Chapter 376

376 The Future’s Potential

Tidas and Murdoc were chatting as they helped each other set up their tents. If the Highlander King would’ve gotten his way, he would’ve simply slept underneath the stars, but the sky had been hidden away by clouds all day.

The ones from this morning had stretched out and darkened as the day had pressed on. It had started out as a mist, then evolved into thick droplets by the time they had finished setting up camp. It made it difficult to move around and do much else until it stopped.

Murdoc and Tidas were squatting under a tarp that had been half-tied off to a couple of tents, then pinned down by spikes on the other side. They watched the rain coming down in sheets, which made Tidas worry about Skye. She didn’t even think about the weather when flying around, as long as there wasn’t any thunder or lightning.

Lost in his worry, Tidas barely heard Murdoc gripping next to him; “This isna campin’.. Campin’ is sleepin’ around a fire wit the stars above our heads! Stupid weather!”

Tidas chuckled at Murdoc’s complaint before saying; “Give it a few more years and I bet Skye will be able to do something about inclement weather.”

Murdoc looked at him with a disbelieving expression; “I wanna say yer messin’ wit me, but I don’t think ye are.. She’s such a sweet lassie. I forget how powerful she be sometimes.”

“Aye,” Tidas replied; “I don’t see a weapon when I look at my wife, either. But that’s what the other kingdoms see her as. Not a person, but a thing to be used. Especially the more traits she gets.”

Murdoc shifted his leg until he heard his knee pop, sighed in relief, then replied; “She’s supposed ta ‘catch’em all’ right? I canna even imagine a person bein’ so powerful..”

Right as Murdoc finished his sentence, something crashed into the ground right in front of them. Scaring the two Commanders so badly that they fell over onto the muddy ground as they yelped in shock. As they scrambled to their feet and drew their swords, a massive gust of air followed by melodious laughter caused them to shield their eyes while Zazzy landed.

.....

Mud and water covered their faces as Skye and Zazzy laughed hard. She almost fell over herself when she jumped down from Zazzy’s back. As the rain soaked her, Skye pointed at them and said; “Ye shoulda seen yer faces! Hahahahaha!”

Murdoc looked at the over half-dozen elk that Skye and Zazzy had brought back, then turned back to Tidas and said; “I take it back.. I can see one person bein’ that strong.”

Tidas chuckled lightly as he wiped the mud from his cheek. Skye sloshed through the mud as she walked up to her husband, then kissed his clean cheek. She smiled at him, then held up her hand as she built her magic.

After two minutes, both of the Commanders were cleaned up except for their boots. The rain would only come down harder as the night progressed. Skye and Zazzy had flown above the low ceiling of the clouds to see how far the they stretched.

It was hard for Skye to breath at that altitude, so they only glanced the endless coverage before diving back through the clouds. She wished that she could get Air magic next, so she could go as high as Zazzy wanted. But until she got that power, her speed and altitude were limited.

Glaring at the ground, Skye stated; “Ima Not dealin’ wit mud all night.. Is this the only tarp?”

Murdoc shook his head; “Na, we got a few more. We mainly use ’em ta cover the supplies, and fer in case a tent gets ripped or whatnot.”

Skye nodded; “Get all the tarps that arena bein’ used, and tie ’em together. As soon as I know how big of an area ta square off, I’ll handle the rest.”

Murdoc nodded, then called for volunteers to help with Skye’s project. At the mention of her name, the soldiers were scrambling to help. They knew that at the least, they would be entrained for a few minutes.

Most of the soldiers were either completing tasks, standing around talking, or playing card games to pass the time. There wasn’t much to do except hunt, and the rain had made that impossible for most. Skye was the only person crazy enough to go hunting in a rainstorm.

A few of the Highlanders had walked over to Zazzy, and grabbed the elks except for the biggest bucks that she caught. That one was for Zazzy, and she made it clear when one of the men went to grab it. The low growl she belted out let the soldiers know: that one was her share, and was not to be touched.

As a few of the Highlanders started to drain and strip the elk, several others started to sew the tarps together. Skye built up her magic, then funneled it into the ground. As she did so, Skye walked over to her tent, and grabbed a small pouch from her pack.

Dumping its contents out into her hand, sky revealed several seeds. Murdoc and Tidas looked at her with confusion at first. Until they saw her throw the seeds onto the barren ground..

Several of the Alconians gathered to watch the Last Warrick instantly bring the trees to maturity. It usually took decades for them to grow so large, but Skye had done it in moments. As they stretched, shed leaves, then stretched again; the trees dropped seeds of their own.

Channeling even more of her powers, Skye used her Water trait to such the surrounding ground dry, to give the seedlings the nutrients they needed. The ground shook for a solid fifteen minutes while Skye brought a forest to life. As the last of the daylight disappeared, the Alconians sighed in relief as massive trees blocked the majority of the rain from their tents.

“This is bigger than the forest that was here before! Will they stay without ye here ta keep the soil enriched?” Murdoc asked curious as to if they had a new source of lumber.

Skye beamed; “Aye, this forest should last fer quite a few generations now, so long as Richard stays away from it. I completely shifted the dirt so that ten feet down is fresh. The trees will maintain the soil from her on out. Oh! Ye should plant blueberry bushes and the like around here. That’ll help ta keep the soil balanced, too. And attract wildlife.”

Murdoc smiled adoringly at Skye as he replied; “Ye really are a goddess in disguise, aren’t cha? Are ye sure I canna steal ye away from the prince here?”

“Shut it, Murdoc. Ye know where her heart is,” Amara said as she came out of the crowd.

“And where have ye been? Ye missed the show!” Murdoc replied, ignoring her jab.

Amara scoffed; “Bein’ useful, unlike you. I was lightin’ fires all over camp. What have you been doin’?”

“Usin’ my expertise to coordinate the soldiers,” Murdoc replied with far too much confidence.

“So, tellin’ others what ta do instead of helpin’ out yer self?” Amara quipped as her fists went to her hips.

Murdoc scrunched his face at her; “Ima King: I ain’t gotta do shit if I dinna wanna..”

Amara ‘tsked’ at him, then waved him off like he was a complaining child. As they started to bicker about ‘proper respect’ and how ‘respect is earned’, Skye was given the massive tarp. Using her Earth and Water traits again, Skye dried up the ground, then made two stunted trees grow far enough apart to tie off the tarp, and make a tent big enough for Zazzy to sleep in.

The soldiers had scrambled to keep dry, but no one but Skye had thought about what Zazzy was supposed to do to keep dry. She wouldn’t be cold like a human or Fae would be, but it still wasn’t pleasant to be stuck out in the rain all night.

After she made sure that it was big enough, Skye had Zazzy go inside, and double-check. The only tarps left were being used, so she grew a few trees to help block any rain from coming in when the wind blew. Satisfied that her scaly bairn would be comfortable for the night, Skye went back to Tidas’ side.

“You’re such a good mom to her. I can’t wait to see you with our other children some day soon,” Tidas commented, which made Skye blush happily.

As they leaned in to kiss each other, she quickly said; “And I canna wait ta get home and start makin’em..”

Tidas smiled right as before he kissed her, the pulled back and said; “Sleep in my tent tonight, and we can get a head start on that.”

Skye laughed boisterously, then replied; “Temptin’ as ye are, husband, I dinna think yer tent neighbors would like us much afterwards..”

Tidas scoffed; “Maybe me, but not you.. But you make a point..”

Leaning in to whisper in her ear, Tidas added; “Your moans are for my ears only..”

Skye forced a chuckle to keep her rising need in check as she replied; “I think the residents of Moonstone might disagree. Ye don’t exactly give me a chance ta keep quiet.. Yer too good at what ya do ta me..”

“And what do I do to you?” Tidas asked with a cheeky grin on his face.

“...Things.”

“Things? What things?” Tidas pushed.

“Ya two do know that ye surrounded by Tanks, right? We can hear ye!” Murdoc yelled with irritation in his tone.

“Oops,” was all Skye said before she and Tidas started to crack up.

The Alconians had a fairly fun night, despite the rain. A few of the soldiers had packed some instruments, and played a soft, happy tune as everyone ate and relaxed. They would pack up and move out as soon as they saw light in the sky, so everyone turned in early except those scheduled for guard duty.

The Tamers usually handled it because they could sleep while their companions kept an eye out for them. As the night shifted into the next day, Skye had woken up several times during the night, the same as Tidas. Both having similar dreams of a black mass dragging their beloved into the darkness.

When the soldiers awoke before daybreak, few talked as they readied themselves for the day. They would reach the outskirts of the old capital, then tomorrow: they would face Richard. Trepidation was obvious on most of the Alconians’ demeanors.. All except two.

Determination shined on Skye and Tidas’ features, putting some of the soldiers at ease. The clouds were still hanging in the sky, and more rain was on the horizon. As they gathered everything and readied to move out, Amara and Murdoc took one last look at the forest that Skye had created.

Squirrels, Chipmunks, rabbits, and other common creatures of forests were already making themselves right at home. As they watched a couple of squirrels chasing each other around a tree, Amara said; “If she can do this now, imagine how powerful she’ll be in a few years.”

Murdoc nodded; “Tidas was sayin’ somethin’ similar.. Do ye think she’ll change as her power grows?”

Amara understood what he meant and replied; “Depends on how much she loses over the next few years.. But even then, I think she’ll still stay Skye.. From what I see: there’s really only one person we should be worryin’ about...”

Murdoc nodded in agreement, then smiled mischievously as he replied; “Aye.. Ima quite eager ta meet this Prince Marco. Who knows? Maybe he’ll piss me off, and I’ll save’em both a butt-load of problems and kill’em me self..”