Page 27 of Flameborne: Chosen

The men huffed and nodded and grumbled, but there were no further protests. I stood, intending to go back to the stables and see if the servants had brought her clothing before I met with the Wing Leaders. But Feroz, my mentor, and predecessor as Commander—though he’d been retired over a decade—ambled casually to my side as the others readied to leave.

“A woman Flameborne,” he muttered. I didn’t miss the glint in his eye that spoke of at least a measure of amusement. “Glad it didn’t happen under my watch.”

I snorted. “I’m sure you are. Don’t get too comfortable though. Remember, if I’m killed, your my ranked successor.”

Feroz suddenly clutched his back and pretended to be injured, though the man still walked as straight as me. “I will inform the King of my aged decline and make certain he appoints a new successor immediately.” When I rolled my eyes, he smiled and straightened, but didn’t move away, and didn’t speak, just eyed the other men as they gathered their things and left in ones and twos. Clearly, he wanted to speak without an audience.

When the door closed behind the last of the Lieutenants, I turned to him with brows high in question.

“You need to call for Accord,” he said without preamble.

I frowned. “This isn’t a formal—”

“Trust me, Donavyn. The girl is a novelty, a stress, and arevolution.This ispreciselythe kind of sliver that seems like little more than an annoyance—until the day it festers and suddenly infection rides your blood, and parts of the body that weren’t even touched grow ill.” He shook his head, his expression grim. “A woman among the Furyknights? I never thought I’d see the day.”

“She’s only Flameborne. She still has to pass the trials. And while I’d love to see her do that, you and I both know the chances are miniscule.”

“And yet, it could take months for her to fail—and in the meantime, everything you’ve built, everything you have to be proud of, could be pulled down around you.”

Feroz wasn’t generally a dramatic man. I arched one brow. “One girl, Sir? You believe my entire legacy could be affected byonegirl?”

“Not affected, Donavyn—destroyed.”

“That seems a bit over—”

“Not because she’s bad, or because she fails. But because her presence will challenge every boundary of discipline and ambition we’ve established in centuries of the Furyknight training. Why do we keep femaleservants purely to the kitchens and Threadhall? Why do we not hire female staff to teach the histories, or strategy?”

“Because they’re a distraction,” I growled.

Feroz nodded. “And now you won’t just have a distraction along the edges. She’ll be right in their midst. With no other females to be seen. Every instinct these men have, every sense we’re beating into them, will be heightened by her—the desire to protect, the desire to compete, the desire toprove themselves.Unless unity and discipline are established from this moment, her mere presence will erode all of it with time.”

I blew out a breath. I wasn’t sure it was as dire as he described, but he was a wise and experienced man. I couldn’t deny that the potential was there for Bren to cause great disruption.

“I can’t remove her from the ranks—not until she disqualifies herself.”

“No, you can’t,” he agreed. “Which is why, when she’s acknowledged, when her squad is identified, when the rules to govern them around her are outlined, youmustpresent a united front. The Officersmustfind Accord—and the ranksmustsee it. You can leave no room for questions in their minds that some of them may have more access to her, or that breaking small rules would be overlooked. Theymustbe certain that their adherence to this new landscape iscrucialand upheld by every powerful man in the Furyknights.”

I sighed. “You’re right. I’ll speak to the others tonight when they bring me their suggestions for rules. We’ll make certain when she’s acknowledged, we announce that we’re in Accord.”

“Mont will be a problem,” he said.

“I know.”

“And you can’t let the Wing Leaders fight for or against her—you need to identify the strongest of the squads, the most experienced. Those with the most integrity and self-discipline.”

I frowned. “She’s an untried Flameborne on a too-young dragon. We can’t throw her in with the most skilled. She’ll never keep up.”

“You need a brotherhood around her who are mature enough to make judgment calls—their assessments of her will determine the path of her training. Put her among boys and she’ll not only be scrambling, but likely pregnant within the year.”

Our eyes locked.

“I’ll think on it,” I said.

Feroz nodded, but then his lips pulled up on one side. “Better think fast. It’s time for your next meeting.”

I turned quickly to look at the clock and cursed. If I didn’t hurry, I’d be late.

Bidding Feroz farewell, I stormed out of the room, my heels ringing on the floor as I called for Kgosi.