by Andrew Rowe
Reika stomped up to me, then grabbed me in a hug. “Well, now we have to celebrate!”
Dawn and I were in agreement. “We’d love to.”
We couldn’t exactly throw a party in the middle of the forest, but we did celebrate in a way that felt appropriate. Dawn, Reika, and I sat down together.
Then Reika and I took turns reading a book out loud.
It was another cheesy romance novel, but I still had a lot of fun.
***
We spent the next couple days walking, resting, eating, and recovering.
I found it was easier to move with my new bond to Dawnbringer supplying me with renewed energy. It was also easier to talk to Dawn without taxing my mind.
More importantly, I also found that I could do it at a much longer distance. If Reika carried Dawnbringer a few hundred feet away, I could still hear Dawn faintly in my mind, and vice versa.
At that point, Dawn and I both started to feel uncomfortable, so we didn’t push it further. I suspected we’d be able to tolerate longer distances eventually, but I didn’t want to take any immediate risks.
Fortunately, there were no signs of the Tails of Orochi following us, in spite of the giant unexpected light pillar we’d caused. Dawn promised she’d warn me before doing anything like that again.
Unfortunately, I didn’t spot the forest spirit, either. I hoped he was okay.
It was possible that wearing the mask was blocking whatever means the forest spirit used to track us, but I couldn’t take the risk of taking the mask off. We were still in too bad of shape for a fight, and since Miyuri clearly had some kind of divination magic, I knew the mask was probably an effective means of keeping her off our trail.
Speaking of Miyuri, we did discuss whether we believed she was going to come after us. We decided we didn’t have enough information, and that we were better off operating under the assumption that she would either come after us eventually herself, or send other people to get us if it suited her purposes.
She seemed to me like the master planner type, and those were always irritating. Fortunately, she also didn’t seem to care much about the swords.
I wondered if she’d seen far enough into the future to anticipate all of the details of our fight in advance. Had she deliberately set things up for us to kill Zenkichi so that she could consume him and gain more power?
It was possible, but I didn’t know how likely it was.
Either way, she was the kind of opponent I wasn’t looking forward to facing again, especially if she’d gained more power by eating Zenkichi’s remains like I’d expected.
***
After about two more days, Reika was feeling well-rested enough to switch back to her dragon form, if only briefly. We both agreed that with our injuries, covering more ground was worth the risk of being seen flying through the air and the fatigue she’d suffer.
For the next two days, we moved further south, flying an hour or so at a time, then resting. Her dragon form still showed signs of its injuries, but it had recovered much more than her human form had. I suspected that the natural qualities of the plane of spirits where her dragon form was being “stored” when it was not in use had to do with that.
I wondered if her human form would heal more rapidly while she was in her dragon form, but I didn’t have enough data to determine that with any certainty. I just had to hope it would help. Her burns were looking pretty bad after two days without any real treatment.
When we stopped for a food break after Reika landed near a flock of wild geese, we discussed our plans.
“We have a couple options at this point. We’re near the borders of both Edrias. We’re also near the train tracks, and if we can find a station, we can take them to Valia or Caelford,” she explained.
“What are the advantages to each?” I asked.
“Valia is going to have the most magical resources. If you’re concerned about finding your friends, you might be able to find a Diviner there who can help. I’d also be a little less conspicuous there, if you’re willing to say I’m a summoned monster.”
That was sorely tempting. Now that I knew Wrynn had reached this continent, trying to track her down was an option. That said, Wrynn tended to use anti-divination spells similar to my mask, and I didn’t know if I’d be able to find her magically. “What about Caelford?”
“Ultimately, if that’s where this Anabelle Faren works, that’s probably the best place to go find her. We might be able to catch her before she leaves for the tournament, or we can just wait for her to get back.”
I nodded. “And the tournament itself is in Edria?”
Reika nodded. “Yeah, but we don’t know when it’s actually happening. We might have time to visit Valia first, try to track down your friends, and then go to Edria after that. And if we miss that Anabelle Faren at the tournament, we can take the train to find her in Caelford.”
That was a hard choice. There were strong reasons to consider all three nations. “Dawn, what do you think?”
It was hard to argue with that logic. “Dawn wants to go straight to Edria.”
Reika nodded. “I’m in agreement with her. You mentioned that you were here to collect resources. If you consider the sacred swords to fall into that category, this is an opportunity you can’t afford to miss. Beyond that, there’s a good chance we can catch Farren there and help Dawn.”
I nodded. “That’s good for Dawn and myself, but what about you?”
“...Edria is also where Dragon’s Damsel is published and I want to see if the next book came out.”
Ah, Reika’s true motivations revealed. I chuckled. “I think we’re in agreement, then. Edria it is.”
“Good.” Reika nodded. “But I’m probably going to need a disguise.”
“Can’t you just make yourself look like an ordinary human?”
Reika shrugged. “While we’re walking around in the street, sure. But not in a fight. My scales and claws are really obvious, and I need to use them to fight effectively.”
“You’re planning to fight in the tournament?”
Reika looked at me like I’d asked a silly question, which in fairness, I had. “Obviously.”
“Okay. Disguises. Honestly, I might need one, too.”
“You’ve already got a mask, that’s pretty good.”
I smiled. “It’s a start.”
“And a false name.” She folded her arms. “You’re a bit suspicious, you know.”
I winced. “Sorry about that. I wasn’t trying to keep any secrets, but...”
“I get it.” Reika nodded. “You tried to deny it, but...I know you’re a hero of justice, fighting crime at night and keeping your identity a secret.”
“I’m really not.” I sighed.
“Not yet, maybe.” Reika grinned. “But if we’re going to be in Edria, wearing disguises and using false identities... What color of mask do you think would suit me?”
I could already tell this was going to be an interesting next step in our journey.
***
We voted — including Dawn — and all agreed that going straight to Edria was our priority.
Dawn insisted that we also needed to get her a mask, if we were getting one for Reika. It was only fair.
I wasn’t exactly sure how the logistics of that would work, but I agreed because it was too hilarious not to.
We traveled on for another day, eventually sighting the train tracks that led across the Unclaimed Lands all the way between Caelford and Valia.
Realizing that we had no identification and looked more than a little shady, we ended up taking an extra day detour to travel west along the train tracks, eventually finding one of the tiny rest stops for the train station. We were very fortunate we found one as quickly as we did, since they tend to be hundreds of miles apart.
Since I was at least somewhat less suspicious looking than Reika, I headed over to the train stop and found a general store.
; I didn’t have the local currency, but they directed me to a Haven Securities bank in the same little rest stop, where I was able to trade some of my own coins for a smaller amount of local currency. I was fortunate that I’d been keeping my money in my backpack, rather than the belt pouch that had been obliterated.
(I deliberately reshaped my coins to remove the symbols of my homeland from them, since those would have raised even more questions than random blank coins did.)
I didn’t find out until later that Haven Securities owned much of the outpost, since they were the ones funding a number of expeditions into the Unclaimed Lands. That would be important to me later on, but at that time, I just was extremely glad to find a way to exchange my currency.
Once I had some local coins, I went back to the general store and bought some much-needed basic supplies. Food, water, medical supplies, and a whole bunch of clean clothes. Also, a razor for shaving. I was getting pretty scruffy, and while reshaping a knife into a razor had worked for me before, it wasn’t ideal.
They didn’t have any healing potions for sale, but the medical kit that I purchased did have a cream for treating burns. I didn’t know how effective it would be, but it was better than nothing.
I even bought a new scabbard for Dawnbringer. She was absolutely thrilled when I let her try it on. I ended up reshaping the crystal scabbard into a more portable shape and keeping it in my backpack. I’d have it available if Dawn ended up destroying an ordinary scabbard rapidly, which I suspected she might. If she didn’t, I could just sell the crystal later. I was pretty sure there would be a market for that somewhere.
Once we had the supplies, I cleaned our injuries with some of the fresh water, then treated them with the medical kit to the best of my ability. It was an improvement.
We both felt a little better after that, but I still desperately needed a healer and a bath.
I asked at the shop about what we’d need to do to get into Edria. The shopkeeper didn’t ask questions — maybe because he already had assumed that we were some kind of criminals, or possibly heroes of justice — and explained that anyone could get into Edria through a border fort, but that without a proper travel visa, it would be expensive.
Expensive sounded irritating, but it also sounded like a solvable problem. Selling the crystalline scabbard was an option if we needed more money, as well as repairing and selling the broken Heartlance replica.
Aside from that, we knew we could probably fly across the border if we really needed to, but we hoped to avoid that approach if possible.
My injures had healed enough that Reika passed Dawnbringer back to me, and I wore her on my belt in her new scabbard.
I glanced down at her hilt, looking dubious. “Oh? You have another ability? Maybe one that could have saved Reika and me from being horribly mauled in that last fight?”
I raised an eyebrow, having a hard time conceptualizing something that was better than a combat ability. “Okay. Go on.”
“So...you can detect your own current location? Sounds real useful, Dawn. Pat yourself on the back.”
“It’s really not.”
I paused. “Wait, why is that?”
I nodded. “And one of them is nearby right now?”
I turned toward Reika. “Any idea why two other sacred swords might be heading toward Edria at the same time we are?”
“Well, according to the prophecy—”
Oh, here we go. Of course there’s a prophecy.
“All of the sacred swords must be united to reach the land where the goddess resides.”
My shoulders slumped. “You’re kidding me.”
“Nope! So, their wielders are probably heading to get the one that’s already in Edria.”
I shook my head. “Why now? That seems like conspicuous timing.”
“The tournament, obviously.”
“What’s so special about this tournament?”
“Oh! You didn’t realize?” Reika smiled. “It’s the Tournament of the Sacred Sword. It’s held every six years in Edria, for a chance to try to claim Diamantine, the Sacred Sword of Stone.”
I ignored Dawn. “I take it that no one has successfully claimed the sword recently?”
“Not exactly. You see, that sword has been in the imperial line of Edria for generations. The tournament winner gets to challenge the current wielder in a match for the sword...and the current wielder is usually the emperor of Edria, or if he’s too old, the crown princess or prince.”
I pondered that. “And I assume the imperial line tends to include people who are very strong?”
“As far as I know, no one has beaten one of them in a match in the last two hundred years. Most contestants enter because it’s a chance to show off in front of a large audience, and they give prizes to anyone who makes it to the last few rounds. No one is actually expected to win.”
Resh.
Thinking about that more, I suspected there was probably a cultural tradition to throw your match to the emperor or his line. The “duel” for the sword was probably largely ceremonial, a way of continuing to validate the imperial line’s claim to the sacred sword.
But I’d never been good about worrying about maintaining traditions.
I’d do some research first, but if I ended up in a fight to earn another sacred sword, I planned to win.
And if two other sacred swords were headed that way, I had a strong feeling their wielders would probably think the same way.
What are the other wielders of the sacred swords like? I wondered.
Dawn replied to my thoughts, even though I hadn’t directed them at her.
You looking to find yourself a new wielder already?
You have a point.
Obviously.
Do I get any points for pointing out that you have a point?
I grinned.
Reika, Dawnbringer, and I continued on our journey toward Edria, seeking out the remaining Six Sacred Swords.
We hoped that there, we’d be able to find some clues about how to get Dawn a body, and maybe learn how she’d developed sentience in the first place.
I wanted to meet the other wielders, too. If we needed to unite the swords to fulfill some sort of prophecy, I hoped that maybe working together with the other wielders would be possible. More friends and companions were always welcome on a difficult journey.
And if they wanted to fight?
Even better.
I was excited about the idea of finally finding some worthy opponents, too.
If I was lucky, maybe I’d find some hints in Edria about where Wrynn had run off to, or what had happened to my other friends. I didn’t know how likely it was that they’d heade
d there, but if the Tournament of the Sacred Sword was known to the public, it was likely my friends would know me well enough to try to find me there.
There were so many things I wanted to learn, to find, and to explore.
Swords. Secrets. Old friends and new ones.
And most importantly, I hoped to finally find a medical professional.
Epilogue – Trails of Iron and Steam
Keras paused, accepting a glass of water that Marissa passed him and taking a drink. “I don’t know how you kept talking for so long, Corin. My throat is already killing me.”
“The trick is that Corin never actually stops talking,” Sera cut in. Her own voice was still hoarse from an injury she’d suffered, but she seemed to be back to her usual humor. “He’s gotten powerful from all that practice. Even now, he’s monologuing in his head.”
“Being introspective does not qualify as monologuing in my head.” Corin sighed and glowered at his sister. “I just like to think about things before I make decisions.”
Sera snorted. “Believe me, that was abundantly clear from your story.” She turned back to Keras. “Can you keep going, or was that it for now?”
Keras raised a hand, taking another drink. “Yeah, I’ll tell you some more. I wanted to get to the parts about the people in Caelford before the train gets there.”
“Meaning Anabelle Farren?” Patrick asked. “Didn’t both you and Corin mention her?”
Corin and Keras nodded.
“Yeah. There are important things you need to know about her, but I need to get through some other stuff first. Getting to Edria, the Tournament of the Sacred Sword...”
He trailed off as he noticed a familiar rhythmic sound, something different from the rattling of the wheels against the tracks.
Hoofbeats.
There shouldn’t be horse riders anywhere near here. Which means...
His eyes narrowed, and his hand moved to the hilt at his side.
Marissa noticed his reaction first, glancing from side-to-side. “What is it?”
“I’m going to have to put the rest of the story on hold.” He stood up, glancing to each of the students. “Stay here. Corin, protective runes on this section of the car. Sera, call Vanniv.”