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“Then you must ride me.”
At first, I wasn’t sure if he was serious or not.
“Is that allowed?” I asked.
He nodded solemnly. “It is not common, but in times of need then we do allow it. You must hold on tight, and do not be alarmed. I will not allow you to fall,” he said. Before I could say anything in protest, he began the process of shifting again. Once more his dark skin gave way to thick fur, a mane billowed out from his collar, and his face turned into the wizened visage of the king of beasts. His great paws flattened against the ground and the muscles were packed tightly within his body. Every inch of him gave a sense of strength and power. It was overwhelming just to look at him.
He stood before me, a giant beast, and then he slumped forward, placing his paws together and bowing his head. His mane flowed forward like a dark river, covering his face. I swung my legs up and mounted him, resting on his back. I squeezed my thighs tightly together to get a good grip of him and then took hold of his mane, my fists grabbing the hair. I held them like reins and positioned myself across his wide body, hoping that I would not fall off. He then rose and I felt like bucking, but managed to hold on. He loped forward slowly at first, one paw in front of the other in a methodical stride, but he quickly increased his pace. I felt the wind whip around me as he began running, his strong paws crashing into the ground. I twisted my neck back, wondering if craters were going to be left in our wake because it certainly seemed as though his might was going to leave some impact behind.
The reverberations juddered through me, making my teeth chatter and my bones shake as I lurched from side to side. I gripped his mane tightly. If I hadn’t been so afraid of being flung from his back then I might well have worried about tearing his mane apart. I cried out in shock as we went careening forward. I had never ridden a horse before, but I couldn’t imagine it would be anything like this. He was wild, untamed, and it was clear that nothing was going to stop him from getting to his brother.
The world formed a blur around me. The colors bled into each other as we left the forest behind and charged over a flatter field. Animals in the distance retreated quickly at the first sight and sound of this apex predator, but today Naaro was not interested in them. His gaze was focused on the mountain ahead and he never deviated from the straight line. I leaned forward, pressing my body against his. I could feel the strength and the energy surging through him. His massive heart pounded like a gong, and I was floored by the intensity of the feeling that passed through me. My breath was taken away and I knew this was the closest thing to flying that I would ever feel.
As I rode him my mind turned to the quest we had taken. There was something quite touching about the way he was so devoted to his brother. Coming from the background I had, to see such devotion between the family was impressive. It was an unconventional family dynamic to be sure, what with Kara having two husbands and the boys being brothers from different fathers, yet it seemed to work for them. Perhaps it led to a deeper level of trust and clearly it was proving more successful than the marriage of my parents had been. Perhaps everyone needed more than one partner, although I didn’t dare think what Peter would say in response to that. He had made it clear more than once that I was the only girl for him.
That was a lot of pressure to take though. What if I didn’t want him, was he going to end up alone? Would I be condemning him to a solitary life?
I pushed the thoughts away as I focused on the world around me, this strange world filled with strange creatures that I could not make any sense of. It was filled with strange people too… yet I found myself feeling intrigued more than scared. Now that the initial terror had worn off and I was confident that I wasn’t going to become a victim to a human trafficking operation I could actually see that they were noble people who were just trying to live their best lives.
In a way I had a lot in common with them.
Naaro’s stampeding charge ate up the distance. I couldn’t quite believe how far we were going. There were a few points when I thought I was going to be thrown from his back, but he managed to keep his promise at not having me thrown from my position. He eventually stopped at the foot of the towering mountain where this Ganang made its home. I looked up, tilting my head back at the huge mountain. The next thing I knew Naaro had shifted back to his human form. He did look impressive in his leather armor, a man built for war.
But I couldn’t help wondering if that was the only thing he was capable of. Was there perhaps more to him? He had been coy when I had asked him about a mate earlier after all.
I had other things on my mind too though. For one, as soon as I had dismounted from him, I realized how much my legs ached. Fire lanced through my thighs and it took all I could muster to remain standing. I had not realized how much effort gripping him had taken, and my legs were like jelly. The other was exactly how we were going to get up the mountain. I swiftly realized that there were many things I had not taken into account when I volunteered for this quest, and I was starting to think that I was a fool. I could have been back in my own world by now. What on earth had possessed me to choose this path?
“So how are we supposed to get up there?” I asked.
Naaro turned towards me and just let out a small laugh, as though I had made a joke. He then approached the mountain and began climbing. Since I did not want to be left behind, I followed him, although my muscles were not going to thank me.
As we climbed, I tried to think of things other than the pain that coursed through my body. Instead, I looked at the moon. It was so huge and bright that it almost seemed like daylight. A sheen of silver covered everything, making it all sparkle and shine. We ascended high enough above the mountain where I could look down and gaze upon a vast sea that stretched out towards the horizon, almost as though it went on forever and blended with the stars. It was glassy and clear, and the waves that rippled were like slivers of silver. It was a beautiful sight, the kind of sight that made me feel blessed. No matter what happened in the future I would never forget this place, and I knew that my previous life was going to pale in comparison. Everything here was more impressive. Even, I conceded as I gazed up at the image of Naaro’s muscles swelling as he moved across the mountain, the men.
I tried to last for as long as I could, but I could feel my arms trembling and my fingers were slipping. The mountain did not offer a particularly challenging climb; there were plenty of ledges and outcroppings of rocks to hold my grip, but eventually I was afraid that I would fall. Only when we reached a plateau did I dare look down, and it made my head spin. I massaged my arms and legs and I gave Naaro a pained look. I knew that he would not have wanted to stop until we reached Divad, but I simply could not continue.
“I’m sorry Naaro, but I really need to rest. You could go on without me and leave me here,” I said, gesturing to the black maw of a cave.
“You think I would really leave you here to fend for yourself?”
“I have a dagger,” I replied weakly.
“No, it is perhaps better that we rest and gather our strength. There is no use going to rescue Divad if I am drained of energy,” he said. I got the feeling that he was saying this to make me feel better about taking time away from the search, for he cast his gaze towards the upper heights of the mountain longingly.
“We don’t have to make it a long rest. I just need to give my muscles a break. I feel them slipping, and I’m worried about falling.”
“You do not need to explain,” he said. We went into the cave and he made sure that there were no nasty creatures already living inside. I sank down, and although the ground was uncomfortable the relief was such that I might as well have been placed on a fluffy mattress in a five-star resort. I sighed as the tension eased away from my muscles. Naaro settled beside me and opened a small pouch on his belt. From this he took some dried meat, which reminded me of jerky at home. I chewed it and was glad of the nourishment. Then he offered me his waterskin and I drank heartily. Now that we had stopped moving the chill had an opportunity to creep in and wind its cold tendrils around us. I shivered and goosebumps rose upon my skin, while Naaro didn’t seem affected by the cold at all. He radiated warmth and I sat close to him, resting my head against his shoulder as the tiredness took hold of me.
“I’m so cold,” I whispered. The last thing I felt was his arm stretching around me as I sank into slumber. I felt safe with him, and I suppose it was more a thing of instinct than anything else. It must have been something that had grown since we shared a bond from riding. After being that close with him it didn’t seem as though we had anything to keep from each other. In some ways I felt closer to him than I did with Peter, for on this day I had trusted Naaro with more than I had ever trusted anyone else with.
Chapter Eleven
Divad
“…have to kill him?”
“If he is clearly not going to agree to our terms then we must force the treasure out of him.”
“But despite everything I do love him. If he could just see the error of his ways then we could rule the pride together, just as you told us we could do.”
