My head was horizontal by the end of the first page.
From the second on, Aymer got into all the details, and boy were there details. I couldn’t believe what I was reading, and I felt a headache coming on before I was anywhere near done.
“Dias!” cried Senai. “Is Aymer okay? How about everybody else?”
“What’s going on? When will they be able to come home?” asked Ayhan.
I pressed a hand to my throbbing head and got down on a knee so I could address the girls.
“Well, uh... It looks like they’re all doing well,” I told them. “Really well, in fact. So you don’t have to worry about them being hurt or anything like that. As for when they’ll be back, I still haven’t read everything yet, but I’m guessing they’ll be back earlier than expected. Just hang tight a little longer, okay? I’m going to read the rest right now, and then I’ll fill you both in.”
The twins smiled and nodded. It seemed like all they needed to know was that everybody was safe, because they dashed off towards the maternity yurt hand in hand. I thought maybe they were running an errand or something, but I didn’t think on it too long—there were still more pages for me.
✦ ✦ ✦
The party sailed downriver, then due west upon reaching the ocean. It was a long journey, to be sure, but there wasn’t even a hint of exhaustion to be found upon the face of any of the boat’s crew members. Any work that needed to be done for the ship—including the handling of it—was done by the goblins, who had even prepared food. The expeditionary crew had expected some difficulties when it came to reaching Beastland shores, but the goblins had provided smaller dinghies, which they pulled to shore.
As such, the expedition could simply sit back and relax, and indeed some even slept until their arrival. The tiring sea voyage that they had expected was instead surprisingly pleasant. Ordinarily, sea sickness would have reared its fearsome head at some point along the way, but such was the goblins’ care that the ride was nothing if not largely smooth from start to finish. Thanks to their efforts, the party arrived on the shores of the Beastland Kingdom raring to go.
“We’ll leave the boat in your care then,” said Aymer to Iberis. “Be sure to take it far enough away from shore that it doesn’t get spotted.”
“Understood.”
The goblins thus took their smaller dinghies back to the ship, which soon vanished from sight. When Aymer saw that it was gone, she hopped aboard Marf’s head. Moments later, three figures leaped from the shadows dressed in black and landed deftly in front of the hopping mousekin.
“People of the Ram’s Horn, we’ve been expecting you,” said one of the figures, adding a neat “ribbit” for good measure.
Under no circumstances was the expeditionary party going to announce that they were from Baarbadal. All the same, for them to have no name at all made for difficulties in communications, so the Peijin family had come up with a code name of sorts—one that reflected the local culture. To further hide their identities, the expeditionary party wore hooded robes that gave the impression they hid large ears under the fabric, and around their waists were tails that could have belonged to any number of beastkin races.
The hoods were worn by all except for Aymer and the mastis, who boasted features that no beastkin would find particularly suspicious.
Aymer had arranged for these disguises, and while she was fully aware they would be running their operation under the cover of the onikin’s concealment magic, she knew that the danger of them being spotted always loomed. And if they happened to be spotted as they were, some among them would be recognized as human or onikin in an instant. Thus, these cloaks had been devised.
With the party under the cover of their cloaks, any locals would likely assume them to be beastkin at a glance, and thanks to Aymer’s cunning designs, any curiosity would be directed at their exact race more than their identities.
It would be unlikely for any to believe them human, though for all her confidence Aymer couldn’t be totally sure given that this was their first time in the field. Still, the fact that the stubborn Mont put his on without so much as a complaint was a testament to the craftsmanship of the cavekin and grandmothers who had helped make them.
“Have you encountered any trouble?” asked Aymer. “If not, we’d like to head north directly for the base camp you’ve set up. We can take a short break there.”
The three frogmen informed Aymer that the coast was clear and directed the expeditionary party into a forest of trees bent in ways that none had ever seen in Sanserife. As they ventured in among the trees, Aymer’s ears perked up to listen for potential enemies, and then she gestured to the onikin to let them know it was safe. An instant later, they vanished, hidden by concealment magic.
The party proceeded in a tight formation to ensure that none of them accidentally peeked out from the barrier of the spell, and they proceeded into the woods, careful not to make a sound. Aymer’s senses were on high alert—it was their first stealth venture into enemy territory, and it brought with it a most unique tension and excitement. They went on until exhaustion started to itch at them, then stopped to catch their breath.
During this break, the onikin shifted to a new concealment caster, and the frogmen drank water from round, wooden cylinders they’d brought with them. Even while at rest, everybody stayed vigilant, and as aware of their surroundings as they could. They listened carefully, sniffed for changes in the air, and made sure they would be able to move immediately.
But just as the party began to feel well rested, a shriek pierced the air.
“Was that a woman?” asked Aymer, immediately regretting she’d said anything.
In truth, nobody else had heard the shriek. Nobody else could. It was Aymer’s sensitive ears that had caught the sound. She could have remained silent, but she’d been caught off guard. Now it was too late to take back what she’d said.
Dias’s old war buddies narrowed their eyes, and a certain bloodlust began to waft from them. They had fought by Dias’s side, and in many ways, they worshipped the man known for his “ball busting” punishments.
So when the men became aware that a person might be in need of help, they did not react with big words or bold movements—rather, their very aura resonated with a desire to help, mixed with a readiness for battle.
Aymer glanced at Mont for support, but the man simply shrugged and shook his head—a gesture that said it was too late for regrets. Aymer then looked to Zorg, but the onikin were emitting the same eager battle readiness that wafted from the others. Realizing now that stopping the men was helpless, she instead issued orders in a low voice.