Lyn listened without interrupting as Rezzan spun a solid five minutes of misdirection intended to cause eavesdroppers to spend resources responding to false plans. That the clackaw was taking the time to do so either meant that the threat of observation by opposition was likely, or this was itself for show, to lure the group into trusting them more. Possibly both — why spend effort to accomplish one thing, when you could achieve multiple goals at once? The clackaw's concern with risk felt real, however — even if the details were uncertain. Lyn trusted their own intuition about the situation — they had decades of experience with that exact scenario, after all, from the other side.
With maybe fifteen minutes before they arrived, Lyn made a judgment call.
“Okay, first up. Rezzan, take your wing and fly ahead — meet us at the creche, as if you'd arranged a healer, but never met us.”
“That isn't likely to convince anyone.”
“Not everyone in an organization receives tactically relevant information at the same time. Let's avoid being predictable, and lend doubt to our relationship to one another.”
“Fair point. We'll see you there shortly.” With a quick turn and ruffle of their feathers at the other clackaw, Rezzan leapt into the air and flew off, just above the treetops, followed by the smaller pair.
Lyn waited a minute for the clackaw to be out of sight, aetheric and visual, then scanned the surrounding area with their gemlike eyes.
“Nothing visible to me. Moira, take a look around, please.”
I already have been. There are a variety of nearby Ber. Our approach is obviously being watched, but by whom, I couldn't guess.
“How closely?”
I can't be sure about observational abilities, but nothing within a few hundred meters.
“That works. Ellie? When we get to that copse of trees ahead, slow the coach down for about a minute, please, we need to hop out briefly.”
Ellie's voice came from out front, “Will do.”
Lyn pointed at each of the group in turn as they said the next part, for emphasis. “Okay, we do not want to be the pawns in someone else's plan — pawns get sacrificed. So, it is time to change the game. Rapid response by opposing forces relies on matching expectation. So we're going to inject some chaos into the mix — and hopefully slow down the jaws of any traps enough for us to avoid being caught by them.”
“Oh, yeah. I was totally right.”
“Novek, unless you've got something useful, the time for humor is past.”
“I do, actually. When we get there, play up how wounded your foot is still — really lean into it — keep that cane in silvered hand at all times. Ellie? When we slow, give your hat and coat to Nat, please. Nat, I am going to fill the coat pockets with surprises. Moira can light fuses on some small bombs — they're just bright and loud, not deadly, don't make that face — caltrops you're already familiar with. Tanner, would I be correct in assuming you've got a Talent related to both tooth and claw?”
Tanner was giving Novek a look that Lyn couldn't quite place. Oh, bombs in proximity to his offspring — he was nervous, of course. “Wh— I'm a Carver, yes.”
Novek did not acknowledge the hesitation, and kept going, “What can you carve?”
“Almost anything but the hardest stone.”
Novek nodded, clearly unsurprised, “Any experience in a fight?”
“I've been in my share — you know how it is for us Brin. But I'm here to keep my pups safe, not start conflict — if I can get them and leave, I will.”
“Okay — that's probably for the best. Nat's with you, then — you guys are team pup retrieval. Start calm and reasonable, but don't be afraid to switch it up if that's not working. I'm with Lyn as the healer bodyguard — we'll be confrontational and demanding. Ellie — you think you'll be safe out here with the coach or do you want to come inside?”
Ellie took a moment to respond. “I think it's best I stayed with the coach. If you hear shots, though, come get me.”
“Okay. Siya's with you to start — if things look safe enough, I'll come outside and get him. Hide him with you, but let him loose if he needs to escape. Khe should stay with—”
Tanner broke in, his tone clearly brooked no argument, “No — Khe stays with me.”
Novek tried anyway, “That's going to keep your paws tied and present an obvious point of leverage.”
A half-snarling Tanner began his response before Novek finished. “They already have three of my pups, and regardless of this Clackaw business, I'm not expecting this to be a brawl. I'm going to ask what's going on, first, and demand to see my pups.”
“Okay, but if things get wild, you get that pup — all of your pups — into Nat's hands. He'll get him to the coach, and safety. Can you do that?”
Tanner's eyes looked left and right, as if embarrassed by his anxiety-fueled retort. His expression softened, and he locked gazes with Nat, seeking confirmation. Nat nodded back, and Tanner stuttered his response slightly. “O—okay, yes.”
Lyn had a thought, and reached into one of the storage compartments to pull out a small travel pack. “Nat, I'm going to fill this with some emergency supplies — mostly food and water, just in case. I think you should go with the option to hide entirely underneath Moira's illusion — the pack included. We can keep some things secret, that way.”
Novek turned to Lyn, “Oh, good idea. I'll throw a few tools, extra bolts and some other bits in there as well. Actually, maybe that's a better spot for Siya, if he'll behave — that will keep Ellie from having to split attention.”
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
Reaching into their belt, ostensibly packed with medical supplies, Lyn removed a pouch and held it out to Novek. “See if he'll stay — without eating all the food. And this is for you, Novek. The further from their expectation of a Tiger Brin with a Vodat kit, the better.”
Novek took the pouch, and untying it, glanced inside. “Why, exactly, do you have a bag of coal-black powder — in your belt pouch?”
“Do I seem particularly stealthy to you, Novek? What color am I again?”
His voice came out somewhat exasperated, but he still answered, “Bright, pearlescent white.”
“Then the answer would seem to be self-evident, would it not?”
He gestured with a shake of the pouch that threatened to spill the contents, “This might work on your scales, but there is absolutely no way that is going to look convincing, applied to me. Unless we're pretending I fell into a campfire.”
They couldn't help themselves, and some small arcs danced across their fingers as they followed up with a question. “That would be true — except — what do you know about electrostatic adhesion?”
“That word started with electro. Nothing involving fur and electricity ends well, Lyn.”
“Novek, be professional about this. We're almost at the copse, and I don't think this would be safe to do in Nat's Talent, unfortunately. So, strip down and we'll hop out.”
Ellie's voice rang out from the driver's bench, “Hey! Hey, let me stop the cart for this!”
“I'm sorry, Ellie — maybe next time.”
Novek sounded genuinely concerned to Lyn's ears, “This is going to wash off, right?”
“Mmm.”
“That wasn't a yes, Lyn.”
With a shrug, they answered, “No. No it was not. But just think of how included Siya's going to feel.”
He pulled off his shirt and hopped down, pacing the cart. “Okay, fine. Do your worst.”
Lyn had moved to stand on the runner, and was preparing to jump down as well. “Mmm. For this to be convincing, you're going to need to lose the pants, too.”
Ellie voiced an objection of sorts from up front, “You owe me for making me miss this, Lyn.”
Tanner was an unexpected addition to the commentary, “I have to admit I'm curious to see how well this works. I could imagine other applications.”
“I do not love you all at this moment. I just want you to know that, as potential death looms.”
“We're not going to die, Novek. They'd have a hard time killing us.”
“Who was talking about them? It's me you should be worried about — I'm halfway competent.”
Nat was both intrigued and impressed as they approached the creche building.
From his elevated position on the driver's bench beside Ellie, he could distinctly appreciate the downward-angle that the oblong torus of the building took, the far side sinking into the ground, giving a subtle slope to the whole construction. The front entryway was the tallest, with wide arched room segments adjoining it to either side, themselves then curling around an open-air central courtyard, shrinking until the rear of the building vanished into the ground, the sloped roof vanishing into the sand from either side. From above, he imagined it would look like a sloped rainbow horseshoe. Where the gap was, the desert sand led directly into the center, though he had only a brief glance before the columnar basalt pillars of the entryway obscured his view of the rear.
Only the front entry was opaque stone — what looked to be a total of six additional sections, each roofed by a different color of translucent material, comprised the rest. Eight segments total, if one assumed there was a room hidden beneath the sands — which seemed likely to Nat, given how the two ramped sections adjacent to the rear looked to be half-open to the sky.
“The different colors of roof glass are interesting. Does that mean something or is it just decoration?”
Tanner answered from his position on the side runner, “They're all different gemstones, not glass. Well, not counting the doorway, obviously. These are the classrooms and dormitories for the various Ber and Ankarran species. I've seen maybe half of them; the hot house isn't a place for anyone with fur, and the two at the back are entirely submerged, freshwater on one side, salt on the other. Each is tailored to different habitat needs — aquatic, volcanic, polar, there's even a partial vacuum chamber, in the level beneath the ground.”
Lyn interrupted the explanation from behind, “Okay — Nat, Moira, it's time to suit up. Remember, Nat — let Moira do the talking. Let's keep you anonymous as long as possible.”
Nat nodded, “Be right back.”
[Slip]
Alright. I need to infuse you with a small amount of aether so I can track your position perfectly. This will be very thin, but it shouldn't allow anyone to recognize you. I'm going to do something similar to the light show, and obscure your proportions somewhat as well.
Sounds good. If I need to talk to you, I'll Slip, okay?.
Okay. This might be a little hard to see out of, so tell me if it's problematic. I'm going to make the skin around your eyes extra bright, so they shouldn't be able to see through the holes you're looking out of.
A bright blue-white shell of light sprang into being, encasing him. Nat spent a solid minute simply admiring the construction of it — it was beautiful. And… intimidating?
This is amazing. I don't see any problems with it, other than it's very bright — not bad, but a little distracting.
It shouldn't be quite so bright outside of the darkness of your Talent, but let me know if it's a problem. Okay, now to hide the pack. Let's see — we'll do long hair. Also, if you need to use your hand for something, pull your hand to your chest first, and I'll hide it as best I can.
Nat moved his hand in, then moved as if to scratch his nose, underneath the skin of light. Like this? You're sure they won't see it?
That's perfect, and no, they shouldn't if I do this part right. Here, let me show you what you look like.
Moira created a mirror copy that moved as Nat moved. It was decidedly feminine.
Congratulations, this may be the most unorthodox magical girl transformation sequence ever.
The most what?
I'll explain later. Maybe. I'm ready when you are.
[Slip]
Lyn's hand leapt in front of their eyes as Nat unfroze — his time frozen too short to have been noticeable. “That, is very bright, Moira.”
Sorry, do you want me to turn it down?
“No, I think the Humans will be suitably impressed, and it will make it difficult for any aetherically sensitive Ber to inspect you. So it's just right.”
Tanner just stared. Novek gave a low whistle. Siya's reaction was far more like Lyn's — he immediately leapt backwards and turned his face away, before Novek scooped him up to shield him from the aetheric beacon that was Moira's full size illusory form.
What do you think?
Lyn looked Moira up and down, which was very weird for Nat — behind the illusion. After a moment of thought, they came back with, “I think that maybe you should manifest a skirt or a dress, is what I think. The leg proportions aren't quite working to hide Nat's pants. The hair's good — it hides the pack well, was that the intent?”
It was, yes. Okay, one moment on a dress… how's that?
“Much better.”
Novek put a paw out to Nat, “Okay, pack please, Nat. Siya, you ready?”
The kit looked at Novek, then the proffered pack, then back to Novek.
Holding out a single finger, Novek answered an unspoken question. “Yes, you can have one sausage. One.”
The kit turned and leapt to the top of the pack, then dug in briefly, and came up with a piece of meat a third his size. He then proceeded to nestle in, comfortably, and Novek closed the pack, loosely.
“Will he be fine in there?”
“Just try not to jostle him, of course, but yeah. Vodat don't breathe like we do. He'll be fine.”
Ellie's voice rang out without warning — her signal that someone was in sight, “Ho, Wehven creche!”
Okay folks, the Ber that were observing at a distance are now focused in on us. Tanner, you're up first. This is your show.
His voice barely above a whisper, Tanner responded, “Land below, it doesn't feel like it. Also, I don't recognize the door guards — and they've never carried weapons before.”
Novek reached out and put his hand on Tanner's paw, atop the door. “You've got this. Just keep your family in mind.”
“Always.” Tanner leapt down from the sideboard as the coach rolled to a stop, and, Khe in paw, walked without hesitation up to the four guards standing, weapons in hand in front of the door to the creche.
