A Wolf's Howl, A Fairy's Wing

"That's quite the story…" Ankhur muttered after Naeku was done telling them what she could. Some things she was forced to keep quiet about, which meant her story had some gaps.

For starters, she couldn't reveal Erik's dimension, or Elora's situation, to them. As a result, the mechanics of how she, Elora, and the others managed to follow him unnoticed, and then appear suddenly after Lilith had been blasted away, remained unclear.

The same went for why Elora, as a third ranker, didn't interfere at any point. As for the reason behind Erik's power boost at the end, that was something she didn't even understand herself.

Thus, Ankhur, and the rest of her family, were still unclear about much of what happened, but they got the gist of it.

"It seems Runa has quite the extraordinary son… or is it more related to that mysterious wife of his?" Ankhur muttered thoughtfully, echoing the thoughts of everyone else in the room.

"Either way, they are clearly enemies of those Humanitas Sangh freaks," Leila, Ankhur's sister and Naeku's aunt, grinned excitedly, arms crossed in front of her sizable chest. "With Naeku's help, they destroyed the enemy's helicopters, heavily wounded that witch, and caused the death of plenty of their soldiers."

"Agreed," her father, Tarek, nodded, while frowning and scratching his beard. "They've bought us valuable time, and I think we should do our best to keep them as allies." It seemed he'd recovered from earlier and was adopting a more diplomatic stance.

Finally, Fatima, their mother, weighed in with a sly smile, "I completely agree, but we should see what we can uncover about those secrets of theirs in the meantime."

Unsurprisingly, that plan garnered universal approval.

Ankhur nodded thoughtfully, but then moved on by looking at his wives and daughter. "What about you three?"

Nadia shrugged with pursed lips, "We need help, husband. Even if the Humanitas Sangh has been delayed for now, they'll be back in the fight before long. Even if they are clearly suspicious and secretive, the enemy of my enemy is still my friend."

On his other side, Amina nodded a little coldly, "Supposedly their empire stretches all the way back to India. They'll get new helicopters, new people, and I doubt it will take long for Lilith to recover. Let Runa's son and his family turn their secrets on our enemies while we keep a close eye on them."

Naeku looked conflicted for a moment. There were still a few things she didn't like about them, especially Elora and Emily, but she knew what her instincts told her. "I think they can be trusted, Father…" she finally nodded, despite a slightly conflicted expression.

Naturally, that didn't go unnoticed. "Is there something else you'd like to say, little Naeku?" her faster asked with a worried frown.

"I—" she began hesitantly, but then sighed and spilled the beans. "They won't betray us, but… They're conquerors, Father, and their moral compass is grey at best. I do believe allying with them is in our best interest, but just be aware… they won't be content with an alliance. They want to rule."

"I see…" Ankhur frowned, while everyone else reacted with obvious aversion. "And how far do you think they'll go to achieve that?"

"Well, like I said," she shrugged helplessly. "Their more compass is grey. They won't be above regular manipulation, coercion, or non-violent blackmail, but they won't resort to threats or magical manipulation."

"Magical manipulation?" Ankhur wondered with a raised eyebrow. This was the first time he'd heard something conclusive about methods like that. He'd heard rumours, including the enemy's Runebound fighters, but was never presented with anything conclusive. "Something like that?" he asked, while pointing at the mark on Naeku's hand.

Unfortunately, that same mark prevented her from providing any details about their capabilities, so she could only purse her lips and remain silent.

Fortunately, her father got the message. Ankhur nodded weakly, sighed, and closed his eyes, "Well, I trust your judgement, Naeku. Regular manipulation, coercion, and non-violent blackmail we can handle."

A small smile suddenly appeared on his face, "Now… I'd like to go see Runa."

Before anyone could object, Ankhur turned to Enkai, who'd re-entered the room at some point during Naeku's story, "Enkai, my friend. Have they been settled in?"

Enkai nodded, causing Ankhur to grin as some energy returned to his weakened body. "Good," he said, before sitting up and pulling off his covers, with some difficulty, revealing his legs, covered by a pair of baggy cargo pants. "Now help me up… I'd like to visit Runa."

* * *

A little earlier, Enkai guided Elora and the others to a set of four large bedrooms. "All four of these are unused," he explained, while never taking a cautious gaze off of Elora. "By order of my brother, they are yours."

"Good," Elora nodded, while still holding Runa in her arms. "You can leave now."

"Hmpf," Enkai snorted, none too happy with Elora's dismissive attitude. "I will leave, but don't forget our king, Lord Ankhur, is the only one allowed to give orders around here." He narrowed his eyes threateningly, "Even your relationship to Runa won't save you if you make trouble…"

But Elora barely reacted and just continued looking at him calmly, and silently. Behind her, Emily, Astrid, and the servants looked at Enkai with undisguised smugness. They weren't ashamed to admit they enjoyed Elora's attitude. Even Emily had to admit it was kind of nice when the fairy's behaviour was directed at others, instead of her.

Only Emma remained indifferent to all of it, instead keeping her full focus on Erik.

After Enkai and Elora stared at each other for a moment, the werelion quickly came to the conclusion that she wasn't going to be intimidated, so all he could do was grumble to himself and leave. It's not like he was going to start a fight in the middle of the palace.

After he was gone, Elora turned around. "Alright, girls," she began, her tone now far warmer than before. "Nora, Anne, and Seraphina, you three should settle in one of the rooms for now. Stay alert, but get some rest. We'll let you know when we need you."

Nora and Anne threw some worried gazes at Erik, but still bowed slightly, before making their way to a room. Only Seraphina stayed a moment with a conflicted expression. She opened her mouth as if to say something, but then closed it again.

Finally, she sighed and simply followed the other two. Clearly, she still had some things to work through, but what exactly was unclear. Perhaps she was simply still acclimating to the role of a servant?

Regardless, when they were gone, Elora, Emily, Emma, and Astrid entered another room, where they put Erik and Runa on the large bed. "Let's get to work," Elora frowned.