A King's Legacy
Chapter 41
Dawn of a Second Son
Death was always rather fond of the smallest mortal children; before they could walk, talk, or truly comprehend what his presence implied for them. Most of those cubs simply stared in silent curiosity when they met him, never shying away, even as he offered them his hand to hold so they wouldn't have to go alone. He always liked the new life, those still carrying just the smallest lingering scent of his beloved's power, but he rarely looked forward to guiding any such youth. The god believed that guiding the young should be left to the living, but Death understood that fate often had other design.
Solis Aureus was quickly becoming an exception to that rule. The human baby was resting in the final bed his father had made for him, smiling so warmly up at the god's vessel. The tiny gold-flecked eyes were brimming with excitement to have some company after being so rudely awakened by the nearby skirmish coming to its end. The child raised both hands above itself; his little fingers trying so vainly to grab a hold of the unicorn's horn. To the infant's great disapproval, it remained just out of reach. Death had appeared before this child after his deal with Calium was finalized, and the god was quickly making his final preparations as he hovered over the infant for which such a grand deal had been made.
"Such great weight sat upon such tiny shoulders, including my own life as well. You had better live up to my expectations, Solis Aureus. I'm going through a lot of trouble just to keep us both around, so don't you think of squandering such a gift from the very gods." Death rarely spoke out loud, usually electing to simply speak into minds, but then again, the deity wasn't truly speaking to the infant in that moment. The god let out a sigh as he realized the truth; that even he was feeling far too vulnerable in such a situation, but he continued despite such buried emotion. "Although, I suppose you'll have a new name soon, given this all actually happens the way I need it to, given I don't meet the very same fate I've always delivered onto others... I do hope you like felines, Aster Venatus."
The deity slowly reached his bony hand forward, bringing it up to the boy's brow as he spoke softly to the infant once more. "You should be asleep for this part. It won't hurt, but it may be a little scary."
The child's grip finally found purchase on the deity's thin digit, and the boy let out a delighted cackle in triumph. His eyes and toothless smile shining brilliantly in the face of Death, something the deity rarely saw in even the bravest of souls, certainly not from one so young. He could only hope the boy could repeat such a feat when the time would eventually come. The god scoffed lightly as he spoke into the darkness of that room one final time before sending the infant back into the land of dreams for a while. "Perhaps you'll be strong enough after all. Until next we meet, young king."
Death finished his work there and moved into position at the Venatus estate. He gave Calium his cue a moment after he was ready. The deal was struck, and their terms fulfilled. They could merely watch and wait from that point on; their great gamble of a plan was truly out of their hands, with all the weight of countless lives balancing on the fate of such a delicate existence.
===
Syphur didn't understand anything at first. He couldn't fathom why his general didn't think he was capable enough to join him. He just didn't see what Sir Byron really meant for him to learn by staying with the medic teams. Syphur learned many things that day, starting with a valuable lesson... Sometimes, it really is better not knowing.
The smell was probably the most nauseating aspect of it all. The charred remains of beast and human alike half-baked in their armor. The countless corpses, some gruesomely strewn from one side of the street to the other at their ends. The overwhelming, heavy undertones of shit lacquering it all so lavishly. The smell was inescapable, invasive, and entirely assaulting. Death was the scent, and it seemed determined to make its presence known to the young coyote.
Syphur had tried to push that smell away, to focus on helping save those he still could, but the adolescent could never truly let that putrid combination slip from his thoughts for very long. Every time his eyes passed over another loss, be it beast or human, the young squire couldn't help but wonder how necessary this all really was... He suddenly understood what lesson his general, guardian, and, idol, Sir Byron had tasked him to learn. Successfully completing an assigned task usually felt better to the aspiring knight, if he was being honest with himself.
"It seems we've done all we can." A quieter voice came from behind the young coyote, and he turned to meet the one speaking. Lady Dorma, the bighorn ewe, continued in her slow-paced tone. "Take peace in knowing our task is finished. We all may soon rest now, both those still here, and those that have moved on."
Syphur turned to the elderly sheep and asked his question in a whisper. "So, is it over? The human king has fallen?"
Dorma nodded in response, moving on to the matter at hand. She held something towards the young squire and spoke quietly. "This just came, it probably took around five mages worth of magic to deliver to camp so quickly, so I can only imagine the urgency behind it."
Syphur stared at the parchment, noting the red wax seal stamped over the folds. He spoke cautiously. "So then... There is news from the Venatus house." Syphur looked back towards Dorma and frowned a little.
She let him settle his thoughts a little and gave the coyote a final order in her lower tone before returning him to Byron's care. "You should know as well as I do how foreboding this is. If that wolf is right about you, you're smart enough to figure that out. Even so, you are here for a reason, young pup, so don't assume your lessons are finished merely because your time with me has. Now go, deliver this, and return to your General after. Report your progress and do know that you were most helpful in saving what lives we could today. Thank you, young Syphur."
The coyote bowed his head in respect, grateful for the chance to learn from one of the oldest and most trusted advisors in Alora. He offered her such thanks, and accepted both the letter, and the duty attached with respect. The young coyote hastily took off in a sprint, heading up the last of the main street and through the castle gates. He ran through the entry hall doors, made a short bound over the broken glass at his paws, and started shouting the moment the panther came into sight.
"General Venatus! General Venatus! I bring urgent news from your wife and house for you!"
The panther took the note, and then he took his leave with the king, stepping away into the throne room. Syphur watched them go, the same as everyone else standing in that room full of the highest-ranking members of the king's army. Syphur suddenly found himself becoming dauntingly aware of how out of place he felt in that room, but luckily for the young coyote, his mentor was there to give him some ground to stand on.
"I don't recall putting you on messenger duty." General Byron started lightly, being considerate of the time and place as he stepped up behind his ward. "Let me guess, Lady-"
"Dorma." Syphur finished the sentence with a nervous grin. Byron had a fanged smile of his own cross his muzzle for a moment, chuckling at the obvious.
"She is always consistent, if nothing else." Byron continued, taking on a bit more formality, pulling his student further away from the other beasts in that room all the while. "So, I am waiting for your report, young Syphur. What did you learn in the duty assigned to you? Do you feel it was a wasted experience? Do you still long to be at the heart of such affairs?"
Syphur dropped his gaze for a moment, already prepared for this question, but still finding his answer a tough one to admit. "The smell was the worst part. I never noticed there was a difference between the way warm and cooling blood smells, but there is, and both make your stomach churn for different reasons. One is the fresh smell of recent death; the other is the scent of chilling decay. Topping both off with all the piss and shit makes me question if I'll ever smell anything other than these awful and lingering scents ever again."
Syphur looked back to the older wolf, and saw Byron was simply staring, letting him give his report uninterrupted. The squire reluctantly continued. "I walked the aftermath of your charge, of all three charges against the main streets. I stepped through the battered gates and doors of our enemies, and I helped drag our injured out to be healed. I helped pile up the bodies of the dead, our dead at least, and I turned my back on the ones deemed at fault, the humans." Syphur looked away once again to steady himself, knowing he had to keep his composure in such a place.
"I learned a lot working with the medic teams. I know about moving bodies with different injuries, including which ones to leave in place until a healer is present. I crafted a lot of makeshift splints and slings. I even helped set a lot of broken bones to be healed as well..." Syphur trailed off.
Byron cut in encouragingly, giving his subordinate some short reprieve. "No small experiences for someone your age. Still, the medic experience would prove useful in the field for any young knight moving forward, especially one heading towards leadership."
"I can't say I share such optimism when it comes to my future roles anymore..." Syphur was speaking truthfully, yet hesitantly. "I am still a smaller beast than most, a commoner, and, above all else, one without a bloodskill." Syphur was pretty sure Byron was choosing to ignore that sentence, so the coyote just sighed lightly, and continued where he had left off instead.
"I learned many things today that I expected to learn. Working under Lady Dorma left little to wonder, or so I thought. While I gained knowledge about healing, as predicted, I think I grasped more about the truth behind war itself today than I ever have before. I didn't expect that... I didn't expect it to feel how it did. I thought I would at least feel some lingering trace of glory or valor moving in your wake, but I finally realized I was looking for something that wasn't there. I had glamorized something that no amount of ignorance could ever excuse glamorizing." Syphur bowed his head, closed his eyes, and lowered his voice even more, making certain nobody would overhear their conversation.
"I am sorry I ever questioned your order, and I am thankful that I wasn't there." His voice broke just as he got the last of it out, and his eyes started welling up in response immediately. The adolescent coyote was just trying so hard not to cry in front of Alora's greatest... Syphur finished his report with tears dangerously close to falling, the lightest sniffle, and the hoarsest whisper.
"All the carrion birds of the world would surely sate their hunger long before they could ever clean up what we have done here. If this is where my duty will bring me, then... I am sorry, General Aschefell, but I cannot do what you have done today. I cannot be your squire if this is what my future would ask of me... It seems I made a mistake... I'm not cut out for knighthood at all."
Byron just gazed that stony gaze of his down towards the adolescent, his expression serious, but otherwise unreadable as he only stared down the mere commoner pup that would throw away every opportunity the noble wolf had ever given him. Syphur had just made a choice, and Byron was deep in silent thought for quite some time.
Byron barked his answer suddenly, making the cub jump a bit from the firm tone used. "Syphur Ictus, from this day forth, you will no longer be my ward, nor my squire. You will no longer reside at my estate, and you will not be accompanying me to any other battlefields."
Syphur was still fighting back those tears as his dreams were all but confirmed as crushed. He expected this much after giving such an answer, but he honestly didn't even know what he was going to do anymore. He was so caught up in his own thoughts at that moment, that he almost didn't hear the older wolf continue.
"The main reason I brought you along this time was because I was still deciding on which way to push you, but I think the answer is clear to me now. The best thing I can do for you is to have you educated further and help prepare you as much as possible for your future as a knight."
As Byron finished his statement, Syphur just blinked in his stunned state, wondering if the old wolf had heard him correctly at all. The adolescent prodded a little further. "General Aschefell? I don't follow."
Byron smirked a little before he placed a hand on his student's shoulder. He turned the coyote around and gestured towards the beasts on the far end of the room. The noble wolf nudged the coyote softly with his words. "What do you see?"
Syphur wasn't sure he really understood the question, but he answered regardless. "The nobility of Alora, and the greatest of our ranks."
Byron shook his head lightly as he gave better instruction. "Look beyond their titles, look beyond their status. Look at them, their actions. Observe their behavior and tell me what you see."
Syphur did as he was asked, doing his best to see them all on equal footing for a moment. The coyote was uncertain, but he gave another answer after a pause. "Some are resting and silent, some are noisy, and celebrating. Is that what you mean?"
Byron replied in that serious tone of his. "There are two kinds of beast here today. The first being those of us who know what we have done. Among others, General Venatus and myself fall into this category. We knew the weapons we would become in our king's arsenal, and we still went along with this entire thing regardless. We are perhaps the most at fault, since we knew better, yet still did nothing to stop it. We compliantly played our parts." Syphur was listening closely, knowing whatever Byron had to say must be relevant to the coyote's own experience here.
"The second, are those that really are just too dense and selfish to see anything besides themselves here. They celebrate such glorious victory, yet most of them were nowhere near the main clashes. They send their soldiers to battle and die in their places, and then such poor leaders soak up all the credit after, reassuring themselves that their hands are still clean this way. They are the kind you always need to be careful around, especially should you find yourself following their orders."
Syphur prodded further, really holding on to every word from that wolf. "So, what am I missing here? What am I not seeing with that perspective?"
Byron turned his stony, gray eyes back to the adolescent, and answered him with the faintest, fanged smile. "That both kinds need to go for different reasons. Every single one of Alora's so-called greatest deserves to be removed from our positions. We have no right to lead this country, nor her people anywhere anymore. We failed catastrophically on a moral level, and any dignity the knights of Alora could once claim has been tarnished by this crusade... Our generation has failed, so this is where you come in, young Syphur."
Syphur blinked in surprise before speaking hastily. "Wait, me? I don't think I could make such decisions..."
Byron chuckled a little before replying. "You will have to, or somebody far worse may end up taking the reins. You are both lucky, and unfortunate. You were born into the first wave of the next generation, so that means you'll be among the first that get a chance to shape the future. However, it also means that you'll have to be the first to deal with the messes of those that came before you, our messes."
Byron let out a sigh, and finished his lesson with troubled eyes to the floor. His gaze was rather distant for a moment. "I brought you with me to see which type of beast you are, to see how you would shape this world going forward given the chance. You have proven yourself a capable student yet again. You have proven that your heart and morals won't be easily swayed by selfish desire, nor power. You have proven that your mind is perceptive, ever learning, and calculative, even in harrowing or stressful moments. You have proven yourself among the few worthy of leadership, so, by the gods, that is where I'll make sure you end up. I'd expect no less from a former student of mine."
As Syphur was humbled by the praise, Byron finished up. "So, I'm sending you off to be educated further, given you understand my reasoning, and still want a future leading our forces? I'll handle the cost for everything, and even include a few private lessons with some personally chosen mentors if you still want this path. Alora will need knights like you, to replace knights like me. We will need such compassion, hearts, and mercy, for without it, we truly are no more than two-legged, feral beasts."
Syphur was humbled beyond measure. This was the last response he ever expected, but the adolescent was quick to begin expressing such gratitude. "General Aschefell... I don't know how I could ever repay such-" He didn't get to finish that statement.
An ear-ringing roar of pure sorrow came echoing through the stony hall, carrying with it the evident reveal to the content of that letter. General Venatus had received news far from fortunate, so the wolf and coyote were quick to rejoin the beast king and his closest advisors at the other end of the hall. Within minutes, only a handful remained. Thanks to Byron's extended privilege once more that night, Syphur found himself counted among the trusted few that would bear witness to the beginning to the story of Aster Venatus; the human king raised by beasts.
===
Stahl had been listening closely to every single word between Calium and Aster since waking up in the Afterworld. The wolf had remained silent through it all, from every single jaw-dropping reveal and heart-breaking truth. In all honesty, that was perhaps the best thing the young knight could've ever done for his king in such a situation. Stahl was paying attention, he was learning what he needed to learn, but he was still feeling quite a storm of emotion welling up inside of himself on his mate's behalf.
It angered Stahl so terribly, to be forced just out of reach of his lover as Aster's heart was broken again and again before him, but the beast was at least thankful he was there to hear the full story, to be able to truly understand what his mate was shouldering now. However, Stahl never would've fathomed the horrible truth behind Aster's very upbringing. As Calium finished the last of his daunting recount of that night's events, and as Aster first began to back away from his birth father in disbelief, the wolf cast his gaze to those beside him.
The panther had his arms crossed, and his gaze low and mostly hidden. He looked incredibly tense, although Stahl really couldn't blame the panther considering what was just revealed to him. Lady Alice was curled into a semi-ball a short distance away. She couldn't bring herself to really turn to face anyone present, so she just elected to listen quietly to the end of the story as well. Finally, Stahl turned to face Death once more from his position lurking behind the trio.
The deity captured the wolf's gaze in this short moment and grinned ever so lightly at the pure rage he felt emanating forth from the wolf. The god praised such powerful emotion, speaking hauntingly to only the beast. `Did you know that your father repeatedly challenged fate with his actions? His choices, mercy, and influences have tilted more results than you could ever fathom, young knight... And yet, he is a beast whose rage knows no bounds when it comes to protecting his own. I can see you inherited that trait at least, but can you really stand against even destiny?'
Stahl's eyes narrowed in response, but Death hadn't finished speaking yet. The god continued in that taunting tone of his. `Hmph. I suppose we will see soon enough. It's nearly time, that poor little king of yours should be crumbling any moment now. We can pick this back up after. I do so look forward to seeing how you'll handle your own truth.'
The wolf had a chill run down his spine, but Aster's frantic voice drew his attention away. The beast turned just in time to see a large fracture form in the wall of shadow. Aster fell to his knees a moment after, and the dark barrier separating the humans from the beasts fell along with him. Stahl was sprinting through that downed barricade instantly. The beast dropped to his knees before he ever stopped, sliding just a bit as he wrapped his arms as tightly around his mate as he could in that garden.
Aster looked up at the sudden contact, croaking out in nonbelief through his heaviest tears yet. "Stahl?"
"I'm here, my king, I've been here this entire time. I understand." Stahl answered his lover tenderly, his own voice nearly breaking at the sight of the pain so clearly visible in those gold-flecked eyes.
"You don't understand! You couldn't understand Stahl..." Aster was barely able to speak through his sobs, but even his voice so very hoarse beyond measure persisted through such turmoil. "I... I took his life from him, just like Talan said I did. I replaced him, I stole his brother. It's my fault, Stahl. This is all my fault... I shouldn't have survived."
"Please, don't ever believe that, Aste- "Stahl was cut off before he ever finished
"YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND, STAHL!" Aster was frantic and lacking any true composure as he shouted his answer. "YOU COULDN'T UNDERSTAND... Talan, he was right about me. I was merely a replacement. I wasn't supposed to live. I wasn't even supposed to bear the Venatus name... By the gods... How can I even use my name? It was never even mine. How could I ever face them again? How could I ever face Corty? How... How could I ever face my fath-"
A strong hand on his shoulder interrupted Aster before he ever even finished such a statement. The boy raised his sullen eyes in surprise, but a look of pure terror overtook his features as he realized who was standing over him.
That look nearly broke Jagón's heart.
"Father..." Aster dropped his head to the ground in shame for even using the title. It was strange, after wanting nothing more than to be reunited for so long, Aster suddenly found himself fearful of such a reunion. He started again in his creaky voice. "General Venatus- "
"That's enough." Aster flinched at the words, but Jagón kept speaking in a strangely low tone. "Stahl, I need you to give us a moment."
The wolf was startled by such a request. Stahl stared up at the panther for a moment before he leaned forward and planted a small kiss on his lover's brow. He spoke so soothingly. "I think your father needs to tell you something important, but know that I am right here, my king." Stahl paused to cup his lover's face tenderly in his hand before speaking a final piece of comfort for his mate.
"You have always been more than what anyone said you were. Don't let that change now." Stahl reluctantly rose to his paws, locked eyes with the general once more, and nodded briefly to him. The wolf took a few steps back, assumed a more defensive stance, and turned towards Death defiantly. He wouldn't be letting anyone else hurt Aster again, not while he was still around. The young knight kept a wary eye on Calium while Jagón knelt before his son.
Aster wouldn't even look Jagón in the eyes, something that forced an acute realization for the panther; Aster was acting the way he did around Talan. The general shifted forward a bit, and his son simply trembled in anticipation of the obvious retribution that was headed his way.
Jagón's touch was delicate, a soft caress that gently coaxed the boy's face closer to his own. Aster refused to bring his gaze up even still, so the general commanded him to do so in a whisper. "Look at me."
Aster hesitantly raised his stricken eyes, a fresh wave of guilty tears flowing freely the moment his gaze was locked with the panther's own. Jagón stared at his son for a moment, adjusted his hand to softly cradle the right side of Aster's jaw, and ran a thumb over the smooth flesh covering the cheek there. The scars left by Talan were not something Aster had to bear on his very face in the Afterworld, after all. When the panther continued speaking, it seemed unexpectedly apologetic to the boy.
"I should have erased all such doubt years ago... I am sorry, my son. I did not know how to intervene, so I did nothing. I can see now that it was the same as leaving those scars to never properly heal. I can finally see the horrible doubt you've been carrying all of this time." Jagón's eyes were sad, but not in the way Aster was expecting at all. They were sympathetic, and without an ounce of resentment, as if his father were the one that had failed. The panther was more worried about the human before him than the very son that was killed in his place. Aster was nothing short of baffled.
"But, Sir Jagó-" Aster started to counter, but the general quickly interjected.
"Father will do just fine, my son. It has this far." Jagón smiled warmly, coaxing Aster on sincerely after. "But please, say whatever you feel you need to say to me. I'd do anything besides leaving you like this for even a moment longer."
Aster was momentously taken aback by such a proclamation. Did Jagón perhaps not hear everything as Stahl had claimed to? He sputtered out his reply between sobs, barely managing what he could get out. "But... Your son... Your, Your Aster. He- "
"Is right here in front of me, crying his big beautiful heart out in guilt that isn't even his to bear." Jagón finished that sentence for his son and gave his answer all in one quick statement
Aster's breath caught in his throat for reasons entirely different than simple tears, and he soon found himself being pulled into a fatherly embrace by the panther.
Just for a short, fleeting moment, Jagón felt that wondrous sense of joy, hope, and clarity he had felt so many years ago, the way he felt the very first time he ever held that fussy, blurry-eyed little cub. The sensation was still just as powerful and definitive as ever, but Jagón expected nothing less. He always simply knew that the boy with the golden eyes was his son, after all. No amount of "what ifs?" could ever come close to even fazing such a truth.
"My little Aster, my little star... How could you so easily forget the conviction behind my words before? You are my son. Whatever other life could have existed, I never knew them, and I'll never even need to. You are more than enough, and you always have been." The panther held his son even closer, not bothering to mask his own tears as he spoke so softly to the boy falling apart in his arms. "Now, let me convince you of what I should have years ago, that I have ALWAYS wanted you, that I have ALWAYS fought for you, and that no god can ever take such credit for the love I bear for you. It was my choice, and it always has been. I think it's time I tell you the rest of that story, my son."
Aster let his tears flow quietly as he finally started to let himself believe what the panther was saying. The young king listened carefully to the last story he would hear in that place.
===
Part of himself wondered if his best bet would simply be hiding the cub's existence from his king, but Jagón knew that the consequences were far too dire to ever risk such a thing. Should he ever be discovered, the punishment could easily even extend to his other sons, so the general accepted that there was only one way that he could ever make this happen. He would have to beg his king to grant him such a request. Jagón was not very hopeful, even before stepping through the remains of that door with that curious little cub in his arms, but the looks that met him did little to ease such doubt.
Alocer had already ordered most of the knights outside, something for which Jagón was certainly thankful, but the remaining ones were luckily all beasts he didn't mind being present for the most part. Even so, Alocer's reaction was not an unexpected one to the general.
"What the fuck is that, Jagón?" Alocer pointed a clawed digit towards the infant as he spoke menacingly to the panther.
Jagón lowered his head a little as he answered his king honestly. "A human cub, one I found hidden away."
"And why is it still alive?" The king was speaking slowly, his voice stern and scolding as he addressed the situation. "You heard my order to kill any remaining human on sight, did you not?"
Jagón clenched his jaw tightly, securing his grip on the innocent boy in his embrace both protectively, and instinctively. He answered in a near begging tone. "My king, I lost my cub tonight..."
Alocer sighed dramatically as he closed his eyes, rubbing them in fatigue and deep thought as he realized what the implications were behind that statement. The lion started firmly. "Jagón..."
The panther leapt right back in, pushing further, trying his best to sway his old friend in desperation before he could be silenced once again. "Alocer, please. I know what your order was, but he is merely a cub. If I could just-"
"Just do WHAT exactly, Jagón? Raise it in place of your own?" The lion was greatly unsettled by this turn of events; the cub showing up after all was really getting under his pelt. The beast king recalled the warning left by the human one, and he fondly remembered being swayed enough to promise his knight that no more blood needed to be spilled that night, but the shield bearer's warning coming to fruition was sending chills down his spine. It felt like Alocer was playing right into his hand.
"No. Not in place of." Jagón frantically made his reasoning known. "That cub has been lost with my wife, and I admittedly take some comfort in knowing that he rests with her now. Neither of them had to leave this world alone, did they? He is somewhere where he doesn't need his father's help now, but this cub is different. He may not be of my blood, but he needs me now... and I think... I need him as well, my king." Jagón knelt before his liege as he finished his desperate plea.
"That isn't your cub, and if you found it hidden in the throne room, of all places, that tells me it's not a cub we can afford to ignore." King Alocer was still hesitant to have it confirmed, but he pried further anyway. "Tell me, what color are its eyes?"
"Brown mostly..." Jagón never wanted to lie to his king so badly in his life, but added a bit meekly, "there is a little gold."
"...It has the fucking SHIELD Jagón... Do you not realize how dangerous that ability is?" Alocer never realized how personal the topic was getting until he was already recalling the fresh wounds from his final battle with the human king. The same wounds he was still in the process of licking.
"Actually... Maybe that's a good reason to keep it around after all..." Lady Alice was finally standing again. Her words seemed intended to come to his aid then, but Jagón certainly saw the self-serving side to her support in hindsight.
"Not you too, Alice..." The lion let out a great sigh, but the goddess had no other choices left. That cub was the last true piece of her remaining, like it or not, so she had to ensure it survived now at any cost. Even so, she couldn't help but notice the soft and delicate way the panther was cradling her heart so protectively, she couldn't help but to be swayed by that personal affection for the leopard once more.
"It did a number on some of our strongest. It even killed one of our best assassins, and repelled the other rather easily." Alice had enough time to gather all the logical evidence she needed to back up her words. She kept speaking fluidly. "It has the power to stall entire armies for quite some time, you can go speak with general Rixator about how effectively it can be used should you need a reminder."
Alice cast a final glance to the knight she so adored, and nodded ever so lightly his way. Jagón's heart had been shattered that night, so if a piece of hers was required to repair his own, she could only be grateful that he would still be the one to nurture it after all.
It was the noble wolf, Byron, that hastily cut in next, seeing one final opportunity to do some small speck of good in such a tragic setting. "It makes for a convincing point, even these tired old eyes could see the potential benefit..." The mentor looked to his prior student, saw the pain still clinging so heavily to the poor panther, and outed the last of his thoughts on the matter decidedly. "If he is truly the last of his kind, I don't see the harm in letting only him survive, considering the use he may one day prove to have for our kingdom. If not, you can simply deal with him then, my king, just as you dealt with his father."
Alocer glared at the older wolf for a moment, cast his gaze back to his high mage after, and finally settled his furrowed brows back on the lowly little human cub. Aster took a single look at the mighty king of beasts before flashing the most carefree smile imaginable his way. Alocer felt his lingering headache throb at the very sight. King Calium's warning about his son's survival... That creature, that god of death... and now this. The royal lion was too tired to even try and argue any longer. He had already asked well enough of his knight as it was. Jagón could, at the very least, have this.
"By the fucking gods... Byron, Alice, the rest of you lot... you get the soldiers back home. Jagón, you will follow behind a great distance from the rest of us. Nobody else ever knows..." The beast king stared down his right hand general one last time, and spoke ever so firmly, ensuring his warning was not taken lightly. "Keep it out of sight. Keep it on a leash, and if it ever brandishes a blade, I'll make you kill it with your own claws. Do you understand me, Jagón?"
Alocer turned to his remaining knights and spoke begrudgingly one last time. "We will be modifying everyone's life-oath for starters... The boy is to never know of any of this..." As reluctant as the lion was, he finally ended up yielding in the end. Perhaps he came out of his battle with Calium shaken more than he had first realized after all.
Byron departed the castle with Alocer, Alice, and the rest of the remaining knights to start the journey home after the beast king's precautions had been pacified. The older wolf quickly located his trusted former squire, and casually started matching his pace. Byron began whispering softly to the blooming knight, careful so nobody else would hear.
"I know you are no longer my ward... but could I perhaps still ask a favor of you from time to time?" The young coyote nodded subtly, intrigued by the words, but certain he would always follow that wolf's orders or advice all the same, both with the utmost trust in his decisions. Syphur truly was such a model squire. The older wolf flashed a fanged smile to the smaller canine and spoke hastily.
"Do you recall seeing the livestock pens back on the eastern outskirts of the town? I know most of the ferals were decimated, but many scattered when the fences were broken... It may be a bit difficult to locate what we are looking for, and there is certainly no guarantee you will find it, but we have some allies that could really use all the help they can get right now." The old wolf finished explaining his request after, and the eager young coyote hastily set out to fulfill it.
As Byron stood on the edges of that final broken kingdom, just before descending back over the mountains, he turned back towards the town, and took in a heavy breath of air. The scent of death was still so encompassing from even that distance that It overpowered the scent of anything else. The beast's mind trailed back to the young girl he had let escape, and wondered if such a stench covering their tracks had allowed other humans to survive as well. Byron liked that there was at least some small hope that their extermination of humans had failed, that perhaps, even such great wounds could maybe one day still heal with time... Perhaps, life really did always find a way.
A familiar, yapping coyote came running up that slope as the general tucked away a final reminder of what he had done in that place. The view from the southern peaks truly could humble any mortal it seemed. Syphur was nearly out of breath, but was far more elated to give his report to the wolf this time around. "I found one! Just like you asked!"
Byron flashed a fanged smile, took a final look at the ruined city of Adamare, and closed his eyes slowly. He turned his back on the last war of kings he would ever be taking part in, and happily let a thought take root in his mind. Byron found it a welcome thing to cling to in that moment.
`Perhaps that hope isn't so small after all...'
===
Jagón was quietly holding the little human cub in the same bed he had found him; waiting patiently for dawn before setting out behind the rest of the army. The beast had caught himself dozing off a few times, and even managed the smallest rest when Aster allowed him to. The cub had woken the general three times already, and after checking that the boy's linens didn't need to be changed again, the panther realized in acute awareness that he still had to secure food such a weak cub could stomach.
In truth, Jagón didn't have the slightest idea what humans could even safely eat, let alone such a young one. He decided the kitchen would be the best place to start. He bundled the boy cozily in the blanket and stood, walking out of the hidden chamber a ways before something made the general stop in his tracks.
Jagón turned in a flash, his veteran instincts making him uncertain if he was still alone in the throne room. He cast his eyes around, yet saw no living trace of anything. The panther took a few light sniffs at his surroundings to be sure, but only decay could be detected in the castle air. The general's eyes fell upon the fallen king, the corpse stripped of both his sword and crown by the beasts before they took their leave, and Jagón felt a twinge of guilt. He knew Aster was too young to understand what was going on, but even so, the panther covered the cub's eyes with the blanket as he passed, sparing him the sight of his fallen birth father.
Jagón stopped one final time before he made his leave, just inside of the threshold to the entry hall. The panther never turned back towards the former king of Adamare, but he still spoke clearly for the man who had already departed the mortal realm. "I know it is probably little consolation... But I am grateful to you for leaving him where I would find him... He may not be raised a king, but he will be raised with love." Jagón never would've believed that Calium heard every single word, but he wasn't the only one listening in that place. The panther stepped through the door, and did not return to that room again that night.
After searching the kitchen with no real luck, Jagón was beginning to worry. He was starting to fear that he would fail this cub after all. As a desperate measure, the panther decided to try his luck with the town, which would be the next best option. Taking a single step outside that door erased all the need for such further worry. A smile crossed the panther's maw immediately, and the general spoke his praise in true gratitude. "By the gods, what would we ever do without Byron Aschefell?"
A single feral cow, one that had recently been separated from its newborn calf in the battle, was hitched to the tree in the courtyard nearest the entrance. Jagón spotted a small satchel tied over the beast's back. Inside of it he found several fresh linens, a small mug, and some short instructions left by his former mentor. Jagón got the idea fairly quickly, looked to the hungry and impatient cub in his arms, and spoke reassuringly to the boy.
"It seems someone has secured a nurse for you after all." It made for an awkward learning curve for the noble, but after getting a feel for what he was doing, he soon had a decent sized mug of milk for the boy. Jagón started by cleaning his hands thoroughly. The irony of washing so much human blood away before feeding the child was not lost on the leopard. The beast used a little liquor to better sterilize everything before he began, being as mindful as he could for the boy's wellbeing. He dipped his finger into the milk, brought it to the infant's lips, and fed the boy for quite some time, repeating the motion tenderly as he merely gazed down at the son he had been able to save against all odds. After the boy was satisfied, (and close to falling back to sleep,) just before dawn signaled the start of their long journey back home, Jagón spoke a final promise to his son.
"We have a long road ahead of us, my little Aster, but I swear to you, your father is stronger than anything we may encounter, so I'll protect you. I'm sure you'll get impatient along the way, and that's to be expected, but you should always remember that sometimes, finding your way home means taking the longest and scariest roads back." The beast looked at the rapidly dozing infant one last time as the dawn of a new life for both the little king, and the knight cast its first rays of light over the horizon. The general spoke fondly to his son one last time before he faded off to sleep.
"Don't worry, you can rest for now. You'll have plenty of time to hear my lessons later."
===
Cortist was sure he should've been long dead by now. The monster had managed to catch him off guard again, only this time, the creature landed a direct hit with a shielded fist, launching a truly destructive wave of agony right through the young panther as he was thrown from the strike. He had just been put through the remains of the rotting door leading back into the entry hall by the ragged blow. By instincts alone, the mage was already rising to his feet, though struggling to accept how he had survived yet again.
`Is it Death? Is he sparing me somehow? Did he do something to me? There's just no other explanation, I shouldn't have been able to take that... He once said he could give me the power to cheat death...'
The mage abandoned the thought, struggling to raise a wall of earth around himself as the demon pursued him into the hall. With a single cleave of the shadowy sword, the earthen wall crumbled away, and the monster screeched in delight as the young mage came back into view. Unfortunately for the demon, Cortist had already prepared his counter.
Two larger spears of ice jutted out of the stones beneath him to spear the attacker through the front of each shoulder, eliciting another sharp howl. Before the monster could escape again, Cortist summoned two more walls of stone, pinning the creature's hands bearing the sword and shield to the sides. As the demon started to shriek in protest, Cortist finally lost his composure, pushed over the edge by his fatigue. He angrily shouted back at the pinned and noisy abomination.
"SHUT THE FUCK UP!" the panther threw his right arm forward, casting a bolt of lightning right into the monster's open maw, stifling the roar with his own thunderous power as the demon writhed in its bindings. Cortist leaned forward on his knees for a moment, desperately catching his breath as he had to quickly process yet even more unfamiliar feelings. Cortist Venatus, for the first time in his entire life, was feeling some fatigue on his vast reserve of magical power.
The panther righted himself, doing his best to even his breathing as he turned his attention back to the demon attempting to break free. The creature had begun violently flapping its wings in an effort to weaken the binds that held it. A large crack shot through one of the spears of ice; threatening to shatter entirely from the flailing. Cortist doubled down, hissing out his words as he built the ice up even more, reaching his right hand forward as he commanded the magic.
"Oh no you don't!" The icy pillars grew to encase the creature's torso and the base of its wings, rendering them barely even able to budge. Cortist reached behind himself with his other hand, feeling for the vines overtaking the front of the hall, the ones with the deep and complex root system. He effortlessly coaxed them to spread further beneath the castle, and soon, Cortist had new, twisting growth further disrupting the cobblestones beneath the monstrosity as they only added to the mounding prison the panther was building. These vines bundled up in mock braids, ensnaring the creature's legs as they worked their way up its form as the earthen mounds encasing its weapons were being reinforced near simultaneously.
Cortist felt the demon pull hard against its restraints, and in return, the panther snatched back. As winding vines wove their way around the jagged snout of the creature, the monster snarled once more. Cortist reared back, created a blade of wind in his right palm, and stepped forward, tossing his magic through the air; aiming to take the wings of the monster off entirely. The demon jerked its head at the last moment, and for a short second, Cortist Venatus worried he had just killed his brother.
The blade had sliced through the stony armor from the collarbone on its right shoulder all the way down to the base of the ribcage on the left side. The pressure holding against the demon suddenly found a good deal of slack, and in a mortifying display, Cortist watched in horror as his own magical vines quite literally tore the monster in half. Even more horrifying, however, was the part still linking the two pieces together.
In the middle of the cleaved-open chest hung two obsidian hearts, chained together by grotesquely lacquered strands of the blackest of blood. One heart had gone still, damaged by the mage's assault, but the other kept steadily beating, pulsing on and feeding the first until it finally had time to heal itself. The demon born with two hearts slowly began to pull itself back together, and Cortist could only stare in horror as the monster's cores were once more hidden behind its shadowy flesh. Cortist was baffled by a great deal of what he was witnessing, however, there was absolutely not a shred of doubt left in his mind as to what had transpired for the monster to obtain two hearts, and the realization felt like yet another debilitating punch in the gut.
The darkness hidden Inside of Aster all this time was the heart of a demon, and Cortist only knew of one such monster that was lacking a heart. What he couldn't come to terms with, was what could ever make a father go so far...
His courage fell into his stomach, and his concentration fell with it. It only took the mage losing his focus for a single instance for the monster to seize its opportunity, free up its sword arm, and make a clearing swipe of the area. Cortist did not recover in time.
The young panther found himself suddenly lying on his back, his breath fleeting, unsure of how severe the wound across his chest even was after taking such a blow. Cortist gazed up at the ceiling of the abandoned castle in a daze, wondering what happened to the demon.
His answer fell upon him, the demon slamming another shielded fist into his body. The blow forced his breath out between the unyielding cobblestones below, and his brother's gifted power. Cortist felt something in his torso break, and involuntarily sputtered out, feeling warm blood and spit pass over his maw. The demon raised its sword arm high, preparing itself for the finishing strike before it could enjoy its well-earned meal.
In that moment, Cortist was afraid, there was nothing left in him but sheer terror... The young panther gazed up into those glowing red eyes, eyes bearing far too much pain and power, and closed his own, accepting that he had lost. The shield was almost fully corrupted by that point anyway, so Cortist wasn't even sure what he was still fighting for. The panther shed a tear, the demon brought down the sword, and for just a second, Cortist surrendered his control of the situation, and accepted whatever outcome may pass. His power was eagerly waiting to take the reins for its master.
As the sword fell, there was a sudden spark. The single surviving stained-glass window in the castle of Adamare exploded outward, followed closely by the most intense and billowing flames the world had seen in centuries as the very mountains trembled from the sheer force of his unrestrained magic. Weathered décor and strangling vines alike were both incinerated within the blink of an eye. For a moment, it appeared as if a second sun was currently rising within the city of the dead. Were the base not crafted of well-mounted stone, the castle would not have survived at all.
As far away as he was, well within the garden of the afterworld, Death still felt enough of that power to make even him shudder.
===
As always, I'd be happy to hear your reviews or feedback. This is the first chapter with an editing team, and I think you'll agree it shows. Hope you enjoyed how I handled this. I'm looking forward to start closing out the climaxes!
The discord has been very helpful, and I've started dropping the first rounds of illustrations there, if you're interested. Thank you for reading, and hope you like what comes next.
https://discord.com/invite/kVz2WuRHGb
-Bayou