10. THE REWARD FOR SAVING A MERCHANT
This does not look good…
My brother always places me in the first wagon, leading the caravan. Moby is the one who assigned this giant to guard me. He appears very menacing when he puts on the helmet and cloak, especially when he wields that large axe.
While finally getting to know Leif, I have since learned he is a very nice and curious person. His specialty seems to be linguistics. When we were kids, our family played a Latin-learning game. I recently taught our gentle giant how to play the game in my native language. He takes out his frightening axe and begins sharpening it throughout the journey as we play our game.
Our horse is suddenly shot by an arrow. They suddenly speed down the road until we crash. Then I hear the giant barbarian say something in a language I've never heard before. My eyes follow his, and I notice five men who do not look like they have honorable intentions towards us. They've all drawn their bows and are aiming them at us. Leif reacts swiftly, pushing me out of the wagon. He soon follows me when I hear him let out a grunt while he’s jumping out of the wagon. Two more arrows blur past us, going over our heads and hitting something in the distance. When I look at Leif, I find two arrows protruding out of his back. One is on his top back shoulder, and the other is in his lower back. His eyes tell me he is in total agony.
“Rip them out.” He whispers, obviously in pain.
“Are you sure?” My voice asks with a squeak.
He gives me a head shake yes and closes his eyes.
While starting on the one in his left back, I give it a good yank. A small whimper escapes from Leif. It makes me stop for a second.
"No, do not stop. Pull it out quickly; they will be heading our way soon."
My hand gets a good handle on it, and I pull it out as fast as I can. He speaks more in a language I have never heard of.
“Okay, get the other one.”
This is highly unusual. What's this guy's pain tolerance? What has he been through to be able to tear arrows out of his back without hesitation? After ripping out the second one, I noticed a lot of blood on my hands. Then we hear footsteps approaching from the opposite side. Leif investigates underneath the wagon.
“Three are approaching. If I had to guess, I bet the others are staying near the woods, watching while waiting to pick us off with arrows.”
“Are we going to be okay?” I ask with obvious fear in my voice.
He gives me a grin. “Don't worry; it will be fine.” For some reason, I almost feel like I can trust his words.
(Leif Blackstone)
Rage has overridden my pain. I now have a new passion for hating archers. The arrow that impacted my lower back felt like it sucker punched my kidney. My nose and ears pick up one of the men about to approach the side of the wagon where we are hiding. This poor soul will be the first to feel my wrath. He pokes his head out like he’s playing peek-a-boo.
He finally sees my menacing figure standing there waiting for him. He doesn’t even get out a yelp before my hand snakes out and grabs his clothes and pulls him right towards me. My metal-helmeted head slams his as hard as it possibly can. With a sick crunch, he passes out instantly. I toss his body out in the open so his friends can gaze at his lifeless body.
Following that, there is some yelling and shifting of feet. I pick up my axe and swing it vigorously. That's when I charge from outside the wagon toward the person closest to me. He holds a small dagger in his hands as he sees me racing at him. The guy behind him has his bow cocked but pointed to the ground. They both stand frozen in place, staring at my six-foot-six frame. By the time I arrive in front of the first guy, he has not even moved. The archer behind him has me more concerned. He hasn't gotten a shot off since the dagger-wielding person is in his line of fire.
While holding my axe in both hands, I run over the first guy with my shoulder. He smacks the ground and gets the wind knocked out of him, and I continue on to the next guy. The archer doesn’t even have time to pull up his bow when I give my axe a twirling motion and bring it down on him with both hands. It goes through his shoulder and all the way down to his ribs. Instead of a scream when he opens his mouth, I just get the man's dying last breath. As he falls backwards to never move again. The axe looks like it's stuck for now, so I leave it. There's a dagger lying on the ground next to its owner. The guy is still not moving and looks like he's in a daze trying to catch his breath.
“Yeah, that sucks when the wind gets knocked out of you.” I reply to him. “It happens to everyone sooner or later.” He doesn't look like he likes my witty responses. Still pissed off from getting hit with two arrows, I pick up the knife and plunge it into his chest where I imagine his heart is. Finishing him off.
My eyes glance to where I imagine the other two archers should be and spot Felix just standing there with a smile like a wolf. The other two are already on the ground. So he’s the reason why I never got another arrow in me while fighting their friends.
"Interesting," is all I get from him before he walks over and checks on Kimi to make sure he's okay. Kimi is in a fog, sitting on his butt next to two bloody arrows, staring at his red-covered hands.
“You okay, Mr. Merchant?” Felix asks him.
He looks from his hands back to us. He gives us a head shake up and down. Guess the cat still has his tongue.
“How are you, kid?” Felix asks me. “I thought I saw two arrows hit you before you jumped.”
“More of a glancing blow.” I lie. They feel like they're on fire right now.
The rest of the caravan soon catches up with us. We tether a new horse to the wagon and move the tree. The caravan then resumes normal operation as if nothing happened.
I'm resting in one of the back wagons since I was injured. Aya, Kimi's wife, is treating my wounds. Tila and Kara are also in the same car. Aya and I are near the front end of the wagon, with the two females in the back.The caravan does not stop for one man, thus the ride is somewhat bumpy. Kimi is currently driving our wagon. I'm not sure if he's keeping an eye on me while I'm near his wife and daughter, or if he's still upset over what occurred.
Aya is already applying some kind of substance to my back. “Thank you for saving my husband today.”
This paste is fantastic. Already, the excruciating pain is subsiding. It must contain some form of numbing ingredient.
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“It's no problem just doing the job that was assigned to me.”
“Either way, thank you for stepping in to save me. It was very brave.” Bimi says overhearing our conversation.
I take a quick look at Tila and Kara. They're both whispering and giggling together. They keep glancing over my way, so I believe it's about me. Tila is a perfect mirror of her mother. Both girls will be very beautiful in the future. I'm sure they will be little heartbreakers.
“So, Leif, my husband, has told me you like learning new things. Is what he said true?” Aya asks while also glancing over at the girls.
“Let's just say I have a very curious nature.”
"An excellent answer. In fact, it was the exact response I was hoping to receive. You are officially fixed; could you please turn around so I can see your face, young man? She speaks with a smile on her face.
"Leif, I happen to be a well-known herbalist. I reached the level of sage while working for the Egyptian courts, but I quit for political reasons. She can see from my perplexed expression that I have no idea where she's headed with this.
She simply flashes me another smile. "As a thank you for saving my husband, I would like to offer you a chance to learn apothecary from me."
"You mean like treating cuts and headaches with plants?
"Something like that, but an apothecary requires a much deeper grasp of each herb. You must know which herbs go together and how to prepare them. It is also necessary to be aware of the poisonous ones.
Well, this is intriguing. On the one hand, I think it would be an awesome skill to have. On the other hand, how much expertise do they really have? Where I am from, we don't usually go to someone like this to treat our wounds. We take pills or liquid medicine. How developed can they be at this time? I glance over at her husband Kimi to see what he thinks about this. He's looking at his wife like she has grown another head. It doesn’t matter what generation you come from; the ways of women will always confuse men.
“Yes, I will learn from you. If you will have me?” Sounds like a good skill to have in this time period. Next to swinging a sword, I know nothing.
It seems to be the response she was waiting for, because Aya gives me a wide Cheshire grin. When she grins, her beauty is just breathtaking. How Kimi got so lucky is beyond me.
“Great! You are to report to me in the mornings from now on. There we will begin your studies.”
She returns my tunic so that I can put it back on. “Put that on slowly.”
We continue our conversation regarding the lessons she will be teaching me. According to her, we will begin by learning how to recognize each herb and medicine as well as its growing regions. Then, later on, we shall learn the more complex material.
We locate a place to camp close to sunset and put the wagons to rest for the night. I manage to jump out of the wagon. Already, my wounds feel much better. She informed me that someone would need to apply additional paste in the morning since they would be quite sore. Then, once breakfast was over, I report to her.
Kimi hops down to walk with me. “I have no idea what goes on inside the minds of women. Every time I think I have her figured out, she does something I'm not expecting.” He gives me a glance. “How much do you know about places ruled by Rome?”
“Treat me as if I know nothing.”
Kimi snickers. Egypt is presently ruled by Rome. Most believe they will govern the world in the future. A console has been selected to oversee each province. The man in charge of Egypt at the time wasn't a particularly nice man. The present priest who worked under the console was my wife's superior. The console believed that a woman could not perform the duties of a priest. He sent her away because he believed that females were inferior to men. He had no idea that the current head priest had grown far too old and that she was doing most of his duties. I tell you this so you will know. She has never offered to teach someone else since we left Egypt. Not Kara, not my daughter, nor anybody. Therefore, be grateful for the gift you have been given.”
“Thank you for your story. I’m sorry she had to go through all that, and I will be respectful towards her. What did they call teachers from where you are from?”
Kimi gives me a smile. “Don't worry, friend; we count you as one of us now. So no need to stand on formalities. Just put ‘lady’ in front of her name and call her teacher when you guys are alone, and all will be well.”
“Thank you as well, teacher.”
That gets a good laugh out of him. “Yes, yes, I suppose you may call me that as well. And Leif, thank you for saving my life. I wish to see my daughter grow up with my own two eyes, and you help make that possible today.”
He dismisses me with a wave, and I return to the area where Dulf and I have pitched our tents. He already has mine set up and has a bowl of soup waiting for me. That's nice of him. He tears me off a loaf of bread as I sit down next to him.
“How was that, Mr. Big Hero, then?" Dulf jokes, meaning no harm in it.
I haven't really gotten to mess with him much today, so I reply with as much of a straight face as I can muster. “They wanted to thank me for saving Kimi and reward me with Tila’s hand in marriage.”
He drops his piece of bread and looks like a fish out of water, opening and closing his mouth with no words coming out.
“You know, if you leave your mouth open long enough, flies will set up and make it their home.”
“What the heck? They asked if you would marry her.” He asks in horror, like he sees his dream flying away.
“Yeah, Kimi and Aya thanked me for saving his life, then said they couldn't see any other person but me taking her hand in marriage.” I manage to say without snickering. As the second ticks by, it gets harder and harder to keep a straight face.
“But you said she was too young for you.” He counters. “That you only look at girls around your own age.”
Messing with Dulf is getting to be the best part of my life.
“I decided to change my mind. Looking at how beautiful her mother is, I'm sure she will be quite a pretty lady one day.”
He sputters and spills some of his soup. “You're just stupid.” He shouts and stomps off towards a small stream near us. I need to teach him some better comebacks.
Moby walks over while chewing on a piece of bread as Dulf storms off. “What was that about?”
“Oh, you know, just messing with Dulf a little.” I put my soup up to my lips and get a mouthful. Wow, that's good. I did not think I would like the food in this era, but when you're starving, anything tastes great. My body requires me to eat more when I’m recovering.
“Felix told me how you handled yourself out there today. Good job. Protecting the merchants comes first in this line of work. It’s nice to know you can handle yourself if fighting breaks out. Felix said it was like he was watching a northern berserker out there. You took a ruthless approach to the bandits, ignoring all of your wounds.”
“Let's just say that I saw red and leave it at that.“
He gives me a weird look that I am starting to get a lot. It occurs when I say something out of the ordinary, and they are failing to understand what I am talking about. It's the same look. Dulf actually gets it a lot.
“I got so mad after getting hit with the arrows that I lost all self-control. There was just the anger.” I clarify for him.
His eyes show that he is finally understanding what I was attempting to convey. "It's normal to feel angry, but try not to let it control you. A more experienced fighter would have defeated you if you had faced him. When I was in the army, it was always simpler to battle the enraged ones.
"Well, you and your small friend are going to experience something new. You and Dulf will begin practicing sparring with Felix tomorrow. Mihail will join you as well. To keep you guys from becoming tired, there will only be minor sparring. Day and night shifts will alternate guard duty. During breaks, we will practice three times a day until Felix is satisfied that you can all keep up. Tell Dulf, and I'll share the good news with Mihail.”
“I think it sounds fine, but the lady Aya has also offered to teach me about herbology, beginning tomorrow.”
Moby gives me a little snort. “That's fine; they shouldn't cross over. We'll let you learn beside her while we're on the move; if you hear a whistle, get out to keep our rear end safe. You will be with Felix during rest periods. Your workload seems to have increased. Apologies, young man.
"Thanks anyway; it's okay; I think I can take it." He starts to walk off and notices Dulf returning. He gives him a wave as he resumes his walk.
“What did Moby want?” Dulf asks, still sounding a little pissed.
“He wanted to congratulate me on my wedding.” I get off without missing a beat. A dirty, wet towel pops me in the face, and I hear Dulf climbing into his tent.
“Isn't it still kind of early?”
He shoots me the middle finger that I taught him the other day.
“Ahh, my little friend is growing up so fast.”
“Shut up. I'm trying to sleep.”
“It's still kind of early, Dulf. " I don't get any response.
“Dulf.”
“Dulf.”
“Hey, Dulf.”
“Shut up; I'm trying to sleep. Some of us have to wake up early and take a guard shift.”
“Well, I took two arrows, so I say we are even.” The throbbing is starting to return a little, but it's not as bad as it was earlier. More like a dull ache at this point. After I finish off my stew, I climb into my tent and pass out.