Blood of Azura

Part XXIII

She managed to retain the minimal contents of her stomach on the short journey to the seat of the Leoth council, though the soaring twists and drops of the beast they rode made it a difficult task.  She was certain she would never get used to the sensation of flight, of being so far above solid ground, of being surrounded by nothing but air and weightlessness. The Leothine were clearly build from a far sturdier constitution.

When she felt the beast begin to slow, and heard the great wings beat at a much calmer pace, she dared to lift her head and open her eyes.  She gasped aloud at the sight spreading out before her.  Perched high upon a levelled section of a large clifftop, was the largest statue she had ever seen. A man, a warrior, with his arms outstretched and his head slung back, roaring in agony. In one hand he held a sword, in the other: a circular shield.  Unimaginable pain. His body screamed it. His expression screamed it.  Carved into the stone of his cheek, in his eyes, on his open mouth - Pain. A talented sculptor had envisioned this - superior even to the sculptor who'd created the statues in the Goddess' Temple. Many many hands had sculpted it to life. It was exquisite. Heartbreaking. It imbued a deep sadness into her that she could neither prevent nor contain. Was it Leoth himself?

The beast they rode scooped around in a wide arc to prepare its descent so that the statue disappeared out of view. They came in to land on a wide circular platform which jutted out from the cliff itself, large enough to hold a few hundred Leoth and their Varveh

The group of around twenty Leoth swung around its radius, landing one by one, each beast running off the flight left in them before trotting to a stop in a tight line which arced out to face a large set of stone gates.  As the beast she rode touched down, her mind and body settled little, though she could not ignore the heavy dredge of fear which lingered in the pit of her stomach. What would happen to her now? What new fate awaited her now? Leoth was an unpredictable and secretive realm.  There was no guessing what they might do with a foreign royal.  Would they see her as Azurian or Calatian? How did she see herself? Which would keep her alive longest? 

When the Varveh had come to land, rearing her great hooves against the smooth marble plain of the forecourt, her Leoth charge unlaced herself from the saddle and slipped down from it, before moving to unharness Fara. She watched with an odd kind of envy at the authority and power that seemed to emanate from her as she called upon her men to move into position.  Theodan, a  distance from her across the space, unsaddled himself and climbed down from his Varveh whispering a few words of comfort to the beast before his head turned to seek Fara out across the platform. Giving her a small nod, he then turned to face the Leoth woman, the arrogant fearless stance he normally wore settling across his large form.  She saw something unspoken pass between them, something silent and warm before the Leoth councillor moved to stand between them. 

Proud and fearless, his stare was unflinching as it settled upon the councillor, Theodan said a few words in Leoth that she could not hear across the distance, and the Councillor smiled in response. His head moved with a soft shake before he lifted his nose in the air and strode past Theodan towards the great stone doors, which began to open as he approached. The soldiers began to march in formation behind the councillor, enclosing Theodan exactly as they had done in the air.