Bird tapped her cane on the ground softly and turned to her two fellows, “We are agreed then, she faces The Pack?”
Stag nodded and turned to Pig.
Even with her mask Pig’s body language suggested she was not sure of the decision. Ultimately she nodded her assent as well.
Maria gave Medi a sidelong look and got her attention with her tail, “What is The Pack?”
Medi glared at her.
Bird interrupted her, “The Pack is an entire small community of Vogel predators that were wiped out by the Noctis and,” her voice caught as she said, “infected.”
Stag continued, “They congregate around a cave to the north of the village. Before they were attacked we had a healthy relationship and even traded. Some of the Vogel were friends of our people and are dearly missed.”
The priestess looked around at her two allies. Pig nodded and Stag looked away but did not speak, “You must destroy the Noctis Pod which maintains the corrupted Pack and put them to rest. Then our village will trust your plan.”
Medi’s face was a mask of irritation and she did not look in her direction.
Maria began to ask a question but was grabbed by the shoulder by the warrior and dragged out of the tent.
Maria stuttered, “I might have a few…,” before she was dragged back out into the central area amidst the torchbugs.
Medi released her and she made an exaggerated effort to straighten her mussed armor and give the warrior an imperious look. The grath woman looked far more tense and annoyed than usual. She wondered if this had anything to do with their night together.
She started to ask, “Look, are you…,” but was cut off.
Medi’s voice was cold and calculated, “There will be maybe fifteen to twenty of them. It isn’t based on how many things they infect. Their numbers are based on how much the pod can handle. The larger the pod the more drones.”
Maria gave her a concerned look and then nodded. She rolled her shoulders and said, “Alright, I will need a way to reliably set things on fire.”
Medi thought, raised an eyebrow and said, “We may be able to help with that.”
The grath were generous with their supplies. They even insisted on giving her several of the small yellow fruits that they had used to reinvigorate her after expending too much of her magic power. She replenished her torches and the grath gave her thirty arrows including ten that the grath called ‘grasshead’ arrows. Totomac explained that the bound bundle grass and herbs at the head of the arrow was made up of a highly flammable herb favored by the Firebugs that had been dried and treated for several days.
Medi had not taken long to gather up her own traveling gear. She preferred traveling light and it was clear that she was comfortable finding water and food between the village and where the Pack roamed. With that they departed the village, some of the grath leaving their daily tasks to see them off.
They had been heading north for several hours already. She continued to practice her runes and when she could took chances to shoot or track game for the evening’s meal.
As the light started to fade from the forest, Medi stopped her and said, “We have several miles yet to go. We should camp and approach The Pack during the day.”
Maria shrugged off her pack and set the two stringed up birds she had managed to shoot in the small hollow that Medi had chosen and muttered, “You won’t catch me complaining.”
The two of them went about setting up the camp and getting settled in. Medi insisted on a smaller fire to avoid being spotted, “The Pack does not often stray this far south but we should be careful.”
They spent a solid hour after settling up the camp sparring. Medi was, as before, eager to teach her all she could. To Maria’s credit she managed a much better showing after their patrol. There was a definite tension in the grath woman that had not been there before. It made her easier to outwit and Maria got in more strikes than usual.
It was after one of these solid hits when both of them were resting and drinking water that Maria studied her companion again and asked, “You seem out of it. Is it because of what we…?”
Medi gave her a long look as if not understanding her leading suggestion and after her brow knitted fully she said, “Should I be upset that we mated?”
Maria sat back and stammered, “I mean… no? I enjoyed myself.”
The warrior gave her an uncharacteristic smirk and growled, “Yeah, you did.”
She gave Medi a withering look and said, “Well, if things are not awkward because of what we did then why are you so wound up?”
The warrior’s eyes softened and she ran her forearm over her forehead to remove some sweat. After a deep breath she said, “Because the Three have done the same thing with you that they did with my father.”
Maria ran a hand over her half shaved head and winced, “Damn, I’m sorry. I was thinking about myself when I should have been thinking of you.”
Medi gave her a tight smile and tightened her grip on her spear, “They are manipulative. They have a way of making you do things and making you think they are your idea. That is what they did with my father. Those they send on these tasks are little but sacrifices. The Three have never voiced it before, but they believe very much that it is the duty of every member of the tribe to lay down their life for the heritage of our people.”
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Maria studied her friend’s pained face and said, “You think they are just trying to kill me off with this task?”
The warrior sighed and leaned forward to look more intently at her as she said, “While you were gathering supplies Totomac tried to talk me out of going with you. He knows what they are doing as well as I. He just believes that my anger is a symptom of my youth, and the loss of my father.”
The Angelus ran a tongue over her pronounced canine and whistled, “Wow Totomac. Not going to lie that one hurts a little bit.”
Medi looked down and rocked back and forth with a grip on the spear as the butt of it dug into the ground, “I don’t like the way things are. I believe they killed my father by sending him out there.”
Maria watched her intently for a few long moments and then said, “You should do something about it.”
The grath looked up at her with a raised eyebrow and Maria clarified, “Doing something does not have to mean violence. You have the power to change things. You are a fierce and powerful woman.” She chuckled and looked down.
Medi asked in a soft tone, “What?”
“You remind me of a friend of my father’s, one of his subordinates. She was the toughest woman I ever met in my life, and not only strong but smart. A tactical genius and a physical match for more than half the men I have ever met. My dad said that First Lieutenant Copeland should be a Major, and if she had been born in a different era she wouldn’t serve, she would be a conqueror. I believed it, and when my dad said something he meant it.”
After a moment she studied Medi’s inscrutable face and said, “You are a lot like her. If you want to change things, nothing can stop you.”
Medi only gave her a contemplative look and then a warm smile. After a moment she nodded her approval before standing and saying, “One more beating and then we will eat.”
The warrior knocked her down and whacked her on the side of the head for good measure in less than ten seconds.
Maria looked up at the boughs of the trees and tried to catch her breath as she huffed, “Early dinner.”
When darkness fell the two of them were huddled on either side of their small fire watching what looked like a pair of large knotted potato-like tubers crackle on a spit. After sitting in silence for nearly an hour, Medi was looking at her leaned back with her arms crossed her chest when she said, “Should we mate again tonight?”
Maria paused in the act of reaching for more food and gave her a sheepish grin, “Let me just add that in addition to all those compliments I gave you earlier you may be the most direct woman I’ve ever met.”
Thinking back to classes she had taken in college and the nuances of dealing with tribal customs she winced and muttered, “We aren’t married now are we?”
Medi raised an eyebrow and asked, “Is there a problem with being one of my mates?”
Maria raised a finger and said, “There may be in fact,” she paused when she saw the furrowed brow and growing annoyance on Medi’s face, “Not with me being your mate. You’re great! Why would you want me as a mate anyway?”
Medi shrugged and said, “You have cunning, you are not unattractive, I enjoyed mating with you. You learn to fight faster than anyone I’ve ever met. I think you would get along with my other three mates.”
Maria sighed and spread her hands, “I may have to leave…,” she stuttered and blinked as she said, “You have three other mates?”
There was a crack of wood and shift of leaves somewhere outside their ring of light. Medi reached for her weapon and Maria stood calling out into the dark, “Who goes there?”
A grizzled male voice answered, “Centurion Lyva and Page Talla. May we approach?”
Maria hissed to Medi under her breath, “Put your hands behind your back and act as if you have been captured,” at the wild confrontational look in her eyes she said, “do it, or the plan might be ruined.”
The grath put her hands behind her back and huddled up against a tree as Maria called out, “I’m the Angelus so don’t be shocked. You may approach.”
There was shifting of more leaves and movement before two figures emerged into the light. One of them was a tall and aged man in leathers with a heavy cloak. His armor was covered in leaves and mud stains, maybe for camouflage. It looked as if he had been out in the wild for some time. He had a bow in hand and eyed both her and Medi from the depths of his hood with caution.
The man beside him was scarcely a man at all. He looked like he was in his mid teens. He was dressed a lot like his colleague but his clothing had much less wear and his camouflage was a bit spotty. His hood was down and he looked wide-eyed and on edge.
Lyva looked at her and then to Medi and raised an eyebrow, “Wasn’t aware they summoned an Angelus. You speak well enough that I am convinced. Who sent ya out here?”
He wasn’t convinced. This asshole was fishing for answers that only someone from his camp would know. She studied both men for signs of danger and said, “The Mysta sent me with an acolyte named Oser, but he abandoned me on the second day.”
The hunter raised an eyebrow and muttered, “Did he say what for?”
Time to plant seeds. Maria shrugged and said, “Said he was looking for some ruin for the Mysta? Said something about it being the key to the expedition.”
The hunter glanced at his comrade and both looked surprised.
Finally, Lyva said, “An Angelus with a beast prisoner out in the middle o’ tha Expanse? Thank the Dominus for breakin up this damned boring patrol.”
The two of them entered the camp and Lyva gestured to Medi, “Caught yaself one, eh?”
Maria eyed him and nodded, “Eventually she will tell me where their camp is.”
Talla spoke up, stuttering in his eagerness, “We’ve seen sign of it Miss! We put down a couple of their hunters a few days ago. Their packs didn’t seem too full so we think it might be in this area.”
Maria cast a worried look at Medi but the grath had her head down and had remained silent. She remembered that the grath and these humans could not understand each other.
She nodded and sighed, “That’s good to know. The Mysta sent me to get back what they stole. I don’t have much longer.”
Lyva gestured at Medi and chuckled, “If you want we can help you torture it. I gotta be honest tho, it's best ya put it down and find another way.” He looked over his shoulder to Talla and grumbled, “Torture never works with these little monsters. Am I right Talla?”
The boy’s head bobbed several times, “They don’t speak the Dominus’ tongue and they aren’t smart enough to learn, Angelus.”
Maria nodded and added, “One of the powers that the Dominus gives me is to speak with all creatures. I think she is coming around.”
The two men chuckled and Lyva shrugged, “Well, if you don’t mind in that case, let the little monster know that we are going to kill every last one of them. I would appreciate the little thick beasties finally being able to understand my damned insults.”
“I think I’ll wait to tell her that after she has told me what I want to know.”
The two men laughed and seemed willing to let the matter drop. Lyva gestured to the fire and said, “Mind if we set in with you here Angelus?”
Cringing on the inside she offered a forced smile and gestured, “Feel free.”
