Chapitre 428: Promise of Tomorrow
In the dim glow, Aurora stared at her map in disbelief. The 'Abominable' was now placed inside the ice barrier.
'But how? When did it cross? Where is it going?'
The map had more new information. Although the document only covered the land of magic and the area around it, a new little unnamed dot had appeared on the shore of the lake outside the barrier. The Empress barely registered the change. Her mind was too full.
The name 'Abominable' was emblazoned in magical ink along the edge of the barrier. Aurora could almost guarantee without speaking to the centaur that this is where she had been.
"Empress!" Brinn, who had joined the king and frantic citizen, called Aurora from her musings. "I think you will want to hear this."
The fiery-haired woman put up the map and returned it to Nurlan. Ready to keep an open mind with whatever she heard, Aurora joined the centaur king and elven princess.
Once the lady centaur had calmed down, she had told of her harrowing journey to the king. With Brinn's translation, she retold it for the Empress's benefit.
Bess had been sent a couple of days before to gather mushrooms for the festival. As the summer had been unusually warm, the lady centaur had found herself scavenging much further than intended.
After spending a night in a natural cave, the young centaur still had not gathered the mushrooms required. It wasn't until Bess had reached the ice barrier the following day that she realized that she had wandered too far.
However, the mushrooms were finally in sight and Bess saw no reason to leave empty handed. She gathered the wild fungi, stuffing them into the pack across her back. In a cool damp area behind a rock, Bess found a myriad of mushrooms of all shapes and sizes.
"A treasure trove of treats!" she exclaimed. Avoiding the poisonous ones like she had been taught, Bess filled her bags to overflowing. If she could make it back in time for the feast, she would be very popular indeed with all these goodies.
The greedy young centaur reached for one last mushroom in the very depth of the shadow of the rock, almost touching the ice barrier itself. She grabbed at the fungi and pulled swiftly.
However, she did not receive the fistful of food she desired. Instead she held a tuft of white fur almost the same shade as the barrier. A groan filled the air followed by an intense growl.
Bess backed up quickly as a large creature rose from the shadows. The monster gnashed its teeth on one of its misshapen heads, threatening to tear the small frantic centaur in two.
It let off a terrific roar, throwing Bess back onto her hind quarters. She screamed, scrambled to her hooves, turned tail and ran with all her might.
Bess could hear the monster roar again, and she knew in her heart if she stopped that she would never make it home alive.
After an hour of running, the lady, who was only a little more than a foal, finally gave up on her escape. She collapsed to the ground and resigned herself to her fate.
However, the treacherous beast was not there to swallow her whole. It had given up the chase, unable to keep up with her thundering pace.
Bess was safe, but she had run in the wrong direction to get home. Part of this was intentional to keep the creature from harming her family, but part of it was just blind fear. Now, void of energy and far from her destination, Bess knew she would never make it in time for the feast…
The centaur then expounded on the measures she had taken to get home on time so as not to upset her mother. It seemed that Bess had a bad habit of disappearing unexpectedly. The king had listened to the story twice now, stroking his stubbled chin the entire time.
When he saw how closely the Empress was listening to Brinn's translation, he decided to inquire her thoughts. "You do not seem surprised by Bess's story," Cypher noted. "Might there be a reason you are so calm?"
"I know the message ball we sent said we were passing through, but it did not say why. The human world has been beset by strange monsters. We are in search of one in particular, and I think Bess may have found it." Aurora summarized as much as she could.
"I see," Cypher gave a sagely nod. "Do we centaurs need to be concerned that this monster came over the barrier?"
The Empress hesitated. She looked between the other members of her cohort, who had all gathered to listen, but none of them seemed to have an answer either. "I don't know," she answered at last. "It would be wise to be cautious."
The others around nodded. "Stand guard," Cypher ordered some of the centaurs. "Take weapons and be ready to defend yourself. This is not the time to be timid." The words sounded strange in the king's mouth, which only made those listening take them more seriously. Scrambling to obey orders, the sentries hurried off to take their posts around the settlement.
Bess waited patiently to be dismissed. She wanted nothing more than to curl up in her own little dwelling with her family safe and sound. Her adventurous spirit was gone, possibly never to return.
Alas, the human woman spoke and dashed her hopes of leaving.
"Can I ask a few questions?" she looked at the king.
"By all means." Cypher bowed and took a step back.
Bess was intimidated by the fiery-haired woman. She had only seen a handful of two-leggers in her short life and she still wasn't comfortable around them. And after the excitement of the past two days, her nerves were frazzled.
Sensing the centaur's hesitation, Aurora swished her head back and forth. The movement of her ponytail had the desired effect. Bess's breathing slowed slightly.
"Ask her to describe the monster," Aurora told Brinn, "with as much detail as she can remember."
The information would be incredibly useful in helping them track and spot the creature later.
Bess's eyes darted away as she was asked the question. Her nervous stomping in the dirt began anew.
"It was horrible. Unlike anything I have ever seen. It had two—no three—ghastly heads though only one of them seemed to be able to make any noise. Arms protruded not only from its sides but from its colossal neck. Snow White fur covered the monster's body, except for its maw and eyes. Its largest mouth was big enough to eat me whole!" Bess's knees buckled before Brinn had finished translating.
Faris, who had remained nearby but tried to stay out of the messy royal business, rushed forward to stop the female from falling. She fell into his arms and shut her eyes. Whether she was being dramatic or actually fainted did not matter, the result was the same. Bess was done talking.
"Get the filly to her mother. She needs some rest, food and water. Poor Bess always seems to find herself in the strangest circumstances." Cypher shook his head.
"Aw, we found the centaur version of you, Aurora!" Brinn cooed.
The Empress pressed her lips together, unable to argue. She did always seem to find herself in the midst of the impossible. "Then it is a good thing we live so far apart or trouble would have a single place to converge..." she answered with a shrug.
"Your Majesty," the doctor approached her timidly. "If what the lady said is true about this monster, is it wise for us to continue on this journey with just the seven of us?" Phileas's white eyebrows were merged into one long, worried arch.
This time the Empress did not hesitate. "I know you have not seen the elven prince and princess fight in a real battle. Nor have you witnessed the raw power that Zan and Nurlan possess. You have only seen Reyan's portalling ability, which should by itself be enough to keep us safe. Trust me when I say that an army would not do better against this creature than those in my cohort."
The doctor looked at those around him. He considered Reyan as a bit of an unknown, but the fairy used his magic capably. Phileas had heard of the elves' power and as Brinn had been a spymaster for the better part of a decade; she must have a considerable amount of skill. Nulan did not climb to the rank of general because of his good looks. And Zan seemed unassuming, but the physician had seen the Councilman defy the odds more than once and survive.
That only left the Empress, who had faced off against Fates, dragons, gnomes and all manner of magical creatures and still come out alive.
"If you want to stay behind," Aurora broke through his thoughts, "then we can come back and get you once we have completed our goal."
Phileas shook his head. "If it is all the same to you, Your Majesty, I would like to see this through."
This was the answer for which the ruler had hoped. She smiled gently, "Then we leave at first light. Get a good night's sleep everyone. Tomorrow promises to be an eventful day."
État de l’alimentation hebdomadaire
-- Classement
Power Stone 
-- Power
stone