Fireborn Law

As they descended out of the mountains where the lycan clan, Silverpaw, dwelled, the tangled forests gave way to larger and larger stretches of farmland, and the towns and villages grew closer together on the flatlands of central Waejontor. Despite the war, people still traveled. They passed peasants on the road; black clad Waejontori women in their headscarves and shapeless dresses following the proper number of paces behind their men. A coach rattled past them at midday with a large armed guard. As the number of people on the road increased, it soon became clear to Pandeena that it would be next to impossible to avoid the Waejontori patrols entirely. They would become mixed in with the others and her animals spies would become more easily confused.

What they did not see caused a sense of tension to grow in both of them: there were no lycans anywhere.

"Where have they all gone?" Pandeena asked, frowning at Caimbeul.

"I don't know, but we're conspicuous by their absence. And I think we're about to find out."

Pandeena followed his glance and saw a small unit of guardsmyn approaching them: dark myn in blood-red livery.

"Ho, lycans!" The captain shouted at them.

Pandeena reined in and waited. Had she been alone, or had Caimbeul still had all the skills of his youth, she would have acted against them at once; however, it seemed better to take a wait and see approach to this.

The Captain swung off his horse and stalked toward them. "Dismount and show me your papers."

She blinked. "My what?"

"Travel papers. All lycans in the Queen's territory are required to have travel papers. You must have permission to travel."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

The commander raised an eyebrow at her. "Clans wolves are you?"

Caimbeul dismounted and sauntered up to the commander. "We dinna know aboot this." He thickened his accent in a deliberate fashion, hoping to appear as a simple-minded farmer. "Ah'm takin' mah new bride home. She's a pretty thing, don't ya think?"

The commander glanced at Pandeena. "If you like them pale."

"Sa what we do aboot these papers?"

"You'll have to come into town with us. We'll talk, and if my commander likes your answers, you will be given papers and allowed to go on."

"An if ya dunna like them?"

"Matters could get rather ugly." The captain sneered at them. "I'm sure the garrison will enjoy opening your wife's legs."

Caimbeul frowned. "Ah dunna want thaht. Ah ain't hawd time ta swell her yet."

The captain chuckled at the stupidity of Caimbeul's answer. "If you don't cooperate, you'll leave with her swollen… but it won't be yours."

"An' if'n ya like muh answers, Ah get her back untouched?" Caimbeul sounded puzzled, scratched behind his ear, and flashed Pandeena a cat sign that was hidden by his large head and thick neck.

Pandeena extended her Wilderkin talents, touching the Waejontori horses' nostrils with the scent of lions. They bucked and reared. Several bolted.

"What the hell?" The captain froze, staring at the spectacle incredulous.

In the moment of distraction, Caimbeul drew his knife, grabbed the captain by the shoulder, and plunged the blade into his throat with a ripping twist. The captain's eyes bulged in shock as he sank to his knees. Caimbeul jerked the blade out, turned, and remounted his horse. "Come on, let's get out of here."

A sharp tingling sensation swept through Caimbeul and his horse shuddered under him. He felt Pandeena's powers gathering for a Jump. They vanished from the road in a shimmer of golden light.

They materialized beneath a stand of beeches and Caimbeul had no idea where they were. The roads had changed a lot over the century that he had retreated gradually into the bottle in Running Horse.

"You should have done that in the first place."

Pandeena shrugged. "I wanted to see if you could talk us out of it."

"I tried. I'm rusty at that stuff."

"I saw that." Pandeena noticed that Caimbeul was shaking. "Are you all right?"

"I haven't killed anyone since Skeleton Creek."

"When Gwythyr died?"

"I put my blades up. This isn't even a proper knife." He pulled his blade and showed it to her as they rode.

"It's just a belt knife�."

"Yah. I'm surprised it worked so well."

"You must start wearing your blades again. It isn't safe."

"I don't own any." Caimbeul's expression darkened as if staring into the mouth of nightmares.

"Then I'll get you some."

He gave a mute nod and did not reply. His thoughts drifted to the pair of fighting knives wrapped in silk and buried in his packs — the ones he had not worn since he failed to save his son. "Where are we?"

"Sharani held territory… or at least it was last time I was through here."

"Yes, but where?"

"Due west of Tamrath Falls."

Caimbeul scratched his chin, certain that his request would not go over well with her, but deciding to make it anyway. "Can we stop off at Skullbones?"

"Why?" Suspicion crept into her tone. "What do you want there?"

"Stop off at that mage shop… if it's still there."

A frown deepened on Pandeena's face. "The only thing you ever bought there was contraceptives… those bloody seed crystals. We're almost killed and all you can think about is sex?"

Caimbeul winced, glaring at his hands as he summoned up the courage to respond, and wondered where he had lost it. It had always been easier to argue with her when a haze of alcohol lay between them. Some days he was painfully conscious of who she was and on other days, she was just Pandeena to him. Caimbeul was too self-aware not to realize how and why he wavered between reverent and irreverent with her. She was both one of his gods and simply a bitch he had gotten his bone into. Life was easier when he took the latter view and he clung to it when he finally formed a response. "Why not? I've no intention of remaining celibate."

Pandeena snarled at him wordlessly.

"I'm male. Deal with it."

"Kynyr isn't like that."

Kynyr? "Who the hell is he?"

"Kynyr Maguire. Cahira Sinclair's grandson."

"Are you sleeping with him?"

"Not that it's any of your business… not yet." Pandeena went arch on him, savoring her jabs in undisguised fashion. "However, we will be soon. Have you ever known a wolf that could turn me down?"

Caimbeul averted his eyes and did not speak to her for the rest of the day except to answer brief questions. Meanwhile, she prattled on about the 'noble' and 'handsome' Kynyr Maguire until Caimbeul wanted to hit him in the face.

GODWAR CENTRAL

Fireborn Law