Letter 2: "New comrades"

Dear Parents,

You shouldn't worry too much about me, I'm better than never. My arm is alright, and I can now swing a stick with enough force to defend myself (my 'subordinates' are helping me to get better in my self-defense skill).

Much has happened here in the last few days. Now we have two more people in our 'team'. They are two cavaliers from Caelin, in Lycia. They are quite opposites: Kent is responsible, serious and serene, while Sain is really outgoing, has his head in the clouds and is a skirt chaser. He even flattered me (thing that I had almost forgot how it was at home, due to my job… after a long time, it felt great…).

Alina dropped her pen and paper, and closed her eyes, thinking in that moment. She was walking along Bulgar with Lyn, when a voice flattered Lyn. Everything seemed fine until Lyn noticed that he was from Lycia, and that pissed her off for some reason, so they left. She couldn't understand why Lyn reacted like that. Lyn was walking so fast, that she almost bumped into a crimson haired guy. As always, she blushed, while the guy looked quite annoyed by that. Alina now giggled at the that thought, which was the first time she ever saw Kent, but she was quite embarrassed at that moment.

And then, while she was leaving the town with Lyn, another bunch of bandits popped out, ready to kill Lyn. Why they were all behind her green haired companion? Luckily, the 'flattering guy' from before appeared, along with the crimson haired one she bumped into before… What's more, he asked her to guide them, although he was a bit ruder than what he looked.

"How did he know I was a tactician?", Alina thought, although the answer came soon. "I should have had one of my tactic books at sight… or do I have a placard saying 'Hello, I'm a tactician' over my head?", she said, picking her pen and paper again to go on with her letter.

Thankfully, the battle ended soon, with the guys' help. Sain is one of those never-ending skirt chasers. He even tried to impress us with his lance, and Kent had to go and give him one of his swords. I prefer cavaliers using a sword, they don't look that old fashioned than when they are using a lance, but that's me. Anyway, you won't believe that Lyn's the long lost granddaughter of Marquess Caelin, will you? And that she now owns the Mani Katti, a legendary Sacaen sword? Well, all that is true. I'll explain little by little…

About Lyn's descent, it's quite simple: her mother left Caelin with Lyn's father, a Sacaen nomad. Soon before she died, she sent a letter to her father talking about her life, and the Marquess sent this nice guys to look for her. But there are more people after her… head. Seems that her grand-uncle is now the heir to Caelin's title, and now with Lyn around… he no longer is. She's going to Caelin now, because if she stays at her home, she'll more likely end up six feet under in a little while. Those guys from last time weren't so easy… About me, Caelin's my destination, too! I have no other plan for the following… life-time, I guess. I can't believe how Lyn ever thought I was going to abandon them. I've become quite attached to the girl, and well… there are two guys now! Maybe my bad luck can turn the other way round! Alright, alright, that's not the real reason, but Lyn's friendship is, along with the fact that I can improve my skill, and that I wouldn't have to make miracles to eat something…

About hat legendary sword, we were going our way to Caelin when Lyn asked us to stop by some old shrine, just to find a guy trying to get his hands in the sword. He was finished off in a few rounds, without any major civilian loses, although the priest had been locked into some room. As a 'thank you', the priest let Lyn touch the sword, which started glowing somehow. According to that old man, the sword chose Lyn as its wielder, a quite strange and awesome thing, as it would be a proof of her clean soul and nature, and other things like that. Jealous? You've got to be kidding me, my tactician skill is the replacement for her sword. Of course, everyone's happy, and Kent started looking at her with another eyes… thing that I don't like too much, because he's the one I like best. Sain? What can I say of him… he's like the little jester I would like to have around when I'm depressed.

I have to go and take some sleep, family. I usually write this thing at night, because we are riding (or walking, like me…) all day, so we can get faster to Caelin. Everyone's asleep right now, and I should do the same.

Loves

Alina (yawn)

PS.: I re-read the letter, and I just noticed that you don't know what's Caelin and Lycia at all. Sorry for that, I'm getting used to the Elibian vocabulary, as if you were. Lycia is a country here, and Caelin is a House inside Lycia, which is too far away, considering that we are travelling fast and don't seem to get anywhere closer to that infamous Caelin…

"What's this?", Kent's voice was quite annoyed, after finding something he didn't like. "Be on your guard, Lyndis. There seems to be some sort of commotion over there"

Lyn looked around her, with her hand near her sword, so she would grab it quickly if needed.

"Just Lyn?", Alina asked saddened, looking everywhere quickly. The whole almost-deserted, highly attacked town gave her the creeps, and wasn't feeling too comfortable there, after listening to Lyn and her 'knowledge' on the Taliver bandits. She was also wondering what drove her to ask her to call her whenever she's ready to strike them as mice, considering that she wasn't of that line of thinking…

"I can look after you", Sain replied her, cheerfully.

Alina turned back to face him and looked at him puzzled.

"What did you say?", she asked him, afraid.

"I heard you", Sain replied, grinning.

Alina's cheeks turned into a bright red, almost crimson color… just like Kent's hair. She could have sworn she thought that line, not that she actually spoke it.

"Don't worry", Sain calmed her, noticing her reaction. "He didn't heard you. He's too much in his work to have noticed that"

"What are you too mumbling back there?", Kent asked, trying to find someone.

"Florina! What are you doing here!", Lyn exclaimed, surprised.

In an instant, a wavy, light purple haired girl appeared, right next to Lyn. Soon, she was introduced to the others. She ended up being a pegasus knight from Ilia (as if Alina knew too much what 'Ilia' meant), who doesn't feel too comfortable around men.

"Did your pegasus land on them?"

"Well… I… a little", the soft spoken girl admitted, shyly.

"Goodness, I wouldn't want to see how that feels like…", Alina thought, bitting her lips so she wouldn't start laughing.

Just then, two bandits appeared, ready to take Florina and her 'flying mule' with them, as they kept on calling the white, winged horse. A fight was going to start… again.

"Florina, join us!", Lyn asked quickly her little friend. "You are a pegasus kinght, you can fight!"

"I… ok! But who's that girl over there?", she asked, pointing to Alina.

"That one? That's Alina, my tactician. She's an apprentice, but also my tactician"

Alina rose an eyebrow.

"Apprentice?", she thought, annoyed. "I finished my studies at the Nodion Tactic and Strategy School! That's not what I would call an apprentice…"

"Alina, we are facing bandits, and they are tough, and we are in a village, and the movement is restricted by houses and such things, and…", Lyn 'spitted' at her, all of a sudden.

"Lyn, wait!", Alina interrupted her, with her hand raised. "I'm a tactician, I know all that an more. Sorry for interrupting you, but as a tactician, a graduated one, I already know that. On to the battlefield!"

"Ah… sorry", Lyn apologized, picking her sword and going into combat.

Dear Parents,

Things are getting better at each step, now we have three more people in our little 'band of mercenaries'. I have to admit that I'm enjoying it, although everyone believes I'm an apprentice instead of an already graduated tactician… Goodness, I hate that!

The other day we reached an almost devastated village, one of those 'I-'ve-already-forgotten-the-name" villages that we have seen in the last days. We've been for just some minutes, when an old friend of Lyn, Florina, a pegasus knight, popped up, running scared. Some bandits were pursuing her because she stepped on one of the guys when she landed. I couldn't avoid smiling at that idea, but I did my best to avoid those sudden, hen-like laughters I usually have when I'm really tempted. In almost no time, we had the bandits just behind us, ready to get Florina and her 'flying mule' (as they called her pegasus). Needless to say, we went into combat… again. I've had plenty of work lately, and I can't complain about that.

And to make matters worse, they were the same bandits (the Taliver) that killed Lyn's people, so she was a bit touched and took the matter personally. Not that I blame her, but she keeps on saying that she will return someday and kill them all. I still don't know what drove me to tell her that I would go with her whenever she does it, because I don't approve that. Maybe because I would have another chance to make her resign that idea… but I still don't know.

On that village we've found another comrade, Wil, an archer who was travelling and had the bad luck of being in that village when the Taliver attacked. I have to admit that I had a really good time when I saw Florina's face when she realized that Wil was next to her. Apart from being shy around men, she has a TERRIBLE fear to bows, arrows and archers in general, and it took us some time to make her understand that Wil was a friend, not a foe.

The battle ended soon, and we left that creepy place, just to reach some creeper place, an abandoned fortress or something like that. Personally, I think that I would have liked to sleep on the woods instead of that place, because the walls seemed to broke by just breathing next to them. However, we couldn't sleep anything, because we were… guess what?, attacked again. Before that, I really laughed with Sain's disappointment when Kent made him notice that he would have to patrol the area while we were sleeping. Everyone looked at me oddly when I started giggling. I wonder how will they react when they find out my 'special laughter' (the hen like one). Just then, we found a woman, Natalie, looking for he husband. It seems that he left the village to raise money to mend her leg, as she can't travel too much. Can you believe that? I sure want someone like that!

Talking about the bandits, Natalie's husband was among them. Lyn recognized him (Natalie gave her a sketch of him) and he joined us. I talked after the fight with him and offered him to join us. The guy has some strength, and wields axes (something that we didn't have until then), and he can get some money. Maybe it wasn't the smartest move (considering that his wife wasn't that well), but it was the best thing I could do. Besides, he wanted to pay back our generosity towards Natalie, so… I don't think that was a bad deal.

And now, I can't sleep and I'm a bit depressed!! When will I find someone like that? That guy, Dorcas, joined a bunch of vile bandits just to help his wife!! Will I ever find someone like that, considering my previous experience in Juggdral, where I was just a 'good girl', 'nice' in the best of cases!?!?!? And all because those guys just want girls doing 'feminine' jobs (dancer, mage, pegasus knights) or after succeeding in 'ultra-tough' ones (heroines, swordmistresses), but not tacticians! I just hhhhaaaaaaatttttttteeeeeeeeeeeeee them!!!!!!!!!!!! I don't care, I'll find someone nice, good, caring and whatever else and I'll return, and I'll walk embraced with him under all their glances, showing them that 'declared', female tacticians can also find someone who can love them! I said!

I'll try to sleep. Now it's Sain's patrol, and I don't want to hear him at all. Things would be different if it were Kent's case, but I haven't seen him around here. I have a slight suspicion, but I don't have proofs to say that he just patrolled Lyn's door. Yes, it was a joke, not my real thinking. Why I use him as my victim? Well, because from our two original male members, he's the serious one. Now that there's more people (well, only Wil, Dorcas' already married), maybe I can use someone else as blank of my bad jokes…

See you

Love depressed tactician Alina

Finally, I came with this chapter. Know what? I have writer's block, so if somebody who reads my other two fanfics wonders why I hadn't updated those but this one, my answer is that I had mid-way done this chapter before, while I had barely started the others new chapters. And know another thing? My exams are coming, so I don't know when I'll update them… See you!