Draxx sat on Nila, slowly rocking side to side as she stepped over the uneven terrain on the outskirts of Red Sands territory, the leather saddle groaning under his weight shifting. The little-used trail had become the trek of choice, as the group wanted to avoid as many people as possible. Pela rode beside him in her usual silence, her eyes big as she took in the surroundings of the changing landscape. Forest had turned to a dirt and sand mixture, churned together in a burnt orange color, pines and firs turned to thick-trunked shorter trees with giant rubbery leaves of a deep red and green blended hue. The foliage was still dense and the trail was not well known, so riding side by side came with some difficulties as the oversized leaves of the Sand Frond Trees battered Draxx occasionally. Anese rode behind him on one of the three horses Amery had procured in Dry Lake. It was a beautiful chestnut color with a powerful gait that made traversing the trails relatively easy. Amery and his horse, a black and sleek Racer breed, plodded along barely behind her.
"I guess cutting our hair was for nothing?" Anese quipped, finally breaking the silence.
Draxx lowered his head and gave a side glance to Pela who shrugged. Over the last few days, after leaving Dry Lake, Anese had become almost unbearable to talk with. Granted, she had lost her family and was thrust into a protective role of sorts over Pela and had to trust two men she barely knew, but it was becoming too much for Draxx to just let go. He became irritable every time she opened her mouth because everything she said was always negative in one way or another. Be it food, and the way it was seasoned or not seasoned or even cooked. It could be the way the leaves let sunlight in through the forest ceiling, and it had become irritating to her eyes. Even worse, despite the smooth gait of her horse, she would complain about the saddle and how it wasn't made for long rides, and the inside of her thighs were becoming sore, like no one else mattered except for her. The riding was long, and the nights longer when it felt like you were walking on eggshells so you didn't piss someone off, and sat around the small campfires in uncomfortable silence.
He blew a breath out in frustration, "Anese...what's the deal here? You've been unbearable for days."
She pulled the reins on her horse and forced it to a stop, "The deal? My deal? Are you serious?"
He had done it now, and he should've known better but he couldn't hold it in anymore. Whatever was eating at her, be it the obvious or something more, he needed to air it out. They were on a long journey to the Emerald Castle and crossing over lands that would be engulfed in war. This needed to happen, and now was as good a time as any. They were hundreds of miles from the nearest town and he couldn't live like this anymore. In soldier camps, if you had a problem with another man then you dealt with him face to face. You didn't let things fester and grow into dissension, that was the quickest way to see cohesion fall apart in ranks. This wasn't the army, but this was a small warband in a way. They needed to have each other's back and they needed to all be on the same page.
He patted Nila's side and she came to a stop as well, "Yes, your deal. You've complained about literally every single thing in the whole world of creation for days. Spit it out and let's figure out a way around it."
Amery pulled his horse short and came to a stop behind Anese and shook his head, looking down at the ground and not wanting to meet her eyes. Draxx had tried to sound as even-keeled as possible, without animosity but talking to women or children was just not his forte.
"My deal is that I watched my mother get torn apart by a man that my father trusted. I watched my father get taken prisoner, and for all I know he's dead now too. I left my home which was the only place I've ever known. I'm riding through unknown lands to an unknown castle, to meet unknown people for unknown reasons. Do you see a theme here, Three-Fingers?" She spat.
Draxx visibly winced at her words as color flushed his face. He wasn't good with women, and even worse with children it seemed. He enjoyed solidarity because he knew what to expect day in and day out, so he wasn't fully surprised that he understood some of what she was feeling. So many unknowns, with every day seemingly producing a new one. He forced himself to smile his best reassuring and soft smile he could muster, but it came across as more of a grimace.
"I understand your frustrations, I do. So many unanswered questions and so many things not known, but Anese, you've got to know. We are all almost in the same boat as you. I've never been in charge of children, for fuck's sake, I've never even had children of my own. I barely know what to feed you, let alone how to talk and coddle you."
She gasped, visibly upset. "Coddle, that's what you think this is? You need to swathe and bathe me like a baby? I'm a woman you moron, not a child! Yes, everything is difficult and hard to understand, I'm sorry I'm a nuisance to you. Maybe you should've stayed with your big-titted commoner back at Dry Lake! King of the Wilds? King of nothing is more like it."
Amery threw his hands up, in a I give up manner, "That's not what he means, Anese. Give him more credit than that. He's trying, I'm trying. We are all out here suffering, but united because we want to get Pela to safety."
She spun on Amery in her saddle, "Are we? Are we suffering? All of us? Shut up, you mop-headed twit, I'm so sick of your whiny voice."
Draxx cleared his throat, "Now that's enough of that. You don't get to go around and just be nasty to everyone because times are tough. I'm sorry you lost your parents. I've lived through that hurt before, I've watched that horror unfold before my own eyes when I was younger than you. I didn't hate everyone and want the world to burn."
"No, you joined the army and killed people." She retorted.
He sighed again, maybe he needed a different approach. "You're right. I had an outlet that was in a violent form. I didn't have a support system of any kind. I didn't have a Pela or an Amery or a fat-headed eight-fingered moron to yell at."
She looked him up and down momentarily, "You are a fat-headed moron."
"I'm sorry we haven't sat down and tried to process everything, Anese. Everyone deserves that because everyone needs that. We've just been on the go and dealing with what's been thrown at us, we haven't been given that chance. It's not that we don't care, not at all."
She covered her face with her hands, "I just wasn't ready for everything to change. I loved my life, and even though I knew Lucan wasn't a good person, I was comfortable!"
As she began crying Draxx looked at Pela and motioned with his head for her to go to her friend. She smiled a sad grin. How was he supposed to help someone crying? In the army men didn't cry except when they were dying from some sort of grievous wound, then you just said a pray and promised them whatever they wanted to hear. This was a child, and this was way out of his element. He looked to Amery for help but he looked just as lost, staring at her with his head cocked to one side and a puzzled look of helplessness all over his face. Nila grunted and took a step to the side, Draxx reflectively reached down and stroked her head, but she grunted again and began walking to where Anese sat on her horse.
"What's the deal girl? Don't make me deal with this shit." He whispered to the hulking swine.
It was too late, she had walked him directly beside her. Anese peeked through her fingers and saw him with a pained smile. "Hey, I know. All of this is-"
His words were cut off when Anese threw her arms around his thick neck and drove her face into his shoulder, sobbing loudly, leaning from her horse to his massive frame. He was stiff and not entirely sure how to act. He patted her back for comfort, but that seemed not so sentimental. He noticed Pela looking up at him and she motioned for him to hug her. Of course! That's what his mom would do when he was young, she would pull him in tight and hug him like there was no tomorrow and nothing could ever hurt him again. He wrapped his muscled arms around the skinny girl and embraced her as she shook from her sobs. It was awkward at first, holding a child so close and both still being saddled, it felt foreign but it felt right. He was the protector in this situation and though he couldn't have changed anything about her situation, he could at least protect her from the things around them now. He warmed to the embrace and squeezed a bit more, he felt his eyes begin to water in empathy for what she must've been feeling. He was brought back to his childhood watching his house go up in flames and hearing his parents cry for help, he was again that young boy. So helpless and weak and he too began to cry.
Anese stopped crying for a moment and pushed her head from Draxx, "Are you crying too?"
Draxx had barely registered that he was, but in those moments he had been reliving the hardest time of his life, "I had a bug in my eye, it burns like a filthy bitch. Why would I be crying?"
He quickly wiped his eyes and caught Amery looking at him, as well, he looked away and put both hands on Anese's shoulder, "I know you're dealing with things you can't completely understand. Just know you're surrounded by people who have your back. This is like a small army, we have to have each other's back. We have to be singular in mind and focus, if we have a weak link then we all fail. So, if you need some time to grieve, just say so. We can all listen and we can all be a friend, you're not alone because a soldier alone is a dead soldier."
She wiped her nose on his shoulder and giggled, "I'm not a soldier, but I know what you're saying. I'm sorry for how I've been."
Pela had gotten off her horse and rested a hand on Anese's leg, she smiled at her and said, "Pela, love."
Draxx watched as Anese immediately was calmed by the touch and the word separate from her name. This was something he had witnessed a few times with the young girl and was amazed each time, especially when the subject had been himself. She had magic in her words and had used them to convince him to take her to the Emerald Castle, he felt like she'd been helping him out in the longhouse too. During his speech, he had started off so poorly but a glance at her and he had felt confident again. Pela was something he had never seen nor heard of in his entire life, something so magical in presence that he didn't have the words or thoughts to truly understand. He looked down at her, golden yellow hair framing an innocent face.
"Pela...what's your story?" He said.
She smiled up at him, "Pela."
Anese wiped her nose on her dirty linen sleeve and laughed, "She knows words, she can write them. If she speaks, things happen."
Pela nodded and walked back to her shorter gray horse, sticking one foot in the stirrup and hopping into the saddle. Draxx watched her and looked back to Anese, "Do you know where she came from? Her parents or anything?"
Shaking her head Anese said, "Not really. We never talked much about it, but I did find her in the Salt Deserts by herself. I would take her food and water and clothes. She used to draw a lady and cry sometimes."
Pela was watching Anese as she talked, at the mention of lady her eyes brightened. "Pela, was this lady your mother? Where is she?" Draxx asked.
She shrugged, then held her hands out in a wide arc. "Everywhere."
The wind blew and the rubbery leaves softly stirred as a flock of birds flew above and landed in the branches above them. They began whistling a song, as two white-tailed deer emerged from the woods and stood in front of the party, they craned their necks and began eating at a bush by the side of the trail. There was a distinct smell in the air of fresh grass and clean water. The party eyed each other and looked back to Pela who had closed her eyes and was smiling as butterflies danced around her.
"Everywhere? Your mother is everywhere?" Amery asked.
Pela slowly opened her eyes and nodded her head up and down, then pulled the reins of her horse and began walking back up the trail. Draxx shot a glance to Amery who looked as confused as he felt. Even Anese was wearing an expression of bewilderment as she watched the butterflies dart and dance around her little friend. The deer looked up and flicked their tails in unison and bounded into the woods.
"Am, there's more here than I think we understand," Draxx said as he gently knocked his heels into Nila's side to walk ahead.
The day's trip was mostly traveled in silence as a calmness seemed to envelop the group, they passed through thick Frond outcroppings and red sand dunes that were shaded by the big leafy trees. The feeling had changed drastically in the group and Draxx had no doubt it was Pela's doing. Who exactly was this girl and furthermore, what exactly was she? As far back as Draxx knew, no one had ever had more than one type of magic and this little girl seemed to have an endless pool of every magic. He watched her for most of the days ride and thought hard about all he knew from the stories told around campfires and bars but nothing seemed substantial enough to answer any of his questions. As day began to fade to dusk they had decided to make a thick crop of fronds their resting place for the night. They were on the outskirts of Red Sands and within a day or two's ride into the Emerald Kingdom, which meant this was probably going to be the last night they wouldn't use a watch out when they slept.
They had set up their pup tents and made a small campfire and ate eggs with cheese, laughing at a small pair of desert chipmunks that had come to visit them. The sky was full of stars above, more than Draxx had seen in ages, and as they all retired to their tents for the night, he lay beside the warmth of the fire and looked into the skies. He saw the Lioness of the Prairie, a group of red stars that always shone brightest just before the snow came every winter, and with heavy-lidded eyes, he counted each one before slipping away into a deep sleep as his body finally fully relaxed with his hands supporting his head stretched out on the open red dirt. His thoughts drifted from the stars to floating above a grassy land covered in blowing snow, drifts built up at the base of rocky outcrops. Massive bison grazed on the grass where the snow had blown away and seemed to have no cares in the world.
He was flying above the landscape like a bird catching the wind drifts and soaring free. He saw homesteads with chimneys billowing smoke and farms with livestock, bales of hay in pastures, and roaming herds of deer. It was peaceful and beautiful, all of it, even though he didn't recognize any of the places it felt like home. He was warm all over from the rays of the sun peaking through the snow clouds. He dove down to a babbling brook where beavers were busily building a dam and talking to one another in squeaky chittering voices. As he dove he felt the air rush against his feathers, suddenly he was hit by something hard and cold. He was veering off course and crashing to the ground below. He tried to correct himself and again, something hit him from below, he flapped his wings and felt the sting of a hard something across his face. Suddenly there was a blinding light everywhere.
"I said get up you old fool." A voice seemed to boom at him.
He had been dreaming, what was happening? His face felt wet and through a fog he reached his hand up and felt his nose. He slowly opened his eyes again, the light was the sun above him and he could just make out someone standing above him as well. He held his hand in front of his face and saw blood on his fingers.
"Either get up now, or I make you bleed more. Don't think I can't handle an old man." The voice said, it had a clipped tone to the words and was terse to Draxx's ears.
"Draxx, it's best if you do what he says."
That was Amery, with more effort Draxx rolled to his side and pushed himself up. His joints popped and cracked and he groaned with the effort. His vision was clearing up now and he saw Amery standing with Pela and Anese who both looked frightened. Behind them were soldiers in purple armor with curved swords held to their necks. Thanish soldiers, they must've come across them in the dusk and seen the smoke from the campfire, shit what a foolish thing to not put the fire out earlier. Draxx cursed himself as he felt the tip of a sword in the small of his back.
"Walk old man, then you lot are going to tell me just what you're doing out here." The voice behind him said.
Draxx held his hands up and started walking forward, "Well, obviously, I was sleeping. I imagine they were too."
He stumbled as the flat of the sword connected with the back of his head, his vision exploded with light and his ears briefly rang.
"That's enough, Jerah. Minnow wants us to take prisoners alive and well, not hobbled and half-brained." The soldier behind Amery said.
"Sir's, my father is old. Please be gentle with him, he was only taking my brother and me to our aunt's house to escape the coming war." Anese said as she held back tears.
"Father huh? Can't hide those missing fingers. We know exactly who this asshole is and you lot will be coming with us. Leave the giant pig tied to the tree, it can rot for all I care. Minnow is going to commend us for capturing ole' Club Hand here." The soldier behind Draxx said.
Just behind their camp Draxx saw a caged box being pulled by a team of horses and accompanied by soldiers, inside the cage were three other men, they looked disheveled and scared. This wasn't good at all, Draxx thought.
"Just take me. Leave the boys and their servant." Draxx said through what felt like a mouth full of marbles.
"No, I think we'll take you all. We'll let Minnow decide what to do with the others. Now start walking to the cage, slaves."
Draxx stole a look at Pela and gave a slight shake of his head from side to side. Now wasn't the time to try anything brave. They could sort this out later, but shit, what a mess this had turned out to be. Captured by the Thanish army, and being taken away in a slave cage, why couldn't things just be easy for once?