Delvers LLC: Welcome to Ludus

by Blaise Corvin

  She somehow got through her first conversation in Luda, but she felt stupid the entire time.

  It didn't help that Henry wouldn't even look at her. It got even worse after she started trying to be friends with Jason. Her cheeks felt like they were constantly on fire. Henry intimidated her as much as he fascinated her. For the life of her, she couldn't bring herself to do anything more direct than follow Jason around because he made her less nervous. She was grateful when he took pity and began talking to her, slowly building at least one of the friendships she sought.

  It didn't take long for her to admit her interest in Henry. Her openness with Jason surprised her but she trusted him even after a short time. She could just somehow feel the goodness in Jason's heart, and when she stuttered out questions about Henry, he regarded her with compassion. She hated her body for betraying her, but she could feel unshed tears in her eyes when she admitted she worried Henry thought she was ugly. He wouldn't look at her after all.

  Jason had shaken his head and said, "No, you don't understand. Henry is a complicated person, and he has a lot of emotional scars. He used to be married, and he sacrificed a lot for his wife. She repaid him by sleeping with another man behind his back. This all happened after his mother got sick and he began taking care of her.

  What's even worse, his ex-wife planned the divorce in advance and got advice from a lawyer. Then she cleaned out their bank account before demanding a divorce. Everything was done in a way that Henry couldn't fight back. He was completely blindsided. They were together for a total of... five years, I think? He was devoted to her, and she ripped his heart out."

  "What's a lawyer?" Mareen blinked. "And you said Henry was a soldier before too. Just how old is he?"

  Jason sighed, "A lawyer is someone who studies the law where I'm from to better understand how to bend or evade it. They're kind of like police officers in some ways. It's great when they're on your side but not so great when they are trying to ruin your life. As for Henry's age, he's twenty-nine years old, almost thirty."

  "He's thirty!?"

  "Well, our years on Earth are a little shorter than yours, so maybe he'd be one or two years younger on Ludus. I don't know. Buy yeah, he looks a lot younger than his age. Everyone thinks I'm older than him. The lucky bastard is a military vet and Asian. He'll probably look young for his age for a long time. Heck, now that we have orbs, even longer, right?"

  Mareen didn't completely understand so she moved on to her next question. "He was married? So his wife chose to spend the rest of her life with him and then betrayed and stole from him?"

  "Pretty much, yes."

  "What a terrible person." Mareen's lip curled in disgust.

  "Again, pretty much, yes."

  She paused for a minute and found a handy tree to examine before timidly asking, "Does he hate me?"

  Jason sighed again. "No, I actually believe he respects you and thinks you're attractive. But like I said, he has a lot of scars, and I think he's keeping distant from women on purpose. Even if he did luck out with his orb... fuck, why did I have to get a cartoon cat?" Jason snarled.

  "Are you angry with me?" Mareen asked timidly.

  Jason immediately held his hands up in a placating gesture. "No, no, you're fine. It's something Henry needs to get punched for. Anyway, I think Henry thinks that you're into me."

  "WHAT!? You mean like courting you? That's ridiculous!"

  "You don't have to say it like that," Jason grumbled. "But yeah, you've been talking to me a lot lately, and you act weird around him, probably because you're shy. I think he's decided that you're into me. In his mind, he probably placed you off-limits. That way he won't have to deal with his attraction to you either."

  "But that... that's stupid!" blurted Mareen. "Anyone with eyes could see how I feel. It's shameful to admit, but I'm not exactly good at hiding this sort of thing."

  "Well, it is what it is. Henry is a great guy; he is one of the most honorable people I've met in my life, but he's not the greatest at recognizing feelings or understanding women. He can be kind of stupid about this sort of thing."

  "Well," Mareen chewed her lower lip and asked, "could you talk to him for me?"

  Jason smiled without humor and cheerfully said, "Absolutely not! I am way too old for this sort of thing. You and Henry are adults. You can work it out between yourselves. I'm getting stressed out just listening to this, and I have enough to deal with these days. You know, with monsters occasionally trying to eat my face and all?"

  Mareen couldn't believe what she was hearing. These two selfless, heroic, interesting men had the emotional maturity of children! It would have taken Jason less than five minutes to clear up the misunderstanding with Henry. Of course, the small voice in the back of her mind that logically told her she could do the exact same thing didn't help matters.

  That night, she'd softly cried herself to sleep. In only a few short days, her whole body ached with unhappiness that Henry might not talk to her. She had to face facts. She couldn't deny anymore that she'd fallen in love. What was worse, she'd found her heart song. It was real, and she was powerless against it. She knew she was getting swept up in the wake of people who were destined for greatness, and she didn't know whether she was content to just follow or establish her own, unique path alongside them.

  She wanted so badly just to talk to Henry, but she felt like she was making a fool of herself. She was not some weak girl! She'd been a mage since she was twelve! It was maddening that she'd finally found her life's adventure but she didn't know how to fit into it yet. What was more, the man she couldn't stop thinking about wouldn't even look at her!

  Years after she'd stopped truly believing that a heart song would happen for her, her traitorous heart had begun singing in a goblin cave. She couldn't do anything about it! She was completely helpless against the feelings suffusing her body and soul. The ultimate cruelty though, the icing on the cake, was that in a sadistic twist of fate, the man who'd done the impossible in making a fairy tale real for her... was a complete IDIOT! And so was his tall, infuriating friend!

  Mareen's Resolve

  While the villagers were traveling to Mirana, Jeth had only approached Mareen once. When it happened, she hadn't even noticed he was there until it was too late. He seemed to just appear out of nowhere like a bad dream. He hissed, "Listen, you know you shouldn't be talking to those outsiders. You shouldn't be spending time with Jason. You are one of us. You are mine."

  Mareen whispered back, "Just go away. I have nothing to say to you." She didn't want to make a scene. Her conflict with Jeth was already a poorly kept secret among the villagers. She didn't want to shame herself or George by allowing outsiders into a family problem any further. She didn't want to create any more fuel for gossip or weaken George's position as village leader.

  Jeth sneered, "Have you no pride? You are a mage, and you follow that Jason around like a pet. He's an outsider. He's not even from Ludus."

  "What I do is my business." Mareen's eyes narrowed. She'd realized Jeth was jealous. Perhaps if she played on that, it would upset him and he would finally leave her alone! "You aren't the only boy around anymore. There are much better options."

  It was the wrong thing to say.

  "Are you spreading your legs for him? Is that what this is, you little slut?" Jeth tried to keep his voice under control, but anger was making him hoarse. "Are you going to have little half-breed Terran children? Actually, you're a half breed too, aren't you? Maybe I should show you what a real man can do to you." Then Jeth did something he'd never done before--he grabbed her arm.

  Mareen felt her skin crawl. She was so startled she didn't even think to use her magic. She just wanted away! She pulled back, but she couldn't free her arm, "Let go of me!" She started to panic. Years of fear and anxiety all seemed to come back at once to suffocate her.

  And out of nowhere, Henry was there. "Leave," he said to Jeth. What was more, he didn't threaten; he didn't frown; his facial expression didn't change at all, b
ut something about him was scary. He wasn't even directing his attention at Mareen, but she could still feel the edges of it. It felt businesslike, like Henry was just indifferent to Jeth continuing to exist.

  He effortlessly broke Jeth's grip on her arm and pushed him away. Jeth looked like he wanted to say something, but bullies are usually cowards at heart; he hurried off. Mareen let out a long sigh, the tension in her back easing. She turned to thank Henry, happy that she also had an opportunity to talk to him, but he was already back to ignoring her again. How did he do that? He was like a cat!

  * * *

  The next day, Mareen's life had changed forever... again. When Henry said he heard wolves, she'd been alarmed but wasn't sure if she really believed him. However, as the caravan rushed to the clearing and the howls became audible, her mental state deteriorated.

  By the time she could actually see the horned demon wolves, she felt numb. She'd thought everyone was doomed, that there was nothing they could do. What was more, it was at least partially her fault; it was all the villagers' faults. None of them had truly believed that the demon wolves were really in the area. Heading to Mirana without an escort had probably gotten them all killed.

  She'd wanted to cry, but she barely kept her composure as Henry and Jason stood between the demon wolves and the villagers. Most of the villagers watched while staying within the dubious protection of the wagon circle. Like Mareen, most of them probably believed they wouldn't be alive much longer.

  When the battle actually began, Mareen no longer doubted she was travelling with living legends. Jason used magic she'd never even heard of before to disappear from where he was then reappear on top of a wagon. She saw Henry turn into an engine of violence and destruction. Oh, she'd seen Henry fight before; she knew he was a warrior. However, that day she witnessed the type of battle sung about by bards.

  Henry slashed with his short steel sword, his machete, and kicked the enormous demon wolves around like they were little more than puppies. He screamed his strange war cry and seemed calm, weaving around trees and escaping from the demon wolves in flashy ways. The way he kept barely escaping each attack made Mareen think that he was taunting them, mocking them.

  It worked. While the demon wolves chased Henry, they largely ignored anything else. From time to time, Jason would suddenly appear among them and deliver death with his bronze sword. It was an amazing display of coordination and martial ability. Mareen wondered how long the two friends had practiced together for this sort of thing. There was no way they could have just spontaneously come up with such an effective strategy.

  The only time the demon wolves seemed to remember the villagers existed was when one caught sight of Jason on the top of a wagon and loped over. Jason hadn't seen the creature coming and disappeared to fight with Henry again. Mareen somehow managed to overcome he fear enough to take action. As the demon wolf jumped between the wagons, Mareen unleashed the one magical attack she could manage per day. She gathered her power and spit. As soon as the spittle left her mouth, she turned it into a burning, caustic substance and accelerated it.

  The acidic, magic-enhanced liquid bullet punched through the demon wolf's haunch, causing the beast to crash to the ground. Quickly, before it could get up again, George ran over to hit it in the head and didn't stop until the monster was still.

  By that time, the battle was over, and she's discovered Henry was hurt. His leg was a mess, and at first she'd believed that she couldn't do anything for him. She choked back tears, trying hard not to lose her rationality. However, as she worked with Jason to clean Henry's wound and cover the mangled leg, she got yet another surprise. Both men had the legendary self-healing ability from ancient stories!

  Mareen kept receiving shock after shock, and she wasn't sure if she was adapting fast enough. As she helped Henry heal, she reflected on the fact that these men had saved her not once but twice! What was more, they'd saved the whole village and asked for nothing in return other than a share of their bland traveling food.

  Henry in particular seemed to fear the possibility of eating the sour plants in the forest and valued the caravan's food stores.

  Then came the day the caravan discovered that Jeth and his father, Yelm, had stolen everything of value in the caravan... including Henry's blessed steel machete. At first Mareen had thought Henry would be fine; he just seemed to be angry. But after following him into the forest and seeing him cry, she'd had an epiphany.

  She'd been taking Henry and Jason for granted. She'd just kept feeling amazed and drawn to them, but she hadn't once considered what she could do to repay their kindness or bravery. In fact, she couldn't deny anymore that she was interested romantically in Henry, but in a way, even that was selfish.

  She'd just been taking from them. She wasn't really trying to understand them. Henry's pain was so deep it practically made the air tremble when he sobbed in the forest.

  Mareen was humbled. Even though she was young, she hadn't actually felt immature or inexperienced around anyone else for years. Most of the people she lived with she'd known most of her life. Her grandfather had seen the world, but he was family, so she took his experience for granted. On the other hand, she didn't even know how to begin relating to Jason or Henry.

  She finally understood where she fit in with her new adventure. Henry and Jason needed help-- they needed her. Despite their overwhelming strength and bravery, they were both surprisingly fragile. Mareen got the feeling she'd only begun scratching the surface of the scars on Henry's heart... and Jason was an idiot.

  The questions Jason asked her were ridiculous. If Mareen had been transported to an alien world, she'd have been asking about shelter, food, how much water was present, what the local customs were, how to make money, and other practical matters. On the other hand, Jason kept asking questions about currency exchange rates, games, and "cat girls."

  For some reason, he insisted on calling female feline Mo'hali "cat girls." He asked question after question about them, most of which Mareen didn't have answers for. She didn't know why, but Jason's ceaseless line of inquiry irritated her at times.

  Why would men care if a woman had cat ears? What did it matter if they went into heat like cats or procreated like humans? She didn't understand why Jason seemed so interested Mo'hali women.

  * * *

  While the caravan continued plodding on to Mirana, Mareen had thought long and hard about the coming crossroads of her life. Like all the villagers, she felt deep shame for what Jeth and Yelm Fortright had done. They'd brought dishonor on the entire village, especially for stealing from people who'd saved their lives. Plus, the sheer value stolen from Henry made it worse.

  At this point, she now knew that Henry had a tough exterior on top of a mass of emotional wounds and that Jason was smart but his attention was directed in all the wrong places. Both men superficially seemed powerful and dynamic, but in some ways, they were helpless. They were not adjusting to Ludus very well. Mareen knew what she had to do. She was going to take care of these two idiotic heroes and redeem the honor of the village in one fell swoop.

  Unfortunately, she had to tell her grandfather about her decision. It was important that she properly inform him she was leaving, and she also needed her inheritance for her plan to work. For over a decade, George had been holding her father's memento in trust for her. It was finally time to claim it.

  She'd found George by himself a few days before they got to Mirana and decided to go with the blunt approach. "Grandfather, I'm going to leave the village after the caravan is settled."

  George was securing a bundle on one of the wagons with rope and didn't look up. He said, "Well, I can't exactly say I'm surprised. I've known this was coming for a long time. What are you planning to do?"

  Mareen took a deep breath. She knew George wasn't going to like what she had to say. "I'm going to become an honor-bound indentured servant and gift the next ten years of my life to Henry and Jason."

  "WHAT!?" George finally looked up from what he
was doing, the unshed tears in his eyes completely forgotten as his emotions did a U-turn.

  Mareen held up a forestalling hand. "Grandfather, wait to hear my explanation before you get upset."

  "I'm listening." George stilled himself with an obvious effort of will.

  Mareen's chin came up as she began explaining her logic. "Those two saved our entire village. They saved the two of us. I owe them twice for my life. On top of that, two of our own people betrayed us and stole from them. The price of that machete would be almost enough to buy a house in a city. The debt we owe them is enormous."

  "That may be true, but becoming an indentured servant is too extreme." George frowned. "I told you before how indentured servants were part of Earth's history. The concept was abused and used as a way to keep slaves when slavery wasn't legal."

  "Yes, Grandfather, and you and I both know it's used that way here too since slavery laws aren't really enforced in Tolstey. But this is something I will do voluntarily. Since I'm doing this for honor, nobody will be exchanging money. I won't be in debt. My tenure will be based on time, not money owed, and my employer will not be able to sell my contract."

  George blew out his cheeks. "I really don't like this. I can't fault your logic, but I really, really don't like this. The truth is that I feel ashamed about how those boys were stolen from, but I don't like the idea of losing my granddaughter over it."

  "Grandfather, you've known Henry and Jason for almost two weeks now. Do you really think they wouldn't let me visit you? Do you really think I'd be mistreated? In fact, I'm fairly sure I'll have to argue with them about this too. They might not even understand the concept. You said before that family ties and honor aren't as important on Earth."

  "That's right, at least not in many countries." George looked at her out of the corner of his eye. "Just please tell me none of this is because of what is going on between you and Jason."