Chapter 95: The bitter nuggets.
Sienna continued on as if she didn’t she their shock. "The captain job...." She turned to the guards around and pointed to the one with the biggest build. "Congratulations, captain."
He froze. "Me?"
Sienna nodded. "You are on the fox vanguard and my husband trust you. I believe you will do a good job. And lastly, the tax disputes. If they are complaining about our taxes, double it. If they complain again, double it again. When people have it good, they don’t appreciate what they have. You have to remind them that things could be worse."
Timothy was left blinking, in wonder. The elders could only look to him for help, as he was Lord Fox’s assistant. How much of this were they supposed to put into action?
"I think we should wait for the Lord Fox." One mumbled.
Sienna dismissed them with a gentle wave of her hand. "You had ten problems and I fixed ten problems. Whether you will put these things into action or not is not my business. Elias will not be woken up, and that is final."
Timothy righted his spine and looked at the elders. With a single nod, he implied that they should move on.
She remained at the table, and her lunch was served. Before she moved a fork, Ali skipped over and claimed her position on the lap. "Mama, I came to eat with you," she said in a soft cheerful voice. "Grandma Miller said she had given you so much food and I should help you get rid of it." She slapped her stomach proudly.
It had not been too long since the girl had her own lunch. Where food disappeared to once it entered her stomach, Sienna could never fathom. Maybe the little one had a physique like hers, from back on earth. She was a bottomless pit.
Sienna fed herself and the little one, taking turns to ensure the food was shared equally. As she ate, she listened to Ali narrate stories about the harvest, the three falls Mija had taken, how grandpa Corven had secretly eaten a strawberry core left behind by Honey Thunder and then cried.
"Why did he cry?" She asked.
Ali shrugged. "I don’t know mama. Maybe it was bitter. I cry when I take bitter medicine."
Sienna nodded. "Mmm, maybe." She didn’t miss the greedy way the little one was eyeing the freshly delivered plate of beef nuggets.
"Mama, the beef nuggets are bitter, maybe I should eat them for you." Ali suggested.
It took everything in Sienna not to laugh. The girl was born to eat! A frown formed on her face as she wondered if the little one needed de-worming. Was that a thing in this world? As she thought about it, she realized that she had never had a full body check. Maybe it was best for her and the children to all be checked out.
"Very bitter." Ali doubled down, chewing on a nugget. Despite her words, her fingers were already reaching for a second one. "Mama, you should not eat them at all. Ali will eat all the bitter nuggets everyday."
Ignoring her daughter’s claims, Sienna stabbed a fork into a nugget and munched on it slowly. She thought about what to do with the rest of her day. She couldn’t take another nap. Perhaps, a walk on the beach was good idea. It was a good way to exercise lazily while livestreaming.
"Sis....." Soren screamed, running and jumping. "We are going hunting on Krug mountain. Do you want to come?"
Sienna’s eyes brightened. She had been itching for something to do and it had fallen in her lap. She rose, with Ali in her arms. "Of course I want to go."
"Me too!" Ali added her voice quickly.
Servants returned what remained of the nuggets to the kitchen while Sienna and Ali headed in to change into more hunting appropriate clothing.
The hunt was lead by her Uncles, who were determined to prove to her just how useful and deadly they could be. Even Corven Junior was going along. They flew to the sky, using their wings. She and Ali got on Honey Thunder’s back, followed by half of the swarm.
Sienna started her live stream as soon as they were in the air. But this time, she didn’t say a word. She let Ali’s giggles do all the talking for them.
The air on Krug mountain was crisp, filled with the cries of many bird species. It was a great place for those who indulged in activities like bird watching. All the falcon beast men flew with grace, wings flicking as they scouted the slopes. Sienna, however, was more interested in the fat mountain chickens that darted between bushes.
Two wild rabbits dashed past her, and she didn’t even look at them.
The falcons however, swooped in. Sienna shouted loudly, "Forget them, we are after the chicken."
She threw her body to the ground, scooping a chicken by the legs with surprising speed. As she stood, she glowed with pride. "I caught one. I really caught one." She squealed.
Her joy took a beating when noticing that the others had caught at least four per person. Even Ali had two!
Corven Junior and Soren laughed.
"It’s not a competition." she muttered.
But they treated it like one. The falcon beast men swooped left and right, turning the hunt into a chaotic comedy of feathers and squawks.
Honey Thunder was not to be outdone. She sent her swarm to herd a group of ten birds and herd them all into a trap. By 4 p.m, they had gathered more birds than they knew what to do with.
They came in different colors and sizes. Some were old, others youthful and energetic and some were just chicks. Soren had even managed to find enough eggs to fill a basket.
A bidding war had started in the live stream, not that Sienna was paying any attention to it.
"Mama, we are having a chicken feast tonight." Ali asked, very excited. She had not eaten chicken in so long. Meat was always available at home, but not chicken. Her grandmother Cadelaria did not like chicken, so it was not cooked. But with her mama, things were different. "Mama, we can have chicken nuggets."
Sienna raised her eyebrows. Her little foodie had such a sharp mind for food that she was even getting creative with it.
She ruffled the little one’s head. "Great idea. We will take all these chicken home and eat some and raise the little ones. When they grow up, they can give us eggs from which new chicks are born. Then, we eat the old ones."
Ali clapped her hands.
Meanwhile, Sienna’s words were being spun on the BeastNet: Sienna Veythar plans to steal eggs of bird beast men and eat their young!