Book 3 Chapter 14: Learn or die
Dantes and Murk arrived at the Conclave in the center of the Veridian Expanse together. It was already late evening by the time they arrived, and everyone else was already sitting around a fire and eating a meal that smelled like a hearty mix of game and freshly foraged vegetables.
Traizen put down his bowl and approached them with his arms wide, wrapping both of them into an embrace. Jacopo had to quickly adjust where he was sitting in order to avoid the elf’s pale muscular arms.
“Murk, Dantes, it is good to see you. We were beginning to worry, particularly with how our connections were feeling. We were just discussing coming to help you.”
Dantes wiggled his way out of the embrace. “Murk was just having a bit of trouble. It happened to be something I could help him with on my way here, so I intervened.” Traizen didn’t need to know that Dantes was given little choice in the matter, but Traizen's knowing gaze seemed to indicate that he was already aware.
“He saved the life of my sister, as well as my own. I consider him a blood brother, and hope he would consider taking a mate from my pack,” said Murk.
Dantes blinked a bit at that. He’d seen many times how often enemies could become allies, but this seemed a bit extreme.
Traizen smiled more widely than Dantes had ever seen before, his eyes glistening slightly with tears. “I am so grateful that you have moved past your enmity to see one another as brothers.”
Dantes stood there awkwardly for a few moments, unsure of how to react to so much sincerity when he himself dealt in it so infrequently.
“So, is there any food left?” he asked.