Naestra and Arahan, the Twilight Twins, are sent to the Gryphon Wood to head off an undead threat. But Drycha, Briarmaiden of Woe, rules here, and the Twins cannot let her know of their presence.
Bitter Spirits - One - Wild Animals
"Why can't we just use the Worldroots?" Arahan complained for the 10th time. "We'd be there already. Would have been there last week."
Naestra slowly consumed the remaining deer meat in her mouth, then looked up at Moorslieb "Drycha would skin us." This was the tenth time she had said this.
"She can't kill us for real," Arahan argued, sitting back against Ceithyn-Har's chest, his head rest on hers. It was late, and she got a bad feeling with evil moon in the sky. But she was unhappy.
Naestra tossed another chunk of meat to Gwyndalor, her eagle. He caught it in his beak, and offered some to Ceithyn-Har when the dragon politely inquired. "She could skin us both at once. You know that would kill us."
"I'm not afraid of an angry tree." Arahan touched her sword. "She should be afraid of us." She stared at her twin through the flickering campfire between them.
"Us, against a whole forest? I love you, Arahan, but you're the definition of reckless."
"I love you, Naestra, but you're the definition of caution."
"If you can't accept my tacticla reasoning, think of it politically. We can't just blunder into someone else's forest."
"Even if they hate us already?"
Gwyndalor screeched.
Ceithyn-Har hissed.
"You mustn't take that tone with my sister," Naestra scolded.
Gwyndalor lowered his head.
Arahan snorted. "Well, I'm off to patrol. Kurnous knows when some human will arrive and spoil things."
"You'd spoil things."
Arahan got to her feet and dusted herself off. "More fun that way. Come on, Ceithyn-Har. Let's see if there's any humans to hunt."
"Warning shot first!"
Arahan stalked away without answering.
Patrol was usually not very rewarding. But at least it got Arahan out of yet another unwinnable conversation with her twin. Kurnous knew she loved Naestra, but her sister was so unreasonable sometimes. Without the Worldroots, they wee reduced to flying all the way from AThel Loren to the edges of Gryphon Wood. So far, they'd made it to the southern part of Stirland, when night fell and it was time to make camp. It would have been far better to imply go there directly. But Ariel said they couldn't risk discovery, so they ahd to take the stealthier route. Ceithyn-Har notwithstanding.
At least Arahan had gotten to choose the camp location. A hill atop which they could observe far even when not flying, with a forest not too far away to ease her forest dwelling instincts.
A horn pierced the silence of the night. Arahan frowned. It wasn't an Asrai horn, and after a second she determined it wasn't Asur or Druchii either. It blew again, and Ceithyn-Har stopped, sniffing the air.
Arahan had her bow in ehr hands before she thought to do it, now recognising a Beastman horn. Beastmen! The Cloven Ones were sworn enemies of the Asrai. Her blood burned simply knowing they were there.
But why? They hated civilisation, even the nature-based kind the Asrai practiced, and this was nowhere near ahuman settlement. She dropped and pressed ehr ear to the ground. Vibrations. Pounding hooves. But moving away. She grit her teeth. They would not escape ehr now.
A small voice urged her to wake Naestra. That was rather the point of patrol. But after her argument, she wasn't in the mood.
"Come, Ceithyn-Har. Let us see these Beastmen for ourselves."
The dragon roared in agreement.
Arahan laughed. "Well, you were never going to eb able to sneak up on them, anyway." She began running. "Into the forest, now!"
With her dragon bounding beside her, the forest calling her to battle ahead, Arahan's heart was up. Battle soothed ehr like nothing else. Battle was what she lived for. Guardians of the forest - well, yes, but by battle.
The horn sounded again, further away. Arahan pikced up pace. What were the Cloven Ones so excited about? Perhaps a human convoy in the forest. Ripe pickings for a good ambush.
Arahan ran through the trees, Ceithyn-Har weavin gthrough them beside her, until they came upon a battle scene, or at least, what would have been a battle scene if the humans stood a chance. Things that looked like men what really weren't danced among the wreckage. Several humans lay dead, not all their parts accounted for.
In the centre, a carriage was broken. The largest Beastman pounded on the walls. A massive beast with a goat head, he growled and roared and screamed as the others danced about.
Arahan nocked an arrow, loosed. Nocked, loose. Thrice, before drawin gher sword and charging in.
Ceithyn-Har roared again, and grabbed a Beastmen apparently too frenzied to notice a dragon 'sneaking' up on him. He squeezed the beast to a pulp, then devoured the remains.
Arahan leaped onto the back of another Beastman, ramming ehr sword through his spine, then jumped off. Now a pair of the smaller ones faced her uncertainly, waving spears at her.
"Am I interrupting something? Terribly sorry," she said as she first chopped the spear ends off then chopped their heads off.
Ceithyn-Har smashed through a line of gors, and stood on a final one.
The largest gors - the Bestigors, - turned from their revelry and hefted their axes against Arahan.
For a second she wished Naestra were here, to share in this glorious moment.
Then the goat-head surprised ehr by speaking something resembling Reikspiel.
"Uncloven One. Die."
"Why did you both training your tongue?" Arahan asked, bracing.
The goat-head roared. "Clovens! Kill!"
The bestigors charged, and Ceithyn-Har breathed the noxious toxins Forest Dragons had replaced their fire breath with.
The ebstigors slowed, confused. Except the goat-head, who spat but continued.
Arahan met his axes, and danced. Parrry, cut, thrust. Jump. Dive. A flurry of moves the bestigor could barely keep up with.
Then a soft voice cut across the melee.
"How chivalrous of you."
Arahan glanced behind the goat-head to see a human woman had somehow extricated herself from the ruins of her carriage, wielding a sword. She grinned at Arahan. "I do appreciate assistance for a lady on such a night."
The goat-headed bestigor roared again, swinging for Arahan's head with his axe. Arahan dropped, and dived into him, slamming her head into his chest. He tumbled over, and flailed for a moment. In that moment, Arahan jumped up, brought her sword into a killing position, and ran the blade through his chest. The body went limp.
She looked up to see the other bestigors clutching themselves and collapsing, while the human woman kept her eyes on Arahan.
Ceithyn-Har looked at the bestigors with disappointment, prodding them in hopes of a reaction.
"Kurnous, Naestra's the diplomat," she muttered.
"Naestra, as in Naestra and - oh!" The woman curtsied. "Allow me to introduce myself. Catalina of Marienburg. I know this is on the other side of the Empire from there, but..."
Arahan recognised the Estalian accent. "Yes?"
"I have buisness interests here." She sheathed her sword. "I must thank you. I must say I owe you my life."
Arahan squirmed. She almost wished she'd been too late. She hated diplomacy. "I accept your gratitude. You cannot travel far without protection here. Shall I bring you to our camp?"
"You are camped nearby? Good." Catalina's eyes flashed. "I have always wanted to meet the immortal twins."
Ceithyn-Har beat his wings.
"And you and Gwyndalor, of course. How dashing of you, Ceithyn-Har."
Arahan felt her cheeks burn.
Bitter Spirits - One - Wild Animals
"Why can't we just use the Worldroots?" Arahan complained for the 10th time. "We'd be there already. Would have been there last week."
Naestra slowly consumed the remaining deer meat in her mouth, then looked up at Moorslieb "Drycha would skin us." This was the tenth time she had said this.
"She can't kill us for real," Arahan argued, sitting back against Ceithyn-Har's chest, his head rest on hers. It was late, and she got a bad feeling with evil moon in the sky. But she was unhappy.
Naestra tossed another chunk of meat to Gwyndalor, her eagle. He caught it in his beak, and offered some to Ceithyn-Har when the dragon politely inquired. "She could skin us both at once. You know that would kill us."
"I'm not afraid of an angry tree." Arahan touched her sword. "She should be afraid of us." She stared at her twin through the flickering campfire between them.
"Us, against a whole forest? I love you, Arahan, but you're the definition of reckless."
"I love you, Naestra, but you're the definition of caution."
"If you can't accept my tacticla reasoning, think of it politically. We can't just blunder into someone else's forest."
"Even if they hate us already?"
Gwyndalor screeched.
Ceithyn-Har hissed.
"You mustn't take that tone with my sister," Naestra scolded.
Gwyndalor lowered his head.
Arahan snorted. "Well, I'm off to patrol. Kurnous knows when some human will arrive and spoil things."
"You'd spoil things."
Arahan got to her feet and dusted herself off. "More fun that way. Come on, Ceithyn-Har. Let's see if there's any humans to hunt."
"Warning shot first!"
Arahan stalked away without answering.
Patrol was usually not very rewarding. But at least it got Arahan out of yet another unwinnable conversation with her twin. Kurnous knew she loved Naestra, but her sister was so unreasonable sometimes. Without the Worldroots, they wee reduced to flying all the way from AThel Loren to the edges of Gryphon Wood. So far, they'd made it to the southern part of Stirland, when night fell and it was time to make camp. It would have been far better to imply go there directly. But Ariel said they couldn't risk discovery, so they ahd to take the stealthier route. Ceithyn-Har notwithstanding.
At least Arahan had gotten to choose the camp location. A hill atop which they could observe far even when not flying, with a forest not too far away to ease her forest dwelling instincts.
A horn pierced the silence of the night. Arahan frowned. It wasn't an Asrai horn, and after a second she determined it wasn't Asur or Druchii either. It blew again, and Ceithyn-Har stopped, sniffing the air.
Arahan had her bow in ehr hands before she thought to do it, now recognising a Beastman horn. Beastmen! The Cloven Ones were sworn enemies of the Asrai. Her blood burned simply knowing they were there.
But why? They hated civilisation, even the nature-based kind the Asrai practiced, and this was nowhere near ahuman settlement. She dropped and pressed ehr ear to the ground. Vibrations. Pounding hooves. But moving away. She grit her teeth. They would not escape ehr now.
A small voice urged her to wake Naestra. That was rather the point of patrol. But after her argument, she wasn't in the mood.
"Come, Ceithyn-Har. Let us see these Beastmen for ourselves."
The dragon roared in agreement.
Arahan laughed. "Well, you were never going to eb able to sneak up on them, anyway." She began running. "Into the forest, now!"
With her dragon bounding beside her, the forest calling her to battle ahead, Arahan's heart was up. Battle soothed ehr like nothing else. Battle was what she lived for. Guardians of the forest - well, yes, but by battle.
The horn sounded again, further away. Arahan pikced up pace. What were the Cloven Ones so excited about? Perhaps a human convoy in the forest. Ripe pickings for a good ambush.
Arahan ran through the trees, Ceithyn-Har weavin gthrough them beside her, until they came upon a battle scene, or at least, what would have been a battle scene if the humans stood a chance. Things that looked like men what really weren't danced among the wreckage. Several humans lay dead, not all their parts accounted for.
In the centre, a carriage was broken. The largest Beastman pounded on the walls. A massive beast with a goat head, he growled and roared and screamed as the others danced about.
Arahan nocked an arrow, loosed. Nocked, loose. Thrice, before drawin gher sword and charging in.
Ceithyn-Har roared again, and grabbed a Beastmen apparently too frenzied to notice a dragon 'sneaking' up on him. He squeezed the beast to a pulp, then devoured the remains.
Arahan leaped onto the back of another Beastman, ramming ehr sword through his spine, then jumped off. Now a pair of the smaller ones faced her uncertainly, waving spears at her.
"Am I interrupting something? Terribly sorry," she said as she first chopped the spear ends off then chopped their heads off.
Ceithyn-Har smashed through a line of gors, and stood on a final one.
The largest gors - the Bestigors, - turned from their revelry and hefted their axes against Arahan.
For a second she wished Naestra were here, to share in this glorious moment.
Then the goat-head surprised ehr by speaking something resembling Reikspiel.
"Uncloven One. Die."
"Why did you both training your tongue?" Arahan asked, bracing.
The goat-head roared. "Clovens! Kill!"
The bestigors charged, and Ceithyn-Har breathed the noxious toxins Forest Dragons had replaced their fire breath with.
The ebstigors slowed, confused. Except the goat-head, who spat but continued.
Arahan met his axes, and danced. Parrry, cut, thrust. Jump. Dive. A flurry of moves the bestigor could barely keep up with.
Then a soft voice cut across the melee.
"How chivalrous of you."
Arahan glanced behind the goat-head to see a human woman had somehow extricated herself from the ruins of her carriage, wielding a sword. She grinned at Arahan. "I do appreciate assistance for a lady on such a night."
The goat-headed bestigor roared again, swinging for Arahan's head with his axe. Arahan dropped, and dived into him, slamming her head into his chest. He tumbled over, and flailed for a moment. In that moment, Arahan jumped up, brought her sword into a killing position, and ran the blade through his chest. The body went limp.
She looked up to see the other bestigors clutching themselves and collapsing, while the human woman kept her eyes on Arahan.
Ceithyn-Har looked at the bestigors with disappointment, prodding them in hopes of a reaction.
"Kurnous, Naestra's the diplomat," she muttered.
"Naestra, as in Naestra and - oh!" The woman curtsied. "Allow me to introduce myself. Catalina of Marienburg. I know this is on the other side of the Empire from there, but..."
Arahan recognised the Estalian accent. "Yes?"
"I have buisness interests here." She sheathed her sword. "I must thank you. I must say I owe you my life."
Arahan squirmed. She almost wished she'd been too late. She hated diplomacy. "I accept your gratitude. You cannot travel far without protection here. Shall I bring you to our camp?"
"You are camped nearby? Good." Catalina's eyes flashed. "I have always wanted to meet the immortal twins."
Ceithyn-Har beat his wings.
"And you and Gwyndalor, of course. How dashing of you, Ceithyn-Har."
Arahan felt her cheeks burn.
