by Robe
Beginning to panic, he spun this way and that, trying to catch a glimpse of the light from the glowing water, but there was nothing. He was about to cry out for help, but then he decided he was more likely to get himself into trouble that way. He leaned against a tree, hoping he would hear something from his companions. A wave of relief washed over him as he saw something in the sky; a fireball rose higher and higher in the air until it exploded into a fiery beacon which lingered, signaling where its thrower was below.
Auric began making his way back through the forest again, this time in the opposite direction, his eyes trained on the spot where the fireball had been. He had run for a while before he heard Joan calling his name nearby. Reaching the source of the shouting, he found his friends gathered around a burning flame on the ground, the only source of light visible. The gleaming water was no longer gleaming.
The group gripped their weapons as Auric entered the clearing before seeing that the one who approached meant no harm.
“We were worried about you,” Joan said, rushing to him to see that he was well. “Are you hurt? What happened?”
“He got away from me,” Auric said, embracing Joan as she reached him. “I’m well. I was afraid one of you would be hurt.”
“A few scratches, but I would say we came out on top,” Reon said. He looked particularly happy.
“What’s gotten into you?” Auric asked him.
“We faced the Evil God and won!” Reon replied.
“But he got away,” Auric said.
“Well, he can’t cause much trouble without drawing attention to himself,” Reon pointed out. “And now we know we can take him.”
“That’s very optimistic,” Dalk said. “We could easily have ended up on the losing side.”
“But we didn’t,” Reon said. “He even caught us off guard. If that’s the best he’s got, I think we’re in good shape. He should be the one worried.”
Auric spotted Ziem standing off to the side, looking down at something in the darkness. As he approached, Ziem made eye contact with him and then returned his gaze to the giant hand Argain had summoned. Although the only light they had was Reon’s fire, they could make out a slight movement of the hand as a black mist seeped from its wounds. It looked smaller than before, curled up like a spider would be once struck.
Ziem tensed up as Dalk walked up beside him. “Do you think it’ll give us any more trouble?”
“I think it’s dying,” Auric said.
Veese, Joan and Reon joined them, and Reon created another fireball in his hand, providing them a better look at what was happening on the ground. The hand did indeed look like it was struggling, suffering as it tried to hold on to whatever drove it. It disturbed Auric, as he felt even a servant of evil did not deserve to suffer.
“Finish it, Reon,” Auric spoke, and Reon nodded before throwing his fireball at the creature. It burst into flame as if composed of dried grass, and the group back away, shielding their eyes as the fire raged. The hand only burned for a few seconds, emitting a thick haze as it did, and then it was gone.
“Argain may get stronger,” Veese said as the companions looked at the soiled ground where the hand had laid.
“You think he’ll show himself again?” Auric asked.
“Only time will tell,” Veese replied.
10
“We have a decision to make,” Auric said as his group sat around the campfire Reon had whipped up. They were tired, and most of them were in pain from the recent battle. None of them were seriously injured, but a good rest seemed well in order. Even Veese couldn’t be heard complaining about the respite.
“Do we go back to Rode for supplies,” Auric continued, “or do we go on, straight through the forest, to Rathelstat?”
“We can’t let him get too far ahead of us,” Dalk spoke. “Traveling to Rode and back would cost us half a day or more.”
“I agree,” Veese said, Reon and Joan nodding beside him.
“Then we’ll go on,” Auric said, “but the journey will be difficult. I have traveled from Lon Gairdas to Rathelstat before, and the Western Barrier stretches on for days. We should get some rest. I’ll take first guard shift.”
“Second,” Joan called.
“Third,” Reon said.
-
Partway through Reon’s turn guarding, the sun rose. Its light struggled to glow through the canopy in the morning gloom, and Reon thought to himself that he could easily just lie back down and close his eyes. It would be foolish, and it would endanger the entire group, so he banished the thought, although he secretly longed for it in the back of his mind.
He climbed up into a nearby tree, pulling himself to the highest branches he could manage and then looked out upon the forest. It seemed to stretch for leagues; mile after mile of leafy tree tops expanded past the horizon, requiring days of travel just to pass through. Sighing, he climbed down and opened his satchel. He had brought it with him the previous night as a precaution and was glad he had. There were food and bandages, along with a snare trap and even more food. It would get them through their journey, or at least part of the way through it.
Noticing Joan also had a pack, a traveling bag lying beside her while she slept, he approached it. The bag looked filled to the brim, its fine leather cover bulging to contain whatever hid beneath. Curiosity setting in, Reon bent down and unbuckled the bag. Within it were some provisions, a wealth of medicines and antidotes, and to his surprise, poisons: small jars and phials filled with strange plant pieces and mixtures. He reached in and pulled out a small bottle labeled “starleer.” Inside it was a dark green fluid that sloshed around as he tipped it side to side.
“Be careful with that!”
The cry made Reon jump, almost causing him to drop the bottle. He looked to see Joan had awoken and was looking at him wide-eyed. She lunged toward him and snatched the bottle from his hands. “One whiff of that and your eyes would be bleeding before I could even get you the antidote.”
“I’m sorry,” Reon said with utmost sincerity. The thought of his eyes bleeding reminded him of the agonizing flash he had experienced in battle the previous night against Argain. “I didn’t mean to wake you up.”
“Well, it’s done now,” Joan said, replacing the starleer bottle in its slot inside of her bag. “Where is the sun?”
“It’s just risen over the horizon,” Reon replied.
“Probably not a bad idea to wake the others,” Joan said.
“What makes you think we’re not awake?” Dalk asked, sitting up and rubbing his face. Everyone else, too, was stirring, and Joan apologized for her shouting.
“What were you yelling about, anyway?” Auric asked as he stood and looked at the sky.
“Reon was trying to poison himself,” Joan answered. “I was saving his life.”
Reon chuckled and stood, and then he pulled Joan to her feet. “I wouldn’t mind washing up before we started this morning,” he said.
“You really want to get into that water?” Auric asked.
“There isn’t anything off about it,” Dalk said. “I took a dip in it while we were fighting Argain last night.”
“I was afraid we were going to have to find another watering hole before I bathed,” Joan exclaimed and began removing her garments. The men stood around her, unsure of what to do until she turned to them and asked, “A little privacy?”
They gathered their things in a hurry and made off out of eyeshot of the pond.
-
Once everyone had taken the time to splash water on his or her face, the group set off. Before them stretched a long journey they were all eager to have done. The Western Barrier was similar to the Cursed Forest, but the trees were far larger and healthier, some so tall they touched the clouds. With no trail to follow, traversing the forest proved difficult; steep inclines, uneven ground and in some places, wild overgrowth of the greenery barred their path, and they had to choose whether to overcome the obstacle, or go around it.
As a travel
er by trade, Auric possessed the skills required for such a mission. He could navigate by the sun and stars and knew how to follow signs to a water source. With the map he carried, he marked their location and kept them on route.
It wasn’t far into the day when they reached an opening in the forest. The other side of the clearing was visible across a plain, and the group strolled into the field, enjoying the sunlight while they could. No ground could be seen as the group trampled the grass, much taller and thicker than the whispy plants beneath the canopy of the trees. When they had nearly reached the other side of the field, Auric stopped them and pointed. A man was sitting some ways away just on the edge of the tree line. He had clearly seen them, but they were too far away to tell what he looked like. Cautiously, the group approached.
As they reached the man, he stood. He had both of his hands on a large, wooden crossbow. “How can I help you all?” he asked. His face was shadowed beneath the widely brimmed hat he wore, but it was clear he was not the Evil God. His belongings were gathered around him, ranging between several weapons, hunting traps, and a few bags of things. The way he stood exuded a dominant aura, relaxed and in full control over his situation, not unlike Dalk.
“Greetings traveler,” Auric greeted the man, but he kept his distance. “Have you seen an individual pass through here by chance?”
“Might have,” the stranger said.
“We’re searching for our friend,” Auric lied. “He is not well.”
The man eyed the companions. “A lot of people to be searching for one.”
“The situation is… fragile,” Auric continued, visibly choosing his words with care. “If we don’t find him, he may cause harm to himself, or others.”
“Well, this is a happy chance of fate,” the man said. “I’m Kandon, and I’m the best tracker this side of the known world. Pay me my cut, and you’ll find your man.” As he spoke, he looked each of the companions up and down as if he could gather all he needed to know with a simple glance.
Auric felt someone put a hand on his shoulder and saw Dalk gesturing for them to talk privately.
“Let me consult my comrades,” Auric said as politely as he could, and he turned to face the group.
“I think it is unwise to bring somebody untrustworthy into our group,” Veese said, “especially this one. He is distasteful.”
“Are you kidding me?” Reon asked. “This is our luckiest break yet! You can’t find these guys walking the streets of Rode. They’re very difficult to get a hold of.”
“It’s one thing to hire a man to find your friend. It’s another to hire a man to find a god,” Dalk said. “We shouldn’t endanger this stranger.”
“We will be endangering ourselves by traveling with him,” Veese said.
“We can’t throw this away,” Reon said. “Like it or not, he has the exact set of skills we need to find the Evil God out here. We let this man go, and we’re fools.”
“I agree with Reon,” Joan said. “We need all the help we can get.”
Auric turned to peer at Ziem. “What do you think?”
Ziem looked surprised that Auric had asked for his opinion, as made obvious by the little step backwards he took and the widening of his eyes. “I think we should hire him,” he said quietly.
Auric nodded. “So do I. This man is invaluable. I’ll pay him and I’ll keep my eyes on him. If he causes any trouble, it’s on my head.”
“Very well,” Dalk said. Veese frowned, but if he had further complaint he kept it to himself.
Auric turned back toward the tracker who was now chewing on a shoot of grass. “That was quite an in-depth conversation,” he said boredly. “Either there’s a lot to agree about, or somebody in that group doesn’t want me around.”
“We’ve agreed to hire you, Kandon,” Auric said.
Kandon smiled and spat the shoot. “I’ll pack my gear.”
-
The party resumed their travel just as soon as Kandon had finished gathering his effects. It didn’t take him long to pack his things up into a backpack he wore around his shoulders. While they walked, Auric provided him with a description of how the Evil God looked, and Kandon responded by telling them that a man matching that description had passed him the previous day.
“It only seems fitting he would go straight to Rathelstat,” Kandon said. “That is, if he is capable of navigating there. I’ll keep my eyes on the trail to see if I can pick up any fresh tracks.”
Almost immediately, Kandon spotted what he believed to be an indication of someone making his or her way through the forest in the same direction the group was headed. He leaned in close to the ground, examining the scene and muttering, although the rest of the party couldn’t see anything unusual. Announcing he had indeed found the trail of a person traveling toward Rathelstat, he rose. Like a hound, Kandon followed the signs, stopping every so often to reexamine something but then accelerating the pace to make up for lost time.
The day was tiring and boring. The companions talked little due to their guest, and Kandon declined most requests to take a break, saying they needed to use the daylight while they had it. This, of course, made the companions irritable, as their hunger and exhaustion grew more and more difficult to ignore.
Finally, upon seeing Veese struggle to climb even a short incline, Auric demanded they take a break for lunch. Kandon grudgingly agreed and pulled a knife from his trousers, stabbing it into the ground to mark where the last sign of the trail was. The others unpacked their gear and settled, sighing in relief, around a small clearing nearby. Reon almost tossed an ember to the ground as a small makeshift fire, but he stopped himself as he remembered the stranger amongst them.
“You don’t do much talking,” Kandon said, taking a seat next to Joan and biting into a piece of fruit he had unloaded, “especially for being such a large group.”
“We try to focus on the task at hand to save our energy,” Joan replied. “It helps us compete with the endurance of athletes such as yourself.”
“Ah,” Kandon grinned. He looked at Joan for a moment. “So, have you claimed any of these men yet?”
Joan blinked at him, her face appalled, but then it shifted into a sly smile. “Not yet,” she replied, “though I get the feeling one of them has his eyes on me.”
Kandon chuckled and finished his meal. “I’m gonna take a leak,” he said, and the tracker strolled off.
“Do you think it wise to befriend such a man?” Dalk asked.
“Yes,” Joan replied quickly and simply. “If he’s going to be traveling with us, then we might as well gain some form of trust with him.”
“He is a mercenary,” Dalk pressed. “He is not looking for long term relationships or to settle down with a family.”
“What knowledge of the New World makes you think I’m searching for those things?” Joan asked, her face growing taut with annoyance.
“You were flirting with him,” Dalk pointed out.
“Oh, so I’m not allowed to have fun with someone unless I want to wed him? Is that it?” Joan scoffed.
The return of Kandon prevented Dalk from responding, but it did nothing to stop him and Joan exchanging faces with one another.
“Are we ready to set off?” Kandon asked.
“Already?” Reon said, having barely begun to eat his late lunch.
“We have to slow down a little, Kandon,” Auric said. “We are not in such prime condition as you, and one or two of us are still recovering from a recent accident.”
“Oh, one of you got stung by a Sheson Vine?” Kandon joked, referring to a plant that could administer a light pain when touched. He snorted at his own humor while the companions simply looked at each other. “You’ll be fine. Just kick on the second round of energy.”
“No, Kandon, we need a while longer,” Auric said.
“Well, when you want to catch this friend of yours, just let me know. I’ll be waiting,” he walked off, leaving the group members to finish their meals in silence.
&nb
sp; -
Shortly after the party had finished their meals and caught their breath, they started their journey again and didn’t stop until Kandon dictated so. It was close to dusk, and there was too little light for Kandon to make out small details in the terrain. In addition, they had come across a stream that would make for a good source of water and a place to freshen up in the morning. Auric and the rest of the group agreed on the location and began unpacking promptly, longing to rest for the night.
“We must awaken by daybreak and continue our journey,” Kandon said. “While we rest, our target may be persevering through the night.”
Auric nodded. “We’ll be ready,” he said and then turned to his companions. “We must be especially careful tonight, whether it be defending our new partner, or defending against him. I’ll be on guard first.”
“Wake me when you grow weary,” Dalk said.
“I’d like a shift as well,” Ziem said.
Auric agreed. “Good. It’s best we get our sleep while we can. Our friend doesn’t seem to like slowing down his pace at all.”
Kandon was setting up camp; he had already hung a small canvas from a few trees, unloaded most of his equipment and had begun work on a campfire.
“You’re quite productive,” Joan said, kneeling next to him.
“Wait ‘til you see some of the other talents I possess,” Kandon said, following up with a quick grin.
“Oh?” Joan asked. “Like what?”
Kandon continued to smile at her for a moment before speaking, “I make a mean tree rat stew.” He spoke without ever taking his eyes off of her.
“I wouldn’t mind tasting that,” Joan said. “Most men don’t cook.”
“Well, it comes in handy out here, in the cold and dark,” he said. “I’ll get some more wood while there’s still a smear of light on the horizon.” The tracker rose, and after a moment more of staring at Joan, he walked away.
“Is there a problem, Dalk?” Joan asked as Dalk rummaged through his gear, but he just glared at her.
Reon tossed a fireball at the kindling Kandon had already accumulated, and the others gathered around it for warmth. The air had begun to grow cold in the absence of the sun. Reon took out a loaf of bread from his satchel and warmed it over the fire before cutting it into slices for his companions to share.