She sees off the women, but Marcus is left confused

"He may not be of the Blood, but I am." Kihara called out from above Marcus, her strong voice carrying over the empty hills. Her arm clutched him tighter against her armored chest, telling him silently that she was there to protect him. "Would you bar me from my return home?"

"So long as you seek to take that male outsider unchained into the Empire, we will." The leader replied, brandishing her spear at the trembling young prince. "Bring him with you to our post in the pass for questioning. If you try to escape, the Law states that we may kill you without question." Marcus froze, his horrified gaze flickering to the curved blade of the woman's spear. He had no doubt Kihara would protect him again, but...what if she got hurt? This was his fault again. These people were only angry because of him!

"Captain." One of the other women spoke from their right, her voice trembling with obvious worry. "Look at the size of the Roc she rides. It's...of the Imperial bloodline, it has to be. Even the three of us together could not match her in the air."

"Silence." The leader snapped. "Imperial mount or not, we are sworn to defend this pass. That she profanes a sacred Roc with her crimes makes them that much worse."

"Your woman is right, Captain." Kihara spoke respectfully, and even bowed her head slightly, but there was an edge of steel to her words that made all three of the women watching her stiffen up on top of their mounts. "Three of your birds could not win against my Nasir and I assure you I am a rider to match his quality." The Captain's face tensed, that long spear trembling in her hand. "Let us make sure it does not come to that then, so that you brave and loyal servants of the Empress may return to your post unharmed. I have something in my saddlebags you should see before you deny me passage. I'm going to reach for it now, so do not take that as an attack."

"Stand down." The leader waved her spear at her two men. They drew back slightly, lowering their own weapons. Kihara nodded, then reached down into one of the bags dangling over Nasir's flank. Marcus tried to wriggle round and see what she was doing, but her arm kept him tightly pinned to her chest. He saw her lift something out of the bag, a piece of rolled-up parchment tied with a red and gold ribbon, but before he could make out any more she lifted it over his head like she was trying to hide it from him.

"Here, I'm going to throw this to you now, Captain." Kihara said. The leader nodded stiffly, then she tossed the piece of parchment over. The Captain caught it out the air in her free hand, then, resting her spear against her side, carefully undid the ribbon and unfurled the paper. She scanned it for a moment, then gasped in utter shock. Her dark eyes flickered back to Kihara, her mouth dropping open.

"This cannot be." She stammered. "How did you get this?"

"No-one can forge that seal, you know that, Captain. There's only one place I could have received it, from Her hand alone." Kihara replied coldly, sitting straighter in her saddle. "Return it to me now and let me travel on my way."

"Of course, Marzban." The Captain bowed her head low, her short black hair falling over her shoulders. Marcus breathed a sigh of relief as her two other women drew away, identical looks of shock on their faces. He didn't understand what was going on, but it seemed like Kihara wasn't going to have to fight after all. He watched anxiously as the Captain gave her own bird's reins a tug, guiding the animal to walk closer to them. Nasir bristled, his golden eyes flashing, but Kihara leant over and rubbed his neck feathers, seeming to calm him down with a few gentle strokes. As soon as the Captain was close enough, she lent over awkwardly, holding out the parchment while keeping as far from them as she could. Kihara snatched it from her grip, and tied it deftly back up before slipping it into her saddlebags. "The foreign boy, is bringing him into the Empire important to your mission, Marzban?" The Captain asked, her dark eyes narrowed and cold as they flickered back to Marcus. The young prince glanced away, not liking one bit the way the woman was looking at him, like he was something dangerous. That word again...Marzban. It sounded like a rank or title, and this Captain was using it about Kihara. Was she some kind of noble? She'd never told him that!

"That is none of your concern, Captain." Kihara snapped, her voice like the crack of a whip. Marcus sat up stiffly, a little shocked she could sound so angry all of a sudden. "I report only to Her." She pulled the young prince tightly back against her chest, then reached around him with her other hand to grab Nasir's reins. As the three women watched with identical expressions of stunned surprise, she tugged on them hard. Nasir screeched shrilly, spreading his massive wings wide. Even the other birds shrank back as he beat the air, scattering stone and dust underneath him. Then he sprang up off his legs, launching into the air with ease.

Marcus gasped as he was once again carried off on the massive eagle's back. Kihara kept him pinned to her, but he could just about lean over to see the three armed women on the rocks below, sitting on their own eagles and growing smaller and smaller as Nasir soared up into the clouds. He shivered nervously against his savior. For a moment there he'd been sure they meant to kill him. What had just happened? Leaning back, he tried to crane his neck and look at Kihara. Her gorgeous face was drawn tight with tension, her lips curled. It was clear she wasn't happy with what he'd just seen, but why?

"Why did they let us go?" Marcus asked her anxiously over the wind whistling past them. "I don't understand. What does...Marzban mean?"

"You do not need to know that." Kihara replied sharply. The young prince felt his lips snap shut. That hint of her displeasure made him want to cower, his chest getting tight and painful. He glanced down again, staring at her hands as she guided Nasir's reins with careful tugs, leading the massive bird back towards the pass opening up ahead of them. Part of him wished she'd tell him the truth, but...he had already decided that he was going to trust her. If she wouldn't tell him these things, there had to be a good reason, right?