Dark Stag Ch. 05

"Get the lure." I said to Brija. She reeled in the short line, hiding the lure in her hand. The tiny kestrel faced me, running back across the table with its mouth opened wide.

"See," I began, "This would be considered a wrong behavior. However, there is no correcting only, ignoring and persuading. Hand me the lure." Brija gave me the lure and I sat it atop the glove. I then placed a little chunk of red meat on the glove.

The bird's head began to bob wildly as she began calculating the distance between my right hand and her current position. Granted, it was less than two feet but considering she had very underdeveloped flight muscles, it was the equivalent of humans leaping four times their vertical height.

Nonetheless, the tiny bird did the extended jump, a trait common in avians. They'd increase the distance of their leap by intense wing beats. She landed, gobbling down the meat.

"She's a very well-motivated bird. After a while, she'll stop doing this because she's hungry and start doing it because she enjoys it." I said, lowering her back to the table. She hopped off, looking back at me confused.

"And when will that be?" Brija asked.

"It depends on her. It could be within the next few days or could be within the next few weeks. This is the start though. We must let her get used to being handled in this way. We must let her feel this is something natural, something she'd do in the wild." I explained. Brija stared for a while.

"Can I try?" She asked, startling me.

"Sure..." I said back, my shock obvious.

I stood back, watching the smart girl emulate my every move. She practiced handling the bird for over an hour, the tiny bird continuing to eat like it was a bottomless pit. But that is what kestrels do. Of all falcons, kestrels have the lowest wing to mass ratio and are very kite-like. Where they differ from kites is in being able to consume their entire body weight in one sitting.

"What should I name her?" Brija asked.

"It's your bird." I smiled, this time with no sarcasm.

"Well, about her personality? What would you describe her?" Brija continued.

"She doesn't fall under the two main stereotypes. She's not timid or aggressive. She's rather inquisitive, rare for the smaller falcons. Call her Qali." I said. Brija looked at me.

"What does that mean?" She asked.

"It means defier." Brija's face lit up as though a yearlong conundrum had been solved.

"So she's Qali the defier?" She asked smiling.

"I guess." I responded.

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Our time training had come to an end. Though I made Brija have a change of heart, I was not dealing with her any longer. This would be my last night here. However, I wasn't going to leave the girl hanging. She did after all have a gorgeous steppe kestrel that she'd be with for years. I also knew how Richard was so he too would help.

The reality then hit me. This would be the last night we'd spend together. I mean, it hit me extremely hard. As I stood at the top of the stairwell, tears rolled down my cheeks. Considering all I had planned, and that he and I had a long and depressing conversation about my intentions last night, it was heart breaking. We'd be so close but out of each other's reach. Then another thought rammed my chest. What if this plan backfires? Who would bail me out if it fails?

Making my way towards my room, I saw Richard's door open. He left out, surprised to see me. He rushed over to me, full of worry.

"You're finished already? How'd it go? She didn't try anything did she?" Richard asked.

"It went well. Of course, I shut it down before it even got to that level. I gave her something to chew on and absorb..." I answered.

"So she didn't try to advance on you?" Richard asked, mouth held in surprise.
"I knew it was coming but I knew if I allowed it to happen and resisted her, the results would probably be terrible. I have too much at stake to go down that way." I said.

"Well, what are you going to do now?"

"That's what I needed to talk to you about." I said, leading him back into his room. We sat down, getting ready for the seriousness that was about to unfold.

"...Ok." Richard said.

"You know I've been using Mercury to learn about the brothel rings right?"

"Yeah..."

"Well the boy ain't stupid. He obviously knows I'm up to something and I'm afraid that if he "learns too much he might rat me out." I responded.

"Seriously?"

"I'm...dead...ass..." I said. Richard sighed, as he mustered up the courage to ask me an intense question. It was one he had to put his feelings aside to even be objective enough to consider.

"How willing are you to make sure it doesn't happen?" He asked.

"I don't want to go all the way with him." I said plainly.

"Well how involved do you want him?"

"I don't even know yet. These angles are so tricky. It depends on how events fall when we meet later tonight."

"Tonight?" Richard asked shocked. I hid my face, not wanting him to see these tears.

"Yeah, I'm going to need you to take care of Bazahra and Rejon for a while." I sobbed. We sat in silence, sulking in our feelings.

"I'll write you as often as I can...if I can." I said. Ricahrd leaned in to hug me. He gave me a firm kiss, before letting me go.

"I just want to be stupid and hop on Rejon's back with you and ride off across the steppe, through the canyons, through the desert and to Illisia. What am I supposed to do without you?" He asked.

"...I wish we could too but..." I said, going back to the subject, "Tomorrow, I might be a slave. In a month, I want you to rent me."

"How will I know if you're gone?"

"Everyone will know when I'm gone. You think I'm letting any of those lords and mistresses in the brothel survive? You think I'm going to stop and hold restraint on any nobleman that gets in my way? No, everyone is dead to me...." Richard looked at me. It pained him to hear me speak this way.

"Please don't kill who you don't have too, alright..." He sighed.

"No promises..."

"Like...how far did you think this out?"

"I've thought of every scenario imaginable. Bazahra and I have scoped this entire town out. We know every nook and cranny, every secret tunnel. I've also, did my research on the surrounding countryside and...I think I know my way back to Illisia."

"You're doing so much by yourself. There must be something I can do to help...I mean there must be. Are you sure they said their top skoges aren't for sell?"

"I've tried, even showed them the extreme amount of money. They denied me. So I guess I got to do things the hard way, and I'm going to kill...them all."

"Well shit then." Richard said, frustrated for me, "All of this...you're doing it by...your...self."

"I know... But it's not the worst thing I've been involved in. Try escaping the Illisan cannibal circuit then single-handedly killing the tribe responsible. This...nah, man. It's not at all the worst thing..."