Raven's Will

13. To Bait the Fox

"Indeed," said the large Elder. His expression was neutral, showing none of his thoughts. "The relationship with Raven is of no importance. What matters is he holds Ra'Skevvor's interest. That is something we can use."

One of the other Elder's, who sat at the far end, coughed lightly. This one appeared to be frail and thin to the point of being nearly skeletal. His head had lost all hair long ago, resulting into in a bald, egg-shaped head that appeared too large for his thin frame. Unsettling pale blue eyes opened, shifting towards the large Elder.

"You intend to bait the fox," he rasped. Even his voice sounded weak. But only a fool would be mislead, for his pale gaze was icy clear.

The large Elder bared his teeth in a brief, humorless smile. "Perhaps, Helios. But before we can create a trap, we need have absolute certainty that our young traitor holds value as bait."

The skeletal Elder, Helios, merely harrumphed in reply. He then leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes. To everyone's eyes, he appeared completely motionless, like he was asleep. Or dead.

Gray grimaced. Dealing with these old guys was never pleasant. Every time he came away from a meeting with them, he always felt like he dove into a slimy pool of filth. And right now was no exception. They may appear old and harmless - maybe even senile - but he knew better.

"You want us to try and capture him again?" He asked. Maybe the Kairg would interfere once more.

"No." The large Elder immediately said. "Your part is done, Talon Gray. You, along with Lante of the Twelve, will report to the Front. Kairg war machines have been moving towards nearby cities. As our only remaining Talon, you are needed to bolster our defenses."

Gray opened his mouth to protest, but caught it at the last second. He wanted to say that his duty should be with tracking down Jett, because wasn't it the Talon's responsibility to deal with a Talon traitor? That was how it always had been. The flyer guilds looked after their own. Always.

Almost as if reading his thoughts, the large Elder simply looked at him. The Elder's expression remained as bland as ever, with not even a shadow or hint of change. Yet Gray suddenly got the impression that he was standing on a pile of hot coals. Only a simple breeze was needed to fan those coals into a raging inferno. And this Elder was holding that breeze within the palm of his hand.

To protest, would be incomparably unwise. It would also be a lot more trouble than it was worth. Gray sighed, giving in. "All right. I'll leave Jett to you. But he's not going to be easy to catch, you know. Don't forget that he was trained by Raven."

A smile that was not a smile spread on that bland face. The large Elder acknowledged Gray's words. "We are aware, Talon Gray. Now, you may go. Lante is already on his way to the Front; he will inform you on the situation once you arrive."

Gray knew a dismissal when he saw one. Even though he felt mostly relieved to leave this problem in another's hands, a small part of him still felt anxious. When he stepped out of the tent, he wore a frown.

Flyers had gathered in the nearby area, clearly trying to learn what was happening. After all, it was an extremely rare occasion for a Troit flyer to go rogue. Before Jett, the last one to turn traitor was none other than Ra'Skevvor himself.

As Gray emerged, he was instantly swarmed by curious flyers. Before they could even start to ask him about the Elder's decision, his frown became a dark glare. "Shut up!" he snarled, even though no one actually had said anything yet.

The two nearest flyers got shoved to the side as Gray swept through. The rest had enough brains to quickly get out of his way. Even the dumbest among them knew that an angry Gray was a dangerous Gray.