Chapter 2: The Woman on the Tree
It was in late autumn when Duke Xandor returned to his territory. It had been 2 years of continuous conquests and he hadn't gotten any respite.
Xandor was one of the most capable warriors, whom the king favored, thus giving him full reign over the designated territory. In this territory… Xandor was supreme. Initially it was a rural area with many mountain dacoit tribes intermingled with the citizens. Xandor struck them heavily and swiftly, ordering thousands of executions and trials. He faced some resistance but in front of his cavalry, the dacoits stood no chance and were obliterated.
Now at present, the territory was peaceful and Xandor was happy to be back.
"Xandor, my son! How you've been missed!" Xandor's old mother, Lady Martha greeted him.
"Mother, I've missed you too. How have you been?" Xandor asked as he hugged lady Martha.
"Oh I've been well. The territory is so peaceful nowadays I even feel bored hehe." Lady Martha said.
"Oh? Hehe, then let's go on a hunt this evening. It will bring you some entertainment for sure." Xandor said.
"Oh that's a great idea. But you go get washed up for now. The bath is ready for you. I'll have the cooks prepare the dishes as well." Lady Martha said.
"Thank you, mother." Xandor said.
---
After taking a long scented bath and eating a hearty meal, Xandor sat with lady Martha and told her of the conquests. The tales of his and his men's bravery on the battlefield, the twists and turns of the many battles, the losses and the gains. Even a full week would not be enough to speak of all of them, thus lady Martha asked him to get some rest.
By evening, Xandor had rested enough. He was a warrior and the two years of conquests had hardened him so much that he'd not sleep for long and would recover from fatigue with just a nap.
As decided earlier, Martha was prepared for the hunt. Unlike her usual long dress, she wore a relatively shorter and slimmer one, avoiding all jewelry and donning on a light tunic with metal anklets. She was a noble after all, having been to multiple hunts since a young age. Even in her old age, she looked relatively young and healthy.
"Ready for the hunt mother?" Xandor asked. "Let's compete on who between the two of us can kill a game first." He grinned.
"Hah, bullying your old mother, eh? Who could win against you in a hunt?" Lady Martha slapped his shoulder.
"Hehe, not at all. I know very well that most of the heads on our walls were kills scored by you back in the day." Xandor praised genuinely.
"Oh, you flatter me. But alright, let's compete." Lady Martha said.
Soon their entourage was galloping through the forest. Both Martha and Xandor were carrying a bow and quiver. Martha had a short sword strapped on her waist while Xandor had his prized spear on his back. Accompanied by veteran cavaliers by their side, they marched in full spirit.
But not long later, the forest became foggy and one could not see from hand to hand. The cavaliers turned the torches on but those were hardly of any use. Everyone had separated by now due to poor sight.
"Mother! Where are you!" Xandor called out.
"Xandor…! I can't see you. The voices are echoing as well. Let's just compete. I have cavaliers with me!" Martha spoke aloud.
"Very well, mother! Take care!" Xandor shouted back and went ahead. It was a moonless night and with thick fog, things had gotten tricky. Hunting in such an environment would be very risky. But nobles were all proud and confident. They held no doubt about their hunting ability.
Xandor had separated from everyone by now but without worries, he moved ahead a while until he sensed a 'presence'. He was a war veteran. He had developed abilities one couldn't logically describe. Xandor became cautious and got off the horse. He tied it to a tree trunk and moved cautiously with his spear in his right hand.
Crack- crackle… Suddenly he caught wood crackling sounds coming from nearby. Turning in that direction, he found a small fire burning at a distance. Curious, he walked towards it and found a campfire burning near a large tree. Next to it was a person. A young woman to be specific. Xandor was astonished. What could a lady be doing in the middle of the night so deep in a forest?
"Hello there. Lady… did you get lost?" Xandor enquired in as gentlemanly a tone as possible. The woman was shocked to see Xandor and immediately she ran up the tree and took refuge behind the branches as if they could protect her. Xandor found it rather cute.
"Do not worry fair lady, I'm Duke Xandor, ruler of this territory. Do not fear me." Xandor said as he approached the tree. The woman peeked from behind the leaves. Firelight illuminated her beautiful face. She was seemingly in her mid-twenties with everything pretty about her, save for her commoner clothes. At once, Xandor was smitten by her. Her hair were wavy black and her eyes dark brown. Her body seemed like a beautiful sculpture. Xandor could feel his heartbeat escalate!
"Alright, you can stay up if you like. I'll just sit here a bit and wait for the fog to lessen." Xandor said. "I came here to hunt some tigers or bears but no luck in this thick fog."
As Xandor sat down and put down his weapons and started talking casually, the woman's apprehension towards him visibly lessened.
"So what brings you here? Are you also a hunter? Hehehe." Xandor joked. No way this woman was a hunter.
"…." The woman stayed silent, making the one-sided conversation awkward.
"Zenia." The woman suddenly spoke in a musical voice.
"That is your name? Pretty!" Xandor said smilingly. "So did you get lost out here?"
"…Ran away. From the landlord." Zenia said. "I live here now peacefully on this tree."
"Oh?" Xandor did not find it too bizarre. It was a common movement among the pagans which comprised most of the populous, to become recluse and head to the mountains or forest in search of peace or connecting with the natural spirits. Often they were mistaken as dacoits though.
"Regardless, this woman can be educated and tamed. She is so pretty. She must become at least my concubine." Xandor thought.
"It must be difficult living here." Xandor spoke and hoped to invoke gloominess so that he could convince her to leave with him.
"Not at all." Zenia said. "There are wild fruits and berries to eat; and a river stream not far from here."
"But wild animals are a threat, no?" Xandor pressed his luck.
"Animals don't linger here for some reason and I can just hide in this tree where I live." Zenia said.
"…I see." Xandor felt that he cannot convince her for now.
The fire kept burning. Xandor and Zenia conversed through the night. Xandor of course was the one doing most of the talking. Telling her about his conquests and war. Zenia didn't seem impressed but she was curious still. Xandor wasn't good at reading women's expressions. He kept rambling on until the day broke and it was time for him to return.
"Won't you come with me? You can work at my castle; pick any occupation you like." Xandor offered one last time. Zenia shook her head in refusal.
"I guess then I'll have to come here again if I want to meet you hehe." Xandor rubbed his nose in slight embarrassment. He was currently like a teenager trying to impress a lady.
"Hmm." Zenia gave a slight smile while looking down. It was enough to motivate Xandor and fill him with hope.
"Then, until next time." Xandor said before putting a dagger in front of Zenia. "Take this as a token of our friendship. It shall be useful to you." Xander spoke and Zenia nodded. He then left on his horse.
Xandor encountered a deer along the way and hunted it down with his arrows. Then tied it on the back of the horse and galloped towards the castle in high spirit. Once he reached there, he discovered that he was the last one to return.
"Oh Xandor! You spent the whole night in the wild. Are you alright? You did not return and we could not find you in the thick fog." Lady Martha said worriedly.
"I'm alright mother. I got lost and could not move in the fog so I just spent the night under a tree." Xandor said. He did not speak about Zenia, worried that his mother might not like the idea of him fancying a lady of the wild.
"Hmm, well I'm glad that you're alright." Lady Martha said. "And? Did you hunt something?"
"A deer." Xandor replied.
"Psh! I hunted a tiger!" Lady Martha smirked while narrowing her eyes.
"You're the best hunter, mother. Hehe." Xandor chuckled.
"Hehe I guess I am." Lady Martha chuckled. "Now you go freshen up and have a meal. Then let's discuss territory affairs in the afternoon."
"Okay." Xandor said and proceeded with his day. But he could not get Zenia out of his head. He kept thinking about her and reminiscing about the nice long conversation he had with her last night.
---
"There was a small mutiny 7 months ago." Lady Martha said on a round table where lay a detailed map of Duke Xandor's territory with the mother and son sitting opposite to one another.
"Oh?" Xander was surprised. "I thought I got rid of all the rebels."
"Yes. The mutiny was led by their children. All teenagers." Lady Martha clarified.
"…How did you handle the mutiny?" Duke Xandor asked solemnly.
"Had them all killed of course. Hung till death on the trees; some hacked to pieces, some burnt alive." Lady Martha said with great eloquence.
"Mother you…" Xandor stared at her. "You're amazing! You chose the best method to instill fear while curbing the mutiny."
"Of course." Martha smiled proudly. "Now there is not a soul that wants a change of authority hehe. Except for the dead people's souls perhaps."
"Hahaha, your humor is still dark and splendid." Xandor chuckled.
"Always." Martha smiled.
Then the two of them discussed the economy, harvest, resources, administration and other things. By the time their meeting ended, it was already night time. Mother and son bid goodnight and went to rest. But on the way to his room, Xandor had thought of going to meet Zenia again. Like a volley of arrows, this thought repeatedly assaulted his mind and heart until he could no longer resist. He donned a tunic, grabbed his spear and went off alone towards the forest under the pretext of hunting nocturnal beasts.
---
In the morning as he returned, his face was lit with happiness and smiles. Throughout the day, his conduct was dreamy and gentle. People around him easily guessed that the duke was in love! However, they dared not ask him about it. Lady Martha on the other hand, merely smiled to herself. An affair that livens up only in the nights? It wasn't going to last long. Why bother about such a trifling matter? Thus, she did not question when the duke went out at nights repeatedly.
---
A week passed. Two weeks. Three weeks. A month…
"Who is this woman you go to meet every night?" Lady Martha finally asked with a frown.
"Oh, you guessed it already, huh mother?" Xandor asked while blushing.
"Yes, I and everybody else in this castle." Lady Martha had woken up with violence. "You are so smitten by this woman that you don't even tend to your daily responsibilities properly. I need to see this woman at once."
"…" Xandor faltered. How could he tell his mother that he is in love with a woman who lives on a tree? How ludicrous would it sound?
"Uhh, there's no need to worry, mother. I'll bring her home tomorrow." He said with some thought.
"No, you won't." Lady Martha stared coldly. She had a hunch that the duke was actually involved with some prostitute. She could not allow such a woman to step into the castle.
"We will go to see her. Men! Prepare the horses!" Lady Martha commanded.
---
Soon their entourage marched out of the castle towards the forest. Duke was leading with a frown. He had not expected such a dramatic turn of events. He was happy seeing Zenia every night and talking sweet things with her. He had already proposed to her & Zenia had blushed before telling him that she needed some more time. Xandor was still certain that he couldn't convince her to come to the castle to meet his mother at once but now with Martha storming into the forest with bulky guards…this was no decent way to meet a lady.
Xandor sighed, unable to find a solution. They soon reached near the tree where Xandor requested everyone to wait a while until he talks to Zenia about everything. Barging in together would only scare the poor lass. Lady Martha relented at once. She crossed her arms and snorted.
Xandor moved into the thicket of bushes and entered the small clearing where there was that woman on the tree. They both smiled at one another.
---
Several minutes passed. Lady Martha grew anxious. She finally could not wait any longer and moved ahead with the guards. The large tree was soon in their sights.
Duke Xandor was in their sights, conversing with the woman on the tree. Xandor's faint voice could be heard.
"And so you see, my mother is difficult to convince. There is no other way but to go through things the way they are now." Xandor said to Zenia who was on the tree while Xandor was still on the ground.
Zenia hummed and nodded.
From afar, Martha walked slower towards the tree with terror in her eyes.
"Why don't you come up on the tree though. I'd like us to be together on this tree at least once." Zenia requested.
"Heh, surely." Xandor said and started climbing up the tree.
"No Xandor!" Lady Martha suddenly shouted because what she and the guards saw was that the woman on the tree had actually been hanging on its branch with a noose around her neck the whole time!
"Xandor stop! She is not human!" Martha yelled but Xandor did not listen. He was already on the tree and then a thick vine wrapped around his neck like a noose and pushed him off the tree.
"Nooo!!" Lady Martha screamed as Duke Xandor struggled before dying a suffocating death; just how many of their rebel victims had died. Xandor's face was now right next to Zenia's, who was still smiling.
Slowly then, Zenia's bloodshot gaze turned towards the guards & Lady Martha and a dagger emerged in her hand. The one Xandor had given her.
Soon loud screams echoed through the forest. Duke Xandor, Lady Martha and their entourage never returned to the castle.
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