Eve of Redemption Omnibus: Volumes 1-3

by Joe Jackson

  “As much as I dislike Earl Southwick and loathe being in his presence, that is a more than reasonable request. How do you plan to use my students?” Markus asked.

  Kari tried to imagine what Aeligos would suggest she do, and the others gave her a few minutes to think while they finished their meals. At last the terra-dracon woman looked up and said, “Like I said, originally I was just going to have them help me track down the succubus, but they may be better suited to flushing her out and finding out if she truly does have a partner other than Black himself. As we agreed, if she wanted to just kill me, she would’ve probably done so by now, or at least tried a lot harder. I think she needs me in Barcon for some reason, and once I’m there, I’m likely to be her only focus. If you’re spending a lot of time with Lord Black, she won’t be able to hide around him; she’ll be forced to blend in with the rest of the city. If the twins are organizing witch-hunts, as it were, they might flush her out and expose her, and then I can hopefully take it from there.”

  “Barcon is a very large city; what you are suggesting could take some time, if it is even feasible,” Markus commented. “I would like to help you in any way possible, and so I will do as you have requested. My students, of course, are free to make their own decisions.”

  “We’ll stand with you, of course, my friend,” Katarina said, and Sherman nodded.

  “The plan’s not perfect; I’m not a tactician,” Kari said. “But we can im…provise along the way, especially if it turns out I’m right and there’s something else involved. The other thing I needed to ask of you, my lord, is some form of transportation. I’ve heard you have some of the finest horses here in the south.”

  “Indeed we do,” Markus said. “My family also has a faster mode of transportation. If you have noticed the markings on my family’s coat of arms, we have raised griffons for over five generations. We can shorten the journey considerably by taking an aerial route, though we will need to discuss a schedule so that we do not all arrive at once.”

  “Of course, my lord, thank you,” Kari said with a bow of her head. She was astounded at the revelation that the Earl’s family had domesticated griffons for mounts. She had seen griffons on many occasions in and around the desert lands near Aurun Ch’Gurra, but never had she dealt with one in combat or gotten a close-up look at one. Griffons were large, powerful hybrids of eagle and lion, and were reputed to be fierce predators with a taste for horse meat – which made Kari wonder how the Earl’s family was famous for breeding both.

  “What about me?” Eli asked, which drew surprised glances from the three paladins as the meal came to a close. Kari regarded the half-corlyps curiously, and he elaborated, “You brought this problem to me, now I’m going to help you solve it.”

  Kari was speechless for the better part of a minute, so she finally did the easy thing: she nodded and patted Eli’s forearm. “We can figure that out on the road,” she said. “You’ll be less out of place with me than the twins, so you can work with me when we get there.”

  “You’ve got it,” Eli responded simply.

  There was an air of satisfaction about the table, and the Earl excused himself and his students to go and begin the day’s studies. Markus informed Kari that she was welcome to join them for their horseback training to the west of the castle, or to take Eli to the southern stable and become acquainted with the griffons. Once informed that the husbandry servants would need several days to properly bond her and Eli with their respective mounts, Kari resolved to do that first, and the meal came to a close.

  Chapter VIII – Falling

  “First things first,” Charles, the chief among the griffon masters, said to Kari and Eli. “Never meet their stare head-on, that’s considered a challenge to ‘em. If you’re wantin’ to look ‘em in the eye, tilt yer head down a bit like so, and if they like ye, they’ll do the same. Lots o’ folk kinda think griffons’re stupid because they’re part bird. They ain’t. Prob’ly smarter than most o’ the people I ever met.”

  Kari nodded. Charles was human, and spoke with the accent and vernacular common in the southlands. He was older, probably in his fifties or maybe more by Kari’s best guess, but he had been long at his craft and was entrusted by the Earl to teach his guests to properly control and ride the beasts. He wore a riding outfit, but it was of heavier material than the typical garb, to better deal with winds and cooler temperatures when riding the griffons at altitude. He had assured Kari and Eli that they wouldn’t need to concern themselves with that on the first day of their training.

  They followed him on his slow, meandering walk toward the griffon stables, taking his time so that he could give them the basics of approaching the creatures before they had an opportunity to do something wrong. The entire rear bailey was a paddock for the griffons, kept apart from the horse stables located in the forward section of the hold. The scent of it was peculiar to Kari, since she'd never around griffons before, though it wasn't overpowering. The stables were very clean, tended to by a sizeable staff of commoners employed by the Earl, all apparently under the command of Charles.

  “Second, don’t try to pet ‘em,” Charles continued. “They ain’t horses, and ye can’t treat ‘em as such. They don’t like to be touched on their beaks or on their foreheads, and if ye raise yer hand to ‘em, you’re as like as not going to lose that hand.”

  “So what’s the best way to approach them for the first time?” Kari asked.

  “Eh, patience, girl!” Charles said, oblivious to Kari’s noble title – which was just as well, in her mind. “Kids these days, ye expect everything to be so easy.”

  “With all due respect, Charles, I’m almost forty years old,” Kari said with a chuckle, and her declaration drew surprised looks from both of the men with her.

  “Beggin’ yer pardon ma’am, but ye don’t look it,” the human said, though he gave no voice to whatever else he was thinking. “When ye first approach ‘em, if ye hold yer forearm out in front o’ ye like so and they bite it, that’s actually a good thing. Means they like ye, and they trust ye. They may pinch ye a lil’ bit, but they usually don’t break the skin; it’s kinda a sign o’ affection. Once ye can get ‘em to do that, ye’ll have no problems mountin’ up and ridin’ ‘em.”

  “So do you feed them to gain their trust?” Kari asked.

  Charles shook his head, sending his wispy grey strands in all directions. “Like I said: they ain’t stupid. Sure enough they’ll eat what ye give ‘em, but ye can’t buy their friendship with food, not even horse meat,” he explained once they reached the stables. He swung the doors wide, and Eli and Kari followed him in. They found the stables were similar to those used for horses, with much broader stalls. The smell was a little stronger here, though still not all that unpleasant. “Don’t go in too far; don’t want to be causin’ a ruckus.”

  Kari looked to her left, where a griffon lay in a sphinx-like position on a nest made of hay, its head resting on its crossed eagle-like front legs. After being stared at for only a few moments, the griffon opened wide blue eyes and lifted its head to return Kari’s stare. Even before Charles turned and said anything, Kari bowed her head slightly as she had been instructed, while still maintaining eye contact. The creature cocked its head as it regarded this new person – Kari imagined it probably didn’t see rir all that often, particularly terra-dracons – but after a few moments it returned the gesture. After a few more seconds, it rose and approached the wall of the stall, and Kari made a conscious effort to stand her ground and not show any fear in case the creatures might react badly to it.

  “Careful now, ma’am, don’t make any sudden moves that she might think’re hostile. Don’t try to pet her, neither, like I said,” Charles instructed quietly. “Just let her smell ye, get used to yer scent and get the first impression that ye’re a friend.”

  “Wetayu, teyla migash naraat,” Kari said, and she lifted her arm the way Charles had instructed them. Immediately the griffon clicked once, leaned its head forward, and bit the ter
ra-dracon woman’s forearm. She didn’t even feel the pinch through the bracer of her paluric armor, but after a moment the griffon released its grip, clicked three times and let out a whistle, and then it stooped down in its stall.

  Charles and Eli beheld the incident wide-eyed. “What…what did ye just say to her?” Charles asked, astounded, and Eli echoed his sentiments with a muttered epithet.

  Kari wondered the same thing. She had no idea what language she had just spoken, let alone what she had just said. Even had Sakkrass spoken through her, the language that fell from her lips was not czarikk. Kari was at a loss, though she took comfort in knowing that the griffon had reacted well to whatever she’d said. “I’m…not even sure,” Kari said after a few moments, and she shook her head. “I have no idea why I spoke at all, let alone said whatever it was I just said. What’s her name?”

  Charles was still astounded, but he recovered quickly as Kari focused her attention on what seemed to be the griffon master’s pride and joy. “This fine gal is called Muireann,” he explained proudly, opening the stall, and he gestured for Kari to follow. “I’m not sure what ye said to her, but she wants ye to saddle up. Let me show ye how to get her ready for riding, and then ye can mount up and let her get accustomed to yer weight and posture.”

  Kari followed him inside the stall, and the feel of the hay under her feet brought back memories of her days with Tumureldi, when she’d learned the basics of horsemanship. The shakna-rir had fine horses, and Suler had long been a passionate rider, both for pleasure and to practice mounted combat. He had extended his training to Kari in those areas as well, and she could remember many a long, sunset horseback ride along the rocky beaches on the west side of Aurun Ch’Gurra. She could only imagine how much Suler would’ve enjoyed the opportunity to train and ride griffons.

  Muireann continued to click and whistle every so often, and Kari took down the tack and saddle with Charles’ help. He showed her how to properly bridle the griffon, which Kari would’ve been a little hesitant to do herself, given Charles’ warning about touching the griffons on the face or the beak. With the trust she had in Charles and apparently in Kari as well, though, Muireann ducked her head and accepted the bridle without complaint. There was no bit, and the bridle fit securely over the griffon’s head in such a way that her eyes and beak would be safe from sudden tugs on the reins. She was also still able to click and whistle with the bridle on, and she did both in approval when Kari finished. Once Muireann was bridled, Kari moved back and Charles showed her how to properly secure the saddle. The griffon tickled Kari with the hairy tuft at the end of her leonine tail while the demonhunter worked. Kari glanced at Eli, but he still stood in the hallway, his expression a mixture of amazement and perplexity. It was as if he wasn’t quite sure what to make of Kari in light of what he’d seen and heard in the past few hours.

  “All right, let’s take her outside before you mount up,” Charles instructed.

  Kari didn’t argue, but followed the stable master outside to a pitching station, where the human tethered the griffon. “Go on and climb up in the saddle,” Charles said once Muireann was tethered and settled. Kari put her foot in the first stirrup and hopped gracefully onto the griffon’s back, and the elder human moved in front of Muireann and let her grip his forearm lightly in her beak. “Now then, ma’am, Muireann here is very well-trained: she’ll obey yer commands and yer gestures, so ye don’t need to yank on the reins too hard. If ye have any experience with war horses, ye can also guide her fairly well with yer knees.”

  Kari nodded silently, and made sure to maintain the proper posture for riding as she sat in the saddle listening to the human. The saddle wasn’t exactly designed with a rir tail in mind, but Kari was able to shift enough to make it comfortable without giving the griffon the impression that she was trying to lead it with her weight. She could feel the strength of Muireann’s back, the griffon supporting Kari’s weight effortlessly, and the terra-dracon woman ran her hand gently along the creature’s muscular shoulders. Muireann clicked and whistled again. Charles laughed jovially and untethered the majestic animal, and as he moved toward Kari, he ran his own hand along the griffon’s shoulder.

  “My, she’s already taken quite a liking to ye, ma’am,” the human commented, and then he looked over his shoulder at Eli. “I guess our half-demon guest will benefit from getting most of my attention, since I think Muireann’ll be taking ye out flying in no time.”

  “Are you sure you’ve never ridden one of these before?” Eli asked skeptically.

  “Sevaat, teyla, sevaat!” Kari said, again speaking that foreign language. Muireann bounded away from the pitching station and nearly knocked Eli over as she headed out into the inner paddock. Kari acquainted herself to guiding the griffon with her knees, and when she came around to face Charles and Eli, the elder human was clearly impressed. Kari couldn’t figure it out herself; she was a fair rider when it came to horses, but she couldn’t have ridden a horse the way she was riding Muireann. She felt an odd kinship with the creature that seemed to cause her to be able to speak with it, and whether she gave vocal commands, tugged lightly on the reins, or guided the griffon with her knees, Kari was able to get Muireann to do whatever she wished.

  Soon she had the griffon trotting laps around the paddock, and all Charles and Eli could do was watch her in amazement. “My word!” the human exclaimed as Kari had the griffon do a pirouette. Kari’s mount took to the air, and the human turned to Eli and gestured toward the stables. “Ah well, I guess we should go introduce ye to one of yer own.”

  Kari felt the griffon’s power as it lifted off from the ground, its massive wings beating huge blasts of air to climb into the morning sky. The terra-dracon woman folded her own wings in tight to avoid being parachuted from the mount’s back. Muireann didn’t fly too high, getting just above the walls, giving Kari a good view of the western paddock and her three paladin friends riding their horses therein. All three stopped and watched Kari fly a circuit around the battlements and then another around the inner keep, and Muireann landed on the angled roof of the keep at Kari’s command. She rode the griffon along the edge of the castle’s roof and once again felt the power in Muireann’s thunderous steps across the tiles. When they reached its edge, the griffon leapt off fearlessly and banked hard to her left to return to the inner paddock, but Kari wasn’t prepared for that. She lost her balance and then her seat, and plummeted quickly toward the ground.

  Kari opened her wings and cut through the air just enough to angle her descent, but the strain was hard on her back. She gritted her teeth in pain as she tried to slow her fall by gliding. She hit the ground and then the wall of the castle hard, though she was able to take the brunt of the blow with her shoulder and not her head. The impact knocked her wits from her almost completely, and Kari lay in a daze for several long moments until Muireann approached, stood before her, and let out a sharp whistle followed by two short clicks. Kari tried to shake free of the cobwebs and started to rise, but she stopped herself when she felt the sharp sting of cracked ribs and a badly bruised shoulder. She was injured, so she lay still while several of the servants in the courtyard approached to see if she was all right. Before they could reach her, Muireann nudged the terra-dracon woman lightly in the side with her beak, and Kari reached up and patted the griffon’s neck, forgetting the warning Charles had given her.

  Fortunately, the griffon accepted the touch and nudged Kari in the side again, and the demonhunter managed to get to a sitting position before the servants reached her. She felt queasy, which was testament to how badly she was actually injured, and she drew her knees up to her chest, lay her head upon them, and tried to push down the feeling. Many of the servants were afraid to get close to the griffon, who glared hard at them with the plumage atop her head splayed in warning. Even in her dazed state, Kari realized Muireann thought she was hurt and that the servants might be trying to kill her, so the griffon was protecting her rider. Kari put her good hand on Muireann’s shoulder
to keep her calm, and the griffon lay down at Kari’s touch.

  With Muireann under control, the servants helped Kari get to her feet feebly. Charles approached with Eli by his side, their faces both showing deep concern. Charles offered a quick apology but decided getting the griffon back to her stall would be best, so he took her reins and led her away from the gathering around Kari.

  “Are you all right?” Eli asked. He put Kari’s good arm around his neck to give her extra support. She was wobbly but didn’t ask anyone for help, so the half-corlyps took it upon himself to simply give it.

  “He failed to…mention that staying in the saddle when…airborne is a bit tricky,” Kari said, half of the words coming out between gritted teeth. She was in a good deal of pain that was plain for everyone to see, despite her attempts to mask it.

  “I don’t think he expected you to be able to speak with the griffons or fly them on the first day,” Eli returned, his humor a bit muted in the face of her injuries. “Come on, let’s get you inside so you can lie down.”

  With the help of the servants, Eli got Kari back to her room, and it wasn’t long before the Earl and the Moreville twins came to see what had happened. It was clear that someone riding the griffons the way Kari had the very first day they met the creatures was highly unusual, but Markus was more concerned with Kari’s injuries. He insisted he would summon his physician from the city and, embarrassed as she was, Kari agreed. It was clear the injuries weren’t terrible, but they were serious enough that healing them on her own would cause a considerable delay in her travels. Once she’d agreed to a visit from the physician, the others left her alone to get undressed and rest, and Kari took only a moment to inspect the graying bruise that was already enveloping her entire left shoulder. She didn’t think anything was broken, but her ribs were painfully close to it, and her shoulder was stiff, having been jammed into the socket awkwardly.