by Brian Keller
After considering what Cooper had said, Utsef asked, “You haven’t learned weapons except those blades? They must be saving that for later, if you survive the forest. You should’ve covered some of those weapons before coming here. Has the curriculum changed?” Cooper shook his head, “Sir, I think I’m to blame for that. I guess we were sent here before we could be taught. Because of an idea I had, and they followed my lead...” His teacher inquired, “So you were sent here early as a punishment, or to save you from repercussions? Is there anything I should know?” Cooper replied, “I can’t think of a reason why you shouldn’t.” Cooper related the story of how they’d hunted and killed the Dregs boys and the flurry of activity that preceded their arrival to the forest. Utsef had listened without any change in expression. When Cooper had finished, Utsef offered a couple thoughts, “That was a foolish thing to do. And the two of you are not as prepared as you should be because of it, I’ll need to expand my lesson plan to get the both of you caught up. Darts are quick and easy. We’ll start with them in a couple of days.” Cooper easily accepted the teacher’s decisions but still wondered, “In a day or two, sir?” Utsef nodded, “For the next couple of days, you boys need to focus on moving through the trees. The unfortunate part for you, personally, is the fact that you’ll be learning these skills at this time in your life… well, gaining speed through Manifestation changes everything you think you know about movement. After Manifesting, it’s like learning to walk all over again.”
Over the next several days, the boys began to learn a great many new things. Moving silently in the forest was not as difficult as they’d originally feared, but there were certainly more factors to consider in the forest than in the city. Originally, they’d thought that it would also be much easier to be unseen, since the myriad of trees and smaller plants caused visibility to be limited. Utsef taught them why that wasn’t necessarily the case, “Those men that we nearly walked up on when we first arrived, at first I didn’t notice their presence, but the wildlife did. The fact that wild animals shied away from us was normal, but the fact that they absolutely avoided going near where those men were told me that something was there, something out of place. Hiding in the city at night is simple. Remain silent and find an adequate shadow. Hiding in the city during daylight is more difficult. It becomes a matter of blending in, of creating the minimum disturbance. In the city, you can remain hidden, regardless of whether you’re moving or not, as long as whatever you do blends. The forest is similar in this way. To hide from a person, you must find the patterns of the forest and move with them. For anyone that cannot, to the rest of us they appear to stumble about as a clumsy child. When you can approach a wild animal in the forest and it does not flee, you know you have accomplished this.”
Darts and throwing knives were comparatively simple. For the boys, weapons were a straightforward matter. Not completely devoid of complications, but certainly more predictable. Utsef had hung a large target from a tree for archery, dart and throwing knife training. The target was essentially a large rug made of woven straw then covered in leather. The boys would move back and forth in front of the target and without warning Utsef would call out “Now!” and depending on which weapon they had in hand, the boys were expected to respond without interrupting their movement. This was good training, and often provided a source of amusement, but initially it was frustrating with the amount of time lost while trying to find arrows, knives, and darts from under the leaves and branches behind the target.
Their days were spent on more than just archery. In fact, most of their time was spent moving through the woods, and not just on the ground. Utsef showed them how to identify hand and footholds on trees to help them climb. He also showed them how to use spikes strapped to their legs or specialized cleats for their feet to make climbing easier. They learned to move from tree to tree, during which time Cooper was happy to have ‘mastered’ the Contraption in Master Brais’ Arena. Each day, as light began to fade, Utsef would bring the boys back to camp site, everyone would do their part in setting up camp, and then blade, thrown weapon, and archery training would commence. Oftentimes the training would last for several hours, and they ended up practicing by firelight.
After a few weeks of this, Utsef demonstrated how to juggle. As he demonstrated, he explained, “It is important for your hands and eyes to work in tandem. It’s also important that you maintain constant awareness of everything around you, regardless of your activity. Juggling will help with both. This will also prepare you for an additional wrinkle we’ll soon be adding to your combat training. Every opportunity when you are not actively training, eating or sleeping, should be spent juggling.” He handed three metal spikes to both of the boys, “These are what you will juggle.”
For Kolrem, juggling came easily. Using Manifested speed he could fall behind and still get his hand in position to catch a pin. The challenge for Kolrem was to use the speed only in the catching and not in the throwing. Cooper became somewhat proficient as long as he remained focused. This wouldn’t be a problem normally, but lately he kept thinking that he was seeing something from the corner of his eye. Yet, every time he turned to see what it was, there was nothing out of the ordinary to be seen. It was difficult to try learning to juggle while distracted.
The boys also learned, sometimes only by error, that some plants yielded good fiber for making cord, and others were absolutely useless. Still others appeared to be useful, but the fibers used to make a cord fell apart at the first exposure to moisture. The boys learned this firsthand when it became necessary to tie their equipment in bundles so they could cross a fast moving river. It took them all afternoon to recover their belongings after the bindings on the bundles disintegrated.
Over the next two months, Utsef would never let them remain in one campsite for more than three consecutive days, and usually only for two. Cooper wasn’t sure he understood the reasoning, but he felt certain that it was some kind of precaution. They’d become much more skilled in moving undetected during both day and night. Each of them could sneak up on the other easily. Though Utsef was not so easily approached, even their teacher had to admit they were improving dramatically. On one windy afternoon, Cooper and Kolrem were hunting each other and an ‘out of place’ movement caught Cooper’s eye. He was certain that it wasn’t Kolrem, he was pretty sure he knew where Kolrem was, or at least his vicinity, and this movement was taking place a fair distance in a different direction. Cooper moved up into the trees for a better look. Once he was about fifteen feet above the ground he looked again. This time, a movement where he suspected Kolrem to be caught his attention. Kolrem was in a tree waving at him. Kolrem then pointed to his own eyes and then in the direction of the movement Cooper had seen a few minutes earlier. Cooper nodded to let Kolrem know that he’d seen it too. As Cooper moved along a thick limb, he could see some movement that didn’t blend in, “Just as Utsef described.”, Cooper thought. Cooper waited a moment and soon could tell that there were people walking carefully through the forest. Cooper got Kolrem’s attention and gave him a hand sign indicating that it was ‘people walking’. Kolrem signed back that he thought there may be four to six people. He then signed for Cooper to stay and watch, and that he’d go back to tell Utsef. Cooper nodded and moved to a neighboring tree to keep these newcomers in sight.
Within twenty minutes, Cooper heard a squirrel chittering off to his right. Except it wasn’t a squirrel. It was Utsef announcing his arrival. The teacher held a hand up telling Cooper to stay in place, then Utsef moved off silently in the direction of the intruders. Kolrem climbed a tree near Cooper and waited. A few minutes later, Utsef returned, directed the boys to climb down and then led them back along the trail that the men had taken. He spoke quietly with the boys while he began stringing a cord across the trail to a nearby tree. Within the next fifteen minutes Utsef placed three traps across the trail. Each of them different and the last one was so obvious that Cooper considered mentioning something. He decided against it, since it w
as apparent that Utsef knew what he was doing. He positioned the two boys a little further down the trail and told the boys that he’d be leading the men back towards them. He added, “It’s likely that one or two of them won’t follow me directly. They’ll move off to the sides in an effort to flank me once I face one or two of the others. That’s where the two of you come in. It’s likely that they’ll have bows. I doubt they’d have come if they didn’t. Try to kill them before they’re able to hit me. It would look poorly on your performance if you were to allow your teacher to be killed today.” Cooper asked, “You’re just going to try and lead them back down the trail?” Utsef nodded, “There are six men. They are here for me, and they know nothing about you. I plan to shoot one or two initially. That should get them to chase me. They’ve already been down this trail within the last hour. It was safe at that time, and it’ll feel familiar to them. That should allow two of them to fall to the traps. The last trap should provide enough distraction for me to get close and dispatch one of them. Assuming that I kill at least one as I get their attention, and two of them go off the trail to the sides, that should leave only one on the trail for me to face, and one for each of you to attack by surprise. If all goes as I expect, I should be able to assist at least one of you before it’s all done. Anything unclear?” Kolrem shook his head. Cooper gave him a quick wink as he said, “Just the part about why they’re here for you. But that isn’t so important right now.” Utsef gave him a brief withering look, then grinned, “Keep in mind. These men are warriors. And they’ve Manifested. We don’t know abilities, so just assume they’re fast. Alright. Cooper, you find a good spot near the tree with the dying limb, over there. Kolrem, on the other side, near that forked, twisted elm tree.” Utsef chuckled once as he glanced over the boys, “Ok then. I’ll be right back.”
Cooper had found a spot where he had a limited view but was well concealed. He had a handful of darts and had pushed his hood back. As he crouched, he let his jaw hang slightly slack. Utsef had taught him that this would allow him to hear a little better. Cooper didn’t understand why it worked, but his teacher was right.
It was a few minutes later when Cooper started hearing some shouts of surprise and cries of pain, or dying. Soon he saw Utsef’s blurred form come into view, then his teacher’s outline became clearer as he spun around and launched another arrow. Utsef didn’t wait to watch the arrow fly, he simply released and ran again. There was an accompanying cry of pain and alarm. His teacher quickly bypassed the traps and then turned with another arrow already nocked. Cooper tore his eyes away and began watching the area around him, in case there was an archer working his way around from the side. Cooper heard a sharp swish and thunk that signaled one of the men reaching the first trap, then another man called out, “Traps! He’s set tr-!” Utsef interrupted him with an arrow. From the gurgling noise that followed, Cooper suspected he’d been shot in the neck. Cooper divided his attention, focusing mostly on his surroundings but occasionally glancing in Utsef’s direction to keep track of his movements. Utsef had moved off the trail a couple of steps and crouched down. After listening for a few seconds, the teacher stood up and looked in Cooper’s direction. He held up one finger and signaled that the man had run off. He gestured that Cooper should stay where he was, then turned and mirrored the same gestures to Kolrem before quickly stalking back along the trail in pursuit. Cooper waited a few minutes before he stood and went over to Kolrem, “I guess the last guy didn’t like his odds against Utsef once he was all by himself.” Kolrem nodded, “Looks that way, but can you blame the guy? I wonder who they are, and why they’re after Utsef?” Cooper shook his head, “No point in wondering right now. I’ll start cleaning up here. You keep watch.” It took most of an hour to break down the traps and collect everything. Cooper had stripped the bodies and strained against the weight as he tried dragging one of them off the trail. He caught a flash of something light-colored at the edge of his vision. He immediately released the body and dropped into a crouch, thinking the last man might have somehow evaded Utsef and doubled back. As he took his first step, he realized he’d already drawn his daggers. He stalked around the tree where he thought he’d seen movement but as he circled it there was nothing to be seen. He remained crouched as he studied his surroundings. He felt certain that he should’ve heard something move if anything had actually been there and he silently teased himself about being so jumpy. He returned to the bodies and tried to drag them but simply wasn’t strong enough.
Cooper finished gathering the invader’s belongings and he’d returned to sit near Kolrem. The boys had been sitting and listening for almost an hour when they saw Utsef coming back up the trail. The boys stepped out to join him. Cooper and Kolrem were carrying and dragging most of the items Cooper had scavenged. Utsef greeted them with a short wave, then looked around, “We’ll need to move the bodies off the trail.” Cooper looked a little embarrassed, “I tried, sir. Those guys are big. They’re too heavy for me by myself.” It took a few minutes, but soon all the bodies were concealed by the forest.
Chapter 21
As they returned to the camp site, Utsel directed them, “Pick everything up. We’re moving again.” Nothing more was said until a few hours later when they’d arrived at their new site and the boys started hanging up hammocks. Utsef nearly had the wood stacked for the fire when he started speaking, “If hunters continue coming here, then you boys are at risk too. You’re getting dragged into a situation that is almost two decades old.” The boys finished up and joined him. Once the fire started to catch, Utsef leaned back and watched the flames as they fed and grew larger. Cooper didn’t want to press. Utsef would say more about it, or he wouldn’t.
Utsef waited until the meat was cooking before he spoke again, “I was born in the Broken Lands to the north and our customs are very different from yours. I am the third son of a mighty warlord. For generations, my father’s tribe and another had been at war. It was what we call a Blood Feud. This could be a very long story, but explaining a few important points should be enough to help you understand. In order for there to be peace between the tribes, a few things must happen: a wedding and two killings. I was not the son destined to be married. My oldest brother was to remain with the tribe, to be my father’s heir. The second oldest was to be married to the eldest daughter of the other warlord. I’ve met her, his fate was almost worse than mine.” Utsef chuckled at the memory then resumed his tale, “I am pretty sure you can already see where this is going. I was to be ‘given’ to the other tribe for execution, just as one of that warlord’s sons was to be handed over to my father. Our blood was to wash away the anger and the wedding was to heal the wounds. I did not stay. It appears the tribes may be united without my blood, since the men today are from both tribes. Perhaps they seek my blood to finalize the peace, or perhaps simply because my departure was an insult to our traditions. Either way, I am hunted.”
The boys remained silent for a few minutes. Then Kolrem spoke, “You were a warlord’s son… that’s like a prince, right?” Utsef grunted, almost a chuckle, “I suppose it is.” Kolrem nodded, “So it isn’t just the poor kids who have problems then, is it?” At this Utsef laughed out loud. He laughed hard enough that his shoulders shook. He quickly recovered and replied, “No, Kolrem, the poor are not the only ones with problems.” Even after speaking he continued to chuckle for a few seconds. As his laughter died down Cooper began to speak about his mother and father. The few happy memories that he could vaguely recall and then some of what happened after. Right up to the killing of Egil and the bitterness he felt about not being the one to kill him.
Utsef could hear the venom in Cooper’s words. He stared into the fire until Cooper had finished speaking before he spoke again, “My grandfather was a great man. He was trying to unite the clans, and nearly succeeded. This is something that has never happened in our history and I doubt anyone will ever get so close again. I remember a time when I was so angry with my father. It was long enough ago that I would have
to try to remember what I was so angry about, but I do remember this… My grandfather took me over to a cooking fire and sat me down. He actually pushed me down to make me sit and listen to him. Then he told me a story. He said, “There are two beasts within every man. One lives off good thoughts like love, hope and charity. The other lives off hate, rage and jealousy.” Then he asked me, “If a beast grows strong enough, it can overpower the other one and control the man. Do you know how a beast grows stronger?” I told him that I didn’t. He then told me, “You feed it”. Cooper considered this for a few minutes, then spoke his mind, “I think a balance is important, but it might be difficult to feed them both.” Utsef’s smile seemed to indicate that he understood, but his eyes held mostly sadness.
Cooper was recalling the many lessons Utsef had heaped upon them in the few months since he and Kolrem arrived in the forest. Rendering hide and animal fat to make glue produced the worst stench he’d ever experienced in his life. Or at least it surely seemed that way. Selecting the ‘perfect’ pieces of wood to carve into the layers for their bows was a process that spanned more than ten days. Once carved out, they stacked them up as instructed and used the glue to bond the layers of wood. They then wrapped cord as tightly as they could manage along the entire length, often working together, one holding the wood while the other wrapped the cord. Utsef insisted that the wrapping was as important a step as the selection of the wood itself. It took a few days before the glue had cured, but once it had they began the painstaking process of carving a little, then heating and bending, then rebinding it to the shape they needed before carving again. In this manner, spending an hour or two each day, it took a few months to produce an ‘adequate’ bow.
The teacher’s true purpose for insisting they learn to juggle had become apparent within the first month after he’d insisted on it. The boys each excelled in dual handed fighting and Utsef demanded that they incorporate darts, throwing knives and small nets into their close combat repertoire. As they sparred with Utsef, he would deliberately leave himself open to a short range attack. This vulnerability would be outside their reach, so a thrown weapon was the weapon of choice. Whenever the boys observed a vulnerability they could exploit, Utsef expected them to decide which hand would be their intended throwing hand, toss that fighting blade into the air, or catch it with their non-throwing hand and hold both blades, then draw and fling a dart or dagger into the target hanging from the tree, then recover the blade they’d tossed and resume sparring. It took some practice and resulted in more than a few lacerated fingers. It was on those occasions it became apparent that Utsef was well versed as an Apothecary as well. His healing ointments and draughts worked, extremely well in fact. This prompted Cooper to ask, “Sir, you’re not just a teacher, are you?” Utsef’s brows pulled together, “I’m not sure I understand your question?” Cooper felt self-assured, “You’re an Assassin, aren’t you?” Utsef laughed, “Well, of course I am! What did you think? The Guild would put someone that wasn’t as Assassin out here to teach you these skills?!” Cooper felt frustrated, “Well then, sir, you must either be an Adept or a Master!” Utsef stopped laughing, “Well, I suppose that’s true. What difference could that possibly make?” Cooper didn’t know how to answer that, but he felt confident he’d think of something.
