Rebirth and Second Chances

"Lord Teigh?" Findabair addressed me hesitantly. We had never met. The Twelve decided the allocation of where each Sidhe would live and those that would lead each Underhill. Once I had taught them the secret to opening the mystical highway that connected all [Fairy Rings], they used that knowledge to create an Underhill network that canvased Europe, Africa, and Asia.

"Yes," I answered, not taking my eyes off Beowulf.

"You wanted to meet," I said, directly addressing my comments to Beowulf. This wasn't an attempt at diplomacy; as such, there was no reason to worry about protocols. As I began our conversation without waiting for an introduction, I decided that I would ignore politics for expediency. I wasn't sure the Beastkin practiced politics in the first place.

"Findabair says Mongols come," Beowulf said, his voice broken, almost as if he hadn't spoken in months or years. As a Beastkin, it was possible he hadn't. I wasn't sure how their society worked, even if they had something I would understand as civilization.

For all I knew, Beowulf and the rest of the Beastkin lived their lives like the animals their warped forms were derived from. It was just as likely that they roamed in small packs, hunting or grazing whatever they came across as they wandered.

I'd not heard of any cities or towns for his people. It did make me wonder how Ogedei thought he could conquer a land and people when those people were always moving. It would make war hard without a target to concentrate an attack on.

"They are making preparations now. I believe Ogedei, son of the Great Khan, will finish his preparations and move to annex Kievan Rus in the next day or two."

And that may be the solution to the Beastkin problem. If Ogedei simply claimed Kievan Rus and began building and fortifying one of their tent cities. The people were adept at creating temporary towns and villages. The yurts were constructed to allow nomadic people to move as needed.

"Why you tell?" He growled.

"The armies of Man have been attacking and killing the Sidhe for decades. We have decided to form alliances with the Beastkin, Elves, Dwarves, Vampires, and other magical races," I replied. "If Man is willing to destroy our people, kill until no Sidhe remain, do you honestly believe they won't turn their attention to the other races they consider different once they have succeeded?

"The Mongols deciding to annex Kievan Rus only proves their intentions. Man believes they are the superior race and that there is no room in this world for any not of their people. They will whittle us down, one by one, unless we join together and beat back their armies."

"What you want Beowulf do?" He barked.

"For now, guard your land and people. We will attack the Mongols after they move toward you. Make them think the Vikings are the people attacking them. It should get them to retreat, to focus on the Vikings instead. But it would help if you were ready," I warned.

"If it doesn't work, or if Ogedei decides to split his forces, you should have your people ready to bleed his army dry using guerrilla tactics."

"What guerrilla tactics?" He asked.

"A new way of fighting. Kill and run. Hide and kill when they aren't watching. Wait until they sleep and enter their camp to kill them," I explained.

"Use stealth and your knowledge of your land to find places to attack where you can kill them, steal their supplies and equipment, and demoralize them.

"Never engage in a battle where they can marshal their forces and use their weapons and horses to their advantage. Bleed them dry slowly, weakening them as they advance until they have no choice but to retreat or face annihilation from your hidden forces."

I knew the use of guerrilla tactics would change the way war was waged. Armies standing across fields waiting to clash was a construct that was only effective when the opposing army was there for you to fight with.

Caesar's legions were so effective because of their shields and lances, but their battle formations were only effective if you chose to clash. If you raided them while moving, left traps, poisoned their food supplies, and killed their commanders in the dead of night, they would become demoralized.

The wages of war would remain the same. Death would come for all at some point. But small bands of dedicated people using guerilla tactics could have a real impact in determining who death harvested.

"You want Beowulf just kill? What difference? Beowulf already kill," he asked in confusion.

"The difference is that you tell us if you need help, and the Sidhe will come and fight with you. If Sidhe needs help, we ask, and Beastkin will come to fight with us.

"The more of us that work together, the harder it will be for the armies of Man to kill us all. They are like locusts, swarming and destroying everything in their path. Only Man will survive if we don't stop them," I advised him.

"There will be no Sidhe left. No Beastkin. No Elves. No Dwarves. No Vampires.

"They will kill and kill and kill until they have no one left to kill but each other.

"If we let them kill us one at a time, they will win, but if we fight together or get them to turn on each other, we will survive. We will hold what is ours. And we can protect our people and each other.

"I hope we can become an alliance of friends. The magical races need to begin working together to withstand the relentless encroachments of Man and his iron."

"How Man different from Sidhe?" Beowulf asked. "Both kill Beastkin."

"The Sidhe do not hunt and will not skin Beastkin to use the hides as clothing. We do not pursue you for your horns, teeth, or claws. We do not mount your heads on our walls to show others what mighty hunters we are.

"The Sidhe respect nature. All nature, in all its forms. We might kill Beastkin. Beastkin might kill Sidhe. But we do not kill for joy.

"Man will remake the world. They kill for pleasure, not to hunt, not to protect. They do not respect the planet or the diverse animals and people that live on it."

Beowulf replied with a few snarls, grunts, and howls. There were even a few whistles and tweets tossed in the mix. I had already noticed the forest surrounding us was teaming with Beastkin but hadn't mentioned it or reacted to it.

The reason for Beowulf's more beastly vocalization became apparent when four individuals stepped forward. A Beastkin with feline attributes, one of the Draken, the descendants of Dragons, a Spider-type Beastkin, and a Beastkin that had evolved using the Condor as a model.

Their attack was not without some warning. I had felt the killing intent as soon as the four Beastkin began to move. I wasn't sure exactly why Beowulf had commanded these four to attack, and I didn't want to exacerbate the situation by killing them for no reason, so I would act with restraint.

Still, I couldn't ignore their actions, but I could respond without really harming them. Ice began to spread out from where I stood, a sheet of ice that blanketed the ground and expanded outward.

Beowulf and Findabair were the first to encounter the ice flow; each was ignored as I directed the ice to pass by them. Once it reached three of the attackers, it thickened and flowed up their legs, encasing them as the ice held them firmly in place.

The last attacker could fly, but a blast of wind was enough to ground the Beastkin and allow me to bury it in the same spreading ice flow as the others.

"Good," Beowulf laughed loudly. "You strong. They come with you. Will help. Will watch. They say to me if your words true."

The attack had been a ruse, a method to determine how I would react and if I was powerful enough to protect myself. I didn't think much about the strategy's effectiveness, but at least it demonstrated that they had trained and developed tactics that relied on animal chatter.

"Are they coming only as observers?" I asked. "I need to know if I should assign Sidhe to protect them or if they will fight to protect themselves or run from danger."

Beowulf could have taken my words as an insult, but he didn't. The four Beastkin, on the other hand, bristled angrily. They reacted to my words as a challenge, my questioning whether they would fight a slight on their abilities.

I didn't intend my words to be interpreted like that. But I was pleased that they had misunderstood. It gave me insight into who and what I would be dealing with. They would act as Beowulf's eyes and ears, but that did not mean they weren't independent thinking people.

They would fight and protect themselves, and to think they needed protection was an insult to them and their kind.

I would allow them to observe. The four Beastkin could watch as I destroyed the Mongol's encampment. Let them stand witness to Sidhe's tactics and determination. I would return them to report to Beowulf what they had witnessed.