Chapter 6: A Mage’s Duty
“And backfoot! Raise, then counter!”
I swung Caen’s sword the best I could, but his instruction was impossible. Originally, I was surprised at how light it was, then, when I started using it, the regret started sinking in. It wasn’t like an axe, where if you could land one good hit, the fight was over. A sword needed footwork, blocks, and counters. Trying to do that with snowshoes on…
I tossed the sword into the nearby snowbank.
“This is ridiculous! How am I supposed to guard and counter in snowshoes and boots?” I glared at Caen, tired and frustrated.
Instead of answering, the old man reached over and picked up his sword. Then, with fluid grace, proceeded to do the exact upper guard followed by a counterattack. In snowshoes.
“Ya, but you had a lot more practice with the stupid thing,” I grumbled as he wiped the snow off his blade.
“Neither me nor the inquisitors care.” He slowly sheathed his blade. “Stick to an axe. Better yet, get a pike so that you don’t get your arm chopped off.”
There was an uncomfortable silence between us as I kicked the snow. Caen had started teaching me some advanced weapon skills. Axes were easy. Same with the spear. Then came the big kicker; the sword. Nothing I did ever made the darn thing work. Every fancy flourish ended with me face first in the snowbank. Every single guard felt like I was reaching just a little bit too far, or pulling a tendon. Every careful piece of footwork was ruined by snow, or worse yet, myself.
“How’s Aria on the bow?” Caen’s voice shot through as I was getting ready to leave from the failed attempts.
“She…” I scratched my head. It was difficult to explain, but Aria was terrible with a bow for completely different reasons. She had a lot of pull strength, and her accuracy was great…except when the wind started blowing. It was almost like she had no ability to adjust her shots. Having an archer whose aim was ruined by a slight breeze was not a great selling point.
“She can hit things, as long as they don’t move and there’s no wind.” I gave a worried murmur as Caen shook his head and gave a tired sigh. At least she had her magic.
“Two days left, right? We’ve been out for a while.” He noted as I nodded. Despite our best efforts, having to skip Oakhenge meant we were running out of food. Aria didn’t help matters. I’d likely need to go hunting today if we were going to get any food before the long trek tomorrow.
“Well, now that we’ve figured that I can’t swing a sword to save my life, how about I do what I do best.” I grinned as I picked up my bow and wiping the snow off. Wielding a sword was one of those childhood dreams. They were beautiful weapons, and using one made me feel like a hero, dancing about and being heroic for all of ten seconds. After that it was tripping over my own legs and faceplanting.
It’s a tough sell when I can dent someone’s helmet in with an axe.
“Hey! Could I come along?” Aria waved as she rushed over to my side, a bright smile on her pale cheeks. She was still in that fall dress, while the rest of us were bundled up like turtles. Quite the enviable ability, if only it wasn’t so rare.
“Of course! Come along.” I looked at her hands as I strapped on my quiver. I had been feeling better about seeing the dead man drowning in my dreams. Even if Aria’s explanation was incomplete, even if I still didn’t know her motives, she was on our side. Also a literal god but that was beside the point.
Aria gave a few excited claps before she opened her waterskin. Water rushed inside, before she closed it with a pop. It was a genuine miracle to see her magic in action, even if I had seen it time and time again.
“You’re going to hunt with magic? I thought you needed to pace yourself.” I pointed at her now-filled waterskin, only to be met with a foxy grin in my direction. She’d been getting close to me the last few days. I would wake up with her by my side, wondering if I had a good night’s sleep. Her wanting to come along for a hunt felt natural.
“Oh don’t worry about me. Let’s go!” She was cheerful and I felt her smile spread to my face.
* * * *
It didn’t take long for me to find a pair of deer tracks and they weren’t far from the camp either. I kneeled as Aria’s eyes inspected the tracks with newfound curiosity. As I began to follow the tracks, I felt a shy tugging on my cloak. It was Aria, looking at me with a shy, reserved look to her eyes.
“You don’t mind me following you around everywhere, do you?” She circled around curiously as I gave a welcoming smile. She really was like a child at times.
“No! Of course not!” I let out an easygoing laugh as we continued tracking. “I find it cute, even if it’s a little weird waking up with you watching me while I sleep.”
I was expecting her to act all flustered, but she did not. Instead she stuck by my side, looking out for me while I tried to find the next set of tracks.
“Do you want me to stop doing that? It does make me really tired in the mornings.” She gave a squeaky yawn. Ever since our talk that day she’s been taking a lot more naps. Enough that I’ve had to carry her at times.
“Actually, I would rather you take care of yourself. You don’t have to go out of your way to make sure that I’m doing fine,” I said as I held the path open for Aria. I didn’t remember this area well, but I do remember it well enough to guess where the deer were going.
“But I thought that’s what friends did?” Aria looked up at me as the two of us walked through the quiet winter wasteland. She wasn’t wrong, but I didn’t feel like I was the kind of person that needed to be pampered by a tiny girl who might be some percentage god.
“It is, but you can do a little of both. If you wake up at the time that you’re comfortable with, then we have an alert Aria, and I don’t have to carry you as much! Win win!” I didn’t know what I expected, but it was not a mischievous grin.
“But what if I want you to carry me? Hmm?” She put a cheeky finger on her lips, still grinning. This girl!
“I’m just kidding.” She waved her hands with a little laugh. “You spoil me enough already, so I shouldn’t be like that.”
Several minutes passed as the two of us talked about whatever came up. I was so used to hunting being a quiet affair but hearing and seeing Aria’s reactions turned a normally tense endeavor into a hangout with a friend. It was almost enough to make me forget that we were hunting something. Almost.
“Oh! We’re getting close!” I gave a cheerful wave as Aria tagged along, skipping by my side.
“To be fair, that magic water strangling thing was super cool. Just terrifying,” I added as I leaned down, examining the track. They were fresh. I notched an arrow as I hunkered down, trying my best not to make too much noise.
“I admit, I try to not look at spooky faces either.” Aria pointed out in a whisper, now crouching with me. Even she was picking up that the time for casual conversation was ending.
Then my eyes opened wide. The tracks abruptly stopped and two inquisitors were dragging off the deer. Crossbow bolts were planted into a nearby tree. I waved my hand as the two of us quietly scurried behind a line of trees and bushes for cover. Aria gave me a worried stare and I nodded, before putting a comforting hand on her shoulder. If it came to a fight, then a fight we would give them.
They were dressed in the red and white attire of the church, a blanket of chainmail around their torsos. The thin one was reloading his crossbow while a much burlier inquisitor was tying the deer onto a large sled. They lacked snowshoes, so it seemed like they stumbled onto our deer by accident. Their poleaxes were leaning against a nearby tree, ready to be used by whoever reached them first.
“That’s food taken care of.” The larger man swiveled his head in our direction as we both ducked under the bush. Aria looked even more terrified now.
“I can’t believe Regis is marching us this hard through the snow.” The thinner man looked nothing like the proud inquisitors that I saw earlier. There was a different glint in his eyes. A dangerous, uncaring shine. “If we don’t find them, the winter is going to find us. Then bury our sorry hides.”
“Short break before we head back?” the larger man asked as Aria began to fidget. She was getting nervous, but I didn’t dare to speak. The only comfort I could manage was a soft squeeze on her shoulder, holding her back.
