Bastial Explosion (The Rhythm of Rivalry: Book 3) (35 page)

“I didn’t have any other pants, so he went to the market to trade for a pair that fit me. Then he gave them to me as he sewed the other pair.”

“He worked for hours to mend the huge gash you made.” Zeti was exaggerating, for Zoke was quite skilled with his hands and had finished quickly. But Grayol didn’t need to know how long it really took. “And now you have two pairs of pants, don’t you? Many Krepps don’t.”

“I do,” Grayol replied in a quiet voice.

“The Zoke that you know is the same one now with the Humans. Don’t forget that.”

Grayol nodded sheepishly.

The massive walls separating the people of Tenred from the nearby forest seemed to stretch into the sky. Zeti hadn’t seen anything so large that wasn’t a mountain, and even most peaks didn’t stand as tall as these stone walls.

A swarm of Humans buzzed around the gate, half going in and half going out. A few were dressed in metal, all of which was too shiny for Zeti’s taste.
Do our Human allies care more about the appearance of their armor than its use in battle?

At the sight of Zeti, Keenu, and Grayol, one of the men in metal whistled and shouted something in common tongue. The others pushed out a palm at Keenu, signaling for him to wait.

Past the gate, all of Tenred was on an upward slope. The side walls ended halfway up where the edges of mountains took over as the border of the territory. Houses three times as large as any hut within the Krepp encampment were scattered along the miles of incline before her. She couldn’t see much else because the massive stone wall came over the top of the metal gate, blocking her view.

Then the gate opened, and a Krepp came through who she recognized.

“Hello, Zeti.” Nebre had the whitest smile she’d seen of any Krepp.

“What’s with your teeth?” Keenu asked, cringing.

“The Humans like to clean their teeth. I thought I would do the same. You’re going to be amazed by their castle.”

Living with the Humans would’ve been a nightmare to most Krepps, but Nebre seemed overjoyed, privileged, even. It was eerie to see such happiness, especially given the reason.

They followed Nebre through the gate, Grayol whispering, “What’s he doing here?”

“He was sent by Doe and Haemon because he speaks the language of the Humans.”

“So he translates when Krepps like us come to Tenred?”

“That and other things, I assume,” Zeti guessed. She couldn’t get used to how different Nebre was from the last time she’d seen him—when she’d been brought into the judgment chambers to be confronted by him and Doe about her brother.

That was when Doe told me I would have to kill Zoke to prove my loyalty,
Zeti remembered.
I hope Paramar’s murder has done enough.

When the gate had swung open all the way, Nebre stopped to point at the castle atop the hill ahead of them. “Look at that,” he bragged, as if he was somehow responsible for building it.

It was marvelous, though, Zeti couldn’t help but admit. The Humans had somehow built it level, even though the ground beneath it sloped.

There seemed to be three layers to the castle. The base wasn’t much more than a wall of stone that wrapped around the front of it like a shield. Behind this was the second layer, which was a block of stone with rounded towers built into it. The last seemed to be the heart of the castle, peeking out from the center, taller than the rest. All along the top were ridges that made it seem like a walkway was available for the Humans to use.

Zeti couldn’t see much of the middle of the castle, as most of it was covered by the walls of the second layer. But she could see its roof—two square towers jutted out from it. Atop each waved a Tenred flag, black with ten red stars. She’d seen it enough to know by now.

The roads leading toward the castle were crowded with Humans seemingly busy conversing and trading with each other. As busy as they were, though, many stopped to gawk at Zeti and the other Krepps, some even pointing.

They must not have seen too many of us yet.
Zeti didn’t know everything that Doe and Haemon had been doing with Tenred, but sending Krepps over clearly wasn’t a big part of their plans.
At least not yet.
Doe did mention that they were preparing for an attack soon.

Nebre slowed so he could walk between Zeti and Keenu, lowering his voice to tell them, “These Humans…I don’t even know how to describe them. They’re sneaky and cunning. Were you attacked on the way here by men from Kyrro?”

Keenu spat.

A few grunts of disgust could be heard from the Humans around them.

“We were,” Keenu said. “Cowards. That’s all Humans are.”

“If you think that’s all they are, then you have a lot to learn,” Nebre said. “Just a few days ago, three spies from Kyrro were discovered within the castle. Three! It was only one at first, but they tortured her until she gave up the other two. All of them had been living there for years. No Krepp would do that.”

“Because we have honor,” Keenu argued.

“This is war,” Nebre reminded him. “I hear them say it all the time. At first it sounded like an excuse, but I’ve realized now that it’s indeed a reason. They care little about honor compared to winning. As should we. I’ve still been trying to get permission to read their history books. I’m sure they’re filled with surprising stories.”

Keenu spat again. “Filthy Humans.” He muttered a curse. “Don’t let them influence you, Nebre. You have to remember you’re a Krepp.”

They were silent the rest of the way to the castle.

There were only two guards outside the thick wooden door. This didn’t surprise Zeti, as the castle seemed to deny entry on its own far better than any Human could. But inside, she found many more wearing armor at each turn.

What do the Humans need so much protection from within the castle?

“Who are we meeting with?” Keenu asked.

“That depends on why you’re here.” Nebre stopped them in the middle of a stone hallway. It was lit by a few torches on the wall. “I assume it’s about the pigeons?”

“How did you know?” Zeti asked.

“Because they won’t fly back to the Krepp encampment. The pigeon master already explained the issue to me. They weren’t trained properly to think of the Krepp encampment as a home. So when they were sent here with messages, we couldn’t get them to fly back with our replies.”

“We” and “our,”
Zeti reflected.
What’s with him?

“I see,” Keenu said. “So what do we tell Doe?”

“Tell him whatever you want, but that’s the reason—the birds weren’t trained properly and were released too early. I’ll bring you to the pigeon master to explain what needs to happen. Then you three can bring back the birds to Doe and try again.”

“I also have this message to deliver to King Tegry.” Keenu pulled the scroll from his bag. It wasn’t sealed. “Doe and Haemon want to attack Kyrro as soon as possible.”

Nebre reached out for the scroll, but Keenu wouldn’t give it to him.

“Doe told me to place it in Tegry Hiller’s hands,” Keenu explained.

“I’m…I’m not sure I can get you an audience with the King, but I’ll try. First, the pigeon master. He’s on the top floor.”

After all the miles and the sleepless nights they’d endured, the climb to the top of Tenred castle proved to be a laborious task.
Every wall was made of stone. The floor was cold against Zeti’s feet, though there was more heat in the air the higher they climbed.

One set of stairs led to the western wall of the castle before it turned and continued upward. There was a slit in the wall. Grayol stopped for a moment and stood on his toes to gaze through it.

“The ocean,” he commented. “It’s like we’re flying.”

Zeti took a look for herself. The castle must’ve been built on a peak over the ocean. She could see bouncing waves of dark blue that stretched for hundreds of miles. There was just one small piece of land in view that looked close enough for her to reach by tossing a stone. Though she knew the distance to be an illusion.

She couldn’t judge how far down the water was from where she stood. Though she did come to realize that she was unable to hear the waves. The castle was too high above for that.

Then she wondered what the view was like from atop the castle.

“Do they let you go anywhere, Nebre?” she asked.

“Almost anywhere,” he answered proudly. “You want to stand on top of this massive structure, don’t you?”

“I do.”

“Me too,” Grayol added.

“Only for a moment,” Keenu said, trying to hide his own interest.

“I almost forgot,” Nebre said. “Don’t discuss anything too loudly. They think there might be more spies, and sound seems to bounce off these walls rather than be muffled by them.”

Every Human they walked by gave them a curious glance. But Zeti soon was used to it. She was in no way eager to leave the castle, for she knew what kind of trip awaited. She could use at least one night out of danger, sleeping with walls on every side of her, allies guarding the entrance to her room. It was a comforting thought, and her body agreed, bringing on an attack of drowsiness so strong she lost her urge to do anything else but sleep.

She noticed Grayol yawning. He must’ve felt the same.

But Zeti took a deep breath and found her strength, knowing there was a decent chance she would be outside Tenred territory by the time night came…and possibly with noisy birds.

Zeti waited outside the pigeon master’s chambers. It was up to Keenu to remember his instructions, and Zeti felt too tired to be able to even if she was required. Grayol decided to go in with Keenu and Nebre, though. They left the door open, and Zeti could hear the little Krepp getting more and more excited as he absorbed every piece of information Nebre translated from the pigeon master’s lips.

The moment they left, Grayol already was asking if he could carry the cage with the three birds in it.

Keenu handed it to him. “You let them out and you die.”

“Why? They’ll just fly back to the pigeon master’s window,” Grayol said.

When Keenu had no retort, it occurred to Zeti that Grayol must’ve been right. She couldn’t help but let out a small laugh.

“Just be careful,” Keenu muttered.

“Now for the roof,” Nebre said. “Just keep following this hall. There will be a ladder you can climb. I’ll meet you up there once I find out whether you’ll be able to speak with the King.”

Nebre turned and left before Keenu could reply. It seemed to leave a sour taste in Keenu’s mouth, for he looked as if he wanted to spit.

“The Krepp has gotten too proud,” Keenu muttered.

When they reached the ladder, Grayol didn’t trust himself to climb it while holding onto the cage, so he gave it to Keenu.

Soon the three of them were atop the castle. A gust of cold air sent Zeti’s black hair dancing wildly. She lost her breath as she turned her gaze.

Ovira looked so small. There were far more trees than she’d anticipated seeing, though most were at the northern end of the continent. They seemed to dwell in groups, little green patches that looked like prickly hair. She recognized much of the land to the east, for she’d just traveled through it. She even saw the Krepp encampment and their lowly wall that would’ve been too faint to recognize if she hadn’t already known it was there.

Looking to the south proved how little she actually knew of Ovira. There were a series of peaks too tall to see over, but there seemed to be a path through them. She believed Kyrro was somewhere on the other side.

Not too far,
she realized.
Maybe a three-day walk.
How could enemies live so close to each other?

Between the mountains and the walls of Tenred was the edge of the forest that stretched to the east, thickening as it went.

The three of them were silent as they waited for Nebre to return. Grayol spent most of his time staring out over the ocean to the west, entertaining himself with quick glances at the birds every now and again.

“Tegry Hiller will see you, Keenu.” Nebre had poked his head into the opening, remaining on the ladder as he continued. “I’ll translate for you, but we’d better hurry. He doesn’t like to be kept waiting.”

“Who does?” Keenu said in a dismissive tone, taking the birdcage and finding his footing on the ladder. “Wait here,” Keenu told Zeti. “I’ll come get you before we leave.”

“Fine.”
So we’re not staying the night.

Zeti decided to lie on her back and close her eyes. The wind wasn’t cold enough to keep her awake, and soon she’d fallen into a peaceful slumber.

She awoke to what seemed to be the castle shaking. Grayol fell to his knees and grabbed her shoulder.

“What is that?” he asked.

“An earthquake?” Zeti figured, sitting up and looking for something to hold onto. They were hundreds of feet in the air with nothing but the low rigid walls on every side of their square platform. Zeti crawled over to one wall, staying on her knees as she dug her claws against the stone and peered over the edge. It turned out to be the eastern side she’d chosen, and she could see the rest of Tenred below her.