A Time of Tigers - From Peasant to Emperor

Nila's eyes cleared as she started to calm down. She nodded once, then twice. "You're right," she said, a determination in her eyes and within her fingers as she tightened the grip on Beam's arm. "They aren't like they were. I have people that will help me now. Whoever, whatever it is that has taken Stephanie, they will pay for it."

They were the sort of words that resonated with Beam. The call to take up power and make use of it. He could not help the golden sparks that flew up into his eyes, as a fire began to burn in his heart and his own determination took hold.

At one point, Nila might have feared those sparks in his eyes and the terribly overwhelming aura that surrounded him when it came on. But now she was beginning to understand him, at least somewhat. He was that which lived in both the light and the dark. If he had reason to, he would reach his arms down into the deepest abyss to claim what he wanted.

"We will find her," Beam said firmly. "I will use Greeves as well. He has already offered himself to me as an information network. Judas and his lackeys are on hand as foot soldiers should I have the coin and the need to use them. For now, I'll search the woods. You search the town and tell Greeves what has happened if you see him."

"I'll search the woods too," Nila protested. "Mother wishes to join in as well. She's been forced to stay at home and look after David, waiting for me to get back."

But Beam shook his head. "If she leaves, there'll be no one to take care of David. Do the town and then take care of the lower woods – besides, you need to gather Rodrey and Rodrick as well."

Nila saw sense in that. Seeing that she wasn't told to search the town merely to keep her safe, she nodded.

"But Nila – listen to me carefully," Beam said. He still hadn't been able to tell her about the new monsters in the upper woods yet, and he was cautious about doing so, for fear that it would only increase her own worry. "No matter what, stick to the lower woods, yeah? You must have felt the disturbance in the wildlife, right? Something is going on. The monsters in the upper wood are far too strong."

Just as he feared, he saw her eyes widen and her determination waver for a second as she almost gave way to worry. "…But they haven't leaked into the lower woods yet, right?"

Beam shook his head. "I'm unsure, but I think not. The soldiers and I dealt with some this morning. Things should be clear, for now."

"Then I can still check the lower woods safely enough, can't I? But if they've taken her to the upper woods then…" Nila trailed off. It was a thought that didn't even bear thinking about. If her abductor had made the mistake of taking her to the upper woods, then Beam supposed that the chances of them being alive were slim, which left Stephanie's chances even slimmer.

"Right. Just stay alert down there. If you even feel something is wrong, start running," Beam told her.

Nila nodded again and Beam turned to leave. Just before he could get away though, she called out to him.

"Beam! Be careful!"

He nodded in reply. "You too. Stay calm. We'll do everything we can to find her."

With those parting words, the two of them rushed off in opposite directions.

Beam sped through the lower forest with his sword already drawn, scanning the forest floor for any sign of tracks. He passed a pair of hunters as he ran, who darted out of his way in fear, thinking at first that it was them he was attacking.

But when he merely passed them by, exuding that intense air that he had, their hearts were able to beat again and they shared a sigh of confused relief with each other.

The forest or the village, those were the only two places Stephanie could be, Beam thought as he ran. They could see all the way across the plains and if anyone was moving through them, they'd know straight away. And, it had to be within running distance – they was no way they could have taken her quietly in a carriage or on horseback.

"She's here, somewhere…" Beam murmured to himself, feeling it in the air. The fog had only thickened in the mountains, with the cold moisture clinging in the air. The higher up he went, the more foggy it became. He could hardly even see a few paces in front of him, but with his eyes on the trail constantly looking out for tracks, he never lost his way.

After ascending the steepest hill, the slick dirt track that separated the last of the lower forest from the upper forest, he began to slow down to a jog. The path here, where the damp had made the mud slick, made it impossible to tell which tracks were which.

The mud was like a canvas layered in one picture after another and it became impossible to pick out any distinctive shapes from them. Beam thought he could see the imprint of a thick paw, but he wasn't sure. There could well have been a boot hidden amongst it all.

"Damn it," he cursed, suddenly realizing that his tracking skills were terribly lacking. "Should I find master?" He murmured to himself. With Dominus' help, they'd be able to cover a lot more ground. He recalled that his master had said that it was his responsibility to care for the village, but surely he wouldn't decline to help him with such an important task for such a reason.

Beam rushed back to Dominus' camp along that line of thought, only to find it empty, just as he had half expected it to be. Ever since Dominus had begun his training again, Beam had seen less and less of him. Dominus had warned him of that, saying that if training was going well, he might be gone for a few days at a time.

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