8. Fersen

The world looked so different from high above the clouds. Fersen felt on top of the world as he looked down at the landscape rushing by beneath them. He felt untouchable and safe from any harm.

But would that be the case when he reached home? It had always been a safe and sacred place, but King Decius's men had shattered that illusion when they kidnapped him. How would Fersen ever feel safe there again, especially once Jaega left to go home to Valzerna? When the dragon shifter was with him, Fersen felt like nothing could harm him. Losing that sense of security scared Fersen.

He would have plenty of time to dwell once he was alone. Fersen wanted to enjoy what little time he had left with the magnificent dragon shifter before he left, never to be seen again. Why did that thought hurt Fersen's heart so much?

It was a disappointment when they landed again. Fersen was quickly becoming addicted to the joys of flying high in the sky.

The sun was beginning to set as Jaega led them to a small cave. It amazed Fersen how the dragon shifter had spotted it from so high in the air. Along the way, they collected wood to use for a fire to keep them warm at night. There was just enough light for them to see into the cave to set up the wood, which Jaega ignited with his orange dragon fire.

To his surprise, Jaega summoned a bed roll that was large enough for them both to use. "Oh!"

Jaega chuckled at his shock. "It is a great deal better than sleeping on the hard cave floor." He gestured for Fersen to join him in sitting on top of it.

Fersen sat in front of Jaega, running his hands over the plushest fabric he had felt in his life. "I'd say so. It's so soft!"

Jaega once again summoned a bag filled with food out of thin air. He passed it to Fersen, who pulled out a few things to start with first. It amazed him how fresh the bread and fruit were. It beat having to forage for small berries and going to bed hungry because he couldn't find enough.

Jaega summoned a second bag, opening it to peer inside. "We have dessert as well, which I think you will be pleased with." He passed it over to Fersen.

It delighted Fersen to see an array of small fruit tarts inside the bag. "Those look delicious!"

"I have a weakness for Alsarian berry tarts, so the servants are good about packing quite a few of those for me when I travel."

"I've never had that before." Fersen was excited to try, though. He set the dessert bag to the side to focus on eating dinner first. "I don't go to the markets in town, so I can only have what grows locally around my home." Alsari was a small, island kingdom south of Valzerna, on the eastern side of Talwyn.

"Alsarian berries are as wonderful as the country itself. My family has a summer palace on the shores of Fordani there because we love it so much."

Fersen could only imagine the luxury of a summer palace fit for the king of Valzerna's family. It was well known, even as far away as Fersen lived, that Valzerna was one of the richest nations in Talwyn. "I'm sure it's beyond beautiful."

"It is indeed. We overlook a private beach and the bluest ocean you have ever seen in your life." Jaega sighed as he continued eating. "It has been some time since I have had the pleasure of visiting. My brother keeps me quite busy with his military campaigns."

"I'll forever be grateful to him for sending you to Shadron." Fersen couldn't bear to think about what would have happened if Jaega hadn't been assigned to dethrone the dangerous King Decius. "Am I allowed to ask where you think you'll go next?"

"I shall return home to Valzerna for the time being." Jaega rubbed his chin. "If the rumors of unrest in Galinor are true, then I will be back out on the front sooner rather than later."

The thought of Jaega being at war again made Fersen's stomach twist uncomfortably. "What rumors?"

"The snake shifters are close allies with the scorpion rulers of Shadron. There were rumors they were ready to join the war in King Decius's name. Now that we have dethroned that bastard, I suspect the snake shifters will seek vengeance. I hope for all our sakes that they are smarter than that. It would not be wise for them to push the limit of my brother's tolerance, especially when their kingdom is so close to ours. But they have not always been known for doing intelligent things."

The unicorn shifter didn't enjoy thinking about Jaega off fighting in dangerous wars, even though he had been doing it longer than Fersen had been alive. "I really hope it doesn't come to that."

"If it does, we will defeat them soundly. Of that, I have no doubt." Jaega waved the subject away. "Let us not dwell on such things. What do you plan to do once you return home?"

"My poor garden will be so overgrown," Fersen said. "I'm sure fixing that will take up a lot of my time at first. I'd love to go for a swim in the waterfall lagoon that's not too far from my home. After that, who knows? I live a quiet life, so there's not much to do."

"I am happy to help in whatever way you need," Jaega offered. "I am in no rush to return to Valzerna."

"Won't your brother want you back to talk about what happened in Shadron?"

Jaega finished his jerky. "Yes, but I have entrusted the details to Grisden to give my brother a proper debriefing. He will have everything he needs without me being there. This is more important to me right now."

Fersen's cheeks tinged pink at the idea of being a priority to Jaega. "I hope you don't get in trouble because of me."

"Even if I do, it will be worth it." The confident way Jaega stated that filled Fersen's heart with overactive butterflies. "Thankfully, my brother and I have always been extraordinarily close. If he thinks me unreasonable now, he will understand once I explain to him the importance of this later."

Fersen blushed, hardly able to believe that Jaega was willingly picking him over returning home to his royal duties. But Fersen didn't want to make too much out of what was likely only a kind gesture and not romantic in any sort of way.

Once Fersen finished eating, Jaega took out one of the Alsarian berry tarts and handed it to him. Fersen took a tentative taste. The bright flavor exploded on his palate with sweetness. It was the best berry anything he had ever had before. He moaned as he took another bite, savoring the tart for as long as he could. "Oh, this is incredible."

"There are many reasons Alsari is well known for its culinary achievements. A lot of our castle chefs are from there." Jaega took a tart for himself and hummed with pleasure as he enjoyed it. "Valzernan cuisine is delicious, but Alsarian is a different level."

Fersen took smaller bites of the tart to make it last longer. "I've never had food from either kingdom, so I'll take your word for it."

"At the castle, we have at least one chef from every kingdom in Talwyn, so my brother can enjoy all his favorite dishes."

That was a level of extravagance Fersen could hardly fathom. He shook his head in amazement. "I can't even imagine being so well versed in the culinary arts. My little world is too small." The information made Fersen realize something. "Wait, if you have chefs from all over Talwyn, then you would have chefs and probably servants from Shadron. What do they think of your brother sending his army to fight their homeland?"

"As they are refugees from King Decius's cruelty, they supported our mission. I had a small tactical team dedicated to finding their families to get them to Valzerna safely while we fought. Even with a kinder ruler in place, it will still give our chefs peace of mind to know their families are safer on our lands."

Would the limits of Jaega's generosity ever be found? Fersen was starting to think it was boundless. "That's incredible that you could find and rescue them, even with all the fighting going on."

"My oldest brother and I are united in the belief that you take care of those you protect. Even our chefs and servants fall under that."

"Which is fascinating to me since King Decius probably didn't know the name of a single servant, let alone care where they were from or if they still had family there." Fersen was sad he finished his delicious tart until Jaega passed him a second one. The unicorn shifter had to make a concentrated effort not to squeal with joy.

"King Tatsuki is nothing like that. He takes pride in knowing every detail about his palace. He never wants to be caught unaware about anything." It was clear how proud Jaega was of his oldest brother. Although Fersen had never met the king, if he was anything like Jaega, he was sure to be one of the most remarkable men in Talwyn as well.

The stories filled Fersen with the urge to go back to Valzerna with Jaega, but he didn't have the heart to ask. Besides, what would he do in a kingdom with no place to live? He wouldn't know the first thing about where to find a solitary sanctuary like his home in the Morven forest. Dreams of the riches Valzerna offered would be the closest Fersen would ever come to experiencing them.