Braxton POV

My eyes blink open to find Emera’s amber fur cuddled up to my face. Her warmth soothes me, but the air around us has a chill. I try to recognize our surroundings when I realize we have slept well past sunrise in Rosewyn’s terran dome. The fire had turned to embers, and my stomach growled with ferocity. I looked around and realized all of us were nearly naked because everything we had got soaked in last night's river adventure. I could see Silas on the other side of the dome curled up in Rosewyn’s lap. Rosewyn looked exhausted. She had herself propped up against the wall with a dagger in her hand. Her eyes fluttered open and closed, trying to stay awake.

The woman had been awake this whole time. She kept watch over all of us and kept the fire alive to keep us warm. I have only seen this kind of dedication during my time at war. Rosewyn makes a good soldier. Is this what all adventurers are like? I know Emera told me it’s a fight to stay alive when completing jobs as an adventurer, but I didn’t think their dedication was this strong. Rosewyn was going to need some sleep if we were going to make it to Desfyra in one piece.

I gently laid Emera down on the ground, determined to relieve Rosewyn of her watch. Looking down at Emera, a smile grew on my face. This was the first time that I had held her all night. It felt amazing to have her that close for so long. If she lets me, I plan to make it a nightly thing for us. Just the thought of spending that time with her gave me the energy boost I needed to get up and make breakfast.

First thing, I need to tell Rosewyn to relax. “Rosewyn,” I whisper, trying not to wake Silas.

Her eyes are glazed over as she blinks at me. It takes a second, but she processes who I am. “Is everything okay? Did I wake you…or are the bounty hunters back?” Her grip tightened on her dagger.

“Easy, Rosewyn,” I tried to calm her. “Everything is fine. I came to relieve you of your post. Get some sleep.”

She nodded and let her body fall to the side, cuddling Silas. If only I had a way to take a picture of this moment, maybe his sister would worry less about her lonesome brother. I left the dome to find my pants mostly dry under the heat of the sun. Once dressed, I walked down to the water to catch our next meal. Rosewyn and Emera weren’t the only ones who could get us some yummy food.

After sunset…

At dusk, Rosewyn finally exits the dome where she had been asleep the whole day. We all eat around the fire as we discuss our plans moving forward. “If we follow the river, we should reach the capital city in five days,” I said. “I have an idea of where we are, but following the river will be our best bet to make it to Desfyra.”

Emera leans on me as she picks at her roasted fish. I can tell it’s not her favorite thing to eat with the way she slowly pulls it off the bone. “Is there a faster way? I mean, the queen summoned us to the castle, right?”

“She has, yes,” Silas replied. “However, I believe Braxton is correct. The surest way to reach the capital is following the river.”

“Should we ride the river to the capital?” Emera asked.

I had considered that option. “Building a raft wouldn’t be hard, but traversing the rapids of the river on a raft would be difficult. Then, there’s the possibility of enemies spotting us along the river. We would be sitting ducks on the water.”

If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

Silas nodded in agreement. “We should stick to the shoreline.”

“Okay, we should start moving then. Bounty hunters are probably looking for us.” Rosewyn suggested.

Hold my hand? Emera asked through our mind link. She had managed to control the link with some practice, which was a relief. Her nightmares and intimate thoughts had dominated my mind until now. I happily took her hand in mine.

We all agreed and began moving through the darkness along the riverbank.

Day One…

We made it through the darkness until dawn. At Rosewyn’s suggestion, we camped further inland in another dome of Rosewyn’s creation. I was starting to understand her survival skills were unmatched by anyone that I had met. Emera was no different. She would evaluate the camp's needs and find a way to survive since we lost a chunk of supplies during our river adventure. Of course, you wouldn’t know that with Emera and Rosewyn around.

Work the fire, brute. My stomach demands sustenance. Besides, I like you shirtless. Emera’s lust penetrated me like a wrecking ball. This bond is eating away at my common sense. I know this wasn’t the time for her ‘private’ thoughts.

I started frying up a rabbit that Silas had managed to hunt in the middle of the night with Rosewyn. Those two made a good team. Silas had been moving slowly after taking an injury in the battle. His magic was still recovering, but when he could he would spend time trying to heal his foot injury. Silas was a prince, but he had the potential to survive a war if it came down to it. Would it come down to it? I felt something brewing since Queen Amory summoned us.

Four days later…

We have walked so far, keeping out of sight. Several boats have swept the shoreline and fired randomly into the forest. Some have tried to trail after us, but they fell into the pits we set as traps. I have spent every day learning just how valuable Emera is to me. The weight Rosewyn can carry when things get tough, and the strength and leadership Silas is capable of. Something changed between the four of us since we left Kanna. I wonder what Queen Amory will think when she sees us. The capital was coming into view just beyond the riverbend.

“Oh! I see it!” Emera exclaimed from my shoulders. “We made it!”

Now, I can focus on you, brute. My heart is pounding with excitement. Emera's thoughts made me blush. Our bond is growing at an accelerated rate according to Rosewyn. It would be long before the bond demanded completion. My cheeks burned hotter as I felt Emera’s thighs against my cheeks.

A growl erupted from the darkness. “Did you, little brats?”

“Oh, joy,” I murmured. My fun thoughts vanished at the intrusion. “We have company.”

Silas groaned at the half-giant staring us down. “Didn’t you go down with the ship?”

“Princey sounds bitter, Olaf,” a purple orc chuckled as he emerged from the forest.

“Dumb dumb needs to be smashed,” the half-giant growled.

A few more foes came into view and in a blink of an eye we were facing off. I stepped between Silas and the orc while Emera headed into the branches above us. Rosewyn had three circling around her that were beast folk like her. They matched each other's speed perfectly, and while I wanted to watch their duel, the orc came at me hard.

“You must be the general,” the purple orc commented as we were face to face and sword to sword.

“I must be,” I answered as we retreated for a moment. “And you?”

Strike right, dodge left. We were in the midst of a hand-to-hand throwdown. They waited for us at our destination to trap us like mice in a cage. Emera hit his leg with an arrow forcing him to stumble. One of the beast folk, a leopard shifter, shifted and chased Emera in the branches above. My heart felt like it might explode at the thought of her being in danger. A side effect of the mark Emera gave me.

I am fine, brute. Beat that orc to a pulp. Emera’s thoughts leaked into my mind. Even now, she was reassuring me of her strength.

“Dexter Rainos, mercenary for hire,” he smirked as he punched me in the face. “Out of practice general?”

I huffed and spat some blood. “This is going to be fun.”

All of us got into it with our foes. This Dexter guy was stronger than I had thought. My face was covered in bruises at this point. A few cuts from his sword dripped down my arms. None of us had managed to incapacitate our opponent. It was well past noon before Silas had the half-giant on his knees. Emera had gotten into with one of the other beast folk while Rosewyn had begun throwing magic at her foes. Dexter and I were equally battered by each other’s blows.

Rosewyn’s magic had caused a ruckus, causing the royal guard to show up. General Uma Ceres led the guard right toward us. In less than a minute, General Ceres had all the mercenaries retreating into the forest. All four of us walked away without injury. General Ceres questioned Rosewyn and Emera’s presence. Silas bid her to just bring all of us to the castle. Five days of walking had been longer than Queen Amory had wanted to wait for us to return.

“Fine,” General Ceres grunted. “Call a carriage to escort Prince Halestone and his party to the castle.” General Ceres wasn’t very happy as she greeted us. “Welcome to the capital city.”