It’s been a few days or more, but she can still smell the smoke.
It clings to her everywhere: her hair, her coat. She makes no effort to remove it. She could have brushed against the surviving willows just beyond the burned-out Mother Tree. She could have rolled in the light blanket of snow that now covers the land. But it’s a reminder of her failures to stop the Chamber (for they collectively agreed it was the piney kingdom) and save her queen (her friend, even) – she’s loath to forget them just yet.
Emmerly hadn’t seen Fiasko being led away by the brazen raiders. She had heard, from the pieces of the story that the remaining Gates citizens had stitched together, that they’d taken her. They must have something over her for the scarred woman to be so compliant, but what? The paint wonders if it is something they can win back, wonders if a stealthy few of them could sneak in and rescue both the queen and her bargaining chip…
She shakes her head as a light breeze comes up. It is a foolish thought, if well-meaning. Their army is pathetically small, as proven by their defense against the raiders. The Chamber could have done so much more damage than they had. With as little resistance as they had met with, the once-evil kingdom could have absolutely decimated them if they wanted to. But they hadn’t. They had taken Fiasko, burned the great tree (and some of the garden, she thinks) and left in a hurry. They hadn’t touched a hair on Mast’s head in all of the chaos, surprisingly leaving him on the throne. If a sub-kingdom hadn’t been their intended goal, what was their motivation?
The wind changes directions suddenly, bringing a familiar scent across the border. The light changes, too, with the sun quickly emerging from behind the clouds. Emmerly looks up to the blazing orb, a trace of a smile flashing across her lips in recognition. Lyris. She makes her way towards the woman, noticing that Kronk has already beat her to the punch in greeting her. Em hadn’t expected the Amazon warrior to show up after their recent fight (it wasn’t necessary to her, anyway) and she certainly hadn’t expected her to be heavily pregnant if she did. “Lyris, I see you’ve more than recovered,” she says, her voice graveled by all the smoke she’s breathed.
A gentle smile forms then, though it’s a struggle to maintain for very long. As for her own injuries, her shoulder still smarts on the coldest, most desolate days - though the pain is less each time. Her cornflower blue eyes turn to the golden paint stallion next and she bumps him lightly with her good shoulder, ever the physical creature. “Kronk.” She’s glad he decided to join them. He had proven himself a capable, willing fighter on that infamous day. “She was probably seeking me.” She looks back at the Jungle mare for confirmation. “I appreciate you coming here, though I’m no diplomat, if you were hoping to work on two fronts today. I’d be happy to show you around, at least.”
Emmerly
walter x valien