Finally, she’s had enough of giving ground and launches her offensive. With a great swing, she forces him to spin, and now he finds himself in her earlier position. She swings at him again, but he blocks her blow. She tries to use her lower center of gravity to force his sword up. He finds himself struggling to control his own blade. The two of them push back and forth, each attempting to disarm the other. He has to duck out of the way of her blades, and finally, with a great shove, she throws him back and lands a solid punch with her off hand in the bargain.
He comes at her again, but his blow is deflected upward, and a kick to the chest accompanies her deflection. Winded from the kick, he attacks again with big overhand downward swings, which she blocks easily. He tries to shove her, but finds himself being shoved instead. To his surprise, he lands face-first in the sand. He launches himself back to his feet and comes at her with big swings meant to drive her back.
Instead, she deflects them all and lands another punch to his chest.
Raising a hand, he calls a halt, “Stop. Enough. You’ve made your point. You’ll do fine on the tests. Your skills are more than basic.”
Chuckling, she whips off her helm, “Kind of you to notice.”
Rubbing his chest, he asks, “Was all that punching necessary?”
Rolling her eyes, she replies, “Be glad you didn’t choose with shields.”
“Why is that?” he says.
Instead of answering, she frowns for a moment, concentrating, and a shield appears. She gestures for him to swing at her. He comes at her with his overhand swing, but she deflects the blow and swats him with the shield, hard. There is a loud THWACK! The boss on her shield bends some of the plates of the brigantine, causing them to dig into his ribs painfully.
He goes to swing at her again and stops. “Owwww… that really hurts.”
Puzzled, she asks, “Do you not know how to fight with just a shield?”
“No,” he shrugs, “Why would…”
Shaking her head, she responds, “Because in battle, things happen. Your weapon may break. You might be disarmed. You should know at least the basics of how to fight without one and be at least passingly familiar with other weapons in case you can pick something up on the field.”
“Weapons don’t break all that often….”
Before he can finish the sentence, she pulls out what he thought was a knife from her belt. While one side is bladed, he can see that it’s much thicker and wider than a regular knife.
The other side features U-shaped openings with a groove at the bottom of each one that runs along the entire back spine of the blade.
“We use these,” she explains, “to break swords. Our word for them means sword killer. Used correctly, I can shatter an inferior steel or iron blade. Bronze won’t shatter, but I can bend a bronze weapon into uselessness. Now do you see?”
“I do indeed,” Benger says, “And I wanted to apologize again for… how things got started. I think… I think that we would be extremely fortunate to have you join our Order. If you think of anything else you’d like to ask, please have them send for me. If you’d like to speak with someone else, I completely understand. However, if you do decide to speak to someone else, I would caution you to put some clothes on first. The... ummm… garment you were wearing when I first arrived is beyond inappropriate by our standards. To give you an idea, the local prostitutes, who are scantily clad by local standards, wouldn’t be caught wearing that in anything, but the most ...ahhhh...intimate setting. I wouldn’t want anyone to get the wrong idea again. You might decide that we are all lecherous, debauched perverts, and nothing could be further from the truth. I know that I look forward to seeing you at the training grounds when you finally get out of the infirmary. I would be happy to show you around Harito since I doubt you know the city, but let’s get you walking first.”
He can see her chewing her lower lip, trying to decide if she wants to ask something. “Whatever it is,” Benger says, “I’ll try to answer it if I can.”
The look he gets is a bit frightened, but she plows ahead. “They won’t let me see myself. I know it isn’t good because I can barely move or even speak. The clerics show up and work on different bits almost every day. They dump potions into me twice a day. Davilla and Vanya wrap me like a mummy. They won’t tell me how bad it is. Will you tell me how bad it is?” she pleads.
You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.
Benger scrubs his face with a hand, “I won’t lie. It’s bad. I’m surprised… Hells Bells! We are all surprised that you’re still alive. Our healers are amazing. You’re already a lot better than when you got here. Just be patient and let them do their work. I know it’s hard to wait for everything to be healed, but it takes time when you’re hurt this badly. Goddess knows that everyone wishes that there was a magic spell to make it all vanish, but she doesn’t have one. There are rumors about a few mages who might be able to do it, but those same rumors say it’s equally likely that they’d wish you out of existence for pestering them if you were to ask.”
“I can be patient,” she sighs, “I’m just... I’m a bit scared by all of this.”
“Nothing to be afraid of,” he shrugs, “it just takes time. You’re going to be fine. Oh... wait… they’re going to wake us up. It’s time for you to eat again.”
“Real food,” she grins. At his expression, she adds quickly, “Until this morning, all I’ve had since I’ve been here is broth.”
“You need to eat more than broth to heal up from all of this,” Benger agrees, “It would be my honor to attend your Induction Ceremony when you are ready for it. It’s clear that you are a very long way from home. I’d be happy to help you adjust to living among us. I think you will need someone to advise you on our customs.”
Before she can thank him, the dream fades, and an acolyte is spooning mashed-up vegetables and meat into her mouth.
Vanya looks at Benger expectantly, “Well… what’s she like…”
Grinning, Benger replies, “Formidable, but someone needs to talk to her about her...umm...fashion choices. All the girls are going to be jealous, but now I must make my report to Interim Head Ember. He’s very interested in her.”
Benger quickly heals her a bit more before he hurries out and heads toward the office of the interim head of their order. Benger snaps to attention smartly and places his left fist over his heart.
Ember’s assistant rolls his eyes, “Why so formal, Benger?”
“I am here to make my report,” Benger says, “about the soon-to-be member of our order.”
“I wasn’t aware that she was awake enough to speak much as yet,” Ulwin says.
“She’s not, Ulwin,” Benger shrugs, “Probably won’t be for a while, if my assessment of her physical condition is even close to accurate, but one of the mages was able to let us meet in a shared dream.”
“How is she? Is her mind intact?” Before Benger can answer, Ember opens his door, “Ulwin, I asked Benger to report to me, not to you. Now, why don’t you go fetch my lunch?”
He gestures for Benger to enter his office. Ember shuts the door and then seats himself behind a large desk entirely covered with scrolls, forms, papers, books, maps, and a few objects. Benger seats himself in the plush leather chair.
“Well…,” Ember says.
“Sir, she is formidable,” Benger replies, “and yes, her mind is very much intact.”
“Can she pass?” Ember says bluntly, “I won’t have some dilettante.”
“She will more than pass,” Benger says, “She bested me twice. Once unarmed and once with weapons.”
“Tell me everything,” Ember says. “Don’t leave anything out.”
“I nearly blew it,” Benger grimaces before recounting his meeting.
Ember frowns at Benger, “Wait, you assaulted her?”
“You didn’t see what she was wearing,” Benger objects. “It’s a strap across her chest,” he gestures to his own, “and another between her legs. I thought it was something the mage conjured up, so I thought I’d have a bit of fun. Maybe find out from the mage where he’d met her. I never thought to see a respectable woman running around that close to naked.”
Ember pinches the bridge of his nose and sighs heavily, “What happened then?”
He continues to describe his meeting.
Ember chuckles, “So, she served you a big helping of comeuppance.”
“Yes, she did,” Benger nods, “More than one.”
Benger continues with the story of their shared dream, and when he describes the plate that she created for herself, Ember stops him.
“Did you say the insignia was wheat?” Ember asks, keeping his tone mild, barely looking up.
“Yes, sir,” Benger nods. “Gold inlay. It felt familiar, like something I've seen in the archives, but I couldn't place it.”
Ember dips his quill into the inkpot, masking the jolt of recognition. Rigan. Saints and Martyrs! Gethin was right!
She wasn’t just hiding in the dream; she was wearing the insignia of the god she murdered. A trophy and a warning all in one. If Benger goes digging in the archives, he’ll find the crest associated with the Mad God’s followers. He’ll connect the dots, and then the entire Temple will know we are harboring a god-killer.
Ember forces a bored sigh and waves a dismissive hand. “You likely saw it in a primer on agriculture or regional heraldry. It’s a common motif for the minor agrarian houses in the southern kingdoms. They all use wheat, corn, or plows. It’s terribly derivative.”
“Oh,” Benger says, looking deflated. “I thought... well, with the gold inlay, I thought it might be something more important.”
“Minor nobles often overcompensate with gold inlay,” Ember replies smoothly, returning to his paperwork. “It implies she’s highborn, certainly, but likely nothing to waste time on. We have more pressing matters than researching extinct farming crests.”
“Right,” Benger agrees, the spark of curiosity extinguished by the mundane explanation. “Just a highborn farming girl, then.”
“Exactly,” Ember says. “Now, off with you. And keep this to yourself. We don't need the other novices thinking we're recruiting farmhands.”
When Benger is done, Ember asks, “What is her name?”
Stunned, Benger thinks rapidly and realizes that he never asked, and she never volunteered it, either.
“She never said, did she?” Ember asks. “Well, no…”
“So, she doesn’t trust you at all,” Ember surmises, “Still, if we can speak to her in this fashion, we can begin her catechisms since she won’t know anything about our faith. I will make arrangements for someone to start teaching her. Regardless of her previous vocation, she is still new to our faith and therefore ranks as a novitiate. As for her military background, that will have to wait until we can get her in a circle and test it. I do not want to hear a single word of gossip about her. Not a word to anyone. If anyone presses you to tell them anything about her, I want you to come straight here and report them to me. When I say ‘me,’ I mean me directly, not Ulwin. And Ulwin is at the very top of that list of anyone.”
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The Sparring Match: Emlyn doesn't just block Benger; she uses her lower center of gravity to force his sword up and lands a solid punch with her off-hand .
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Shield Etiquette: Benger thought they were "just sparring" without shields, but Emlyn conjures one anyway to prove a point . She swats him so hard with the shield boss that it bends the plates of his armor into his ribs.
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The "Sword Killer": Emlyn shows off a wide, thick blade with U-shaped openings on the spine . It’s designed to shatter inferior steel or bend bronze into uselessness.
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Harsh Reality: When Emlyn finally asks how bad her physical body is, Benger doesn't lie: he says everyone is surprised she's still alive .
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The Report: Benger tells Interim Head Ember that she is "formidable" and bested him twice—once unarmed and once with weapons.
Spare Change Count:
18 Copper Pellets: Dropped by acolytes who are impressed that the "Goo Girl" just humbled a Paladin in her sleep .
4 Silver Shavings: From Hedrek, who probably enjoyed watching Benger get knocked into the sand.
1 Dented Armor Plate: Freshly mangled by a shield boss.
Other Contents:
A "Sword Killer" Blueprint: Sketched from memory, though Boltir hopes he never sees one near his own axe.
A Vial of Dream-Sand: Still gritty, still smelling of sea salt and Benger's wounded pride.
A Small Bowl of Mashed Vegetables: The "real food" Emlyn finally got to eat after the dream ended.
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