I shrugged casually, all the while thanking whatever gods there were that no one else could read my mind.
“I just think maybe all Walkers are a tad arrogant, and it doesn’t hurt to think of every possible scenario before just assuming you’re stronger and therefore will be the winner.” I swallowed as all eyes turned in my direction. “On Earth I often outsmarted much bigger and stronger men, even when I was outnumbered,” I smiled down the table at Quarn, “although I know on more than one occasion I had assistance. But my point is ... they never thought for one second I was a threat; they underestimated me.”
“You’re Walker, baby girl. You’re the biggest threat they will ever meet.”
I sighed. Josian was missing my point ... on purpose, I think.
“Just be careful tomorrow, father. Remember Mom’s threat about the fist in your mouth.”
“Yes, remember that, dear,” Lallielle said.
Josian flinched.
“Can you explain the Walker clans and hierarchy to us?” The question came from Lucy.
Josian nodded. “This is long overdue information for Aribella and Talina. There just never seems to be time to fit everything in.”
He wasn’t kidding.
“There are seven clans. On paper we’re even in status, each descended from one of the seven original Walkers.”
“On paper,” Brace reiterated, his tone sardonic.
Josian grinned. “Yes. Unfortunately, as with all powerful, long-lived creatures, we tend to create our own drama and power plays.” He paused briefly. “So, in very basic form the seven clans are Abernath, Doreen, Relli, Kaos, Gai, Laos, and Whar.”
He said the names fast, flicking them off one by one.
“Dad! You’re going to have to slow down or write them out for us.” I sighed.
Lallielle stood and handed me a piece of paper. As usual, she’d thought ahead. I looked down at the stark white sheet. In my hand it had a smooth texture, more so than anything I’d felt on Earth. For a moment I wondered what they made their paper from, before shelving the random thoughts and forcing myself to focus.
Lucy leaned over my shoulder to read the list out loud. Talina even moved closer so she could see the paper.
“Abernath – (black tribal), Doreen – (red lace), Relli – (gray swirls), Kaos – (brown stripes), Gai – (white spots), Laos – (golden sunbeam), Whar – (indigo patterned).”
She stumbled over a few of the words but no one corrected her.
“I just gave a very brief idea of the colors and differences in their patterns.” Lallielle smiled. “None of the clans have marks that are the same.”
Josian kissed her on the cheek. “You’re a genius, lady.”
“Golden sunbeams?” I asked, wondering how that was a pattern.
“You’ll understand when you see it.” Brace nudged me under the table.
It must have been the fiftieth time he’d done that that night. I stomped down hard where his foot had been, but he was quick enough to move it in time.
“Kind of like a sun starting in their center and then beams shooting off over their bodies.”
“They sound amazing.” I glanced down at the list again, trying to picture each one.
“So, I am an Abernath?” Talina sounded unsure, “and Que, the ultimate evil Walker, is my leader?”
Brace’s expression softened. “That’s true, Talli, but since he cannot sense your energy, it’s in our best interest to keep that information from him.”
“Could he make me go with him? Like some type of leader mind-control?” Talina’s eyes widened, fear flashing in their brown depths.
Brace snorted. “God, he would love that skill. No, Talli, your mind is yours to manage alone.”
Josian interrupted then.
“Lalli has listed the clans in the undefined order of power,” he said. “We have no real governing body. We basically self-govern our own clans. Order and control is carried out by the most powerful, the Princeps.”
I assumed that was like the king or ruler, and apparently that was Brace’s father.
“Can I borrow that writing tool?” I held out my hand to Lallielle.
She smiled and passed it down via Lucy. I examined the instrument for a moment, before deciding to ignore the strangeness of this semi-transparent, miniature object. I just pressed the pointed end to the paper and a dark blue mark appeared. Excellent.
“Okay, so who is the Princeps of each clan?”
I prepared to write.
Brace was the one who went through the list this time. I wrote as he spelled each name out for me. My scribble almost illegible compared to the lovely swirls of Lallielle’s script. This was my finished list.
Abernath – (black tribal) – Princeps: Que
Doreen – (red lace) – Princeps: Josian
Relli – (gray swirls) – Princeps: Grantham
Kaos – (latte stripes) – Princeps: Krahn
Gai – (white dots) – Princeps: Jedi
Laos – (golden sunbeam) – Princeps: Tatiana
Whar – (indigo patterned) – Princeps: Nos