Lillis pulled back the bowstring, biting her lip in concentration as she lined up with the tree knot that was her target, and then released. The arrow flew forward a distance of less than ten feet and buried itself in the ground. With a pout she turned back to her father, "I don't understand, Papa!"
Bennan Urso looked at his ten year old daughter and smiled. Placing his hand on her head he asked, "Are you ready to listen to me now?" She frowned, but nodded. "You are still lining up the arrow to the target," he said, "The arrow will be falling from the moment it leaves the bow. If you line the arrow head up, you will always hit the ground. You must choose a spot on the bow below the arrow. I've made a mark on your bow that should be right for this distance, use that for your shot."
"But it looks like I'm shooting way over the target," she protested.
"I know it doesn't seem natural but you just need to trust me, honey. I've been doing this a long time."
Lillis looked at her father, a ranger captain in the king's service, responsible for keeping the grawl and devourers from raiding the king's lands. She had seen him shoot a coin out of the air and knew he was telling her the truth, even though it felt all wrong. She nodded at him and turned back to her target. He handed her an arrow and she lined it up. Then, ignoring every natural instinct, she tilted the bow upwards until his mark was aligned with the knot and let fly. The arrow struck low and to the left, but it was close.
She jumped into the air with a squeal, "Did you see that? Papa I did it!"
"Yes, darling, I did. That was a wonderful shot! You'll be a great archer some day," he replied proudly.
"Not as good as you, Papa," she beamed up at him.
"Oh, I don't know. It took me much longer to come that close when I was first learning."
"Can I try again?" she asked, excitedly.
"Of course, as many times as you like. I've got all day for you."
She grabbed another arrow and prepared her shot as he stepped back with a smile and watched her.
Bennan leaned back in his chair and regarded his daughter. She was talking fast, even as she shoved food in her mouth, much to her mother's exasperation. They had suffered through her excited anticipation at joining the king's rangers leading up to her eighteenth birthday, hoping the reality would be enough to sober her. Instead, her first day had left her bursting with energy and eager to tell them every moment.
"And the prince, mmph, is actually much more handsome up close, and so polite!" Lillis said over a mouthful of potatoes. "Here I am, just a recruit, and he treated me like a respected soldier. He even said I was a good shot! Can you believe it?"
"You are a good shot, Lillis," replied Bennan. Then, more seriously, "How many charr did you say made it through the wall?"
"Four, though we dealt with them quickly." She grinned, "I dropped one of them all by myself."
Bennan shook his head, "A year ago we never saw them within a day's march of the wall, now they breach it. This concerns me."
"We'll push them back, Papa. We always do," Lillis said, proudly.
Bennan smiled, "Aye, with such as you serving the king we can't help but be safe."
Lillis laughed, "Thanks, Papa." She grinned, "Did I tell you the prince said my name? Prince Rurik of Ascalon actually said my name out loud. Can you believe it?"
She went off again chattering about her charr hunting adventure while Bennan nodded and listened, but deep inside his heart was a fear that he could not push aside. Something was happening with the charr, something he had never seen in his lifetime, and it worried him deeply.
Olias pulled his hood further over his head in a vain effort to keep the wind-blown dust out of his eyes. Why Lillis had chose to camp out in the middle of a barren field he could not understand. She was normally much wiser when choosing their camping spots, never selecting something so exposed. Since they had reached the blasted out remains of Ascalon she had not been herself, being unusually quiet and moody, and this was just another symptom. He was beginning to worry that she was losing her mind.
"Lillis," he said, "Could we at least move into that little gully down there and get out of the wind?"
She looked at him blankly, then turned and looked at the gully. "That used to be a stream, you know."
Olias just stared at her. He had never been here before so, of course, he didn't know. Was she expecting a response? If so, he had none to give.
She sighed and gazed into the empty area where the stream must have been. "There were small striped bass in there that I used to catch with a hand net. I could come out here and have dinner caught within minutes. It took longer to clean them than to catch them." Her head turned to look out onto the burnt plain before them, "There was wheat up there, just enough to feed us. The garden was off to the right where Mama used to grow her pumpkins. I used to love her pumpkin pie."
Olias nodded, a knot forming in his throat, "You always did have a sweet tooth."
Lillis laughed, but it was a hollow, haunted sound. "I do. Papa's fault really. He used to sneak me honey candies even though Mama said they were bad for me."
"Were they… here?" Olias asked.
Lillis nodded. "I had gone to the Abbey on an errand. When the fire began to fall they rushed us all down into the catacombs. Mama and Papa were here at home." She swallowed. When she spoke again, he voice was tight and raw, "The heat was incredible and the catacombs collapsed in places, burying many down below. Those of us who made it out found nothing but ash everywhere. Our house was only wood and daub - there wasn't a trace of it left. Even their bones had been incinerated."
Olias huddled deeper into his cloak, shivering despite the hot wind that blew across him. He offered a prayer to Grenth that these people of Ascalon would find peace in the afterlife, their survivors certainly had none.