The Legend Of Black Eyes

"You"re starting to make a name for yourself." The baroness broke the eery silence. Her red lips parted into a charming smile. "I didn"t imagine you"d look like this though."

"What did you imagine?" I asked.

"Some tall, handsome blond boy with a wide jaw and an att.i.tude," she answered. "It would be more fun breaking you if I were to add some seduction to the game, wouldn"t you agree?"

I frowned at her. "What"s stopping you now?" I asked.

"You"re already under my spell dear boy," she said. She had caught a strand of her hair and started rotating it around her fingers. "Lucky I don"t mean to kill you."

"Now that you brought up the subject," I said then leaned in toward the baronness. "What do you want?"

"All in good time," the baroness said. "I a.s.sure you, I will not coerce you into doing something you don"t approve of," she went on. Her hazel eyes kept their careful watch on my belt. "Now is not the time to speak of potential partnerships. Now"s the time to celebrate."

I looked at her, wide eyed. "What do you mean celebrate?" I asked.

"My fighter," the baroness said with her arms raised to the sky. "The evil wicked witch," she said in a near perfect imitation of the announcer, "has won the blitz!"

"She was yours?" Osgar asked. He"d just spoken for the first time since we got to the carriage.

"I even granted her special training," the baroness said in a proud air. "Would you like to meet her?" she asked Osgar.

All his fear and sweat disappeared upon hearing the baronness" proposal. His eyes twinkled. He looked at the woman as though she had just offered him a castle in the capital.

"Can we meet her?" he asked. "Is that even possible?"

"Who do you think you"re talking to?" the baroness asked, feigning offense. "We"ll have to let her rest tonight first. We"ll pay her a visit first thing tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?" I asked.

"We"re going to my estate," the baroness said. "I have a celebration planned with people from my own circle. You shall be my guests of honor."

I frowned while Osgar and our lovely escorts giggled excitedly. Nothing here boded well. I was interested in some powerful folk in the city, that"s how I came across that officer. I didn"t rely on coincidence to cross that man"s path. I planned my approach and manipulated him. I should"ve known better.

I wasn"t the only one capable of playing this game. This baroness knew something about me she wasn"t willing to admit yet. Many questions popped up into my head. What did she need from me? What did she know about me? Did she work with that old man? Then why did she have to resort to force to get us into the carriage?

"What are you looking so somber for?" Osgar whispered to me.

I turned to look at his grinning face. His cheekbones were fl.u.s.tered. Opposite us, one of our escorts was pouring wine for the baroness while another poured for Osgar.

"You almost shat your pants a few seconds ago," I shot at him.

"I didn"t know we were going to a party," he told me. "Do you know what they say about the baroness" parties?"

I raised an eyebrow. "I"m ususally more interested in dirty money and whispers in the streets," I replied.

Osgar took the gla.s.s my escort was handing him, took a gulp then pulled me by the collar. "They say," he whispered. "the baroness invites people from all over the country. Most of them are n.o.bles. Men and women, most of whom are h.o.r.n.y and in good shape, come to feast and drink.

"They exchange good words and play games until the major event of the night. The baroness" mage comes in, shoots some sparkles in the air, and everything changes."

"Are you talking about… orgies?" I asked.

Osgar grinned. His mouth would"ve stretched farther than his ears if that was anatomically possible. "No man or woman can earn a second invitation," Osgar went on. "They say it"s a once in a lifetime opportunity. Tonight, Zedd, I"ll f.u.c.k til I die."

"You do your thing," I said then turned my gaze on the women in front of us.

The baroness was observing us, as she sat opposite us. Our escorts sat on each side of her. My raven haired escort sat in front of me. Her eyes never crossed mine since the arena. The baroness, on the other hand, seemed to have developed a special interest in me.

"You don"t like parties, Mr?" she asked.

"Zedd," I answered. "Zedd Darkstar."

"Whoa there," she replied, chuckling. "Where did you pick that name from? Did your grandma read you the alphabet to rock you to sleep?"

"Something like that," I answered.

"What"s your real name?" she asked, her smile vanished. She was holding the wine cup, directing it in slow, playful circles.

"What about you?" I shot back. "Shall we just call you the Baroness?"

"Elsa," the baroness said. "You can call me Elsa Vogel, Lady of the MilkWeed and the Vale of Tunder."

"You"re an actual Baroness?" I asked.

"My father," Lady Vogel answered, "died two moons ago. As his only child, I inherited his lands and the t.i.tle that came with it."

The conversation turned into political debates between Elsa and Osgar. I listened to the important bits, while my mind wandered to the baroness and her hidden agenda when they debated social reforms.

We left the city that night. Guards, whom the baroness claimed were under her control, opened the city gates for us. Horses broke into a gallop, and about two hours later, we arrived to a beautiful mansion. Walls surrounded the twenty acre property. Guards, clad in iron armor, opened the gate for us.

They all wore black capes, clasped on their shoulders. A fiery rose took up most of the cape. Its thorns were embroidered with crimson and golden threads, emphasizing the blood and the orange flames. They all bowed as the carriage drove through a cobbled road and up a slope.

We soon reached a fountain around which a wide, circular road was built. The horses stopped and men rushed to open the doors for us. Lady Elsa got off first, followed by our lovely ladies. We came out last. When the well-dressed servants caught sight of my deformed face, they winced and looked at their master questioningly.

"Show them to their quarters," she said. "They"re tonight"s guests of honor."

The servants nodded gravely, as though the baroness had spoken some code we didn"t understand. One of them, a tall man with graying hair and slumping cheeks, snapped his fingers at the darkness. Four women, dressed in black and white, rushed to the light.

They took our escorts toward the manor, while men asked us to follow them.

"This one comes with me," she said, pointing at me. "Your friends will be taken care of," she went on, addressing me. "You and I must have a word before the feast starts."

I looked at Osgar, and jerked my head toward the manor. He nodded and followed the men a.s.signed to him. I walked toward the baroness who led me through a dark garden. Clouds had dissipated in the sky above us. The waning moon shed whatever light it could at us, but it barely illuminated the beaten road we took.

"Bring a torch, d.a.m.nit!" Elsa screamed at the men that followed close behind us. "Do they expect me to fall on my face here and die?" she mumbled then.

I heard shuffling footsteps then someone disappeared from behind us.

"What did you think of the fight?" the baroness asked then.

"Your fighter"s got guts," I said. "What she did was nothing short of outstanding."

"Could you take four, well-armed and well-trained, champions and come out on top I wonder?" she said in a playful tone.

Her playful voice was coa.r.s.e, as though she had a cold she could never get rid of. In the darkness, I couldn"t tell if she was being sarcastic, or meant the question. I could smell her perfume as we walked side by side in the darkness. It had a strange effect on me. My breathing got shorter, my stomach contracted uncomfortably.

"I don"t know," I replied. "It depends if those well-trained fighters had had any sleep. Did they eat well and drink enough water? Were they focused during the fight, or did something cloud their thoughts?"

Elsa chuckled. "I love the Wolf-Fights," she said. "If it weren"t for them, our kind and n.o.ble men would grow restless. Do you like fighting, Mr. Darkstar?"

A servant rushed beside us then, holding a torch. Our immediate vicinity got illuminated. I saw a beautifully kept garden, and a beaten path in the middle of it. We were walking toward a building whose shadow was getting larger the more we walked. There were a dozen people walking behind us. They were all tall and formidably built.

"I don"t like fighting to entertain lazy, bored richmen," I said. "It"s not the way it should be."

Elsa smiled. Her cheekbones had grown pink. Her red lips lost some of their brilliance. It had grown chilly since we left the city. I didn"t even know where we were, but lady baroness spoke about a vale. She looked at me with approving eyes then turned toward the torch holder. She s.n.a.t.c.hed it away from his hands and gave it to me.

"Would you mind holding it for us?" she asked. "I"d appreciate it if my men walked a safe distance behind us."

I took the torch and nodded at the lady. She nodded back and dismissed the servant. She didn"t trust her men to keep a secret. I wouldn"t trust them either.

"Our mutual friend had slipped that invitation to you on my command," she whispered after the servant disappeared. Only the flickering of flames and the sound of footsteps accompanied us in that dark, cold night.

"What do you want?" I asked.

"A fight," she answered.

"Who am I fighting?" I asked.

"You"ll find out soon enough," she said in a playful tone.

We reached the large building then. Two men appeared out of nowhere and opened a large double door for us. I soon found myself in a large rectangular building. Wooden floorboards were arranged in the center in a square. Swords, spears, hammers and the likes hung along the walls.

Elsa ordered her men to light the torches, and soon the place sprung up to life. It was a training arena of some sort. Elsa walked toward the square in the middle and threw her cloak to the ground. She was clad in chestnut leather from top to bottom. She"d strapped a belt across her chest, carrying a dozen throwing knives.

She unbuckled it and threw it to the floor as well. She turned to me and beckoned me forward. From where I stood, I could see her shapely body calling for me. She had strong legs, and even stronger shoulders. The tight leather outfit emphasized her shape very nicely.

"I"m fighting you?" I asked, in disbelief.

"We"re using training swords, of course," she said. "I want to know how good of a fighter you are."

"Why?" I asked as I got closer to the training arena.

"Rumor has it that you"ve met with Crow," she said. "Rumor has it that a member of the Shadows was found dead near the old port the same day you met the lady of the dark."

She smiled. She knew about Beatrix"s powers, and she was telling me she knew by ways of a wicked, yet beautiful, smile.

"Can you handle a sword?" I asked as I unbuckled mine and put it against a wall.

"You"ll be surprised," Elsa said in her s.e.xy, playful tone.

"Why do you want to fight me though?" I asked.

"That"s your prize, ugly boy," she said. "Win this fight and I"ll tell you."

"What happens if I lose?" I asked.

She picked up a sword then started practicing some basic swings and thrusts.

"Then we have no deal," she said. "I"ll go back to my party, you get patched up. Tomorrow morning, you leave this place and we never speak again."

I picked up a wooden sword and swung it in the air a couple of times. It was light enough, but st.u.r.dy to deal some minor damage. I couldn"t risk beating the owner of the estate to a pulp.

"What happens if I refuse to fight you?" I asked.

"I didn"t take you for a frightened puss," she said with a mocking sneer. "You"re ugly sure. You"re surely not craven as well."

I tightened my grip around the stick and advanced toward the square. Elsa grinned as she saw me step into the arena. "Let"s not waste each other"s time then," I said.

I brought my sword in an arc above my shoulders and waited for her to make the first move. I had to a.s.sess her speed and timing. She swung at my leg and I dodged the attack easily. I only had to step back.

I heard the next attack before I felt it. I was in the middle of walking away from a wide swing when Elsa diverted her stick and hit me behind the ear. I heard a swooshing sound then I staggered, almost fell to my knees, then blinked rapidly. I saw her grinning as she swung her stick toward my head once more.

Instinctively, I parried her swing and answered with a vertical attack toward her right shoulder. She dodged that one, only to meet my elbow. I hit her jaw and she stumbled back. I ran at her then swung at her ribs. I needed to wear her out. That was the only way for me to win this fight and not provoke her guards" ire.

She took the hit head on and moaned. She wasn"t done though. She gritted her teeth and pulled the stick I hit her with. I stumbled forward, and she kicked my left foot. I fell in a loud thump, while Elsa regained her footing.

Elsa kicked me in the ribs then directed her wooden sword at my head. The world spun around me, and my right temple throbbed. I wasn"t willing to pa.s.s out though. I wouldn"t be outdone by a woman I underestimated. I felt rage build up, then frustration as I tried to parry a kick, which Elsa retracted at the last second then pummeled me with her stick.

I rolled to the side and fought to get on my feet. I had lost my sword. Elsa was effortlessly gliding toward me, wooden sword in hand. Her eyes darted left and right. She was deciding on where to strike. It was my opportunity to take her by surprise.

"Stop!" I mumbled under my breath.