Aether Beasts

The first vehicle that came fully into sight was not as odd as I had expected and essentially looked like a normal caravan except bigger and with a triangular plow-like object at the front. It was covered in enchantments, from basic camouflage to more complex things that seemed to have some sort of effect on the nearby ground. They were rectangular in shape for the most part except for the front, and while they seemed to have treads, they were currently floating along at a normal pace.

There were no obvious storage cells, but I was sure they were there.

My attention didn't remain on the vehicles for long as the riders and people of the expedition came into the view.

The first thing that caught my eyes immediately was the snake woman.

"A naga," Zirani said in answer to my unspoken question. "I had a naga teacher when I was at my aunt's court. They are dual affinity beasts of death and nature. Poison and venom experts. Most of what I know about poisons comes from them, though this one is young."

The naga had the upper half of beautiful women with porcelain skin and fine features. Flowing black hair framed a delicate face that would attract the gaze of any man. Her chest wasn't lacking either, but past her stomach was not a pair of legs, but a long serpent-like body covered in dark green scales. She wore clothing not unsimilar to Zirani's garb. Two straps of black cloth, covered her considerable breasts and wrapped around her torso. It left a lot of skin bare.

The crowd murmured and muttered which seemed to agitate the naga as she suddenly seemed to shift, and where once stood a snake woman, now stood a normal human woman. She had the same features but the lower half was now normal human legs covered by more cloth that wrapped around her legs and covered her private area. It gave off a superficial impression of clothing without actually hiding anything. The entire grab was very revealing and left a lot of bare skin on display

"Shapeshifting?" I questioned aloud.

Zirani nodded. "Minor shapeshifting. Naga have three forms. Full serpent, hybrid, and then this human form you see now. They can also manipulate their scales in the hybrid and human forms to use them as clothing and other such things."

"Why is she dressed like that?" Misty asked.

"Like what?" Zirani asked, genuinely confused. "It's fairly normal clothing for a naga, though I suppose it must be a surprise for those in the plains. Those in the lands of the green court are a lot less prudish."

"Good to know," I muttered, and thought back to how I'd sort of gotten used to the girls being in very little clothing. Hell, Zirani's normal clothing was quite revealing. I wasnt sure how I felt about the naga. She was beautiful, but the snake half was simply unlike anything I had ever come across.

The naga moved into one of the vehicles, and the crowd turned their attention to the rest of the expedition.

Most were normal humans in different colored arcane robes, but I saw a few in heavily enchanted armor carrying enchanted weaponry. In fact, all of them had enchanted clothing, which was probably normal and something I would have to get used to. In the plains, having enchanted clothing was a sign of wealth, but in the lands beyond the scar, it was probably normal and commonplace in most places.

"Well, well, well. That's unexpected."

I turned to see Zirani smiling, and I followed her gaze to a stunning woman who was seated atop one of the vehicles with one leg over the other and an imperious air about her.

"Who is that?" Misty asked.

"The verdant lady, Aeverie," Zirani announced with a hint of pride in her voice.

"You know her?' Sandra asked.

"Know her?" Zirani chuckled. "I was the one who recommended her for the title. I didn't expect to see her here though. She's not a fighter and held little interest in the plains."

"Is she human?" I asked.

"Elven Fae," Zirani answered.

"Fae," I muttered as I stared down at her.

She was unearthly in a way, her beauty inhuman. Her fair skin was unblemished and had a glow about it while her dark brown hair seemed to blow in rhythm against an invisible breeze. Her body was attractive, to say the least, and after I squinted, I spotted pointed ears and got a look at her light blue eyes with rings of verdant green.

The men and even the women in the crowd stared at her in awe and lust.

That seemed to annoy the younger-looking man who was set next to her. He looked smililar to the fae, but less in a way. He had the same unearthly quality though nowhere near as strong as the lady, and his ears were only slightly pointed.

"He's a half breed," Zirani explained. "Half human and half fae it seems."

"He seems pissed," Sandra noted.

"That's because he's her consort," Zirani replied. "Or so it seems. He looks the jealous type."

"Consort?" I asked.

"It's complicated," Zirani said. "Best we save this talk of court politics for another time, perhaps on our way to my lands. For now, just think of him as her official lover, lower than a husband and partner but higher than some common courtesan or tryst."

I watched them for a few more seconds before I turned my attention to the others who were walking beside or sitting atop the vehicles. More were probably inside, and I was sure I'd get to see them later.

"Zirani, are those…"

Misty words trailed off and it took a moment to realize what had caught her attention. Atop one of the vehicles towards the rear was a woman with pale skin and coal-black hair, framing a face with two crimson eyes.

"Vampires," Zirani mused. "That's a surprise."

"Is this bad?" Misty asked, her fangs bared, and eyes glowing. I could feel the beast within her responding to this new threat and assessing things.

I sent calming thoughts to her through our bond.

"Could be," Zirani replied and I felt her help Misty as well, adding her efforts to mine. "It could also be a good thing. I can't tell if they are of a clan or house. We'll deal with it. take care not to stay around them too long. They will have a much easier time of seeing through the mask, though we might not need the mask if all goes well. If they've allowed vampires into the expedition then that means everyone down there accepted it and they should be no conflict or trouble if we reveal you."

That eased some of Misty's worry, but she still seemed on edge, not that I blamed her. This was the first time meeting another aether vampire. Zirani also talked about Misty's bloodline and how dominance was a major part of empire society.

Speaking of nerves, I noticed that Sandra's gaze had locked onto a group of dune surfers at the center of the procession. It didn't take long to understand why as my eyes fell upon a blond-haired arcanist with emerald green eyes and a dark robe.

"Is that a member of your clan?" I asked Sandra.

She nodded. "Probably from a branch family. He has the eyes, but not the hair."

"This isn't as large as I expected," Zirani admitted. "I saw off an expedition once and it was greater than this. Either they lost some along the way or not as many wanted to come this time."

"Is that a good or bad thing?" I asked.

"Both in some ways." Zirani shrugged. "Nothing we can do about it."

We continued to watch the procession as it moved further into the city, and I spotted a few more interesting people like what seemed to be a person with smooth bark-like skin, someone covered head to toe in bandages, and a man with horns and pitch-black iris's around a white pupil. I thought it was some sort of vampire at first until Zirani clarified it was a half-demon, a cambion to be more exact.

I had a ton of questions but kept them to myself for now.

Soon the procession passed us, and the crowd began to disperse, some following or leaving while others stood about and spoke to one another.

"Do we go now?" Sandra asked.

"Let's just slowly follow," I replied. "Let them get to the center of the city first."

Everyone agreed, and so we slowly made our way to the center of the city, going from rooftop to rooftop when we could. We didn't move as stealthy simply because most of the city was watching the procession and so the streets and other roads were very barren, with only a few people going about their business.

As we followed the procession, I knew one thing for certain. Things were about to get very interesting. There would be new things to see and experience along with new challenges and obstacles to face.

"We'll get through it, together."