“Goblins? Seriously, you believe in goblins?” Anders asked.
“After what you’ve seen over the last several days, I’m surprised you don’t take my word more seriously,” Ivan said glaring icily at Anders.
“He’s got a point,” Max said.
“Yeah, but come on, goblins are just folklore,” Anders said. “They’re stories to keep children from wandering out of their beds at night. They don’t really exist…” he trailed off into his own thoughts, considering the horrifying possibility of an actual horde of goblins rooting around in the foothills bordering Brookside.
“I have heard stories of them from reliable people,” Max said. “I didn’t have any trouble on my way over from Brookside, so they may have moved out of the area.”
“Either way, we should get a move on if we want to reach Brookside and send word before my people sail past us,” Red said.
Anders and the others followed Max as he pulled apart the thick growth of bramble and brush and led them toward the trail that meandered from the Grandwood Mountains to Brookside. Reaching the hard-packed dirt path, Ivan pulled Red aside while the others continued on ahead.
“Listen, and you listen good,” Ivan said sternly, gripping Red by the collar of his tattered shirt. “You almost cost all of us our lives back there on that ship. It took me nearly every ounce of magic I possess to ensure the four of us didn’t die when Thargon’s wind wrecked our ship. My magic is nearly depleted and it will take me several days to regain my strength, so we’d better not run into any goblins because I won’t be able to do anything to stop them from slitting our throats while we sleep. I didn’t spend a good portion of my life fighting in a war that nearly ended Kartania’s existence and travel all this way to be led into a death trap by an inexperienced, eager-to-prove-his-self-worth child! From now on, I’m in charge of this outfit and you’ll do as I command. Is that perfectly clear?”
Red furrowed his brow and clenched his jaw. Grumbling, he said, “Yes, sir,” and the two of them continued on behind the others.
The next morning Anders watched the sun slowly rise out of the eastern horizon, reflecting a golden hue off the water’s edge. Mountain snowmelt fed into the lake where they’d decided to camp. Kneeling, Anders bent down and cupped cold lake water into his hands. Splashing it over his face, he found himself momentarily engulfed by its icy grip. It sent a chill through his body that invigorated him. He thought it might have the same effect on him that caffeine did, pulling him out of the sleepy fog that clouded his mind during the early morning hours.
Anders was alone. He’d awakened early and couldn’t fall back asleep. Letting the cold water trickle down his face, he noticed a rustling in some tightly grouped willows to his left. Suddenly alert, he sat still, listening intently. His now-sharp eyes darted around the area as his body remained perfectly still. He was fully awake now, but hoped the noise was a figment of his imagination stemming from his lack of sleep. Slowly reaching his hand to his waist where his knife was holstered, he prepared for the worst. Blade in hand, he turned to face the brush where the noise had originated. A squirrel sprang out and scurried up a tree. Cursing himself for being so on edge, he took several deep breaths and slowed his heart rate. Then he laughed for having been so worried and tucked his blade back into its sheath.
Feeling foolish, he walked back to camp. Ivan, Red, Max and the other two Rollo warriors were now awake and preparing to leave. Anders gathered what few belongings he had: his bow and three arrows, a canteen, a small pouch of coins, and some flint for starting fires. The only other things he possessed were the clothes on his back and the knife holstered to his belt. He’d found the canteen and pouch of coins among the wreckage that washed ashore, but decided to leave some larger items behind. The group was anxious to make good time, so they’d decided to travel light.
“You ready to hump it all day?” Max asked enthusiastically.
Anders looked at him with a slightly confused and embarrassed look, and asked, “Wha… What do you mean by hump it all day?”
“You know,” Max said, gesturing to his legs. “Hike across the hills for the whole day. We still have at least two days of humping to get to Brookside. I know my feet will need a good soaking in hot water when we’re through with this one. What did you think I meant?” he asked Anders, recognizing the strange look on his face when he’d first asked him the question.
“Oh, nothing,” Anders said quickly. “I knew what you were talking about.” He raised an eyebrow and nodded at Max, hoping he wouldn’t keep digging into it.
The roughneck crew of shipwrecked men walked all day. They crossed countless rolling hills, trekking through green grass and lush trees. They’d been walking for an unusually long time without anyone saying a word, when Max broke the silence.
“Hey, Ivan,” he said.
“What?” Ivan replied shortly. Anders could hear the irritation in his voice when answering Max’s questions over the last several days.
“Tell me a story about when you were in the war,” Max said cheerfully. “How about when you first joined the army, what was that like?”
“I don’t feel like talking about that,” Ivan replied gruffly. Max’s disappointed sigh could be heard nearly a mile away.
“What about how you and Theodor met? You served with him, didn’t you?” Ivan glanced back at him as he spoke. “How did you two become friends?” Max continued, hoping Ivan would break and divulge something about his past.
Ivan paused for a moment, struggling to find words. He began to speak, slowly at first, and faster as the story flowed out.
“Theodor, Anders’ uncle, and I… were from different towns in Southland. Back in those days, the King’s army sent recruiting officers to get young men to sign up and join them. When they came to each town, the recruiters would set up obstacle courses in the town square and hold contests. As one can imagine, each contest was physically demanding and catered toward those who were the strongest and fastest. I won most of the competitions each time they came to my town. Ever since I was old enough to think for myself, I wanted to be soldier. When I became of age, I didn’t even blink twice before signing up for the King’s army.
“All of the recruits within Southland went to the same training camp. After six weeks of training, the recruits were assigned to divisions. Most people were placed into the infantry or cavalry, as more bodies are needed at the front lines during a war. Numbers were typically what won wars back then.
“Theodor and I were sent to the same camp and were both placed in bunkhouse thirteen, which became our training squad. During our first week of training, it became clear that I was going to be our squad’s leader. Theodor, however, needed some encouragement and drive to do what was expected of a new recruit. You see, he was underperforming and didn’t take the training very seriously. I was very committed to my role as our squad’s leader and began to help Theodor. When you have to rely on each other in a setting like that, you are only as good as your weakest person.
“Theodor told me briefly after meeting that he was forced to join the army by his father, who would strip him of his family rights if he didn’t do his part for the war effort. He didn’t want to dishonor his family name, so he joined reluctantly.
“Looking back on it now, I was a little harsh with him at first. We spent extra time in the mornings and evenings going through the drills. I helped him find his role in our group and after several weeks his improvements were leaps and bounds above any other person at the training facilities. We became quite close during those six weeks,” Ivan paused for a while, looking up at the sky.
With a long exhale he continued, “Once our squad’s training was complete, we were assigned and placed into our new roles. Theodor and I were posted to different divisions and didn’t see much of each other for a long time after that.”
“I thought you two served together during the war?” Max interrupted.
“We did serve together when the war reached its peak. But after training camp, we both went our separate ways for several years before our paths crossed again,” Ivan said succinctly.
Ivan quickened his pace to put some distance between himself and the others and walked in silence, clearly not wanting to say anymore. Anders wondered if there was something Ivan wasn’t telling them, and he wanted to know, he deserved to know.
“Please continue,” Anders urged Ivan as he jogged to catch up with him.
Anders could tell Ivan didn’t want to continue but knew Anders wouldn’t let him end where he’d attempted to, so begrudgingly he picked up where he’d left off.
“Theodor was placed in the cavalry as a marksman. He had a special talent with his bow that not many could rival. I was sent off to an officers’ training program to further my role as a leader,” Ivan stopped at a small stream flowing across the trail. “Red,” he hollered at the Rollo warrior who was walking with his men several yards in front of them. “Let’s hold up here for a moment,” Ivan commanded.
Max and Anders took this opportunity to sit and rest their feet. Ivan stopped and drank from the stream.
“Theodor never talked about his time during The War of the Magicians,” Anders said. “Thank you for talking about it with us. It seems there’s a lot about my uncle that I didn’t know.”
Anders felt Ivan was holding something back and wasn’t telling him everything about his uncle’s part of the story, but reading the current situation, he knew now was not the time to ask. If he did and wasn’t sensible about it, Ivan might clam up and never talk about his uncle with him again. Anders had the over-whelming feeling that Ivan knew things about his family that could help him discover where he came from, perhaps even who his parents were.
“We have about two more hours of daylight; we should consider making camp soon,” Red said to the group.
