The idyllic beauty made a sob rise in my throat–until I noticed what the elves were wearing.
Sunglasses.Karim and Tisvali had Terminator-style shades.
I faked a cough to cover up my fit of giggles.
“You all right?”
I looked back at Deidre.She didn’t wear sunglasses, perhaps because her human eyes were better adapted to daylight.She gave me an amused smile.
“Yes, just adapting to the fresh air,” I said, voice low like hers had been.
“Move as quietly as you can,” Karim told me.“Our surface territory is unguarded during the day.”
I nodded.Fear seeped into me, erasing all thoughts of laughter and tears at nature’s beauty.This was the post-apocalyptic world, not a leisurely stroll in the forest.If the elves were weary, I should be terrified.
Karim signaled us to start moving.I had him on my right side, Tisvali on my left, and Deidre at some distance in front of me.They each moved in a slight crouch, matching my pace, arrows at the ready.
My pace was slower than usual since I wasn’t used to walking barefoot and hadn’t stretched my legs this long since my capture.I also took my surroundings in, should this be the last time I ever set foot outside.Who knew if they’d let me live if the edelweiss didn’t survive?
The more I looked, the more certain I got where we were.The combination of evergreen plant species was distinctive, suggesting human interference rather than a natural forest, and I noticed trail markers on some trees and large stones.This was a nature reserve, and I knew of one located several hours on foot from the University Botanic Garden.This had to be it.If I had the opportunity to run away…
The elves didn’t seem to be paying attention to me.They kept a shades-protected eye on their respective perimeter, scanning the forest left, right, back, and up.No one looked where they were stepping.Given that this forest was above their home and they had guard dutyout here, I supposed they knew every inch of it.
We had walked for around ten minutes when Deidre left ourformation.In the blink of an eye, she went up a pine and disappeared in the dense foliage high up.I looked at Karim, the question what was happening written on my face.
He surveyed the perimeter once more before stopping and turning to me.He pointed ahead to the left of the tree Deidre had climbed on.
At first, I noticed only a large yellowish fungus growing out of a nearby pine.Then my gaze slid down, and there, atop a moss-covered flat rock near the base of the tree, I saw a tiny white flower with a yellow center.The tiniest of edelweisses I had ever seen–real or photographed.
Truly breathtaking.
I went to crouch next to it.“Hello there, beautiful.”I carefully examined the way the flower was attached to the soil.“Aren’t you a tiny miracle?”
“Jesus, she’s talking to the flower,” Tisvali whispered to my left.
I ignored him, because now was not the time to explain that plants reacted to frequent speech directed at them, including music.Classical music, in particular, had been found to stimulate plant health in some studies, but all I could offer this unique specimen were kind words.Hopefully, that would aid its survival.
And ease my nerves about the task at hand.
“You have found yourself a comfy spot, gorgeous,” I said softly as I determined where all the roots went.I would need a knife to dig around the roots and some of the original soil to transplant the flower.“Karim, I will need a–PrinceKarim, I–”
He was already kneeling next to me and handing me a dagger.
I stared at the shiny blade with symbols etched into its smooth surface and gold handle.Where did that dagger come from?The only weapon I’d seen on him was his bow.
“Just Karim,” he told me, keeping his voice down.He had removed his sunglasses and had a soft smile playing on his lips.
“Umm.”I couldn’t talk, couldn’t think.I was mesmerized byhis face, a breath away from mine, lit up by that smile.Gone was the stern expression he’d worn; excitement shone in his dark eyes now.
“The dagger.It is what you need, correct?”
Right!“Yes, thank you.”
I took the weapon from him with slightly trembling fingers.He was trusting me with a weapon and with a delicate flower.I didn’t want to break his trust.
“I need somewhere to place–”
He was already reaching for the quiver on his back.He pulled out a cylindrical container like the diploma tube I had from university but made of glass.Water sloshed at the bottom.“Will this do?”
