Chương 382: 10.2

Jewel kept her head looking ahead, as befitting her station, but her attention fanned out and thrashed all around her. Her ears did not flicker or turn, but she felt every sound and step and possible sign of moving men, horse or other beasts along the road. She did not let her eyes flit and flutter and settle on every figure they passed but still she calmly tried to pry out every possible secret of the faces that passed beneath her gaze.

She felt like her unhatched eggs were made of lodestone at her sides, the weight of them an ever present reminder of their vulnerability. And yet besides the cooler, but still not terribly cold weather? Leaving Terminapolis was more or less just like arriving. The road was the same, the farmland now in its astoundingly gentle winter rest was the same. The people gave her a wary consideration in her passing, but also friendly greetings.

After all, many of the same villages and peasants recognized her and the veritable fair she had brought with her mere days ago. Stories had been shared with them by roaring fires about her defense of their fellow magarskans further north. It was practically the same, and yet it was different. For where before she was traveling south with hopes of preserving the peace. Now she was marching north with a certainty of war. A war she had done everything to try and prevent!

No matter what that irresponsible child claimed about her she was trying to stop a war! The Impetuous Prince had called a storm down on the capital and left on the wing no matter how irresponsible a sign that was! He'd abandoned all of his court as well to whatever Murad the First cared to do to them! Just the thought of leaving Paul, Muriel, Dariusz or even Erhard behind? It made her fire try to crawl up her neck and bite at her flesh!

Forcing her to clench her neck all the tighter beneath her scales as she maintained the outward composure of grace and calm. She was marching north to war, with one of Erhard's Halberdiers running a messenger dove ahead of them at what would have been a death march for any other. All to try and inform Mathias and Viznove of the need to begin the muster of the Realm as soon as possible! Foolish child Evren! Why did he have to act when he did?!

Why couldn't he have told her about the betrayal in proper channels and forms of intrigue so they could have worked together!? Instead of ruining everything all at once! And that monstrous, traitorous Murad! She'd trusted the High King! He'd always been civil in all their letters and meetings, she'd shared her sympathies and fears of Wallachia with him! She'd given him aid for the suffering of Magarskans during the troubles! And how did the man treat her kindness? Her offering of friendship?!

He sent Vampires after her! And then with his dishonor exposed did he abdicate? Try to make amends? No! He killed his own son for daring to ask so much! Why did he do so much thoughtless cruelty?! For what!? She'd done everything right and honorable and they were still going to war! And what was that trickery Fizzbunches was up to?! What even was the Weird doing in Magarska?! And Adelyne had gone to meet him with Havel the night before it had all come undone!

Was this treachery by one of her inner circle or manipulation by the cat weird? All of it made her flame thrash even harder, straining to find a path to her mouth, a shape to slip over her tongue and teeth and then escape as words of pure unrivaled fury. Jewel clenched her claws harder than she reasonably should on another stately bound along the road. Leaving a harsh furrow that might risk jostling the wagons or tripping a horse. But she struggled to care. At least they had confirmed what had only ever been rumor.

A wyrm's flame did indeed do absolutely nothing to another wyrm! A single shred of relief but she'd never wanted to find out like this! Stolen story; please report.

"That could have gone better my lady." Adelyne was beside her, riding on a sturdy hackney. It felt like it took every shred of Jewel's will to not speak harshly to the guildmistress.

"Adelyne, Tell me truly and immediately, why were you seeing Evren that night?" The woman flinched and looked around, reaching towards Jewel's neck to sign something as her smile came weakly to her lips but before she could even try to beg off for the sake of security Jewel's voice rumbled deeply." I don't care who is listening, Tell me why you went to see that idiotic child of a prince and what you spoke of! Because it obviously was not only what you told me that evening!"

Her spy mistress in all but name stilled, face freezing before she scowled up at Jewel and let her own anger show honestly on her face.

"I went because you asked me to get the measure of him, I brought Havel because you commanded me to get the measure of an Unknown Wyrm and might very well have been sending me to my death Jewel!" Jewel growled again.

"And Fizzbunches? What about him? You mentioned he was there. But did he send you?" The woman stared up at her before throwing back her head and laughing.

"Oh, star's mercies Jewel! Do you? Oh heavens above! You actually do?! Of course you do! You utterly proper and honorable idiot! You think I'm in conspiracy with that scheming cat?!" Jewel held her posture, she kept her face serene, she held back every speck of fire from her words, but her voice rattled the metal around her. Made the hair on Adelyne's head shiver and brought gooseflesh to what of the woman's arms were bare."

You carry his boon Adelyne, you converse with him, and then the day after you speak to Evren he marches up to High King Murad and ruins every single shred of a hope for peace between Magarska and the Realm?" The woman shivers under the sound and rumble of those words, but as soon as they pass she's glaring up at Jewel, tears welling at her eyes and a fury on her lips and brow.

"I met the scheming bastard cat while I was looking for the boy's chambers! He led us to where he was staying with his brother then left, and then me and Havel simply talked about you and what you were like and what we knew of you! I got the measure of the wyrm and reported that night just like you ordered me too!" Jewel did not lose her composure, she did not let the sorcery slip into her words, Adelyne did not find herself twisted into something horrible and vicious and scheming.

She did not sprout fur and ears and smug golden eyes. But the urge to utter the command for it was so great it boiled in her chest." You told me he was honorable, a good, but inexperienced child, Adelyne. But something you said must have driven him to try and cast a curse upon Murad!" Her throat hurt with the strain of keeping itself closed, keeping the rumble to a minimum, holding all the furious wyrmflame inside. Not letting even a wisp of it loose.

"The only thing we said about sorcery was that wyrms could do it!" Then a look of concern fell over her spy mistress' face.

"And Havel told the boy what you did to him..." Jewel stared down at the woman, who suddenly looked just as worried and out of sorts as she had when she first arrived in Valasect. So, it had been trickery and manipulation after all. Jewel could not speak, if she dared there would be a spell to it, the fire was building in her throat, raging to break free. There was too much pressure, too much ruined in just a few days! Years of planning and effort, a decade of working to ensure peace!

A king's bounty in aid given to Magarska! All undone by a single infuriatingly smug cat! She had to let it out and dared not put words to her feelings. So instead Jewel turned her head up into the sky, opened her throat and screamed white hot fury and denial into the sky. A fountain of searing white oblivion roaring into being and deafening all the world with its thunderous wroth. Then exactly as before Jewel assumed the proper poise and grace of a Countess and continued her march north.

Politely ignoring how long it took Adelyne and the rest of the caravan to start following again.