Chapter 5

An hour later, I was standing on a cliff looking down on a series of pools. My sensor pack was telling me it detected a large source of primal life nearby, but the pools appeared to be heavily guarded by a tribe of primitive amazons. According to the note from the preliminary scouts, they were called the Torine Sisterhood, and were quite violent.

It took me about 45 minutes to triangulate approximately where that source was and I soon found myself looking at the entrance to a hole under a large tree. Four of the sisters stood guard over it, each of them nearly twice my size and armed with pretty big swords. The problem I was facing was difficult. A source of Primal Life that strong would help Myala immensely. She was hiding it well, but being so far from the Mother tree was draining her more every day. Sooner or later, she would have no choice but to remove her crown and irrevocably break her connection to the mother tree, or die. Given the readings I was getting, that source could buy her a couple of years at least for us to either reclaim Arboria, or finally accept its abandonment.

I knew what Arwick would tell me. He wouldn't hesitate to order its retrieval. Myala would fret and fuss and wring her hands but eventually accept the necessity. The other Consorts would silently agree with Arwick while trying to comfort Myala's distress.

And me? I checked over my pistols and spare clips. Myala didn't need to know how I got it.

I worked my way through the upper branches to the big tree, and dropped down behind the guards while attacking. I killed one outright and heavily wounded another as the last two charged me. I flipped over their swords as I fired wildly, forcing them to use their swords to block my shots. I did a backflip as I heard a whistling noise, just barely avoiding the sword thrown by the one I had wounded. I fired a few more shots into her as I heard one of the other two groan, turning to see the thrown sword had hit her in the leg. I ducked under the swing of the still unwounded one as I kicked the sword stuck in the others leg, causing it to tear through her calf and drop her to her knees. She thrust her sword at me as the one behind me charged, but I used gate to pop behind her and avoid it. I turned to shoot her, but stopped and blinked.

They were both dead. The thrust that I'd dodged had gone straight through the chest of the one charging me, while her sword was currently embedded in the skull of the one on her knees. As I blinked, they both slumped to the ground.

I quickly pulled their bodies into the bushes on either side of the path and grabbed the key I saw hanging around the neck of the one stabbed through the chest. It easily opened the lock on the barred gate a little way into the cave opening, and I locked it back behind me.

The cave wasn't very deep, ending about twenty feet in in a room that appeared to be a shrine of some sort. On the alter a statue of a naked woman holding a sword point downwards before her stood in a beam of light, lines of green light creating accents that emphasized her assets. My sensors pack went wild over it, so I assumed it was the source I sought. I picked it up and examined it more closely, noting that the base seemed to have a connector of some sort though it was just sitting on the altar. Obviously, the Torine just saw it as an idol.

I heard several shouts come from behind me, and the sound of a body slamming against the gate, and cursed. Desperately, I looked around for an alternate exit and noticed the beam of light that had illuminated the statue. I looked up to see a shaft going straight up through the center of the tree, and grinned. Obviously, the Torine hadn't thought to secure it because they were too big to fit through it. I tucked the statue into my digital storage and quickly took off my gloves and boots to expose my claws, then climbed on the altar to jump up and dig my claws into the wood of the shaft. I pulled myself up into the hole and looked back down into the shrine.

She was looking up at me, a curious expression on her face. When our eyes met, she blinked, and a slightly brighter shade of blue crossed her cheeks before she faded from view.

I didn't have time to think about it as I turned back and started climbing. I reached the top right as the Torine broke down the door and rushed into the shrine. I didn't understand what they were saying, but they apparently spotted me as several spears slammed into the tree below me. I ran along a bough and jumped across to another tree, heading for the cliffs around the pools. The Torine gave chase, but I was too high in the trees for them. The branches I could use would never support their weight.

When I reached the cliffs, I clawed my way up them while the Torine had to race for the paths they had carved in them. By the time they reached the top, I had already climbed up into the heights again. I grinned as I leaped through the branches and acrobatically flipped from tree to tree. They tried their best, but humans had no hope of catching an Aurin in a forest. I had lost them inside of a mile. I finally stopped to catch my breath in a tree about three miles from the pools, listening intently for any signs indicating pursuit. A loud roar and shouts came from about a half mile away, so I cautiously made my way over to see what was happening. I found the Torine locked in combat with a large plant creature that looked like a dragon. My identification guide called it a Stem dragon. Given their struggles, I doubted they'd be able to resume their chase anytime soon.

Still, I stayed in the trees until I was on the edge of the camp and well within our patrol lines. I sat in the fork of a limb about forty feet up and took out the statue to look at it again. If I had to guess, it represented a Torine. Her assets were impressive, but she was way too muscular for my taste. Still, the carving was far too perfect for those amazons to have crafted it, and the tell-tale green accents probably meant it was Eldan in origin.

A touch of blue drew my eye and I looked up to see Her looking at the statue too as she serenely floated next to the tree.

"Do you know what this is?" I asked as I held it up for her.

She looked surprised as she blushed again, but shook her head before vanishing.

I chuckled to myself as I put the statue back in my pack. It seemed my dream girl was gradually getting a little bolder. I dropped down the tree closer to the ground and saw Blok walking a patrol. I whistled the code of the day at him and he turned towards me as I dropped to the ground.

"Hey Bunny. You back from scouting?"

"Yup. Anything happen while I was gone?"

"Nah, not really. I heard an interesting story though."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, one of the guys I met here told me about some of the strange stories floating around. The one I found most interesting was one about Dorian Walker."

"The guy who found Nexus?"

"Yeah, according to the story, he didn't find it, he was led here."

"Led?"

"Yeah, by some glowing blue girl in robes who just showed up on his ship and pointed to the co-ordinates of Nexus. Then he jumped here and found it."

I raised an eyebrow. "A glowing blue girl in robes?"

"That's the story. She just showed up out of nowhere and vanished just as quickly. There's rumors that she's occasionally been spotted in some of the ruins. But no-one's been able to confirm it. Typical ghost story. But they say she's the most beautiful girl they've ever seen."

Well, yeah, that I could confirm. She was indeed the most beautiful girl I'd ever seen. But it raised some interesting questions. Just who was she? And why did she seem so fascinated with me?

I told Blok about the Torine and that I'd lost them several miles away and he promised he'd let the other patrols know to keep an eye out. Then I headed into the camp to find Arwick.

I found him talking to one of the Elders and cursed my luck. The elders and I weren't on the best of terms. They thought I was far too frivolous. I thought they were way too serious.

The moment I entered the tent, the elder broke off and stared at me. "Child? What have you brought? I can feel a massive spring of primal life energy surrounding you."

I bowed to her. "Yes elder, I discovered an artifact during my exploration, I thought it might help Myala."

I took out the statue and set it on the table. I looked at Arwick. "I know the crown is draining her, but I thought this could replenish her energy."

He nodded as the elder examined the statue, "This- this is a device to focus primal life. It seems to draw in and amplify the natural energies of the weave. Myala could indeed draw forth the power from it to bolster her own. Bless you child, this will be a great boon."

Arwick sighed and rubbed his eyes. "Where did you get this, Val?"

"Some amazons had it sitting in a shrine collecting dust, so I relieved them of it. They weren't actually using it after all."

He sighed even harder. "And you didn't think to inform command prior to this?"

"Of course I did. I just chose not to."

"Myala is so going to chew you out for this."

"Only if you tell her. You know you'd have ordered a retrieval. I just made sure Myala didn't need to agonize over it."

"Well, you aren't wrong. By amazons, I presume you mean the Torine sisterhood?"

"Yeah?"

"FCON has already declared them a threat, we've had several skirmishes with their hunting parties already. But please. Try to follow the chain of command a little more closely in the future?"

"Sure, sure. Though I'm not technically part of FCON you know."

"Yes, I know, but the Explorers Guild is supposed to work with us. Regardless, you specifically are considered one of Myala's subordinates, and thus under my command, even if it's not formally acknowledged, so do try to remember that you represent the crown."

Well, I really couldn't argue with that. Arwick was giving me a lot of leeway as an independent agent, but Myala couldn't help but worry about me. She'd be devastated if something happened to me. I might be in the Explorers guild, but it looked like I still had to be aware of my relationship with the palace. My actions were going to be seen in the light of my connection to the Queen, no matter what I did to separate myself from her. I was the Queen's pet, and had been for most of the decade of her reign. In Aurin eyes, that held weight even if I technically held no authority. I wasn't a consort, but I was as close to being one as it was possible to be.

I gave Arwick a sheepish grin. "I'll try to be a little less reckless."

He rolled his eyes. "You don't need to lie to me, Valya. I know how bad you are at impulse control. Just try to be a little more aware of how your actions look to others,"

The elder folded her hands together, "Child, you are simply too well known. Your fame has always been an issue. You've gone from the notoriety of your, um, early career, to being acknowledged as one of the finest dancers on Arboria. To many Aurin, you are a symbol. Even your choice to enlist in the Explorers Guild has been seen as a source of inspiration for many Aurin. Like it or not, child, you are viewed as a role model to many."

I sighed. "I will try to remember that, elder. I'm just a dumb bunny though. People have so many better choices for inspiration."

"While I agree, that is besides the point. Whatever your preferences, you are still admired by many, and important to the Matria."

"And given what you just brought us, Val, your contributions to our entire cause cannot be ignored." Arwick noted. "I know you're not going to want any public credit, but you really should expect another visit to Myala's bed in the near future."

I grinned. "Well, I won't refuse of course, but since we're on the subject, Arwick, got a question for you."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, um, well… given our situation. After things settle down and stuff. I was kinda wondering… um…"

He raised an eyebrow at me.

"How'd you like to give me a kid?" I said in a very small voice.

He blinked. "Say what?"

"Well, um… you're like the only guy I know I'm willing to sleep with and… um... we like need to increase our numbers somehow… eventually." I really wanted to bury myself under the floor. This had been such a bad idea.

He pinched his nose and sighed. "You really didn't think this out, did you, Valya?"

"Um…."

He shook himself and gave me a serious look. "Alright, I understand your reasons, more or less, and I can seriously say I am happy you would choose me. But that's something we will have to discuss with Myala. You're her pet and I'm her consort. Any child we have together would be royalty. I am not objecting, my dear, but I think we should table this for now."

"Um… okay." I said meekly.

The elder looked grimly amused. "For my part, I will say only that I see no problems with this. I am pleased that Valya is, however reluctantly, placing the needs of our species above her own preferences. And she could do far worse in her choice of a father, Arwick. You are an exemplary example of Aurin manhood." She turned to me. "On the other hand, you would need to settle down and behave yourself."

Arwick snerked. "Well, Myala would probably be overjoyed if it would finally get Val approved as a consort. But it's probably better to wait until Val gets over the adventuring bug."

"Yes, we can't have the mother of a royal running off every chance she gets."

"Um… Well. You know we really need as many hands out there helping as possible for now. So…. Um… can we talk about this later?"

I high tailed it out of there, followed by Arwick's chuckle.