Chpter thirteen

They pulled into camp, Kiera hopped off the truck and walked over to the man she'd left in charge.
"Sergent Ryien, pack up camp. We're going to relocate again."
"Where did all these people come from?"
"Town, we brought food. Now don't make me repeat myself."
"Yes sir!" the sergent saluted as she ran back to camp.

Tressa looked over at the camp, "Why can't we just stay here?"
"They haven't moved since I left, and trucks aren't exactly hard to track. If we move now it'll take longer for them to find us."
"Are they from the place too?"

Kiera climbed back onto the truck, "Yes, Those of us who managed to escape."
"Do you think my mother might be with them?"

Kiera paused, She doubted it. Few of the female servants in the place were actually old enough to have a daughter Tressa's age, and most of the ones who were old enough had there families with them here. A few of the guards maybe, but they'd all been there for years. She'd have noticed a pregnancy if there'd been one; Armor wasn't flexible enough to allow for that sort of thing. The only person she could think of in the whole palace who'd been there less than fifteen years was Callin, and she was in her mid hundreds; the idea of her having... Although she had to admit the scandal that seemed to revolve around Tressa within her family would be understandable if that were so; Kiera simply didn't want to think of the Guardswoman as anything but a name and a suit of armor with an attitude.

"We're ready Ma'am."
"Good, move out."
And the caravan, now several hundred men strong, set out again. Heading south now, towards the mountains.

Tressa sat quietly admiring the open fields of Anatolia as they passed by slowly. Kiera just closed her eyes and tried to get rid of the images of Callin and some nameless rogue that her train of thought had brought her.

chapter twelve

The supplies and wounded were all loaded up into the trucks. Kiera was amazed they'd had room for everyone. She walked up to one of the trucks and climbed onto the roof; if there was a fight she'd need to be able to react.

While she started to brace herself for what would inevitably be an extremely uncomfortable ride; Dame Allistari pulled up alongside. She must have had some wealth stashed somewhere; a Dalion like hers wouldn't be cheap. That was a high-end speeder there.

"My niece says she'd like to ride with you. If that's alright with you?"
"Niece?"
"She says you two have met."

It wouldn't have taken a scryer to know who would be climbing out of the passenger seet. Tressa hopped out and started climbing onto the truck. Kiera pulled her up.

"This kid's your niece?"
"My sister's daughter."
"How did she end up with you?" It was a personal question, but Kiera's rank made that sort of thing permissable; rude, but it still would get an honest answer.
Dame Allistari stopped for a moment, it was clear this was an issue she had no interest in discussing.
"Her mother, My sister, was, is not disposed towards a maternal lifestyle. And since her, 'partner' was indisposed when Tressa was born; I've raised her."
The disgust was obvious; it sounded like this was something no member of the family had wanted. She couldn't help but wonder about the father, but Kiera had the feeling rank wouldn't get her any further than this. Courtesy would only carry her so far. Maybe Tressa could be convinced to tell her more; now that she was safe the child had perked up noticeably. Although that may have been because the witchy aura didn't bother her now that she understood where it came from.

The convoy started off towards the hills. Tressa just sat there staring at the surroundings eagerly. Kiera decided to make the first move.
"Tressa."
"Yes Ma'am?"
"Do you still want to learn how to fight?"
Her whole face glowed, if she hadn't been on the top of a truck this probably would have been one of those gleeful jumping and squealing moments. It looked like this was a dream come true for her, like being a servant girl and finding out that your father the emperor or being whisked off by a handsome prince to his castle. It was a wierd thing to watch from the other end.
"You really mean it?" Tressa said ecstaticly.
"Yes, I'll teach you whatever I can. I'm not that good myself, but I know a good teacher and if we ever manage to find her I'll make her teach you. Until then, I'll show you everything I know."
Kiera stopped and thought about her first squealing joy moment, the day she first used magic. None of her siblings could do it, everyone knew that part of the ascension to the throne was that you had to prove yourself the strongest of your siblings. Mentally, physically, socially, the council was required to take everything into account; the ability to use magic gave you an edge in every possible way. In a non-magic using family it was practically a guarantee to the throne. It meant you could win fights easily, know things even spies couldn't learn, and read crowds like it was no bodies buisness. Not to mention the convenience it brought; a good mage never lacked anything they needed. Even if by some insane chance(considering her brothers she'd have won without magic) she didn't become the next lord of Anatolia; there was always the imperial guards. Everyone knew that anyone who scored over a 3 on the magical apptitude tests had a spot for them in the guards. Magic was the best thing that could happen to a Nielda.

Kiera sighed wistfully; Tressa just sat there silently, but the mood was clearly shared.

chapter eleven

Kiera approached the mansion. If it weren't for the gardens, it would have been pushing it to call this place a mansion. More like, very nice house with an excellent garden. This Dame Allistari person certainly liked her garden. It looked like she'd imported a variety of flowers and herbs from across the empire. The expense would probably explain why the house was so small by comparison to those of other low nobility.
Three in front, just like Tressa said. And she could see one of the patrollers on the second floor. The front wasn't an option then. She slipped around to the western side of the house; it was evening the sun would help her a little if the patrols spotted her.

She decided to risk it, and started climbing a trellis on the side of the house. There was one outside of her own bedroom; so she was quite used to climbing quietly. She wondered if there was some sort of universal law that princesses had to have very sturdy, attractive trellises outside their windows, because it seemed unlikely her father would have knowingly put something so convenient for climbing right next to her window.
The patrol had made it past her window when she came in. She quickly drew her sword and ran him through. Then moved across the hall to the stairwell. THe other patroller must have caught her scent because as she reached the door he flung it open. She slashed him across the chest as he reached for his weapon. Seven more, she thought as she silenced him with a stab to the throat.
She dashed down stairs, weaving a hasty spell. She turned into the kitchen; three of them were facing her weapons ready. A fourth was behind them still focused on the barricade. She threw her bolt of energy across the room; catching the center one across the chest and flinging him into the archer. The two toppled over the barricade, falling down the stairs with a clang of armor. The remaining two charged her. She began franticly parrying and blocking there blows; unlike the ones outside these two seemed to know how to fight together.

A bloodied figure came bareling out of the cellar with a loud cry. Behind him a Nieldic guard was following, sword in hand. Her assailants turned and tried to defend themselves. The screamer appeared to be a chef or cook of some sort, He had a butchers knife inverted in one hand and in the other he sported a large pot lid as a makeshift buckler. He slammed the first warior across the muzzle with his buckler and drew himself against his opponents body; stabbing him mercillesly in the back with the knife. The guard wasted no time in dispatching his warrior either, Kiera watched a familiar parry-bladeslip combo performed with military precision.

She heard the front door burst open behind her and turned. The remaining three warriors were facing them. One of them fired an arrow before she could react; and she watched in surprise as it was deflected in mid-flight.
"Pee on my herbs will you!"
A middle aged woman was standing, no, hovering over the barricade. Dame Allistari thrust her staff at the warriors, knocking them to the ground. The chef pounced upon the nearest warrior with his knife, and the guard rushed to finish his warrior. Kiera, not to be outdone by Allistari's magical display, began channeling away her opponents strength. The battle for this town had been quite tiresome and she needed the energy to make it through the day.

As her adversaries life faded under her spell, Dame Allistari walked up and touched her on the shoulder.
"That's enough child. We aren't trying to disintegrate him."
Kiera broke off the spell and sheathed her sword.
"We need to leave town, now."
"Princess, be a dear and help Caswick and Gesen bring the wounded out to the truck. Gina and I need to gather a few things from the garden."

Kiera moved to follow the two men. There was no mistakig it, she'd found the local witch. She was just glad this one hadn't asked for an apprentinceship.

Chapter ten

Kiera reacted instantly. She was glad she hadn't sheathed her sword.
A Ga-Vok warrior had been leaning on the inn's front door and was laying shocked on the street in front of her.
She stabbed; he howled, then lay still. She looked up, another Ga-Vok was standing in the middle of the room, weapon drawn. She charged without thinking and cut him down. Above her on the balcony another three were emerging from the door. One darted back into his room, A second charged to the stairway drawing his weapon, and the third crashed to the ground after leaping from the railing at her. She didn't even bother dealing with the last of them, it was very obvious he was dead, but instead ran to chalenge the one on the stairs.
The hair on his spine was raised, she started up the stairs. He pounced at her; throwing himself down the stairs. She threw herself against the wall and kicked him through the railing as he passed, then hopped down and stabbed him. She then went to pursue the remaining warrior.
She reached the door, and flung it open. The warrior had been bracing himself against it and went toppling off the balcony as he tried to recover. No need to worry about him either, the cracking noise and mushy thump told her everything she needed to know about his fate. She was far more interested in the room's other inhabitants.

"Y-you, you saved us."
nearly a hundred beaten and scared looking Nielda sat along the edges of the room.
"Are there any guards here? Healers?"
"No. They killed them all, I think."
"Who's in charge here?"
The whole group looked around, uncertain.
Then one girl raised her hand. She looked to be about fourteen or so.
"Ma'am, Dame Alistari is in charge."
"Is she dead too?"
"Maybe not, I heard them talking. They said that there were some people still holding out in the cellar of her mansion. She might be there."

Kiera's political training took over. She'd spent several years learning how to work crowds. She knelt down next to the girl.
"What's your name?"
"Tressa, Ma'am."
"And how old are you"
It was a rhetorical question, every Nielda knew it. It was the fact that they took the time to ask that was apreciated; it always had been. She could have asked her what her favorite color was(blue), where she was from(not certain but she would guess Tara, to pale to be local), or whether she was scared(remarkably no) and the inteneded result would be the same. It was no secret magic users were able to pick thoughts and memories out of the minds of the unguarded. She hadn't out of courtesy, but that was beside the point, people expected her to either already have the answers or not be a real noble.
Which is why the answer bothered her so much.
"Eleven Ma'am."
She didn't look it, but fortunately she'd already planned to answer it that way.
"Eleven? I'd have guessed you were much older than that."
Tressa muttered quietly, "I know you did."
Kiera pretended not to notice, she knew no one else had. "Well Tressa, I'm going to get you all out of here safely. But you have to promise to do as I tell you."
Tressa nodded, but her eyes were never drawn away from Kiera's. She'd never admit it, but this girl had the kind of creepiness that was usually only found in an older witch.
"Gather up all the food and supplies you can find. Get tractors or trucks and whatever else you can find and pack it up. We're going into the hills to hide out until things are safe again."
The people brightened up considerably. They'd been hoping for something like this to happen.
"I'm going up to the mansion to help the people there. If I don't come back just head due west until you reach the hills. Take any weapons you can, you may need to defend yourselves."
They all rushed out to follow her instructions. Except for Tressa, the little devil was still standing there.
"I can help, I can get you into the mansion."
"No, if you want to help then tell me how many there are."
Tressa sighed, "Nine; two patrolling the second floor with bows, four at a barricade overlooking the cellar, the other three are at the front door. I can take you inside if you'll let me."
"No, I'm not going to take a little girl into a fight. Magic or not, you aren't ready."
"Can you teach me?"
"What?"
"Teach me, to fight that is."

Kiera stopped and thought, this wasn't exactly the sort of thing she had ever really considered. I mean she'd have an heir to train one day, but an apprentince?
"We'll talk about it later. I need to go take care of those Ga-Vok up at the mansion."
"I'll wait for you."

That child chilled her to the marrow, but she had the feeling she'd need all the help she could get.

chapter nine, continued

Done.
It wasn't the most elegant illusion in the world but it would serve her purposes.
Kiera looked down at the roughly humanoid, semi-transparent, perfume-smelling conjuration in front of her. She'd enchanted it to appear to be picking something off the ground in a small patrolling pattern. not quickly, just enough movement to draw attention but not enough to make them suspect anything.

Now to take up her posistion. She crouched behind a low rock, sword ready at her side. From here she could see the whole ridge and on down to the Ga-Vok camp outside of town.
She saw a Ga-Vok down in the camp motion towards the illusion, and then three of the score of warriors from the camp begin rushing up the ridge.
As they reached the illusion and began attempting to destroy the unresponding image, Kiera sprung from her hiding place. Slashing the air and cutting down the furthest of her opponents with a burst of magic she flung herself upon her stunned prey.
The second warrior fell in a spray of blood as she cut him down, and she spun to block a stab from the last of them. Twisting the blade in her hand she slid it along the blade of his weapon and plunged its tip into his chest. She turned towards the camp to see how they had reacted to this development.
It was better than she'd hoped, all seventeen of the remaining men were charging her position. Calculating their distance she readied her sword. When they reached the position, she plunged her sword into the earth and activated her traps. Spears of blood ad stone sprung from the earth, impaling four and wounding most of her assaillants. One of them lept over the deadly thicket, drwaing his katar. She spun, bringing her sword down upon his back; then again turning plunged it through the unguarded neck of the next of her opponents. Nine down.
The others were not so hasty; they were warriors, not fools. Moving carefully, they positioned themselves around her. Two lunged at her, she lept back slicing one of their arms. Another bounded over them, stabbing at her and slashing her leg with his claws. She struck him wildly across the back, forcing him to the ground. Using magic she flung another back as he charged. This had aways been easier in simulators, she thought to herself as she deflected another blow. She rolled to dodge, slashing upwards into the unguarded thigh of a slower reacting adversary.
The ten remaing warriors now spread out as a larger male barked loudly at the others. He would be their leader, she brandished he r weapon at him.
"Stop Barking and fight me yourself, coward!"
He raised his head, the others stepped back. He crouched, grabbing a second weapon from a nearby corpse. Kiera quickly tried to remember everything she could about fighting an oponent with multiple weapons.
"sword tip down, and lock blades." Callins lesson from so many years ago returned, "then sweep upward forcing their blades above your head, then stab downward."
It had seemed so silly at the time, practicing combat. But if she ever saw Callin again she would knight her for it.
He stabbed with the right first, she caught the outside edge and forced it down. As he stabbed with the left she pulled her sword back along the right Katar and forced it across the left. Then raising the pommel of sword into the air she forced his blades over his head and.
The force of the blow took him to his knees. He gurnted in pain, unable to scream for the blade that now pierced him from his muzzle to his chest. The other warriors stood back, dumbfounded by their leader's demise.
She decided to go all or nothing, the wound in her leg was going to make moving to painful to fight. She withdrew her blade, pushing the still twitching corpse aside. Channeling energy down the length of the blade she drew back her sword. Then with a swing she unleashed a shockwave of arcan force at her enemies.
It wasn't lethal, but it knocked them all to the ground and left them severly lacerated. She stepped over and finished seven with a stab to the throat. She knelt over the last of them, he was only mildly wounded. Perfect for what she needed.
She crouched over him cutting his arm and drawing a few vials. She filled them with his blood and arranged them on the ground. She should have done this years ago, but she had never expected to actually use her sword in a fight. She rose. Extending her hand over the vials she beagan to inacant the desired charm. then sweeping across the vials she shattered them. The glass fell to the ground with the blood crystalizing in the air before her. Then she slowly drew her sword across the red mist; drawing it nto the sword and empowering it. This would make channeling spells much easier in the future. She then repeated the procedure this time crystalizing the blood without shattering the vials; bloodstone was one ofthe best substances for the amplification and retainment of energy after all.
She silenced the wailing Ga-Vok beside her and proceded down to the camp. She gathered every scrap of food she could before walking into town to find the inn; it had been a long time since she had slept in a bed.

What she found there was completly unforseen.

brief interlude

I'll get back to chapter nine over the weekend, possibly even tomorrow. But for now I've had a wonderful idea and need to record it.

As a warning, I'm no artist. But sometimes I feel the need to make something; a tabard, ship, or weapon usually; visually, so that others can understand what I'm saying a bit better.


no color, but it would be leather on the lower white sections(dark brown), dark red(also leather) in black section, and metalic grey on the upper white sections, the light grey sections would be the color of whatever the wielder's clothing was.
it would be gemmed in the middle of the red(black) section; I have yet to decide what sort of gem, but a large emerald or saphire seems likely.
Stay with me here, I know this is complicated and rather silly.
The leather section is a glove, and the blades(metal sections) fold back.

The practicality of this weapon is quite questionable. It lacks the stable design of a Katar, and the deftness of a knife. However, like many of the weapons you will encounter in the Nieldic universe; this one is heavily enchanted. And it falls under the category of weapons that I refer to as 'artist's weapons'; things like nunchuks, double bladed swords, or anything attached to the end of a chain with no handle. These are the sorts of weapons that take years to become proficent with and are really more of a novelty than an actual weapon for the most part.
Magic users, however,love power. And novelties like this one usually have it.
This particular weapon belonged to an Nielda, A member of the Ukown Guild(Obi-Wan's warning about Mos-Eisley; only with more magic and considerably more organization) before the Ga-Vok wars. It's called 'zink's cleiden; or 'death's hand'. Not the most original name but the man who was best known for wielding it was not about to be overshadowed by a mere weapon.


I look horribly distracted, and just outright horrible in this picture. It's hard to look good while you operate a laptop's camera.

chapter nine

Kiera was in sight of the town when it occured to her. If there were more than five of them she wouldn't stand a chance in a fight. She stopped on small ridge just off the road into town.
She could probably out match any given one of them in a fight, but if more than on came at her she wasn't sure. With magic she could probably take as many as three or four at a time; if she was lucky.
No, that sort of magic was to costly. SHe'd be exhausted in minutes and unable to defend herself if any more came. Which left her with one choice, set traps and lure them out.
It was a time consuming option, and left a lot to her enemies competence. But it was still the safest option. And a little magic could remove a great deal of personal danger.
She drew her sword; it seemed like this was hapening a lot recently.
she slid her hand across the sharp edge and quickly cast a clotting spell to prevent to much blood loss. The runes came more easily to her now; she had used these enchantments often recently. As her blood trickled down the blade, she marked the earth along the ridge. She wasn't sure about how effective the spell would actually be, but she doubted they'd have any way of detedting it without a spellweaver of their own; in which case she would be dead anyways. She had read tales that said Ga-Vok shaman could slay their enemies from across worlds. Child's tales perhaps, but she had seen nothing to disprove it.
That was the last of them. What blood remained on her sword would serve to poison it against her enemies. Now to lure them.
She was hesitant to spill more of her own blood; so she bent over the earth. drawing upon her own power she gave it shape. An image of a woman, nothing spectacular; but a bit of her own scent would work better against a Ga-Vok.