Chapter 19
Zathar
I jolted guiltily away from the viewscreens that lined the wall and table inside this room.
Raising my hands in the air, I told my friend, “I haven’t touched anything, I swear.
There was a picture in the hallway, I thought it came from here.
” Pointing at the still-frozen image of the Shaman on the screen I offered that as proof to my friend.
Why was he even back? He couldn’t have possibly found Iave in so short a time but I leaned to look around him anyway, searching the hallway to see if his hulking shape might be there.
Corin pressed his hand to my shoulder, “No, I didn’t get that far.
We’ve got another problem, a big one.” His eyes went to the image of the supposed Shaman, “I see you found Vrash’s recordings of this place and what happened in the past. We’ll talk about that later. Come with me first.”
I shared a worried look with Vera and she shrugged, following after Corin as he headed back for the cave exit.
“Khawla warned us there were Bitter Storm movements on the border, right?” Corin said just as we reached the exit of the cave, he pointed for the border to their territory on our left and I nodded.
The master scout had indeed said so, but I hadn’t worried, Bitter Storm liked to make a show of force from time to time, but they’d never attacked before.
“I think they’re going to move on the village soon.
I saw war machines Zathar. Trebuchets on wheels, a ballista, and more Bitter Storm warriors than I could count.
This is dire. They outnumber Thunder Rock three times over, and our former Clan will be caught completely by surprise when they start moving.
And it will be soon too, they looked like they’re almost ready. ”
I stared in shock as I tried to process all the implications, my mind already whirling with all the options we had.
Ignore this? Let Bitter Storm kill Thunder Rock and take their territory?
Warn Thunder Rock and risk being caught?
Pack up our things again and move even though we’d just found a place that might work for us?
Behind me, Vera was translating what Corin had said to the others and Cosima’s eyes started leaking in the noisiest fashion almost immediately.
Min-Ji was taking it in stride, mostly staring at Corin as my mate talked.
While Reid was clutching the sword I’d given him in a white-knuckled grip.
“We’ve got to do something,” he said when she was finished.
“It’s not like Bitter Storm will leave us in peace once they’re done conquering the Thunder Rock Clan. ”
Vera turned her head to meet my eyes, giving me a firm nod.
“I think Zathar and I should go to warn them. We’ll have the best shot at making them see reason, and they’ll owe us, that can only be a good thing.
” Her words all made perfect sense, not only did my position as the former Prince make me the best candidate, giving them the news would indeed make the Queen owe us.
We could end up with a truce and build something from there.
Support for our budding little Clan could be extremely useful.
And yet… My instinct was to say no. Mostly I just didn’t want to take Vera with me for these talks, she would just be putting herself at risk.
She was small and fragile and we’d have to make the trek down the mountain as fast as possible, not to mention that Astrexa might try to kill her on sight; thinking it would clear the way for her ambitions.
I opened my mouth to say so but Vera forestalled me when she placed one of her small hands on my chest. “I’ll hide in the woods while you do the talking, okay?
But seriously, don’t you think it’s better to have at least a little backup while you go in?
If you recall, I did knock out that Msera dude on my own, didn’t I? ”
Reid snorted behind her shoulder, grinning at me as if to say she’s got you there.
I wasn’t going to tell her that it would be more prudent to take the human male with me for backup if I wanted that.
Taking her with me had one advantage, no two if I thought about it.
I’d have her in my arms each night away from this place, and on top of that, she wouldn’t be this close to the preparing army.
They might consider wiping out our little colony first if they caught wind of our presence.
“Then that’s the plan,” I huffed out. “Corin, we’ll have to let Iave wait a little longer.
You’ll need to stay here to guard the humans.
Vera and I will be back as quickly as possible.
” She beamed at me, obviously pleased that I was taking her along and I hoped I was making the right choice.
I didn’t like that I might be taking her straight toward danger, toward where that gathering army would be headed.
I accepted the pack of supplies my friend held out to me.
It had been meant to sustain him while he searched for Iave, now it was going to have to be used to get Vera and me back down the mountain.
It wouldn’t take more than a day and a half to reach the Thunder Rock Village if we kept a direct course.
But how much time would we have to get back out of there before Bitter Storm attacked?
Vera was hugging the girls goodbye, murmuring soothing words to the one with the leaky eyes.
She slapped Reid on the shoulder and laughed when he hauled her in for a quick hug.
I kept my eyes on him but it was a quick and friendly embrace, verging on brotherly so I gave him a nod. “Keep the sword, you might need it.”
Then it was just me and my mate again, traveling hand in hand beneath the trees and that felt nice. A good portion of the time that we’d known each other had been spent this way, I might have to convince her to take trips like this with me just for the fun of it once the danger had passed.
“Hey, we’re out of sight of the Cave, aren’t you going to insist on carrying me now?
” Vera said, a teasing note in her voice.
I knew she was trying to lighten the serious mood as much as she was making a genuine offer.
So when I bent down and picked her up without comment she simply settled in my arms, her sling clutched in her fingers.
Good, she was alert and scanning the woods along with me, ready for any sign of danger.
My mate was a quick study, she was brave, and she knew how to lead. I was so grateful that she was mine.
We traveled in silence for the first hour but talked quietly for the next few.
Taking only a short break near a stream of water to freshen up and eat.
When night started to fall we were nearly at the village; if I pushed on now, I could reach it before anyone headed to bed but I hesitated.
Was it better to approach in the daylight?
Or better to do it now and get it over with?
In the dark, Vera would be better able to hide but I knew a good spot regardless of the light.
“Go,” Vera said with a serious look. “You are worried about the friends and family you still have behind those walls. I will be okay. I’ve gotten the hang of the sling.
I’ll hide until you return. The sooner we get out of here the better, right?
” She was absolutely right, but I hated that I’d brought her all this way, where she was at risk, and now I was going to leave her alone on top of that.
Even if she was hidden from my former Clan, she might still fall prey to one of the predators that roamed Serant’s surface.
There were many, it was only because they feared a healthy Naga hunter more that we hadn’t seen any so far.
“Are you sure? We can still turn around,” I started to say, tilting my head up to look back the way we’d come.
You could only just see the jagged peaks of Ahoshaga rising sharp and jagged between the taller spires of the other mountains.
We’d crossed a lot of distance in a short time and I was tired, but not tired enough not to make the trek back if I needed to.
She pressed her hands to my cheeks, making sure my eyes met hers when she spoke. “Are you crazy? You know you need to do this. The Queen might be a bitch, sorry but it’s true, that doesn’t mean you can’t feel loyalty to some of the other people you grew up with. We have to warn them.”
I truly was blessed with a mate like her, she understood me, and I couldn’t help but laugh at what she said of my mother.
I did not know the word bitch, but I was certain it meant something bad.
She was right on that count, my mother was the least maternal person I knew, and I’d always envied some of my peers for having less ambitious but more caring mothers.
With Vera, I knew I wouldn’t have to worry about any of that when we had younglings, she would love them unconditionally, I knew it.
She was right that I had to do this too.
Some of the hunters, even surly Msera, were once friends, and I knew they felt sympathy for my situation.
No hunter truly turned their back on the males that were cast out by a Queen, that could have been any of us if we didn’t find our mate.
So I couldn’t turn my back on them now either, because doing so might wipe out my entire former Clan, a thought that was still horrible to contemplate.
There were many younglings to consider too, they were all innocent in any of this.
“If you are certain too,” I said, leaning in to press my mouth to hers.
She kissed me back eagerly, threatening to ignite passion between us we had no time for.
“You will hide and not come out for anything but me, got that?” She nodded immediately, sending her mane of pale hair flying around her face.
I molded my mouth to hers again, struggling to let her go but this time she used her nimble fingers to tug on my chin horn.