The Tribes of K'haren - Completed

Chapter 21.2

As soon as Feyn had finished her report, everybody started talking all at once. It was complete chaos. Tired and bothered, Feyn sighed loudly. The others looked at her for a moment and went quiet.

'I think,' Feyn started once everybody shut their mouths. 'we should let them settle this on their own. The dragon is right, Phraio business is not our business.'

'It is to us!' Nume insisted, gesturing at Kran and herself. 'We can't let them kill each other just like that. Kran, you talked to Zurem, what did he tell you, why are they at war?'

'Well,' Kran hesitated and thought for a moment. 'There seemed to have been a minor dispute, usually, they would have glossed over it, but this time, the other tribe insisted on a duel, a fair way to settle it. It should have taken place between two of their best soldiers but somebody interrupted it and that sufficed to make the other tribe declare war. Despite it supposedly not being clear who interrupted the duel in the first place. But anyway, Zurem said his father had gone to the first battle with an offer of peace but since they were all slain, it had obviously been turned down. Zurem told me that the morning before we had arrived, a scout had returned, bringing the news of the defeat and another army being sent to a certain place. But I made him promise me not to go, to stay and only defend the people he still had. If it is true and you have indeed seen two armies, that means he lied to me.' Kran concluded, looking at Feyn.

'Of course it's true, I can count, you know.' She said, rolling her eyes.

'I should have known, we could have stopped him.' Kran whispered.

'We still can.' Nume insisted. 'There must be a way. Feyn, how far away was that?'

'Too far for your Gseirut to reach before nightfall.'

'What about Bay then?' Raf inquired.

'The Baymout? Well, these beasts are faster than me, so she should be able to make it...' Feyn said, fearing they were actually going to try. If they were, she would have to go with them and her wings might just fall off.

'Then let us not lose any more time. Tarlequin, are you with us? We might need somebody to calm the soldiers down, there's no point in us going just so we can watch.' Nume said. The Faun looked at her out of tired eyes. He hesitated for just a brief moment, but then he nodded.

'So we're all going then.' Raf stated.

Before they could leave, Raf handed one of his daggers to Nume and one to Kran.

'Just in case.' He said. Kran took it quietly but Nume wasn't happy about it, though a short argument settled it, it was too dangerous to join a battlefield without any weapons.

Then Raf helped them climb onto Bay's back while the Baymout didn't look too pleased with it. Just before he could climb up himself, he suddenly felt something cold touch his hand. Looking down, he saw the young boy. Raf didn't understand how he had managed to sneak away from the women so he looked around just to see the same boy still sitting motionlessly on a cart nearby.

'How...?' Raf muttered, looking back at the boy still standing next to him.

'What's going on?' Nume asked, but he ignored her.

'She's coming for you.' The boy's voice calmly stated. It sent shivers down Raf's spine.

'Who is?' he asked, but the boy didn't answer, he just stared up at him. 'Who's coming for me?'

'The queen of the night.' The boy replied. His touch still felt cold on Raf's hand but when the boy started smiling, it went so cold it burnt a mark into Raf's scaled skin. Yet he couldn't withdraw his hand, he was captured by the boy's gaze.