Chapter 2 – Il Sovrano

There’s something very calming about a warm bath. The pool was in a small cavern off of Argent’s hallway. He explained that while gryphon’s tended to scoff at technology, they decided that heaters in the water were a good idea. I waded out to the middle and ran my feet over the little mound of rock it was hidden under. The rock was pleasantly hot. I sat down on it, glad that I was tall enough that if I tilted my head back I could still breathe. The heat felt wonderful on my sore thighs and bottom. I now knew why riding bareback was such a bad idea.
The water pressed on my ears, dulling all sound outside of it and amplifying it within. I could hear the gentle hum of the heater and the soft splashing as I waved my arms back and forth lazily. I closed my eyes and let my thoughts drift, not really wanting to think of anything. I hummed Debby’s song to myself. La Fata Morgana… I wondered what it meant.
“That’s a very pretty song,” a voice said under the burble of the water. I immediately sat up self-consciously, sliding off the rock and sinking in up to my chin. The speaker had been a young gryphon woman, maybe 14 years old (maturity-wise, I added to myself). Her orangey feathers glimmered in the gaslight. They were pulled up off her forehead so that her Gem was clearly visible. It glowed dully, wrapped in a tattoo that reminded me of daisy petals. “I’m sorry if I startled you,” she added.
“It’s okay,” I said slowly, making sure that my body was hidden as best as I could manage.
She laughed nervously, her face turning red. “Ah… S-sorry, this is my first time meeting a witch,” she explained hesitantly. “The Chief asked me to bring you these.” She held up a bundle of clothes.
“Ah… Th-thanks,” I said, relaxing a little. “My other ones were kind of dirty.”
“Yes. They’ll be washed tomorrow with the other laundry.” She set the bundle down and turned to leave.
“Uh, wait!”
She turned back around. “Yes?”
“Um… What’s your name?” I asked lamely.
She smiled. “Luca. And you?”
“Erin. But I like your name better.”
“I’m glad you like it. I like yours as well.” Luca laughed. “I was so nervous, but you’re not that different from any of us after all.”
“Yeah. I don’t think any of us are, really.”
“Mm… I don’t know. I met a sorcerer once.” She shivered. “It takes a lot to scare a gryphon, but… There was just… something weird about him. I couldn’t even tell you what, but I feel like they’re different than us. Very different.”
I waded over to the side of the pool, resting my arms on the side of it so that I could talk with Luca more easily. The water felt cool after the warmth of the heater. “Maybe you’re right.” I thought back to the sorcerers in my visions. They certainly had seemed oddly cold and detached, as if they weren’t really a part of the world at all.
“Or maybe I’m just being silly. I was really young at the time, so who really knows?” She shrugged.
“Luca?”
“Yes?”
“What type of clothing is that?” I pointed at the bundle.
“It’s very pretty,” she said happily, unfolding it. It was like a bathrobe, with a loop and tie around the waist, but with several loops to fix the chest in place. It was dark blue and made with something that looked a little like silk. “The Chief felt that it would look nice on you,” she explained.
I studied it. “Maybe,” I agreed. I’d never worn something like it, so I didn’t really know.
I dunked my head under the water and gave my scalp one final scrub before coming up again. “Could I have my towel?”
Luca picked it up from the ground and handed it to me, turning around politely as I climbed out and dried off. “Say, Luca,” I said once I finished and had the towel wrapped snugly around my middle. “What’s it like to live here?”
“Hm… Well, I don’t have much to compare it to, mind you. But, I guess in general, it’s very… cozy. And I don’t just say that because there’re several hundred gryphons living together in these caves.” She laughed. “It’s more like… everything has its place, everyone has their job. The higher-ups have set jobs, like the Order and, of course, the Chief and Elder. But the rest of us rotate jobs every few months or so, overseen by the… director of each job, I suppose you could say.”
“What kind of jobs rotate?” I asked curiously, tying the robe around my waist. “You can turn around now.”
“Oh, you look lovely! Well… Let’s see…” She looked up at the ceiling, shifting her weight thoughtfully. “There’s the laundry, of course. Hunting. Butchering. Messenger...ing.” She smiled nervously. “And, uh… …I know I’m forgetting some stuff, I’m sorry.” She covered her face in embarrassment.
“It’s fine, it’s fine,” I reassured her, buttoning the top of the robe.
“Though things have been kind of different since the Lord came and all,” she said mildly. At my confused face, she blushed and covered her mouth. “Oh, dear, I wasn’t supposed to mention him! You didn’t hear it from me!” She ran away, leaving me alone in the cavern, my hair dripping quietly onto the floor.
Well, I thought to myself, running the towel through my hair, pulling it back and wringing it out. That was weird. I wonder who this “Lord” is…

I slipped back into my shoes and walked back down the hallway to Argent’s room. It was empty. Uncertainly, I glanced around. I had no idea where else to look for him. I mean, I knew he had an office, but these caves were probably dozens of miles deep, not to mention they were spread across several mountains. If you could fly, that was obviously not a problem. But, uh, I can’t fly.
I noticed the orange feathered gryphon that had met us earlier walking down the corridor. Of course, I didn’t know his name. “Uh, excuse me?” I called, jogging over to him.
He turned. “Me? Oh, hello, little witch,” he said cheerfully. “That looks very nice on you. Gift from the Chief?”
“Yeah, I suppose it is, uh…you.”
“Tanné,” he said quickly. “Rude of me not to mention it earlier.”
“Oh! That’s where I’d seen you before!”
“Excuse me?”
“I-I saw Argent’s uh… coronation?”
“Ascension,” he corrected kindly.
“Yeah, that. And I saw you appointed to the Order. You were with him that time he took on the president.”
He smiled. “Indeed I was. So, you are a Seer?”
“I guess so,” I said uncertainly. “I see the past though, not the future.”
“Fascinating!” I know he reads like he was being only polite, or even sarcastic, but he actually seemed interested. His eyes were bright and clear, and honest. I’d rather missed seeing honesty in a boy’s face. Sometimes it seemed like everyone was out to keep me in the dark. Glad to know it maybe wasn’t a universal guy thing. Then again, this guy wasn’t looking to date me. “You should talk to the Elder about it. I’m sure she would find it really interesting, too.”
“I’ll try to sometime, but first…”
“Ah, you’re looking for the Chief, right? He’s in his office.” He didn’t continue, smiling at me as if that was all that needed to happen.
“Um… I don’t…”
“Oh, of course! Sorry! Shall I take you there? It’s in the next cave over, where most of the offices and work bases are.”
“That would be great. Thank you, Tanné.”
“Not a problem! This way.” He began to lead me back up the corridor, toward the entrance.
“So… What does the Chief do, exactly?” I asked conversationally.
“Well, he oversees all the jobs we do on a daily basis. It’s tough to take care of a big tribe like this, and this is really one of the biggest.”
“The Apollo Tribe, right?” I asked.
He nodded. “That’s right. He’s our patron god.”
“So… Your tribe has roots in… Greece?”
“Rome, actually,” he said happily. “Several of the cities that human historians have found have actually been gryphon cities. The humans viewed them as demon cities and feared them. Because, of course, we had no other form then. We were unable to speak and, while we could write, it was a tiresome practice and used only for sacred purposes.”
“I see… So, how did a human god become your patron?” We were outside now. The air smelled so fresh and sweet and the only sounds were our voices and the wind.
“Despite what the human myths say, the gods were worshipped by many other people besides humans,” he explained. “Now, forgive me for interrupting our conversation, but I’m going to need to give you a lift.” He bent over, reaching down toward his toes, and shifted, giving his feathers and good shake before lowering his wings so I could clamber onto his back. We made a brief flight over to another ledge and landed. He changed back. “As I was saying, they’ve long been worshipped by many people, including us.”
“So, how many tribes are there?”
“Twelve.”
“And… the Apollo Tribe is the top one?”
“Pretty much. Though the Diana Tribe, as our sister both in name and importance, usually works closely with us.”
“I see.” I remembered that name. Their messenger was the reason Argent had to be appointed to his position earlier than expected. But I was no longer bitter. The anger and betrayal I had felt then seemed far away, childish.
“This way,” Tanné said, walking into the cave. “This is one of the shallowest caves,” he explained. “All of the offices are here.”
I nodded, looking around. This caves had wooden doors instead of curtains. To better keep people out, I assumed.
Tanné led me deeper inside. “The Chief’s office is in the very back,” he explained apologetically.
“It’s fine. I don’t mind walking.”