Peyton was looking rather unashamed as we gathered for breakfast later that morning, having slept a bit past sunrise. Small wonder, though, after the night we'd all been through. Khithran joined us, but was warned by Lanlanor to keep his mouth shut unless he was directly spoken to, and the former prince had the good sense to do as he was told, eating silently as Peyton expanded on his remarks of the night before. "Unicorns were one of the first races created," he said. "It was Hesperos the Wise who then used his magic to seed life on this world. From his seeds came the first elves, and he taught them all his arts. From there, the elves - known as the high elves at that time - then used the arts they'd learned to create great forests, where animals and mortals lived in harmony, with no one preying or hunting for sport. If food was required, permission was asked, and the animal or bird thus petitioned gave up their life gladly. 101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfpmhAUMbCZ
"But then humans arrived, and with them came dwarves, orcs, and other races." Peyton sighed. "They brought new life to this world, but also strife and war. Before long, the great forests were no more, and the high elves were forced to retreat deep inside what remained, while war raged outside.
"Hesperos and his brothers finally forced peace, but it was an uneasy one. The humans wanted the magic of the elves, but the elves would not yield, not unless one of their own was given in marriage to one of the humans. But the princesses refused, so the unicorns offered their princesses instead. Aerowen the Golden became the first to join with a human in marriage, and so peace truly began to flower. But the humans were ever greedy for knowledge, and they abducted many of our maids, until we were driven to the edge of extintion. To preserve our heritage, we were forced to go into hiding, so we might recover the shattered remains of who we were, giving the impression to the rest of the world that we'd died out.
"And without maids, we did, until finally only two unicorns were left. One was my brother, Arryn the Childless, and he died without issue. I am, literally, the last unicorn left in existence."
"But you mentioned others," I said, awed and saddened by his story.
"I did," Peyton admitted. "But I don't want to speak of them too much. They're the one breed who refused to join with the humans, and for good reason. They hail from beyond the stars, and they've never mixed well with us 'ordinary' unicorns. But they have powers my people never dreamt of, and I believe they are the only unicorns who have the skill to help you, Fionn."
"Any chance is better than none," I said, and the others nodded. Khithran looked like he wanted to say something, but kept his mouth shut as per his instructions. Lanlanor noticed anyway.
"You want to say something, nightowl?" he asked, and Khithran flinched as if struck at that epithet. He gave brave answer anyway.
"Forgive me, revered one," he said to Peyton, "but why are you revealing yourself? And what has Fionn to do with all this?"
"Let's just say there's some things not even the most powerful of elves know how to do," Peyton said calmly. "Fionn's willing to take the chance; he's got some personal issues, and I believe King Calimero can help him."
Khithran nodded, but I could see the questions mounting behind his eyes as he settled back down. I did give Lanlanor a frown, wondering why on earth he was being so not-elfy, but decided to ask later once his simmering temper had passed. Surely his dislike of Khithran wasn't just because of some unkind remarks made years ago.
Peyton now addressed us all. "We've a long ride," he told us. "King Calimero has no idea I'm alive, and I daren't use my magic to get us there faster. So we're going to have to do it the old-fashioned way. Khithran, I hope you don't mind riding a cart horse."
Khithran shook his head. "No, revered one," he said respectfully.
"Good." Peyton huffed, ears flicking again as they'd done last night. "Ashton, have you supplies enough to last us?"
"I can procure what's needed," he said, "and if all else fails, we can barter or hunt our way to King Calimero's domain, wherever that is."101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlDKftX9iN0
"It's here, but not here," Peyton said. "They live a half-step out of phase with the rest o of the world, but Arryn taught me the way to get there, just in case I felt I ever needed to ask for assistance. I just never dreamed this day would come, but that's how life goes."
"It's a great thing we ask of you," Paradox admitted. "I for one am glad you are freely consenting to use the knowledge your brother taught you."
"You're all my friends, and you've never mistreated me," Peyton said stoutly. Could a horse - unicorn, rather - smile, he would have done right then. "I feel it's only fair to lend you a helping hoof, not just for Fionn, but also because, deep down, I want you all to see a unicorn. It's an experience you'll never forget, and you won't ever be the same."
Ashton got a speculative look in his eyes. "I wonder," he mused. "Would even the most cold-hearted of elves see the light?"
Peyton let out an amused whinny. "Not even the stoniest-hearted individual would be able to stand against us for long," he said, "and King Calimero's people are even more unicorn-y than us. And that is saying something, friends."
I had to admit, I was just as interested as Ashton in seeing how Zocerth would react to seeing a unicorn, and as we got ready, I found an impish glee tickling my heart at the thought of how such a meeting would go. Given Peyton's wicked sense of humour, he was just as keen as us to test the theory of just how long Zocerth would last before she broke down and admitted defeat.
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