Ayre

I am left to bear the exhaustion and dizzying amounts of pain alone. My physical movements are slow and difficult whilst my mind churns against what must be a sea of uncertainty.

Everything has changed, and yet I feel no less like myself. If anything, it is a comfort knowing that I have been supported all this time.

It might take time, but I would like to stop thinking of my parasite as… Well that word.

The pain at least is nothing new. I can deal with that if I pace myself and be efficient with my movements.

Survive the now. If I can do that, we can fall apart later.

My relentless self doubting still tugs at my thoughts. I would have to interrogate everything at this point. But knowing that doing so means perceiving my life as the Fourteenth Prince is something Lenore and I managed together fills me with excitement in place of the usual dread.

The thoughts feel… less like a shackle that tug at my attention with every clinking reminder that it is a fate I am bound to.

But I can just ignore them! Lenore isn’t going anywhere.

A part of me dares to look forward to how I might see myself now. Maybe even in a mirror if I am feeling brave.

For now, it is enough to know that I am still the Ayre that everyone keeps attaching themselves to for one reason or another. Just me would be hard to believe, but with Lenore’s insight added to my own? It is a little easier to believe that I have achieved more than just surviving up until now.

Instead of feeling like a wretch, I find myself seeing my position as a gift for what might be the first time. The Fourteenth of the Castellan’s unholy brood is more than the sum of our shared parts.

But how much more could I become?

The question summons a hunger that I instinctively push away.

Not here. Not now.

Everyone around me is unappetizing when compared to the likes of Lenore.

Astraea would come close, but unlike the Howling Watchers, Astraea does not register to me as prey.

A curious thought, that.

But now is the time to resolve this altercation.

"Enough." A bitter harshness suffuses my voice as I focus on the aftermath of violence that has unfolded around me.

I make it a threat by rising to my feet.

All around me, I can reduce the estimation of the amount of danger I am in. Each and every motion of trembling hands and faltering steps signal a trepidation at seeing me back on my feet.

That visible signs of fear and hesitation causes Second’s emerald to glow gives me ideas about how to handle who I am dealing with. Second looks drained by the emerald’s use.

I must have been in a miserable state after turning the tourmaline on Mel’Viora.

The Second Thorn’s reactions are delayed by a good half second behind those of the Howling Watchers, whose ears twitch at every sound.

It is not just that I am some brutish wretch freshly spawned from the depths beneath the Castellan’s castle. When my own blood retracts, hardens, and allows my body to shrug off mortal wounds, I’ve become a frightening truth behind whatever stories are told of the Castellan’s broodlings.

If I can shrug off a spear to the heart and two more besides, what else can the vision of what I am in their minds be capable of?

A cursory glance in Astraea’s direction informs me that she has somehow managed to avoid breaking a sweat. She casually discards weapons she has disarmed multiple Howling Watchers of.

Astraea is someone I will likely be able to count on in a fight. But for now, the threat of her and I together is enough to lean on.

My gaze instead searches for Amari. I find her fresh from peeking around the cover of a building. She is unharmed and more importantly, has not directly participated in the brief bout of violence.

Maybe the Howling Watchers will hold less of a grudge against her.

If she wants to claim the role of my advisor in the front of the Thorned Watchers, she might as well earn the role in front of the rest. I beckon her over, wondering how much of the wider scene she witnessed from afar. "Amari. Advise me."

To Amari’s credit, she doesn’t hesitate to begin striding towards the gathering to stand at my side. “I should start by praising your restraint. Any deaths or maimings would have inspired grudges from the rest of the Watchers who would need to pick up the slack.” She nods towards the fallen Watcher who went for my heart.

Yeah. I definitely could have used that explanation earlier. Still, her words are enough that I feel better about earlier decisions against killing a Watcher. Tripping Howling Watchers instead of killing them in the confrontation with Mel’Viora means this is the second time I have shown them mercy.

I offer my attacker a hand. “An admirable attempt on my life. See that it doesn’t happen again and I’ll see to it that the Watcher maimed by the Third Thorn is accommodated.” Snapdragon’s Watcher name tastes bitter on my lips, but in my state I think I can excuse slight falters in my voice.

The Howling Watcher’s fury only grows as I pull her to her feet with ease. That I can still casually exert myself leads to a few moments of visible hesitation on her part.

She does, however, cling to her hatred.

“This changes nothing!” She says, spitting the bloody remains of teeth broken against my solidified blood. “You maimed my sister! Maimed!”

“I’ll take accountability for Third’s actions.” I say in a tired drone, unsure if I can muster any further emotion for this flailing Howler.

One by one her siblings join in the effort it takes to restrain her from working up the nerve to lash out.

“You should be dead! Dead!” She screams as her fellow Howlers drag her away.

No.

I want to live for once.

And not just for my dolls or Lenore, but for me.

Somehow knowing this makes the pain easier to bear.

It’s a reminder that I am alive to internalize lessons that pain reinforces.

If nothing else, I commend my attacker for having the courage to bite into an unholy abomination. I denied her the courtesy of dying from a spear through the heart, but she just kept up the attack.

That kind of dedication feels like it could be valuable in the days to come.

No more words spill from her lips. Not after her sisters gag her.

I don’t blame them. Not with their sensitive hearing and all. But I do make it a point to hear the words they use to try and calm her down.

“Nine. It’s not worth this.”

“Let it go.”

“This isn’t what our sister would want.”

With the Howlers departing, the Second Thorned Watcher is left to take stock of the splintered remains of spears and my blood at his feet.

“Why side with me and not them?” I ask.

Second gives me a patronizing look. When he speaks, he does so as if the answer is self-evident. "It is clear to me that you were not going to harm any of us.” He crosses his arms. “Despite being stronger and the slighted party, you showed restraint. There are few who would give us that without strings attached.”

Time to pull on that string then. “If Third has done something. I’ll not give her up lightly.”

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Second glares at me, but the corner of his lip rises in the makings of a smirk. “Dead on your feet and still making threats.” He rubs his jaw before shaking his head. “No. I don’t think that will be necessary. Odds are likely that I have been misled.”

“Oh?” I raise an eyebrow, likely failing to look interested.

“We don’t stab someone in the heart for refusing to answer questions.” He says with cold amusement. “Nor would we if you asked us to.”

“What if Mel’Viora asked you to?” I say, attempting to pry what information I can from the unusually forthcoming Second Thorn.

Second emphasizes her title before responding. “If Grove Tender Mel’Viora so much as suggested it would be in our benefit to kill you, an attempt would be made.” He makes a gesture to the mess of discarded weapons the Howlers left behind.

If they needed them for something, they likely would have taken them with them. Or at least, that is what I take away from the gesture.

A sigh issues from Second’s lungs. “It doesn’t mean the Grove Tender wants you dead. The Howlers could be receiving a punishment in disguise.”

I frown at that. “You’re suggesting they were set up to fail.”

“I’m merely speculating.” Second says, his lips tighten suddenly. As if cutting himself off.

“I’ll keep Third safe in the Seed Seers’ spire. Just in case.”

At that, Second takes a long moment to scrutinize me. “You could have killed Ninth Howler. Or worse. I asked you not to feed on my people. Even when pressed into a situation where anyone would have expected you to, you refrained from doing so.”

It is my turn to cross my arms and cover up the fresh wound to my breast. “Sure.” It is all I feel comfortable saying.

“You showed restraint. That’s not nothing.” Second says, with each trio of words feeling like the closing out of a half formed argument.

Is this Second’s attempt at thanking me?

“I’m not my siblings.” My voice hardens in an effort to force the distinction.

Second slows his words, taking the time to pick the right ones. “No. I see more of my sister in you than anything else.”

I hold myself still, making an effort to not give anything away. How I feel about Snapdragon is no concern of his or anyone’s. “What are you implying?” I give Second a glare, feeling defensive all of a sudden.

“We… I have tried my best to accommodate her. As Third, her place in our planting is to push First and I to be better, to deserve our ranks. Unlike most Thirds, she goes above and beyond to bends or warps the order within our planting that I, as Second, am expected to maintain.”

Seeing Second struggle, I take a stab at getting to the point. “Would passing her off to me or the Seed Seers help you maintain this… Order of yours?” I struggle to hide my revulsion in how he is asking.

Second’s face screws up. But before he issues a rebuttal, a sigh escapes his lips. “If there is no place for her in the Thorned Watchers, yes. I would formally request that you find her a place that she can… Work through the issues I have failed to address. If you would like-”

I raise a hand. “That’s enough. I’ll claim her as mine should the circumstances allow it.”

“Alright then.” Second straightens up, nods, and begins to pick up the shattered spear pieces.

I turn to eye my companions.

Astraea is wearing a naked expression of approval. She stands at attention when I turn to her.

There is a sense of restless energy about her. It is like this fight was not enough and she is ready to start pressing our advantage if I could only order her to take the next step.

But the conversation I long to have with her is not one to be had out in the open. I wave her off, allowing myself to sag with the accumulated pain and exhaustion of the day.

This causes her expression to slide into a protective concern. I wonder if she overestimates what I am capable of?

I’m not about to walk off being stabbed three times without feeding on someone.

Amari’s tail brushes against my side. She directs my attention to Second, extending an open palm in his direction.

His back is turned. The Watcher’s focus is on the task of cleaning up the blood and weapons broken in the fighting.

“Astraea.” I say, stiffening my voice.

“Princess?” Astraea replies with an onyx gauntleted salute.

I falter, if only for a few quickened heartbeats. “Would you mind helping the Second Thorned Watcher?”

“It would be my pleasure.” Astraea says with a sharp toothed smile.

Second turns at that to give us a strange look. Even I can tell that his movements have relaxed around us. Whether it is a dulling of his senses or I have gotten through to him, only time will tell.

Once Astraea and Second begin to coordinate, I am free to search my she-fox advisor’s expression for approval.

She responds by pressing what appears to be a folded letter into my hands.

Turning so that no one else can see, I look over Amari’s assessment of the locals.

Have care on whom you feed. Blood runs thicker here than you might expect.

Be wary of a reliance on stones. Your Seers cannot shape what was never theirs.

Count the days til you quit this place. Leave as a friend or without a trace.

I furrow my brow as I look up from the cryptic message.

Immediately a white furred finger is pressed to my lips. Amari presses the note and my hand into a closed position with a vulpine grin.

A look to the side confirms that Second and Astraea both had their backs turned to us.

Amari draws my attention back to her and away from the note. “You asked of your siblings. Now is the time.”

I study her expression for a moment. Oh how I yearn to prick at my para… My sister’s perspective being joined with my own. The letter’s words and change of topic demand I am at my best.

Deciding against further strain, I content myself with giving Amari a tired look. “We should start with who you expect to be paying us a visit and suspected motives.”

Amari’s grin becomes a self satisfied expression. “Oh I can do you so much better than that, fair Princess.”

I swear I told her to lay off the titles, but I choose to let this one slide. “Prove it.”

The she-fox starts by taking a calculated step backwards. “At your Twelfth sibling’s request, your swift transportation here was arranged by Prince Threnodias, Ninth of her Unholiness’s brood. I was, and I quote, contractually obligated to bring you here before the next full moon.” Amari clasps her hands together in sync with Astraea turning on her.

“You snake!” Astraea shouts all of a sudden.

“Fox.” I sharply correct as I step between the two. “She’s our fox. And she’s going to explain.” My voice harshens. “Let. Her.”

I stare down my Sworn Blade.

Astraea’s perfect lilac lips tighten into a compliant line.

“Amari.” I say with a hiss. “Would you care to elaborate?”

“Oh with pleasure!” Amari says with audible amusement as her tail sways without a care in the world. “No amount of coin in the world can buy the freedom of my sisters.”

We both ignore the low growl that comes from Astraea.

Amari’s smile becomes a sneer. “Actual blood relatives I might add, not squeezed from moon touched plants like you Lunarian Seedlings.”

I feel the onyx stone plate press against my hand as Astraea grows impatient.

A quick glance informs me that Second’s jaw has set. His hands clench on an emerald and a spear head.

I’m not going to be able to hold them both back if she continues to antagonize them.

“Amari!” I bark.

“It’s really quite simple.” She remarks. “The goals of the Astraea here and your dangerous ninth sibling are in conflict. Astraea thought to bargain for advance warning enough to whisk you away before you were ever put in any real danger. But if you left before your siblings arrived… Other lives would be forfeit.”

Astraea clenches her fists.

I prove too weak to hold her back.

Physically, at least.

Maybe I can still appeal to her.

I strain against Astraea’s arm, my feet digging into the stones at my feet.

“So what? Why tell us now?” I grit my teeth as Astraea pulls me off balance.

That she does it so effortlessly…

My next words need to count. I sink my teeth into my lips, draw forth blood, and see so clearly as I again fall to the ground.

I get a glimpse of Amari holding herself in what registers as content resignation.

The words she penned to me had a finality to them, as if this was all I would need to mull over to achieve my ends.

Amari is okay if her part in this play ends here. Advise given, a ruse revealed, and parting hope.

Whose lives would be forfeit?

Her sisters?

Would they die immediately? Or would there be time to stop word traveling back to wherever they are being kept captive?

No. If that is the arrangement, Threnodias would keep his hostages close. None rise above ten without understanding how to maintain such a position.

Besides, my estimation of Amari would fall if she made such a desperate gamble over a situation she might have control over.

A hunger cuts me off from any last ditch show of strength or speed.

I can’t keep pressing myself like this.

I’ll have to rely on my words.

“Your sisters!” I shout. “Astrea! Listen to me! She’s forcing our hand but only because she needs our help!” I slam my fist into the stone ground. “We can’t hurt her. Not for that.”

Astraea pauses mid stride.

Amari looks up at Astraea, unconcerned for her own safety. “I’m bound to play my role. Same as any of you.” There is no apology in her tone or words.

And why should there be?

My heart aches with a weight bearing down hard against it as I weigh the kind of resignation that leads to a beloved sibling sacrificing herself for another.

Astrea looms over Amari, already within arm’s reach.

My heart begins to sink.

“Amari.” Astraea’s voice hardens into low husky pitch. “Give me a reason why I shouldn’t kill you.”

“Astraea.” My voice falters. “Don’t.”

Amari’s shoulders sag as she offers Astraea a sad smile. “I can’t. I’m already willing to trade my life for theirs. Which is why I need a miracle. You and Ayre are the best card I have to play. I would pay any cost to right the wrong of bringing them to Vylian shores.”

Astraea stiffens. Her head gently falls forward to press against Amari’s own. My Sworn Blade’s voice falls to a whisper. “You could have told me.”

The fox shakes her head. “I can’t afford to trust like that. Not here. Not when I am surrounded by monsters.” She looks up to meet Amari’s eyes. “It was all I could do to pit you against each other.”

Astraea cradles Amari’s cheek, stilling the fox’s shaking head. “I need you to understand me.”

I hold my breath as Amari gives Astraea a slow nod.

Astraea’s words are cold and dispassionate. “The only reason you still draw breath is that you have appealed to the heart of the Princess I serve. Whether you have done so with a liar’s tongue, clever manipulation, or out of a heartfelt love for your siblings is irrelevant to me.”

Amari swallows, her eyes closing shut.

An Onyx gauntleted claw runs the length of Amari’s throat. “There is no life I would not trade if it meant prolonging Ayre’s life.”

“Astraea.” We say, pouring our heart into this plea. “She’s more useful to us alive than dead.”

Our Sworn Blade’s head tilts to the side. “Perhaps.” Slowly, Astraea withdraws her hand.

Amari’s tail remains stiff. When her eyes open, we both watch as Astraea falls to one knee. “You may keep the coin I promised you. But in exchange for the lives of you and your sisters, I will demand that you swear a new contract to me.”

“I’ll do anything-” Amari starts.

Astraea cuts her off. “This one will be bound in blood and sworn under rites of old.”

There is no hesitation. Determination alights in Amari’s eyes as she balls her own hands into fists. “Free my sisters from the tyrant Threnodias, and I will bind my fate to yours.”

Astraea turns to me. “Princess, You have my apologies. But I must ask that you grant me leave to do whatever is necessary to save her sisters. Please, do not endanger yourself if I need to leave your side to achieve this.”

I find myself letting go of the breath I’ve been holding. “Of course.”

Feeling a little self conscious about witnessing such an exchange, I find myself casting a wary glance at the Second Thorn.

The raised corner of his lips drops. “That the three of you court ruination so openly is of no interest to me.” His voice is as harsh as his words.

As he turns to leave us with an armful of broken spears, I catch a roll of the eyes. “You know as well as I do that it is only treason if you fail. I would wish you well, but I think we would all be better off if you failed.”

Several steps later, we all hear the Second Thorn sigh aloud. “I’ll speak to First about joining you for tonight’s full moon. It is the least I can do.”