A King's Legacy Ch. 11

"It's a very plausible conclusion... One I have thought on many times myself. Although, I will admit I wasn't aware the orcs had made peace with the human kingdoms... I respectfully had no idea how far your kind had advanced, and I apologize for such an oversight on my behalf. I never considered your people shared my own ambitions for uniting our world." Crag continued, satisfied with the answer The young prince had given him.

"I possess the final letter the human king sent to the chief before me, the details do not reveal much, but it may give us some clues as to unraveling this mystery, as well as how we may hope to stand against the threat that approaches... But should you wish to hear it, you must include the boy in this conversation. Allowing him to read the note may be one of the only ways my tribe may repent for the foolish betrayal of our allies, and his father. The boy should know."

Prince Tyfin shuddered a bit. "The boy should know." It was the same thing that demon had spoken, more or less. The prince took on a somber expression before he filled the orc in on the true manner of the restrictions on the human, as well as what he could never be allowed to know of his heritage, that this was part of the conditions required to have Aster spared in the first place. Crag listened patiently, but spoke his disagreement afterwards.

"I understand why you had to do what you did, and the fact you managed to have the human spared is perhaps even more unbelievable considering who was on that council... But keeping your allies in the dark is exactly the kind of thing that led our ancestors before us to their near demise. I wish to be part of a new order for this world, one that unites us through similarities, and our differences. We need to be better for the sake of our people. We need to be better than the King's before us were... We need the strength of that shield, and we need it unhindered by the shadows of doubt that lies can cast." Crag stood from his place then, satisfied with where the conversation had ended.

"I will give you three days of rest to ponder your decision, beast prince. Please, enjoy your stay with us as our guests while your soldiers get to relax for a short reprieve. We will continue this when you have decided, your people should be waking shortly, I am sure they have many questions for their prince... But know this, beast prince..." The orc spoke lower now, showing respect, but also determination as he finished his words.

"The boy will learn of his roots soon enough, if you choose to keep that information hidden from him, it may be the cause of your own undoing..."

The lion only nodded once, accepting that warning for what it was. The beast prince stood, and made his way towards the exit of the structure. As he passed through the doorway, Rust jumped up from his waiting place by the threshold to join the prince once more. Tyfin smiled at the cub, hiding all traces of worry as he thanked the young fox for standing guard for him. If nothing else, he could spare a little heartache for his people when he could. Even if he knew that sometimes, that may not be the best thing to do.

The pair casually conversed as they made their way down the rough road through the orc village to the cluster of buildings the other beasts were waiting inside of when suddenly, a loud crash of flailing bodies came barreling through the wooden door on one such abode.

Captain Rixator was wrestling with two orcs as the door exploded into splinters of wood from him forcing the head of the first through the timbers, where the orc crumbled in place. After he had succeeded in knocking the first out, the great bull grabbed at the orc hanging around his shoulders, desperately trying to hold on as the bovine rampaged, and flung the green skinned creature far over his head, sending it into a nearby wall with a crash, and a wail of pain. The bull stood in place, nostrils flaring as he turned his confused gaze to the lion and the fox watching on in shock. Before either had time to react, Captain Rix snatched a hold of both, throwing them over his shoulders with ease as he began running full speed towards the outskirts of the foreign place.

"CAPTAIN RIXATOR!" Prince Tyfin screamed in his attempt at calming the bull, "Stay yourself! These are not our enemies!"

The bull never heard the prince, already dead set on reaching safety with the lion and the cub in tow. If nothing else, Captain Rixator was certainly one to prioritize his duty, and his current priority was making sure his prince was safe from the notorious orcs known for their savage ways. Nothing would have likely stopped the beast's escape, had it not been for another door opening a short second later.

As Mollis stepped into the street, he held a hand up towards his fleeing captain, casting a simple spell his way that made the bull stop in his tracks as his hooves were raised just out of reach of the ground. The great bull grunted and thrashed in his suspended frustration as the gentle rabbit made his way over to his captain, giggling softly at the larger beast's ability to jump to conclusions. Mollis didn't mind, as he had plenty of experience handling it over the years with the bull.

"Captain... Did you even try to hear what the orcs had to say?" Mollis was quite amused at this chaos, silently reveling at how adorably dense his captain could be sometimes. The bull was a brute, and often wise in many ways, but patience was NOT his strong point. The bovine only furrowed his brow, finally realizing he may have misread the situation as he spoke in his burly defense.

"I THOUGHT WE WERE UNDER ATTACK! ONLY THOSE WISHING TO MEET DEATH HESITATE IN THE PRESENCE OF ENEMIES, MOLLIS!" The prince just sighed, still firmly held in his soldier's grip while he spoke.

"Once again, Captain, THESE ARE NOT OUR ENEMIES. Now, would you please put me and Rust down so we may clear up this entire misunderstanding? You're being disrespectful to our hosts, and we owe them an apology for this!"

The bull snorted once more in frustration as his hooves were gently returned to the ground by the hare. The bovine released his hold on the two smaller beasts a moment later as the prince began gathering his people from the other huts nearby to explain their stay after abashedly apologizing to the victims of his soldier's rampage. Most of the prince's people happily welcomed the chance to rest, and with that, the beasts began trickling off to explore a bit of the town they had found themselves in. Stahl warned Rust not to cause too much trouble as he parted with the fox. The knight then left with the human, curious to see what the boy wanted to show him so badly.

Aster had been awake through the initial first contact, so he had already familiarized himself with a bit of the layout beforehand. There was one thing he was DYING to do, and the human soon found himself standing at the edge of a surprisingly clear river running along the western end of the town. They were certainly still in the Crimson Sands, or at least near the border, but the landscape had splashes of life around this area where the earth softened up a bit, and the climate felt just a little less harsh than before. Slowly but surely, the group had found themselves clear of their first great trial.

As the human looked across the simple, flowing stream, his eyes lit up in sheer delight, something that made Stahl happy to be present to experience it with him. The boy turned to the wolf, spilling his excited thoughts.

"THIS IS A RIVER RIGHT? IT'S SO MUCH BETTER THAN I EXPECTED IT TO BE! HOW FAR DOES IT GO? LOOKS LIKE FOREVER! I CAN'T EVEN SEE THE END OF IT!"

Stahl laughed at both Aster's unexpected reaction, and his own oversight. The wolf had assumed Aster just really wanted to take a bath, never even considering this was the first time the human ever had a chance to see water like this... Stahl felt a bit guilty about that, but didn't want to ruin the experience for the boy. He spoke, contempt in that moment.

"Just you wait, Aster, I'll show you the ocean some day too... The mountains, the forests, the towns... You'll see it all, and I can't wait to be there to see it all right beside you... To see you in utter awe of the world you have yet to live in." The knight leaned in close to the human for a moment, quickly licking at the tip of Aster's nose before he continued, motioning to the water as he spoke.

"But until then... Want to jump in? Captain Rix was actually right about one thing... We do both stink pretty badly. I like your scent, but still... it has been over a week..."

It was Aster's turn to laugh, as he agreed with the wolf, he had looked forward to rinsing off the desert dirt just as much as the beast had. The pair made their way to the edge of the cooling water a moment later, stopping at the ends of the earth. Stahl looked over to his human again, flashing that fanged smile of his deviously down at Aster before he spoke.

"Time to strip these rags off!"

The wolf casually placed his large hands on the bottom of his filthy shirt, pulling it up and over his head in one swift move. Aster couldn't have looked away from such a dazzling display of his solid frame if he had wanted to. Which he very much did not. To see his powerful arms flexing in that way as they shifted up, and over his torso, revealing his gorgeous coat and the firm muscles that rippled across his frame from such a simple action made Aster feel the same types of things he had back at their room. The human eyed the beast in delight as the wolf dropped his pants, kicking out of them as his fuzzy sheath and balls swung freely from their confines. Stahl turned to the boy, pointing at him with that cocky expression Aster was coming to know so well.

"Your turn! Strip!" Aster's face flushed immediately, struggling to give his answer.

"Wait! Here? But... There's people around... I can swim with my pants on... I think." Stahl wasn't having that.

"We need to wash up, and it's easier to do so and clean those pants while you aren't wearing them. Besides, it's hard to swim in clothes, and I want to swim naked with you, is that too much to ask for?" Stahl finished his rebuttal with an exaggerated pleading look to Aster, clasping his hands in mock begging. The human looked away, knowing if he stared at the wolf he would cave. He almost managed to hold his ground.

"...Shit ...FINE! YOU WIN." Aster let out a heavy sigh of defeat, Stahl actually wanted to howl in delight at his victory!

Aster removed his shirt easily enough, and took a seat to remove both of his boots shortly after, setting them aside with his headband. The human stood once more, and nervously brought his hands to the pants around his waist, looking away in embarrassment as they lingered there in his reluctance. Stahl stepped closer to the boy, and gently reached down to cup his smaller, fumbling hands in his own as he looked the human softly in the eyes, speaking slowly.

"It's alright, It's just you and me. You know I would never try to do anything to make you uncomfortable... So if you want to leave them on, it's alright, I unders-" The wolf was cut off quickly.

"NO! This is the only thing you've really asked me to do for you... The one thing that wasn't to help me in some way. I'm doing this, Stahl!" The human pulled his hands free from the wolf's own, took a deep breath in to focus his courage, and snatched his pants down to his ankles in one fell swoop as his blush flared to new heights.

Stahl didn't dare miss the opportunity to see the boy in his natural glory, as he greedily eyed the surprisingly well endowed, swinging tool of the bared human before him. His mouth watered at the very sight. While he had seen the boy naked before, this was the first time Aster had chosen to share a view of his body with the beast, making it all the more meaningful to him.

The human's tool was similar to Stahl's own, but completely different all the same. Where Stahl's sheath had connected to the flesh of his groin, Aster's hung loosely, and it seemed the sheath itself was attached to the member, instead of simply containing it. Aster's balls were decent sized, with a few hairs scattered over them. Stahl noticed the fur around the boys tool was shaved low, much as the human's face had been until recent, but not quite as close. Overall, it shaped the piece pretty well in the wolf's opinion. As Aster looked away in embarrassment, Stahl brought up a hand to gently rest on his chest before he cooed to the human.

"Aster... You're truly a wonder to behold." As tender as the beast was being, the human only flushed more at the compliment, reluctant to see it. That was alright, Stahl would remind him of it until he did believe it someday. The boy finally glanced back to the wolf a moment later, steeling his panic, motioning to the inviting water before them as he spoke in an embarrassed, hushed tone.

"Well... Shall we? Or do I have to stay out here like this all day?" The wolf smirked before quickly giving his response.

"I would definitely be alright with that." Aster didn't think it was nearly as amusing as the wolf had, but relented when the beast offered his hand to the smaller human once again before the pair stepped into the soothing water to rinse off and relax together. Or so they had hoped.

After a few short minutes of being submerged, a mighty bellow interrupted the pair as Captain Rix announced his approach with Mollis and Prince Tyfin in tow. Aster only shrunk behind the wolf when he heard the call, desperately trying to hide his nudity behind his beast of comfort. Stahl was happy to be his shield for a change, as he greeted the approaching trio cheerily.

"HEEEEEYYYY CAPTAIN RIX! THE WATER IS AMAZING! COME ON IN!" Stahl barely contained his laugh as Aster squeaked in protest behind him, not wanting company while being so exposed. The large bull bellowed back his intent to do exactly that, already stripping the little clothing he did wear as he made his way towards the water.

When the heavy bull revealed himself, Aster shuddered at the sheer size of the imposing weapon that swung between the beast's knees. Aster was sure of only one thing about the sight... That his captain's dick would surely kill some of the people that ever attempted to take the monstrous thing. There was just no way... The boy's thoughts were drawn away as the bull splashed heavily into the river, tossing the discarded clothes carelessly over his shoulder onto the bank. Mollis spoke next, giving the wolf a knowing smile.

"Hope we aren't interrupting... Prince Tyfin wanted a word... But since we are already here..." The hare stripped his own clothing then, his fuzzy little tail wiggling cutely as his rear shifted free from the confines. The hare had a very slender frame, but a decent amount of curves where they accented him the best. Something about the way the hare disrobed made something flutter within the human before the rabbit closed his eyes and eased himself into the water, sighing in relief as he settled into the relaxing current.

"Ahhh... This is the stuff. I've been DYING for a good bath for days..." The rabbit trailed off, cracking open one eye towards the lion on the bank before he continued in a playful manner "Prince Tyfin, care to join us?"

The lion only smiled, surprising Aster as he simply began to undress himself. The human was shocked the prince had actually agreed so easily, and found himself watching with a good deal of curiosity... Prince Tyfin had been fully clothed for their entire trip, never once revealing his body to his people, so Aster really didn't know what to expect, but it certainly wasn't what he saw.

As it turns out, the crown prince of Alora was in INSANELY great shape, completely taking the human by surprise as his golden fur sculpted the perfectly toned body in regal decadence. Aster even felt his breath hitch a bit at the sight, as the tufts of fur that came to points along his frame only accented the big cat's shape, making for a dazzling display of a beastman. The prince certainly had an air of royalty, even without his clothes, and a decent sized tool of his own from the looks of it. Aster was feeling heavily overstimulated as the lion prince waded into the water, joining the other four present with casual greetings. The four beasts idly talked a bit while Aster shied away from the conversation, hiding behind his wolf, his mind occupied by naked images of the beasts he had grown close to before the prince brought up what he had came to discuss in a heavy tone.

"Aster... We need to talk... We need to talk about many things..."

Stahl's own breath caught in his throat, as he realized by the lion's serious demeanor that Aster was about to learn the things he had been prohibited from learning, or at least, some of them anyways. Perhaps the wolf wouldn't have to keep those secrets from his human any longer. Stahl certainly hoped not, the guilt of lying to his boy had been gnawing away at his conscience, especially after Aster had so boldly declared he didn't want to lie to Stahl back at his estate. The wolf grew still. The hare, the bull, and the boy made no movement, listening intently as the prince began speaking to his trusted, and gathered allies. As he finally began telling Aster what he felt the boy should know.

Rust was wandering among the shops, idly peeking at the strange merchandise offered by the orcs as he killed some time. The fox was young, but he wasn't stupid. His uncles needed some time alone, and they had been forced to babysit him long enough, so the cub didn't mind giving them their privacy. Besides, he was very much intrigued in learning about the strange wares before him. The orcs were all kind towards him, answering his questions to the best of their abilities, and the fox was actually enjoying his solo trip because of it.

The cub wandered on, until he saw Oust a short distance away disappear inside of a particularly popular building, the unmistakable smell of alcohol confirmed to the young fox it was certainly a tavern of sorts. The cub was curious about what the tiger was doing, but knowing how grumpy the beast could be, decided it would probably be best if he just left him alone. The small fox walked on a bit further, when a familiar smell and sound assaulted his senses.

There was the smell of smoke in the air... There was the unmistakable ringing of metal clashing upon heated metal... There was no doubt, there was a blacksmith nearby.

A familiar sense of peace washed over the cub, the feeling of security he had found in his father's own forge where the fox had assisted him with his crafts. A sense of nostalgia that made the cub want to cry in a homesick manner for his longing to see his parents followed it shortly after. He missed his mom... He missed his dad... But he would stay strong. He would use this to grow, just like his uncle Stahl had asked him to back at the cave...

Rust balled his fists, determined not to cry in his predicament. There were many interesting wares made by the orcs, Rust was certain the blacksmith here would have equally foreign methods to his creation... The fox would find out what he could, so he would have something worthy to bring back to show his father, a new method of forging... So he could prove both just how much he had grown, and how much he had learned, despite their circumstance. The small canine beamed brightly at the thought, making his way towards the ringing strikes of steel with both a renewed sense of purpose, and a lighter heart than he had felt in days.

Thanks for reading! The next chapters should answer many of your biggest questions, and 13 will finally bring some real spice to the story. There is still plenty to come, but we are probably somewhere around 25-30% of the way through the first book. (For sure 2 books, Probably 3 by the end, could be 4 by the time I start the third but that's kind of hard to call at this point.) I appreciate those that take time to leave their thoughts, or a simple review or rating. (I've been trying to remind myself to make more frequent paragraph breaks for those that made the suggestion, and still am actively trying to be better at proofreading as well as improving my grammar, so thanks for the patience.) See y'all next chapter!