Chapter 3: Chapter 2B: Aftermath (Bonus Chapter)

(Perspective Shift: Third-Person.  ** This is a bonus chapter, which is perfectly skippable. I wrote it just as part of getting used to the characters, and honestly didn’t originally intend to release it.  But hey… it’s a decent little treat while you wait on chapter 3.) 

 

Thomas gazed at Rikara’s sleeping form, and Dova who remained stalwartly at her side. The two women had become fast friends the moment they met, granting him a glimpse of a side of Dova he’d never seen. Truthfully, he feared Rikara had done something to Dova. His suspicions were further cemented when Rikara had shouted Dova’s name, causing the young Felryin to immediately act when she’d otherwise being refusing to comply. Now he had reason to suspect, his initial suspicions had been wrong. 

Though not a mage himself, Thomas had lived and warred long enough to have fought astride a few talented individuals. He’d seen them push themselves to their limits, and had bore witness to the fallout that came after. Spells needed fuel, they needed mana, and a mage who’d burned through all of their reserves was incapable of providing that fuel. If Dova had been brainwashed, the spell causing it should’ve lifted. With Rikara unconsious, Dova should’ve returned to the silent shadow she once was.

She didn’t. Instead, Dova was more expressive than ever. Her wide-eyed gaze never left Rikara’s sleeping form, and her lips kept quivering as if she was on the verge of tears. No longer the quiet assassin Thomas knew her to be, now Dova reminded him of his own daughter. A young woman, dealing with the horrors of the world, with no idea how to do so. Rikara had done that. She had restored Dova’s humanity, and in a matter of days. 

“I owe the lass an apology when she wakes,” Thomas muttered to Elrich, who was busying himself with grilling fish he’d caught in a nearby stream. 

“Why?” 

“There’s no way she brainwashed that girl. It seems they were just kindred spirits, and we mistook their kinship for a nefarious plot. I’m ashamed of myself. At my age I should know better than to judge others so quickly.” 

“There’s no way Nova would be acting like that if she wasn’t brainwashed! You know what she’s like, the girl hardly speaks. And when she does, it’s a few words at most.”

“Just like a fire will burn itself out without wood, spells fade when cut off from the caster’s magic. The lass is out cold, she cannot maintain her spells. We have to face the truth, Dova never trusted us enough to share her true self. We were fools to believe what we saw was the way she is meant to be.” 

“I just can’t believe it.”

“Even if you are close to them in age, they are both young women. They will share more in common with each other than they share with you. Though she is  neither human, nor noble, I’m sure Dova knows that getting too close to you would invite unsavory rumors.”

“Unsavory rumors among who? Many of Treu’s noble families are dead or in hiding. If she truly believes such things, she’s a fool.” 

“It is said in the old nations of the Felryin the scent of an unsavory person on your clothing was enough to cause a scandal. A traveller’s diary my father purchased at auction when I was but a lad even mentioned servants being washed in white ash to hide their scent.” 

“How barbaric.” 

“Could you say we wouldn’t do the same if humans commanded a Felryin’s sense of smell?” 

“I… cannot.” 

A gentle wind blew through the camp, causing the fire to crackle and pulling a thin rope of smoke into the trees. Narrowing his eyes Thomas gazed at the point the trail of smoke vanished into the darkness, rubbing the worn hilt of his sword. “The elves are watching.” 

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“Elves?” 

“Don’t mind me, I’m just reliving an old memory. You should pull your fish before it burns.” 

Elrich’s face flushed as he pulled his fully cooked fish from the fire. “I was watching it.” 

Dova’s nose twitched at the smell of fish, yet she refused to leave her place at Rikara’s side. Her first friend in this life lay unconsious before her, pale as a corpse, her vibrant orange hair matted with sweat. Dova couldn’t allow herself to eat, not when Rikara could not, not when it was her fault she lay unconsious. 

Truthfully, she’d never felt any anger or indignation toward what Rikara was saying. She simply enjoyed pretending as if she did. It was fun, like a game of cat and mouse, and she was the cat. Dova had to get the last laugh, it was a matter of pride. Yet, her playful pride had nearly killed her only friend. With nothing to cherish, she’d never cared for the complexities of life and death. The world was brutal, hellish even. All Dova cared for was her own survival, all others be damned. Until she met Rikara. 

Nobody else in the world understood. At first they didn’t understand why she was so defiant. Then they failed to understand why she didn’t break, after she’d lost everything, for what purpose did her mind remain whole? After her escape, people didn’t understand why she didn’t speak, why she didn’t try to find a new home for herself, marry, and raise a family. 

What was Dova fighting for? What was it that she so desperately wanted, that kept her on the prowl, risking her life again and again? She had her freedom, after a few years of work, she had enough gold to buy a little farm in a more accepting land. She wanted none of that, before Rikara, she didn’t know what she wanted. All Dova knew, was that she hadn’t found it. 

Now, the treasure Dova sought was right in front of her. A friend who understood her. Someone she could talk about Earth with, someone who’d hug her when she said she missed her family, her human family. Someone else who saw the game like system underpinning the world, apparently hidden from all others. These things made Rikara more real, more tangible, more important. She was Dova’s treasure, and she had nearly killed her. 

A solitary tear traced a line down Dova’s cheek, right as a steaming fish slipped just below her nose, right inside her periperhal vision. “Wha?”

“I don’t think Rika would be very happy to wake up and find you haven’t ate anything,” Elrich noted, pushing the fish into Dova’s hands. “So eat. Okay?” 

“Thank you.” 

“You’re welcome, and Dova?”

“Yes?”

“I realize there’s a lot of things we still don’t know about each other, but I’d like it if you relied on me more. I couldn’t give a damn if others can smell you on me, okay?” 

“Sure,” Dova blinked, trying to make sense of what Elrich was saying. 

“Let me know if you’re still hungry after that.” 

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