"An expedition?" King Amiire questioned.
He and his son stood upon the castle walls watching the nightly patrol ride out into Markvere. Vesper leading the charge. Amiire was partially grateful, for his father could not assign him to chaperone the prince if he was gone.
"You've seen their progress, and every soldier goes on one. Because they are to be my personal guards, I would like to take them on an expedition to view how they would perform outside castle boundaries."
"And you feel a camping trip into the mystic woods would bring out their true strengths. Very well. As long as Jasp goes with you as well."
"Of course, Father. We will be gone for a few days, but I promise to be careful," Amiire said as he excused himself.
"Amiire," his father bellowed and Amiire paused in his steps.
"I am aware of your little side expeditions with this lot outside of the castle. This is the first time you have alerted me of your intentions on leaving, and in normal circumstances, I would have denied your request. But because they brought you home safe every time, I will trust their ability to protect you and bring you home. Should they give me one reason to think them unworthy, I will exile them. Understood?"
I'd like to see you try, old man. "Understood.....Father."
King Amiire watched as his son rode off with Jasp and his Pacitings. What he managed to withhold from Amiire was how he intended to send Vesper after them when he returned.
"I will not let you make the same mistake that I have."
The lot waited for them within the woods in a cave. Creatures beyond Mekhi's imagination roamed further in, hence why they refrained from traveling too deep. Ralyks lived in the woods multiple times when he attempted to hide from his previous masters. He knew the area as if it were his home.
He remained on guard outside the cave, keeping an eye out for Amiire and Jasp. Mekhi stared down at the guys who were curled up asleep in a nest of jackets. They appeared more peaceful than Mekhi had ever seen them before. A sense of innocence he knew they would never get back.
"They're gonna be okay, dude," Nikaelis chirped, placing a hand on Mekhi's shoulder. "They got us protecting them!"
"Yeah that's reassuring," Zyair grumbled before walking out to check on Ralyks. Mekhi grinned before glancing up at the kid.
"Thanks, Nick..... You know, there was a time where I would never trust them with anybody. Our caregivers even made me warry sometimes, but they brought a sense of security."
"What's a caregiver?" Nikaelis asked and Mekhi arched a brow.
Only then did he realize in a land with no humans, some of their customs may not had been expressed.
"Oh, okay. Sometimes, when there are children who don't have any parents or relatives to look after them, they are taken into foster care. There, they have certain adults who care for them all until they either get adopted by another family or are old enough to leave and live on their own. In our case, not a lot of families want to take in delinquent boys who know how to pop out shoulder blades and smoke. So, we lived in a troubled boys home, which is supposed to be another sense of Hell..... But our caregivers, unlike most, actually gave a damn about us."
"So, you don't have like, any parents? Just a couple random guys who aren't even related to you?"
"None that I've ever met, no. In all honesty, I didn't even know I was supposed to have parents until I met the guys. Hearing about moms and dads sounded like a fantasy, but apparently everyone has them."
