Galen stood outside the house with his bag. Nessa got up early to send him off. This was the first time they would be separated since they met each other in Minastav. Yesterday, Nessa was not affected by the news, but she had been weepy this morning. She hugged Galen tightly and told him about how much she would miss him. Galen was touched by this, but reminded her that he would be gone for less than a week. Thuraya managed to console her and distracted her with sweets.
Nessa clutched Galen's pant leg and asked, "You'll be back soon?"
Galen pat her head, saying, "I told you already, Nessa. I'll be back before this week is out. Don't worry."
She sniffed, "I'm not worried. I just don't want to be bored with Miss Thuraya."
"Hey!" Thuraya called.
Nessa giggled, "Sorry, Miss Thuraya, but it's true."
Galen crouched in front of Nessa, looking her in her eyes. "I'll be back before you know it. You won't even have time to be bored."
Nessa crossed her arms, "If you say so."
"I know so."
The sound of a horse reached the house. Galen rose from his crouch and grabbed his bag off the ground. The stagecoach came into view. Usoro sat in the front with the driver. Once she saw the group, she waved and slid out of her seat. She greeted Galen, "Hello, fellow traveler. Are you ready to leave?"
"Yes," Galen swung his bag.
"Great, we can go." Usoro took Galen's bag from him and put it into the back. Galen followed her and was about to climb into the cart when Usoro stopped him. She grasped his arm and dragged him to the front. "Don't be shy. There's room for all of us up here."
Galen grimaced, "I'm more comfortable in the back."
Usoro laughed and pulled him into the seat next to her. "Nonsense. You will sit here with me. You aren't scared of me, are you?"
"Of course not." Galen settled into the bench. He turned and saw Nessa and Thuraya waving goodbye. Galen waved back to them and felt the stagecoach kick into action. He waved until Nessa and Thuraya were gone from his sight. He let his hand drop and he faced the road ahead of him.
Usoro nudged him with her shoulder, "Are you excited?"
"I'm excited to get this over with. I'm tired of dealing with you."
"You can't be tired. We've barely gotten started."
Galen gave a deep, heavy sigh, "I can't wait."
They fell into silence for the rest of the ride to the station. When they arrived, Usoro gathered the bags and Galen entered the station to find a place in the queue for the train. Usoro handed Galen his bag when she met up with him. The train arrived shortly after. Boarding the train, Galen and Usoro took their seats. The train departed with a jerking start, and Galen readied himself for the trip.
"So," Usoro started, "How has your stay been in Zamsune?"
"Terrible," Galen remarked dryly.
"How was it before I blackmailed you?"
"Fine. Can we not talk?"
Usoro pursed her lips and shrugged, "Okay."
They continued to not talk for the first quarter of the train ride. However, Usoro soon became restless. She jiggled her leg and tapped rapidly on the armrest. Galen tried his best to ignore her incessant noise, but his annoyance got the better of him. He snapped, "Stop tapping."
"Sorry," she apologized, ceasing her tapping. But she was only able to still her hand for a moment before resuming the movement.
Galen glared at her, "You're doing it again."
"Oh, sorry. I don't mean to do it."
"What will make you stop?"
"We could talk. I wouldn't feel so jittery."
"Okay, let's talk."
"Now I don't know what to talk about."
Galen rolled his eyes, "I'll start. Why do you want to leave?"
Usoro chuckled to herself, "That's a loaded question. The simple answer is that I don't want to be in the military."
"I thought civilians only had to serve five mandatory years. Why not wait until they're over?"
"I'm a special forces officer. We don't get to leave."
"What makes the special forces so special?"
Usoro leaned in and whispered, "We're Zamsunian spies. We look out for our country's interests overseas."
"I see. If that's the case, why are you here? Watching us?"
"As part of my punishment, I have been demoted to doing grunt work."
"Punishment?" Galen narrowed his eyes.
"For trying to escape the military."
"What!" Galen shouted. His loud voice drew the attention of the other passengers. They looked at him with annoyance. He quickly apologized and lowered his volume. "You've already tried to escape?"
"Yes, so they're keeping an eye on me."
"Do you realize how much harder that will make this?"
"I am aware."
Galen slumped in his chair. "I can't deal with this right now. What about your man, Eamon? You said you have a description."
Usoro hummed, "Description is a loose word for what I have."
"Description is the word you used yesterday."
"I'm not very honest. I heard about a man who matched Eamon's personality description. He also showed up in Ardogris around the same time he vanished from the military."
"That's all you have? Really?" Galen was a hair's width away from becoming angry.
"It's hard to find information about someone who's dead."
Galen ground his teeth. If he spoke now, he would not be able to stop himself from screaming at the officer. He composed himself. "Eamon is dead?"
"Supposedly. He was declared dead four years ago."
"We're looking for a dead man."
Usoro sighed, "Look, I know you won't believe me and I haven't been truthful, but I know he's alive. That man in Ardogris is Eamon. I know it."
"You're right. I don't believe you. Why would I believe a lying--" The train screeched to a halt, throwing people out of their seats. Mummering filled the air as people wondered what was happening.
A steward entered their train car, announcing, "Please stay calm. Everything is being handled."
A passenger called, "What's happening?"
"An astera has attacked the train," the steward answered.
"Are we safe?" another passenger yelled.
"Yes, please stay calm. Soldiers will come to deal with this shortly." Other passengers yelled their responses to that. The steward blew his whistle, silencing the clamor. "I can't make them come any faster. We will be safe for the time being."
Usoro made eye contact with Galen, who made a questioning gesture. She motioned her head to the steward. Galen shook his head, not understanding what she wanted. Usoro stood and Galen snapped to attention. Galen hissed, "What do you think you're doing?"
Usoro ignored him. She said loudly to the steward, "Do not worry. Me and my partner are officers. We can help."
The steward raised a suspicious brow as Usoro was not in her uniform, "You are?"
Usoro slipped her badge out of her pocket, showing it to the steward. "Is this proof enough?"
"My apologies, Senior Officer Usoro. Thank you for helping us."
"Where is the beast?"
"Five cars up. We've evacuated all the passengers."
"Got it. My partner and I will deal with this."
Galen pulled her down to him. He whispered, "I am not helping."
"It's too late. I said we're both doing it. You don't want to help those poor people?"
Galen just stared fiercely at her. She tutted, "How cold-hearted. Think of it this way: the sooner we deal with this, the sooner we get to Ardogris. The sooner we get to Ardogris, the closer you are to getting rid of me."
"Whatever," he spat. He followed Usoro out of the train and into the forest. Evergreen trees surrounded them and a thin blanket of snow covered everything. Up ahead, Galen could see wolf-like figures hitting the exterior of the train.
"A pack," Usoro frowned, "This will be harder than I thought."
"What's the plan? Do you have a weapon?"
"I have this," Usoro pulled out her reuûn'oard. A staple weapon for high ranked Zamsunian soldiers to have. A reuûn'oard was made of runes twisted into the shape of a rod that allowed non-magicians to cast magic. The user of the reuûn'oard needed to know the Oxuri word or words to activate the various spells. Depending on the runes it was composed of, its uses and power changed dramatically. The rod needed to be remade when it was out of charge, so the soldiers were asked to use the weapon sparingly. The sword that was required for all soldiers was enough for most situations.
"What can it do?"
"Simple fire and earth elemental spells."
"That will have to be enough."
"I have a plan. I'll approach from the front and get the astera's attention. You can go around and take them out from the back."
"That sounds risky. How about you get their attention, and I'll cast an illusion that has them trapped? You can roast them after that."
"Brutal. I like that." Galen rolled his eyes and motioned for Usoro to walk in front of him. She took the lead, running up to the astera. Galen followed a couple paces behind her. As soon as she got close, the astera abandoned the train and faced them. They were wolf-like, but lacked the distinguishing ears and tails of actual wolves. They were bulky and half of their fur was replaced by rotting spots like they had gangrene. Their eyes had no pupils and were as white as their bared teeth.
Usoro used the reuûn'oard to shake the earth, ensuring the astera had their attention focused on her. Behind Usoro, Galen's hands glowed. To him and the astera, glass walls enclosed the creatures. Galen said, "They're trapped."
"Perfect," Usoro smirked. She held the rod in front of her and whispered, "Ntiugiea."
A fire ignited the astera. The creatures yelped and rolled on the ground, trying to put out the fire. Unfortunately, a magical fire could not be put out easily. Their yelping grew louder as the flames expanded. The illusion trapping the astera broke from their frantic attempts to put themselves out. The combined scent of burning skin and fur caused Galen to gag. Eventually, the yelping stopped, and all the astera fell over. They were not dead, but they were close to it.
Galen asked, "Do we leave them here?"
Usoro nodded, "The other soldier will take care of them. If they are alive, they will heal them. If they are dead, they will harvest them."
"Ugh, I need to get away from this smell." Usoro and Galen headed back to their car. They entered the cabin and informed the steward that the astera were taken care of. The steward took the information to the conductor of the train. The train did not resume activity for another forty-five minutes. During this time, Galen and Usoro fell asleep.
They woke up to the steward declaring that Ardogris was the next stop. Usoro took their bags down from the overhead compartment, handing Galen his luggage. They exited the train onto the platform, which was bursting with people. Usoro and Galen shoved their way out of the station and landed onto the busy street. Galen held his bag closer to his body.
Usoro said, "First thing we have to do is find a girl named Jivanta."
"The girl with the flowers. Kind of vague if you ask me, but what isn't with you?"
"You're figuring me out, Galen. Let's start looking."
They walked through the city, searching for any sign of Jivanta. Galen realized this was no easy task because all of the city appeared similar. Dull gray surrounded them as if the city had laws against using color when making buildings. Ardogris was a mining city, and its purpose was reflected in the people. Men with pickaxes and covered in dirt milled around every block. Women carting wheelbarrows full of coal passed them. Galen assumed they were taking them to the station. Cargo trains must come through the area often.
In the distance, Galen heard a woman calling, "Jivanta! Come here, dear."
Galen and Usoro turned their heads to the voice. They went in the direction they heard the woman call from. Rounding a corner, they saw an older woman talking to a girl a little older than Nessa. The old woman said, "How much for those daisies?"
"Two crurni, please." The old woman fished out two copper coins from the pocket of her apron.
"Is that all for today, dear?"
"Yep, I've got to help out at the smithy for the rest of the day."
"I told that man a forge is no place for a little girl."
Jivanta grinned, "I like it there. It's the warmest place I could be."
The old woman shook her head, "If you say so."
Jivanta waved goodbye and walked away, weaving through the commotion of the town. Usoro and Gallen followed her quietly. They watched her make small talk to various shop keepers and workers. The young girl was always ready to make pleasant conversation with the people who crossed her path. Jivanta reached the end of her journey, entering a blacksmith's house.
"We're here," Usoro said.
"Yes," Galen replied, "I hope your hunch is right."
"I hope so too."
Galen knocked on the door. Usoro stood behind him. A gruff voice asked, "Who are you?"
"My name is Galen. I am looking for a man named Eamon."
"He used to be a part of the Zamsune military," Usoro added. The door swung open, revealing a hulking figure.
"Neve?"
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