“What are those?” the stranger whispered as Remi swallowed.
“They’re from Cimmerian. Strays. They feed on people to extend their lives. The closer they are to death, the hungrier they get.”
“They look like dogs…but scarier.”
“They are. But I wouldn’t try rubbing their bellies.” Remi gripped the blanket around her. She didn’t want to show them fear, for like animals they could sense it in a victim, and that would just make them want to attack all the more. But it wasn’t the attack that she was afraid of.
It was taking the life of any creature.
Unbeknownst to all but Olivia, she was the only one in their town to successfully take down one of the Hounds. They were built like bloodhounds but as stocky as pitbulls. They had massive shoulders and jaws as wide as an alligator’s with the teeth to match. Their eyes were beady and drool poured from their mouths as if it came from a pitcher. Their bodies trembled for the blood they smelled as if they were addicted to it, and all they needed was a reason to advance. A twitch of their prey’s arms. A movement of their legs. All they needed was the opportunity to begin the chase.
“Listen,” Remi whispered. “There’s three of them, so we’ll have to focus on one at a time. I need you to hold your hounds back until I can get to them.”
“What?” the stranger scoffed, on the line of ridicule. “These dogs aren’t threats. Step back and watch what I can do.”
“If you want to die, go ahead,” Remi replied. “Have you faced one of these before?”
“No, but—”
“—I don’t care who you are. These hounds are tricky. Even a Sage could fall by one of them.”
“What?” he asked in disbelief, though his voice was lower than before. “Even a Sage?”
“I’m just being honest,” she said as the hounds started growing tired of waiting. They stretched their paws forward cautiously, searching for the weakest prey. Remi coughed and caught their attention. They extended their heads toward the ground as their eyes fixed upon her.
That’s it, she thought to herself. Just stay on me. Ignore them.
One of the hounds decided to take a chance. It lunged toward Remi’s small throat, sure of its victory, but Remi had already unsheathed her eidolon from beneath her wool blanket. Throwing the blanket aside, she pivoted to the right and allowed the hound’s momentum to propel it through her blade, cutting it in two. The other two hounds were thrown into a frenzy as they began running in circles around the three of them. Remi kept her falchion steady as Olivia readied her own blade. Remi noticed that her friend was heating up the blade from her grip on the hilt and she smiled at her cleverness. It was almost like Olivia was creating her own makeshift eidolon. The stranger, however, wasn’t going to be much help at all. He was still standing around like an idiot with his blade sheathed, staring hard at Remi’s eidolon.
“Wake up!” Remi shouted and he jumped from the abruption in the silence. The remaining two hounds charged her and Olivia, but they had learned from the deceased’s mistakes. They didn’t jump in the air. Instead they kept their bodies low to the ground like a snake, darting in to nip at their legs and then speed out before they could be swiped at.
Remi grunted as she received another bite on her ankle. She hadn’t even seen the animal move, and now she could feel her feet beginning to swell. She didn’t know if they had poison in their saliva, but it probably didn’t matter. The loss of blood would be more than enough to take her down in the end.
“This is getting old!” Olivia shouted as one of the hounds pulled her back by the ankle. She swung at it but it had already put some distance between them. The stranger finally came out of his daze as one of the hounds decided to take a chunk out of his calf.
“NO!” he screamed in agony as the hound leapt away from his attempt to slap it. The stranger growled and put his hand to his right hip when all of a sudden one of the hounds leapt up and latched onto his throat. Remi threw caution aside and came to his aid, hoping that Olivia would be able to take care of the last hound herself.
Remi cut through the hound at the stranger’s throat and it’s jaw went slack, hanging from his neck like an accessory. The stranger grunted as he took a hold on the hound’s mouth and thrust it off of him. Remi heard a yelp and she spun around to see Olivia delivering the final blow to the last hound’s head—a downward thrust.
“We need to check the other end,” Remi breathed heavily, feeling her adrenaline dying down. Olivia nodded and began heading to the other side, leaving her and the stranger together. Not that she thought the intruder was much of a threat anymore. The hound hadn’t been on him long, but there was a deep puncture in his throat from where each of its teeth had sunk in. The stranger couldn’t breathe well and his eyes were beginning to well up with tears. She wasn’t sure if it was because of the pain or the fact that he almost died.
“I got you,” she said, trying to pull him up to his feet. After the first pull, she knew that it was going to be impossible without his assistance. “We need to get to the infirmary. They have antibiotics there. We should probably both get some for these wounds.”
“Eckard,” he replied. Was it another language he was trying to speak in?
“I don’t understand what you’re saying,” she replied. “Come on. Help me help you.”
“Name is Eckard,” he whispered, forcing his legs to carry his weight. She tried to put his arm over her shoulder but he weighed too much. Giving up on trying tocarry him, she let him walk behind her as she kept an eye on their surroundings.
“Don’t try to talk too much,” she said as she examined each house from roof to porch. So far, it looked like only a few hounds had gotten in. Not too surprising since they couldn’t have smelled too many people inside. They must have been really hungry.
“I’m from Paragon,” he said from behind her, and she was too shocked to scold him. She fought the urge to face him for she knew they would stop in their tracks and inevitably begin a conversation. Both actions could wait until they were sure that they would survive.
“We’ll talk in a moment,” she said as they continued up the main dirt road. Eventually, she stopped in front of a house that looked exactly the same as the others. Nothing important was labeled in their town and she supposed it was smart to a degree. If anyone came to steal from them, it would sure be an adventure trying to find the right goods.
“Where are we,” he rasped and she shushed him. She pointed to one of the cots that had a somewhat clean sheet and motioned for him to sit on it as she opened the panel cabinets. She rummaged through the little wooden boxes and peeked under the lids until she found what she was looking for. It might not be the most appropriate medicine for the wound, but at least she could identify these particular herbs. She knew they sped up the healing process on cuts and soothed the burning.
Without asking him, she took a few of the leaves, rubbed them between her hands until they were practically ground up into dust, and then she pressed it up against Eckard’s throat. She had seen her parents put water on their hands before grounding up the leaves but she didn’t want to dilute the effects.
Eckard winced and closed his eyes. He leaned back on the cot and took deep breaths as she retrieved a few more leaves and applied them tenderly to the bite on his leg. After a few more leaves were put onto his neck she took care of herself. Her parents would have disapproved for sure, saying that she should have kept her life in mind first.
Or maybe not.
Maybe they would have found a brand new warrior to groom in Eckard. It was hard to say.
“Thank you,” Eckard whispered as she finished with her legs. She stared at him as he gave her a smile. “You didn’t have to do that.”
“I know,” she replied. “But how else am I going to find out what you’re doing here?”
He laughed. “Well, that’s true.”
“So? Why are you here?”
“I was looking for new recruits.”
“For a town li
ke mine? Need new members for your raid group?”
“No, not at all,” he said, pressing a hand against his neck. Remi shook her head.
“Don’t touch it. Let it work.”
“Fine,” he sighed, putting his hand back down. He grit his teeth and glanced back at Remi. “Like I said, I come from Paragon. There’s no raid groups there. No point. We have everything we need.”
“Then why do you need recruits? Paragon is a long way from here.”
“The recruits are for the Sages.” He searched her eyes for awe or surprise, but he found none. “Of course…it seems that doesn’t impress you.”
“I think you know why.”
“Yes,” he replied, staring straight into her eyes. “Because you are one.”
“I’m no Sage. I can manifest my soul into eidolon. Just like you. That doesn’t make me a Sage.”
“Where I come from it does.”
“Then the Sages aren’t anything to be impressed about,” she huffed, looking around for her blanket. Remembering that it was still in the dirt road, she ripped a sheet from a cot behind her and wrapped it around her shoulders. It didn’t provide much warmth, but it would do for now.
“If you met them you wouldn’t think so.”
“Can they do more than use an eidolon?”
“Not too much more. But that’s not the point. It’s not what weapons you have at your disposal but how you use them.”
“Okay,” she said, turning back to the cabinets to see if there was anything else they could use. She had already used more herbs than she was allowed so there was no turning back now. Besides, Olivia still needed to be treated.
“You’re right,” he replied, jumping off the cot. “There is more to a Sage than the weapon they yield. They wouldn’t be held in such high regard if that was the case. You have to admit though…I must be strong if I was able to make it all the way down here on my own.”
“Not that strong,” she replied, glancing at his neck. He smiled and chuckled a little.
“You were right. The hounds weren’t what I expected. I underestimated them.”
“Why are you talking to me like a salesman?” she asked, turning back to the cabinets.
“What do you mean?”
“You’re being so nice to me. Complimenting me. Making small talk and borderline flirting. What’s your game? You can’t possibly be trying to sell me on joining the Sages.”
“Perhaps I’m just grateful you saved my life.”
“I hope that’s it,” she said with a shiver. “Because I have no intention of going with you anywhere. And especially if it’s to join the Sages—if they even exist.”
“Oh, they exist.”
“Sages are fairy tales told by my people. Maybe one of their grandparents released their eidolon or something similar long ago, and as a result it became a legend. I believe you that there are others out there that can release their eidolon. I’ve done it and so have you. But what I don’t believe is that they are a group of legendary warriors beyond my imagination, just waiting for the war to start so that they could swiftly end it. And most of all, I definitely don’t believe that they would want me on their side.”
“Why not?”
“You have an eidolon,” she said, nodding toward him. “And so you know some of the things it can do. Break down the composition of living things. Evaluate threats. Enhance your senses.”
“Yes, I know.”
“Then you had to have sensed my weakness.”
“I…” His face dropped. “You’re sick.”
“I am. But of the permanent kind. Had it since birth. It’s a miracle that I’m still alive today.”
“What is it?”
“No one knows. They’ve tried everything though. Nothing gets rid of it though. It’s like there’s a parasite inside of my body that’s eating me just slightly faster than my cells can heal it. Some days I feel okay, but most of the time I’m exhausted and cold. I sleep longer than any human being should and it’s hard for me to keep on weight. And that’s just the top of the mountain. There’s a whole host of problems on the climb down.”
“And yet, despite all of that, you were able to release your eidolon. Some would say that’s pretty impressive.”
“Or it shows just how easy it is for someone to do it if they put their mind to it.”
“You’re not giving yourself enough credit,” he said, crossing his arms. “Do you know anything about eidolons? Like the fact that it’s tied to your will? You wouldn’t be able to form one unless you have the willpower, and that says a lot about your state of mind. You may be in a lot of pain, but you’ve withstood the suffering. You’re not broken.”
“Not yet,” she replied, shutting the cabinets hard. She turned to face him and he tried his best not to pity her. He was sure she had seen plenty of that throughout her life.
“Believe it or not, you’re the first one I’ve found that I felt confident enough in extending an invitation to. You should be honored.”
“You have the wrong person.”
“Don’t you want to see Paragon? It’s more beautiful than you could ever dream of.”
“I’m sure.”
“Then why are you so reluctant to even think about my offer? Is it leaving family and friends that you’re worried about?”
“No, I hate this place, and Olivia would come with me if I asked her. I have family…but as far as I’m concerned, I have no family…if that makes sense.”
“Then what is it?”
“Up until now I’ve only had to take care of myself, and that’s taken up more than enough time. I train for fun, but it’s nothing serious. There is real danger out there, and I’m not afraid to die. I’ve been hand in hand with death since birth…but I am afraid of getting someone else killed. Because I can’t protect them.”
“The Sages can take care of themselves. And you saved my life today.”
“But that was against the hounds. You’re asking me to go out into the world, where Paragon and Cimmerian are on the brink of war, and I’m supposed to train with an outfit that will be on the frontlines. I can’t be depended on like that, and it’s not for lack of trying. I might be fighting side by side with you one day and all of a sudden, I faint. Could be due to exhaustion. Could be because my illness is acting up. But I could faint, and get killed. Or I’m not there to back up one of our teammates, or worse…a friend…or someone I fell in love with. No, I’d rather just—”
“—lay down and die?” he finished for her. Remi clenched her jaw and took a deep breath.
“That’s not how I see it.”
“But that’s what you’re doing. Doesn’t matter what way you say it. That’s what you’re doing.”
“I could be dead tomorrow.”
“You could have been dead on arrival. But you’re not. It doesn’t mean you won’t survive a year, but at least before you go, you could see what the worlds have to offer. I didn’t have to be here today, but I was. And you didn’t have to save my life, but you did. And now I’m offering you a chance to see Paragon. There’s no telling what you will see and experience, and it might even give you the strength and will to fight on for many more years to come. Here…living in this place…you know what you’re going to get. How many more years will it be before you just give up?”
Remi didn’t have an answer for him.
“Listen, I should really get some rest before I head back out. Especially if those hounds are still out there. When will the raid group be back?”
“Not tonight,” she whispered. Eckard was the one who had been bit in the throat, yet she felt like hers was on fire.
“Mind if I just lay here on this cot for a few hours? We could talk some more if you like.”
“Sure,” she whispered again. Without realizing it, she took the cot next to him and lay down as well. As soon as her head rested on her hands, she could feel her body relaxing. She had outdone herself.
“I haven’t convinced you of leaving yet, have I?”
he asked.
“Not yet,” she said quietly.
“Well then, what do you want to know about Paragon? Maybe I can persuade you.”
“Everything,” she yawned. He smirked and started talking about all of the things he had seen.
Chapter 3 – Paragon/Paradise
She awoke a couple hours later—to the voices of Olivia and Eckard talking, and the stagnant musk of mold and wet boards. It must have rained recently. She pushed herself to a sitting position and they cut their conversation short. Eckard was still sitting on the cot next to her and Olivia was at the edge of Remi’s, swinging her legs back and forth.
“How long was I out?” Remi asked.
“Not too long,” Olivia replied. “You probably needed it.” Remi’s eyes fell on her friend’s legs, bandaged up and smelling like alkoote herbs.
“I’m so sorry,” Remi replied, realizing that she had forgotten all about treating her.
“Don’t worry about it. I’m a big girl.”
“Still,” she said, glancing over at Eckard. “Did I fall asleep while you were talking?”
“Nope. Before that.”
“So embarrassing,” she muttered, wiping a hand down her face.
“You didn’t miss much,” Olivia replied. “Eckard was just telling me about the trek here. There’s not a whole lot of people on Terra.”
“Ever since Paragon and Cimmerian came into play,” Eckard continued for her, clearing his throat, “there has been a great migration to one or the other. Some are looking for purpose. Others for adventure. Many seek protection or distance from their perceived enemies. Either way, it’s made my job a lot harder. That’s for sure. It seems like everyone’s already made their choice as far as where they’re staying.”
“Not Remi,” Olivia blurted out. “She’s been looking for a way to leave this place for years.”
The Last War (Book #9 of the Sage Saga) Page 17
