Heavy is the Head that Wears the Solemn Crown

Twenty-Six - Blood of Fire and Soul of Ice

Techno

The horse Techno took from the pirate camp was not as tame as Carl is. The horse is a terrified creature underneath his legs, and the only reason it has not attempted to buck him off is because of the blonde child that sits in the saddle with. Tommy's usually chaotic presence somehow soothes the beast until it steadily rides down the dirt paths. Techno would rather not ride a horse at all, knowing he is much faster than this poorly bred specimen. The winged creatures- seraphim, they called themselves- could fly overhead to keep up with him, or leave altogether, for all he cared. Fool also seemed plenty capable on her feet. She would chase after, leaping agilely into the air when she lost sight of him to return to his side. The easiest option would be to put Tommy on his back, but he couldn't disturb the boy's rest even if it cost him efficiency. The seraphim told Techno that Tommy would probably sleep for the whole journey back to Pogtopia since growing out his wings tuckered him out. This was a matter of Tommy's health.

"I'm surprised you care this much about that boy," Alex remarked. She was walking right beside his horse, effortlessly keeping up with the trotting beast. Her bow was slung over her shoulder. Her hands were gripping the back of her hand, her folded elbows outstretched like a pair of fleshy wings growing from her head. Techno looked away when that comparison registered in his mind. He supposed he was still surprised that Tommy had his own pair of wings. They were folded in between Tommy's back and Techno's chest. They sometimes twitched, but they mostly remained still as Tommy's slow breathing found the spaces where the horse's footfalls couldn't fill up.

"What do you know about the seraphim?" Techno asked instead of acknowledging her words. He kept his vision focused in front of him, but he could feel her glowing eyes staring at him from the corner of her eyes. She was upset for some unfathomable reason, and her emotions were making her seem even more inhuman than usual.

"The seraphim are ancient creatures thought to be extinct," Steve answered for Alex. Techno could not see his human form, but his voice was steady in his ears like Steve was speaking right next to his head. "They are familiars. When a new god comes into being, they create a species to serve them. I do not know which god the seraphim belongs to. I believe they were a god of light. All I know is that the god who birthed the seraphim has been dead for thousands of years. The seraphim should have died alongside that god, but it seems the god blessed their familiars with autonomy before their passing. Moon, that fool you allow to travel with you, is a harengon, another familiar. The harengons should be dead, though. They were hunted down. I believe the only reason she was able to survive is because she changed her form."

Techno's grip on the reins tightened. Tommy was the familiar of a dead god, and Fool, who called him master, was a creature wanted dead by the divine. It was now very clear why Alex was upset, and Steve refused to show his form. They were angry with him for traveling with these two creatures. They saw Tommy and Fool as hindrances. He wasn't sure if they truly cared about him or if they simply did not want their favorite toy to be taken away, but they were barely restraining themselves from telling him to abandon the two.

Fool, Techno would love to walk away from. Despite how useful she was in a fight, she annoyed him to no end. He wanted her dead more than he wanted her alive, and he was struggling to hold back his bloodlust when she would look at him with monstrous eyes. The only reason he didn't slit her throat in the night was because of some deeply rooted nostalgia that held back his arms when he would reach for his knife.

Tommy, on the other hand, Techno could not walk away from. He still wasn't sure what connected the two of them, but he had accepted that Tommy was part of his life now. He was going to hold onto the blonde until the war was over, at least. When the world stabilized and peace was restored, he would think about letting Tommy explore the world. If he and Kristin wanted to visit the empire, he would make sure they were well-protected from the monsters that roamed the forests and the predators that lurked in the palace.