She king sat at the head of the table. He was hulk of a man; with broad shoulders, a huge chest, arms as thick as my waist, and a noble aura that only made this giant seem even bigger. He had thick, straight , shoulder length, strawberry brown hair and gentle golden eyes. He had a square shaped face, and even his neck was covered in muscles, His Adam's apple bobbed as he laughed and greeted Ishi like she was family, telling her she didn't need to be so formal.
On either side of him sat his wives, one was a black panther and the other was a lioness. The lioness must be the mother of Jerrod, since he seemed to resemble her more than his father (with the exception of his hulking physique). The black panther looked a lot like the woman who guarded the city entrance, but slightly different. Next to the panther saw a few younger children who silently ate and paid no attention to us. Next to the lioness sat her son, Jerod, who looked at Ishi as if she had grown two heads.
After he finished greeting Ishi, the king looked at me and asked her, "And who did you bring with you?"
"Isola's patient and one of my disciples. Her name is Mika, and she is going to help me."
"Oh-ho-ho? Help you? With what exactly?" The king seemed amused.
I was just as dumbfounded, Ishi is a one woman army, what could I possibly help her with?
"Your highness, there have been intruders in the city." Ishi commanded the attention of everyone at the table as she recounted how she found her sister missing and the trail we found (tactfully leaving out my weird abilities).
"Based on the damage to the tree, I would say that whoever was in the city last night has been here before. The claw marks on the tree indicate multiple intruders as well." She finished her summary of events.
"What about tha guards?" The panther woman spoke in the same accent as the one I met before.
"Layla was assigned to that sector last night, which was a mistake. someone messed up the schedules, she shouldn't have been in the pool since she's no longer here." Ishi said without a hint of emotion.
Layla… her ex girlfriend? I remembered now that the black panther who guarded the gate was also involved with Ishi. I didn't know she left.. that explains why we haven't seen her since that day.
The king sighed and looked tired. His wife, the lioness, reached out and placed her hand on his forearm for comfort. The Panther queen didn't even spare them a glance as she continued her exchange with Ishi.
"Who was in charge of the sceduales?" (Who was in charge of the schedules?) She asked.
"It's been a lottery system since we didn't have a captain." Ishi answered.
"Which wouldn't have been a problem if you weren't so stubborn!" Jerrod shouted. His face was red and his eyes were glassy.
Beside him sat his new fiancée who was staying quiet and looked very concerned about him.
"It's my right to refuse." Ishi said calmly but with an undertone of don't-f**k-with-me.
Jerrod wasn't getting the message, he was clearly upset about Isola being missing. "This could have been avoided if we had a capable captain; the schedules would have been organized, no intruders would have gotten in, and Isola wouldn't be missing!"
They offered Ishi the position of captain? That's a major position… I can't believe she refused. She's so talented.
His fiancée reached up to grab his hand but he shook her off, which seemed to upset her. His mother hissed at him to calm down and stop acting like a foolish child. He immediately sat down with a look from the king.
"The timing can't be a coincidence, loves. I tink we should ave someone look into dis." (I think we should have someone look into this) The panther queen said to her husband and wife.
"I agree, dear." The lioness said, looking at the king.
He looked thoughtful. Ishi quickly interjected.
"I would like to take a leave of absence and look into this myself." She had a very authoritative tone.
"It wouldn't be wise to allow our best warrior to leave the city after something like this," the lioness said, "If they are planning to attack then we will need your strength."
"If they are planning to attack they might have taken someone a little easier to target, not a hermit who lives in the trees and talks to no one." Ishi shot back.
I stifled a snort of laughter. The lion queen seemed to accept this logic and nodded in agreement.
"I will allow it." The king boomed, "As long as you are discreet. However…If anything happens, we can not be associated with you… do you understand?"
"Understood, your majesties. Thank you." She bowed low and we left.
The royal family was talking amongst themselves as we were leaving, deliberating on which tribe was spying on Lashwood and if they need to prepare for a territory war.
Ishi led me out of the palace and back to the city center. I didn't say a word the whole time. She mentioned that I am going to 'help her' does she mean that I am going to help her find Isola? It would make sense.. I still need Isola to help me transform anyways.
"Pack. Get the dog. Meet me back here ASAP." Ishi said to me before storming off.
Before I could offer any words of comfort, so much had happened. I feel like a real jerk… I never even expressed sympathy about her sister missing. I walked back to the hut to get started.
Marshall was already home. I gave him the details on what happened at the palace. I hadn't mentioned that we are going to help find them yet.
"So we need to pack up and go help, right?" Marshall asked.
I wasn't sure if he was going to be mad or what when I told him.. but before I could tell him I want to help, he offered. He really is the best.
My smile must have sufficed as an answer, as he smiled back and took off to grab provisions from the kitchenette while I packed the essentials and weapons.
"Old trusty." I smiled as I grabbed my bow. I remembered the nights Dania and I spent making it. I felt a little choked up, knowing that she was in danger and I might not see her again. The horrific scene in the bedroom of Isola's house flashed in my mind.
I changed into an outfit I prepared ahead of time, specifically for adventuring. It was a leather vest- which I turned into a top. It had a V neck and laced up in the front, but looked okay with my makeshift bra on underneath. I wore one of the skirts that Ishi bought me, but I modified it. I wore tight legging-like pants underneath the skirt so I could climb in the trees without offering a free show. I also added a leather belt with pouches since they don't have pockets in this world. I hadn't finished accessorizing the belt; I was still trying to add a clip to hold my quiver when I was last working on this project. It will do for now though. I grabbed my leather braces, which weren't too flashy since I made them myself, and prepared to leave.
"Ready?" Marshall asked as he approached.
He was wearing his usual, well-fitted tunic and pants. I suppose he didn't need much else since he fights in wolf form. He had Dania's backpack on his shoulders and his satchel tied to his waist.
I heaved my backpack and quiver on my back and nodded, "Ready."
*. *. *. *. *. *. *. *. *. *. *. *. *. *. *. *
We met Ishi at the city center, she was pacing impatiently. When she saw us she stopped and flagged us over. She was wearing an outfit that was no doubt made for battle.
She had an outfit on that was similar to our training outfits. Her top was made of dark tanned leather with fur trim. It came to deep V between her breasts, the neckline was wide and went up around the back of her neck like a halter but had a strap around her neck that was somehow tied in, the back of the top tied in the back below her shoulder blades. It was adored with braided leather, fur, and war trophies (animal teeth and bones). The skirt was no different; it was made of thick leather which was braided at the sides by her hips. The skirt sat just below her hips and showed off her V-line. Adorning the skirt were more war trophies, leather braided, some feathers, a drinking horn, and a large medallion carved from leather. She had thick leather braces with fur trim on them and one cross body strap which allowed her to carry her spear.
We approached; she narrowed her eyes at Marshall.
"We're ready." I said once we stopped.
She looked us over and rolled her eyes. My bow and quiver caught her eyes and she asked what it was.
"It's my weapon of choice. I'll show you how I use it later." I said proudly.
"So what's the plan?" Marshall asked her.
"We can't be sure that heading west was their true destination… or whether it was a misdirection.. but since they used masking elixir before heading out, I'm guessing that they are heading to one of the western cities." Ishi said to Marshall.
"The only western cities with felines are the desert city of Sah'fi or the capital, although the capital is a little more north.." He said thoughtfully.
"Correct." Ishi replied. "We can't be sure which one they are headed for. Lashwood and Sahfi are entering an alliance, which makes the capital the most likely destination."
"It's also closer, so it won't be too much of a loss if they aren't there." Marshall replied.
This is a side of him I've never seen, he's usually so dunderheaded.
"So we are going to the capital, then?" I asked.
"Yes. Let's get moving, they already have a head start." Ishi commanded and led the way out of the city.