CHAPTER V #4
“The sentiment has never been considered here, Lady Alexis,” Sir Reynold shakes his head.
I smile again to the couple, knowing that my next words may come off hard…
“Perhaps it is time to consider, then.”
The husband and wife are unable to hide their looks of disbelief.
I lift my whiskey up to my lips and glance at Keane, needing to know if he understands my meaning.
He wants to remake Woodlands— wants to integrate the Discerni and human population there equally, as was the way of his Court of Warriors.
And until tonight, I had only considered Woodlands as a part of that desire, but now understood deep within my core that a change will have to come to the Court of Knowledge as well.
Disce cannot continue as a Kingdom if it separates magical beings from mortals, and Loughty and the rest of the Court of Knowledge will be no exception to that sentiment.
“A good and early morning to you two,” McQuoid’s deep voice greets us as he walks into the stables.
“Good morning,” I smile to the rugged man.
He’s dressed in his typical black and maroon attire, sending me a smile before he clasps hands with Keane.
I look down at McQuoid’s side and see Skiba walking towards me.
The large tiger sniffs my fingers before his white head pushes into my hand in greeting, a large purr falling from his throat when I rub fervently behind his ears.
“No Clair then?” I ask the Prince.
McQuoid has his hand on his thick auburn beard, stroking it in thought as he watches Stormfall jump down to greet Skiba.
“No Clair,” he shakes his head, smiling sadly. “In any other circumstance she would be excited to join. She’s the best tracker and hunter that I’ve ever met. But the babe has changed her sleeping schedule so that she has to rest through the early mornings now.”
I nod at McQuoid in understanding, thinking that I’d like to hear more of Clair’s life before she met him.
The best tracker and hunter he’s ever met?
That’s a huge compliment, and I can’t even envision the kind of life she had to earn such a title.
I know so little about her, only that McQuoid found her in Pyre and took her back with him to his capitol, declaring her his betrothed.
“Go get your horse readied,” Keane grins to the Prince. “We’ll meet you outside.”
Canon is waiting outside when we walk out of the stables, the man chatting with another that looks to be a Pyrenese soldier. I recognize him immediately as one of the men that toured the Palisades with Clair and smile in greeting when the two of them turn towards us.
“Your Grace,” Canon tilts his head to the red headed man next to him, “this is Grant, McQuoid’s First Guard.”
“We’ve met,” Keane smiles and reaches out a hand.
I let my gaze fall on Canon, analyzing Keane’s own First Guard fully for the first time.
The Discerni soldier looks to be around Keane’s age, so twenty-eight or twenty-nine in human years.
He has his sandy brown hair buzzed short around his head, accentuating his leaf-cut ears and the angular plains of his Discerni features.
Those features don’t hold any coolness to them as many of the other Discerni do, though they always look calm, a perfect match to his perceptive and watchful eyes.
He has slightly tanned skin that compliments the color of his hair, the hint of a beard shaved back so that only the stubble remains.
“And this is Lady Alexis,” Keane turns to me.
I smile at the Pyrenese shoulder, extending my hand in familiarity before I tilt my head at Stormfall.
“You’ve vaguely met Storm,” I grin, watching as Grant eyes the Bird of Ash with a fond smile.
The red-head shakes his head in wonder. “The Prince and Princess told me of your adventure in Red Falls, Lady. The way they described the bird was as if he were the size of a small hawk. He’s far larger than I let myself envision.”
“And growing still,” I chuckle.
“Brilliant.”
“So how do you want to do this,” McQuoid’s voice booms from the stable doors, fastening a sly grin on Keane. “Should we let the beasts lead the way?”
“Yes,” Keane grins back, eyeing Skiba at the Prince’s side. “We’ll take the Bell Grove path that’s just outside the eastern gate. Then we can follow them.”
“Excellent,” McQuoid beams.
Keane leads our small group past the stables and soldiers’ quarters, towards the eastern gate until the dirt path narrows.
It’s then that Skiba bounds forward, the snow tiger taking the path at a slow trot in front of us as Stormfall pushes off my shoulder to greet him.
The tiger glances up when Storm glides low at his side, his black wings spread wide before he soars farther forward.
Skiba hurries to catch up to the Bird of Ash, his teeth nipping at Stormfall’s tail feathers with a playful growl.
We hunt for some time, putting a bit of distance between us and the beasts so as not to disturb their chase. They both bound between the thin trees and the thick grass below, with Stormfall gliding high at the top and Skiba commanding the ground below him.
“They work well together,” McQuoid nods, watching as Skiba disappears around a tree.
Stormfall does the same, maneuvering behind a thick portion of the canopy until it’s just our riding group moving through the Grove.
“It’s a sight to see,” Keane grins, saying something else I don’t pick up.
I’m riding just a bit behind the two men, my own gaze trained on the forest with my bow and daggers not far out of reach.
“To Livyatan?” The Prince of Pyre responds in disbelief. “Why in the Old World, Keane?”
My eyes dart quickly to the back of Keane’s head, urging Millie forward.
“Because we’ve found out there’s more to the prophecy,” Keane sighs to his friend, “more words to be found...”
“How do you know they will be there?”
“The Ancient told Alexis and me. And Isham confirmed. They are Rivian’s words this time, Rion, not Hirovale’s.”
“His sister?” McQuoid furrows his brows.
Keane nods with a grimace. “Yes. She is also awake.”
“That’s three of the remaining eight, then,” the Prince exhales.
“Four, soon. Heysan rides with my sister to wake Sianoa in Alston.”
“Hmm. Your Ancient is building for his cause,” McQuoid eyes Keane from the side. “When are you looking to make the travel into Livyatan?”
“Hopefully as soon as we return from Woodlands,” Keane states.
“We’ll be leaving for the court on the same day you depart.
We’ll be on the road for almost a fortnight before we make our way back to Gaumond.
There’s no set plan yet, but I’ll assess and start making the preparations once we settle in… ”
My stomach lurches into a knot at the news. I still had heavy trepidations about crossing the border into those lands.
“I should like to take the travel with you,” McQuoid’s voice goes hard, “with my own delegation, of course. I do not trust the Leviathans. But I do trust that two royal leaders in their lands will stop them from doing anything rash.”
“It was always my intention to ask you to join us,” Keane gives his friend a small smile before shaking his head, “but you have a family to consider now, Rion. An heir that needs a father to grow up with.”
Ancients.
Did they really think Livyatan would be that dangerous? That reckless?
Yes.
And I did, too.
McQuoid grimaces and looks away from Keane, staring out to the woods for a while.
“Let me speak to Clair,” he finally sighs.
“While you may travel to the Kingdom in a quest for the words, my own interest stems purely for the humans that live there. I do not so easily forget the other words my father shared with me from his Council. Your brother’s men are still reporting the disappearance of the young, yes? ”
“Recently,” Keane nods solemnly, “over the past year. And Isham…”
McQuoid’s eyes narrow on Keane. “And Isham what?”
Keane glances at me over his shoulder, and it’s all I can do but nod him forward.
“Isham admitted, Rion…”
“No,” McQuoid shakes his head in disbelief.
Keane’s eyes are cool, holding the Prince’s steadily. “Yes. The young lives were used to wake Rivian. He sacrifices his Priests now to wake her magical creature.”
“Ancients,” McQuoid swears, his full body tensing.
My heart weighs heavy for the humans of Livyatan. As much as I didn’t want to admit it, the travel had to occur, just like our travel to Woodlands.
A loud growl pierces the Grove from far ahead.
Keane and McQuoid kick their horses into a trot as I quickly follow behind, reaching for my smaller dagger that rests under my sleeve.
We ride towards an open clearing in the small forest, to a single tree standing wide and tall without another in sight.
Stormfall rests on one of its limbs, his yellow eyes looking down at a decent sized orange fox cornered at the trunk.
Skiba stands taut in front of the animal, taking a predatory step forward as we all slow our horses and let the beasts do what needs to be done.
But something moves in the grass to the left of the snow tiger, causing Storm to caw loud in warning.
I look at the movement just as Skiba lunges for the fox, watching as a large wood snake aims its head and teeth for the tiger’s hind leg.
I don’t think in the moment, just react, and throw my dagger straight at the animal. The blade flies true, skimming between Keane and McQuoid’s horses as they both whiny and lift into the air, the animals frightened and caught off guard.
Skiba sinks his teeth into the fox’s neck, ending its life quickly as the wood snake falls twitching to the ground behind him. Both men land their horses in the frenzy, their gazes looking back at me in open surprise as I frown at the two dying animals.
“Rion tells me that we have you to thank for protecting Skiba today,” Clair walks next to me under the Great Oak with a grateful smile.