All three of us were eager the next day to face Zirani even though I knew better than the other two just what sort of beating we were in for. I didn't think for a moment that we were going to be able to beat an aether beast that was over four hundred years old and with a hundred of those years dedicated to nothing but the arcane and combat. She had become a jungle queen after all, and you didn't get to that point by being weak. As far as I knew only the strongest could be Zigan's, though perhaps it was different. It wasn't like I had asked Zirani about it. I was impressed that she was a jungle queen but it's not like that was the reason I loved her. It wouldn't have mattered to me if she were a dryad or some other form of a humanoid beast.
"Don't think flattery will help you," Zirani said mentally, having read my thoughts.
I sent her the equivalent of a mental shrug. "It was worth a shot."
