《Horn Lord》Chapter 7 - Nhedri
Advertisement
The weighted ball troubled the head of my father, so we made a stop at the bowyer's hut before heading home.
I pushed aside the deer hide curtain that kept the flies and mosquitos from finding their way inside. I first felt the heat, then caught the smell of burnt stone and wood chippings that made my nostrils itch. I rubbed until it reseeded, then looked around the hut at the many bows and arrows that hung on the wall. Two large, sweaty bodies, built of muscle, fat, and black hair, shaped wood and chipped stone at two workstations. They wore exhausted expressions and leathered skirts. Both men looked up from their duties, eyeing her father as he stepped inside.
"Reigrum, what do we owe the pleasure?" Burnn asked in his dreary tone. "What you've got there?"
Father stepped around me and tossed the weighted ball to the man. Burnn was slower than he looked and more clumsy, bobbing the iron from one hand to the other until it took flight out of reach, being snatched by the second man ... or boy ... who was as large and stout as Burnn was.
"Father, you've grown slow in your old age," Warii chuckled loud enough to make my ears drum.
"What is that?" Father asked, finding a spot in their circle. I snuck in beside him.
Burnn brushed a finger down his broad chin, rolling the stone between two fingers. "Eastern sorcery."
I felt a chill slip down my back, and I hoped they hadn't seen me shiver. They stayed fixated on the circular silverish-gray stone.
"Where'd you find this?"
"Alongside the River. It killed a Centaur."
Both Burnn and Warii gave her father a long, disturbed glance. "We've seen these before. Iron." He turned towards his son and nodded.
Warii disappeared behind another hide curtain that concealed the rear end of the hut. He reappeared carrying a rattling clay pot. He handed it to my father. He glared between both men, gave a cruel shake of the pot, then brought his eyes down. I didn't have to see what was inside; my father's twisted face told me it was not good.
"How long have they been here?"
Burnn held his tongue.
Warri admitted, "A season," Warii admitted, lowering his head to keep from father's glare. "That's not all. These invaders have built a strange camp."
Father used his Lords' tone. "What kind of camp?"
Advertisement
"We're uncertain. They're hunting in mass and driving away the herds." Brunn caught his breath. "But that's not the worst of it. They're expanding north up the canary fields."
"Wings?"
Burnn shook his head. "No ... I believe Tardakk's victory over the wings has kept them slothing away in the south."
Father looked around the room, while a sliver of light brightened his eyes, and they brightened.. "You said this was eastern sorcery?"
"Yornmen. They seek vengeance and to spoil our lands ..."
Father found a seat, bringing his hands to his forehead, trying to work the worry from his head with his fingers.
I felt the courage to speak in his stead. "There are mountains and crowls in the east. And an ocean that separates ArkiLa from Everyorn. Are you telling us they've crossed?"
Warii replied, "we're telling you they've not only crossed, but have uprooted the crowls, cleared the mountains, and settled in the prairie lands. And by the looks of it they mean to move North towards Bronzebuck."
Silence crept through the hut until it died by my father's lordly holler. "And why wasn't I made aware of this until now? Why keep this ... secret?"
"We brought this to the attention of the Hyquin Elders, my Lord." Burnn replied, scratching the back of his head. "They said it was nothing to concern you about."
Father looked between them through furrowed eyebrows. Chin pressed on his fist. "And what cause would be greater of my attention?"
"They believed your interests were on your legacy." He saw father's displeasure. Warii shifted uncomfortably. "What I mean, my Lord, is that the matters of giving your daughters away and strengthening your tribe were of greater importance."
"I see." Reigrum's lips sunk. "If I'm understanding you correctly, I had no time to think about eastern invaders and our food growing scarce, because my daughters are my true focus?" He turned to me. "As they should be." His eyes were light and warm until they turned to stones upon the men. "I'll speak to the elders later. For now, you two will show me this camp."
"I'll go with you."
"No." Father brought a hand down on my shoulder. "You must tell your mother of my whereabouts ... Besides, you're in no condition to ride."
I swallowed, uncertain by what he meant. Had he learned about my first blood? Impossible. If he had, he'd let it known.
Advertisement
"As you say, Father," I replied, rubbing his hand, hoping my touch would ease him some.
We said our goodbyes, then I walked Mayhee through our village. Several evenly spaced homes; standing tall and wide, with wattle walls and golden thatched rooftops; riddled the golden fields. Foxes and coyotes feasted on rabbit, moles, and mice; birds nested and sang; and creepy crawlies walked and burrowed in the earth.
I waved to the herders and the farmers, then breathed in the warmth while the wind yanked my hair in every direction.
"How was the ride?" Nook'i asked, leaning against a fence, fingering coarse, knotted hair. He was a thick boy, built for working saddle, but not one for riding horses.
I didn't have the heart to tell the truth. "It felt great."
He chuckled, "it'll be a few rides before you break it in." He waved, then returned to working saddles until daylight turned to dusk.
Thousands of hoofs hardened the path leading to her home. I followed it to the center of the village where my cottage stood like a stack of wood in the sea of gold. It was the cottage of my childhood. One I'd soon be leaving once my father learned of my first blood and wed to a match of his liking.
I brought Mayhee to the fence behind our cottage, giving him pats as I led him inside. He whipped his head then took off into the fields, sending the other stallions into a gallop. They circled the fence line until Mayhee overtook led the herd to my delight.
I must've watched them for an hour before retreating to the cottage, walking inside to the song bug's favorite tune. I pushed aside the deer hide that hung over the doorway, stepping through the threshold between sky and roof. There dim candlelight greeted me with a peaceful glow. My eyes adjusted quickly to the shadows lingering in every corner.
From the table, mother looked up from the hide she cleaned. The shadows unable to conceal her young, motherly beauty; a beauty that hadn't faded even after birthing six daughters. She raised a hand, and I came and sat across from her.
"Where's your father?" Her voice rang notes that complimented the song bug's tune.
I met her hazel eyes that'd darken with worry. "We found something," I replied.
I spent the next thirty minutes explaining about the centaur, the iron ball, and the camp father went to investigate. Mother listened with intrigue, feeling our bowls and bellies with soup, while I filled her heart with worry. Once I felt nothing else could surprise her, I sprung my secret upon her.
"Mother. Today I reached womanhood ... I haven't told father."
The brightness on her face, that welcomed the news, darkened. I suddenly lost my appetite.
"You should've told him. You know how you father is. Remember when your sister kept it secret for six months? How hard he came down upon her?"
"I remember, mother." I shook the thought away. "I intended to tell him when he was less ... distraught."
Mother lips sunk, "Wash up, dear. If I can smell it, so can he."
I obeyed her words, and grabbed an old, half beaten centaur robe I kept for just the occasion. I headed towards the river. The moon sat high and round, lighting my way After a quick trip, and a long dip, I wrapped myself up, feeling mostly clean, then hurried back to the cottage. By the time I arrived home, the fresh rag between my legs was already sticky, red, and rank. And for a moment, I feared there was no hiding it from father. I'd have to tell him soon as he got home. I didn't realize it'd be quite so soon ...
At the door, I beat the dirt from my riding boots. That's when I noticed it ... silence ... the song bugs had gone quiet.
"It's nothing like I've ever seen, Nalisai ..." I raised my ear, to my father's dreadful tone. "Herds are being gathered for ..."
"For what, Reigrum?"
"Butchery." He whispered. "It is the only way to describe it."
"And what will you do?"
"The only thing I can do ... Eroh is to be made a man come on the morrow. We are to be there for his ceremony. I'll speak to the Chief Horn and tell him we must assemble the hoofs."
"Assemble the hoofs for what?"
"War!"
I gasped. My legs shook, feeling too weak to carry my weight. I collapsed against the cottage, breathing heavy. After filling my lungs with enough air to clear my head, I decided what was best for my father. And that was to not burden him with my first blood.
Advertisement
Conspiracyland
A hardened full-time conspiracy theorist, Jones, finds himself in a timeline where everything seems to have gone wrong. Armed with the knowledge of a veteran internet shitposter and the power of paranoia, he sets out to break the conditioning. Join our heroes as they traverse an absurd world filled with mutant lizardmen, ufos, and nefarious secret organizations.
8 241The Wrong Hero
The gods have been known, in times of great need, to summon a hero from another world. In ages past, they have summoned mighty warriors from other universes to fight as their champion and save the world from darkness. Unfortunately, the gods are not all-knowing, and they can make mistakes. Sometimes what they get is not quite what they were expecting...
8 191Fluvia Dellarose was an Otome Game's Villain
Full Title:Fluvia Dellarose was Supposed to be an Otome Game’s Mini-Boss Villain, but Her Strong Maternal Instincts Prevailed! – As Expected of a Former Single-Mom. Main Site: https://honyakusite.wordpress.com/fluvia-dellarose-was-an-otome-games-villain/(Illustrations and the latest chapters - and a more aggressive update rate - can be found on the main site) In the otome game, [Love that Breaks Bonds], Ryllia Piermont is one of the main rivals, a villainous woman who seeks to devour marry a man of high-standing to gain power despite already having a fiance. Blackmailing, threatening, and tricking her way through the story, the person who made it all possible for Ryllia was the sickly Fluvia Dellarose, the younger twin sister of Ryllia’s naive and arrogant fiance, and a secret wielder of the illegal Ghost Arts. The tragic sub-villain, Fluvia Dellarose’s life went something like this:1. Lose magic2. gain Ghost Arts3. build the family estate up based on blackmail and illicit knowledge4. get sweet-talked by Brother’s fiancee5. become devoted to Ryllia6. orchestrate many of Ryllia’s dirty deeds7. get thrown away by Ryllia8. attack the Heroine9. get executed when Ghost Arts are found outThat’s how it was supposed to go, but… Mother, Father, properly scold your selfish son! Do you mean for it to become a habit?! Brother, I will raise you into a good man!Hmm… Mother has an inferiority complex so she doesn’t like socializing? Very well! I will turn the areas of yourself you hate into those you take pride in!Eh? There’s movement in the dark underbelly of the city that must be dealt with? … And just what are you going to do if my naive father hears of it? Bring the reports to me! Ghost Arts? Hmph! As if I would learn something illegal! Do you have any idea what kind of influence I will have on the children(Mother/Father/Brother)?! You don’t understand just how easily influenced these people (my precious, adorably foolish family members) are! Besides why should I, who was spurned by love and had to raise my child all by myself in the previous life, follow some sort of love-story script in the current life? In this life, I will live to see my grandkids this time!
8 219Breaking Hell
Tasked by a mysterious voice to journey to the centre of Hell, Jayson and his companions battle through the floating island of Pandaemonia in the infamous Hellbreaker tournament. But with dark secrets haunting them, and the stirrings of war between Heaven and Hell, their bloodthirsty competitors are the least of their worries. If you like shonen anime, I hope you'll love this story. If you enjoy reading Breaking Hell and wish to support: You can REVIEW the story right here on RoyalRoad. You can VOTE for Breaking Hell at TopWebFiction. (v cont'd below v) You can SUPPORT the author via Patreon. You can FOLLOW the story on Wordpress for advance chapters, art, and more. You can WATCH the author's art streams on Twitch. Thanks! ~david Jayson Agonistes: Breaking Hell is a serial action fantasy by David Whitechapel which follows a team of adventurers as they face off against demons, magic and monsters on the floating islands of TreArkh.
8 91Marvel one shots
The title says it allWarning: smutI take requests
8 69After Dark {Jonah Marshall/Adam Marshall}
TW; W33d use, bl00d, d34th, v0m!tEDIT: I HAVE BEEN INFORMED THAT TY IS NO LONGER COMFORTABLE WITH SHIPPING ADAM AND JONAH AND I WILL RESPECT THAT. I AM KEEPING THIS FIC UP SOLEY FOR THOSE WHO WISH TO KEEP READING, HOWEVER PLEASE DO BE AWARE OF HIS FEELINGS ON THE MATTER AND BE RESPECTFUL. I WILL NOT MAKE ANY MORE CONTENT REGARDING JONADAM.THANK YOU FOR READING.
8 120