by Alex Alcasid
The chair scraped harshly against the ground as Loren suddenly stood. “Great. We have no time to waste. Let’s go.”
The princess was almost out the door, patting Ma’trii on the head in mid-stride, before Cassendir managed to get up. “Loren! Loren, wait, what do you plan to do with the old leopard?”
“Gershwin said not to talk to him, right? Well, I intend to do just that. The First Son would have a reason for that warning, and the Beastman did seem a bit strange.” Loren led the way, strolling quickly through the small border town and into the gathering of colorful nomad tents just beyond. “It’s a mystery I’d like to solve before we go.”
Cassendir frowned. A deep crease formed on his brow. “I think we should leave him well enough alone. He’s done nothing to us. To you.”
Loren didn’t stop or even turn back to look at the scholar. Cassendir let out a frustrated groan through his nose, and Kae appeared by his arm. The huntress’s expression was grim as she watched Loren walk off through the crowd without them.
“Kae?”
“Cassendir, what was the town you said we were going to drop Kaiten off at?”
“It was Hardwick, a small town at the end of the Imperial Highway on this side of the Kilrough Mountains. I think it is at the edge of the Aldoran territory, but I’m not sure if another kingdom claims it. Why do you ask?”
Kae sighed. “If we’re leaving Kaiten to go home on his own, I’ll have to ask him a favor. Do you think he’ll pull through?”
“Well…From what I know of him, he’s a proud and steadfast man. I think if he promises to do something, he’ll do it. He’s kind at heart, so he’ll help.” The scholar looked curiously at Kae. “It’s about Loren, I know. But what about her?”
Kae walked on, following Loren at a much slower pace. “I don’t trust her magic, Cassendir. It changes. I don’t like it.”
“Changes?” Cassendir jogged a bit to catch up with the huntress. “What do you mean?”
“Sometimes she isn’t herself. The magic changes her, and she’s been using it too much.” Kae sighed again, defeated. “I can’t do anything.”
“But you think…” Cassendir said slowly, attempting to trace the huntress’s train of thought. “You think that maybe Kaiten can send for help. Without Loren knowing.”
Kae only nodded.
The snow leopard Beastman’s tent was small compared to the other nomad structures. While the nomad tents were set up outside of the border town’s short walls, the snow leopard’s tent stood alone, without neighbors, as if shunned. Loren stood near the opening of the tent, looking at the strange patterns and colors of the mismatched fur and hides. The other tents were not set up with sheets of hides nearly so colorful. Out of the corner of her eye, Loren saw her friends finally arrive. She nodded to them, and pushed open the entrance of the brightly colored tent.
Inside the tent, the living space was surprisingly large. The structure looked so small and cramped from the outside, but the interior was tall enough to stand in, and wide enough for two people to stand with arms outstretched. Still, with four people and a wolf, it quickly got cramped.
The old snow leopard sat cross-legged in the middle of his tent, a mortar and pestle in his hands. He didn’t look up as the newcomers entered his home, but he cocked his head to the side.
“Hello,” he said, his voice thin and reedy. “Welcome, travelers. What brings you to me?”
Loren took a second to glance around. The tent had a bedroll laid out on the ground, with piles of books surrounding it. Murky jars full of liquid or some other ingredients were laid out in little groups, and bushels of fresh herbs were laid on top of them. “I’m curious about you.” Loren answered, getting straight to the point.
The snow leopard sniffed the air and raised his head. His eyes were milky white. He sniffed again and smiled, showing yellowed, rotting teeth. “Is that so? Please, please sit and make yourselves comfortable.” He said, gesturing to the dirt around him. Hesitantly, Loren sat in front of him.
Seated directly in front of the old leopard, the princess was able to see him more clearly. His gray and white fur was slashed apart on his face and arms, showing raised scar tissue on the skin beneath. As he raised his arm to continue his work with the mortar and pestle, a bit of his sleeve moved to exposed more of his forearm. What Loren first thought were simply scars, were actually dark, swirling markings, carved through the fur and into his skin.
Behind her, Kaiten growled audibly. “Those markings. Old man, explain them to us.”
The snow leopard chuckled. He sniffed the air again, and turned his blind eyes towards Kaiten, his milky eyes looking right into the young lion. “You are the Beastman’s rightful king, are you not? Are you frightened by these?”
Cassendir likewise frowned. “Those are mage markings. But…”
“There are no mage Beastmen.” Kaiten growled again. “Beastmen are never born with the markings or the connection to whatever magic humans have.”
The snow leopard nodded. As he did, the darkened scars pulsed with a sickly green glow — a mockery of true mage markings. Kaiten’s hand flew to his belt, but he had no sword. He grunted in disdain and flexed his hands instead, bearing his claws.
“What have you done?” he demanded.
“I’ve transcended, my young king. Transcended the limitations the gods have put on us.” The snow leopard showed his teeth in a grim smile. “I’ve long had enough of the humans saying we were below them, that we were too stupid to be blessed in the ways they were. Even if we are stronger, faster, wiser than them, they held their magic above us.” He held up one arm, letting the sleeve fall to his elbow. All around his forearm were the swirling dark marks, turned ghastly on his scarred skin. “I’ve learned how to take the magic into myself, my king. Watch.”
He held out his hand towards the bundles of herbs. His hand shook, either from age or from the immense pain it once endured to bear the markings carved into his flesh. The scars pulsed their sickly green, and the bundles of parsley and sage began to rise into the air. They floated across the room, slowly, and landed in Kaiten’s hesitantly outstretched arms.
“Think of it, Kaiten, son of Gaturr.“ The snow leopard grinned. “The first Beastman Spellmaster. Would your armies not be made stronger with my presence?”
Kaiten frowned, and tossed the bundles of the herbs back where they came. “What you have done is unnatural. An abomination.”
“How did you do it?” Cassendir asked. Kaiten glared at him, but Cassendir was a scholar at heart. He was curious.
The snow leopard’s laugh was more of a wheeze. He reached into the folds of his cloak and withdrew a short dagger in a leather sheath. He slid the blade out carefully, with reverence. The blade of the dagger was completely black, with a slick, reflective surface. It glinted in the weak streams of light that came in through the hides and furs of the tent wall. Cassendir gasped as he saw it, and the old Beastman turned his sightless eyes to him. “A dagger with a blade of pure ebonstone.”
“Ebonstone.” Cassendir breathed in awe. He approached, sitting beside Loren. “Yes, ebonstone has innate magical properties. But the stones can only be acquired from—“
“The Plaguelands. Yes.” The snow leopard nodded. He sheathed the dagger and quickly returned it to its hidden pocket inside his cloak. “I ventured to the ruined castles within the Plaguelands several times, risking my life with every step. I first hoped to find treasure there, but putting one foot inside those castles… I could feel the area thrumming with magic, still teeming with something, a presence, after all its years. I found tomes there, with blank pages. I thought them empty, till I saw the pages under the light of the full moon.”
“Moon rune tomes.” Cassendir said, excitement in his voice. “They’re pages are blank to non-mages, but the script becomes visible to everyone when read under the light of the full moon. That is ancient magic! Spellbooks!”
The snow leopard nodded again. “Precisely. In one of them were pictu
res of mages, drawn in great detail. It traced the patterns of their markings, all of the places the markings most commonly appear. The most common was on the arm. And so, I copied those patterns with great ritual, and the ebonstone dagger. The same ebonestone dagger, and a single battered journal that was owned by the only other person who has ever managed what I have done. I follow in his footsteps, young king, and I have found his power!”
“You gave yourself something you were never meant to have.” Kaiten said grimly.
“You may say that now, young king, but you will seek out one of yours with abilities no one else possesses in the future.” The old Beastman chuckled. “You will seek me to be your Spellmaster.”
Loren shook her head. The princess had heard enough. She stood and signaled to her friends that they should leave, when suddenly the old Beastman sniffed.
“Wait. You, the girl.” He called, sniffing the air. “A dragon, are you?”
“I am no dragon, I’m a human.” Loren replied.
“Your magic smells of great beasts, there is no doubt about it. Great power and the shine of gold.” The snow leopard sniffed again and his expression soured. “Gold and red, the red of blood. You smell of fire and ash, the metallic scent of blood.”
“What?” Loren looked back at him. The gold of the dragon magic faded from her eyes, no longer hiding the fear that was clear there.
The sickly green glow of the snow leopard’s markings pulsed brightly, then stilled. “It smells foul, under the warm brilliance. Leave my tent with all haste, bloody dragon. The scent burns in my nose.”
“Excuse me?” Loren said. She turned full back to the old Beastman. “Please, explain. What do you mean? Blood?”
The snow leopard shook his head. “Leave! Leave me be. I want no audience with you.”
“What is your name, at least?”
“Malla is my name.” the old Beastman grunted. “But none have called me that in a long time. I have been ostracized by society for my actions, Beastman and human alike.”
“I would have to agree with them.” Kaiten grumbled. “What you’ve done is reprehensible; an abomination.”
The old snow leopard Beastman raised his face, looking to Kaiten with blind eyes. He smiled. “You would have done the same, my king, if you were in that place. If you felt the thrum of life at your very fingertips, you would have done the same.”
Kaiten left the snow leopard’s tent in a huff. If it was possible to slam a tent flap, he would have. Loren came out next, looking haunted. The prince rounded on the princess, unable to keep the growl from his voice. “It was a mistake to come here, Loren!”
“I know.” Loren’s voice was only more than a whisper. “It was foolish of me, and you were all right. It was a waste of time. I’m sorry.”
The Beastman prince paced in front of the tent, seething. Nomads, both Beastman and human, were starting to stop and stare. After a while, the prince seemed to burn out. He stopped pacing. “You didn’t know what he’s done, or even who he was. It’s not your fault, Loren. And I suppose this information is of some benefit. Maybe a cautionary tale that an abomination like this is capable of happening.” Frustrated, Kaiten scratched at his short mane. “I must stop this from happening to any other Beastman.”
Loren stood where she was, staring at the floor. The old Beastman’s words rung in her head. “Bloody dragon,” he called her. She raised her eyes to Kaiten, and they were hollow. “Kaiten…What did he mean?”
“By what?”
“I smell of fire and ash? A bloody dragon? Does he know about my family?”
Kaiten impatiently shook his head. “Pay him no mind, Loren. His mind is probably long gone, after the rituals he put himself through. He should not have played with magical forces, especially anything from the Plaguelands! Ignore it, it’s probably the ramblings of a mad, old man.”
The princess sighed and nodded. It was better to focus on the task at hand, rather than be sidetracked and bogged down with doubt. There was still a long way to go, and so many things to do. Loren took a deep breath and held it for a short while, steeling herself, but a movement caught her eye and what bit of concentration she managed to create for herself left just as quickly as it came.
Kae left Malla’s tent. She met Loren’s gaze as she straightened herself. Loren quickly looked away.
Kaiten grunted and scratched at his mane again. “Come on, let’s get to Hardwick. I have to find some way to remove Doreos from power and reclaim my throne. Then I can fix this mess and protect my people.”
Chapter Twenty One
The road south of the border town was mercifully paved. Trees were cut down and a path was cleared, laid down with flat stones that wreaked less havoc on a cart’s wheels than the natural rough terrain would. A trader’s cart had arrived in the border town just as Loren and the others were about to leave. The princess paid a small sum of gold to the driver, persuading him to let them ride in his cart back to Hardwick. It was there he was going, and with an unexpected handful of extra gold in his pocket, the driver accepted.
While the road was relatively smooth, the ride in the back of the cart still swayed them, bumping them into each other at every dip and gap between the paving stones. The swaying motion of the cart, along with the peaceful, quiet journey, soon found Loren curled up on the bench with her pack under her head, asleep. Ma’trii curled up with the princess, dolefully watching everyone else.
Kae sighed. She watched the scenery go by. The trees gradually shifted from the tall and hardy ones that grew in the bitter cold of the north, to the smaller trees with sprawling roots that spread far along the ground. Those sights were familiar to her, and she had the option of following Loren’s lead and taking a nap, but the events of that morning were still raw in her mind. Kaiten saw the huntress’s troubled expression and raised a brow.
“What worries you, huntress?” he said gently.
The simple act of being prompted to open up, to know that someone was willing to listen, brought Kae to tears. They streamed down her face before she managed to wipe them away. “Prince Kaiten… It’s nothing, I swear.”
Kaiten frowned. His expression softened, and concern showed in his eyes. “Kae, you’re crying. It’s not nothing. We still have perhaps another couple hours before we reach Hardwick. Do you want to talk about it?”
Kae fell silent, but after a while, she nodded. She moved closer on the bench to Kaiten so they could talk in hushed tones. Loren stayed asleep, oblivious. “It’s Loren. I don’t understand her at all. I thought at first that perhaps it’s the magic making her act so differently to me. But what if it’s not? What if it’s her? I don’t know what to do about it.”
“Kae.” Kaiten said softly, face screwed up in confusion. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
The huntress took a deep breath, her face burning with a blush just thinking of how to explain herself. She screwed her eyes shut. “I think I have feelings for the princess.”
“Feelings?”
“Yes…”
Kaiten tilted his head, still confused. “I don’t understand.”
“Well…You see, what I mean is — “ Kae stuttered.
“No no, I’m sorry. I meant that I don’t understand how this is a problem. You have feelings for her. As far as I am aware, she has no suitors. Loren is an independent and headstrong woman on her own, she wouldn’t settle for a suitor that the King and Queen of Aldoran would line up for her. Why do you hesitate to act on your feelings for her then?”
Kae choked, arms pinwheeling and flailing as she tried to explain. “It’s not that simple! Prince Kaiten!”
The young lion Beastman chuckled. “Just Kaiten, please.”
“K-Kaiten! Loren’s a princess. I’m not royalty, or nobility, I’m barely even a commoner! I live in the forest with a feral wolf Beastman!” Kae spluttered. “Aren’t there protocols or rules or something?”
Kaiten chuckled. “Well yes, of course there are. But the ruler of a kingdom has the
power to do whatever they please. They can change the rules if they wanted. And besides, have you ever seen any rules in Aldoran written down that says a princess cannot be with a commoner?”
“No… I couldn’t read them even if there were.”
“Why don’t you try? The way I see you, you’re holding yourself back. You’re scared. What is there to be afraid of? You two are close, I’ve seen the way you look at and touch each other enough times since the outpost to know that. If you’re scared, what about Loren?” The prince waved a hand to where the dragon princess slept, curled up and small. “She’s far from home, with no army, barely any plans. All I want is to go home, and I’m already petrified. But she is intent on facing a mad queen.”
Kae sighed heavily. She slumped against the wall of the cart. “What am I supposed to do then? What do you think I should do?”
Kaiten scratched at his mane as he thought. “Talk to her, definitely. Ask her what she actually wants. Then you decide if what she wants is something you can give.”
Kae stared out at the trees calmly passing by. The crisp, northern air wasn’t bothered at all by this huntress and her problems. She wondered, distractedly, how she was expected to simply talk to the princess. Especially after what happened earlier. “Thank you prince— I mean, Kaiten.”
“You’re very welcome, Kae.” Kaiten smiled. He leaned back on the wall of the cart. “I hope you and the princess drop whatever this tension is between you two.”
Kae winced. “Is it obvious?”
“Her eyes aren’t normally gold.” He looked pointedly at the huntress. “And she doesn’t talk strictly about plans for more than ten minutes at a time. The Loren I know is a lot more excitable than that. So, something must have happened this morning.”
“I guess we had a fight.” Kae hesitated.
“What happened?”
“I told her what I just told you. I’m a nobody, she’s a princess.”
