The Land of Green and Gold Part II: Silence

Chapter 28: Rising Tensions

The Moonlight Band Elder were quiet the following morning as Griffin gathered them before him.

"I'm hungry. Can we eat yet?" Griffin heard Cyanus whine to Gilda.

The old naiad shook her head. "Not yet, dearie. Be patient."

Griffin cleared his throat. "First things first, we are going to start rationing out food. We were supposed to have enough to last us until we reached Highdale, but at the rate we're going, we will run out before then. Ash will divide what we have left and will further split each divided portion into smaller bits for each day. The rationing will be added onto my rules, so if you argue against it or attempt to take more than your share, you will be punished." Griffin paused to let this sink in, then continued. "Speaking of the rules, Mac and Cold have not yet been briefed. Sir, I would like you to take charge of that immediately after this meeting."

The sylph nodded. "I would be honored."

"Good. Now, onto the last thing." Griffin sought out Jolt, his gaze hardening. "One of my rules is not to leave the camp after dark without my permission. This is to keep you safe from humans and Elder like Feral."

"Feral's dead and we can easily beat up any humans," Jolt argued.

"Feral may be dead, but there are other threats out there. One of them being an unstable spriggan known as the Unbound Elder."

Pounce frowned. "Wait—isn't he a good guy?"

Griffin shook his head. "He's unpredictable and dangerous. The unbound Elder is not to be trusted."

"And you know this how?" Jolt challenged.

Griffin ignored the phoenix. "Returning back to my rules, Jolt, you directly disobeyed me and snuck out last night. Your punishment will be to create the tent every day, starting today."

"What!" Jolt cried out, lip curling in anger. "Are you serious?!? I'll be using up all my magic if I have to do that every day. I won't have anything left!"

"You should have thought of that before disobeying me."

Jolt glared at his leader, hatred burning in his eyes. "Says the one who doesn't even obey his own rules."

Griffin held back a snarl and bared his teeth. "And now you will also be guarding the prisoner every day and will be the last to eat. Would you like me to keep going?"

The phoenix looked furious but snapped his mouth shut, choosing instead to continue glaring.

Griffin returned his attention to the rest of his band. "That'll be it for now. Go see Ash for your morning portions and then begin packing up camp. We will leave for High dale as soon as everyone is ready."

The Elder quickly dispersed and Griffin made to leave as well, but then suddenly a hand grabbed his arm and yanked him back around.

"I thought we were going to have a discussion!" Jolt hissed, his grip tightening around the spriggan's arm.

Griffin resisted the urge to pull away, though he was keenly aware of the heat emanating from the phoenix's palm. "First, take your hand off me."

Jolt let go and crossed his arms, waiting for a reply.

"Second, you're behind. We just had a talk."

"That—" Jolt stabbed a finger at the dimpled sand where everyone had been standing, "—was NOT a discussion. That was you flaunting your rules and pretending to be Oh So Mighty."

Griffin clenched his fists, feeling the magic inside him gathering swiftly, as though eager for a summons to attack. The spriggan sucked in a deep breath, conscious that some of the other Elder were watching.

I can't attack one of my own followers.

"Jolt, I already told you that my rules are to keep you safe. And believe it or not, those were also Wolf's rules. I merely adopted them as my own."

The phoenix rolled his eyes. "How dumb do you think I am? Wolf's rules? Yeah, right. That lie might work with the others, but I won't fall for it."

"It's no lie!" Griffin gritted his teeth. "You know what? That's it. If you hate my rules so much, then leave. Find some other band that will meet your expectations."

Jolt hesitated, the fire in his eyes dimming as he gazed over his shoulder at Starlight.

Griffin smirked. "Huh. So that's what's tying you down."

Jolt rounded on his leader, snarling. "You leave her out of this."

"I'll do what I want. And it's pathetic, really, that you can't leave without her." A warning pulse surged in his gut, but Griffin ignored it, too angry to stop. "Does she even like you? She seems to pay more attention to me than her old friend, after all."

Before Griffin even had a chance to react, Jolt stepped forward and grabbed the neckline of his tunic, grasping the emerald cloth so tight that Griffin could barely breathe.

"I would let go if I were you," Griffin ordered quietly, struggling to stay calm despite the tightness around his neck and the blood pounding in his ears.

He glanced over at Starlight and Jolt followed his gaze to see that the pretty sylph had stopped working and was watching them. Jolt released his hold and stiffly backed away.

Griffin smoothed out the front of his tunic. "Now get back to work. Do that again and I will kick you out."

"Whatever you say, leader." Jolt shot Griffin one last glare then stalked over to Starlight.

Griffin sighed, suddenly feeling drained.

"You okay?" Fern walked over and hand him his morning portion. "Eat. You'll feel better."

Griffin accepted the food and sat down in the sand.

"So I take it the talk didn't go too well?"

Griffin rolled his eyes. "That's an understatement. He just won't listen to reason, Fern!"

The dryad shrugged uncomfortably. "Well, you two didn't exactly get off on the right foot when you met. It'll take some time before he sees eye to eye with you."

Griffin snorted. "You mean it'll take an eternity."

"You just need to give him some time. You'll see!"

Griffin shook his head. "Fern, I know you mean well, but not everybody can change." The spriggan finished the last of his breakfast and stood up. "Let's help finish packing. We need to get to Highdale as soon as possible now that we're low on food."

Fern nodded and quietly followed him over to the others.

***

Hey guys, sorry this is a bit short! College is starting up soon and I'm having some issues with this semester's schedule. Feel free to comment and vote and as always, keep writing :)