Chapter 2

I arrived in the outskirts tired, dirty, but happy. Here at last I had a home, somewhere that could be a link with my lost memories.

I felt the weight of the sword I carried, Rainer, the hilt of the blade where the tip should be when you wear it on your back. It was a secret of mine to have the sword reversed. My way, your hand had merely to move a couple inches up and back, while with a conventional shoulder-harness for the sword my hand would have to travel up to shoulder level. It saved precious milliseconds, which were vital in warfare. It could mean the difference between life and death. Rainer was also a dual-blade: it could split down the center if you wanted it two, giving you two swords with which to fight. It had been made for me by the Sandtiger himself, as a reward for completing his advanced training.

I was standing on the Main Street when I felt a hand on my bag, and I instinctively whirled and grabbed them by the shoulder. I found myself facing a pretty girl of my own age, trying to steal my bag!

"Well, what do what we have here?" I asked pleasantly.

"It appears that you have a young lady by her shoulder, sir." She was good. Smooth in a crisis, she knew how to turn it back on another.

"Why were you stealing my bag?" I asked her bluntly.

"What do you care?" she asked defensively. "You just want to turn me in."

"It all depends." I looked into her eyes, and felt my eyes flare blue for an instant as I looked into her soul. Her eyes were a stunning green, to contrast her fiery red hair. "Are you trustworthy?"

She put a hand to her forehead and broke my intense stare. "Stop looking at me like that."

"I can see that you have lied in the past, Vi." I was not unduly bothered. "But I don't think you want to lie anymore. Not until you learn how to master a sword, that is."

"How do you know me?" She demanded.

"I can see your soul in your eyes, Vi." I said gently. "You haven't had an easy time. Here" I tossed her one of my few gold pieces. "That should take care of you for a bit, anyway. By the way, would you happen to know where a good inn is?"

She pointed down the road, and for the first time smiled. "What's your name?"

"I am known as Arc Caster."

"Well, thanks." She handed me a small copper charm. "When you get to the inn, show the innkeeper this, and say you're a friend of Vi's. He knows me."

"Bartending doesn't pay all the bills, I see."

"You have no idea. I might see you there if your still there tomorrow."

"I don't let people run around with my secrets." I warned. "If you tell someone about me seeing souls, I will find you. Don't worry, I'll be there tomorrow."

She hesitated before continuing on her way. "I don't know what it is about you, but something tells me to keep your secrets. Don't worry, I promise not to tell anyone. And I always keep my promises."

I nodded before leaving. "I'll hold you to it."

The next morning I awoke at the inn. Having acquired a place to stay, my next order of business was finding work, and a teacher. It was my ambition to become a Shaka'Do, which was sort of like an assassin who worked for the kingdom, only far, far more skilled. "Assassins have targets," my old teacher Sandtiger had told me once, "Because assassins sometimes miss. A Shaka'Do has deaders, because the person they are after is dead, they just don't know it yet." It also was training for rigorous warfare, and only the finest warriors completed the two year training course.

"So, the famous swordsman has arrived."

I smiled at Vi as I sat down at the bar. "How about a light breakfast before I die of starvation, oh bartender?" I teased. "Good morning to you too, Vi."

She shouted something towards the cook's chambers. Then she turned towards me. "So what's up? Why did you come to Elanor?"

"Not again." I wagged my finger at her. "I never let anyone know my business until I know some of theirs."

"You are smart." She giggled.

"Well, it's not like your stupid." I grinned. "I'm planning to become a Shaka'Do."

A slight hush fell around me. From that alone, I could tell that Shaka'Do's weren't popular, even if they were honored.

"Well, good luck." She punched me playfully. Then she drew close and whispered in my ear. "I'm free after three in the afternoon. Can you meet me at the central fountain?"

"All right, but why?" I asked.

"I'll keep your secrets," she said with a devilishly attractive smile, "if you show me how to use a sword."

I waited for Vi at the fountain, and found her to be chronically on time, almost to a fault. Still, the lesson went rather well, although we didn't hang around the center for our lesson. Instead, we went to a nearby shack, and practiced away from the public eye. Vi seemed to have a natural talent for the sword and she did extremely well. However, she still didn't know the art of war, and she wanted me to teach her that. It was hard, but in the end, I ended up learning as much at she did.

In return for my efforts, Vi taught me stealth. How to creep through the undergrowth silently, how to leap from one tree to the next using only one arm and two feet so you can hold a weapon in the other hand. How to make yourself nearly invisible by blending in. She also taught me the arts of theft and smuggling. I wondered where she got it all from, but there was no doubt that she had done it before. I saw her as a soul treated unkindly by the world, and this was her effort at redemption. At least, when I was with her she wasn't out robbing someone. She was an honor to be around, a person to die for.