Sacrifice

by Underwood, Patrick

  Stifled laughter came from behind me.

  I cast my view at the offending noise and gave her my best marine glare. “Not helpful,” I growled.

  She gave up all pretense of holding the laugh in and let it go with a deep belly laugh, falling forward off her log.

  I got up, shook the water off me as best I could, and waded back to shore. “Done yet?”

  She laughed even harder. I glared at her for a few minutes when the shock of the moment and the bite of the icy water finally let go. “Yeah, probably right. Funny, from the sidelines. It's good to see you laugh at least though.”

  She finally got control of herself enough to speak. “Thank you, I needed that. Come here and I will dry you off.”

  “Dry me off?” I said with a raised eyebrow.

  “Water is my power. I am not strong yet, or skilled at the externals for that matter, but I should be able to coax the water to leave your clothes… mostly.”

  I walked up to her and stood still. She placed her hands over me and then rubbed down the outside of my clothes. Water dripped off me much faster as she moved her hands up and down my body.

  Before I knew it, she had crested her hand over my manhood, and it stirred at the woman's touch. As much as I tried to stop it, it had a mind of its own. She jumped when she realized what she had done, her face flushing red while I pretended not to notice, then she continued with the rest of my clothes.

  “There, all dry, I have never been good at physical magic, my strength lies in healing and sensing, but I can do a few things.”

  “So, couldn't you have done this to your clothes yesterday?” I said it before I could stop myself.

  She flushed again. “Oh… um, yes, I supposed I could have. Must have slipped my mind.”

  She was lying. I could tell by the change in her body movements. She suddenly started wringing her hands, her face flushed even more than when she touched me before. The change in behavior was at odds with her normal mannerisms. Instead of saying anything, I filed that bit of information for later. It's good to know people’s tells.

  She was probably trying to seduce me into helping her, so I better let it go.

  “Anyway,” she continued. “Do you want me to see if I can get the water to push a fish or two near the shore where you can grab it? I might have the strength for it.”

  “Wait, you can do that? Why didn't you say so before?”

  She glared at me, raising an eyebrow. “Because you interrupted me when I tried.”

  “Oh… sorry about that.”

  She smirked. “Next time maybe you will wait to hear what I have to say then?”

  It was good to see her get some confidence back. “Deal, though I am a man, and we have been known to be idiots around women most of the time. Please allow me some grace.”

  “Acceptable, let's try to get some fish, shall we?”

  I laughed. “Sure, I am hungry and need more than just fruit and jerky.”

  The fire snapped and crackled as it died down enough to put the two fish we had over the fire. I had cleaned and gutted them at the creek bed before we returned, putting the guts back in the water for the other fish to eat.

  “Ok, this will only take a couple of minutes,” I said, my mouth watering for cooked food. The smell of the… I think they were trout... smelled good, and I was starving.

  “What did you do to them?”

  “Little thing I picked up years ago. We don't really have any cooking utensils, so by getting these green branches and splitting them in two at the ends, add a couple more sticks through the fish itself, we can create a modified grill basket to cook them evenly.”

  I placed each fish over the flames, holding the sticks just a few inches over the coals that had formed as the flames died down, watching them cook. My thoughts drifted to my past and then back to the present.

  “A copper for your thoughts,” Tyla said.

  I smiled at that. “Where did you hear that saying?”

  “Something my grandmother used to say, said it came from her grandmother.”

  “Was she a matriarch too?”

  “Grandma Russel? No, she was on my father's side, but her grandmother was a great matriarch according to the stories, though. It's why my father was picked for my mother's second husband.”

  “Picked?”

  “Yes, it’s… complicated. My father, his name is Micheal, is the second husband. Jason is her first husband.”

  “So, wait, multiple husbands at the same time?”

  “Yes… I keep forgetting your lack of knowledge. We do not fully understand how women are Chosen for their powers. It can completely skip generations. We think, at least according to what I learned in school, that having a father with Chosen in the blood and a Chosen mother increases the odds. So, it is normal for women of power to have multiple husbands and children with them. I have a brother and sister from my father, and two half-sisters on my other father's side, none of the other girls had power. Though Titiana, my full sister, is too young to know yet.”

  “Interesting. We called that polygamy in my, uh, land. Wait, was that when a man does it? Maybe polyandry? It was becoming a thing where I came from, and the words get mixed up in my head.”

  She nodded. “Yes, well, that is where my last name comes from, my father. Even though my father took my mother's name when they married. I would have eventually taken the Blackrun name from my mother when I graduated from school and became an adept. Without power I would have just kept my father's name.”

  “Kind of confusing, but I think I understand. Here, take this but let it cool. Have you eaten fish before?”

  “Yes, it's a staple in my mother's estate,” she said, taking one stick from my hand and blowing on the fish.

  “Wild caught with bones on it?”

  “Umm, no…”

  “Wanted to make sure before I explained it to you this time,” I said, a smile on my face, which she returned with a giggle. “Alright, you can pick the fins off like this, and then pull the meat away from the bones, or pull the skin off and the bones should come with it. Sorry, I don't have any seasoning, so it's as basic as you are going to get.”

  I displayed what I had explained on my fish, pulling off a fin and throwing it in the coals, followed by pulling some of the skin and bone, leaving only white meat, which I blew on and popped into my mouth. “Mmm, even without it, it's not bad.”

  She mimicked my motions, though not as skillfully. I could tell she wasn't used to getting her hands dirty from the squinting of her face.

  It was cute, though.

  She finally popped some fish in her mouth. “Oh gods, I did not realize how hungry I was.”

  “Well, we only have two, but the berries you picked ought to help fill the meal out. Let’s save the jerky, though, if we can.”

  We sat in silence while we ate. The distraction of finding more about this world wore off, and I went back to my inner thoughts. I finished the food and placed the stick down, deciding to trust Tyla a little more. “I said her name was Jessica, she and I were… in love.”

  Tyla nodded, not saying anything, but looked a little pensive.

  “We were together for a few years, planning on getting married someday. Just kept putting it off for one reason or another. Then this… grand expedition came, and we both decided to go. I was told at the last minute that I was not going, but Jessica still was, and it tore us apart. She's gone, and I… am still processing it inside.”

  Tyla scooted next to me, not saying anything, just laying her head on my shoulder. I wasn't sure how we had grown this close so fast. But damned if it did not feel good to have someone just listen.

  “In the dream… again, it felt so real, but I do not know how it could be, she said the expedition was trapped and not able to return. She said she still loved me but wanted me to be happy and move on.”

  Tyla placed a single hand on top of mine and squeezed. No tingling sensation, no magic, just the power of human touch.

  It h
elped.

  “Then my land was overrun by… I don't know what they were, but I thought I was going to die… I could swear that I died, but I woke up in the forest just before I met you. No memory of how I got there.”

  There, the easiest to understand version of my story was out. Minus a few key details I promised myself to tell her if we got closer and knew she would not think of me as a complete madman.

  Rather than judge me or my story, she told her own.

  “My mother is… was the Matriarch of Blackrun, part of the Matriarchy of Nitre, named after a great city to the west. We have allied our families for generations and our twin cities ruled the lands down the middle. The Matriarch of Nitre was nominally our liege lady, but her and my mother were friends since they were little girls and even lovers for a time. I called her my aunt for my entire life.”

  I pulled my hand from underneath hers and wrapped my arm around her. She left her hand on my lap.

  “About a year ago, she and my mother had a falling out. My mother never said the details, but suddenly, and as a surprise to all in the Matriarchy, we declared our independence from Aunt Josephina. My mother raised her banners, and all her ladies and mistresses were called to war. The following spring, about six months ago, there were several battles.”

  She took a deep steadying breath before continuing.

  “Josephina's armies drove us back. It was not until a few months ago we found she declared herself a lover and disciple of Seir, the Demigod. My mother begged for help from the Matriarchs of Riven Hold and Casting harbor, using a Demigod in human lands as the reasoning. Only Riven Hold sent an army, but it was enough to double my mother's forces. My mother pulled me out of my classes to help with healing and we marched to engage his forces. We thought we had the numbers… but it was a trap. Our armies were superior, but Seir was so powerful, he and his harem moved into the battlefield and destroyed our Chosen and our warriors alike. I don't think my mother had seen such power before. I…”

  Tears now streamed out of her eyes. I picked her up and put her in my lap and held her as she cried and buried her face into my neck.

  “She….” Tyla sniffled as she tried to talk, raising her face to mine. “She sent me away at that point with my bodyguards. Her and Miranda of Riven Hold were going to engage and try to stop them… but I don't think she had much hope. The look in her eyes when I saw her last was of resignation, not hope. So, they all probably died and I am all that's left.” She started crying uncontrollably at this point.

  I did not say the obvious, that they could have captured her. If what she said earlier was true, then she might also have been corrupted, but I really hope I was wrong, for Tyla's sake.

  I let her cry on my shoulder for a while, all plans of training were now in ruins as it was now too dark to do anything. Before I knew it, the crying stopped, and I could hear sounds of snoring from my new companion. I struggled to rise, then got her in the bedroll before covering her up and putting the ripped clothing we used as a pillow under her head.

  I smiled at her, hoping that we were developing in a positive manner that was healthy, and not coming together out of fear and loss. I would have to be mindful of that, not let our passions consume us until we knew more. The lower brain of this twenty-year-old body disagreed with me. Luckily, that part of… me, I guess now, did not get a vote in the deliberation.

  I snuffed out the last of the fire, grabbed a flat rock I planned to use as a whetstone and got to work sharpening the cheap daggers. Trying to search my brain for the pieces of knowledge that could let me figure out how to make a bow or some other type of range weapons to add to our arsenal as I kept watch through the night.

  9

  Close Proximity

  “Thrust, twist, and then rotate it around with a downward slash. This is one of the most basic dagger fighting movements, and it's where we will start for now. You did good with the spear, but this is if it gets knocked out of your hand and you need to go to a backup.”

  “Like this?” Tyla asked as she duplicated my movements.

  She pushed out with the dagger at the sapling tree, twisting it just like I showed her, then she pulled and slashed in a cross motion down the simulated chest of her assailant.

  “Yes, but don't make contact with the tree right now, I just want you to feel the movement of the knife. We don't want to dull the blade any more than we have to just yet. I will find a stick or something later you can feel the impact on. Just do that about twenty times on each arm, then we can get moving again.”

  She nodded.

  We had stopped for a midday break and another of the many creeks that littered this area, heading up a wide pass in between the mountains. We decided to do training during each of the breaks in smaller increments rather than at the end of the day, while we moved.

  “What is our goal, Derrick?” she said as she switched arms.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Well, umm. My original goal was to seek shelter in Riven Hold… and they found me before I could get there. Then you showed up and we kind of just ran into the mountains, but… I am not sure what our goal is. Are they still chasing us? Will we just hide in the mountains for the rest of our lives? I do not know what to do now.”

  “That is a… valid point. I am honestly not sure myself yet, things have been happening so fast lately. All I can tell you is I have a powerful feeling about going up this mountain. Why? I am not sure. I just feel drawn to something. But a plan? Nothing yet, I'm sorry.”

  Tyla finished and stretched out her arms from the workout, eventually walking over in front of me. She smiled up at me and I returned it. “I am fine with following this feeling of yours, and I know this sounds weird but a part of me feels freer than I have in a long time, even with the pain of my mother's loss.”

  Our eyes met, and I could feel the pull towards this young woman, our faces started inching closer. Human attraction doing what it does best. I almost gave into the sensation when at the last minute I reined the desire back in, seizing her shoulders and moving my face to the side.

  “I'm sorry, Tyla, I… really want to kiss you right now but I don't want us to do something we will regret later. We have only known each other for a couple days and things are still… fresh for me with the memories.”

  “I… understand,” she said, shaking her head and huffing. “If you do not want me in that way—”

  “No!” I said, cutting that off. “I just don't want us to move so quickly that we have regrets we can't reconcile later. Everything is just so raw for both of us, let's give it a little time before we decide whether it's something we really want, or just a survival instinct telling us it is what we should do. I… really hope that makes sense.”

  “I think so, my mother’s mistresses talked often of battlefield flings that did not work out later. Though I never thought it would be this… overwhelming inside me.”

  We hugged for a minute, and she pressed right up against me. I suddenly felt the blood flowing away from my thinking head and to the feeling one. As it hardened right into her stomach. Rather than push away, Tyla pushed tighter.

  “Uh, Tyla, that is kind of the opposite of what I need right now.”

  “Sorry,” she said as she shifted away from me, her cheeks flushed, and she was panting this time.

  I took a few deep calming breaths, closing my eyes. “It's fine, even with the brief time I find I… care for you, Tyla. I don't want us to ruin it by moving too fast. Let's make sure this attraction, or whatever it is, is real.”

  She nodded. “I… think I can do that, though that looks painful.”

  I opened my eyes to her staring at my groin. My little buddy was arguing in the strongest possible terms my decision to wait, standing at full attention in my pants. “I'll be fine, just need to start walking and things will ease on their own. I hope.”

  She smirked at me and glanced away, suddenly realizing she was staring at my crotch, her face burned even redder than before.

 
“Alright, let's get moving, see that outcropping up there?” I pointed up to the side of the pass, trying my best to focus on the rocks and not her body, as her hardened nipples pushed through the thin fabric of her shirt.

  “I do.”

  “That looks like it has a good vantage point down the mountains. I want to head up there and see if I can spot anyone following us. Then we will use the game trail going up from there to head up higher. Maybe build a shelter and hide for a few days if this feeling I have doesn't pan out. Then decide our next move.”

  “More climbing, I am not looking toward it,” she said with a groan.

  “You'll live. As my old drill instructor used to say, 'walking builds character private Shultz! So, get to building!'” I laughed at the old memory as I mimicked my first DI, wishing I could remember his name. “Somedays, I miss being a green recruit with no responsibility other than to do what I was told.”

  “You have funny words you use. The world magic cannot translate some of them since there is no equivalent.”

  “Really? Who trains your troops here?”

  “Adepts mostly, they give commands, and they expect the men to follow. Other than the medical wagons, I did not have that much experience, though. The men marched, the Chosen rode horses. The men were the fodder and the infantry while the Chosen rained down their power on the enemy.”

  “Huh, I'll have to find out more about how you do war here when we get back to civilization.”

  We walked up the steep grade, sweat poured off of us from the warm day. “Is it summer right now?”

  “The end, cooler weather could hit us at any time.”

  “So, four seasons in this part of the world?”

  “Yes, the effects lessen as you go south past Riven Hold, but the weather here can get quite cold in the winter. We do not want to be in these mountains for too long without a proper shelter.”