They were waiting for Barnar to return. The guide went inside the soldier’s keep to prepare all the documentation needed for their travel.

Riou approached Arthas as the girls were talking about proper fighting techniques and mana manipulation as they waited by the city gates.

“So, my fearless leader… That was an unexpected night.”

Arthas nodded, signs of his tiredness could still be seen on his face. “I’m too old for this”

Riou looked at him sideways “Right… but what was that growling? I never saw you doing anything like that before, you looked completely out of yourself”

“I… I don’t know how to explain it” Arthas seemed quite conflicted thinking about it.

Riou just nodded looking at him.

“I don’t know what happened, it just came out… I couldn’t control it”

“Oh, I’ve noticed… I bet Zafira noticed it as well”

Arthas forced a smile, he clearly seemed a bit ashamed.

“One thing I never understood, that touching stuff you guys do. It was nice to see it happening from the spectator’s seat for once. And oh man, she changed completely after that.”

“She did…”

Riou nodded “And you didn’t need to force her to wait for the girls to pick up before her… that was way too much, don’t you think? You wanted to show her who was the boss didn’t you?”

Arthas sighed “I just couldn’t resist myself. It was an urge to do it. It’s strange, because I didn’t want to… in my mind I even thought about leaving, but I just couldn’t bring myself to do it. My body was on fire, my mind could only think about one thing...”

Riou just nodded “Yeah, you were bewitched by her charms.”

Arthas glanced at Eileen and then back at Riou “When we met, I used to wonder how a female could grab your attention so fiercely that you would do so much just to return to her. I didn’t think that was even possible at first. But now, I start to understand it better”

“Really? So Zafira...”

“No… I’m just saying that I’m understanding it better now”

Riou smiled looking at Eileen “She always had an effect on me, I even tried to fight it at first. But some fights are worth losing” he then turned to Arthas a bit curious. “You told me before, you like the ones with strong feline traits, don’t you? Maybe that was your downfall today”

Arthas smiled, “When she sat on my lap and looked at me with those cat eyes… you wouldn’t believe the words she spoke to me. The little restrain I had left was lost at that moment”

“I beg to differ... you lost yourself when you growled, she knew she had you right then, right there. I couldn’t believe my eyes because that was so unlike you”

He nodded “I know, should've stood up, I should have left when you all went off… I wanted to. But My body was already on fire and my mind was clouded... How do you do it, master?”

“Do what?”

“I never saw you succumb to desire, not even once. How do you deal with the heat? The fire that starts at your gut and spreads to the body… burning you up and taking your mind away. Your crotch gets on fire and all you can think about is to take the female to your bed. How do you do it?”

“First of all, I’m a human… my crotch don’t get on fire, usually speaking”

Both let out a small laugh, “And give yourself some credit, there were no Zafiras in the village for you to create any resistance to that kind of... charm. And someone like her, to a village boy like you? She knew exactly which buttons to press to activate your lion instincts to the fullest, she knew how to get you into the mood she wanted.”

Arthas nodded “I was caught unprepared, that shall not happen again”

“You are always too hard on yourself, you need to have fun sometimes too, so don’t worry about it too much” he narrowed his eyes at Arthas and smirked “And I saw the whole thing… You really gonna tell to my face that you weren’t enjoying yourself last night?”

He let out a faint smile looking around to make sure the girls wouldn’t be listening “It was interesting.”

Riou nodded “After all these years, I’ve come to know you better than you think my friend. And you need to relax more often. We are on this side now, things aren’t that bad over here, it's ok to relax.” Arthas nodded but suddenly became more serious “Speaking of bad… the queen showed me the necklace you gave her.”

Riou sighed and looked down before replying to him “You disapprove this decision?”

Arthas shook his head “I believe you wouldn’t give it to her if it weren’t ready. She asked me about it’s story, what should I tell her?”

“Everything… I don’t have secrets with her. But there is nothing to worry about. That event won’t happen again, I changed the necklace since then, there shouldn’t have any incidents now.”

Arthas nodded more relieved.

Riou nodded, their conversation ended as Barnar returned from the keep, putting some things in his bag and quickly approaching them.

“Everything is in order, grab your things! We are good to go!” Everyone was ready, and the trip finally started. They were on foot towards Khargaz as horses would attract predators.

The guide from the Boar clan talked about the most trivial matters and especially about his past adventures. The whole day was marked by his rough, deep and unpleasant voice, as they moved towards the capital of the beastmen plains.

“Brahm, Brahm… hum, I think I’ve heard that name before. Where did you say you were from again?”

“The North” replied Riou rather harshly without much patience left, nonetheless Barnar seemed impervious to such mood nuances and continued talking without restraint.

“I see, I once met a norseman with that name… But tell me young Brahm, how did you come across these half lions? A half lion is already a very rare thing to see, and strong enough to impress Zafira? If someone else than her, herself had told me, I’d say it was impossible. I can’t believe she recognized all of you, even the human girl, that’s not the Zafira I know, no way… Master Arthas must have caused quite an impression”

Arthas forced a smile clearly not wanting to discuss the matter with Barnar.

“They were offering their services for a hefty sum, so I hired them to work for me… one thing led to another and here we are,” added Riou.

Barnar nodded “Once I met a lioness from the main lion’s clan, she was so full of herself, I led her caravan back to their lands, I mean, I tried to, you know how those lions can be. But the coin was good but the company was very unpleasant, very differently from you folks.”

“Thanks, I guess? So you’ve been to the lion’s clan? What can you tell us about it?”

“Oh yes, everybody knows where it is, but if you wish to enter, you better have an invitation”

“Invitation?”

“Only invited guests are allowed into the Lion’s villa. Even if you were half lion you aren’t allowed without one.”

“How can we get one of those?”

“You need to find a Lion in the city, anyone from the clan can issue an invitation. The commander of the city’s guard for instance. He once invited me to the Lion’s land to help tracking a Falgor, a huge nasty beast. It was trashing the clan’s farmlands for weeks until they finally called for me… and that smell, huh, I could sense it even from inside the city! It’s a great story. They told me about it, I recruited 3 other hunters, friends of mine. One of them was married to a cousin of mine you see. Nice lad. Strong and reliable… if you’d seen him you wouldn’t believe he once worked as a tailor before becoming a hunter. But that’s how he met my cousin you see... ”

“Barnar! Barnar!” Riou smiled trying to get him to stop “I never seen someone that likes to talk as much as you do”

“Hahaha! Indeed I’m a good talker. This is not the first time I hear it. There was this one time when I was taking a young group of warriors to hunt to the south…” Riou sighed and pressed his fingers against his forehead “...I joined them as a favor to a friend you see, he had a nephew in the group and wanted to make sure it was a good hunt. So the trip was to last three days, but we managed to do it in just one, can you believe that? Everyone managed to get their prey on the first day”

“More likely they were desperate to end the torture… Does he ever tire of speaking?” whispered Bellica to Attia.

Attia nodded clearly exhausted from his yapping as well.

“So Barnar, why do we need an escort in this land? So far, I’ve seen nothing that should bring concern” Questioned Arthas.

The boar nodded “These lands are treacherous Mister Arthas, you didn’t see them because I’ve made sure of it. But there are poisonous animals and giant predators on the lookout for easy prey… I’m using my nose to locate them and choose a safer path to us.”

“We should go straight to get there sooner, can’t we speed up? We are moving too slow.” Said Attia.

“Oh my dear, don’t worry, this trip won’t take too long, the plains are easy to cross if you know what to avoid, a day or two more and we will be there. We can’t go too fast or we might run into something we don’t want to.”

“But do we need to avoid everything?” questioned Bellica.

“Not everything… for instance, see that plant? The one with the red thorns? A scratch and your muscles stop working for a whole day, if a thorn gets stuck on your leg, you’re dead in an hour. There are equally poisonous serpents on the tall grass nearby as well. So we aren’t avoiding everything. After all, we don’t want to run into some Bamboras or a Mooncrystal saber.”

“I just heard about them in stories, I wouldn’t mind seeing one” replied Bellica

“Is that so? Those beasts are quite famous for their deadlines if encountered. Before the guides and escorts were required, human caravans often died in this plains because of them”

“I doubt such beasts would pose any threat to us, we should just go straight and get there sooner” added Attia.

“Spoken like a true Lioness!” said Barnar with a smile.

The day passed and the night would come soon, Barnar suggested to move a bit further before making camp as he knew a perfect spot to stop, not too far ahead.

As they arrived, the place had a good opening for tents and was far enough from the vegetation so animals wouldn’t come too close. But they also found a recently dead beast by the end of the clearing. A very large feline, a panther or maybe a tiger like creature.

It’s fur had a white and shiny shade, just like the moonlight and giving the impression the beast was made of crystals.

“A Mooncrystal saber, dead? Only Gallars hunt them and they are eaten whole. Hunters wouldn’t leave the pelt and claws behind either” Barnar kneeled beside the beast and analyzed it meticulously.

“Adult male, no signs of poison, no wounds, no blood? There are no signs of struggle or fight around it either. It just fell down, dead.” The tracker scratched his head looking around in confusion, still searching for tracks that could explain what could have happened.

Riou glanced at Arthas, the lion nodded and approached the dead beast.

He inspected the back of the fallen Mooncrystal saber, looking deep into its fur so he could see it’s skin. Along its whole body, several small punctures on the skin of the animal.

Arthas looked back at Riou with a serious expression and gave him a single nod.

Riou glanced at Attia and Bellica while readily walking towards Eileen. Positioning himself near her. The princess saw the movimentation and got on guard as well.

Barnar also noticed their sudden change and was about to ask what happened. But something got his attention, the tracker got very still and his nose moved. He turned towards the strange smell in the air. He sniffed deeply a couple times as if unsure of what was that scent.

“What’s wrong?” asked Riou to the guide already knowing the answer.

“I don’t know.” Said Barnar looking into the distance, the plains vegetation was not very high, and the trees were scarce. He looked towards the high grass and weeds nearby. “This smell, I don’t recognize it… but something is close”

Arthas looked in the same direction that Barnar was looking “Smells like a Soul Eater” he informed the guide that turned to him confused. “What is a Soul Eater?”

“A beast with dark gray and black fur, no eyes or mouth, only two small orifices side by side on the top of its elongated body. Half a man’s height with several insect-like arms. On the end of each of these arms, it has a small claw in the format of a needle. Once it latches into someone it won’t let go. These needles will puncture the victim and sucks out its soul. A slow, painful death”

Barnar squinted his eyes and shook his head “Never heard of anything like that, there is no such beast in this parts”

Arthas prepared himself “It sensed us, it’s approaching” he unsheathed his sword followed by Attia and Bellica.

Riou was with Eileen at the back while Arthas and the lionesses took the front.

“This thing is fast and smart, whatever happens, don’t let it touch you” Said Riou to Eileen, clearly positioning himself to protect her if needed.

It was moving fast on the tall grass towards their direction, the movement and sound of the grass gave away its position.

As it was about to appear outside of the tall grass it stopped completely.

“In position, I’ll be the bait” said Arthas as the two Lionesses immediately moved one to each of his sides taking a formation slightly away from him.

Barnar watched everything with apprehension.

Arthas took a deep breath and relaxed, lowering his sword.

Eileen looked at Riou wanting to understand what Arthas was doing.

“Arthas will try to bait the soul eater to him. He will use mana to highlight himself while the girls conceal their mana flow. That way we trick the soul eater senses so it focus on Arthas, increasing the chances of an attack at him”

Eileen nodded and questioned “Does that really work?”

“Two out of three times”

Eileen was not too reassured after hearing that “What happens when it fails?”

Suddenly the small beast slithered out of the tall grass, its movements were fast and very close to the ground. It was very large, larger than any of the soul eaters they encountered so far.

It crawled with his many arms at fast speed, ignoring Arthas completely and going directly for Barnar.

As it jumped at the guide, Bellica was already there, swinging her sword at the beast with full strength. The hit sent the soul eater flying back into the tall grass it came from, tumbling and cutting off the grass as it scratched the ground with its own body.

Riou looked at Eileen “When it fails, it just goes for someone at random”

Barnar turned to Bellica surprised by the sudden attack “Thank you miss, you saved me… what was that thing?” Questioned the guide looking into the direction the beast went flying.

“Don’t let your guard down yet, it won’t die that easily.” said Arthas glancing at Riou “Did you see the size of it?” Riou nodded concerned.

Barnar shook his head “Are you kidding me? With that hit it should have been cut in half at the very least, are you sure it survived it?”

“It survived… and that thing has been here for a while. It’s on a feeding spree. The prey here must be easier to catch than from its original place” Added Riou.

Arthas looked at Attia “Prepare to burn it when it comes out for Bellica, it will want revenge for the attack” the lioness sheathed her sword and prepared to cast a quick spell.

From the tall grass the soul eater jumped at high speed towards Bellica without restraint or preparation.

Without a chant or any warning, a huge blaze took over the beast that was shot down in mid air once again. It fell down in flames, burning its fur.

Barnar looked at Attia amazed by the display of magic. He never saw a beastmen able to do it like that.

Arthas immediately moved in before the soul eater could recover from the fall, with his sword, the lion pinned the beast on the ground with the tip of it pressing it down with all his weight and strength. Despite the enchantments and Arthas power, the sword couldn’t manage to pierce the beast’s skin, it was just pinned down.

The Soul Eater was squirming with the fire on its fur, but Arthas managed to keep it in place with certain difficulty.

Attia didn’t lose time, she immediately positioned herself looking for the two small holes.

As she found them, she raised her palm at them. A directed burst of flames were shot towards the holes, flame bursted out as the beast was now burning from the inside out as well. The monster desperately tried to flee. Arthas was having a hard time to keep it in place so Bellica quickly joined him, pinning the thing down by the other extremity in the same fashion as Arthas.

They let the beast burn until its movements ceased completely.

“Now it is dead” said Arthas removing his sword from it.

The Soul Eater quickly withered, like a dried leaf and became curled and brittle. Arthas used his sword to easily break its insect arms, separating the needle-like claws from them.

With care, Attia recovered them and stored the claws in a bag. The rest of the beast was completely unusable, all withered, cracked and burnt.

Barnar was without words, the trio was clearly much more powerful than he anticipated and very knowledgeable of such strange beasts, he now understood why Zafira had recognized them so quickly and so highly.

“A half breed with spellcasting abilities… that’s something you just don’t see! And how did you know so much about this thing? Where did it come from?” asked Barnar.

Riou walked towards him and looked at the beast “So this is not native to this region?” Riou pondered for a bit “Is there any lake nearby?”

Barnar shook his head “No and this thing is definitely not from here, I never saw anything like it.”

Riou looked at Arthas “Any Ideas?”

The Lion shook his head “I don’t see how it could have come here on its own, even at that… other land, this thing isn’t that common either.”

Riou nodded agreeing. “Well, it’s dead now and we need to camp as it is getting dark. Maybe we can learn something about it once we reach the capital”

Barnar nodded “I will make sure to talk to some trackers on Khargaz, if there are more of these things, they surely have heard about it”

-----------------------------------------------------

The evidence of the soul eater attacks could be seen all the way to the capital. Several carcasses of dead beasts and even hunters that were unfortunate enough to cross it’s path.

Some were recent enough that they could see the punctures of the Soul Eater claws, others were already too decayed and even eaten, but the unusual quantity and place they were found told Barnar that it was not made by any known beast.

As they followed the river to the east towards the capital, large snakes and crocodile-like reptiles were a common sight in the large waters of the river. They managed to cross it by a sturdy bridge, built to allow traders and caravans to easily go between the capital and the port city.

The lack of roads and safety in the region prevented commerce to thrive as desired. To try and mitigate the problem, many hunters were hired to reduce the wildlife between the cities in an attempt to make it safer.

And from the bridge to the capital it was a small plain but it was filled with green pastures which provided a prosperous hunting ground, wild herbivores of all kinds were everywhere to be seen in huge packs. No wonder why there were so many predators around it..

As the city grew in the distance, Khargaz was a sight to behold, despite what Riou expected after seeing the port city. Huge, intricate spiked walls were the only thing savage looking to the city. The buildings and houses were unexpectedly high and with a quite good masonry. Made only of very neatly polished white stones, the city beautifully reflected the sun, creating splendid sight in the distance”

When they arrived at its gates, the guards promptly addressed Barnar. “Been a while Barnar!”

“Lahr! Are you still working at the gates? Aren’t they tired of your ugly mug already? They should have sent you elsewhere by now”

“I wished they did, but someone must guard our city... so what business brings you and your party here?”

“This human here is a famous merchant from the norse lands, he wishes to make trade agreements to our magnificent capital” replied the Boar with a smile showing him some papers.

The guard nodded and gave a round piece of leather to Barnar and proceeded to request the others to open the gates to let them inside.

Still, the guard couldn’t help but to look with surprise towards the half lions, he certainly had never seen one before.

The city seemed very old, but was made of a high quality material. The stones were perfectly sculpted with the shapes, sizes and lines. All in great finesse and detail.

The roads were paved with flat stones perfectly aligned as well. The city itself was well disposed, the amount of thought put into the distribution of the buildings and ratio to the streets certainly put Longart to shame.

Barnar explained that the kings of the plains always were from the Lion clan. So everything had to be perfect. And for a city that big to have such a level of control and detail, it was certainly enviable by the other kingdoms.

And to keep it that way, Barnar explained that only those that the Lions approved of, could actually reside in there.

Walking on the streets the group couldn’t see any lions despite Barnar’s claim, but Riou saw some folks with stripes like tigers and many other felines. They were clearly the vast majority of the city.

“Wait a moment, before you are free to go about your business you need a pass,” said Barnar quickly going into the nearby building. It looked like a temple with its large staircase, pillars and large front entrance, indeed it was rather curious as it was very similar in architecture to those in the spirit world.

The guide quickly came back “This here confirms you entered the city with a guide and that you are hosted at an human approved inn” Barnar showed and handed a small leather piece with a circle and a burnt stamp into the leather. “Don’t lose this, it’s your pass, if any guard bothers you just show it to them.”

Arthas nodded and secured the pass in his pouch. “So this is our inn?” questioned the half lion while looking at the place.

Barnar nodded “The very best of Khargaz! For humans, I mean… but still pretty good”

Arthas smiled “Very well then, we will return here at night”

Barnar nodded “Good, I will be waiting here. With the pass you are good to go. Just let me know when you wish to leave, I can take you back whenever you want” Said the guide with a proud smile waving and going back inside the strange looking tavern.

With him gone everyone turned to Riou.

“We have a few hours before the night, let’s gather the information we can from the locals.”

They walked around and found a plaza, a squared area with stands and balconies of the local trade. Roots, leather, meats and spices of that region were on sale. Weapons of all kinds were on display as well.

While moving between stands, Arthas overheard a conversation and called Riou nearby to hear it as well. Aguard was talking to a cat hunter in a rather heated argument.

“How will I make a living if I can't hunt?” Asked the hunter to the guard.

“The best trackers in the city are still searching, but no one seems to have found it yet” replied the guard. “How can we kill it if we can’t find it?”

“That thing killed three of my hunting party! Three! Tell that to their wives and children! We don’t need trackers, we need the elite soldiers on this hunt!”

“We won’t take them from the front to hunt a mere beast… Perhaps if you had killed it when your party found it, this problem would be solved already. A shame you couldn’t take care of a single beast… Well, what would you expect of a cat party? You were lucky to only lose 3 people while at it”

The hunter showed his teeth “That thing can’t be killed with just arrows and swords! Its skin was thicker and harder than a Jarkassa’s scale!”

The guard smiled with a smug face “Sure, cat”

Suddenly Riou approached “Excuse me, I apologise for overhearing your conversation, but this beast? Is that the one with many arms? Long with dark fur and no eyes?”

Both weren’t pleased by the sudden approaching “Where is your pass, human?” questioned the guard immediately.

Riou asked Arthas to show them.

“Hum.. why do you ask, human?”

“Is there any reward for killing it?” added Riou.

Intrigued, the guard nodded “Yes, there is a hefty reward… if you kill it of course.” he glanced at the cat.

Riou smiled and extended his hand while looking at Bellica.

She handed the bag with the claws to Riou. “My friends here are excellent hunters, on the way to the capital, we found such a strange beast and my friends killed it, these are the claws as proof. You can ask our guide Barnar as well, he can confirm the story”

The cat hunter's eyes widened as he saw the claws and smelled the bag, his hand was going towards the claws, but Riou quickly closed the bag and pulled it back “So?”

The guard nodded “If this is indeed that beast, just go to the guard post by the end of that street, talk to the captain, he is managing the rewards.”

Riou smiled “Thank you for your time”

----------------------------------------

The guard post was a military building attached to the walls of the city.

“Why are we here? Do we need the money?” Asked Attia unsure.

Arthas shook his head “We are after information. Our master is using this opportunity to gather it.”

Attia and Bellica eyes widened “As expected, so clever” they said as Eileen giggled watching their exaggerated amazement.

Didn’t take long for them to find the captain. An astonishing large man with a wide chest and big arms. He had pompous hair and was standing inside his office while looking at some papers on his hand.

“Shit… it had to be a bear,” Riou said to himself.

The captain looked at the approaching group, and before he could ask, Riou was already displaying the pass to him. After seeing it, the Bear became more receptive.

“Hello, you must be the one in charge of the guards, we were directed here by one of your men regarding the strange beast that have been lurking around these lands”

The bear nodded, and with a strong voice he spoke “Yes, did you come to report a sighting of it? Or did it kill some of your group on the way here? Unfortunately there are no compensation for losses” said the bear moving to the desk ready to write down a report.

“Well, we’d like to talk about the reward since we killed it,” said Riou with a smile.

The bear looked at him with a smug face, not too convinced “You... killed it?” he glanced at the group taking a good look at them.

“Well, they did,” said Riou pointing to Arthas and the girls. Promptly showing him the bag with the claws.

The bear stared at them for a moment, he noticed the strong presence of the half lion and their high grade equipment. But most importantly, he was sensing the truth in the human words “Humm… Perom!” called the captain as a guard rushed in.

“Is this it?” asked the chief as the guard looked at the bag and smelled it. With surprise the guard nodded firmly “Yes sir, is the same smell of that beast!”

The bear nodded slowly. “That’s impressive, to think a couple of half lions could take care of this thing. It had been bothering us for months. II will have to inform this to the commander, he will want to meet you three. Please, come tomorrow and we will have your reward ready”

Riou smiled “This commander seems important, is he from the Lion clan?”

“Most commanders are, why do you ask?”

“Just curious, I thought with the war going on and the Norse presence most of them would be on the front” Replied Riou.

The bear shook his head “Those humans barely know how to hold a sword and definitely underestimate Argo’s tactics, they are more of a hindrance to us. To be honest, I don’t know how they are still alive. I just received news that they managed to lose half of their remaining army on the last attack. That means thousands of new undead will be attacking our brothers in the frontlines.”

“They lost half of it in a single attack?” Questioned Riou surprised.

“Yes, the fools thought they could read Argo’s movements, but the argonians are treacherous. They lure them like you do to capture wild Tehum Pigs. And like the pigs they fell for it. At least they won’t last long now, with half their army gone and the other half injured, I hope they finally go home””

“So the beastmen are not helping them at all? You guys knew they would be attacked and did nothing?”

The captain shook his head “It’s not a matter of helping, they are fools that refused to listen. The king only advises once and he will let nature take its own course.”

“What about the norse king? Any news of him?”

“No, he might be dead, captured or hiding on their boats for all we care”

“I see, well, thank you and we will be back tomorrow for the reward” said Riou bidding his goodbye.

As they moved outside “What do you wanna do master?” questioned the half Lion.

“Things are not well at the front and by the way the captain spoke of it, the Norse is completely lost now… so there is no time to waste if we want to salvage the situation”

Eileen was apprehensive, her grandfather was in the middle of all that. “What can we do to help them?”

He glanced at Eileen, “I will go see what happened to him”

“Master, shouldn’t we go with you?” asked Bellica, looking at Attia that was also eager to join him.

“We don’t know how long Therese has been a prisoner here, we can’t lose focus on her as well. Besides, I’m unnecessary tomorrow. I can go and find the norse king.” he turned to Arthas “Tomorrow when you talk to the commander, get an invitation to the Lion’s clan. We can’t miss the chance with this lion as there might be no other around to invite us”

“Are you sure, master?”

Riou nodded “I can go faster alone, your mission now is to protect Eileen and find Therese”

The three nodded.

He turned to Arthas “Take care of them.”

“Yes master, we will manage it in your absence, safe travel” said the half Lion lowering his head stealthy so no one around would notice.

Riou smiled and approached Eileen “I won’t take long… I will find out what happened to your grandfather and your uncle and be right back.”

The princess looked at him very concerned, she even grabbed his arm as she approached him “Are you sure this is the best way? Shouldn’t we stay together?”

He pointed to her necklace inside her armor and clothing, she picked it up, “Locate” he spoke and the locket shone briefly. A blue mana arrow appeared on his hand pointing towards it.

“I can find you wherever you are, don’t worry”

She nodded “But what if you get in trouble and I have to go rescue you?”

He smiled “Open the locket”

She opened it and looked inside, there were many engravings that she couldn’t read. In the middle of each locket, 4 diamonds could be seen. Riou touched the side of the diamonds with his finger and a magic arrow appeared on top of them pointing at him.

“You can find me as well. This arrow will always point at me”

Eileen nodded with a smile “I liked it”

Seeing it, Attia and Bellica immediately rushed towards him “Master! Can I have one too?” both spoke in unison.

“No, just Eileen… she won’t misuse it” Both pouted and moved back.

He smiled at the princess “Take care and take care of them”

“Get back soon, ok? I don’t like the idea of you going alone into Argonian Territory” Riou nodded “I will be carefull” and began to walk away, suddenly vanishing amongst the local population.

Eileen watched him vanishing while still searching for him. Arthas just smiled at her “Come on let’s head back.”

--------------------------------------------------------------

Back to the inn, they haven’t much else to do than to wait for the next day. Arthas went to sit with Barnar and a few beastmen to try and gather more information on the commander and find a way to get him to invite the group to the clan’s villa.

The girls were on their own table.

A young man with expensive clothes and a good grade leather armor watched the group with interest.

Without thinking twice he approached the table where the three were, he promptly set his bow to the side of the table and sat down with them “What a sight to behold, three gorgeous women in the same table, please allow me to pay for your next round, a moment like this must be celebrated”

“No,” said Attia abruptly. “Leave”

“Oh come on, don’t be like that…” the man became very serious “I know who you are” he glanced at Eileen, the princess tensed up and the group stared at him silently, Attia and Bellica were ready to draw their swords.

The man suddenly opened a smile “You are the group that everyone is speaking about! The one that defeated that thing that was lurking and killing everything!”

“The Soul Eater?” asked Bellica.

The man was surprised “Never heard of such a thing… but lurker seemeds more adequate don’t you think? By the stories I heard from the other hunters. I didn’t catch a glimpse of the beast myself, but I was after it for the reward. A shame you guys beated me to it. That’s why I’m here, II came to see who were the hunters that were better than me… and what a delightful surprise I had when I saw you three”

Bellica shook her head “Lurker is a large reptile with dark and yellow scales, a creature with four limbs and a long tail with extremely resilient stamina, it follows its victims from a safe distance until they are too tired to fight back, they only attack when their prey drops exhausted. To call a soul Eater a lurker is completely wrong.”

The man was even more surprised “I never heard of such a beast either… my apologies for the confusion”

Before they could object for his presence the man continued “May I know how you killed this Soul Eater? I heard it couldn’t be wounded by swords and arrows”

“Fire” replied abruptly Attia once again.

“That's indeed an unusual way to slay a beast. Speaking about difficult creatures, may I know your names?” The man looked with interest at their gear, analyzing everything.

“Why?” said Attia.

“Well, I’d hope to get acquainted with the best hunters in town… wouldn’t you tell me your names?”

“You didn’t say yours, why should we say ours” added Bellica, not too fond of the interaction.

“What a blunder, so you do want to know my name.” the man smirked and glanced at Eileen that remained silent.

“No, we don’t, that’s not what I meant” Bellica tried to correct herself.

“Too late, I’m Galan, a human hunter that came to Khargaz on the search of more challenging and better hunting grounds” he smiled and greeted the group once again waiting for them.

With a sigh Attia spoke once again “I’m Attia, this is Bellica and this is Qu… Eileen”

“Such beautiful names… if I’m not mistaken, Eileen is also the name of the princess of Allard, isn’t it?”

“It’s a very common name,” replied Eileen, forcing a smile.

“Of course it is, but I doubt the princess can compare to such a rare beauty as yourself”

Attia and Bellica looked with protective anger at the man after such a comment, clearly displeased by his presence.

Noticing the mood, he continued “I mean… all of you of course” he tried to amend things but to no avail.

Galan forced a smile and diverted the subject “These weapons and armors of yours… where did you get them?”

Attia and Bellica were about to speak when Eileen interjected “We bought them from a trader” said Eileen.

Galan nodded “Must have been really expensive, I never seen armors like these… can I see the swords?”

“No” Attia bluntly spoke again, very annoyed by the request.

Galan nodded “Smart, keeping your secrets to yourselves.”

He glanced at Arthas and Barnar and stood up with a smile “Seems like I overextended my welcome. Sorry, but I had a need to quench my curiosity. Also, my heart would not quiet down unless I met such beautiful girls… so please forgive me if I was too prying. I hope to meet you all again, soon.” And with an elegant nod he bid his farewell before leaving the table.

“Strange man, too confident for his own good” said Bellica as Attia agreed.

Arthas came back to their table, he noticed the strange man leaving it as he was approaching “Who was that?” questioned the half Lion looking at him moving to the other side of the room.

“He said his name was Galan, a hunter… he asked about our armor and weapons” replied Attia.

“Hum” pondered Arthas for a moment before changing the subject “Barnar said it's a quick and safe trip to the Lion’s clan from here, all we need is the invitation.”

They all nodded, full of expectation for the next day. “It’s early, but we could use the sleep, it's been a while since we could really rest” Bellica looked at Attia that agreed. Both have been on mission with Riou lately and didn’t have many days to rest.

As they were moving to the rooms, “Arthas, a moment if I may” asked Eileen as the others continued on.

Arthas sighed already imagining what Eileen wanted, he raised his hand for the bartender requesting two drinks before sitting once again.

Eileen pulled the necklace out from inside her armor. “So, can we talk more about this? I want to know more”

Arthas went silent for a moment and his expression became serious. Surprised by his change, she waited for him to gather his thoughts.

“So you want to hear this necklace’s story? It’s a long one...”

She nodded.

“Very well… as you know, years ago, we were still exploring the spirit world trying to find a way out of there. Things were going well for us. We had reached a point that we had strong people that were able to help on the search. Before our master’s arrival, we had never stepped outside our forest's borders. We knew nothing of the world around us, only that it was deadly to us.”

Eileen understood that.

“At that moment, all hands, eyes and feet that were available in the village were out in the outside lands, exploring and covering ground, trying to find our way out. But there were only so many of us and the spirit world was vast and unforgiving. Still, day after day we were doing our job diligently.”

Arthas sighed deeply “But one day, I was in the village coordinating the parties and we were running low on people. The veterans were all out and I needed someone for a very easy assignment.”

Eileen was listening carefully to him.

Arthas continued “Fabila, one of the 4 pledged Lionesses at the time, was training her little brother for the scout exam. He ended up volunteering for the mission, eager to display his skills and prove himself” Arthas paused “He wasn’t ready… he was a good boy but he was too anxious, too eager… and too young. But he insisted on taking the mission. Fabila was confident in his ability and also vouched for him. So I ended up agreeing to send him out with another greenhorn.”

She leaned in, tense for his next words.

“When they didn’t return... Fabila and Gadora, the other lioness pledged to the master and two of the strongest members of our village at the time, went after them.”

Arthas paused, quickly looking to the counter to see if the drinks were coming, his attention seemed to disperse but he eventually continued.

“When no one returned, I feared the worst. But I couldn’t just leave the village after them. Luckily our master didn’t take long to return and quickly went after them on his own.”

Arthas sighed “When he returned, he had brought us their bodies” He looked down, his eyes showed a deep regret.

“He told me about a fiend, a shadow monster like no other that we had ever encountered. The thing was wicked and liked to play with its victims. And it was strong… so strong that he even managed to wound him many times in their fight. That’s the level of the enemy they were unlucky to encounter… 2 young kids and 2 lionesses died because of it.” he looked at Eileen ”Can you imagine? A monster able to hurt him?”

Eileen widened her eyes. “I can’t imagine that happening...”

Arthas nodded “A shadow fiend so wicked and so smart that Master called it a Tormentor, for it liked to torment their victim before killing them. But you know how he is, despite the difficulties, he always finds a way… To this day I blame myself for what happened.”

“You shouldn’t blame yourself”

Arthas nodded “That’s what he said to me at the time, but instead, he put that weight on his own shoulders instead of mine…”

“He blamed himself?”

“After that event, everything changed, he changed.”

Eileen listened with attention, her heart became heavy listening to the story. Noticing the drinks had arrived, Arthas waited for the bartender to leave to continue.

“He locked himself in his house, didn’t want to see anyone for a while. When he finally came out, he had devised a whole new system for the training, equipment and the requirements for someone to be allowed into missions.”

“He started with me, Attia and Bellica. We spent months in a very intense and harsher training schedule than before. When we three were ready, he ordered us to train the others based on his new system. He wanted a self sustainable program, something that wouldn’t depend on him. That’s where the colors and equipment grades came into play.”

Eileen was aware “The current training system”

Arthas nodded “I thought he’d resume his search once we started spreading the new knowledge and rules… but no. He became focused on creating a protective spell. Something that would be able to counter the things that were still lurking in the dark. Something that could fight against all the monstrosities we weren’t prepared to face.”

She looked at the locket.

“Queen… he was obsessed. Once he created this necklace he started to leave his home early in the morning and to return days later to rest. I could sense an anger in him that sent shivers down my spine. Even Attia and Bellica avoided him during that period. The few times we spoke, it was clear he wanted vengeance… but not only that. I could see a dark flame in his eyes which I didn’t like.”

Arthas pointed to the necklace “This was made from a very special metal that he had brought with him, from this side.” Said Arthas looking at it and chuckling.

Eileen looked at it, and indeed, it resembled the metal of the sword Riou had made, but it was much darker in color now and had the diamonds encrusted on it.

“He was probably thinking of giving us some sort of safeguard, something that could replace his own presence. After all, he couldn’t be everywhere… When it was finally ready, he showed me this necklace. He asked me to test it.”

“What happened?”

“Nothing. Nobody of us could use it. The power required to activate it was far beyond anyone’s capabilities.”

Eileen was confused “ Why would he give it to me, if even you couldn’t use it?”

Arthas shook his head “I don’t know” he leaned in to take a better look at the necklace, Eileen was about to take it off to show him. But Arthas stopped her. “Do not take it off,” he said seriously.

“But what does it actually do?”

“It was a guardian spell, it protects only its user… and no one else”

She took a deep breath and opened the locket to look inside.

Arthas was surprised when he looked at it. He didn’t recall those stones inside, he moved his hand and touched the stones on the right socket, they moved on their own from their holding, taking place at the corners of the locket and revealing something written underneath them.

“Nemesis?” said Arthas confusedly. From the corner of his eye he sees a white hand by Eileen’s shoulder, but when he lifted his head and looked at it, it was completely gone.

“What’s that? Does it mean anything?”

He recollected his thoughts “If I recall correctly his teachings, it is the name of a deity from master’s original world, a goddess of divine retribution… a punisher of hubris”

Eileen widened her eyes in surprise “A deity? Like one of the elementals?”

Arthas shook his head “I don’t know, but that’s the name written here...”

“Can you read anything else?”

Arthas tried to open the 4 diamonds on the left locket, but they were shut together, there was no way to open them.

He looked with care and attention on the several small writings and symbols around the lockets, especially the ones around the name “I recognize some of the symbols and words... there seems to be an awful lot of bindings and constraints. Master’s tongue is a very difficult one, not to mention that his enchantments and spells are just too complex, I can’t make much sense of any of it”

The half lion leaned back once again with a sorrowful smile “But knowing him, I believe he went all out on this necklace.”

Eileen looked at it one more time and nodded even more concerned now than before. She put the diamonds in place and closed the locket. “I’m a bit scared of wearing this now”

Arthas nodded “But he wouldn’t give it to you if it weren't safe to use, just be careful with it and it will protect you”

She smiled and nodded “Well, thank you for sharing this story with me, I feel a bit closer to him now”

Arthas smile, “Wanna hear another one?”

She nodded.

“A few months before we found the way back… master was specially melancholic”

Eileen’s attention was instantly grabbed.

“He told me many times about this moon… something in the sky, so far away, yet it appeared big and so bright that illuminated the night with it’s silver light.”

“You didn’t have a moon?”

“No… not even a blue sky. So I often found him looking up, as if he was searching for this moon”

She smiled “he loved to look at it… the first time we talked to each other, it was under the moonlight”

“Oh, I know… he told that story many times. Everyone in the village knows the story of the beautiful princess in her purple dress, in the balcony, under the moonlight.”

She smiled.

“But one cold and dark night, I could sense his longing from afar. A white globe appeared in the sky, high and big, shining over everything with a silver light. I went to see him and ended up catching a glimpse of his princess’ image by his side. A white silhouette made of fog, an image he created to your resemblance. Thye stood side by side observing that white orb outside his house. That’s how I knew who you were when we first met in the village.”

A tear formed in Eileen's eyes.

“You must have missed him greatly as well, didn’t you?”

She nodded with a smile as she cleared the tear from her eye “I thought my chest would crumble over its own weight after he disappeared. I couldn’t stand the thought of never seeing him again. If it weren’t for Max and Therese...” She chuckled cleaning another tear “I even stole his old clothes from Max’s house before we left, I used to hug them every night so I could sleep.”

Arthas smiled “I’m glad that I was able to see you two reunited.” Arthas lowered his head in deference to her. “ But It’s getting late my queen, enough stories for today.”

She nodded, picking up the locket and opened it, she touched the side of the stones where Riou showed her and the blue arrow appeared, showing his direction. She smiled and closed it, guarding the necklace inside his armor once again with a smile in her face and a relieved expression.

Away from their attention, someone was observing them from a distance.

-----------------------------------------

The next morning, they all went to the guard post to talk to the commander. He was already waiting for them, a pure Lion with blonde hair and a very strong body, he was just a bit taller and a bit more muscular than Arthas himself. He had a distinguished elegance and a clear sense of superiority.

The captain introduced him as Commander Varos, the one in charge of the defenses of the capital.

The commander looked at the group not too interested at first, but as he noticed their equipment, his interest grew “I was told that you were the ones that killed the notorious beast that have been scaring the hunters of the city”

Arthas confirmed with a nod.

The commander approached them to take a better look at their equipment. After a moment of silent contemplation he continued “I heard stories that it was quite hard to be killed. I suppose you accomplished such a feat with the help of these weapons of yours. I can see strong enchantments and the rare metal weapons and armor reinforcements” he paused smiling at himself “Even black wyrm leather. That’s some high quality equipment you have there” He looked at the metal quite surprised, noticing it’s enchantments on the armor plating and getting even more interested.

“Indeed, these weapons helped greatly” confirmed Arthas.

Varos nodded “Very well, I doubted it was possible but this grade of items does pleases me. I was told you travel with a human trader, is this the kind of merchandise I can expect from him?”

Arthas nodded “Almost… the black wyrm was used to craft these armors and no longer available, but he do have other good leather to be used instead”

“I see, tell him I have interest in buying his whole merchandise” he said rather dismissively.

“Unfortunately, the human trader is discussing business with other parties at the moment, he should be available in a day or two”

The lion nodded “I see” and waved for the guards to pay their reward for the kill. “I don’t like to wait… make sure that he listens to my proposal before making a deal with anyone else.” the commander looked at the captain of the guard letting him know of the order as well.

As Varos was about to leave, Arthas addressed the Lion once again “Commander! A moment more of your attention, I have a personal request.”

Curious, the commander allowed him to continue, turning around to face them once again.

“We follow the path of our ancestors, upholding our traditions and ways of the clan as we can” The commander wasn’t impressed, he clearly didn’t see them as true lions.

“It is the first time we came to the plains and I would like to know if it is possible for us to visit the Lion’s clan? We wish to see the land of our ancestors” said the half lion glancing at the others behind him.

The commander took a deep breath and pondered for a moment “Such spirit is commendable, given your mixed heritage of course” he said approaching Arthas and the girls… looking straight into their eyes, one at a time.

“You seem to speak the truth, despite being a half breed I can sense that our blood is strong in you three. I don’t imagine how your story came to be, after all, Lions hardly lay with other clans. And specially not with humans” he paused looking at them pondering on what to do.

“These girls were trained by a true Lioness, Therese. You may have heard about her”

“The banished… Yes, we all have.”

“We heard she was imprisoned… do you know anything about it?”

“I just know that she returned about a year ago and was captured. Besides, that’s the lionesses’ business after all. We don’t meddle in it. Maybe the Matriarch could tell you more about that”

Arthas nodded “So, can we go to the Lion’s clan?”

Varos looked at their armor and weapons once more “If you know and understand laws and follow the ways of our clan as you claim, I can take you there.”

Arthas nodded “We do”

Varos nodded pleased “I am to return this afternoon, so if you wish, you can come with me… make sure to bring the trader with you. That way we can quickly resolve this business”

Arthas was surprised by the short notice “I don’t think he will be ready by today’s afternoon”

“Then go get him. Either way, my invitation is for this afternoon, tomorrow I will be back here and Won’t return to the clan for a few days. Meet me in the north gate in 2 hours, delays will not be tolerated.” The commander turned and left the room.

Arthas looked at the girls that weren't sure how to proceed. They collected the reward and left the building. Outside, the three approached Arthas expecting an answer to what to do.

Arthas pondered for a moment.

Eileen shook her head “We can’t miss this opportunity. You heard Riou too, there might be no other Lions here to invite us. And this way, we would be escorted inside and treated as guests by a high rank, we might not get another chance like this.”

“That may be true, Master did say to get the invitation” said Arthas.

“Someone should stay behind and wait for him.” added Attia.

“There is no need for that, master can find us wherever Eileen is”

“Wait, maybe one of us should stay,” Suddenly said Eileen looking at Arthas with an idea in mind.

“Me? But two lionesses and a human female, alone, inside the clan lands would not be safe, you know how they are in relation to the females there.”

“But that might be good for us. You heard what the commander said: Therese is a lioness issue. That means we need to get into the lioness wing to find more about it” The three turned to her not understanding.

“By what I know about the laws and customs of the lions, without a male leader we will have to be left with the females in their private wing. That way it will be easier to get to the Matriarch and gather information on Therese. Not to mention that if Arthas is not there, the other lions won’t feel threatened.They can’t do any power challenge for whatever reason, less conflict will happen”

The half lion sighed “I don’t think it’s that simple, I can’t let you go alone.”

“It will not be simple, we will have to be very cautious and display only the necessary strength as disciples” she looked at the two lionesses. “We need to impress them just enough so they take interest in us. The matriarch is in charge of the training and the lionesses, being with them is the only way we can get to the matriarch,” Attia and Bellica nodded, increasing the spell effects and further suppressing their presence.

Arthas pondered for a few moments “Are you sure about this? I’d rather go, I don’t feel comfortable letting you three alone.”

“If we show up with you, Varros will take us to the Lion’s wing. The Matriarch might not even come to see us there and we will be requested to leave not long after our arrival. But if we go alone, the commander will have to take us to her as he cannot let females alone into the Lion’s wing. It will be our chance to impress her. She might even tell us about Therese.”

“Are you sure of this?”

“Yes, Therese made it very clear that they take this very seriously. I’m not sayin it will work… but I think it's our best chance to find out about her”

Arthas nodded “He chose you as his queen for a reason. So I will trust your judgment. But please be careful”

Eileen smiled “Don’t worry, the lionesses have a strong bond and we can use that to discover more about Therese. I’m certain we can impress the Matriarch and she will give us the information we need about Therese.”

“I hope you are right”

----------------------------------------------------

The 2 hours passed quickly as the three bodyguards prepared at the north gate to join the commander’s carriage towards the Lion’s Villa.

Seeing them there, the commander approached while looking around, searching for the other two “So the half lion and the trader won’t be joining us? A shame, I hope he will be available soon?”

Eileen smiled “Arthas went to get him. They will be back as soon as possible and will be brought to your presence, maybe he will be able to join us while we visit the famous Lion's clan?”

Varos looked at Eileen “If he arrives soon, it might be arranged. But why would a human girl wish to go to the clan lands?”

Eileen smiled “Arthas mentioned it, Therese was my master”

Varos squinted his eyes for a brief moment “That’s very unusual, I never heard she took a human into her wing. But fair enough, I see no harm in bringing you all there anyway. I just hope that this good act of mine is well rewarded, you will put a good word to your employer, will you not?

“Of course Commander Varos, we will not allow him to make any deals without talking to you first”

“Good, then let’s not delay our departure any further.”

The carriage had lion paws, claws and menacing lion heads carved in the woodwork of its cabin. Six horses pulled the carriage at a fast pace on a leveled and well built stone road. It was the most comfortable trip Eileen ever had.

The commander used the time to ask about the weapons and armors they were using. Where they were manufactured, who was the blacksmith and most specially, who were the enchanters that could even enchant armors. Bellica and Attia said only the trader could answer those questions since it was a secret. But they assured the methods of production were well understood by the crafters that the trader hired.

And Varos had a good eye, all he needed was a look at the metal and the enchants to know its real worth and grade. So the more he looked at the equipment, the more interested he became.

Within a short travel at the fast pace of six horses, they were arriving at the place. The Villa of the Lion’s clan had a farm nearby and a huge hunting ground to the north and west of it. And only the Lion’s were allowed to hunt there.

The guards outside the walls were all from different felines species and very well equipped. Nothing like the common guards in the city.

As the carriage approached the main gate, they promptly opened them without delay.

On the inside of the walls several houses spread through the large land. At its center, a massive structure of the villa. It covered all the remaining of the terrain from there to the end of the walls. It was made of stones, old as the city itself. But it was so well made and delicate, that it seemed like a summer house with its open gardens, porches everywhere.

The carriage stopped at the stable where a guard came to treat the horses.

The road from there continued to the entrance of the villa. Making a circle with a mighty statue of a wild Lion, ferociously standing on its back legs at its center.

There were green trees and flowers on the courtyard amongst smaller statues and busts. The place was well taken care of and made to impress.

“Come, since your leader is not present, I will have to introduce you to the matriarch, she will assign someone to show you the place” said Varo entering the main house.

The place was splendorous, thousands of years of heritage displayed with statues, tapestries and sculptures all over the entrance hall. Paintings hang on the walls of the past matriarchs, lion kings and generals. All the strongest fighters and leaders that the beastmen ever had, were all displayed in all their might, most of them, as expected, were from the Lion clan.

Attia and Bellica stood still in front of the biggest of the statues there, a mighty depiction of a Lion with a piercing gaze; one could sense his power from it. He stood high and looked down on the onlooker.

“The white king?” Said Attia looking with admiration.

“Impressive, you do know our history” said an elder woman approaching. Varos promptly greeted her, he stood straight holding a hand to his chest.

The elder was certainly a Lioness, the traits were still very present despite her advanced age.

The strong presence, the elegance and the slow movements so characteristics of the Lionesses were unmistakable. She was clearly not to be taken lightly. Eileen could see Therese in her and bet that was exactly how she would look when she got older.

“Matriarch I was going to inform you of this arrival. These young ones wished to see the house of their ancestors. And the human girl claims to have been taught by a Lioness herself, so I brought them here to visit” said Varos very politely as the matriarch seemed surprised by the claim and approached them with a curious look.

Attia and Bellica glanced at Eileen that just smiled and nodded, they seemed not too sure how to act in that situation, the Matriarch presence was imposing. Not menacing or powerful. But she had something else that Attia and Bellica seemed to be having trouble to deal with.

It was their first time seeing a real lioness Matriarch after all. The princess had to calm them down as they were rather nervous as she approached.

The elder smiled at the interaction and glanced at Eileen. The elder lioness walked by them and analyzed Attia and Bellica first, very closely she looked at their faces “Strange… you look like a halfblood, but your smell, it is quite different from one” she looked into their eyes “I sense very strong instincts, the lion’s pride and our kind undying resolve. Very intriguing, I had never seen half bloods like you two. Why do I sense true Lionesses within your eyes?”

“It’s an honor Matriarch” Both Attia and Bellica replied in unison lowering their heads in deference.

“Very good, very good indeed. Our blood runs unusually strong within you two”

She then turned to Varos “I like them, you did good in bringing them here Varos. I want them to stay the night. It will be good for the others to see how our blood runs thick.”

Varos thanked her with a nod “Then I will let them under your care” he then proceeded to leave the hall.

Eileen smiled and glanced at Attia and Bellica, their goal was rather easily achieved.

The matriarch then moved elegantly towards Eileen and looked at her eyes “Crystal blue eyes... They are quite rare” said the Elder surprised, she seemed intrigued by the strange human “So you were trained by a lioness?”

“Therese, yes.”

The matriarch nodded, imagining as much already. She then extended her hand over Eileen’s head, closing her eyes, slowly lowering it to touch her head.

Eileen stood still. And as her hand touched Eileen’s head, the golden lion's eyes appeared on the elder for a brief moment as she opened her eyes in surprise. She then continued “So strong… for a human to have reached this potential. Therese must have trained you for a long time”

Eileen nodded.

She widened her eyes for a moment, still surprised by what she sensed “Therese, she was a very promising Lioness, no wonder you got so powerful under her care…”

Eileen smiled politely “She is a very powerful warrior and I admire her greatly, it was an honor to be her disciple”

The elder nodded “She taught you well” Eileen thanked the praise once again with a slight nod. The old lioness turned to Attia and Bellica “And you? Were you also taught by Therese?”

Attia shook her head. Eileen looked at her surprised, that was not what they agreed to tell. But Attia seemed unable to lie to the Matriarch.

“Who has taught you then?” inquired the elder with curiosity.

“Our mothers taught us from a young age, when we were of age, our master came to our village...” continued Attia as Bellica nodded agreeing with it.

“A village? I had never heard of a village with half lions before...” said the elder.

“Yes, it was hidden in a forest, but our master found us and took us out of it. He was the best thing that happened to us, we are here because of him” said Bellica with a smile.

The elder eyes widened for a moment. “Him?”

Eileen restrained herself as she couldn’t believe it, the two were not able to contain themselves.

Both nodded, confirming their master was a male.

“I see,” said the elder, quite disheartened from hearing it. She then turned to Eileen “Did you also train under this... master?”

Noticing her intentions Eileen promptly denied “No, I just recently met Attia and Bellica”

The elder’s mood improved. “You two look very strong with those armors and weapons. But gear doesn’t make the warrior. They are but tools. It’s obvious your training was lacking for none of you have a very strong presence. At least not as strong as this human here.”

“What’s your name?” She asked the princess

“Eileen”

“Did you know they trained under a male guidance?”

“Yes… they told me on our travel together towards Khargaz”

She shook her head “Training with a male never leads to good things. There is just too much instinct and pride in the lions so forcing interactions between the genders before their time always results in the same thing. You two lost a lot, a shame you were born in a faraway village. But if you wish, I can arrange for you to join the training with our young ones. We can try to show you the way of the lioness, things that you certainly missed, If you have the time, of course.”

“That’s a great honor Matriarch,” said Eileen with a smile as Attia and Bellica nodded as well in agreement.

The matriarch was pleased by her words “It will be good for these two Lionesses to experience our ways at least once in their lives. And you Eileen, I’d like to ask for your help as well. A powerful human female like yourself is very hard to come by. If you could participate in our training. It would help to teach a lesson in humility to our students. They think too little of the humans, but you should be able to open their minds a bit. It will be a good lesson for them.”

Attia and Bellica smiled, they glanced at Eileen, very happily. Both were eager and like children that just met their grandmother. Eileen smiled “It will be my pleasure”

The matriarch was very pleased with their interaction and nodded thanking them”

Attia and Bellica suddenly leaned their heads towards the elder as a sign of respect, waiting for her to touch them as well.

But the Elder smiled and just waved at them “That won’t be necessary my dears, I know all that there is to know from our conversation, it’s clear who the female leader is, in this pack of yours” she glanced at Eileen with a smile.

“I’m matriarch Diata, leader and trainer of the Lionesses. I’ve been on the way to the lioness for over 100 years. I recognize you as lost sisters and welcome you to stay as long as you want in this house.

“Thank you Matriarch Diata” said Eileen respectfully.

“The next training will begin soon on the courtyard nearby. I will order the maids to prepare the rooms within the lioness wing. I will meet you there in a few.” The matriarch showed them the door for the courtyard and left them for the moment.

“What was that?” asked Eileen quite confused “You were answering her with the truth! What happened with the story we agreed upon”

Attia and Bellica looked at each other “We couldn’t avoid… she is a matriarch. We can’t lie to her”

Eileen sighed “Let me do the talking from now on, ok?”

Away from them, Diata went to see Varos in his chambers “You were never to help anyone Varos, why have you brought these three gems here?”

Varos smiled “You’ve seen their gear? They work for the trader that sells them as bodyguards. I’m just making sure that I have the preference for his wares”

The matriarch smiled “Bodyguards for a trader? But he isn’t here, so who is protecting him now?”

“The trader has another bodyguard, a half lion, he is their leader”

The matriarch raised her eyebrows surprised “So there is someone stronger than the human girl in their party? And he is also a half breed? Did you invite him to come here as well?”

“I did, but they said he went to get the trader. Since they didn’t show up in time I guess they won’t be coming here.”

She nodded “I’d like to meet this half lion as well. If you find him tomorrow, please let him know of

my invitation, inform the guards as well”

“Very well Matriarch”

As she was about to leave “And Varos, let’s not inform the prince of these guests, there is no need for him to be concerned with visitors. ”

“As you wish, Matriarch”

---------------------------------------------------

The courtyard was an open place within the Villa. An inner garden with many open corridors surrounding it and at its center was a training area.

The place was beautiful. On the center there were several stone pillars, obelisks made of a single massive stone, sat down perfectly on the ground.

From the side doors, several young lionesses began to show up in line, perfectly moving towards the stones and taking position one after the other. They all used the same clothes, a very light training gear with no protections to the body. They all had their hair tied up to make sure it would not get on their way.

In line behind the obelisks, the first ones walked towards the stones and positioned themselves. They were sharply focused, all of them started to punch the obelisks with all their strength one after the other.

As Attia, Bellica and Eileen walked about to watch them better, they noticed the obelisk had many marks. Some showed cracks while others even had marks of their fists. They had clearly been used for a long time and were showing the signs of the strength of the lionesses.

On the back of the courtyard, a few older males were talking and watching the young lionesses training from the distance.

The Matriarch appeared from another door and smiled at the trio as they watched the training. She walked towards the center and addressed the students “Attention” she said as every student stopped and turned towards her in unison.

“We have guests today, sisters from afar that came to see the home of their ancestors, let us welcome them” the students stood straight and positioned facing them. They all put their hand on their chest at the same time

The matriarch continued “As it is customary, let us see how our sisters fare on our basic training.” she extended her arm inviting them to join the young ones.

Attia smiled and promptly walked forward followed by Bellica. Eileen stayed back. Diata joined her to watch the performance.

Attia positioned herself in front of one of the stones “So, I just need to punch it? How much strength?” she asked looking at Eileen.

“Give it everything you have” said the matriarch with a smile, the elder then turned to Eileen and whispered “Bellica is stronger than Attia isn’t she?”

Eileen just smiled at the matriarch while desperately trying to tell Attia to restrain herself with her hands, head and expression.

Attia was pondering on the words of the elder, but looked at Eileen for confirmation. She quickly noticed her shaking her head and signaling with her hand.

The matriarch noticed Eileen’s guidance from the corner of her eye and smiled at herself.

Attia nodded understanding Eileen’s recommendation and turned at the stone. Without any preparation, she casually punched it.

Her fist sunk into the rock as if it was a soft pillow, causing severe cracks throughout the whole stone.

The students were in shock and looked at the Matriarch. Even the elder could hardly contain her surprise. Diata immediately looked at Eileen, but the human girl was somewhat relieved with the result. The matriarch was even more astonished as she understood that the half lioness had held back by Eileen's order.

Attia approached Bellica and whispered “What happened? Why are they so surprised?”

Bellica shrugged “Maybe you were not supposed to break the stone”

Attia looked at the stone nodding, she had not thought about that possibility.

Diata recovered herself quickly, and with her innate elegance, she walked towards the stone “Look young ones, the power of the lion is strong within the veins of our sisters, even afar from the breasts of their homeland, they are still able to harness our power!”

The young lionesses were in awe after such words.

Diata approached the two half lionesses “Indeed a marvelous display, you two may be half blooded, but you clearly have our strength.”

Both Attia and Bellica smiled as the matriarch continued “Since the basic training is too simple for our sisters, let’s move on to a more advanced class. I’m curious to see how they will fare there”

Diata showed them the way. The young lionesses followed, very curious to see it as well.

Through the beautiful halls of the Villa, they arrived at another large open area inside the complex. This one was not made of stones, the floor was just dirt and it clearly showed the signs of the intense training that was done there.

About 20 lionesses were there training, they were clearly an older class.

They were sparring against each other without reservations using real weapons.

As the matriarch approached, the teacher stopped the training and everyone positioned in line to receive her.

“Miss Eileen, would you mind showing what you learned from Therese to one of our elite disciples here?” Diata looked at the teacher “Bring the best student you have to spar with this human”

Eileen didn’t see any issues with that, she was more than used to such training, after all, she spent a lot of time sparring with Leona like that.

She took position and looked at Diata “What are the constraints?”

The other students frowned as if she was taunting them. They clearly were finding it difficult to believe that a human would be able to spar with a Lioness

The matriarch shook her head “What do you mean by constraints? It’s just a regular spar”

Eileen nodded understanding, she put her hand on the sword Riou gave her and stopped. She then went for her rapier and also stopped quite conflicted on her decisions.

The matriarch was watching every single one of her movements and decisions.

“I think it’s better if I pick the same weapon as my adversary…” Diata nodded “Very well, that will certainly put both in equal grounds”

A lioness gave her a sword and positioned it in front of her.

“Can we begin?” asked Diata.

Eileen nodded, prepared to duel.

The matriarch gave the signal, the lioness rushed to attack her immediately.

Eileen felt a surge of power within her body, every fiber of her being seemed to have been instantly enhanced, she was focused and ready to battle as she had never been before in her entire life. The lioness that lunged at her seemed to be moving in slow motion now, such was her focus on the battle and readiness. She forced a smile thinking to herself “I should have changed armors as well… this is way too much for a simple spar. I hope not to stand out too much”

Every movement of the quick lioness was easily observed and avoided by Eileen. The princess dodged her attacks with ease, not even sweating about it.

A smile appeared on the princess's face, she now realized how Riou felt in their fight when they first faced themselves.

To the spectators Eileen seemed to move effortlessly, with an uncanny precision and minimal effort. Everyone watched in awe at such a demonstration of superiority by the human.

And with a single move of her sword, the spar was over. Eileen just deflected the student’s sword once, and it went flying from the lioness hand and into the ground. Even Eileen was surprised by it. She was not expecting to win so easily.

Despite her attempts to hold back, the enchantments on the armor were just too powerful after they activated. She was not expecting such a change in her performance.

Diata was shocked, she looked at the student that was still trying to understand what happened, and nodded “Again my child, you don’t have to consider her a human this time, do not hold back” she said to the Lioness.

The student nodded and picked her sword back.

Eileen took poise once again, trying her best to hold back.

The young lionesses eyes went golden, Eileen could feel the amount of mana her opponent was crudely gathering with all her might. The princess could only smile at herself, remembering that she too used to be exactly like that as she started her training with Therese.

But after a year under her training, she was no longer the same.

With all her might, the lioness swung at Eileen that stood still. With a single hand holding her sword, she casually swung at the incoming attack to block it.

*CHANG*

The sound of the metal clashis was followed by the top half of the lioness sword flying. Eileen once again was caught by the surprise on how easily that young lioness lost her sword.

She forced a smile and glanced at Diata.

The matriarch could not believe her eyes, the difference in skill was just too great, she could tell Eileen was strong, but that was far beyond her expectations.

Diata immediately looked at Attia and Bellica, their lack of excitement watching that display just helped to deepen the Matriarch’s thoughts. Such skill and power was a rather normal sight for them.

A human had surpassed the level of skill of one of the best disciples of her house. She could be even compared to some of the veterans Lionesses. No human had ever achieved such a level of proficiency in melee combat.

The old matriarch was lost in thoughts, astonished by the ability displayed by the human girl. Not only her, all three of them were very strong for their age. She couldn’t help but wonder what kind of training Therese had created that allowed a human to reach such a level.

Diata suddenly stopped and widened her eyes, a realization came to her mind.

“If her disciple is this powerful… That’s why she had returned! She believed she could win, after all this time… she was still trying to prove her point, but then why would she...” the matriarch vocalized her inner thoughts and glanced at Eileen one more time. After seeing her in action like that, Diate began to understand Therese’s action a little better.