Disclaimer: I do not own Fire Emblem or anything associated with it.
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Last time on Blue Wolf…
"...Khimari…I agree to the terms of your compromise," the Dragon King relented, surprising everyone in the room. "Understand that this is the only exception that I will make."
"I most definitely do," the wolf nodded.
"...Ena! Nasir!" the dragon called out. "Please supply the Laguz Alliance with meat, water and other necessities for their journey home. Follow Khimari with them to the entrance of the caverns of the wolf tribe. Tell Gareth, Kurthnaga and Aenir to assist you if necessary."
"Yes, Your Majesty!" the two dragons said before bowing out of the room.
"What…" Khimari breathed, not expecting that at all. Well, none of them were, to be honest. Skrimir, Reyson and Ike looked gobsmacked, more or less, while Tibarn and Ranulf were looking around in honest confusion trying to understand what in the world just happened.
"This is only because of your actions, Prince Khimari. Do not overextend my gratitude." Without another word, the black dragon exited the room, leaving the small delegation by themselves.
"...Grakhamsa (thank you)," the wolf said quietly in the ancient language before turning to the rest of them. "…Come on. Follow me, everyone," Khimari said. Everyone else, too tired to even try and completely contemplate the events that just transpired, followed the Hatarian without any complaint towards the mountains of the wolf tribe.
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After the audience with King Deghinsea, Khimari silently led the Laguz Alliance along with Ena, Nasir, Kurthnaga and Gareth until they reached a lone cavern passageway. Although no one said anything to the wolf, everyone had a myriad of questions to ask him. For the moment, they merely counted their luck that the dragon king had a change of heart and even gifted them with supplies for the journey back home, which proved to be A LOT of things. The donation from the Goldoans was enough to last for many days, even after they returned back to Gallia.
"...Here we are," Nasir said when they arrived. "I'll leave the rest of the way up to you, Khimari."
"...Thank you, Nasir. Tell Deghinsea I said the same, and that I'll be back soon," the wolf returned, attracting some strange stares. He really didn't care much, since the secret regarding him and Goldoa was clearly out of the bag now. Once again, the only thing awaiting him was a long and drawn-out discussion that would prove to get on his nerves.
"It's the least we could do," the white dragon responded. "I will pass along the message as well. I pray for your safety." With that, he and Gareth turned around and began walking back, only to realize that Ena and Kurthnaga stayed by Khimari. "Ena? Prince Kurthnaga?"
"...We will remain with Prince Khimari yet a while longer," the dragon prince answered. "I assure you all that I will return by midnight at the latest."
"...As you wish, Prince Kurthnaga," Gareth replied, before bowing and leaving.
"Hey, wait up!" Ike called, running up to Nasir. Although he was curious, Khimari gave it no mind and returned his focus back to Skrimir and Tibarn, who walked right behind him as he led the army up to the mountains.
"Come on. Don't make too much noise and make sure not to walk carefully. It might get a little slippery further up," the wolf said before entering the cave with Ena and Kurthnaga at his side.
"...Khimari, is everything all right?" the black dragon asked when they were more or less out of ear shot walking along the cavern entrance. "You seem much…quieter than usual."
"Just thinking about things…You know how my funks work by now, Kurthnaga."
"Have you spoken with Almedha as of recently? How does my sister fare?"
"She's fine, more or less," the wolf shrugged. "Still a crazy drama queen, but what should I have expected? Insanity never could be fixed in a day."
"Khimari…"
"I know, I know. She's been through a lot compared to the rest of us," the wolf sighed. "At least she can sleep a little easier with some of her daddy issues resolved. She and your father spoke a little while ago, according to him."
"Really? Then she may return with Pelleas…"
"Not quite, but I'll tell you later," Khimari started. "That's a story for a time when there isn't a half-dead army behind us."
"I…see…" At that point, they arrived first at the mass expanse that served to be the ancestral home of the wolf tribe that used to inhabit Tellius. Soon after, the front lines of the army were able to witness this for themselves.
"Wow…This is really something!" Janaff cawed in astonishment.
"The injured can go to the nursery room over there," Khimari pointed, wasting no time to watch them gush over his tribe's homeland. "The rest of you can set up here and the big cavern ahead. I'll take you through the entrance to Gallia tomorrow morning."
"...Okay, Khimari," Ranulf responded, getting over himself first. "Skrimir? Did you hear him?"
"...Yes. Soldiers of the Laguz Alliance! We will rest here tonight." After his order, the many Laguz started to unpack camp, happy to finally have a place to sleep without worry of pursuit.
By that time, Ike had already returned from his short conversation with Nasir and Gareth and returned to see all of the efforts going on. "Ah, there you are!" Looking to the right, the Beorc saw Ranulf walking towards him.
"Has Skrimir decided to stop here for the night?"
"Yeah, Khimari's treat, apparently," the cat shrugged.
"So this is where the wolf tribe used to live? …No wonder they kept to themselves. This place can easily fit the Laguz Army three times over."
"True, but we're only given access to this cave as well as the two large ones adjacent to it. A few tigers and hawks tried to explore the whole cave system, but Khimari almost killed them."
"Seriously? That seems a little extreme," Ike noted. "Then again, he definitely knows more than we do about this place."
"The Wolf Prince seems to know a lot more about what's going on with everything, and I for one am sick of having to guess in the dark about what it is," another voice introduced. The two blue-haired people shifted slightly as Tibarn, followed by Reyson and Skrimir, entered the conversation. "This entire thing is fishy."
"How could the wolves have hidden something so amazingly large? The cave system may run through the entirety of Tellius!" the heron said incredulously.
"Yes, this would make an amazing pathway for ent-"
"That's not going to happen." Surprised, everyone turned to see Khimari himself walking up to the group. "My tribe's homeland will not become another war checkpoint, Skrimir."
"With all due respect, Khimari," Ike started, careful of how he treaded with his brother about the topic of his tribe. "If you told us about this path earlier, we could've avoided the Kauku Caves entirely."
"...And Begnion would've chased us through here, as well," Khimari said after a moment's pause. "If we were completely safe from them in the caves to start with, my tribe would still be living here. The reason we don't have to worry is because no one from Begnion's Army knows about the entrance through Serenes Forest. They only knew where to attack because they followed one of the wolves here way back then. I won't allow that to happen again."
"But Khimari," Reyson interjected. "Surely you recognize how much this would benefit the Laguz Alliance!"
"I don't care, Reyson," the wolf prince denied. "The only reason you all are even hereis because I didn't want to have you go back through the caves like Deghinsea ordered. The home of my tribe is neutral territory, and you all are passing through this time only. My ancestors will not get involved with another needless battle, whether directly or indirectly. That is my final answer on this matter." Without waiting on another response, the wolf turned and went over to help Mordecai, Brom and Nephenee with camp preparations.
"...Touchy," Ranulf muttered. "Sorry about that. I had no idea he'd get all hot and bothered."
"Someone needs to get him set straight," Tibarn grunted. "That wolf is out of control."
"King Tibarn, please try to understand-"
"Look Ranulf, you and that mate of yours clearly haven't had much luck keeping him in check," the Hawk King cut off. "The next time he mouths off to me, he'll get a proper lesson in respect." With that, the green hawk left to get some rest, followed by the heron prince.
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A little while later…
"So…Pelleas isn't her son?" Kurthnaga repeated in disbelief. After the little…discussion with Tibarn, Reyson and Skrimir, Khimari went off to check on the dragon prince, who stayed in another more secluded room far off from the army. Ena left shortly after helping to deliver the supplies, leaving the black dragon as the only one who had to return to Goldoa.
The two just finished having a discussion about Khimari's suspicion regarding Pelleas and his now sure hunch about him not actually being Queen Almedha's son. "He can't be," the wolf said. "Nothing lines up about him. He's not a Branded and he doesn't have much in common with her or Ashnard. Even if his mark didn't show up, he would've had something more characteristic of either one of them."
"I see…But…If not Pelleas, then who would her son be?"
"...Ironically, Soren, the tactician that works with Ike is most likely. Earlier today is pretty much a confirmation of that, too."
"How so?"
"When I came to talk to your father during the audience he had with Tibarn and the others, he looked directly at Soren. He even asked him for his name. I'll ask him about it later, but I think he recognized that Soren was descended from him."
"Hm…"
"Well, and in the looks department," Khimari continued. "He actually looks a lot like you in some aspects." This surprised the Goldoan prince greatly.
"Really?"
"Yeah, especially the face and the hair. That was what made me first suspect it in the first place, honestly," the wolf admitted. "Would you like to meet him before you go? I'm sure I can wiggle him away from his tent for a little while."
"...No need. I can go to him alongside you." Now it was Khimari's turn to be shocked, as he simply stared at his Goldoan friend with a surprised expression.
"You? Go through the whole army camp? Are you sure?"
"...Yes. If he really is my nephew, I shouldn't be scared to meet him."
"...Well, alrighty then. But kill the nephew talk, will you? We look the same age and I don't need any more reminders about how you're two hundred years older than me." At that, Kurthnaga gave a small but genuine chuckle.
"I will do my best to refrain from giving you such reminders."
"Thank you very kindly!" the wolf smiled, before getting up. Helping Kurthnaga up from the stone he was sitting on, the two friends trekked through the cave on the way to go see Soren. Along their way there, a comfortable silence settled between the two, who had long grown to become great friends. "Alright, here's the camp. Stay close to me so you don't get lost," Khimari warned, looking back at Kurthnaga. The dragon prince nodded affirmatively and stuck close to the Hatarian as he weaved through the camp. The two caught a couple strange stares from some of the Laguz that hadn't crashed asleep yet, but the trip to the wind sage's tent had proved completely calm and steady.
"...Are you ready?" Khimari asked. Kurthnaga closed his eyes for a moment, most likely in deep thought about what could soon happen. For a moment, the wolf honestly thought that the black dragon would refuse, but he soon nodded his affirmation to the question he was asked. "Okay, I'll let him know and come back to get you in a moment."
After another nod from Kurthnaga, Khimari quietly entered the tent to see Soren reading a book about strategies in chess while a small map of Tellius sat on the floor. "Soren," the wolf quietly called, getting his attention.
Upon seeing the wolf, the sage relaxed a lot, though tiredness still remained plenty obvious in his movements. "Khimari? How can I help you?"
"You look tired. Sorry for making you come with me to Castle Goldoa. I know it may have been taxing on you."
"That has already passed, Khimari. You should know I am not one to dwell on such small things."
"Well….About that…It might not have been such a small thing. I have someone here who wants to speak to you, if that's okay." The tactician's face took on a quizzical expression. "I know it's definitely strange, but I'd rather you not go through…Forget about that, do you want to see him or not?" As stupid as the wolf though it was for Soren to put up emotional barriers around him, he found it completely ironic that he just did the exact same thing to Soren in that moment. But, unknown to most, the topic of who Khimari's father was eluded him for most of his life and kept him up many nights. Until he met Ranulf, the lack of knowledge about half of his family utterly drove him crazy, and his case was nowhere near as extreme as Soren, who didn't know his mother or father's identity.
"...I'll meet with whoever it is, but we will discuss this after the guest has departed," Soren agreed. Nodding with a small smile, Khimari momentarily turned back to guide Kurthnaga into the tent. As the three sat down, the wolf noted immediately that his hunch was more than likely the truth of the situation.
As it were, Soren and Kurthnaga looked exactly the same with their neutral expressions. Their dark-green hair nearly matched, with the branded's being maybe one or two shades darker and their skin both possessed the same complexion more or less (being a bookworm didn't exactly give one a tan). "...H-Hello," Kurthnaga started, obviously nervous. "My name is…Kurthnaga."
"The prince of Goldoa, correct? What business would you have with me?"
"I…Well, when I heard that maybe my sister's son survived, I couldn't help but come see for myself." Immediately, Soren's expression straightened and his focus on Kurthnaga intensified greatly. "...I can see it. You must be the one."
"...I never met my parents, nor do I have information of their identity," Soren quickly said, though his heart started to beat even faster.
"That would make sense, I suppose," Kurthnaga sighed. "I am sorry, but I really must ask you; when you met Father today, how did it feel?"
"...It felt…familiar," Soren revealed, answering honestly. Although he could start to see the direction of the conversation, something in his head couldn't quite comprehend what was going on right now. "What are you trying to tell me?"
"I think…No, I know that we are family." Kurthnaga's statement cut right to Soren, who gasped at the word that had escaped his grasp for so long. For a long time, the sage sat quietly as his inner mind utterly shattered from what the dragon said to him.
He had a family? The one who was rejected by everyone? The outcast that had no place in anyone's world, whether it was with the Beorc or Laguz?
"...Kurthnaga, I think Soren needs some time," Khimari quietly muttered, scooting closer to the sage. "I'll talk to you soon. Meet here again in three days?"
"...Yes. That will suffice." With the next meeting established, the dragon prince turned back to his nephew with a calm and soft expression. "It was nice meeting you, Soren. I hope that we can talk again soon." At once, Khimari began to rise before Kurthnaga stopped him with a sign of his hand. "I can make it back to Goldoa by myself. Do not trouble yourself more than you already have."
"...If you say so. Good night, Kurthnaga." As soon as the dragon prince left the tent, Khimari turned to Soren, who had tears leaking through his eyes as he tried to maintain that same emotionless face that he became so well known for. "Soren…I'm sorry for hurting you, but…" The wolf sighed before continuing. "I didn't want you to go on forever wondering about your fam-"
The Hatarian found himself punched in the face by the sage, bringing him back to a familiar scene three years ago in the meeting tent the day before Ashnard's death. "I'm not crying…I'm not…" Without hesitation, Khimari hugged Soren tightly, refusing to let go as the sage finally let himself cry freely on the wolf's shoulder.
"It's okay, Soren. I'm here for you."
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The next morning…
Early into the morning, Ike woke up from an uneasy sleep inside his tent. Thinking about everything that has been going on for the last couple of weeks, the mercenary general sighed as he sat up and scratched his hair. Getting his sword and sheathing it, Ike left his tent to see Khimari and Soren walking through the quiet caves by themselves. As soon as he exited, the wolf's ear twitched and the two were alerted to his presence. His brother motioned for him to come over with a quick wave of the hand, which he followed.
"Good morning," Ike said evenly. "How are you doing?"
"We're fine," Khimari answered, though he looked at Soren again, making the Beorc the slightest bit suspicious that he missed something. "I'm taking a small walk and I told Soren to come with me."
"A small walk, eh? Where are you going?" another voice entered. Looking around, they found the source of the voice to be Tibarn, who already was awake and Reyson, who stuck by his side like usual.
"...Come on. I'll just show you," the wolf said. His expression had a sad undertone to it that could be felt by everyone in the small group. Without another word, the prankster led everyone away from where the Laguz Alliance stayed, taking them to another small set of caves that led to a hillside with little vegetation. "...We're here," he answered after taking a heavy gulp.
"...What is here?"
"...All of them. My tribe," Khimari answered, causing the whole group to share a look with each other.
"W-What? Your entire tribe?" Reyson said incredulously.
"Every victim of Begnion's terror. I spent a lot of time over the last three years making sure they all were able to have a final resting place. I came to say hello to them before we left for Castle Gallia."
"...Would you like to be alone, Khimari? I can tell how much it hurts to show this to us," Reyson asked.
"...Thank you, Reyson. I'll be back soon to take the army to the Gallian entrance of the caves." With a quick exchange of goodbyes, the heron took his leave of the wolf prince, followed by the hawk king, who said nothing. Even if he didn't have a particularly fond opinion of the wolves as a tribe, he still knew better than to desecrate the burial grounds of an entire people with wrongful actions or words.
"We'll get going, too…" Ike said, turning around to give his brother some space.
"I'll stay a little longer," Soren informed his commander, surprising both of the brothers to varying degrees.
"...Soren? …Alright, if that's what you want. I'll see you both when it's time to head out." Leaving the two by themselves, Ike walked back to camp, heading over to Titania, who was already working with Boyd, Mist and Oscar to help clean the camp. "Good morning. How is everyone doing?"
"Oh, Ike! There you are," Mist said. "It's so cooold up here! I felt like my legs would freeze last night!" The comment brought a smile to her brother's face; count on Mist to complain about anything while packing up to go somewhere.
"We're in a mountain, Mist. I wouldn't bet on it being extremely hot or humid," Ike responded, going over to help with the effort. "Besides, the ones who lived here had plenty of fur to keep them warm."
"I wish! Soren hogged Khimari last night so I couldn't do anything!" the teenager huffed, to Ike's amusement and interest.
"Soren, huh? Who would think he would use Khimari's fur like Mist and Rikari to get a good night's sleep?"
"I remember a certain someone trying to make a pillow out of his shedding fur once upon a time," Titania mentioned, making Ike go slightly red in the face as the others laughed at his predicament.
"...That was a long time ago."
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"Are we all ready?" Khimari asked before the rest of the Laguz Alliance. As the army woke up, they quickly were able to consume some of the supplies given by Goldoa and now the army, although still filled with wounded soldiers, seemed to have much more energy than before on account of being better rested and well-fed.
"Yes. Lead the way, Prince Khimari," Skrimir confirmed, being much more respectful than usual. The wolf genuinely didn't know if that was because they were at his ancestors' territory or the fact that he threatened to rip all of the lion's teeth out to prove his point about how serious he was about them being in the cave only this time.
Meh, Skrimir obeyed housekeeping rules so whatever he said doesn't have to be fulfilled. "Come on, everyone. Stay close and be careful; we'll have to travel through some snow for this one." Paying attention to the wolf, the group followed him closely as he led the army through the mountains that his people called home. After about an hour and a half, give or take a few minutes, Khimari transformed right before walking outside one of the caves into a small snowstorm.
"Ummm…Khimari! No offense, but our fur isn't as thick as yours," Ranulf called. It was true and it showed; many of the Laguz were shivering and none of them weren't even outside the cave yet. The wolf paused for the slightest time, before giving a nonchalant grunt to his father and continuing to walk.
"More walking, less complaining. It'll get warmer when we go into the lower caves." Truthfully, Khimari felt bad for taking them the long way to Gallian territory, but he absolutely refused to show them the direct route to his tribe because he didn't entirely trust all of them not to try and reuse the entrance for their own purposes.
"I'm n-n-never going up here ag-g-gain!" Janaff cawed. The poor hawk was nearly freezing and chittering, much like a lot of the Laguz Alliance Army.
"Hmph. This territory is treacherous," Tibarn agreed. "No wonder we never found the wolves' hideout before. They are the only ones who could survive this environment." Not that the green hawk would admit it, but these temperatures combined with the snowfall made it nearly unbearable even for him.
"Glad you know. Come on." Despite everyone else's freezing state, Khimari spared no one a break and walked at a steady pace along the freezing mountainside. Keeping up with the wolf was difficult as his entire pelt became just as white as the snow around them and the only way the Laguz could be sure they were in the right direction were the occasional howls given by the wolf.
Before long, they entered another cave that was hidden behind a deceptively small wall of snow and continued their trek back to Gallia. "F-F-Finally…Less snow…" Ike said. Admittedly, he thought he was really close to a case of frostbite after all that time out there.
"You okay, Ike?" the wolf asked in concern. "We're about to enter Gallia." Fortunately for the army, the wolf meant what he said as the cave quickly started to warm as they walked. Before long, the front of the Army saw an exit that showed a large mass of tropical trees and deep undergrowth under a bright and shining sun, signifying that it was the peak of the daytime.
"Ah, at last! We have again touched Gallian soil!" Skrimir exclaimed in relief and genuine happiness. "Come, my brothers! We must push on until the very end!" Motivated by their general's optimism as well as the familiarity of their homeland, the Laguz Army began to move even faster, despite the multitude of injuries sustained among the hundreds of soldiers. Picking up the slack, Khimari showed his support by sticking close to his father the entire time, silently letting the cat use him for support.
"We're almost there…You've made it this far," the wolf quietly encouraged, doing his best to keep his father's spirits alive. "You can do it, Dad. You and everyone else here."
"...Thanks, Khimari. Why can't you be this supportive all the time?" the cat asked wistfully, looking up to look at the sky above the dense Gallian canopy. Although the sun was still strong, one could tell by its position that the celestial body would soon be setting.
"Well…You would probably be robbed of the full parenting experience if I didn't make you want to rip your hair out sometimes," his son joked, letting out a small croon. The blue cat only gave out a wistful hum at the comment, finding it preferable to saying something else. Accepting it, Khimari let out a deep breath of contentment. Despite the precarious situation of the overall world, he found himself looking at the positive side of his life at the moment.
He was back in a (relatively) safe environment, his family survived heavy conflict and they were all about to be together again, Volug notwithstanding. '...Stay safe, uncle,' the wolf thought to himself as he walked among the Gallians and Phoenicians back to Zarzi where the great Castle Gallia overlooked the seemingly endless ocean of trees. After nearly losing the brown wolf to his own weakness, Khimari found himself filled with a sense of doubt about how he was going about things.
Without meaning to, he dragged others into danger that they weren't equipped for. '...This has to be my fight,' he determined in his head, thinking about everything that led up to their current solemn march back to the castle. He agreed to stay in the kingdom (temporarily), and gave faith to everyone that he knew with the small but resilient hope that they'd all come back in one piece and stronger than how they left. Not only did it not happen like that, but Kilvas ended up betraying them and the war itself only managed to expand to include Daein, now leaving only Crimea and Goldoa neutral in the conflict.
The wolf personally doubted that Crimea could stay neutral for long, considering that Begnion was tracking them all the way to the border and would likely try and strong-arm the country he grew up in on Tellius to get them to support the empire instead of their allied nation, Gallia. Whatever the way they went about it, Queen Elincia would have to choose a side sooner or later, with the same result; a war just as big as the Mad King's War three years ago.
"...mari? Khimari, are you listening?" A second later, he was lightly shaken by Ranulf, who still used his son's support to walk easier in his tiredness.
"Hm? Oh, sorry for spacing out, Dad. Did something happen?" the wolf quietly responded.
"I said that the first thing you should do when we get in the palace is to find Nailah and bring her to the throne room if she isn't in there already," his father said. "The sooner we can get everyone together the better we can sort this mess out."
"Ah, I understand…Dad?" Khimari called, attracting the cat's full attention.
"Yeah?"
"...Never mind," the wolf stopped with a huff. Things were gonna get worse before they got better.
…A lot worse. And Khimari wasn't quite sure that things would get better in this case.
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A short while later…
"Get everyone some care! Distribute some of the supplies among all of the men and set up a smaller version of camp so we can focus on treating the heavily wounded," Tibarn called out. The Laguz Alliance officially arrived at Castle Gallia a short while ago, and wasted no time in quickly organizing an entire system for the exhausted army to get the most optimal and efficient care possible as soon as possible.
"We'll help make sure it gets done," Ike nodded, before turning to his company's tactician. "Soren, how much do we have left?"
"...Still a generous amount," the sage answered after closing his eyes for a moment. "We can give out healthy portions of supplies today and then stockpile the rest to better manage what we work with, but this will last us another week and a half, most likely."
"That much? …The old lizard turned out to be good for something, after all," King Phoenicis muttered before turning to the main group. "Ike…Khimari. We need to meet with Skrimir, Ranulf and King Gallia. Come on to the throne room."
"Alright," Ike agreed. The wolf only nodded as he gave out a quick bunch of supplies to Nephenee and Kyza to help distribute to the greater army. The group of four, including Prince Reyson, then made their way through the expansive castle to the room where the beast king resided. When they arrived, they met the faces of King Caineghis, Giffca, Nailah, Rafiel and Leanne, along with Skrimir and Ranulf who ascended earlier to the room that overlooked the forested kingdom.
"You have all returned," King Gallia said as his gaze swept over all of the people that entered the room. Eventually when it settled on Khimari, the lion paused for a moment with an expression that held some disappointment, making the wolf sigh in shame. "Do you need rest before we begin to summarize the effort?"
"No, King Gallia. I believe that this conversation has been long past due," Tibarn rejected, looking pointedly at Nailah. Seeing the anger in the hawk's expression towards his mother, Khimari couldn't control the rising hair on his tail as he quickly took deep breaths to calm himself. Ranulf, who also saw the look, took a closer couple of steps towards his mate who stood next to the herons with a neutral face.
"Is that so? Then we shall begin with haste," Caineghis replied. "What has become of the Laguz Alliance and what is Begnion's status?"
"...I failed, your Majesty," Skrimir began, getting on one knee with his head down. "Because of my mistake of taking on an opponent too powerful, we found ourselves defeated and humiliated by Begnion's Army."
"...Skrimir," the lion's uncle boomed. "Rise. You have delivered your army home in one piece. We will discuss this later. King Tibarn? I see King Kilvas is not with you…"
"Kilvas betrayed us," the hawk simply said. "They went behind our backs and told Begnion about our plans to raid their supply camps. Then they attacked us while the empire laid waste to Phoenicis."
"Hmm…" King Caineghis had a serious look on his face as he processed everything that Tibarn was telling him.
"We rejoined with Skrimir and the Gallians before crossing the Ribahn. After taking Castle Seliora, we couldn't continue after his incapacitation and Ranulf helped lead the rally home," he continued. "We barely managed to escape the Kauku Caves with our skin and ended up in Goldoa of all places."
"What!? You went through the Kauku Caves and ended up in Goldoa?" the king shouted, not expecting to hear that. In that moment, Gallia's ruler saw how desperate the army must have been to escape Begnion's might. "...I imagine King Deghinsea was not pleased."
"Heh…He was exactly how I thought he would be, at first," Tibarn said mirthlessly. "But he ended up giving us much needed supplies that are being used by the army as we speak. The supply was huge."
Somehow, Kinga Gallia's expression became even more surprising than it already was. "King Goldoa gave aid to the Laguz Alliance? …Forgive me, but I cannot help but find that a hard swallow."
"Hmph. Ask this one," the hawk directed, pointing his head towards Khimari. "He's the one who convinced the lizard to let us through Goldoa and guided us back here through the land of the wolves." This time, both Nailah and Caineghis registered shock in their expressions. "Khimari here has the most explaining to do out of everyone here, I would say." King Phoenicis then went over to the wolf before pushing him forward, in front of everyone gathered in the room. "You. Speak."
"Tibarn…" Nailah growled, instantly taking a dislike to her son's treatment. "Watch yourself."
"Watch your son properly, then. I'm sick of his running around. You and this kid have more secrets between the two of you than every other person on this side of Tellius. It's about time you came clean with everything you've been up to."
"...I already told you, Mom has nothing to do with what I did," Khimari calmly stated, coming to the wolf queen's defense. "Please, don't bring her in this."
"I don't believe you. All you wolves are too cunning and conniving for your own good. Now, you are going to speak and then we're going to lock you up somewhere right where you can stay out of messing with everyone's affairs."
"King Tibarn, desist!" King Caineghis intervened, seeing that both Khimari and Nailah were close to bursting at the Hawk King. "I would have Khimari explain his actions as of late before we speak of the appropriate consequences." The hawk grunted in displeasure before walking to take Reyson's side with his arms crossed.
"...The reason I left Gallia was to do a mission," Khimari began after a long pause. "During that mission, I ended up criss-crossing Daein and Begnion several times."
"What was your mission, Prince Khimari?"
"I…" The wolf stopped for a moment, looking up as he thought about the best way to go about telling this to everyone. He then shook his head as a small frown adorned his face. "For lack of better word, I was a spy."
The reaction throughout the room was instantaneous. Reyson's head snapped back with shock, Tibarn's glare became even more menacing and all three lions in the room had widened eyes along with Ike. "A spy!?" Caineghis roared. "For whom?"
"...Goldoa." Again, everyone except Queen Nailah recoiled in utter shock at the wolf's words. "Before I even went to Begnion with the other messengers, I contacted King Deghinsea with the hope of maybe getting him to moderate talks between Begnion and the Laguz. He then charged me with keeping him up to date on the events going on around the continent."
"I…see…How did you maintain communication?" the lion king asked. Without any hesitation, Khimari reached into his pouch and pulled out his dark green sending stone he received directly from the king of dragons.
"This is a sending stone. It is used to communicate over long distances through telepathic means. We wolves, like herons, have the power to feel those close to us over long distances," Khimari revealed. "When the moon is full, I could use this to communicate across Tellius, no matter where I ended up. Through that same connection, I felt when Dad was knocked unconscious and went straight to the Laguz Alliance camp, which hadn't crossed the river quite yet at that point." At that, Nailah's head snapped over to her mate, giving him a piercing stare that promised a stern talk would soon occur. Ranulf kept his stare directly on his son, though he quietly gulped when he felt the shift in the white wolf's composure.
"After checking on the army's status, I went to Daein to check on my uncle, Volug. That was when I found out that Daein agreed to Begnion's request to attack the Laguz Alliance. After interrogating Daein's king, I found the Daein Army and momentarily fought with them to ensure the safety of Volug and a few other people. After Skrimir and Tibarn successfully led the army across the river, I joined with the Laguz Alliance up to our return today."
"..." After listening to the wolf's recollection of events from his point of view, King Gallia sat on his throne with a face of heavy contemplation. At that moment, Tibarn took the silence to begin his own line of questioning.
"How did you and King Deghinsea begin this dialogue in the first place?" the hawk interrogated, rounding on the young wolf. "You said you went to him directly after Rafiel told all of us about the Senate's involvement in the Serenes Massacre–which you wolves apparently already knew about."
"Correct," Khimari answered, shifting his eyes to look the green hawk directly in the face. "King Deghinsea is a friend, as well as Prince Kurthnaga."
"...A friend? Do you expect me to believe that?"
"Don't let the blood get to your head too quickly, King Phoenicis," Nailah cut in. "While we lived in Kucha, our ancestral home, we wolves had some communication, albeit limited, with Goldoa."
"This is surprising to hear, Queen Nailah," King Caineghis said.
"We were two tribes of people in isolation; As Khimari already showed, our home has access to Goldoa as well as Gallia. It's not such a stirring thought as it may seem."
"So, that old lizard hasn't been the only one trying to control all of us for centuries," Tibarn put in. "It all makes sense now. You wolves were the attack dogs for Goldoa this whole time."
Immediately, both wolves in the room had their hackles raised at the hawk king's comment. "Hey! We're not anyone's dogs! Nor do we care about controlling anyone!"
"Again with the baseless accusations, King Tibarn," Nailah sighed, walking up from her space near the herons. "How many times do I have to tell you that your claims are simple falsehoods?"
"They clearly aren't; in fact, they seem to be more valid than ever now. This hellish hound has been running around Tellius doing goddess knows what for who knows how long while you seem to not be surprised at a single thing that he does." Tibarn noted. Although the hawk tried to hide it, the continued stresses he dealt with continued to leak out as he took his wrath out on the wolves. "Just like Gallia, Phoenicis was split apart because of your tribe and we almost never recovered as a nation! You can't defend your clan of murderers, no matter how hard you try."
"You will not call my tribe murderers," Nailah snarled, her anger reaching a peak with the hawk in front of her. "I offered to explain everything on multiple occasions, and you denied every single time. Now you offend my tribe and prosecute my son. You have overstepped your boundaries, Tibarn."
"You never learned yours. But I'd be happy to teach you," Tibarn said, stepping menacingly towards the wolf queen.
In the heat of the moment, Khimari rushed to his mom's side, putting space in between her and Tibarn. "You will not touch my mom," he snarled, glaring at Tibarn through slitted eyes.
"Hmph," the hawk scoffed. "You think you can stop me? Step aside." With the intent of facing the wolf queen directly, Tibarn forcefully grabbed the upper part of Khimari's left arm and tried to move him.
…Except that the stress of the moment combined with the force applied to the injection site cause Khimari to struggle back with narrowed eyes. In a matter of a few seconds, Khimari began to growl uncontrollably at Tibarn while starting to crouch as if he were transformed.
"...Oh no," Ranulf breathed as soon as he recognized where this was going. "Ike, help me stop him!" Before the two could try and snap the wolf out of his relapse, Nailah jumped in front of both of them. "Nailah!"
"Khimari!" she yowled, grabbing him and hugging him closely. "Calm down. It's oka-Ahh!" she yowled as she was bitten on the shoulder by her own son.
"LET ME GO!" he cried out in pure terror, pushing and writhing like a chained animal. Even still, his mother refused to let go while Ranulf ran to the two of them.
"Khimari, you're not in the tower anymore!" the cat screamed as he helped restrain the wolf. Even with the two of them, Ranulf couldn't stay safe and also received a bite to his arm from the blue wolf.
"Khimari…Please come back to me," Hatari's queen pleaded in her son's ear. Slowly, the wolf stopped his writhing, panting heavily as his whole body trembled uncontrollably.
"...Khimari?" Ike called, walking closer to the three beast Laguz.
"Help," the wolf cried out with a look of total pain and scorching agony all over his face. It seemed that he didn't see anyone else in the room and was talking to the air around them, staring up towards the sky. "...Anyone…please. I don't want to be a Feral…" The words said by Khimari put everyone on edge.
"Shh…It's okay," Nailah soothed. "You won't become a Feral One. Nor will you be in that tower ever again." Without missing a beat, the wolf queen turned to the herons. "Can you please put him to sleep, Rafiel? He's not snapping out as easily as before."
"Yes, my Queen." With Reyson's help, the eldest heron calmed the wolf to sleep with a song. After a few moments, the blue wolf was breathing steadily in Nailah's arms while Ranulf got up with a sigh.
"...What was that?" King Caineghis asked simply. Everyone, even Tibarn, seemed to be shaken up about the situation. Even though the situation had again escalated between the wolves and the hawk king, the lion had stayed silent to let the conflict play out naturally instead of intervening like the other times. However, the direction that it took had everyone at a loss for words.
"That was one of Khimari's relapses, Your Majesty," Ranulf sighed as he turned to the king. "See, he was experimented on by Daein in the Mad King's War and was drugged with the medicine that turned Laguz into Feral Ones, who were created to be Ashnard's killing machines at the cost of their sanity and lifespan. Even after Reyson and Leanne helped heal the worst of his condition with the galdr of release, he still has some moments where…well, that happens."
"...I see…"
"King Gallia…I believe that I should take my leave of the room at the moment," Nailah spoke as she tried to lift her son up. "We can continue this…conversation in the morning." As she spoke, the white wolf glared at Tibarn with such hatred and disdain that Ranulf was honestly surprised that he didn't turn to stone.
"That would be best. The strife of war has strained the limits of everyone's patience," King Gallia noted. "You all need some rest before we discuss further contingency plans against Begnion's inevitable counterattack. Take due care." With that, he, Giffca and Skrimir all left the throne room, leaving the herons, the wolves, Ranulf, Tibarn and Ike alone.
"Nailah…Let me take him to a room," the cat sighed, trying to be as gentle as possible.
"I'll help," Ike volunteered, coming forward. With a quick thank you from the cat, the two helped heft the wolf out of the room, followed closely by Nailah. After they left, Tibarn did nothing but stare and sigh at the mess that just happened.
"Damn…"
XXXXX
"I won't be leaving him tonight," Nailah said resolutely, looking at Khimari's sleeping form. He and Ike had just laid the blue wolf in bed, where he lay with a content expression. "I can't believe it happened again…"
"Again? You've seen it before, Nailah?" her mate asked, not aware of this. It did make sense, though; she jumped right into the situation before he or Ike could try and snap the young wolf out of his manic episode.
"Yes. The first and only time I've seen such an event out of him was in Daein," she began as she began to lightly stroke Khimari's head. "One of his friends, Maurim, I believe, was fed the same drug that they forced on Khimari without anyone's knowledge. He began to have anger outbursts and transform uncontrollably, but Rafiel was able to cure him with the galdr of rebirth."
"Even then, Khimari stayed crouched in the corner, baring his fangs at all of us like we were enemies…I grabbed him like before and spoke to him until he snapped out of it, but…"
"Don't think about it too much," the cat soothed, rubbing the queen's shoulders in a comforting manner. "He'll be pranking you as soon as he wakes up." Even though Ranulf was shaken by the situation, he still took the role of being as supportive and optimistic as possible. "...Ike? You want me to show you where the rest of the Greil Mercenaries are?"
"...Yes, please. I'll come check on Khimari in the morning as well," the Beorc added. With a nod, Ranulf gave Nailah a quick encouraging kiss before leaving the two Hatarians alone in the room.
"Haaahh…" Ranulf breathed as he and Ike walked down the large castle en route to the mercenary's resting place. "This is a mess."
"That's an understatement," Ike bluntly noted. "What will you do tomorrow, Ranulf?"
"We'll have to continue our meeting first thing in the morning to make plans for Begnion's attack," the cat started. "Skrimir's still in a funk about his loss against Zelgius, though he won't admit it, and you've already seen how messed up Khimari's head is at the moment. I definitely do not look forward to the conflict resolution Nailah and Tibarn are going to have the next time they see each other."
"You can handle it," Ike encouraged, giving the cat a pat to the back. "I'll make sure Titania and Soren are present tomorrow morning. I assume that Tibarn will be checking the status of the troops' recovery?"
"Yeah, I'll go ask him…When you visit tomorrow, be careful," Ranulf warned. "Wolves are highly territorial about their own, so make sure you are as non-threatening to Nailah as possible. She's usually highly composed and patient, but I can tell she's close to snapping."
"I'll keep that in mind," Ike simply said as the two arrived at where he would be staying. The Beorc instantly had an internal sigh of dejection, knowing exactly what Ranulf was talking about from firsthand experience of Khimari's overly overprotective attitude towards him or others when he deemed it necessary. "Good night, Ranulf."
"Good night."
XXXXX
Early next morning…
With another sleepless night behind him, Ranulf dragged himself out of bed as he immediately went to go check on Nailah and Khimari. The small crescent moon began to show itself after the passing of the new moon, though dawn would soon be approaching. Walking down the silent halls of Castle Gallia, the cat silently opened the door to see Nailah, now transformed, sleeping protectively with Khimari resting next to her. As he peered inside, the white wolf's head would turn towards the doorway, showing that she was awake. "Nailah…you need to sleep." In response, the Gallian received a dismissive grunt and a roll of the wolf's head. "Yeah, you know I could hardly sleep, either. But I still want you to look out for yourself, okay? I'm about to go take a quick survey around the army and make sure all is well before the war meeting. Need any rabbits to eat?"
Nailah huffed in laughter, making the cat smile ever so slightly. "Be right back." Closing the door, Ranulf walked the hallways towards the exit of the castle. To accommodate everyone, tents were still put out as the soldiers rested and gave each other aid. As the cat walked around the grounds, he was pleased to see that the overall status of the soldiers' health seemed to be improving. They looked like they rested easier, many were bandaged up and on the way to a full recovery. The smell of vulneraries, concoctions and everything else weighed heavily in the air, almost to the point where Ranulf's nose felt overwhelmed by the smell of herbs.
"Everything seems to be going well over here," the Gallian determined after walking around most of the campgrounds. As he prepared to leave the general area to hunt game for Nailah and Khimari, a voice called out to him.
"Ranulf, hold on." The blue Laguz turned around to see Tibarn walking over to him. Not sure exactly how this incoming talk would go, he merely turned his head to the side as a signal for the hawk king to start the conversation. "...I'm sorry about last night. I didn't mean to lose my cool like that. How's the kid?"
"Khimari? He's resting…He'll probably be messed up in the head for a few more days, though. That's how they always go," the cat sighed. "I'm not the one to apologize to, though," he continued with a knowing look. "You're about to have quite the challenge getting things right with those two."
"Yeah, Reyson and Leanne already chewed me out about that," Tibarn huffed. "When can I speak to them?"
"No time soon," Ranulf said, shaking his head. "When Khimari wakes up, he'll be beyond angry, and Nailah already wants to rip your head off for what happened to him. At most, I can talk to Khimari by himself and convince him to hear you out, but only after his head gets out of that tower."
"Looks like I have some work cut out for me…Thanks for helping me on this, Ranulf. It looks like this'll have to be done with the utmost care."
"Hm," the Gallian snorted. "There's a reason I made sure the two of them were never angry at the same time. I don't have any plans to pry in hawk and wolf affairs, but the outlook on that front doesn't bode well for you."
"Hmph. Now you're Soren or something?" At that, Ranulf gave a small chuckle upon realizing that the comment was reminiscent of something the wind mage would say. "I'll keep my distance for now, but I'm never one to shy away from what I have to do or fix."
"Best of luck with that," the cat muttered before parting with the king of Phoenicis. While he wasn't angry at Tibarn for what happened, per se, he was more than irritated with the continuous digs at his family that the hawk made throughout the war effort. With a huff, the cat gathered strength to transform and bounded out in the forest to find food for the two wolves.
XXXXX
A little while later…
"I think this is the room…" Ike said to himself as he stood outside a door in Castle Gallia. Ranulf told him a little while ago right at dawn that he could go visit his brother, who had since woken up from last night's events. Now, he and Mist decided to pay a visit before the former went to the throne room to finish the war briefing that was sidetracked the day before.
"Well, knock on it!" Mist quietly pushed, rolling her eyes.
"Fine, fine. Remember not to be too forward, Mist. We haven't met his mom yet," the mercenary commander warned, remembering the advice Ranulf gave him last night about Nailah, their brother's biological mother. Knocking, the two waited for a moment before a soft bark answered. After the two Beorc shared a look with each other, Ike shrugged and opened the door to see a blue and white wolf laying on a bed right next to each other.
"Good morning, Khimari!" Mist greeted, coming forward only to be stopped by a growl from the white wolf. Before Ike could pull the cleric back, Khimari crooned, licking his mother's fur to calm her down. After a moment, the white wolf seemed to understand and let the fur on her back relax. The two then transformed into their two-legged forms, sitting on the bed.
"Hey, Mist!" Khimari returned, standing up and coming over to give the girl a hug. The warm smile on his face almost made Ike forget about the wolf's episode last night. "What brings you here?"
"I haven't been able to talk to you in forever!" the cleric huffed. "We've been running ragged because of Ike here and I couldn't even send a letter during our last mission. Even when you ended up in camp, everything was so busy that I couldn't get a word in!"
"You know Ike can be a little scatterbrained sometimes," the wolf eased, to the mercenary's chagrin. "It takes him extra time to think of that stuff."
"Hey! I'm right here," Ike complained. "But, besides that. How are you feeling? I know-"
"The whole army's recovering, Ike," Khimari interrupted, looking his adopted brother directly in the eyes. "You don't have to worry about me. I'm fine." In response, the Beorc nodded slowly upon understanding exactly why Khimari didn't want the topic being introduced at the current moment. "Ike, Mist, have you met my mom yet?" he redirected, stepping back a little bit to show Nailah's form, who stayed quietly in the room during the interaction.
"Hm? Oh, no! I am so sorry!" Mist exclaimed in horror. "Please forgive me, Your Majesty! I was too excited to see Khimari again," she explained, giving a small bow to the wolf queen that Ike repeated in tow, albeit much more awkwardly than his little sister.
Hatari's queen only laughed at the two, lightly moving her hair back as she got a better look at them. "It is of no consequence…You are the Beorc that took Khimari in as a child, correct?"
"Well…our parents did," Ike explained. "Someone brought him to my father after he was found unconscious and he was brought back to health. After that, he just stayed with us in Crimea."
"In any case, your family has my eternal gratitude for taking care of my little prankster. Do your parents still reside in Crimea? I should thank them personally." The atmosphere took a noticeable dive after the question, with the three young adults in the room sharing looks with each other.
"Our…parents are dead," Ike revealed, making the wolf queen's eyes wide with surprise.
"Please excuse me for my ill-timed question. I know that it must have been rough for you…" Rising from the bed, the white wolf lightly touched Mist's hair with her finger as she smiled lightly. "I'm sorry."
"N-No, don't worry about it, Queen…Hatari?" Mist replied, cocking her head sideways. "You didn't know."
"I like her," the wolf said aloud to her son, who grunted in good-nature at the comment. "She has that special spark, too. A lot like Rikari."
"Joa? Ilhicia! (Yo do? Awesome!)" Khimari replied, leaving the two Beorc completely out of the loop.
"...Khimari, want to fill us in on what's going on?" the swordsman asked, drawing the blue wolf's attention.
"Nothing much," he shrugged. "But all good things, I guarantee."
"Sorry if you had a language barrier growing up," Nailah apologized, smiling at the situation before them. "We don't speak the modern tongue in Hatari and I was slow to teach it to Khimari. It must have been rough to work around."
"Actually, it wasn't quite that bad," Ike recounted, looking up as he went back to their childhood. "Khimari would call things weird names from time to time, but I didn't know he spoke another language until Mist threw out his rabbit from the cellar that he hunted for us."
"Hey! You were the one who threw it out!" the healer refuted with a puffed face.
"You told me to throw it out because it was disgusting and scary."
"But you still did it!"
"As far as I'm concerned, you both threw it out," Khimari huffed. "I'm never hunting food for you two ever again."
"I think I'll manage," Ike returned, before something came back to the forefront of his mind. "Mist, can you leave the room for a minute? I want to ask Khimari about something?"
"Hm? Well…Okay, I'll go check on Boyd and the rest of the mercenaries, then," the girl relented, saying her goodbyes before leaving the room. When Ike was sure that his sister was out of earshot, he turned back to the two wolves who patiently awaited his question.
"Will you two be finishing the meeting with us today? I planned to head straight there after I left."
"...I'm not sure if I'd be welcome there," his brother answered with a deep breath. "Maybe I should stay behind for this round…" Despite how much the wolf tried to hide it, his brother knew how much it killed him on the inside that everyone saw him in such a weak state.
"Khimari." The tone in Ike's voice caused the two wolves to stare at him directly in the face. "I know how much this hurts."
"No one knows how much it hurts…" the wolf interrupted, turning around to stare at the wall. A sense of sadness and despair enveloped the room as Hatari's prince took a deep breath. "That's why I wish no one ever saw it to begin with."
"But you can't blame yourself for what happ-"
"Yes, I can and I will," Khimari denied, turning around with slitted eyes and raised fur. "Ike, you of all people should know that I acted of my own accord leading up to…"
"Khimari," Nailah called, seeing that her son's tail began to shake erratically. "You need to calm down…Please." The soothing voice of her mother instantly led the wolf to comply with her request.
"...So, what should I do, then?" Khimari asked with his arms crossed. His eyes, no longer slitted, held a mostly patient posture that contained the small amount of desperation that tried to escape from his being.
"I planned to speak to King Caineghis and Ti…tania before we continued the meeting officially with everyone else," Ike revealed, skillfully swapping names as to prevent a protest from the wolf royals. "No one from the Greil Mercenaries knows about what happened to you last night, so it won't be a topic of concern for her."
"...Good," Khimari determined after closing his eyes. "Alright. I'll come." After his agreement, he turned back and gave the white wolf queen a hug. "I'll be right back. Will you stay in here?" After a nod of confirmation from Nailah, the blue wolf turned to his brother. "Okay, Ike. Lead the way."
In response, Ike grunted affirmatively before wishing the Laguz queen well. The two then left the room and started for the throne room. The space between the two was silent as each brother thought of how to best touch the topic they talked about in the room. Ike had seen, again, that stubborn barrier that Khimari put up against the rest of the world, and there seemed to be no way to bypass it. Internally sighing, the Beorc thought of ways to get the wolf some closure while still respecting his privacy regarding his event relapses.
Looking back as they walked, Ike saw Khimari's face glued to the ground, spaced out in deep thought. His eyes, which seemed not to notice the Beorc looking at them, showed a deep pain and guilt beyond anything that he had seen before. '...Khimari…What are you hiding?' Ike thought, turning around before the wolf recognized that he was being watched.
With another quiet sigh, the Crimean continued leading the trek until eventually, they arrived at the throne room where Giffca stood, keeping guard. "Ah. Sir Ike, Prince Khimari," the black lion greeted, doing a small bow. "You are here to see the king, I presume?"
"Good morning, Lord Giffca. Yes. Is he busy?" Ike asked curiously.
"He is currently speaking with Hawk King Tibarn. I will notify him of your presence." Giffca then left the entrance for a moment, leaving the two brothers to stand there until his swift return. "You may enter." With the lion's blessing, they slowly walked into the throne room to see exactly what the beast king's shadow described; King Caineghis and King Tibarn talking to each other between the room's center and the edge that overlooked the heavily forested kingdom.
"...There they are. Thank you, Giffca. You may return to your post until Ezra arrives," King Gallia stated. With a 'by your leave' and a bow, his longtime friend exited the room, leaving the four by themselves. Instantly, the red lion's eyes landed on Khimari, who had a guarded expression around the others in the room. "...Prince Khimari. Have you already recovered from your…event?"
For a few seconds, the wolf said nothing and stood motionless, much to the worry of everyone in the room. A few deep breaths later, Khimari looked the beast king directly in the eyes with a steady and emotionless expression. "I'm fine. I apologize for my repeated outbursts last night. It derailed the meeting without purpose. It will not happen again." The nearly systematic way of speaking the wolf employed unnerved Caineghis, but he decided not to dwell on it at the moment.
"Be at ease, Khimari. Now…We were talking about Begnion's actions of late," he continued. "While the Laguz Alliance Army recovers, we must understand the state of our foe."
"They are in deep disarray," Khimari answered. "The Senate and the Apostle are at odds with each other, and factions are emerging among armymen and common citizens alike. General Zelgius is of the opinion shared with the Apostle, but has his hands tied since Begnion's hierarchy forces him to take orders from the Senators, who want nothing less than the extermination of all Laguz."
"Is this information credible? The theocracy of Begnion is amid a civil conflict?"
"Not openly, I don't believe," Khimari answered as he shook his head. "But the seeds of discontent are already spread far and wide. It's only a matter of time."
"Whatever the case, we need to go and scout beyond the territory and see what the Central Army is up to," the hawk king said. "I'll let Ulki and some of my men scout around Gallia's outskirts to gauge what they're doing."
"That is an appropriate plan," King Gallia agreed. "In that case, I will tell Giffca to organize extra patrols and to fortify our borders. War cannot be allowed to scourge Gallia's territory."
"Agreed. Is that all, King Gallia?"
"Yes, King Phoenicis. We can suspend this meeting for now. Update me as you are able."
"King Caineghis," a quiet voice entered. Looking over, the lion couldn't help but be surprised that the soft-spoken voice calling for him belonged to Khimari, who still maintained his defensive positioning. "May I exit the room?"
"...Yes, you may be dismissed," Caineghis granted. With a simple bow, the wolf quietly left without another word. With a start, Tibarn realized that this was a chance to talk to the young wolf without his mother's presence. After quick words with Ike and the lion, the green hawk followed after the wolf, finding himself leaving the palace. The blue wolf soon sat by a tree in a secluded part of the forest that was well-hidden from the palace.
"...Here goes nothing," Tibarn muttered to himself before he walked directly over to the wolf prince. "Khimari," he called, getting the wolf's attention.
"...King Phoenicis? Can I help you?" For a split second, the hawk king couldn't tell whether or not he was talking to Khimari, Soren or Nailah.
He quickly shrugged off his amazement at that moment and returned to the talk at hand. "Look, I'm sorry for letting my temper get out of hand in the last meeting." If Khimari heard the apology, he didn't show it at all. "There's no excuse for my actions, even if I didn't know about your relapses."
"Hmph. I…" Khimari paused for a moment, drawing all of Tibarn's attention to him. A moment later, a powerful stare connected with the hawk king's eyes. "...What did my tribe do to your people?" The question admittedly threw the hawk off-guard. "Tell me, what was so bad?"
"...After Phoenicis' formation in the Begnion year 385, our independence led to a joy in our islands. Kilvas wasn't in existence as of yet, so both hawks and ravens lived together. About 70 years afterward, a former king and his envoy went to visit Gallia and never returned. Upon further investigation, his corpse was found next to a dagger and a group of dead wolves. Of course, the interim leader of Phoenicis interrogated the wolves, who denied everything. He declared war on the wolves, and the two tribes warred against each other for another three years before the new king and the one afterwards died at their hand."
"Conveniently at that time, the ravens decided to secede from Phoenicis altogether, which led to the creation of Kilvas. With such drastically reduced numbers as well as the conflict with the Begnion empire, Phoenicis nearly collapsed as a suitable ruler couldn't be found. For a short period after, the population kept declining until King Avian got everyone's beak put back to shape."
"...I…see…" Although Khimari found Tibarn's retelling of events interesting, the wolf noted that it was nothing but revisionist at its best. The real history of that event lined up much better with the accounts told by King Deghinsea, his mother (and tribe in Hatari), as well as a few records that Prime Minister Sephiran managed to snag for Khimari that detailed anything and everything the theocracy knew about his tribe. But still…Where did the story start to get so twisted? "Thank you for telling me."
"What did you intend to gain from that, Prince Khimari?"
The wolf already gained what he wanted, which was the hawk king's attention to get away from his mental state and to something else. But now…He simply didn't even know how to feel anymore. "I wanted to understand better. That's all."
"...If you say so."
"If you have nothing else to say, then I'll get going."
"Wait!" the hawk called when the young Laguz got up and began to walk in the opposite direction. "Aren't you going to say anything else?"
"..." Without turning around, the wolf looked up to the sky and let out a deep sigh. "I have nothing else worth saying." Not sure exactly how to respond to that, King Tibarn did nothing but watch the wolf disappear between the large masses of trees.
XXXXX
Trigger warning: (I guess?)
A/N: And that's that! For the record, I do want to clarify something if it isn't obvious (ish) enough; yes, Khimari does have PTSD (something that after a little research wasn't exactly given this name until recent times, which is why I avoid the phrase directly in the story). I just say this because I just want people to be aware that it can truly be something debilitating and seemingly impossible to deal with. It's a very complex thing of the mind and the best thing that can be done to have patience and compassion for anyone suffering with the condition. I just wanted to spell it out because I may have made it seem vague in the story, which is exactly how it can be in real-life situations sometimes (especially considering the amount of misdiagnosing that can go on with this and other mental conditions).
But with that aside, all is not lost! As this is being posted, I am already writing the next chapter (most likely a Naruto-style filler, to be honest) and will NOT take a whole year to finish…I think.
Ignoring all that, as always, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Remember to fave, follow and review, and until next time!
Blizzard, out!