“No wonder you don’t go out often.” Jessie clung to Kael’s back as he scaled the rock wall.
“Usually I do not have a human hanging on my back like a monkey nattering in my ear!”
“What’s a monkey?”
Hissing, Kael decided to ignore her, human’s had lost much and he felt no need to return it to them. Despite the climb he was not weary or out of breath, having scaled it countless times. His claws had carved out hand halls from his frequent excursions. If not for Jessie, he would be bounding up the wall as cat would a tree.
“I think Jack is going to adore you. He’s a scholar you know. Always shuffling through papers or bending over dusty tomes.”
“I have no intention of meeting you ‘Jack’, nor another human, it was a moment of madness I took you at all.” His hand landed flat on the cave floor above. Smoothly he lifted his and Jessie’s weight to the stone floor. “We are here.”
“Oh my blessed Gods! I didn’t think I’d ever have firm ground beneath me again.” She heard a snort as Kael shrugged her off.
“Come, it is dawn and if you wish to reach your city before dark you need to stop rolling around like a pig in mud.”
“Hey!” She scrambled up and followed the sound of his voice and the glow of his eyes as he led her out of what she had started to think of as her home.
Despite his growls and snarls, she no longer thought Kael was a demon. Not human clearly, but he was not evil. She wondered if they could be considered friends. She frowned and skipped a few steps to keep pace with his long strides. He had shown her things that she thought were legend and spoken of peoples and places that she could not wrap her mind around. Even Jack, for all his learning could not scratch the surface of the knowledge within Kael’s mind.
And he hid in the depths of the earth, hording it all. She did not resent him. She was beginning to understand something of her own race’s history and knew from her own reaction to him that he would not be accepted with open arms. Most likely, instead, with sword and cannon.
“I brought the large cape with me. And if it’s dark no one will know –“ Jessie gasped as suddenly light stroked across her eyes. Squinting she saw it was the cave mouth. “Oh Gods! Finally!” She ran past him, with a slight limp. “To feel the wind on my skin and hear the birds, you have no idea Kael-“ Jessie called back to him.
“It loses a little something over time, child.” He finally reached her and stood at her side, his wings unfolding and flexing as a breeze skimmed over them. “What is this about a cloak?”
Jessie turn to face him straight on. Squaring her shoulders. “I know you don’t like humans, but I think it’s because you don’t know us so well. I want to show you how we are now. Instead of just the ones in your books.” Jessie fought not to step back or look away from his direct gaze. His eyes seemed to burn into her.
“It is not just books, human.” Nostrils flaring, he was the first to turn away. “But I will accompany you. If I do not you will manage to break both legs.”
He stooped down and scooped her into his arms.
“Hey I was thinking of walkin-“
Her words cut off in a scream as he jumped and his wings beat the air, lifting them easily.
“This will be faster, stop your shrieking.”
Jessie buried her head in his chest, refusing to look down. “Tell me when we get there.”
It felt like hours before his voice rumbled beneath her ear, waking her.
“Jessie…”
She blinked, smelling smoke, her mind suddenly wide awake. He never called her by her name. She looked up at him.
“I believe… that you will not be going home today.”
“What-?” Jessie turned her head and looked down.
A city burned beneath her. The streets were red. The walls were in ruins and the buildings burning. Jessie knew, just looking that there were no survivors.
“The False Lord-“ Her voice choked in rage.
“No,” Kael’s voice was considering as he tilted his wings to make another loop around the fallen city. “This is not his work. Your two lords know better than to destroy the inhabitants of a whole city and the city along with them. This is someone new.” Another wing beat brought them lower and suddenly Jessie could smell the smell of decay. Her eyes widened, even as her stomach lurched when she saw the piles of bodies in the cities centre.
“There are too few humans, let alone cities to make this destruction worthwhile.”
“What do you mean?”
“It means child… that you have a new enemy. One that makes your False Lord seem a kitten.”
“Usually I do not have a human hanging on my back like a monkey nattering in my ear!”
“What’s a monkey?”
Hissing, Kael decided to ignore her, human’s had lost much and he felt no need to return it to them. Despite the climb he was not weary or out of breath, having scaled it countless times. His claws had carved out hand halls from his frequent excursions. If not for Jessie, he would be bounding up the wall as cat would a tree.
“I think Jack is going to adore you. He’s a scholar you know. Always shuffling through papers or bending over dusty tomes.”
“I have no intention of meeting you ‘Jack’, nor another human, it was a moment of madness I took you at all.” His hand landed flat on the cave floor above. Smoothly he lifted his and Jessie’s weight to the stone floor. “We are here.”
“Oh my blessed Gods! I didn’t think I’d ever have firm ground beneath me again.” She heard a snort as Kael shrugged her off.
“Come, it is dawn and if you wish to reach your city before dark you need to stop rolling around like a pig in mud.”
“Hey!” She scrambled up and followed the sound of his voice and the glow of his eyes as he led her out of what she had started to think of as her home.
Despite his growls and snarls, she no longer thought Kael was a demon. Not human clearly, but he was not evil. She wondered if they could be considered friends. She frowned and skipped a few steps to keep pace with his long strides. He had shown her things that she thought were legend and spoken of peoples and places that she could not wrap her mind around. Even Jack, for all his learning could not scratch the surface of the knowledge within Kael’s mind.
And he hid in the depths of the earth, hording it all. She did not resent him. She was beginning to understand something of her own race’s history and knew from her own reaction to him that he would not be accepted with open arms. Most likely, instead, with sword and cannon.
“I brought the large cape with me. And if it’s dark no one will know –“ Jessie gasped as suddenly light stroked across her eyes. Squinting she saw it was the cave mouth. “Oh Gods! Finally!” She ran past him, with a slight limp. “To feel the wind on my skin and hear the birds, you have no idea Kael-“ Jessie called back to him.
“It loses a little something over time, child.” He finally reached her and stood at her side, his wings unfolding and flexing as a breeze skimmed over them. “What is this about a cloak?”
Jessie turn to face him straight on. Squaring her shoulders. “I know you don’t like humans, but I think it’s because you don’t know us so well. I want to show you how we are now. Instead of just the ones in your books.” Jessie fought not to step back or look away from his direct gaze. His eyes seemed to burn into her.
“It is not just books, human.” Nostrils flaring, he was the first to turn away. “But I will accompany you. If I do not you will manage to break both legs.”
He stooped down and scooped her into his arms.
“Hey I was thinking of walkin-“
Her words cut off in a scream as he jumped and his wings beat the air, lifting them easily.
“This will be faster, stop your shrieking.”
Jessie buried her head in his chest, refusing to look down. “Tell me when we get there.”
It felt like hours before his voice rumbled beneath her ear, waking her.
“Jessie…”
She blinked, smelling smoke, her mind suddenly wide awake. He never called her by her name. She looked up at him.
“I believe… that you will not be going home today.”
“What-?” Jessie turned her head and looked down.
A city burned beneath her. The streets were red. The walls were in ruins and the buildings burning. Jessie knew, just looking that there were no survivors.
“The False Lord-“ Her voice choked in rage.
“No,” Kael’s voice was considering as he tilted his wings to make another loop around the fallen city. “This is not his work. Your two lords know better than to destroy the inhabitants of a whole city and the city along with them. This is someone new.” Another wing beat brought them lower and suddenly Jessie could smell the smell of decay. Her eyes widened, even as her stomach lurched when she saw the piles of bodies in the cities centre.
“There are too few humans, let alone cities to make this destruction worthwhile.”
“What do you mean?”
“It means child… that you have a new enemy. One that makes your False Lord seem a kitten.”
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