The General

by M. A. Abraham

  No one had heard Cambria arrive, or Anders for that matter. Yet, they were both standing less than five feet away from them, and she was being careful not to let her voice carry past the group of men, so her sister wouldn’t hear her comment. Gabriella would notice her quickly enough, she always did.

  “All of her life?” Talus couldn’t help voicing his shock as well as his disapproval.

  “Gabriella’s talents shone from her like a beacon, almost from the moment she was conceived. Our father began to train her from the time she was able to stand on her own. At best, you could call her childhood nonexistent, as it was filled with lessons from the most learned Elves in the Empire. Even Mariss and Mistral didn’t get the extensive education she did,” Cambria explained.

  “Why?” T’Harris asked. It explained a lot to him, although not why.

  “Father figured there had to be a really good reason why our family was suddenly being blessed with a replica of the famous Gabriel Eagle Claw, even if she wasn’t a male. The similarity to our ancestor was why she was called Gabriella,” Cambria explained. “Father never could figure out why the Fates didn’t send a man under the circumstances. Women make good warriors, but they are considered to be the bearers of light, and carry the future generations of our people. If there was going to be a war, it didn’t make any sense that a woman should be chosen to lead the Elven Empire into battle in the way of all Eagle Claw Generals of the past. Our ancestors have a reputation of leading charges in person while directing the battles while they fight. Father couldn’t understand how Gabriella could handle this as a woman. Father thought that if a war was eminent, Gabriella would have no choice but to sacrifice her femininity in favor of her position.”

  “So she was raised to believe she could never live her life as an Elven Female,” T’Harris noted.

  “For the King and Elven Empire, it always will need to be upheld before her own needs or desires. It was something she came to terms with and accepted many centuries ago,” Cambria stated.

  “Lariel?” T’Harris asked.

  “Lariel has always loved Gabriella, from the moment they met during their childhood on. She was a pretty child, and a beautiful woman no one could find a way to get through to. She erected walls that resisted the most persistent suitors, and our father took pride in her accomplishments,” Cambia explained. She then grinned and added, “Lariel is definitely paying the price for his obsession at the moment. His Life Mate has seven brothers, and they refuse to allow him close to their sister, at her insistence. In a matter such as this, no one cares if she is his Life Mate, or if he is the Emperor of the Elven Empire. He broke the rules, and it is her right to decide whether she will accept him as a mate or not.”

  “He sent us here to bring Gabriella back to talk to her. Her name is Deneene and she is the only daughter of King Thilmior. She is a popular Elf, as well as feisty. If she is half as good on the battlefield as she is off, I would hate to have to face her in a fight,” Anders admitted.

  “How is it Lariel never met her before?” T’Harris wondered. He would have thought Lariel was in a position to know everyone, especially when they were associated with an Elven family of that size. Eight children in one family was rare in the Elven Empire, unless you were an Eagle Claw, and even they weren’t that prolific.

  Anders explained. “Even the Emperor Lariel doesn’t get to meet everyone. From what I have heard, her father ordered the Blue Dragons to guard her. Lariel won’t be able to cross the border without getting frost burn, Emperor or not. He also wouldn’t dare ask one of us for help because after what he did to T’Harris and Gabriella, we would be apt to deliver him to the lairs of the Blue Dragons. That would really put us in their good books. I am not so certain it would work the same for him though. He can be charming when he wants to be, but I doubt if it is enough to get him out of the type of trouble he got himself into.”

  As the four Guardians snickered, Cambria walked across to where her sister was and joined in the discussions, “Hi Sis, Britallia, Chania. What are you all so serious about?”

  “We are planning our day for tomorrow,” Gabriella answered.

  “I will ride out with Gabriella to see Cormar and Lindquist at the Fortress. We plan to check out what they are doing in case we missed something important,” Britallia informed Cambria.

  “Who else is going?” Cambria asked.

  “Just us, and the usual guard,” Britallia commented.

  “We don’t need guards, we need to travel fast,” Gabriella objected.

  “What of T’Harris?” Cambria asked, even as she ignored Gabriella’s comment. “It would be quicker to travel by Dragon.”

  “T’Harris can stay here and play with the rest of his gang,” Gabriella sniffed.

  “The rest of his gang will undoubtedly be coming along,” Chania chuckled. This was a point of dispute that had been going on for a while now.

  “I wouldn’t dismiss your Life Mate that quickly or easily, Gabriella. You will be sorry if you do for the rest of your life,” Cambria warned her sister.

  “I have work to do, Cambria, you know how it must be for me,” Gabriella argued back.

  “Just a word to the wise, sister. This is one time when the family motto of “For the King and Elven Empire” only applies in one manner, and I would grab it with both hands,” Cambria advised.

  “I can’t,” Gabriella denied. “There can be no Life Mate for me. It is why I keep to myself, and you know this better than anyone.”

  “I know more than you want to admit. We will talk about it at another time,” Cambria let the matter drop, even as she took up another. “Lariel has met his Life Mate.”

  “I am happy for him,” Gabriella stated bluntly. She didn’t like how stubborn Cambria was being on the subject of T’Harris. She knew her sister well enough to realize that although she wasn’t mentioning him at the moment, there would be a lecture coming up about this in the near future.

  “Deneene saw how Lariel acted when he noticed you had met your Life Mate. She thinks she knows what he feels, and we get the impression she is not the forgiving type,” Cambria warned.

  “There is nothing between Lariel and I, there never has been,” Gabriella denied. “Lariel is The Emperor, I am the High Lord General, and that is the grand total of our relationship.”

  “She is aware of how you feel, and she doesn’t blame you, but the same cannot be said for Lariel. Unlike you, Deneene isn’t afraid to see things the way they are or how she thinks they are. You, on the other hand, tend to walk around with blinders on, choosing what you want to see and refusing to believe anything you didn’t,” Cambria noted.

  “And you refuse to see things the way they are. You always romanticize things. Life isn’t always the way you think. Sometimes it is exactly as I must believe it to be. I am The High Lord General, nothing can change that, and for me, there is only the Elven Empire. Nothing else can matter.” Gabriella stated, then turned to Britallia and Chania as she added, “If you would be so kind as to provide me with a chamber for the night, I will retire. At first light I will leave for the Fortress. I want to get there and conclude my business as fast as possible. If possible, I would be just as happy to go on my own, that way there would be no other riders to slow me down.”

  “Of course, we will also send a meal up to your rooms to sustain you, as I doubt if you have taken the time to eat,” Britallia agreed. “I will be ready to leave with you first thing in the morning. I warn you, if you leave without me, I will follow and I doubt if I will be flying alone. T’Harris isn’t the only one that can change into a Dragon, nor is he alone in sensing how close your Dragon is to coming out. You will need his guidance to handle her when she does. Don’t be afraid to listen to what he tells you when this happens, as the first time she emerges can be overwhelming. This will get easier with each shift until you are comfortable with what is happening.”

  Gabriella didn’t want to believe what she was hearing, but with those surrounding her at the momen
t, she had no choice but to accept what they were saying. She did have a Dragon in her, and one day soon it would emerge. That day, however, was not now. Also, as far as the trip was concerned, she would still rather go on her own, and if it were at all possible, she would find a way to do so.

  CHAPTER VII

  Gabriella wasn’t surprised when T’Harris slipped into her bed in the middle of the night and carefully wrapped his larger body around hers. He gave a sigh of satisfaction and pleasure as he inhaled her scent, then went to sleep. She was certain he knew she was still awake, but he seemed to be content to let her rest. She was going to have another long day in the saddle, and this following the one she had spent most of the day before on the road doing. Before he had fallen asleep, she felt the touch of his healing powers flow through her one last time, before she succumbed to the relaxation and relief she had needed from the stiffness in her body. She fell asleep shortly after. It was something she hadn’t thought necessary until that moment. As she nodded off, she acknowledged the effect he had on her and tried to shrug it off. It didn’t work, but she wasn’t going to admit to that.

  T’Harris knew the moment Gabriella fell asleep. He softly pressed a kiss against the crown of her head and sighed as he acknowledged this would be the best he could hope for over the next while. He didn’t question his luck, he felt he had gained a lot of ground with her in the short time he had known her. She could have ordered him from her room, and he would have had no choice but to comply. Because of this, he felt he could live with things the way they were for now. He was at least getting to hold her. The rest would eventually follow. He just needed to exercise a little more patience.

  The moment Gabriella opened her eyes the next morning, T’Harris went on alert. It took him a few moments to remember they were going to the Fortress. It was going to take time to cross the land to get there, and he had to admit, he would rather have flown. That, however, wasn’t the way things were done here anymore, not unless there was no other choice.

  As T’Harris had felt Gabriella’s alertness the night before, she could tell he was awake now. His body went from being relaxed to tight within moments of her opening her eyes. Dealing with him was something she had hoped to avoid. In fact, she had planned to slip off during the very early hours of the predawn light, so a regiment of guards wouldn’t weigh her down. She hadn’t been told this would happen for sure, but she had a feeling it would be the case. To do this was a matter of protocol with these people, and above all, that needed to be adhered to. It wasn’t the way she operated, though. She needed the freedom to go her own way and check things out without interference from others, so she could get the feel of the land.

  T’Harris could nearly feel the frown covering Gabriella’s face and knew she sensed his alertness. She probably suspected she was going to have a full escort of troops riding with her all the way to the Fortress too. Well, she was right about that. He had tried to reason with the Commander in charge of the garrison at the Citadel, but there had been no talking the man out of doing what he felt was his duty.

  To be fair to the Commander, T’Harris had seen what he was dealing with. They were in a declared state of war, and no one knew if assassins were in the valley from the outside world. The chance of this being the case was slight, but it wasn’t out of the realm of possibility. Gabriella was the High Lord General of the Elven Empire, and with this in mind, it was up to him to make sure she reached her destination safely.

  The soldiers serving under the Commander were even more impossible to deal with. T’Harris had entered the barracks to find a complete battalion of men vying for a spot on the troop to accompany Gabriella when she rode across the valley. No one wanted to be left behind when they could ride with the High Lord General. She was not only the highest-ranking officer in the Elven Empire, something the people in the Valley decided they were a part of, but she was also very beautiful. He hadn’t wasted much time letting the men know she was his Life Mate, which meant she was strictly off limits.

  T’Harris had seen how the men had looked at him after they had found out about his place in Gabriella’s life. There had been an equal amount of awe and jealous resentment. They knew he was one of the Guardians of the Empire, which meant he could shift into a Dragon at will. It seemed unfair to these males that Elves should be able to walk into their land and claim the most beautiful, as well as the highest-ranking females in the Empire. It was as if the Fates had favored them. Being able to change into a Dragon, as well as winning the hand of one of those women was more than any one male deserved. T’Harris agreed, but that didn’t mean he was willing to give up his Gabriella.

  Gabriella didn’t say a word, but her actions told T’Harris plenty. She wasn’t pleased he felt comfortable enough to walk into her life and make himself at home. She hadn’t given him any indication he would be welcome at her side and especially not in her bed. She wasn’t about to give him the satisfaction of railing at him about the matter though. She had a suspicion he was looking for a reaction from her, and that she refused to give him.

  With a quick cleansing spell and conjuring of a clean uniform, Gabriella left her assigned room and headed for the courtyard. She had no intention of wasting anymore time here. She was tired and cranky from the lack of sleep over the last few days, and it was time she was on her way. If she were lucky, she would find her horse waiting for her arrival, and no one else ready to leave when she did. It was one of the reasons she decided not to eat. She descended the stairs, crossed through the rooms leading to the outside of the building, opened the door, and stopped short.

  Gabriella looked out into the courtyard, expecting to see only a couple of horses saddled and ready to travel. She had no doubt T’Harris would be tagging along, his expression had as much as told her this the night before. She, however, had not expected to find half the garrison, along with three Guardians of the Empire and their Life Mates ready to leave. It would take three times longer to get where she was heading with this crowd in tow, and she had no intention of allowing it to happen.

  The Commander walked to the front of the steps, ready to offer Gabriella his hand to help her down the stairs in a gentlemanly fashion, when he noticed T’Harris glaring at him from over her right shoulder. He wasn’t about to do anything to cross that Guardian. So, he bowed deeply, as he greeted her, “High Lord General Gabriella Eagle Claw, your guard detail is ready to ride. Say the word, and we will escort you to the Fortress.”

  “I understood this was to be a small troop. I don’t expect that you could possibly keep up with the pace I plan to set with all these men in tow,” Gabriella pointed out. She didn’t tell the Commander she had no intention of waiting for any of them. She would be travelling hard and fast. From what she could tell, the only one who knew what she had in mind was her sister, Cambria.

  “We can keep up to you. I promise, we will not hold you back,” The Commander promised.

  Gabriella didn’t spare even a look at the man. Instead, she took note of Cambria, who was sending her signals warning her not to do what she seemed intent on. Her sister knew her well, but she didn’t have time for the useless pomp. This was going to be done her way. With a quick jerk of her chin, she looked away from Cambria, pulled on her gauntlets and ordered, “We ride. If you can keep up, good for you; if not, know this was expected to begin with.”

  Cambria quickly moved to Gabriella’s side, as she strode purposefully towards her horse. She knew there could be no way the Human bred horses would be able to keep up to Whyngold. The mounts the soldiers were riding might be considered prime stock in the valley, but Gabriella’s was one of the Light Elven King’s prized stallions. Even most of the steeds in the Elven Empire couldn’t run as long or fast as he could.

  “Don’t do this, Gabriella,” Cambria begged.

  “I never asked to be a part of a parade. I don’t have time to play their games. I have reports to make and gather. I am also getting messages from the far side of the Valley that didn’t exist yesterd
ay, and those I need to check out for myself.” Gabriella stated. Her voice sounded clipped, as if she was as angry with herself as she was with the others.

  Cambria could feel the frustration her sister felt coming at her in waves. She knew Gabriella wouldn’t give in, not this time. She seldom did when she made up her mind to do something. She knew the Commander had overstepped his place the moment she had seen the rows of men waiting for them outside the door. Cambria had tried to warn him about what would probably happen. He hadn’t listened to a word she had to say on the subject any more than Gabriella did now.

  Cambria stepped back as Gabriella mounted her horse, and she could tell Whyngold had picked up her mood. He knew she was about to allow him to have a good long run, and he was ready for it. He was well-fed and rested, and he determined to show these upstart mounts what a stallion of his caliber could do.

  Cambria caught at T’Harris’ sleeve, as he moved to pass her, and asked, “Did you have anything to do with Gabriella’s mood?”

  “No more than usual. Gabriella woke up surly and has been gaining ground on that level ever since,” T’Harris admitted. He intended to go to his horse to follow her, but Cambria wasn’t finished with him yet.

  “I think we better fly after her, not ride,” Cambria advised. “The poor Commander and his troop won’t be able to catch up to Gabriella until sometime tomorrow, if even then. She isn’t going to feel sorry for them either. With this in mind, I will speak with the others. We may even arrive in time to warn Cormar and Lindquist about her mood, because I guarantee you, she won’t be any easier on them than she was on anyone here.”

  “You know your sister well,” T’Harris noted.

  “I should, we are twins,” Cambria stated.

  Cambria then watched as Gabriella called out a curt order, even as she wheeled Whyngold around and allowed him to show off. He flicked his tail in challenge to the other horses in the courtyard, then pranced toward the outer gates as he arched his neck in a prideful manner. “We ride for the Fortress, open the gates.”