The prince and his father joined the line of riders advancing through the forest. Somewhere ahead, a deer-- or maybe something else-- was running, panicked, and maybe it would come in their direction. Tarez readied his bow. The noise of so many horses would mask the approach of a deer, so he watched carefully for movement. There was some, maybe 300 paces ahead, and he notched an arrow. An animal dashed from behind a large bush toward the right. He let loose, but the arrow fell short as the deer bounded away out of sight.
The line of riders to his left was curling around now, and he turned his horse as well. The deer would probably head back toward the middle of the circle of riders--
But not necessarily. It came bounding at him, almost faster than he could take another arrow, ready it, and let fly. The arrow hit the ground between the deer's rear feet as it leapt directly at him. An arrow appeared in each of its flanks, and its landing was an undignified crash, skidding to a stop right before the prince's nervous mount. He quickly dismounted, now drawing his hunting knife, to bring an end to its suffering.
Somewhere, deeper in the forest, a cheer rose up-- the other side of the circle must have also made a kill. Three deer in one day! Tarez smiled, and stood to let the palace huntsmen start their work on the deer. His father gestured, and a servant brought the platform so he could dismount. "A young doe. Beautiful creature."
"Yes, Father."
"Sheall we announce a luncheon?"
"Hungry already, Father? No, I think we should ride on."
"The chef told me this morning we hardly need to take any deer today, we already have plenty in stores."
"I've been told the same. Very well." He pulled his horn out of his belt and blew three sharp notes. Quickly, the activity changed, for anyone not engaged in preparing the deer carcasses for transport to the palace gathered in the clearing.
It was a sumptuous feast, but since few were yet hungry before the sun was at salute, it ended early. The rest of the morning was mostly relaxed chatting and riding and target practice before heading back at noon.
There was a loud, low rumble.
The prince and the king looked at each other, each with a look of surprise and worry. "Mount up!" shouted Tarez, and he heard, distantly, the Chief's shout as well. He took his time as his father made his way up his steps to the saddle, and fell in behind those who'd mounted more quickly. The Chief joined them, too, but though his jaw was set, he said nothing.
As the hunting party came within sight of the palace, the Prince sat up in his saddle. Something seemed dreadfully wrong, and both his father and the Chief noticed as well. Soon, everyone else picked up on their alarm.
Mindful of the Chief’s current mood, the King said, “Taréz, take four of the guard and investigate. Chief, attend me.”
“Sire—”
“I know you feel you ought to be the one to send out, but I am confident in my son’s abilities. You taught him well— trust in that.”
“Yes, Sire, but—”
Taréz went out of earshot as the King started to ask the Chief for a visual description of the damage. It did seem to be quite the tragedy. The wall where they intended to attach the South Hall was gone, as well as most of the third floor in that area. He tried to picture what furniture and works of art were in those rooms, but then he remembered that they had been moved just in case. It was a terrible mess, but the damage could be fixed... at considerable cost. The South and North Hall projects would stretch the burgeoning budget for years to come without unforeseen problems.
Elves of both shades scurried about to stabilize things and clean up a little, giving no sign of suspicious activity. The members of the detail with him gave pinkies up from their various positions. Satisfied, Taréz dismounted and jogged through the mess into what had been a minor meeting hall. The Queen was there, doing her own survey of the damage. “Is everything okay, Mother?”
“According to Yis, yes. He explained everything to me right away so I wouldn’t worry. Such a thoughtful man. Apparently the palace is more fragile than anyone thought, so when they knocked a wall in, more of it fell than expected, and it destroyed some of the third floor. Oh, dear, I sure hope the ball can go on as planned.”
“I hope so, too. I’ve been looking forward to it.” Taréz traipsed back over the rubble to his horse, and planted his flag in the ground. That was the all clear signal his father would be waiting for, and the hunting party started approaching immediately.
A few moments later, his father’s powerful steed came thundering over the hill. The size of that horse! A large horse was necessary just to carry a Vle of the King’s size, but this one could actually gallop with its royal rider.
Of course, no tree-dwelling Vle would ever allow himself to get so large... and would rarely use a horse anyway.
The King brought his mount to a halt. Taréz came over while a quick-thinking light-skinned mason hefted a stone for the King’s step. “Thank you, mason. Your assistance is greatly appreciated. What is your name?”
“I am Tenasor, Your Majesty. It is the least I could do for my sovereign.”
“I shall commend you to the chamberlain. Please, return to the clean-up.”
Tenasor bowed. “With pleasure, Your Majesty.”
As the muscular man walked away, the Prince stepped to his father’s side. Repeating what his mother had told him, he added, “She doesn’t seem too shaken by it.”
“Now we only have to convince Gardric of Yis’s explanation.”
“He may never trust Yis after this.”
“I never really expected him to before. Even so, would you do me a favor? I know that he will do an investigation and dredge up evidence against Yis, so I need someone to do a counter-investigation. Prove that Yis didn’t plan this intentionally to interrupt the ball.”
“No problem, Father.”
“Good. In the meantime, we’d better get our catch preserved.”