“Still screwed, huh?” Petroc sloshed the whiskey in his flask. It often seemed the only things you could rely on in this world weren’t people or technology, but the simple things in life. It was a shame that people forgot this painful truth so often. Maybe his life wouldn’t be so full of disappointment if he just remembered that.
“I don’t understand,” Andora pounded her own knee with a fist. “The coins are just fine. The wires aren’t crossed, or gunked up, or anything. It just refuses to work. None of this makes any goddamn sense…”
“I’m telling you it’s an artifact,” Eli said. He combed his hair back, slicking more of that weird jelly in to hold it all in place. The man cared more about keeping his hair gelled up than keeping his own gear in order. If Andora wasn’t here to babysit his crap for him, then Petroc would’ve been more than happy to leave him in the loving care of the wilderness. Maybe the fanciful ELFs would find his narcissism endearing.
“Do you mind sticking with what you’re good at?” Andora huffed.
“Being quiet isn’t his strong suit,” Petroc chuckled.
“He’s good at ignoring us and thinking about himself,” she corrected.
Smirking up from his handheld mirror, Eli said, “I think about you, Andora. Parts of you, at least.”
“Ugh,” Andora got up and began walking away from the camp. “I’m doing a perimeter check.”
“I just did one,” Eli called out.
“We already established what you’re good at,” she shot back. “Being useful wasn’t on the list!”
Just as Eli closed the mirror in his hands, Petroc stood up. He looked the younger man in the eyes, and just shook his head. The expedition was already off to a terrible start. The last thing Petroc needed was the only other two Seekers in the area tearing each other’s throats out.
“She’ll come around in a day or two,” Eli adjusted his vest. “They always do.”
Petroc shook his head, “I’m not treating you if you get shot.”
“And I’m not asking,” Eli waved Petroc away, “so just mind your business. Don’t you have more whiskey to drink, old man?”
He might just kill the annoying braggart himself. Petroc thought about it. His life would be essentially forfeit afterward, but at least he’d have some peace. Seeing the condescending look on Eli’s face really made him think about it. There were few things in this world more satisfying than wiping the smirk off a windbag’s face with your own fist. The crunch of cartilage and bone was like biting into a deep fried hunk of meat — the bite was worth the burn. The pleasure was worth the pain.
“I’ll mind my business as long as you mind yours,” Petroc answered. “If you get handsy with Andora, then I’ll return the favor. Understand?”
“This whole expedition is fucked,” Eli sighed. “I should’ve asked for more coins up front.”
“A hard lesson learned, then.”
“I’ll be in the tent,” Eli turned away from Petroc. “Make yourself useful and keep watch, you old drunk.”
As Eli went inside, Petroc sloshed around the last of the whiskey in his flask. He thought about it again. He really considered it.
But he couldn’t do that to Andora. She’d never forgive him if he became moored by doing something like that. Not for an idiot like that.
Sighing, Petroc put the flask away, and looked up at the morning sky.
It was pretty. You had to appreciate the simple things.
----------------------------------------
As if that lanky, pallid, irritating piece of filth would ever get even a pat on the back from her. Why was Amon's Clearing so far from other settlements anyway? She heard some places even regularly had caravans go back and forth, with tons of new retrotech being traded between the settlements, and new people moving from one place to another. It seemed like everywhere else in the world was more interesting than here. Why was she born in such a remote, boring, useless forest?
The life of a Seeker was supposed to be full of adventure, and treasure, and life changing events, and… and maybe, just maybe, you met the right guy. Someone who was responsible, but not overbearing; someone who was understanding, but not a pushover; someone who was stoic, but also playful. Maybe just a bit taller so she didn’t have to stand on her toes when they kissed.
Andora slapped her cheeks.
She had to pay attention. The wilderness was full of danger, and she was liable to get killed if she just let herself be distracted by… pent up thoughts.
This wasn’t supposed to happen. Everything had been going just fine until their extech got fried yesterday afternoon. It wasn’t like everything was broken — some equipment was working as well as ever — but their artifacts just refused to cooperate. They needed the tracer to find their way to the facility. Searching the wilderness would take days, or weeks, without it. If Andora couldn’t fix it, then they’d have to just scrap the whole expedition.
Andora clenched a gloved fist because she knew, she just knew that stupid jerk Eli would take his payment and run off. He didn’t give a crap about Amon's Clearing. He didn’t give a crap about anyone but himself. Why did people like him even exist?
Movement.
Andora stood motionless as the information from her third eye slowly resolved itself into more comprehensive detail. She tapped her fists together, the gloves suddenly expanding into a full set of gauntlets, and crouched low to the ground. She reached for the radio on her shoulder, but hovered over the power button. The stupid radio wasn't working anyway.
Three humanoids.
Was it possible that other Seekers had found some clues about the abandoned facility? But the data cube they recovered was so worn that the data was nearly totally corrupted. Was there another place that had information on the nearby facility? They would try and take the extech for themselves, leaving Andora and her group with nothing!
Bow. Quiver. Knife. Spear.
Why did they have such primitive weapons? Were they ELFs? Only ELFs would use a bow and arrows. What were ELFs doing so close to Amon's Clearing? How long had they been out there? Could she take three ELFs by herself? What if they had some bomb made out of a chimera’s acid or something? Didn’t ELFs have all kinds of weird things made out of chimera?
Two noticed. They’re approaching.
Oh no… This was it. Andora could feel her heart hammering in her chest. Do or die! Andora hadn’t fought ELFs before but knew they would try some of their weird tricks at the start. She’d have to use the speed her cybernetics offered her to her advantage. It would wear her out fast, but she had no choice. This was life or death!
“You suck at hiding, lady,” a woman called out.
“Ertia, don’t be so rude!” another one scolded. “Excuse us, we’re looking for the nearest settlement. Would you mind showing us the way, please?”
This… was this a trick? Did ELFs play mind games like this to lull unsuspecting—
“Boo.” Andora reacted with raw instinct and twisted with her whole body to punch whoever was behind her.
Her fist flew past a tangle of black hair.
The most gorgeous woman Andora had ever laid her eyes on was looking down at her with a sly grin. Her entire body, from her hair down to her bare toes, looked to have been covered with dirt and grime from whatever adventures she’d had. In almost direct contrast, the multicolored dress she wore was absolutely spotless and only further contrasted with her tan skin. Every curve of her body was only further accentuated by the dress. Andora only noticed the white spear in the woman’s hand after this fact.
“Ertia!” that second voice shouted again. “We’re so sorry for scaring you like that. We didn’t think we’d meet anyone else in this forest.”
Andora turned to see a smaller girl, with a slender, diminutive frame approach. She wore a floral print sundress, with nothing to protect her bare feet. She had similarly tanned skin and black hair, but it was combed straight and hung loose past her shoulders. Her arms were behind her back and seemed to be supporting a strange metal hoop with hanging, overlapping plates.
Her smile was completely disarming, “Sorry again! My name is Tao, and these are my sisters, Ertia and Ravi.”
Following the slim girl’s eyes, Andora only just noticed the impassive face of the third woman. She looked much more mature, and had an air of regality and poise about her. Black hair pulled into a topknot, bow in hand, and a poncho held against her stomach by a few strapped pouches. Her loose trousers were held up by a belt with a strange knife attached. Her eyes seemed to be watching Andora very carefully.
“Um,” Andora wasn’t sure how to respond. “Sorry I attacked you.”
“You call that an attack?” the beautiful girl, Ertia, smirked at her.
“She’s just teasing you,” the slender Tao quickly said. “Believe me, I know how annoying it can be.”
“Why would you travel alone in the wilderness?” the serious looking Ravi asked.
“I’m not alone,” Andora cleared her throat. You can only make a first impression once. “No respectable Seeker would be so arrogant to travel alone. My companions have a camp just a short distance away. I was merely patrolling the perimeter when I detected your approach. My apologies. I hope we can work together in the future.”
“Why are you talking like that?” Ertia gave her a confused look.
Tao quickly stepped in front of the other girl, “What she means to say is that we’re a little new to the area and might need some help getting supplies. We don’t want to appear rude or disrespectful, so would you mind introducing us to some people in town?”
“We can trade,” the aloof one added.
This was definitely not something Andora considered happening today. She had never met any Seekers besides Petroc and Eli. Just what kind of extech did these girls have that they would go traipsing around the wilderness with barely any survival gear? They must be insanely strong.
“Yeah,” Andora replied. “I can show you around Amon's Clearing and introduce you to people and stuff. First, we should go back to my camp. Um, there’s two Seekers there already.”
Ertia cocked her head in confusion. Was that too few? Andora thought that three Seekers was the traditional adventuring party. Besides, these girls were a group of three, too.
“You mean hunters,” Ravi said.
“Well, I think most people around here call themselves Seekers,” Andora was pretty sure everyone who got extech enhancements did. “Do you call yourselves hunters, then?”
“I’m the White Spear of Ur,” Ertia spun her spear around before resting it across her shoulders.
Tao rolled her eyes and scoffed, “Nobody actually calls her that.”
“Let’s sort things out at your camp,” Ravi said. “I’m sure your companions will assume the worst if you don’t return soon.”
Andora offered to lead them back, and the women took formation alongside her. Ravi and Tao were by her sides, with Ertia hanging back. Although Andora was nervous, she knew that she couldn’t show any such weakness here. Not in front of powerful Seekers like these women. Did all Seekers give themselves a title? The White Spear of Ur. Maybe the spear was one of her three.
“May I ask what are your three?” Andora tried.
“Our three what?” Tao leaned forward as she walked. She didn’t look insulted or wary, but genuinely curious.
“Your three enhancements?” Andora felt her heart pounding against her chest again. She screwed up, didn’t she?
“I can show you one,” Ertia said from behind them.
Oh, good. Andora didn’t put her foot in her mouth, then. However, just when Andora turned to look back, there was no one there. Somehow, Ertia had gotten in front of them. Was it a speed enhancement like hers? Teleportation?
“She just likes to show off,” Tao said in a disparaging tone.
“She can’t do stuff like that,” Ertia threw a glance back at Tao. “That’s why she has to carry the artifact.”
“I can do plenty, but I’m not a big showboat like you,” Tao pouted.
“We really just want to rest in town, if possible,” Ravi said. “We’d rather not waste any more time or energy than necessary.”
Andora was happy to oblige them. Maybe she could convince them to help on the expedition and they could dump—
Andora gasped out loud. The other women stopped in their tracks and immediately began scanning the tree line around them.
“Sorry,” Andora tried to hide her face behind her hands. “It’s not anything in the wilderness. I just remembered one of my companions is a complete jerk and will probably piss you all off.”
“That’s nothing new,” Ertia replied.
“We’ll try to be patient,” Ravi said.
“What kind of jerk?” Tao asked. “Are they selfish, or rude, or dismissive, or…?”
“All of the above?” Andora wasn't sure how to tell them that he was nothing more than a pig.
“Ravi,” Tao called out.
“I'll hold her back,” Ravi answered.
Ertia scoffed, “Whatever. So, one person is a jerk and the other isn't?”
“Petroc means well but, well,” Andora suddenly felt flustered. Was she telling them too much up front? They seemed interested, and it was fair to warn them about Eli. “He's a mostly patient man, but has a hard time trying to keep up with everyone. Besides me, there's not many people he feels he can rely on, so he tries to do everything himself. It wears on him, I can tell, but he won't let me do more to help unless he's confident I can figure it out.”
The girls all looked at one another.
“Sounds like someone we know,” Tao said.
“On a good day, maybe,” Ertia added.
“I'm sure we'll all get along well enough to make it to town,” Ravi concluded.
Andora just smiled in answer. Was this what Seekers normally talked about? It all seemed so… normal. It was nice.
----------------------------------------
Tao had managed to keep their identities a secret for now. She'd have to gather much more information about what Seekers actually were, what was expected of them, and what they were capable of if they were to be convincing to anyone more scrutinizing. For now, they'd have to rely on goodwill and charm to sidestep any awkward questioning or inconsistencies. Hopefully, Ertia wouldn't blow their cover.
The Seeker Andora seemed to wear her heart on her sleeve. She had a really interesting set of clothes, too. Hair that was half gold, half pink that hung close to her neck; a pink shirt covered by a black, leathery looking jacket; there were weird devices hanging around her neck and body; a utility belt not unlike the packs Ravi favored held up a skirt; she wore some kind of tights underneath, and had big, heavy footwear.
Maybe she expected to traverse around acid pits or something. Footwear was useful for some protection, but nothing beat the sure grip of your own feet on the earth. If these were the ordinary humans that the faeries made deals with, then they probably needed to use extech more often if they couldn’t even protect themselves with qi. Although, it sure sounded like these “enhancements” worked in a similar way. Maybe their “enhancements” mostly came from an external source. Tao knew some stories of people using chimeric essence to channel the powers of the chimera it was harvested from.
“Sorry that Ertia is such a showoff,” Tao stated neutrally.
“It's fine,” Andora quickly replied. “I think it's really cool. I didn't know there were other speedsters around. I do something similar to get in and out whenever I need to. You're a Striker, right?”
“I hit them hard and fast,” Ertia said. Good, keep it vague.
“Petroc is a Defender,” Andora continued. “Eli is a Controller. We make a pretty good team when we're actually in a fight. It's just the rest of the time that's annoying with him.”
“What do you normally end up fighting around here?” Tao needed more information about humans, about Samsara, about the limits Seekers actually had.
“Oh, you know, just all kinds of weird chimera. Bear things, and boars, and snakes, and things like that. This area doesn't have anything crazy, like ELFs or ORCs or something. And there's no crazy parasites or diseases to worry about either,” Andora answered. Killing chimera was normal, then — dealing with other species was substantially less so.
“How do you treat your injuries?” Tao kept a mental list of the possible topics they could discuss in the future. For now, she needed to branch out to as many topics as possible. People often forget to give key details about things unless they’re related to other problems. Hopefully, they'd get a broad enough understanding to navigate surface conversations while in town, and could get more details from observation.
“We have an autodoc,” Andora replied easily. That was very good news. Looks like some extech had names that never went out of fashion.
“I had to use biofoam for some injuries before,” Tao offered.
“An emergency, huh?” Andora seemed excited for some reason. “We carry a little bit of medical gel, too.”
“Well, when you're in a pinch, you just use what you can!” Tao chuckled.
Andora laughed along with her, “Must’ve been quite the ordeal. Can I ask what happened?”
Tao briefly debated how much detail she should reveal. If she went too far in either direction, then they'd seem very alien to the girl, and she'd suspect they weren't Seekers after all.
“Chimera caused a cave-in,” Ravi cut in.
“We almost died,” Ertia casually added. “But that artifact saved us.”
Andora’s face turned pale, and she looked down at the ground, “Oh…”
“We're okay now, and that's what matters,” Tao said. Not the best way to spin that story, but at least Andora wouldn't ask any follow-up questions. She seemed like the type who avoided conversations like that. “Do you have any artifacts that can help out in a bind?”
Andora’s eyebrows scrunched down, “Actually, all of our artifacts stopped working. They suddenly became inert yesterday evening.”
Tao felt a spike of alarm, “Oh, is that so?” That was when they teleported here!
“Yeah, I'm having a hard time trying to repair what we have,” Andora looked at Tao expectantly, “Do you know how to repair artifacts?”
“I can certainly try!” Tao had no clue how artifacts worked.
----------------------------------------
Andora must’ve been trying to cool her head. With the tracer no longer functioning, their expedition was bound to be an order of magnitude harder. Plus, they’d have to spend that whole time with Eli. Going back to Amon's Clearing would probably end with Eli claiming he fulfilled his part of the bargain, and he’d try to leave town with the next passing caravan. The filthy freeloader.
Petroc looked over the tent, with its solid black dome standing out like a sore thumb in this forest. Petroc didn’t know what Eli was doing in there, and he didn’t want to know. The less he saw of him, the better — besides, it let him get back to reading again. There was only so much information on the data cube, and a decent chunk of it were blueprints and maps of the facility it came from. But it also contained somebody’s logs.
If we keep doing experiments like this, I’m afraid we’ll be stripping ourselves of humanity with it. No creature was meant to be immortal. The very principle of senescence is a corrective measure to prevent agelessness. Humans would still have brains and biology meant for a mature lifespan of eighty years — what will become of those who live for centuries? Even if they were only works of fiction, the insight that such stories show us doesn’t paint a pretty picture for these people. The closest comparison may be those with eidetic memory — and for them, life is torture.
A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
Whoever you were, scientist person, you deserved a long life, regardless. Petroc wondered if there were people who had the time to sit around and ponder these kinds of things back in the day. Maybe Samsara was a paradise back then, like some people say. What had mankind wrought for things to fall to this?
“Hey!” Andora’s voice rang out from beyond the tree line, “Petroc, we’ve got some new Seekers!”
Seekers? Here? Petroc stood up, and deftly activated his stopgap. Maybe he was being paranoid, but it was better to be careful than be regretful. Did he trust Andora? Yes. Did she make mistakes? Absolutely. There were no other nearby settlements, so whoever she found must have been either very lost, or worse.
He really hated the fact their artifacts weren’t working right now. Petroc looked back to the tent. It was better to be careful than regretful. He went to the entrance, and pounded on the doorway. There wasn’t any sound out here, but he knew that Eli would’ve heard it.
Before the rat bastard came out, he heard the sounds of rustling underbrush, and light conversation. That was a good sign, at least.
Andora’s face was the first thing he saw — a smile and laughter — she was safe. Next to her was a smaller girl in a sundress with what looked like a hand stitched floral pattern. That must have been a gift from someone, which meant these Seekers took care of their own to some degree.
Walking beside them was a much more stoic girl, with a bow and arrow? Why would a simple girl have something like that? Did they hunt recreationally? Unless it was some kind of extech or artifact, Petroc couldn’t think of a good reason to use it. Maybe it was just for the novelty of the hunt.
Just as he was about to wave, a third girl appeared behind them, and made Petroc freeze in place for a moment. Petroc really considered himself out of the whole dating game. He had his heyday, and had love for a few years, but nothing else ever really stuck. Seeing this girl made him absolutely ache for touch.
Her eyes met his — and he suddenly felt very small.
“Hey Petroc,” Andora cheerfully gestured to each girl as she introduced them. “These are Tao, and Ravi, and Ertia! They’re all Seekers, too!”
Petroc blinked his eyes in disbelief. These young girls were the Seekers?
“Circumstances kind of forced us to grow up a little faster than others,” the little one said.
“Some of us have more growing to do than others,” the beautiful one, Ertia, said.
Andora laughed, “They’re actually looking for a settlement to recover. What do you think? Should we just end the expedition now?”
“Hold on,” Petroc waved Andora over, “Let’s have a quick pow-wow first. If you ladies don’t mind, we’ll just step over here for some privacy.”
“Oh, absolutely!” little Tao chirped. “Take as much time as you need.”
“I need to sleep,” Ertia pointed at the tent, “Is that safe?”
Andora snorted, “Not right now. Eli’s in there, isn’t he?”
“Oh,” Tao nodded in apparent understanding, “the jerk.”
How much did Andora tell these girls? Petroc spoke up, “He can be hard to get along with, but he’s good in a fight.”
“We’ll see about that,” Ertia leaned against her spear. The other two girls stepped closer to her, and began muttering amongst one another.
Petroc did the same with Andora, “What do they know?”
“Just that we’re Seekers,” she whispered back, “and that our artifacts don’t work. They almost died from a cave-in before, so we should let them at least rest up in town. Plus, if they’re as strong as they look, then we won’t even need Eli.”
Petroc blinked his eyes in disbelief. Was he missing something? Those girls couldn’t have been older than Andora, and she was barely in her twenties. She had no idea what a strong Seeker looked like. “Listen, I’m not saying you’re wrong, but what makes you think they’re so strong?”
“They don’t have any protective gear, man,” Andora nodded in the direction of the three girls. “And that spear one, Ertia, is a Striker like me. She was able to jump behind me before I knew she moved.”
“She ambushed you?”
Andora blushed and looked down at her feet, “Well, she just moved faster than I could react. It’s not like anything happened.”
Petroc looked back at the three whispering girls. The other two looked to be scolding Ertia. Her expression never deviated from boredom, however, until she made eye contact with Petroc again. He instinctively looked away, and addressed Andora once more, “Look, not everyone you meet has your best interests at heart. We’ll talk things over, and if I think they’re okay, then we’ll take them in.”
Andora looked frustrated, but just nodded her head.
Sorry, princess, but the real world wasn’t like faery tales. Seekers were a wild bunch, and most of them would eat up a gentle girl like Andora and spit her out. In fact, characters like Eli weren’t terribly uncommon. And if she didn’t learn that lesson now, then she’d never learn.
“To what,” Eli suddenly emerged from the tent, “do I owe the pleasure? Do I see angels from high heaven come to grace us with their presence?”
Oh, goddammit…
“What a group of beauties we have in our midst,” Eli looked at Andora and Petroc, “Did you invite them without telling me? Well, don’t be rude, guys. If you’re all done introducing yourselves, why not introduce us?”
“Hello, Eli,” Andora said in a monotone, “We’re so glad you can finally join us.”
“Hold the applause, Andora,” Eli pulled out that pocket comb of his and began combing his gelled hair back. “And what are your names, sweeties?”
Of the three Seekers, Tao kept the disgust from her face better than the others, “My name is Tao. I mostly offer support for my sisters.”
“Little Tao,” Eli gave a white-toothed grin, “And you two are?”
Ravi and Ertia looked like they had absolutely no interest in answering him.
“Don’t be shy now!” he clapped his hands. “I promise I won't bite.”
“They’ve had a hard journey,” Petroc intervened, “and just need a place to recover for now.”
“Oh, any injuries?” Eli gestured with his hands, “I can give you girls a look over to make sure you’re okay. Strictly professional, of course.”
“You can fuck off for now,” Ertia cut in.
Eli clutched his hands to his chest, “Ouch, my poor heart! Looks like one angel has a dark side to her. Maybe the quiet one will reveal a sweet side instead?”
“C’mon guys,” Andora began walking toward the tent, “You can at least rest inside for now.”
Eli clapped his hands, “Great idea, Andora. We can all get to know each other a little better inside.”
Ertia pointed her spear at Eli, “What’s going to stop me from killing you?”
Petroc immediately moved between Eli and the other girls, “Look, we’re all stressed out, but that’s no reason for things to come to violence. If we can’t get along at camp, then what chance do we really have working together? Let’s just bring it down now.”
Tao stepped in front of Ertia’s spear, “We have to get help to go home, remember?”
“If you kill me,” Eli said from behind Petroc, “then you’ll become moored. You’ll be hunted down by others for being a human killer. You’ll have to struggle to survive in the wilderness. You really going to condemn yourself just for little old me? I must be pretty special to you, then.”
A surge of pressure came down on all sides, and Petroc instinctively summoned his hard-light tower shield. He heard Eli take a few steps back, and press against the tent’s barrier, but didn’t bother turning around. The girl with the spear was a more clear and present danger than a wyrm. Her eyes blazed with fury. Petroc felt his heart thumping in his chest, and broke out in a cold sweat. Who the fuck did Andora bring into their camp?
With a flicker of movement, Ertia snapped her head against the taller girl’s chin, breaking free, and then shot forward. Petroc tried to intercept, but he was like molasses and she was the wind. Ertia was standing by Eli, her spear pressed against his throat, and out of his reach.
“That’s not what I fucking asked,” she said. “Being hunted by Seekers or forced to live in the wilderness are consequences of killing you. I asked, what’s going to stop me?”
“Ertia!” he heard one of the other girls shout. Petroc couldn’t let it escalate like this. He had to stop this right now.
A wall of light forced the white spear away from Eli, and Petroc advanced on the girl, “Humanity has a hard enough time surviving as it is. I won’t let you kill someone who’s willing to fight for us.”
She coolly regarded the growing wall of light, and Petroc only just noticed that Andora was trapped on the other side with Eli, who was clutching his throat in terror. Ertia turned to face Petroc, raising her spear toward him, “You would fight to protect him?”
“I protect everyone,” Petroc raised his hard-light tower shield in front of him. “Even assholes like him.”
She grinned, and said two words that chilled him to the bone, “First blood.”
She stepped forward, and her spear became a white blur — his stopgap activated instantly. A silvery cocoon covered his whole body for only a moment, and he heard the impact of her attack sing, before he saw a look of curiosity on her face. Without hesitation, he pushed off his back foot and tried to tackle her with his tower shield.
Like a dancer, she pirouetted and struck out once more. With his enhanced body, he was able to pull back his tower shield in time to block the attack. Sparks flew, and he pushed toward her with all his might. It felt like he hit a wall. He looked down through the shield to see her grinning up at him.
She dropped down, and a blur of motion brushed past his shins, activating his stopgap once more. That was his last charge, too. With a shout of effort, he hammered his shield down on her with all of his weight. The impact jarred his teeth, but she seemed to take it in stride as she unfolded from the ground with her spear lashing out like a coiled spring.
Sparks flew in front of his face as he barely brought the shield up in time. Her form blurred across his vision, and he felt a sudden sting along his right forearm. Instinctively, he retreated back a few steps to try and gain some time to assess the damage.
“My win,” Ertia jabbed the butt of her spear into the dirt, with a wide grin on her face.
Beyond a little sweat, she showed absolutely no signs of fatigue or battle. Her freaking dress was just as impossibly immaculate as before the fight started. That must've been some extech, then. It helped explain how she was able to take blows from his reinforced limbs. Even so, this woman must have had subdermal armor or something to give such resistance. Petroc wondered where the hell these women came from.
He looked at his arm, and noticed that the cut was long, but shallow. Was that intentional? Considering what he’d just seen, that level of control over her weapon meant she must have been training with it her whole life. If this was the kind of monster just one of them was, then what could the other two do?
The tall one — Ravi was her name? — stepped up to Ertia, and immediately backhanded her across the face.
Ertia actually staggered back a step at that, and Petroc could see a bit of blood dripping from her nose.
“You broke your promise,” Ravi stared down at Ertia.
“The trial,” Ertia hissed, “is over, Ravi.”
“Are we home?”
“...I never raised my weapon against you.”
“Hitting me is to raise your weapon in practice, and in spirit. You broke your promise, Ertia.”
Ertia looked away, her hand clutching her spear.
Ravi snapped her fingers, prompting Ertia to look up, “And these people are fellow hunters, Ertia.”
“They’re nothing like us,” Ertia spat back.
“They’re hunters, Ertia,” Ravi pushed her face closer to the other woman. “Do you know what it feels like to be broken, Ertia?”
The two women stared one another down. Petroc had no idea what the hell was happening anymore.
“Maybe,” Tao spoke up, “we should discuss this in private.”
The other two glanced at Tao, before Ertia suddenly pulled away from Ravi, “Whatever.” She began walking away from camp.
“I’ll talk to her,” Tao waved at them, before scampering to follow behind Ertia.
A heavy silence fell over the rest of the camp. Petroc had no clue how to even begin talking about what happened. The stuff about Eli? He had dealt with that before. This new mess of women? Well, he chose to remain single for many reasons, and this kind of thing was one of them.
“Are you injured?” Ravi broke the tension.
Petroc looked at the shallow cut on his arm again, “Nah, I’ll be fine. Just needs a little bandage, and I’ll be good.”
“I understand,” Ravi sighed, and she suddenly appeared to be much older than she looked, “if you don’t want us around. I’m sorry things wound up this way. I should’ve had a better handle on it.”
The wall of light sputtered out of existence, freeing Andora and Eli. Both were pale and wide eyed. Petroc would have to talk to them, too. He turned to Ravi, “Look, I understand some people have a harder time being civil than others — I’ve got plenty of experience with all kinds — but we can’t let things come to blows between us. She was clearly pissed and still managed to hold back. I understand you all have probably been lost in the wilderness for a while, so you’re bound to be a bit wound up. After almost dying, you probably don’t want to have to deal with more bullshit just when you thought you’d found a place to rest. I get it. If you’re good, then I’m good, alright?”
The tightness and rigidity in Ravi’s posture noticeably loosened. It wasn’t gone, she still stood up straight, and had her right hand free to grab the blade at her hip, but her dark eyes looked at him with a disarming degree of gentleness. She approached, with her hand outstretched, “Let there be peace between us.”
He shook her hand, “Peace,” and felt the callouses. Petroc knew then that this woman must’ve been as much a monster as Ertia.
“I’ll make sure they’re doing okay,” she said. At his nod, she turned away and went in the direction of her sisters.
Petroc looked over at a horrified Andora and a terrified Eli. Peace, huh. Would it be too much to hope for that?
----------------------------------------
The silence of the forest was absolutely deafening. The pine smell swept all around her with the cool breeze. The forest floor here was far less dense than the jungle. It was more like walking through Ur than walking through the wilderness. Most annoying of all, though, was her little babysitter hovering around, just dying to take the moral high ground and say how wrong she had been and eager to lecture her on what she should do in the future. It was like a mosquito buzzing around her ears that she couldn’t kill — she wasn’t even allowed to swat it away.
“...You can just yell at me, if you want to,” Ertia declared, not bothering to keep the bitterness and venom from her voice. “I know I fucked up, but I’m sure you want to tell me how and why.”
“I don’t think you fucked up, Ertia,” the gentleness of Tao’s tone made Ertia feel like a child.
Ertia glanced back to see Tao following with her hands behind her back — she wasn’t carrying that artifact anymore — and with a carefully crafted stone-faced look. She was trying to hide her true feelings again. Ertia hated that. Tao always tried to hold things back.
“Then why are you following me, Tao?” Ertia called back. “Did you want to make sure I don’t get lost even though we’re already lost?”
Ertia kept walking for a bit, but Tao didn’t answer. That was even worse than whatever scathing reply she was bound to cook up instead.
“Are you still going to say we’re not on Samsara?” Ertia continued. “Wanna tell me how we’re just supposed to gather all of this extech when we won’t even have a place to put it?”
It was ridiculous. How the hell were they expected to trust the faeries — a species known for their trickery — that went out of its way to make deals for their own benefit over anyone else? Not to mention the fact that they’d happily sell whatever they learned about Ertia and the others as soon as they could.
Were they supposed to trust the Samsarans? If those people were supposed to be their warriors, then what kind of help could they expect from the rest? This whole expedition was doomed from the start.
“Or are you planning on telling me how I owe you my life? That I should be grateful for this second chance,” Ertia sliced a low-hanging branch out of her way. “That I should think about changing or growing from this whole thing. That if we’re going to work together, I have to change my attitude.”
That’s what everyone would always say about her. Ertia had an attitude problem. Everyone was quick to point that out to her, but no one ever offered any solutions. Well, her dad at least told her to channel her emotions into the spear, but that didn’t work. Sure, it helped her blow off some steam from time to time, but it never stopped her from getting angry in the first place.
And even then, she wasn’t angry. People were annoying. They all would misinterpret what she said, or tell her to behave a certain way. No one ever just tried to get along with her. To just let her do things her way for once. It was always about her having a lack of patience, or not paying attention. Nobody ever understood what she thought, or felt, or even tried to do.
“You gonna tell me that I’m supposed to be smarter than this, right?” Ertia slashed at another branch, but her spear couldn’t cut all the way through. She pulled it out and smashed the branch to splinters with the haft of her spear. “Wanna tell me how violent and stupid I am? What a spiteful little ball of hate I must be?”
Always with the accusations of being full of hate and rage, as if that was her default state, as if she didn’t feel other emotions. She hated getting angry. She hated lashing out and hurting people around her. But that kept happening! Someone would interrupt her with a request while she’s training, and then claim she was being too rude when she told them she’d do it later. Someone would mock her, tell her she’s a brute or an idiot, and then be all the more happy to bite back with an I-told-you-so when she got upset.
A fallen tree laid in her way, so she began hacking away at it with her spear. The bone spear that had been given to her father by Iroh. It was said to be made from a sky whale — unbreakable. Her father had given it to her, saying it was the only thing in Ur that could match her spirit. He taught her how to use it. People became less grumpy around Ertia, even though they still thought she was nothing more than a stupid ball of anger.
But she wasn’t.
Anger didn’t care about the color of the trees or the night sky. Anger didn’t stalk a deer in the wood, or stare into a spotted cat’s eyes in the night. Anger didn’t leap from tree to tree, or dive to the bottom of a river. Anger didn’t sing the songs of the birds, or brush its hands along the leaves. Anger didn’t skin a boar, or roast it over a fire.
Ertia jabbed the butt of her spear in the dirt, and slowed her breathing. The felled tree was nothing more than a scattering of firewood now. It always helped her concentration when she was doing something with her hands instead of just sitting around being useless, wasting time.
It was actually rather peaceful.
She looked back, and saw Tao eating a bit of jerky.
“We’re running low, aren’t we?” Ertia asked.
Tao finished chewing her piece, and swallowed, before answering, “I think Eli’s a piece of shit.”
Ertia scoffed, “Yeah, no kidding.”
“I like Andora, and Petroc seems responsible,” Tao said, “but I don’t want to travel with them if Eli’s there.”
Ertia shrugged, and began sorting through the tree’s debris with her spear. Petroc was certainly tough, at least. If humans normally couldn’t use qi, then they must’ve been relying entirely on extech to survive. Not all extech used coins, but a ton of the kind that didn’t was also impossible for sapiens to use. Ertia idly wondered if the same was true for the Samsarans.
“I think they’ll get rid of him and choose to travel with us,” Tao chirped happily. “Because they don’t like Eli either.”
There she went, thinking about things and being all smart about it.
“They know we’re much stronger,” Tao had that knowing smirk on her face now. “That means that we’re stronger than most Samsarans. But we still don’t know enough about them, so we need to make what friends we can. People seem to think it’s strange that a group of young girls travel alone like this, which means we’re definitely a kind of exception.
“Andora asked you ‘what are your three.’ That must mean that people never have more than three signature abilities, right? So, we have to be careful about what kinds of things we do in front of others — just be consistent. Until we can confirm whether these people identify themselves as the Samsarans from the stories, we can’t assume any of the old stories are a hundred percent true.”
All of that did make sense. However, one thing stood out to Ertia, “What about the faeries?”
Tao scrunched her face, “The stories seemed pretty reliable for them, but we didn’t know they had a specific deal with how they interacted with humans. That also means they have another deal with the ORCs and with ELFs — more species we have a rough idea of but no real detail until we encounter them.”
Ertia looked back at Tao, who was now pacing back and forth in thought. People in Ur would complain about Tao talking sometimes. Ertia knew it was just how she thought. Sure, it could be annoying, but it wasn’t like anyone had to listen to her.
“We’re definitely on Samsara,” Tao gave Ertia a placating look. “You were right about that. I think we can earn the trust of Andora and Petroc. With their help, we’ll have a place to stay. If we keep working together, then we’ll eventually be able to gather enough extech to make a deal with the faeries.”
“You’re assuming they’ll need to even work with us,” Ertia sat on one of the tree’s bigger chunks. “If they have stories about us, too, then how will they react when they find out we’re not Samsarans?”
Tao just shook her head, “I don’t think that’s likely. Andora might be a little naive, but she took our words to heart and assumed we just had different terms with the same meaning, like the whole hunter versus Seeker thing. That just means that Samsarans actually do live separately, like the cities of old. We can use that to our advantage.”
“What are you scheming now?” Ravi called from the trees. As she rounded past one of the pines, Ertia immediately looked away. There was a heaviness in her heart that solidified now that Ravi was here. She hated that feeling.
Great, and now she was getting angry again.
“We’re trying to survive until we go home, remember?” Tao said.
“Mmhmm,” Ravi didn’t look at Tao, though. Ertia could feel the weight of her gaze. It made Ertia feel like she was being pulled into the dirt. She felt small and useless again.
“Until we find people we can trust, we’re just going to have to be careful with everything on Samsara,” Tao must have either not noticed or was pretending not to notice. Ertia didn’t know which was worse, but both somehow seemed just like Tao.
“I shouldn’t have hit you,” Ravi said, “I’m sorry.”
Ertia felt that weight stagger in her chest, and her face felt hot. She rubbed her eyes before any tears could come out. Here she was, paying for another stupid mistake. Why was she so stupid? Why did she make the same mistakes again and again?
“We can go back and talk to them, but first,” Ravi approached Ertia. Was she going to hit her again, then? Didn’t she notice that Ertia’s qi was already disturbed? But it didn’t matter. It was nothing less than Ertia expected, or deserved. This was just how things always went. She’d screw something up and then be punished for acting out. She told herself that she’d learn; that she’d finally act properly and not upset anyone else; that she wouldn’t be impulsive and angry; that she wouldn’t prove everyone was right about what they said about her.
But, in the end, it always came back to this. Another screw up. Another round of punishment. This was just how life was.
Ravi pulled Ertia up — and hugged her. She hugged her so tightly that Ertia was actually having a hard time breathing. Her breaths became haggard, and she heard herself gasp out a sob.
“It’s okay, Ertia,” Ravi rubbed Ertia’s back, “I know. I’m sorry, too.”
Hot tears finally spilled out like a storm cloud. Ertia tried to speak but just gasped out another cry. She clutched Ravi desperately, suddenly wanting nothing less than just the feeling of comfort. She didn’t hear what Ravi was whispering to her. She sounded so gentle and kind, but it only made Ertia cry harder.
In this moment, for a short time, the pressure that pushed down on her tender heart lifted.
----------------------------------------
Tao poured more water into Ertia’s cupped hands, “Now, if only we could get you to do this every morning, then your face wouldn’t be so full of dirt all the time.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Ertia splashed the water on her face and wiped away the last traces of dirt and tears.
Ravi knew she’d have to take more steps like this to protect these two girls if they were going to be on Samsara for the long haul. She still held out hope that the people of Ur would figure out a way to bring them home, but knew that it was better to prepare for the worst. After all, chance favored the prepared.
Tao tried to begin brushing Ertia’s hair, but was pushed back with every attempt. The two lightly bickered, but didn’t seem to really be arguing.
Tao may be smart, but she could come across as too naive — or seem too smart, or have her head in the clouds. And Ertia was too impulsive and abrasive. It fell to Ravi to be the leader they needed to survive Samsara until they finally got home. She did have the most experience in the wilderness, and was the most mature between the three of them. Besides, she was the only hunter among them, so they’d rely on her to help get them out of situations like these.
As far as Ravi was concerned, those Seekers were Hunters, like her. That meant they had a reason to be out here. They could trade. Petroc seemed like he genuinely wanted to trust them, especially since he had been so willing to forgive them for Ertia’s attack. It seemed likely they’d have to bargain to keep Eli out of the hunt, though, that really shouldn’t be hard to do. Andora didn’t tolerate Eli much better than them, and Petroc was protective of Andora.
“Do you guys feel well enough to go on a hunt?” Ravi asked.
Ertia shrugged, “I could use a bit of rest, but if we have to fight, then I’ll fight.”
“We really should rest before heading out,” Tao answered. “It also helps make us seem a little more vulnerable, which will go a long way in helping the others empathize with us.”
Always a clever twist on what would otherwise be something simple, “Alright. Do you really think their town would be safe for us?”
Tao nodded, “They’ll probably have us stay in a place just for Seekers that are normally from out of town. Samsarans have different cultures and not all of them get along. As long as we behave and don’t go far without a chaperone, they’ll let us rest.”
That was a good point. Ravi didn’t know as many of the stories about Samsara, so she should definitely ask for more input from Tao.
The girls were ready to head back, and make some amends. They’d have to promise their support for whatever hunt Petroc and Andora were doing. Maybe Ravi would be able to find some things to do in town without raising suspicion. She was certain Ertia would just practice with her spear the whole while, but she’d have to keep Tao on a leash. When asked, Tao was happy to state how she’d try to make new friends and connections by sticking close with Andora — citing that people loved honest characters like her, and that she was sure to be in everyone’s good graces.
Ravi wondered what Tao meant by Andora being an honest character. Did she mean naive? There was little doubt she was inexperienced, at least. Being honest was something people liked in others, but didn’t usually offer completely from themselves. Ertia, for example, would probably never voice how scared she might be. Even so, she was honest enough, just like anybody else. .
When they finally got back to camp, there were only two people waiting for them. Petroc, standing tall and with his arms crossed, looked grim. Andora, barely reaching his chest, looked like a child beside him.
“We’ve got a problem that we need to nip in the bud as soon as possible,” he warned.
Andora wrung her gloved hands together, “Eli rushed back to town. Because of the fight, he thinks you’re all moored.”
“Only thing to do is get back and explain things before he poisons the well.”
“How fast can you guys run?” Andora finished.