Wild Born: Chapters 1–3

Fenray had incurred debts to the earl, and Conor was helping to work them off as a servant to Devin.

Musicians played, soldiers strutted, and a peddler sold candied nuts.

Not only were many domestic animals present, but Conor saw mews full of birds with exotic plumage, a corral containing deer and moose, several caged wildcats, a penned trio of badgers, and a black bear chained to a post by an iron collar.

Conor tried to remain impassive. If he sat still and kept calm, soon it would be over.

He glanced furtively toward his father, then looked down.

And of course there was that night two years ago, when Conor and his brothers had stood against a brazen pack that had tried to steal sheep out of their pen in the high pasture.

He took in large paws, keen claws, savage teeth, and striking cobalt-blue eyes.

Briggan the Wolf, patron beast of Eura, stood depicted upon a rich blue banner, eyes shrewd and piercing.

In spite of the abundant evidence, it was the look on Devin Trunswick’s face that brought home to Conor what had transpired.

It simply didn’t happen.
Yet it had. Undeniably, inexplicably, it had.

Devin seethed, and Dawson’s mouth was spread in an astonished grin.

“I came a long way to find you. Stay near me, and I will let no harm befall you. I won’t press you to take our vows until you’re ready, but you need to hear me out. Much depends on you.”

Anyone who ventured beyond the village palisade took a risk.

Her father nodded pensively. “The lost guardian of Nilo. What does this mean, Chinwe?”

He stopped and gripped her shoulders, heedless of the rain.

“I am confounded. I should be happy that you summoned an animal. But you have called a leopard! And not just any leopard—one that resembles our legendary guardian. In good ways and bad, you have always been different. And now this tops all of it! Will your beast bring good or evil upon you? Upon us? I don’t know what to think.”

“I journeyed here from afar. Your daughter has accomplished the impossible, as was foretold weeks ago by Yumaris the Inscrutable, one of the wisest women in all of Erdas. What happened today will reshape the world. I’m here to help.”

“Her power,” Zerif stated somberly, “will bring much more than rain.”

Her father had not called a spirit animal, but even so had risen higher in the military than any of his ancestors. He was a formidable man—nobody was more cunning, or more observant, or more wrathful when crossed.

She didn’t know whether he had visited a soothsayer or beheld the vision himself, but he had acted certain, and he was never wrong.

Meilin gathered her parasol. Made of paper and intricately painted, it was strictly ornamental.

He seemed perturbed, almost unsure how to continue.

“We just received word that they were but a prelude to a major incursion. Your father had prepared for something of the sort, but our enemies have more men and resources than even General Teng had guessed.”

As Meilin approached, even the dignitaries and merchants and government officials arose and applauded.

Meilin forced the most natural smile she could manage. She gave small nods to faces she recognized. Everything felt brittle, fake. She wondered if the onlookers could see through her facade.

Not only was her father rich, not only was he a popular general, but she was also attractive and refined.

A scant six weeks past her eleventh birthday, she could outmaneuver all but the greatest masters.

Meilin hoped that her spirit animal would augment her fighting skills.

She knew that all sorts of powers could be derived from a strong relationship with a spirit animal.

He was admiring her poise.

Many caged beasts were positioned on and around the stage, a royal menagerie including orangutans, tigers, pandas, foxes, alligators, cranes, baboons, pythons, ostriches, oxen, water buffalo, and even a pair of young elephants.

In a strident voice he proclaimed the ceremonial words—the same words he always said.

Sheyu held a jade decanter to her lips. Meilin took a sip.

For a moment, Meilin felt profoundly relaxed.

Lenori never finished her sentence, because the alarm bells started to ring, a gonging clamor reserved for emergencies.

They worked in tandem, deflecting attacks, dispatching foes, and pivoting to lend each other assistance.

The thick walls muffled the tumult from the parade ground, so their footfalls echoed loudly.

Meilin’s heart squeezed as she glanced up at her father’s stoic face. She could tell he was shocked, but he hid it well.

“Unprecedented. There hasn’t been an army like this since...”

“I won’t let this rabble take me. Go.”