Travel was not a simple thing for nobility. For someone like Surian, who was relatively high in the peerage, exhaustive preparation was required. She had a full complement of guards, twelve maids, and many attendants. The entire train of carts and carriages was larger than a trading caravan. 112 vehicles in total and over 250 people; 200 of those were guards. The route was scouted for danger, and after the Eight-Day, we left Lakeshore. I rode in a carriage with five other attendant women who were, at this point, so terrified of me they couldn't even meet my eyes.
I almost missed Eleanor; at least we could have had some verbal sparring. But she was dismissed, and from what I know, was back with her incredibly wealthy family. A tragedy indeed.
We headed east for some time. Passing large plains of grass, snowy hills, and dense forests. I felt the burden on my shoulders lessen, the cramped walls were stifling, and I was still a village girl in the end.
The worst of the snows were well behind us; now it was, at best, a light dusting. Luckily, perhaps two days into the journey, we had enough sun to keep away the worst of the cold. Nothing that a thick dress and an overcoat couldn't protect against. My cart bumped along the dirt road. Elis rode in the same cart as Surian. Even as her handmaiden, I wouldn't be allowed such a privilege.
A normal transport would take half the time to reach Vinlan, but the baroness wanted to travel in comfort.
Still, though the roads did perturb me. The dagger strapped to my thigh offered a small amount of assurance. We stopped at least an hour before sunset each day since entire fortifications had to be built then torn down in the morning.
We were in the second week of our journey. The sky was clear as we passed a rather dense stretch of forest. If we continued east for another week, this highway would eventually lead to Farketh. But tomorrow we would turn north, travel for another day, and be within Vinlan's borders. It was the fastest route given our large train.
The carriage I rode in was quiet; the other maids knew full well I wanted silence. It had a window that could slide open so I could watch the trees pass us by, and admire knights mounted on massive warhorses.
I was just managing to doze off before I heard a loud crash, sounding like a massive tree falling. Shouts erupted towards the front of the caravan, a full twenty carriages ahead. I was just about to stick my head out of the window when something flew past. I whipped my head around as a bloodcurdling scream erupted from one of the women, followed by three more. The girl I had slapped around for improper dusting had an arrow in her eye. She slumped against the seat, clearly dead. Then the rain started.
A hail of arrows descended, sending horses running and men diving to the ground. I ducked as close to the floor of the carriage as possible, not wanting to end up like....
‘What was her name again? It didn't matter. What's going on?’
Arrows fell like a storm. I could hear them burying themselves into the wooden frame. Occasionally, horses and men would cry out. Our carriage jostled to the side, rocking violently, then stopped.
‘The horses and the driver! They're probably dead.’
Still, the rain of arrows didn't stop. I heard men scream in agony, and others were shouting orders.
"Shield cover, cover, they'll run out of arrows eventually."
"Attack on both sides. Henry's down. Stan's down.'
"Hold, Hold, wait until the cocktail ends."
The shouting continued, punctuated by the occasional cry of someone being pierced.
The other girls looked at me, eyes filled with terror, staying as far away from the one skewered by an arrow.
‘THINK MYR, we’re being ambushed on a highway. Why? It had to be because of the war. THAT DOESN'T MATTER. SURVIVAL! How do we survive? Hide in the carriage? NO. They will focus on defending the baroness. I need to get to her; no doubt, Elis is with her. If the history books are correct, as soon as they run out of arrows, they'll charge in. I need to make it to Surian before the defenders fall.’
I looked at the other terrified girls; tales of women being caught up in wars never ended well. I had my dagger as a mercy at least. Two broke down in tears, another screamed, while the fourth looked numb with terror. Thinking on the arrangement of the carriages, I imagined a path to where the baroness was. From that path, I plotted where I would run.
‘Get to her and Elis, wait for the arrows to end first; nothing else matters.’
I reached into my bag, grabbed my new quill, and stuffed it into a fold of my dress. Closing my eyes, I waited, trying to ignore the screams and terror going on outside.
I let the flames within burn up all my hesitation and fear, leaving behind only a single thought, a single goal. Survival.
The seconds passed in my mind.
‘One....Five...Fifteen....Twenty-Two.’
"W-What, what do w-we do?" A girl said.
"Lady Myr, what do we do?" Another girl asked.
"Stay, in the carriage, the guards will protect us," Another suggested.
"Goddess Anier, hear my prayer, and protect your faithful flock from the depravations of the......"
I tuned out the panicked rambling.
‘Thirty-three...Forty-two.’
They were nothing to me, as far as I was concerned; it was every woman for themselves.
‘Fifty-four.’
The absolute rain of arrows stopped. My eyes opened, and I looked at the group of girls and said, "Run or Die."
Without waiting for a response, I burst from the carriage into a world of violence. The thundering of hundreds of feet echoed through the forest, and just from the tree line, I could see men in heavy leather. Two? Three? Four hundred?
‘It doesn't matter, run! ‘
I sprinted down the road, ignoring the corpse of the driver, the horses that looked like pin cushions, and dead and dying soldiers on the ground. Not all carriages were covered. Some carried entire families of servants, every one dead from an arrow. Some lay face down on the ground, while others were still in the middle of dying.
By the time I reached the middle of the caravan, the attackers had gotten into a melee with the knights. The sounds of weapons clashing against armor, screams, and curses were deafening. Men butchered each other. The knights were better equipped but were far outnumbered. I ran for all I was worth. I dashed past one knight locked in a battle with three men in chain mail.
Only to be met with four enemies blocking my progress. They looked shocked to see a random maid running around. The grins on their faces chilled my blood. They pounced, but I dove under a carriage. As if blessed by fate, the four men who were about to follow were struck from behind by two knights, their armor and weapons soaked with blood. I kept crawling under the carriage. Until I popped out the other side. I ignored the mangled horses and kept running, dodging another group of knights getting overrun by men in leather. Blood soaked the ground, and I kept tripping over the many arrows.
The battlefield was chaos, but in their desperate fight to the death, I was ignored, or if I was noticed, not worth chasing.
Finally, I reached the baroness's carriage. They were using two carriages that had fallen over as a barrier to protect their rear as they faced an onslaught from the southern forest of at least 80 men. The Baroness was in the middle with Elis; their far more expensive carriage was turned over on its side. The knight's shields were locked together. Elis was busy with a much cheaper-looking wagon, trying to hitch a single frantic horse to it, while the men fought for their lives. The superior formation and armor made the circled area nearly impenetrable. From my view, under the cart, I couldn't see a way through. Then I stared at the overturned carriage near the rear of the formation.
‘I could climb that.’
Just as I was about to do so, a dozen men thought the same and broke off from the attacking group, trying to climb over the large carriage sitting on its side. As soon as they reach the top. Surian shouted, "Elis, the carriage."
Elis turned, still trying to wrangle the struggling horse, finally managing to get it hitched. Then she pressed her left hand to her chest and extended the right.
Before, the lightning she demonstrated was impressive; this, though, was like the power of a god. A literal storm of lightning erupted from her fingers, engulfing the men, cooking them inside their leather armor as it arced between them, killing them instantly. Those who were about to climb stopped and joined the main force, trying to break through the wall of knights.
‘Now!’
I popped out from under a carriage and sprinted towards the wagon. I ignored the smell of charred flesh and burning hair and gripped the wooden beams of the undercarriage.
"Myr?" Surian shouted in confusion as I reached the top.
Elis turned, her eyes wide as she saw me standing atop the toppled carriage. I was about to jump down into the circle before she shouted, "Wait, Myr, go inside the carriage, there's a leather case under the seat, bring it out."
"What?" I asked, utterly confused.
"It's under a seat, bring it or die where you stand."
Elis sounded dead serious. Our eyes met, mine filled with fury for her delaying my safety.
I sighed, turned back to the door, and carefully lowered myself into the carriage. It was odd since the carriage was on the left side. Still, I checked the seats and realised they folded up to reveal a compartment. Inside was a brown leather case. It was large and unwieldy but not too heavy.
Since I was curious, I flipped the two latches and opened the case. My heart stopped. The five books were neatly stacked inside. I closed it. Suddenly, survival wasn't the most important thing on my mind. The case had a leather strap so I could carry it on my back, so with great effort, I climbed using the benches, back up to the door.
Not willing to be sent on another mission, I jumped down, landed in a heap, and saw Elis and Surian staring at me.
"Impressive, Myr," Surian said, sounding only slightly terrified. Her beautiful blue dress was dirtied, and her hair tousled.
"Thanks, how are we going to survive?" I tried to ignore the fight to the death happening all around us.
Elis looked at the case, then at me, and finally landed on the carriage. "There's a tree blocking the escape up ahead. I can open up a path, but we get one chance."
I looked at the bedraggled carriage doubtfully. It didn't even have a cover, just a wagon with seats.
"How are we supposed to get out of this circle of death?" I gestured to the men fighting, trying not to think about their decreasing number. As one died, the circle became smaller.
"I said I can, now, get in the carriage, both of you, I will drive," Elis commanded. I sighed, hoping she could do as she said.
~
After we mounted, stepping in front of the carriage, Elis muttered something for over a minute.
She placed her left hand on her chest again. I felt a rush of air flowing towards her, its power increased until dust and debris started flying everywhere as all the air around us was sucked into her hand, apparently. Finally, it stopped. Elis pointed her palm forward towards the dozen or so carriages and the large fallen tree in front of us.
"Heads down," She shouted.
I had to look.
A wave of force erupted from her palm, pushing everything in front of her away so violently that it sent carts, people, horses, and our own men flying; even the large tree that lay across the road was blown to bits.
'This is real power. It will be mine, I swear it.'
The fighting stopped, and the road was completely clear, save for small bits of broken carriages and crumpled men. Elis, however, was already moving. She hopped into the driver's seat and, holding the reins, whipped the horse into motion. We sped away from the attackers, finally realizing what had happened. They tried to block the path. Elis just extended a hand, and lightning killed all that faced us. I sighed as we broke away from the ambush. Leaving over 200 people to the mercy of the attackers.
We rolled along for several minutes, Elis pushing the mare for all she was worth; however, none of us expected a second ambush. None of the arrows were aimed at the driver or passenger. All were aimed at the horse. It was riddled with arrows. The mare sputtered, slipped, and fell, almost tossing Elis from the driver's seat.
‘They want them alive. This has to be Farketh. If he captures Elis and Surian, this war will be over before it truly started. However, if they got away, the consequences for the Farketh barony would be beyond severe. The baron may just take my advice and destroy it all. Whoever the Baron of Farketh was, the man had brass balls to pull something like this.’
"Dammit, off the carriage into the forest," Elis commanded. Soldiers came running out. Not many, only twelve. I didn't have my dagger ready, but fortunately, I had a magus.
She extended her left hand to her hip this time. More lightning struck the attackers, killing them.
I had to shake my head at her impressive deadliness.
"How are you doing all this, Elis. You have no source. If we were in Lakeshore, I could understand, but this....It's impossible," Surian said, staring at the smoking bodies.
"Nothing is impossible, but you're not ready for such things. Come." Elis commanded.
I had no context for Surian's surprise. But clearly, there were far more secrets to magic than what was available to an apprentice magus.
~
Fortunately, no more people attacked us. We headed north, trudging through the forest in a dress and dainty boots was difficult to say the least. But Elis pushed us to the point of exhaustion and beyond. We walked for hours, not willing to take the roads or risk another attack. There wasn't any conversation, only Elis's directions: cross the river, head east, follow the ridgeline. The sun was setting, the sky turning from golden to purple. Night was approaching. We were near the base of a steep cliff. Where exactly, I wasn't sure.
Elis looked up, then announced, "We rest here for the night."
Surian collapsed to the ground, sighing as she finally got off her feet. She leaned her back against the rocky cliffs, unconcerned about the blue dress being stained by the forest floor.
"What happened?" I asked as I sat next to Surian.
"Farketh has to be. An impressive and well-set ambush." Elis explained as she sat to Surian's left.
"I'm assuming the rest are dead," Surian said.
"Was that the plan the entire time? Provoking a war, predicting that Surian would return to Baroness Vinlan, and predicting her route. Could he have seen so far?" I asked
Elis bit her lips, "It's not impossible, and it does make me wonder about Gemma's disappearance. What if she saw or heard something she wasn't supposed to?"
‘Well, isn't that convenient for me!’
Surian added, "If it was, then we radically underestimated Baron Farketh. Everything was set out for this moment, I know it. It would have worked; the ambush was perfect. If not for you, Magus Elis, using abilities like the heroes from the stories." As she finished, she threw an accusatory gaze at Elis.
‘Something was strange about how she used magic.’
Glancing at the leather case at her feet, I considered how to take it.
"Where are we headed?" Surian asked.
Elis sighed, "We're around twenty miles south of the Adjuran hills. If we continue north, we'll find ourselves on another highway. It shouldn't take more than a day or two to reach a village. But if I were Farketh, I would have people in every town and village waiting. Assuming everyone was killed to the last. It could be well over a week before either your mother or father sends troops. So for now, we stick to hills and mountains until we reach a Vinlan's border crossing. From there, we can commandeer a transport to Riverrock."
Surian sighed, frustrated, "That's a two-week journey on foot, Elis."
Elis's tone became firm, "That's what has to happen, you are the most important piece. I can keep you alive for the journey. But we can't head back west and certainly can't go south. So, prepare yourself, we march at sunrise. Stay here, I'll make a fire."
Elis stood and walked into the forest, picking up wood and debris as she went.
"Magi," She mumbled.
The Surian turned her gaze to me. "You did well to survive and retrieve the case. Help me through this, and you will be handsomely rewarded. Simply ask, and I shall grant it."
‘Is this my chance? Darion himself said that noble gratitude can bring great rewards. Just ask, see what happens. You never know.’
Looking away from her, I stared at the case still slung over her Elis's back. She was adamant that she had to be the one to carry it. My heart raced; it was as if my entire life had led up to this moment. Everything would pay off, killing Gemma and Clark, running away from home, abandoning my chance at happiness with Darion and Beth. It would all be worth it.
‘Emyr, can you see me in this moment? My moment of triumph.’
"Magic, can I learn it?" I asked, trying not to sound as eager as I felt.
Surian looked at me, her face blank. Then she laughed. It was deep, from the stomach, the only kind of laugh that comes from hearing a truly hilarious joke.
Then she stopped, seeing my expression, which didn't change. "You're serious?"
‘Hold back your anger, Myr, don't let it seep into your voice.’’
"Yes. I know the rumor that only nobility can learn, but...." Surian cut me off.
She went from filled with humor to cold apathy,"That rumor exists for a reason. You just saw the display that Elis put on, and now you think you should wield that power. Do you think we would trust such power to a peasant, with no background, no true sense of loyalty to the empire? One who abandoned their marital obligations? An abused child filled with spite from what they suffered. We don't know who your father is, and not six months ago, you were accused of murder. The Magisterium would question the sanity of someone who put forward such a candidate. Do not delude yourself, Myr. Proximity to power does not mean you are allowed to wield it. I say this not to be cruel. You are a commoner; we all have our roles in this world. Anier decided your fate at birth. You tried to avoid it, and it landed you in my service, an honor most would kill for. Now, rid yourself of such foolishness and make sure Elis does not hear this. She would kill you where you stand."
As she spoke, each word felt like a fresh lash across my back. I remembered those thirty-three lashes, the pain, the stinging. The flames of anger consumed my mind.
‘She dares to laugh in my face, to tell me to abandon my dream. Little baroness, you do not know how much I have sacrificed for this moment. And you dare deny me what is rightfully mine. And worse, you use Anier's name to justify yourself. There are no guards, barons, or nobles in this forest to protect you. There is you, me, Elis, and a blade at my thigh.’
I shrugged as if her words didn't affect me, "Can I learn the sword then? I've always imagined what it would be like being a knight."
Surian blinked as if expecting an argument, then she shrugged, "Female knights are rare, but if you want it, as a reward, then so be it."
I grinned, "Thank you, Baroness, not to worry, I'll do my best to see us out of this forest. "
The mask that I had mastered while serving her slipped back on.
She patted me on the head like a dog, "Good."
Then mumbled to herself, "A northern woman knight. It would make such a splash at court. Why didn't I think of it sooner?"
I turned to see Elis returning with a bundle of wood.
‘Once again, I meet a barrier, and I must commit to removing it. It doesn't matter, for my soul had long since been doomed to the Sygian abyss. I will take what I want; damn the consequences, I curse Anier's name and spit upon her church. In fact, when I have the power, I will burn one to the ground just for spite. And three more just because I can. Foolish woman, you justify denying me what is rightfully mine by using her name. Now your death is an afterthought. Are you listening, Anier? Can you see the fallout that will happen? If you're real, then prove it and stop me. This is your last chance; if you don't take it, I'm the only one who's going to leave this forest alive.‘