They had been riding for three days straight. Sleeping only one hour every three they traveled, as they raced through the Lynoën countryside while avoiding any settlements on their way.
So far, there had been no sign of the enemy following them. Perhaps the attackers didn’t deem it necessary, considering the amount of people that had died in the assault. However, Lidea was certain they would eventually come looking for them once they discovered that she had survived.
They must still be checking the bodies.
A sudden misstep in her horse’s trot almost threw her off balance, but she managed to stay seated by clutching the animal’s mane. Regaining her composure, she sighed and patted the horse's neck apologetically. Her riding skills were mediocre at best, and the lack of sleep had left her mind foggy. She had nearly lost consciousness several times by now.
Feeling eyes on her, she looked up to see Warchief watching with concern. Astride his bay mare, he looked to be at complete ease in the saddle, as he made sure to stay beside her at all times.
Lidea suspected he had been tasked with the thankless job of keeping an eye on her, while Crystal had to ride double with Cedric.
“I’m fine, Warchief.”
She tried to argue preemptively, but through the way he pressed his lips together, she knew he disagreed even before he spoke.
“Maybe we should take a break…?”
His suggestion was a reasonable one, but she couldn’t help but glance over at the Droamstymer Channel. They had been following it from the moment they left the capital as it was the most direct way east, and now she could see the faint outline of the flags that signaled where the channel crossed the Lynoën-Udrän border.
They were so close.
“We will reach Udrän in another couple of hours. If we continue on, we can reach camp before nightfall.”
Following her gaze, he nodded in understanding before bringing his horse to a stop.
“All the more reason to take a break now. You won’t manage to stay awake until then.”
As soon as his horse halted, her own gelding stopped as well, not missing any opportunity to rest, even if it meant nearly dislodging his rider again.
“You can’t be serious, Warchief. I will be fine for another couple of hours. There is no sense in taking the unnecessary risk of trying to sleep here for a short moment when we can have a proper night's sleep in safety when we arrive.”
“It does make sense if that means that we can prevent you from falling off your horse and hitting your head.”
He spoke so matter-of-factly that he almost convinced her. Almost being the keyword.
Annoyed, she tried to steer her horse onward, but the stubborn thing seemed to ignore any of her commands. The sight must have looked pretty ludicrous, as Warchief started laughing. His mirth only fueled her irritation.
“What are we standing around for?”
Crystal asked as she caught up to them, Cedric’s sleeping form sitting behind her. Though the soldier’s life was no longer in any danger, he was still too feeble to ride. From what she understood, the extent to which he had used his abilities while being untaught, had damaged his body from within. Crystal assured her, that it was nothing that couldn’t be mended by time, but he would have to rest as much as possible. For that reason, they had decided to tie him to Crystal who was not only the lightest among them but also the most skilled horseman.
“She was about to fall off her horse again. We should take a break before pushing through to camp.”
“It makes no sense to stop here. Why take the unnecessary risk when we are almost there!”
They both spoke at once and the healer glared unamused before sighing deeply as she started to untie Cedric from herself.
“I needed to switch horses anyway, make your decision before I have done so.”
Although the healer needed substantially less sleep than either Warchief or Lidea, she seemed too tired to deal with their discussions. It wasn’t that odd, considering she had to hold not only herself but also Cedric upright in the saddle and had been caring for the soldier through almost every short break they had.
Lidea glanced at Warchief, but he was still looking at how Crystal slid out of the saddle and prepared the horse for its off-duty time before she picked up Cedric and carried him to the second horse which had been running riderless beside them.
“You know that we should continue, Warchief. Can’t you trust that I will hold on?”
As she spoke, his attention turned back to her and a smirk appeared on his face. The telltale sign that he had come up with something that would infuriate her.
“There is only so much you can accomplish on willpower Lidea. You are exhausted. But fine, if you really want to continue then you can sit in the saddle with me.”
Lidea frowned at his suggestion, not able to believe that he was being serious. She hadn’t shared a horse since she had been a little girl, and she wasn’t gravely injured.
“Unless you rather take the break in that case?”
His smug grin told her, that was exactly what he thought she would choose. Lidea wished that she could just get her gelding to move, but the animal was chewing peacefully on some grass, not even acknowledging her legs as they pressed against its stomach.
“Fine. You get your way.”
She grumbled as she jumped off the horse, her legs protesting as her feet hit solid ground. From the corner of her eyes, she could see Warchief’s grin turning triumphant as he set about jumping off.
“No reason for you to dismount.”
Lidea couldn’t contain the self-satisfied tone in her voice, as she loosened the cinch of her saddle before turning to him with her reins in hand. His look of confusion made her only grin wider as she started to tie her horse to his. Her intentions finally dawning on him, he broke into a bemused smile.
“I should have predicted this.”
Warchief muttered but nonetheless moved deeper into his saddle and kicked off his stirrups, before offering her a hand.
Lidea raised an eyebrow at him as she hinted at the back of the horse.
“I can sit behind you.”
His grin returned as he shook his head.
“What would be the point in that? I still can’t help you, if I don’t see when you fall off. Or do you want me to tie you as we do with Cedric?”
She supposed he had a point, but that didn’t make her feel less uneasy as she put one foot in the stirrup and accepted his hand. At least Warchief had the decency not to gloat as he helped her sit in front of him. The pummel of his saddle was luckily lower than most, so it wasn’t an awful experience but she knew that it would grow uncomfortable soon.
“I must say, I thought you would choose to have a break.”
He moved his hands around her waist to grab the reins in front of her. The unfamiliar sensation caused her almost to shiver.
“I was serious when I said that it made no sense to stop here. We need to get to camp as fast as possible. If they discover that I’m still alive, they will start hunting us down.”
She was reminded of how easily the Ligerian army had broken through their ranks. They hadn’t stood a chance, and she didn’t want to meet them on the road while deprived of sleep and with nowhere to find cover on the open Lynoën planes. Even worse would be if they would follow them to Udrän. It was true that Lynoës knew better than to attack the horse nomads, but would they be as careful now that they had these new soldiers?
To avoid broaching the subject that they had all been avoiding, she looked over her shoulder while giving him the widest grin she could muster.
“Besides, this way I get to annoy you for the rest of the road while I get my way.”
Satisfied with his expression of shock, she looked back to the front as she felt his chest start to shake before he erupted into laughter.
“I think you might have played yourself, there.”
Before she could ask what he meant, their attention went to Crystal who had managed to seat herself and Cedric on the other horse and now rode up to them with sparks in her eyes.
“Time to speed this trip up?”
She asked playfully as she looked at Warchief, who must have responded in silence as she suddenly brought her horse up into a canter.
“No!”
Lidea yelled but was already too late as Warchief let his mare follow suit, causing Lidea to hold cramp fully onto its mane. Her knuckles turned white as she bounced on the pommel until she could feel Warchief’s arm in front of her stomach to help stabilize her.
“My apologies, Princess, but you are right that we should make haste.”
Lidea could hear the mischief in his voice but couldn’t respond as she was too busy with keeping herself on the horse.
This infuriating bastard!
Her fear was short-lived as her body grew used to the rhythm of the mare’s steady canter. In some ways, it was easier to sit through than the bouncy trot they had done before.
As Lidea started to relax, the exhaustion returned and her body grew heavier by the minute. She tried to keep herself awake by watching the horizon where the distance to the border decreased rapidly.
Her sleep-befuddled brain put together that they must have slowed their pace down for her benefit. It made her feel embarrassed but at the same time, she was disappointed that they hadn’t told her.
Getting to the camp fast was worth more than her precious feelings, and they should have known that.
Lidea didn’t notice when she had drifted asleep, but she woke up feeling sluggish and warm. The horses had slowed down to a walk and without the breeze, the summer sun seemed determined to scorch everything with its rays.
Sitting up straighter, she looked around and felt Warchief release the arm that had laid gently around her middle.
“Welcome back to the living.”
His overly chipper voice was not something she wanted to wake up to, and she didn’t respond until she noticed the rolling green hills that surrounded them. An environment completely different from the flat open fields of Lynoës.
“Are we in Udrän?”
Her voice sounded scratchy, a testament to just how well she had slept.
“Yes, we crossed the border some hours ago.”
It was unimaginable that she had been able to sleep through hours of sitting on a horse. But it was clearly the case, as they were even riding her brown gelding now. Meaning, that Warchief had even transferred her from one horse to the other without waking her. Perhaps he had been right that she had been too fatigued to be on a horse.
“I must say, I have never seen one sleep so soundlessly, my Lady.”
Cedric teased from the other horse, and it was strange to hear him address her as ‘my Lady’. Glancing over at the soldier, he looked to be in less pain than the previous days, giving Lidea some hope that he was on the path to recovery. She had worried that the days in the saddle would reopen his wounds but that didn’t seem to be the case.
“You learn to sleep through everything, if you don’t often have a chance to sleep at all.”
Her serious answer seemed to knock the wind out of Cedric’s cheeriness, as he answered through a simple nod before pointing his gaze ahead. The awkward silence that followed, made Lidea feel bad.
“You seem to be feeling better?”
Lidea felt flustered, and her attempt to open up a conversation felt clumsy but Cedric smiled in understanding.
“Besides that, I still feel like I’m being stung by a thousand needles, sure I’m doing great.”
“Thousand needles, huh? You are being pretty talkative for someone who is suffering that badly.”
Lidea remarked playfully, but the man gave her the evil eye in response.
“If only you could feel what I am going through, then you wouldn’t say that!”
Not giving Lidea a chance to respond, a bad-tempered Crystal intervened.
“He overloaded the channels that distribute the magical energy through his body, damaging them in the process. Stinging, burning, or itching sensations are common in such cases.”
“See! Told you so.”
Cedric couldn’t see the deadly glare that Crystal had on her face as he bounced around, happy that the healer had confirmed his suffering. Meanwhile, Lidea found herself distracted by the concept of magic channels. Did that mean that magicians had a different anatomy to other humans? Or did she have those channels too, and were they inactive?
She had never thought to look for a book on the human condition, but she made a mental note to do so when given the opportunity.
“I suppose you did. I will remember that you are great at handling pain, such an ability will come in handy in the future.”
The soldier paled as he looked at her in disbelief.
“That isn’t funny.”
Lidea just smiled as she felt Warchief move behind her. He grabbed the map that they had received from Firon and held it open in front of them. The manner in which the man had written up his instructions gave away that Firon had once belonged to the royal army. It contained a rudimentary drawing of their destination, the path drawn in straight lines which led to several landmarks, each described with a different number of bearings.
“We should be getting close to our final waypoint. Can you hold this?”
Lidea took over the map, allowing Warchief to retrieve his compass. The sight of which stunned her. While many noblemen flaunted their wealth through ornately decorated everyday items like pens, cufflinks, sword scabbards, and even compasses, none compared to the one Warchief held in his hand.
It was completely crafted out of gold and adorned with decorative ribbons carved with nature-themed motifs. The outer ring, a swirl of blue that reminded her of stained glass, contrasted beautifully with the inner ring, which was etched in similar nature motifs to the exterior and housed a red arrow that pointed them north. The blue ring bore the letters T, E, L, and D, which likely represented the cardinal directions in the language of its maker. Additionally, there were lines indicating the directional degrees to make navigation easier for its user.
The amount of detail within the piece showed off how priceless of an item it had to be. Still, it displayed clear signs of use.
The protective lid had been broken off, and the glass covering the arrow was severely scratched.
She had witnessed how Warchief treated his expensive belongings, but it continued to baffle her. How could he afford to be this careless?
If the man in question noticed her shock, he didn’t acknowledge it as he studied the bearings of their direction with the one Firon had written.
“We are still going in the right direction so we should hit that river at any moment. After that, we just have to head straight north and we should be there.”
Hearing that made her feel a mixture of relief and anxiety. Once in the camp, she would have to face how many people they had lost. She wasn’t sure what she could even tell them. Had she known, how overwhelming the Ligerian forces would be, then she would have evacuated everyone at once, despite the risks. But she hadn’t.
“I can almost hear your brain creaking from how much you make it work. What is the matter?”
Warchief spoke softly, keeping the conversation between the two of them. For a moment she wanted to ask about the compass, anything to distract herself from the guilt that wrecked her mind but instead, she sighed deeply before gathering her thoughts. Avoiding the topic would not change what had happened or make her problems go away, so she answered truthfully.
“I don’t know what I’m going to do when we arrive. I will need to talk to them, but I’m worried. Those Ligerians… I never thought humans could possess such strength. How can we possibly defend ourselves from them?”
As they had waited for Cedric’s treatment to be finished, she had found some of the less scorched bodies within that cave and had removed the gaiters covering their faces. She had half expected them to be monsters with pointed teeth and claws, but they had looked like ordinary men.
It just didn’t make sense. Even as professional fighters, they shouldn’t have been able to break through so many people with such ease.
“I don’t think you have to fear the people. They will understand you, after all, you are a natural leader.”
Warchief spoke sincerely but she couldn’t help but snort in disbelief.
“I mean it, Lidea, you might not see it but they trust you. Just be yourself, that is all you can do.”
He paused before continuing.
“As for those Ligerians, I’m not sure either. If it was merely strength, then it wouldn’t have been as dangerous. But, they had no regard for their own lives. I have seen individuals like that before, but never a complete army full of them.”
He sounded as dumbfounded and worried as her, which didn’t ease her nerves one bit.
“It is because you have never had to fight against the power of a God.”
Crystal added, causing Cedric to look up at her in confusion. Lidea guessed he hadn’t been able to listen in to their conversation like the healer had.
Knowing better than to offend Crystal, she didn’t reply however, Warchief did.
“How sure are you that the Gods are involved? I thought they were forbidden from meddling in human affairs.”
She couldn’t believe that Warchief was actually entertaining the idea. Did he believe in the existence of gods as well?
“That is the idea, but the Gods always love to push the boundaries they are kept within. Besides, they were wearing the crest of the Goddess of curses.”
“I’m really hoping you are wrong on this one.”
Warchief stated exasperated, earning him a dubious grin from Crystal.
“Am I ever?”
“No.”
As they spoke, Lidea couldn’t help the feeling of doubt that crept into her soul. It wasn’t the first time that she met people who believed gods to be real, but she had never heard anyone talk about them as Warchief and Crystal did. To them, the gods seemed to be as real as a king or noble.
“Wait a minute! Are you saying that our country is being targeted by a God?”
At least Cedric seemed to share in her disbelief, making Lidea feel less crazy.
“I am not sure, Cedric. Finding out a God’s intention is like finding a jewel between rocks.”
A new kind of quiet fell over them, as every one of them fell prey to their own thoughts. Lidea still couldn’t get herself to believe in such nonsense. Partially because it sounded ridiculous, but also, because if it was true, her fight would have been pointless from the start. After all, how can one win from a god?
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