Chapter 383: Night Off
The night following Heila’s victory, Captain Lennart roused himself from an afternoon nap and prepared to greet the setting sun before a long night of work began. Last night’s events at the arena had left the men from the Vale of Mists on edge, each of them recalling the suicidal madness in the eyes of the cultists who willingly sacrificed themselves for the chance that one of their members could defeat Heila and bring her under their control.
The High Fen had always been welcoming for Lady Nyrielle and after the grand welcome they received on their first night, both he and his men had begun to relax. After months of travel, fighting, and assembling Nyrielle’s ragtag army of defeated zealots and cryptic devotees, they were just weeks away from home.
Tonight, according to the agenda that Heila had provided him with, he hoped that things would be quieter. Nyrielle and Ashlynn were due to dine with High Lady Erna and several lord mayors of the High Fen in what should be an evening far removed from the danger of places where powerful champions gathered.
Still, he wasn’t comfortable until he’d donned a light coat of mail and secured his fighting gauntlets in place at his hips. He hoped that he wouldn’t need either, but if violence broke out at what was supposed to be a dinnertime negotiation, it wouldn’t be the first time it happened on this trip.
When he presented himself at Nyrielle’s chambers, however, he was surprised to find Zedya waiting outside Nyrielle’s door wearing an elegant fur coat over a modestly cut dress in deep, rich purple silk and crimson lace, looking like she was prepared for a night outdoors.
"Hello, Lenny," the amethyst eyed vampire said. Her voice was warm and gentle and her pale skin held the healthy glow that said she’d fed the night before, but even a recent feeding couldn’t account for the... softness he felt from her tonight.
"Has there been a change in plans tonight, Madame Zedya?"
"There has," Zedya teased, placing a finger underneath the bearish man’s chin and leading him back the way he’d come. "You won’t need your armor tonight, or your weapons. Tonight, you’ll accompany me. Come," she said with a smile that lit up her plain features as though the moon had appeared from behind clouds just to shine on her. "You should get changed."
"Where are we going, Madame Zedya?" Lennart asked as he fell in comfortably behind and to Zedya’s left side, taking a position to protect her vulnerable side even if she had little need of his protection. "Should I dress for the cold?" he added, hoping to get some details from her.