Approaching the glen, Arpeus spied a deer bounding toward them as he squinted through a bright sunbeam shining through the forest canopy. It was being playfully followed by Fox and Kerberos. Not a deer, though. A short man. A man with the legs of a deer or perhaps the legs of a goat. It bounded like a deer and was upon them in moments.

​

Alani braced Arpeus, wrapping her arm around him and squeezing.

 

"He's a friend, don't be afraid," she whispered.

 

The creature bowed low, and Arpeus spotted two small horns protruding from coarse curly hair.

 

“Greetings, I am Panto! You must be Arpeus, our envoy from the city.”

 

He stood up, but was much shorter than both Arpeus and Alani.

 

“Alani. It does a fawn’s heart good to see you. You have been away too long."

 

He hugged her, drew back, and stared at the two of them.

 

“It’s only been a week! Arpeus, give him Coill’s gift.”

 

Arpeus detached Kerberos' pack, who was happy to be rid of it, and fished out the wooden cylinder.

 

“This is from Coill, and he asks you to come for a visit,” Arpeus said.

 

“Oh my. Oh my. My. I do know what this is,” said Panto, with a grin of crooked teeth.

 

“Be careful with that and share it with your brother,” Alani warned.

 

“Oh, very careful,” Panto said, hugging the wooden cylinder to his chest like a newborn baby, “I wouldn’t dream of spilling a drop.”

 

Alani sighed with a bit of exasperation.

​

“You’ve met Kerberos?”

 

“Yes. Any friend of Fox is a friend of mine. Come, my four-legged friend, it's time for you to meet the others. You two slow-pokes come at your own pace. I've got cooking to do.”

 

Panto gave the wooden jar of ice wine a gentle, loving kiss and bounded off, Fox and Kerberos in tow.

 

The woodland place had the appearance of a natural meeting hall or agora. The trees were tall and straight, and honeysuckle and grape vines were hanging like curtains from their boughs. Vibrant ivy bordered the clearing, dotted with oleander, blue jasmine, clematis, and a hundred other flowering plants, creating a rainbow of both sights and smells. The clearing had a carpet of soft grass and moss.

 

Deer and stags mingled with men and women in white robes. Little fawns, half-human, with goat or deer legs, abounded. On the far side, a marvelous set of creatures, with the upper body of humans but the posterior and four legs of horses. Flowers of every kind, with their intoxicating scents, were at every place he laid his eyes. The tree branches seemed to sway as if inviting an embrace.

 

The wonders were starting to overwhelm Arpeus, and Alani led him by the arm, as he gaped at the many sights. How could this be anything but a dream?“

 

Arpeus, let us sit you down and have a bit of wine, you seem a bit unsteady. Please, close your mouth. That gaping hole isn’t attractive.”

 

“I’m shocked. So many beings, animals, and creatures.”

 

Alani waved her hand, and a broad-faced fawn drew over, with careful and deliberate steps.

 

He was larger than the other fawns, with a big belly and a thick line of hair down his chest and over his stomach. Arpeus wasn’t sure if it was a beard or something else. The fawn presented two cups to the pair, and they both grasped one of them. The cup was made of a light wood with a purple hue, engraved with images of grapes and leaves. The violet color was deep and inviting.

 

Wordless, the fawn poured deep red wine into their cups, smiled broadly, and skipped off. Arpeus could not help but notice he had a bottom as round as his belly. The fawn suddenly looked over his shoulder and gave Arpeus a ribald wink.He blushed.

 

“Never mind him,” Alani said with a giggle, “That is Panto’s brother. Babac speaks little, drinks a lot, and plays the syrinx like no other.”

 

“My friend Phemius would have liked him, then. He played better than any man I ever knew.”

 

Arpeus lifted his cup and tried to put away thoughts of his dead friend. Alani’s hand stayed on his wrist.

 

“Sip it, my dear. It is far more potent than anything you have had, I’m sure. Except for that hard ice wine that Coill drinks,” Alani said with a smile.

 

Arpeus smiled back, enjoying her touch.

 

“Over there,” Alani said, gesturing to a quiet spot.

 

“It's better for you to watch for a bit, to get used to these sights. I imagine I would be taken aback if we were at your Polis. I remember being shocked at that dreadful sea the first time I visited it.”

 

“Not dreadful,” he said quietly, ”just dangerous.”

 

He sipped the sweet wine, which had a bitter aftertaste. In an alcove of low branches, a series of stumps awaited them, their tops hollowed out into well seats with mossy cushions, surrounded by a fragrant carpet of pine needles.

 

At first, he did not see the seated woman, as dark as she was. She arose as they approached, smiling.

Her skin was a color he had never seen. Arpeus had seen people before with a dark complexion, but her skin was so dark that it was almost blue. So dark, it seemed to shimmer. Her eyes were bright as the stars, her features finer than any statue, and her figure was also as if chiseled out of stone. Arpeus had never seen a woman like her. She wore jewelry like nothing crafted in Penelon. Bracelets, a torc, and arm bands. She also had bands around her ankles and thighs. Red and green and gold and silver. The sparkling light under the trees made them seem to twinkle and move. The woman's smile was enchanting, and her teeth were straight and perfect.

 

Her voice sounded like music from a harp.

 

“Alani, it's been too long. Why have you hidden yourself in the borderland forests? Is it because of your friend, so tall and handsome? Why does he stand with his mouth open like that? He might catch flies that way.”

 

“It's a habit of his,” Alani replied, reaching up and tapping the bewildered Delon on the chin.

 

“I am Ekhid,” she said as she raised her hand, strong yet utterly feminine, to him.

 

Arpeus brought his trembling hand to hers when the bracelet upon her wrist reared up into the form of a viper, drawing back and bearing needle-like fangs and a forked tongue.

 

Arpeus fell back in astonishment, his wine cup pitched to the air.

 

“Snakes!” he gasped.

 

Ekhid, not flustered for a moment, stroked the viper softly and cooed.

 

“My child, did the tall man frighten you? Go back to sleep.”

 

Ekhid lowered a hand to help Arpeus up.

 

“They do not bite unless I wish for it, silly man.”

 

All of her adornments rolled and slithered around her perfect form. Arpeus extended his hand and got back to his feet.

 

“Ekhid, you wicked teaser! This is a stranger to our land,” Alani said.

 

Alani handed him back his purple cup, having caught it mid-air, without spilling a drop.

 

More and more beings arrived in the glen, and Arpeus began to doubt his own eyes and his sanity.A trio of winged women flew down from above the treetops, with golden hair and red skin, as if burned by the sun. They did not approach, yet he could see their wings were similar to bats, yet they glided like hawks or eagles. Arpeus thought for a moment that far above them were horses with wings.

 

“Harpies and pegasi,” Alani whispered, "the winged horses seldom come out during the day, but roam the cool air of the night. Sunset to sunrise. I think the pegasi are the most lovely beings in the world. So very shy, I only touched one once."

 

Arpeus only nodded.

 

“You have come at a very fortunate time, and for the one-eyed giants perhaps at a bad one,” Alani continued.

 

“The Autumn equinox approaches, and many of the people of the forest will be here to celebrate the day and mourn our journey into winter. A feast is always prepared. You said the beasts attacked at night, so perhaps they fear the sun. Right now, the days are still long and the evenings short.”

 

“I’m thirsty," Arpeus said, and as if on cue, Panto approached with a bowl.

 

“I sense a need for a drink over here,” he said.

 

Alani held up a hand, “Perhaps only water for our new friend.”

 

“Nonsense,” Panto said, with a strong glare, which screamed of disapproval.

 

“This is ale, Arpeus. Made from wild oats and honey, amongst other things.”

 

The drink was cool and a little bitter, and Arpeus enjoyed it. It was not as strong as the wine and felt good on his throat. Panto bowed to them and produced a small lyre.

 

“A song, if you will, a serenade to our friend. Even in his desperate hunger, our noble friend spared both doe and fawn. I never realized such restraint existed amongst the people of the coastal lands,” cooed the mysterious being. Arpeus smiled quizzically, but as was his custom, listened rather than spoke.

 

“No thing in the forest goes unnoticed,” Alani said quietly, and Arpeus began to blush.

 

Panto’s brother hopped over and began to play his syrinx. The song started slow and began to pick up pace, melodious and sweet, every note was perfect, and somehow familiar.

 

Arpeus sipped more of this thing called ale and was overcome with the urge to sing. He began softly at first. Babac raised his eyes from the pipes and wiggled his eyebrows in acknowledgement of the young man's honeyed voice.

 

Arpeus did not utter a word, but simply let sounds flow from his throat. The music swept him away, and he let the vocals come from his heart and spirit. Encouraged, Babac played louder and began to dance, a slow rhythmic dance in time to the long notes he began to produce. The notes met Arpeus’ voice, and Arpeus’ voice met the notes, the two becoming one. Arpeus' voice became louder, and it filled the clearing.Arpeus, in his young life, had sung before family and guests, always encouraged by those who knew his voice, and in quiet moments he was often begged for a song. He had sung soothing lullabies to his little sister. Roaring chanties when fishing upon the waves of home and energetic ballads when bringing in the harvest. Soothing songs to assuage his mother's grief at her son Oro’s passing, cheerful songs to awaken the household, ribald odes when with his young friends. Gentle poems when the sun fell below the western mountains.

 

Never, in this wordless melody, had his heart flown so high, had his voice been so truly his own and yet also a part of the forest.

 

When Babac completed his accompaniment, Arpeus’ eyes were full of tears, and he opened them to see the sweat-drenched, chubby fawn, exhausted from playing and dancing, bowing before him.“You have been given a wondrous gift,” Babac said, in a voice as deep as an ocean abyss.A roar surrounded him, and Arpeus lifted his head.

The crowd of humans, curious beings, and half-men cheered and shouted their approval, many with tear-laden eyes. He reddened and turned to Alani.

 

“Well done, you have made friends and earned trust,” she whispered, “The forest beings will not believe something so beautiful could have come from someone that can not be trusted.”