The True Confessions of a Nine-Tailed Fox

Chapter 108: The Slowest Lychee Tree

"Where are we now? Are we there yet? I'm tiiiired."

"You were perfectly capable of walking much longer distances when you were a normal horse. Stop fussing."

"But I had to walk all day, and now I have to walk all night. I'm sleeeepy. I'm tiiiired."

"How can you be tired? You're a spirit. Look at Bobo. She doesn't even have legs, but do you see her whining?"

"She's too nice to say she's tired."

When Floridiana's and Dusty's heads both swung towards Bobo, she forced a cheery grin to reassure them. "I'm fine. Don't worry about me!" She was starting to tire, although it was less from muscle strain and more from mental stress.

Another explosion boomed somewhere in the forest to their left. Not so close that the shock wave flattened them, but still much, much closer than Bobo liked. None of the Claymouth bandits or the Baron's guards used explosives, so she'd never realized that such horrible things existed.

"Maybe I can climb a tree to sssee where we are?"

"Good idea," said Floridiana, making Bobo smile with pride. "I'll go with you. Dusty, stay."

The horse snorted and stamped one hoof. "As if I have anywhere beeeetter to go."

"And speak properly. Stop pretending you're Lord Magnissimus."

"I am NOT pretending to be Lord Magnissimus! I am the Valiant Prince of the – "

"Yes, yes, you are. Come on, Bobo."

Leaving the horse to stomp on a patch of moss, Floridiana selected a tall tree that had sturdy branches and narrow leaves that wouldn't block their view. She crouched, sprang up, and swung herself onto the lowest branch, then hauled herself up from branch to branch. Bobo slithered after her, taking care not to exceed the human's pace. Together, they looked out over the forest.

Then they kept looking for a while.

"Well," said Floridiana at last. "That's...something."

"Wow!" was the only word Bobo could find to describe the battle. Hundreds and hundreds of those vicious trees ringed the city, while soldiers shot exploding crossbow bolts at them and tried to burn them up.

While Bobo had been gawking, Floridiana had been craning her head around and analyzing the scene. "The Lady of the Lychee Tree must have summoned lychee trees from all over the fief! Just look at that!"

Bobo followed the mage's finger. Long, winding tracks of naked earth, each the width of a root network, led from all directions to the ring of trees. "Wow!" It really was the only word for it. "Good thing we're not in a lychee tree!"

Which was when she realized that all the nearby trees had stopped creaking and swaying after the shock wave passed – but their tree had not.

"Ummmm, is it jussst me, or do you sssee that too?"

Floridiana, however, was still studying the battlefield. "I'll bet that's the commander. I wish I could see his standard.... I wonder if it matches any of the ones in A Mage's Guide to Serica...?"

"Ummmm, Mage Floridiana?" This time, Bobo gave her a gentle nudge, careful not to startle her into losing her grip and falling. "Why is our tree the only one ssstill moving?"