With that and having nothing else to say, the two rode silently as Luna slept until the sun began its descent, still burning bright as it stained everything orange-red.
Despite being on horseback and running for her life, Luna barely stirred, and Lan couldn’t help but wonder if she had that much confidence in him or was just that tired. After a moment, Lan voiced something that had been on his mind since he saw Luna’s ability.
‘She is a Summoned Hero, isn’t she?’ Lan asked, the words hanging in the air for a heartbeat until Seras’ shoulders tensed, and she slowly turned to look at him.
‘What are you talking about? Of course not.’ Seras frowned.
‘There is no way that she is eleven years old,’ Lan said. ‘So there is no way that she can have an ability, and I know of no race that can do what she does on Tearna, ’ Lan pressed.
‘She is older than she looks, and there have been those that gained their Tomes sooner than eleven.’ Seras countered smoothly.
‘Is that the case? Then I know for sure that she is a Summoned Hero as she has no Seraph.’ Lan said, which Seras clearly knew nothing about as she looked unsure before sighing.
‘What are you going to do…’ Seras asked.
He didn’t know, nor had he expected Seras to give up so easily. For a moment, Lan wondered if taking her back to the city despite the risk was the right answer.
‘If I take her back to the duke, we could have proof that Leeto has been Summoning People from other worlds.’ At that major revelation, Seras’ eyes grew wide before she pushed past it and shook her head.
‘The Summoners Guild is an autonomous group that is not loyal to any princes. Even then, you would only be able to go after Prince Caerleon. Who will pass the truth stone test about knowing where she came from.’ Seras said, still processing the information about Luna not coming from a Tale, but another world.
Lan nodded. Although he hadn’t known about the Summoners Guild and didn’t like what it meant, he had guessed it wouldn’t be that easy.
‘How are you so sure?’ Seras asked. ‘About her being brought from another world?’
‘Turns out one of my ancestors is a Sage of Crownguard and a Summoned Hero himself. And Luna is not the first I have met. Although it is not widely spread, I get the feeling it is something those in the know are trying to keep hidden. And something I now believe.’
Seras nodded, falling silent again, but Lan had more questions.
‘The people you are going to meet… You said they were like her.’ Lan said, getting another nod from the woman. Lan breathed in sharply at that before asking his last question.
‘How long has she been in this world?’
‘Five months…’
This time, Lan let silence fall over them.
Although he had suspected as much, having it confirmed made his blood run cold with rage. Everything he had been through paled compared to the complete unfairness of having been taken from her world and all those she knew and cared about, only to end up in a world full of people who did nothing but cause her pain.
For him, there had always been the hope to gain a title and be rid of Dell, but Luna… was there even a way to return her to her world, or was this it for her? Alone in a strange world at an age that most children would still be on their mother’s apron strings.
Lan looked down at Luna. Even with other Summoned Heros, she would always be alone.
And then there were the other Summoned Heroes. Seras had all but confirmed that there was a group of them. A group of people who had been taken from their worlds. People who had to hold some animosity towards those who brought them into this world, and what if they were linked to the young master?
He would be handing Luna to the same people wanting to end the world… but it wasn’t like it was his place to stop this, nor did he have a better plan for Luna, so why… why, by the Light, did he feel responsible for her, for all of this?
{Lan} the voice said, saving Lan from his thoughts as he noticed that Tyr had been sending him an alert.
Lan closed his eyes and allowed the impression to fill his mind. Then, he watched the ground race past through her eyes as she followed a large humanoid on the back of what looked like a bear.
‘Seras, does Gregor have some sort of mount?’ Lan asked, hoping that this was just a coincidence.
Seras stared at him blankly for a long moment before saying. ‘The Charge Boar.’ She breathed before taking Luna from Lan and kicking the horses to speed.
Luna cried out as the wind started to lash past them.
‘Charge Boar?’ Lan shouted.
‘One of Olon's other familiars! One that they left in Leeto!’ she added before turning her attention back to driving the horses.
‘What’s that mean?’ Lan shouted back, getting a frown from Seras.
‘It…’ she started before the horses jumped over a large branch that had fallen in the road. ‘if we are lucky, then it means we are just dealing with more familiars.’
‘And if we are not?’ Lan called, shielding his face with a hand.
‘Then Olon must have enough on a Portal Mage to buy their loyalty.’ She shouted back before the thought made her kick the horses to draw any more speed from them. But it didn’t seem to help as a voice reached them, breaking through the rushing wind.
‘Little Bird! It’s time to come home!’ A deep, reverberating voice shook Lan’s bones as if the sound was using them as a conduit.
Once the sound reached them, Lan turned and saw a figure cresting over the hill. A Figure with blood-red skin and riding a monstrous black boar with which, even from where they were, he could see the fire streaming from its mouth as it picked up speed.
‘Seras!’ Lan shouted, looking back at the same time as he noticed Luna had stopped crying. The reason why he found when he looked down at her.
Luna’s skin had turned a ghostly white as she looked forward with wide, hollow eyes. Something made worse as her eyes had changed again, only now a purple so dark it looked to be turning red.
Anger filled his chest, and Lan had to force himself to look back, only to find the troll close enough that he could see its burning red hair, and the boar still looked to be picking up speed.
They wouldn’t be able to get away. Lan thought as he drew his sword.
‘What are you doing!’ Seras shouted as she noticed him.
‘Buying you time!’ he called back. ‘When I get rid of him, I’ll send Tyr to let you know I am on the way.’ Lan said as he climbed to his feet on the saddle.
‘And what if she doesn’t show?’ Seras asked, which was something Lan hadn’t expected.
‘Then you go with plan A,’ he said, getting a hesitant nod from the woman before looking at Luna.
‘When I am done dealing with the dumb troll, I will tell you the story of Pen and the Living City.’ Lan said over the sound of the horses just loud enough to reach the girl, who blinked, her eyes shifting to purple as she looked at him worriedly. ‘I think I might like that one a little more than Pen and the Giant,’ he added with a reassuring smile before he lept backwards off his horse.
Twisting as he flew back to be in a better position, Lan Wisp Walked just as Tyr got into range, and the world raced past him.
Shattering crystal filled the air as Lan finished his turn, Tyr flying around him like a moon before he kicked off nothing as he tried to make the most of the Silver Wind. Unbound by the world’s laws, Lan flew towards the ever-growing troll, now able to see its burning red hair.
{What’s the plan, Lan?} the voice asked as Tyr raced forward to meet the troll.
‘Working on it.’ Lan said, detaching his scabbard and joining it with his sword before kicking off the air one last time with the last of his Silver Wind. The troll now close enough to notice and smile at him.
But Lan barely paid notice of it as the sound of the Charge Boar’s thundering hoof beats caused the dirt road to melt to glass as the boar left burning pockmarks behind it. And that was only the beginning.
This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.
Lan wasn’t sure how something of that size could even move, but it looked to be picking up even more speed as it saw him.
Then Tyr reached the Troll and Boar, and there was no more time to think as Lan stepped through the space between them, the world falling away as he raced towards them.
Twisting his body before the Wisp Walk, Lan stepped out, already swinging his sword spear with all of his Silver Wind-empowered body, not at the troll but at the legs of the boar.
For a moment, Lan felt like he had accidentally hit a boulder before the boar continued its stride, throwing its front legs forward, ripping Lan’s sword spear from his hand as the force spun him upside down.
[Inventory: Spell Thief = Added]
Lan heard as time slowed, and he watched the troll smile at him as the boar started to pass him, arching back and throwing a punch with the entirety of its massive bulk behind it, aimed at Lan’s head.
[Hp: 120 > 110]
Pain, sharp bone-cracking pain ripped through Lan’s arm as he brought his shield arm up, activating it and turning his certain death into a wild spinning flight across the open field to their left.
Tyr sent an impression as she flew after him, and Lan Wisp Walked before kicking his legs to reorient and break his wild flight.
‘That could have gone better.’ Lan hissed through his teeth as he tested his left arm. ‘Anything broken?’ Lan asked. There was no doubt that was one of the most brutal punches he had taken, and although he could move it, Lan had lost all feeling in his left arm.
{Somehow, no… although you won’t be getting any feeling back for some time.}
‘What would have happened if that had hit me?’ Lan smiled as he flexed his arm.
{Do you really need me to say it?} the voice answered as Lan reached into the Other World Chest and drew out his sword.
‘No.’ Lan laughed, feeling lighter as he looked over at the troll to find that he had managed to stop the boar. Which tried and failed to stand even though it didn’t look like Lan had managed to draw blood. It couldn’t even lift itself up to try and stand as it let out low wails of pain.
Quietly, the troll walked around the boar, watching it struggle as it brushed the dust off itself.
‘What is it, can’t stand?’ It said in the same deep voice without the effect that rattled Lan’s bones before it brought its heel down on the boar’s neck, slamming it to the ground before a sound like the crack and pops of a falling tree trunk echoed through the field.
‘You are going to have to pay for killing my boar.’ The troll grinned, showing rows of blocky pearl-white teeth with two long tusks instead of lower canines as it pulled the familiar stone from the boar’s head.
Lan didn’t take the bait; instead, he sent a trace of mana to his eyes, shifting his sight. Unsurprised to find that the flame of the troll’s health surrounded its whole body, burning like an out-of-control furnace.
Dressed in a furlined leather jerkin and large metal gauntlets with studded knuckles, Lan was able to see the daggers and large Warhammer hanging from its belt.
Any one of which Lan was sure could be a quick end for him.
Seeing that the troll was willing to wait, Lan looked at the horses that were just now cresting the next hill.
The troll followed Lan’s eyeline and smiled.
‘Thinking about them instead of yourself, huh? Don’t worry. They are still close enough for me to catch.’
Hearing this, Lan locked eyes with the troll, dropping into a low spear stance before surging towards it.
‘There we go!’ the troll laughed before charging to meet Lan, rearing back and throwing another skull-crushing punch as Lan vanished, inches from the fist, appearing above the troll as he detached the scabbard and threw it into the chest before he aimed a two-handed slash at the troll’s neck.
The troll raised its arm with the nonchalance of swatting away a fly. Letting Spell Thief sink into the bone as it turned, one of its daggers in its free hand and aimed to disembowel Lan.
Moving as only one with the Silver Wind could, Lan twisted his body, using his sword as leverage to swing his legs up as the blade passed inches from where the steel of his chest plate ended.
Not to let Lan go unscathed, the troll slashed up as Lan disengaged, the tip of its blade drawing a thin line that made blood bubble from under Lan’s skin before he managed to kick off and make some distance between them.
[Hp: 110 > 108]
‘I thought as much.’ Lan said as he landed in a low stance.
{Lan?}
‘No point in dodging when it takes less effort to heal.’ He said before his head spun.
[Status Effect: Poison]
Lan swallowed hard before feeling his head start to clear, and the status effect faded.
‘Voice?’ he asked, shaking his head.
{The scratch wasn’t deep enough to pass on enough poison. But if even that much gets into your bloodstream, you won’t be able to move anymore.}
Lan nodded.
‘No way!’ the troll laughed. ‘The look in those eyes! You are one of them, aren’t you? A real hunter!’ the troll shouted as if trying to rile up an audience. ‘Not one of the fools in it for the coin. A real killer, one of His killers. I always wanted one of your skulls for the collection.’
Ignoring the troll, Lan looked after Seras and Luna, finding them almost over the far hill.
Either from being ignored or the horses getting away, the troll frowned, sliding his dagger back into the sheath as it unhooked its Warhammer.
‘Don’t worry, I’ll put the poison away. I want to make this last.’ Even before the troll finished, Lan was moving. Staying planted on the ground, Lan thought about the feeling of flying, letting his Silver Wind carry his body and doubling his speed as each step pushed off the ground without resistance, no longer held down by the world’s laws.
Despite the smile there a moment earlier, the troll was clearly taken aback, blinking and raising its hammer but not swinging as Lan closed and Wisp Walked behind it.
Which it saw coming, turning to meet Lan, only this time, he had stayed low to the ground, making the troll have to correct its aim as Lan Wisp walked again. Appearing above it, he brought his heel down on its head.
If he couldn’t cut the monster, then he could try knocking the sense out of it.
Lan’s hit was solid, dropping the monster’s head. But the same kick that could knock a man out and splinter wood did nothing to the troll as it grabbed Lan’s leg, swinging him over its head and slamming him to the ground.
[Hp: 108 > 88]
Lan bounced hard off the dirt, but before he could let the pain set in, his body reacted and rolled as the troll tried to stomp on his chest. The second foot fell as Lan kicked his legs over his head, rolled to his feet, and sprang away, having learned two things.
First, he would have to do far more damage to knock the sense out of the troll. The other was a little more worrying. When it grabbed him, Lan tried Wisp Walking, but he couldn’t, which he wouldn’t have needed to learn if he hadn’t been focused on the dagger.
Before Lan could think about it any further, the troll was on him, raising its hammer and then bringing it down, but Lan would have seen the attack with his eyes closed and sidestepped it.
Instead of lifting its hammer, the troll struck out with its dagger, scoring a line on Lan’s chest plate as he jumped back, dropping his sword in the chest before drawing his mace and Wisp Walking.
Cloaked in silver light, Lan emerged in front of the troll and aimed at the dagger, crushing the hand holding it and sending the poisoned blade flying through the air, which he Wisp Walked up to catch as the troll’s hammer passed through the space he had been in. catching the dagger, Lan vanished, appearing behind the troll as in one fluid motion, he drove the dagger into its head before turning and delivering a spinning kick to the hilt of the blade for good measure.
‘There, how is that?’ Lan breathed, appearing in the field, followed by the shattering crystal. If even a drop of the poison was able to paralyze him, then a full blade’s worth should be enough for even a troll like this.
He thought, watching as the troll’s eyes rolled in different directions. Lan drew his sword from the chest, planning to put the monster down for good, but saved himself as he looked the way Seras and Luna had gone one last time.
‘Oh man, this is just not it.’ the troll cried, its eyes refocusing as it pulled the dagger free. ‘I really am trying to get into this, but your heart is just not in it!’ it sang. ‘you keep worrying about the woman and girl, but what about the fight, man. Where is the bloodlust, the will to kill even in death? I have one chance to face a Marked Hunter, and you are wasting it,’ the troll said, hooking its hammer on its belt as it started to pace, even turning its back on Lan.
{Uh, what is happening?...} the voice asked dumbfounded.
‘I have no idea.’ Lan said, even as the troll’s image of those with the Hunter’s mark got under his skin.
‘Tell you what,’ it clicked its fingers. ‘I’ll let you go. Just like that.’ it grinned.
‘How kind of you.’ Lan answered flatly, not dropping his guard.
‘No, I mean it. You go and make sure that woman and the treasure get to that town, and when I catch up in a day, we have a real fight.’ It offered while also letting Lan know it knew where they were going. ‘At this point, I won’t catch up until they reach the town anyway, and with that zippy little ability, I can’t stop you from leaving whenever you want or continuing to get in my way. But there is one thing stopping you from going, isn’t there.’
Lan frowned, the troll’s smile telling him they had been right about the spy in Grisham.
‘That’s right.’ the troll grinned. ‘The moment I am seen in that town, it will be reported to those that place the spies there, and then it’s over. Every last one of my master’s affairs will be looked into. In twenty minutes flat, the vultures will be on you as those who want to take Olen’s place or just get rid of him come to claim the prize. But we can’t have that now, can we?’
‘Why not? One would think you would want to get away from your master.’ Lan asked, getting another smile.
‘He may be a rat piece of shit, but Olon is still my master, and I would like to keep it that way. So this is my offer: tomorrow night at midnight, you can meet me outside of the city, and we can do this for real. If you kill me, you get to go free, but if I kill you, then I just wait for the woman to leave, and I can snap her neck.’
‘And what if we just stay in the town or leave before midnight.’ Lan challenged as he thanked his years as a merchant apprentice for keeping his surprise off his face. The troll thought they would be leaving on horseback after reaching the town.
Although she hadn’t told him, Lan was sure they wouldn’t leave by horse. If that had been the case, she wouldn’t have put all their effort into reaching the town. At the very least, the people she would be meeting must have had a way to deal with the troll.
All he had to do was agree, and they were home-free.
‘If you leave, we just start the chase over, and I’ll hunt you to the ends of the world, and if you stay even a minute past midnight… then I will come looking for you even if it means losing my master. You know you can’t stop me. Your best chance is to kill me in a fight. The troll threw something at Lan, which he caught.
Looking down, Lan found a pocket watch. Without thinking, Lan shifted his sight but found no runes on the watch.
‘Not a minute after midnight.’ The troll smiled.
‘You think I am a fool. When I let my guard down, you and your portal mage will come in and kill me.’ Lan probed. ‘Better just have it out here.’
‘You think I would let a portal mage set eyes on the treasure? You don’t know the mages of Leeto.’ The troll laughed. ‘Although I can’t say I am much better, I plan on killing them anyway.’
Lan frowned at that as what should have sounded like a false effort to convince him sounded more like gloating.
Lan stood there for a moment. A part of him, a small yet ever-growing part of him, told him to just stay and fight. Even though after nine Wisp Walks, he hadn’t even been able to do real damage. Lan felt his muscles itch for him to go on like he had almost found the answer.
Two things won out, however, the first being his goal had only been to buy time for Seras and Luna, which he had done. The second is that he was tasked with protecting the two and not killing the troll, and there were no doubt more familiars out there.
After a long moment, Lan nodded. ‘Midnight.’
‘There it is,’ The troll smiled. ‘The eyes of a real killer.’
Lan didn’t answer, reaching out with his mind until he found that Tyr had reached Seras and the horses. Then he removed the tuning bell and stepped through space.