by J. J. Thorn
“Your daughter and her friends will be fine. I have seen her raised from the time she was born. My companions and I will make sure they’re safe. If that means we bring back less Skink carcasses, then—”
“Woah! Let’s not be too hasty. I’ve raised her to be resilient. She can handle a few scrapes and bruises. A man must not forget his business as well, his other child.”
From his side, Mrs. Rolle stared daggers at her husband.
Britta recognized the situation and decided to interject before things got out of hand.
“What’s this about me being resilient?” she asked. “You’ve got that right, pops. I’m the shield that will protect this family.”
Each of us streamed into the house behind her. So far, I still couldn’t see John. A thought that made me very happy.
“Yes, that you are, my darling.” Mr. Rolle smiled and hugged his daughter.
“Gavin, you know my daughter. Please meet her friends, Jen, Cassie, Zane, and Terrence.” Mr. Rolle pointed us out.
Gavin took the invitation and stood up to greet each of us as well.
“Greetings to all of you. Lovely to make your acquaintance. My name is Gavin Valis, and these are my teammates Barda, Quinn, and Tara. Barda is our Front-Liner, with the SHIELD Affinity. Quinn will also be at the front but has the SWORD Affinity. Tara is our Utility, and she has the NATURE Affinity. We usually have another teammate, Trent, but he was unwilling to join us. Instead, my apprentice will be taking part. He and I both have the ICE Affinity.
“We sent him away before you came to check for any bounties posted in the Guild Hall near where we are going. He’ll return soon, so you’ll be able to meet him. He and I will act as Ranged and Utility for this particular trip.
“You’ve all been told where we’re going and what we will be doing, but since we are spending two weeks together, we should try to get along.”
Gavin gestured to each of his teammates before making his way around the table to greet us in turn. We all took turns shaking his hand and re-introducing ourselves.
“Ugh, hey, Uncle Gavin, nice to see you.” Britta shook his hand. “My Affinity is SHIELD as well, and I’m planning to be a Front-Liner. Are you guys sure about not bringing a healer along?”
“Yes, nothing to worry about. Tara’s Affinity allows us to collect herbs, and we can use those to stop the flow of blood and close minor wounds. Nothing large, mind you, but enough for this trip. Sadly, Trent knew we wouldn’t be making much from the trip and chose to work elsewhere for the next couple of weeks. Despite this, we’ll keep you safe on the trip. You have my personal guarantee.”
Gavin moved on to Jen next and shook her hand.
“Hello, sir, Jennifer Gleam. SWORD Affinity user and Front-Liner. We look forward to learning from you and your team.” She did not break eye contact once as she spoke.
Gavin laughed to himself. “Strong hands you’ve got there, Jennifer. I look forward to it as well. For my own curiosity, are your parents the ones that make ‘Gleam’ Light-infused products?”
Jen didn’t want to be known for her family’s accomplishments only, but she did not falter as she responded. She had obviously met several high-status individuals in her life.
“Yes, sir. That is my family.”
“Okay, thank you. They make good products and help save lots of lives. Thank them for me the next time you see them.”
“I will, sir.”
Gavin moved onto Cassie and Zane.
“Hello, sir, I’m Cassie. HEAL Affinity, Utility role.”
“Hello, sir, Zane, IDENTIFY Affinity, Utility as well.”
Zane and Cassie had both chosen to leave out their last names. Cassie for no apparent reason, but Zane because he obviously didn’t want to get his father’s last name involved.
He finally came to me as we shook hands. The first thing I noticed was that his hands were remarkably soft for someone who supposedly fought against monsters regularly. His handshake was firm but did not hurt.
As we clasped hands, I felt at ease. He did seem like a good man, who had so far shown us all respect.
“Ugh, hi, sir. My name is Terrence Stine, my Affinity is WEIGHT, and I’m not fully sure what my role will be, but I’m also aiming for Front-Liner.” Where the rest of my friends had been able to exude confidence, I had followed up with indecision and meekness.
So much for great first impressions.
“That is nothing to be ashamed of, Terrence. You’re all in your first year of Prep. At Rank 1, I had very little idea what I would be doing as well. Use this trip as an opportunity to see what you might feel most comfortable doing. And sorry to pry, but did you say Stine?”
“Yes, sir. My parents are Wally and Martha Stine, from Huag.”
“They wouldn’t happen to have any relation to Tom Stine, would they?”
My palms started to sweat, I knew where he was going.
“Yes, Wally is his older brother.”
“What a coincidence. That means I’ve got two Stine’s on the trip. I wonder why my apprentice didn’t tell me he had a cousin in town.”
“We don’t talk much, sir.”
“Yes, John can be mysterious and moody sometimes, but he’s a good lad. Good work ethic and all that. You probably know.”
“So, I’ve heard, sir. Will he be returning soon?” I tried to stay polite, despite how uncomfortable my body was becoming.
“Yes, he should be.”
There was a knock at the door.
“And that should be him now. Come in, John!”
At the doorway, a lithe figure with brown hair and a pronounced jawline walked in. He wore equipment similar to Gavin’s and had a piece of paper in his hand. He had grown some muscle since I last saw him, but he remained slim. He had some daggers strapped to his waist, similar to Zane’s, but with a curve to the blade.
Within seconds of entering the room, his eyes caught mine. I didn’t know what he was thinking as he started to smile from ear to ear.
What felt like an hour passed as he looked at me. I considered leaving through the second door at the back of the house. I considered barreling my way through him and running right back to the dorms.
Instead, I froze.
What was probably only a second passed before he finally spoke. “Terrence! How are you here! I’m so happy to see you!” He walked over with his arms outstretched. His voice was raised an octave as he made it known how happy he was to see me.
Upon reaching me, John gave me a big hug. He held me tight for a few seconds before releasing me. Throughout it all, I didn’t hug him back and still hadn’t said anything.
“You look amazing, Terrence! You’ve lost a lot of weight since you came to Krader. I only saw you four months ago and you’ve changed so much.”
Gavin interjected. “Let’s move on now everyone is here. We should get on the road as quickly as we can. Were there any good bounties, John?”
John’s smile disappeared instantly as he walked past me. “Yes, master. There was one bounty that seemed worthwhile, at F-Rank or below, as per your specifications.”
“Good, thank you. We’ll also see if Borson has any postings for Pinslo Lake— ideally for Skinks themselves. Okay, let’s get going!” He turned to Mrs. Rolle. “Thank you, Eleanor, for allowing us into your home. And don’t worry about your daughter. She is in safe hands.”
In this time, I still hadn’t moved. Gavin, John, and the rest of his team started to stream out of the house and towards the city gates. Jen and Cassie started to follow, while Britta said goodbye to her parents one last time.
Zane stood beside me as we tagged behind the group. “See, man, that wasn’t too bad. I’ve seen nobles do the exact same thing though, so I’ll stick beside you.”
“Mhm, thanks.” Was all I could get out, still processing how John had reacted. Everything John did was deliberate, and I couldn’t let my guard down.
Britta finally caught up and joined the two of us at the back of the line.
Chapter 11 – Unique
Gavin bellowed out orders. “Quinn, Tara, ride up front and make sure the driver knows where we’re going. Favian is known for giving bad directions, let’s make sure Graham knows we’re heading to Pinslo Lake.”
Quinn and Tara jogged ahead without a word and started speaking with the wagon driver. Coincidentally, it was the same Graham who had taken Zane and me on the trip from Huag to Krader.
By now, most of Krader’s student population had left for the break. We were leaving on the same day, but Mr. Rolle had chosen for us to leave after them to avoid the madness that went along with sending dozens of wagons.
“The rest of you, get in the back. We’re already behind, let’s not make it any worse.”
We listened to Gavin’s words and piled into the back. Since there were only eight of us, the wagon was much more spacious than what we had ridden in on our way to Krader.
Without any fanfare, we took our seats, and the wagon was on its way.
The five of us huddled beside each other towards the back of the wagon. Gavin, his teammate Barda, and John, all sat towards the front.
We started to chat about some of what we’d heard over the last hour, but within a couple of minutes, Gavin came and joined us in the back with John in tow.
“So, what are you all planning to do while we’re in the wagon?” He asked, sitting down beside Britta. She was sitting beside Jen and me, on one side, with Cassie and Zane on the other.
“We were going to go over our plans, sir,” Jen answered. “We won’t be doing much fighting, we know, but we don’t want to be dead weight for the rest of you.”
“Good idea, but that won’t be necessary. By the sounds of it, you’ve all talked quite a bit about what you might be doing on the trip. So instead of doing that, what do you think you could be doing?” He looked between each of us in turn, searching for a specific answer.
“We could count our supplies, sir,” Zane said, with some hesitation. “But I don’t think that’s what you’re talking about. Do you think we should be asking you and your team more questions so we can prepare for the trip? If so, I can come to the front and discuss things with you.” He was usually so confident, so I was surprised to hear him even a little hesitant.
“I brought cards,” Britta said. “We could play some games if you want to join?”
Gavin gave up on us and instead turned to his apprentice. “John, what should you be preparing to do on a trip that could take about thirty hours. Do you believe that you should be playing cards or talking for the entire trip?”
John sat up straight, like a soldier at attention. “No, sir. Thirty hours uninterrupted is a perfect chance to train.” He sounded almost mechanical.
“Train?” Britta scoffed. “But we’re in a moving wagon. It’s not like we can spar or anything. There’s no room to even swing a weapon.” She the cards back into her bag.
Gavin’s voice grated with every word. “Britta, if you weren’t your father’s daughter, I’d smack you across the head for such a stupid remark. Let’s get something straight here. Your father has spent a small fortune to make sure the rest of you are capable of coming on this trip. How many of you have been on a trip like this before? Britta?”
“Uh, my dad took me on a couple of merchant runs growing up, but never like this.” She chose her words carefully, afraid to anger him. “I’ve seen some monsters killed, but only by our guards.”
“Jennifer?”
“My parents would take me to see some of their work around the Kingdom, but same with me, never like this. It was always behind a series of guards.” She looked down in embarrassment.
“Cassie?”
“No…sir.”
“Zane, Terrence, I expect the same?”
“I have killed a few monsters, sir,” Zane responded. “But always surrounded by men and women stronger than myself.”
“I went on one hunt with Tom’s father,” I said. “I haven’t killed anything though and that was the only time.”
“Yes, and that is to be expected. Zane is probably the odd one here, since most children would not need to hunt and kill. Favian might have told you this would be safe, and my team will protect you if necessary, but we are not your sitters. This is not a field trip. If it were up to me, you would all be running after the wagon, but sadly, we are on a tight schedule. This trip will take thirty hours, and you should expect that you’ll need to train throughout all of it.”
I started to recognize his point, but still wasn’t sure how much we could do without access to our resources.
“But we’re only Rank 1,” Cassie said, meeting his hard stare. “And like Britta said, there’s no room to move in the wagon.”
“I understand that, but without needing either John or I to tell you, think. What else could you be doing while even confined here?”
He once again looked at all of us for answers.
I frowned, thinking. We were in the back of a wagon with very little room around us. I had always known that I would use my Skill during the trip, but…
My Skill?
Is he trying to get me to use my Skill? Like Cassie said, it’s only Rank 1, but when has that ever stopped me from using it before?
It seemed obvious, but in all of the discussion surrounding the trip, we’d never taken the time to consider using our Skills any time other than during fights.
Here we were, alone and protected for thirty hours straight. We had no obligations, other than to ourselves. Why wouldn’t we use the time to train and practice?
I mean, what else could we be doing?
“Meditation?” Zane said, stopping my train of thought.
“Using our Skills,” I added in, nodding along at what Zane was saying.
“Using Internal Energy in other ways,” Jen said. “Even if we can’t do it yet, it doesn’t hurt to keep trying!”
“Exactly!” Gavin’s face brightened “We’ll be taking two breaks during the trip to rest the horses. In between that, you’ll have every opportunity to expend all of your Energy. If your Skill doesn’t work in a moving vehicle, meditate, or try to augment parts of your body. If that doesn’t work, work on getting a general Skill if someone is trying to teach you that. If that doesn’t work, look outside and stay out of your teammate’s way.
“I am not saying that you can’t discuss those other things, or even play cards, but your first priority should be to make the best of this trip. And as much as we might squabble, Favian and I have been best friends for years. I won’t have you waste the money he has spent on you. Many students don’t get this chance. Don’t waste it.
“John, for instance, will be doing Shaping exercises for the next hour. He’ll then meditate for an hour, and then will rest for an hour. If you want some help, I’ll be at the front with Barda. Come speak to me during John’s first break.”
He stopped talking, nodded at John, and went back to his place at the front.
John gave us all a quick look, smirked slightly, then also moved towards the middle of the wagon and started to conjure ice on the bench in front of him.
“Ice Block,” he whispered. Each time he said it, a small block of ice would appear. The ice blocks all looked the exact same, but even then, he continued to conjure them.
My friends and I all watched as he methodically kept building ice blocks. Each block was small enough that it would start to melt almost immediately. Eventually, after watching for fifteen or twenty minutes, he took a break. Sweat was beading on his forehead, and he looked a little drained, but after five minutes, he started again.
“Okay, let’s stop watching John,” Cassie said. “What are we going to do guys?”
“Ugh, I think we train,” Jen said.
“Well, duh. But what are you guys going to do? I can use my Skill, but I don’t see how that’ll do anything. I do that all the time and my
percentage barely goes up.”
“Yeah, I’m also a bit stalled,” Britta said. “There’s only so much I can do with a Skill that lets me use my shield better. Especially in a wagon where I can barely stand up.”
“But isn’t that exactly it?” I said. “This is the perfect time. Gavin is right. But I also think we should still work together. Like, I don’t know, John has Gavin, right? Well, we have each other. That’s why we’ve made it so far already. We work together and plan out things together. Like, Cassie, what do you mean you’re stuck?”
“Ugh, that’s a bit private, I don’t know—
“Don’t feel pressured, Cassie, but Ren’s right.” Zane spared me a nod. “We should work together. We spend so much time talking about everything else, but we’ve never talked about training our Skills. We can use this chance to bounce ideas off each other about our Skills. It’s usually something you keep private, but I have nothing to hide from you guys. So, I’ll start. I’ve also reached a bit of a wall. I’m at seventy percent and I feel like it hasn’t gone up in a month.”
“Holy shit, Zane. That’s amazing.” Britta gaped at him. “I’m only at forty-five and I thought that was really good.”
I hadn’t heard Zane’s percentage in a couple months. In the beginning, we would talk about it every now and then, but as school got busier, we stopped discussing the percentage numbers.
I guess he stopped because his progress stopped… Could that have been why he always spent so much time with those books detailing other IDENTIFY Affinity users?
I couldn’t believe I had never thought to ask him. At the very beginning, he told me it as a private thing, so I usually kept it to myself. I looked at my friend and thanked him internally for always having my back.
The girls kept congratulating him, oblivious to my thoughts. Jen’s was actually higher, at 78%, and this astounded them even more. Cassie and Britta started to tease her for having kept such a huge secret from them.
Cassie eventually caved and told us that she was just shy of 50%. Still respectable, but nothing like Zane or Jen’s.