Princess of Beasts - Chapters Eight and Nine (Patreon)

*****

Chapter Eight

*****

With the prisoner secured, Lissir strode through the ship, heading for Princess Nira’s office. Despite her years spent living in the ship with her sister, it still struck her just how much walking was involved to get from one section of the ship to another. The vessel was absolutely enormous, complete with multiple sets of lifts, stairwells, ladders, rigging, gangplanks and walkways, labyrinths of rooms and interconnecting corridors, and so on. 

Some of the crew called it a city-ship, and with good reason. It had its own resident population, spread across a number of distinctly different decks and sectors, not unlike a city’s varied districts. They had everything from tailors and cobblers, to wood and metal workers, to gunsmiths, engineers, and even farmers raising crops and livestock. They had the galleys, of course, but they also had common areas which, over the years, had turned into pubs and taverns. The ship had currencies, adopted from a number of different regions of the world. Hell, they even had their own justice system to keep order. 

Whatever the Cataclysm was considered, it took a damn long time to traverse. Gryphons were not averse to walking a good distance, but under other circumstances, Lissir would simply take to her wings and fly. While some of the ship’s larger rooms and passageways had the room necessary for a gryphon to spread her wings, it simply wasn’t practical to fly from one section to another. If not for the fact that she was heading to an interior area, Lissir would have considered leaving via the docking bay, and flying around the outside of the ship to another entry point. 

Given her size, Lissir had to take the main corridors. Many of the smaller side passages and hallways just weren’t big enough for gryphons to comfortably walk. She could have squeezed herself into most of them, but more the walls brushed the feathers of her folded wings, the most claustrophobic she became. The primary passageways were filled with busy crew members of all species going about their days. The presence of so many people left their air swirling with a head-spinning array of scents, as well as a dizzying din that left her ears flattened back against her head. 

At least she didn’t have to worry about anyone getting in her way. One and all were quick to scramble out of the way of any oncoming gryphon. While she might not be as massive as Malaresh, or even as big as their white-feathered guest, she was still more than large enough to bowl over even the sturdy gnolls and va’chaak who made up the bulk of the security and maintenance divisions.

As Lissir reached one of the lifts large enough to support a creature her size, her thoughts wandered back to Alakor. Until today, she’d never actually met a snow gryphon before. She’d heard plenty about them over the years from other gryphons, both in her clan and those allied to hers, as well as from the Empire itself. She’d heard they were big, but Alakor was even larger than she expected. The name came from both their arctic lineage, and their mostly-white coloration. In most Empire gryphons, white was usually a highlight color, and rarely ever a primary. Yet for Alakor’s people, it was just the opposite. It certainly gave him a striking, exotic appearance. Lissir had to admit, Alakor was not at all an unattractive male. It was a shame he was such an asshole, she thought. 

A trip up the lift took Lissir to the Imperial Court Residence deck. Or at least, that was what the deck was originally intended for. Nira was the only official member of the Imperial Court on board, and she preferred to sleep in her smaller room on the Common Quarters deck. Nira had given a few of the other larger quarters to some of her dearest friends and highest ranking officers, and turned a lot the other rooms into libraries, archives, and meeting areas. However, she kept the original living space for the Imperial Family, along with its associated offices, armory, monitoring stations, and communications equipment. 

The deck was extravagant, once, as would have befit the imperial family. One wide, maroon carpeted hallway was lined with ancient portraits of Nira’s ancestors, beneath silver light fixtures. Another was adorned with wooden panels engraved with images of the Empire’s history. Near the central living areas, there were decorative reliefs carved in ivory and gold. Long display cases contained massive dragon bones carved into tiny, intricate scenes of airships taking to the skies above a palace. Another held antique ornamental rifles and pistols, plated in gold, inscribed with scenes of victories battles. 

There were far fewer people on this deck than those before. The relative calm provided a pleasant respite. As she approached Nira’s doors, Lissir spotted a few armored va’chaak in old indigo and ebony guard uniforms. One of the lizard-like bipeds was male, with dark green scales and golden speckles. The other guard was female, with pale blue scales, and silver marking along the side of her head, and little frills. Each bore a rifle slung over one shoulder, with a pistol at the hip, along with plenty of ammo. At this point, the guards were as much a formality as anything. With the possible exception of Alakor, Lissir couldn’t imagine anyone on the ship who would wish to do the Princess harm. And should the alarm bells signal an imminent threat, dozens more such guards would flood the hallways and swarm to her protection, anyway. 

“Hello!” Lissir lifted her paw and waved it, offering her best imitation of a bipedal greeting. Then she dipped her head and mantled her wings, offering her respects in the way of her own people. 

“Hi, Lissir.” The female va’chaak came forward, eagerly rubbing and scratching at Lissir’s ears as soon as the gryphon leaned into her touch. “The Princess is waiting for you.” 

The gryphon leaned her head into the attention, a throaty purr coaxed from her. “Mmm…that’s nice.” She felt a little guilty about not remembering the names of the guards, considering they knew hers. Granted, there were only a handful of gryphons board the ship, compared with hundreds of other people. There were probably not many crew members who didn’t know the gryphons names. “I hope she hasn’t been waiting long?” 

“Not terribly.” The male spoke up to answer her question. He approached and joined in with the petting, stroking her neck feathers. “She knew you had business to attend. Sounds like we’ve got a new guest.” 

“You could say that.” She closed her eyes, savoring all the affection. Let it never be said, she thought, that a gryphon was too proud to enjoy a good petting. She swished her tail, cooing. “I’d stay here and enjoy this all day, if I could, but I’d better not keep her waiting much longer.” 

“No, probably not.” The female va’chaak patted her head, then went to open the door. 

When the male backed away as well, Lissir straightened up, shaking herself. Though she did so enjoy being petted, it always left her feathers mussed, which in turn left her with a great urge to preen. Still, she forced herself not to sit here preening in front of them. They might well find it get the wrong idea and think she hadn’t enjoyed all the attention. Instead, she asked their names. The female was Urga, and the male, Temok. Lissir thanked them, but feared she’d never remember them without meeting these two again at least a few more times. 

Urga knocked on the doors, and when Nira’s muffled reply came from with, she pushed them open. The doors themselves were white, but inlaid with shimmering, iridescent blue-black pearl. When the doors were closed, the inlay created a gray black star, the symbol of the empire. To Lissir’s knowledge, the name came from an old tale about the Empire’s founders, and a mythical black star that led them to safety as they fled persecution. The same stay eventually led them their first alliance with the ‘beasts’, or so it was said. 

Once the doors were open far enough, Lissir strode into Nira’s office. The Princess’ office was a large, circular room. The walls were the color of cream, divided into panels with elegant golden framework. Each panel had bore its own decorations. Some held frescoes of important figures, others had elegant silverwork flowers, or ornamental vases and crystalline sculptures. Light fixtures in hidden recesses cast gentle, faintly blue-tinted light throughout the room. A floor of pink marble spanned the room, with Nira’s expansive, semi-circular desk at the center of it. As Nira often held meetings in her office, an assortment of chairs of various sizes and styles were also located in the room.  

The desk was also marble, though it was white, with gold ribbons running through it. It looked as if it weighed more than Lissir did. Piles of books, charts, and writing utensils sat on one side of the desk. At the other side were a number of navigation tools and instruments of brass and crystal. Also sitting nearby were several spyglasses of varying length, along with handfuls of golden coins, and cartridges of various sizes for pistols and rifles.

All around the outside of the desk were carved images from the Empire’s history. Most of them depicted grand battles, or the signing of great treaties, or even the flight of their first airship. Lissir had always been partial to the engraving of a human with a crown bowing before three tall gryphons. It symbolized the day that the first three warring gryphon clans voted to put aside their differences, and join the human’s Empire, together. To spread their wings and fly into the future, before it left them behind. 

Nira sat in the plush, black-leather chair behind her desk, gazing at an old, silver tinted photo held in a simple wooden frame, and kept under protective glass. The Princess had many other such images, though Lissir knew she kept most in her current sleeping chambers. The one she kept on her desk was different, though, special in its own way. 

The image it held was of Nira’s younger sister Tryn, the only other known survivor of the once great Imperial Family. Nira almost never spoke of her sister. Hell, Lissir couldn’t remember the last time she’d even heard Nira utter her name. Sometimes, the gryphon wondered if it was hard for Nira to see her and Sivik together, joking around, being affectionate, even sniping at one another. Did Nira miss those things, with her own sister? Or had the years rendered those longings but dull aches, buried somewhere in her heart? 

Best Lissir could tell, Nira tried not to think about her sister the way she tried not to think about her parents. The situations were both similar and vastly different. Nira’s parents were dead, a fact the whole ship knew and yet Nira refused to acknowledge. Nira also rarely acknowledged that her younger sister Tryn was still alive. Considering that Nira would never get to see her sister again, Lissir imagined it was just less painful for the Princess to convince herself her sibling was dead. 

“Should I…” Lissir kept her voice as soft as she could. “Come back later?” 

“No.” Nira turned the photo down on her desk, and pushed it aside to join an immense stack of books and charts. “I was just…thinking. Thank you, though.” She waved the gryphon forward. “Come in, Lissir.” 

Lissir did as the princess asked. She settled into a sturdy, gryphon-style lounger across the desk from Nira. Loungers were the gryphon equivalent of a chair, an elevated surface that was either flat or lightly inclined. They allowed a gryphon a comfortable place to lay, while also elevating them above the floor. Luxurious padding in overstuffed, golden hued cushions lined this one. Lissir settled onto her belly on it, one hind leg casually hanging off the edge. 

“Any trouble getting our new friend settled?” Nira leaned back in her chair, folding her arms. 

“Not really.” Nira rubbed the recliner’s cushion beneath a paw. “I left him under guard, but I don’t think he’s going to bring us any problems. In fact, he…” She trailed off, unsure if she should tell Nira about Alakor’s reaction to the buddy. After a moment, she decided it was for the best. “He cried, actually. When we presented his bed. Apparently, he…” She sighed, patting the chair frame. “Never had a bed, before.”

Nira scowled, knitting her brows. “Not exactly the reaction I expected.”

“Nor I!” Lissir swished her tail. “But…perhaps I shouldn’t have been too surprised, given what I’ve heard about snow gryphons.”

“Go on.” Nira rocked her chair. “I wanted to hear about them, actually. Before the others arrive. You seem to know an awful lot about the species.” She paused her rocking, her scowl deepening. “Is it a separate species?” 

Lissir considered the question, stretching her wings. “I don’t think I’m scientifically minded enough to answer that.”

Nira chuckled, resuming her idle rocking. “Give it your best shot. I’ve never seen a gryphon with his colors, or his size, before.”

“There are different types of gryphons, and different clans.” Lissir splayed her ears, working the thoughts around in her head. Gryphons viewed such things differently than humans, and it was troublesome to translate those differences. “We would consider the snow gryphons to be an isolated, unique clan. There are different…” She clicked her beak. “I suppose your word for it, would be…breeds, of gryphons? We tend to call them clans, now, but that can have several different meanings. A clan can be the whole of a breed, like the snow gryphons, or it can be a grand collection of family units and individuals, with a leadership structure, or even an army. We have different words for them, but also different ways of saying those words, or conveying meaning with body language. They don’t translate well.”

Nira rubbed her face with both hands, groaning. “I understand. Alright, so…put it in simplistic terms even a dumb human can understand.” 

That made Lissir laugh. She lifted her head, her beak open and ears perked. “You’re hardly dumb, Boss. But humans can’t even move their ears properly, let alone make half the sounds we do. You can’t be expected to tell the difference chiirm, and chiiirrm…” She cocked her ears to precise ankles, flattening back her wings, but splaying the feathers. Then she added a warbling, chirping noise to the word. “Chirm!”

Nira only blinked. “There was a difference?” 

“Exactly.” Lissir waved a paw. “One speaks of a personal clan, one speaks of clan-species, and one speaks of a clan, as a nation.”

A smile tugged at Nira’s lips. “I thought I told you to put it in terms us dumb humans could understand.” 

Lissir warbled amusement, then fell silent. Her tail swished back and forth as she considered the easiest explanation. “I suppose, if you were to speak to a biologist, they would tell you snow gryphons are a separate, but related species. Such as…” She waggled a few half-unsheathed claws. “Wolves, and coyotes. They’re both similar, but wolves are much larger, and coyotes much more populous. Separate, but closely related enough to breed together, from time to time. To the same extent, there are different species of gryphons, but where our different clans once warred, eventually we united.” She gestured to Nira’s desk, to the image of the three gryphon rulers forging their alliance with the humans. “Over the generations, the physical differences between our clans have blurred. But the snow gryphons, they were isolated, living in the mountains to the far, far south, where the Union was borne. So they remain a separate species of gryphon, a clan apart.” 

“That’s a lot of words just to tell me yes, Alakor’s a different species than you are.” Nira leaned back again, putting her boots up on her desk. “But thank you for the explanation, just the same.”

Lissir chirped, lifting her crown feathers. “I thought you’d appreciate the finer details. You do seem to have an interest in our people, after all.” 

“I sure as hell do. You’re fascinating.” Nira grunted, her jaw flexing. “I’d be happy to sit and have a few drinks with you and your sister sometime, and just…learn all about gryphons. Hell, I wish Malaresh was half as forthcoming about dragons as you are about your species. For now, though, we’d best keep focused on our guest.”

Lissir nodded once. “Biologically speaking, I believe that he is a separate species from us. Not so distinct as to be unable to breed with us, though. Not that he’s had the chance.” 

Nira grinned, tilting her head. “I slightly get the feeling you’d be interested in giving him that chance, under other circumstances.” 

“He’s a very impressive gryphon.” Lissir let her beak slowly open and her ears gradually flatten in sly smile. “And his colors are not at all unattractive. I’ve never seen colors like them. And, if the rest of him’s just as impressive…” She gave a mock sigh. “Well, let’s just say it’s been far too long since a male’s climbed on my back and given me a proper fucking.”

Nira burst out laughing. “Lissir, that’s not how that expression works.” 

“What?” Lissir cocked her head. She was certainly she’d used the correct human words for a satisfying mating experience. “Proper fucking?”

That only made Nira laugh harder for reasons Lissir didn’t understand. She unfolded her arms to wave a hand at the gryphon. “No, no. I meant, ‘let’s just say.’ Usually when someone uses that phrase, they’re about to subtly imply something, not just blurt it out.” 

“Oh.” Lissir rustled her wings, fluffing up. “Gryphons don’t do subtlety very well.”

“So I’ve noticed.”

“It’s just as well.” Lissir set her head down upon a curled forepaw at the front of the lounger. “If what I’ve heard is true, it wouldn’t matter how impressive his cock was. He wouldn’t know how to use it, anyway.” 

“I suppose you two did tease Alakar an awful lot about being a virgin,” Nira said, quirking a brow. “Dare I ask if that’s something gryphons can tell so easily?” 

Lissir chirruped and giggled. “Oh, no, not really. It’s not as if our feathers turn colors after someone pleasures us for the first time, or our crown feathers grow in after our first mating.” She held up a paw. “But to my understanding, all snow gryphons who serve the Golden Union are purposefully bred. The gryphons don’t have a say in it, the union breeds whichever pairs it thinks will provide the offspring who best suit their needs. Then the Union takes away their eggs, and raises the fledglings to obey their masters.”

Nira pulled her feet off her desk, leaning forward. “You said earlier. It’s rather, sickening, actually. The Union seems to think that anything that isn’t human is somehow…lesser than them, no matter how intelligent they are.” 

“Exactly.” Lissir clicked her beak. “I rather doubt that snow gryphons are allowed much opportunity for recreational mating. Even if he’s bred a few times, it’s not as if he’s going to be any good at it.” 

Nira rubbed her chin, smiling again. “I suppose you’ll just have to show him the ropes, then.” 

“Very funny.” Lissir clicked her beak. “Defecting or not, he’s still Union. And an asshole, at that.” 

Nira chuckled, reaching for one of her navigational instruments. She picked up the collection of brass circles and dials, idly turning it over in her hands. “Speaking of his defection, what’s your honest assessment? Is he genuinely looking to defect, or is he fucking with us? It’s certainly crossed my mind that he might still be working for the Union. He could be under orders to locate us, and fake a defection in order to worm his way into the crew, then flee with as many of our secrets as possible.” 

“I wondered as much, myself.” 

At the mention of secrets, Lissir glanced past Nira, towards the section of wall at the far side of the room. Though the room was circular, Lissir considered that area to be the back of it, as it was opposite the entryway. The room had several hidden doors in its white and gold paneled walls. One led to the secret corridor that connected to Imperial Family’s private quarters, as well as a few other areas. Others led to various escape routes of emergency escape. One, however, led only to an immense door made of strange, black material. Lissir had seen the door only once, and it the sight of it left the skin under her pinfeathers prickling and tingling. It looked like stone, smooth and black like obsidian. And yet, no matter what manner of light reached it, cast no reflection whatsoever. It was as if the ship’s builders created a door made from shadow itself, then hidden it away behind the Imperial Family’s offices. Whatever that meant, she wasn’t sure she wanted to know. 

And yet, curiosity was a beast ever seeking to escape from it’s cage. Lissir gestured with her beak towards the far wall. “Have you ever…?”

Nira grunted, not looking back. “Yes. And to answer your inevitable follow up question, what I found in there was a lot of very confusing things I decided it best not to mess with. I’d rather not talk about that, right now, aside from the hope that Alakor isn’t actually here to try and steal whatever all that stuff is.” 

“Well, what’s it look like?” Lissir ruffled her feathers. “Was it weapons, or tomes with forbidden knowledge, or-”

Nira slapped her free hand against her desk. “Not now. I want to know what to tell Rog before he gets here with the others. So. Can we trust Alakor or not?” She held her hands up. “You can only guess, I know, but you’ve a better insight into him than I do.” 

Lissir nodded, sitting up a little on her lounger. “Fair enough.” She took a slow, deep inhalation, fluffing herself up as she considered the question. It was difficult to say one way or the other. She simply hadn’t had enough time to talk with, and observe, the white-feathered male. Then she let all the air back out in a long, deliberate sigh. “I’m not certain.”

Nira groaned, rubbing her forehead. “Lissir…Just take your best gods-damned guess.”

The gryphon chirred, an irritated noise. She did not like making guesses on important matters. Still, Nira went with her instincts more often than not, and most of the time, the princess’s best guesses had panned out. A few of them had even saved their lives, in times past. Granted, Nira’s guesses that hadn’t worked out were often the reason their lives were in danger in the first place. But Lissir supposed as long as it all worked out well in the end, that was what mattered. 

“What do your instincts tell you?” Nira waved the astrolabe, leaning back in her chair again. “You said he cried just because we’d given him a bed, right? Did it seem genuine? Was he truly moved by something so basic, or did it seem more like a spy playing for sympathy?”

“I believe it was genuine.” She ground her beak, pinning her ears. “Genuine enough that I comforted him, in fact. The Union does likely treat them like animals. They’re probably brainwashed from childhood, told they’re…just beasts, given a chance to earn a soul by serving the Union’s God, or some such bullshit.” She snarled under her breath, flaring her crown feathers. “And with his attitude, he probably got himself beaten for talking back an awful lot growing up, too.” 

She unsheathed a single claw tip, tapping it against the lounger, thinking out loud. “If half the stories are true, it would have been a terribly difficult life, but he wouldn’t have known any better for most of it. But late in the war, or after it, it would be harder and harder for the Union to hide the fact that the Empire’s gryphons aren’t servants. They’re citizens. Or at least they were, before the Union. As a spy, he’s probably been to places the Union doesn’t control. Realized he doesn’t to spend his whole life as their slave, beaten into submission. This place, our ship?” She waved her paw at the space around them. “It’s probably his best chance to escape all that. Especially if he’s telling the truth about the Union extending their influence into formally non-allied lands. Wouldn’t do him much good to flee them if they’re just going to annex whatever country he fled too. But with us, he’d be free, for the first time in his life.” 

Nira turned the astrolabe over in her hands a few times. “You’re making a pretty strong case for a genuine defection.” 

Lissir’s worked her beak in silence, struggling for a reply. A few times, she’d caught something in the white gryphon’s eyes, some haunted, anguished ghost drifting just behind his azure irises. It was there, when he was staring at the bed, and it was there, when she teased him about being bred and he could not meet her eyes. Wait…did that mean…? 

“I think…” She kneaded the edge of her lounger. “I think maybe they bred him, recently. And…maybe that was the last straw, as your people say.” 

Nira leaned forward again. “Go on.”

“It was clear that teasing him about whether he’d mated or not was getting under his feathers, but maybe not for the reasons we thought. When we got him to his quarters, I asked him if his old masters had already bred him. I realized when I said it, it was a step too far, but…” Her ears drooped. “I think he has a child. Or…they bred him to some female he cared about. Maybe both. I don’t think they’d let him see his child. Maybe he…he just couldn’t stand to be part of that, anymore.” 

Nira frowned, quiet for a moment. When she spoke up again, her voice was softer, and heavy with sympathy. “That’s terrible. But…don’t you think he’d want to stay, if only to make some effort to go and see his child?” 

Lissir tensed, slowly turning her eyes towards the face-down picture of Nira’s younger sister. “With respect, Princess…will you ever try and see your sister?” 

Anger flashed in Nira’s eyes, and slammed her hand on the desk. “My sister is-” She clamped her jaw shut, the fury melting away as swiftly as it arrived. “Point taken.”

“I’m sorry.” Lissir bowed her head, best she could while lying on a lounger. “That was too far.”

“No, no.” Nira sighed, saking her head. “It was exactly far enough. If you’re right, and they did force him to father a child…That could be grounds for him to finally undertake a defection he’d been considering. But…” She cursed under her breath, tossing the astrolabe onto the desk. “We also have to consider it could be grounds for blackmail. Tell him they’ll bend the rules, let him raise his own child, if undertakes a dangerous, secret mission.”

“That is…” Lissir growled to herself, wishing she’d considered such a cruel, but entirely plausible, option herself. “More likely than I’m comfortable with.” 

“Agreed.” Nira held both hands up. “Granted, we’re just firing shots in the dark here, anyway. He may very well just be genuinely seeking an escape from the Union. Gods know I couldn’t blame him there. And if he’s telling us the truth, he’d make a hell of an ally. Kasis could pick his brain for Union intel for years. We’ve plenty of people on board the ship who’d love to get back at the Union, but far fewer who can actually give us real, up to date information on how they operate, and where they’re operating. Alright, Lissir. If you had the make the decision right now, do you believe he’s genuinely defecting?” 

“Yes.” Lissir nodded once. “But, I-”

“No but’s.” Nira shook a single finger at the gryphon. “Yes, or no.” 

Lissir ground her beak. It was an impossible to distill such a question down to a simple yes or no answer, but her instincts said yes. If she was a brainwashed Union slave bird, who only just discovered the gryphons outside the Union weren’t treated like animals, she’d want to get the hell out of there, too. 

“Yes.”

“I concur.” Nira reached across the desk and dragged a leather bound folder across it. She flipped it open, and pulled out a document. From the looks of things, she’d already filled it out in part. She pulled a pen from a stoneware container, and scribbled a few things out on the document. “I’m authorizing an upgrade of his status. He’s now officially a guest of the ship, and is further authorized to visit the following list of areas. However, he is to remain under guard, and I am officially placing you and your sister in charge of him. Anywhere not explicitly listed should be considered off limits.” 

“As you wish, Princess.” Lissir clicked her beak twice, then dipped her head in a formal bow. 

Nira lifted her pen and waggled it at the gryphon. “Let’s be clear on one thing. He is to remain under suspicion of possible continued Union allegiance until we have full and complete reason to believe otherwise. Watch him and listen to him carefully. If you, your sister, or anyone else see or anything the least bit suspicious, I want to know immediately. I’ll tell Rog and the others in person. I’m keeping that off the documentation, because I want you to be able to show this to Alakor.” 

“A wise idea.” Lissir tilted her head. “Anything else?” 

Nira signed her name to the document, then blew on the ink. “Just inform me directly of anything else you learn about him, or anything you deem important. For example, if he ends up confirming he does have a child, or if he lets slip any particularly grievous abuses he might wish to avenge, or if you fuck him, or-”

“What was that last one?” Lissir narrowed her ears, her ears pinned.

“Grievous abuses.” Nira set the pen down, then laid the document atop the folder. “It could be possible that he is genuinely defecting, but for purposes of using us as tools for revenge.” 

“Hilarious, Princess.” Lissir fluffed herself up, then smiled. “Do you really want to know?” 

“Only if you feel like bragging.” Nira folded her arms again, matching the gryphon’s grin. “Or complaining, if he’s as inexperienced as you believe.” 

Lissir gave a playful snarl. “As you wish, Your Highness. But it’s not likely to happen, anyway. If I wanted to mate with someone that egotistical, I’d go visit Malaresh.” 

Nira laughed, rocking her chair again. “There’s an idea. Though, I heard a dragon’s penis has spines on it.” 

Lissir scrunched her face behind her beak. “That sounds unpleasant. Thankfully, his tongue sure as hell doesn’t.” 

Nira quirked a brow. “Speaking from experience, are we?”

Lissir just tossed her head. “Hearsay, more like. Speaking of which, it seems as though Amelia’s seen it. Perhaps we should ask her if it has spines.” 

Nira leaned forward, her eyes widening. “She has? I didn’t know she and Malaresh ever…well, anything. But I suppose she has spent a lot of time with him. And there was the episode where she had to have him fitted for a saddle. Oh, now I’m extra curious.” 

Lissir gave a chittering giggle. “About the dragon’s cock, or Amelia’s knowledge of it?”

“Both.” A knock on the door interrupted Nira, and she called out. “Yes?”

Urga opened the door a crack and pushed her blue scale muzzle through the opening. “Guard Captain Rog, Chief Navigator Kasis, and Chief Mechanic Vekk are here to see you.” 

“Thank you!” Nira offered the gryphon a playful smile. “As much as I’ve enjoyed our chat, I’ve business to conduct. You’re welcome to stick around, if you like.” 

Lissir shook her head. “I’d better go and make sure Alakor’s not giving Amelia or my sister any trouble. I’ll tell him what we agreed upon, as well.”

“Sounds good.” Nira hopped out of her chair, and came around to give Lissir a hug around her neck. “Thank you, Lissir, your help has been invaluable.”

“Glad to hear it, Princess.” Lissir happily leaned into the human’s touch. Nira had been a dear friend for a long time, royalty or not. She lifted her foreleg and returned Nira’s hug before pulling back. “I’ll talk with you later, then. Get a drink tonight?” 

“Love too.” Nira returned to her desk, offering a farewell wave. “See you then.” 

*****

Chapter Nine

*****

Nira smiled at her friends as they entered her office. Rog came in first, followed by Vekk and Kasis. Though she had plenty of other officers, over her decade or so on the ship, these three had proven themselves to be not only among her most trusted friends, but also her most her most competent crewmen. She’d made them her personal advisors as well as putting them in with their heads of their respective divisions. 

Rog was still wearing the same clothes from before, the black tunic and breeches with silver buttons. He looked as if he’d brushed his fur, at least. He’d left the axe somewhere, and replaced it with a leather bound log-book, instead. Nira had always thought Rog looked sharp when well dressed. Now, if she could just get him to put on a formal jacket, or a fine vest, he might really look impressive. If nothing else, the idea of a big gnoll warrior in fine, formal attire amused her. 

As Vekk and Kasis followed Rog in, they whispered and giggled to each other, holding hands. Between their short stature, Vekk’s big ears and fluffy fur, and Kasis’ blunt muzzle and twitching tail, Nira couldn’t imagine a cuter couple. Vekk was in clean clothes, all the grease and grime washed from his thick gray and red fur. Now his pelt spilled out over the collar of his blue shirt, and protruded from between its buttons, as well as out of his sleeves. In the absence of his usual pockets filled with tools, he’d buckled a variety cargo bags across his chest and around his waist. Kasis was in fresh clothing as well, though hers was simply another hybrid jumpsuit she’d stitched together for herself, this time black. She carried a bulging satchel across her shoulder. 

“You know, Kasis,” Nira said, propping her boots up on her desk. “I can’t help but notice that not only is Vekk all nice and clean now, but you’re in clean clothes, too.” 

“Someone’s got to scrub all that grease out of his fur.” Kasis shot her lover a playful glare. “Gods know he sure as hell won’t do it himself.” 

“Sure I will!” Vekk hooked his free hand under the cargo strap across his chest. “At the end of the day. But, yanno, no one’s gonna say no when their female offers to help them wash up.” He nudged Rog’s leg with his elbow. “Right big guy?” 

Rog flashed the smaller male a grin. “Damn right.” 

Kasis flattened her tiny frills back, hissing. “I am not ‘your female.’ You know I don’t like it when you call me that.”

“I know, I know.” Vekk squeezed her hand. “You prefer it when I call you my girl, right?”

Kasis jerked her hand away from his, and slapped him over the head with it. 

“Ow!” Vekk rubbed his oversized ears, grinning sheepishly. “Sorry, Sunset.”

“You’d better be.” She smiled at him, then kissed the side of his muzzle. “Now knock it off.” 

“Yes, Sunset.” Vekk dragged over one of the high chairs for her. Nira kept several such chairs in her office, kobold-sized seats, elevated to the level of the princess’ desk. “Lemme get that for you.” 

Kasis scrabbled up the chair, and settled herself, then pulled her satchel off her shoulder and tossed it onto the desk. Vekk pulled another chair over for himself, as Rog pushed the gryphon lounger out of the way. The gnoll replaced it with a larger chair better suited for gnolls, then plopped himself into it. Most of the furniture on the ship was better suited for non-humans than it was for humans. The chairs often had frames and designed to comfortably fit tails, as well as the animal-like leg and foot structures of other peoples. 

“Got a guard regiment assigned,” Rog said, passing Nira his log book. “Put the girls and Amelia at the top of it, but also gave them authority to reassign others in their place or as needed.”

“Good!” Nira skimmed through the list of names. She recognized most of them, if not all, but anyone who Rog trusted with the job was good with her. “I’m authorizing him to visit a few common areas, but he’s to remain under guard for the time being. Lissir and I believe his defection request to be genuine, but there’s no real way to prove it other than earning our trust over time. And that burden’s on him.” She fetched her pen, then signed off on the guard assignments, and passed the book back to Rog. “I want everyone to keep a close eye on Alakor though. Watch what he does, where he goes, where he’s looking…and listen to him, too. What he asks about, what he says about himself, anything he lets slip, and so on. As much as I want to give him the benefit of the doubt, for the safety of this ship and its crew, I need to consider him as a potential Union spy and saboteur.” 

“I think that’s smart.” Vekk tugged the cargo strap back and forth across his chest. The fur poking between black buttons shifted with it. “I sure as hell don’t want him going anywhere near the engines. Or the fuel depots. Or the boilers. Or the turbines. Or the gas pumps. Or the gas bag access-”

Nira held her hand up to cut the urd’thin off. “I get it, Vekk, I get it. Don’t worry, right now he’s only authorized for galleys, the lower decks pub, one viewing deck, and the shops. I don’t even want him allowed onto any outside areas yet. He’s obviously seen the ship plenty from the outside, but I don’t want him to have a chance to find his way to any other exterior access points.” 

“Good, good.” Vekk rubbed his hands together, then propped his elbow up on the arm of his chair. “I ran all the inspections. Couple minor issues that popped up. There’s a propulsion turbine I don’t wanna use until we finish a repair, but we should have that done by the morning. A boiler that needs a re-weld. Everything else looks good, though. Haven’t had time to run every test, but I’ll get that done this evening.” 

Rog glanced down at Kasis, giving her a big, toothy gnoll grin. “Yeah, Kasis had her own tests to run, sounds like.” 

Kasis stretched her bronze scaled arms out, interweaving her fingers, playfully cracking her knuckles. “We had to test an especially important piston.” 

“Which, I might add.” Vekk perked his over-sized gray ears, sitting up straighter. “Performed in an exemplary way.” 

The kobold gave her lover a sly, sidelong look. “I’d say it earned a satisfactory grade, at least. Could use replacing with a newer model.” 

“Hey!” Vekk slapped the arm of his chair, laughing. “Very damn funny, Sunset!” He huffed, pinning his big ears back, then returned his attention to Nira. “Anyway, if we have any problems or discover anything problematic, I’ll let you know right away. I think we should be good, though. If we had to run, or fight, I’d be confident in firing things up full go.”

“Speaking of fighting,” Rog said, scratching at the ruff of dark fur on the back of his neck. “I told the gunnery crew to check and test every cannon and gun the ship’s got, and any other weapons, too. Haven’t heard back yet, but shouldn’t be any real problems. Got security staff checkin’ their own weapons too, and everything in the armories.” He glanced at the urd’thin and kobold. “You two should get your own groups to do the same. Just in case.” 

“Yeah, yeah.” Kasis waved him off. “Half of us don’t even carry guns, but I’ll pass it along.” 

“You better.” Rog folded his arms. “And when’s the last time you cleaned yours?” 

“About the last time I fired it.” Kasis twitched her tail.

“Which was when?” Rog glowered down at her. 

“Shit if I know!” The little kobold threw her hands up. “I got more important things to do than drop a pistol into a soapy tub. Yanno, like making sure we don’t crash this thing into a fuckin’ mountain.” 

The gnoll just stared at her, his muzzle hanging open. “Please tell me you don’t drop it into the tub.”

Kasis snapped her jaws. “Of course not! I just knew it’d piss ya off.” She held her hands up sighing. “I’ll make sure it’s well maintained, alright?”

Rog smiled at her, nodding once. “That’s all I ask.”

“Whatever. Don’t forget to oil up and sharpen your precious axe.” The kobold made an annoyed, growling noise. “That way, when you get shot from a distance, you won’t have to worry about being embarrassed when your killers loot you for a dull, rusty weapon.” 

Nira chuckled, shaking her head. “Alright, alright. That’s enough. Kasis, what have you got for us?”  

Rog gave an loud snort, flattening back his ears. “A poorly maintained pistol, apparently.” 

“Hey!” Kasis hopped to her feet on the elevated chair, growling again, louder this time. “You keep it up, mutt, and I’m gonna nail you one in the powder bag so hard, your weapon’s gonna need some maintenance!” 

“Aww, are you inviting me to join you two’s next bath?” Rog let his muzzle hang open, his tongue lolling over his teeth, a rather insulting expression among gnolls. “I’d be happy too! Wouldn’t wanna make Vekk jealous, though.”

“That’s it! I’m taking you down, mutt!” Kasis leapt off her chair with a snarling cry.

“ACK!” Rog swiftly covered his crotch with one hand, using the other to fend off the furious kobold scrambling up his chair. He grabbed her around the throat, not painfully, just enough to hold her at bay. “Truce, truce! Don’t make me put you in time out, little lizard pup!” 

“Get yer hands off her!” Vekk leapt out of his own chair, scrabbling to Kasis’ defense. “I’m coming, Sunset!” 

Nira just stared, watching it all unfold. At this point, as long as no one got serious injured, she was inclined just to let them all wear themselves out. Gods, she thought, it’s like dealing with children. Dangerous, dangerous children. Soon Kasis and Vekk were on opposite sides of Rog, clambering over him and his chair as if they were scaling the ship’s rigging. They across him, leaving the gnoll to try and keep them at arms length, or snatch them up and toss them back to the floor. Rog finally got an arm around Vekk’s waist, and stood up, hefting the smaller creature up like a squirming sack of grain. He tried to snatch Kasis next, but she scrabbled up the front of Nira’s desk before he could get hold. Just as quickly, Kasis propelled herself off of it right into the gnoll’s chest. 

The impact hit Rog hard enough to rock him back into his chair. That in turn upended the chair and sent everyone toppling backwards along with it. Wood cracked and shattered as the chair collapsed, and all three combatants thumped soundly against the marble floor. Nira winced, but since there weren’t any screams, remained content to let things sort themselves out. Rog sprawled on his back, coughing. Vekk groaned alongside him, panting for breath. Kasis tumbled across the floor, and ended up flat on her belly, her tail sticking up in the air. She pushed herself up, looking around. Then with a little whimper, crawled back to the others. 

Kasis climbed atop Rog, and sat upon his chest, smiling down at him. “I win.” 

Rog coughed again, returning her smile, a bit more sheepishly. “Good game.” 

Nira finally laughed, rising out of her seat to go help everyone up. “You three are gonna kill each other, one of these days.” She reached down and hoisted the kobold off of Rog’s chest. Normally Kasis hated being picked up, but this time she hung limp from Nira’s arms, and offered no protest as Nira returned her to her own seat. “You owe me a new chair.” 

“Technically,” Kasis said, a smile on her blunt, bronze muzzle. “Rog broke it.” 

“Technically,” Rog said, slowly sitting back up. “Next time, I’m gonna throw you so hard you stick into the wall like a dart.” 

“That’s not how ‘technically’ works, Rog.” Nira bent over to offer Vekk her hand. The groaning urd’thin staggered back to his feet, and Nira helped him back into his elevated chair. She turned to help the gnoll up, next. “And you did egg her own pretty hard, that time. But.” She grasped Rog’s hand with both of hers, pulling with all her might till the gnoll was standing. Then she turned back to Kasis, waving a finger. “You broke the chair, so you pay for the replacement. And clean up the mess.” 

Kasis huffed, muttering something under her breath in the kobold tongue. Then she glanced at Nira. “Yeah, yeah, alright.” 

Nira went back around to her desk, dropping into her chair with a sigh. “So, now that you three have earned your bruises for the day, can we get back to business?” She gestured at Kasis. “You were about to tell us what you had.” Then she shot Rog a glare. “Keep your muzzle shut this time.” 

“No idea what you’re inferring.” Rog went to the gryphon lounger. 

Kasis watched him closely, waiting until she was sure he wasn’t going to interrupt before she began. She pointed to her satchel on the desk. “I drew up three potential routes for us to take, but the more I thought about it, the more I think we should-”

SCCCRREEEEEEEEEEEE!

As Rog dragged the gryphon lounger back towards the desk, it made a horrible, grating sound against the floor. The noise drowned out Kasis’ voice completely. Nira cringed at the obnoxious sound, pinching the bridge of her nose. The noise continued for a few moments, then Rog paused to glance back at everyone. 

“Hey Kas, what were you saying?” 

Kasis folded her arms. “I ain’t gonna talk till you’re done, otherwise you’re just gonna-”

SCCCRREEEEEEEEEE! 

As soon as he stopped once more, Kasis thrust an dull clawed finger at him. “He’s doin’ that on purpose!”

“Of course he is.” Nira shot the gnoll a glare. “Rog, cut it out.” 

Rog turned around, his ears swiveled in feigned innocence confusion. “Cut what out?”

“Rog, behave yourself, or I’m banning you from alcohol for a week.” 

The gnoll’s jaw dropped. “All alcohol?” 

“Yes!” Nira slapped her hand on the desk. “Now either bring that thing over here and sit on it, or just stand here. Either way, stop needling Kasis.” 

Rog grumbled, dragging the lounger over without further scraping sounds. “Give you something to sit on, more like.”

Nira glared at him, even as she tried not to laugh at his childish but admittedly amusing retort. After all their years together, they still had practically the same juvenile sense of humor. The only real difference was Nira knew when to quit. “I can hear you, you know.” 

“I kinda thought…” Vekk gestured between Nira and Rog. “You two had already…” 

Nira glanced over at the urd’thin. “Vekk, please.”

“You know.” Vekk made a circle with his furred thumb and finger, then held up a single finger on the other. “The ol’…” 

“Yes, Vekk, everyone knows what you’re implying.” Nira ignored his question. 

The urd’thin moved his finger towards the circle. “So, is that a yes? Have you and Rog-” 

“Vekk, if you complete that gesture?” Nira set her hands on the desk, leaning over it towards him. “I’m putting you on latrine scrubbing duty for the rest of the year. And Malaresh’s latrine, at that.” 

Vekk dropped his hands into his lap. “Speculation cheerfully withdrawn.”

“The Emplacement!” Kasis slapped the edge of Nira’s desk. “If you males would both stop being so damn obnoxious for at least one minute, I’m trying to tell the Princess I believe we should venture to The Emplacement.” 

Nira snapped her attention back to Kasis, her voice flat. “The Emplacement. Really? Don’t we have enough trouble?” 

Kasis shrugged, her tail twitching faster than usual. “I know, I know, it’s always a risk going there.” 

“A fun risk,” Rog said, though he kept his voice soft. 

Nira smirked. “Also true. But why?” 

Kasis scratched her muzzle. “We’re already going towards the Teeth, right? As long as they’re willing to let us through, The Emplacement is the easiest transit point. Plus can restock some things while we’re there. See if we’ve any more connections on new sources of lifting gas, too. More importantly?” She held up a finger. “If that white-feathered shit-brain is telling the truth, there’s a good chance someone at The Emplacement can verify it. Maybe not his defection, specifically, but the parts about the Union drawing up new truces with surrounding lands, and so on. There’s usually at least few spies and other black market folks there willing to sell intel.” 

Vekk gave an irritable growl. “Yeah, and some of them probably work for the Union.”

“Good,” Kasis said, snarling. “We can kick ‘em in the balls on behalf of the Empire.” 

Nira grinned at that idea. “Wouldn’t pass up the opportunity if it came along.” She leaned back in her chair, considering it. “We usually have a few contacts and connections of our own hanging around there, too.”

“There’s another thing, too.” Kasis leaned forward, resting her palms on the edge of Nira’s desk. “If we take Alakor at his word, about being a spy, and assassin type, then he’s probably got contacts there too, right? That’s exactly the sorta place they’d wanna infiltrate or otherwise establish a contact in. If they don’t realize he’s defecting, maybe we can use him to draw out another Union agent, get ahold of him ourselves, see what they know. Might be a good way to test Alakor’s loyalty.” She leaned back again. “If it turns out he’s lying too us, or say…springs a trap, we can always put a bullet in that big white-feathered head.” 

“Or four bullets,” Rog said, snorting. 

“Or, yanno, all the bullets.” Kasis rubbed her clawed fingers together. “Plus, if we do gotta run to another region, The Emplacement’s as good a place as any to get some information to help us decide where we’re heading next.”

Nira drummed on the arm of her chair. “I’ll admit, if there’s anywhere we can go to find out why the Union’s suddenly taken a renewed interest in us, and in me, it’s probably The Emplacement. And since I don’t get a better idea…” She laughed, shaking her head. “I guess we’re going. Just…” She held up her hands. “Everybody try not to get shot this time. In fact, no shootouts in general.” 

Rog barked ominous laughter. “Oooh, this is gonna be fun.”

The Princess shot the gnoll a threatening look, then sighed. “We better wait for Malaresh to get back, first. I have a feeling we’re going to need the backup.”