Quests Volume Two Page 5

  He stiffened when Loriana hugged him. He passed the wet breeches to Raykim and they left the town again.

  Upon reaching the camp they heard distinct splashes and found Bellinda and Hinrik seated on the river shore.

  "Did you just have visitors?" Keneith asked.

  "Yes, the local Waiora came to say hello," Bellinda answered. "My oh my, Raykim, you look great!"

  Raykim pranced about, beaming.

  "Isn't Loriana the greatest dressmaker that ever was?"

  "Indeed." Bellinda chuckled and stood. "Don't you think it's bedtime guys?"

  Both she and Hinrik barely hid a yawn.

  "You dormice can get your sleep," Keneith replied. "I'm staying out here for a little longer. Loriana's house is stuffy."

  "Good night, Keneith," Hinrik said.

  "Sweet dreams, Hinrik," Raykim said cheerfully. "I'll be watching over you all!"

  "I don't need you to watch over me!" Keneith glared at Raykim who was too excited by his new clothes to be intimidated.

  As soon as the other two were inside the wagon, Raykim went to him and hugged him.

  "Thank you, Keneith. Nobody has ever done anything like this for me."

  "You're welcome, now get away from me," he replied bluntly.

  "You don't like cuddles?" Raykim looked at him, disappointed, still holding him.

  "Are you requesting cuddles or giving cuddles?" he retorted.

  "Requesting," Raykim answered shyly.

  Keneith sighed. It wasn't easy to hug someone with big bat-like wings on his back. He put one arm around Raykim's neck and the other around his thin waist. He squeezed and felt Raykim's nose press on the side of his neck. Then he let go and pulled away from his cousin.

  "Better?"

  "Better than nothing..." Raykim's smile was frail.

  "I'm sorry, Raykim, when it comes to relationship and blood ties I'm more Fajrulo than Human."

  "'Tis okay. Thank you, Keneith. Good night."

  Raykim opened his wings and went to lie on his belly on the roof of the wagon, using his arms as a pillow.

  Keneith shook his head. He was never any good at telling people he cared for them. He'd lost the few people who had loved him because of his own cold heart. It had been good with Bellinda at first, since she didn't like talking about love either, but then even she had started going all mushy and lovey-dovey, and that had ruined everything.

  He sat on the river shore, staring at the stars mirrored in the water and wondered if he'd ever find a place to call home.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  Kelvia had been left behind and the wagon still stuck to secondary roads at the edge of the forest that grew at the base of a mountain range, which allowed Raykim to ride on the roof of the wagon. Sometimes he scouted ahead or over the mountains, oblivious of Human borders and curious about the world.

  He wasn't expecting the land he lived in to be so big. If he went high up, he could vaguely see its whole shape, although the world was round, and his telescopic view allowed him a glimpse of the highest mountaintops of Maadre as well, even though it was across the ocean, a trip that took days on Human ships.

  Keneith had said that his full-blooded half-sister Starblazer had gone there with her mother when she was still a baby, unable to shift shape, much like he was. His own father had vanished without a trace, and Raykim felt still quite ignorant about Fajrulo.

  He was growing very fond of Humans, though. He was aware that Keneith, Bellinda and Hinrik weren't fully Human, but then Loriana had made him those wonderful clothes and he hoped that eventually he might be able to mingle with them.

  And then they stopped on the shore of the umpteenth river, more or less midway along the mountain range. Raykim found a nice clearing and they decided to stop for a few days so the horses could rest properly.

  Raykim went hunting with his cousin, but then he helped prepare the venison. He enjoyed cooking more than Bellinda, and now that someone was teaching him how to do things, he was very happy. No more raw meat for him!

  Hinrik bathed sometimes twice a day, but then, he was half-Waiora. Raykim hadn't seen any Waiora yet, but maybe they had seen him and were afraid to show themselves to him, in spite of Hinrik's presence.

  On the second day Keneith had taken down a boar with a fire ball and Raykim had helped him to skin and roast it when Hinrik came back from his bath wearing only his breeches.

  "Young man, do you mind covering that body of yours?" Bellinda said, staring at Hinrik's naked chest still wet under the sun.

  "Why, is it too much for you to behold?" Hinrik replied, sitting by the fire.

  "You could say that, yes. Please, have mercy."

  They exchanged smiles and he put on his tunic as Raykim passed him a piece of perfectly roasted meat, staring puzzled at his half-Waiora friend.

  "Why don't you tell me to cover myself?" Raykim asked Bellinda. He'd been around her half-naked up to Kelvia and even now he was without Loriana's shirt on.

  "You're too young to be interesting," she replied.

  "And you shouldn't be bothered by these things yet," Keneith added. "By Fajrulo standards, you're a newborn. By Sila standards, you might start feeling the call for your first mating flight, but since Bellinda doesn't have wings, you shouldn't even look at her."

  "What do you mean, that Raykim will have sex only with winged beings?" Hinrik asked, puzzled.

  "No, but his body is still not ready for sex," Keneith replied. "He might have lived twenty years already, but it's as if he were a ten-year-old Human. Did you have sex thoughts at ten?"

  "Um... no." Hinrik blushed and bit the meat to keep his mouth busy.

  "Why are we even discussing sex in front of a child?" Bellinda rolled her eyes. "No offense, Raykim, but really, did you feel that pull to take to the skies and find a mate? Or did you mate while scouting for us?"

  "No, I didn't," Raykim grumbled. "I was just wondering what the fuss was about. You should have said it had to do with mating."

  "Sorry, dear." Bellinda smiled fondly at him. "I do realize you're young but obviously hadn't realized how young you were."

  Raykim shrugged. There, they were treating him like a child again. True that mating was a grownup thing and he wasn't really interested in that. But he was interested in Human things – traditions, mating, whatever – so he would have loved to know more.

  Keneith gave him his meat and he nibbled at it, still taken by the thought. He only had a vague idea of how he had come into the world and he wasn't sure he wanted to know more yet, but at the same time he was sick of being treated like a baby. He wasn't a baby!

  He sulked after the meal, hugging his knees and staring at the sky. The others were playing "What does that cloud look like" and he'd had enough of that game. And since he had promised not to tamper with clouds, where was the fun?

  He looked up with them, though, just in case he saw a Sila fly by. Not that he'd tell them – he could see very far with his telescopic view, but they couldn't.

  And then a blue-green moving dot caught his attention.

  He gasped and jumped to his feet.

  "What is it?" Bellinda asked him.

  "There! Fajrulo mating!" He pointed at what he saw, zooming in on the dot. Definitely two dragons, one blue and one green. They were tiny, therefore they must be quite far away, high up in the sky.

  "I can't see a thing," Bellinda said. Hinrik squeezed his eyes, but couldn't see anything either.

  "Don't bother with your Human sight," Keneith said, unmoved. "Raykim, stop staring, that's not a sight for you. Didn't we just say you're too young?"

  "But that's... my father, I think!" Raykim replied, still staring at the sky. "I need to check!"

  "Raykim, don't!"

  Keneith tried to grab him, but he was faster. He opened his wings and took off, headed for the couple of dragons who seemed locked together.

  He had seen animals mate, so it wasn't anything new. It was obvious that the blue dragon was mating with a green female. He sto
pped at a certain distance and stared awed at the blue bat-like wings so similar to his own. Same color, but attached to a scaly dragon body with a whitish belly.

  Yellow eyes turned to look at him as the dragons separated. The green female had red eyes and barely glanced at him before flying away.

  "What are you looking at, boy?" the male roared.

  "Father, is that you?" Raykim said hesitantly. "I'm Raykim, son of Winged Amalia..."

  "Get away from me!" The roar shook Raykim to the bone and he felt the flame before it erupted from the dragon's mouth.

  With a yelp, he closed his wings and dived to the ground. He avoided the burning breath and spread his wings again to glide back into the clearing. Looking behind him, he saw the dragon was following him, furious.

  Panicking, Raykim dived again towards Keneith's shield. He didn't know how to raise protective magic shields and hoped his cousin's defenses would keep him safe.

  As soon as he touched the ground, he stumbled against a root and fell into Hinrik's arms. He closed his wings, still panting, and held tight to Hinrik's powerful torso. He wished he had Hinrik's muscles, although he doubted they would help against an angry dragon!

  Raykim was certain now that he'd just met the Fajrulo who had sired him. But why was he so mad at him? Why did he try to kill him? Were Fajrulo that heartless with their offspring?

  Keneith's shield held as the blue dragon spat fire against them. Hinrik passed Raykim's shaky body to Bellinda and turned towards the river.

  Raykim nestled against Bellinda, watching wide-eyed as his half-Waiora friend turned to the river and splashed his father's head, extinguishing the flame before it left his throat.

  My father is an evil monster! Bellinda sent soothing healing waves through him, calming his terror.

  The water threw his father off-balance and made him crash a little further down the river shore. Raykim giggled hysterically while Hinrik covered the dragon with another wave of water. And then Keneith put a hand on Hinrik's shoulder and walked towards the fallen dragon.

  Raykim relaxed his grip on Bellinda, watching his cousin confront his father.

  "Greetings, Runedemon," Keneith said.

  So I was right. He's my father! Raykim didn't know if he was happy or scared.

  The dragon bared his fangs, his pointed ears twitching under the sun.

  "Do you by any chance know the whereabouts of your sister?" Keneith continued, undaunted.

  "When will you wretched half-breeds learn to leave your parents alone?" the dragon roared. "There is a reason we abandon you! We don't want to have you around!"

  Raykim let go of Bellinda, wounded, and Hinrik put one arm around his shoulder. That was a very protective and sweet older brother! Raykim wondered if Hinrik could adopt him!

  "It's not really a good reason to try to kill us only because we are naturally attracted to being close to you," Keneith retorted. "Especially one as young as Raykim. If he were full-blooded, he'd still be with his mother!"

  "Then he can blame it on his Sila mother for kicking him out of his nest," Runedemon retorted. "And now he knows better than to disturb two adults mating."

  The yellow eyes glared at Raykim who tried to hide behind Hinrik's wide shoulders. If it weren't for the wings, he would have probably succeeded, since he was shorter and thinner than the half-Waiora.

  "And who's that wretched young man?" Runedemon continued.

  "Another wretched half-blood," Keneith answered. "Half-Waiora, hence you can thank him for the shower. You probably badly needed it anyway."

  Runedemon roared again, but that didn't deter Keneith. Hinrik and Raykim stepped back a little – towards the river, since that was the safe place for Hinrik – but Bellinda didn't move.

  "I should destroy you all!" Runedemon said.

  "You thought the shower wasn't enough?" Keneith scoffed. "You're one quite powerful Fajrulo and we're four quite determined half-breeds. It's an interesting challenge."

  A challenge! Raykim's interest perked up and he moved next to Hinrik. He wasn't sure how he could contribute, but he wasn't letting his cousin and his new friends fight his battles for him. He could manipulate fire as much as Keneith, and he controlled air as well. Now that he wasn't panicked, maybe he could confront his powerful father!

  "You are not setting fire to this forest." A group of Waiora emerged from the river very close to the grounded Fajrulo.

  Raykim barely glanced at them because he heard feathery wings flapping overhead. His eyes went to the sky and he gasped. A group of Sila glided around Runedemon. Raykim almost whined at the sight of the leader. Her hair and wings were losing their original color, but she hadn't changed much.

  "You are outnumbered, Runedemon, leave in peace," she said.

  "Winged Amalia, long time no see!" The Fajrulo sounded sarcastic. He didn't look like he was going to leave though. Raykim wondered what his mother had seen in him to make a mating flight with such a monster.

  "Leave our son and his friends alone," the Sila insisted while Bellinda approached Runedemon and put her hands on the skewed wing.

  Raykim gaped as the half-Genn closed her eyes and started healing his fallen father. He rushed to hug his mother, basking in her scent and her warm embrace.

  Everybody watched as Bellinda set the broken wing, and Keneith was right by her side when she collapsed. The Fajrulo muttered a thank you and flew off without looking at anyone. The Waiora dived again in the river while Keneith took Bellinda into the wagon to rest.

  Raykim felt Hinrik's eyes on him, but then his mother took his face in her hands and he forgot where he was.

  "Are you all right, Son?" she asked tenderly.

  "I... wasn't hurt, they protected me... how did you know?"

  "I've been following you since you left our mountains." She smiled. "I wanted to make sure you were safe."

  "So you've always watched me?" Tears came to his eyes, but he gulped them down.

  "Since I was forced to let you go, yes," she answered. "I'm glad you found friends who can protect you."

  "Mother, I want to come home!"

  "You can't. You have found new friends. They love you."

  "Keneith hates me! And he's my cousin!"

  "He doesn't hate you, Raykim, he protected you, didn't he? You can't expect him to display any form of affection, though, if he's half-Fajrulo."

  "Mother, why did you mate with a Fajrulo?" Tears were running down his cheeks now and Winged Amalia gently dried them with her thumbs.

  "He looked Sila to me," she said gently. "He had shifted shape and I was... in need. I realized my flight mate wasn't Sila only when you were born with tiny bat-like wings on your back..." She kissed his forehead. "I will always love you, Raykim, but the rest of the Sila can't stand you. Please, stay with your cousin, will you?"

  Raykim sniffled and nodded. He hugged her tight and listened to her heartbeat for a moment, then let her go.

  "I miss you, Mother," he said with a shaky voice. She was surrounded by her other offspring who backed her only out of respect for her age. Raykim saw in their eyes they didn't want him back.

  "I miss you too, Raykim, but you're better off with your cousin. He will explain everything to you when the time comes."

  "About what?"

  "Your body and mating. Soon you'll be ready and I wouldn't be able to help you in that department."

  Raykim sniffled again and looked at Keneith and Hinrik who were waiting for him.

  Winged Amalia caressed his hair. "Raykim, I'm so proud of you."

  Raykim refused to look at her. Keneith came over and put one arm around Raykim's shoulder.

  "Nice meeting you, Winged Amalia. I will take care of your son."

  "I know you will, Keneith. Thank you."

  Raykim gulped down more tears. And then she was gone with her perfect offspring and their perfect offspring who had feathered wings and no pointed ears and looked like all the other Sila of the world.

  "Let's go hunting," Keneith suggested, lea
ding Raykim back to camp. "Bellinda will need food to recover from healing a Fajrulo, and it will keep your mind busy..."

  ***

  Keneith was still kind of mad at his rash cousin, more because he'd put them all in danger than because he'd brought Runedemon's wrath on them. Of course his pure-blooded uncle wasn't helpful at all, and Keneith was beginning to think he'd never find his long lost mother.

  He was quite proud of his team, though. Hinrik hadn't panicked and his water jet had taken down the Fajrulo. Bellinda had noticed Runedemon was hurt and had healed him. Only Raykim had screwed up, so to speak.

  But then, at least Keneith knew that Raykim's mother hadn't really abandoned him. She'd been watching him as he traveled with them, although she was gone now. Raykim was still a little bummed, both by her leaving and the fact that Bellinda was still recovering, therefore Keneith left him alone.

  As he cooked the pheasants and hares they'd caught during their hunt, Keneith thought about Winged Amalia, the Sila tricked into a mating flight with a Fajrulo. He was glad he didn't have those instincts and wondered if Hinrik had ever felt that kind of call.

  Waiora and Sila were similar in that every ten years they mated with the first member of the other sex that happened to come by – calling it a mating swim or a mating flight – and usually produced offspring after the compulsive mating.

  Then he considered his own impulses, trying to remember when he'd felt that compulsion. Although Fajrulo weren't as regular in their mating flights, having much longer lifespans, he found a certain pattern in his own mating process.

  He wasn't sex-obsessed, but he did need to have sex after a number of years, usually around five. It had been more often when he was younger, but now he was obviously an adult and didn't need it as often as he used to.

  Raykim was very quiet after the meeting with his parents and helped him to season the meat without speaking. Hinrik had gone inside the wagon with a herbal tea for Bellinda.

  "Should I check?" Raykim asked shyly as they took the meat off the fire, perfectly roasted.

  And then the door of the wagon opened and Bellinda came out with the mug in her hand, followed by Hinrik.

  "How are you feeling?" Raykim asked, his yellow eyes wide with worry and a hint of guilt.