Chapter 2
Dominic sat up in bed. He was all right, though he was shaking all over. The dream was back again, threatening to find him and the ones he held dear. The voice was still echoing in his mind when he walked over to the water basin. The cool dark water refreshed him and helped him settle his mind. Where was the voice coming from? Should he listen to it and run away from everything? No, he had to find Lynn. He didn’t have to see her; he just had to know she was safe. She probably didn’t even remember him. She probably thought he was died along with all the others. Maybe she is dead to. NO! Dominic corrected himself. She had not been taken. She was alive!
“Sir?” A girl looked at him through a slot in the door. “Is everything alright? I heard some screaming and I thought I’d better come and look.”
Dominic shuddered at the memory of hearing his mother screaming in the night. Was he doing that now? “No, that wasn’t me. Maybe it was one of the other guests, I’ve never slept better.” He said lying.
The maid shrugged. “If you say so sir. I’ll let you get back to your sleep if there be nothing else.”
Dominic pulled his boots out from under the bed. “Could you put together some breakfast for me? I want to leave in about an hour. It doesn’t have to big, maybe just a loaf of bread or something of that sort of thing.”
“All right sir. I’ll have it ready in two minutes.”
Dominic pulled off his nightshirt as he listened to the maid’s footsteps echoing down the tavern’s stone hall. Pulling on his black shirt he took his cloak from the hook where he had hung it a day before. It had been a present from elves. It looked like any other old cloak with its dark fabric and its regular clasp, but that was only to that casual observer. It was always warm when it was cold outside, waterproof, and would never tear. Pulling out his small traveling bag he made sure everything was in it. Nothing that anyone would stop him for, a map with many different roads and high ways, a golden locket that filled the bag with a soft light, a few books, a hunk of cheese, an empty water bottle, and a couple apples. He put on his cloak as he walked down the hall toward the tavern’s main hall. The whole place was quiet, but that was not unusual for this time of morning. ‘The sun must not be up yet.’ Dominic thought as he took a small bag from the maid. Murmuring a quiet “thank you” as he slipped out the door.
His horse, Midnight, was in a foul mood that morning. Dominic was careful when groomed him, when Midnight was in a bad mood he often let everyone know it by biting them. “Hold still you big hunk of meat,” Dominic said as he headed toward the stall door and tried to avoid Midnight’s snapping teeth. “I’m going to go get our stuff. So you better be nice to me or you wont get any more apples on this trip,” Midnight snorted impatiently as he stamped his foot down inches away from where Dominic’s foot had been seconds before.
Once Dominic had Midnight saddled up he went back to the tack room to get his weapons. Fingering them gently, he buckled them one slowly. He cared a long sword with leather on the handle for a better grip, a slender dagger that slipped into his left boot, and a stone pouch and a sling slid easily onto his belt.
Dominic looked behind him again. He had been traveling for about four hours and something inside of him told him that someone was fallowing him. The little hairs on the back of his neck started to prickle as he rode into a clearing. Midnight stopped, and snorted as he stamped his foot down on the mossy ground. All of a sudden a figure in a black cloak came out from behind a tree; a hood covered his face. “So we meet again.”
Dominic tried to control his temper as the vampire took a step closer. “I see you are not looking so well. What’s the matter can’t sleep?”
Dominic was thrown out of the saddle as Midnight reared and bolted. Fighting to draw his sword, Dominic saw that he was completely enclosed by vampires. One hissed quietly. “He should make for a good dinner, it has been a long time since we have drank the blood of a human.”
The vampires walked toward Dominic, drawing their sword on the way. Ready to fight to the death Dominic decided to take as many with him as he could. Charging into their ranks he fought with all his furry, trying to remember all the things his master had taught him. Up, down, and around he fought like a windmill. Then, right before his eyes a vampire dropped down dead, a wound on the back of his head, but Dominic hadn’t touched him. The vampires, baffled started to flee as a good many of them dropped as if some invisible person was going around slitting everybody throats.
Dominic, breathing heavily, kneeled down on the ground. Hoping that whatever had killed the vampires might spare his life. Slowly, out of thin air a girl appeared a brown cloak swirled behind her. Her red hair was pulled back into a braid. The only weapon she carried was an elegantly made knife with navy blue ivy as the only decoration. She wore gloves that had their fingertips cut off showing off her brownish blackish claws, the claws of a fox. Her dress was a soft brown color, with a red vest that fastened up in the front. The only piece of jewelry was a golden locket that hung around her neck.
Holding three fingers the girl stuck out her tongue at him. “That makes three.”
“Three what?” Dominic snapped. He knew that he should be nicer to her, but he was hot and sweaty and not really in the mood for games.
“Three time that I’ve saved your life.”
Dominic stared hard at the girl, where had he seen that face before? It dawned on him as she magically transported herself to near to a tree so she could lean on a large oak. “Vixen?”
“That took you long enough.” She murmured as they hugged.
Stepping back Dominic had to look hard at the girl he used to know. She looked older, not in appearance, but in the way she acted. Her eyes told him that she had seen the same things that he had.
“What are you doing here, in the middle of no where?” Dominic said as he started after Midnight, stupid horses. Why did he always have to run away when there was a battle to fight?
“Was about to ask you the same thing.” She replied cocking her head. “I had just gone when those things attacked our village. I went to go find Lynn; we were going to go together to the story telling that night. When I couldn’t find her in the woods I headed back. I went back I found this dragon trying to kill my mother. She yelled at me to use my gifts and get out of there. I didn’t know what to do so I ran trying to find help. I finally came back they were taking the prisoners somewhere. They couldn’t see me because I used my gift, like my mother told me to.”
Dominic saw that Vixen was crying, putting an arm around her he whispered in her ear. “You found her body then.”
Shaking with sorrow she cried, shaking all over. Midnight, who had finally came back, sniffed her hair. Petting his nose, she took I deep breath. “Yes, I found her body. I looked for Lynn’s but it wasn’t there. I think she might have survived. Any way I came all the way out here, so that no one could find me. I have a place to live about three miles from here.”
Dominic grabbed Midnight’s halter. Fishing through his saddlebags he gave Vixen a hunk of bread. “Here have some lunch. I’m not hungry.”
“Why are you out here?” Vixen tore at the bread with a will.
“Your going to think it’s stupid.” Dominic said shaking his head.
“Come on,” Vixen took a swipe at his arm, “how do you know that? Just try me.”
Dominic took a deep breath then, quickly, got it all over with. “I’m looking for our kind. I’m going to start a band of people that are going to start saving blessed people, like us.”
Vixen smiled, her sly face shone. “How marvelous! I know some blessed people like us who will join for sure. Travel three miles south of here and you’ll come to the place I call home. By then I’ll have everyone and maybe some people I don’t know with me, don’t worry. All of them will be blessed.” And with that she was gone.
Dominic stared at the empty space that was Vixen. Smiling to himself he patted Midnight’s back, at least he had some one on his side. Who knew? Maybe Vixen would be able to start his little band
Dominic almost couldn’t believe what stood before his very eyes: Vixen’s home. It was different and strange it was almost hard to believe, how could one girl build all this. More like a camp then a house the way Vixen had it set up was that you wouldn’t now you were in camp unless you were looking for it. The clearing was beautiful, but also well protested by a screen of bushes that surround the camp. The actually living space was underneath the trees. He had found the door by pure fluke, Midnight had reared at a squirrel in the branches and his hoof struck the largest of the trees. A small door had opened in the side of the tree. After seeing if Midnight was all right, Dominic had slowly gone down a winding staircase into what might have been a greet hall if it had been a fortress or a castle.
All the furniture was made out of wood, some even cut into the living tree. Doors and passageways snaked away from the main hall. There was one room that didn’t have a door. This was the kitchen. Dominic walk into it with wonder, the whole place smelled of freshly baked bread. The stove and oven were made from stone; pots and pans hung from the ceiling as if they were a decoration. The cupboards and shelves were cut into the tree’s massive roots. Dominic only had little while to wonder where the water was for the cooking came from when he spotted a little well. The well, as where the cupboards and shelves, was right into the tree or maybe it was natural, but who could tell? There was a dip in the root. Vixen had apparently found some under-ground river, and harnessed it to flow straight into her kitchen and supply an endless gathering of water.
Dominic whirled around to see Vixen leaning on the side of the door. “Do you like it?” She asked as she swept in with about ten other people. “I spent a whole years building it. Some of it was hear when I first found this place, but most of it had to build myself.”
Dominic did a mock bow. “It’s wonderful. I couldn’t have done better myself. Would you mind doing some intros?” He waved over to the group of people.
“I’ll let them do that themselves. I got to get some food into their stomachs. Some of them haven’t eaten real food for over a week!”
Dominic could tell. Most of the people look as if they hadn’t eaten real food ever.
“I’ll start.” A big black man walked over and shook Dominic’s hand. “My name is Eric Taleteller, Seer, Songmaker…”
Dominic listened to the soft snoring of Eric while he mused of the day’s adventures. He went over all the people’s names and titles that he had met tonight in his head: Carrie Watermover was the tannest person he had ever seen, with kind brown eyes and hair. She cared a thick spear which she used quiet well. Her power was simply amazing. She could control water, which mint that anything that did have water would have to move if she wanted it to. There was Eric of course; he preferred an axe as his weapon. Dirk, on the other hand, clamed he need no weapon, he could manipulate fire. He was very full of himself. His hair was bright red and his eyes were disturbingly hazel.
Emen Screech Owl Spirit and Dominic both got along right away considering that they both where owl spirits. (This meant that they both talk to owls and have wings grow out of their back. Also their eyes changed at night from their regular color into a pale yellow, which made it so that they could see in the dark.) The last two people Dominic really couldn’t explain. Saphira Healer, Plant Protector would be the cook and healer if anyone would ever get hurt. Her light brown hair seemed to plastered into a braid and seemed like it would never come out, but it was not the girl herself that confused him. It was her younger brother, Sam. Sam had no power and yet Dominic felt the power of the Creator emitting from him. His sister insisted all night that he was not blessed yet, but Dominic believed other wise. Sam had gray hair, eyes, and his nails with strange yellow eyes. There was definitely more to this six-year old that met the eye.
