Ruthivan entered the forest, his eyes narrowed as he scanned the tree line. Somewhere Claire's mother had escaped, though it was unlikely she went far. He had killed Claire's father in a fit of rage when the elder had threatened to free Claire and take his children. No one would take what was his.
He went back into beast form and sniffed at the air. The change was instant, as was the scents. He could follow the trail of scent left behind as though it were a neon sign. And in short order, he caught up with Seranfrit.
"Please," she begged, backing up against one of the trees. "Don't kill me. Please."
"Seranfrit," Ruthivan crooned, effortlessly turning himself into his esper form. "Why would I do that?" She let out a sob and shook her head. "You killed my husband!"
"You hated him anyway. I did you a courtesy. And now you will do one for me."
"What are you talking about..."
"You will go back to the tribe and let them know that they have a new leader." Seranfrit's eyes grew wide. "You can't be serious."
"Oh, but I am. Eladrim was a failure, he couldn't get our people to populate, the numbers of those in the tribe are the same as they always were. What good will it do our people if we aren't prepared?"
Seranfrit inched away, but Ruthivan slammed a hand on the tree trunk beside her, blocking her way. "You don't want to challenge me, do you?" She merely shook her head. "Good. Claire and I will provide the perfect example of what needs to happen - what good, solid esper pair bonding can do to help a people rebound from the brink of extinction. No Vectorians will cross us once we have built up our numbers. We will crush them, and all that oppose us."
"You're mad..."
"No. I'm a leader, your leader. Go and get the main tent ready for our arrival. You may move into ours. And Seranfrit... if you cross me, I will give you the same courtesy I gave your pathetic husband."
Ruthivan watched Seranfrit scramble as she rushed through the forest. He turned and walked back to the tent house and froze when he met eyes with Celiara and the other children. He smiled, and they fled back into the house. His breath caught in his throat and a scowl came to his face. Claire. She made him do this. She made him kill her father and as a result, she made his children fear him. 'No matter,' he thought. 'Time will heal that wound, and when they see what an esper leader should be, they will understand why that needed to happen. All would be as it should be.' Ruthivan entered the house.
