Author's Note
Again with the lateness. Sorry for taking so long, but I think the end result is worth it compared to what this chapter was like before the numerous revisions and wholesale deletion of parts I wrote and didn't like upon reading them again. I appreciate those of you who are still following this story in spite of my irregular update schedule, and hope that you'll keep reading.
Chapter Six: Memories of Days Past
"Are you going to tell me what happened last night, or are we in for a long day?"
Jaren looked up from his seat on the wide terrace. He had just finished cleaning his weapons, and was preparing to sharpen the longer of the two blades before Lynia had showed up and posed the question. "You noticed then," he said as he carefully laid the short sword down on a clean cloth.
"It's just slightly difficult not to when a pair of people sitting directly across from one another say absolutely nothing between the two of them. Especially if one them goes so far as to ask others sitting next to them to pass them things during breakfast instead, and one of those people happens to be me," Lynia said irritably. "So, yes, you can say I might have caught on that something happened. What could you have possibly done?"
"Nothing in particular," Jaren said as he turned back to his preparations. He picked up his short sword again, and poured a measure of oil onto the whetstone placed in front of him before placing the blade against it and grinding it against its surface.
"Please, spare me the semantics. Then what did you say?" She placed a great emphasis on the last word. Jaren's face didn't change at all from its almost unconcerned expression.
"I'm guessing it must have been rather spectacular if someone who was all over you yesterday suddenly stops talking to you." Lynia said as she sat down next to Jaren, and laid back with her hands clasped behind her head, evidently preparing for a long explanation.
"I guess you could say that," Jaren said blandly, the noise of his blade grinding against the stone punctuating his words.
"Eh, is that so?" The question was directed at Jaren despite Lynia not even looking in his direction anymore, instead gazing up at the clear sky aimlessly. The two said nothing else for a while, Jaren sharpening his sword and Lynia letting time elapse without comment.
"She asked me about Anterei's role in the Na Tunk rebellion, the one that deposed the Giriyagina," Jaren said finally, the blade in his hands no longer scraping against the stone. He turned to face Lynia.
"It went downhill from there," Lynia said as a statement rather than a question.
"In a manner of speaking," Jaren replied.
"So it did," Lynia fired back without missing a beat. Jaren nodded. More time passed as the two silently watched a small clump of clouds pass.
"You're in a deep mess," Lynia said, sitting up. "Of course, that goes without saying."
Jaren nodded again, and turned back to his sharpening. He finished, carefully wiping any excess oil off the blade before returning it to its sheath, and began sharpening his long knife. "I was thinking I'd go to the market and buy a gift for her, as an apology of sorts," he said after some time.
"Not a bad idea. Have anything specific in mind?"
"A set of drinking cups and a jug of spirits," Jaren said. "What do you think?"
"Good choice. She does seem to be fond of drink," Lynia said approvingly. "Should go along well with a normal apology like normal people usually give when they land themselves in a mess."
"Since when was I ever normal? Stop glaring at me Lynia, I can feel your eyes burning a hole in me," Jaren said in exasperation, as Lynia was indeed glaring at him "I'll give you that, but you still need to apologize," she replied, still glaring.
"Captain should just promote you already so you can give me advice officially," Jaren said jokingly.
"That'd ruin the fun now, wouldn't it?" The new voice belonged to Treyar himself, and went along with a smile that to both Lynia and Jaren looked like trouble.
"Sorry Captain, I didn't mean to question your decisions," Jaren said as he and Lynia jumped up to their feet and stood at attention.
"It's fine, think nothing of it," Treyar said, motioning for them to relax. "As to what that advice may be, if you were discussing what I think you were, it might not be necessary anymore."
"Captain?" Lynia had asked the question, and looked to Treyar questioningly.
"I just finished giving Karura and Touka the short version of the Anterei history. They caught on fast enough that I had some extra time, and I went over our personal operational histories. Karura had the most interesting expression on her face when I got to your days in First Division, and I mentioned what the three of you were up to during the Na Tunk rebellion. Apparently, she didn't know about the fact that you were all helping her brother directly," Treyar said.
"I see," Jaren said. "Did she mention anything about last night?"
"No, but if I consider that the two of you were acting a bit cold to one another this morning, Karura's particular reaction, and the fact that Lynia was browbeating you just a moment ago, I think I have an overall idea of what happened," Treyar said with a smirk. "Also, knowing your particular talent when it comes to women..."
"Don't say it Captain, please," Jaren said, his eyes closed in a grimace.
"How did you not tell her about that?!" Lynia's glare had returned in full force.
"I didn't really get to it, seeing as I upset her enough for her to leave without getting the chance to say anything more," Jaren said, eyes still closed.
"At least you didn't aggravate Touka," Treyar said with a laugh. "The two of you are getting along rather well, it'd be a real shame."
"I guess I just understand the Evinkuruga temperament better," Jaren said. "Would make sense, considering my family."
"Very true," Treyar said. "Anyway, don't let me hold you up. You've got a duel to prepare for right now, former royalty to talk to later, and I've got reports to sort out later tonight!" His tone was cheerful, but the two of them could tell there was no real enthusiasm behind it. The frown he was wearing made it even more obvious just how much fun Treyar thought he was going to be having.
"Good luck with that, Captain," Jaren said. He couldn't help but smile a little at their usually dauntless leader looking so defeated because of some paperwork.
"Oh, don't you smile just yet," Treyar said direly. "At this rate I'm going to speed up your promotion to Lieutenant so you can share in the joy. You're lucky that Free Company reports can only be filled out by commissioned officers."
"How fortunate," Jaren said, involuntarily cringing at the threat that had been issued.
"For you, maybe. See you on the parade ground," Treyar grumbled, a strained smile not quite crossing his features as he plodded off to his room. Kyr came around the hallway leading to the terrace, snapping to attention and saluting as he saw Treyar walk towards him. The Captain returned the salute not quite as energetically, saying nothing as he walked past. Kyr looked confused for a moment before a flash of understanding lit his face.
"Paperwork?" Kyr walked over and took a seat next to his two teammates, asking the question as he settled himself more comfortably on the wooden floor.
"You are correct," Lynia said with a smirk. "Anything interesting happen on your end?"
"Nothing really, no. Some of our potential recruits had a bit of trouble with the screening, but it's not like a little supplementary training won't clear that up," Kyr said, looking off in the distance. "I guess they don't do that much in the way of running, being Capital Guard and all. Probably too used to patrolling streets and standing in towers. Maybe run down the occasional thief in the market here and there."
"They are a defensive unit after all. Makes sense," Lynia replied. "You assembled them in the main parade ground?"
"I did. They're taking a break and a light meal right now. Handful of their Sergeants are down there keeping an eye on them for me until the show starts."
"That's good," Lynia said with a nod. "Should be instructive."
"Speaking of which, you've got a rather large turnout waiting for you to show up, sir," Kyr said to Jaren. "Amazing how fast word can spread when you mention there's going to be a duel between a Free Company soldier and a Evinkuruga warrior. I think the entire garrison and a good portion of the castle staff must be present since the Regent allowed for it."
"Good work," Jaren said as he finished the last bit of work on his long knife, wiping and sheathing it as he had the longer of his two blades. "Let's get going, then."
"Excited?" Lynia looked to Jaren with a grin.
"Maybe," Jaren said, grinning back.
"I think I'm more nervous than you are," Kyr quipped as they made their way through the hallways and down the stairs leading to the ground floor.
"Maybe. I have to admit though, I'm a bit anxious to see how she fights."
"Can't you guess? Based on the sword type, I mean," Kyr said.
"I have an idea, but I'm trying not to get too hung up on preconceptions," Jaren said, gesturing with his hands.
"No plans then either," Lynia chimed in.
"Nothing set in stone, yes. I have some general plans, but you know what the Captain says."
"Plan to plan over," the three intoned at once.
"Smart man, your Captain is." The three of them stopped walking to turn and look where the voice had come from, as they had just passed through a hallway that intersected another. The voice belonged to a large, muscular man with a scar on one eye accompanying the composed figure of Benawi. The Free Company members all bowed deeply to the Regent. "Good morning, sir, we were just going to the main parade ground for the duel," Jaren said.
"Yes, as were we. I don't think you've met before, I'd like to introduce the leader of Tusukuru's forces, General Kurou," Benawi said, indicating the physically imposing man by his side.
"Good morning, General," Jaren said.
"Morning. I see I'm not the only one who's moved up in the world since you were here last," Kurou boomed cheerfully, reaching forward to clasp Jaren's hand, who moved forward to complete the gesture.
"Good to see you're in good spirits as always, sir," Jaren said amiably. "Cavalry is still doing fine, I hope."
"What are you saying, friend? Of course they're doing fine, they've got me as a General," Kurou said with a laugh as he swatted Jaren's shoulder lightly.
"You've met before, I take it?" Benawi looked to Kurou, who answered the question with a nod.
"He was giving me reports on the situation during that mess with the Avu Kammu, and for maybe a month and a half after it was over," he said, the warmth in his voice being replaced by a decidedly more serious tone.
"My team and I were responsible for the northwestern portion of the border in the direction of Noseshechika," Jaren added. "Tracking movements of the enemy relative to the people displaced by the fighting, for the most part."
"Ah, I recall now. I'm glad we had the support of your people during that time, it would have been much worse without your scouts giving us early warning," Benawi said. "Come, we'll walk with you to the parade ground."
"You're too kind, Regent," Jaren said as they continued down the hallways leading outside.
"Introduce me to your friends, why don't you, I haven't seen them before," Kurou said as they walked, glancing over at Lynia and Kyr.
"Oh, of course, I should have done that to begin with. General, I present Leading Sergeant Lynia Milthas and Sergeant Kyr Ilvos," Jaren said, gesturing to his teammates in turn as he named them. The two nodded politely to Kurou as they walked.
"Ah, you mentioned them, now that I think about it. Pleasure to meet you two, Jaren told me a lot about you two," Kurou said.
"Nothing embarrassing, I hope," Lynia said, giving Jaren another look. He pretended not to notice. Kyr coughed nervously.
"Not that I can recall. You've all been together since your training cohort more or less, that sort of thing," Kurou said reassuringly. "Now that I think about it, he did tell me a few stories about his student days that were quite funny."
"Having a lot of spare time on one's hands between class sessions helps when it comes to those sorts of things," Jaren said.
"You were a student? Excuse me for saying so, but that seems a bit unusual for a professional soldier, although I suppose I'm one to talk," Benawi said.
"I don't mind, sir. It was something my family suggested, and that I agreed with completely. They brought up the idea after I decided on joining the Soranan military, actually," Jaren said. "My uncle Tellis said it would be of great help to have a more formalized education."
"Your uncle sounds like a very wise man," Benawi said with a nod. "Ah, we're here." As he finished speaking, the group stepped out onto the main parade ground. Kyr hadn't been exaggerating; there were hundreds of soldiers and castle staff assembled, some sitting around the space that had been designated for the duel, others standing behind them to get a better view.
"Some crowd," Lynia said, impressed. "Almost like the capital forum back home, although the audience is a little less distinguished."
"More like less haughty," Kyr said with a smirk. "Spend more time gossiping with their neighbors than watching the actual performances, they do."
"Well then, guess it's on you to make sure they get what they came for, eh Jaren?" Kurou beamed at the tall scout standing next to him. Jaren nodded, rubbing his right shoulder slightly. "I'll try not to disappoint," he said absentmindedly. He was scanning the crowd for any sign of Touka, finally catching sight of her sitting cross-legged under the shade of a tree with her sword across her lap, head bowed. Kurou caught sight of this as well. "Is she alright?"
"She's fine. Just preparing herself mentally. The Evinkuruga have a sort of mental ritual they go through before a duel." As Jaren finished speaking, Touka slowly rose from the ground and replaced the sword at her hip. She walked towards the dueling ring formed by the crowd, those in her way clearing a path without any need for words.
"Well, I better get going," Jaren announced to them. "Regent." Benawi nodded in acknowledgment. "I am certain you'll do well out there."
"I thank you for the kind words," Jaren replied, and looked over to his teammates. "I'll see you two after we've finished."
"Take care of your arm out there," Lynia cautioned. Kyr bobbed his head in agreement.
"Will do." Jaren set off through the crowd, following Kurou.
"Alright, you slackers, clear a path," Kurou called out as they neared the crowd. The reaction from the soldiers nearest was immediate, with the previously unorganized clumps of men jumping to attention and forming neat ranks, parting to allow their chief commander and the following duelist through.
Jaren noticed a good deal of the men looking at him curiously, as he wasn't wearing the dress uniform marking him as Free Company, but instead one very similar to the patterned uniform he had wore previously. The difference was that the colors were primarily of a tan and brown palette, and the pattern was composed of angular shapes instead of the small blotches of color. Additionally, there was an overlay of what looked like small, faint colored lines overlaid on top of the pattern, almost as if the clothing had been struck by a light scattering of small raindrops from above. The pattern stood out against the dirt of the parade ground, which was uniform in color. His combination scarf and head wrap dangled loosely from his neck, and displayed a similar pattern to the his main clothing, along with the gloves and leg wrappings. The harness was back as well, holding his long knife under his right shoulder and short sword at his left hip again, although the pouches were nowhere to be seen this time. Only the hat was absent this time, and a slight breeze made its presence known by moving his sand-colored hair about.
As Jaren walked through the crowd, he rolled his shoulders, rotating his neck from side to side with an audible popping noise. Balling his hands up into fists, he performed a similar procedure with his wrists, then fanning his fingers out before finally relaxing them as he came to a stop in the center of the parade ground. He spaced his feet apart about shoulder width, and clasped his hands together, placing them in the small of his back. Jaren waited in this position, staring straight ahead as Touka crossed the ground between them to stand in front of him.
"Good afternoon," Jaren said, taking a step forward and extending his right hand. Touka took a step forward as well, and the two clasped the other's right wrist. "Good afternoon to you as well," Touka said firmly.
"My, it's been some time since I've seen you so serious, if you don't mind me saying," Kurou said with a smirk.
"I would shame the memory of our peoples if I were to be any less prepared," Touka replied. Kurou shrugged in response, shaking his head. "I wouldn't really know, but you would be the authority in this situation."
"Sorry to keep you waiting," Jaren said to Touka. "We'll start once Captain Treyar makes his way down here. Few last minute errands he needs to run before coming down to arbitrate."
"Arbitrate?" Kurou scratched his head as he repeated the unfamiliar term. "You mean judge?"
"That's right. We might be doing things a little different from what you're used to, so the Captain is going to be observing and making any rulings on the outcome," Jaren said.
"Sounds complicated," Kurou said, rubbing his chin.
"It can be, at times," Jaren said with a wave of his hand as the crowd parted again. This time, Treyar was the one entering. He was clad in his dress uniform still, and the sun gleamed off the brass and silver badge pinned to the front of his red hat. Striding purposefully, he covered the distance between the edge of the crowd and the group of three at the center in short order. Touka caught sight of a long, thin object wrapped in a brown cloth he was carrying in the crook of his left arm that to her eyes could only be a sword of some sort. Her speculation proved correct, as Treyar came to a stop moved the wrapped object from underneath his arm and undid a knotted cord at one end. Sliding the cloth downwards, he revealed a sheathed sword. Treyar passed it to Jaren, who took hold of it with a nod.
Jaren brought it up to his eyes as he drew it from the sheath, parallel to the ground. He held the sheath in a rather unusual way, his index and middle fingers on the hand holding the sheath gently tracing the flat of the blade as it emerged. He mouthed something silently as he did, although Touka was unclear as to what he was saying. Jaren finished drawing the sword out, and put the sheath through a convenient loop in the back of his harness as he flipped the sword around, presenting it to Touka on outstretched hands. She took the sword from him carefully as he did so, trying to learn something of its characteristics. Learning anything that would help in the imminent fight would seem prudent, to her thinking.
The sword was a more uncommon design, being straight, with no overall curvature to the blade. Looking at the blade itself, Touka noted there were what appeared to be three different sections. Although the main body of the blade was fairly normal, the tip of the sword was tapered gradually to a point from both sides, unlike hers. The blade was also sharpened on both sides, which continued down the middle section of the sword. What interested her the most was section between that and the guard, the shortest of the sections. From what she could tell, it was unsharpened, much like what she had seen on Lynia's sword earlier. She found this rather curious, as an unsharpened section of blade made much more sense on Lynia's sword, being that it was so long. On a shorter, one-handed sword such as Jaren's there seemed to be less use for any techniques that involved gripping the sword higher up. On its surface, she could see a wavy pattern laid into the metal. There was a small pair of what resembled backwards-pointing wings that acted as a guard in front of the grip, along with a short length of chain dangling from the pommel, a small weight at the end of it.
Testing its balance by hefting it in her sword-hand, she noticed it felt superbly balanced, the point directing itself almost naturally to wherever she willed it. She spun the handle in her hand as she would with her own sword when switching from her normal grip to her reverse grip, and again couldn't detect any shortcomings. Taking a practice swing, the blade seemed to part everything around it, judging by the smoothness with which it cut through the air. "It's a fine weapon," Touka said as she passed the weapon back to Jaren, who bowed his head to her before accepting the weapon and securing it in the sheath now on his back.
He waited for the handful of seconds it took for Touka to draw her own weapon and present it to him with both hands as he had done earlier. Taking hold of the weapon, Jaren carefully appraised the surface of the sword. He squinted, deliberately taking his time to examine the handle, guard, and wrapping before moving on to the actual blade itself. Turning the blade this way and that, his eyes ran over the edge from where the blade met the guard to the tip of the point. Satisfied, he took a dozen steps backwards from Touka, Treyar, and Kurou before assuming a stance with the sword. Touka noted it as a very conservative one, right hand over left on the grip, the handle of the sword close to his ribcage, sword pointing straight up and down Standing on the balls of his feet, he took a short, shuffling step forward before taking a practice swing and shuffling back into place as he completed the swing. He had aimed it at the centerline of an opponent, the tip of the blade cutting into the imaginary opponent from the top of their head to somewhere around the middle of their torso.
Having done this, Jaren did a close imitation of Touka's sword-spinning, although he did not right the sword to its original position, instead leaving the blade in a grip with his smallest finger closest to the guard, rather than his thumb. Swinging the sword like this, he shuffled forward with his right foot leading, aiming a cut at what would be the left thigh of his imaginary opponent and cut past what would be the right shoulder. Going further, he then took a step with his left foot outwards and planted it, transferring his weight to it, and whipping his right foot behind him so that his right leg was forward again. The sword remained held in the same grip, and ended up held outwards to guard his body once more. Jaren flipped the sword around, catching the blade in his left hand as he held the handle with his right. Coming back to Touka and the others, he presented the sword with outstretched arms.
"Thank you for letting me inspect your weapon," Jaren said with a bow of his own. Touka returned the gesture as she took her sword back and returned it to the sheath at her waist. "No, I should thank you for the demonstration," Touka said graciously.
"Everything in order then?" Treyar had asked the question, and looked to the two duelists who nodded in response. "Right, let's get this started then. You'll have to excuse me, ma'am, I'm about to get a bit loud," he said as he turned away from them. Before Touka could ask him what he meant, she caught sight of Jaren wincing and covering his ears with both hands. Touka looked at Kurou, who shrugged and covered his own before following Jaren's lead. She could hear Treyar taking a very deep breath before deciding it would be for the best if she copied them as well.
"Sorry to keep you waiting! I am Captain Treyar Kern of the Free Company, and I am here today to arbitrate this duel!" Touka now appreciated Jaren's warning; Treyar's voice was positively tremendous, and almost painfully loud even with her hands covering her ears. She watched as Treyar looked around before taking another breath to continue.
"The conditions are simple: the first duelist to be caught in a situation that would end in serious injury or death loses the duel! Injuries are to be sustained and will not stop the duel! The duelists will stop only on my signal! That is all!" Treyar's statements had an audible effect, judging from how the assembled crowd murmured to one another about the conditions.
"Hey, now, that sounds a little excessive, doesn't it?" Kurou looked worried as he asked the question. He glanced over to Benawi, who made no indication of what if anything was to be done.
"Have some faith, General," Treyar said, turning back to face them, his announcement finished. "These two fight at a high enough standard that there's nothing to worry about. Few bruises here and there, a cut or two, they'll be fine."
"If you say so, Captain," Kurou said.
"Your concern is welcome, but unnecessary," Touka said imperiously. "It would shame the Evinkuruga if I were to seriously harm an Anterei."
Kurou held his hands up defensively. "Forget I mentioned it," he said quickly. "I should know better, having seen you fight before."
"I should apologize in advance for any marks I leave on you after this is over," Jaren remarked.
"Hmph. That's only if you manage to hit me," Touka said, her winged ears sticking rigidly outwards as she glared at him. "That's the spirit," Jaren said with a grin. "Best we get started then. Captain, if you would?"
"Sure thing, Jaren," Treyar said, winking at him. "Duelists! Take your positions!" The shouted command from Treyar quieted down the crowd instantly, the wind blowing through the grounds and the sound of Jaren and Touka's footsteps the only noises anyone could hear. They stopped a distance of twenty paces between them and turned to face one another.
"Prepare!"
Touka dropped into a half-crouch and placed a hand on the sword at her hip. Curiously, Jaren did nothing, remaining in a loose stance with his hands out in front of him, right leg and right hand slightly leading, his knees slightly flexed.
"Begin!"
Across from him, Touka exploded forward, her feet a flurry as she closed the distance between them in a series of rapid, small steps. She drew and aimed a cut at Jaren's torso with her left hand still on the sheath, the blade moving from left to right in front of her. Right as her sword left the sheath, Jaren went into action as well, darting backwards to evade the sword slash before charging forward and to Touka's left in the blade's wake. Seeing this, Touka ended her swing early, transferring her left hand to grip the handle as well and using the additional leverage to begin a new attack. This time she aimed her blade upwards and to the left, diagonally. Her swing was halted prematurely by a blur of motion and a sharp clang that accompanied the impact traveling up her arms.
Jaren had finally drawn a weapon and met her sword blade in mid-swing. He had positioned his body so that his left leg was straight, and his right leg bent at the knee, the center of his weight forward. His left arm was trailing his body much like his left leg, and his left hand held the long sword that was no longer in its sheath. Touka's mind was briefly possessed by a flash of surprise at this, as she had assumed Jaren was right-handed prior to this incident from what she had seen the day before during the fight in the clearing. Did that mean he was left-handed, then? She pushed the thought from her mind as the sword in Jaren's left hand transitioned from its parrying maneuver to the attack. Quickly breaking his elongated stance, Jaren took a more compact one as he leaned his body forward to arc his sword from right to left in an attack aimed at Touka's neck.
She dodged the attack with a quick hop away, and began to circle around Jaren to her left, trying to keep out of the reach of his left arm, or at the very least position herself so that any attacks made with his left would be not as strong. Jaren responded by circling to his own right, keeping the distance and positioning between the two the same. Touka could see his gray-green eyes tracking her, intensely focused on her movements. Jaren hardly blinked as they continued to revolve around one another. It came as a surprise then when Touka saw Jaren smile and wink at her. There was just enough time for her mind to register this before Jaren sprang into action again and all extraneous thoughts were pushed aside.
Touka's reflexes and instincts took over. Jaren was rapidly approaching, running at her in a crouch and trying to keep her in the arc that he could use his longsword most effectively. She saw him aiming for a shallow slash at her midsection as he closed, likely with the palm of his hand holding the sword pointing up, meaning he would be looking to stay on her left in a mirror of her own tactics of fighting the opponent on their weaker side. Sure enough, Jaren continued to close and the sword flipped outwards, his palm up. With only a moment to spare, Touka moved her own blade to deflect Jaren's out and away from her body, and took a step backwards with her right leg, tensing her body to whip around for a counter.
What happened next was more than she had expected. Her well-placed blade never deflected anything besides a gentle breeze, and she felt a jolt of pain on the back of her right hand. At some point in his approach, Jaren had transferred the longsword to his right hand, and in his left there was the long knife instead. He had slammed the pommel of his long knife into the back of her right hand as she had held it in place prepared to parry, and she now found the blade of his longsword pressed flat against the inside of her left thigh. The knife in his left hand was now held in an overhand grip, the point angled downwards and aimed where her shoulder met her neck.
"Halt! Duelists, break contact and cease combat!" The sound of astonished whispers and comments could be heard rippling through the crowd as soon as Treyar had finished shouting his command. The duel had lasted perhaps maybe all of half a minute, a good portion of it taken up by Jaren and Touka circling each other.
The two duelists pointed their blades away from one another carefully, and moved away from one another to sheathe their weapons, Touka doing so in a daze. In essentially the blink of an eye, Jaren had managed to close the distance to where she could hear him breathing slowly. He had slipped inside of her blade's striking distance, and reached a position where he could inflict two crippling wounds on her. Touka felt dismayed as one thought crossed her mind: even if she had somehow dodged the long knife aimed at her left shoulder, it was unlikely she could avoid a severe injury to her left thigh. At best, she would have sustained a deep cut to her left leg that would make fast movement all but impossible, and at worst the artery in her left leg could have been severed. The thought vexed her, but she had to admit that Jaren had outdone her in a clear and undisputed fight. She stole a quick glance at Jaren's face to see if he was showing any emotion, but all she could see was a quiet composure while he closed his eyes and clasped his hands behind his back.
"Duelists, approach!" Jaren and Touka walked over to where Treyar had been observing. He clasped his hand around Jaren's left arm and raised it up. "The winner, by dual entrapment, Warrant Officer Jaren Strasert of the Free Company!" Again, the noise of people in the crowd talking to those next to them rose in response. Kurou strode over to where they were all standing as Treyar finished announcing the results, and the duelists bowed to one another again.
"Alright, you laggards, the show's over," Kurou shouted. "Sergeants, take charge of your men! I better not see any guards not at their stations or talking away instead of watching their areas, still a lot of time left for me to detail some extra work! Dismissed!" The noise of the crowd rose a notch again as sergeants of the guard began running around and directing those under their command, and the castle staff started gossiping as they headed back to their work.
"Quite a show, Jaren. You never disappoint," Kurou said with a smile as he turned to face them.
"Wouldn't dream of it, General," Jaren replied earnestly. "We were hoping this would help the news of our being here spread."
"Don't you worry about that," Kurou said, laughing. "One thing you can always be certain of is that soldiers and castle staff will talk, and with you beating our distinguished Touka, I think the talk will spread even faster than usual."
Jaren glanced over at Touka. "I feel bad for not asking earlier, but how's your hand?"
"It's fine," she said, a bit too quickly from Jaren's perspective. He leaned over and gave the back of her right hand a firm prod. She drew her breath in a sharp hiss and pulled back her hand, flushing slightly. Kurou chuckled, looking away and struggling to hold back a smile as Touka glared at him.
"Sorry, I think Karura's rubbing off on me a little," Jaren said. "In all seriousness, you should get that looked at if you felt that through your handguard. It's your sword-hand after all."
"Well, that might be a little difficult with the Evinkuruga pride and all," declared a lazy voice that could only belong to Karura. She strolled towards them in no particular hurry, a jug of sake dangling from a cord wrapped around one of her wrists gently bouncing against her leg as she walked. Touka made no comment in response, although Jaren noticed a hint of a frown in her expression.
"She sure knows how to pick a good time to show up," Treyar murmured to Jaren. "I believe I'll make myself scarce. The reports, their bewitching song beckons to me." His tone was sarcastic, but he looked at Jaren meaningfully. Jaren nodded to let him know he understood what had to be done, and Treyar responded by means of a quick wink before turning to the others.
"I would love to stay and talk, but I am afraid I absolutely must get going," Treyar said apologetically to Kurou and Touka. "The Free Company is famous for a lot of things in the popular imagination, but the problem for me at least is that it takes a lot of bureaucratic wrangling to get them done."
"I feel you on that one," Kurou said as he extended a hand to Treyar, who promptly clasped it with his own. "Running things from on high is never as easy as it sounds."
"Indeed. The fact that I'm running a smaller operation than you is kind of foreboding when I think about it," Treyar said. "Makes me wonder if I should still be going for promotions at this point."
"They have a habit of finding you, although I don't know how the Anterei do it," Kurou said. Treyar smiled. "Thank you for sparring with Jaren," he said gently to Touka. "I know you did it to honor the bonds our people share, but I also appreciate it personally. It might not be apparent now, but this duel has done a lot for us." Touka looked up to meet Treyar's gaze and bowed politely, but stayed silent.
"Until later, then," Treyar said to Touka. Wasting no time, he strode over to Karura, stopping to talk to her as well. "Good afternoon, Karura. I wish that I could stay longer and enjoy your company, but I must be going. Unfortunately, the Free Company needs a good deal of paperwork to keep it running with some semblance of order."
"Don't stay on account of me, Captain," Karura said sweetly. "I hope that your work goes easily then, and that you have a pleasant rest of the afternoon."
"I appreciate the sentiment, thank you," Treyar said with a half-bow. "I'm sure you have something to talk to Jaren about, so I'll leave you two be." Karura returned the formality with her typical grace and easy half-smile.
"Ah, nice to see you made it down here," Kurou said, amused. "Enjoy the duel?"
"Very much. Nothing like a good fight to help pass a dull afternoon. Well, besides some drink, of course," Karura said, raising the jug by its cord.
"I don't mean to be rude, but we need to talk," Jaren said urgently.
"Oh? And whatever would we need to talk about?" Karura asked in an innocent voice.
"About what I said yesterday, I realize I might have gone too far," Jaren said, looking at her.
"Yesterday? I don't seem to recall. Could you perhaps refresh my memory?" Karura asked the question coyly, and it was plain to see that she was enjoying Jaren's unease.
"My comments on your former country's mistakes were ill-advised, and I'd like to humbly request that you to overlook them."
"Well said," Karura said. "I'm happy that you're trying to be considerate of my feelings, but there's nothing for me to overlook."
"Oh, is that so?" Jaren blinked, showing a hint of surprise at the turn of events. "All the same, I'd still like to make it up to you somehow."
"Why don't you pay me a visit later tonight, say an hour after dinner?"
"If it's not too much of a bother, that would be fine," Jaren said. "I'll bring something to drink."
"Wonderful," Karura said with a grin. Walking past Jaren and the others, she stopped and paused to think for a second before turning back and approaching Jaren. She leaned over to drape herself loosely over Jaren's back and shoulders, the jug bumping against his side. "I think this would classify as 'rubbing off on you a little,' or something of the sort," she said softly in his ear. Although she couldn't see Jaren's expression, she could tell he was wincing at her words. Touka was noticeably silent upon seeing this, and Karura seemed to take it as a cue to press farther.
"Don't be late now, a lady can only be selfless to a point, you know," she said as she untangled herself. "I'll leave you to your dueling partner; a delicate Evinkuruga flower should be handled carefully by skilled hands." Karura's phrasing and tone of voice were needlessly flowery, enough that Jaren drooped his head and let out an audible sigh as Touka's eyes flashed and her winged ears stuck out rigidly.
"I know I lost, you don't have to make me look even more foolish!" Karura's response was to pat a very frustrated Touka on the arm, still grinning as she turned and left. Jaren shook his head as he watched her leave. Touka let out a frustrated sound before stomping off in the opposite direction.
"Touka, hold on a moment," Jaren called after her, but she showed no signs of stopping or even turning back to look at him. He stared at Touka's figure as she walked further and further away before looking up to the sky with an exasperated look.
"See if this makes any sense to you," Jaren said to Kurou as he closed his eyes and rubbed his right temple. "Yesterday, I managed to anger Karura to the point where I worried she might still be angry at me today despite getting along rather well earlier in the day. At the same time, Touka and I were getting along just fine. Now, Karura is the agreeable one and Touka's taken over the opposite role."
"The way I see things, it makes perfect sense to me. Then again, I've known them a lot longer than you have, so that's something to keep in mind. Really, it's Karura in action. She's a real mystery, that one," Kurou mused. "Come on, let's head back to the castle, we'll talk some more on the way."
"She's really good at keeping me completely, utterly confused about her now that you mention it," Jaren said glumly. Kurou slapped his back with a chuckle. "Don't be so depressed, I think she likes you," the large man said jocularly. "You're making good progress too, she's only known you for two days; should have seen how fast she blew me off. She invited you to her room, no less."
"Ancestors guide and protect me," Jaren said grimly. "What is it about women and men who are already spoken for anyways?"
"Hey, now that's the first I heard of that," Kurou said, his steps halting briefly due to his surprise. "You finally got someone waiting for you?" He quickened his pace for a few moments to catch back up to Jaren.
"I don't know about that," Jaren said. "Kind of a mutual wait would be the best way to describe it."
"She's in the military too? You never stop being interesting, you know that?"
"All too well, I think," Jaren said with a half-hearted laugh. "Wasn't an easy courtship, if you can even call it that."
"Hey now, run it by me before you start saying that," Kurou said with an arched brow. "I've been a leader of soldiers for as long as I can remember, so I've heard my share of stories about chasing after women. Try and shock me."
"The first time we met we were at each other's throats..." Jaren began, only to be cut off by a snort from Kurou. "Routine," Kurou interjected. "Very."
"Let me finish, it gets better," Jaren said with a raised hand. "We were at each other's throats because she had slashed up my right arm really well as I disarmed her, and I was trying to get her off of me by choking her into unconsciousness. She was trying to return the favor," he deadpanned.
"Okay, that's one I haven't heard before," Kurou said as he scratched his head. "What caused all of that?"
"I was running a screening operation with my team and she was a mercenary being paid for by the other side," Jaren explained. "First Division had killed her employer, so there was no reason for her to stick around, and she happened to run into my area."
"And then?" Kurou briefly turned away from Jaren to wave off a group of soldiers who were standing rigidly at attention upon seeing their General nearing.
"I told her to put down her weapon and surrender, and she told me where she'd put her weapon," Jaren said, smirking. "I had my orders, she had her instinct for self-preservation, we fought. The deadlock only broke after I managed to find the blade I had dropped when she'd wounded me earlier, and then stab her in a nerve center in one of her legs. She blacked out from the pain, although it took a few seconds. Seemed more like an eternity to me. I honestly have no idea how she ever came to like me after that one." Kurou burst out laughing, drawing more than a few amazed stares from passerby as they walked. Jaren smirked but said nothing as they drew nearer to the castle, seeing Lynia and Kyr waiting in front of the door they had come into the courtyard through.
"That went well, I think," Jaren stated as he and a still laughing Kurou stopped in front of the other two.
"Well fought, sir," Kyr said enthusiastically. "Makes me want to get our Capital Guard trainees into sparring, although I know it's too early for that."
"In time, Kyr," Lynia said. "How's your arm, Jaren?"
"Fine, I think," Jaren said as he rolled his right shoulder and flexed his arm. Lynia reached over to feel his upper arm, grasping the muscle. "You're right, I can't feel any kind of tightness or anything to worry about," Lynia remarked. She looked at the large man who was partly doubled over curiously. "What'd you tell the General, anyways?"
"Just how he met the girl he's longing for now," Kurou said between gasps for air. "Something about them stabbing and choking each other."
"Oh, that," Lynia said, the second word enunciated very distinctly. "Jaren's always liked the strange ones. Not that I can tell you why." Jaren frowned at her, his brow creasing as he did. "What? You can't honestly tell me that the women you tend to get involved with are at least somewhat out of the ordinary."
"Are you counting yourself in that group?" Kyr asked the question with a smile, but it quickly left his face as Lynia shot an especially menacing look his way. "Joking, of course," he stammered.
"Of course," Lynia said with a leering grin. "Right, Jaren?"
"So much I want to say, and yet so many horrible things that will happen if I do," Jaren said half-seriously.
"Hmm? Whatever could you mean?" Lynia's eyebrows twitched as she asked the question with a forced smile.
"Nothing, nothing at all," Jaren said with a practiced ease. Lynia folded her arms across her chest and continued to glare at Kyr, who despite his best attempts to ignore her, stiffened in response to the attention. Jaren rolled his eyes at the silent conflict being fought next to him before turning to Kurou. "I need to go the market and pick up some gifts for Karura, so I'll have to take my leave, General."
"Yeah, well, I should probably be getting back to work anyway," Kurou said with a tired sigh. "I have to figure out what happened with the latest shipment of supplies for the cavalry. You'd think it'd be pretty hard to lose track of fifty replacement saddles, but that's what my quartermasters are telling me happened. Lucky you, getting to play the envoy."
"Don't think I'm lucky just yet, I still have to get through the rest of the night," Jaren said with a worried look on his face.
"You've got a point there," Kurou said with chuckle. "Good luck, then."
"Thanks General," Jaren said, shaking hands with the large man. "Kyr, why don't you go with me to the market before Lynia's eyes bore a hole straight through you."
"Aye, sir, thank you," Kyr said hurriedly, swiftly moving over to Jaren as he began walking towards the castle's main gate. Kurou and Lynia watched the two go.
"Quite a handful, those two are," Kurou said. He looked over to see that Lynia was still directing a hard look at Kyr's back. As if in response, she unfolded her arms from across her chest and breathed a sigh.
"You're right, General, but they're my team members," Lynia murmured. "I wouldn't trade them for anything in this world or the next."