It took only a few moments to reach Keritanima's apartment. Like the others on that floor, it looked almost exactly the same as his own, with the large common room with the two bedrooms split off from each side and the glass-paned door leading out onto the balcony across from the entrance. But where Tarrin's apartment had three couches, Keritanima's had two plush chairs flanked by two couches, with a tea table in the center and a small stand between the two chairs. All of the furniture was upholstered with soft, shining leather, leather that contained feather cushions. Keritanima sat on one of those chairs with her feet propped up on a footstool, with Szath and Azakar standing behind her chair protectively. Miranda sat in the other chair, her lap full of knitting. Dolanna and Allia sat on the couch facing the door, and Dar and the Keeper were sitting on the one before them.
They all greeted him loudly and happily as he entered without knocking, but the happiness died away when they saw the pensive look on his face. "Whatever is the matter, dear one?" Dolanna asked.
"I hate to break up the festivities, but I need to talk to all of you," he said immediately. "We'll wait for Jenna, my parents, and Camara Tal to track down Phandebrass, though."
"Uh oh, it sounds serious," Keritanima said with a weak grin.
"How are you feeling, sister?"
"Weak as a kitten, but otherwise fine," she replied. "I do feel a little, weird, though. I can't quite put my finger on it, but I think it'll clear up after I get some rest."
Room was made on the couches, and Tarrin and Jesmind were sitting on the very long couch with Allia and Dolanna. His Selani sister touched his face warmly in greeting, smiling at him, then patted him on the leg and allowed Jasana to climb up into her lap. "We were trading stories, trying to piece together a complete chronology of the battle," Keritanima told him. "Now that you're here, you can add your part of it."
"It wasn't much, sister," Tarrin said. "If you want to talk to the one who did it all, talk to Jenna."
"We were with Jenna, Tarrin," Allia reminded him. "It was what happened here on the grounds that we have missed."
"It wasn't all that much, sister," he shrugged.
"I think you are not being honest, dear one," Dolanna said with a light smile.
"I really didn't do much, Dolanna," he objected. "I defended the icon from a few Demons, then I projected out to the wall to help you, then I helped Camara Tal defend against the final assault. That was about it."
"You are being vague, dear one."
"I know I am," he said simply. He didn't want to get sidetracked quite yet, so he wasn't about to go into detail about what happened to him during the battle.
The door opened, and Tarrin's parents came in. Eron was carrying Jenna in his arms, who was in a nightshirt. She looked drawn and exhausted, but she did manage to smile as she was carried into the room. Tarrin rose and greeted his parents with warm hugs and a slap from his mother for not visiting them sooner, and then more room was made. Elke and Eron Kael found seats on the other couch, but Miranda gathered up her knitting and gave Jenna her chair, then pulled a simple wooden stool from one of the bedrooms and set it on the other side of Keritanima's chair and seated herself.
"You look tired, sister," Tarrin noted.
"I feel tired, Tarrin," Jenna grinned wearily. "I've never worn myself out like that before."
"You want me to fix that for you?" Sarraya asked.
Jenna stared a the Faerie for a long moment, then she laughed. "That has to be Sarraya."
"I forgot, you haven't met her yet. Mother, father, Jenna, this is Sarraya. She's the Faerie that helped me get across the desert. She's a good friend of mine."
"Pleased to meet you," Sarraya said, bobbing slightly in the air before landing on Tarrin's shoulder and making herself comfortable. It had been a while since she'd used him for a chair, but it immediately felt right to him.
"I guess we should thank you for helping our son, Sarraya," Eron said mildly. "I know he can be a handful sometimes."
"You have no idea," Sarraya said in an obviously melodramatic turn of voice. "Anyway, like I said, yo want me to pep you up, Jenna?"
"Ah, no, thank you all the same," Jenna said carefully. "I'll be fine after a night's sleep, Sarraya, really. Thanks for the offer, though."
"If you need me, just call," she offered.
"I'll remember that."
"Now if Camara could drag Phandebrass up here, we could start," Tarrin fretted. "It's starting to get late, and we're all tired."
"I saw him crawling around on the ground where the Sorcerers are mending the fence," Sarraya chuckled. "What was he doing?"
"With Phandebrass, you can never tell," Tarrin laughed.
"And you may not want to know," Keritanima added.
"Have you met Phandebrass yet, mother, father?"
"I don't think so," Elke Kael replied. "From the sound of it, I'd have remembered him if I did."
"No doubt," Dar chuckled in agreement.
"He is, rather unique," Allia said mildly. "But he is a solid, dependable man."
"No argument there, but he is a bit eccentric," Tarrin nodded.
"We're all eccentric in our own ways," Eron said sagely. "Some just aren't afraid to show it, that's all."
"Then Phandebrass must be fearless," Miranda giggled.
They spent the time waiting for Camara Tal and Phandebrass by trading short descriptions of the parts of the battle they'd seen. Most of them overlapped, for everyone in the room aside from the Were-cats had been together on the field. They only split into smaller Circles afterwards, and it was there that they traded information. Jenna actually nodded off as Dar described for the fifth time how Keritanima had managed to avoid being Consumed, a subject that seemed to embarass the Wikuni, but it was cut short when the door opened, and Camara Tal led Phandebrass into the room.
Phandebrass hadn't changed his robes yet, and they had some dried blood on them. They also had grass stains, and a few black smudges that looked like ash. "I say, we made it," he prattled as soon as he came into the room. "I hope we didn't miss anything!"
"If we did, it's all your fault," Camara Tal snapped at him.
"Good, we're all here," Tarrin announced. "Find somewhere to sit down, if you can, and we can get to the heart of the matter."
Camara simply stood by the hearth, but Phandebrass retrieved the chair that sat in front of a dressing table in Keritanima's room and set it by Jenna's chair. Tarrin leaned back on the couch and drew in his breath. "I'm sure everyone here either felt it or was told about it," he said immediately.
"That wave of magical power?" Dar asked.
Tarrin nodded. "That was the Firestaff," he said grimly. "It's revealed itself to the world." There was a long silence, broken when the Keeper blew out her breath. "The Goddess told me that everyone around the world felt that, and most of them will realize that it was the Firestaff that did it."
"I could feel what direction it came from," Camara Tal grunted. "That means others did too."
Tarrin nodded. "Exactly. They don't know precisely where it is, but they do know in what general direction it is, so that means that we're going to be racing any Wizard or Priest with a ship."
"So we leave tomorrow," Keritanima announced. "Our information won't do us any good if someone stumbles across the Firestaff by sheer luck."
"I was thinking of tomorrow afternoon," he said. "Me, Kerri, Dar, Allia, and Dolanna are going. No arguments," he said with a slight smile. "I know Miranda and Szath will at least go back to Wikuna, but the question is, who else wants to go?"
That caused a little bit of laughter in the room. "Tarrin, you nit, we're all going!" Keritanima told him with a laugh." Well, everyone but Jenna and your folks, anyway."
"I, I can't go," Sarraya said in a small voice from his shoulder. "I can't be that far away from my colony. I'm sorry, but I need to go home for a while. I hope you're not disappointed, Tarrin. I know I am. I wanted to go on another adventure with you."
"I understand, Sarraya. The G
oddess told me that you've been away from home a very long time, and that you need to go home and rest for a while. As long as you're here waiting for us when we come back, I'll be happy. I'm sorry you're not coming, but at least you can rejoin us later."
"That's a promise, Tarrin," she said strongly, patting his neck with her tiny hand.
"If you're not finished, I'm not finished protecting you, Tarrin," Camara Tal told him. "I go."
"I say, you think I'd miss the chance to study the Firestaff up close?" Phandebrass announced.
"I've been with Kerri this long, I'll see it out to the end," Azakar announced.
"Alright," Tarrin said, nodding. It was as he expected; everyone was going to go. "I'm going to offer Jula the chance to go with me. She needs to be trained."
"I want Jula to stay with me," Jenna told him. "You train Kerri, and I'll train Jula. Besides, I think I may need a Were-cat Sorcerer on hand. I may need Jula to help me with Jasana."
Tarrin hadn't considered that. "Good point," he said. "Alright, Jula stays."
"Count me in as well," a voice said from the doorway. They all turned to look and saw Kimmie pad into the room. She was back in her peasant dress, and was all cleaned up. "Master Phandebrass agreed to take me on as a pupil, and I can't very well learn from him if he's with you and I'm still here."
"I say, you'll be a good student, my dear," Phandebrass told her. "I sense a great deal of potential in you."
Kimmie beamed at the Wizard, then gave Jesmind a curiously neutral look. "It's not exactly like I'm inviting myself. Triana decided that she's not letting Tarrin go without another Were-cat along with him to help. We fought over who was the lucky one after you left," she grinned at Tarrin and Jesmind. "I won."
"You fought over it?"
"Well, not real fighting," Kimmie explained. "I just proved to Triana that I had the most personal interest in going, since Master Phandebrass was probably going too. She said I go. Rahnee was very disappointed," she grinned. "I get the feeling she was looking forward to the idea of getting to spend all that time with you separated from Jesmind."
That seemed to hit a nerve in his mate, and she narrowed her eyes at the sedate female Were-cat, and very nearly growled in her throat.
"Well then, it sounds like everyone but Sarraya is going," Keritanima announced.
"Don't rub it in!" the Faerie growled at her. "Just make sure you have good stories to tell when you come back."
"This may not be the right time, but since your parents are here, Jenna, I guess I should tell them now," the Keeper finally spoke up. "Eron, Elke, I've appointed Jenna to the Council. She'll be taking Amelyn's place as the Mind seat." The Keeper smiled at the young woman. "She's the youngest katzh-dashi to ever hold a Council seat. You should be proud."
Eron and Elke did not look proud. They actually looked rather unhappy about it. "We were going to return to Aldreth, Keeper," Eron explained.
"I can't go with you, father," Jenna sighed. "My place is here now. If you and mother want to go back to Aldreth, then by all means, go. Don't hold yourself here because of me. I'll be fine, I promise. I have Jesmind to be my guardian, and I have my niece Jasana to keep me company. Don't I, Jasana?" she said to her.
"Umm," Jasana agreed.
"Don't you trust Jesmind to keep an eye on me, mother?" Jenna asked innocently.
"Are you staying here, Jesmind?" Elke asked directly.
It hung there for a long moment. "Yes," she finally said, which made Tarrin literally sigh in relief. "I don't want to stay, I want to go back to Aldreth myself, but Jasana needs to be near Jenna. If Jenna is staying, then I have to keep Jasana here too."
Eron and Elke exchanged looks. "We'll talk about this later, Jenna. In private," Eron told her. "You can stay, but we have to decide if we're going to stay with you, or go back home."
"That's fine, father," Jenna assured him.
"I'm a little tired now, but I'll arrange for our ships," Miranda spoke, standing up. "I'll get a squadron ready to move. If the seas are going to be crowded, I think a little show of force will get us back to Wikuna safely."
"That's a good idea, Miranda," Keritanima agreed. "Tell the Admiral to have twenty ships ready to sail on the afternoon tides."
"They'll be ready," she assured them, then she filed out of the apartment with Azakar following closely behind, to protect her if needs be. Szath closed the gap behind Keritanima's chair protectively, his black eyes continuing to stare at those arrayed before the Wikuni queen.
"Well then, if that's what we needed to talk about, I'd say that it's time to start packing," Keritanima said brusquely. "That, and the fact that I'm still very tired, and I'm about to fall asleep on you all. So, excuse my bluntness, but I'd appreciate it if you all let me go to bed."
"That's a good idea," Dar said with a yawn.
"Let us meet tomorrow for breakfast," Dolanna proposed. "So to be organized to depart."
"Good idea. But let's make it lunch," Keritanima said. "The way I feel right now, it would take a Troll looming over me to get me out of bed any time before noon."
"An early lunch," Dolanna pressed. "We will have much to do, and little time to accoplish it."
"Alright, an early lunch, you slave driver," Keritanima complained.
They all stood up, and then said their goodnights to one another warmly, trading hugs and kisses. Tarrin left the apartment and started down the curving passageway that would lead them back to his own apartment with Jesmind, Jasana, and Kimmie in tow. The younger female Were-cat was silent a moment, then she spoke up. "I won't touch him, Jesmind," she announced in promise. "I'm going for the things Phandebrass can teach me, not to steal Tarrin away from you."
"If it were anyone else, I'd be alot angrier," Jesmind said through clenched teeth. "Now I think you'd better go to your room, Kimmie. I have some words for my mate."
"Ah. I'm glad my room is on another floor," she chuckled. "I'll see you tomorrow. Maybe."
She turned back down the passage, heading for the stairs, and Tarrin found himself dreading reaching the door to their apartment. It was but a short walk, but it seemed to drag out infinitely before him, heightening his anxiety. When they were finally there, he quickly opened it, motioned for his family to enter, then closed and locked the door.
Jesmind was angry, but it turned out that she only wanted to fight to vent her frustration. She railed at him for only giving her one more night with him, raged at him for pawning off his daughter like a trinket, and for not talking to her about any of those things beforehand. Then she shouted at him about how insensitive he was. Tarrin endured the tirade until Jesmind seemed to scream herself out, and then took her paw. "Feel better now?" he asked conversationally.
She glared at him, then laughed helplessly. "Damn you, Tarrin!" she said without much conviction. "I knew you'd have to leave us again, but I didn't think it would be tomorrow!"
"Things are getting tight, love," he told her seriously. "We need to get there first, so that means we need to get going. I don't know how long I'll be gone, probably about six months or so, but I'll be back. Hopefully, that'll be the last time I have to leave you, my mate. If everything goes well, I'll be back to stay when I return." He reached up and brushed her hair from her face. "And who knows? Maybe a few months apart will mean that we'll have a couple of extra years together."
"I don't care about then, I care about now!" she said in frustration. "I want you with me right now, beloved! I'm going to go crazy without you here with me!"
"You'll have Jenna and Jula to talk to, love," he told her. "That reminds me. Jula is sleeping in Jasana's bed."
"I'll share with her tonight, Papa," Jasana said quickly from where she'd been sitting on the couch, waiting for her parents to finish fighting. "I like Jula. She's nice."
Jesmind clearly seemed uneasy about that, but then she sighed and nodded. "For tonight," she said. "Jula's in no condition to cause any mischief anyway, so Jasana will be safe enough."
"I'm glad you trust my d
aughter enough to let our daughter sleep in the same bed with her."
"I don't really, but these are extenuating circumstances," Jesmind admitted. "Alright, it's been a long day, cub. Into your room and get ready for bed. We'll be along in a bit to tuck you in."
"Alright, Mama," she acquiesced, getting up and padding to her room.
"And you," she said, looking at Tarrin. "I don't care how tired you are, beloved. I have only one more night with you before you leave. Don't plan on wasting it by sleeping."
"I didn't think you'd let me," he said with a teasing smile, taking her paws and looking down into her eyes. "I'm glad you're not going to really fight about this, love," he told her. "This is important."
"I know it is. It's the only reason I'm letting you do it," she replied seriously. "I don't like letting you leave me, but even I can understand that this is more important than what I want."
"Triana got to you, didn't she?" Tarrin asked after a pause.
Jesmind gave him a rueful grin. "Yah," she mused. "She told me to be graceful about it, or she'd kill me."
"I don't call all that screaming very graceful, Jesmind."
"I can't just let you go and do whatever without letting you know how I feel. Besides, if I just knuckled under here, you'd think I was getting weak, and you'd just start doing whatever you want all the time." She tapped him on the cheek. "I may lose, but you still have to fight for it, beloved."
Tarrin stared down at her, then smiled. "That's the Jesmind I know and love."
"Of course it is. Who else would it be?"
The next day dawned, for the city of Suld, with one massive hangover. Almost everyone in the city had been celebrating, and they were feeling the effects of it the morning after, as many picked themselves up out of the streets in which they'd passed out. But not everyone had been partaking in the joy. The Wikuni fleet, after gathering up their sailors from the taverns and festhalls, quickly and quietly prepared their ships to leave. By morning, a squadron of twenty clippers was prepared for departure, including the Royal ship, a clear indication to anyone coherent enough to see that the Queen of Wikuna was preparing to leave Suld. Ungardt ship captains dragged their crews out of tavern floors, streets, and the beds of victory-flushed young women, and they too began to get ready to pull out. A large portion of the Arakite Legions too looked to be preparing to return home, but a portion of the Arakite forces had settled into barracks on the Tower grounds, making it apparent that they were going to remain in Suld to either train with the Knights or supplement the defense forces of the city and give Suld time to call in more Sulasian troops for her defense.
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