Tales of Regventus 1: Aldawen
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C Tarkington
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34
Chapter 1
GRIFFA
It was cold, much too cold for the beginning of autumn. As she made her way around the third ring of the city, Griffa fastened her cloak more tightly and looked around the crowded streets.
The shops didn’t seem to be thriving as they once had. The wares in the windows were sparse, and the paint was chipped and faded on many of the buildings.
There were more beggars here now.
When her father brought her to Aurumist when she was younger, they usually only saw begging in the fourth ring.
She wasn’t sure what she hoped to find. She was tired of hearing about magical folk disappearing. People were missing from too many villages around Regventus. Even in her beloved home of Abscon, a family had not returned from their trip to the valley.
Griffa knew something was happening, and she was sure it had to do with the powers in Aurumist.
She’d tried to tell the Ring, hoping at least Hector would listen to her, but they had brushed her aside, claiming Abscon was still safe, and that was all that mattered.
Griffa huffed. The Ring was next to useless. All its members did was sit around, waiting for some prophesied king to save them.
She should have left hours ago when she realized there was nothing to learn. The few people she’d had contact with knew nothing and had heard nothing.
Anyone who knew anything would be in the first ring and at the palace, which were impossible to visit unless she wished for this day to be her last.
She was powerful and confident in her abilities, but she was also not a fool.
Griffa headed toward the second ring to see yet another frivolous attraction. Two guards were standing at the gate. They came toward her, and she stopped and smiled.
“What’s your business in the second ring?” asked one of the guards.
“I hear they’re lighting the palace in honor of the lord’s birthday. It’s best viewed in the second ring,” Griffa said, keeping a smile on her face.
She pulled one of her dark-red curls out of her eyes. “They also say the best parties will be in the first.”
The guard closest to her smiled back and nodded. “The most boring parties, you mean. Those rich folk are too uptight to know how to celebrate.”
Griffa laughed. “You’re probably right.”
She moved closer to him, gently placing her hand on his arm. “I don’t suppose you’re at the end of your shift and wish to accompany me? I’m sure you could show me where to find a bit of fun.”
“Oh?” His smile widened as he leaned toward her. “And what type of fun do you most enjoy?”
“Hmmm,” Griffa said as she moved her hand slightly. “With someone who looks like you? Let’s just say, this will be a night you won’t forget.”
The guard laughed.
His companion moved closer and pulled the guard’s hand off Griffa. “You should move on, miss. Henri is stuck here for at least a few more hours. Maybe all night, if I decide it necessary.”
“A pity,” Griffa said as she straightened her cloak.
He was not bad-looking: young, tall, and had a nice face. If she were in a different mood, she might have asked him to join her for a drink.
As it was, she got what she wanted when the guards moved aside, permitting her entry into the second ring.
Gone were the crowded shops and the beggars. Instead, there were expansive buildings and lawns that were green in the spring and summer. Now, though, they were a faded yellow.
Leaves of varying colors lay scattered over the ground, while half-bare trees lined the pathways.
Griffa walked over to the largest field, close to the great library. It was filling with people, all of whom were staring up at the palace.
She kept close to one of the larger trees and looked up at the Palace of Aurumist.
Once built by a magical leader, it was now the home to the Lord of the Kingdom and the Council of the Ancients.
She knew little of them. All she’d learned from the Ring and a few private sources was that the current lord was young, barely older than herself, and only a figurehead. A pretty face for the people.
It was said the kingdom’s true rulers were the viceroys on his council.
Griffa stared up at the palace, wondering if those inside were as evil as her people said. She sighed, wondering if it was wrong to hope they were not.
The sun was starting to set, and more people crowded onto the lawn. Griffa moved back to lean against the tree when she felt someone slip up behind her.
“I thought it was you. I’m glad to see I was right,” a voice said, so close it tickled her ear.
She couldn’t help but smile. “I was hoping to go the whole day without being recognized, but I should have known an event this size would attract you. Looking for some pretty girl from the city to keep you warm tonight?”
“I have no interest in girls from Aurumist, Griffa. There has been only one woman on my mind for some time.”
Griffa turned to look at Talon Wendell. He looked the same as he did the last time she had seen him, months earlier.
Perhaps his black hair was a little longer, and his brown eyes looked wearier than she remembered, but this was to be expected. He had more responsibility now.
His smile and dimples were the same, and the look he was giving her made Griffa grow warm, as it always did.
“You’re an awful flirt, Talon.”
“I’m pretty good at it, actually. Are you really here all alone? None of your city friends are around? What about a young man from Abscon, or a certain protector?”
Griffa’s stomach dropped. “I’m alone, Talon. I saw some of my contacts in the city earlier but left them where they were. There are no young men in Abscon who I find interesting enough. And as far as Ansel, I haven’t seen him in months.”
“Really?” Talon asked, one eyebrow twitching upward. “So you’ve been alone at Keene Manor this whole time?”
“I have barely been to the manor. I’ve spent most of my time traveling or in the forest. What have you been up to?”
“Running the valley, of course. It leaves little time for anything else. If I had known you were so lonely, I could have found a moment or two to get away. Why didn’t you come to see me?”
She looked away. She had been tempted. Talon would at least have distracted her for a time.
But it was too risky. She had let herself feel too much for him once, and it had caused her nothing but pain. There was also Ansel, and the reason he was avoiding her.
“I have been busy too, Talon. I have responsibilities as well.”
“Oh, then you’ve taken your place? I thought I would have heard it if it were true.”
“Things in Abscon are as they have been since my father died. I’m speaking of other things.”
Talon chuckled. “You can just tell the truth and say you’ve avoided me. I wish it weren’t the case, but the truth is better than a lie.”
“It’s not just you I’ve avoided. I’ve spent most of the last few months alone. I haven’t wished for company.”
“Do you want me to leave you alone now?”
Griffa looked up at Talon’s face, half in shadow, half in light as the sun disappeared behind the palace. He was smiling at her in a way that was different from the past. It was softer, less arrogant.
“I don’t mind your company, not tonight.”
“Good, because I think what we’ve been waiting for is about to start.” Talon put his hand on her waist and turned her around so she was facing the palace.
The lights started from the bottom, and every window slowly lit up, ascending higher and higher.
Griffa backed up into Talon for a better view, and he wrapped his arm around her waist. She involuntarily sighed as she felt his strong chest and warmth against her. He was familiar and safe.
As the lights continued to illuminate the palace, climbing toward the top, he lowered his mouth to her ear. “It is beautiful, no matter what horrible things happen there.”
She turned her head a bit. “Maybe it isn’t all horrible. I would like to think there are at least a few worthy people in there, just trying to serve the kingdom.”
“You are too good, Griffa.” He kissed the side of her face as though on impulse.
It was not unpleasant, so she leaned her head to the side as an invitation for him to go further. He brushed his lips over the side of her neck as he pulled her deeper into the shadows.
People moved ahead of them to watch the lights reach the tallest tower of the palace as Griffa and Talon pressed themselves against the tree.
Griffa put her hand on Talon’s arm around her waist as he dropped another kiss on her neck, this one firmer, his tongue flicking out against her skin.
Griffa moaned softly as Talon’s hand slowly made its way up her side.
“I’ve missed you,” he said, pulling her sleeve to drop a kiss on her shoulder. “Come with me, Griffa. We can go back to the valley or your little place in the forest. Wherever you want.”
She nodded before turning to face him. He raised his hand to brush some curls away. She had seen the look of lust in his eyes many times, but there was something different about it.
He leaned down to kiss her, and she rose to meet him.
His tongue brushed across her bottom lip, and she opened up to give him access. He groaned as he deepened their kiss, his tongue brushing across hers.
Griffa was about to pull back and suggest they hurry to the forest when a noise made Talon pull away and turn.
Griffa looked behind him to see five children running down the pathway. None looked older than ten.
Behind them were three Aurumist soldiers, gaining quickly. One of them distinguished himself as the leader of the group by the long black feather in his helmet.
Talon looked down at Griffa for one moment before blowing out a puff of air and nodding. He grabbed her hand, and they took off toward the soldiers, leaving the crowd and the lights behind.
“We need to be quick and careful about this,” he said as he glanced behind them.
“Of course,” Griffa said. She threw out a hand as the leader of the soldiers got close to the children. He tripped over his feet and landed flat on his stomach.
The other two soldiers leapt over the fallen one. They hurried after the children, who were headed toward the city gate, where two guards stood ready.
The children slowed down, glancing between the guards in front of them and the soldiers behind. All the men had pulled out their swords.
Talon let go of Griffa and raised both hands. A harsh wind blew the children aside, and they landed on a patch of grass near the wall.
Griffa threw out her hands, causing the guards at the gate to fly through the air and into the thick trunks of the trees.
Talon cried out, and Griffa felt Talon’s magic surround her, but it wasn’t enough, and some force hit her.
The next thing she knew, she was flying through the air, only stopping when she hit a wall.
