“If I hear the word maid one more time, I’m jumping out of this wagon!” Marin declared. We all burst into laughter, and after a moment, a small smile spread across her face as well. With the serious topic behind us, we fell into a more casual conversation that carried on for the rest of the afternoon. It was difficult to gauge the passing time due to the overcast, snowy skies, and before we knew it, Marten had pulled the wagon into a clearing to break for the night. We filed out into the snow-covered field and began the process of setting up a small camp.
“It’s so cold!” Marin complained as we worked. “I appreciate you letting me borrow some clothes, Lia, but do you have anything a bit warmer?” After her original clothing had become emergency bandages, she had chosen to borrow a sundress from Lia to replace Marten’s shirt. While it fit loose in the chest and tight around the waist, it was clearly more comfortable than the alternative, but the shift in weather had brought a new set of problems.
“I know we have some furs packed somewhere,” Hana said, rubbing her arms to keep warm. “Let’s go find something to change into.” Although her dress was made of a much thicker fabric than Marin’s, it didn’t stop her from shivering against the winter air.
I walked up behind Lia and hugged her from behind. “While they’re busy doing that,” I whispered in her ear, “I have an idea of how we can keep warm.”
Lia’s eyebrows shot up as her cheeks flushed, and she slowly turned her head to stare at me with wide eyes. “Lux, are you, uhm…suggesting we—”
“Go find a place to spar, yes,” I finished with a laugh. I gave her a tight squeeze, then walked past her towards the snow covered fields beside our camp.
I heard her sputtering in place behind me for a moment, followed quickly by the soft squeak of snow under her boots as she rushed after me. There was a sudden pain in my shoulder as she landed a playful punch on her way by. “You probably think you’re clever, don’t you?”
“Oh, from time to time,” I mused, tipping my head back and forth. “What, did you think I’d suddenly stop teasing you now that Marin’s here?”
“Maybe I did!” she replied, turning her nose up and looking away from me.
“That wouldn’t be any fun at all, and you know it,” I said, throwing an arm around her shoulders and pulling her in close. It took her a few moments to shake off her partially exaggerated indignation, but she eventually leaned into the sideways embrace as we walked.
Once we were a few hundred yards away from camp, we split apart and took our places across from one another. “Now, I hope you’re ready for—”
My advice was interrupted by an immediate charge, and I barely had time to dodge as a stab from her blunted sword drove towards my chest. I laughed as she slid by me, her feet failing to stop where she had intended due to the snowy ground. My sword formed in my hand and smacked her across the back. “As I was saying, I hope you’re ready for a new lesson in footwork.”
Our session was brief, but full of energy; the intensity of our practice bouts had grown in tandem with Lia’s proficiency, and we were quickly reaching a speed and ferocity that far surpassed any regular human. When the match was finished, we both fell to the ground panting, our breath clearly visible in the frigid air. “Well...you were right,” Lia said breathlessly.
“You’ll have to be more specific; I’m right about a lot of things,” I responded as I leaned back on my hands with a satisfied smirk.
She let out a loud groan and flopped back into the snow. “You were right about sparring. I’m definitely warm now.”
“Ah, that,” I said, falling back to join her. “Glad I could be of service.”
We lay together in the snowy field for a while, staring up at the dark clouds that hung low in the night sky. “Lux, I have a question.”
“Ask away,” I said, taking her hand in mine.
“What do you think is going to happen when we get to the Mountain Gate?”
“I’m not sure,” I sighed. “I’d like to believe that your parents and Marin could get through without an issue. I have no doubt that guards are distributing wanted posters with our faces on them as we speak, but I doubt they know what your parents look like.” I frowned and shook my head. “There’s a chance that they do, though, and that’s not a chance I’m willing to take. Virram will no doubt have the gate heavily guarded, so...I’d say the most likely outcome will be a fight.”
Lia nodded beside me. “Do you have a plan?”
“Sure. Kill anyone who tries to stop us.”
She laughed softly. “Well, I guess that’s technically a plan.”
“Having never seen the Mountain Gate for myself and not knowing how many guards we’ll be facing, it’s hard to be more specific than that.” I tapped my finger on the back of her hand as I lay quietly, deep in thought. “I promised Savitz something before he died. I told him that I was done running, and that I would do anything to protect my family. No matter who they put in our way, I’m keeping that promise.”
The intention behind my words were clear. “Even Val?” she asked, barely louder than a whisper.
“Even Val.” I scowled at the mention of her name. “Ever since I arrived in Kaldan, I’ve been making excuses: the guards who arrested me didn’t know any better, or Savitz was just following orders to bring me back to face justice, or
