Raxx didn’t offer his enchantment and she didn’t ask him for it, so he sat alone once more, waiting for darkness to fall, staring into the small campfire.
The shadow demon stood, stretching his back. Whilst the night did little to temper his guilt, it did rejuvenate his exhausted body. He cracked his neck and opened his wings before stalking off into the dark forest.
He wouldn’t go too far, just in case, but would scout around for some more information whilst remaining in earshot of Faye. The way things had been, Raxx wouldn’t have been surprised if she failed to call for him, even if she were in trouble. He swiped at an overhanging pine branch. Why was nothing ever simple? He cursed his majick silently.
Disappointment in droves…
Great expectations, followed by grave frustrations…
You’re also going to disappoint others in return…
Never had Raxx wanted to speak with Tabitha more. He had a feeling his friend would have some keen insights – after she had finished thoroughly mocking him, of course. Raxx fished the fortune crystal out of his pocket and lifted it up to his face, holding it by the chain. Its surface had dimmed, given the distance he was putting between himself and Faye, but still sparkled enchantingly through the dark. He sighed, frowning and shoving the gem back into his pocket once more.
Raxx wasn’t very popular with women. Most of them turned away from him in fear, or even sometimes disgust. Those who were keen to give him their time were usually damaged in some way – keen to let a ‘monster’ steal them away into the night to have his way with them. As a younger man, Raxx had shamefully played into that fantasy, but as he aged, he became more selective. Having a bed mate every night had seemed less and less important and he now tended to focus his attention on his work instead. It had been a little while since Raxx had met someone he was so keenly interested in.
Faye was unusual, like him. She was his polar opposite and that intrigued him. He so desperately wanted to return to the camp, sit with her and ask her the endless list of questions he had bouncing around in his head, but he’d messed it up.
Raxx was surprised the princess had been so keen and confident in pursuing her affections towards him. He knew she didn’t fully trust him, which was to be expected, but he couldn’t quite believe that Faye returned his curious infatuation.
Having lived a full, varied life, seeing all manner of strange and wonderful majick users, Raxx wasn’t surprised the princess had captured his attention. Faye, however, was completely new to, well, everything. She had no idea how unusual she was. Why would she be so interested in him? She should be terrified of him. He was a living embodiment of what she feared the most, after all.
Raxx sighed. It was no use getting wound up in questions he would never know the answer to. It was far more productive to focus his energy on tracking down Lephas.
Time passed quickly in the curious way it often did whilst Raxx was cloaked by the shadow plane. He sped through the darkness, looking out for any points of interest and his majick fizzed at the forefront of his mind, casting tendrils out into the woodland, keen to grasp any small clue it could find.
Steam billowed up into the night sky from nearby hot springs and Raxx bounded gracefully up the steep incline, leaping boulder to boulder to investigate. The large rock formation was littered with small pools of warm water. He stopped next to one, kneeling and allowing his body to materialise. He snatched his gloves off and dipped his hands beneath the surface, cupping water and splashing his face.
Raxx glanced around whilst he dried his hands and pulled his gloves back on. Something was amiss here… A foreign smell – not unpleasant, but nothing nature could have designed. Raxx stood, casting his majick further afield, soaking it into every nook and crack of rock.
Soap. Simple and mildly perfumed, but there was no doubt about it. Raxx darted over another ledge, coming to a standstill at a large pool – deep enough to bathe in. A flurry of excitement riled Raxx’s majick and he hurried ahead, slipping away into the darkness. If the scent of soap was still lingering, whoever had used this pool couldn’t have gotten far.
As he sped back into the forest, forging ahead and eager to trace the mysterious bather, he wondered why Lephas had stopped to wash himself or the princess. It was bitterly cold and wholly unnecessary. The commander knew better than to risk hypothermia for the sake of cleanliness.
His majick niggled at him. Something wasn’t right with this picture. Raxx couldn’t put his finger on it, but it wasn’t adding up. As he played over scenarios where taking a bath would have been an appropriate line of action to take, Raxx skidded suddenly to a halt and held his breath.
Though he was standing still, somewhere nearby snow creaked underfoot. His majick burst into life, scrabbling at the inside of his skull for answers. Raxx cautiously stalked closer. His keen eyesight caught a glimpse of movement through the wilderness and he hurried towards it.
What met him there, was both surprise and relief. A young woman, not much older than Faye, stumbled through the deep snow. She looked unsteady, travelling slowly on shaking legs. She was wearing a fur coat that looked as if it had been a sight to behold at one time, but was now dirty, matted and dishevelled. Long, golden hair and eyes a very familiar shade of blue scanned the snow for any hidden obstacles in her way.
Princess Lori.
But where was Lephas? Raxx glanced around, casting a net of majick further afield, searching for the commander. Lori was alone. How had she come to be here? Had something happened to Lephas? Raxx’s gut tightened and he stalked closer still.
Lori’s head shot up, turning to glance in his direction, her eyes wide with fear. Curious. It seemed Faye wasn’t the only Goldwyrm sister who was able to sense his presence. Raxx scowled.
Lori sped ahead, stumbling more as she hurried to get away from the mysterious threat she had detected. Raxx watched the faerie a while longer. When she fought her way into dense shrubs and began to unbutton her breeches, it became clear that she was out here to answer the call of nature. Was she still with Lephas or had she managed to escape him? It was her unlucky day, if so. Raxx never lost his prisoners.
“Lori…”Raxx spoke, keeping his voice low and gentle.
The faerie’s head shot up once more. If there had been any doubt that this was the missing princess, Raxx had well and truly extinguished it.
“Hello?” the princess called out.
She was remarkably similar to Faye; it was almost unnerving. Now he was closer to her, Raxx could see that Lori was the elder of the two sisters, but their expressions and mannerisms were so similar, it was fascinating.
An owl hooted overheard and Raxx glanced up at the large bird. It was looking directly at him. He growled beneath his breath. He couldn’t afford for that damn bird to give him away, not now he was so close.
Confident that he’d be able to outrun the princess should she flee, he darted forward and circled until he was behind her, ready to pounce. The princess startled, her chest heaving as she stared into the dark shadows where Raxx had just been stood.
