Maera

  When I saw Misty poking her head through the hole in the tent she’d made, I nearly cried out for joy. Seeing her alive lifted my heart out of the abyss it had fallen into - I didn’t know how she did it, but she’d managed to track me many leagues away and snuck into an encampment full of soldiers. She chewed off the ropes that had been binding my hands; once those were freed, I cloaked us in shadows and she led us both out.

  “No, I’ve never learned magic from anyone,” I had said.

  I suppose my captors never realized I was anything more than a fighter - I saw no need to tell them otherwise. Indeed, I think they were convinced that the first time I’d ever tried to use magic was when the twin-tailed witch had - I snarled when I imagined her face. I’d only recently realized that “magic” was the name of the powers I’d been born with and everything I knew how to do I’d figured out by trying.

  But it’s the weapon that makes the warrior is it not? I had no idea where any of my gear was stashed, nor did we have the time to search for it; I had to consider my armor and scimitar lost for the time being. If we got caught, we’d be overwhelmed - I had to rely on my other talents. It should go without saying that I also changed into my daytime clothes before we quit the tent.

  My shadow concealment, as I call it, is hardly perfect: it doesn't make us completely invisible, strong enough light sources can pierce it, and magical detection would reveal our presence as well. After narrowly avoiding being spotted multiple times, we finally made it to the hills - from a distance I saw the fires of the camp burning brightly. I’d never seen anything quite like it; the military camps around the moor were dour places, devoid of joy - as they ought to be, I thought.

  “We made it Misty,” I said, stroking her, “Well done! Now…now what do we do?”

  Misty gave a low sad rumble, ah, of course she had no idea - her entire goal was to find me after all.

  “Father must be warned not to march his legion,” I said, knowing full well that Misty couldn’t fathom any of this. “Yes, and he must be warned about the Black Order…and Red Lightning - he mustn’t underestimate their leader, Victor.”

  That name got her excited. “You like him, don’t you? He treated you kindly, didn’t he?” my heart sank. Why was I hesitating? I reached into my pockets, and pulled out a large envelope. The twintailed witch had left this on the table, and for some reason I took it with me - I don’t know why I did, but…”What am I doing, Misty?”

  The dreadrunner could only nuzzle me…and that’s when I saw it: the Ca-dil-lac, on a nearby rise, just sitting there. My resolve wavered and I froze. The time I had spent inside that thing, though my hands were bound, made me feel something that resembled comfort. I got back in Misty’s saddle, and commanded her towards the crimson iron chariot.

  “I’m going to apologize right now,” I said.

  That’s right, it makes no difference to Misty where I go - as long as I’m with her.

  But then I stopped, and shook my head; the forces fighting inside me, one side wishing to go home and one side wishing to remain, had me bound in ways that mere ropes never could. My loyal friend whimpered and craned her neck to meet my gaze with those sad golden eyes.

  “I’m sorry, Misty, I know you like them.” I said, tearfully. “But he’s still my father…I have to honor that. I have to remain loyal.”

  I pulled on her reins to turn us about, and we bolted ahead at full speed but not for terribly long - carrying me, Misty would tire after only a mile or two. The trees were somewhat thick on this side of the hills, so I made them. Once I was certain we were far enough away I dismounted from Misty and checked her saddlebags; good, nothing had fallen off or been stolen since I saw her last. I remembered how once, while hunting for big snakes in the swamp, she’d somehow managed to wiggle out of her entire kit and lost everything.

  As far as weapons, I had a shortbow with a quiver of twenty arrows, and a short sword. For food I had some dried rations, just a few day’s supply - considering how far away we were from home I knew we’d need to hunt as well. Then again, Misty herself is deadly; even if she wasn’t wearing a magic collar that strengthened her claws and teeth she’s still formidable. I don’t like to think of her as a weapon, or a mount - she’s a powerful friend.

  Could I find something to eat, at a settlement along the way? Gah! Red Lightning could be looking for me, they could warn every town within a - no, no, wait, even they must have limits…I hope. I mustn’t rule out the possibility of finding shelter along one of the main roads, but, to return to the Dreadmoor I’ll need to go across wild country eventually. I just needed to find a landmark of some sort, something I recognized. Fortunately, the leader of Red Lightning was just as lost as I was so the skunk-haired bard was always providing him with details.

  We were north of the mountains where Rivercrown city lay, somewhat west of the crossroads…which meant if I kept going east I would eventually meet the main road. But for now I needed to survive the first night. That star-spangled ranger had built a fire before, and for some reason he let me watch - had he been trying to teach me on purpose?

  “The tinder, the kindling, and the fuel,” I repeated. I set about gathering wood of various sizes and arranged it in a triangular shape. But as to how to start it - he had a little box that produced flame…but wait, he also mentioned that there were ways to start a fire with a spark by rubbing two sticks together, or strike a piece of flint with steel.

  I gasped - steel? That’s it! What was it that the green-eyed princess had said about what she can do with the air to make it warmer? Vibrating the, um, molly-cules? I’ve always been able to affect metal in certain ways - is it possible that I can…

  I took out one of my arrows, placed my finger on the tip, and concentrated as though I were going to change its shape. But instead, I did what the green-eyed princess described when I asked what the hells she was doing - I didn’t exactly expect an answer but she happily explained. After many tense minutes, I managed it - then soon it was red hot. The smiling face of the green-eyed princess flashed in my mind. Why was I feeling warm already, the fire hadn’t even started!

  I plunged the arrow into the center of what I’d built, and soon I had a fire going! Misty curled up close by, and I leaned against her; this is how we’d slept when we were travelling with the hillmen and altered ones. I was feeling fairly smug about having figured out a new use for my metalshifting power; at least that’s what I call it. I suppose it’s metal magic, then? I’m still going to call it metalshifting.

  I had a nightmare that night - I dreamt of a tall shadow, a man’s shadow, cast by flames…a woman’s shadow was nearby on the ground. I heard a faint voice.

  “...I swear that he, or his kin, will end you…”

  Then the man’s shadow lifted the woman’s shadow by the neck, and I heard a snap. The shadow loomed over me, and then I woke up with a start. I barely remembered anything about the dream, the clash of fire and shadow seemed to fade from my mind.

  “Good morning, Misty,” I said, “Did you sleep well?”

  Misty jumped up, and bunted me with her head. “I knew you would. Come, let’s get going.”

  We started our journey at a brisk but reasonable pace; she couldn’t maintain her full sprinting speed for very long, but we’d trained together for years and so now she was really good at moving overland even when carrying me. I reasoned that the Cadillac couldn’t follow us easily if we stuck to rugged terrain, so we moved east through the foothills rather than taking a straight line northeast towards the vale of Alta Ferra. This hillscape though, it seemed easy to get lost in - lost…that triggered another memory.

  The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

  “The stars are pretty no matter what world you’re in,” the star-spangled ranger had said. “No idea how to navigate by these ones though - good thing I’ve got one of these!”

  Then he brought out something that he called a compass, he explained how it worked, which in turn led to him explaining a concept called magnetism - according to the green-eyed princess, an explanation that required further explanations was common with him. From another world, was he? I don’t understand what that means, but I did realize that this magnetism sounded an awful lot like that thing I can do - concentrating on one of my gauntlets, I can pull a sword to my hand. It didn’t have a very long range, but I enjoyed using it; I lamented my present lack of gauntlets.

  I began to wonder and then I saw a small rivulet running down the side of the hill. Misty and I drank deep of the clear water, and I filled our waterskins…but there was one other thing I wanted to try. I still had my iron cutlery, the set I’d received from the Ebrotani. I used my metalshifting to shape it into a shallow cup, which I filled with water, while leaving behind enough for “the needle”. After many attempts I managed to do, er, something…I don’t know the words for it. The needle stuck to my sword without me needing to fill it with magical energy.

  I laid the needle on top of a leaf and set the leaf in the cup…but instead of pointing north, the needle simply floated in the water and stuck into the side of the cup - gah! That’s when I remembered:

  “...you see, the casing has to be non-magnetic too. Glass, wood, plastic, or even non-ferrous metals like silver, copper, aluminum…” He went on and on.

  I sighed. I had no means to shape the abundant wood around me, nor did I have any glassware, nor did I have any idea what aluminum and plastic even were. I also didn’t have any copper or silver coins; the fire-haired barbarian had gifted me a small pouch of silver coins she called “helms”...but I’d bloody left it in the Cadillac - gah! I realized I’d have to be content with going in one direction until I found a road, and so I forged ahead.

  ***

  Two, three days passed I think - before I finally reached the main road, which I recognized for being wider than the others. A Gaian highway, the skunk-haired poet had called it. There had been some snow the night before and I couldn’t be gladder for the existence of fire. I’d seen more maps in a few days than I ever had in my entire life, so I was able to reason that if I turned left, I’d be heading north towards the town at the crossroads. After that, I think, is when I’d need to start heading towards the Alta Ferra valley - towards Dreadmoor.

  We travelled at a brisk pace, and then as evening drew near I made camp by the roadside. This particular part of the road ran through a pine forest, not especially large and I didn’t recall if it even had a name. It smelled much nicer than the Dreadmoor ever did. Misty had run off into the forest to hunt us some dinner; I’d tried to follow but she pushed me down with her head, rumbling - fine, I’ll admit to needing a little rest.

  I smiled and shook my head; who is caring for whom again? I stretched out by the fire and looked at the stars for a while and then I actually dozed off. I don’t know how long I’d been out for but I awoke with a sudden twitch of my ears; I heard the crunch of boots in the snow - four people, I estimated. I also heard voices…

  “A lone woman, and she’s asleep - this’l be easy pickins.”

  Bandits? Fie! I didn’t have time for their scum.

  But I was outnumbered, and I couldn’t hear Misty’s breathing anywhere. I nearly leaped to my feet, but the voice of the man with the spike-tail mustache rang in my ears.

  “...the virtue of patience can and must needs be an asset in combat - if given an opportunity to wait for an opening, take it.”

  Ugh him and his virtues - at least he was somewhat handso- I mean, inoffensive to my eyes…but he’s a damn Hylarian, my father’s sworn enemy! Nevermind that, he was right - if I let them know I was actually awake and not helpless, they might take me down with arrows before my first stroke fell. I waited, but I wasn’t idle - I discreetly retrieved the iron cup I’d made and clenched it in my left hand. I thought at first to turn it into a spike, but then I recalled something else:

  “...then I surprised the goblin with pocket sand!” The skunk-haired poet had said, then he looked curiously at the star-spangled ranger for some odd reason; his eyebrow could go very high. The green-eyed princess was also puffing her cheeks at him.

  But no matter. I had an idea. Instead of reshaping the metal, I began to deconstruct it - in a few moments it had been reduced to a handful of iron filings. Once the steps of my would-be robbers were close enough I started to channel magical energy into my palm.

  After a few more steps they were right on top of me; yes, within my striking range. I knew what to do next. I remembered what the red-haired barbarian had told me, when we were out buying clothes, after I’d asked why she did so many squats every day.

  “Huh? Because a good kick can save your life. In combat, your legs are your best asset.”

  I quickly tucked my legs to my chest, and kicked as hard as I could. Crunch! A direct hit to the man’s knees - he staggered low enough that I was able to get a hand on his steel helm; i reshaped the metal inwards and crushed his skull. Leaping to my feet I spun around - the iron filings in my hand were now so hot that it was beginning to hurt, and that’s when I threw them right into the eyes of one of the bandits who had been standing at my head.

  The man with hot iron in his eyes screamed in agony. His partner was distracted long enough for me to draw my shortsword, use metalshaping to turn it into something resembling a spear, and skewer him with it. I reshaped the sword to its original form, closed in on the burning man, and finished him off.

  There was just one more left. I had been about to bring my sword to bear on him, when all of a sudden he dropped to his knees with a look of terror in his eyes. Oh…it was at that moment that I realized Misty was back - and she had something in her mouth.

  “P-please don’t kill me,” the man cried, “I’m sorry, I won’t do it again, I swear! I’ll give up thievery for good!”

  I walked slowly, inevitably towards this man as the glow of the fire burned brightly behind me. Soon it was I, looming over him, where he had been over me before. I raised the weapon, prepared to cut the sweat-stained head off of this ruffian. Who did he think he was, trying to rob me?

  “P-please,” he cried, as I swung my blade downward, “mercy!”

  “...Victor’s capacity for mercy is the only reason why I’m here today, you know. You’re not the first person he’s spared, whose life he’s changed for the better…”

  Once the memory had ceased flashing before my eyes, I found that my sword had stopped short of the bandit’s collar. I clicked my tongue and snarled. Damn you, skunk-hair, stop making sense!

  I kicked the man and shouted, “Go then! Don’t let me catch you sneaking around here again!”

  Screaming, the man ran off into the woods leaving behind his dead companions. I’d never just let someone who tried to hurt me go like that before. It left me feeling strange, an indescribable feeling like I’d dropped something heavy.

  “What the hells is wrong with me, Misty?” I said. Ah, I realized that Misty was eagerly nudging me, so I turned around and saw what she was trying to show me: a rather large rabbit, nice and plump. They certainly get big out here, don’t they?

  “Oh well,” I stroked her neck, “Thank you for the feast.” She hootbarked happily.

  While I feasted on my share of the rabbit, roasted over the fire of course, I thought about what had happened. Why did so many of the things those people said come to me then? But eventually sleep found me, and in the new day’s light I got a better look at last night’s battlefield.

  I didn’t see any horse tracks, so I reasoned the ruffians must have come by foot. The spoils of my private war included a pair of steel vambraces, shin guards, a brigandine cuirass, some ill-fitting gambeson, and an open-faced sallet. I’d done my best to adjust them with my armor maintenance kit and metalshifting, but it still didn’t fit right. I also picked up two daggers, an extra shortsword, and another quiver of arrows. The other weapons I reduced to steel ingots for later use.

  Once I was done getting dressed again realized that I was filthy and my newly acquired gear was even worse - that’s when I remembered something else I’d learned travelling with Red Lightning and their allies. For the first time in my life, someone had actually taken the time and effort to teach me a spell. But why did it have to be her?

  “Cleanser is a necessity for a mage on the go,” the twin-tailed witch had said. “It works on clothes, armor, and almost any surface. Since you’re elf-blooded, you should be able to use it even if you’re not otherwise magically inclined.”

  Out of all of them she’d irritated me the most with her questioning and I’d made sure she knew - yet she kept trying, and had even taught me how to clean my own clothes with a few simple words and a wave of the hand. But then she’d called my father a liar and said that she suspected something even more absurd, something unthinkable. I don’t believe her, I can’t - and yet here I am thinking about what she’d said.

  Once I was free of blood and dirt, I threw my coat on - the one the green-eyed princess had happily bought for me to keep warm. Inside one of the pockets I felt the thick vellum of the twin-tailed witch’s envelope. A part of me wanted to cast it into the embers of the campfire, but in the end I couldn’t.

  Newly armed and armored, my journey with Misty continued - north, towards the crossroads.

  "Father is surely worried, he's likely desperately searching for me....I know it."

  Maera's Journey continues Friday (or Monday) and I have two choices: