Page 8 of The Warlord’s Princess (Warlords of Tempest #3)

RAMSEY

We form two parties, one going east inland, the other west inland. Fiona and Araelya join us, and I decide not to go with them, as they would only remind me of the Little Vaeyark invading my hut.

Knowing the Veriskans have been traveling further out onto the island has me on edge, but they dare not come within two days of the village, as it would risk their numbers thinning ever more than they could bear.

Caen, Haelden, Gaerth, and I stalk the forest, locating a bruntler den quickly, and move to surround it.

Bruntlers are not the largest beast in the forest, but they are hearty and most delicious when smoked, feeding us for many days whereas an endergulf’s meat is not only lean, but it is not long lasting.

The best we could hope to stumble across is a terragulf, that is several times as large as a bruntler, with enough meat to feed the entire tribe for several passing moons.

Still, a bruntler found so early in the day is nothing to complain about.

Haelden and Gaerth flank the cave, while Caen stands behind a tree, bow in hand. I stand opposite him, readying my axe.

It is Gaerth who makes the call, cupping his hands and blowing into them to make the correct pitch to rouse the beast.

After a few blows, a deep growl erupts from the cave, followed by a stomping sound. I ready myself, gripping my axe and holding my position as the others do the same.

Bruntlers may not be as large as a terragulf, but they are twice as ornery, and one should never let their guard down against such a foe.

The beast erupts from the cave, his tusked face thrown back as it unleashes its battle cry.

Haelden and Gaerth charge forward with spears, spearing its flank and driving the beast forward, further away from the cave.

Caen unleashes an arrow, drawing the beast’s attention toward him while I charge its shoulder with my axe.

While the bruntler is dangerous, it lacks the shredding claws of a vensar and the intelligence of an endergulf, so the greatest risk when it is in peril is that it will trample you.

My blow lands near its mark, but it halts at the bone plates that shield it just beneath the surface of their flesh. Haelden and Gaerth stab the beast again, angling their jabs to hit between the internal plates as Caen shoots it three more times.

Furious, it turns towards me, lunging forward.

I sidestep, swinging the axe at its jaw.

We spin a deadly dance, four against one, refusing to relent for even a moment until the beast falls.

Caen brings a horn up to his lips and signals to the other party, so they can help take it apart.

Typically, each party manages its own kills, but it is not often we take down a bruntler, and with its bone plates, it can be hard to cut down, and if we are not quick enough, the mean could sour.

A short time later, Fiona, Araelya, Elric, and Eddard join us.

“You need to slice between the plates,” Elric tells the Penticari women. He points to a spot and Fiona hacks at it with an axe, but it is clear her weak muscles were not made for such labor.

Because they are lessers and made only to ready the land for those better…

As large pieces are hacked away, others haul them to the village, so that they might be made into a stew or jerked.

Elric has Araelya start a fire, so we can cook the most sensitive pieces that are quick to spoil, and I see that, despite her weak form, Araelya’s skills have improved.

Sometimes I wonder if she and her people are capable of more than I realize.

Elric squats beside the Penticari to place some sticks and I see them exchange furtive looks, for few of the women come close to being worthy of a mate, and she is one of them.

Dread grows through me like ivy, though I do not know why. I should not want these women—they lack honor. They are weak, tire easily, and must depend on others.

I had thought that maybe there were a few worthy of our help. Nori, Meg, and Araelya perhaps, but all three are being courted, leaving the rest of us with crumbs.

If only I had brought Amber back immediately, then things could be different. I would not have weak Asha living in my hut, and I could have courted someone properly, as the women demand.

I think back to Asha and her toiling. How her entire life now revolves around her weaves, which need not exist at all.

Everything about her infuriates me, from her soft voice to her smell—her scent that permeates everything.

I could smell her beneath the soap she used, an odor primal and heady that makes my head spin. I could hardly sleep, it was so powerful, and my mind went to places it should not have.

Fiona is stronger than most of the others, her copper hair a shade lighter than Araelya’s, making it look like pure sunlight in the morning.

But for some unknown reason, she does not interest me.

Again, my mind returns to the Little Vaeyark and her weaves. Her limbs thin, frail-looking; eyes, much too large for her head.

Despite her slight form, she saved our mission, for without her ability to navigate through the walls of The Tomb, we would have never been able to fix the terraformer.

And her tribe would still be out at the caves and on the shore, waiting for certain death to claim them.

Still, that does not make her strong.

After we have finished carving the bruntler, I rest on a log, watching the growing fire. Eddard sits next to me.

“How does it feel to be back?”

I suck in a breath, remembering how Asha called me emotional.

Eddard throws a leaf into the fire. “I know you mislike having Asha in your hut, but she is doing good for her people.”

I snort derisively.

“With the bruntler’s meat, we should have food for days. Mayhap we can build a workspace for her, so she no longer has to stay in your hut?”

A flicker of rage burns in my chest, though I do not know why it should.

“It would be a good lesson for the women that desire to build their own spaces.”

“She is fine where she is,” I snap, knowing it would displease Grixis, and for good reason.

I may mislike being made an example to the tribes, but if we are to truly join, everyone must see that even the most outspoken against the Penticari, me, is capable of working with them.

And I owe it to them for their help with the terraformer.

He gives me a look that nearly makes me bark, but before I can say anything, Fiona hands me a leaf full of meat.

“I heard Amber giving you trouble yesterday,” Elric says to Gaerth.

“She thinks she is too good to tan the hides,” Gaerth grumbles.

Elric smirks. “Whoever courts her is going to have their hands full.”

Caen, who does not hide his disdain for the Penticari women, snorts derisively. “I thought that would be you, and that she would come back from her walk around the island with a round belly.”

All eyes train on me, expecting me to elaborate.

I frown, refusing to let them know I had wanted that too.

My mind wanders back to a time I try to forget. When my honor was intact and I held the Great Princess Kasmina’s attention.

My entire life, I thought myself better, looking down on the men raised in the barracks for when you are born to a queen, the rules do not apply to you.

But now I know the truth of it, for if I had been sent to the barracks, as most other boys were, I may not have been exiled.

While men are always held accountable when a woman’s womb does not quicken, they very rarely suffer my fate. Typically, it is used as an excuse while the true reason for exile remains hidden.

I know much and more about the inner workings of Tempest that the other men do not, because of my proximity to true power. But I do not share my knowledge, as it would not honor Tempest.

Sometimes I wonder if there was another reason I was sent away, but that is something I care not to think about.

We finish eating and begin our walk back to the village, going at a hastened pace.

Eddard comes alongside me, bidding me to slow.

“What do you want?”

He looks around to make sure no one else is listening. “Tomorrow, at first light, we will meet with Grixis to send Brock and Haelden to scout the Veriskan-infested areas.”

“Will there be no one searching close to the village?”

“Since the Penticari joined us, Grixis has sent men as far as three days out to look for signs of them, and so far, there has been none save the body of Annelo, which was not recently placed. Fenrick and Ulof scout now, and all appears quiet.”

I nod, and when we head back into the village, I go to see Grixis.

He looks up at me with a worry-lined face.

“I hear you took down a bruntler.”

“It was hearty, and should last a few days.”

“Still, we need to hunt more with all the extra mouths.”

Cutting through the idle chatter, I say, “I hear you are sending scouts out tomorrow morning to search where I came from.”

“Yes. I was hoping you could meet with them beforehand in The Tomb and tell them where you encountered the Veriskans.”

“Perhaps I should instead go and lead them there myself.”

He shakes his head. “I need you here.”

“I do not wish to be here if it means sharing my hut with a lesser, and this is the perfect excuse for me to leave.”

Grixis sighs. “Asha is doing important work for our tribes.”

“Then let her do it elsewhere.”

“Have you so quickly forgotten what she has done for us? If not for her, The Tomb would be lost, along with any hope of restoring our honor.”

“You said goodbye to your honor the moment you?—”

“Guard your tongue,” Grixis growls, his biceps flexing.

I know I have gone too far.

“In the future, I will keep such thoughts to myself.”

“The tribe is tense.”

“Have they grown disenchanted with the Penticari?” I say smugly.

“No, not at all, though a few are still stubborn toward them.”

“Enough chatter. Why must I stay?”

“I have seen you make hard decisions and know you can be trusted.”

“I can do that scouting for Veriskans!”

Grixis’s jaw tics. “I need you to give the women a chance.”

“Have I not done so already? I was at the shore, same as you. It was I who suggested we get Elena to help us fix The Tomb. And who trekked through the woods in search of Obnoxious Amber? I did.”

“You have done all of those things, and yet, I must ask more of you.”

“What more could you possibly ask?”

“You must dull your edge.”

“Dull my edge?”

“Show the others that even if you have no love for the Penticari, you can still coexist with them, and what better way to do that than with Asha? I understand why you feel the way you do about her, but look inward, see strength where you thought there was none.”

“What if I am right and there is no strength in that one?”

“She alone was the only one who could fix the terraformer, and we cannot tell the future, and if we will need small Asha again.”

I growl in dismay. “This would be a lot easier if she did not exist in my hut! She can go to the longhouse with the rest of them.”

“She is staying with you, and you are staying in the village, and that is final, as it is best for everyone.”

“No, it is best for you and Elena,” I snarl.

Before he can reply, I storm from his tent, across the village, to my hut, furious that he would demand that I stay with Asha when I could be scouting the woods.