Moonlit Scales [rewriting]

Moonlit Scales: Seven

M O O N L I T   S C A L E S :
Chapter Seven

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THE TRIP LASTED two days, but it felt like so much longer. Phoenix and I mainly traveled by the woods, using their foliage as protection from any watchful eye, in case rumors had started and the Royals were searching for us. So far there was nothing, which I took as a good sign that Addison had done well in preserving my whereabouts. We didn't encounter any trouble along the way, which I was debating meant either the odds were in our favor, or we'd have double the obstacles on the way home.

My feet were blistered, and my eyelids drooped consistently from lack of sleep. Luckily my hair remained short and black, but I noticed that it grew longer and lighter each night, much more rapidly than normal. Within a week, its disguise would fade away.

Aside from that, we fared well. We consumed the hare the first night prior to my transformation, and before I became a girl again I caught us a deer that we ate the next evening, cooking it with a fire I had blown onto a grouping of twigs and leaves. I would snag berries as I passed their bushes, only hoping they weren't poisonous. I hadn't died yet, so I supposed I was all right. When it became too dark for even my advanced reptile vision, we would find a clearing and curl up against a tree until early morning.

I was on the verge of fainting when the endless pastures of Casim edged into view. It was different than what I had expected. First of all it was deserted, save for a few tents that belonged to the generals. I planned to arrive early, but to be the first soldier checking in was far from what I thought I'd be. As if the fact we were going to war wasn't depressing enough, the fields weren't the usual, healthy green and yellow swaying grasses and scattered wildflowers. The grass was practically nonexistent, and what did stay standing was crisp black. The ground was nothing but ashes and singed soil, the occasional carcass lying abandoned like a graveyard.

The entire scene was so completely lifeless, I almost saw my hope vanish with dead certainty that I would never again see home. Casim was a promise of no survivors, like death's door stoop. Doom was written across the expanse of destruction, and the possibility that I had made the wrong choice bombed my body so forcefully that I involuntarily shuddered.

Phoenix's head swiveled uncontrollably, like he sensed danger envelope us as we climbed out of the forest and approached the battlefield. The musty smell was overwhelming, and I had the urge to pinch my nose. Who in their right mind wants to die here in a Godforsaken wonderland?

My boots slid on the dusty earth, and I wouldn't think of what—or whom—I was stepping on as I reached the closest tent. I was about ready to vomit at the thought of living here for two weeks, the average time it took to train the soldiers and deflect the dragons.

I swallowed before I cleared my throat, pulling the scroll out of my satchel. I chewed on the inside of my cheek while I waited for someone to acknowledge me.

The tent trembled and the entrance was unzipped, revealing him.

What on Earth had I signed up for? I thought sourly as I plastered a not-so-friendly smile bordering a wicked scowl on my face. I had dusted my cheeks with a gentle layer of dirt and grime, hopefully covering any feminine aspects. My eyes I would have to pray he wouldn't recognize.

Ambrose raised his eyebrows expectantly. I mirrored him. He sighed. "Yes?"

"Yes, I would like some instructions, if your Highness could be so kind as to provide them?" I showed him the parchment. His eyes flicked to the paper and he took it from my fingers.