can and I will supply you with enough to start training. You should train with these two weapons whenever you have nothing else to do. One more important thing, seeing as we have people in camp who see nothing wrong with going through others’ belongings. I have a satchel that contains Lanoirian Stars and myric quills. Do not go in it. Myric quills are deadly poisonous. One touch of the tip and you will be dead before you hit the ground. I will instruct you in their use when you are ready.”
A few red faces appeared as the Rangers headed to their appropriate training spots. Garth walked around and observed or instructed as needed. Fredrik was awkward at first with the staff, but Tedi had a fine sense of balance and handled the stick with excellent control. With a little training and a lot of practice, Tedi would be deadlier with the staff than he would be with a sword.
Tanya was indeed giving Arik a contest. Of the two Lorgo boys, Arik was definitely the better swordsman. Tanya was very good with a sword and was besting Arik, but it was obvious that she had received some good instruction. Eventually, Arik would beat her constantly because the boy was so powerful, but for training, Tanya would prove to be an excellent sparring partner for him.
Raised voices from Niki and Kalina drew Garth towards them and he stopped to listen.
“It just is not possible, Niki,” Kalina was saying. “A shield never remains stable or levels off, it keeps getting weaker each time it is hit. That is the very basic nature of the shield. It is probable that you just became numb and didn’t feel it getting weaker. Now I want you to list every spell you know and I will start to teach you spells which are closely related to the ones you already know.”
Tedi gave Fredrik a good hit to the ankle and Garth hurried over. He knelt down and examined the ankle. “It’s okay,” Fredrik declared. “It hurts a bit, but that is my own fault.” Fredrik limped to his feet and picked up his staff and continued his practice with Tedi.
For the next several weeks, the Rangers traveled half days and spent the other half days and evenings practicing. The results of the training were promising. Fredrik was modest when he said that he had played with throwing knives. He was already better at throwing knives than most men Garth had met, and he took to throwing the Lanoirian Star fairly well. He still had quite a way to go in hand-to-hand combat with a knife, but if he could throw them quickly enough, his assailants wouldn’t get close.
The old merchant, Boris, got his money’s worth on the instructions that he had purchased for Tanya. She was good with knives, bow, and staff, as well as the sword. She also enjoyed tossing the boys around in hand-to- hand combat. She picked up the knack of using the Lanoirian Star very easily, as well.
Arik was an eager and fast learner. His muscular body was in excellent shape and he had an amazing endurance. Tanya still beat him most of the time in swordplay, but he was getting better. With the bow, nobody could beat him and his keen eyesight seemed to help him with the Lanoirian Star as well. Tedi, Fredrik, and Tanya could beat him with a staff and Arik generally avoided using one.
Tedi excelled with the staff, getting better every day. He now took on Tanya and Fredrik at the same time and won most of the time. He was also turning into a good tracker, better than Arik, which surprised both of them. Garth also learned that Tedi had an excellent set of ears, hearing many things that Garth did not, and Garth’s hearing was excellent.
Niki was having trouble with both the knife and the Lanoirian Star, the only two weapons she was training with. When Niki practiced throwing, everyone cleared out of the way. Kalina said she was progressing well with her magic, though. She was not as strong or as talented as Fredrik, but she had some unusual talents. She could smell things that no one else was capable of smelling. Her claim had led to an interesting evening when the boys volunteered to hide things in the woods and make her find them blindfolded, and she did. She also knew some types of magic healing that Kalina had never heard of. She claimed to have learned them by accident and Kalina promised to secure a book on healing spells for her when she could.
Garth combined horseback archery lessons with hunting and food was always plentiful. Kalina combined her lessons on edible plants with instructions on gathering plants and minerals necessary for some magical potions. She began to accumulate some stock to teach Fredrik and Niki how to make potions and what they were good for. For the most part, Garth was very pleased with the progress that the Rangers were making. Already, the four warriors, Arik, Tedi, Fredrik, and Tanya, would have been welcome recruits to any army. Garth had plans of making them much more than recruit material, though.
Arik and Tanya rode into the campsite with a large buck and were arguing about whose skill contributed more towards the kill.
“It was my shot that took him down,” insisted Arik.
“Only because it was your turn,” Tanya protested. “I am the one who tracked him down.”
“Tracked him!” laughed Arik. “He practically stood and waited for us.”
The bantering continued as the two Rangers dropped the buck for Fredrik and Tedi to prepare and took care of their horses. Kalina observed Garth smile and shake his head and came over and embraced him.
“I haven’t seen you smile in a long time, warrior,” she teased.
“Nor you, witch,” Garth said softly as he returned her embrace. “Out here with the children, one could almost forget the death and destruction that continues in the world.”
“Almost,” Kalina uttered as she broke the embrace. “We are going to have to make a trip into town soon. Tanya told me that some of the horses need their shoes tended to.”
Garth sat by the fire in a thoughtful mood and Kalina sat down next to him. “Melbin is less than a day’s ride,” he finally offered. “I will take the horses in tomorrow and get them taken care of.”
“Can I come with you?” Fredrik asked as he also sat down. “I have been making knife sheaths and most of the knives we have are a little too large for concealment. I would like to shop for something a little smaller and a bit more balanced.”
“The knives we have will do the job,” Garth stated. “Where are you trying to conceal them that they have to be smaller?”
“You have never been a dainty woman,” Niki laughed as she sat next to Fredrik. “Would you believe that Fredrik has eight knives on his body right now? You, Garth, have created a monster. Besides, I will keep an eye on him for you. I need to do some shopping as well. Just this morning, I broke my last comb.”
“I wouldn’t mind getting some news on the situation in Lorgo,” added Arik. “We don’t know what has happened since we left.”
Garth looked up at Arik, Tedi, and Tanya standing across the fire. Garth turned to Kalina for help and she smiled at him. “I did promise to try and find books for Niki and we could use some more leather and dyes,” she shrugged.
Garth laughed heartily. “What is the matter, Tedi?” he quipped. “Didn’t they let you in on this con?”
“I’m quite happy here,” Tedi remarked. “Though I have no objections to helping Tanya with the horses. You really can’t handle them all by yourself.”
Garth looked around at all the smiling and eager faces. “Okay,” he consented as he threw his hands up. “I don’t need a mutiny on my hands, but…” Garth grew deadly serious as he continued, “but we have to be very careful. There are dangers in the cities and one loose word will endanger us all. Arik, you will be in charge and you will keep everyone safe. I will need to pick up some information while I am in the city and it will not be safe for all of you to be around me. Kalina and I are known by different names in Melbin. Do not use them unless you are in dire trouble, but we are known as Mikal and Yolinda Obanik.”
“Why do you use different names for different places?” asked Tanya. “Are you wanted criminals?”
“We have broken no laws,” Kalina answered, “but, still, we have many enemies. For your own safety, you will pretend not to know us in the city unless we approach you and then you will use the new names Garth has just told to you.”
Everyone nodded in agreement and the evening was filled with excited plans for the outing to Melbin. In the morning everyone except Garth shed their black uniform and donned clothes that would fit the city. The entire campsite was cleaned up and the group was ready to leave at first light.
By midday, the walls of Melbin rose in the distance and Arik and Tedi stared in awe. While the boys were impressed by the size of the city, Fredrik, Niki, and Tanya were only curious about what Melbin would be like.
As they rode on, Garth explained a bit about Melbin. “The city was not always this large,” he began. “Before the Collapse it was a little larger than Lorgo because it was a seaport for Targa. The Sordoan border was only a few miles south of here. During the war Melbin was attacked by both sides repeatedly and what they didn’t destroy, the Collapse did. After the Collapse, the citizens began to rebuild the city and one of them, Alfred Krakus,
