Wolves of War

Wishes

Asai picked me up and carried me out of the council chamber. His finger dug into the side of my thigh. His body is tense with anger. I kissed him on the ear, then on the temple, then on his cheek. Asai leaned into me, giving me access to his forehead and nose.

“Asai!”

“What do you want now, council man?” Asai growled

I circled Asai’s head in my arms and pressed his cheek to my breast. Asai inhaled my scent and hugged me tighter. Asai has been a little on edge ever since he woke up. His patience has shortened considerably, he is trying his best to not let his anger get the best of him. I have turned into his stress toy. A few sniffs of my neck and a little hug would keep him calm long enough to get ahold of his emotions.

“He won’t do anything with me clinging to him like this, but I suggest you speak quickly”, I told the council man.

“The King is calling a war meeting” the man said quickly, then ran away.

Asai sighed “I’ll take you back to the carriage.”

I nodded my head.

Asai put me down in the carriage next to Ramune. “I’ll come see you when the meeting is over.”

“Sure, play nice with your friends”. I kissed his lips.

“They are not my friends,” he grumbled.

When I got back to the Dukedom, Santa was waiting at the entrance to the Manor. She was surprised to see me exit the carriage, but her bewilderment soon turned to anger.

I headed straight for my room and closed the door. That was intense and awkward at the same time, I thought. Slowly, I walked towards the garden, taking off all the jewelry Galga thought I needed to impress the old Wolf men of the Capitol. Asai never cared what I wore, and it’s still true now.

I stepped into my garden and found it thriving. Fruit of the season hung heavily from the branches of fruit trees. The grass is green and lush and to my surprise the conjured rain cloud that was over the garden had disappeared. With the climate back to normal, the rain cloud wasn’t a need any more, but that shouldn't have caused the rain cloud to disappear.

I see, I hummed. Someone dug up the water ferns. They must have really needed them if they spent the time doing that. Maybe I should start handing out seeds to the people of the dukedom to grow privately. I’m sure that they would appreciate that.

Later in the evening, Asai returned to the manor. He missed dinner and ended up having a light snack in his study. He looked exhausted. I wanted to ask him if everything was going to be okay, but I also wanted to give him peace. He had to jump right back into work the moment he woke up from his sleep. The last thing I’m sure he wants to do is talk about work at home.

Swallowing my curiosity, I went back to reading an advanced Herbology text I found while at the Golden Forest. I ate cheese and crackers along with Asai in silence.

After another couple of hours of us sitting in the study enjoying the presence of one another, Asai stood up. He walked over to me and pulled me to my feet. He wore a tired smile as he kissed the top of my head.

“Thank you for your company” he said, smiling down at me.

I grinned “Up! Up!”

Asai laughed and lifted me up. The man is very tall so I needed a boost in order to reach his lips. I circled my arms around his neck and legs around his waist. Asai clasped my buttocks, holding me up and keeping me from sliding down. His lips now within my reach, I claimed them. Asai rumbled in approval and allowed me to take control. He leaned back against his desk, not letting me go until he was fully satisfied.

The door to the study opened and, after a brief pause, someone cleared their throat. Now forced to acknowledge the intruder, both Asai and I turned towards the door. Keylyn stood in the entrance with a letter in his hand.

“Is that the deployment notice?” Asai asked.

“Deployment? Notice?” I asked curiously.

Asai nodded. He reluctantly allowed me to slide down his torso so that he could take the letter from Keylyn.

“My father had a meeting to discuss the discovery of a….” Asai paused for a moment then chuckled “Talisman”

“Talisman?” I repeated.

“As you already know. Witches used to reside in this world and with them magical objects. The witches might be gone, but the objects still remain,” Keylyn said.

I nodded my head. The red diamond rune pen, the silver bow, even Vigil could be considered a magical object. They all remained behind when the witches left this world.

“What about this magical object that requires a deployment notice?” I asked. “That’s like notification to prepare for war, right?”

Asai nodded “With the Ursa”

“Our spies have indicated that they found some sort of talisman that’s capable of granting the user…wishes”

“That’s not a talisman”. I said, “Talismans, grant you protection.”

Charms are manifestations of a user's will. They can be full of luck and good or bad intentions. They can also be used as a way to miniaturize a person's tools or weapons. Boxes are what you should be wary of the most.

Keylyn and Asai inclined their heads questioningly

“If a charm grants wishes, it is most likely a fountain or well, an hour glass or a music box. Fountains and wells are the most common and music boxes and hour glasses are rare. If the charm is a fountain or a well... in order to activate it, you'll have to give it an offering that's equal to or greater in value of the wish being granted. Once the wish is granted, the water dries up. Only when the fountain or well is full again can another wish be granted.”

“This is why the king wants to deploy her” Keylyn says.

I blinked “The deployment order is for me?”

“It’s technically for Asai to take you to either secure this magical item or destroy it.” Keylyn says.

Asai pursed his lips and looked at me “We are essentially going to war with the Ursa. That kind of campaign can take years.”

Oh, I took a step back once I realized what he was talking about. The portal to my home-world opens up in 18 months and I still have to reclaim Blackstone and find Nymera’s killer.

“If it’s a charm that grants wishes, couldn't you use it to wish yourself home?” I straightened and looked around Keylyn to see Galga.

“I could.” I said in agreement “But that kind of wish is one of greed. There might be an adverse effect somewhere in the world to pay for that wish.”

“You have to pay for wishes?” Asai yours

I nod my head “The use of magical items usually comes with either a price or limitations. Items created out of greed usually have both.”

“So in the case of this magical item… it has both a price and a limit?” He asked.

I nodded “Yes you are correct. The reset depends on the wish. Simple wishes will have a lower reset time. For example, wishing for death would have a rest time of under 5 mins. Wishing for life, on the other hand, is much more complicated and would probably have a high reset time of 500 years at the minimum. However, when life is involved, the price to pay would be very high.”

Asai nods his head in understanding. “Assuming that the wisher wishes for death… What’s the price for that?"

"The wisher will lose a part of themselves, usually their humanity.” I said.

“But the Ursa will probably have several people make the wish if death is their goal,” Keylyn said.

“Or the Queen can have four of her followers wish one person of the royal family dead.” I said.

The room went silent.