Page 84 of The Kingdom of Eternal Ice
“Or a test.”
“That too.” Shayan looks at the little bag before opening it. When I go to stop him, he shrugs. “They never said we couldn’t look.” He pauses. “It’s spices and money. You are right, it’s a test. Let’s make sure to pass!”
The upside of being part of the royal guards is that we know the territory very well, even those surrounding areas. We are careful with entering no-man's land. There are parts that are relatively safe, like the strip of land that is between us and the Everlasting Desert, where Princess Azadeh came from. Then, there is the rough North with the snowy mountains, which hardly anyone passes through due to the rough nature of the area. It was where the dragons used to live. But the no-man's land here, at the eastern border… that’s leading into a vast area of empty land.
If we were to pass it, we’d reach The Luminous Fields, the mysterious home of the Fae. They are peculiar and like to stay to themselves. We barely have any contact aside from some very rare political meetings.
This no-man's land is said to be inhabited by rogue werebears. The king tries hard to unite the shifters and have them join the kingdom or at least help them build their own little independent packs. With the fox shifters and deer shifters he succeeded, but the werebears wanted to keep to themselves.
“I don’t know anything about these lands,” Shayan mutters. “Aside from The Luminous Fields laying behind them. Tell me what to expect.”
“I’m not sure,” I admit. “Some werebear sleuths are supposed to be here.”
Shayan nods. “How come they are your enemies?”
“They aren’t, not really,” I say. “They are less organized and a younger society, if you will. The problems started recently, and the king is suspecting their leader to be up to something.”
“Like an alpha could, he can lead a whole pack to its doom?” Shayan wants to know.
I nod while leading him through the forest. Soon we’ll pass through it and then will be faced with empty lands.
“Tell me more about the other shifters,” he says.
“They are small in population,” I explain. “There are a few fox packs, united under one leader. They live further towards the west of the lands. The fox shifters are their own little group. They accept and respect King Gillean, but keep their autonomy.”
“They don’t fall under his reign?”
“No, they are allies and have their own leader,” I explain.
“And the king accepts that?”
“The king is wiser than his father was,” I proclaim. “So, instead of killing everyone who strives for independence, he would rather offer them peace treaties and protection, in exchange for their loyalty.”
Shayan nods. “And the dragons?”
“If they truly still exist, they’d be their own kingdom,” I explain. “They originally were located in the Northern Mountains - the Silent Mountain. They never were one with the other shifters.” I pause. “And, then there is a very small pack of deer shifters in the south. Similar to the wolves and dragons, they built their own independent kingdom but have an alliance with us. They are very peace-loving and nurturing.”
“What about the cats?” Shayan’s lips tug into a smile. “Simin was obsessed with them when she and Azadeh were younger.”
“Werecats,” I chuckle. “There is a pride close to The Luminous Fields. They have their own lands, and are reigned by a queen.”
“It’s very fascinating,” Shayan says. “So, what’s the deal about the werebears? How to handle them?”
“They are strong and overall have good senses, but their eyes are weak. And they are not as agile as wolves,” I tell him. “We need to make sure to be quiet and move now at night.” I push past the last trees and a huge vast snow desert is revealed to us. In the distance, we can see another forest and a small hill. That’s our destination. “The darkness of the night will hopefully cover us,” I mutter silently.
Silence lingers around us as we carefully make it through the snowy path ahead of us. Fortunately, we don’t need to walk through the thick snow. It’s weird, as last time I was here I don’t remember there being an actual path; it indicates that people are coming and going from here. Shayan is right. I also doubt that the humans of the small village would walk through here, their terrified gazes still lingering in my mind.
I’m starting to believe that the cult has their grip tight around them.
A little grumble startles me, and I grab Shayan’s arm to hold him back. Peering through the darkness, I allow my wolf to come forward, my body freezing at what I’m seeing.
Shayan tosses me a glance, and I put my finger on my lips, carefully leading him forward. His eyes widen when he finally sees what I see.
There is a cave close-by, and a huge group of werebears, thirty, maybe forty, are currently laying spread out and sleeping. To reach our destination, we need to walk through them. Just our luck.
May the goddess be with us.
twenty-eight
