CHAPTER 91: PREPARATIONS

Captain Rix had made steady progress in his mission to scout ahead, finding little that would impose them up to that point. The captain had walked all night since he had departed the village and continued on through most of the morning. He allowed himself three hours of rest when the sun was at its highest, but continued his march onwards until evening approached shortly after.

The stubborn yet staunch bull hadn’t rested nearly enough and had simply powered on, making good progress as he did so. He hadn’t been overheating, and his food and water supply were still pretty decent also, so he didn’t figure he would have much to worry about at that point.

He was only a short ways away from the thicket when the tree line came into his sights as he reached a bit of higher ground... Unfortunately for the Captain, that wasn’t the only thing to come into his sights as his range of vision grew.

"Eight hundred... Maybe even a thousand..."

The captain’s mind raced to deduce everything it could about the opponent as the bull quickly and quietly dropped in his place, silently praying he hadn’t alerted such a force to his presence.

The force even such a mighty warrior was hiding from was a truly imposing gathering of hundreds of fiends. There were two larger ones that could possibly even be considered lower demons counted among them. But the most puzzling part of the large gathering was how impossibly still they all were.

In that moment, they truly looked like they themselves were a part of the jagged, thorny bushes that sprouted up where the landscapes met.

Captain Rix gathered what info he could for a while longer. He didn’t like this. It was out of place. It was intentional. It was a wall to block passage, placed where it could be easily avoided in plain sight. It was a calculated warning and a guide.

The thicket was off limits, and any who dared attempt to breach the wall would surely be met with a gruesome end.

The bull finally pulled away and began making his way back to report to his prince. He made it about two hundred paces before he heard something behind himself that made his blood run cold.

There was a first hollow, piercing cry that resounded into the air, and then the unmistakable rumble of hundreds of feet suddenly marching on. The bull gave one look behind himself, and the growing cloud of dust gave him all the answers he needed. The fiends were heading in his direction. They were heading towards the village.

The great brown bull grunted at his misfortune and shifted his water supply off of his broad shoulder. The bull downed two gourds with swiftness, casting aside the empty shells after, not wanting any extra weight slowing him down.

The beast held the ropes on the last four in his larger right hand to steady their sloshing as he stretched towards the sky just a bit, mentally cursing himself.

`Well... That damned rabbit was right as usual... Should’ve rested more.’ The captain squatted down just a bit, drawing in one more deep breath before he launched forward, his powerful hooves breaking into the dry dirt below as he barreled into a steady and measured sprint.

If he paced himself, he could make it back by dawn to give his warning... The captain could only pray he would make it with enough time left.

___

Talan was kneeling before his father’s bed in the Aschefell estate the morning after the full moon, the morning the group was preparing to depart the estate. He had been filled in that his prince was still alive, and were it not for the older wolf talking him down, the panther would have departed the moment he received the fortunate news.

Instead, Talan had agreed to wait a day and make his leave with the rest of the group to stick together in number, ensuring a slightly larger degree of safety for the beasts.

The roads were becoming more hazardous by the day in wake of the disarray spreading across the kingdom, but even still, all the panther could focus on was keeping those he cherished safe.

Byron could only smile on from the doorway as the young warrior made his vows to his father. Vows to find his brother Cortist and to bring him home. Vows to reunite with the prince and to stand by his side until the endeavor was over. Even a surprising vow to return the "Human pet" to his father’s side.

Byron hadn’t pried about the older brother’s resentment for the human yet, but was planning to soon. After all, they would have plenty of time on the road to discuss such things. The older wolf cleared his throat and began speaking as the young warrior turned to meet him.

"I just wanted to let you know that the carriages are ready... Are you certain you still wish to bring your father along? It won’t be hard to manage, but I do worry if it’s the best thing in his condition... However, I do understand your need to keep him close." The panther only nodded at the wise wolf before answering.

"I am. When father wakes up, he will follow us anyway... At least this way, I can protect him until then. My family has quite the target on our backs after my claim to the throne, and even though I will soon withdraw that claim, I cannot afford to leave any weaknesses exposed to our enemies in the time until then... Are you certain YOU still wish to travel with me? I’m sure you understand how that could end badly for your family..."

The feline trailed off, but the wolf didn’t hesitate to dismiss any such worry.

"Talan... You may not want to hear this, but if all of this goes smoothly, you will be a part of my family also... I know you don’t consider him your brother, but Aster and my daughter have become very... close as of late. As such, the things he values are the things my daughter values, and if there’s one thing I can say for certain about the boy, is that he values all of his family very deeply. What kind of family would I be to turn my back on you in your time of need? No... What kind of knight would I be? Certainly not one worth serving the next king of our nation."

The older wolf donned his fanged smile at the panther, putting that debate to rest with finality. Talan only bowed a bit as he replied.

"Thank you, Sir Aschefell... I would like a little more time with my father, I’ll bring him down after. I won’t keep you waiting too long." The wolf nodded, happy to oblige as he turned and made his leave.

The old wolf shuffled across the estate at a steady pace, stopping to rest his bad leg every so often before he made it to the forge. The sound of ringing steel and the smell of burning cinders were a welcome presence after sitting untouched for so long.

As the wolf creaked open the door, he saw his son Amboss placing the finishing touches on his last minute project with the help of a certain coyote, a long time friend of the family, and the beast in charge of the prince’s personal guard, Sir Syphur Ictus.

Sir Syphur had been in the King’s service for well over twenty years at that point. He volunteered to help with the registration at the most recent selection before taking a short trip back home.

As such, he was not present for the day of the attack, but his service to the crown could be traced back to even delivering the final letter from Jagón’s wife, Felicity, to the panther on the battlefield all those years ago.

Sir Syphur was nothing special on the combat aspect of things, but his resourcefulness, and his knack for quick thinking when it was needed the most were nearly unparalleled, more so proven by how the smaller beast who barely stood at 6’ 5" had survived for so many years.

The multi colored coyote was summoned per Byron’s request, as this was one of the few beasts he had trusted with the information that their prince was still alive. The coyotes’ orange tipped ears came to attention when he saw the knight enter. The older wolf gave his greeting to his comrade before he commented on the project.

"Looks like you managed to pull it off with a little help, my son. Do you think it will work the way you need?"

Amboss looked up to meet his father’s gaze and smiled, already returning to his lighthearted self after yesterday’s good fortune had brought renewed hope to the beast.

"It’s no permanent replacement, but it will, at least, give me some means for basic use and defense... Blades were always more Silbern’s and Stahl’s thing... But I can’t exactly attach an entire hammer to my arm, so it will have to do for now. Besides, we are out of time, and I won’t be waiting any longer to go get my son back."

As the wolf finished his statement, he adjusted his arm to slide into the frame, noting the excellent fit, despite that he had been crafting with only a single arm, and a small bit of help from the coyote.

Amboss was fumbling a bit with the buckles, but neither the older wolf nor the coyote were comfortable offering their help without the younger wolf asking first.

Rouge, however, had no such reservation and strutted right past the older wolf in the doorway to assist her husband upon arrival, already well finished with her own travel preparations.

The apt fox began speaking to Amboss in her usual, softer tone, but with one clearly still laced with a twinge of uncertainty after almost losing both of her boys.

"As stubborn as the steel you shape... Same as ever, it seems." The fox let out a small sigh.

***