The air was still, almost too quiet. The mare’s hooves crunched and rustled the dry fall leaves. Daran rode in front of his mother now, more on her lap than in the saddle. He usually rode behind her but she shifted him to the front just after the last chase. His mother held the mare back, trying to calm it. Daran didn’t know where his father was now. The three of them had stopped for a moment when they came to the trees. Daran’s father said he would ride to the east leaving a trail for the men to follow. His father told them to go north and find safety while he drew the pursuers away. Daran’s father kissed him on the forehead, kissed his mother and turned his horse. His father said he would meet them some place. Daran couldn’t remember the name his father said.
Daran rode behind his mother deeper into the woods, his cheek pressed against her back. She felt warm and smelled good. His father’s trick didn’t fool the men. Daran heard a sound like a bee buzzing. Then his mother yelped and jerked in the saddle. She looked over her shoulder then spurred the mare. Daran held tight as the horse jumped fallen trees, and crashed through brush. Something warm ran down his mother’s shoulder and then onto Daran’s bare arm. The ride was too wild for him to look. Daran was afraid that if he did look he would see his mother’s blood. They got ahead of the men. That’s when his mother shifted him in front of her. She said she could ride better that way. His mother let the mare trot for a while then rode hard again. Daran felt safe with his mother but was worried about his father.
Twice that morning, the two men almost caught up with them. Both times, arrows buzzed past and stuck in trees. They rode hard again until his mother felt it was safe enough to rest the horse. She didn’t say much all morning except to tell Daran to be brave and not to worry. His mother let the horse walk now. She gave him some dried meat and water but didn’t take any for herself. She kept looking over her shoulder.
Daran’s mother tied a strip of cloth around her arm and wiped her blood from his hand. She said it was just a little cut and he shouldn’t worry. Daran knew she and his father were fierce warriors. He had heard people telling stories about battles fought by Darshon and Darasha Altherr. Daran stared at the ground and thought about sitting on his father’s lap, late at night near the crackling fire in the big stone fireplace in their home. Daran would fall asleep in his father’s lap while the men told stories about adventures they shared. Daran jerked out of his daydream as the horse lurched forward. His mother bent over Daran as the wild ride began again. Twice, the horse stumbled and nearly fell. It hurt when his mother crushed him against the mare’s neck, but he didn’t cry out. Daran knew he was lucky they didn’t fall and that the horse could still run.
Soon, his mother reined the horse to a walk. She put one arm across his chest and hugged him tight. She kissed him on the top of the head and squeezed him even tighter then stopped the horse. His mother slid to the ground then lifted him down and sat him on a log. She knelt on the ground in front of him. She put her hand on the side of his face and stroked across his cheek with her thumb.
“Daran, you must be brave. The horse is tired and I can’t loose the men following us. I’m afraid they might catch us soon. I can’t fight them and protect you at the same time. I need to stop those men so we can be safe and join your father. I must ask you to do something to help, but you must be very brave to do it. Do you think you can be that brave?”
“I’m brave mother, just like you and father. I’m almost old enough to be a squire or even a page, and I’m big enough to help if you’d let me.”
“I know you’re brave. You’re my brave hero and you’re as much a gentleman as your father. You are just as ready as he always is to help when there’s need. Here’s what I want you to do my brave hero. I need to either fight those men or loose them in the forest. My horse is too tired to carry us both and I can’t fight very well with you in the saddle with me. I want you to hide here so I can deal with these men and then come back for you. Look at the end of that log over there. Do you see how it’s hollow? I want you to crawl in there and hide until I can come back for you. I know it will be dark in there and you won’t be able to move very much. It won’t be pleasant but you must do it for me.”
“You know I’m not afraid of the dark. I can hide in there but when will you come back?”
“I don’t know how long it will be. It might even take until nightfall. I might not be able to find you again until it’s light. Do you think you can hide there all night if you need to?”
“I can hide in there a long time. They won’t find me, then you can come back and we can find father.”
“Yes darling, that’s how it will work. I’ll give you the water and jerky. You know I don’t need them. I can find what I need in the woods. You must stay in the log and be absolutely quiet. I’m sure the men following us are still on our trail and will pass this way. When they have passed, it might be all right for you to peek out, but only a long time after they’ve passed. If they don’t pass by, don’t come out of the log, even for a minute unless it’s been dark for a while. Can you do this for me?”
“Don’t worry mother. I won’t come out for anything. If they come past, I won’t even breathe. They won’t find me.”
“Good. I know you’re brave, and smart too. There is one other thing. It might take me longer than a day to deal with these men. You may need to hide for a day or even two. If I’m not back for you in two days, then you will know that I’m all right. It’s just that it’s taking me a bit longer. You mustn’t worry about me. I know you’ve heard stories about how both your father and I outsmarted our enemies before. We’ll do it again this time. It’s just that sometimes it takes more time than you hear in the stories.”
“But what if it takes more than two days? Why can’t you just use magic?”
“I don’t have any more magic so I must use other ways. If I’m not back in two days, then there is a town that I want you to go to. It’s not too far from here. It will take you about three days to walk there. The name of the town is Reyas. Reyas is east of here. You will start walking with the sunrise in your face and end the day with the sunset at your back. You know how to do that. You’ve seen your father and I do it before. If you walk at night, keep the brightest star of Ilias over your left shoulder. You know how to do that too, don’t you? Do you think you can do this? Tell me what you are to do.”
“If you don’t come back in two days you are still fighting the men chasing us. I should walk to Reyas. I should walk east and use the sun and Ilias to guide me. But what do I do when I get to Reyas?”
“This is very important. There may be others hunting for us. You must be very careful. Pretend you are the hero in one of the stories you’ve heard the men telling. When you get to Reyas, you must pretend you are an orphan. You don’t know who your father and mother are. You don’t even know your own name. You must never say my name, your father’s or even your own, to anyone. You can find good people who will help you. Just help them and offer to do work for food or a place to sleep. You won’t have to do it for very long. It might be very difficult and you might feel like giving up but you can’t. You must be brave in this. There is only one person who can help but you have to go to her in a very special way. Her name is Queen Abrienda but you can’t just walk up to the castle gate and ask to see her. If you do that, they will laugh at you and might harm you. You’ve met her before but wouldn’t remember. You were still very little the last time she saw you. You will have to wait for her to come out of the castle and ride through the city. She does that very often. When she does, people always crowd around her and call out greetings to her. You are small and should be able to squeeze to the front of the crowd. You must get close enough to cry out the name ‘Abre’. If someone asks who you are calling to, just say you saw a friend on the other side of the crowd. If queen Abrienda hears you, she should stop and ask about the name. Only to Queen Abrienda should you say, your mother told you to call her that. It’s like a secret code word she will understand. She will help you and you will be able to trust her. You can tell only her, what has happened today and how you traveled to Reyas. Do you understand all this and can you remember? It’s very important that you do.”
“I can mother but I won’t need to because you’ll be back for me. I know you will.”
“I hope so too Daran but good warriors and heroes must have very good plans in case something goes wrong. You must remember this plan and be able to do it just like I would or your father would. Quickly, you must tell me what you are to do in Reyas. The men must be getting closer and I have stopped too long.”
“I should wait until I see Queen Abrienda and then call her Abre. But what if she doesn’t hear me?”
“Then you must keep trying until she does. If it takes a long time then you must be smart enough to make a new plan. But, you can not tell anyone else your real name. Do you understand?’
“Yes mother.”
“Then it’s time for you to hide and for me to take care of those men.”
Daran’s mother held his hand as they walked to the fallen log. She hugged him close and he squeezed his eyes tight enjoying the way she smelled and the closeness of her. She kissed him and watched as he slid, feet first, into the hollow log.
“Remember my hero, you are my son and the image of your father. Be brave, be kind, be always a gentleman. Help those in need when you are able. Live these things and your father and I will always be proud.” She reached into his hideaway and cupped his face in her hand once more. “Good bye sweet one. We love you.”
She turned and ran to her horse. Daran peaked out enough to watch her swing into the saddle. She reached down, broke a large branch from a tree, and walked her horse in circles, sweeping leaves with the branch. His mother threw the branch into the surrounding brush and turned to look at him. She smiled, blew a kiss and motioned for him to tuck back inside the log. Daran slid back into his hiding place then pulled a double fist full of leaves into the opening. Daran heard the sound of hoofs crackling on leaves fade into the distance as his mother rode away
For a while, Daran really didn’t think about anything. He couldn’t see very much out the end of his log. It was only clear for about a sword length. Small oak and birch seedlings made it hard to see much farther. Daran could tell that there were large oaks farther away. He tried to rearrange the pile of leaves he pulled in front of him so that no one looking in would see him. It was dark inside the log except for the bits of light that filtered through barrier of leaves. Daran tried to wiggle around to look behind him but there wasn’t enough space. He simply lay on his stomach and folded his arms as a pillow to rest his chin on. It smelled like damp earth inside the log. It wasn’t really bad. It was the way it smelled when you played in a pile of leaves and burrowed down to where they were wet. It smelled like it did the couple of times he went fishing with his father and they turned over rotten logs to find worms and grubs for bait. Daran thought about how good his mother always smelled –like wild flowers did when he walked through the field by their home. Daran remembered how he would come home all muddy and dirty after playing in the field or the brook that bordered is western edge. His mother would either be cooking, or oiling and sharpening her weapons. She would stand with her knuckles on her hips and smile at him. “All that mud,” she would say and shake her head. Then she would look at his bare feet with all the flower stains and say, “At least your feet smell good –better than you fathers,” then laugh and go back to her work.
The leaves rustled. Daran’s eyes snapped to his small viewing space through his screen of leaves. Daran held his breath and felt his heart pounding. He squeezed his eyes shut and felt his whole body stiffen. He was trapped. They were coming. They would get him. Then he heard the voice of his mother in his mind. Be brave, Daran, my little hero. He willed himself to relax. Daran let out a breath and opened his eyes. He strained to sharpen his senses. He must listen. He must look. He must feel. He must be a warrior like his parents. He heard the noise again—closer this time. What was his plan? His mother didn’t give him a plan for this. What should he do? He had to have a plan and quick!
He didn’t dare try to slide deeper into the log. That might make a noise or worse yet it could make the log move. He didn’t have a weapon but wouldn’t know how to use one if he did. What did he have –only a water-skin, a pouch of jerky and a pile of leaves. Daran thought playing in the leaves. Once his friend threw a bunch of leaves in his face and Daran got dirt in his eyes. He fell down and cut his head. He could throw leaves in their face. It wasn’t much of a plan but Daran felt better because he both had one and thought of one.
Daran listened as more leaves rustled; this time in a regular pattern. How many were there? Were they coming close or going away? Think, he screamed at himself. Why didn’t he learn more from his father? Darshon tried to teach him lots of things but his mother always let him go play. She said that two warriors in the family were enough. If he ever got out of this, he would learn everything he could from anyone that would teach him. That’ why his parents were great warriors. They could think up good plans, because they knew so much. His mother always called him smart. He could learn to be a hero like his parents.
The sound was close now. Suddenly, something moved the seedlings in front of his log. Daran could make out something brown –maybe a boot. It was a fur boot. The boat moved closer and he could see a pink button. His heart beat hard as he stared at the button and it jumped closer. Daran laughed silently, grinning ear to ear.
“Shush, shush.” The rabbit pricked up its ears then disappeared from his field of view. Daran dropped his head back to his folded arms. “A rabbit. If I’m that afraid of a rabbit, what’s going to happen if the men show up?” Daran turned his head to the side and closed his eyes. He was surprised at how he felt. Daran thought about what he had just learned. He felt exhausted like from a day of playing. He knew it was from the tension that came with being scared.
The fire crackled in the hearth but he couldn’t get warm. Cold seeped into him from the flames. Daran floated closer to the fire and the crackling grew louder. His father’s friends were telling stories they didn’t want Daran to hear. Their voices were low. Daran strained to hear them. The crackling grew even louder and the cold fire moved to him until he was walking through it.
Daran’s eyes popped open. The voices were real. The sound of crackling fire came from leaves crunching under boots. Daran shivered yet sweat formed on his forehead. His heart beat hard against his ribs –fear again. He must control it. Daran took long slow breaths as he concentrated his senses on the world outside his hiding place. He tensed and relaxed his mussels to work the kinks out and get his circulation flowing to warm him. Daran wondered if he should take a fist full of leaves to throw. That would make too much noise he decided. He had to stay calm, be brave and use his senses. The rabbit was practice. This was real. The men moved closer. They were very near.
“They was here Nath. Look, some one swept the leaves around. There, see that broken branch in them bushes. She used that to try and hide her trail.”
“See any blood? I’m sure I got an arrow in her. I saw her jerk. Too bad I didn’t get her little whelp too. That would be a shot worth braggin' about. Two hundred paces through the woods and I spit two of ‘em on one shaft ready for roast’n over the fire.”
“You can roast the young’n or do what you want with him but you’re gettin' to wild with your arrows Nath. Do something to her that the healers can’t fix and G’Kar will boil your guts with his magic. And speakin’ of roastin’ and spittin’ what say we camp here? Be dark before long.”
“We ain’t camp’n till we catch her. Think she’ll camp? Her horse has got to be played out by now. She ain’t a big woman, but her horse, carry ‘n two, will be done in long before ours.”
“How about we just take a break Nath. My bun side’s been pound’n that saddle for too long. Sit’n on this log feels almost as good a tavern bench.”
This ain’t a tavern and don’t be asking for another pull on the jug. You said you wanted to water your stag. So do it and let’s get after them.”
Daran listened in silence. There were two men –he was certain of that. They must be the men who split from the main group to chase him and his mother. Daran lost track of time when he fell asleep. He guessed from the color of the light filtering in the end of his log, that it had been some time since his mother left. That was good. That meant she was far away or was rested and waiting in ambush somewhere. Maybe she was even near by. One man’s name was Nath. They had one horse and a stag. What were they doing with a stag? The man had to water it. Maybe stags aren’t as strong as horses. Then he heard water running —pouring on his log hideaway. What was the man doing?
“If you’re done let’s get on with it. If we don’t catch ‘em soon, I say we consider another line of employment.
Daran heard their mounts move off at a trot. He waited a long time, still afraid to make even the slightest move or sound. When his heart began pounding, again he concentrated on what his mother said to him. “Be brave, my little hero. Be kind. Be always a gentleman. Help those in need when you are able. Live these things and your father and I will always be proud.” His heart calmed. His breathing settled. Daran did his best to be brave.