6

The Borderland

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I let out a sigh.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Ryam tense, clenching his fists and taking a deep breath, before releasing it. Slowly, he brought an apple to his mouth, taking an oddly aggressive bite. Part of me wanted to ask if he was alright, but the dark scowl he sent my way gave me the impression that he didn't want to be bothered.

So I just left him to it, and kept on walking with slow, unsteady steps, absently chewing on a small loaf of bread. I trained my eyes forward, trying to keep myself focused on the dirt road before me. Though, even that was a struggle, as even the overcast morning's sun was bright enough to hurt my eyes.

The mercenaries and soldiers I marched alongside were in various states of grogginess. That is to say, some were absolutely fine, and energized for the day's march ahead of us. Others were less so.

And then there were the unlucky ones like me, who had all drank way too much last night, and were now regretting the fact that they ever existed. The cat's wail was a lot worse than I'd ever thought or hoped it'd be.

I tried to keep my mind focused on what was before me. On putting one foot in front of the other. On the several leagues of road ahead of us. On the fact that our winding path probably strayed pretty often, skirting back and forth between the kingdoms of Ken and Geofu.

Almost inevitably, my thoughts strayed. And when they did, they strayed to last night. To Diana.

I sighed again.

"Oh, come the fuck on," I heard Ryam mutter.

I didn't even know where to begin, as thoughts and emotions rushed through me like water through a river.

Last night, with her, everything felt right in the world.

And now here I was, confused and worried and feeling sorry for myself. The pounding headache and swirling stomach I'd woken up with weren't helping matters, either.

A part of me wished that, some way, somehow, I could have remained in Halem, instead of just disappearing in the morning, feeling like I'd just stolen something.

And another part wished that last night had never happened at all, insisting that it had been nothing but a mistake.

But that idea was untrue, and stupid, and just incredibly unfair to her.

But then again… I was making a lot of assumptions, wasn't I? I mean, I liked Diana. A lot. But, in truth, we'd hardly known each other before yesterday, so… What had last night even been? Did she feel the same about me as I felt about her?

I sighed again, rubbing at my face.

Gods, I really am thinking myself to death over this, aren't I?

I've spent so much time moping around and stressing over this, I felt as if I was some sort of lovesick teenager.

...Which, well, I suppose I technically am.

Abruptly, I felt something wet slam against my cheek. It didn't quite hurt, but it was definitely more than enough to shock me out of my thoughts. On the ground, by my feet, was an apple's core. And then standing just a few feet away was Ryam, with his arm still outstretched, and looking like he was just barely suppressing a smirk.

"Did… did you just…?"

"Damn right I did!" he yelled. "Now quit that!"

I folded my arms, trying—and likely failing—to scowl back. "Quit what? What're you even talking about?"

"That!" he shouted again, gesturing at me with both hands. "That damn brooding!"

"What? I- I'm not brooding!"

Ryam scoffed. "Oh, like hell you're not. You're just staring off into the distance, looking all constipated, like you're trying to do a massive shit," he spat. "How is that not brooding?"

"It's not. I'm not!" I shot back, honestly feeling more confused than anything else. "Even if I was, why do you care?"

"How could I not care? Fuck me, Red, if you could brood any harder, you'd curdle milk just by looking at it. Women would swoon as you pass, and men'll hang themselves to spare themselves of your damn misery."

I didn't know how to even begin responding to that. I shook my head, trying to defuse my annoyance. That turned out to be a mistake, as it just ended up making me feel even dizzier, so I stopped.

"Look, Ryam," I said, "I'm sorry if it's bothering you, but I've got a lot of things on my mind."

Ryam cocked his brow. "Yeah? Like what?"

I paused, unsure if I'd heard him correctly. "What?"

"Did I st-st-st-stutter?" he sneered back, rolling his eyes. But then, to my surprise, his expression switched from mocking to serious, almost sympathetic. "Just what the hell's eating at you so badly, Red?"

I hesitated for a moment. "Well, uh… last night, I… sort of…" I paused and took a breath, trying to find the right words to say.

"Just spit it out," he said.

"I- I slept with a girl last night," I blurted out, wincing at how awkward that sounded.

Ryam nodded and smiled slightly. "Alright, that's good for you, lad. But what's that got to do with it?"

"Whaddaya mean?"

"I mean, what's the issue? Did you not get to finish? Were ya pushing rope?"

"Pushing rope…?" I stared back at him, feeling more and more confused. "No, Ryam, that's exactly the problem. I mean, we'd just met, and we barely even know each other, and now I'm just…" I took in a breath, running a hand through my hair. "Gods, I'm just going back to Ken, as if nothing happened."

Ryam folded his arms and tilted his head, giving me a confused stare. "Okay…? Again, what's the problem here? You're not married, right? Just lay down and pump away. Not like the ladies complain about that," he said with a shrug.

My mouth dropped a little in astonishment at his casual dismissal. "What, just like that?"

"Yeah," Ryam nodded, "just like that. I mean shit, Red, sounds to me like you're fussing over nothing. You fall in love with this girl, or something?"

Yeah… I guess that was more or less the crux of it all, wasn't it? Again, my thoughts went back to the original question; What did I feel for Diana? Did I even feel anything at all for her? Was all that just the alcohol talking? Was last night just a brief lapse in judgement, brought on by the fun and the thrill of the night?

And then my mind was overwhelmed by memories of soft kisses and a warm embrace.

I couldn't be sure. And somehow, that unsettled me. I couldn't—

A piece of jerky bounced off my forehead.

"Hey!" I shouted, turning to Ryam.

He shrugged nonchalantly, giving me a look as if to say, 'And?'

"Would you stop throwing—"

We both froze, almost simultaneously, as we heard a loud crack from the treeline just beside the road, followed by another. The trees groaned and visibly shook as something moved along them, with slow, pounding steps. Everyone else around us, Black Hounds and Alliance soldiers alike, stopped and tensed up, letting their hands fall to their weapons, as whatever was beyond the trees approached.

The pounding steps grew louder, until it felt like all the world was beating against my eardrums.

The trees shook and shuddered as if in slow-motion, and out of them, something—No, someone, came.

Ghirem the mountain man strode out of the treeline, with a large dead deer sprawled out over his broad shoulders.

...And, uh, he must have lost his pants at some point, because he was no longer wearing them.

I'm pretty sure I could have lived a very long and fulfilling life without ever needing that particular image burned into my memory.

"What-ho, Red Ansel! Ryam!" Ghirem called out with a broad grin, as he spotted the two of us.

Everyone stood down and we sheathed our weapons. Though, none of us were exactly relaxed, even as we slowly resumed the march.

"Is… Where'd you even get that deer?" I asked, staring long and hard at the beast over Ghirem's shoulders.

"This is no deer," Ghirem casually said, as if he were discussing the weather. "'Tis an elk."

Yep. Because that definitely explained everything.

"An elk."

"Aye, a big one, too," Ghirem continued, his smile stretching further and further. "He was a tough beast to catch. Put up a good fight. I've been dragging him out of the forest since yesterday."

Me and Ryam continued to stare, caught somewhere between morbid curiosity and concern.

"Okay," Ryam cut in, "I'm just gonna end this one right here. Ghirem, please, for the love of fuck, go find yourself some pants. You're making it real hard to concentrate."

Ghirem stopped walking and glanced down at himself, with a curious expression that became one of honest surprise. "Ah," he said simply. "That would explain the breeze." He then looked to me again. "Reflect on my words, Red Ansel," he said. And with another hearty laugh, he spun on his heel, wandering off to… somewhere.

Ryam and I continued walking in silence in the wake of that.

"So, uh… Is that normal?"

Ryam shook his head, his eyes taking on a world-weary look. "Yeah, let's just not even talk about it."

"Works for me," I said, nodding back. "And, uh, thank you, by the way," I added.

Ryam looked back at me, confused. "Huh? What for?"

"For talking with me. I… I don't agree with a lot of what you said, Ryam. But I still appreciate it. You gave me a lot of perspective."

He kept staring at me for a moment, before shrugging and smiling back. "Yeah, sure. Don't worry about it, Ansel. Any time."

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A little after midday, the march came to a brief pause for luncheon.

I sat alongside a number of my Alliance comrades in a loose circle of rocks and fallen trees. The meal was simple, but it was tasty and filling. It consisted of flatbread, bacon, sausage, and some pieces of white cheese from Halem.

Some of the mercenaries and soldiers eyed Ghirem's elk with expectant, somewhat longing looks, but there just wasn't enough time to butcher, skin, clean, and cook it. So it'd have to wait until dinner, much later in the evening.

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Either way, I was grateful to have a break, however brief it was. I drained my whole waterskin with a single, large gulp. Apparently, that was supposed to help drain the alcohol out of my system. I still felt a bit lightheaded, but at least my headache was fading, so hopefully the rest would go with it soon.

I leaned back against the rock I was sitting on and stretched my back, popping a few knots and cracks. It'd been too long since I'd done any real exercise. My joints felt like they might crack if I made them do too much.

Slowly, I let my eyes shut for a bit, just enjoying the breeze and warmth of the sun.

"Hey, Shielders!" someone called out.

I opened my eyes, and saw a burly-looking mercenary walking towards our group, leading two horses with ropes. He came to a stop, looking over all of us, before his gaze came to a stop on me. "You Ansel?"

I nodded, quickly blinking my bleary eyes. I noticed that all the others were already standing, seemingly ready to start the march again.

Gods, had I fallen asleep?

"Perfect. Mount up," the Hound said. "Vault wants you riding up front with him."

"Me?" I asked. "Why?"

"Don't ask me, man," he said with a shrug. "I'm just here to escort you. I wouldn't keep him waiting if I was you."

I couldn't tell what to make of this, being summoned by the man himself. I'd expected that I'd just be footslogging it along with the rest of the soldiers and mercenaries, not in some sort of special position.

I stood up and started moving towards the offered horse, but stopped, eyeing it hesitantly. It wasn't like I didn't know how to ride one, but I'd never really had much experience doing so. And besides, with my stomach still upset, I wasn't exactly feeling confident in my abilities.

I looked at the rider with a shaky smile. "Can I just walk instead? I wouldn't wanna throw up all over the poor horse."

He gave me a blank, thoroughly unimpressed look. "Pssh, come on, fella," he said. "You ain't gonna throw up."

Still feeling hesitant, I nodded to him and mounted up.

"Alright, let's get going," he said, and began leading me forward.

And so I ended up leaving a trail of vomit all the way to the front of the column.

"Okay, I stand corrected," the mercenary said, with a weak chuckle. I'd have laughed along with him if I wasn't busy emptying the very depths of my stomach.

At the head of the column, I spotted Hicks and Keane, who greeted me with a nod, along with several other Hounds I didn't recognize.

And at the very forefront was Vault himself, mounted on a massive brown-spotted destrier.

"Yo. Here he is, boss," the mercenary said to him.

Vault turned his head and looked me over, his face expressionless.

"G-good morning, captain!" I stammered out a greeting.

To my surprise, everyone around me laughed, while Vault palmed his face with a groan.

"It's just Vault," he said. "None of that 'Captain' or 'Sir' shit."

"Uh, y-yes si— Vault. Okay."

He rolled his eyes, before motioning for me to fall in beside him. I did so, and the march resumed. We rode in silence for several long minutes. I almost wanted to ask him why he'd called for me, but I also didn't want to be rude. I decided to wait for him to speak first, however long that would take.

And so we rode.

The woodland eventually thinned out and came to an end. The borderland we now marched through was mostly flat, with only a few rolling hills. The grass was a vibrant green, and I couldn't help but notice how breathtaking it all was. I'd never really thought of myself as one for nature, but I guess I could appreciate why some people would call the wilderness their home.

I was so distracted by my thoughts, I almost missed Vault's question.

"What was that?" I asked, flustered.

"I asked how long you'd been with the army," he repeated, his tone even.

"Oh. Uh, I joined up when I was sixteen, so I'll be coming up on three years now."

Vault nodded, as if considering something. "And have you thought about it?"

I shifted uncomfortably in the saddle. Vault wasn't being hostile or aggressive or anything, but something about his demeanor was starting to put me on edge. "About what?" I asked.

He let out a laugh, turning to face me fully. "Come on, pup, don't play dumb. Will you be joining the Hounds?"

Dammit. There it was; The one question I'd been trying so hard to put off from my mind.

"We're always recruiting," Vault continued, unaware of my internal struggle. "But we especially welcome the strong. Those who can fight well." He grinned then, looking every bit as dauntless as he did the day of the battle. "Maybe even a guy who can single-handedly put down an aberrant chief. How's that sound, Red Ansel?"

I felt my heart start to race. A small, traitorous part of me almost wanted to ride off into the wilderness, escaping both options. But that would just be delaying the decision. And I couldn't let myself run away just because of it.

"I, uh…" I began, unsure of how to word my response.

I didn't want to sound ungrateful for the offer. I had friends in the Hounds. Comrades. But the same was true for the Alliance. Especially after everything that had happened, I couldn't just bring myself to leave it all behind.

"I—" I started again, but Vault cut me off with a nod, his expression unsurprised.

"Like I said, we're always recruiting. It's not a decision you have to make now," he said.

I let out a breath, feeling myself relax somewhat.

Vault reached into a pouch on his saddle, fishing around for something. After a moment, he pulled out his hand and flicked it, tossing something towards me.

I reflexively brought up my hands to catch it, but it was small and my reflexes were clumsy. It slipped through my fingers and bounced off my chest before landing on my lap. It was a small, steely-gray badge, with the snarling dog emblem of the Black Hounds at its center.

"Maybe not today, and maybe not tomorrow," Vault said. "But we'll make a Hound out of you yet, puppy." With that, he nudged his horse forward.

I frowned, but slipped the badge into a pocket, and followed after him.

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Roughly twelve days later, the fortress Ken became visible on the horizon. It took us yet another day before we arrived, late in the afternoon.

The fortress was surrounded by high walls on all sides, a half dozen towers standing at the four corners of the walls, small watchtowers dotting the wall tops. Beyond them, I could just barely make out the buildings inside

The gates to the fortress were wide open for our arrival, with several guards standing at the sides. I was surprised when I noticed that a large portion of the guards outside were women in distinctive silver-gleaming armor.

I turned to Hicks and Keane, who were riding beside me. "Those women; are they the Dawn Templars?"

Keane raised an eyebrow at my question. "Shouldn't you know that already?"

I shrugged and tapped at my temple, feeling somewhat sheepish. "Well, some parts are still a bit foggy."

He chuckled, shaking his head. "They are. The church's very own knightly order, tasked with protecting the goddess reborn." He threw me a sideways glance. "Ringing any bells yet?"

"Ringing lots of bells," I said. "Though, what are they doing in Ken? The White Citadel's in Geofu, isn't it?"

"Eh," Keane shrugged. "Your guess is as good as mine, Ansel."

I let the matter drop, and we entered the fortress itself. I could feel the sheer size of the place as we rode through the streets, flanked by buildings on either side.

The streets bustled with people going about their business. Some paid attention to us, but most didn't. A few stopped and stared for a moment, but shook it off and went back about their days.

After nearly another half hour of travel, we came to a halt before a large, oblong building, with several smaller buildings around it. The central structure featured two tall towers at its front, with large flags at their tops, and a large walkway surrounding the entire thing.

"Well, this is as far as you go, Shielder," Hicks said, patting me on the shoulder.

I was confused for a brief moment, before I realized that these were the military's barracks. I got off the horse with a nod, handing the reins to Hicks.

From the corner of my eye, I saw the rest of the Alliance soldiers walk up, along with some more of the Hounds. I spotted Reese and Young Edd among them.

"So you guys aren't gonna stick around, then?"

"Chyeah, long enough to get paid," he said. "After that, we're off to the next job." He chuckled. "No rest for the wicked, and all that."

I nodded. That made sense; there was always a battle to be fought. There was no telling where or when the Legion would attack next, so both the Hounds and the Alliance had to stay on their toes. In fact, I'm sure I'll likely see another combat action before too long.

I turned to the rest of the Hounds, giving them a small smile. "It was good to meet you guys," I said honestly, not wanting to hold back. "Hopefully we'll meet again."

There was a brief silence, before they all burst out laughing. And then suddenly, I was placed in a headlock. Again. "Oh come on!" I grunted out.

Hicks chuckled and rapped his knuckles through my hair from atop his horse. "Hey, you still have that badge, don't ya?" he asked. "You hold on to that, and you'll meet us whenever you damn well please, Red." With that, he released me and let me move away.

"The Hounds'll welcome you with open arms, lad," Fat Edd said, giving my back a hearty clap as he walked by.

The rest of the Hounds continued to laugh, moving on to join the rest of the free company. Save for one.

I turned to Young Edd, who stayed beside me. "Edd? Everything okay?"

He started, almost looking startled. "Yeah," he nodded. "It's just…" He trailed off, rubbing at the back of his head somewhat bashfully. "I didn't get a chance to say it before, but… Thank you, Ansel," he said. "I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for you. So I owe you—"

I cut him off with a shake of my head. "You don't owe me anything, Edd," I said, smiling. "It's what friends are for, right?"

Edd's eyes widened for a moment, surprised, before he smiled back. "Yeah. I guess you're right."

"And, hey," I continued, "if you're ever in Ken again, look me up; I'll buy you a drink yeah?"

Edd smirked at that. "You sure that's a good idea?" And then he laughed at my responding grimace. "Don't go doing anything stupid, you hear?"

"How can I? You're taking all the stupid with you."

We both shared a laugh at that, and firmly shook hands. With that, Edd turned and ran to catch up with the rest of the Hounds.

I watched them all leave, before turning around and entering the barracks alongside the rest of the soldiers.