Inheritance: Threads of Fate

Chapter Two - Resolution

Raxe led Caspian outside the house and to the outskirts of town. "An old friend of mine owes me a favor." Raxe explained as they approached a property with a large corral surrounding it. Caspian's mouth dropped when he saw the animals contained inside. "WHAT IN ASLAN'S NAME ARE THOSE?" He stepped back.
"These, Your Highness, are called 'camels.' They are the best way to get around in the desert." Raxe was very much enjoying the fact he knew something the king of Narnia didn't.
"Surely you don't ride those things?" Caspian staggered.
Raxe laughed. "Yep! They can run about just as fast as a horse with a full load, and can go longer without water. I once heard of one who went fifteen days without a drink and a full weight load."
"Astounding..." Caspian approached the fence cautiously. "Are they dangerous?"
"Well not inherently...but..." A Camel spit in Caspian's direction, nearly missing his face. "They do, do that."  Raxe ended, rolling with laughter.
Caspian jumped back, "Oh ha. ha. very funny." He tried not to laugh. "I'm keeping my eye on you."  He spoke directly to the camel who accosted him.

"Looks like he likes you!" An older man appeared out of the house and approached them. "Raxe! How you been boy?"
"Umont! Still alive are you?"
"Yeeep. Sorry to disappoint you!"
They both laughed and hugged.
"Who's your friend?" Umont asked, looking towards Caspian.
"This is King Caspian, of Narnia, Um." Raxe introduced.
Caspian gave a polite little bow.
"Is he now? Very interesting...." Umont turned to Caspian and bowed back.
"Honor to meet you Mr. Umont." Caspian greeted.
"Oh please sonny, Umont will do just fine." Umont waved Caspians pleasantry away as if it was a fly.
"What brings you two by?" Umont asked.
"I need to use up that favor Um, we need a couple camels." Raxe answered.
"Planning to use em to ride back to Narnia?" Umont joked.
"To rescue a friend." Caspian responded.
"Not that girl the guards are all looking for? You're not into trouble again are you Raxe?"
"You know me Um. I'm always into trouble." Raxe laughed.
"Well I'm happy to loan a couple to you," Umont said, "provided you bring em back in one piece. They're my livelihood after all."
"You have my word." Caspian placed his hand over his heart and nodded.
"Time to teach a king to ride a camel..." Raxe smiled in anticipation.

"This. Feels. ODD." Caspian exclaimed from the back of a white camel as Raxe led it around on a lead.
"You'll get used to it." He replied. "It's a bit more bumpy than horseback, but a camel's feet will never fail you. Just make sure to keep your own balance."
"Ok. I think I'm ready for the reins." Caspian called down.
"Alright, here you go." Raxe handed Caspian the lead. "Now remember, they respond to sound and..."
Caspian clicked his tongue and his camel trotted forward faster than he anticipated, lurching him forward as he rolled off the camel's neck onto the ground.
Raxe fought a laugh. "You ok?" He approached Caspian who was laying flat on his back.
"Who looked at these things and decided, 'I want to get on and ride this creature?'" He groaned.
Raxe chuckled, offering Caspian his hand up. He took it, and brushed himself off.
"No one is to know about this..." Caspian commanded.
"Of course not, Sire" Raxe laughed.

Caspian and Raxe returned to Zumi around nightfall,  a little more dusty than when they left, but Raxe said Caspian had enough of a grasp now not to kill himself. They loaded their packs, and reviewed the most current map someone had made of the desert.
"How is she with her sense of direction?" Zumi asked.
"She's not an expert navigator but..." Caspian responded,  "she can at least tell what direction she is headed."
"Alright so there's a good chance she didn't condemn herself by heading further out into the desert." Raxe pointed towards the west.
"And she would know better than to go directly towards the city, the direction she came from." Caspian pointed out.
"That only leaves north or south. Which at least gives us a direct path..." Raxe noted.
"Were you going to release Kex tomorrow morning, Zumi?" Caspian asked. "Or do you think he can track her in the dark?"
"Well...I was thinking..." Zumi hesitated. "If I release him, he's going to come back to me, which won't do you any good unless you're here to see what he brings back..."
"We already told you Zum, we're going. You can't change our minds." Raxe argued.
"No, no. I know better than to argue with a stone wall..." Zumi agreed. "But. The best chance of you finding her will come if you take Kex with you."
Both Raxe and Caspian stared at him in shock.
"Zum...you don't mean your going to let us borrow him?" Raxe confirmed.
Zumi nodded with a sigh. "Trust me, it's a terrible loss for me but... right now, you need him more than I do. Your girl needs help." He looked at Caspian, who flushed at the mention of "his girl."
"You do us a great honor." He responded. "Thank you Zumi."
"Just bring him back to me when you find her huh?" Zumi smiled and clapped both men on the back.
"In that case, what say you we leave immediately?" Caspian asked Raxe.
"Sounds great." He agreed.
"Aww look Kex, you're already bringing these men together." Zumi joked, and Kex squaked.
Once outside, Caspian held your necklace up to Kex. "Take this Kex. Bring her back to me." Kex looked at Caspian with his head tilted, then grabbed the necklace in his talons and took flight into the night sky.
"May the gods watch over and protect you and your loved one." Zumi said while clasping arms with each of them in turn.
Raxe and Caspian mounted their camels, and took off towards the desert.

* * *

A day later, the guards at the General's estate stood on guard as a falcon was circling overhead. They thought it was after the General's prized birds, but after landing on the rooftop for a moment, it took off again.

The next day, a wandering merchant noted a large bird circling over the large jutting rocks that signaled the edge of the most dangerous part of the desert. "Some poor fool must have gotten himself killed out there." He thought to himself.

The day after that, a snake hiding under a burnt pile of sticks ducked as a falcon landed on the towering structure he was using for shade. The falcon stayed at this location a while, as if he was looking for something. The snake hissed angrily as the falcon began pecking at the burnt sticks, but the snake didn't know the falcon wasn't there for him...

* * *

You were riding on Abra out in the open just past sunrise when you saw the shape of a large bird circling overhead.
"Hey! We're not dead yet!" You called out to it. "Go find a different breakfast."
The bird came closer, and Abra began to snort nervously.
"Steady boy...you're five times his size." You comforted him.
You continued on, and the bird followed for a while, as if he was looking for a good place to land...
"Fine! You're going to be very disappointed when we don't keel over by the time you get down here!" You yelled up to it.

You passed a pile of boulders on your right, and as if in response to your taunts, the bird landed on one of the smaller boulders, and watched you. You halted Abra. This falcon was acting very strangely. You were curious, so you unmounted and walked towards it.
"Hey pretty birdy..." You spoke softly as you approached him. "Why are you following us? We don't have any food..." You stopped short, noticing something glinting in the sunlight from his talon. "What do you have there?" You asked and were surprised when he allowed you to approach him. Your heart sunk to your feet when you saw your necklace. "WHERE DID YOU GET THIS?" He flapped and jumped back. You spoke louder than you meant to and scared him. "Sorry, sorry... birdy...where..." This bird isn't going to answer you, you realized. You held your necklace in disbelief. Caspian was the only person who would have had this in his possession, "unless he was captured and killed." Your inner voice rationalized. "No." You can't afford to think that way.

Ok, there are only two logical reasons why this random bird would have your necklace. One: He found it on a dead body, liked it because it was shiny, and took it. Two: Someone tied it to him. "Think. Think." You told yourself, pacing back and forth as the bird and Abra watched you. "You're not a wild falcon, are you?" You asked the bird. "You wouldn't have let me approach you otherwise... which means someone gave this to you, or you took it from someone you knew...."
You sat on the rock next to him, and he looked up at you. "You landed right next to me on purpose, didn't you?" You asked him. "That's why you were following us....were...were you looking for me?" Ok so if someone was looking for you. It was either someone who wanted to help you, or someone who wanted to hurt you...after seeing the Generals menagerie, you wouldn't doubt for a second that he would own a falcon who could track people... how did he get the necklace..."he recaptured and killed Caspian...You left, you broke the agreement. He hunted Caspian and Raxe down and killed them."  The horrible realization hit you like a ton of bricks. HE KNOWS WHERE YOU LIVE. YOU TOLD HIM TO ASK ABOUT THE GIRL AT THE INN.

Sis, Tavros, the entire island. NO ONE is safe as long as you are on the run. You have to return... you have to stay and be his wife...if he's already killed Caspian and Raxe...there's no reason for you to keep running anyway... You broke down. If you could cry, you would have. This will never end until...right then you made your decision. You have to return to him, and kill him.