Newsgroups: alt.pub.dragons-inn From: hutch@ibeam.intel.com (Steve Hutchison) Subject: [AU] Meeting on the Road Message-ID: References: Date: Fri, 6 Aug 1993 18:46:23 GMT ADMIN from Steve Hutchison: This is posted for Wolvie and Chris. Formatting, spelling, and minor dialogue fixes as usual. In adjusted timing, it happens the day after "Tiger Beat" ADMIN from Christopher Motherway: This post occurs a morning or two after the "Shepherd Moon & Morning Hymn" post. Edited and posted by Chris Meadows (Thanks for mentioning Blaze in "You Can't Keep an Evil Man Down"). ADMIN from Chris Meadows: You're welcome! - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - (Background Music: Instrumental version of "The Last Unicorn" by America, from the animated film of the same name.) It was nearing noontime as Sir Lance and Blaze made their way across the plain headed towards Generica. Thunder and Stardust (the horses) slowly trudged on while the riders let their minds wander. The goblins in that town were contained and returned to the forest with a warning never to return. Lance would have gladly sliced them all, but Blaze warned him not to anger them, for their revenge could prove bitter, so not a one was harmed. They stayed the night and started the trip home at sunrise. Lance enjoyed the vast open spaces around him. He had loved such wideness for almost three years now, and he thrives for any chance to live the city to go there. Blaze could not enjoy it, though. Her mind had been occupied for quite some time now. Lance noticed this in the villiage; she had assisted half-heartedly to round up the goblins. He asked, "Beloved, are you all right?" Her train of thought interrupted, Blaze startledly said, "What? Oh ... I am sorry, Lance. Ever since I heard of the Mages' Guild members going out to find Andrea and Sheryl, I ... I have not been able to stop worrying about them." "_That_ I have noticed," Lance replied. "Your amulet has been glowing since we left Generica." It was glowing even now, dimly, almost sadly. "I just pray that they are all right, that is all." "I understand, Blaze. I am worried myself. But they can take good care of themselves; they always had. I am certain that they have a good reason for leaving, and when they return, they ... " Lance stopped in mid-sentence, spotting a small group of people far off to his right. "Well, well," he said. "It seems we are not the only ones travelling today." Blaze looked over to the party for a while. Suddenly, her eyes opened wide. "Lance," she all but yelled, "Look closely! Do you see what I see?" Lance, who would not be an effective knight without keen vision, stared at the group. Two strange creatures; centaur-like perhaps. A few humans, and a small horse. Nothing unusual. Then, the sunlight hit something that made Lance blink ... Something just above the horse's head ... A horn! "Sheryl?" he finally said. Blaze's amulet glowed brightly. "Yes!" she said. "It IS Sheryl!" The couple made their horses break into a gallop and headed toward the group. As they approached, they saw the young unicorn, with a young man walking to her left, and to her right ... "AAANDREAAAA!" called Lance as he got close to the group. Andrea did not recognize the riders at first, but when the horses stopped and the riders dismounted, she knew who they were on the spot and yelled out, "Sir Lance! Blaze!" Lance approached the young thief and said, "Thank goodness you are alive! We have been worried about you!" While Lance talked, Blaze grabbed Andrea's hands and said, with tears in her eyes, "My hands touch with joy! Oh, Andrea! I was afraid those hunters had captured you and Sheryl!" Smiling, Andrea spoke up, saying, "Hey, hey! Calm down, you two. You weren't the only ones who worried, you know. After all, these guys came out to find us." The lovemates then realized that the rest of the party had been eyeing them since their arrival. So they greeted 'Raf (who Lance first thought was 'Raelf, the man who taught him that drinking "chess" game, and apparently was a shapeshifter, because he was a half-lion centaur at that moment), ar'Elya (who had looked different last time he saw her), and Kardia. A whinnying Sheryl introduced the couple to Jay, the young man, with Andrea translating. "Where's Jake Pitzar?" Lance asked, realizing that something was missing. "We came out because of his article in the paper, the descriptions were so like you." "He was called away," Andrea replied. "Some kind of new assignment." Watching Andrea as she made explanation, Blaze stopped and thought for a moment. She then looked closely at Andrea for a while. Her magic mind's eye told the archmage that something was wrong, different. She was not sure what ... until she looked at Sheryl for a second. Then, a look of shock appeared on her face. "Andrea! You ... you have the aura of ... of ... of a unicorn about you! Dimmer than Sheryl's, yes, but it is there! What has happened to you?!?" Andrea smiled and sighed, saying, "It's a loooong story!" Lance smiled and stated, "Well, since it seems we are all headed back to Generica, you all have a loooong time to tell us." - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - About a half-hour later, the group had relayed the story: Andrea's run in with Raykor, her transformations in a unicorn, ar'Elya's careful modifications of the spell so that she could overcome her unicorn-half's instincts (Andrea even showed such a transformation, leaving Lance and Blaze in awe), even the juncture of Sheryl and Jay (spoken quiety, so as not to get Jay suspicious). She did omit mentioning her panic attack before nearing the city, and the reason for it, because she wasn't entirely comfortable with talking about it just yet. After the story was told, Blaze, still awestruck, said, "Well, at least my theory was correct. I _thought_ that, perhaps you were the second unicorn, and that Raykor had a hand in it." Lance added, "You are lucky that _both_ your horns were not sliced off by those hunters. Hey, wait a minute ... Blaze, remember when your soul-self was captured? Could that have been Raykor?" "The entity that held me _did_ seem to have Raykor's evil and magical qualities. His mind's-face even looked like that of Raoh the Conqueror!" "Sounds like him, all right," said Andrea. "When did this happen?" "In my sleep. I wanted to looked through your house to find traps, when this forces drew me into the house and into his mind. He wanted my life-force energy and my magic to help him fight his "foe". He did not specify _who_ the foe was, though. I was barely able to get away." Kardia noticed something about the amulet that Blaze wore. "May I look at this, please," she asked, and Blaze smiled and handed it to her. She stepped aside, and shifted sight -- there was magic, but of a very unusual kind. She showed it to ar'Elya, who grew blond and dragonet-populated, and they discussed it for a few moments. "Can you tell the difference here," ar'Elya said, and Kardia nodded, "and this goes off to nowhere, I wonder why..." "and this reaches into the archetypes, I'll show you..." "Oh, how lovely! Wait, I want to learn that pattern so I can weave..." "Exactly, it replicates here and here... I've never seen that particular way of doing it," ar'Elya said as they returned to the rest of the group. "But it seems to work." As Blaze and Lance listened, Kardia added, "This is a magic focuser, attuned to magic produced by good and by love." Blaze smiled and said, "Ahhhh, so _that_ is why it glowed whenever I thought of Andrea and Sheryl, or of Lance. They are the ones I care about and love most of all in this world, and that love was focused into the crystal. Funny, I never thought about it but ... it also glowed ... when I thought of my father." A small tear appeared on the young woman's cheek. Lance then said, "Well, Andrea, I ... do not suppose that, now that you need the space that a unicorn needs, you would be interested in ... in clearing that house out ... " Andrea answered, "Oh, no, Sir Lance, the 'Housestorming' party is still on. After all, it _is_ my house, and I _am_ still half-human!" Lance smiled. At least he knew he could help the young thief as he had promised. "Very well, then. Once we return, I will buy a good meal for each of you to celebrate Andrea's and Sheryl's return. Then, whenever you are ready, m'lady, we shall 'debug' that house, so that you can live there in peace!" For most of the rest of the journey, the group spoke of prior events and various subjects, such as unicorns and magic. Lance and Blaze would sleep well that night, knowing that Andrea and Sheryl were all right.