The Forsaken Hero
Chapter 294: Map

Chapter 294: Map

The morning sun breached the canopy in waving, dappled beams, falling upon my face, making my eyes twitch. The light’s soothing warmth was seductive and welcoming, inviting me to bask in its glory, but I hardly noticed it, lost in the depths of my meditation. Mana cycled in wide, lethargic currents, slowly washing over the jagged scars that laced my soul. It was difficult to practice, but I dedicated the morning hours to it ever since learning of Sari’s enslavement, never missing a single day. It had been slow going, by my efforts weren’t without fruit. In the three days since we left Heartland, I’d managed to bring my soul to the threshold of fifth level.

Our journey thus far had been the easiest I’d ever embarked on. On Fable’s back, we climbed mountains and waded rivers, eating up ground at an unimaginable rate. Even the roughest terrain, something I might have once considered unnavigable, were little more than trifles to the wolf’s massive size. When we stopped to rest the night before, the forest had shown signs of thinning, the mountains growing less dramatic and sheer. The trees had lost their ancient, enigmatic auras, and the sky appeared through the twisted branches more frequently.

A sudden flare of fire shot through my soul, driving an agonized spasm through my tail. I bit my lip, holding back a cry, every muscle clenching as more waves of pain followed. It was an unwelcome reminder of the state of my soul–healing, but still very, very hurt. The scars had faded some, but the deepest remained, often igniting for the most arbitrary, random reasons. Sometimes, for no reason at all.

Slowly, the pain receded, and I unclenched my fists, letting the folds of my skirt fall free. Letting out a heavy sigh, I relinquished my mana and opened my eyes, blinking away unshed tears. It seemed this was as far as I could go today.

"It happened again?"

I felt a hand rest on my head, stroking between my horns, and looked up to find Korra gazing down at me. Her piercing green eyes were wet with concern, a small frown radiating disapproval.

"I’m fine," I said, my voice soft and quiet. "You don’t have to worry about me. I’m not going to keep pushing...not again."

"Good. In that case, mind if I brush your hair? You did agree to it, remember?"

I glanced up again, surprised to find her frown transformed into a small, mischievous smile. It was something she’d insisted on since leaving Westfall Village, though I hadn’t quite figured out why. Still, I could only nod, my heart growing lighter as her smile spread, a small dimple appearing on her cheek.

Before I could even shift to a more comfortable position, I felt a tug of a comb. It was all I could do to keep the wry smile from my lips. Had she been holding it the whole time?

Her touch was soft and gentle, smoothing out tangles and snarls with an ease and grace I could only dream of. Such intimate contact had taken getting used to, but I no longer flinched whenever her fingers brushed my horn, or danced across my sensitive ears. Occasionally, when I closed my eyes, her image overlapped with Trithe, but that was happening less and less often. Perhaps, one day, I’d be able to forget that experience entirely, when she brushed my hair for the sole purpose of manipulating me into accepting the Soul Binder.

"You alright?" Korra’s voice drifted into my ear, and I started, finding I’d unconsciously tensed.

"Y-yes!" I stammered, a slight blush overtaking my features. Giving my head a shake, I accidentally dislodged the comb, earning a disapproving grunt from Korra. "Sorry, I was just thinking about something you said. It’s been really calm and peaceful since leaving Heartland. Why did you say it might be difficult to get to Brithlite? Is there a large river or something that Fable can’t cross?"

Fortunately, she accepted the excuse gracefully and let out a lighthearted chuckle, pausing her ministrations long enough to glance at the wolf. Fable lounged on a large rock on the side of the clearing, basking in the morning’s sun. "I doubt there’s a river on Enusia that wolf can’t swim across. That one we hit yesterday didn’t even get up to his stomach!"

Sensing something more was to be said, I ran a hand my hand along the length and drew the tip into my lap. "Then what is it?"

"The war, obviously."

Despite her position behind me, I could practically hear the eye roll. Feeling the sting at her dismissal, my grip tightened, sending a sharp tingle through my tail. "Oh."

Korra paused, looking down at me from above, and her face softened. "Sorry, I didn’t mean it like that. I just thought you knew about the war. We’ve talked about it quite a bit, haven’t we?"

My grip grew even tighter, whitening my knuckles. But, instead of just nodding and withdrawing to myself, I forced myself to respond, mustering enough strength to whisper, "I thought it was north of Brithlite."

She was silent for a second, then ventured, "It is? Wait, Xiviyah, have you ever seen a map?"

To her disbelief, I shook my head, sending a wave of crimson curls dancing around my shoulders.

"Unbelievable," she muttered. Then, putting a more optimistic raise in her voice, "Xiviyah, the capital of Brithlite is west of here, but also south. We’re north of Brithlite. The demons began their invasion near the tip of the continent, but they’ve claimed enough ground to be nearly parallel to us. I wouldn’t be surprised to run into patrols of either side on the way, both of which would mean bad news."

Cross a battlefield? But wasn’t that much worse than it sounded? I took a shallow breath, a nervous twitch tearing my tail from my hands and back onto the ground. "This isn’t good. Now that I’ve rejected their offer, the church will send inquisitors after me. And the demons...the closer I am, the more will be able to sense me. It won’t just be the powerful evolved demons, but all of them."

"Getting cold feet?"

I shook my head. "Honestly, this world’s been against me from the beginning. Having a few more enemies won’t make much of a difference. What about you? If you continue with me, it’s all but assured we’ll fight not just demons, but humans as well. Are you going to be alright fighting the people you’ve been defending and living with this entire time?"

The air grew still and heavy, the only sound the whisper of her comb through my hair. I fought the urge to turn, to see what sort of expression she was making, waiting with bated breath for her answer. No matter what, I had to press on. I couldn’t abandon Sari. But the thought that Korra might be reluctant to join me was almost too much to bear.

After what felt like an eternity, Korra set her comb down and rested her hand on my shoulder. "It’s complicated," she finally said, then added, "But I know one thing for certain. I’ll never let anyone hurt you, be it demon, man, or monster. If it’s truly your decision to go to Brithlite, I’ll be with you the entire way."

I opened my mouth and tried to speak, to tell her how much she meant to me, but the words didn’t make it past the lump in my throat. Instead, I could only nod, reaching up to lay a touch her hand resting on my shoulder. She gave my shoulder a comforting squeeze then slipped in front of me, dropping to a knee and reaching into her spatial ring.

"I picked a map up in Brithlite sometime ago, used it to help me find this backwater city in the first place," she muttered, fishing around for a time. Her eyes lit up, and she withdrew an old, wrinkled piece of parchment. "Here it is! Look, we’re here."

The parchment was old and dry, crackling like autumn leaves as she smoothed it against her thigh. It was a little rough, but matched my memory of the great atlases in the Divine Throne. The northern continent was smaller than the southern, looking like a putty crescent moon tipped on its side, the arc curved northward. Brithlite was at the very top of the arc, the capital city, sharing the same name as the country, located near its southern boundary. Heartland Forest, with a small dot indicating the city itself, covered a massive swath of the continent nearly the size of any other country depicted, save an empire on the southern continent.

"The demons came in here," Korra explained, running her finger over the northernmost coast of Brithlite. "From what I understand, they’ve taken a few of these towns and cities, pushing the battle parallel with where we are."

"Can’t we just go further south before cutting East? We’d only hit the war if we travel in a straight line."

She shook her head, gesturing to the Heartland Mountains, a sweeping range that filled the entire region south of the forest. "These mountains are home to some particularly powerful creatures. I’ve heard there’s a particularly powerful dragon who reigns in that area. Alex, I think, killed one of its sires, so it’s not particularly fond of heroes right now. I’d rather brave the war than risk entering its domain."

I nodded slowly, studying the map further south than that. Unfortunately, trying to avoid the area threatened by the dragon, or other powerful monsters, would probably take three or four times longer than cutting through the battlefields. North wasn’t an option either, as it was completely controlled by the demons.

"I guess that settles it. There’s still trade though, right? I think I’ve seen a few merchants in Heartland who came from Brithlite. We could use their roads."

Korra tapped a finger to her chin, tracing the trade road with her eyes. "Yeah, that might work. If we can get to Tristram, this city here, we might be able to hire on as caravan guards or something. That would be an easy disguise going into the country. You have your adventuring guild emblem, which would vouch for our identity. They don’t ask much more for mercenaries."

"Alright, let’s do it." I took a deep breath and stood, stretching my arms over my head before glancing at my wolf. "Fable, you ready? It’s time to move."