The Iron Forest: Ancestor's Legacy

Walking back to the road turned into a shuffling of frozen feet. The winter storm glazed everything with a sparkling layer of ice. What body heat Sana and Victor had left after coming down the mountain dissipated from the stale, frigid air.

Sana cursed herself for risking their lives in an attempt to avoid the road. She had a good reason, though. They were heading in to Chotukhan territory and capture would be a fate worse than death. She knew if they captured him, he would be tortured and killed. Like they did to…

She heard a thump and turned to see Victor on his hands and knees.

“I’m f-fine. I just need to r-rest.”

She pulled his arm to get him back on his feet. “If you rest now, you’ll freeze to death.”

He struggled to stay standing, using her for balance.

Sana wrapped her arm around him. “We need to keep moving.”

Their pace slowed further.

“Victor?” His mumbling worried her. He needed more than a campfire to recover—they both did.

The road wound through a narrow valley that turned white beneath a thick layer of ice. Spruce trees bowed from the extra weight of snow, carried by the wind rushing from the mountains. Ahead, a column of smoke rose into the gray sky.

Sana push Victor forward, carrying a large percentage of his weight now. “We’re almost there. Just a little farther,” she whispered. “There’s a town up ahead. We’ll find a nice, warm place to stay for the night with hot food and drink.”

Houses and buildings made from aged logs huddled together on both sides of the road. If it were not for dozens of chimneys belching out smoke from hearth-fires, it would have seemed abandoned. No one dared to venture out, which gave Sana a slice of comfort.

The sudden sight of civilization also peaked Victor’s interest and spirit. “What is this place?”

“Sevid Zos, a trapping outpost. Hunters from other villages come here to sell firs to the Chotukhan. A lot of difficult people can be found here. We need to be careful.”

“Best behavior—got it.” He smirked.

Sana smirked herself, forgetting Victor’s lack of knowledge of everything. Although he’s a grown man, I have to keep reminding myself he has less experience of this world than a child. This may complicate things.

Sana pulled the bearskin hood over her head enough to hide her face. Although no guards stood watch, she didn’t want to risk it and be noticed.

Music rumbled from inside one of the larger buildings. A sign squeaked as it rocked back and forth. The words, ‘Pelts and Pints’ were carved into the faded wood. Every few minutes, a burst of laughter roared from within.

“A tavern?” Victor asked.

“An inn. Not many options for places to stay. At least it will be warm.”

She opened the door to reveal a room full of men and women. Three musicians played spirited music with a young man singing about a queen who tried to murder a king with a blade and fire. Honey glazed venison over a fire filled the room with an appetizing haze.

She kept her head low and took a step forward.

Victor grabbed her arm. “You look like you’re trying to hide. Try to relax.”

“Easy for you to say. No one’s looking for you.”

He shrugged, moving to take a seat at one of the tables.

A middle-aged woman approached with a scowl. She was as wide as she was tall, wearing an apron smeared with a reddish stain. “Never seen you two around these parts. What’ll it be?” she asked with fists pressed against her hips.

“A bowl of whatever you got. And a warm place to sleep,” Sana requested.

“There’s plenty of stew in the kettle and you’re welcome to the stables to lay your head down. It smells of shit, but it’ll keep you warm.”

Sana pulled out a bracelet from inside her cloak and placed it on the table. “That will do fine.”

The woman studied the beads made from polished turquoise and quartz then gave a gap-toothed grin. “I’ll have your stew served up shortly.”

“Just as I told you,” Victor said when the woman left, “no one recognizes you. We’ll be fine.”

Sana had her doubts. “I still think—”

Two wooden bowls were slammed on the table. “This should warm your innards.” The woman slid a pair of leather tankards towards them. “Hot honey wine to warm your spirits.”

Sana nodded in thanks. She started sipping the stew, but hunger overpowered her manners and she gorged herself, slurping every spoonful. The savory flavor of wild onions with cumin did well to enhance the bland taste of bone broth.

She looked up at Victor, who was downing the stew with equal enthusiasm.

“The Shainxu, are they anything like the Shankur?” Victor asked after finishing his meal.

Sana took a sip of her wine and shook her head. “No. Not at all. They are all wizards who use magic.”

“Magic?”

Sana wasn’t sure if he didn’t understand the word or what it meant. “They can do things that no one else can.”

Victor chuckled. “I know what magic is, but I don’t believe it exists.”

“It does. I’ve seen it.”

“You have?”

She nodded. “They are a very strange group that doesn’t take well to outsiders. For centuries, they have isolated themselves from all other tribes, not caring about anything else but worshiping Mother Gaia and learning the ways of the Ancients.” She paused, noticing Victor’s distraction. “What’s wrong?”

“Don’t look, but a strange man has been watching you since we arrived. I might have been wrong about your popularity.”

Sana turned her head with a casual glance to see a lone man seated along the wall opposite Victor. Shadow covered his face but didn’t hide his bright white eyes or long, thin mustache. Burgundy robes peeked behind a brown, rough-spun cloak.

“I said don’t look,” Victor muttered.

She smiled, amused. “Victor, he’s not watching me. He’s watching you.”

“Me? Who is he?”

“I don’t know. Never seen him before.”

The stranger still sat with his gaze on Victor. A few men passed between them with tankards in one hand and arms around each other. As they passed, the man vanished without a trace.

“What… He’s gone?”

Sana shrugged. “One less creep to worry about.”

Victor shook his head in disbelief. “No. I mean, he disappeared… like that.” He snapped his fingers.

“If I had to guess. He was Shainxu.” Which worried her. Several tales were told of how Lady Tani performed the same trick in Gathal. She was there, but not there. If that’s the case, then someone with the same power has an interest in Victor. If trouble erupts, it will blow her cover and alert the Chotukhan of her presence.

She downed the last spoonful of stew. “Let’s get going before we find ourselves the center of attention.” Sana slung her pack over her shoulder and gestured to the door.

They left the Pelt and Pint with as much discretion as possible. The door opened to twilight sky, giving enough darkness to move with little notice. Firelight broke through the double doors leading into the stable barn as they headed for it. For the night, it will serve as their home, which Sana looked forward to since her exhaustion reached its peak.

Rough-cut wooden doors opened to a building filled with empty animal stalls and piles of hay. Oil lamps spread yellow light in random flickers, just enough to see. She dropped her pack. “Victor we should—”

The stable doors slammed shut.

“Looks like we caught us a real beauty,” a man said through yellow teeth. She recognized his ringed armor as a soldier of the Chotukhan. Three more appeared from the stalls, then another from the shadows. The swish of metal rang as swords were unsheathed.

“Lord Balon and Lady Karmera want Queen Ranina alive,” another guard said. “Feel free to kill her boyfriend.”

They closed the distance.

Sana glanced at her spear, still attached to her pack, and disassembled in two pieces. She closed her fists, ready to fight. Five to two seems like good enough odds to me. A glance at Victor, who still carried an off-balanced stance and little experience with a sword in a real fight, had her rolling her eyes. Make that five to one.

The doors to the stable burst into thousands of tiny shards and splinters, sending everyone to the ground.

Sana jerked up to ringing ears, knocking chunks of wood off her back. She reached to help Victor to his feet and turned to see the man from the tavern, standing in the doorway with his arms crossed.

The guards sprang up. One rushed the wizard, but a swing of the stranger’s arm sent the guard flying back into a stall. Another attacked with a swing of his sword, but met only air. The wizard’s image twitched and garbled from the interference. How can a man fight with no weapon?

“Run you fools!” he shouted.

Sana snatched her pack and grabbed Victor’s hand before heading for the door, leaving the stranger to fight the guards. A quick look back showed lightning and flashing lights burst from gaps in the stable’s paneling.

She ran, making sure Victor kept pace. His footsteps crunched the fresh snow, but she also detected a couple more. She halted in a clearing, pulling her spear from the pack. A twist of her wrist joined the two pieces into one weapon. Dead men don’t take prisoners.

Three new guards spread out, encircling them. Sana spun the weapon, making circles in the moonlight. They lurched forward with swords raised high, one at Victor, two at Sana. She dodged and weaved, almost dancing around the men while he blocked and parried. Her thrust impaled the first one while the second sent her spear’s shaft digging deep into his gut. Victor’s swing sent the blade across the third man’s throat. A final jab brought the only survivor to the ground, ending his life.

Sana halted, breathless, her spear across her back, ready for another attacker. She only saw darkness and trees.

“We need to get moving. It’s only a matter of time before they send an entire legion after us.”

Victor nodded. “But where? We’ll freeze to death if we don’t find some place warm.”

“I’ll help you with that!” cried a scratchy, high-pitched voice from the distant shadows. “Don’t be alarmed. I won’t hurt you.”

Sana spun. “Show yourself.”

The stranger from the tavern approached with arms crossed beneath his rough-spun cloak. “I must say, you handled those guards better than I expected. Those were three of the King’s own, very skilled.”

Her eyes narrowed. “Who are you? What do you want?”

“Of course, pardon my manners.” He bowed. “I am Jinlin, master mage and keeper of the Arcane.”

He took a step forward and held out a thin stick-like finger, pointing at Victor. “And I want him.”

Sana put herself between the wizard and Victor. “You’ll have to get through me first.”

“My dear, I’m afraid you are greatly outnumbered.”

To her shock, four more Jinlin’s appeared and formed a semi-circle, with two more arriving a few seconds later. They looked identical and mirrored each other’s movements.

She glanced at Victor to see him in wide-eyed amazement.

“If you want me to help. Then you must pass the test,” they said, echoing one another. “Which one of me is the real Jinlin?”

Sana scanned each one and found no indication of which was real, or which was fake.

Victor leaned toward her and whispered, “Second one on the left.”

“You sure?”

“Yes.”

She bent her knees and bolted forward with a spin and roll. Her hand grasped at Jinlin’s neck with the spear-point, inches from his face. All the other wizards evaporated, leaving the one in her grip behind.

Jinlin grinned. “Very good. I believe we’ve established who’s the brains and who’s the brawn.” He pulled away and headed toward the darkness. “Come on, if you want to get warm. I’m not going to carry you.”

Sana turned to Victor. “How did you know?”

He smiled. “Simple. Only one of the wizards had foggy breath.”