Blood Runner: Book Three of the Empress Saga

CHAPTER FORTY-NINE

Enfri came out of her tent once she was dressed for the occasion.

She'd put her hair up in three tails to keep it from whipping about her face. Her outfit allowed for good range of motion, though it wasn't particularly comfortable. It was heavier than Jin's armor, with quite a bit more steel. Hardened leather plates, reinforced with bands of metal, covered her more vulnerable areas. The leather was dyed dark green and the metal polished to a bright silver. Bandoliers crossed her chest from either shoulder to her waist, and they had dozens of potion vials and defensive spells tucked within. A pair of goggles with swappable tinted lenses completed the outfit, and Enfri kept them raised on her forehead.

The two women armsmen that had assisted her with getting into the blustering armor followed Enfri out. She wished they'd stop looking at her with those awed expressions. Enfri didn't feel particularly awe-inspiring. In fact, she felt just short of ridiculous. In all her life, she'd never worn anything more protective than a thick apron and leather gloves while tending the scalethorn patches near her old homestead.

Enfri frowned as she surreptitiously felt at her backside. She'd need to have a word with Jin about this outfit she'd commissioned. It was especially snug around her hips. Winds and storms, but Deebee had a point about leggings. Enfri was reluctant to let anyone walk behind her lest they get an eyeful of this indecency.

Deebee, on the other hand, was resplendent. As the empress' dragon, the Storyteller was the first of the mighty to receive a set of the battle-regalia designed by Nooka and Hugin. The crew was in the midst of securing the last plates of polished steel to her harness. There was a segmented breastplate, barding for her legs, and even a polished skullcap. Looking at her, one would be hard-pressed to remember the silver was a scholar and not a warrior.

"More than a little encumbering," Deebee grumbled. "I'll need to give notes to the Artificer and his Lord of Emeralds. Some adjustments are necessary, and if I change forms, it won't carry through the polymorphy."

"Neither would the crew," Enfri pointed out as she came up to Deebee's head. "Can you move alright? It's not too heavy, is it?"

Deebee hummed as she tested moving her wings through a slow flapping motion. The leading edges of her wingspan were now girded with sharpened metal. "I'll get in the air, but I won't be very agile. I suppose I'll be thankful for all this if one of those renegades comes at us." She passed an appraising eye over Enfri's outfit. "I hardly recognize you, love."

Enfri rapped her knuckles against one of the metal shoulder guards. "I don't much recognize myself."

From the way Deebee's brow furrowed with concern, she must have heard the note of sadness creeping into Enfri's tone. "Then let us put an end to this foolery," she said. "Once this day is ours, we'll allow the sky woman to take the empress' place for a time."

Enfri smiled up at Deebee, but she didn't feel it in her heart. The further along this path she walked, the more she was forced to realize that Enfri Page was no more.

Deebee sighed as if she could hear those thoughts. "The crown makes one faceless. I think I understand why that saying weighs on you so much. Allow me to give you a different old saying to consider." She cleared her throat. "If the empress wants to be a herbalist with a garden, she may."

Enfri covered her mouth. "I don't think I've heard that one before."

Deebee affected a shocked expression. "Really? Well, the mighty have said it for centuries, and I challenge any mortal to say otherwise."

Somehow, that managed to drive away some of the gloom taking up residence in Enfri's heart. She placed a hand against Deebee's forearm. "Armor or not, Ban says we're to stay away from any fighting. The idea's to stay mobile and out of reach, not go looking for trouble."