Montoya Valley, chapter 11

The soldiers wasted no time when the zombies stopped moving. Torches, swords, and axes blasted at the standing corpses, briefly until they all collapsed. Gerard and Diego walked around towards the gates, meeting up with Lenk and Jack. Soon the castle guards were piling up the bodies, preparing them for a massive funeral pyre.
Diego stood outside the walls for a moment, gazing up. He could see Irini's blond hair, as she spoke with Gerard. The scout sighed for a moment, taking one last glance at the woman he could never dare to love. Without another glance, he turned around, heading west into the forest. With Caine dead, and the undead powerless, the other villagers would recover.

When morning came, the rising sun found most of the people asleep, laid out on the charred grass of the courtyard. Some had staggered back to their homes, or into the castle barracks, but most had simply given in to their weariness. The pile of the dead had burned out hours before, leaving only a large pile of ashes as a reminder or what had happened.
Irini woke with the morning sun, pulling her torn cloak tightly around her. Slowly she rose, still feeling the bruise on her shoulder and jaw. She started walking around the courtyard, before ducking under the broken gates and stepping forth onto the road. A faint smile came to her lips as she saw Higgins and Lenk, both sleeping propped against the outside wall, almost side by side.
After a few minutes of walking she laughed at herself, and carefully reached for her magical powers. A small green arrow appeared, visible only to her, and she started picking her way through the forest. It wasn't too hard to follow the path, since the marching zombies had flattened much of the forest undergrowth.
After about an hour, she finally found him. Diego was leaning back against a tree, waiting. "I knew someone was following me." He stood up, and started to bow. "Why, Irini?"
She stopped, confused. "I ... why are you leaving, Diego? The valley is safe now! Caine is dead."
He nodded. "I know, I was the one who killed him." He dropped his head slowly to look at his feet. "And for a peasant to kill a nobleman is a crime."
Irini's mouth dropped open in astonishment. "But ... Caine was evil! Do you really think my brother would sentence you to hanging for such a noble deed."
"No, I think he would ask me what reward I would want." He paused for a moment. "After I told him, then he'd probably hang me."
Irini took a step forward, and Diego raised his head to look her in the eyes. For a moment there was only silence. "Not if I told him it was what I wanted as well."
He chuckled dryly, tears starting to come to his eyes. "Maybe he wouldn't kill me, but he would never permit it. I'm only a peasant, the son of a peasant!" Wiping away his tears, he turned away, leaning against the tree, as his tears ran down into the lines of the bark.
Irini put one hand on Diego's shoulder, fighting back her own tears. "Only a peasant?" she asked, sarcasm sharp and biting. "A peasant who defeated a skilled necromancer, a peasant who tracked down and saved a paladin! Beggars have been knighted for less noble deeds than that! My own ancestor was nothing more than a common soldier, and he became a Duke!"
Diego paused a moment, leaning against a tree. "Even so, how could I stay here? The entire valley would soon know of my feelings, and I would never be free of the jealousy of others. Better if I leave, and let them keep a good memory of me."
"And leave me alone with a bad one?" Her voice broke as she started to sob.
He winced, slowly turning around. "I'm sorry, milady," he whispered, "but I cannot face the thought of living being loved only by one person, and hated by the rest."
She looked up at him, tears streaming down her cheeks. "So instead, you will run away." He flinched again, then nodded slowly. "Then I am coming with you. No, don't try to protest! Do you think I can face the thought of losing the man I have come to love?"
Diego hung his head, and stared at his feet again. Irini slowly stood up again, reaching forward to put place a hand on his shoulder. "If ... if you wish, I will even renounce my title. But you are not leaving me behind!"
He looked up in surprise. "Renounce your title? Milady, I'm not worth that!" But before he could protest any further, she had grabbed him by the back of the neck, and pulled him into a fierce kiss, that this time he did not resist.
After they finally came up for air, she asked, "Where were you planning to go, anyway?" resting her head on his shoulder.
"Well, the caravan said something about a war down around El Marid. A sword for hire would probably be useful there." She nodded silently against his shoulder, then pulled him down for another kiss. And after a few minutes, much more than a kiss.

Gerard fought to keep his eyes open, as he gave the orders to his guard captains. The ashes had eventually been cleaned up, and soldiers were at work removing the broken portcullis gates. Higgins had been sent to his forge, to start on building a new, and sturdier, set of bars. He sighed, and started to nod off, when Charmain curtsied and entered the room.
"Milord, um, I think we have a little bit of a problem."
He sighed, and managed to raise his head. "What is it, Charmain?"
She gulped, and dropped her gaze to the floor. "Your sister Irini is missing. Along with one of the scouts."
He jumped up from his seat, weariness forgotten as panic seized him. "Missing? Find Romero and bring him to me! No nevermind, I'll go find him!" The Duke leaped over the table, dashing out into the courtyard and almost running down the scout. "Romero! I need you to go into the forest right away, and see if you can find Irini. Take other scouts, if you need to!" The surprised Romero barely had time to nod his assent, before the Duke was shoving him towards the broken gates.
Behind Gerard, Charmain cleared her throat. "Um, Milord Gerard, the missing scout was Romero's friend, Diego." Gerard stood for a moment in complete shock, before shaking his head.

Lenk and Jack stood outside the gates. Sometime during the night, the paladin had found a scabbard that fit his sword, now slung across his back. "Where are you headed now, Lenk?"
The goblin was silent for a moment. "The caravan master was talking about a war down around El Marid. Some group of assassins tried to kill the king, and take over themselves. I was thinking of traveling down that way."
"Traveling down where?" The two looked up in surprise as a battered Kiwin came walking over. His silver flute was hidden back in its pocket, but a long knife hung at his waist.
Jack grinned. "Down to El Marid. I think after ten years of waiting, Chief is deserving of some revenge."
"Ah, so you were from the great city! I wondered why someone who seemed so worldly would be sitting around in such a little dukedom like this." The bard chuckled. "So, when are we leaving?"
Jack cleared his throat. "Pardon me, but did you say *we*? What gave you the idea that I was going along to that city?"
Lenk smiled. "Weren't you just talking about revenge? Besides, you wouldn't let a poor, uneducated goblin go into such a big city without a guide, would you?"
The two humans laughed, and together with their short friend, turned towards the road out of the valley.

An hour later, Romero stepped through the tree line into a magical setting. A clear stream bubbled up from a cleft rock, and the grass under his boots sparkled with its own magic. Several trees, both fruit and pine, spread their branches conveniently to give shade without darkness. He stepped forward slowly, with wonder at where the magical garden could have come from so suddenly.
He stepped around an apple tree, and a scrap of paper caught his eye. Carefully he moved up to the tree, and pulled the note off. "Damn, I really should have followed Diego to those reading lessons!" Folding up the note, Romero placed it in his pocket, and headed back towards the castle. He had a feeling that Irini was more than safe, wherever she was.

Gerard unfolded the note, and read it to himself.

Dearest brother Gerard,
You might not understand, or agree, but I am in love. You probably guessed that it is the scout, Diego. Since he doesn't feel he can openly love me living in Montoya valley, we are traveling. Hopefully we can return, when some time has passed.
Your sister,
Irini

Gerard folded up the note, and looked at Romero. "Well, I think you're now the leader of kills for the scouts. Diego and Irini won't be returning to the valley for quite some time, I think."
The scout stood for a moment, unsure of what to say or do. But after a moment, Gerard waved a hand in dismissal, and he was glad to bow and depart the keep. He had work to do.

The next morning, somewhere over the mountain pass towards El Marid, Diego awoke with sparkling emerald grass under his cheek. With a chuckle, he lifted Irini's face towards him for a kiss. She sleepily blinked her eyes at him, and he waved a hand at the magical garden around them, sprung up during the night. "Irini, my love, is this going to happen every night?"