Galliard watched his Lord brother and Lady sister walk away with a smile plastered on his face. He was pleasantly surprised that Wrath had agreed to help the rabbit people. The lordling was almost certain that his brother would have left them behind to get slaughtered. He was glad that his insistence had led to their safety in the castle.

A slight tug on his shirt made him turn around to see Regan standing there with a small blush on her cheeks. She opened and shut her lips a few times but seemed unable to speak. The young Prince took the time to take in her appearance. She was a slim girl with sunkissed skin and dark brown hair to match her fluffy ears. She seemed overly skinny to his eyes, in truth, but he supposed that had more to do with her being malnourished than anything else. Her clothes were torn in many places and seemed far less comfortable than his own, he noted.

Finally finding the courage to present her thoughts the young girl spoke with a shaky voice, “Thank you, kind sir, I am grateful for your mercy.” She bowed to him awkwardly, swaying for a moment as she did so, the formal action clearly unfamiliar to her.

Galliard looked down upon her with a warm smile, “I could not sit idly by and let your people be erased from the continent.” He shrugged, unsure what his reaction to such a statement should have been.

“You are so kind for such a strong warrior,” Her eyes twinkled as she gazed up at him with admiration, “I wish to be as strong as you one day.” She admitted as her ears drooped slightly as her words reached them.

His eyebrows pulled together in annoyance at her words as he could almost hear the howling laughter of his older sibling. Though he was nowhere near at the moment, off doing something or another, as he was wont to do. He wiped the look off his face as swiftly as it had appeared not wanting to offend or frighten the girl standing before him.

“The compliment is much appreciated, but I am no great warrior,” Galliard chuckled half-heartedly, the admission to himself more than her. “I have a long way to go before even being considered one of the best…”

“From what I saw today I think that you will be very strong,” She looked away shyly at her own words, considering for a moment that disagreeing with a prince may not have been wise.

However, the young lordling did not seem to be offended by what she had spoken. Although he also did not seem to agree with her thoughts on the matter entirely. Galliard looked pleased with her insistence, the belief she showed making him perk up slightly.

“I sure hope so.” He smiled at the thought, her heart skipping a beat as he gazed down at her. “I have matters to attend to, the servants will show you to your chambers.” A servant appeared beside them at his words, startling the girl slightly. “Get settled while you can, you only have a few hours to get used to the place before you need to return here.”

Galliard turned and stepped away from the rabbit girl without another word. Leaving her where she stood he began to wander the castle halls deep in thought. Not truly paying attention to where he was going until he found himself standing outside the study of Lady Lust.

The young prince lifted his fist to knock on the large oak doors leading to the woman’s private study chambers, only before he could he was teleported in without warning. Dishevelled and somewhat annoyed…. He lands softly on a chair before the Lady of Lust.

“What can I help you with child? Her voice is distracted, busy writing something onto a scroll as she was, but soft all the same.

“I do not know.” He admitted to the older woman, smoothing his clothing of non-existent impurities.

“Then why have you come?” A single eyebrow raised questioningly even as she stopped her note-taking to look upon him.

“I do not know that either,” He could tell he was pestering her and so spoke up before she could say anything else. “I was just wandering the halls trying to clear the storm that is my thoughts when I found myself here.”

The older woman looked at him for a moment, searching eyes making the boy squirm. She sighed, pushing her notes to one side and leaning back. Looking upon her prince with curious eyes as she waved for him to continue.

“I did not know where I was going,” The younger boy said sadly, shifting uncomfortably in the chair he sat in.“Nor do I know where I am meant to be.”

She sighed, now understanding the princeling’s plight. She mused at how often the young and lost seemed to find themselves before her. Perhaps her Lord had placed a note on her study doors again as a prank as he had done in the past. Telling all that crossed that she had some great wisdom to impart upon them should they come to her.

“Let me tell you a story,” Lady Lust spoke as she broke from her musings, “A long time ago there was a little lord just like you who fought for his place in his clan.”

“He was a tiny thing, uncoordinated and stubborn,” The Lady Lust leaned back in her chair slightly, balancing on the back two legs. “He believed that the world owed him something for being born a member of the Masks alone.”

“He refused to study or train, believing that all would tremble before him at the sound of his family name,” A small giggle left her lips as she remembered the young man’s folly. “Finally there came a day where he had to protect his home and his people.”

“Did he realise his mistakes and come to rise up to be a strong warrior?” He wondered aloud, leaning forward to hear her answer.

“No of course not,” She laughed at his presumptions.“He died that night, now go and train, power and respect come with training and time.” She stood ruffling his hair affectionately.

“That had certainly not been where I thought the story was going.” The boy pouted at the redhead, swiping her hands away, lest she continue to mess with his locks.

“You will not get to where you wish to be sulking and complaining,” She pulled her hand away to tap the little lord on the nose, making his eyes cross to follow it. “You must train hard and exceed everyone’s expectations, including your own.”

“Yes, Lady Lust, I will do my best,” Galliard stood and bowed his head in respect to the older noble. “Thank you for taking the time to speak to me.”

“You have great potential, my prince, you just have to focus it,” Her eyes flashed purple for just a moment before returning to their normal hue. “Just like a fire, you will not grow without something to burn.” She hums, staring at him for a moment longer before returning to her writings.“Find your spark and turn it into an inferno that consumes everything in its path.”

You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

The little lord bowed once more before making his way to the door and out he went. Down the hall, he travelled towards the training grounds with a new determination. His brother Wrath was already there with the rabbit people when he reached, standing in a line in front of him. They were at attention, hanging off of his every word.

“Today is the start of your new lives here,” The booming voice of Lord Wrath was easily recognizable even at a distance, “Insolence will not be tolerated, treat your tutors with respect, or I will simply throw you back out to be hunted by the wolves.” His voice was hard, the words not spoken as a threat, but a fact.

The rabbitkin gasped in horror and nodded profusely, some of them shaking at the thought of leaving this haven to go back into the wilds to be picked off and slaughtered for sport again.

“We will not deceive you, my lord, we take our vows very seriously,” Regan spoke, her voice surprisingly firm in her declaration even as her mother reached out to pull the mouthy girl back. “You are our saviour, we will not reward kindness with betrayal.”

Wrath's head tilted to the side for a moment and Gilliard smiled at the girl’s resolve. Other than her grandfather, none of the other rabbitkin had dared to utter a single word to the two sons of the House of Wrath. Or any of the other Blessed since they had arrived for that matter.

“You will be trained by none other than my Lady Consort.” The lord continued as if he had not heard the girl speak.

The man gestured to his consort as she entered the area, the woman looking out curiously at her new charges. She did not speak, content with watching them as they whispered at the news.

“Furthermore, since the youngest of my house was kind enough to insist on you remaining here he will be responsible for you in all things.” He waved a hand back at Galliard, making the Rabbitkin stare at him for a moment.

The younger man blanched at these words, not having expected his brother to declare such a thing. He was pretty sure he had spotted his sister by marriage hiding a smile behind a small fan at his expense.

“Any problems you have you take to him and any issues you cause he will be punished for along with you,” His words brooked no argument, his words final. “To live here you have to be able to protect yourself as well as the masters you will soon serve.”

“I shall take my leave and let you begin your training,” Wrath announced, leaning over to speak to his consort. “May I first have a word?”

The two lovers turned their backs to the rabbitkin, conversing silently with each other. Even going so far as to put a barrier around them so they could speak in private. Galliard took this time to go over to Regan to give her some pointers for her first fight.

Syrin gazed over at them as inconspicuously as she could, not wanting to bring them to her husband’s attention. The little rabbit girl had a crush on the prince she mused, it was inevitable, he did save her and her whole family from the clutches of the wolves. How cute, the girl’s first crush no doubt from how she was acting.

Galliard obviously had no idea how she felt about him, he was so oblivious it was adorable. It was a good thing that the prince or his brother had not figured it out yet. Though she had known her husband for a scant time, she knew he would be furious at the thought. Such a lowly being thinking they had any right to court not only a Blessed but a Blessed of his bloodline. She thought in amusement, tickled at how different the two brothers were at times.

After bidding her husband goodbye, Syrin watched them interact for a moment more with keen eyes before clearing her throat. Catching their attention, they stopped talking immediately and looked up at the beautiful pale-skinned warrior. Galliard said his farewells to the Rabbitkin before leaving to go to his day's first class. Syrin noticed how hard he was working by how defined his muscles were getting and the increased power in his magical aura.

She smirked slightly to herself, proud of her brother's progress in such a short time. Clapping her hands together in front of her, the sound making a few of them twitch, she finally spoke to her new students. “Alright everyone gather around.” She beckoned them forward with a gloved hand.

They huddled closer together, looking up at her with rapt attention. Determination was clear in their eyes and the way they held themselves. They were ready for a change, to be stronger and not only to be able to protect themselves but prove themselves worthy of being saved.

“My husband kindly took you in and saved you from being hunted down and torn apart.” She says looking around at all of them to make sure the message got through. “You must earn your keep, or be thrown out, so work hard and I wish not to hear even a whisper of complaint hit my ears.”

They all nodded in understanding, and she put them to work. They trained all morning, working on speed and defence, fighting against magical figures she had made. The man-sized earth golems were little more than slow-moving targets for the swift demihumans. However, their tough clay exteriors made them excel in such a role. Lady Wrath was mildly impressed by Regan; she was notably stronger than she seemed, for a mortal anyway, but not by much. Two others caught her attention, a shorter stout blond woman with wide hips, a muscular figure and a gentle face. Her movements were swift and powerful as she fought two golems at once. Moving just enough to be out of range of one while she engaged the other. She must have been one of the few ‘warriors’ they had left in their number.

The other was a tall dark and lanky boy, who seemed the most agile of all of his kin, darting in and out of the range of twin earth golems as they attempted to swat him. Almost like a particularly hungry and annoying Soul Spike. The Lady of Wrath closed her eyes for a moment and shuddered at that particular thought before refocusing. If she never saw another one of those massive flying insects she would be a happy woman. They were monstrous insects that sucked the very soul out of their targets for use in necromancy. Truly, that must have been the work of a demon in her opinion, no loving God would create such a thing.

The two had already destroyed one of their targets each in the small time she had been distracted. She hummed in approval at the sight, nodding to herself. If they improved fast enough, she would likely put them in charge of the others during mock battles.

“Halt and come hither.” She sent out a mental order to the two, making them jump from the sudden invasion of their minds. She laughed silently to herself as she watched them look around confused, that being the first time they experienced such. The girl had even stopped long enough to get tackled by the remaining figure she was fighting.

“Over here,” She calls out to them again showing them which direction in their mind. The boy got to her first since the girl had to fight her way off the ground. “What is your name?” She asked swiftly so as not to waste time, the girl walking up behind him was close enough to hear.

“Harvey” The boy spoke clearly with his head held high, Syrin could not help but notice the fear behind them, but she would soon train that out of him.

“And you?” She asked, turning her snowy eyes towards her, the girl flinched as her glowing orbs focused on her and averted her own eyes away from the stronger woman’s gaze.

“M..M...Monica my Lady.” She answered with an awkward bow. This one's fear was far more obvious as she stumbled over her words.

“Only your hair represents the light of Xal, do you not share the same blood as the rest?” She queried, curious as to her origins.

The girl’s eyes saddened a bit and tears began to swell, but she held them back as she nodded at the question.

“My whole family was already killed by a pack of wolfkin when they came across our home moons ago.” Her voice quivered in anger, the memory enraging her. “I had run out after a fight with my papa, and when I came back, only chunks of flash and innards remained of them.”

She would not admit it openly, but at that moment her heart went out to the girl, and she felt this urge to take her under her wing and protect her proper. Not because she was ordered to but because right now she saw the scared little girl she was when Lord Envy found her about to be butchered by The Fang Brotherhood and saved her. Syrin vowed to herself to be to Monica what Lord Envy had been to her, she would make the girl stronger, a force to be reckoned with. And when she was ready she would help her get her revenge.

The Lady of Wrath studied the girl’s frame for a moment more, before nodding in understanding.

“You are one of the main family, correct?” She spoke to the boy after a time.

“Yes ma'am.” He nodded with enthusiasm, ears flopping up and down with the motion. “Our leader is my grandfather, I am the third youngest of his grandchildren.”

“Continue your training.” She sent them back to the yard, having nothing else to say to the two. They did as ordered, one far more enthusiastic than the other.

“Cleo?” Syrin called out to the head of the maids and she appeared in an instant, not wanting to keep her lady waiting.

“You called my Lady.” The elderly-looking woman asked softly from beside her.

“I wish for Monica to be my personal servant.” She spoke politely to the oldest servant of the house of Wrath, after a moment an idea popped into her head. “Make Regan one as well.”

“Is there anything else I can do for you, my Lady?” She nodded slowly at the request, her grey bun tied tightly at the back of her head bobbing with the action.

“No, that is all.” Syrin confirmed, gazing down the hall to where she felt her husband's presence.

The ancient blessed woman bowed one more time to her ruler before fading from existence once again.

Lady Wrath hummed to herself for a moment in thought, sure of the decision. It was perhaps best to take Regan away from the youngest son of Wrath. Her husband was a vengeful man and she did not wish for the girl to die or be punished simply because of some sparring ground crush. She would keep the girl occupied with other things until she gets the idea of him out of her head.

The Rabbitfolk’s training went on for a while more until Xal was high in the sky and they had to continue with their duties around the keep. She watched as some of the slower learners limped away with bruises covering their bodies. They had been rather surprised when she had made the golems move twice as fast, seeing as they were dodging them easily moments before, it had been rather funny. Syrin considered for a moment if her husband’s sense of humour was infectious… She smiled behind a hand as a pair of young men carried their friend past her, bruised from a fist to the chest. Nodding at them in acknowledgement, she turned away from the mortals, striding down the halls towards the war room and her beloved.