Chapter 25

25

Never take for granted the value of a loyal comrade.

~ Ranger Captain Bonovar

Kaylina woke to early-morning light creeping through the canopy, a chill seeping up through the ground, and cool damp air blanketing her. She should have been cold, but warmth radiated from something pressed against her side.

She reached over and patted a large furry body. Levitke, the taybarri stretched out beside her, yawned.

“Thanks for keeping me warm,” Kaylina murmured, deciding she’d slept through the entire night. When was the last time that had happened? “I think that was magically induced sleep.”

Levitke whuffed in agreement.

“You’re a good companion.”

Levitke rose, shook herself like a dog, then wandered a few steps to pee on a fern.

“And not shy or modest,” Kaylina added.

Her body was stiff when she rolled onto her side, but she pushed herself into a sitting position to look around. She sensed the same altered mushrooms and other plants as the day before, but her father had disappeared. Off to research Vlerion’s curse?

Hope and dread mingled within her. She wanted to fix him so he could be a normal person—the talented and noble ranger he was when the beast didn’t encroach—and she’d thought she would give anything to achieve that, but could she sacrifice her humanity? Give up her dreams and everything she was?

“I don’t know if I can do that, Levitke,” Kaylina whispered as the taybarri wandered back over. “I wouldn’t even get to be with him after his curse was removed, not if I turned into a tree or plant, some weird druid… sentinel .”

Levitke nosed at the pack, and Kaylina dug out dried jerky for them to share, including a few cookies.

She didn’t see the bottle of mead she’d given her father, so he must have taken it with him. Maybe it would give him a happy buzz, and he would see that he should wave his hand, lift Vlerion’s curse, and leave her to protect the preserve as a human. That she would be willing to do. She could return to her ranger training and learn to be good at fighting so she could ride out on patrol and protect it with her sword, her taybarri, and her druid magic. Then she could return home and make love to Vlerion at night.

Kaylina groaned with longing for the notion, but thinking of him reminded her of the vision the sentinel had given her the day before. She jolted to her feet. She’d intended to check on him after meeting her father, not spend the night sleeping in the forest.

“We need to find Vlerion.”

Levitke swished her tail and dipped her shoulder, an invitation for Kaylina to mount.

Before doing so, she looked around again for Arsanti. Would he expect her to wait here?

She dug in her pack for pen and paper and left him a note saying that she would return. When she looked around for a place to leave it, two vines descended from a branch, startling her.

They tapped their tips together. It took her a moment to catch on and lift the paper. They captured it and held it so that Arsanti wouldn’t miss seeing it hanging from the tree at the edge of the clearing.

“Thank you,” she told them.

Kaylina swung onto Levitke’s back, and they headed toward the boundary of the preserve, birds chirping happily. Rain started, and Kaylina couldn’t share their cheer. At least the canopy kept most of it from pattering down on her head.

When they reached the edge of the preserve, Levitke halted abruptly. She looked toward four riders on the highway, their route taking them toward the mountains.

The men wore loose white-and-tan clothing that Kaylina had seen before. The sage assassins had favored that garb. Like them, these men carried swords sheathed across their backs or at their hips. She was too far away to see if they had sagebrush tattoos on their arms, but she wouldn’t have been surprised if they’d been sent to hunt someone, regardless. They looked like a pack of bounty hunters.

She swallowed. Could they be after Vlerion?

Their horses trotted through puddles as they headed toward the watchtowers and the pass. In her vision, Vlerion had also been in that direction.

“It could be a coincidence,” Kaylina whispered. “Lots of people go that way, right? Maybe they’re leaving the city because of the trouble there.”

Levitke’s muscles were tight as she watched the men. They were past Kaylina and Levitke now, their backs toward them, and, in a couple of minutes, they would be out of sight, but the taybarri remained tense.

“Do you think they’re assassins or bounty hunters, Levitke?”

A soft whuff.

“And that they’re after someone?”

Another whuff of agreement.

“Vlerion?”

Levitke didn’t know that. Like Kaylina, she probably had only suspicions.

“We’ll head back and tell Targon.”

She was tempted to trail the men, but, between the wide highway and well-trimmed grass and brush alongside, there was no way the assassins would fail to notice followers.

As soon as the men crested a hill and disappeared over it, Kaylina nudged Levitke’s flanks, waving for her to head to town. The rain had stopped, but dark clouds promised it might return and come down harder.

Levitke startled her by running for the highway and turning not toward Port Jirador but toward the mountains. She chased after the assassins, her pace much greater than that of the men’s horses.

Kaylina gripped the taybarri’s fur tightly to keep from falling off. “What are you doing ?”

The sage assassins had been amazing fighters, gifted by the altered plants they consumed, and even one had been too much for her to handle. She didn’t know if these people had similar power, but there were too many for a single ranger trainee and a taybarri to take on, regardless.

Levitke didn’t slow down. She charged for the hilltop.

A man shouted in his native desert tongue: Something, something, Vlerion .

Though surprised, Kaylina drew and loaded her sling as Levitke ran up the hill toward the crest. Swords clashed somewhere on the other side, steel clanging in the damp morning air.

“Bounty hunters,” someone barked in Zaldorian. It was a familiar male voice, but not Vlerion’s.

“Jankarr?” Kaylina asked in wonder.

Levitke crested the hill, and the battle came into view. Two black-clad rangers on taybarri wielded swords as their mounts leaped and bit at the four horsemen. The bounty hunters also wielded their swords, stabbing and slashing as they attempted to surround the rangers.

“It is Vlerion and Jankarr,” Kaylina said.

What were they doing out here?

As Levitke bounded toward the fray, Kaylina picked out a target. She could ask questions later.

Though she hadn’t had as much practice as she needed for firing from the back of a moving taybarri, she managed to clip one of the bounty hunters on the shoulder.

Vlerion looked in her direction, surprise widening his blue eyes, but her arrival didn’t keep him from parrying a swing toward his head. He deflected the blade as his mount—he’d been reunited with Crenoch—lunged in, snapping at their attacker’s horse. Right after, Vlerion launched his own series of slashes and thrusts.

Attacked from high and low, the bounty hunter struggled to keep his mount steady. It squealed and backed away as Crenoch bit and snapped.

Jankarr faced off against another white-clad assailant, his taybarri leaping about so the other enemies couldn’t get behind them. The bounty hunters were quick and agile, but they rode normal horses, and horses were no match for taybarri.

A man on the edge of the skirmish drew a throwing knife. Kaylina fired another round, striking him in the side of the head. He reeled, catching his saddle horn to keep from tumbling off.

Levitke charged at his mount, slamming into the horse with her greater weight. The man’s grip on the saddle horn couldn’t keep him from flying off. He twisted in the air, managing to land on his feet, but Jankarr appeared behind him and lunged in, his face grim as he swung his sword.

The bounty hunter heard him and ducked to evade the attack, but it was a feint. Jankarr shifted the swing to slam the sword down onto the man’s head.

Kaylina loaded another round into her sling, but she and Levitke were close enough now that they would be vulnerable to sword attacks. Dare she draw her blade against such skilled foes?

She was tempted to ask Levitke to back away, but her taybarri roared and went after a bounty hunter who’d lost his mount. He stood his ground, fearless at the huge taybarri rushing him, and lifted his blade to slash toward Levitke’s snout.

Kaylina fired her round at his forehead. He jerked his sword up, forced to deflect the projectile instead of attacking the taybarri. The lead round clanged off his blade, but Levitke had reached him.

The man sprang to the side, avoiding her snapping jaws, but didn’t see that Vlerion, still riding Crenoch, was waiting for him. Face utterly calm, Vlerion ran the man through with his sword.

One of the attackers shouted something, then wheeled his horse and rode away at top speed. He was the only bounty hunter still mounted, the only one, Kaylina realized as she looked around, still alive. The other three lay dead, their horses fleeing back toward the city, hooves pounding the highway.

“Kaylina,” Jankarr blurted as she studied Vlerion, relieved, now that the battle was over, to find him alive. She’d been haunted by that vision. “What are you doing here?” Jankarr added.

“My taybarri thought Vlerion needed to be rescued.” Or so Kaylina assumed. Levitke had known something was up. Maybe she’d caught the scents of her fellow taybarri.

Jankarr wiped his blade before sheathing it. “But I’m already rescuing him.”

“Is that so,” Vlerion said dryly. Dryly and calmly. With no signs of injury, he didn’t look like the battle had bothered him in the least.

The situation reminded her of when she’d entered Spymaster Milnor’s office to rescue Vlerion, only to find him sitting calmly at the desk. His face wasn’t as grim as the day before, but there wasn’t any humor in his eyes when their gazes met. He did, however, nudge Crenoch to ride to Levitke’s side so he could lean over and hug her.

When Crenoch sidled up parallel to Levitke, the taybarri also leaned over. Not for a hug or anything affectionate but so he could sniff her snout a couple of times. After that, he turned a look—an accusing look?—up at Kaylina. He whuffed.

“Is he smelling cookies on your breath, Levitke?” After returning the hug and checking to make sure Vlerion truly wasn’t injured, Kaylina delved into her pack.

Levitke lifted her head and swished her tail. Jankarr’s taybarri, Zavron, also came over, ears perked at the rustling in the pack.

Jankarr and Vlerion watched with bemusement as Kaylina handed the last of her cookies to the taybarri, making sure to give Levitke one too. If not for her, Kaylina would have ridden the other way. The two rangers likely would have been fine without her intervention, but she liked to think she’d helped. And she was relieved beyond measure to have found Vlerion alive.

“Is it odd that she’s giving our mounts cookies?” Jankarr asked. “And not us?”

“No,” Vlerion said. “It’s her druid blood. It compels her to do such things.”

“And that’s... not odd?”

“It is not. If you wish her to reward you with cookies, you must perform as well as the taybarri.”

“I did come to rescue you,” Jankarr said. “And warn you about the bounty and bounty hunters. What greater a performance could there be?”

“I already knew about the bounty hunters. This is the third group I’ve encountered since leaving the city yesterday.” Though it wasn’t visible in the distance, Vlerion glared sourly in the direction of Port Jirador—or maybe that glare was for the royal castle. Who’d put out the bounty? The queen? Because he’d turned down her proposal? Or was the prince responsible? Upset because some people wanted a King Vlerion and not a King Enrikon?

“I had no idea you were educating yourself on their existence so thoroughly,” Jankarr said.

“Not by choice.”

“It was at least noble and heroic of me to bring you your taybarri. You’ll admit that, won’t you? You’d be bereft in battle without Crenoch.”

Now, Crenoch lifted his head and swished his tail.

“That was thoughtful of you,” Vlerion said.

Jankarr nodded and gave Kaylina the same expectant look that Crenoch had.

“Uhm.” She poked into her pack, hoping she had goodies left. “How did you get out here, Jankarr? I thought you were searching for more mercenaries in the catacombs.”

When she caught Vlerion’s grimace, she regretted mentioning them.

“I was, and I found them,” Jankarr said. “Stealthily. I was able to overhear them talking about their plans.”

“Apparently,” Vlerion said, “the prince brought them along, as Targon guessed, in case he needs to fight the Castle and Kingdom Guard to take the throne.”

Jankarr nodded. “I only found one platoon, but there are hundreds, if not thousands of men, stationed about the catacombs, waiting to fight if and when they’re needed. Enrikon had them sneak in ahead of his arrival, figuring people wouldn’t yet be on high alert and looking for trouble. The group I heard talking was discussing whether they would be sent after Lord Vlerion, now that people are arguing that he has a greater right to the throne than Enrikon.” Jankarr looked at Vlerion. “Have you seen the chart showing your lineage in Taybarri Square?”

“I have not.”

“It’s just as well. A surly guard or maybe a Virt drew a giant, uhm—” Jankarr glanced at Kaylina, “—a phallic symbol next to your name. I think it was meant to be derogatory, but someone else came along and circled it with a heart, pointed the tip to your name, and added equally giant, uhm— Well, I think the whole picture is meant to indicate your suitability, heritage-wise and virility-wise, for the position of king.”

“This is the intelligence you rode all the way out here to give me?” Vlerion asked.

“Well, you already knew about the bounty hunters, you said. I told you I’m trying to redeem myself.”

“That’s not necessary, not for me. Targon’s the one irked about your double-agent status. You were his favorite commoner-rising-among-the-ranger-ranks story, you know.”

Jankarr’s humor vanished. “I didn’t even think he liked me.”

“I didn’t say he liked you.” Vlerion’s voice was deadpan—or maybe he was tired—but he thumped Jankarr on the shoulder.

Jankarr’s responding smile was wan. “You’ll at least be pleased to know it didn’t sound like the prince has anything to do with your bounty hunters. The queen, feeling jilted or threatened or both, has put a reward out for your head. She’s the one who wants your death. Although…” Jankarr scratched his jaw. “Going by what the mercenaries said, the prince would be pleased to see you die too.”

“Wonderful.”

“The mercenaries don’t want to fight you and eagerly await news of your demise.”

“Remind me why I was pleased when you rode into my camp,” Vlerion said.

“Because I brought your taybarri.”

“That’s right. Who would mooch from Kaylina if Crenoch weren’t here?”

Crenoch turned his head to bat his tongue against his teeth toward his rider.

There weren’t any cookies left in her pack, so Kaylina drew out a couple of pieces of jerky that she’d snatched from the pantry the day before. She handed one to each man.

“This doesn’t look as good as a cookie.” Jankarr accepted it but only after looking at Vlerion’s hand to see if he was getting something better. “I’m possibly envious of my own taybarri.”

Zavron let out a whuff that sounded smug.

“There’s chili spice and honey in the jerky glaze,” Kaylina said. “My brother made it. It’s good.”

Jankarr brightened. “I’ve heard he’s a genius.”

“He tells me that a lot.” Kaylina decided not to be offended that Jankarr thought her odd and her brother a genius. Such was life.

Vlerion took a bite of his jerky while looking at Kaylina. “I am pleased to see you, but aren’t you supposed to be in Stillguard Castle?”

“Oh.” Jankarr snapped his fingers. “I forgot to share that intel with you. She’s looking for her druid father. Did you find him?”

“Yes.” Kaylina wished she could give Vlerion good news about his curse, but… she didn’t yet know if Arsanti could do anything. Or if she could bring herself to pay the price he would demand if he could.

Vlerion and Jankarr raised expectant eyebrows.

Not sure how to explain the encounter, she groped for a way to start.

“If it helps, Jankarr promises he’s done delivering the latest gossip to the spymasters.” Vlerion’s tone was light, but Jankarr winced.

“I believe that,” Kaylina said, and she did. She also knew Spymaster Milnor… wouldn’t be a problem anymore.

She needed to tell them about that too, but her gut knotted at the idea. She wished she could get away without admitting she’d witnessed Milnor’s death. She would tell Vlerion in private, she decided, and let him inform Captain Targon and whoever else needed to know. At least, this time, she’d only been defending herself. Not that the authorities would deem that an acceptable reason for a commoner to kill a royal spymaster.

“I need to talk to Vlerion alone about it, please,” Kaylina said. “It touches on a private matter between us.”

“A matter of beastly importance?” Jankarr asked.

Vlerion gave him a sour look.

“Yes.” Kaylina didn’t see any point in denying that, not when the paper had shared almost everything.

“I’m glad I only recently found out about that,” Jankarr said.

“Because you would have been conflicted about sharing my secret with Spymaster Sabor?” Vlerion asked. “Or because you would have been scared to ride alone into the mountains with me?”

“Definitely the latter. Sabor, I assume, already knew.”

“He did. Kaylina isn’t afraid to ride off alone with me.”

“No, but she’s odd. As we established.” Jankarr gave her a friendly nod, a twinkle in his eyes making her inclined to accept the ribbing as a part of being a ranger rather than anything insulting.

In truth, having Jankarr teasing her again relieved her. He’d been so distant after she’d used her power to save him in the preserve.

“We specifically did not establish that,” Vlerion said.

“I established it. You objected.”

“As an aristocrat and your superior officer, my objection overrides anything you establish.” Vlerion pointed up the highway toward the top of the hill. “Go keep watch while we talk. Let me know if a fourth group of bounty hunters shows up.” After a pause, he added, “Please.”

Jankarr’s eyebrows flew up, and he looked at Kaylina.

“I taught him about how commoners like it when aristocrats say things like please and thank you to them,” she said.

“Interesting. How did you impart such a difficult -to-master lesson on a noble?” Jankarr asked.

Kaylina raised her sling.

“Ah, of course. If I had breasts, I might try a similar method on Vlerion, but I think the outcome would be different for me.”

“I can’t believe you think she’s the odd one,” Vlerion murmured.

Jankarr waved in what could have been agreement or parting and guided his taybarri to the high point to keep watch.

Vlerion slid off Crenoch and walked away from the highway—and the bounty hunters’ bodies. Though Kaylina wouldn’t have minded the taybarri listening to their conversation, she also dismounted and followed him through grass that had grown tall as the summer progressed. It swished against their thighs, and they stopped under a pine, water from the rain still dripping from its needles.

“There’s something I’d like to discuss with you, as well,” Vlerion said quietly, “but tell me about your night first, if you wish.”

A part of her wanted him to go first, to tell her about his night—and whether he’d stood atop a watchtower and contemplated jumping. But did it matter if he had? He was here, alive, and facing bounty hunters. If he’d wanted to die, he could have let one of them win. She frowned at the thought of riding over that crest in time to see him fall to an enemy’s blade, and was glad he hadn’t.

“It went that well?” Vlerion smiled slightly, though his eyes held worry as he watched her.

“It was… eventful. And I didn’t learn quite what I hoped to learn.” She hesitated, wondering how much she should tell. “I asked about your curse.”

For an instant, hope sparked in his eyes, but he must have guessed from her tone and expression that she hadn’t learned how to lift it.

“My father doesn’t know if he can alter it in any way, but he’s going to look into it. Apparently, instead of attacking friends and foes alike, the beast is supposed to be moved to specifically attack those who threaten the preserve. My father said that if someone else volunteers to… dedicate their life to guarding the preserve, your curse might not need to continue.”

“Someone else?”

Kaylina touched her chest. “Me.”