WL: Ch4: Chapter 1

On the one hand, being in Sol was a nice reprieve from sleeping on the hard ground, in the open with campfire smoke blowing wherever the wind blew it. On the other, sleeping in the barracks was a far cry from the lifestyle Andriel was accustomed to in Tahmil. At least they weren’t alone, with Red and Harken sticking with them and comfortable places to sleep at the end of the day. It was better than returning to Tahmil with Sierra like Echellius wanted.

They’d arrived in Sol to learn about another Rhakos causing trouble. This one eluding capture on the docks, a shipment of crates freshly demolished. Food and equipment lay scattered over the docks lightweight minutia of war supplies floating in the water, some clinking against the stone pier and wooden beams. As Harken was the smallest, Bastien circled to let him and Red land first. They chose the end of a pier, leaving the larger Harpia to land on the stone quay. “What happened?” Red asked as he dismounted with an elegant jump to the ground. “And is everyone okay?” Andriel chimed in, joining them at a trot. There had been a couple of injuries, those unfortunates not fast enough to jump clear of the rampaging Rhakos.

A few days later found the four on another midnight patrol. So far the Rhakos had eluded them, no matter how they split into teams. The only rewards for their diligence were property damage, confused trails, and inflamed citizens. “At this point, I’m worried about finding this Rhakos.” Red sighed, walking next to Andriel, who nodded in agreement before adding, “I just hope you and I don’t find it. I’m sure Bastien and Harken would be fine, considering they can fly away.” The two shared a nervous laugh, pausing in the middle of a bridge to listen for trouble and glance about. The scrape of something against stone made them freeze, glancing about for the now dreaded glow of red eyes in an ambush. “Red.” Andriel breathed, keeping their voice low and praying that it wouldn’t carry. “What was that?” Red shook his head, too wary to say anything as he kept surveying their surroundings. A yearling cat spilled out of the alley next to them, the rubbish bin it had been scrounging in toppling over as the feline fled. Red and Andriel let out explosive breaths of relieved laughter, neither realizing they’d stopped breathing for a moment. After they’d composed themselves they continued on toward the bridge directly ahead of them.

The quiet was shattered suddenly, Bastien and Harken dropping out of the sky past the bridge and down to the riverbank. An earsplitting shriek replied, sending Red and Andriel running to the edge of the walkway to look down. Bastien had cut off the Rhakos’s escape into the tunnels under Sol, his feathers standing on end, all four wings outspread to intimidate the cornered wild Stryx. Without thought to their own safety, Andriel leapt down, running toward their partner and climbing his leg to the saddle. Once there they grabbed the bow they’d brought just in case and readied an arrow. If this ramming Rhakos decided to come for Bastien, Andriel could back him up, maybe get an arrow in its leg to slow it down long enough for them to get airborne. Andriel glanced back to the bridge for Harken- and nearly choked when they didn’t see him. Their eyes scanned the riverbank in a panic looking for him until Harken shifted position to reveal Red in the saddle, ready to back his own stryx up in the confrontation.

The wild Stryx tossed its head, scratching the soft ground in agitation as it saw that it was trapped. Both riders and their stryx held their breaths in the moments it took for their quarry to decide its next move. While Harpias were larger than Corvas as adults, Bastien was barely old enough to even be out here. As a two year old, he was still growing. Andriel had known that it was a reason Echellius had forbidden his offspring to join the fight against Wraith, but they had been more concerned about escaping the gilded cage Andriel felt they lived in. All the responsibilities of being an heir to a kingdom, specifically the marriage part, had become a wedge between Echellius and Andriel. As a biologically female offspring, Echellius already had concerns about Andriel being accepted at court as the heir. Concerns that had been exacerbated by Andriel refusing to conform to biology and the expectations of petty nobles. Andriel realized that they had begun to tense when Bastien moved to lower his wings, head turning to look back at them.

Suddenly the Rhakos broke, charging Bastien. Andriel internally sighed, it was probably the best choice compared to taking on an adult Corva. Seeing their friends in trouble, Harken and Red burst into action, trying to intervene so Bastien could make a clean escape. However, the stryx jumped at the last second, narrowly dodging arrows fired by Andriel and Red at its feet and legs. On instinct, Bastien ducked, turning so Andriel was thrown from the saddle to the ground- well clear of danger. They rolled, catching themself before hitting the stone walls of the river bed, to see the Rhakos land on the other side of Bastien and flee into the caverns. Though both stryx could have easily run through the tunnels, Andriel and Red decided it would be smarter to report back to the barracks rather than risk their flighted stryx to chase a runner through unfamiliar underground tunnels.