The Shadow of Beauty

Ch 25- Getting Into Marlayla

The stag man pointed urgently, feet beginning to move backwards, "BEHIND YOU!"

Kendrick raised a quizzical brow and turned his head to look at Helia and Sig. They looked equally confused.

Kendrick didn't move and merely stared at the stag man, "Um...what?"

"Don't let them touch you!" he urged in a tenor voice.

"Touch me?"

Rolling his arm in an urgent beckon, the stag man kept urging him, "Quick! Follow me!"

Before any of them could react, the stag man turned and tried to bound away on his strong deer legs when suddenly, in his urgency, his huge backpack, which was nearly as big as him, got snagged on a bush. He yelped and fell over, unbalanced from the sudden stop. His pack was strapped to him so he couldn't get free of it as he laid on the ground, kicking his hooves furiously.

Kendrick walked over to where the stag man had fallen, looking every bit like a hapless overturned turtle. He stared down at the strange being with a bewildered blink. The stag man's human part looked to be of middle age and slightly built under his white shirt and red cutoff pants. He had muscle but was still very lean. His ears were constructed like a deer's but only half the size and the antlers sprouting from his skull weren't particularly impressive; only a small six pointer. His slender neck was almost abnormally long, more akin to a deer than the human side. The stag man's wide eyes were deep dark brown, almost black and he had freckling across his small round nose and cheeks.

"Jumpy little fella aren't you?"

"Help! Please get me up before they-- GAH!" the stag man thrashed his head and screamed aloud when Helia approached beside Kendrick. "NO nonono! Get away!"

Sig followed after but kept his distance when he saw the creature's fearful reaction. Helia's hand ghosted to touch the pommel of her sword but didn't appear too eager to draw it in light of the being's cowardly mannerisms. A scared creature could be just as dangerous as an aggressive one.

"Keep them away! Keep them away!" the half stag cried out as he fought against his oversized pack with no luck.

Quite abruptly, Kendrick reached down and grabbed one of the stag man's small antlers which gave him a controlling hold.

He pulled him closer, "Hey, hey! Calm down buddy. I appreciate your concern, but you need to calm yourself."

The wide brown eyes seemed to take on more panic at being immobilized. He jerked his neck, trying to wrench free but Kendrick held him still.

"Let go!"

"I'll let you go. But you have to promise not to run away." Kendrick prompted.

"But... those...those are humans!"

Kendrick raised an eyebrow, "Yeah...and...?"

The stag man looked bewildered by Kendrick's lack of concern. "If...if they touch you they'll steal your magic and butcher you for meat!"

That made Kendrick laugh aloud which further confused the half man half stag. Helia and Sig meanwhile were giving looks ranging from complete perplexity to mild offense.

Kendrick was still laughing and then turned to them with mock terror, "Oh goodness...how horrifying you both are!"

Helia rolled her eyes but then knelt down which made the stag man freeze, shaking, "Easy...I'm not going to hurt you." She gestured to Sig, "He won't hurt you either." She eyed Kendrick still holding the being's antler, "I can't speak for him."