I’d always found some reason to dismiss the odd memories that sometimes floated into my mind—the name of the blade Slade’s fellow bandit had wielded against me and the vampire creatures I’d first associated with the Nér-vrogan were only two of the more recent examples. Agna’s keen observations had made it impossible for me to delude myself any longer; I simply couldn’t deny the truth behind her discovery.
“You know who my mother is.” I felt my shoulders sagging as I was forced to give in. “The Goddess of Justice has blessed me with many gifts, including those you have noticed.”
I didn’t bother mentioning the Deathless since they’d never appeared in Runía. From what Dreya had told me, the method of their arrival had limited their presence to Arrika, so I wasn’t about to open up that can of worms.
Worms? In a can? Who the fuck would do that? Where does this shit even come from? I really wished these random thoughts would just fucking stop already.
“But that doesn’t make me your savior,” I rejected the implication behind their continued stares as I shook off the strange phrase. “The truth is I’m a fool, and I’m only here because I was too stupid to appreciate how much she loved me.”
“That may be true; I don’t know,” Kyrah mused, the corners of her mouth curling up in a mischievous grin. “But even if it is, there’s nothing that says you can’t be both a fool and our savior.”
She kinda had me there…
“How about you just treat me like anyone else for now?” I tried to bargain with them. “Let’s wait until after I perform a few miracles before you make me into some sort of hero.”
“You do realize that you’ve already done that, right?” One of Agna’s short tusks peeked out from her smirk of satisfaction, reminding me of how they viewed the minor magic of my Spells.
Cornered yet again, I could only let out a frustrated sigh. Although the magic I wielded was just a small thing, in these lands, the rarity of it had transformed me into an almost supernatural phenomenon. I knew there was absolutely nothing I could say that would sway their opinion, so I gave up trying as I shouldered my pack once more.
“We should get moving,” the defeated tone of my voice seemed almost pitiful.
Kyrah shared a conspiratorial smile with Agna as we left the small clearing behind, the two of them obviously bonding over the amusement they’d had at my expense. I wasn’t sure exactly how I was going to do it, but I was definitely going to make them pay for that—someday.
17
Agna shed a portion of her earlier caution, blazing our path a bit faster in an effort to reach the next of her hidden campsites. It would be the last one we’d be able to make use of since the orcs’ incursions into goblin territory seldom ventured as far north as our path would take us. After that night, we’d have to make do with whatever shelter we could find on our own, an obviously uncertain proposition.
After setting up camp, the three of us had a brief sparring session before sitting down for dinner. Kyrah was showing a great deal of improvement with her blades, and Agna’s more… forceful technique provided an interesting addition to her training. The day’s journey and our mock combat were more than enough to make us all tired, and once my snares had been set, we fell asleep quickly.
I’m not sure exactly what it was that woke me in the middle of the night. None of my traps had been sprung, and the forest beyond the small cavern we’d taken refuge in was completely quiet. When the implications of that profound stillness suddenly occurred to me, I began searching for my swords as I glanced into the darkness outside.
My hands hadn’t quite reached the hilts of my weapons when I froze in place, unable to move as I looked into the bright amber eyes of a tremendous creature looming in the cavern’s entrance. Traces of silver moonlight glinted off the edges of razor-sharp fangs as the beast glared back at me, all the more menacing in the deathly silence. While I had no idea how he’d managed to sneak past my snares, there was only one thought that consumed my mind.
Please don’t make me kill you, Scar.
‘Don’t worry, I won’t,’ I saw the grin on his face when Scar’s reply echoed in my head.
As he padded towards me, there were no indications of the feral rage that had taken hold of him before. Although Scar had grown considerably, I only saw the same little puppy I’d once found curled up on top of me. The changes he’d undergone became a bit too obvious to ignore when he laid down beside me, and with a sudden shock, I realized that his size wasn’t the only thing that was different.
You can hear me now! I was able to send him my thoughts for the first, err, second time.
‘Yes.’ His eyes sparkled with amusement. ‘Clearly, I am not the only one who has changed.’
What happened, Scar? My curiosity got the better of me as I began running my fingers through his coarse fur. The last time I saw you… well, it wasn’t really you, was it?
‘That was still me,’ his reluctance to admit that was clear in Scar’s more subdued tone. ‘It was just a part of me I had to overcome before it was safe for me to return to you.’
You also needed to eat that orc, didn’t you? I hadn’t forgotten the story of Bane’s transformation, and Scar’s inexplicable actions suddenly began making a great deal more sense to me.
‘I… Yes, yes, I did.’ He paused for only a brief moment before asking. ‘How did you know?’
My mother has a companion, much like you, his furry brows rose as I made my confession. He went through something similar.
‘You understand what I am to you now, don’t you?’ His voice dropped to a meaningful tone. ‘And more importantly, what you are… Sintári.’
Yeah, I know. I was sure my lack of enthusiasm was underwhelming. I’ve just been trying to ignore it for a while.
But you do realize that I’m not an actual Sintári, right? I couldn’t allow him to believe that little bit of fiction. I only inherited some of my mother’s abilities; that’s all.
‘You were able to summon me, Ashíel,’ Scar gently nestled his face against mine. ‘That makes you a real enough Sintári for me.’
Gods, that damned wolf could be so fucking sentimental when he wanted to be!
I think you need to stop talking and just lay with me, Scar, I rested my head on his broad shoulder, trying to hide the emotion that was welling up in my eyes.
‘Of course.’ He thankfully gave in to me, laying his own head down on the soft pelts that lined the small cavern’s floor.
Despite the short time we’d been together, having Scar back made my world feel complete again. It really didn’t make much sense, but I was beginning to get used to that. There was so much more than just friendship between us; whatever Sintári powers I had made the bond we shared far stronger than that. A contented sigh escaped me as I pulled myself even closer, and once I’d wrapped myself around Scar, sleep came to me more easily than it had in quite some time.
Fortunately, I managed to wake up first, or else the morning might have started off quite… interestingly. Not only had Scar grown a great deal since Kyrah had last seen him, but she had no way of knowing that he’d overcome the difficulties he’d been experiencing at the time. Agna had never met him at all; she’d been taken out of that battle before Scar had made his appearance. The sight of a wolf larger than any of us sleeping beside me would have probably thrown them both into a state of sheer panic.
“Hey, it’s time to get up.” Gently nudging her, I woke Kyrah as quietly as I could.
She clutched her blankets tightly as she grumbled her reply. “Okay, just gimmie a sec.”
“We have a special guest this morning,” I teased.
“…the fuck are you talking about?” As Kyrah pried her eyes open, her confused words ground to an abrupt halt when she caught her first glimpse of Scar.
“Is that Scar?” I could understand her disbelief. Honestly, I don’t think I would have recognized him either had I not been able to sense him so clearly.
“Yes, and he’s fine now,�
�� I hastened to reassure her. Although I was certain that even she could read the smile on his face, I wanted to make sure Kyrah knew that Scar was fully recovered from his ordeal.
Stumbling to her feet, Kyrah rubbed her eyes and looked again just to make sure he was really there. Squinting as her brow furrowed, Kyrah continued staring at him for a long moment before she spoke again.
“He’s different,” she finally declared, yet with no small degree of uncertainty. “He’s definitely bigger, but something else has changed as well. I just don’t know what it is.”
Duh. I somehow resisted the temptation to roll my eyes at her ‘keen’ observation.
‘She is far more observant than you give her credit for.’ Scar’s reply lacked the sense of irony I expected.
“Scar and I have both changed a lot,” I managed to hold back my sarcasm—mostly. “Perhaps not for the last time either.”
While Kyrah glanced at me sideways, Scar responded with an equal amount of skepticism.
‘What makes you believe that, Ashíel?’
Well, from what I know of Bane and Dreya’s early days, both the Goddess and her companion went through several different stages together. It only seems reasonable that we might do the same.
‘Goddess?’ Scar’s head cocked to one side when he replied again.
Fuuuck. I hadn’t told him about that yet, had I?
“You’re talking to him right now, aren’t you?” Kyrah glanced back and forth between us, giving me a moment to gather my thoughts.
“Yes,” I answered her, never breaking contact with Scar’s eyes as I did so. “I forgot to tell him something very important. After we wake up Agna, he and I are going to need a few minutes alone.”
Well, we wouldn’t actually need to be alone, alone. Now that we were able to speak to each other discreetly, Scar and I could talk about anything we wanted. All I really needed was a few minutes to explain things to him—easy enough in theory, at least.
“This should be interesting.” Kyrah smiled as she sat back down and motioned towards Agna’s still-sleeping form.
‘Yes, it should,’ Scar echoed her mocking comment as he laid at Kyrah’s feet.
I glared back at the pair of… traitors while they waited for me to rouse Agna from her slumber. Kyrah’s sly grin only widened in response as she reached out to stroke the soft patch of fur behind Scar’s ears, and he had the audacity to look quite pleased with himself as he closed his eyes and leaned into her. Turning my back on both of them, I stomped over to where Agna slept beneath a bundle of furs.
“Wake up, Agna,” the words came out somewhat louder than I intended when my frustrations got the better of me.
“Yeah, alright, no need to shout,” the dark glower Agna initially shot at me immediately vanished when she sat up and caught sight of Scar lying beside Kyrah.
“Is that a fucking worg?” In her obvious state of confusion, she misidentified him—an understandable error considering his size.
“It’s alright,” I tried to explain. “He’s been absent for a while, but Scar is my companion.”
“I understand,” Agna faltered only briefly before recovering from her shock more quickly than I imagined she would. “It’s just… well, I thought my people were the only ones who tamed worgs.”
“He may be quite large, but Scar’s actually a wolf.” Seeing how well she’d taken things, I finally took the time to correct her.
‘Ashíel?’ His voice came to me with a strange, clearly tentative inflection. ‘There’s something I’ve been meaning to tell you…’
Are you fucking kidding me? I shot back at him.
‘No…’ He at least had the decency to appear chagrined.
“Well, I guess you’re right about that, Agna,” I glared at him as I was forced to admit my mistake. “It seems as if someone’s been holding out on me.”
“They can talk to each other,” Kyrah helpfully explained while I continued to stare daggers at Scar. “Silently, of course, so we have no idea what they’re actually saying to each other.”
“He… speaks?” Agna’s jaw fell open as she gaped at Scar.
“To me, yes,” I clarified for her. “And he can understand anything he hears as well.”
‘I am sorry, Ashíel,’ Scar’s tail drooped low with his apology.
It’s alright, I guess. Considering how I’d also been holding out on him, I couldn’t be too angry.
‘We should talk, there’s—’
“You are the one!” Agna’s excited shout drowned out Scar’s thoughts as she jumped to her feet.
“Yeah, sure.” I was certain I wouldn’t like whatever was coming next. “I’m the one idiot who got herself banished from her mother’s Empire.”
“No! I’ll keep your secret, but I won’t let you deny it any longer.” Agna hurried about as she began snatching up her gear. “We need to be on our way. The sooner I get you to the Free Lands, the sooner you can put an end to the Nér-vrogan.”
Agna shoved the last piece of equipment into her pack as she finished speaking and then ushered me outside, none too gently, and I was left with little choice but to follow as she began marching her way through the forest. Kyrah only shrugged when I glanced in her direction; she had no more idea of what had come over Agna than I did. Well, I mean, I understood—I just didn’t agree with the orc’s rather hasty conclusions.
Despite the need for stealth, Agna set a rigorous pace as she blazed our trail northwards. With her apparent lack of care, I was forced to focus on our surroundings much more closely than usual. Although I had Reflection protecting each of us and Detect Life scanning for danger, the wilds were far too dangerous for me to ever drop my guard. Even Scar seemed preoccupied as he trotted along beside me, obviously just as concerned over our safety as I was.
My fears turned out to be completely justified when we skidded to a halt in the center of a small clearing. In front of us, several tremendous wolf-like creatures strode out from beneath the cover of the forest, while many more emerged all around us. Seeing them for the first time made me understand how Agna had been able to recognize Scar so easily, but as the large pack of worgs surrounded us, we had no choice but to draw our weapons and hope for the best. Not that there was much to actually hope for. We were outnumbered at least three to one, and the outcome was all but assured.
Scar didn’t seem the least bit perturbed by the incredible odds, and I could only watch as he stalked towards our foes. Although he was more massive than even the biggest among them, Scar clearly stood little chance against their numbers, yet there was no sense of hesitation as he continued to advance. Completely baffled by his actions, I was about to call him back when Scar came to a stop barely a handful of feet in front of the leader of the worg pack. The black fur of his rival bristled at Scar’s blatant defiance, while Scar’s hackles stood on end in response. Then, I stared in amazement when he took one final step forward.
Just as his foot touched the ground, long spikes of razor-sharp bone rose up from beneath Scar’s skin, forming a deadly mane all along his neck and shoulders. The bumps I’d felt there weren’t the traces of some old wound he’d received; they were his own lethal armor. As he came to a halt once more, the rows of slightly curved spikes twitched menacingly, filling the glen with the ominous rattle of bone scraping against bone before locking into place with a sharp ‘snap.’
The sound of Scar’s low growl followed as he dared the alpha-worg to challenge him, but the entire pack tucked tail and ran in the face of his ire. When he turned around and began loping towards me, I saw the last vestiges of an amber glow fading from Scar’s eyes; almost exactly the way my own anger had begun to manifest itself, save for their color. I realized then that I’d not only misnamed him, but I’d also misjudged Scar—greatly.
His entire display had caught me completely off guard, and I struggled for something to say when he returned to stand by my side once more. Scar seemed to share in my difficulty as he looked everywhere but in my eyes.
You were trying to tell me, weren’t you? I couldn’t help but stare as the long spikes slowly retracted beneath Scar’s fur.
‘Yes.’ He only met my gaze for an instant before his eyes drifted back towards the low grass beneath his feet. ‘I am sorry; you have every right to be angry with me.’
We’ve both been keeping secrets from each other out of fear, I replied, taking hold of Scar’s chin and pulling his face up so I could look him in the eye again. That needs to end, right now.
“We need to talk, all of us,” I held Scar’s gaze as I spoke aloud. “I know it’s still early and we haven’t gone very far today, but it’s time to find a safe place to camp for the night.”
“Yes, I-I’ll start searching for a suitable location,” Agna replied with an uncharacteristic degree of hesitation.
“What—” I cut off Kyrah’s question as we followed Agna into the forest.
“I’m going to tell you everything,” I explained, my resolve only increasing as I spoke the words. “This won’t be easy for me, so I only want to do it once.”
“Alright, I can wait,” she replied, eyes narrowing as she quickly added. “As long as you promise not to hold anything back this time.”
“I won’t.” I’m pretty sure I said that more to myself than in response to Kyrah.
I was hoping it would take a while for Agna to find us a secure campsite, allowing me some additional time to gather my thoughts. There was just so much I had to say, and even though I knew it all, I hadn’t been ready to admit most of it to myself. But as I’d told Scar, the time for secrets was over, not only between the two of us but also from Kyrah and Agna as well. I didn’t know how many people I’d be able to trust in this world, but I knew that I could count on the three of them to never betray me. It was well past the time for me to honor their friendship with the truth they’d earned.
Second Skin: Wayward: A litRPG Adventure (Second Skin Book 7) Page 16