his sword through the assassin's heart."

Fearghas actually snorted and Taranis shook his head just as Ailill appeared in the doorframe and waved them over. "The King awaits you."

They entered the King's study, which was surprisingly light and airy. White drapes billowed in the slight breeze coming through large arched windows and the gold-colored wood of the floor and ceiling beams gave the room a warm and welcoming atmosphere. It stood in stark contrast to the thunderous expression on the face of the man standing in front of an ornate desk.

"Taranis!" In two long strides the King was before him, grabbing him by the shoulders and running his hands along Taranis’ arms and back, as if he wanted to make sure he was unharmed.

Taranis shifted uncomfortably in the King's embrace. "I'm all right, Your Majesty."

The King took in a deep breath, then stepped back while his eyes searched the room until he found Fearghas, and his voice became edged with anger. "Is this the assassin Nevan sent to kill my great-grandson?"

Ailill squeezed Taranis’ shoulder briefly, before he stepped in front of the wolf. "Yes Father, this is Fearghas."

"Step aside, Ailill."

"Father–"

"I want to look into his human eyes when he explains to me why King Nevan ordered Taranis’ death." The King uttered a short word and Fearghas froze where he stood. His face contorted in pain as he fell on his side. With agonizing slowness, paws became hands, clenched to fists, with long black claws digging deep wounds into palms, before they finally retracted and became fingernails. Black fur vanished, leaving pale skin. Muscles twitched. Limbs expanded to human arms and legs. The transformation seemed to be beyond painful and when it was finally over Fearghas lay on his side, curled into himself, trembling and panting harshly. His skin glistened with cold sweat; his long ebony black hair stuck against his body in places, dampened by perspiration.

As soon as Fear’s forced transformation had started Taranis was by his side. Kneeling, he gingerly laid his hand on Fearghas’ back and shoulder, wincing at each slow, painful change until it was over.

Instead of familiar yellow eyes, pale green eyes sprang open and Fear whispered almost inaudibly, "Help. Up."

Taranis shook his head; he couldn’t imagine Fearghas getting up just yet. A look into his face however, made him change his mind. Grabbing one of Fear's arms, he slung it around his shoulders, while he put his own arm around his friend's waist. Balancing the weight of the larger body, Taranis stood slowly up, pulling Fear to his feet.

Fearghas had a hard time adjusting to his human body. His knees bent, he could only stand on the balls of his feet, as if he still were in his wolf form. Annoyed that he had to lean heavily on Taranis so as not to fall, he slowly forced himself to straighten his legs and stand on his whole feet. When he finally stood upright, he was taller than anyone else in the room.

The King had watched Fearghas’ transformation with an indifferent expression, unmoved by the pain the man had to go through. Letting his gaze wander over the naked Wolfener, irritated he still needed his great-grandson’s support so as not to fall, he barked at one of his sentinels, "Bring a chair and get him some clothes." Then he turned to Ailill. "Are you sure he isn't a spy? In times like these, where there is talk of war, one can never be too careful."

"War? So it wasn't just rumors we heard in Gaia Town?” Taranis interrupted.

"The House of Quorish is preparing a war against the dwarves and us. Your Great-Uncle Edan is in the Zinnith mountains conferring with the Dwarven King in my name."

The sentinel came back carrying a bundle of clothes which he threw in Fearghas’ lap, before he turned around and took his guarding position beside the door again. Fear sorted through them then pushed his legs painstakingly slowly into some loose trousers. To pull them over his hips he had to get halfway up from the chair and promptly stumbled. Immediately Taranis tried to stabilize him but he snarled, “Let me. I can do it on my own!”

After this Taranis took a step back and watched Fearghas struggling with his tunic next. It was obvious that he couldn’t lift his arms enough to slip them into the garment; he was still too weak from the forced change. Stubbornly he tried it anyway, fighting with the tunic and his waist-long hair that kept getting in the way. Growling, Fear finally threw the tunic on the floor and slumped back into his chair. Taranis lifted an eyebrow questioningly and after a brief nod from Fear, he calmly braided his friend's hair into a thick plait before helping him to put the tunic on, this time without the risk of being snarled at again.

When they were finished, the King turned to Fear. "Your life depends on your ability to persuade me that you are neither a murderer nor a spy."

Fear shrugged. "Since my father told me about the meaning of my mark," he lifted his hand to show the King his paw-shaped birthmark, "I was well aware that any moment could be my last."

“Good." The King frowned. "My son believes Nevan has other motives for wanting my great-grandson dead beside the fact that he is a hybrid. Is he right?"

“Since King Nevan had learned a second generation hybrid existed, he was extremely agitated, but when he heard it was your great-grandson Taranis, it almost seemed as if he was…eager to hunt him down and see him dead." He shrugged. "I don't know how to explain this further. Some things he said gave me the impression he thought it was only justice that it was your great-grandson who had to die.”

“But he never mentioned Cai?” Taranis asked.

“No, at least not in my presence.”

“Don’t you find this strange?” The King asked, his voice going hard.

“Maybe he’d already sent someone else for Cai. Or he didn’t know of him by the time he sent me out.” Fear looked up in time to see Taranis' jaw tightening.

“Hmm, maybe.” The King looked from Taranis to Fearghas. “If you had changed into your human form from the beginning, shown Taranis what you are, explained everything to him, and warned him then you would sound more believable.”

“I already knew that he was a Wolferner.”

“You knew? Why did you never ask me then?”

“I thought you had your reasons not to speak about it. But I didn’t expect you having an order to kill me would be one of them.”

“I can’t change at will.”

Ailill shook his head. “Wolfeners can change their form anytime they want.”

“The ability to transform at will was taken away from me. Only my King can release me from this form.” Fearghas looked down at his body. “Or so I thought.”

“Yes. I sensed the binding spell and now you have confirmed my suspicions. You will change back to your wolf form soon and there is nothing I can do about it. Lifting the spell again would be too painful for you to survive, am I right?” the King asked. Then he stepped forward and touched the collar around Fearghas’ neck with a fingertip. Fear hissed. “It has something to do with the collar.”

“It’s the manifestation of Nevan’s spell. He traps us in our wolf form and only he can take it off. This way we always come back.”

"So he would have removed the spell after you had carried out your mission successfully?" The King rubbed his fingers where he had touched Fear's collar.

"In theory, yes. In reality? No. He would have found a minor flaw in my performance and renewed the spell after a brief recovery period."

"Recovery period?" Taranis asked.

“The longer we stay in our wolf form, the more aggressive we become, until we finally are unmanageable and they have to put us down." Emotions too fast to catch flickered over Fear’s face. "The King sometimes edges it, this way we are as suitable as we can be for some of the special tasks he has for us."

“How long can you stay in your wolf form without being in danger of losing yourself to your wolf form?” Ailill asked.

Fear shrugged. “It depends, usually some weeks.”

“But you were with Taranis for a year without changing into your human form; how is this possible?” Oran who had been silent the whole time, eyed Fear distrustfully.

Fear met Oran's eyes and held his gaze. "Taranis never treated me like an animal, but like a friend, a companion, a sentient being.”

“You are a sentient being,” Taranis almost shouted, glaring at Oran.

“Sometimes we are alone for weeks on our missions, live like true wolves, and our minds drift. If we are with people, men, they only see the wolf, even if they know that we are not animals. They don’t talk to us, or when they do, they talk to us as if we were dogs. They don’t expect answers to their questions. When I was with Taranis, I discovered that I wasn't in danger of becoming feral as long as he treated me like a human.”

“Even so, only Nevan can remove the spell completely and he won't do it as long as you haven't accomplished your mission. All the more reason to kill Taranis eventually,” the King objected.

“I would never kill Taranis. I said it before, the law doesn’t apply here; he only has Elven magic. Moreover, he is my…friend.”

The King looked at Taranis. "What do you think, Taranis? Now that you know he was sent to kill you, do you still trust him?"

Taranis hesitated briefly and then nodded. "I did, and still do trust Fearghas with my life. If he'd wanted to kill me, I'd be long dead." He breathed in deeply and then turned to Fear. "I just wished you had talked to me, told me all this, "he gestured vaguely with his hand, "trusted me as much as I did trust you."

The King went back behind his desk. “I will inform you about my final decision early tomorrow morning." Then he looked at the sentinels guarding the door. "Show the Wolfener to the guest quarters. I want two of you guarding his door at all times.”

“That won't be necessary. I’ll stay with Fearghas; we’ll go to my rooms.” Taranis looked at Oran, who had been surprisingly quiet during their conversation. “To make sure he doesn’t accidentally get killed.”

“Are you sure?” Ailill asked.

“I am, Grandfather. Fearghas won’t harm me.” Taranis turned to Fearghas. “Do you think you can walk?”

Fear stood up slowly, swaying for a short moment, but then caught himself. “Lead the way.”

***

Urien removed the locking spell and opened the door with the key hanging on the chain around his neck. Moonlight fell through the window into the room and he immediately saw that the bed was empty. Anxiously, he looked around until he found Cai standing by the window, the ankle chain still in place. Cai didn't turn around to him, didn't so much as twitch but ignored him completely. Urien walked over to him until he stood beside him. That was when he saw the tattoo. Dozens of stars of various sizes glistened all over Cai's right arm and shoulder. Without thinking, Urien touched one of them with his fingertip. "I never saw this before."

Cai flinched away, but he couldn't get far because of the chain. "It's only visible in the moonlight, it's a Fae tattoo. Mother gave it to me before she left."