Chapter 63 part 2

Embris merely shrugged. She really didn't care either way. Though, the fact that this 'Blue Rose' kept her identity hidden, actually made Embris feel just a little better. Whatever she was up to, was something she didn't want attached to herself, which meant that it was going to be easier to escape if Embris decided to join in the end.

"Anything else?" Embris asked.

Riewis merely shrugged. "I guess if you need any help reading something or anything, we have others who can read it for you, but you'd have to discuss it with them. We can provide a weapon to you, even if it breaks, as well as basic armor. Though, anything more elaborate will have to be out of your pocket."

Embris nodded at that. While she wouldn't mind getting a free suit of plate mail, she had to acknowledge that it was more realistic to have to eventually buy her own. Though she wasn't sure if there was anything else that she'd need to deal with when it came to building up her own equipment.

Although, as she thought about it, she suddenly realized that she had gotten a letter. She wasn't sure who it was by, but the fact that she had a letter meant that she had something to read, or needed something read to her.

Besides, this would spare her a few coins and Nymis and Rephis could know what it said as well. Which meant that she just had to find someone who could read it and she'd be golden. Although, she had little expectation of anyone joining just now to being able to read it at the moment. While it would be nice to know what it said, she wasn't really in a rush to have it read anyway.

After all, she wasn't sure when she'd need the money she'd earned to help her siblings out. So, saving even a single hesh was worth it if it meant that it'd be on hand later on when she might need it more.

_

"A-are you sure it's fine?" Nibbles asked as Jenn was having him escort her and her unit to the jackalope's village.

It was requiring her entire unit because Nibbles wasn't going to lead them with anything less, which Jenn couldn't help but feel a headache about. Even when she'd assured him that it'd be safe and that the wolf-kin wouldn't actually harm him, and that he'd won at their spring collection, so that they'd be able to get some free resources from the wolf-kin. Although, that last part fell flat, as Jenn had suspected it would, given how they felt that the 'free' resources were how the wolf-kin kept them in debt to them.

"Yeah, it's fine," Jenn replied, lying through her teeth. "I don't mind."

She minded that her entire unit had to accompany them. She minded that many in her unit weren't happy about this turn of events. She minded that Nibbles was being a pain about this as well. If he wasn't her sole contact with the jackalope-kin, she might have abandoned him after having saved him with how vocal he was about things that made him nervous.

While she felt bad with how much a bundle of nerves Nibbles was, her patience did have limits. Even when she tried to push them out, she knew eventually she'd reach her limit about extending her limits. Which she was pretty sure was quickly approaching. Though, they were also just at the edge of the jackalope village as well.

Which, in turn, she hoped wouldn't cause her to have to find out just how far she'd actually be able to extend the limits of her patience as well as he ability to tolerate aggravations that wouldn't go away. Either because they chose not to or because it just wasn't possible for them at that particular moment.

"So, do you need the entire squad to enter your village with you, or is this close enough?" Jenn asked, rather than answering Nibbles' question. Partly because she was afraid of what she might actually answer it with.

She hoped he wouldn't require the entire squad, because without the support of Gishia, she doubted that she'd have been able to get them this far to begin with. Any farther and she wasn't sure if that'd ben enough as they weren't happy to have left the forest that they were supposed to patrol. That they were uneasy about having left that area, regardless of if their 'captain' had directed them to.

"I'll be okay with you," Nibbles replied, sounding almost like a little kid rather than the teenager he otherwise looked like.

Jenn had a feeling that the jackalope-kin might be more like children than adults, from Jenn's perspective, largely because of how timid Nibbles seemed. Although, she also couldn't rule out the possibility that Nibbles might be a low-end example of the other jackalope-kin. That he just might be more timid than the rest of them or that he was just tired and once he was better rested that he'd come across as a better example of his kind.

Jenn entered the village, which was clearly meant to blend into the surroundings and would have looked like their surroundings to Jenn if she hadn't been told that this was the village. Though, she also had the feeling that the field they were walking through was likely chosen as a location because of how flat the hills otherwise looked.

Though, she did notice where a few guards were, but they hardly seemed like they were there for defense. Maybe more likely to call out a warning if anything did happen or appear. Which Jenn certainly could understand. Otherwise it almost looked like a cluster of hills that were otherwise unremarkable.

Not that it's continued location helped it any with the wolf-kin being aware of it's presence.

"Unlike the wolf-kin, we don't have an elder," Nibbles commented as they made their way deeper into the village. Or at least what Jenn assumed was the village, since she had no idea how large it was or how far it extended.

However, she was startled for a moment when she saw a jackalope burst out from under a small patch of grass and run for thirty feet before stopping and looking at Jenn, as if it worried she was about to start approaching it again. Though, even as she didn't show any signs of doing so, it was clear the jackalope wasn't letting its guard down.

The fact that it was a rabbit that had the antlers of a deer made Jenn shocked that it had been able to hide in the grass without its antlers showing in the first place. If she would have been able to have noticed it, she doubted that she would have felt so startled herself.

"Don't worry about Lester. He gets rather jumpy around anything new," Nibbles remarked.

Jenn couldn't help but think, Lester?

She wasn't sure if all the jackalope around her had a name, or how anyone would be able to tell the difference between them, since whenever she'd seen rabbits, she was pretty sure that she wouldn't know which one would be which if she had to keep track of them.

However, that wasn't what she'd come for, so she quickly pushed it out of her mind. Especially with her being conscious of her unit watching her carefully as she continued walking into the village. Despite her being nearly out of view.

From what Nibbles had described, the homes were dug from underground and weren't noticeable from above the ground unless you knew where they were to begin with. As such, if Jenn was to live here, that she might begin to recognize where they buildings were themselves.

Which Jenn wasn't convinced about, but didn't say anything to Nibbles. She wasn't sure if it would be a good idea to bring it up to him at this point.

Eventually he led her to a place that looked like It could host a waterfall, with how some of the rocks coming out of the hill looked. Although, as Nibbles walked around it, it felt like either there had been a waterfall there at one time and it had either been blocked by the jackalope-kin or the rocks had been placed to create the illusion.

Inside, Jenn felt like her breath was nearly taken away. Furniture that had been crafted with shed antlers adorned what looked like a foyer, each piece masterfully crafted to look like it was a single antler, even though Jenn could see where one piece of antler ended and another began if she looked closely.

Nibbles then rang a small silver bell that was sitting on the narrow table. The bell was a simple one that had a hammer inside to create a pleasant ringing sound that seemed to echo all around them. The table also had other pieces, some carved from antlers while others were carved from stone.

There was even a piece of a man with a weathered, kind face that almost looked like he was set there to keep an eye on visitors to make sure they were on their best behavior.

The tabletop was made of well polished wood, though Jenn wasn't sure what kind it was. Just that it had a golden color that she wasn't used to seeing in anything one Earth. Although, she certainly wouldn't mind getting something like this at some point. Or at least if she had a chance to acquire something like it.

"The mayor should be with us in a few minutes," Nibbles replied, as if this was all a checklist of what to do.

Jenn nodded, unsure how else to respond. It felt like if she said the wrong thing that they might be cast out before she had a chance to say anything to the mayor. Although, she suspected that that feeling might be her nerves talking more than anything else.

After a minute or two, a door opened that had blended so well into the wall that Jenn hadn't noticed it opened. Outside came a man with the same weathered face as the carving on the entry table. He looked at Nibbles without so much as blinking, though Jenn had a feeling that Nibbles' presence wasn't very appreciated. However, when the man's gaze turned to Jenn, he nearly stumbled to the floor as he backed up too fast and ran into the doorframe.

The man had salt and pepper hair that was neatly cared for and tied in a ponytail at the base of his neck, antlers that were starting to grow out of his head were almost like the jackalope Lester's, He wore a blue and red robe that looked like it was very well-crafted, and wore glasses. He had green eyes that almost seemed to glow in the dim light, and he appeared to be otherwise in picturesque health, aside from his tumble at seeing Jenn.

Jenn suspected that everything this man owned was rather expensive. Whether it was for appearances or because he had more of a taste for the finer things in life, she wasn't sure just yet. Only that he was surrounded by luxury that she had to imagine made him one of the wealthiest members of his tribe.

"Wh-who are you?" the man gasped, not trying to move any further than he had already, as he stared at Jenn. "What do you want?"

Jenn looked at Nibbles, wondering if he was going to introduce her and try to smooth things over or if she was on her own. She wished she could say for certain which one it would be, but right then she wasn't so confident.

"This is a friend," Nibbles said, allowing Jenn a quiet sigh of relief that he did introduce her and she wasn't going to be left floundering again here. "She saved me from the spring collection."

The man looked back and forth between Nibbles and Jenn, uncertainty clear in his eyes. However, after a couple minutes, he seemed to have come to a conclusion about something because he then picked himself up from leaning so much against the doorframe and looked at Jenn as she gazed back at him, unsure what came next.

"My apologies for showing such a display," he said, his voice as calm as if he hadn't freaked out a minute before.

"Not at all," Jenn replied, bowing her head slightly, not sure what the proper custom was for the jackalope-kin, although she was sorely tempted to peek into the mayor's mind to see what that might be. After all, technically they weren't friends just yet, or allies, so she wouldn't be breaking her own determination to not look into the minds of a friend or ally outside of extenuating circumstances.

"So, what brings you here?" he asked. "Uh, I'm not sure I recognize what tribe you're from."

"I'm a human," Jenn replied casually, hoping that it would create an atmosphere that would help keep the mayor from ending up as timid as Nibbles had on occasion. "And I came to see if your people would be interested in an alliance with mine."

The mayor's eyes blinked. It was clear that he hadn't expected such a response to have been made outright and so bluntly. At the same time, Jenn worried that some of what she said might make her feel more like the wolf-kin to the mayor.

"Alliance?" he asked as if it was a foreign word, which technically it was with the way Jenn said it, despite her magic having translated it in his mind into his language. "Why would anyone want to ally with us? The wolf-kin are an ever present threat to us."

"I've already spoken with the wolf-kin and have reached an agreement with them," Jenn replied. "I'll be able to guarantee that they won't bother you with their spring collections anymore, or with the free resources they feel they owe whoever beats them in their spring collection."

The mayor blinked, turned to look at Nibbles before returning his attention to Jenn. "Are you serious? They've never stopped doing that as long as we can remember. Nothing we did changed anything. They just kept us in bondage by giving us the resources so we'd always owe them."

Jenn shook her head slowly. "No, they felt they owed those to whoever won when they didn't collect the resources."

The mayor gave Jenn a smirk that made her want to smack him, regardless of how it would appear or affect the 'talks' in regards to forming an alliance.

"Maybe that's what they said to you, but many of the wolf-kin frequently remind us of it when they drop it off. That we won't be allowed to leave until we pay them back for every resource they give us. It's been that way for generations."

Jenn hoped that the generations that the mayor spoke of was closer to a human's lifespan rather than that of a rabbit's or maybe even a jackalope's. All she really knew about jackalope were that they were supposedly fictional creatures, mostly told around campfires and sometimes sold as decorations, with the antlers really coming from a deer. Though, with these here, she couldn't be sure how much to believe in regards to the 'facts' she remembered her father telling her and Cherie about jackalope. Some might actually be true, but she couldn't really be sure just how much would be or if all of it was a load of bull.

However, getting into those sort of details would need to wait. At the moment, she still needed to conduct the business that had brought her there.

"I have been assured that the elder views it the way that I told you, so I am confident that they'll stop coming to you for the spring collections and if trouble does come up, I was planning on having someone come here to learn your language so they can talk with the person I've arranged to learn the wolf-kin's language in order to-" Jenn stopped for a moment when she realized a discrepancy with the mayor's story, but she quickly recovered and continued on as if nothing had happened. It wasn't the time to dissect the discrepancy. "-to have someone who can communicate with them to help keep the peace between the two of your tribes."

The discrepancy she realized was that if the wolf-kin didn't really understand the language of the jackalope-kin, then how would they know how to call out to them that the resources were to keep them in bondage? Jenn was getting a feeling that being in bondage to the wolf-kin was merely their perspective and unless they learned the language of the wolf-kin, that perspective likely wouldn't change and she was pretty sure that none of the jackalope-kin were likely to do that because of the rift that already existed between the two tribes.

"You'd do that for us?" the mayor asked, making Jenn wonder if it was an honest misunderstanding between the two tribes and not from a deliberate deception. If that was the case, it might be easier for her to create a lasting peace.

Although, she doubted it would go very quickly, regardless of anything else.

"Of course," Jenn replied. "I have reasons why I think I'd benefit from this arrangement as well, but we can always discuss that later when we've formalized an alliance between our peoples."

"I guess that would be fair," the mayor remarked. "Though, how did you get them to let us go from being involved in the spring collection?"

Jenn smiled. "I proposed a competition. Where those who do best get to participate in the spring collection themselves. Your people would be welcome to participate if they wanted, but no one is required to join. The competition would occur in the fall, so it's not like they'd have to do the spring collection the next day or anything."

Jenn could feel Nibble's mirroring the mayor's reaction where his mouth was opening and closing at irregular intervals as he processed what Jenn just said. She was amused at it, but she couldn't say that she was really that surprised.

"So, do we have a deal?" Jenn asked before the mayor could fully recover.