The Tiger Within 677 The Pyre

The wood was gathered and bound together in the frozen field beside the palace. Word had already been sent to The SnowDrop Palace, so the family knew what had happened. The Forest Knights gathered, building a pyre as their Princess commanded, hearts heavy with the loss of a comrade and their Prince.

Kyera stood on the balcony looking out over the pyre. Her hands clutched close the baby's blanket and the smears of dried blood. Her heart hurt as she agonized over her choices. Leaving the baby alone last night had been a tragic mistake. She knew better…

Clovis wrapped his arms around his wife from behind. His own eyes swollen from the products of a broken heart. Raina tried hard as she might to fight through the tears. She and the dragons helped gather wood for the fire. 
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"Blaming yourself will not solve this mess." He whispered against her hair. Kyera raised a hand to wipe her eyes.

"Gale is gone… Kan is dead. I was the last one to see either of them alive. Clovis, Kan was cold and the blood was dry. I hadn't been in bed for more than three hours. I saw nothing wrong… it should have been me. I could have protected us." Kyera whispered as the power inside her wrestled within. The fires of anger and hatred began to build within her heart.

"Maybe, but Kan died protecting Gale. There is not a more n.o.ble death for him. I am sure he does not regret it. Gale… he.. he's with your father playing in Moria. You will see him again." Clovis struggled to make that sound like a positive as Kyera watched the funeral procession prepare.

"We need to go down stairs. We have to be the ones to place Kan." Kyera whispered unable to respond to her husband's attempt at soothing her. At least he tried. That was all she could really say at the moment. Together the pair headed down stairs, and watched as the group gathered. The soldiers and guards who had trained beside Kan stood at attention around the funeral Pyre. The body lay under a sheet nearby  still in tiger form.

Clovis and Kyera walked their place beside the fire, but Kyera left him there. She approached his body where it lay on the ground. She bit his neck like a mother would her cub and jerked him up, thrusting her powerful form under him. After several minutes and a little help from Talis, Kan's form lay across Kyera's snow white fur. She carried him to the top of the pyre, to the bed of flowers so carefully arranged. His body slid to the flowers and Kyera b.u.mped her head to his, taking that moment to steel herself against the words she must say. Then, her body blurred like softened clay, and the shadows swirled around her into a black Forest Knight Uniform complete with her silver circlet.

"This year we have lost many good men. The remains of Cora, Lazren, and Mally were never recovered, but I lay on this pyre what we have reclaimed. Good people, betrayed by those they were sworn to protect. A waste of life their lives, but not a waste of their souls for they believed in their duty." Kyera spoke loudly as she lay the furs on the wood beside Kan. "And today we lay to rest The Betrayer." Kyera stood tall as she spoke, each and every eye on her. "He was misunderstood, and labeled with such a cruel name despite being completely innocent of those crimes. Crimes he took the blame for to protect his family. I absolved him of that name, and of those deeds. We accepted him back into our family. He died today proving his worth by trying to defend the Royal Prince from an unknown foe. Let us light this fire, and pay tribute to a man who gave everything to prove he was worthy of this uniform when in truth his worth was so much more than that." Kyera quickly made her way down from the pyre and raised her hand, every man raised a bow, fire arrows at the tip. Raina notched a shaky arrow as well, the flame at the end bright. As Kyera's hand fell, so did every arrow. Setting the pyre aflame.

And with that, the guard stood tall sending their fellow soldiers off to join the spirits of the forest of Ash.