Archer's Ramblings - Eld Based Stories

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Part 4 : Ainsley

Postby Archer » Sat Jan 24, 2015 1:52 am

*Rolls in*

Behold! Less than half a year later! Not even two weeks, in fact. Miracles do happen. XD
Anyways... hopefully it is enjoyable, I'm certainly enjoying writing it.

*Rolls out*


- | - | -


    “Just ignore him,” Peyton said, looking the thief over.

    “Easy for you to say. I should report him or something.” Ainsley was already scanning the room for the nearest guard.

    “You have no proof that he’s done anything, any guard you talk to is going to laugh at you. If he was concerned about getting arrested, he wouldn’t have come to tonight’s event,” she replied, rolling her eyes. “Let’s just enjoy tonight and not worry about it.”

    Fletch returned before Ainsley could come up with a response, immediately putting an end to their discussion. He handed them each a glass of punch, noticing their expressions as he did. “Did I miss something?” His dark blue eyes studied both of them.

    “Oh no, nothing important,” Peyton replied immediately, her cheeks reddening slightly as she shook her head.

    “We were just wondering who that was you were talking to,” Ainsley replied, forcing a smile. Peyton shot her a look, clearly wanting her to just drop the subject.

    “That was just an old friend of mine.” Fletch shrugged slightly, and quickly moved to change the subject. “I’ve heard the gardens are a sight to behold, if you ladies would care to join me?”

    “That would be wonderful,” Peyton answered for both of them.

    Fletch took the lead, guiding them through the crowd to the door that led to the gardens. He held the door open for them, allowing them through first with a wave of his hand.

    Despite having seen the garden before, Ainsley was still amazed by the sheer beauty of it. Massive evergreens covered in frost and snow were scattered about the large space, blocking some of the view but also providing a sense of privacy. Smaller trees barren of leaves lined many of the paths, the small lanterns that hung from their branches the only illumination in the garden besides the moon. The paths were cleared, but everywhere else the ground was covered in snow with small tracks here and there where a creature had run through. In the very center was a large pond, almost completely frozen over with a few wooden benches around it.

    They walked farther along the path, drawing closer to the pond. Not many of the guests had ventured into the garden yet, most were still taking in the sights of the great hall or lighting lanterns in front of the manor, leaving the garden quiet and peaceful. The garden was mostly occupied by other, non-human creatures. Rune dragons flew back and forth overhead and otterlings and who knew what else played in the snow beneath the trees.

    The small group stopped at the edge of the pond, watching in silence as two nocturne runes, one blue and the other green, flew low over the ice. The glow from the wings and markings reflected on the ice and snow below them, the colourful light dazzling.

    Not one to break the silence, Ainsley sipped from her punch as she waited for someone to speak. No longer distracted by conversation she could feel her bond with Kallai, comforted to know that he was not far from where they were. As she watched, her companion ran across the ice, making a game of stopping and sliding across the slippery surface. Alharic followed suit, his squeaks of alarm as he lost balance and started sliding on his side caused the nocturne runes to disappear into the trees.

    Beside them, Fletch laughed quietly at the pair’s antics. As they drew closer, he knelt down and put his hand out. As Ainsley watched, a small orb of blue light formed above his palm, pulsing with energy. Alharic was the first to notice the light, bounding across the icy surface as quickly as he could without slipping. Unconcerned about falling, Kallai beat him to the edge, sliding past him and coming to a halt in the snowbank. Both otterlings walked up to investigate the light, Kallai taking the lead when the smaller otterling hesitated.

    Ainsley glanced over at her friend to see Peyton watching the scene before them intently. Upon realizing that she was being wathed, Peyton glanced up and smiled before returning her gaze.

    When she looked back down, the blue light burst, causing both otterlings to jump back in surprise. Tiny specks of light floated down towards the ground like falling snow. Kallai stepped forward, raising a paw to attempt to catch the tiny blue light nearest him. His eyes went wide when it vanished as he touched it. There was an excited squeak and both otterlings immediately started chasing the remaining flecks of light. When they’d all disappeared, and it didn’t seem the boy was going to create any more for them to chase, the pair took off to find something else to do.

    “That was incredible!” Peyton gushed, her eyes wide and bright.

    Fletch smiled back at her as he straightened up. “I can show you more, if you’d like?”

    “I’ll be right back,” Ainsley said, quietly excusing herself.

    As friendly as the young man was, she did not feel comfortable around him. Her mind kept circling back to his friend, whom she was certain was the same thief from earlier in the week. Syn. His name had not slipped her mind, either. It was all but ingrained in her mind after replaying the entire incident over in her mind countless times since it had happened.

    The more she thought about it, the more she began to wonder if Fletch had been one of the two that she’d seen with him. There was no way she could be certain, but she needed a break from his presence to try and clear her mind.

    She was almost at the door that lead back into the main part of the manor when she saw movement along the side of the building. A thick golden plume of a tail swished across the snow before disappearing from view. Curious, Ainsley followed the smaller path along the side of the building, hoping to catch another glimpse of whatever creature she’d just seen.

    The path she’d taken seemed to go around the entire building, and was probably meant for staff and residents, she assumed. The main part of the gardens were behind her when she saw the bright coat of the creature she’d been following. It was still a distance away, but the bright red coat of the sea serval was easy to see thanks to the lantern light and snow.

    Ainsley froze when she realized the serval was not by itself. She quickly stepped off the path, ducking behind a tree where the lantern light wouldn’t reach her. Her quick glimpse of the person had her nearly convinced that it was the thief. The clothes and figure matched what she’d seen earlier, when he’d been talking to Fletch. It makes sense, she decided, What better place for a thief to rob than a manor where there was bound to be plenty of expensive and valuable items?

    If he was about to steal from the manor, now was her chance to get him caught, she realized. A more childish part of her was far more excited at the prospect of getting back at him. A small smile crossed her face at the idea of bringing the criminal to justice. And what better way to prove that he was a thief than to catch him in the act?

    Decided, Ainsley poked her head around the tree, looking just in time to watch a door close behind the young man and his companion. She hurried back to the path and headed straight for the door, her heart beating faster.

    Trying to make as little noise as possible, she let herself through the door she’d seen him enter after allowing half a minute to pass. Inside, she found herself in a dimly lit hallway in the private area of the house. With the celebration going on, hardly anyone would be coming and going as the staff and residents were preoccupied with attending to their guests.

    Neither the boy or his serval were in sight, meaning they had to have gone into one of the rooms. Ainsley walked down the hall, looking for any sign as to which room he’d entered. A partially opened door and a faint, shifting light near the end of the hall caught her attention. She crept as quietly as she could up to the door, pausing alongside the wall to take a breath and steady her nerves.

    Standing there, she could just barely make out the sound of muffled voices. Certain that the thief was in that room, she started back down the hall to find someone who could deal with the situation. Before she’d gone two steps, though, she heard the door swing open behind her.

    She moved to run, but it was too late. An arm wrapped around her waist, jerking her back, and a hand covered her mouth before she even thought to scream for help. She wasn’t ready to go down without a fight, and did the first thing that came to mind; she bit down hard on the hand clamped over her mouth and stomped on her attacker’s toes with her heel. He pulled back in surprise and pain, and Ainsley jerked herself away.

    A second figure appeared before her, causing her to freeze where she stood, stopping mid-stride. The knife pointing directly at her was enough reason for her not to move. When she finally looked up from the knife that was far too close to her for her liking, she found herself staring into the same icy blue eyes that she’d looked into right before he’d stolen her baubles. This time, he wasn’t smiling, though, and there was no sign of the sense of humour he’d expressed when they’d previously met.

    “Of course.” His voice was harsh yet quiet as recognition crossed his expression. “Get her into the room,” he added, clearly speaking to whoever was behind her.

    A hand grabbed her arm right above the elbow, pulling her around. What she didn’t expect was to find herself facing yet another familiar face.

    “Fletch?” The word was out immediately, and both boys winced at how loud she said it. The dark look she received from Syn made her duck her head.

    “No,” the second boy replied, but didn’t elaborate. Another look revealed that she had been mistaken. This boy’s hair was longer and less neat than Fletch’s, and he was missing the scar she’d noticed across the other boy’s nose.

    The room they pulled her into was the study, shelves lined the walls and a single desk sat near a window that faced the gardens. The only light in the room was coming from the window, leaving most of the room in deep shadows.

    “I’ll keep an eye on her so you can focus,” Syn said quietly, grabbing her wrist and leading her to the desk.

    A moment later a second source of light materialized, bathing the space around the unnamed boy in a green light. He’d formed a small orb of light in much the same way that she’d seen Fletch do earlier.

    Syn guided her to the desk chair, where she settled herself without resistance. Ainsley kept her gaze on the knife that he held comfortably in his right hand. His other hand was raking through his hair as he paced back and forth in front of her.

    “What is wrong with you! I mean, did you even think before deciding to interfere?” The words were a barely audible as he spoke under his breath. He stopped to face her, face clearly flushed with frustration even in the dim light. “You know what, don’t answer that. I don’t even want to know. You clearly have no idea what you’re doing.”

    Ainsley could feel her face and neck become hot with embarrassment, and was grateful for the shadows that prevented him from seeing. It seemed she wasn’t in immediate danger, as they hadn’t made a move to actually harm her, which allowed her to relax slightly.

    “It doesn’t seem there’s anything else here, it doesn’t look like he’s actually involved,” the other boy informed them, giving up on his search of the shelves.

    The door to the room shifted slightly as the sea serval she’d seen earlier entered the room. It went directly to Syn before turning and ducking under the desk.

    “Get down, someone’s coming!” Syn hissed, grabbing Ainsley’s arm and pulling her down behind the desk. The other boy followed, sitting on her other side with his back to the desk.

    “You get us caught and we’ll make sure you go down with us,” he threatened, the knife in his hand gleamed dimly as it reflected the moonlight.

    Ainsley balled her hands up into fists clutching the skirt of her dress and closed her eyes, deeply regretting her decision to follow the serval in the first place.

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Re: Archer's Ramblings - Eld Based Stories

Postby Archer » Sat Jan 31, 2015 3:40 am

I was hoping to post this on Friday... but I missed it by about 45 minutes as I started editing later than intended... Oh well, can't complain about three updates in one month. It would be lovely to be able to continue this pace through the semester. ^-^

Moving on...


- | - | -


    Footsteps echoed loudly down the hall outside, and Ainsley could make out at least two distinct voices. With every step they drew nearer the room where the three were hiding.

    Ainsley opened her eyes in time to see a nocturne rune fly past the window, its rune marking glowing a bright green. The nameless thief beside her seemed to relax, but on her other side, Syn was fidgeting and seemed ready to leap up and bolt out the door on a moment’s notice. To her relief, he had finally put away the knife. The threat was still there, though, and she knew that running wasn’t worth the risk. All he had to do was say that she was involved and she’d end up in some cell who knew where.

    They listened in silence as the approaching footsteps paused. They hadn’t reached the study yet, to Ainsley’s relief, and she hoped that they wouldn’t.

    “It’s the guards, they’re checking the rooms,” the nameless boy whispered, dark eyes focused on Syn.

    “I thought you timed the rounds!” Syn hissed back.

    “I did! The shifts must have changed.” Without another word, he crept towards the window, keeping his steps light. He unlatched the window and pushed it open, swearing under his breath when it squeaked slightly.

    There wasn’t enough space for any of them, except maybe the serval, to get through. Ainsley was about to ask what in the name of the Ancients he was doing when the green nocturne rune reappeared. It landed lightly on the ledge and hopped down onto the man’s offered arm, its markings were dim, hardly noticeable now. Still holding the rune, he crept back to his place at the desk.

    Syn nudged Ainsley, pulling her attention away from the rune. “Be ready to run, you’re going to follow me.”

    Ainsley nodded, swallowing hard. She unclenched her hands from her dress and pushed herself up so that she was crouching. Her legs felt weak and shaky, and she breathed deeply in an attempt to calm her nerves - or at the very least stop shaking.

    Another tense minute passed before the guards reached the door to the study. As the door opened, Ainsley caught the distinctive sound of nails clicking across the hardwood floor. A dire wolf! she realized, any hope she had of them not being found vanishing.

    “Hey, why’s that window open?” At the same time that the guard spoke, the dire wolf started growling. It had caught their scent.

    One of the guards made a shushing sound, and the whole group started moving towards their hiding place.

    “Now!” Syn yelled, jumping to his feet.

    He was already moving by the time Ainsley was fully upright, and she scrambled to follow him. On her other side, the nameless boy turned as he rose, the rune on his arm spreading its wings and using the momentum to launch itself at the men. Before it reached them, it pulled a hard turn, its markings lighting up and temporarily blinding the men as it flew past. A feline screech followed by a howl of pain sliced through the quiet of the room as the serval launched itself from under the desk at the dire wolf’s face.

    All three were through the door before either of the two guards was able to see well enough to run. The sea serval darted passed them with the nocturne rune flying over its head. Ainsley was nearly knocked over as the dire wolf tore by her, howling with fury as blood dripped from the scratches on its muzzle. Syn turned, heading down a thin hallway that Ainsley hadn’t seen before. His friend kept going, following the creatures in the direction that they’d entered the building. Behind them, she could hear the guards yelling to each other about splitting up to chase both groups.

    More than happy to follow the orders she’d been given, Ainsley emerged from the hallway directly behind Syn to find herself back in the great hall. The room was packed with the guests in their elaborate clothes, and there was little room to walk let alone run. Ainsley was also painfully aware of the presence of multiple guards and staff around the room.

    “Dance with me.” Syn grabbed her hand, pulling her out of the crowd standing around the edge of the room. Not giving her any chance to argue, he pulled her close with a hand behind her back.

    Ainsley fell awkwardly into step with him, gaze moving wildly around the room. The guard that had been chasing them was at the edge of the room, scanning the crowd for them. He would notice them any moment, she knew, quickly averting her gaze so as not to draw his attention.

    “Relax,” Syn said upon seeing her expression.

    “Easy for you to say. And what about your friend or serval?” she shot back, finding her voice.

    “Bo? He shouldn’t have a problem outrunning the guard, and I pity that dire wolf if he gets close to Gwynn again. You’re the one that’s the concern, you’d never be able to outrun anyone in that dress.”

    By that point, the guard had spotted them and was trying to push his way through the crowds of people. He was calling out to the others in the room, trying to get their attention over the noise.

    “I didn’t exactly plan to do any running tonight. And why are you helping me anyway?”

    His step faltered for a second, but he corrected quickly and guided her around another pair of dancers. They were nearing the doors to the gardens with several guards approaching. The dancing guests paid them no heed, causing the guards to have to weave around them as they got in the way.

    “I’m not going to let an innocent rot in prison for me.” His voice was so quiet that she had to strain to hear him over the rest of the noise in the room. He cut her off before she could respond, turning her around and pushing her out the door with his hand on her back. “We’d best hurry.”

    It was much quieter outside, but plenty of guests were milling about on the paths now. She knew that the guards wouldn’t be far behind them and, as Syn had so kindly pointed out, there was no way she could outrun them.

    As they hurried down the path towards the pond, Kallai came bounding up. The brown-furred otterling ran along beside her, casting suspicious glances at her unfamiliar companion. He could clearly feel her distress, and seemed to be waiting for some sort of instruction. As much as she wished she could fill him in that moment, it simply wasn’t possible, but she hoped he could feel her relief to have him there beside her.

    The pond was in sight when the guards neared them, yelling for them to stop. Ainsley’s heart was pounding with fear, and her legs felt as though they might go out at any moment. People on the path scattered, openly watching them and the guards as they passed.

    At the edge of the pond, Syn slid to a sudden halt and turned around. Confused but glad to not be running anymore, Ainsley stood beside him with one foot on the ice behind her. One of the onlookers stepped out, seeming to have not recognized what was going on, and collided with one of the guards. The guard tumbled to the ground, nearly taking a second guard out with him.

    None of the guards appeared to notice as the spectator turned and disappeared into the crowd. Right before he vanished from sight, Fletch winked at Syn, the ease of his smile showing just how unconcerned he was about the situation. Unfortunately, Ainsley was too terrified to take pleasure over having proof that she’d been right to be suspicious of him.

    Regardless, the confusion had successfully slowed down all of the guards. Ainsley cast Syn a confused look, though she knew she probably looked more terrified than anything. Before she could ask what in the name of the Ancients he was waiting for, a loud roar cut through the noise. She looked up in time to watch a pair of massive wings shoot out from the sides of the beast, effectively slowing it’s fast descent before it crashed into the snowy earth below. It landed heavily right in front of Syn, the bystanders closest to it scrambling to get back from the beast. Had the pond not been directly behind her, she would have done the same.

    “Ride’s here,” Syn yelled over the noise of a second roar. When Ainsley hesitated, he grabbed her wrist and pulled her forward. “Come on!”

    The drake’s head did not turn away from the guards it was focused on, the low rumble coming from its chest more than enough to make them second guess approaching. One offered a half-hearted attempt at telling them to stop, but it was clear that even he knew that it was futile now.

    The drake shifted, moving lower to the ground so that it was easier for Syn to help Ainsley get on the large creature’s back. Beside them, Kallai began squeaking angrily, basically bouncing on the spot as he tried to get their attention. Before Ainsley could say anything, Syn grabbed the otterling and shoved him towards her. Clearly pleased with himself, Kallai nestled himself into the folds of her dress directly in front of her.

    When they were both safely on, Syn swung himself up in what was clearly a practiced motion. Immediately, the drake’s golden wings beat against the air and within seconds they were off the ground.

    The ground below dropped away quickly, and Ainsley had to close her eyes against the sudden wave of dizziness. Her stomach churned and she gripped the leather straps of the riding harness before her as though hanging on for dear life. The skirts of her dress billowed with each gust of wind, further adding to her discomfort.

    She knew as soon as she opened her eyes that doing so had been a mistake. The ground was far below, the people that she could make out were tiny. If she fell, it would be a long way down. She closed her eyes and hunched over, trying to imagine that they had never left the ground. That the drake was just standing on the ground below and flapping its wings for fun. While it wasn’t very helpful, she was able to push back the nauseous feeling in her stomach.

    Directly in front of her, Kallai was squeaking excitedly. The only sign that he was even remotely concerned about the height was his long body pressed closely against her. He watched everything with wide eyes, as thrilled as she was scared to be in the sky.

    “Relax. Breathe.” Syn’s voice was little comfort to her. He was clearly used to riding atop drakes and, more importantly, was used to the heights accompanied with such a method of travel.

    The descent was slow, smooth enough that Ainsley didn’t even realize that they had been approaching the ground until the drake landed. The abrupt landing caused her eyes to snap open finally, and she barely waited for Syn’s help to get down.

    She managed to make it two steps away from the drake before collapsing, landing hard on her knees with her hands bracing against the ground. Her stomach threatened to empty its contents, and the world around her seemed to tilt at an odd angle.

    Once she was sure that she wasn’t going to be sick, she sat back on the ground. There was no doubt that her dress was covered in dirt, but after the night she’d had she couldn’t bring herself to care.

    Syn had walked away, leaving her and Kallai alone with his drake. Kallai sat calmly beside her, watching her with what was clearly concern. She could feel his worry through their bond, as well as his confusion over the events that landed them here. Not that she was entirely sure where ‘here’ was. They’d clearly left Silverport, though she could still see the glow from the town when she looked at the horizon behind her. Having kept her eyes closed, she had no idea as to what direction they’d gone, and it was too dark to make out anything identifiable.

    The drake had hardly moved from where it had landed, seemingly quite content to sit and wait. Yellow spots stood out against its brown body, lining its neck and tail as well as marking its face. Golden eyes watched them carefully, though it did seem to be relaxed.

    Beyond it’s large frame, she could make out the outline of what appeared to be a building. A faint yellow glow was just visible through the cracks of shuttered windows. Probably someone’s home, she assumed, and most likely where Syn had disappeared to.

    “Come on, Kallai, we’re leaving.” Ainsley forced herself to her feet, half-heartedly straightening out the skirt of her dress.

    He squeaked back at her, and she could feel his confusion over where she intended to go. In truth, she wasn’t really sure. Silverport was clearly quite a distance away, but at least it was a direction. She had no interest in spending any more time in whatever place the thief and his drake had landed her.

    “I don’t know.” Had Kallai been human, and his hearing not as sharp, he would not have heard her.

    The drake did nothing but watch them as they walked away, heading in the direction of Silverport’s glow. When she glanced back again, the drake had turned its piercing gaze away. She hoped it meant that the great creature had lost interest, and did not care where they went. Though she wouldn’t admit it to herself or her companion, inside she knew that it wasn’t that simple. That they couldn’t just walk away and pretend nothing had happened.

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