The old man nodded. “Yes, we thought as much. But did you say you passed over the forest? Does that mean…?”
“It does. Pachi is huge now and flies!”
“Well done. I’ve never done any flying myself, though I have known a few wyvern riders of old. Their order is long gone now, though, I’m afraid.” His eyes seemed sad.
I moved on to the next piece of bad news. “So, you’ve heard about the Fafniri, too, then?”
“Aye. They were once noble, but Anwar and his sister Astiria have led them astray.” Then he shook his head as if waking himself from a bad dream. “Look at me. Where have my manners gone? Please, come sit down with me.”
He led me back, past a line of people working in his shop: a few older folks and some little more than children. It made sense that those who couldn’t fight would be helping to arm those who could.
We found the small table that we’d used when eating the mountain cat ribs with Adalee. A small kettle was sitting there already, and Quinn fetched another cup for me. He poured me tea and we enjoyed a moment of silence, the drink preparing the way for a much-needed conversation.
I was the first to break the silence. “So, you are Taelman? And an Elder? I don’t know what you are, really. Care to explain?”
He laughed and his ancient eyes held my own for a long moment. “I am very old, Hana. And yet, I am the youngest of the Elders. The ones who come want me simply because I am the closest at hand. There used to be many more of us, but the years are not kind. Just consider me keeper of an aging truth. And I cannot be captured. Should the battle go ill, I will ensure that the knowledge I hold doesn’t fall to evil hands.”
I swallowed hard, trying not to feel sick. Imagining Quinn ending his own life, even for honorable reasons, was too much to consider. “It won’t come to that.”
Quinn prodded me, moving the talk toward less dire concerns. “And you, girl. What of your sword? Have you recovered any other components?”
“I have. Here, take a look at these.” I pulled the sword free first, then removed the Ito braid, the Kashira, and finally the Tsuba that I still wore on a string around my neck.
Quinn marveled at each piece and looked up at me, grinning. “Yes, Hana. These will make your sword much more powerful. When we finish our tea, I will begin work on your katana immediately.”
I held a hand up to argue. “Surely, there are other things more important.”
“Hana, I am an armorer, not a tactician. Once, I was a warrior too, but never a commander. I will have the sword finished before nightfall. I would ask you to inspect our defenses and see if you can think of anything to add, though.”
He stood and brought the pieces over to an empty section of worktable, then laid them out.
Remembering something else, I excused myself and came back in a hurry, my arms full. I started by handing him the Maldrille Bow he’d given me. “It is time I returned this. I know I paid for it, but you gave me an incredible deal, and I was thinking… do you know of anyone young and dumb enough that wants to become a hunter?”
Quinn laughed and took the bow from my hands. “I do. Adalee has been training a flock of townsfolk in the bow. I’ll ask her who deserves such a fine weapon. But tell me, then, what weapon do you have to replace it?”
I couldn’t help but grin at him as I pulled The Lost Bow from the pile of items I’d retrieved. “Check it out! I helped the Sirrushi wyverns and they gave me this as a reward, promising to join us in the war to come. Oh yeah, and Harnoth, a stuffy but nice wyvern guard, said that a squadron of their warriors would come in two days. We just have to hold out that long.”
Quinn’s eyes bounced between several emotions as he heard me blather. Then he replied in a somber tone, “They have the gem back, then? And you managed to slay an Ichneumon? I was not sure it was possible. Well done.” He let the matter go with the grace of those who have seen a lifetime of unlikely events. “Now let’s see what you have here.”
He took the bow in his hands and gasped. “This is… how can it be?” Quinn said in a voice so quiet it was obvious he was speaking only to himself. Then he looked at me sharply, wonder and anger both alight in his gaze. “Do you know what this is? Whose this is?”
I glanced at the bow in the old man’s hands and shook my head. “The Queen Matriarch of the wyverns claimed it was owned by an elf who had possessed great skill. Why? What am I missing, Quinn?”
He sighed, then ran his finger down the bow’s black string, the energy that pulsed there wrapping around his thumb. “This belonged to an elven prince who fell in battle fighting the wyverns long ago. It seems fitting that you, the one who helped reforge the broken alliance, should own the bow now, but not all will agree. If we survive, I will tell you what I know.”
I took in the information, then, too excited to wait, showed Quinn the many items I’d gathered for him. “The Karnath deer hides were the last thing I retrieved. It’s all there now, and don’t worry about any payment, okay? If you rebind the sword, we are more than even.” He watched me as I organized the items before him, humor in his gaze. “So, what were you working on? Your big project, that is. What are all these things for?”
I watched his eyes study my own a moment before he
