“Now, the Screaming Eagles are almost here,” Leon said as he wiped the scowl off his face, the meeting with the Thunderer having just concluded, “but before we get to them, I have some questions.”

“I believe we have a few minutes,” Nikolaos said as the hall quietly murmured amongst itself, the elders and Chiefs discussing the Thunderer’s visit. “The Eagles won’t be here for a short while, and we can keep them waiting for a little while without insulting them.”

“Hopefully this won’t take insultingly long,” Leon replied. He turned to the Jaguar and asked, “What was that ninth-tier woman talking about when she said she’d heard things about you from ‘Hector’?”

The Jaguar frowned and took a moment to respond. Hesitatingly, he asked, “Do you… remember who Hector is? I… spoke of him briefly once.”

Leon recalled all that he’d heard of Kataigida from the Jaguar. They’d met multiple times while the man was in Occulara, and they’d spoken at length of the political and social situation of the Ten Tribes. Leon did vaguely recall the name ‘Hector’ coming up a few times.

“He is… a member of the Tiger Tribe, isn’t that right? Currently working under the Thunderer in some capacity?”

“Yes,” the Jaguar confirmed.

“The Tigers,” Nikolaos began as the Jaguar went momentarily quiet, apparently lost in thought, “are ruled differently than we are. Their Tribe is more rigidly segmented—they still have a Tribal council, but they serve mostly as a council of advisors. The true power of the Tribe rests in the hands of the Chief of the Raging Tiger Clan, acting as Hegemon of the Tribe.”

“The current Hegemon of the Tigers and Chief of the Raging Tigers is Hector’s twin brother, Solomon,” the Jaguar interjected. With a sigh, he added, “At one time, he was my brother-in-law.”

Leon, intrigued, raised an eyebrow.

“My sister,” the Jaguar continued, “fell in love with him, and our father arranged a marriage. The marriage, as far as I’ve ever been aware, was happy, but childless. Solomon took other wives and had children with them, but his bloodline is awakened, as was my sister’s, rendering children between them effectively impossible.”

“What happened to your sister?” Leon asked, picking up on the Jaguar’s use of past tense.

The Jaguar went quiet again, and when he spoke again, his eyes were unfocused and distant. “She is with our Ancestors, now. Age got to her before she could advance beyond the sixth-tier.”

“My condolences,” Leon softly stated.

“Thank you.”

Leon let that sit for a moment before asking, “How does all of that relate to Hector? I’d have thought that with the two of you becoming family, your relationship wouldn’t have been the sort that would’ve had that woman thinking negatively of you.”

“Hector… was my best friend,” the Jaguar stated so quietly that even Leon had to strain his ears to hear his voice over the low din of the hall. “To put it simply, both he and Solomon were in contention to succeed their father. It came down to a duel where both Hector and Solomon could call upon their allies.”

“Hector called upon you?” Leon softly inquired.

The Jaguar nodded.

“You didn’t fight with him?”

Again, and with his face becoming momentarily lined with sadness and regret, the Jaguar nodded. “I couldn’t,” he stated, shame coloring his voice. “He was like a brother to me, but my sister had married Solomon. To fight against Solomon would be to fight against my kin.”

The Jaguar went quiet again, his golden cheeks now red from shame, and what Leon felt was quite possibly anger, embarrassment, sadness, and a host of related emotions at having to not only relive these events, but in such a public place—even if, by his estimation, the other elders and Chiefs were not paying much attention, either absorbed in their conversations or politely making small talk with those sitting next to them instead of concentrating on Leon, the Jaguar or Nikolaos.

When the Jaguar spoke again, he simply said, “I chose my family that day, and I lost my best friend. Hector lost his bid to become the Tiger’s Hegemon and has never forgiven me.”

Leon took a moment to absorb all of that information and then said, “I apologize for bringing all of this up here. Thank you for telling me this anyway.”

“As my King commands,” the Jaguar said, and he went quiet again, but this time, Leon didn’t pull him back from whatever memory he seemed to get lost in.

So, turning to Nikolaos, he said, “I’m changing the subject if you’ll forgive my abruptness.”

“By your will, Your Majesty,” Nikolaos said with a mirthful smile.

“You called the Thunderer something while he was here,” Leon said. “‘Iron-Striker’. What did you mean by that?”

“I sit upon the Elder Council in Stormhollow,” Nikolaos said. “The Thunderer did too, before he was named Thunderer. We know each other from that time, though not particularly well. ‘Iron-Striker’ was the name I knew him by. The Booming Brown Bears have strange naming conventions, having separate names for their kin, kith, and everyone else. ‘Iron-Striker’ is the Thunderer’s public name. Or was his name, until he became the Thunderer.”

“He didn’t seem too thrilled that you used it.”

“He likely took it as an insult, which is good for that is how it was intended. The Bears place great importance on names. The Thunderer would prefer to be known as ‘the Thunderer’, despite having been known as ‘Iron-Striker’ for centuries. To the Bears, this change in how others refer to someone is just a matter of course, and they typically take great offense if others don’t respect such matters.”

“I see,” Leon replied. He closed his eyes and took a moment to think. When he opened them again, he stared at Nikolaos and said, “There’s no need for such disrespect. If he wishes to be known as ‘the Thunderer’, then so be it. It is his current rank, after all, unless there’s some legal contention that it isn’t?”

Nikolaos’ easy smile faltered a little bit and he admitted, “No, his rank is legitimate, no one is arguing that point. We’d just rather he didn’t hold it.”

“We needn’t tarnish our cause with disrespect,” Leon said. “Refer to him, at least in public, as ‘the Thunderer’. I’ll not have us losing allies over such insults, minor as they may be to us.”

Nikolaos smiled bitterly and bowed to Leon, silently accepting his order.

After that, they stood upon the dais for a few more silent minutes, Leon only speaking to postpone the council’s attempts to discuss the Thunderer’s words until after the Screaming Eagles had been received. The Eagle’s delegation had arrived over Raikos, after all, and he didn’t want to get too into the weeds with that discussion and delay their reception, potentially insulting them enough to cost him their support, especially since their Lawspeaker, Exallos Aetos, had come personally, encumbered with more than two dozen other eighth-tier elders and a couple hundred others of varying power in their delegation.

“That’s a large flock,” Leon observed.

“A good sign,” Nikolaos said as they were shown into the Jaguars’ gathering hall. “If they were here to refuse to pay you obeisance, they would’ve sent a considerably smaller delegation.”

Leon smiled and hummed noncommittally.

As Aetos led his Eagles in, the waiting Jaguar Chiefs and elders murmured and stomped in welcome, a couple elders even calling out some of the Eagle elders by name. It wasn’t hard for Leon to see that both Tribes were close given the attitudes expressed on both sides.

“Welcome, Exallos!” Nikolaos shouted as he stepped off the dais and went to welcome his counterpart. “It’s been too long since you came out this way! Why is it that we’ve had to wait for such a momentous occasion as this for you to return to Raikos?”

“Probably because your people so rarely stay long in Raikos,” Exallos Aetos drily replied. “Venturing a couple thousand miles outside of my Tribe’s domain is not done lightly, you know, so visiting much further east than this is out of the question without adequate planning. You could more easily come to Raimondas, but for the sake of your ego, I’ll refrain from asking why you have never visited.”

Nikolaos laughed in good cheer as he escorted Aetos to the dais. While he then stepped back onto the dais, Aetos respectfully remained standing just past the lip, the rest of the Eagle elders at his back.

“It is good to see you again, Leon Raime, Heir of the Thunderbird,” Aetos formally stated. “I was worried when I saw the Thunderer himself leaving Raikos not long ago and hurried these last few steps to the city.”

“Fortunately, he was only here to exchange words,” Leon explained. “He declared that he would not support my rule over the Ten Tribes.”

“Hmm. Expected,” Aetos intoned. “Though, it does raise a question: if you don’t have the support you want, what are you going to do?”

There were a few discontent murmurs from among the Jaguars, but Leon smiled and answered the question, knowing that it was more than fair.

“I will accept the fealty of all amongst your people who choose to give it. I have little interest in compelling fealty through violence, though I hope you understand that weak vassals and bannermen are not in my interest, so I’ll be sharing certain powers with those who do swear to me.” He paused and his smile thinned. “And only to those who swear to me.”

Aetos nodded. “So those Tribes who do not choose to follow you will not be attacked?”

“I do not seek war,” Leon clarified. “I seek only the restoration of that which once belonged to my Clan. I understand that war may be inevitable to achieve that goal, but I will not seek it out. If I enter into hostilities with any of the Ten Tribes, it will only be because they attacked me first. If any Tribe rejects me, then I will proceed without them.”

“And they would have no choice but to continue without the support of any Tribes that declare for you?” Aetos inquired.

“My Clan was not simply the rulers of this plane, and I would have all that we once were restored. That means my goals lie elsewhere in the universe. Within the Nexus and other planar clusters. I will not stay on this plane, spilling blood and exchanging sharp words over petty Empires. Those Tribes that swear to me will, of course, come with me in that endeavor, and have all that they may have lost in the universe restored. With interest.”

Aetos took a deep breath, a deep smile spreading across his face. “Then let it be known,” he loudly began, “that the Screaming Eagle shall fulfill its age-old obligation to the Thunderbird!”

He dropped to a knee, along with all those elders at his back.

“Let our talons be your swords!” he shouted, his words echoed by the others he’d brought with him. “Our feathers, your armor! By the winged grace, we swear to fight your enemies and guard your house! Our King! Leon Raime! The Thunderbird Reborn! The Thunderbird Reborn! The Thunderbird Reborn!”

His voice grew progressively louder, as did those of the rest of his delegation. By the third ‘The Thunderbird Reborn’, the Jaguars had picked up the call, repeating it again and again. The Jaguars took to their feet and began stamping their feet and roaring into the air, the combined weight of their voices and wildly spiking auras causing even the heavily fortified gathering hall to violently shake.

But that was nothing compared to how Leon felt. He felt every intonation, every chant deep in his bones. He could feel the Thunderbird herself taking notice deep in his soul realm, and her pride would’ve filled him to the brim if his pride hadn’t already done so.

Leon had rarely ever coveted a throne for its own sake, but in that moment, he truly felt like he understood why kingship was so coveted. It was intoxicating, having so many powerful men and women declaring for him so enthusiastically. Two terrifically powerful Tribes, their elders and Chiefs representing many millions of people, showing him such loyal support, was more than he’d ever thought himself worthy of.

He took a deep breath, then held up his arms, doing his best to accept their acclamation as he thought a King ought to. The chanting of ‘The Thunderbird Reborn’ continued for at least twenty repetitions until Leon altered his stance a bit, silently calling for silence. It took a few more repetitions, but eventually, the hall quieted down.

“The support and faith that you have all shown in me and my Clan,” he began, wishing he’d planned some kind of acceptance speech, “humbles me beyond my ability to articulate. But know that the Thunderbird considers the Jaguar and the Eagle her dearest friends! Your faith in me will not go unrewarded or unreciprocated! Together, we will reclaim what we have lost, and usher in a new age not just for our Clans and Tribes, but for the entire universe, which will shake with our coming!”

He’d spoken entirely off the cuff, but it seemed that was enough as Jaguar and Eagle alike roared their approval, and as he basked in their show of support, Leon looked around and saw not a single unhappy face. While he’d long professed that he intended to rebuild the Thunderbird Clan, this was the first time he ever truly felt like it was not only possible but that he’d already taken the first real steps on the road to the restoration of his Clan.

‘… and revenge for them, too,’ Leon thought with some satisfaction. While he’d set aside his grudge against Justin Isynos, Justin’s boss, ‘Lord Kamran’, was still out there, and Leon would afford him no similar courtesy.

But as good as he felt, there was still a small part of him that was waiting for the other shoe to drop, for the reminder that this was not going to continue to be so easy.

As it turned out, he didn’t even have to wait a single day.

—

With the Eagles having declared their support for him, Leon quickly wrapped up the meeting, allowing the Jaguars to see to arranging suitable accommodations for their guests. Leon then went to his own guest villa with his retainers, intending to celebrate.

It turned out that his idea that the entire city heard the hall’s thunderous acclamation was spot on as not only were his retainers practically buzzing when he left the hall, the whole city was practically driven into an uproar, and as he was escorted back to his guest villa by the Jaguar and several dozen ‘honor guards’ from the Jaguars, the citizens of Raimondas cheered whenever he passed them on the street.

He found himself waving and smiling more in that twenty-minute trip than he felt like he had in the past year.

Upon reaching his guest house, he immediately dismissed the rest of his retainers to plan out their own celebrations while he took Valeria and Maia into their private quarters to spend the next hour more intimately—though, separately, at least for the particularly intimate moments. Once that private celebration was out of the way, he found himself, with both his ladies and Anzu, making a call with the comm lotus back home to Occulara, and sharing the news with Cassandra and Elise.

“… wish I could’ve been there,” Elise sighed. “It sounds like it would’ve been a magical experience…”

“It was,” Valeria confirmed with a bright smile. “The whole city was chanting it by the end.”

“It was exciting,” Maia added, emphasizing her understated point with a satisfied smile of her own.

“We’ll have to have a proper coronation, then,” Cassandra declared. “Impromptu ceremonies like these are nice and all, but it pales in comparison to an actual coronation. We’ll need to have all of the Sky Devil leadership there, and then—”

“I think planning that might be a bit premature,” Leon interjected, causing Cassandra to pout a bit.

Before she could say anything more, a knock came at the door, and Anzu jumped up to go answer it. He poked his head out of the door, exchanged a few words with whoever was there, then leaned back into the room.

“Brother,” he said, “the Hawks have sent a delegration, too.”

“Delegation, Anzu,” Elise corrected through the lotus.

“Dele-gation,” Anzu repeated slowly.

“We won’t keep you then, husband,” Elise said.

“Yes,” Cassandra added. “Go and accept even more vassals. Grow your Empire. I will accept nothing less than complete victory from my husband!”

She smirked provocatively and Leon told himself to remember that when he returned to Occulara.

With just a few more words of goodbye, Leon wrapped up his call and set out for the gathering hall once again, a scant few hours since he’d left it last. Being caught up in the celebratory mood of the city, which was still practically vibrating with the energy of the Eagle’s and Jaguar’s joint acclamation, Leon soon found himself flying over the city in Thunderbird form, his retainers trailing him not too far behind, and circled the gathering hall’s forecourt several times before landing and returning to human form.

“Leon!” Nikolaos called out, drawing Leon’s attention. In contrast to the jubilant mood of the rest of the city, Nikolaos and the rest of the dozen or so Jaguar elders who were waiting for Leon’s arrival in front of the gathering hall looked significantly more concerned, which in turn dampened Leon’s mood.

“I heard the Hawks arrived,” Leon said as he walked over, his concern growing with every step he took.

“They have,” Nikolaos confirmed. “Their delegation numbers only five.”

Leon cocked an eyebrow and said with some disbelief, “Five?”

Nikolaos nodded in confirmation.

Leon took a deep, steadying breath and braced himself for a political sucker punch. “Well. Best not to make assumptions, I suppose. Let’s go see what they have to say…”