"What the fuck do you mean they're gone?" Bernar asked, taking a step forward towards the messenger.
The guardsman Vyra sent desperately tried to find the right words to say as he took a few uncomfortable steps backward in the snow that coated the top of the Rhydian Pass. "I'm just giving you the report as it was given to me," he finally replied, feeling the weight of Bernar's intimidating power drawing closer.
He's going to crush me flat at this rate, the guardsman thought as he struggled to breathe.
Bernar realized he was letting his own emotional state get out of control and stopped moving and exuding his uncontrolled mana.
Calm down. He's just the messenger, he thought, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath as he regained control of his senses.
When he opened his eyes, he glanced at the others momentarily, and even though they were a little further away than the guardsman, they all felt it.
So much for a heartwarming reunion with Leona, he thought, mentally kicking himself.
"I apologize for the slip in my demeanor, friend," Bernar said, putting his hand on the guardsman's shoulder. "When did this happen?" he asked, trying not to become emotionally charged again. "Roughly two days ago. I had to ride through the night just to get this message to you as quickly as possible," the guardsman replied, taking a shallow breath of relief as he pushed a lock of golden hair away from his deep blue eyes.
I can't do much about it if he was caught up in a portal, and while it's unfortunate I can't be there with Mom, I also can't let Leona go to Harut with just this handful of people, Bernar thought as he placed a hand on his chin, trying to determine the best course of action to take.
"I see. In that case, get some much-needed rest. No one here is going to dare to harm you, so you can rest easy. However, whenever you do return to Caegwen, I would like you to send a message to the Commander for me as well," he said. "Thank you, and of course, I'll send the message. What is it?" the guardsman asked, grateful to hear that he could finally get some decent sleep.
"Tell the Comman-… no, tell my mother that Thoma will be alright. She's trained him well, and if he's got Lady Ysevel with him, then I'm sure he'll be well taken care of," he said, allowing only one corner of his mouth to be tugged at in a wry grin.
However, out of the corner of his eye, he could just barely see Leona's head tilt beneath her hood in curiosity.
"I will deliver your message as soon as possible," the guardsman said with a bow. "Just make sure you get some rest first," Bernar said, patting the man on the shoulder before walking his horse over to Leona's side. As he got closer, however, he noticed her cloak was taut around her shoulders and being pulled tightly shut from the middle where a pair of fingers held her reins.
Beneath the hood of her cloak, however, she stared at him with as much curiosity as the surrounding air would allow her to express.
"It's good to see you again, Your Majesty," he said with a curt bow. When she didn't verbally respond, his heart sank a little.
Shit, did she just now find out my mother was the Commander in question? He thought in the pause between his bow and the lack of a verbal response.
He decided to risk a glance and noticed her small frame was quivering regardless of the heavy cloak. "By the Graces, are you alright?" he asked, quickly noticing her uncontrollable shaking.
His eyes glowed a little more intensely, immediately condensing a small nebula of mana around her and activating a carefully controlled Pyrus spell. "Th-thank y-y-you!" she managed through chattering teeth as her quivering smile reached her eyes.
"You don't have to thank me for anything. I was wondering why you weren't very talkative when you saw me. I'm sorry that I didn't notice earlier," he said, making sure her cloak wasn't catching a mana flame. "It's a-alright," she said, a little less chattery now that she was getting warmer.
"I could have helped, but I don't have the same level of control over mana as you do," Thorsen chimed in. "Oh, I don't doubt that, but it is good to see you again, my oversized friend," Bernar said with a slight grin on his face. "Likewise. It's about time Her Majesty had some company other than my own or Gwili's," Thorsen said jokingly.
"It's not like I'd planned for that to be the case, you know," Gwili said, spreading his arms widely. "Things just happened to turn out that way," he continued, turning his gesture into a shrug. "Sure, sure," Bernar replied with a dismissive wave. "In any case, it would be better for us to get going soon, as the longer we're out here dallying, the more prepared the Harutians will be," he said with a small amount of urgency in his tone.
"Agreed, Master Bernar," Wyrran said with a bow. "Oh, fuck no. I'm not a master. Also, how long have we known each other, Wyrran?" Bernar asked, raising his hands placatingly.
"Well, I didn't want to be disrespectful in front of Her Majesty by addressing you incorrectly," Wyrran said bashfully. "You do realize that she's heard Thoma and I say much worse things to each other, right?" Bernar asked jokingly. Wyrran's face paled as he stammered wordlessly in response for a heartbeat.
"It's alright, my newfound friend," Leona finally said, the warming effects of the Pyrus spell now in full effect. "If Bernar treats you and the others as his friends, then so shall I," she said, giving Bernar a knowing nod. The elf was shocked but regained his composure quickly after clearing his throat. "Th-thank you, Your Majesty," he said with a bow.
Leona looked around at the others that lined the edges of the Rhydian Pass. "You are already used to following Gwili, and so I place you in his charge once more," she shouted out, giving her elven friend a nod of acknowledgment. He responded with one of his own and whistled an intricate pattern of notes that closely mimicked a bird's call to summon the rest of the elves.
When nearly thirty came out from behind the bushes, rocks, and trees like they were woodland spirits, Thorsen whistled critically. "Oh, they're good. Very good," he said, not hiding his pleasant surprise as he was taking note of their stealth capabilities. "Who do you think trained them?" Gwili asked smugly, pushing his nose high into the air.
Bernar mounted his horse and rode by Leona's side as Thorsen moved up to the front to lead the way. The elves fell into the formation behind Neko, Marte, and Gwili and continued on foot. "Are you sure they'll be alright to follow us on foot?" Leona asked, glancing back momentarily.
"Elves can run for an extremely long time without breaking so much as a sweat," Bernar began. "These men and women in particular, have extensively trained their natural ability to absorb ambient mana, even at this altitude," he continued. "Ah, I should've known you would know all about them," Leona retorted wryly.
Shiiiit! I probably should've kept my mouth shut, Bernar thought with an awkward smile, feeling a bead of nervous sweat drip down his cheek.
"When were you going to tell me?" she asked. "About my mother being the Commander in question?" he asked plainly. Leona nodded her head in response. "Can she even do that if she's not an elf? It's not like you have pointed ears," she she said bluntly with a playful undertone.
He felt his heart skip a beat but quickly regained his composure.
"Look, I was going to tell you. Once Thoma was done with his training, that is," he answered quickly, skimming over the potential depth of her question. She raised an eyebrow in disbelief, scrunching the side of her cheek slightly in the process. "You weren't going to surprise me by having her show up to the wedding ball in full Commander attire?" she asked playfully.
"Not at all. I mean, you knew we were going to train in Caegwen. I assumed you'd know I had at least some connection to it, given I seem to have a lot of elven friends," he replied, thrusting his thumb over his shoulder and hoping no further connections would be made.