A Pride of Gryphons

by Kristen S. Walker

  Navera bowed her head. “I accept your kind words, sir, but I think you should still call for a review of my decision.”

  Varranor sighed. “We’ll deal with that later. We have enough to sort through just trying to get everyone settled for the night.”

  Navera bowed a final time and walked off.

  Varranor looked back at Orivan. “Should I call for a healer to look at her?”

  Orivan shook his head. “No, she’s just in shock. She and Philagros came from the same village.” He looked down at her with a face full of sorrow. “If I may, sir, I’d like to stay with her and see that she’s alright. Thanks for your offer, but I can’t join you.”

  Varranor felt his joy at seeing Orivan drain away, left with only disappointment, but he couldn’t ask the young man to do anything else. He didn’t know if he should be jealous of the way he held Tatiana with such tenderness and care. Were they only brought together by the fighting and shared grief, or was there something between them? He didn’t want to think he’d already lost his chance with Orivan.

  “You may, of course,” he said stiffly. “And take care of yourself, too. I know it was a rough night.” He turned and walked away to go see if anything else needed his attention before he went to meet with Galenos.

  Tatiana VI

  Tatiana wanted to sink into the ground and disappear forever. She knew she was crying in front of everyone, including the warlord, but she was far beyond caring by now. Her only friend was dead, had been dead for hours without her even knowing about it, and he’d died alone. She should have been there for him, fought to protect him, held his hand when his spirit passed from this world. She could have told him how she felt.

  And with him dead, her last connection to her life in Helyma was gone. How could she ever think to go back there again and face the people of the village if they knew she’d done nothing to prevent Philagros’s death? The faces of his family—his parents, his brothers and sisters, his extended family of cousins and uncles in the village—they all rose before her in her mind’s eye as if accusing her of failing him. And her only family, her mother, would surely judge her harshly for her weakness. She’d promised to become a powerful warrior who could protect Kyratia, but she couldn’t even save the person who’d meant the most to her.

  Sobs wracked her body, rising up from deep within her chest. She was dimly aware of the fact that she was shaking uncontrollably but she didn’t care. She would let her tears become an ocean and swallow her whole. There was nothing left for her without him.

  Eventually, she was aware of Orivan’s arms around her, holding her up from collapsing on the ground. She clutched at him and buried her face in his shoulder, soaking the jacket of his uniform. He rubbed her back soothingly but said nothing, just letting her cry it all out.

  She thought her tears were endless, but exhaustion overcame her at last. She looked up blearily and saw they were the only ones still standing in the courtyard; all of the marewings and their riders had managed to find space for the night. Only Moonshadow and Lilywhite waited nearby, their eyes half-glazed over in sleep.

  “Oh, I’m so sorry,” she said, pulling back from Orivan and rubbing her face with the back of her sleeve. “I didn’t mean to keep you. Where are we supposed to put them…?” She gestured at their marewings.

  Orivan smiled and put an arm around her shoulders. “It’s alright, I wouldn’t leave you alone.” He pointed behind one of the nearby buildings. “The stables are all full, but one of the officers let me know that we could leave them in one of the training fields back here for the night.”

  She leaned into his touch and let him guide her to their assigned field. It seemed like every spare patch of grass was full of marewings, from their usual paddocks to the open spaces left for training drills and parade demonstrations, even the small vegetable garden by the kitchens. But sure enough, Orivan led her to a field that had enough space for two more marewings if they didn’t mind being cozy with their neighbors.

  Moonshadow seemed to recognize some of the other marewings and went to stand with them, but Lilywhite hesitated on the cobblestones. She nudged Tatiana with her nose and refused to leave her side.

  “You need to tell her that it’s alright for her to leave you,” Orivan whispered in her ear. “She’s concerned about you. Tell her to get some sleep and say that you’ll see her in the morning.”

  Tatiana stroked Lilywhite’s cheek and gazed into her tired eyes. “I don’t know that I want to leave her, either,” she admitted. “What if I just spent the night out here with her? It’s not too cold.”

  He shook his head and pointed to the other marewings. “She might like that, but you’re making the rest of them nervous. They don’t know you and they all need to rest. Come, there’s a bed for you inside.”

  She gave Lilywhite a final pat and sent her into the field, then turned back with him. They walked between the buildings without speaking.

  He stopped near the mess hall again. “Do you want to eat? There’s supper for everyone.

  The faint sound of voices drifted out the door and cooking smells wafted through the air, but the food wasn’t enticing—it only seemed to turn her stomach. She shook her head. “No, just sleep.”

  Thankfully, he didn’t argue with her, just led her to one of the barracks. She hadn’t slept in the barracks since she was a recruit still in training—as a candidate, she’d only had one roommate, and since becoming a full-fledged rider, she had her own quarters. But she was beyond caring. She went to the cot he pointed out for her and barely managed to pull off her boots before collapsing on top of the blankets.

  Orivan started to walk away, and suddenly fear gripped her. She bolted upright on the cot and reached after him. “Don’t leave me,” she pleaded. “Just… not until I fall asleep, please?”

  When he turned back, she could see dark circles under his eyes from his own exhaustion, and she felt guilty for asking. But he only nodded and sat down on the edge of her cot. “I’ll stay with you,” he promised. “Don’t think about anything else right now, just close your eyes and sleep. We’ll mourn tomorrow.”

  She clutched his hand in hers, then buried her face in her pillow and squeezed her eyes shut. She prayed that sleep would bring oblivion and she would never wake up to face this pain again.

  Aristia II

  Aristia unwrapped her arms from around her middle and cocked her head to one side. For hours now, screams had echoed through the city, so loud and desperate that she hadn’t been able to do anything but curl up in the corner and pray they would go away. Monsters fighting in the sky, gryphons and marewings, had tormented her for so long that she’d lost track of time and her family had given up on trying to speak with her. They’d left her alone in her bedroom, confused by her extreme reaction to the battle.

  But now they’d all fallen silent. Could it be that they’d finally gone away? She listened with one ear, then the other, and failed to hear any signs of fighting. Peace had fallen over the city at last.

  She tiptoed to the door and peered out into the rest of the house. It was also dark and silent in here, which means the hour must be very late and her family had gone to sleep.

  Moving quietly so she didn’t wake anyone up, Aristia crept out of her room and down the stairs to the kitchen on the first floor, hoping to find some kind of leftover food. Her stomach was so empty it hurt, as if she’d been running from the monsters instead of cowering in her room. She wasn’t sure why the battle’s effects had drained her so much but she knew she needed to restore her energy somehow.

  The supper dishes were all washed and put away, but Aristia found a loaf of bread and a hunk of cheese in the pantry. Without anyone to see her lack of table manners, she stuffed both into her mouth, tearing off huge bites while standing in the middle of the room. Her eyes darted around hopefully for some other tasty morsel, like some fruit or a meat pasty, but she wasn’t sure what her mother would miss and scold her for in the morning. She washed it all down with clear
well water and began to feel a little better.

  Then she slipped back out into the courtyard at the middle of the house and peered up to the duke and duchess’s rooms at the front of the second floor. Were either of them at home? It was a vain hope—they were probably both needed with the city under attack—but she would have liked it if they were up there. She knew Korinna and Galenos weren’t strong enough on their own to fight off all of the gryphons if they came back, but it would make her feel safer nonetheless if they were nearby. She had to know.

  One step at a time, she went up the front stairs and paused by each door. Galenos’s door was open, showing the obviously empty room. Korinna’s door down the hall was closed, but there was no light inside, and when she pressed her normal ear against the wood, she could hear no sounds of breathing. They must both still be out dealing with the aftermath of the battle.

  The thought of being alone in the house without anyone to protect her if the monsters came back sent shivers down her spine. There was no way she’d be able to sleep if they were gone. Oh, please, Allfather, let them be coming home soon.

  Aristia went back downstairs and planted herself in a chair by the front door. She’d wait until she knew they were both home safe. After the night she’d had, she needed some reassurance.

  Galenos VIII

  Nightshade lowered her head with exhaustion after they landed behind City Hall. Galenos slid down off her back and gave her neck a comforting pat. “I guess that’s more exercise than you’ve had in a long time, too,” he said in an apologetic tone. “I’m sorry, girl. I’ll try to make more time for you in the future.”

  The alarm bells had just finished ringing throughout the city, leaving behind an eerie silence. Galenos was alone in the dimly-lit patio for a while as he took off Nightshade’s tack and rubbed her down. He checked her over carefully by touch. Her joints were warm from the strain, and there was a nick on her left ear, but otherwise none of the blood was hers. Thankfully, she hadn’t seemed to suffer any injuries from the fight.

  At last, he sent her to find her paddock for the night and shouldered his gear himself. He walked over to the hall and knocked on the door.

  A nervous clerk answered after the third knock. “Is it safe?” he asked in a quavering voice, peeking around Galenos.

  “The attack is over,” Galenos reassured him with a patient smile. “Can someone manage to get me a late dinner and some clean clothes? Oh, and find the duchess.”

  The clerk opened the door wider and bowed. “Of course, Your Grace! The staff is all still here. We’ll take care of you.” He held out his hands to take the duke’s gear.

  Galenos gratefully handed over the heavy saddle and the rest. “Thanks. Better make some extra food,” he added. “There may be more coming—hopefully my brother.”

  The clerk nodded and rushed away to relay his orders.

  Galenos walked slowly down the hallway to his office. He found it empty, with the lights off and the windows closed up. Perhaps the guards had decided to keep Korinna safe in an inside room, which would be easier to defend. She was also probably asleep, since it was the middle of the night, and it could take her a while to wake up these days. He only hoped it wouldn’t be much longer, because he was impatient to see her.

  Shortly after he had all of the lamps lit, servants came in the open door to attend him. One set the table and poured cool water, while the other helped Galenos change out of his stiff flying leathers. His aching limbs longed for a hot bath, but the nearest bathhouse was all the way across the square and he just didn’t have the energy to walk that far. He’d wait until he’d recovered and eaten something.

  Varranor arrived just after supper was served up hot and steaming. “Oh, thank the gods,” he said, reaching for a piece of flatbread. “You’ve always got such good food here. Can I steal your chef for my personal meals?”

  Galenos gave a short laugh. “Your company couldn’t afford what I pay him,” he jibed back at his brother. “You could at least sit before you start stuffing your face.”

  Varranor slumped into a chair, but he continued to eat without any regards for manners, piling food onto his plate with one hand and shoveling it into his mouth with the other.

  Galenos rolled his eyes but said nothing for a while, eating in silence, until his curiosity finally got the better of him. “But you have to tell me how you knew the city was under attack. I didn’t have anyone to spare to send you the message.”

  Varranor grinned. “I’m just that good.” He reached for the wine bottle and poured himself a generous glass. “Actually, I can’t really explain what happened. The afternoon started off well. We used Ameyron’s strategy and hit the gryphons hard so they couldn’t get past us, but they kept coming until nightfall. I was thinking that tomorrow we could finally strike down enough of their numbers to scatter the rest and end this.”

  He took a swallow of wine and gestured with his glass. “But when we tried to land in camp for the night, the strangest thing happened. The marewings all started to act up like they sensed another attack. We tried to get them to calm down, but there was nothing we could do.” He shook his head. “Finally, they all took off like they knew where they were going. When we got close to the city, we heard the guns going off and saw you trying to take on all of the gryphons with only two rookie riders as back-up, so we decided to give you a hand.”

  Galenos frowned. “Do you think that the marewings could have sensed the gryphons from so far away?”

  Varranor shrugged. “I have no idea. We’ve had a few losses, and all the fighting has gotten them really riled up, so maybe they were more sensitive to their presence? I’ve never seen anything like it.” He jabbed a finger at Galenos. “That’s a question for your fancy mage to answer.”

  Galenos looked down at his plate, as if he could see a clue in his food. Something was still bothering him. “The other thing that I can’t figure out,” he went on, “is how they got into the city in the first place. The magestone usually repels monsters even in the air, but it was like they didn’t even notice it. We had no warning. Korinna was the first one to spot them—and they flew in over the bay in the south, not from the north where you were fighting.”

  “Strange,” Varranor agreed, but he didn’t appear to be too bothered by the mystery. He looked around the room. “Is the little wife at home? You should go wake her up to tell her that we won.”

  Galenos pushed back his chair and stood up. “Actually, Korinna was supposed to be safe here, under guard. I asked a servant to bring her.” He crossed the room and grabbed the bell pull to summon someone.

  The nervous clerk came to the door in a hurry. “I’m sorry, Your Grace,” he said. “Most of the staff has left, since it’s gotten so late. Did you need something else?”

  Galenos folded his arms. “Yes. I asked for my wife. Is she still asleep somewhere?”

  “Oh!” The clerk covered his mouth. “I thought the other servant already told you. The guards said she left shortly after you did, to go help the wounded. Should I send someone to fetch her?”

  “What!” Galenos fumed. “Don’t bother. I’ll go myself.” He would have a stern talk later with City Hall’s guards about the meaning of guarding his wife. He should have expected her to do something reckless. “Where did she go?”

  The clerk stammered out directions to a warehouse nears the docks.

  Galenos shot a look back over his shoulder at his brother, who was still lounging and sipping his wine. “No need to get up,” he snapped, since it looked as if Varranor had no intention of going with him anyway. “I’ll speak with you tomorrow.”

  Varranor raised his glass with a smile. “Tell her I said hello.”

  Galenos scowled and marched out to go find Korinna. He only hoped that she hadn’t gotten hurt by roaming around the city while it was under attack.

  Korinna IX

  Korinna was floating in the darkness. All around her, she could hear the sound of leathery wings fluttering, as if she were surro
unded by a flight of marewings. She reached out her hand and a velvety nose pushed into her palm, tickling her with its warm breath.

  She dimly remembered that she had called out to the marewings for some reason. Now they had come, but she didn’t know why she needed them—or did they need her? She strained to see where they were, but all her eyes found was more blackness.

  More noses pressed up against her, brushing her arms and shoulders, hot breath ruffling her hair. The marewings surrounded her with a feeling of peace and safety. Whatever had been wrong before, she realized, was gone now. There was nothing to worry about anymore.

  But something was still bothering her. When she focused, she realized that someone was calling her name. Reluctantly, she turned away from the protective circle of marewings and looked for the source of that voice.

  Her eyes fluttered open. Korinna looked up and saw Galenos bent over her. His forehead was wrinkled with concern—a strange sight. He always looked young to her, even though he was eleven years her senior.

  “Korinna!” he cried. He grabbed her shoulder. “I was so worried about you. Are you alright?”

  Korinna realized that she was lying on her side on a cot. She looked around and vaguely recognized the warehouse, then saw a priest bending over a wounded man on the cot across from hers. The unsettling sight brought her back to the present. “What’s going on? Are we still under attack?” She tried to push herself up on her arm to look around.

  Galenos wouldn’t let her sit up. “Take it easy,” he said in a soothing voice. “The physician needs to check you over before you can get up. Don’t worry, the city is safe. Somehow the Storm Petrels found out about the invasion, and showed up just in time to drive the gryphons away.”