Aristophane looked around for her target, she was having difficulty keeping track of time. Had she been waiting for a minute for half an hour? She was not sure, she had a task to accomplish it was difficult enough. Even climbing into the tree in setting herself up in this position had been exhausting. Was it a good position? She questioned her choice, it was not as if she had much experience only a few weeks of training. She was determined she would do well. She owed it to her family, well she didn't want to be shown up against her siblings.
After four years as a smith her brother was doing very well for himself. It would be hard for him not to with the specialist training her parents had paid tutors and masters to provided him with. And with their connections her sister was a Sargent in the city watch. After just three years she would probably pass the exam and become a lieutenant, then eventually a captain.
Aristophane held her short bow in her right hand, her only arrow in her left. The bow was the finest scout bow that they made. It looked almost as good as the day she had been presented with it by her mother. She wore a dark brown tunic spun from a silk cotton fibre blend, its craftsmanship was exquisite but it helped to hide her against the tree. She had sandals that were solid and functional, helping her to move around. Her shoulder length black hair was held back in a bun with a clasp keeping it out of her eyes and from snagging against the tree. Her gold citizenship plaque hung round her neck, a sign of her status as the daughter of a wealthy merchant family.
She was trying to calm her breathing, she was up in an olive tree trying to remain completely still. She was out in the countryside in a farm owned by her family. So she was at least familiar with her surroundings, having visited the place half a day’s journey from the city of Epheze. It was late in the evening the sun would be gone very soon. She could not see in the dark, but then nether could her opponent. Not that her opponent didn't have other senses. At sixteen an adolescent would earn their middle name, their job a title fitting between there name and there family name and so her parents had picked for her.
There was a rustling from the ground, she moved slowly in anticipation. It would be some time before her body was used to such exercise. She tried to hide behind the trunk of the tree, screened in the upper branches. There was a serpentine beast on the ground, looking around searching for her. A terror Lamia its body was covered in dense scales. Its body from the waist down was a massive serpent. Its upper body was that of a heavily muscled man, its face was very human though it lacked hair. Though rows of spiky scales gave the impression of hair it was not quite the same. Female Lamia as rare as they were did have hair long and green.
The Lamia's eyes were keen looking for its target, its forked tong darted out sensing the air. An unfair advantage in such a contest and it would use any advantage, it was not a stupid creature. It wore clothes stitched together from hide and skin, not tough enough to be armour but still very hardwearing. He carried a well maintained short bow, it was well used as opposed to Aristophane's the string was not yet drawn taunt. But the Lamia knew what it was doing, holding bow and arrow at the ready, expecting an attack to come from any direction it scanned around.
It didn't seem to notice Aristophane and slowly slithered past her hiding place. She remembered her tutor’s words and slowly silently drew the bow back. She would get one chance to fire and she needed to make that one shot count. She aimed for the back of the neck where the spine was thinner and the skin was not so tough. One of the few weak spots on a being like that, where it was as vulnerable as a human.
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She tried to focus on her shot, but she was distracted. Her mother had sent her out here to train. The city states had a strong view of a citizen soldier, something taken from the northern land that desperate and dangerous place. Everyone must be able to fight to some degree, to defend themselves there family there city and there gods. She said a quick prayer to Bolina the mother goddess the head of the pantheon, that her arrow would fly straight.
The terror Lamia spun round at the last second, pulling its bow up and snapping off a quick shot. Before Aristophane could finish drawing her bow, or even realise what was going to happen. She felt the arrow hit her in the shoulder and she felt herself falling backwards. Out from the tree her bow tumbling from her hand her own arrow falling to the ground at the base of the tree barely traveling a foot.
She landed awkwardly in a pile of hay left at the base of the tree. The wind knocked completely out of her. The Lamia slowly moved over to the arrow dropped from the tree. He picked up the practice arrow, it was blunt with a padded ball of cloth wrapped in leather. It would hurt but do no serious damage. He picked up her bow tutting to himself as he slithered over to Aristophane. She gasped her face narrowing her finger pointing accusingly out of the hay. “Gegron for the love of the nine do you have to shoot those at full power, this is just meant to be training, I am getting bruises all over”? Her teacher looked down at her in a relaxed manner.
“You will learn little girl and quickly, I used about a quarter of my strength. This is a hunting bow not a war bow, I gave you a good ten seconds to get me first. But you spent too much time deciding if you were going to take the shot, next time you will be far less hesitant, or I shoot back at half strength”. Aristophane sighed and adjusted the leather archery bracers. Gegron reached forwards and pulled her to her feet. Then he handed her bow back to her.
He was not unsympathetic, “Enough practice for today, tomorrow we do a bit more target practice. Then we get you back to the city. Your sister Augo can run you through the guard’s obstacle course a few times, so you can build yourself up a bit with training”. He picked up his own arrow, the practice arrow still had a punch to it due to the weight. Smoothly he put his own bow over his shoulder and the arrows back in the sheath. “You should start carrying your own sheath and knife and flint so that you can start a fire”.
Aristophane punched the man covered in scale on the shoulder, even putting all her weight into it she couldn't hurt him but the point was made. “Ease off on the training won’t you, I have bruises on my bruises and I can barely feel my fingers, at least play me the starts are shining”. Gegron lead her back to the house, he had a set of pan pipes hanging around his neck, next to his silver citizenship plaque. He reached down and started to play a set of pipes in a soothing melody, she looked at him dragging her sandaled feet.
“You’re meant to teach me music and scouting why can’t we start with the music lessons”. He stopped playing for a second, “the agreement your mother made with the weaver tribe was quite clear. I teach you to be a scout then I teach you to play an instrument, your mother prioritised it, after you have the basics mastered and a few hunting trips with me under your belt then I can teach you the pipes or the drums, then you can play the stars are shining for me”. Gegron played the pipes again a soothing celestial melody as they headed back to a modest farm building.
They took a brief supper fruit and bread, Gegron had a skin of wine and Aristophane had a little watered down. Then they prayed to the nine for a restful sleep, to the matriarch Bolina the forge goddess long may her forges burn may the construction of their arrows be solid, to Timis the goddess of justice and the hunt may her skills improve under such a blessing. Then it was the deep night in the guest quarters of the farm house. Lit by one candle Aristophane hung up her bow and arrows taking time to check them, then she snuggled into the blankets to get some sleep.
Gegron stayed outside her room, she was his charge. His people needed a bit of coin so he was hired out as a tutor and a body guard to the merchants daughter. She would learn to play as he was taught to do, she would learn archery he would help her. She was his charge and any that dared to threaten her would be full of arrows. He got out a flute and began to play a very quiet tune accompanied by loud snoring in the background.