Under normal circumstances, heroes who do something that drastically improves the lives of the ordinary folk received public honor for their deeds. They would be shown to the people that they saved, to receive the adulation and thanks that such a task deserved. This time, however, there would be no ceremony, nor no public event to mark it. In Nihon-Ja, they were strangers, and in Tyrman, the common folk knew nothing of the mage that had terrorized the country to the far southeast for so many years.
While there was much honor and respect from those who knew what Tsuyoi Shimonseki had done, and the acknowledgment from Issho-Ni that they had done better than anyone could have expected, the praise was delivered quietly. And before they could fully come to terms with it, they were once again on the very same ship that had carried them there and taken them swiftly back to Tyrman. It had all been a whirlwind. In time to come, each of them would parse out the events for themselves, recovering and coming to terms with it. But for now, they were keen to leave the sight of the bloodshed behind them.
“There’s still much to be done in Tyrman anyway,” Leonov said. He almost seemed keen to give a definitive reason for their return so that it didn’t resemble an escape. “Milagre is still fixing itself after the Infernal invasion. Chances are there’s still plenty of work to be done. Plenty of contracts for us to take on.”
As he said this last sentence, he cast an uneasy glance at the other members of his party. As to what their plans were now that Taiki’s mortal enemy had been vanquished, it hadn’t been discussed. Whether through exhaustion or a similar unease, nobody wanted to be the first to voice their opinion or make suggestions for fear that the others would disagree. All of them felt that they had something special going here, and they were loathe to make a move that would ruin the prospect.
In that awkwardness, much of the journey back to Tyrman was left to a heavy silence. It flooded the deck more effectively than the most persistent storm, seeped under the doors, and even caused the crew to be less talkative than they’d usually be. The captain of the ship, a former soldier and member of Issho-Ni, raised no complaints, for he understood their plight. The sense of exhaustion that overtook one after such a vicious undertaking was no small thing to deal with. It required time, patience, and most importantly, a lot of self-reflection.
Eventually, the ship found its way back to Sheran, and the party was given a personal escort to the capitol by Master Kanora Tokugawa, who’d apparently been waiting in the port city for them for nearly a week. She too spoke very little on the trip back, but she did seem interested in casting curious looks over her shoulder at them, weighing them in her mind. Only when she gave a small nod as if confirming something to herself, did Falynn feel it was necessary to ask.
“Surprised to see us alive?” She asked. She smiled slightly to take any unintentional sting from the question. “I know we didn’t do very well in our Crucible against you.”
“On the contrary,” Kanora said quietly, tightening the fist that held the reins to the horses pulling the carriage. “I had absolute faith that you would succeed. And you did better against me than you thought.”
Even Leonov had to laugh at that, a short and bitter sound. “You absolutely thrashed us.”
“Well,” she said, tilting her head thoughtfully, “I’m also fortunate to have been trained by undisputed masters of each of the techniques I learned. When the likes of Samuel Bragg, Shiora Tokugawa, Grimr Longfang, and even the Sage of the Mountain teach you, you’re bound to become very strong. If you survive.”
She didn’t quite smile at that, but the corner of her mouth did twitch. She returned her attention to the horses before her. “But no, I had every faith that you would do well. I am an excellent judge of one’s strength.”
Falynn and Leonov shared a look at that, but both chose not to comment. It was high praise from the woman, who had defeated them all with almost no magic, relying on her physical strength above all else. Unconsciously, their shoulders all straightened. Even Taiki was heartened by Kanora’s words. She’d never met the warrior before today, but she’d heard plenty of accounts from others about the woman’s skill and power.
“Pity we didn’t accomplish it without major injury,” Taiki said dryly, glancing down at her arm yet again. “A near-perfect mission.”
“There are no certainties in war,” Kanora replied mystically. “But I would not worry if I were you. There are many ways to overcome such an injury.”
“None that are natural though,” Taiki said. While she’d treated her missing limb with some cold indifferent humor in the month past, now she allowed a little bitterness to creep into her voice. She cast a glance at Falynn. “I’d hate to make you uncomfortable with the replacement.”
In spite of the lingering grief Falynn felt about Taiki’s crippling wound, she felt her cheeks redden at the prospect that the tall warrior could care so much about what she thought. Glancing away to hide the fact that she was blushing furiously, she cleared her throat. “Well, there… might be an alternative. A natural one, I mean.”
Taiki didn’t look entirely surprised, but her eyes did widen an inch or so. “You really think so?”
“I don’t know that it will work for sure,” the druid girl said, her ears now turning red, “But I think there’s a way to do it. I’ll have to convince a very high power to make it work, however.”
Taiki, assuming she meant Grimr, nodded her understanding. “I suppose I’m lucky I get to spend a life with someone so resourceful and kind.”
Falynn’s head whipped around at that, momentarily forgetting her red face. “What?”
Leonov and Roni, watching Taiki closely, were thrown for a shock. For the first time since they’d all met, Taiki seemed at a loss for words. She seemed flustered and even a bit nervous. “Well, I mean, if that’s alright with you, of course. All of you, I mean. I wasn’t trying to say-”
She trailed off, realizing that she’d been stammering. In an instant, the befuddled expression was gone, and she glared at Leonov, who quickly looked away, pretending not to have noticed. But Roni, seated at the back with a view of the plains around them, was smirking so broadly that her green eyes were almost reduced to slits. Then, worst of all, Falynn let out a nervous giggle, which quickly turned into helpless laughter. It was an infectious sound, and quickly took over all four of them. Even Kanora let out a low chuckle, unnoticed, from the front.
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“Yes,” the Master of the Sanctuary said, stretching her legs, “You’ll all do fine.”
-
Two days later, Taiki, Roni, and Leonov were woken from a deep slumber by Falynn, who was flushed and out of breath. Instinctively, Taiki suspected an attack, though they’d been safe in Shallow Brook since they’d arrived, and rolled to her feet, hand grasping for the sword that was no longer at her side. She blinked in confusion for a second, then noticed that restless as she was, Falynn didn’t seem to be in a panic.
“What is it?” She asked blearily, rubbing her eyes with her one good arm. “What time is it?”
“It’s almost dawn,” Falynn said quickly, still breathing heavily. There were a few twigs in her hair, evidence of the fact that she’d been in the woods and, as was her way, tripped at least once. “Come on! All of you!”
And without waiting for a response, she bounded away, and they heard her give a hurried apology to someone as she ran into them. “Sorry, just in a hurry. Come on, you lot!”
Without a chance to shake away the remnants of sleep, the three of them exchanged mystified looks, then decided, as one, not to question it. Sure they would get answers eventually, they broke into a run to catch up to the druid, just at the border of the quiet commune. Falynn led them deep into the trees, in the same direction that they had once taken to awaken the ancient beast Elderclaw. And, in fact, after nearly fifteen minutes of hurried travel, they realized that she was aiming directly for it once again.
Only when they broke into the clearing and blinked against the first rays of sunlight that were piercing down from above did they finally muster up the willpower to ask again. This time, it was Roni who broached the subject. “What’s going on here, Falynn? Why did you wake us up and drag us through the forest?”
Falynn beamed at them, and more importantly, at Taiki. “It agreed!”
They were nonplussed, and their expressions said as much. It was Taiki who realized what she meant first. “My arm?”
Falynn nodded excitedly. “A material stronger than steel, with natural magical affinity, and is perfectly natural!”
“Living wood?” Leonov guessed. “But that can’t do very well as a prosthetic. Didn’t you say it lost its potency after a while?”
“Not living wood,” Falynn corrected him. “Acquite! It’s the strongest natural material that exists!”
Before any of them could ask another question, there was a shudder in the earth at their feet. They took a step back, uncertain and nervous without their weapons, but Falynn made a reassuring gesture. “Don’t worry. He’s big, so he makes a lot of noise.”
Just then, a massive figure appeared at the edge of the clearing. Easily eight feet at the shoulder and more than twelve feet in length, the massive beast known as Elderclaw stepped into the light of the sun. Its bright violet eyes gleamed as it regarded them all, and Falynn grabbed Taiki’s one good arm, pulling her forward. Taiki wasn’t keen on approaching the massive beast, but she trusted Falynn and went after a brief struggle.
Elderclaw lowered its head, inspecting Taiki’s missing arm, and let out a long, low breath. Taiki had no idea what that meant, but Falynn seemed to be up to speed. “It is possible, isn’t it, Elderclaw?”
It is within the realm of the possible, the ancient voice rang out, seeming to emanate both from the edges of the clearing and from the deepest parts of their mind. I will grant you this request. Have you made your decision?
“I have,” Falynn said firmly. She seemed inordinately pleased. Taking a step away from Taiki, she said quickly, “Don’t move. He’s going to do it now.”
It transpired more quickly than she’d expected. A wash of magic flooded over her, crashing into her body and filling her to the brim with its power. Then her arm felt… heavy. Not her good arm, either, she thought. Almost as if she were afraid to look, she glanced down at her missing arm. Except that it was no longer missing. She lifted the silver limb, flexing the fingers experimentally, her mouth wide open. It seemed no different to her than her previous arm, save for the fact that it was radiating a great deal of magical power.
As the silver light the arm put off began to fade, Falynn stepped forward again and put one hand on it. She muttered a quick word, and Taiki noticed the addition of something… new. She couldn’t quite place it. It was similar to chaos, but tamer. Then the light faded completely, and what was left had the appearance of dull metal. It was exceptionally heavy, yet it lent her the power necessary to move it. She stooped and picked up a rock from the ground, crushing it into a rough powder with ease.
“What did you agree to?” She asked, turning to her friend. Her savior. “I won’t accept this gift if you’ve made a promise that will harm you.”
“It’s nothing like that,” Falynn assured her, then pointed. Between Elderclaws feet was… a smaller Elderclaw? Taiki blinked, not sure of what she was seeing. No larger than a domestic cat, the small creature, also made of living wood like its larger counterpart, had ice-blue eyes, and a light greenish tint to its body. The end of its tail was covered in minute thorn-like spikes. And, as Elderclaw took a step back, it padded forward to stand before Falynn, staring up at her face.
Remember your vow, young druid, Elderclaw said, turning and pacing toward the edge of the clearing once more. There is great power in that shard. Do not squander or allow it to be corrupted.
The tiny Elderclaw let out a low growl, and Falynn stooped to pick it up. Beaming at the others, she said, “I promised my service in return for that gift. Technically, I’m not a druid of Grimr now.”
Catching the worried looks on their faces, she hurried on, “It’s not a bad thing, I promise! I’m a warlock of Elderclaw now. He gave me a shard of his power, and I’ve got so much more to learn.”
“I’ve never heard of a warlock of Elderclaw,” Roni said slowly, narrowing her eyes as she looked at the tiny cub.
“Precisely,” Falynn agreed, her eyes gleaming with glee. “I’m the very first. I figure it’s a good power to have if we’re going to stick together for a little while longer.”
She said it quite boldly, but she looked uncertain as she glanced between them, curious as to what they thought. Taiki and Leonov were grinning broadly. They’d been the most interested in continuing their previous plan of growing and gaining experience, and it pleased them that she was so eager to as well. Roni didn’t say anything at first, but took a few steps forward, peering at the cub at a much closer angle. “He’ll be a fine beast when he grows. What will you call him?”
Falynn looked more than a little surprised at the question but answered at once. “Espin. In the Druid's tongue, it means thorn.”
“Espin,” Roni repeated, nodding slowly. “Yes, that will be a fine hunter to roam with.”
Leonov took a tentative step forward, holding his breath. “Does that mean that you want to stay with us for a while?”
The ranger shrugged slightly, but it wasn’t a gesture of denial. It was her usual indifference. Though they could sense, underneath it, an eagerness that matched their own. “Why not? We’ve already gone through so much. I’m eager to see what other hunts you all could take me on.”
-THE END-
This novel is dedicated to one of my oldest readers, Carmine. It was really only through your continuous monthly support that this story could even exist. For that, you have my eternal thanks. I hope you’ve enjoyed this story and the growth and journey that it led Taiki on. Here’s to many more stories in the future, and the hope that Taiki’s story continues to live on in others.