Summoner 20, p.33
Summoner 20, page 33
“Are you suggesting they held back before?” I asked. “I think Mur’s injury proves otherwise.”
His injury proves our point exactly, Sera countered. Sure, the hawks swooped in to save the moose, but the mistwolf had every opportunity to kill Mur, and it merely took a bite of him instead.
If they wanted you dead, they’d have killed you, Phi pointed out. Your earlier hunch was correct, Hunnah wanted you here for one reason or another, but it seems like you capturing one of her monsters was not a part of that plan.
“Any sage words for the group, Carth?” I prompted the horned Archon, and a honeyed laugh rang through my consciousness in response.
Perhaps I shouldn’t have doubted my sister’s abilities so long ago, Carth mused. I used to underestimate her pack, but now that I’ve seen them in action after so many centuries, I shouldn’t have written her off.
“That’s nice,” I scoffed. “And entirely unhelpful, so you’re going back in your cage until you can behave.”
With a wave of my will, I thrust the wards back around Carth and held back a sigh. I didn’t know why I’d even bothered with the green-skinned goddess. She had no intention of ever helping me, so I needed to stop pretending otherwise.
I turned my attention back to the other Archons, Xan specifically. “Is Hunnah asking them to stall until she arrives?”
That’s not a bad theory, Xanrith allowed. It’s hard to say for certain, but that does sound like something Hunnah would do.
The growls grew louder, and I knew it was time for this to end.
“Gryff?” Nia whispered, and I could feel the elementalist’s gaze upon me, but I couldn’t react, not yet.
As the monster at the head of the pack took another tentative step, I deepened my stance and braced myself for attack, but the iridescent wolves surprised me by turning on their heels and fleeing in one swift blur into the emerald brush.
“What--” I began to see, but my voice cut off in disbelief.
“Where are they going?” Nia wondered as the pack disappeared into the thicket of trees, and I shook my head slowly as they vanished from sight.
“I have no idea,” I replied in an awed tone. “Hopefully, they’re returning back to their mistress like we wanted them to. Catching one of their pack threw them off, and they didn’t seem to know how to act. It’s almost like Hunnah gave them a direction, and when the plan didn’t follow it exactly, they didn’t know what to do.”
“Do you think she’s on her way here?” Nia asked as the citrine tendrils of her fire magic retreated back into her fingertips.
“If everything works out how we wanted it to, then yes,” I replied to my wife, and then I peered around at my team, who were all just as confused as me. “Everyone relax for a second. Sheath your weapons, stretch. I don’t know when they’ll return, but exhausting ourselves at attention isn’t going to do us any favors.”
My friends relaxed their stances and let out sighs of exhaustion.
“Maker, that was terrifying.” Braden shook his head as a shudder rippled through his broad shoulders. “I thought we were going to be the pack’s lunch.”
“We came close.” Gawain rubbed the back of his golden-blonde head. “And speaking of lunch, where is Mur?”
“Mur!” Vahla gasped as she shifted back to human form, and her features turned to alarm as she remembered the moose shifter.
The younger hawk-princess suddenly ran into the thick spread of trees with impressive speed, and Braden chased after her. Gawain wasn’t too far behind, and soon, it was just Nia, Freya, and me.
“Should we go after them?” I wondered.
“Between Braden and Gawain, I think they have it under control.” Nia shook her head, and she smoothed a few errant strands of silvery hair back into her braid. Even after fighting a pack of deadly monsters, Nia’s hair still looked immaculate. How the multi-elemental mage managed to remain so elegant no matter what she did never failed to amaze me.
“Are you two okay?” I asked as I studied both of my wives.
Freya didn’t look nearly as poised and put-together as Nia, but there’d always been a wildness about my hawk wife that was incomparable to anyone else.
“I’m fine.” Freya shrugged as she pulled a leaf from her dark-blonde mane of hair. “Only a few scratches here and there.”
“I’m alright, too,” Nia chimed in, and she gave Freya and me a small smile. “Confused and a little tired, but other than that, I’m fine.”
“Me, too,” I agreed with the beautiful mage.
I’m fine, too, if anyone was wondering, Dio grumbled, and my tawny familiar shrank down to the size of a housecat.
“We were wondering, and I’m glad you’re okay,” I laughed lightly, and I swept the grumpy saber-toothed-cat into my arms. “You were a total badass back there.”
I was, wasn’t I? Dio declared with a proud puff of his chest, and I scratched behind his ear to reward him for his efforts.
Once he was through with the affection, I set the cat-like monster on the ground and turned my attention back to the mistwolf’s essence crystal.
I ran my hands over the smooth surface of the crystal and let out a whistle as the mental image of the mistwolf struggle played through my mind. “That was a close call.”
“I can’t believe that actually worked,” Nia breathed as the crystal’s rainbow shift reflected off her piercing blue eyes. “Not that I had any doubts about your ability, farm boy. You’re a damn good summoner.”
“Our Gryff is indeed a powerful warrior,” Freya praised me with a proud smile. “If anyone was going to capture a monster like the mistwolf, it would be him.”
“It was a group effort,” I reminded my team. “I appreciate all of the praise, but if it weren’t for you guys keeping the rest of the pack at bay, none of this would’ve been possible.”
“Alright, enough of the complimentary sappiness,” Gawain’s voice rang out as he reappeared. “We have a moose that’s in need of a healer.”
The haughty fire mage and Braden had Mur between them, and the moose shifter had one arm over each of the mages for support.
“Oh, no,” I heard Nia whisper, and her hand went over her mouth as she took in the sight of the weakened boy.
But even though his face was pale, and there was a dark red bloodstain in the side of his shirt, Mur still wore a friendly smile.
“It looks worse than it is, Gryff,” he called out to me in his native tongue, but Braden’s sudden glance at me proved overwise.
“We must get him healed at once!” Vahla appeared from behind them, and her eyes had a touch of red to them as if she was on the verge of tears.
“We will,” I assured the younger hawk shifter before she could get too upset, and I looked over at my friends. “Gawain, Braden, bring Mur to this tree over here and help him sit down.”
The pair of mages let out sounds of agreement and then carried the moose shifter over to a tree not far from where I stood. Once Mur was on the ground, he rested his head against the trunk of the tree and closed his eyes. Vahla kneeled down beside him and offered him a hand, and he took it gratefully and squeezed as his features clenched. My curly-haired friend was in a lot more pain than he wanted to let on, and I needed to get him healed immediately before things got worse.
“Thanks, guys.” I nodded at the ox-like summoner and the fire mage, and then I cleared my throat and addressed the group. “While we’re waiting, I’m going to summon Xanrith. Her healing magic can help Mur, and once he’s patched up, I’ll have her examine everyone else. I know the rest of us just have a bunch of minor scrapes and scratches, but if Hunnah and Quilla show up as anticipated, we need to be in perfect condition.”
“S-Summon Xanrith?” Mur stammered as his dark-brown eyes shot open. “W-Which one is she?”
“She’s not Veopa,” I soothed him, and I heard Freya translating my words to her sister. “Xan has resurrection magic that also works as healing magic.”
“She is one of the goddesses, yes?” Vahla clarified in her native tongue, and her eyes were cautious as the words left her lips.
“Yes.” I nodded at my sister-in-law. “Is it alright with you for me to summon her here?”
“If she can help, then yes.” The younger hawk shifter nodded back at me as she tucked a strand of russet hair behind her ear. “Besides, I would really like to meet her for myself. I am fascinated by your monster goddesses.”
I reached into my consciousness and unbound the wards that kept Xanrith at bay.
Hello, Gryff, Xanrith greeted me, and the musical tone of her voice brought a smile to my face.
Though I wouldn’t admit it to the other Archons for fear of being flayed alive, I had a soft spot for Xan, and I’d grown to really enjoy her companionship. She was the only one of the Archons who’d joined me willingly, and while I didn’t want to feel biased toward the ancient goddesses, that’d definitely scored her some points.
“Hey, Xan,” I replied. “We’re going to need some of your resurrection magic. Mur got clipped by one of the mistwolves, and the rest of us have some minor scrapes and bruises that could use some healing.”
Summon me forth, and I’ll do everything I can to heal your friends, Xan replied.
I unbound her completely, and after a moment, the side of my torso began to tingle. A stream of azure essence flew from beneath my shirt, and once it dissolved, Xanrith stood before us.
The umber-skinned goddess stretched out her wings, and the azure flames crackled with the motion. I admired the way Xan’s full, pert breasts swayed as she brought her arms back down to her sides, and heat spread to my cheeks when I realized she’d seen that.
“Now, which one is Mur?” the goddess asked as her violet eyes darted around the forest.
“The moose shifter over there.” I pointed to where Mur laid down beneath a tree.
Xanrith gracefully swept over to him, and as she approached the moose-boy, I watched Vahla’s jaw drop in awe.
“Is everything alright?” Xan asked the hawk-princess in a soft tone, and I was surprised to hear her use the language of the clans to speak to Freya’s sister.
“S-Sorry,” Vahla apologized, and her emerald eyes flew straight to the ground. “I-I was expecting a monster goddess to be more… gruesome. You’re beautiful.”
“Thank you for the compliment, princess,” the umber-skinned Archon addressed the shapeshifter. “You’re lovely, too.”
Xanrith carefully crouched down and began to examine Mur’s wound. She gently pulled the hem of his shirt up to examine the injury better, and when I saw the mistwolf’s bite marks on his flesh, a brief flash of panic coursed through me. They were deeper than the stain on his shirt had indicated, and I wanted to yell at my friend for trying to play it off, but the moose shifter had been through enough.
“Is he going to be okay?” Vahla whispered to Xanrith.
“Your friend is going to be perfectly fine,” the flame-winged Archon insisted. “The wound is deep, but not deep enough that I can’t heal it. Trust me, princess, my specialty is reanimation. There’s little I can’t bring back, and he’s not nearly as far gone as others I’ve returned to the physical world.”
“Thank you,” Vahla replied, and she stepped aside to give Xan some space.
The umber-skinned Archon took Mur’s hand in hers, and the moose shifter’s dull brown eyes swept over to her.
“Now, Mur, I’m going to need you to focus on my eyes for this to work,” she instructed him. “All you need to do is focus on me.”
“Okay.” Mur nodded weakly, and he quickly looked over at me.
“Just do as she says,” I instructed him in my calmest voice. “Xanrith knows what she’s doing, and we’re all right here for you.”
“Thank you.” My moose friend nodded again. Then he took a shaky breath and looked up at Xan, and the Archon took his hand in hers and squeezed it tightly.
There was a hum, a small vibration in the air that buzzed at the innermost part of my ear, and I whipped my head around to see if the others could hear it, but no one else reacted to the sound.
It’s my magic, I heard Xan’s voice in my head. You’re more in tune with it because I belong to you. It’s similar to the way you can sense the magics of your other summons.
Soon, the wound across Mur’s chest began to seal up, and I couldn’t help but shake my head in awe as I watched Xan’s magic at work. The goddess had brought me back from the brink of death before, but it was still fascinating to watch her heal someone.
Arwyn’s healing magic worked in a similar way, and I wondered if healer mages were influenced by the flame-winged Archon in the same way the shapeshifters had been given their gift by Veopa. That made me wonder if the other classes of mage had been gifted their magics by the other Archons, but that was a question for another day.
“Wow,” Nia breathed beside me.
Color returned to Mur’s cheeks, and soon, it was almost as if he’d never even been injured in the first place. His dark-brown eyes sparkled with a honeyed tint, and a smile broke out across his lips.
“Thank you,” he whispered to Xan, and the goddess helped him to his feet. “Thank you so much for healing me.”
“You’re welcome,” she replied. “You’re going to want to take it easy for a bit, but you should feel back to normal soon.”
“He is fixed?” Vahla asked the Archon in a soft voice as she craned her neck to look over at the moose shifter.
“All fixed,” Xan confirmed.
The young hawk-princess’ face lit up, and she gave the flame-winged Archon a dazzling smile.
“Oh, thank you, my lady, ” she whispered. “I was so worried he wouldn’t be okay.”
“You’re welcome,” Xanrith said, and then she inspected Vahla with a raised eyebrow. “It appears you have some scrapes yourself. Step over here, and I’ll heal those right up for you.”
Vahla nodded, and I noticed Freya stiffen. While she was more trusting when it came to Xan, I knew she was still uncomfortable with the monster goddesses, and especially uncomfortable with one touching her sister.
“She’s gonna be okay,” I whispered to my hawk wife. “Vahla’s in good hands.”
Freya’s gold-flecked brown eyes remained on Xanrith, but she relaxed when I crossed over and wrapped my arm around her shoulders. She rested her cheek against me, and I leaned down and kissed the top of her head.
As we cozied up, Mur stepped over, and his cheeks were tomato-red.
“F-Freya?” he addressed my warrior wife as he tugged at the hem of his jacket. “I just… I wanted to thank you for saving me from that wolf.”
Freya raised her head up to look at the moose shapeshifter directly. “Vahla did most of the saving. I only provided a second body--”
“You helped just as much,” Mur interjected in a firm but polite voice. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome,” Freya replied in a cautious tone
Mur gave her a quick smile and turned away from the hawk-princess, but before he got too far, Freya reached out to touch his shoulder.
“Mur?” she addressed him when he turned around. “You are not as bad as I thought. You held your own against the mistwolves, and even though you were hurt, you wanted to pursue the fight. That loyalty is not lost on me.”
“Thank you, Freya,” the moose shifter replied in a thoughtful voice. “That means a lot to me.”
Freya gave the boy a curt nod and then inclined her head toward Vahla. “Do not hurt my sister, or I will give you a wound worse than the wolf.”
Fear flashed through Mur’s eyes briefly, but Vahla appeared at his side and pulled him away before Freya could say anything else. Her cheeks were just as pink from embarrassment, but there was an appreciative smile on her lips.
It wasn’t an official blessing, but I knew Freya was at least a step closer to accepting the moose shifter as an ally. Maybe one day she’d even see him as an acceptable companion for Vahla.
After that, each of us went over to be healed by Xanrith, and once we were all cleared of our scrapes, scratches, and bruises, I thanked the flame-winged Archon and recalled her back into my consciousness. When the azure essence returned to the site of my tattoo, I realized my teammates were all staring at me.
Gawain cleared his throat first. “So, now that we’re all fixed, and you’ve captured one of the monsters, what do we do now? Should we try to track down the rest of the pack?”
“We want Hunnah to come to us, remember?” Braden said gently. “Gryff caught one of the pack to get her attention, so we probably need to stick around this area. If the mistwolves are on their way to find her, she probably isn’t too far behind.”
“Are you prepared for whatever’s going to happen when she arrives?” Nia asked me in a serious voice. “How are you in terms of mana? I know Xan just healed us all, but she’s technically one of your summons, so I know your mana is affected when the Archons are outside of your mind.”
“I’ve been a lot worse,” I insisted to my wife. “My mana doesn’t take as big of a hit anymore, not since I’ve collected nearly all of the Archons.”
“Still, I brought a few potions with me,” my ashen-haired wife pressed. “I want you to drink them down and build up whatever energy you lost in that battle. You’ve taken on the Archons one at a time, but capturing two of them… You’re going to need as much mana as you can get.”
“It’s not going to be easy,” I said. “But we have the other goddesses at our disposal, so Hunnah and Quilla are outnumbered. Even with two of them, we still have a larger team for them to fight against.”
“Should we find more open ground?” Gawain wondered. “I know we want to stay still and all, but there has to be a space close to here that’s more open. It doesn’t have to be a field, we just need a more suitable area in case a battle ensues.”
“That’s not a bad idea,” I agreed with the fire mage. “Let’s see if we can find a small clearing.”
My team snapped into action, and we headed into the forest. We managed to find a more open space, a clearing with trees surrounding it, and though I didn’t like to feel so vulnerable and exposed, I knew this area would be better suited for a fight. The pack had gone north, so we settled at the southernmost part of the clearing so we could see their imminent return.
