***Tirnanog, Mount Aerie***
***Magnus***
I am not so kind of ga to be carried back to your hunting lodge, Ginevra complained. Probably more to herself than to us. She had turned whinier the further her healing process advanced. Maybe because she was now awake for longer, which gave her more ti to think and get bored.
We had her strapped to a sturdy pole, using as much of our spare fabric as possible. The poor woman looked like a cocoon made out of rags.
Maybe a beautiful butterfly would hatch from it in the future?
I chuckled at the thought.
This is so undignified, Ginevra continued. Why not a normal stretcher?
Because you could fall off if we have to run. We encountered a ghostleech on our way down here. No matter your worth, I wouldnt fight one for you, Astra shot back. And now be silent, or I may let you slip!
I silently pursed my lips when I noticed the annoyed tone in Astras voice.
It was the first ti I had seen soone get on Astras nerves enough to make her lose her calm. Maybe it was the whiny, sowhat shrill way in which Ginevra was speaking now that her throat was healed.
I could perfectly imagine her as one of those politicians back from earth. Those who always complained about God and the world as long as it wasnt them who were the problem. Its the others fault! seed to be their motto.
Why should I be silent? Ginevra huffed. I will be in deep shit once we return. If I make a deal with you guys and implicate the Patels, the Patels will make the rest of my life a living nightmare. Assuming they dont have assassinated. And if I keep my mouth shut, you will lock up. Or worse.
Or worse, Astra confird and nodded to herself. It looked like she had given up on niceties. But not because of your poaching. If what we deduced is true, then you are just a small fish. If I were you, I would sing like a bird and hope the Patels will have too many other problems than to harbour a grudge. Think about how many stratas aside from the Frosts would be interested in learning about the existence of a large scale Patel operation. If the Patels dared to pull one over on a family like ours, the ones in charge of the twelfth strata, then who else are they daring to fuck around with? People will start looking beneath their carpets when they hear about this.
Ginevra whined but didn't have a direct retort for once. I hope that shiny armour of yours ans you have the resources to protect because my contacts will send everything they have after if they find out I am alive.
tal would be shinier, I mumbled, unconvinced that a beetles carapace could be called shiny. My armour was polished, for sure, but didnt reflect the light. Co to think of it, having shiny armour for wilderness exploration would be a stupid idea because of visibility. Everyone knew as much nowadays.
Are you joking? Ginevra huffed. Anyone can buy tal armour with a months wage. Buying a full iobeetle armour set like yours would take two years of poaching. Maybe three! And only on the black market, because full sets normally arent sold and instead handed down as family heirlooms!
I reached up and corrected the fit of my helt, suddenly uncomfortable with what I was wearing. Had Astra put into Tirnanogs equivalent of a spacesuit?
Astra pointedly didnt look back. She had both hands firmly on our carrying pole and was leading the way with confident steps.
You said our armour costs only a few months of inco, I stated, implying a question for Astra.
Then you havent paid enough attention, Astra comnted flippantly. I said it takes a few months to make the armour. Which is true. Just dont give so shit about freeloading on . If we are freeloading, then its on my parents, because I requisitioned the gear from the familys armoury.
I raised an eyebrow but decided to just go with it. As you say.
Complaining about having the best protection possible would be stupid.
We carried our trophy as fast as Astra dared to lead us through the Belly and then back up the Throat. It was an arduous task and we had to rely on Astras filants more than once.
Pretty much all of the vertical ascends had to be tackled by Astra alone because it would have been impossible for to carry Ginevra while climbing the steeper parts of the cave. At least not without injuring her by reopening the wounds. Or Wound? Did having your entire skin dissolved by stomach acid count as a single wound? Anyway...
anwhile, Astra simply had to hook her filants into the ceiling and pull herself and our charge up a few tres at a ti.
There was one dicey situation when we encountered what was essentially an oversized earthworm blocking our path. The shaft we had taken up the Throat suddenly ended in a pulsating wall of flesh. It moved in waves from left to right and was hot enough to force us to retreat a few tres back down the tunnel.
I learned that the creature was simply called worm and was slowly digging itself a path through the mountain, forcing us to either wait or turn around.
Astra decided to wait, since poking the creature in the side could reportedly cause a violent reaction we wouldnt survive. When sothing so large turned to scratch an itch, a cave-in was the likely consequence.
Sadly, I never got to see the whole beast. Once it had passed, we had to wait for two hours until the stone cooled off from the worms passage and then we got to skip a newly created tunnel, roughly twenty tres in diater. Astra couldnt answer my question of where the thing had put the mass it had scraped out of the mountain.
Well, the only way to find out would be by jumping down a worms maw, she suggested. I dont know anyone who was lucky enough to survive being in one of the things paths.
Has nobody ever hunted one? I asked.
The elders may have, Astra replied after a monts thought. Normal hunters just run when they notice the walls shaking.
With neither Astra nor Ginevra knowing more about the creature, there was nothing else to be said about the topic. I had no choice but to leave the mystery to be uncovered another day.
After resting at a shelter between the Maw and the Throat, we made our way back through the Maw and arrived at the large tal gateway which led into the clans living caves. On the way there, we also greeted our old friend, the wild molerat, and it allowed us to pass once more with just a hiss as a warning.
All in all, it took us two full days of pure travel ti to carry Ginevra back ho.
This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
Getting down into the Belly had also taken us roughly two days, but we didnt hurry on the way down and spent quite a lot of ti on hunting and with Astra teaching about the environnt. We certainly hadnt been in a rush to get to a specific destination.
Before we announced our return at the gate, Astra silently addressed Ginevra, Its better if you let speak, Ginevra. In fact, it would probably be best if you say nothing at all. Can you do that or do I have to shut you up?
Ill pretend to be asleep, Ginevra replied, apparently realizing it wouldnt help if anyone recognized her.
Astra knocked on the gate and we waited until I heard the sounds of soone unlocking it from the other side.
The large woman who let us out a few days prior stepped aside when Astra and I carried Ginevra inside.
When I surveyed the area, I found fewer hunters were guarding the entry compared to when we left. It seed like a few had left to hunt in different parts of the cave system.
Who is that? the woman was quick to ask questions about our unexpected cargo. I wasnt aware of other hunters being registered for your hunting territory.
Curiously, the guard wasted no ti on enquiring about Ginevras state.
Astra smiled sweetly at the gate guard. I am sorry, but I am afraid that opportunity and circumstance had us deviate from our registered trip. The path down the throat was blocked by a ghostleech and we couldnt find a way past it without a fight. So we decided to take a small incursion into the Maze. A worm opened up a straight path to it. It is where we found our friend here, heavily injured and about to be digested by a changeling matriarch.
Changelings? They are breeding so close to us!? The gate guard looked confused but relaxed her stance.
Yes, Astra quickly continued before the woman could start thinking. We stamped out a small colony, but I dont know whether we got all of them. I highly advise giving all departing hunters a warning. The changeling colony was quite close to the Throat. There is no telling whether they mightve expanded their activities down into the Belly. The Maw at least seems to be safe. Could you please organize a ride directly to my familys estate? And our friend needs transport to the hospital.
I watched with silent amusent as Astra waved a hand at the woman and allowed her filants to flare up a little. What are you waiting for? Chop! Chop!
Err, yes! Of course! The guard was reminded of her station. She turned and quickly ran towards her office.
I was proud of my partner. Astra had twisted the truth enough so Ginevras identity wouldnt be known to the general public imdiately. People would know we had returned with a heavily wounded person, but nothing hinted at sothing illegal being afoot.
With the number of guards and hunters posted at this gate, so information being leaked couldnt be avoided. But we could control how events would be perceived.
It took us half an hour of waiting until two carriages with the Frosts personal house guard arrived.
We loaded Ginevra into a second carriage and Astra silently instructed the guards not to let their eyes off Ginevra. She was to be kept safe and her whereabouts accounted for at all tis.
Essentially, it was the nice wording of: Keep her alive and locked up until you are told otherwise.
I only relaxed once we were sitting in our carriage and on the way back to the Frosts estate.
Soo, the Throat connects to sothing called the Maze? I asked. It was the only part of your fabricated story which I didnt get.
Astra shrugged. Maybe? The Maze is a set of maze-like tunnels created by a burrower colony. The worms path went in the right direction and a worm tunnel can go on for kilotres without collapsing. The important point is people wont be able to verify our story quickly. Even if soone working for the Patels gets suspicious and sends a group down there to check, they will have to find the worms path and follow it.
I nodded. And without communication, it will take them a few days to co back. Assuming they send soone right away. We might be able to check the records later on for hunting parties who suddenly changed their schedule.
Astra grinned. Exactly. And who is to say that Ginevras party will be missed at all? Hunters vanish in the depths often enough without a trace to be found. Our poaching ring might be suspicious of the identity of our returnee, but as long as we keep her identity a secret, we might be able to avoid tipping them off. The worst thing to happen would be for them to hide their tracks and set their operation on ice.
We kept bouncing stratagems off each other until we finally arrived at ho and dismounted the carriage.
Mary Frost received us in the entrance hall. The old crone wore a disapproving expression on her face as if to tell us we were stealing her ti.
You are back early, Mary stated the obvious after we greeted her, then focused her gaze on Astra. Your parents are waiting for you in Etans office.
Having said her piece, Mary turned and stalked off in her offices direction.
I believe I have never seen her in any other state than bad mood, I comnted once it felt safe to do so.
Grandma Mary is just like that, Astra comnted with a wince. It took well over a year until I finally managed to see her having a neutral expression.
I scoffed and followed Astra to Etans office, where we found both of her parents waiting. It looked like we wouldnt get sothing like a bath before we had to report.
You returned early, Teresa opened the conversation with a tone of worry in her voice. Did sothing happen that forced you to abort your trip? I heard you requested transport to the Tates hospital. We already thought the worst happened.
Oh, I apologize. I didnt consider how it would look from your point of view. We are fine, but we picked soone up who needed transport back to the clan, Astra replied, then continued to give her parents an abridged version of our adventure.
Their expressions turned serious as they listened. Etan asked only a few short questions during Astras explanations to clarify parts of the story which were unclear.
Before long, Astras recount ca to a conclusion and her parents shared a long mont of silence with each other before Teresa gestured for Astra to follow her out of the room.
Etan frowned but didnt say anything about it before he turned his attention to . So the third strata eh? Are you planning any more trips to catch witnesses and drag them to my doorstep so I end up cleaning up the ss?
I shrugged and spread my hands. Dont bla for Astras decisions. If she hadnt stopped , we wouldnt have dragged the two Thich all the way to Mount Aerie.
Etan only closed his eyes and rubbed the bridge of his nose. I am not looking forward to the fallout, but this may help us in the long run. The Patels are fervent supporters of the faction which is in favour of doing nothing to keep the peace.
***Tirnanog, Mount Aerie***
***Astra***
My mother led out of the office and into the estates hydroponic garden a place where she liked to have her more serious discussions.
This gave the first hint that there was about to be a reckoning and I didnt look forward to it.
Once the swing door to the garden area fell shut, Teresa turned abruptly and started screaming as loud as I had ever heard her chew out when I did sothing stupid.
What the fuck went through your head to hunt down a mindflayer with just two people! Did you forget everything we taught you about survival! I cant even bla Magnus for this because you should have been the one to know better! I know you want to prove yourself, but this is not the way to do it! Climbing to power by blindly taking every challenge in front of you is only a way to ensure one thing! And thats death!
I felt it before I saw it and moved without thinking. The other , the one I had watching out for threats suddenly took over and had bend backwards, then twist and roll over my shoulder.
There was a thin strand of scintillating light that flashed through my vision just in front of my face and I felt a sting on my cheek.
Once the other returned control over my body, I was standing four tres further away from Teresa, crouched and ready to back away further out of her reach. A burning bush, an ornantal plant that the original settlers had brought from Earth, lost a few of its branches. All of them severed as if by a razors edge. It had been right next to before I dodged my mothers wrath.
Now the bush looked like the gardener decided to trim off everything close to the paved walking path.
I touched my cheek and my hand ca away bloody. That was uncalled for, Mom. Headwounds bleed like a bitch! I know myself it was reckless. I assure you, I have a reason for seeking power beyond power for powers sake.
Teresa balled her fists and visibly fought to regain her composure.
When I saw how much she actually cared, I suddenly felt bad for how I had presented the story to her and Etan. When I tried to see things from her point of view, I realized challenging the mindflayer must have looked like the pure recklessness of greed.
The type that got young fools killed.
I went down to my knees and apologized to Teresa for the first ti in a long ti. I hadnt been the best daughter soone could adopt in this fucked up world. I am sorry for worrying you like that, but I am fine. Magnus had a good plan and you can believe when I say, I deliberated a whole night over trying it or not.
It wasnt right of to cause worry for Teresa and Etan. They had taken in and given more than most other children could expect in this world.
Oh, get back to your feet! Teresa let out a defeated sigh. I intended to take off an ear for such a stunt! So you may learn sothing for the future. At least it seems like the mindflayer mutation wasnt a complete failure. You can move your whole body now?
I grinned, not caring about the cut on my cheek, or that she had intended to take an ear for educations sake. Oh, that, and so much more, Mom. You have no idea!
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