Katla suppressed a laugh as she watched Hester avoid looking at her body. Standing there naked, she did nothing to cover herself. She was starting to enjoy teasing poor Hester. “I didn’t get the impression that you were training to be a warrior mage.”
“Oh, I am not,” said Hester. “Master Brutis threw me out of his classes after three weeks. But I enjoy the combat training and Master Crabtree insists that I do some physical training. I train mostly with the tower guards.” Hester continued to try looking away, but when Katla moved up the bed, he couldn’t help but glance over at her. Seeing her naked body, he froze for a moment and then hurriedly turned his head again.
Slipping under the sheets, Katla got comfortable. The cool cotton sheets felt good. “You can turn the light out now.”
“Right, yes I can do that,” mumbled Hester. With a wave of his hand the small blue globe of light started to shrink and grow dull until the room was dark.
Katla closed her eyes. It was tempting to push her teasing of the young male mage further, but they both really did need their sleep, it had been a long day, and who knew what they would face tomorrow. Katla drifted off to sleep.
…
When the morning sun found Katla’s face she squinted and groaned. She nodded to herself that it was time to wake. Turning in the bed she reached her arm out to smack Hester, but to her surprise he was not in the bed. Her eyes went wide with surprise and she finished rolling over to take a look. Sure enough, Hester was not in the bed. He had woken, gotten dressed and left the room without her noticing. She had slept through it. Katla couldn’t remember the last time she’d slept so soundly that she didn’t wake at the slightest movement or noise around her.
Getting dressed, Katla headed downstairs. As she got to the bottom floor, Hester walked in the front door of the inn. He smiled and pointed to an empty table. Katla nodded and joined him at the table. Only one other patron was awake and was sitting at the table next to the window, Katla recognized him as one of the horse traders.
“Good morning,” said Hester, sounding bright and chipper. “I’ve fed and saddled the horses. Darna is making breakfast right now.”
Before Katla even finished sitting down, Darna came out of the kitchen. “Perfect timing. Here is your breakfast.” Darna put down two plates filled with eggs, bacon, sausages, and large chunks of toasted bread. Katla’s mouth watered as she smelled her meal. Hester had not exaggerated when he called the food delicious. Katla thanked Darna and attacked her plate of food. In short time, she was done. She leaned back in her chair and rubbed her belly contently. She noted that the room was starting to fill with waking customers. None of the men she suspected as highwaymen were in the inn. It could mean nothing, yet she would be a fool to ignore her instincts. A wary eye would be needed as they ventured further east.
“Do you need more? You ate that awfully fast,” said Hester.
Katla shook her head. “No. It was delicious but that is more than enough for me. I’m ready to leave when you are.”
“I’m just about finished. We’ll leave right after.”
Darna returned to the table with a small sack. “I’ve made you a small lunch. It is better than anything you’ll have gotten at the college.”
Hester smiled. “Thank you, Darna. When you going to come cook at the college?”
“When pigs fly,” replied Darna. “On second thought, you might give one of my hogs wings if I say something like that. I like my little inn just fine, Hester. Besides who wants to live in that damn rainforest if they don’t have to.”
“It’s not so bad,” said Hester. “It’s rather lovely in the dry season.”
“Great,” said Darna. “It’s lovely two weeks of the year. No, I’ll stay here and let you lovely darlings from the college come and visit me. Give Master Crabtree my regards.”
When Darna went to check on her other customers, Katla asked Hester about her. “Does she fancy your Master Crabtree? That is twice she’s brought him up.”
Hester chuckled. “No, Master Crabtree is far too old for a woman like Darna. He is, on the other hand, a notorious flirt and loves nothing better than to visit here and lavish praise and compliments on Darna. She enjoys the attention, but I believe she secretly may fancy Master Wolden, but he is very shy. He could use a lesson or two from Master Crabtree on how to talk to women.”
“Master Wolden isn’t the only one who can take a lesson on how to talk to women,” said Katla. Before Hester could say anything else she rose from the table. “Come on. Let’s go find a witch or two.”
…
Gradually, as they moved farther east the land changed. The tall, thick forests of the rainforest became more sparsely spaced trees, and wide fields separated by huge clumps of bramble bush and other shrubs. The sun was finally shining bright again after days of being hidden by dark rain clouds.
The road wound in and out of the smaller forests, and into the fields. Occasionally they could see small farms, but mostly, this area was uninhabited. The farm lands to the south and north both being superior. They were in the middle of one of the small patches of forest when a stranger stepped onto the road in front of them.
Katla’s eyes scanned the forest as they approached the hooded man standing in the middle of the road. Katla let her hand casually slide over her hip until her hand rested over one of her dirks. She stopped her horse a good thirty feet before the man, and signaled Hester to do the same.
The stranger lifted his hood. It was the man who’d been at the bar the previous evening.
“What can I help you with friend?” asked Hester.
“Nothing,” said the stranger. “This doesn’t involve you. You should leave mage.”
Katla watched the stranger carefully. “You should leave, before someone gets hurt.”
The man grinned. “What is the point of an ambush if no one gets hurt.”
Katla noticed his eyes shift ever so slightly to her left. She turned in her saddle to see who was behind them. The arrow which had was aiming for her heart, struck her shoulder instead, only her last second shift had saved her. Katla yanked the arrow from her shoulder and jumped from her horse, pulling out her dirks as she landed. She charged the man on the road. More arrows sliced through the air.
In front of her, Katla spotted several more warriors making their way out from behind the thick bramble bushes where they had been hiding. Katla glanced back, Hester was now off his horse and using his magic to block the incoming arrows. He wasn’t attacking, but at least she wouldn’t have to worry about getting another arrow in the back.
The men attacked Katla just as she reached the first man. She was surprised when he easily blocked her first attack. She’d hoped to kill him in one blow and then work her way through the new warriors as they reached her, but luck wasn’t with her this day, the man was a skilled warrior and knew that time was on his side. He backed up, deftly blocking Katla’s attacks while the other men surrounded her. The tides of battle turned as the new men arrived, Katla went from attacking to simply trying to survive. The five men worked as a unit, their attacks probed for weakness, and came in steady waves, leaving Katla no option but to duck and weave and desperately block each attack. There were no openings for a counter-attack, no chance of escape. Katla kicked out with one leg, her foot blocking a low attack while both of her dirks blocked sword attacks.
The fourth weapon, a heavy hammer whistled through the air and slammed into her unprotected chest knocking her back. Katla groaned as the heavy weapon sent her flying back. The last thing she heard was a loud angry roar from behind her; then the world went black.
10
The gems are safe
After defeating Arzhan, Hanna limped back to the village, her body ached and she felt drained. Fighting the deadly demon warrior had drained her, she was exhausted.
When she came into the village, Biran was among the first to spot her. He rushed to her side. He grabbed her arm and put it over his shoulder, helping her to walk down the hill.
“Take me to Esmera’s house if you don’t mind,” said Hanna.
Azad joined Biran and grabbed her other arm.
“I’m not dead,” said Hanna in protest. But the truth was she was glad for the help.
“I take it the demon warrior is dead,” said Azad as the two men carried her to the house.
Hanna nodded. “Yes.” She was too tired to explain the fight, or what she’d learned.
They put Hanna on Esmera’s spare bed. “Are you hurt?” asked Biran.
“No. Just exhausted,” said Hanna. “This demon was very powerful. It took everything I had to defeat him.”
Esmera came into the room. “Everyone out. You can ask her your questions later.”
Biran looked ready to argue, but then nodded. “Fine.” He squeezed Hanna’s hand and leaned down to her ear. “Sleep well.”
Azad simply turned and walked out.
Hanna closed her eyes. Sleep came quick.
The dream was like the last one she’d had. Both Thorodd and Anso were waiting for her in the fog.
“Hanna,” said Anso as she approached.
“What is it?” asked Hanna. “The moons aren’t aligned, how are you here?”
“The moons aren’t the only celestial power that allows us to communicate with you. The return of Quivna to the mortal realm has many in the spirit world concerned. We’ve been granted the ability to communicate with you again so soon.”
Hanna nodded. “That demon was powerful. I can only imagine what Quivna is like.”
“Quivna is a far greater danger than any demon warrior. Her magic will influence people. Warriors will be attracted to whatever human form she is in, and will willingly serve her. Even without the spirit stones, Quivna will be able to build an army. Right now, she is still weak, but as her powers grow she will become increasingly dangerous.”
“What can we do?” asked Hanna.
“You know what you need to do,” said Anso. “First, you must secure the remaining spirit stones. Find a way to ensure the witches can’t get their hands on them. Then you must return to Mykoznia. Find Katla.”
“Are you sure?” asked Hanna. Katla was responsible for Thorodd’s death. Did they really want her to work with her again?
Thorodd chuckled. “Your loyalty is appreciated. But you now know why she killed me. She is a valuable ally. She may be an assassin, but she has loyalty and honor. Working with her is a far better thing than allowing Quivna to gain power.”
“Remember,” said Anso. “Find Katla and her mage.” Then both spirits disappeared into the dream fog.
“What mage?” asked Hanna, but they were already gone.
…
Hanna woke to a growling tummy and a dry mouth. She groaned as she sat up.
Esmera walked into the room. “Our sleeping beauty awakes.”
“What time is it?” asked Hanna. I didn’t miss breakfast, did I? I’m starving.”
“You missed a breakfast, a lunch and a dinner. You’ve been asleep for a day and a half. That battle really must have taken it out of you.”
“Yes. There seems to be a limit to how much energy I can draw from their spirits, and my own.”
“Using magic is always draining. As your magic grows stronger you will have more reserves,” said Esmera. “Come to the kitchen. I will cook you breakfast.”
Hanna followed Esmera to the kitchen. “Where is everyone?”
“Biran is at the mine. Azad and your men are on guard duty. They are making sure no more unwelcome visitors enter the valley.”
Hanna sat down. She was glad to have Azad with her. The first mate was a competent commander and didn’t need her to tell him what needed to be done.
Esmera put a plate of assorted fruit in front of Hanna. “Start with that.”
Hanna gratefully accepted the food. Aside from the need for extra sleep, the use of spirit left her feeling famished. As Hanna ate Esmera started to cook. The smell of bacon met Hanna’s nose. From her travels, Hanna knew pig was considered unclean by many cultures and some ate no meat at all, but Hanna was glad none of her gods frowned on it. Fruit was good, but she wasn’t sure if she could live on it alone, especially now.
Esmera put another plate in front of Hanna. “Now that the demon warrior is dead, are we safe?”
Hanna took a big bite of an apple, she barely finished chewing before answering. “For now, but as long as you have spirit stones there will be danger.”
Esmera nodded. “That is the same conclusion that we’ve come to.”
Hanna ate until both plates of food were gone. She was starting to feel normal again.
When she finished, Esmera spoke again. “You should go speak to Biran. He’s been worried sick about you. I had to kick him out yesterday. He wanted to spend the day at your side waiting for you to wake.”
Hanna blushed. “He is at the mines?” Hanna rose. “Thank you for breakfast.”
“Breakfast is the least we can do. You’ve saved our village twice in the last few days. We are forever in your debt, Hanna Halfblood.”
Hanna didn’t know what to say to that. “I didn’t do anything special. I just did what needed to be done.”
“And that is why we love you,” said Esmera. “Now go before I hug you to death.”
Hanna walked up to the mine. Today there was only one man guarding the entrance, and as soon as he spotted Hanna he headed inside the mine. She didn’t even reach the mouth before Biran came out.
“Hanna! You’re finally awake. I was so worried,” said Biran.
“A girl has to have her beauty sleep,” joked Hanna. “How are things here at the mine?’
“Good,” said Biran. “We are almost done.”
“Done?” asked Hanna.
“Yes. Come I will show you what I am talking about.” Biran grabbed her hand and led her into the mine. The main shaft was just over six feet high and equally wide and went straight into the mountain, before starting to wind down further into the mountain. “Ever since we realized that the spirit stones could be used for evil we’ve been trying to figure out what to do with them and the mine. We decided the best thing to do would be to keep mining them. If we simply closed the mine, someone would come along and reopen it. But now the lode of stones has ended. There are two veins of silver that we’ve been mining. One had the spirit stones in them, and the other was just silver. The one vein with the spirit stones has petered out. It is possible there is more, but silver is a funny thing. We might be able to find more, or that vein may be exhausted. However, there is little reason to go digging into heavy rock for something we really don’t want to find.”
Biran led her down an arm of the tunnel. Several of the village men were in the tunnel, cleaning up loose rock on the ground. Biran pointed to the end of the tunnel. See how the rock is solid here? Before the end of the vein, this wall was filled with little cracks and veins where the silver ran. Inside those veins were the spirit stones.” Biran went to a place in the wall and pulled a rock away revealing a hiding spot. He pulled out a sack and handed it to Hanna. “The stones can serve a good purpose in the right hands. You are proof of that. Otherwise I would’ve destroyed them all. Take them and hide them where no one but you can find them.”
“What about the other vein? Are you sure you won’t find stones in that one as well?”
“I’ve decided to not risk it,” said Biran. “The men are cleaning up the last bits of rock with silver and then we are going to bury the mine.”
“Bury the mine? But what about the silver?”
“We only mine silver because it is a valuable trading commodity and it is here. It isn’t worth dying over. We are closing the mine. We’ll set a fire inside that burns all the support beams we’ve put in and the roof will collapse. We’ll hide any signs of the mine. Anyone that comes to the valley looking for it will have to search all the surrounding mountains and even if they find the mine, they would need years and talented miners to find the silver veins again, and that is no guarantee
. After that we’ll leave this valley.”
“Where will you go?” asked Hanna. She hoped he’d say Irontide, but she knew that was foolish.
Biran took a deep breath. “We will head west. Our people are used to moving. They are ready. I, I was hoping you would come with us.” Biran pulled Hanna close. “Come with me, Hanna.”
Hanna leaned her head against his. It was tempting to say yes. Biran made her feel like no other person ever had, but she couldn’t go west with him. While Quivna was out there she needed to be hunting the demon witch.
“I wish I could, Biran.”
“But you have to go and hunt the witches,” said Biran. “I know. I tried to convince myself that it was enough to keep the spirit stones safe. But I think I only told myself that because I wanted you to be free of the witches. But if there are other demon warriors out there, you must stop them, same with the witches who make them. I just wanted you to myself.”
Hanna felt tears beginning to well in her eyes. She had just met Biran again, and yet she felt a connection to him and she knew he felt the same, and now she was losing him. His responsibility to his people gave him no choice but to lead the Nordvik clan away from the dangers of the Ayrith Valley, while her own destiny was leading her even farther away. The chance of building anything with Biran had gone from remote to impossible.
Biran wiped a tear from her cheek. “No tears. I’m lucky to have met you, Hanna Halfblood, and will always be grateful for what you have done for my people. Besides, who knows what the future may bring. Perhaps one day our paths will cross again and there won’t be witches and demon warriors to be slayed.”
Hanna sniffled and then smiled softly. “That would be nice.”
“Yes, it would be,” said Biran. “Now let us get out of this damn mine. It is time to destroy it.”
Hanna clutched the sack of spirit stones Biran had given her. Destroying the mine was only part of the problem. She now had the remaining stones and would have to take them away. Without the stones the Nordviks would no longer be targets. “I will take my men and leave. The sooner the stones are away from here the safer you will be.”
Hanna Halfblood: Spirit Warrior Page 9