Arakim's Legacy(#Wattys2015)

Chapter 7

All heads turned towards the door which opened to admit the tall lanky auburn cougar juvenile, letting in more light from the lit torches in the passage. Ren hesitated at the door, glancing at all the occupants of the room without holding anyone's gaze for longer than it took to acknowledge them but not submitting either. But everybody in the room was staring at him with questioning looks, wondering what was so important that the cub was interrupting the meeting of the sentinels and Tyr. They could sense the anxiety in him. Anxiety not borne from fear but one tinged with worry and subdued impatience.

"Elder Mika sent me to tell you that last meal is ready in the hall and almost everyone is awaiting your presence.'' Ren said, looking pointedly at Tyr but before he could say anything else, Tyr gave him a nod, smiling warmly at him, causing the poor cub's heartbeat to rise and eyes widen. He stood there for a second till the sentinels started making their way to the door forcing him to leap out of the way or be mauled down.

Mena smiled inwardly at the cub's antics, stood up to go and felt eyes on her. She glanced in that direction and caught the questioning look Edum was giving her. Mena shook her head knowing what he was asking her. He wanted to know if she needed to talk. Of course, she needed to talk but she wasn't going to talk, at least not at this moment when everything was churning in her stomach. Mena started towards the door with Tyr bringing up the rear when she noticed Djou watching her intently but kept silent which suited Mena for she had no intention of stopping to chat.

When Mena stepped into the passageway, a long enough passage that was several feet wide and about a hundred feet long into which several chambers opened into. Chambers just like the one she just left only smaller, that served as Tyr's office and a place used for meetings. The other sentinels had offices and sleeping chambers along the passageway except for the mated pair who had family chambers in the main cavern beyond this one with the rest of the shifter populace.

Mena could see the other sentinels almost at the archway that led to the ledge that extended on both sides to the stairs going down into the hall from which she could hear the hum of voices drifting upwards from all the shifters gathered there for the last meal of the day except for the young who would have been fed earlier. And that was for convenience's sake, although one could choose to eat in their chambers but most opt for eating with others.

Mena didn't really see the need for conversation during meals, so most time either ate in her chamber or hunted her food down in the woods before last meals but she had a lot on her mind lately and had not been able to indulge. And today's meeting which lasted longer than she expected put a stop that.

But still she had a lot to think about and decided to go to her chambers first before going for last meal. Mena walked down the passage till she came to the last door on her left. The noise level rose higher with more than two hundred shifters talking and eating.

She walked into her chamber which was divided into two by a stone wall with a narrow opening in the wall leading into the second room. The first serving as her office and was utilitarian in its decor having two sturdy tables and a chair, few easy chairs, bare smooth floor and a fireplace that mostly stood unlit. The only attraction in the room was the wall that had most of her weapons hanging on it and the table with the sheaths and the heavier weapons like her big maces, axes, and crossbows. These were her price possessions.

Barely glancing around the place, Mena lit a lamp and walked straight into the inner room, her sleeping chamber, stooping a little to avoid hitting her head on the doorway that had no door, the contrast to the front room. This was decorated in deep rich colours from the red soft woven wool carpet on the floor, to the colourful tapestries on two sides of the walls that belonged to her father and the brightly coloured coverlets, a gift from Adani, on the big bed taking space on the right side room.