Pressing On
The Never Ending Quest - Episode 31191
|
It seemed unsafe to linger too long in the vicinity of the camp. Also
any food that there might be in the nomads' tents seemed likely to be
contaminated by whatever had blighted the area. Preparing to move on, Fred
bent to pick up the
litter that he had fashioned out of branches, on which the woman lay.
But before he could do so she said: "You look all in. I'm sure that I will be well enough to walk now." It was true that Fred did feel very tired. The woman was no featherweight, and he had been dragging her on the litter for hours now. But his sense of chivalry made him say: "I'll be quite all right. Resting is the best thing to heal your wounds and to recoup your strength." The woman smiled warmly at him. "It's typical of you, Fred, to put another's well-being above your own. But I've had a good sleep now and I feel much better for it. I don't believe that I have any injuries worse than cuts and bruises." "Well..." Fred said doubtfully. But the woman - he supposed he should get used to thinking of her as Astra, though it seemed a strange name to Allarian ears - was already scrambling to her feet. He offered her his arm to help her up. She accepted his assistance, whether out of weakness or politeness he wasn't sure. Once she was on her feet, he was surprised to find that she was an inch or two taller than he was, for it was the first time that he had seen her standing. Her face was pale, but she seemed steady enough. Her red hair was unkempt, her long velvet gown was dirty and torn, and she was barefoot (having lost her slippers in the river), but there was no mistaking her beauty, her athleticism or that she held herself like a lady of quality. "The food in my pack was ruined by its immersion in the water," Fred told Astra. "We must find food and drink quickly. Shelter too, as the nights can be cold up here in the hills." "Why did you come up into the hills? Surely the going would have been easier for you down in the lowlands?" "I decided to seek help from the nomads that live here. I knew that they were fiercely loyal to the King and would help us. That seems not to have worked out too well. But there is more than one tribe in these hills. Perhaps we shall yet find succour." "Let us hope that they have not met the same gruesome fate. There must be something very evil in these hills to have caused such devastation." Fred realised that all he knew about Astra was her name - which strongly suggested that she was not from Allaria - and what she had told him of her recent adventures (which he suspected to be no more than a feverish dream).
|
JH
7/30/2003 1:26:22 PM
Extending Enabled
24953191 episodes viewed since 9/30/2002 1:22:06 PM.