What Nathan had no way of knowing was that his request had already been answered. For at that very moment, Princess Nataleigh and Maid Madelyn were well on their way over the Renegade Forest in search of the coastal work shop of three dwarven inventors. The two maidens had become friends very quickly and had not stopped talking since they left the camp of the Jolly Men. Maid Madelyn had always been one of Nataleigh’s favorite dwarves to watch in her magic mirror. She had always wanted to meet the young warrior maiden and learn how to fight like she did. Her father would never allow her to participate in the combat training with her brother.
“Melee fighting is no place for a maiden,” he had said, “and warfare is especially ugly when women are involved.”
Nathan was younger than her and already his training had begun.
“I never get to have any fun.” she had complained on more than one occasion until the idea of action and adventure had filled her every thought. It was this very thing, in fact, that had pushed her to leave the Palace of the Heart and come down to Darrowold. She was tired of being treated like a girl. She wanted to be a warrior like Maid Madelyn. And now, here she was with her hero on a valiant quest to save all of Darrowold!
What Nataleigh didn’t realize, was that Maid Madelyn had always wished to be treated more like a lady than a warrior. The young renegade maiden had always heard of other young dwarven lasses who were cared for and sought after while she remained seperated and alone, an outcast from normal dwarven life. The truth was, Maid Madelyn had been with the Jolly Men for so long that she no longer knew how to be lady-like, and she found herself drawn to the young princess in all her pretty clothes and proper manners.
So the two had much to talk about as they rode the winds on Jewels back, asking each other all sorts of questions until finally Maid Madelyn asked one that was rather uncomfortable.
“So tell me, young Princess. If your father forbade you to leave your ivory palace in the clouds, then why did you disobey him?”
Nataleigh felt her chest tighten with guilt, but she quickly answered with a question of her own.
“How else would you have been warned about the Serpent’s Eye if I hadn’t taken the risk of disobeying?”
Maid Madelyn had already expected this answer and was ready with another question.
“Do you not have any other way of sending a message to those of us below, but to come yourself?”
Nataleigh was definitely feeling uncomfortable now and wanted to end these questions so she said something very rash at that moment that she knew was wrong and caused her to blush in shame.
“No.” she lied.
Maid Madelyn did not let it end there. She was sitting behind the Princess and could not see the sick look on her face and asked again.
“But didn’t you mention that your Brother had a talking dragon that...”
“I said, No!” Nataleigh interrupted sharply. She was getting upset that Maid Madelyn was questioning her obedience and wanted to forget the whole subject. “I mean... well....the dragon isn’t very smart and this was too important and um,... oh look! There are the cliffs by the sea that I was telling you about! We’re there!”
Nataleigh shouted the news in her nervousness, relieved to have something that would change the subject. Maid Madelyn let the subject go as Jewel began to drop lower in the sky towards the rocky cliffs.
Within moments, they were over the top and gliding down the far side where they hoped to find the entrance to the dwarven workshop near the water’s edge. With the new excitement at reaching their destination, Nataleigh soon forgot the bad feelings in her heart. When they tried to come back she pushed them away.
“I don’t see why it’s so bad.” she kept telling herself. “I’m doing something good and no one is getting hurt. My father would understand.”
But of course, she didn’t realize that her decision had already put her little brother in great danger; that at that moment he was the prisoner of the most evil being in Darrowold with very little hope of escape!
And so she continued into the next step of her quest with the thrill of excitement in her blood drowning out the voice of her disobedient heart until she could no longer hear it.
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