Ian lay still for a short while, remembering that he had woken up because of a bad dream. It took a moment for him to realize that it was indeed a dream and not a real experience, as at first he was sure it was. No, this was one of those dreams. The intensity of the emotions he woke with was hard to fight through. Running his hands through his hair, Ian noticed that Reese had already gotten up and left the room for breakfast.
It was difficult to tell the time since they were underground, but Ian figured Elizabeth would’ve been sure to come wrestle him out of bed if he had slept too late. His eyes came into focus and he sat up rubbing them while going over the details of the dream in the event that he needed to tell Chwillen and Brawd about it. Sharp images came back to his mind’s eye but the details were far sketchier than they had been in the dream. He was frustrated that he wasn’t remembering more and tried to subdue his desperation for the full blast of information he needed in order for it to be helpful to the mission.
Ian remembered he had been alone, separated somehow from the rest but unsure why. He knew he was in agony for Elizabeth and was aimlessly looking for her. He was angry at Reese as he stumbled around the forest and splashed through streams. As he wandered, he hoped that those that he journeyed with would find him before it was too late. There was more, and though Ian urged his mind to bring forth the images, he was unsuccessful.
Taking a deep breath to lull his frustration, he grabbed the robe he found lying on his bed the night before. He bumbled around a bit making his way to the hall. Ian expected the room to be in the full swing of the breakfast hour. Instead, he noticed it was empty, and he wondered if it could still be the middle of the night. Deciding to sit before the fire and try to relax in hopes that doing so would help jog up a few more morsels of the dream, Ian quietly stepped into the hall and then stopped when he heard subdued voices.
Ian saw Reese’s back in the light of the fire but could not make out who he spoke with. Stepping back to allow some privacy, he waited. Curiosity soon got the better of him and he craned his ears to pick up a bit of the conversation, but his effort was in vain. As he waited he could not make out the voice or see the person to whom Reese spoke. The conversation ended and he heard thud-like footsteps going in the opposite direction up and out of the hall to the corridor that led outside. Reese walked over to the fire and crouched down, taking a page of parchment from his robe pocket. He tossed it into the glow of the flames and continuing to kneel watched it burn.
Ian took a step forward when he saw Reese rise. Looking up, he let out a sound of surprise at seeing Ian and, taking a quick look back at the fire, froze.
“Ian, hey, I didn’t know you’d be up,” he said.
“Yes, I had a dream,” he said, hoping that would cause Reese to question whether he knew something about his suspicious activity or not and to explain why he was up burning things in the middle of the night.
“Well, I couldn’t sleep so I came out here for a bit,” Reese said, stretching. “I’m going to try to get a bit more shut eye before we set out,” Reese said, walking away without taking the bait.
Ian answered, “I think I will stay out here for a little while before coming back. What time do you suppose it is?”
“I think you were sleeping only about an hour or so,” Reese said quietly. “I bet it is a bit past midnight.” Then he was gone.
Ian waited to make sure that Reese had gone back to their room and then made his way over to the hearth. He knelt down, trying to see if there was anything left of the paper Reese had tossed in. A pile of ashes sat upon the large stone at the foot of the fire. He poked at it a bit with his finger and found that almost every part of it was burnt beyond recognition. One sliver of paper remained and on it was ancient Welsh writing. It was only a few strokes of lettering and he could not make it out.
The sight of the paper filled Ian with suspicion about what exactly his friend was up to for the first time since Reese had changed so drastically for the better. It didn’t help that he had just had a dream that he had been separated from Reese and was angry with him. If he could only remember why it would go a long way, but he just could not. After sitting at the hearth alone for a good long while with his memory still clouded, Ian went back to his room to find Reese sleeping like a baby, with almost a smirk on his face.
***
A knock at the door startled both men awake and Brawd popped his head in.
“Rise and shine, gentlemen, we eat and set off shortly,” his voice was all business.
Two places were set for Ian and Reese as they joined the others. They, along with Chwillen, Brawd, King Padraig, Etaina and Elizabeth, dined at a table that was set off from the rest of those engaging in the bountiful breakfast. There were quite a few more beings living in the court of the queen than Ian had assumed there would be, including a fair amount of fauns. Each table seemed engaged in their own light morning chatter, leaving the king’s table to themselves.
Reese took a seat next to Brawd, leaving only the place next to Elizabeth open. Ian was not doing as well as he would have liked at avoiding being near her but decided it was not worth worrying about. After all, he was no longer some adolescent kid. Although sometimes he wondered if that were really the case around her; one minute he felt like a warrior and the next a confused, bumbling idiot. His thoughts were interrupted by Kembell bounding towards their table with the long strides of someone carrying an urgent message. He leaned into the king’s ear to whisper some news.
King Padraig said quietly, “Tell the others.”
Kembell announced for the table, “We’ve just received word from a source among the fauns that there are traitors among us. Details are sketchy so we are not sure where to begin looking or if the warning should even be taken seriously. The message didn’t say who is suspected, but they are supposed to have lived among us for a while waiting for the right moment for betrayal.”
“We have had traitors in the past, though it has been a while, and we have lost many a warrior because of it, so we don’t dare take these warnings lightly,” the king said to his guests gravely.
“Somehow they knew we had guests in Caer Pren. We could have been followed.” Etaina stated.
“We weren’t followed,” Brawd said matter-of-factly, “I would have known. It could be false information to try to delay our leaving.”
“We don’t doubt your abilities after all you have done and after what you have sacrificed through the years, Brawd,” the king stated while looking squarely at Kembell. The king lifted his chin to let him know he trusted the newids and humans implicitly.
Kembell returned the gesture and questioned his king, “What are your orders, my lord?”
“Ask our most trusted men if they have seen anything to cause them concern. After you’ve done this, if you feel like we may move forward, set aside our best: four fairfolk and two faun to accompany them into the Far lands. I ask that you lead this group as their personal guard.”