Summoner 20, page 23
“Did you have a good flight?” I asked her.
“Yes.” My hawk wife nodded with glee. “It was wonderful. Vahla and I flew circles around Eyrie for quite some time. She is much faster than she was before, I almost struggled to keep pace with her.”
“That’s pretty impressive,” I laughed. “I’m glad you had a fun time, though. You definitely deserve it.”
“From what I’ve seen in the halls, my parents are throwing together quite the celebration for us,” Freya continued on as she sat down and unzipped her boots. “We should probably bathe and ready ourselves for the affair.”
So, we took the rest of the afternoon to ready ourselves for the evening’s festivities, and I was relieved to be able to finally bathe. Growing up in the Wilds, I was used to going for stretches of time without being clean, but Enclave life had spoiled me. As silly as it sounded to admit, I enjoyed the ritual of bathing and making myself tidy. Plus, I was blessed with an entire family of exceptionally beautiful women, and they deserved to have something nice to look at as well.
We hadn’t packed much in the way of clothing, but I managed to find a pair of nicer wool trousers and a dark blue button-down shirt that had somehow remained wrinkle-free despite the long journey. Freya had instructed us to pack for warmth rather than style, but I’d still advised my women to bring a change of nicer clothing just in case something like this were to arise.
We managed to time everything out so perfectly that Vahla arrived back at the chamber to take us to the celebration right as we finished primping.
“Vahla, you look beautiful,” Freya complimented her sister.
The younger hawk woman was clad in a simple black dress with flowing sleeves, and her long hair had been brushed so that it shone like fire over her shoulders.
“Thanks.” Vahla blushed. “Shall we?”
We scooped the children up out of their cribs and then followed Vahla to the hall where the feast was being held.
As promised, Fenrir, Ratreya, and the rest of Hawk Clan threw together a celebration so grandiose it was worthy of a royal family. Long tables laden with all kinds of exotic and delicious-smelling foods lined the large stone hall, and tall torches swathed the room in a golden glow.
My Mistral lovers and I peered around the room in awe as we took in the sights. It looked as if all of Hawk Clan was in attendance, and the shapeshifters offered us respectful smiles and greetings as we passed by.
“Wow,” Cyra breathed. The umber-skinned summoner had tamed her midnight-black curls into pretty waves, and her lips were painted a deep burgundy.
“It’s so cool in here,” Erin chimed in as she secured the golden comb that kept her coppery hair pulled back. “It’s like something out of an ancient fairytale.”
“Hawk Clan takes its celebrations seriously,” Freya explained. “Especially when it comes to new additions to the ruling family. When Vahla was born, my father threw a feast just as impressive as this. It is a family tradition spanning back hundreds of years.”
Fenrir and Ratreya were already seated at the head of the table, and the pair of hawk shifters rose from their seats and gestured at the empty chairs nearby.
“Welcome, everyone!” Ratreya greeted us.
We all took our seats at the table, and once everyone was situated, Chief Fenrir raised a glass of mead high into the air and cleared his throat loud enough to reverberate throughout the hall.
“Tonight, we gather to celebrate our beloved Princess Freya,” the hawk leader announced in a regal but booming voice, and I made sure to translate for my Mistral lovers. “She has returned to us from the faraway lands of Mistral, and with her husband, the warrior Gryff, she has given Hawk Clan the first royal grandchild, the beautiful Princess Lahrra.”
“To Freya,” the hawk shapeshifters cried out in unison. “And the Princess Lahrra!”
After we sipped from our glasses, the feast officially began, and we all filled our plates with the delicious meats, vegetables, and breads that had been prepared for the occasion. How Hawk Clan had managed to throw all of this together so quickly was beyond me, but I was so hungry, I didn’t question it too much.
As we tucked into our food, Vahla stared longingly at Lahrra.
“You are so lucky, my sister,” the young hawk shifter sighed as she rested her chin in her hands. “You have wonderful friends, an adoring husband, and a beautiful baby girl. I wish I had that as well.”
“What about Trjegul?” I asked, and as I looked around at the shapeshifters seated around us, I realized I hadn’t seen the warrior hawk since we’d arrived.
Trjegul had been one of the strongest warriors on the entire island and had fought valiantly at my side during the battles between Moose and Hawk clans. He and Vahla seemed to get on well, and when we’d departed Eyrie Island, I’d been so sure the pair of hawks were going to get involved and grow to be the future leaders of Hawk Clan.
However, from the look that Vahla gave me, something had clearly happened between the pair of shapeshifters in between now and the last time I’d seen them together.
“He is no longer worthy of my affection,” Vahla replied, and her emerald-green eyes glinted with a mixture of bitterness and jealousy.
“What happened?” Freya asked her sister in the calmest, most sisterly tone she could.
“He found another,” the redheaded shapeshifter sighed. “Merra. Once you left Eyrie Island for Mistral, and the dust of our battle settled, his affections shifted. Apparently, their bond was enough to make him forget I even existed. Father said he is not worth the strife anyway. He is a weak male whose head can be turned by any pretty hawk who will bat an eye at him.”
“Merra?” Freya repeated back to Vahla, and an awestruck expression crossed over her features. “He willingly chose to pursue Merra? Of all of the hawks in the Clan, why would he choose her when he could have had you, Vahla?”
“I don’t know,” Vahla sighed, and then her face softened up significantly. “I do not know what makes her so desirable. Trjegul is free to make his choices, and he has. Now, I must find a more suitable mate.”
“What are they discussing?” Cyra whispered beside me.
“A breakup,” I explained. “Vahla and another shifter were involved with one another, but he chose another hawk as his mate.”
“Oh, fuck that guy,” Cyra announced. “If he turned down Vahla, he isn’t worth her time.”
“Men can be fickle,” Erin said absently, and Freya tilted her head as she studied the ginger-haired mimic.
“Fickle?” the hawk woman wondered. “What is the meaning of that word?”
“She’s trying to say that men can be unreliable,” Cyra explained, and Freya’s full pink lips formed an “o” as she understood.
“Not all men, though,” the blonde shapeshifter pointed out. “Our Gryff is not fickle. He is reliable and dependable.”
“Yeah, he is.” Cyra grinned over at me.
“Gryff definitely wasn’t included in my statement,” Erin agreed.
Freya translated for Vahla, and the younger shapeshifter turned her attention to Erin.
“Where can I find a man like that?” Vahla sighed again, and her head was bowed so low to the table that her long tresses spilled into a russet pile on the wood and hovered dangerously close to her plate of food.
“I got lucky,” Freya replied with a coy smile in my direction. “I didn’t have to search for my mate. My husband came across me in Wolf Clan territory and saved my life.”
“It was one of the best decisions I ever made.” I smiled at her.
“Maybe you need a good Mistral man,” Cyra proposed, and after Freya translated the dark-skinned summoner’s words, Vahla lit up at the idea.
“Is there a man there who is like Gryff?” she asked Freya in an excited voice.
“What did she say?” Erin inquired.
“She asked if there are any men like me,” I translated, and heat spread across my cheeks.
“Not like Gryff, but maybe similar,” Cyra replied. “We could always set you up…”
“Do we even know anyone who’s available?” Erin laughed at the idea.
“Not anyone who is worthy of my sister,” Freya declared, and the blonde puffed her chest out slightly as she slipped back into the language of the clans. “The man who is worthy of my sister has much to live up to. Not just any man will do. He has to meet certain requirements, and even then, he must get my approval.”
“I do not need your permission, Freya,” Vahla huffed as she raised her head back up. The chief’s russet-haired daughter crossed her arms against her chest and pursed her lips, and the movement showed her true age. “I can choose a man myself.”
“You may choose, but he may not be worthy,” Freya repeated in a matter-of-fact tone. “You are the daughter of a chief, Vahla. The man who marries you is going to one day be responsible for Hawk Clan. You must not choose someone who will not uphold our values.”
“Our values?” Vahla scoffed. “No offense, my beloved sister, but you forsook tradition to marry Gryff. He is not of Hawk Clan, but when he took your maidenhood, he became your husband. You cannot preach to me about following Hawk Clan when you left us in the first place.”
“Maidenhood?” Cyra cringed at the word, and I regretted the decision to translate the sister’s exchange word for word.
“I returned, did I not?” Freya asked her sister quietly. “I’m sorry I was gone for so long, but traveling in my condition was not safe for me or Lahrra. And then there was the fact that my husband was gone--”
“You were gone?” Vahla whipped her head around to face me. “You left her while she was pregnant? Why?”
“You left Freya?” Ratreya inquired.
“Not on purpose,” I tried to assure my mother-in-law, but the hawk woman didn’t seem totally convinced. “It was a situation with the Archons.”
“The monster goddesses,” Freya explained. “There was a fight against one of the remaining ones, and in order for my husband to keep our home from being destroyed, he had to intervene and join her in the shadow lands.”
“Shadowscape,” I corrected her. “But yes. I had to join Carth in the Shadowscape for a week in order to get her to retreat from our home.”
“If you were only in the Shadowscape for a week, how did you miss Lahrra’s birth?” Ratreya frowned. “Was this the week before she was born?”
“I was gone for nearly a year,” I answered Freya’s mother. “Time passes differently in the Shadowscape. To me, it was only a week, but back in the human realm, nine months had passed by. When I returned from there, Freya had already given birth. Unfortunately, I missed Lahrra and Milo being born.”
“I am sorry to hear that.” Chief Fenrir frowned. Apparently, his wife hadn’t been the only one to overhear our conversations. “But I also understand that you have paid a duty to your home in the same way you saved Hawk Clan.”
“I do not blame him for being gone,” Freya reiterated. “My brave husband sacrificed himself as a prisoner to keep us all safe. And now, almost all of the monster goddesses belong to him.”
“Truly?” Vahla asked, and her auburn eyebrows were so high on her forehead, they almost flew right off. “Almost all of them?”
“Save for two,” I revealed to the younger shapeshifter. “They are the last remaining Archons.”
“What happens when they all become yours?” Vahla wondered. “Will it hurt you? Will there be an existence without the shadow beasts?”
“I don’t know,” I admitted to her. “I hope that maybe they’ll stop appearing as often, but I can’t say what will happen once all of the Archons are mine.”
“Oh,” Vahla said simply. “I understand. Sorry for asking, I did not mean to offend.”
“I know,” I assured her with a soft smile. “Thank you for the concern anyway. It’s a lot to try to explain.”
“Perhaps we can speak on it more later?” Vahla suggested. “I am fascinated by the monster goddesses, and I want to know more about them.”
“I’ll tell you whatever you wish to know,” I replied, and Freya’s sister’s face lit up like a beam.
My blonde wife, however, didn’t seem too thrilled at this idea.
Since I hadn’t known Vahla very well before this, I could easily see the ways the hawk girl had grown up since the last time we’d spoken, but I knew Freya had a personal bias. Vahla was her sister, so it was going to be hard for my wife to let go of her protective tendencies.
I rested my hand on top of Freya’s, and the hawk-princess softened her features considerably.
“You’ll find a mate, Vahla,” I addressed her sister in an encouraging tone. “You’re kind, intelligent, and brave, and any man would be lucky to have you as their wife.”
“Thank you, Gryff.” Vahla blushed as she tugged at a strand of her russet hair. “I appreciate the kindness.”
“So, Chief Fenrir, not to bring up heavier topics, but how have things been since we were here last?” I asked the chief, and Fenrir unleashed a heavy sigh.
“It has been wonderful in many ways,” the hawk leader began. “And yet, in others, it has been difficult. Peace is hard to maintain, especially with the biases held so strongly amongst the Clans, but we are adjusting to these new changes.”
“Has Moose Clan stayed away?” I continued on.
“We have not seen anyone from Moose Clan in almost a year,” Fenrir answered after he took a long sip of mead. “It appears they’ve vanished from the territories completely, which could either be wonderful or terrible news. I only wish I knew the fate of their clan.”
“And how are the other Clans faring?” I wondered partially from curiosity, but the other part of me wanted to move the attention away from the moose shifters.
“The wolves, snow leopards, and bears have mostly come around,” Fenrir revealed, and the hawk chief straightened his back proudly. “Chief Boris, Chief Grymm, Chief Tjorn, and I meet regularly to maintain our alliances. Since our cooperation began, there has been cohabitation between the islands. Some have elected to stay with us on Eyrie, and others are interspersed amongst the other territories. None of the shifters are bound to one territory as before.”
“That’s wonderful news.” I smiled at the hawk leader.
“Peace and tranquility are an ongoing effort, but I will do whatever it takes to make them possible,” the hawk leader said. “I dream of a day where all of the conflicts within the Clans are entirely resolved, and we don’t have to worry about potential threats or prejudices within the territories.
“I hope our lands can get that way one day as well,” I replied, and I washed away my disdain with a large sip of mead. The sweet honey wine slid down my throat and warmed my belly from the inside out.
“How has Mistral fared?” Fenrir asked with a bird-like tilt of his head. “You mentioned the monster goddesses earlier. Have they attacked your lands in the same way they attacked the South?”
“They attempted,” I answered. “The remaining four goddesses had aligned with one another, and they tried to threaten my home, but we managed to halt their advances before they could strike. One of the goddesses surrendered herself to me willingly, and the other I subdued myself.”
“You are a strong warrior,” my father-in-law praised me. “Especially for one so young.”
“Thank you, sir.” I nodded at him. “But I’ve only ever done what was necessary to protect my home and family. It’s what any man in my position would have done.”
“Gryff is being quite modest,” Freya chimed in. “He has fought countless battles and entire herds of enormous shadow beasts, and he has always emerged victorious.”
“I can’t take the credit for all of those fights,” I reminded her gently. “I had assistance from my fellow mages in Mistral for a good amount of them. Claiming all of those battles for myself doesn’t feel fair.”
“That is the sign of a true warrior,” Fenrir assessed. “It takes a good man to value those at his side, and those who have his back in battle. While I admire your praises of your comrades, I know what kind of leader you are, Gryff. Don’t undervalue yourself.”
“You said that two goddesses remain?” Fenrir asked. “Have they revealed themselves to you?”
“I met them in the Shadowscape,” I explained. “But since my return, I haven’t seen them in person. They’re lurking back somewhere, but I’m not sure exactly where they are.”
“They cling to the shadows,” Fenrir mused in a thoughtful manner. “That sounds very much like them.”
“Once I captured their sister, their alliance faltered,” I added. “Since then, they’ve let their monsters do all of their work for them.”
I briefly explained the appearance and disappearance of the mistwolves, and Fenrir appeared equal parts fascinated and disgusted at the description of the monsters.
“You know not what they are planning?” he asked, and I shook my head. Then the hawk leader leaned forward in his seat and fixed his dark-brown eyes on mine. “It is concerning that they do not wish to reveal their purpose, but do not fret. You are strong, and you have your friends and allies to help take them down. Should you need other help, know that Hawk Clan will stand with you. We are far, but not far enough that we couldn’t find a way to meet you at your side. Hawk Clan owes you everything, so if there is anything you ever need, Gryff of Mistral, you have us on your side.”
“I know the army back in Varle would greatly appreciate your offer, Chief Fenrir,” I thanked my father-in-law. “As do I. Thank you for your kind words.”
I couldn’t predict the future enough to know if we would ever need the Clans to step in to help us, but the hawk leader’s offer was incredibly generous. It was strange to think back to the time before I endured the trials to become a member of Hawk Clan, and even stranger to remember the time when Fenrir was cold and aloof to me.
I lifted my glass to my lips and was about to take another sip of mead when I suddenly heard a crash and a loud shriek.
“Freya, Vahla, look out!” Cyra screamed.
I looked up just in time to see a moose shifter armed with a wicked-looking dagger charging full-speed at my hawk wife and her sister.
