Jabone's Sword (54 page)

"And do you just want to . . ."

"Yes," Tarius said with a smile.

"But now we have a tiny baby so I guess that will have to wait. After all I'm very tired having fought a great battle and given birth all in the same day."

All the way home on the ship her brother Tarius, not Tarius the Black mind you, but a younger, very good looking hero of the same name, had told glorious tales of the battle and their trip, until Ufalla was wondering if she'd really even been there at all.

Ufalla had just greatly enjoyed being at sea again and to have Jestia by her side knowing that they were going home to start their lives together, the battles at least for the moment behind them.

That for the time being at least their adventure-lust cured and the Amalites put down they could get married, move into their new home, and just enjoy each other and their homeland. Enjoy talking about all the great things they had done, as their parents and the older members of their pack had done as long as Ufalla could remember.

Tarius and Jena seemed very happy with their new baby and he with them. Jabone was enjoying being Kasiria's husband and having a little brother. He'd always wanted siblings and now he had one. He didn't seem to mind that there was nearly twenty years between them.

Eric and Tarius had done a bonding exchange and Eric seemed happy to just be with him and he was happy with her, so Ufalla was happy for them even though the thought of them together put her to thinking of a goat humping a horse.

Kasiria seemed as eager to be home as they all were as she stood on the deck with them, waiting for the Kartik to come into view. If she had any qualms at all about leaving behind her homeland, her rank and her title, it didn't show on her face. She just smiled up at Jabone as if he were just the most magnificent thing on the planet.

Finally they could see the Kartik and then the Katabull harbor and they were all silent as they were just watching, savoring that last few moments between still being gone and being back home again. All silent that was except for Jestia who was of course talking and what else would she be talking about but their wedding which Ufalla was actually looking forward to if for no other reason than that she just wanted to have it over with.

"We will hire dancers. I'm thinking just women because now that you've made me queer . . . "

Ufalla laughed, grabbed Jestia around the waist and drug her against her. "I didn't make you queer."

"Whatever. Anyway since I'm queer now I find that the male form is rather repulsive to me. So I'm thinking just female dancers. And singers. I'd like singers, but I don't care what sex they are, would you like singers?"

"You know I don't care, Jestia."

"Pretend to," Jestia said.

"Sorry, but I don't care about any of it but being with you."

Jestia smiled and wrapped her arms around Ufalla's neck. "But it will be fun, Ufalla. I want it to be fun for both of us."

"Are you going to be there?" Ufalla asked with a smile. Jestia just laughed and nodded her head. "Cause see if you're going to be there I'm going to have fun."

"I can't wait to get home. Get in our new house, lay around in our own private hot spring all day, make love all night," Jestia said in a dreamy voice.

It sounded like heaven to Ufalla.

The boat docked and everyone all but crawled over each other to make it to land.

Her mother and younger brother and sister and Arvon and Dustan among many others had come down to meet the boat. As expected Dustan was very surprised to learn that he was a Fadra but didn't seem to be at all upset about it.

As they moved across the deck all of the Katabull reached out to touch them, and Ufalla's heart swelled with pride. The Katabull believed that if you touched a Great Warrior on return from battle you would have power over your enemies. So the fact that they were reaching out to touch her said that they thought she was a Great Warrior.

They had just finished embracing her mother and siblings and then her father was holding her mother in a way that said that they still loved each other and didn't like to be separated. It warmed Ufalla's heart.

Jestia was just rattling at anyone who happened to be listening about all her wedding plans when the Queen's own herald broke through the crowd. He bowed low before Jestia, getting disgruntled sounds from all the Katabull assembled, and Jestia hissed, "Rise fool, how dare you disgrace the Katabull!"

The man rose and stated, "Your highness, your mother asks that you be brought to the palace immediately."

"Well that's a shame because you see all next week I have big plans," and then Jestia's voice rose a great deal, "to
not
do what my mother says!"

"Your highness, I'm afraid I must tell you there has been a horrible accident . . ."

"I can't do anything about what age has done to her face . . . Well I could but I won't," Jestia interrupted.

"Your highness, please." His voice caught in his throat, so he either actually cared about what he was about to say or he was good at pretending, "I'm afraid the accident has happened to your brother Katan."

"Let me guess. He strained his voice reaching for a high note."

"He is dead, highness."

Jestia laughed even as Ufalla moved to take her arm to steady and comfort her.

"Katan is dead, oh that's quite a joke. What happened, did he catch a bad cold and sneeze himself to death?"

"Jestia," Ufalla said gently, "I think he's serious."

"It's just some trick to get me to go to the castle," Jestia said, waving her hand in the air in a dismissive way.

"I assure you it is true highness. Prince Katan is no more. He fell down some steps at the palace and bumped his head, and I'm afraid . . . He went to sleep and never woke again." Ufalla could see the moment at which Jestia realized that he was indeed telling the truth and just what that meant for her because Jestia turned white. She took a deep breath and let it out. She looked from Ufalla to the herald then back again.

"Go back to the palace at once," she told the herald, never taking her eyes off Ufalla. "Tell my mother that my heart aches for her and that I will be there as soon as I get my affairs taken care of here." Jestia was quick witted but when she looked at Tarius there was a look of real panic on her face and Tarius seemed to know immediately what to do.

"Jestia must help us with some potions for our wounded. Tell the Queen that we grieve with her. Take your people back with you. As soon as things are settled here I myself will go to the castle and explain all that has happened," Tarius said, and Ufalla noticed that Tarius had very carefully not said anything about bringing Jestia with her.

"Now, go at once," Jestia said with an elaborately dismissive hand gesture towards the herald.

He bowed low again, once more pissing off the Katabull, and then he took off with the four palace guards right behind him.

"What are you going to do, Jestia?" Ufalla asked in a panic when they were well out of ear shot.

"We're going to get our things off that ship, put them onto that one, and sail out with that boat to wherever the hell it's going."

Ufalla smiled. "I've always wanted to go there."