III
The Desert Town of Sephin
After liberating the Sixth Legion, the Independent Cavalry Regiment made their way to their true destination, the desert town of Sephin. They stayed in the town, refreshing their water and food supplies and gathering intelligence.
“It’s been three whole days since we got to Sephin, but the imperial army still doesn’t look like it’ll move any time soon,” said Claudia, daintily slicing up the meat on the plate before her. Olivia, meanwhile, stuffed her mouth with reckless abandon.
“Mm, thoth rath ah thtill thcuwwying abow, thow,” she replied, unintelligible through a mouthful of meat. Claudia carefully placed her knife and fork down and heaved a deep, pointed sigh.
“Major, what do I always tell you? You must finish your mouthful before you speak,” she said, looking coldly at Olivia. Olivia nodded, chewing hard. Ashton watched them out of the corner of his eye, opting to quietly eat his own dinner without interjecting. Privately, though, he’d had it up to here with Olivia’s total lack of improvement, no matter how often she was corrected.
“You know, I didn’t think it’d be this easy getting a table at dinnertime,” he mused. A tavern called Meridia of the Desert lay near the gates of Sephin and was well known throughout the town for its excellent cooking. An array of dishes featuring seasonal fish and vegetables was piled high upon the table. None of it would have been out of place in the famous kitchens of the capital, yet many of the other tables around them were empty.
Sephin had a long and storied history, and for generations, it had prospered as an important trading town. The road known as the Starry Highway ran north to south through the central region, well-known as the only source for sand crystals. These crystals were said to fetch a price as high as gemstones, and in the common parlance they were known as “stardust.” From spring through summer, sand crystals of the highest quality could be harvested, and merchants flocked to barter for them. Ashton still remembered his parents’ cries of delight when, during his childhood, sand crystal rings had been in vogue amongst the young ladies of the nobility. While they were not as popular as they had once been, sand crystals were still a rarity. This unexpected scarcity of people in such a location puzzled him.
“We’re not so far from the northern lands here. The merchants were probably afraid that the empire would show up and fled. If it comes down to being rich or being alive, that’s hardly a choice at all,” Claudia answered briskly.
“Oh, yes. That makes sense,” said Ashton. He watched as she cut another piece of meat, every gesture the very picture of elegance as she raised her fork to her mouth. In stark contrast, a fishtail protruded from the corner of Olivia’s mouth. Now Ashton remembered the relief on the faces of the people he’d passed in the street.
So that’s why the captain was so welcoming... he thought, finally grasping the reason the captain of the town guard had gone out their way to help them, even offering to shoulder any costs they incurred during their stay. Now he saw that this was motivated by the desire for them to stay longer. It wasn’t unreasonable—there were only around two hundred soldiers in Sephin. A wall of clay bricks encircled the town, but it wouldn’t hold off a serious attack from the imperial army. Now this three-thousand-strong regiment had shown up—a force more than capable of defending the town. Ashton couldn’t blame them for getting their hopes up. In the end, however, they couldn’t remain here forever. They were done refreshing their supplies, and once the scouts sent to survey the area for enemy movements returned, they would be off again. They had to get going to the Emaleid Citadel soon—tomorrow, if possible.
The veil of night settled over the land, and the moon rose, its dim light filtering through drifting clouds.
“All the food was so good!” said Olivia as the three of them got up to leave.
“I never thought I’d eat fresh fish in the middle of the desert,” Claudia said.
“Not that it matters, but Olivia, you eat too much,” added Ashton. He was mortified when, just as they stepped outside, the proprietor came out with all the staff to see them off.
“Please come back any time!” they called with a cheerful smile and a wave. Ashton forced a polite smile, then, desperate to get away, walked quickly off towards the lodgings the guard captain had arranged for them.
Now that I think about it, our rooms are far too nice. The kind of place a wealthy merchant would stay... He pictured the four-story building of red brick. Then, with a jolt, he realized Olivia wasn’t beside him anymore.
“Wait, where did Olivia go?”
“Huh?” Claudia looked over. “Oh, for... Now where’s she gone off to?” Muttering about how after the drama over choosing a name Olivia must have developed a habit for giving her the slip, Claudia cast her eyes over their surroundings. Ashton did the same, but he couldn’t see Olivia anywhere. The meager light cast by the moon made searching almost impossible.
“Well, she’ll come back when she gets hungry.”
“I’m sure she’ll come back when she gets hungry.”
Ashton and Claudia spoke at the same time. They looked at each other, and couldn’t help but share a smile.
Around the same time, on the outskirts of town, Olivia was facing off against a man dressed entirely in black.
“You picked up on me from that distance? So you did see us last time, damn you,” Arvin said through his mask.
The girl sighed deeply. “It’s not like I had to ‘pick up’ on anything with you scurrying about right under my nose.”
“Funny. I don’t remember coming anywhere near you, you little brat.” Ever since the incident at Canalia, Arvin had been on his guard, observing the Independent Cavalry Regiment from the farthest limit of his spyglass’s range. Lester disagreed, but Arvin didn’t think it was a good idea to get too close without taking adequate precautions. Yet despite all that effort, the girl had noticed him the moment she left that tavern. When their eyes met through the lens of the spyglass, a chill of terror had shot down his spine.
“Huh. Well, whatever. Now, that black outfit with the black mask. I met someone dressed like that back at Galia Fortress. You’re a rat like him, right?”
“Oh? Shimmers are all rats to you, then?” said Arvin. “And so what if I am?” As they talked, he became certain that Zenon was dead. Zenon would never have allowed anyone who’d seen him to walk away. That one such person stood before him now was indisputable evidence.
“I mean, whatever. It just gets on my nerves when you keep popping up, so I came to squash you. You seem to be multiplying too. Rats, right? You look away for a second, and suddenly there’s more of them,” the girl said; then she unsheathed her sword and looked over at the trees, her eyes running over the dense green. There was no wind, but the faint rustling of leaves could be heard in the darkness.
“Kill her!” As Arvin screamed the order, four shimmers came leaping from the branches at Olivia. Even in the face of a sudden attack from above, she didn’t panic. She crouched down, then leapt.
“Wha?!!!” The shocked voices of the four shimmers rang out together. In the blink of an eye, the girl had gone from the ground to standing upon a bough high above their heads. Anyone would be shocked.
“Your enemy’s worst blind spot is right above their head, true. Still, you can’t get cocky just because you got above them. It’s always possible someone might come around and get above you. Z always reminded me of that.” No one had anything to say to this lecture. One by one, the Shimmer agents dropped dead, their heads split open. The wet thump as each corpse hit the ground sounded to Arvin like fruit being squashed. As the last one collapsed, the girl leapt lightly down from the trees. With a bold sweep of her black blade wrapped in a dark mist, fresh blood mixed with brain matter splattered across the ground.
“Leaping freakishly high, and swinging that sword faster than the eye can see... I can certainly see why they call you a monster,” Arvin said.
“I’m not a monster. My name’s Olivia. Seriously, why does everyone call me a monster?” Olivia asked, tilting her head. Arvin just snorted with laughter. After the superhuman performance Olivia had just given, he couldn’t think of anything else to say. By all rights, he should have been tidying up the aftermath of their attack right now. Instead, the corpses of the other shimmers lay strewn in front of him, and instead of lying dead on the ground, the girl was standing there on her own two feet. I can see how she killed Zenon, he thought, slowly moving his left hand towards the steel whip coiled at his waist.
Right. All the highly trained agents I brought along just in case were slaughtered in an instant. Definitely time to get out of here. But...
As Arvin had told Lester, intelligence was a shimmer’s primary duty. Violence was always a last resort.
But...
He crouched ever so slightly, and shifted his weight onto his right foot. He watched Olivia, smiling as she looked back at him. Her uncanny black sword hung at her side, as though the fight was already over.
...but if I’m going to run... I’m wiping that smirk off her face first!
Arvin’s arm rose up in a powerful swing, and the whip followed, undulating as he released it to fly at Olivia’s face. A fraction of a second before the curved blade reached her, Olivia twisted slightly, and dodged.
Just like I thought. After what I saw of your abilities, I’d be more shocked if you didn’t dodge, Arvin thought. But you should have parried. Against this weapon, dodging is a fatal mistake! His hand that held the whip twitched to the right. The whip’s trajectory shifted, coming around behind Olivia—
“Wow, that’s a great weapon. I’ve never seen one like it before.” The steel whip slid from Arvin’s hand, smashed to pieces from blade to handle. The base of Olivia’s hand dug into his belly.
“Wha... How...?”
“Hm?”
“How...how did you know I’d attack from behind?” Unless she had eyes in the back of her head, there was no way she could have avoided that strike. Arvin struggled to hold on to his fading consciousness.
Olivia brought her lips to his ear, and whispered, “You poured too much of your bloodlust into your weapon. Even a sleeping pigeon would have dodged that.”
What the hell is she talking about? Arvin thought, as his mind faded to black.
The Silver Moon Inn
Is that the time already? Claudia thought. The major sure is taking her time... What can she possibly be up to? And where could she have gotten to?
Two hours had passed since Claudia and Ashton arrived back at the inn. After vanishing without a trace earlier, Olivia was still nowhere to be seen. Claudia shut her book, contemplating whether she should go and look for her, when she heard rapid footsteps from the corridor. They stopped directly outside her door.
“Excuse me, Miss Claudia!” came the servant’s panicked voice as they rapped on the door. “It’s Miss Olivia! She’s... She’s...!” Claudia stood up and hurried to the door—this boded nothing but ill. The servant stood there, gray-faced and quivering.
“Has something happened to Major Olivia?” Claudia demanded.
“Oh, thank goodness. I... Oh, dear. Please come with me!” said the servant before scurrying away without waiting for a reply. Ashton, alerted by the commotion, came out to join Claudia, and they both hurried to follow the servant down to the entrance.
“Oh! Claudia, Ashton, I’m back!” Olivia called when they got there, waving cheerfully despite the fact that she was covered in blood. Beside her, a man dressed all in black lay facedown on the ground. The slight rise and fall of his chest indicated that he wasn’t dead, at least. The servant, apparently having seen to their task, fled back to the kitchen.
“Major?! What happened?!” Claudia cried. She flew to Olivia’s side and began running her hands all over the other girl, leaving no part of her unchecked. To her immense relief, Olivia was uninjured. The blood must have all come from her opponent.
“Is she hurt?” Ashton asked. Claudia looked back and shook her head. Ashton’s whole body sagged with relief, and he sank to the ground.
“Claudia, quit it already! That tickles!” said Olivia, twisting away.
“As if I care about that! You disappear without a word and the next thing I know, you’re covered in blood... And why do you have this suspicious masked man with you?” In her panic, she hadn’t noticed before, but now she saw that the man’s face was hidden by a black mask. Black mask and black clothes—this was clearly no ordinary townsperson.
“Um, well. He’s a shimmer rat.”
“Shimmer...?” Claudia paused. “Like, from the Imperial Intelligence Division? That Shimmer?!”
Claudia knew of the shimmers. They boasted both outstanding reconnaissance skills and formidable combat abilities. She looked back down at the one collapsed before her.
“Huh,” said Olivia, narrowing her eyes. “This is what passes for an intelligence agent? I’d never have guessed after how bad they were at hide-and-seek.” She prodded the man’s head with her toes.
“Not that I don’t believe you, but... You’re sure he’s a shimmer?”
“Yeah, that’s what he said, so I’m pretty sure it’s true,” said Olivia, cackling. As far as Claudia was concerned, however, this was no laughing matter.
It can’t be a coincidence that a shimmer was hanging around here. Could it be... No, there’s no question. They were definitely watching us, she thought. Later, she would find out the details. Right now, it was clear at least that Olivia had captured the shimmer on the ground before her. She called Ashton over and ordered him to tie the man to a pillar to prevent him escaping.
“Now, ser. If I may be so bold,” Claudia said, turning to Olivia with a smile. “Just how is it that you came to capture a shimmer?” Rage at Olivia burned hot inside her. Olivia, looking a little nervous, hurried to explain what had happened. When she had finished, Claudia’s smile grew wider.
“Thank you, Major. I see what happened now. To summarize, you’ve been aware that we were being watched ever since we left Canalia—is that right?”
Olivia nodded her head emphatically. She wasn’t totally sure why, but Claudia was really scaring her. At times like this, she’d learned, it was best to do as she was told. She did love to learn.
“You couldn’t have informed me of that a little earlier?” asked Claudia.
“Erm... I did say I saw a rat...” Olivia protested in the smallest of voices.
Claudia’s smile stretched to its limit. Her face reminded Olivia of a Yaksha—a demon from her picture book that brandished a knife in one hand, cackling with laughter and swinging its hair about as it pursued unlucky humans. It was genuinely terrifying. Olivia remembered how one night, unable to get the Yaksha out of her mind, she’d built a fort out of her bedding to stand guard in case it came to get her.
“How am I supposed to understand a ridiculous code word like ‘rat’?” Claudia bellowed. Olivia shrank away from her, then looked over at Ashton, who was clumsily securing the man in black to a pillar, in a silent plea for backup. He looked guiltily away from her.
She had no allies here.
“Claudia, just hear me out before you get mad, okay?” she said. “I was going to kill them all, but then part way through I was like, ‘This could help us get information!’ So I left one alive and brought him back here. I did good, right?” Olivia puffed her chest up with pride.
Claudia exhaled heavily. Olivia had heard once that sighing too much would drain someone of all their happiness, and the thought of telling Claudia this crossed her mind. Right now, though, she thought that it would probably just make Claudia even angrier, so she decided against it.
“Well, what’s done is done,” Claudia muttered. “You’re right. A shimmer will probably have some useful intelligence, though I doubt he’ll give it up easily.” She glanced at the shimmer. Olivia got the sense she was off the hook and let out a little breath of relief. She decided that next time she’d say “bug” instead of “rat,” to make it easier for Claudia to understand.
A small moan came from across the room.
“O-Olivia! I think he’s awake,” said Ashton, scrambling away from the shimmer, who slowly looked up, shaking his head groggily.
“Guess I got captured, eh?” he said, looking around the room then at his own bound hands. He smiled, displaying no sign of fear. “Why didn’t you just kill me there and then, you monster? It shouldn’t have been much trouble for you.”
“I’m not a monster,” said Olivia. “I told you, my name is Olivia. First question: what’s your name?” With this, she pulled off the shimmer’s mask.
He screwed up his face as it was exposed, but answered nevertheless. “Zoeh.”
“Well, Zoeh, I’ve got a few que—”
“Just a moment, Major,” Claudia cut her off. She crouched down in front of the shimmer, then stared deep into his eyes. There was a long pause before Claudia said, “He’s lying. I’m absolutely sure of it.” She stood up again with a dismissive snort.
Olivia laughed. “You don’t say! Your eyes are coming in handy as usual—a gift from the heavens, just like I said.” She turned back to the shimmer and ran a finger from his forehead down to his chin. “Let’s try that again. Could you tell us your name?”
A tremor ran through the man’s body. “My name’s Arvin,” he spat. Olivia looked at Claudia.
“He’s telling the truth this time,” she confirmed, to Arvin’s unconcealed shock. Ashton, meanwhile, looked from Olivia to Claudia, utterly lost.
“Okay, Arvin, I’ve got a few questions for you, if you don’t mind,” Olivia started again. “Oh, and if you answer honestly, we’ll let you go.”
“Major!” protested Claudia. “You can’t just—”
“It’ll be fine,” said Olivia, cutting her off. The shimmer chuckled darkly.
“I don’t get the feeling your friend is going to let me scurry away,” he said, with another fearless grin. He seemed to have gotten some of his composure back.
“Don’t worry. I keep my word. So how about it?” Olivia prompted. In reality, she wasn’t particularly concerned about whether he accepted or not. If he didn’t, she’d just stab him in the face with her ebony blade and that would be that. Z would be happy to get another meal. As far as Olivia was concerned, there were no downsides either way.
Arvin seemed to waver with indecision, until at last he broke his silence. “All right. What do you want to know?” Claudia’s eyes widened with surprise.
“First off, would you mind explaining why you were following us?”
Arvin snorted. “That’s it? No, I don’t mind at all. We’re tracking the Seventh Legion.”
“Is that because of how we captured Fort Caspar?” Olivia asked. Arvin made a show of looking impressed.
“Well, well! Quite the detective work there. Yes, the commander who conquered the northern lands isn’t very happy with the Seventh Legion after you destroyed the Southern Division of the Imperial Army. If that’s all you’ve got for me, it’s high time for you to get out of here and head north to meet your death.” His mouth twisted and he added, with a snicker, “If a monster can even die, that is.”
Olivia frowned at this, but the voice that came from beside her was utterly furious.
“Keep calling the major ‘monster’ and see where it gets you, scum!” shouted Claudia, brandishing her fist at Arvin. She was beside herself with rage. Even Ashton, who was always so meek, wore an expression of fury that Olivia had never seen before. Taken aback by the intensity of their reaction, she forced a smile.
“Claudia, Ashton, it’s fine. I don’t care, really.”
“Perhaps you don’t, ser,” said Claudia. “But I do!” She swung her fist down towards Arvin’s face with all her strength. Just before she made contact, Olivia caught her arm.
“Major...” Claudia’s eyes burned with protest. Really, Olivia wouldn’t have minded if Claudia hit him. She just didn’t want him to get knocked out again.
“Well, who’d have thought?” said Arvin goadingly. “The monster understands the ways of the human heart!”
Before Claudia could get a retort out, Ashton fixed Arvin with an icy glare and said, “Olivia, I think it’s best we killed him here, don’t you? He’s of no more use now we’ve got the information we need from him.”
Olivia chuckled. “That kind of talk doesn’t suit you, Ashton.” She drew her ebony blade with a smile, before bringing it down at Arvin. The rope that bound him fell softly to the floor, leaving him sitting there, totally unharmed.
“I didn’t think you’d actually let me go,” he said. He stood up unsteadily, flexing his limbs as though checking to ensure they still worked.
“I told you I’d keep my word. But more importantly, could you take a message to your commander for me?” Olivia asked.
Arvin stared at her for a moment. “What is it?”
“‘I’m coming to kill you, so you’d better keep your neck squeaky clean until I get there.’ Tell her just like that, okay?” Olivia said with a thin smile. Arvin grimaced, but nodded.
“Uh... Right. I’ll make sure she gets it.”
“Thanks, Arvin!” Olivia said. With that, keeping an eye on Olivia’s sword as he went, Arvin slunk out of the Silver Moon Inn.
“Are you sure about this, Major?” asked Claudia. She eyed the open door with an ugly expression, her anger still simmering at the surface. The idea that someone had been so angry on her behalf made Olivia feel warm and fuzzy inside.
“Yep,” she replied. “We know what our enemy is after now. It’s proof that Ashton’s hunch was right too. Our tactician knew best after all.” She directed a little round of applause at Ashton, who scratched his neck, embarrassed.
“But Olivia,” he said, “did you have to send such a provocative message? You’ll just aggravate this commander even more.”
“I thought so too,” agreed Claudia.
“Well, I figured if I said it like that,” Olivia explained, “even if it makes her mad, she’ll at least wait for us to get there. It sounds like this commander is a bit obsessed with us.”
“In other words, you eliminated the possibility of the northern division of the imperial army advancing on the central lands, like we’d feared...”
“Yes! And that right there is how you do strategy!” said Olivia proudly, holding up a finger. Battles weren’t all about swords and muscle. If you had the chance, it was far better to throw your opponent off-balance with words. Ashton folded his arms and nodded, looking impressed.
“Right,” continued Olivia. “Moving around so much has made me hungry.” She rubbed her belly and looked towards the kitchen. Her eyes met those of a servant who’d been watching the whole scene from behind a table, who made a funny squawking noise.
“Oh, for... Everything’s always on your schedule, isn’t it, Major?” said Claudia. “I’ll have them get dinner ready for you.”
Olivia made a grumbling noise, and said, “But I’d rather have a sandwich with Ashton’s homemade mustard...”
“You what?” said Ashton. “Come on, the food they make here is far better.”
“I don’t care. I want a sandwich you made,” Olivia insisted. A dopey smile came over Ashton’s face.
“Oh, all right then,” he said. “I’ll make it right now.” He trotted off towards the kitchen, looking elated. “Excuse me!” he called out. “Could I use the kitchen for a minute?”
“O-Of course! Take as long as you need!” stammered the servant, then made a mad dash from the kitchen towards the stairs. Claudia watched them go, then gave Olivia a light shove.
“All right, ser. While Ashton gets that sandwich ready, you should put some fresh clothes on. You’ll scare the other guests looking like that.”
“Yeah, good idea!” Olivia said cheerfully, then skipped off back to her room.
No Comments Yet
Post a new comment
Register or Login