CHAPTER NINE

A hunting party of the Vile surrounded a unicorn in the great forest. Unicorns once flourished but were slowly dying out because of those that hunted them. The Vile were naturally evil and could not get closer than ten feet to the unicorn due to its mystical magical nature that protected its purity. The magic that protected the unicorn also made it unable to defend itself properly from certain evil beings. Clubs were thrown at the unicorn and though many were deflected or avoided, some struck her hard. The Vile continued their assault on the unicorn, laughing that the unicorn could not strike them with its horn, only push by them by utilizing the magical field that pushed evil beings away. A club struck her hard across the back of her head and she fell. She slid across the ground sideways and darkness took her.

The unicorn heard battle around her. She opened her eyes and looked around. The Vile had not been able to get close to her, but they had lassoed her with ropes from a distance. She was bound tightly. She looked to see several of the Vile lying dead about the forest. Most of them had caved in exoskeleton-skulls. The battle sounds stopped. She heard someone approaching her and panicked. She tried to break free but could not break the ropes that held her. It was as single battered Vile that came into her view. It was covered in blood and bore wounds that should have felled a common man. The Vile fell to his knees as though fatigued and feeling the effects of his wounds suddenly.

"Do you speak?" the Vile asked struggling to remain conscious. The unicorn did not respond but rather tried to break free again.

"I know you are scared. I am fading from fatigue. I killed my brethren to save you. Don't kill me when I release you." The Vile pleaded as he tried untying the ropes that held the unicorn to a tree. He untied the first rope before collapsing. Three more ropes held the unicorn to three other trees but the Vile had fallen unconscious from his wounds.

"I do speak. Are you alive?" The unicorn finally responded when she realized this Vile was trying to help her. The Vile could not hear her. The unicorn sensed that he was in fact an evil being. She could not get close enough to heal him because of that. She looked around wondering if this was some sort of trick. Were there more of them? No! She could plainly see several of her captors lying dead all around her. The Vile lifted his head abruptly and spit dirt from his lips. He was barely conscious.

"Sorry. I passed out." The Vile crawled sluggishly to the next tree and untied the rope. One-by-one, he worked the ropes free at each tree to free the unicorn. The ropes were still attached to her but at least she was not bound to the trees.

"Rest here. I will find you help for aiding me." The unicorn said before galloping off. The ropes hindered her movements through the heavy forest and caught on underbrush from time to time. She heard the neigh of horses off in the distance and moved towards the sounds. She came to a road and saw several warhorses approaching on the road. She stood still and stared at eh approaching riders.

"I need help!" She called to the riders. The riders stopped briefly as if surprised to see a unicorn. One rider dismounted from her horse and approached the unicorn slowly. It was a woman. She held out her hand with an open palm and her other up above her head. The unicorn was nervous. These were complete strangers and they rarely allowed anyone to get close to them. The woman came within ten feet of her and slowly reached for her dagger. She unsheathed it and kept it in view of the unicorn.

"Do you understand me?" The female was an elf maiden which set the unicorn at ease a little.

"Yes. What do you mean to do with your knife?" The unicorn asked.

"I am Eleanor Laventha. I am going to cut the ropes from you so you don't keep getting caught on the brush." Eleanor claimed.

"I sense that you are not evil. If you try to harm me or bind me in any way I will end you where you stand." The unicorn warned.

"Fair enough! It is an honor to provide aid to such a mystical creature as you. I am a druid. You can sense that I mean you no harm?" Eleanor extended her empty hand within sniffing range of the unicorn. The unicorn relaxed at her scent and let Eleanor get close. She carefully cut lose each of the ropes that encumbered the unicorn and then sheathed her dagger. She brushed a gentle hand across the unicorn's mane.

"Thank you," the unicorn bowed.

"The honor is mine!" Eleanor replied. "Who did this to you?"

"The Vile." The unicorn answered.

"What are the Vile?" Eleanor asked.

"You can learn about the Vile from the one that saved me from his own kind. He is badly wounded and I cannot get close enough to heal him with my magic because of his evil nature." The unicorn said evenly.

"Lead the way," Eleanor said. The unicorn turned to lead the elves to the wounded Vile. Eleanor followed on foot while her friends followed at a safe distance as she had instructed earlier. The unicorn stopped when they had come back to the site and pointed her horn at the one that had saved her.

"That one there," she said. Eleanor moved in cautiously. Sir Fellis was on foot and tied his and Eleanor's horses to a tree. He kept the princess within view always. Eleanor chanted a healing spell and touched the insectile humanoid. Some of his wounds closed but not all. He moaned in pain. Eleanor began inspecting his wounds closer.

"He will need to rest for a few days to recover from these wounds but he will live." Eleanor said to eh unicorn.

"Will you care for him?" The unicorn asked.

"Anyone who risks their own life to save a unicorn is honorable no matter their heritage in my book. I will care for him! Sir Fellis can we make camp here tonight?" Eleanor noted a broken arm among the six arms on the humanoid and set it with a makeshift splint she fabricated from a tree branch and some cloth from her tunic.

"When he wakes, tell him I am grateful for his sacrifice." The unicorn said and turned to leave.

"Wait!" Eleanor called. The unicorn stopped and looked at the druid. "We are out to reestablish friendships with denizens of the forest. I am the princess of the great elven city ruled by King Solaris, my father the king. I wish to learn the cause of the rise in vermin in the forest."

"Well met, Princess Eleanor Laventha. I am Fortuna. Al the information regarding the vermin can be gained from this one when he awakens. Though he saved me I do not know his true intentions. Be wary of his kind." Fortuna said before galloping off into the forest out of view.

"A mystical unicorn after two days of travel? The creators smile upon us." Sir Fellis said in awe. The elves tied off their horses and began setting up their camp. Dog came up next to Eleanor and sniffed the Vile. Dog growled at his scent.

"Calm," Eleanor whispered to Dog.

"Dog does not like what he smells. I will care for him. Perhaps my magic along with yours can heal him quicker than you originally thought. Eleanor moved out of the way and allowed Sir Fellis to look at the wounded being. He placed his hand upon the Vile and prayed. Healing power flowed from his hand into the body of the Vile and closed more wounds. The eyes of the Vile opened.

"Who are you?" The Vile gasped in panic. He had never seen an elf.

"He is awake," Sir Fellis called out to his friends. Eleanor knelt beside Sir Fellis.

"The unicorn asked us to help you because she could not." Eleanor explained.

"Did she tell you why she couldn't help me?" The Vile asked in defeat.

"Yes. We do not judge you for what you are. We do not even know of your kind." Eleanor said evenly. The Vile turned to meet her and Sir Fellis' stares.

"You don't want to know of my kind. We are cursed!" The Vile claimed with a shameful tone.

"No one is born evil!" Eleanor said defiantly.

"Yes, they are! —my kind for certain. Have you heard of man? Humans, I mean." The Vile asked.

"We have heard of the humans but I have never seen one." Eleanor replied.

"Nor I," Sir Fellis said.

"Before man was forged, my kind was formed of the ground first. The gods were tired from creating the world and the beasts of the world so when they formed my race they failed to see that something diabolical had touched my race during creation and made us innately evil. Our nature was noticed just before the gods fell asleep when the First as our religion calls him slew his own brother from a bone of a dead animal out of jealousy. He was destroyed by the gods and all but a small number of my people were destroyed along with the First. We hid beneath the ground for many generations and no one knew of our existence until recent times. The Vermin Trinity found us and warped us into this." The Vile held out five of his six arms in disgust. "We are born hating ourselves because we know our forms are not natural. Now we are minions of the Vermin Trinity aiding them in collecting food or new creatures to transform into insectoids."

"What of the unicorn, Fortuna?" Sir Fellis asked.

"She told you her name? What a beautiful name!" The Vile pondered the elegant name of the sacred animal.

"Yes, she did. She also asked that we tell you thank you for your sacrifice." Eleanor said as she remembered the unicorn's request.

"The Vermin Trinity is made up of three massive vermin gods. One is a centipede, one a scorpion, and the other a spider. Even though my people have been transformed into this and used to help catch new species to feed on or incorporate into the new world of insects, we are still used as food also. It is only a matter of time before I would be eaten by a spider or even one of my own kind. My hunting party was obliterated by a green dragon not far from here. I never returned to my people even though that was why the dragon spared me—to warn others not to bother him or his kobolds. I came upon this hunting party and saw the unicorn so beautiful. I could not allow them to assimilate her." I surprised them and began beating them to death. But they beat me as well and before I could free her entirely I passed out from my wounds expecting to awaken in some hell where I belong." The Vile said with a sad tone.

"You are among friends so long as you do not cross us," Sir Fellis offered. The Vile looked at the two elves in confusion. Never had he been treated so kindly.

"I appreciate your hospitality, but I am innately evil and cannot be trusted." The Vile warned.

"You don't have to be," Eleanor said. She looked at the sad humanoid.

"What if my tribe comes looking for me? What if the Vermin Trinity sends their minions after us?" The Vile asked.

"They already do," Sir Fellis replied.

"That is why we are here. We seek to make allies and fight back the vermin that threaten the region." Eleanor explained.

"I am vermin. Do I threaten you?" The Vile asked.

"You are not vermin. You are an intelligent species that can think for it-self. As far as whether you threaten us or not, only you can know that. Nonetheless, I trust you." Eleanor assured the Vile. The Vile sat up.

"Thank you. I will help you." The Vile decided.

"I want to begin by constructing a ranger station out here. You know the area. Where would you suggest?" Eleanor asked.

"Forest creatures avoid the roads even though they are not used often. I would suggest building it near the road." The Vile replied.

"I appreciate your suggestion," Eleanor said before turning to see where Annalisa was.

"I'll lend you my bedroll so you can rest up." Sir Fellis offered the Vile. He stood up to go retrieve it leaving the bandaged humanoid to its thoughts for a moment. The Vile stood up, still in some pain and walked after the elves.

"Wait!" The Vile called. Eleanor and Sir Fellis turned around.

"You need to lie down and rest," Eleanor suggested with concern.

"This forest is very dangerous at night. There are only seven of you and a dog." The Vile sounded generally concerned.

"We are well-aware of the dangers. We are even aware that we are unaware of some dangers." Sir Fellis assured the Vile with a dizzying choice of words. The elves had their encampment set up in minutes with three tents big enough for two people each comfortably surrounding a common area where they built a fire pit with stones they gathered. Annalisa and Eleanor went off hunting for a night's meal before it got dark. Sir Fellis, Sir Sendrick sat by the Vile near the campfire.

"Do you know where the so-called vermin gods are?" Sir Fellis asked.

"I have only been to the entrance of the layer of the Spider God. The others are not within the great forest." The Vile answered.

"We have not seen a god ever. We know of the existence of only the two creators by stories that have been passed on. This will be the first time we have seen a god on this world and I'm not looking forward to this meet." Sir Fellis said.

"We give thanks to the creators. All others are false gods!" Sir Sendrick barked. Sir Fellis eyed the young paladin.

"I too am a paladin of the order, Sir Sendrick. Until we know for sure the facts personally, I feel it is not wise to condemn alternative views and beliefs." Sir Fellis said evenly.

"You sound like Eleanor," Fauna chuckled. "She is very diplomatic about things."

"I will take that as a compliment," Sir Fellis said with a smile.

"Oh, it is! She wants so badly for everyone to get along without fighting. Diplomacy first and the sword last." Fauna said.

"There is nothing wrong with being civil," Sir Fellis assured.

"Some species are not diplomatic or intelligent for that matter," the Vile interjected.

"We never assume. We always try to do what is right first. Or else we are no better than the wicked." Sir Fellis said. Annalisa and Eleanor returned with Dog at their sides holding their catch of the day.

"The gods blessed us with these rabbits." Annalisa said holding up two meaty rabbits she had shot with her bow. The elves and their new-found companion sat around the campfire talking as they cooked the rabbits for their dinner.