Trav waited patiently for Rahim to answer. Finally, the boy replied, “No. And I think it’s a good idea to leave her there. She—” It took him a while to get himself under control again. “She loved the cabin. It is a good place for—” Rahim didn’t speak again.
“I understand,” Trav said softly. He turned and hurried up the stone steps. The fire had almost reached the cabin now, and the wind was blowing the flames, helping it spread. He’d already grabbed pots, pans, and other basic necessities to live. This time Trav threw food and some of Rahim’s things into a new bag made of sheets.
As he passed the table one last time, he laid a hand on Najila’s cooling hand and said, “Rest in peace. You were probably one of the strongest people I’ve ever met in my life. I will do as I promised and look after Rahim.” Something echoed through Trav’s mantle, like a gong, and he felt right—a feeling he had a hard time wrapping his head around.
Before he left the cabin, Trav carefully gathered up the chess board.
On his way down the stone steps, some of his emotional control cracked, and he snarled then savagely thought, Hey Oracle! Were you planning to clue me in to any of this?
He was not surprised when the reply came immediately.
Trav almost sent an angry reply, but calmed himself. Sometimes you just had to roll with the punches. It wouldn’t help anyone, especially Rahim, if Trav didn’t keep his head on straight. He had a lot to do before his valkyries arrived.
Everything had changed...again.
Chapter 13
The valkyries arrived almost a day earlier than Trav had predicted, likely hurrying after they’d felt he was in mortal danger. He was making a few guesses, still not entirely sure how the bond worked—at least on their end. When he saw them show up, he also got a good idea of what the holdup had been a couple weeks prior.
In fact, if not for the bond with his valkyries, he still would have heard them all arrive—they’d made quite a racket. A large group of harpies had all moved directly to the workshop cave, marching in step, and the moment they’d crashed to a halt, Narnaste had come flying out of their midst with Yaakova and Ysintrill following a bit slower. All three of the valkyries had slowed when they’d seen Trav standing with the nervous Rahim behind him.
Trav carefully observed the ranks of Kin. Now that they were closer, he could tell they weren’t all harpies. There were a few other species of Kin here and there, a type Trav had never seen before with demonic features and horns. This was definitely a military detachment, but Trav knew they were fairly weak, low in the food chain. Whether this knowledge was coming from his own memories or Odin’s wasn’t important at the moment.
Narnaste collided with Trav. “Master! Thank the skies.” She sighed and quivered with emotion.
Trav put an arm around her waist and asked, “Where’s Tiffany?”
The valkyries shifted uncomfortably, all but Yaakova. “She is being held, New One.”
“What—” began Trav.
Ysintrill burst out, “Chief, why is the forest around here burned? Parts are still smoking! What happened?”
Trav eyed her and turned to regard the lines of harpy soldiers. Most of them looked bored, but he saw several that seemed nervous, and a few more that had a look he knew from Odin’s memories. He was beginning to understand how he’d gotten an extra bar of power.
There was a certain amount of tension in the air, part awkwardness, part expectation, and part Kin power plays. He had a feeling that some sort of pecking order needed to be established with all the new harpies. “We have a lot to talk about. Narn, Kova, Trill, you can come into the workshop. Let’s get caught up.”
Suddenly, one of the harpy soldiers, a big female with long feathers and an ornate headdress stepped forward. A second figure also stepped out from the ranks of soldiers, a male Kin with horns and sharp teeth. The Harpy said, “Travis Sterling, I presume.” She flashed a predatory smile, likely trying to be intimidating. “We have traveled a long way to meet. I must insist you speak with us first.”
Yaakova frowned, and her feathers bristled. Ysintrill looked away.
Trav eyed the harpy. “Who are you?”
The harpy’s nostrils flared and she declared, “I am Captain Bravoosa. After being placed in charge of this detachment, I have—”
Trav had already used his newly honed magical senses to size the captain up. He judged that she was a little stronger than Yaakova had been when he’d first met her, so nothing to sneeze at. She was armed too. But Trav had changed, even within the last two days. Of his six bars of available power, he’d used three of them on new, permanent enhancements.
Since Trav knew how Kin thought, how they operated, he used one of his new abilities. He let his thoughts grow unfocused, moving magic throughout his body, and stepped through the shadows at his feet. Then he willed himself to emerge from the shadow behind Bravoosa.
The entire process took a tiny fraction of a second, and would probably look instantaneous. Trav made sure not to be threatening with his weapons, but he pitched his voice down and said, “Captain Bravoosa, I am in a very bad mood. Within the last two days I have fought a small army of Kyvendi soldiers, including a ruling-class Rakshasa. I also had to watch my friend die. So I am going to give you the benefit of the doubt that you don’t know who I am, but you need to let me talk to my group right now, without making a fuss, or we are going to have a problem. Do you understand?”
Branding himself with Shadowwalk had cost Trav a full two bars of power, but it would grow as he did. After a lot of thought, he’d realized that giving himself this permanent power now, while he was still relatively weak, would give him the most benefit in the future.
And now he could move faster, and be more sneaky, more unpredictable.
The harpy captain had recoiled and her eyes dilated when Trav Shadowwalked. As she’d listened to him speak, feathers near her neck flared, and she began to tense, as if she might attack or do something else equally dumb. Trav merely moved his wrist, a tiny, precise movement that brought his spear’s blade at the same level as the harpy’s neck. “This is not open for discussion.”
Trav gave all the rest of the unfamiliar Kin a flat look. He got a number of different expressions back, which was not unexpected. Being spoken to like this by a human was probably not an everyday thing for them.
“Master,” began Narnaste, but Trav cut her off with a forestalling hand. He was fairly sure now that his valkyries had likely brokered some sort of deal with the harpies, but Trav knew Kin, and he’d realized something important over the last couple days as he grieved with Rahim.
It was time to lead. Being neutral was not an option, not on Asgard and likely not in this universe. He’d accepted pieces of this realization before, but he’d never seen the full picture. Now he understood the price of his mantle, and he was going to dictate the way these harpies were going to interact with him right off the bat.
In fact, it’s likely what Najila would have done.
The captain didn’t speak, and none of the other harpies did either. Trav knew enough about Yaakova’s home country to know that Bravoosa was likely unsure of how to react, so she was staying silent to save face.
“Who are you?” Trav asked the demonic-looking Kin.
“I am Minister Roony, and I represent the Demona government. My job is to help oversee the ongoing harpy leadership transition.”
“Ah.” Now that Trav knew the Kin was an official from Demona, it was easy to guess he was of the Demona race, the overlords of the country the Demona controlled, Demona. They were apparently powerful and organized, but not so great at naming things.
He turned and said, “Yaakova, Narnaste, and Ysintrill, co
me with me. Rahim as well. Minister Roony and Captain Bravoosa, I will try to make this fast.”
The group of harpies seemed stunned for a second, and Bravoosa sputtered, “We traveled all this distance just to find you an—”
“Yes, and thank you. Now you can wait a few more minutes. I haven’t seen my family for a while.” Trav led Rahim and his valkyries into the workshop. He caught a glimpse of Yaakova’s expression. She was suppressing a smile and her eyes practically glowed at him.
The moment they were all through the doors, Trav pulled Hex, touched the wall, and said, “Fortify.” Glowing runes flashed against the floor, the ceiling, the doors, and every wall.
“What is all this?” asked Ysintrill, gesturing at the door.
Trav turned to face her, and gave her a hug. “This means we are all safe for the moment. The walls are warded, powerful magic. Nobody can hear us outside this room, either, even if they put an ear to the door.”
All three valkyries looked at Trav like he was a puzzle to solve. “You’ve changed, Master,” murmured Narnaste. She gently pulled Ysintrill away, moving slowly into an embrace. Trav stroked her hair.
“Who is the Rakshasa cub?” asked Yaakova.
“That is Rahim. He is my nephew, my ward, I guess.”
Narnaste moved closer to the boy. “He really is Rakshasa.” Her voice full of wonder, she said, “Master, what happened?”
Trav pulled up some simple chairs he’d made, and said, “Alright. We’ll start with me, then get to your story. As you can probably guess, I left Tiffany’s realm in the middle of the attack on Faith—”
He told the story in the most economical, but accurate way he knew how. The valkyries had differing reactions when he recalled how he’d killed the Rakshasa and other Kin fighters outside of Faith. They’d also wanted to see the dagger that Trav still carried.
Over the last couple days, Trav had already told Rahim everything that had happened, so none of it was news to the boy. After Trav had accepted his responsibility, and his new relationship with Rahim, he’d realized they were more or less family now. This meant Trav was not going to keep too many secrets—not if he didn’t have to.
When he was done catching up his valkyries, Ysintrill shook her head. “Chief, I can hardly believe so much has happened, and I wish I could have met Najila. She sounded incredible.”
Trav nodded, feeling a wave of deep sadness wash over his heart. Out the corner of his eye, he noticed Rahim lower his head. “Yes, but everything that happened, has helped me realize some things. It gave me focus.”
“What do you mean?” asked Narnaste.
Trav narrowed his eyes. “As you all know, I have wanted revenge for...various things. But now I can see the real problem. Kin are suffering too. Kyvendi is a shithole of a country, which has helped me accept what I was avoiding before. It’s really not very likely to just take down an individual or two. Even if I could, it wouldn’t change anything. Nope, it’s got to be the entire country.”
“The country? So you are going to conquer Kyvendi?” Yaakova asked with a slight smile.
Trav didn’t dance around his answer. “Yes. I’ve already realized I can’t exactly just hide, and all my other goals haven’t changed, but it’s time to accept what I am. Odin bought the farm because he was wandering around by himself. I’m not going to make the same mistake. It’s time to create something, build something, and if I can gut the murderous fucks who deserve it on the way, that’s a major bonus.”
“So you have accepted that the Kin are not all your enemies, Chief?” asked Ysintrill.
“I suppose so, yes.” Trav made a face. “Well, except the Dacith. Maybe we can wipe all of them out.”
“That might be genocide, Chief.” Ysintrill frowned.
“I know,” growled Trav. “When I can, I’m going to try to do what’s right, and try to be fair. But Dacith can all choke on some poison. We’ll just have to see if I ever meet one that isn’t actively trying to kill people weaker than they are.”
Yaakova chuckled. “Now the spark has become a fire. I am happy to see this change, New One!”
Trav eyed her. He still had complicated feelings about the harpy, but he was starting to understand Kin better, and for better or for worse, they were bonded now.
“So what’s next, Chief.” Ysintrill eyed the workshop. “And what is all of this?”
“This was Najila’s workshop. Now it’s mine. And what’s next is I give you all your tools and weapons I’ve made for you while you tell me what you’ve been doing for the last few weeks.”
Trav moved to the canvas-covered bundle of weapons, and after opening it with a flourish, he explained what everything did as he handed them out. Narnaste’s eyes were huge as she ran her eyes over the blade of her new sword, then with Trav’s instructions, she made a practice lunge.
Yaakova cooed and admired her bracelets before sitting down. “This room is truly warded against sound?”
“Yes. It’s also gated.” Trav smiled at his valkyries’ confused expressions. “I have set up one half of a rune equation to instantly travel here in the future. This will be my safehouse.”
“Ah. I did not even know such a thing was possible. It is beyond the realm of known magic now, but you do not follow such rules.” Yaakova smoothed her feathers and gestured for everyone to sit down before asking, “Shall I begin our story?” She made eye contact with Ysintrill and Narnaste.
“Yes.” Ysintrill nodded. “You can probably get the details right better than we can.”
Narnaste nodded. “Go ahead.” She scooted her seat closer to Trav’s, and turned toward the door. Her demeanor changed in an instant, and Trav was seeing the cold, fierce Kin woman he’d first met. She was guarding the room, and taking her job seriously.
“When the attack began on Faith, you’d been gone for a while already, and—”
Trav held up a hand. “Yeah, I already know that part. Please start from when you had already escaped.”
Yaakova nodded. “So be it, New One. We traveled for the better part of a day. At first we tried to move away from other groups, but then we noticed that many of the other escapees were heading toward a small mountain, maybe a big hill. We reasoned this would be a good rally point, and there was safety in numbers, we linked up with one group, and followed them. It turned out all the refugees were heading toward a glyph hop.”
“Is that like a teleporter?”
“Yes, but teleporters are stuff of legend. The glyph hop just moves everything in its circle, and up to a certain amount of weight, and glyph hops have limited range. This one had a combination, meant for escape, and put us near the border with Demona.”
“That’s where we were near when I first met you, right?”
Yaakova made a face. “Yes, New One. So—”
Trav frowned. “You mentioned sacrifices. What sacrifice?”
“Some of the oldest magic relics require blood, or a sacrifice of life for power. The glyph hop worked after we sacrificed a couple cattle.”
“Oh.”
“And before you ask, yes, humans have been used in the past to power them, there is no way that anyone from Faith would use humans when they are part of the community, and especially not when several High Masters have been human.”
Small favors I guess, thought Trav. He motioned the harpy to continue with his hands. Blood sacrifices using people would just be another thing he’d change after burning the current government to the ground.
Yaakova nodded. “Many things happened, but an overview is that we met up with my family. You remember I told you about how the harpies govern?”
Trav nodded. “I think. The harpies are all led by the strongest species, the plains harpies, or Bernacians—which is what you call yourselves. Bernacia is like a province in Demona, the actual country, but Demona are lazy and unorganized. They get a lot of their military power from your tribes, so you have a lot of freedom. Every ten years, all three Bernacian tribes have a contest for who is going to
compete for the leadership of all Bernacia, correct?”
“More or less, yes. I am from the East Tribe. My family was the ruling family for the East Tribe, and my half sister had the royal tree. This time around...my family has won the guiding tree, and my younger half sister is the guide.” She frowned. “All of this is a little complex, and the politics have many levels. Once we all made it to my hometown, we were in talks for many days as I tried to secure help to reach you.”
Ysintrill nodded. “We had no idea what your situation was or if you would be in danger. After you moved so far so fast, all we knew is that you were in the deep wilderness.”
“I wanted to come after you in my wolf form, but the others talked me out of it.” Narnaste left her seat to stand beside Trav and lean against him. “I am sorry for the hardship you have suffered.”
Trav shook his head. “It wasn’t hardship, at least not most of it. And yes, my friend was murdered and I almost died too, but I’m not sure if things would have gone differently if you’d been here.” He gestured at Rahim. “And Rahim is a good boy. He is the one who has truly suffered hardships.” All the valkyries focusing on him seemed to make Rahim shy. The fur on his neck bristled and he looked at the floor.
After absently putting an arm around Narnaste’s hips, Trav nodded at Yaakova. “Could you explain the soldiers outside?”
“I was getting to that, New One.” Yaakova gave Trav’s arm around Narnaste a single expressionless look and crossed her arms. “My little sister is the Guide. My older sister, the current Royal, is not taking this well, as she wanted to compete for the royal tree. Luckily, I was not even there at the time, so nobody is angry at me, not even my family.”
“So your family was the second family the last time that the Royal succession happened, right?” asked Trav. “That’s why your family has been leading your tribe, even though your half sister was the Royal. She was part of a different family in your tribe?”
“Correct. The problem now is that my family has weak military power, and the current Royal, Greeda, should be supporting us, but she’s not.”
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