As Sarah and Seth stepped onto the cobbled path that was through a little thicket of trees, an arrow buzzed in between them. Seth drew her sword and took a little side step in front of Sarah. Sarah held onto her staff and made sure the barrier was wrapped around them tightly. She should have known that the odds that these would be friendly people were not good. The two women eyed each other. With a small tilt of her head, Seth lead them forward. They took another cautious step, and another arrow whizzed on past.
"Halt!"
"I stop for no one." Seth held her sword up higher and she took another step forward. Sarah sighed at her friend's ferocity. There wasn't any hope in trying to befriend the assailants in front of them with her attitude.
"We can't even see them!"
"Shh! Don't give that away!" Seth whispered back. Another arrow, though this time it was reflected by Sarah's barrier. The arrow hit a tree opposite them with a twang.
There was a sudden stillness in the trees that stopped the women in their tracks. Sarah lifted a hand to wipe away the moisture from her face when she saw it, a figure, moving at them without sound. "Seth!" she cried out.
The man was deflected, no harm done, but Sarah clutched at her blouse as her heart burst from her chest. Seth laughed, putting her hand on her hip. "Nice try."
The man stood up and brushed his trousers of dirt and grass. He was young, no older than eighteen by the looks of it. The way his clothes were patterned green and brown made him camouflage into the trees. It was no wonder they couldn't pinpoint where he was coming from. The young man eyed the women, and Sarah tried to make herself look as intimidating as the pirate captain beside her. "Who are you?"
"No one of import." Seth held her sword up, pointing it to the man's neck. Having dropped his weapon onto the jungle floor and with no time to reach for it, he raised his hands. Sarah could visibly see him shake a little when Seth gently nudged her blade into his skin. Sarah knew that the pirate wouldn't kill the boy without reason, but she still had one hand hovered over Seth's arm in case everything went south. "Now if you'll take us to your leader."
Arms still raised, the man turned and started his walk. Sarah matched Seth's steps, and whispered just loud enough for her to hear, "what are we doing? Is this how we're going to get them to like us?"
"Like us?" Seth glanced over at her troubled companion. "Captain Seth Balmore doesn't make friends with those who try and attack her."
There was finality in her voice and Sarah dropped it. If Seth was going to be the one running the show, she wasn't going to interrupt. She would not have been able to interrupt, anyway, as Seth would have just done anything she wanted. Instead, Sarah looked at her surroundings. The trees were almost nonexistent now, as were the vines, and ahead of them in the clearing was a wall. She watched as it grew and grew until they reached the gate. Seth slipped her sword back into the loop of her belt, but still pushed their guide forward.
As they stopped in front of the looming gate, two men looked over the wall, bows drawn. "What happened out there Sal? Who're these with you?"
"Just…open the gate!" the man now known as Sal yelled back to them, a hitch in his voice from the pirate's glare at his back. "I'll…um explain!"
The two men seemed to hesitate, but eventually one whistled. The ground shook as the heavy gate lifted slowly from the ground. When it was halfway lifted, more men with bows surrounded them. Seth chuckled, but held her hands up. Sarah raised her hand and staff as well.
"Weapons on the ground!"
"No." Seth shrugged. Sarah shot her a look. Her friend was going to get them in a fight she did not want to bother with.
The men seemed to be a little baffled with the outright refusal. "I said, weapons down on the ground!"
"Seth…"
"No. In fact, how about you put your bows down?"
"What did this woman say?"
"Weapons down on the ground!" Seth mocked back to them.
Sarah put forth a little more energy into their barrier, and it was good she did as three soldiers let loose their arrows. She winced as three other soldiers were hit by the reflected missiles. Luckily, no one would die from those wounds.
"Some sort of witch!"
"It's her staff!"
Seth took another step forward. The men backed away. Sarah watched as she marched right up to the one who wore the most medals on his vest. "I see you're the captain of this small brigade." She lifted a hand and gently brushed her nails across his face. Sarah watched as the man's frown deepened, but he didn't move. "I would suggest, speaking captain to captain, you take me to your leader, elder, or whoever runs this place."
The captain's face turned a violent shade of red. When he lifted a hand, no doubt to place a blow to Seth's face, Seth quickly hit the hilt of her saber to his rib cage. A resounding crack echoed into the air, leaving the man gasping on the ground. "Sal?" Seth turned to the young man, arms crossed.
"Yes, uh, ma'am?" Sarah almost laughed at his little salute he gave to Seth.
"Show us around, won't you?" Seth nudged the captain on the ground with her boot. "I think your leader's indisposed."
"Yes, ma'am!" Sal sidestepped the little group that had formed around their captain and led Seth and Sarah further into the place.
The village was constructed out of stone and wood, and it amazed Sarah that this place so deep into a jungle was able to find the resources to build it. The jungle trees were not made to house people, so she wondered if somehow they traded something for it. Dozens of rows of houses lined the streets and it was like they hadn't just walked out from a miserable jungle. It reminded Sarah of a port town, minus the boats and water. Children played outside, there was even a market, and everyone looked to be healthy enough. Sarah tried to cram it all into her head so that she could write it down later. "This place is a mystery!"
"Hey, Sal!" Seth purposefully stepped on the back of his boot, letting the young man trip a little ahead of her. "Tell us about this place!"
Sal readjusted his footwear and gave the pirate an exasperated sigh. "This is the Village of Thieves. It was founded around five decades ago by Prince Holton of Uhra."
"I've never heard of it!" Sarah quickly walked beside him. He gave her a bit of a wide berth but stopped trying when she kept getting closer to him. "How come you're not on the map? Where do you find your resources? Why don't you have a name for your village?"
"I, um—"
"No, but what about the jungle itself? Why here? How do you keep—"
"Sarah." Seth chimed in from the back.
"Right. Sorry." She gave the man her kindest smile. Sal blushed and turned his head.
"We're here anyway," he mumbled out. In front of them stood a grand building, much fancier than any other the houses and structures they've passed. "This is our Town Hall."
Seth clapped the boy on his back. He practically fell over from the strength of it. Sarah did not envy him. "Won't you introduce us?"
Sal, with a hand on his back and sigh escaping his lips, nodded. He turned grimly towards the double doors.
"Hold it!" Seth stopped him by pulling his collar. Sal gave her an exasperated look at the way he was being yanked around. "On second thought, here."
She untied a small leather pouch from her belt and poured the contents of it into Sal's hands. Both he and Sarah gasped at the gold and gems that he suddenly possessed. "I like you, Sal! For your troubles!" She ruffled his hair and thumbed the space over her shoulder. "Now get out of here."
Sal bowed low, stuffing everything into his pockets. He took off straight after.
Seth laughed. Sarah threw a hand into the air. "I don't understand you!"
"What? He was just a kid. I gave him a hard-enough time, anyway." Seth shrugged.
Sarah shook her head, adjusting her glasses on her nose. Seth continued with, "I didn't want him to get in any more trouble than he would already. He'd probably face worse if he waltzed up in there introducing us. Besides," and here Seth threw an arm around Sarah's shoulders. "We got this."
"We sure do." Sarah said with a laugh.
"Let's go save your boy, huh?"
Seth held onto Sarah's hand and they marched right into the hall. Immediately they were surrounded again, and this time Seth held up her hands. Sarah followed suit. A man in a long white robe stood up, and every other person sitting stood up with him.
"Who are you?"
"Captain Seth Balmore." Seth motioned towards Sarah. "And this is my friend, Celes."
If Sarah was confused, she didn't show it. They didn't discuss any plans once they arrived to their destination, and Sarah knew Seth could handle anything with more guts than she. So, Sarah fell along into the story Seth was creating. "We've been looking for something."
"I do not make any dealings with pirates." The elder crossed his arms underneath his long sleeves. "We may be thieves, but we are not gullible."
"I could not care less about your little business," Seth said with a flick of her hand.
Sarah observed the crowd, letting Seth take the lead. People sat in colorful clothes, distinguished in their wear. She could tell that these people were not like the happy villagers outside. No, there were scars on their bare arms and a sourness to their expression. These men and women were warriors, having earned the right to sit in this hall. What kind of village is this? Sarah thought to herself.
She refocused on Seth when she mentioned Kaim's mission. "Uh, yes. He came here about half a year ago looking for someone," she filled in.
The elder frowned, the wrinkles crisscrossing harsh lines around his mouth. "You know of Kaim Argonar, the mercenary?" Sarah was caught off guard that he knew his name and position, but nodded. "You…take pride in knowing that immortal scum?"
Sarah and Seth eyed each other warily. Well, he knew about immortals, but could he tell that they too were never-ending? Seth lay a hand over her weapon at her side. "And if we do?"
"We want nothing to do with you." The elder sat back down, looking like the conversation was over. No one else sat down, instead watching what their next move would be.
The guards hesitantly took a step forward, but before they or Seth could draw their swords, Sarah took several steps towards them. "Sa—Celes!"
"He's sick!" Sarah waved her staff, sending out a small wave of wind that knocked down the guards in front of her. People moved, regrouping to get in front of their elder.
The elder held up a hand. Everyone stopped moving. Sarah stood an arm's length away from him. "The mosquitos got to him, then?" The man's face crinkled into a grin. "Too bad. I'd hope that they would have ended his unnatural life."
Sarah frowned, not taking the bait. "All I ask is that you give me the cure."
"Cure? What cure?" The elder openly laughed in her face now. There was an uneased chill that ran up Sarah's arms. "There is no such thing! Nothing can save him if he's already been bitten. He should already be dead. Seems to me he will live an unfortunate life." Here he smirked, and Sarah could feel her fists tighten. "I guess there are worse things than death."
Sarah moved her staff in front of her. She could feel the people start to close in. She wasn't foolish enough to do any harm to the elder of this village, but she felt comforted with her weapon closer to her. "What can we do to change your mind?"
"There's nothing that comes to me."
At this rate, Kaim was doomed to die and die again until the end of time. Sarah could feel her blood pressure rise. The sudden spike in her heart rate had her reconsidering not harming the people in front of her, and she was trying to fight with herself on what spell to use. Luckily, before she could open her mouth and make matters worse, Seth stepped up beside her. "How bout a duel?"
The elder seemed to take interest. He stroked his white beard with one hand. He opened his mouth to speak—
"Sir!"
The doors behind them opened, and in came the captain Seth so unceremoniously hurt from before. The elder closed his lips and waited for the guardsman to talk. "That woman! The one with the staff is a witch! They cannot be touched!"
To prove a point, he tried to slice any part of Seth. Instead his weapon backfired and clattered uselessly to the floor. Seth shrugged, muttering, "the jig is up."
"I don't deal in magic or sorcery," the older man said with a scowl.
"She can just take it off. See, watch." Seth motioned to Sarah. When Sarah didn't move, Seth gave her a wink. With a huff of breath, Sarah waved her staff in front of her. The pirate captain then faced the guard captain. "Alright. Hit me."
The opposing captain said, with a gleam in his eye, "my pleasure."
Seth held up one finger. "Not the face. Remember your ribs?"
With a little growl, the captain raised his fist and punched her square in the nose. Seth flew back onto the floor but jumped back up immediately, and with a speed that seemed inhuman, punched the already bruised ribs again. With quick readjusting crack, Seth set her nose back in place and turned to the crowd. With a bloody smile, and wet laugh, she announced, "all barriers are down! And I will not allow them to go back up."
The captain was carried away moaning, and the group in front of them looked back to the woman with hesitation. "From one pirate captain to the Prince of Thieves, I promise I will not use any magic."
That caught Sarah's attention. The Prince of Thieves! Could that really be? Sarah looked hard at the elder in front of her. Sure, he could fit the right age, and he did have a strong resemblance to the current crowned King of Uhra, but she wondered if Seth was going on just hunch alone. If this was the missing Prince of Uhra that was thought to be left for dead, it could cause a rift within the kingdom. Sarah watched the old man carefully.
The elder held his stare with Seth, not confirming or denying the name she called him. Seth did not blink back. With one tilt of his head, he agreed. "In half of an hour someone will escort you to our field."
The hall cleared except for one lonely guard. Sarah dug around in her pack for a cloth and passed it to her friend, feeling a little excitement from possibly meeting the actual Prince Holton. "That was unexpected!"
"Right? I told him not to hit me in the face. Men never learn." Seth wiped away the blood from her face and mouth but didn't bother to try and clean her chest or clothes.
"That's not what I meant," Sarah said with a laugh.
She motioned towards Seth's clothes, but she shook her head. "Makes me look badass," she informed Sarah without missing a beat.
. . .
The whole village had come to the field to watch. In the crowd she spotted Sal who was looking very skeptical. "I believe our new friend doesn't believe we'll win."
"Well, I can't wait to see his face when we do." Seth rolled her shoulders and lifted her legs back behind her to stretch. She went through a little set routine which, Sarah assumed, made sure she was loose and ready to go. This shouldn't be a hard match, but Sarah was concerned with the outcome. How could they trust anything anyone had to say in this place? Kaim was waiting for her at home, and she was anxious that she wouldn't be able to get what they came here for. Or worse, somehow, they would catch this illness and all three would be doomed to die forever. That thought twisted her stomach and sent her heart fluttering. She let the thoughts go, breathing out the last of her worry, and focused on Seth's stretching routine.
As soon as the elder made it to the field, everyone grew quiet. Before taking a seat in a chair on the stage that was built in the grass, he held up two small bottles for all to see. "If our visitors win our match today, we will be giving them two vials of our most precious medicine." There was a murmur in the crowd, but he silenced them with another hand. "And if they don't, they will be sentenced to let our friends bite them in the jungle." In the silence he turned to Sarah and Seth. "Do you accept my terms?"
Seth nodded, waving her hand. Sarah frowned, but dipped her head in agreement. The elder held up one closed fist, a signal. There came an eruption of cheers when a tough looking man dressed to kill came wading through the crowd. He held up his sword, a sign for the people to cheer even more.
Seth smiled and stepped forward.
The fight was almost too easy. Seth was fast, too fast for the mortal to keep up. The more he tried to swing his heavy sword, the more Seth was able to land blows on him. They weren't even hard blows, just enough to have him stumble until the last one knocked him out completely. Sarah was amazed at the swiftness in her blue haired companion's movement, and the way her little form packed such a powerful punch. She had always admired Seth's strength, but she was awed to see it in action. Seth had the soldier down and pinned within four minutes. Sarah watched as Sal's mouth dropped open when Seth looped her saber onto her belt. She didn't even break a sweat.
The crowd was in absolute silence when the elder got up out of his chair. As he made his way down to them, Seth turned and faced Sarah. She whispered quickly, "You got a barrier on you?" Sarah nodded. "Alright, it's too much to ask for another on me, I know, so will you get ready to send a message to Aneira?"
"But why—?"
"Just do it."
Sarah nodded grimly, carefully summoning a little ball of light in her hand, away from the sight of the elder. Surly if he saw her doing this, he'd turn straight back around and they would be at the mercy of the bugs in the jungle. "O one from the White-Winged Clan, please hear my message," she whispered.
The older man handed over the two vials without a word. Seth secured them to her leather pouch on her belt and grabbed Sarah's arm. They stared to move as quickly as they could away from the center of the field.
"I said I'd give it to you, but who said anything about you leaving!"
Sarah heard arrows notching on the bow and almost missed Seth saying, "now!"
An arrow deflected off her as she felt Seth's grip leave her own. Sarah threw the ball of light into the air and cried out, "I need to see you!"
A burst of light lit up the field. Sarah lost her footing and fell into the grass underneath her. Without any warning, Aneira took Sarah and Seth into his arms and leaped into the sky. His wings stretched out and strained to dodge the arrows flying past them. Sarah used what magic she could to put up a very large barrier surrounding the three of them in the air. She kept her eyes closed to concentrate but could hear his pleasant hum in her head.
The rush of gravity suddenly flooding her belly let her know that they were safely away from that place and moving towards the ground at a fast pace. When she felt the ships cool floor underneath her, she braved taking down the barrier and opening her eyes. She felt a little bit of vertigo hit her, but she felt good. "Thank you Aneira for the ride! We made it Seth—"
Seth lay motionless behind her. The arrow that protruded through her chest must have hit her heart. Sarah gasped and made to move towards her. Aneira beat her to it, shielding his captain from view with his large wings. He started yelling out orders, and Seth's crew began to get ready to set sail.
A minute or two of Sarah wiping away silent tears later, Aneira opened his wings. Seth was blinking up at her, and already moving to sit up. The bloodied arrow lay beside her, and Sarah should have known that she could come back to life with a speed matching Kaim's. She laughed, tears streaming down her face even more as she slammed into the pirate. "Ow! Sarah!" With her arms she tried vainly to push the crying woman off her. Sarah didn't move.
"You're alive!"
"We can't die. Sarah, stop crying on my dress!" Seth again tried to push the crying woman off her. "You'll get blood on your glasses!"
Sarah laughed again and only wrapped herself around Seth harder. Seth sighed but chuckled and patted the bespectacled woman softly. "There, there. Be a lady and dry those tears," she cooed teasingly.
. . .
Seth and Sarah looked down at the broken bottle. "I can't believe it's wasted." Seth sighed.
"We still have one. And I think that's all we need." Sarah finished charming the bottle to be unbreakable and set down her staff.
"You sure about that? If it doesn't work…"
"Holton said this." Sarah carefully tucked away the remaining vial into her pack. "Nothing can save him if he's already been bitten."
When Sarah didn't say anything else, Seth lifted her hands. "So…?"
"We just need to wait for Kaim to die."
. . .
Seth stared down at Kaim as he struggled with his last few breaths. Sarah readied the vial after carefully shooing away a crying Cate. "The poor girl has seen enough," she said, taking a seat next to her dying lover.
"So, we give him the vial as soon as he wakes up?"
"We have one shot." Sarah smoothed Kaim's short hair into place, giving him just a little bit of zephyr to numb the cramps a little. "No need for your last time to hurt as badly," she said close to his ear.
She didn't know if he truly heard or understood her, but he seemed to smile at her touch all the same. With one last shaky intake of breath, Kaim stilled.
Sarah sighed and let him go. It hurt to watch that happen, but she couldn't dwell on it. Kaim needed her to be at full attention. "Now we wait."
They sat quietly for twenty minutes and then got into position. Seth above him, and Sarah straddling his hips. Sarah was ready to pour the vial down into his throat, and Seth was going to make sure Kaim kept every drop of medicine in his mouth. When Kaim shifted awake, they moved. Seth pulled open his mouth and Sarah stuck the vial in. Kaim started to struggle, though so very weakly, and Seth had no trouble keeping his jaw together.
Kaim's body went limp. Sarah panicked. The worst possibilities were running through her mind, and she became angry at herself for not thinking this through more thoroughly. "They could have given us poison! Why didn't I think of that!"
She felt for his pulse and didn't find any. Hands on his face, she started pumping her healing spells into him. Wake up! she thought, pressing her fingers into his sullen cheeks. Wake up!
Just as she was thinking about doubling her efforts, Seth grabbed onto her wrist. "Stop!"
"I can't!"
"It's too much! Let go!"
"I will not!" Sarah screamed, tears falling down her cheeks. Seth yanked her hands off Kaim's face, and Sarah almost shoved her away until Seth pointedly looked down.
"He can't breathe, woman!"
With a little gasp, Sarah looked down. Kaim's chest was moving, and he was taking very short gasping breaths. She climbed off his lap and grabbed Seth's fingers. The connection felt reassuring as she watched his breathing even out. Soon enough, he was back to sleeping restfully.
"I'm hungry. Got anything here?"
Sarah turned to her pirate friend trying to find the words to apologize. Seth just rolled her eyes. "I'm assuming the kitchen is that way?" With a gentle squeeze of Sarah's hand, Seth let her fingers release and walked out of the room.
Sarah sat on the edge of the bed and gently touched Kaim's face. His color was returning, and there wasn't a wheeze in his breathing. With a gentle intake of breath and slow exhale, she rested her head against his bony shoulder. "Come back to me, please."
. . .
Kaim woke up with a splitting headache. He felt stiff, unwashed, and terribly thirsty. After a moment he realized that his stomach was cramping, though not from nausea like the past six months, but for the lack of food. Kaim slowly blinked his eyes and looked at the empty room before him. He was surprised to see Seth curled up on the chair in the corner. "Hey," he croaked, not realizing just how bad his voice had gotten. He tried to clear his throat, but nothing really came out. "Hey," he tried again a little louder.
"You don't have to yell." Seth peeked open one eye, a little grin coming to her face. "Hey yourself."
"Sa…Sarah?" Kaim moved his eyes slowly around the room.
"I was supposed to keep watch while she took a nap on the couch, but you know how boring it is watching people sleep? Because it's boring, Kaim. I've already died once this week and I swear I was about to again."
He gave her a questioning look. She waved her hand at him and sat up with a stretch in her chair. "I mean you've died a few times in the four days we've been waiting, so I guess it shouldn't matter how many times I die. I digress. I'm going back to my ship. Write to me when you can."
He gave a little nod, choking out a thank you, but she was already out the door. Moments later, Sarah burst into the room. Her glasses were crooked and her hair a mess on her head, but Kaim had never seen anything as spectacular and beautiful as the woman in front of him. She took a few deep breaths in and out before bursting into tears. Kaim laughed, stomach and chest aching from the sudden force of it. He watched as she sniffed and gasped and wiped her face with her sleeves.
"It's not…you can't even laugh correctly…It's not funny!" she cried out, but he could hear the humor in her tone. She came over to him and scooted into the space beside him. She buried her face into his chest, and he leaned his head over. "I was so afraid."
"I'm here," he whispered, rubbing his chin into the crown of her head.
Sarah leaned over and held a hand to his face. She traced her fingers over his skin and Kaim realized for the first time how terrible he must look. She rested a hand on his forehead and felt relief from the headache plaguing him. When she disconnected the healing magic, he whispered, "I'm sorry."
"Don't apologize." With a watery smile she moved out of bed. "Let's get some food in you."
.
It was a week before he could move out of bed, and another three before he could brave the edges of the last of winter for a walk. Sarah wrapped another scarf around Kaim and made sure he was wearing his thickest gloves. He had lost a little warmth when he finally shaved the beard from his face and appreciated the scarves, but knew it was too much. "I look ridiculous," he commented.
"I didn't have a chance to charm any of your clothing to keep you warm. You're gaining your weight back, but you're still a little weak, Kaim." Sarah placed his hat on his head and gave him a little pat on his shoulder. "You were pretty much starved, dear."
"I know." Kaim moved to adjust his scarves, concealing his smile. He admired the way Sarah cared about him but didn't want to give her any satisfaction in knowing it. "Let's walk."
She held onto his hand as they walked out into the snow. The mountain was starting to warm back up, a lot of the snow a melted mess around them. Sarah watched him and took careful, smaller steps with Kaim at her side. Kaim wanted to act like there wasn't anything wrong with him, but he knew his body's limits. In no time he'd be back to normal, but for now he valued her steady pace. As they made their way across the village he let her see the smile that was growing shyly on his face. It did him good to be outside, and he was really enjoying his time. They watched some of the village children race around, slipping and sliding in the snow. "All of this will be melted in another week," Sarah said, watching as a little girl threw a sloppy snowball across to her friend.
Kaim hummed in response. "It'll be a welcome change."
"I'll miss it a little," Sarah said with a sigh. "But with the old comes in the new, and you'll finally be able to travel again when it's warmer."
"I am…I'm going to rest," Kaim admitted. "I think I've deserved it."
Sarah agreed. "You deserve to stay at home for at least seven months."
"Yeah?"
"Yep."
Kaim suddenly leaned down, placing a kiss on her lips. Sarah squeaked, but his lips were gone as quickly as they came. She tilted her head, eyes searching his.
"Thank you." He stopped walking as they were at the edge of the village and there was no place else to go. This was hard for him to say out loud, but he wanted to make this vocal. She needed to hear his gratitude. "You and Seth, you put yourselves in danger for me."
"Well. I mean we couldn't just leave you like you were." Sarah tried to hide her reddened cheeks in her winter coat. Kaim usually never got affectionate at all outside of their home, so he could see how she'd become bashful. "I couldn't even fathom it."
Kaim looked down. His cheeks were burning a little too and he had the smallest of smiles. "But you risked it all to get that medicine, and I know the elder didn't like me any with what I did, and you could have contracted the disease, and…well. Thank you."
"And I know you'd do the same for me." Sarah pulled him around, and they started their slow walk back. "Kaim, I love you too much to see you like that—"
Kaim interrupted her with another kiss, this one fiercer than the last. Sarah wrapped arms around his neck, being careful not to tug him too hard against her. He loved the way she was so cautious with any living thing in pain, and that only provoked the kiss to deepen. When they let go for air, it was his turn to move her along. Kaim felt perkier than he had in a while, and by the blush and little skip in her step, Sarah did too.