Grand Theft Griffin

by Michael Angel

  Chapter Seventeen

  “Your, ah, High Elderness…” I began semi-coherently. “I am here as an envoy of King Fitzwilliam–”

  That was as far as I got before Belladonna lunged forward, her razor-sharp yellow beak coming within a few inches of my face. It took all of my control not to flinch as she sniffed the air around me, made a ‘huff’ of disdain, and strode back to her initial landing spot.

  “Do not waste thy breath on false greetings,” she said, in her scratchy, high-pitched voice. “Even thy smell is one of treachery! Upon thy brow I scent scales and blood, blood and scales!”

  This was definitely not turning out the way I had been hoping. Alarmed, I turned to Shaw and pleaded with my eyes for a little help. To his credit, he stepped to my side and quickly spoke up.

  “Dayna Chrissie hath joined us but recently in battle,” Grimshaw pointed out. “Eldest, the scents thy nose detects are from this afternoon’s contest of thine lances against the wyverns.”

  That tidbit of information went over like a lead balloon.

  “Wyverns!” Belladonna spat. “So quick to confession! Outworlder, thy conspiracy with yon wyverns seals your fate. Thy body shall indeed be welcomed among the Skinned Ones!”

  This time I caught the expression of one of the Elders who’d escorted us inside. He rolled his eyes in a way that clearly said: Here she goes again.

  I wasn’t finding this the least bit funny, however.

  Shaw sputtered. “Nay, Eldest! It was I who brought her to that contest.”

  “So quick thou art in replying, so quick! Art thou in league with this outworlder and her wyvern allies?”

  “This outworlder saved my life,” Hollyhock said, stepping up next to her father. “From the aforementioned flock of wyverns, yet. Why would one in league with them do such a thing?”

  “Thou hast freighted more dishonor than all the griffins here,” Belladonna shot back. To my surprise, Shaw’s daughter actually flinched. “Even one just out of the egg could see that this was a ruse, a stratagem most foul, to gain your trust!”

  “Something around here is certainly foul,” I muttered under my breath. Luckily, Belladonna didn’t hear me as she worked her way up to a right high dudgeon. Her out-of-kilter eyeball randomly wandered around the room as she strutted back and forth.

  She addressed the room at large. “I have told thee! I have told thee that I have seen blood and peril in mine own visions! The war of eons past yet stirs. The dream horses sow the seeds of their fall. The humans dwell upon the bones of their nemesis. The owls imprison the sacred as they move on silent wings, ready to strike. The greatest of the dragons passes into realms beyond the sight of all. Creatures of the fey and the rock scheme our destruction, whilst one who might yet save us lies beyond the light of the hearth. And here! Here we are attacked from without and subverted from within, and all our kind sit by, gormless and weak, letting his outworlder beguile us!”

  My breath caught for a second. Maybe it was all nonsense. But…if there was anything to her rantings, Belladonna had just scattered a fistful of gems in front of me. I wished that I could’ve sat down and looked at each of her statements in detail. But I had to put a stop to this before it got out of hand.

  The High Elder may or may not have been plain nuts, but she had a streak of paranoia wider than her wingspan. Everything she was told to validate my innocence got put into her mental feedback loop that I was guilty of collaborating with some shadowy enemy.

  I couldn’t back down now. Aside from needing to solve the crime in question, my entire presence in Andeluvia was on the line. But how was I going to…

  My mind did one of its weird little clicks just then.

  It couldn’t be that simple, could it?

  I swallowed, hard. As soon as Belladonna paused in her ranting to take a breath, I stepped into the gap with something I’m sure no one was expecting.

  My confession.

  “Eldest!” I shouted. “I must congratulate you. You have indeed scented my ruse, as I attempted to gain access to your aerie for the enemy’s nefarious purposes.”

  Belladonna blinked. Both of her eyes actually seemed to settle down and focus on me for the first time. Her voice ratcheted down from its earlier screech.

  “Thou hast brought congratulations for me?”

  “Of course. It can’t be easy, being the only one who sees truly and wisely.”

  “Thou art right! ‘Tis a burden beyond belief to have one’s decisions taken with surly glances and words.”

  I risked a glance back. My companions each looked as if I’d hit them full-on with a flash bulb. Shaw’s beak actually hung half-open in shock. I stiffened my back along with my resolve to play this out the rest of the way.

  Well, in for a penny…

  “Then I stand before all as living proof of your wisdom,” I went on. “I am indeed working for those you have seen in your visions.”

  “The old war doth stir…”

  “Like water in a simmering pot, High Elder. One which is soon to boil over. Which is why you need to let me do what I came here for.” I took off my traffic cone colored backpack and pulled out one of the buccal brushes. “I mean to examine your warriors with devices like these. They’re to help ensure that only the healthiest griffins serve with King Fitzwilliam’s Air Cavalry.”

  Belladonna cocked her head, making her earrings jangle. “But that does not serve thy underlying purpose, does it?”

  “Of course not, Eldest,” I said, spreading my hands. “You have found me out.”

  “Ha! Another plot have I uncovered! Then what is thy ultimate goal?”

  “Oh, I can’t say. Anything I told you would be a lie, of course. Which is why you must allow me to look at each and every one of your warriors as soon as possible. Otherwise, how will you learn the truth?”

  “Of course,” she breathed. “Since all you speak is falsehood, I must have thee kept under guard as closely as possible whilst thou attempts to enact thy plans!”

  “Curses,” I sighed. “You have foiled me again.”

  “But who can I trust with overseeing thy machinations? I must cudgel my brain to decide…”

  “No cudgeling needed, Eldest.” I pointed at the various members of the Elder council around me. “Any of these fine griffins will do. After all, they sit only slightly behind your greatness, do they not?”

  “They do! And whilst they wish to replace me, they lack mine own singular vision!”

  “It is unique, I’ll give you that.”

  “Since you choose them, it might be that they are in league with your plans.” Belladonna gaze fell on Shaw’s daughter again. “Yet this young one…thou had tried to gain her trust. That means she must not be part of thy plan yet. Since she has not fallen under thy sway, then she can be trusted to watch over thee.”

  Hollyhock looked one part confused and two parts shocked, but she kept quiet as the Eldest jabbed a talon towards her. Apparently, Belladonna had already forgotten the insult she had casually tossed her way.

  “True Born daughter of Grimshaw, I charge thee with guiding and watching this Dark One. I have great need to find out her true purpose here, so should she come to harm, it will go hard – very hard! – on thee.”

  Hollyhock knelt. “I shall perform thy task to my utmost.”

  “Then I shall leave thee to it, for I grow tired. This struggle with the evil in mine own demesne is taxing, and I do not wish to be disturbed for the rest of the day.”

  With that, Belladonna the High Elder unfurled her bedraggled wings. With a quick double beat, she returned to the upper levels of the cavern and slipped away into the darkness. Murmurs came from all around as the griffins remarked on her latest orders, though only in low tones.

  I let out a breath and ran the back of my hand across my forehead. It came away damp with sweat. Hollyhock moved around to my side so that she flanked me along with her father before she spoke in similarly soft tones.

  “That was…unexpected.” />
  “Which was?” I asked. “The High Elder’s rantings, or my response?”

  “Both, in truth. Though Belladonna has always flown more than a little off trim.”

  Shaw let out a squawk before he added, “Nay, never like this. I like this not. ‘Tis only luck that Dayna’s forebears are human, not griffin. None of us could have bent meaning like that, not without loss of honor.”

  “That’s why I’m glad she didn’t ask you for corroboration,” I said honestly.

  “Aye, that is true.”

  “Then I must ask,” Hollyhock said, “If I am to be your guard and guide, what is your true aim, if not to survey the ‘health’ of our warriors?”

  Shaw traded a glance with me. As much as it might alienate me from his daughter, every griffin had to be considered a suspect for the theft in Los Angeles. Regretfully, I shook my head.

  “Thy need to know is not as great as our need for secrecy,” Shaw said.

  Hollyhock gave me a newly appraising look. “Then perhaps Belladonna has struck in the gold for once, and you are in league with forces aligned against us.”

  “Do not speak like that, even in jest! While Dayna’s cleverness has worked its will for now, the High Elder’s mind is striking at shadows. What will happen when Dayna’s task is done, and she no longer needs to watch and wait?”

  “That’s a bridge I hope to cross when we get closer to it,” I said, and I felt Galen’s silver amulet like a warm coin against my skin. “At least I have access now. And a way home, if all else fails.”

  “Be grateful of that. Otherwise one might well indeed join the ranks of the Skinned Ones.”

  Shaw looked up at the network of chains that hung above the cavern like an industrial-themed trellis. My gaze followed his. I frowned, trying to figure out what he meant.

  Suddenly, my mind finally understood what it was seeing. The nightmare shapes tangled in the lattice of iron chains snapped into focus. The twisted, dried chunks of flesh still seemed to writhe in agony. My legs shook as I made out a half-dozen eyeless skulls, limbs punctuated with jutting nubs of bone, and the horrible beef jerky-like quality to the desiccated muscles. Five of the figures were long-since flayed griffins.

  And one of the figures had been a human.

  Chapter Eighteen

  I’d seen corpses in various states of decay in my career. As far as the flayed figures in the chain-link rafters went they were actually fairly well preserved, in a leathery sort of way. Up close, I’d expect them to rank no higher than a two on the Chrissie Scale of Stinkiness (patent pending). Yet those six bodies sent a chill down my spine. It was a quick reminder to Miss Slow Learner here that for all its glories, Andeluvia had some very dark aspects.

  “I sense that thou hast misgivings,” Shaw rumbled in my ear. “All griffins who see the Skinned Ones feel the same way, for that is what they are meant for. We have few formal punishments, save for this one: the flaying and display of those who have given in to dishonor so grave that it threatens us as a people.”

  My throat was dry for a moment. It was a reminder that Andeluvia played by its own set of rules. Even King Fitzwilliam, who eschewed capital punishment when he could, still had a working dungeon and medieval interrogation equipment for his use.

  The chamber quieted around us as the remaining Elders slipped back into the shadows, presumably to return to their quarters or to continue doing whatever they did during the evening hours. Ironwood spoke briefly to Hollyhock and also took his leave.

  I nodded towards the Skinned Ones. “What did these six do? Did they anger High Elder Belladonna?”

  “Nay, Dayna. All of these date from far before her time.”

  “That’s encouraging, at least.”

  “As it should be,” came a new voice. A griffin with fur and wings the color of his steel helmet and breastplate approached us. Blood-red garnets speckled the edges of his armor, and the mark of a long-ago wound wended its way along one half-crumpled ear.

  “Elder One,” Grimshaw intoned. He and Hollyhock lowered their heads in a slight bow as the older male approached. I inclined my head and followed suit as best I was able to. A pause, and I felt the gentle pressure of a paw on my shoulder.

  “Be at ease, Dayna Chrissie. I am Elder Ulrik. Our people do not summarily execute a nation’s envoy, no matter what the High Elder may say in her less-than-lucid moments. Also, Grimshaw hath spoken at length about thy adventures.” With an annoyed tone, Ulrik added, “I mean to say: Grimshaw has spoken at length about your adventures. Apologies. It takes time for an Elder’s mind to bridge the span between the old generation’s speech and the new.”

  Shaw gave Ulrik a look. “‘Twas nothing wrong with thy speech before.”

  “And yet it shows how we cling like mewling chicks to our past,” Ulrik insisted. “Not the future, which is what we need to care for and encourage, lest it creep up on us unexpectedly. It is why I have spoken up on behalf of Hollyhock and Ironwood, and received rebuke from my peers in exchange.”

  “You have my gratitude,” Hollyhock chimed in, with a ruffle of her feathers. “It is good to know that some of us feel the winds of change when they blow.”

  I listened closely, aware now of a repeated pattern of discord. This was the second time I’d witnessed a generational clash of ‘old’ and ‘new’. Despite looking all one and the same from the outside, I sensed a good number of things roiling underneath the surface of the griffin culture.

  “Regardless of what Belladonna thinks, I do have a job to do,” I said, holding up the buccal brush again. “All I need to do is swab this device along the inside of each of your warriors’ mouths. That part shouldn’t take more than a few seconds. Then I return to my world to use our own form of ‘magic’ to look for possible health problems. The whole process might take a few days, at most.”

  Ulrik squinted from beneath the brow of his helmet at the little brush. “If it can do as you say, that will be a help to us. There are always far more warriors who wish to serve Fitzwilliam’s Air Cavalry than there are openings. Your method should keep the number of honor duels for the spots to a minimum.”

  “Whatever I can do to help.” In truth, that hadn’t been anywhere near my list of considerations, but if it helped keep an Elder on my side, so be it.

  “Your mention of battle fitness has brought to mind the wounded from my lance,” Hollyhock said. “My Captain has already seen fit to join our brother at the Place of Healing. I should be there as well.”

  “Fly well,” Ulrik agreed, and Hollyhock backed out of our conversation with a low bow. She hurried out the same tunnel that Ironwood had taken. As soon as she departed, the Elder nodded towards an upward sloping passageway. Shaw and I walked along with him as he continued to speak. “Many of our warriors are yet abroad. Yet luck still holds, Dayna Chrissie. Four days from now, we of the Reykajar Aerie shall celebrate the Rite of the Autumn Winds. Unless we or our allies are in a state of war, all griffins are to return here.”

  The way we traveled along opened up as the slope increased. Once again, side tunnels spiraled off to unknown depths that echoed with the murmur of wave action. Ahead, the light of the setting sun beckoned us towards the end of the passage.

  “‘Twould be easy for such as I to organize the warriors here to begin seeing you for examinations,” Shaw added. “But the sun draws nigh to setting, and I fear to disrupt the evening hunts.”

  I did a quick mental calculation. “It’s Wednesday evening right now in my world. I took the next day off, so I could start tomorrow morning.”

  “What of the day after that? ‘Twas my understanding that in your world, one works five days in a row.”

  “I have to be in on Friday, sure. But no one stuck me with the weekend shift, so that gives me Thursday and Saturday to get a good head start on the tests, finishing up when the remaining griffins return for your ceremony.”

  Ulrik nodded. “It is settled, then. My advice would be to use the open space ‘round the trader’s cabin for
your work. ‘Tis…I mean, ‘it is’ one of the few large open spaces here.”

  With that, we emerged from below into the cool red-gold sunshine of the evening. The stillness of the air vanished, to be replaced with the steady salt-scented ocean breeze. I let out a low whistle as I took in the panorama before us.

  The passageway had turned into a broad road whose borders were marked with colored bits of banded agate and paved with pink and gray crushed seashells. The path sloped steeply down and away from us, curving through openings in the different levels of open-topped griffin apartments and disappearing into the green haze of forest far below. We’d come out on the rear slope of the stony mountain that made up the aerie, rather like a bunch of surfers who’d let a wave’s swell pass underneath.

  Ulrik and Shaw showed me down the slope towards a squat, rectangular building. Though it was a fairly standard-looking cabin with stone walls and a flat wooden roof, here in the griffin’s realm it looked positively alien. To my surprise, the cabin’s entire front wall opened up like a king-sized set of French doors on a pair of squeaky iron hinges.

  The heady scent of pine needles, smoked meat, and leather greeted me as I stepped inside. Round windows covered in animal skin punctuated each wall. The walls themselves were lined from floor to ceiling with wide wooden shelves. Aside from a thin layer of dust, the shelves were completely empty. Next to a bare hearth sat neatly bundled cords of timber, a pile of kindling, and a quartet of crude benches. Wicked looking hooks protruded from high up on the walls. It took me a couple of seconds to figure out that these were for hanging hammocks.

  “Almost every year, the aerie hosts Andeluvian or Kescari traders,” Shaw explained. “While thy kind prefers a different kind of dwelling, this seems to suffice for the merchants.”

  “I can’t complain,” I said honestly, as I took off my pack. “It’s kind of homey, in an abandoned hunting lodge sort of way.”

  Ulrik gave Shaw a puzzled look. Shaw shrugged in reply. Luckily, the Elder was too engrossed in watching my next activities to inquire further.