Svae headed to her regiment and told her captains that she was going on leave. She put Captain Halton in charge while she was gone. She left her area and went in search of Captain Alana Pervis. She was stationed at Winn’s division command center. When Svae found her, she was in an office filling out paperwork. Svae had not seen her since the news came out about Winn and Jaunty being captured by the Menegar. Alana did not look well. Her skin was pale, and she looked like she was ill.
Svae leaned against her door frame and knocked on the open door.
“Hi Alana, you don’t look so good.”
“Svae,” Alana said excitedly. “How nice to see a friendly face.” She got up and hugged Svae. Svae was a head taller than Alana but Alana was a little broader in the shoulders and hips.
“To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?” Alana asked. “I know you have been busy preparing for the coming war, as have I.”
“Actually, I was just given leave. I am here to see if you want some leave as well.”
“I do need to take some time to deal with my grief. I can barely function. I am sure my temporary commanding officer wouldn’t grant it. He is a complete arse.”
“I have been given the authority to grant leave to the heroes of the Battle of Tolevo Rise, but there is a catch. Can we talk in here? Is it super private?”
“Svae what are you talking about? Yes, shut the door and no one can hear what is said in here.”
Svae shut the door and sat down in the chair in front of Alana’s desk. She spoke in a whisper.
“Alana, before I say anything else, swear that you will never repeat this conversation to anyone.”
“If that is what you want, of course I swear. You know you are a dear friend to me, and I would never betray you.”
“I know you wouldn’t, that is why I am here. Also, what I have to tell you involves two of your favorite people, Jaunty and Winn.”
“What? Is there news of them? Tell me!”
“I’m sorry there is no news. However, there is hope. I am forming a rescue party to find them, and I want you to be a part of it.”
“Svae, I have about given up on Jaunty being alive. In fact, I pretty much think he is gone.”
“Alana, you can’t give up hope. Now is the time to act, not mourn. We will find them, I swear it.”
“Svae you are the strongest person I know. OK, I’ll go. At least if I throw my life away looking for him, I’ll have lived for something.”
Svae slapped Alana in the face.
“Pull yourself together! You can’t come if you have a death wish. Convince me right now that you are willing to fight and endure extreme hardships to find your man. You love Jaunty. Let that love drive you.”
“You are right Svae. I have wallowed in my sorrow for too long. Here is the chance to do something about it. I am going to go, I am going to fight, and we are going to find them.”
“Good! That is the Alana I know. The question is, who else do we pick to go?”
“That is easy, Svae. Vant Resbon and three members of the 17th Platoon. Vant will know which ones to pick.”
“What about a translator? We need someone who speaks LaVore and Menegar.”
“I don’t know. Maybe Vant knows someone.”
Chapter 8: That Girl Can Fight
July 15, 850 A.A.
Torvee and Tiga got in serious trouble with King Arkyn when he found out they stayed behind. He yelled at them in a most ignoble fashion for hours. He had the girls in tears. He confined them to the palace grounds and set guards for both. After a few weeks of being held prisoner in the palace both girls pleaded with their uncle to let them go into the city. He granted them an hour in the city every other day, with their guard’s present. They so looked forward to their time in the city. Most of the time they went out together. They would shop and visit the coffee shops. Admittedly most of the shops were not open since most of the town had evacuated to Aggenburg, but there were a few open. After a week, Torvee and Tiga grew tired of those shops and started to regret staying in Trellheim.
Tiga’s guard was an unassuming female named Trina. Tiga was kind to her and Trina started to open up and tell Tiga things about the military. Tiga liked Trina and didn’t mind her being around her constantly. Torvee, on the other hand, could not stand her guard. His name was Arvil. He did not show much deference to Torvee and that drove her wild. After a month of him guarding her they had not had one real conversation between them. Torvee was not interested in finding out anything about him, and he wasn’t interested in finding out anything about her. There was constant tension in the air when they were together, which was just about every waking hour. Tiga asked Torvee why she kept Arvil at such arm’s length, and Torvee said it was because he was such a basic common man. She didn’t want to know him.
Tiga still had the rapt attention of a certain Lieutenant Reed Sexton, but he had grown busy of late and only saw her every third day or so. Tiga had grown to cherish the time she spent with him. She knew she was developing feelings for him. They had talked so much about everything imaginable. He was very intelligent, which caught Tiga by surprise. He was also very much a gentleman and had not so much attempted anything with Tiga except kiss her hand. He treated her so gently, like he knew she had been damaged and hurt. She began to trust him, which scared her. She never thought she could trust any man. Yet, his personality and mannerisms were so comfortable to her that she felt at ease telling him almost everything about her life. The last conversation they had he hinted at taking their relationship a little further. It was gently put, but Tiga knew it was time to either declare him as just a friend or become more intimate with him and start forming a stronger bond. She didn’t know what to do. She was frightened, but at the same time she wanted to be closer to him. She had fretted for four days and tonight she was to walk about the ramparts with him after dinner. Trina had agreed that Reed was protection enough and she would wait by her bedroom while they stepped out.
It was dinner time and Torvee and Tiga got to walk to dinner without an escort, because the guards ate at the same time they did. The dinner party was small. Beside Torvee and Tiga, there was King Arkyn, Lieutenant Sexton, General Gustafson, and General Rackam of the Aviel force. The first course was served, and Torvee started a familiar conversation.
“Really uncle, must you keep that brut Arvil on me even when we are in the palace? He is like a puppy dog that continuously licks my heels. He is very unpleasant and acts like he hates me. He couldn’t possibly want to keep me from harm with an attitude like that.”
“Torvee dear,” Arkyn said. “You are stuck with him. He has a bad attitude because he resents guarding you. Arvil is a very proud man and is a consummate soldier. Despite his disdain for his assignment, he will protect you with his life. I trust him implicitly.”
“Uncle he hates me. Imagine being forced to be around someone who hates you. It is unnerving.”
“Torvee, everyone you have ever been around has loved you. It must be a shock for a man not to genuflect when he sees you. This is teaching both of you that not everyone is going to bow down when they see you. You both have too much pride. Being around each other has taken you both down a notch. Don’t you realize that Arvil has begged me to take him off this duty? He hates it as much as you do. That should give you some satisfaction.”
“Who is he to you that you care so much about taking him down a notch, uncle?” Torvee asked.
“Oh no,” said Arkyn. “If you want to know who he is, then you ask him. Changing the subject, Tiga, how do you find Trina?”
“Uncle she is very nice. I don’t mind having her around at all.”
“Good, Tiga,” Arkyn said. “I am glad.”
Arkyn started a conversation with General Gustafson. Torvee glared at Tiga like she was mad at her. Tiga turned to Reed and started a conversation with him.
“Reed, I am looking forward to our walk tonight, aren’t you?”
“My Lady to be honest I am not.”
&nb
sp; “Reed! Why not?”
“Because I put a little pressure on you to tell me your intentions toward me on our last walk. I am afraid you have thought about it and you are going to tell me you are not interested in me.”
“Of course I am interested in you Reed. We have become close in the last month. I told you before I thought myself incapable of romance. I must admit, you have given me cause to rethink that position.”
“Tiga, that is music to my ears. I hope beyond hopes that we will become more than friends.”
“Reed you will just have to wait till later to find out.” Because I still don’t know myself.
After dinner Tiga and Reed took their stroll on the ramparts walking arm in arm.
“When are the Menegars supposed to come?” Tiga asked.
“It has turned into a little bit of a mystery,” Reed said. “The horde is going out of its way to go to all the major cities that we have abandoned. They are at Farheim now, which is four days march from here. There is an idea floating around that they may attempt to find Aggenburg.”
“Why would they do that? The army is here. I thought the point of the invasion was for them to take Skal and Aviel, not ravish the countryside.”
“The Menegars hate Skal almost as much as they hate Aviel. They may be trying to ruin the country by destroying all the infrastructure and farmland as punishment. Your uncle is very upset about their strategy and if he had more men, he would attack them. He doesn’t though, and he is trapped here. Even if the Menegar try to find Aggenburg, we won’t be able to chase them. Besides, Aggenburg is supposed to be impregnatable.”
“You mean we won’t help Aggenburg?”
“No, the King won’t abandon Trellheim. They have 38,000 troops to our 22,000. We could harry them in the mountains, but they could lead us into a trap. The right thing to do militarily is to hold on to Trellheim and hope the 5,000 troops at Aggenburg can hold out if it comes to that.”
“When will we know where they will go next?”
“They have spent five to ten days at each major city they have sacked. They just arrived a Farheim, so it will be a few days before we know what their plans are. Though it would be stupid for them to go after Aggenburg. They would most likely get lost in the mountains. Maybe they will starve if they do.”
“I wish they would go back home,” Tiga said.
“I do to, my lady. I do to,” Reed said.
“Enough war talk,” said Tiga. “I believe you had something personal you wanted to discuss?”
“I do Tiga. I thought I would get away without saying anything but since you called me out, I better say what is on my mind.”
“What is on your mind Reed?”
“I want to know where I stand with you Tiga.”
“How do you mean?”
“I want to know what I mean to you. I want to know if I may court you. I would ask the duchess, but she isn’t here, so I apologize if I am violating some protocol. Tiga, I have feelings for you, and I want to act on them, but only if you have feelings for me as well.”
Tiga, who was expecting this and was looking forward to having Reed court her, froze. The fear and the loathing her father caused her rose up in her. She started shaking and tears started falling down her cheeks. She ripped her arm away from Reed and she turned and ran off toward her rooms.
“Tiga wait! What did I say?” He yelled as he chased her all the way to her rooms. Just as she was closing the door, he blocked it with his foot. “Please Tiga, tell me what is wrong.”
“Go away!” She said through her tears. “I never want to see you again.”
“Not until you tell me what is wrong. What did I do?”
“Here is what is wrong. You won’t want me when I tell you so maybe it will make you go away. I was repeatedly raped by my father when I was a child. I am surprised you don’t know about it. As a result, I don’t trust men, and I don’t want a man.”
“Tiga of course I knew about it. It was in the newssheets. I am devastated that you were abused in such a manner and if your father were alive I would kill him myself. The fact that you were raped doesn’t make me care about you less, it makes me care about you more.”
“You lie, you just want to rape me too. I killed my father, and I’ll kill you if you lay one hand on me.”
“Tiga you are upset. You don’t mean that. You are a sweet, kind, and gentle woman. You aren’t a killer unless you are in such a terrible situation that you have no other choice. No one can blame you for that.”
“You want to court me, so you can have sex with me. Forced sex. Never again!”
“Tiga I want to court you, so you will marry me. I hope we would have sex but in a healthy way and only when you wanted to. Is that too much to ask?”
“Yes. I will never marry and never be at the mercy of a man again.”
“I see. Then I bid you goodnight. I shall miss our walks.”
Reed moved his foot out of the doorway, and she slammed the door shut. Reed stormed off and Tiga slumped down with her back against the wall crying bitterly.
Three days later, the whole palace noticed the coldness between Reed and Tiga. He didn’t eat in the royal dining hall anymore and she went well out of his way to avoid him. They happened to be out on the walls walking one evening and when they realized they were heading for each other he abruptly turned even though she called out to him.
He had his assignment changed from the liaison between the Aviel and Skal forces and went back to being over a company. However, Arkyn didn’t like the next man they assigned him and demanded that Lieutenant Sexton be put back as the liaison. Then he ordered Reed to eat with them. He ended up seeing Tiga every morning and night. They both looked miserable and very uncomfortable.
At dinner one night, Torvee thought that she would help by sitting by and engaging him in some conversation.
“How many archers to you have altogether?” Torvee asked.
“We have 1,000 that double as infantry and the Skal force numbers 1,000 as well, my lady,” Reed said.
“Please drop that my lady stuff. You know, Tiga is an archer. If you need another she can shoot. She is very accurate. Winn taught her, and she has out shot Winn on several occasions.”
“No, Lady Vaux did not tell me that. It would be the King’s decision to let her participate in the war. I am sure he wouldn’t dream of it.”
“Why not?” Tiga asked, who was listing to their conversation. “Skal women fight!”
“Not nieces of the King, Lady Vaux,” Reed said. “Ask him yourself.”
“Uncle,” she said to the King, interrupting his conversation with General Gustafson. “I want to fight.”
“Tiga don’t be ridiculous,” said Arkyn.
“I can hit a target dead on at 200 span and I am excellent at the sword.” Tiga said.
“Tiga, don’t care if you are as good as your brother, you are not fighting, end of discussion.”
Tiga was furious. She sat up abruptly and stormed out the dining room.
“That one has a temper I didn’t see until the other day,” Reed said quietly.
“I love my cousin like a sister, but she never has been the same since that terrible thing happened to her. She will be fine one minute then start crying and yelling the next. She is sweet at heart though. I have never known a kinder soul.”
“I can see that about her,” Reed said. “I don’t think she is ready for a relationship, with her ups and downs. I must say she fooled me.
“Reed, I think that you are right she isn’t ready for a relationship and she may never be. Enough about her though. Why don’t you take me for a stroll, and we can get to know each other?”
“Lady Eriks, I would love to. However, I have a very early bugle call tomorrow. Perhaps another night?”
“I will hold you to that,” Torvee said.
After dinner Reed walked back to his rooms. When he got there, he saw Tiga waiting by the door. He almost turned around but Tiga saw him, so he braced for whatever
tirade she would throw his way. To his surprise, it wasn’t a tirade at all.
“Reed, I have come to say I am sorry. I treated you very poorly. You have been nothing but a good friend to me and I feel terrible about the way I acted. In my defense, sometimes certain things trigger flashbacks to when I was younger, and it throws me into a tailspin. I lash out at my loved ones and say awful things that sometimes are not true. For instance, I do want to be married one day and I want children and a happy family.”
“Just not with me,” Reed said.
“Reed, maybe with you. You wanted to court me. I give you my permission on behalf of my mother.”
“Are you sure about this?” Reed asked.
“Are you sure? You have seen how crazy I can be,” Tiga said.
Reed smiled and ran up to her and hugged her. He lifted her up and spun her around, then he kissed her on the lips.
“Does this mean you are courting me?” Tiga asked breathlessly.
“Yes, I think it does, my beautiful crazy lady,” Winn said.
“Now that you are in my thrall, you can help me to fight.”
“Tiga, you heard what the King said, there is no way he would let you fight.”
“If I fight with the Avish force, he can’t do much about that.”
“Rackam will not go for that and take a chance of upsetting the King.”
“If he doesn’t know about it, then it won’t be a problem.”
“You want me to sneak you in as a fighter?”
“Yes, Reed, I do.”
“Tiga, I am not doing that.”
“What if I challenge you to a sword fight? If you win, I will marry you the same day, but if I win you let me fight?”
“Marry me? I am very good with the sword Tiga. Are you sure you want to make this bet?”
“Yes, I know you are good I watched you practice, so I know what I am getting into.”
Trials of a Champion Page 10
