hawk & sable

CHAPTER THREE,

HAWK & SABLE | THREE

"IS THAT..." Asteria squinted from where she stood, eyes trained on the docks. Ciri, from a distance, could make out a few figures. She was conversing quietly with Laurence in the middle of the deck. Ciri took a few steps forward.

"It's Rhys." Io had a grin plastered on her face. Rhys. That would be Rhysa, the Briar, the only female Iron Wolf so far. She was relatively new, only having become one two years ago, but more than capable. "Rhys and Dominic." Dominic was her partner. The two worked together as a seamless team.

Besides her, Laurence raised a brow. "Who?"

"Iron Wolves," Ciri said, her voice calm. "The royal family has seen us fit for the company of not one but two Iron Wolves. Junior ones, but Iron Wolves nonetheless. Don't attempt charming Rhys, Dumont. Dominic enjoys charm, but Rhys is very strict on the job. You'd likely end up with your mouth carved out."

Laurence said, dryly, "I'll keep that in mind."

He thought it was a joke. It was not. He tilted his head. "One of them's a woman." He was putting it together in that clever little mind of his. Not that it was difficult. There was only one female Iron Wolf, after all.

"That is Rhysa. We call her Rhys, as she prefers."

"The Briar."

"That is her nom de guerre. The man beside her, Dominic, he is the Notus."

Laurence blinked, the only sign of his surprise. "The Briar and the Notus. Goddamn." Both of them were young. Rhys couldn't have been older than eighteen, and Dominic was merely twenty. But they were both legendary. The Notus was extraordinarily powerful, and the Briar was, well...

A woman.

Not that Rhys wasn't immensely skilled in her own right. But most people knew her because of her gender. It annoyed her to no end. Ciri couldn't blame her, exactly, though she understood why this was seen as the only thing making her stand out. Female wiccais trained for combat were rare. Most wiccai outside of the Hatlen Isles, the safe haven of wiccai, were not combat-trained, choosing to suppress their powers and live in hiding in fear of persecution and discrimination. Those within the Isles had traditional ideas of gender norms. Women were rarely, if ever, given any kind of combat training. Their powers were forced into the domestic spectrum.

There was talking behind her. Ciri turned her head. Danna had finally deigned to grace them with her presence, a sailor bringing up her trunk behind her. Danna offered a nod of her head as thanks, and the sailor placed the trunk down. She turned, fixing her eyes on each individual person on the deck before turning to the dock. "Rhys and Dominic?"

"I always forget how good your eyesight is," Asteria whistled, throwing her head back.

Without much emotion in her voice, Danna deadpanned, "You're just blind, darling."

Laurence's brow raised. Ciri shut her eyes and smiled. Asteria grabbed Danna's arm and the two girls walked back to the edge. Io galloped towards Lady Kuroki, who whispered something in her ear to make the little girl grin.

Ciri placed her hand behind her, slowly setting herself down on her trunk. "It will be a few hour's ride to Hong Cheng. Would you like to occupy the carriage with Hua Jueying? I assume Dominic will be guarding him with Rhys."

"Sounds awkward."

"It is. I can join you if you want, though space might be a bit tight. Though all four of them would be occupying the other coach, so it's practically the same, really."