Page 35 of Shifter King
"Call me Ki if you like. If it makes you feel that this is more of a partnership, but this is a destiny and a calling, Neyeb. You cannot ignore it. They suffer, and the evil in this world—in all of creation worsens." It sighed again, curling back farther into the tapestries of her mind. Its luminous moon-like eyes stared at her sadly."They were right though. Those Vawtrians in the monument…I knew of them. They were kind and gentle. And somehow—well, this world grew too hard for them and destroyed them. Do not make their mistake, or their suffering will seem like nothing compared with what will come."
THE PURPOSE OF A REPUTATION
Despite his hunger and all of the energy he had spent, it was hard to eat the evening meal. After Amelia went to bed, Naatos left to investigate the camp once more.
There had to be something they were missing.
A deathly stillness had come over their former camp, far worse than when they first emerged ragged and gasping from Dry Deep. For a short time, it had been a relatively safe haven to recuperate. Now it felt like a corrupted tomb, scarred by the invasion of those Bealorns.
He circled the camp, searching for any trace or clue. He eyed each indentation and mark that they had left. These Bealorns had found them easily, and they had come prepared. It wasn’t a lie that more had been waiting beyond the ones he'd caught and seen through heat vision. The faint footprints in the dirt as well as the bent leaves and twigs proved at least six more had been waiting back here, and he had not caught even a trace of them.
The footprints led farther into the forest and to a smaller clearing surrounded by black-streaked aspens. Lighter footprints and indentations as well as a fanned-out pattern of dirt suggested that several flying creatures had been here. Insectoid most likely.
He drew in a deep breath, sifting through every minute scent. Initially he had thought that the orbs on their necklaces had absorbed the smell. But perhaps it was more than that. Perhaps they were using those or perhaps the technology that the Abliatos used had been adapted. But whatever it was, there had to counter it. There was always something.
The arrival of the Bealorns had been bad. What made it all the worse was the fact that his own instincts warned against killing them immediately. Though not shocking, it had been obvious that the Bealorn queen had made preparations. What exactly he could not say.
They would not reach Amelia. They would not find her. Never again.
Nor was he worried that Amelia would choose to go to them. Mercifully, it didn't seem as if had any inclination to believe the queen at all.
Just meet for a quiet meal and discussion. As if even Amelia would walk into that. No. They'd have to do far better than that.
He scoffed as he raked his hand through his hair. That Bealorn queen had plans to use Amelia that didn’t require a prophet or mindreader to see through. Anyone with two brain cells could put that together. And that meant she would continue to search for her. Worse still if she had told others about Amelia, they would come searching as well. What Amelia offered would tempt many. That ferocity and desperation for power likely meant Zorna had not disclosed her knowledge of Amelia to many outside of those essential for her plan. Though how Zorna had concluded that or found them, he didn't know. One of a dozen new mysteries to resolve.
As good as the bunker was, they needed to move beyond it and soon. Perhaps the northern mountains would be safer. Or Darmoste once they took it back.
A low growl rose within him.
They didn’t have enough people. Ordinarily, he would have had false camps set up and then tracked the Bealorns to see who was doing what. If he had had his cadre or even just his army, this would have been dealt with so swiftly and Darmoste freed.
For now, there were really only four of them.
True. There were other forms he and his brothers could take. Ones that would work for tracking and spotting eventually despite the other side’s advances in tech. But these matters were escalating swiftly. Too many questions had to be answered.
They could manage this. But they would have to be cunning and precise. AaQar was right. They couldn't afford to declare war on an entire world or even just one continent or nation. Especially not when—he halted, a wall of grief striking him. He staggered beneath its weight.
After what had happened to the peacemakers—Elinar and his followers—how cruelly had his own cadre been treated? They could not have met a good end. They would have—how had they perished? In fire? By venom? In combat? And their children?
Shaking his head, he covered his eyes. There was no purpose to this grief. Nothing that could be done for it. The dead could not be brought back.
Darmoste would have to be freed so that they could unearth the Tue-Rah. The temple would have to be constructed again. The pedestals. The dais. The operational components. Restoration here meant far more than it had meant on Reltux. It could take months. Perhaps years. And that assumed they survived the Grey Season.
Straightening his shoulders, he stared out through the trees toward the great mountains in the north. A heaviness weighed upon him, crushing deeper with each passing breath. What had happened here was the reason he had refused to stop being a Para. The reason he had decided to seek out the ruling of the worlds.
All of this cruelty and suffering was allowed to not only exist but to flourish. And what had been done to stop it?
He searched a few hours more until the moon had nearly reached its zenith. No further traces had been revealed, and though that was precious little, it was something. When he returned to the bunker, he found AaQar just starting his watch. He stood in the main room and paced slowly, his gaze roaming over the walls. One look at his brother's face confirmed how disturbed he still was.
"What did you discover?" AaQar asked.
"What's this?" He gestured toward the counter. One of the collapsible pots had been filled with water, and something that looked like fish bones and cartilage soaked inside along with at least three different types of mushrooms.
"WroOth went hunting again tonight and found false queen's bane and shadow caps among other things. It might help Amelia in her restoration from Dry Deep. I know they added some other ingredients to improve the flavor, but I haven’t found any and I’m cautious about risking too many additions aside from perhaps the herbs from the tea. She'll have to make do. What did you discover?"
Naatos picked up one of the canteens of water and drained it. There wasn't much to share though he told him everything of note.
AaQar chuckled dryly; his expression remained somber. "I smelled nothing even when they were present on either occasion. Those orbs and beads on their necklaces did a fair bit of the work. I suspect they are using something similar to what the Abliatos are using, but it has been adapted in some way so that their sensors do not track it either. That most likely means they are using extremely small quantities of tra."
