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Chapter 18

The next day, Captain Franklin decided they should start circling back toward Howlester Duchy. They were running low on supplies, and he didn't like the idea of straying too far near Crinnington's borders. On the other side of the forest was a great stretch of endless fields, followed by the dark and mysterious Nahet Fens. Nkwe had heard horror stories of the Nahet that made even him only too happy to steer clear of the border. The place was yet another piece of Ayni's territory, as the Wings of Fire had taken a great deal of Aonre for her own during the war of the gods.

The stories said that Azrian had been raised in the Nahet, cradled by the wings of water, under Ayni's very nose. Nkwe knew that it wasn't until the slutty Second Light stole the virginity of one of Ayni's foxes that the goddess of rage even knew she was there. Nkwe thought it was a pity Ayni hadn't killed Azrian twenty years ago. Ti'uu's foolish and naïve plan to make dogs and foxes play nice had cost thousands of lives . . . and Nkwe was responsible for having taken his fair share of them.

The Nahet was possibly the most dangerous place in Aonre, and Azrian had grown up there. As much as he loathed Azrian, Nkwe had to admit he was impressed. It was no small feat to survive such a place, as the creatures there were very powerful predators. Jaguars and anacondas prowled in the Fens that could snap a beast in halves, yet Azrian used to tame them with her song. But as much as he hated her, Nkwe pitied Azrian as well. Recent stories said that had become a cold and distant goddess, who sat on her throne . . . and sang no more.

As misguided as Azrian and Ti'uu were, at least they were trying to make the world a better place. Nkwe had to admit that Yfel never made anything better or even tried to. She just cackled while she tricked Ayni into setting the world on fire. He wanted to believe that Yfel had taken Robin for a good reason. But in his heart, he doubted it.

They packed up camp that morning and set out for the road leading to Howlester. They had orders to avoid the border of Crinnington anyway, as they were serving only as a search party for that specific area. Etienne had sent mastiffs in other areas and even had a party searching Thalsin. But Franklin's small group was to stick to Crinnington incase Robin found her way back home.

If he was honest with himself, Nkwe actually thought Etienne's maneuverings were uncharacteristically tactical, but it was a waste of time and resources. Nkwe tried to tell Etienne that Mogethis would not be in Thalsin. Or Statney Grove. Or anywhere in_Varimore. If Mogethis had the ability to teleport herself out of the ball, it meant one of two things. Either she had gotten a hold of one of the ancient artifacts of legend - the stone - that allowed for instant teleportation. Or she and Robin had actually been teleported out of the ball _by a god. In either scenario, Mogethis and Robin could be anywhere in Aonre. They could be way the hell in Kingdom Sevra, for all anyone knew.

Nkwe thought Etienne had nothing to fear where Zeinara was concerned. Zeinara was Maret's child. According to Taiga, Maret created Zeinara to rule Varimore and thus the world. Zeinara could kick and scream and fight, but Maret would find a way to bring her home safely. And Robin? She belonged to Yfel. There was no retrieving her. It was done. Finding Mogethis before she hurt anyone on Yfel's orders - that as the _real_priority.

Nkwe wished he could make Etienne see that searching was fruitless, but the distraught king looked at Nkwe with an adamant blue eye and insisted that he would not simply sit on his tail while his daughter was out stumbling through the wilderness simply because she was Maret's child. "To hell with your gods," he'd said and turned from the room. And it was one of the rare moments when Nkwe actually agreed with Etienne: to hell with the gods indeed.

They traveled the road to Howlester all day and well into the evening. Captain Franklin sang merry songs with Guss, who had an extra pep in his step as dusk fell purple and pink across the sky. Guss was always happiest when the stars came out and once told Nkwe and the others that he'd been born under the stars, in the rain, when his mother's carriage broke down on the road. He was delivered by a vixen who happened to be in the wood nearby. The vixen charged his mother three nuts and a piece of Guss' soul for her services, with the promise that she would one day return for it.

Chase had laughed and called Guss' story rubbish, but the merry little mastiff insisted that it was true. His soul belonged -- at least in part -- to a fox witch, and one day, she would cast a spell, and he would be in her thrall.

"Such a thing is no joking matter," Nkwe had told Guss with a serious frown. Because he knew there were, in fact, vixen witches of the woods who imprinted dogs to take as slaves. It only worked well with pups, as they were young enough for the partial-possession to have maximum effect. If Guss' story were true, the witch who'd bought his soul alongside three nuts could do whatever she wanted with him at any given time. And he would be powerless.

"But I ain't joking," Guss had replied with a flourish of his spoon. "Ma told me to look out for the witch, as one day she might be back to snatch me up."

Chase rolled his eyes. "Getting snatched up by a scary old witch? Couldn't you even try to be more creative?"

Natasha laughed, and Chase seemed very pleased by the fact.

"The story has been heard a thousands times," Chase went on, encouraged by Natasha's amusement. "Now tell me the one about your dad starting life as a frog."

"That one's not too farfetched, actually," added Captain Franklin with a teasing lift of his brows.

Guss only chuckled. "I'm tellin' you lot, it's true!"

"Well, when the day comes, make certain you're not in the midst of pissing, eh?" laughed Captain Franklin. "If that ol' witch makes you pee in the soup, she'll hear from me."

Guss laughed. "Right-o, Captain. Hopefully, the wind'll be blowin' the other way."

The captain tapped his temple appreciatively and returned to his stew.

"Only she wasn't old," added Guss and licked his spoon with a long pink tongue. "Ma says she was young and beautiful. Brown as the earth. With eyes like a hawk."

Nkwe stiffened to hear the description.

"What's the matter, fox?" Chase demanded suspiciously, and Nkwe glanced at him irritably. Chase always noticed the slightest change in his demeanor.

"Nothing," Nkwe had lied and returned to his meal.

But present-day Nkwe was still disturbed by Guss' description. The witch who had taken Guss' soul could only be Hawkeye, the young and beautiful vixen who had tried so many times to seduce him when he was a boy. He didn't want to believe it was her, but who else could it be? Guss was from Varimore, born and raised, but only the daughters of Yfel - who dwelled in Poston -- bothered to steal the souls of little dog children. What was a daughter of chaos doing here twenty years before? It could only mean that Hawkeye had survived the battle at Howlester and perhaps even fled in desertion. It would be very like her to desert. If Nkwe ever saw her again . . . he would kill her himself.

Truth be told, Hawkeye wasn't even an original member of Yfel's clans. She had been kidnapped from her mother-clan, a clan devoted to Eden, because she was utterly beautiful and magically gifted. No one knew her true name as she refused to give it, so Nkwe's father named her Hawkeye for her vicious yellow eyes. She was given to Nkwe's older brother Yiska. Like Tataliti, she underwent the wedding night ritual, which meant all of Nkwe's brothers had raped her, Nkwe included. Naturally, she hated Yiska and all his brothers after that - except for Nkwe. She fell head-over-tail in love with Nkwe and insisted on seducing him, but Nkwe refused to betray his brother and warned Hawkeye away. She became so fervent in her advances, one night she managed to drug Nkwe's meal. He awoke with her in his arms and his member rock solid against the soft lips of her sex. She'd had her way with him as he was in a trance. She was smug and gloating, but he grabbed a knife and cut her face and told her never to come near him again. And she didn't. No one ever knew of the incident, and Nkwe was glad. He kept his mouth shut, but he always carried a bitter flame for Hawkeye in his heart.

"And the road is long, just like me dong, and all the girls cum stroooooong!" Guss sang, shattering present-day Nkwe's thoughts.

Natasha laughed girlishly. "You're disgusting, Guss!"

Guss wagged his brows as he walked ahead with the captain. "Thank ye, darlin'. I try."

They were still following the road to Howlester, and as dusk fell, Nkwe knew they would have to stop and make camp soon.

Chase followed behind Guss and the captain, giving Nkwe and Natasha the occasional cold stare. He was angry that they had kissed, but Nkwe was grateful the young mastiff hadn't said a word about it. He didn't feel like the teasing that would come from Guss and the captain. And said teasing would only encourage Natasha in her pursuit of him.

As if Natasha needed encouraging. That night they set up camp, and as Nkwe was settling in his tent, he sighed in exasperation when Natasha entered behind him. He sat on his bedroll and regarded her irritably, trying with all his might not to notice how pretty she was or how lovely she smelled. She smelled like the yellow flowers she kept leaving in his bedroll. Sometimes he found them in his pockets after he awoke from feverish dreams of her paws on his penis, and he knew she had fondled him through his pocket as he'd been sleeping. It was nothing short of molestation . . . and it was driving him mad. Her fingers had felt so good, pumping and massaging him as he slept. Pumping until he squirted his seed and woke from the wet dreams warm with his own cum. If only she had licked him clean.

"I'll put my mouth there tonight, if you like," she said with fluttering lashes, and it was almost as if she'd read his mind. She crawled across the bedroll to him, her tawny mane swinging down around large green eyes, her tail low behind her. She gently rubbed her nose against his, and he swallowed hard. He'd give anything to have her warm, wet mouth on him there. She glanced at his lips, then slowly extended her tongue and licked them. Nkwe turned away.

"What?" Natasha begged. "I've seen the way you look at me. You want me! I dare say you even l-love me," she whispered and her lip trembled. "So what's stopping you?" Her face darkened. "Is it Chase? Bother Chase. Just ignore him."

Nkwe shook his head. "Natasha," he said firmly, "this isn't love. We barely even know each other. You're mystified by me because I'm magical and exotic," he said with a curl of his lip and a disgusted wave of his paw. "If you saw for a moment the person I was . . ." His voice trailed away when her face twisted. She looked on the verge of slapping him, and a tiny part of him couldn't blame her. He knew damn well that she didn't want him just because he was a foreign fox and therefore "interesting."

Natasha sat back and folded her arms. "So what aren't you telling me? Just tell me and we can get it over with. What's the big secret?" Her green eyes darted bright up and down his heavy robes, as if he were hiding something in his pockets. "Are you secretly a mass murderer?"

Nkwe swallowed hard yet again, but he looked her in the eye and said calmly, "Yes."

Natasha went still, and something in her eyes shrank with fear. Her ears slowly pricked forward, pushing through her yellow mane. "You're lying," she whispered solemnly and lifted her chin. "You're lying to push me away."

"No," Nkwe said as calmly as before. "I'm not."

Natasha blinked at Nkwe and her eyes glistened with sudden tears. He could tell she hated crying in front of him. Anger darkened her eyes - anger at herself for crying - and her throat tightened as she said in a voice that broke, ". . . what did you d-do. . .?"

Nkwe felt the sadness weighing in his chest like lead. He was going to tell her the truth, and she was going to reject him. And while it wasn't at all surprising, it was still going to hurt. Badly. He couldn't stand the accusation already in her eyes.

"I was a part of the fox incursions twenty years bef --" the word cut in Nkwe's mouth when Natasha hissed and slapped him hard across the face. He sat with the burn of her little paw spreading in an ache under his eye, and as he stared at the floor, he could feel her anger and sadness like electric heat on the air. He was afraid to meet her gaze, as if doing so would suck the last few days of happiness he had known right out of him. Never again would they laugh and tease. . . . never again would she kiss him by the firelight.

"Look at me!" Natasha nearly screamed.

Nkwe lifted his eyes and looked at her. Her pretty face was streaked with tears. She was crying freely, but she was enraged. "You were a part of that!" she practically howled. Her fangs appeared in a grimace and her pretty eyes squinted up as more tears spilled. She shook her head and turned dramatically from the tent, the whisk of her tail fanning her sweet scent hard in his face.

Nkwe sat in the tent alone, willing himself to go after Natasha. But a shout outside made him start, and then he was crawling from the tent.

"Halt! Reveal yourself!" Chase shouted.

Nkwe scrambled to his feet as he emerged from his tent. Captain Franklin was doing likewise, fumbling to pull his sword even as Natasha pulled her own.

Chase and Guss were standing on the edge of the camp, weapons held ready, peering into the darkness. Guss had his crossbow raised and was glaring behind it as he aimed. Nkwe took up his staff and joined them at the edge of the camp. He thought he smelled foxes, and he knew he could see in the darkness far better than the dogs. Chase and Guss were straining to see the two silhouettes that were quite clear to Nkwe. The silhouettes were spying on them from the bushes. Nkwe sent a beam of light from his staff, and it illuminated the spies immediately. The strangers slowly stood, and Nkwe saw the mastiffs exchange uncertain glances.

Captain Franklin hesitated.

"Come forward!" Nkwe barked. "Or I'll kill you first and ask questions later!"

Natasha looked at Nkwe reprovingly, but it worked: the strangers held up their paws and came forward. As they came, Nkwe could see clearly that they were indeed foxes. The female was dressed in a long, white, tattered gown and a bearskin coat. The male was wearing a long white robe and . . . sandals. They were shoes unlike any Nkwe had ever seen on a fox. The male's sandals were golden braid, winding around his toned calves and over his ankles. They were shoes worn for the aesthetic, the way dog bitches wore heels to balls. Nkwe at once found it disgusting, and he knew it was quite likely the strangers were from S'pru, the Otherworld, where it was said foxes wore fancy shoes, jewelry, and long white robes, dressing in a frivolous manner very akin to the dogs Nkwe hated. They certainly had the look. The female was wearing rings.

The foxes approached the camp, and the male announced that they were mere travelers lost in the forest and looking for a friendly spot. Captain Franklin looked to Nkwe, as he always looked to Nkwe when he didn't know what to do. And since Nkwe was considered the unquestioned expert on all things fox by his companions, the other mastiffs looked to him as well.

Nkwe decided the foxes should be welcomed - not because he trusted them, but because he didn't trust them. It was common knowledge that Azrian often sent criminals down from S'pru - a stupid and careless thing, Nkwe thought - in an attempt to avoid having to build prisons and deal with them herself. Nkwe explained this to the others, warning that they could only assume that the foxes who approached them were criminals. No one ever left S'pru unless they were exiled.

"We should pack up camp and keep moving," Nkwe added. If the strangers had friends in the darkness, they did not want to be sitting ducks until their guests decided to give the signal to attack. Though he didn't tell the mastiffs, he knew from experience what foxes were capable of. His own tribe had pulled such tricks on unsuspecting travelers many times, sending in "innocent foxes" supposedly in need of help only to attack the dogs who tried to help them.

The others agreed to Nkwe's suggestions, though they looked unhappy at the prospect of more traveling after such a long day, and until that night, they had never traveled Crinnington after dark.

"Are we your guests or your prisoners, then?" grinned the male fox as the group was packing up. He and the female stood still as Natasha and Guss pointed weapons at them.

"A little of both," Captain Franklin said, kicking dirt on the fire.

Nkwe stood studying the strangers, his staff in paw and glowing with a soft light that touched every face. The vixen was very beautiful, curvy, short, with large breasts and round hips and a long red mane that fell to her feet. The back of her gown was bloody. Nkwe didn't need to see it to know: he could smell it in the darkness. She had been burned and magically healed, and her red fur still carried the scent of burned flesh and river water.

The male fox carried a very strange smell. He smelled of plants Nkwe had never known, of earth Nkwe had never walked and probably never would walk. His white mane carried leaves and twigs from trees that Nkwe could not identify, and he smelled of a water that was somehow . . . different. It was obvious at a glance that he was cunning. And a liar. Nkwe had the strong urge to pull Natasha away from him. The strange male kept glancing at her with a leer in his eyes that made Nkwe's fangs grind.

Determined to understand the nature of the strangers, Nkwe reached out with his mind, trying to get a sense of their magic. He stiffened when their minds slammed mental doors in his face. And he knew they were no mere bandits or thieves, nor were they criminals cast down from S'pru. These foxes were extraordinary in that they were protected, body and mind, by a power only rivaling that of the gods.

"Uh oh," the male fox sang, rocking on his heels. "Looks like the cat is out of the bag." He was looking at Nkwe, his arms folded. He seemed very amused.

The vixen followed her companion's gaze and looked at Nkwe curiously from slanted eyes wreathed in long lashes. Nkwe could see her hesitating unhappily, as if she wanted to tell him something but could not. She stood with one paw holding her arm. Her back was stiff with pain, and her rings winked in the light of Nkwe's staff. When her eyes connected with his, Nkwe realized they were two different colors, and suddenly, he knew who she was.

"Azrian?" Nkwe said, his voice hoarse with amazement.

The vixen blinked, as around her, everyone fell still.

Nkwe saw the jealousy flash in Natasha's eyes. "What?" she demanded. She jerked her sword at Azrian. "She an old lover? She help you carry out your filthy deeds!" She looked at Nkwe with a twisted expression.

Guss laughed in amazement. "What's this now?" he said, looking between Nkwe and Natasha with delight. His ears pricked forward. "What'd I miss?"

"Shut up, Guss," Chase said darkly. He watched with concern as fresh tears started to Natasha's eyes, then he glared with bitter accusation at Nkwe.

"I don't _know_her," Nkwe said heavily. "I know _of_her. Everyone does. Or they should."

"Don't you bloody get it?" Captain Franklin said impatiently to the others. He was staring at Azrian as if he'd been struck by lightning. "She's the one from the Battle of Wychowl." He looked at Azrian with round eyes. "She's . . . Nadheertia returned to us."

The mastiffs stared at Azrian, taken aback. Nkwe knew they were young enough that they had grown up hearing the stories: Azrian, the reincarnation of Queen Nadheertia, who had ascended to a new world in the sky twenty years before.

In spite of his more secular tendencies, Chase was deeply devout. Upon realizing who Azrian was, he sank to one knee, stabbed his sword in the dirt, and bowed his head reverently before her. The other mastiffs followed suit, until Nkwe was the only one left standing.

Nkwe looked Azrian defiantly in the face. He was damned before he bowed to her. He knew better than any dog who and what Azrian was. Azrian was a travesty, Ti'uu's latest blind attempt to correct his past mistakes, to reincarnate the daughter he begat with Kutre, a daughter who was slain so mercilessly by King Antony. Yfel shook her head at Ti'uu's bumbling, as did her children. For the cycle would only continue, and this latest reincarnation would die like the others before her, taking with her anyone who was at her side. Someone had already made her mortal: it was only a matter of time. Before he realized he was even saying it, Nkwe was demanding that Azrian leave.

Azrian didn't answer. She swallowed hard and stared at Nkwe with unflinching eyes. Nkwe was beginning to wonder if she could answer.

"Maybe foxes bowed to you on S'pru," Nkwe said darkly, "but you will find no such groveling here, Child of Tears. Leave us be. Before your curse spreads to us all."

Azrian's face darkened, but Nkwe was surprised to see the tear that slipped from her eye.

"The curse is a story," said the male fox beside Azrian and smiled incredulously, "told to scare little vixens away from big dog dicks and vice versa. The fire has no pattern. The beauteous Ayni kills when she wills and who she wills . . ." He slowly grinned. "As does Yfel."

Nkwe's lips tightened. "What do you want? Who are you?"

The male smiled sweetly and tilted his head. "Why, to help you, of course."

Nkwe snorted. "The gods do not wish to help us. They wish to control us."

The male studied Nkwe a moment, and Nkwe was surprised to see approval in his glittering eyes. "Very good," he said, "Child of Yfel."

Nkwe tensed, ignoring it when the mastiffs glanced at him in surprise. Natasha glared at him as if the stranger's words had only solidified her hatred and he felt a pang in his chest. "Don't call me that," he warned through his fangs.

"The fact remains that I have come to help you," the male fox went on. His fingers stroked the wisp of white fur on his chin as he studied Nkwe with interest. "I know where Mogethis has gone. I know where she has taken Robin. Yfel has commanded her to take the girl there. It is a place you could not reach on your own. I will help you reach it. For a price."

Nkwe wasn't surprised. Nothing was ever free when it came to the gods, and this male before him was clearly working for them.

"Do you hesitate?" the male fox mocked. "I know how frightening it must be, the thought of defying Yfel --"

"Name your price!" Nkwe snapped angrily. He hated that his paws were trembling. He clenched them into fists and growled, "Yfel is no god of mine." He tensed when the fox's eyes flitted to Natasha, who was still kneeling with her head down. His chest heaved. "No! You can not have her!"

Natasha raised her head, baffled.

The fox was smiling. "Ah. So you do care for the bitch." He made a tisking noise. "My, my. In love with a dog creature? What would your mother think, Nkwe?"

Natasha's lashes fluttered and she blushed hard. Nkwe avoided looking at her. "I do _not_love her," he said darkly.

"Then give her to me," came the grim command. "Or do you covet her virgin sweetness for yourself?"

Natasha blushed brighter and trembled slightly where she knelt.

Suddenly determined to prove the fox wrong, Nkwe dropped his staff and lurched forward, grabbing Natasha by her neck and dragging her to her feet. He slapped the sword from her paw, and she screamed softly when he ripped the buckles on her breastplate. The breastplate clattered off in the dirt, and as everyone watched, he reached around and ripped her shirt open. She gasped as her breasts sprang free, high and firm as they bounced against the air with rigid pink nipples. They rose and fell in her breathless horror and confusion, and Nkwe saw the fox's eyes glaze with lust. She was trembling all over when Nkwe squeezed her breasts and pinched her hard nipples, as if to entice the stranger, who watched the rough groping with burning eyes. Satisfied that the stranger was hooked, Nkwe grabbed Natasha by the neck and shoved her to her knees. She dropped forward and caught herself, and her breasts hung down, full, ripe, and blushing from his touch. In the silence that followed, Nkwe saw Azrian watching Natasha, her eyes soft with sympathy.

The other mastiffs kept their heads down, though Nkwe could see their eyes wide with horror or else frowning with anger. They were too afraid, however, to move. The stranger thrummed with power. And he had to be powerful if he could subdue the Second Light.

"Well!" said the male fox, laughing softly. "Aren't you even going to ask my name before you pump your beloved's naked titties in my face?"

"She is not my beloved," Nkwe said through his fangs and hated himself when Natasha winced sadly. "If you will help me find Mogethis . . ." He bowed his head. "I will give you whatever you ask. I don't need to know your name."

The fox slowly smiled. "Good. My name doesn't matter."