Chapter 53

Chapter 53: Moose Tracks

“And why would ‘travelers’ help you? Let me guess: you waved the gate fee, didn’t you?! Lieutenant Tanner will have your hide when I tell him, haha!” the lad in the armor jeered.

“Come on, Klaus! I didn’t wave the fee! They don’t-” Ronnie was going to continue, but stopped when he realized he’d be busting out the prince if he said anything.

“T-They don’t need to pay because they did this mornin!” Ronnie declared, proud of his own quick thinking.

” Lieutenant Tanner was the one at this gate this morning.. Want me to go ask him to come for verification? He’ll be pissed if you’re caught in a lie,” Klaus baited him.

Ronnie thought for a moment before shaking his head in the positive. Even if the jerk did go get the lieutenant, Prince Tidas was here. He would back him, and hopefully get Klaus in trouble too. But all the same; he was still hoping Klaus would back down.

Ronnie smiled cockily as he looked at his fellow trainees and said; “Go right ahead, but ‘Tis you he’ll be pissed at for wasting his time.”

His confidence on the matter made Klaus hesitate. He looked at the two men, then realized the third was a woman. He looked Skye up and down, but couldn’t tell much about her appearance. Her cloak blocked his view, but he could tell she was petite. And her dress was made of more expensive materials than what commoners wore daily. He grinned brazenly as he sauntered towards her.

.....

Ronnie recognized the smile on Klaus’ face, and immediately tried to stop him. The fool was going to get himself killed if he did what Ronnie Knew he was about to do. While he hated the guy, he still didn’t want to watch Klaus be run threw because he unknowingly hit on the prince’s wife right in front of him!

As he took the few steps in Skye’s direction, Ronnie stepped in front of him. The lad wasn’t tall or muscular by any means, but he did have one trick that he knew Klaus hated: his Beta. As he towered over Ronnie, the lad looked him square in the eyes.

The two that had been silent began to laugh and taunt the others like immature children.. Attempting to solicit a fight. Klaus sneered while Ronnie stood his ground, unflinching. Klaus was annoyed by it greatly and said; “My, my, my! Ain’t we getting brave! Trying to show off to your ‘new friends’ is gonna bring a world of hurt down on you, Ron..”

The lad gulped hard, but didn’t move. He’d been calling to both his Alpha and Beta since Klaus had showed up, but they’d felt pretty far away. Which annoyed Ronnie greatly. ‘I told them to stay close this mornin’! Why do ye never listen, hmm?! I know ye can hear me! Get yer arses here now!’

Ronnie used his magic to call to his companions again, but got no reply. Only when he’d said that he needed help dealing with Klaus, did he get a simultaneous response. They screamed in his head with their joy: ‘FINALLY!’

After a few tense minutes, the thunderous sound of large hooves crunching down on the gravel road drew everyone’s attention to the gate. A large moose came through the gate, causing all present to take a hesitant step back; all except Ronnie.

The beast trotted over to the lad and nudged his head. It made a guttural roar sound like a bear towards Klaus and his friends, making them all shuffle backwards in fear. It stood over six feet at it’s shoulder. It’s horns were massive with bits of branches stuck in them. A slight drool line hung from the corner of it’s mouth, giving the beast an almost rabid look.

Ronnie grinned broadly before saying; “About time, Monte! I told ye to stay close; why do ye never listen?”

The moose flopped it’s head side to side as it made odd noises before Ronnie yelled, “I don’t care if yer special blueberries are ripe; we got training to do! Get yer shit together, Monte!”

The moose towered over the young lad and huff at him. Skye and Tidas felt their fear for the lad surge as he playfully bopped the beast on it’s head. When the beast nuzzled Ronnie in response instead of stomping him to death, Tidas and Skye released their breaths.

Skye smiled beneath her cloak at the cute scene before her. The moose was acting like a giant child that knew he’d misbehaved. Ronnie laughed loudly at Monte’s antics until Klaus spoke.

“Y-You’re Not supposed to have that beast in the city! Lieutenant Tanner said so! It scares people!”

Monte didn’t so much scare the people, he just drew their attention. A large crowd was beginning to build around the gate’s entrance area; blocking any traffic trying to come in or go out. The commotion had gained not only the townspeople’s attention, but the lieutenant’s as well.

“What’s going on out here?! Why is there-Ronnie! What did I tell you about allowing that beast of yours into the city?! Get it gone then come explain yourself in my office!” a vein bulged from the side of his neck as he yelled at the lad.

All the young men present had come to attention at the sight of Lieutenant Tanner. He had caramel-colored skin tone with dark brown hair and eyes. He was tall; almost as tall as the moose. Tidas chuckled to himself upon seeing the man being so strict. It wasn’t his nature, but he was in charge of recruitment in Dragonhorn for the time being. Which Tidas knew Lieutenant Arthur Tanner hated doing.

Like most of his mages, Arthur would rather be out in the world. Exploring, fighting, and enjoying good food and women. He was a strong fighter with a Tank trait that focused on power. He’d been with Tidas when he’d gone up against his uncle, and had helped save him by carrying him back to their temporary base.

As the lieutenant turned to leave, Tidas stepped forward. He used his speed to come and stand directly in front of him. Making it a point to keep his hood pulled down the whole time. The prince smiled before he said; “Shouldn’t a Tamer keep one of his companions near him at all times, Lieutenant Tanner?”

Arthur had barely moved when the man sped over to him. Only his hand, which had gone to the hilt of his sword. Tidas had seen it, but paid it no mind as Arthur stared him down. He’d cocked his head to the side, trying to glance under the prince’s hood. But all he could see was a cheeky grin he swore he recognized. Straighten his head, he demanded the man remove his hood.

Tidas’ smirk grew as he replied, “I will, once we step inside your office. Don’t want to cause another commotion now, do we Artie?”

Upon hearing the nickname, the lieutenant beamed. He instantly knew the cloaked man was the prince. He was about to speak when Tidas tapped on his own lips with his finger. He then nodded his head at the crowd that was still dispersing. Arthur understood, and extended his arm and motioned for Tidas to enter. The prince nodded, then turned to Skye to signal her to follow.

Once he looked at her, Tidas realized why the crowd was taking so long to leave. Skye was petting the giant moose; giggling every time he nuzzled her. Ronnie and Klaus’ group had been dumbstruck by the sight. The moose had only ever been friendly with Ronnie, and that was only because he was his Tamer. Moose are not known to be friendly to humans. But here Monte was; nuzzling a human stranger.

Skye’s hood had slowly slipped back; revealing her face. The men around her had all dropped their jaws at the sight of her. Not that she noticed; being to busy petting and smiling at Monte. Ronnie was astonished as he watched the beautiful lady. He didn’t realize his Beta had showed up.

Klaus was still gawking when a small bird began to dive bomb him. It pecked at his ears and pulled at his hair with every swoop. He yelped as his two friends scattered before the lieutenant could notice them. Ronnie was laughing hard as he tried to call to the bird in between breaths.

Seeing the lad prancing about, the lieutenant said: “Ack! It’s just Jack, Klaus. Stop being a baby.. Why are you even here? You’re supposed to be scrubbing out latrine buckets for that incident report the other day..”

Klaus froze at the mention of his misconduct. He’d had a grievance filed against him. For trying to bargain sexual favors from a young woman who wanted to enter the city. It wasn’t known yet, but it would be soon. Then his reputation would take a hit. Not enough to jeopardize his admittance to the RMC. But enough to make getting a woman into his bed difficult.

Before that would happen, he’d have to impress the beauty in front of him now, to gain any chance with her later. She was stunning in her face; Klaus could only imagine what her body must look like. He straightened his back, and sauntered towards Skye.

Before turning to face him, she pulled her hood back up. She didn’t like him, but had no intentions on causing a scene by pissing him off with her death glare. Tidas was right by the lieutenant; if the fool tried anything stupid, the prince was ready to kill him.

Klaus stood just a couple feet from Skye as he asked; “Would you like to have dinner with me tonight? My father is Lord Bowers, and I’m going inherit some day.. Best to get in my good graces now, if you want to be treated well.”

Skye couldn’t stop herself from openly smirking. She knew Lord Bowers through her father, but had never met his son. The lord wasn’t particularly fond of his oldest son. The boy was practically useless growing up. The only thing he ever cared about was chasing women and counting coins. The fact that he was bold enough to hit on sky made her chuckle loudly before she spoke.

“I thank ye for yer offer, but I must decline. It’s not proper for a married woman to dine alone with a man, other than her husband,”

Skye flashed her ring as she finished.

Klaus leaned in and said softly; “Only if others find out..” he donned a cheeky smile before taking another step towards Skye.

Skye was irritated now. She didn’t want to cause a scene, but the idiot was asking for it. When he reached out to touch her face, Skye grabbed him by the wrist, twisted it, and used his own weight against him as she flipped him onto his backside. She’d done it so fast, he hadn’t had time to reach. He landed with a large thud that knocked the wind out of him. Skye stood above him; looking down with disgust.

“Ima clearly a married woman! What in the Hell would make ye think I would want You to touch me?! I be No light skirt, sir! And yer father would be very angry to know of yer dishonorable advancements on married women,” Skye practically grilled Klaus into the ground with her yelling.

Fury quickly built up in Klaus as people on the streets pointed and laughed at him. He’d never been treated in such a way before; especially by a woman. Most he offered himself to jumped at the chance. His anger begin to crest as he quickly jumped to his feet, and began to berate Skye.

“Ye stupid bitch! Do ye know who I am?! Ye don’t treat yer betters like that!” Klaus reached his arm back to slap Skye; forgetting where he was as his rage and humiliation clouded his judgement.

Tidas was about to beat the man half to death, but didn’t get the chance. The second Skye saw his arm go up, she’d sneered devilishly. She lifted her hand in a halting motion, then pointed down. Klaus glanced down just in time to see a small pillar made of rock and sand jut up from the ground, and hit him square in his man bits. It immediately crumbled away after impact as Klaus dropped to his knees, screaming out in pain. Before he could fall over, Monte kicked him with his back leg; sending him flying to the side. Leaving an impression of his hoof on the armor of Klaus’ shoulder..