Roland gripped his practice sword nervously. His wound from his last spar with Riley was not healed yet, and here he was facing him again. Surely Riley would go easier on him this time. Wouldn't he?
Riley's gaze was complicated as he raised his own practice sword to the starting position. Roland decided to get it over with and take an offensive tactic.
His first trio of blows, a set Peter taught him, were deflected without even a twitch on Riley's face. Roland tried again, and was similarly ineffective. The disparity between their fighting skills was comical... to everyone except the two of them. Roland was feeling an exasperated shame, while Riley was feeling a mix of pity and resentment.
Roland fell backward into a defensive stance. He was only wearing himself out trying to attack. Riley quirked an eyebrow at him.
"Giving up already?" The taunt did not fall on deaf ears.
"I'll never give up," Roland responded, "Will you?"
Riley's eyes narrowed at the double meaning he sensed behind Roland's words. Roland cringed. Why was he provoking the most dangerous warrior in the camp, who already had reason for a personal grudge against him? He didn't even have real cause for jealousy except that Finn had also written Riley a letter. But that was enough to nibble away at Roland's good sense right now.
"Why should I give up when I'm clearly going to win?" Riley swung a measured blow that it took Roland enormous effort to block.
"Not every battle is so obvious," Roland huffed, berating himself internally. This was madness, and yet the old haughtiness had lit up in Riley's eyes and Roland felt the irrational drive to take him down a peg or two.
"Oh?" Another lazy swing and a block, "And you think you're winning this other battle?" The next blow was harder and jarred Roland's shoulder as he managed to barely swing his sword up to prevent the strike from hitting his ribs.
"I'm absolutely certain of it," Roland defiantly held his ground as he stared into Riley's face. The confidence in his gaze insinuated that he had ample evidence in support of his statement. Riley's eyes lit with rage.
Pushing his sword against Roland's, both practice swords careened to the side, leaving Roland undefended. He felt the full force of Riley's muscular body slam into him before he hit the ground half a second later, knocking the wind out of him. Riley stared down at him from where he stood, a tinge of regret on his face, mixed with angst and frustration.
Roland gasped for breath and knew he'd fractured at least one rib and bruised one or two more. His head spun and his back ached. All things considered, Riley had gone easy on him. The larger man was capable of far worse damage.
__________________
Finn and Dr. Sherman listened patiently at the council meeting. Another report had come in of a wolf attack. A young mother had gone to the well outside of her town for water and was severely injured. The Council's faces were grim.
"General, is there any news from the army on these wolves? Have any of them been successfully hunted?" The Judge asked. His desire for justice was not confined to humankind, or to the walls of Klain.
The General cleared his throat. "Two of our scouting parties that patrol the borders have had encounters with these creatures."
The rest of the Council looked at him expectantly to continue, though none of them voiced the question.
"The wolves seemed to be hunting the groups. One soldier in each was severely injured. The wolves fled when the rest mounted a counter attack." A murmur ran through the crowd.
The Peacekeeper squinted, as if trying to solve a mystery. "Only one soldier in each? Is there any discernable pattern to these attacks?"
"Perhaps," The General's eyes cut to where Finn was in the crowd. "Both injured soldiers were female. The wolves seem to be hunting women."
A fresh surge of murmurs caused the head guard to strike the butt of his spear against the stone floor to restore order.
"I have reluctantly decided that, for the safety of the army and its members, that all female soldiers must be temporarily recalled to Klain. I will send the order this afternoon, and will decide at some future time whether this threat warrants releasing them from service entirely. I will also be ordering the recruits to continue their training on the move as they join in tracking down the wolves." The General eyed The Provider, who had no reaction to the news.
Finn couldn't believe it. The General's earlier questions now made more sense, but the situation didn't. The wolves hadn't been hunting her, they had clearly been out for the children. She'd put herself in the way. The fact that she was the only one injured was a coincidence... She thought hard about it. Dr. Sherman had said he'd treated an injured soldier before for an attack by a mountain lion. At the time she hadn't known soldiers could be female. Had Dr. Sherman said the word 'he' or had Finn simply pictured a man based on her assumption?
No, she was fairly certain he'd said it was a man he had treated. The pattern must be new, then, or just extreme coincidence.
Satisfied temporarily by The General's announcement, the meeting moved onward. The Provider announced that the emergency stores had been almost fully refilled due to the hard work of the citizens of Klain, and the attendees breathed a collective sigh of relief. Mrs. Sherman and Mayra had been doing their part to make preserved fruits, vegetables, and meats that would last long in case of a siege. Finn wondered idly if Mrs. Sherman was donating all of it to the main city stores or keeping a personal supply as well.
The meeting concluded and the citizens dismissed. Finn wanted to go talk to the General more about how the attack on her was more coincidence than anything, but Dr. Sherman gave her a sharp look warning her not to press her luck. Her impudence toward the military leader was tolerated because he seemed to like her, but there were limits to his good humor. With the pressure of the increasing animal attacks and the absence of an enemy force to fight head-on, the strategist was growing embittered and frustrated.
The two walked home instead, and Finn decided to pour her irritation into a letter or two. The General said he would send orders this afternoon; maybe they would also deliver mail.
It took less time than she anticipated to put all her feelings onto paper. Perhaps her breakthrough of the prior day had something to do with it, she realized. A wave of emotions rose within her again. Resisting the urge to push them aside, she sat still and breathed, trying to let it wash over her and pass. She tried to identify each feeling as it ebbed and flowed.
Sorrow, frustration, anger, impotence, helplessness. Her breathing became labored and the exercise overwhelming. Opening her eyes, she looked up and concentrated on the plant in the windowsill, its purple flower, and each leaf. She counted them and took another deep breath. As she had promised the little plant before leaving, she added crushed eggshells and more water to its pot, adding leftover tea leaves for good measure.
She then sealed the letters and went to ask Mrs. Sherman how to get them delivered.
Victoria asked to go on the errand with her, and Finn agreed. Mrs. Sherman had given her directions to the registration office, where mail was collected and sent to the recruits. Unless an order from the General was truly urgent and required immediate departure, the messenger normally stopped by to retrieve the mail on his way out of the city. As it was still late morning, Finn hoped she wasn't too late.
She'd initially written a letter for Riley, but decided she should send one for Roland as well. She had briefly struggled with how to address him after their memorable parting, but found the words came easily once her hesitation was overcome.
Victoria was a little chatterbox as they walked along, and Finn enjoyed her company. Spending time with a small child always brought her such a refreshing outlook on life. From questions to comments to silly jokes, the little girl was blooming now that she was out of the orphanage. It soothed Finn's heart.
They arrived at the registration office, and Finn stepped up to the ever-present desk. The clerk looked her up and down.
"Hello," She began, a little nervously, "I've got letters for recruits, is this where I drop them off?"
The clerk eyed her and nodded, holding his hands out for the mail. She put them in his hands, unsure as to the procedure. She'd forgotten to ask Mrs. Sherman if there was a cost to send them.
"I'm sorry, I'm a little unfamiliar with the process... do I need to pay anything?"
The man's face twisted, "What is this, a bribe? Mail to soldiers is free. If you want to get mail back, you have to come here to pick it up."
"Oh! Thank you." She responded. She almost asked if there was any mail for her, but Roland had just delivered his and Riley's letters not long ago. It was highly unlikely that anything had been sent, let alone arrived, since then.
She curtsied to the man, realizing she really should ask Mrs. Sherman for military etiquette lessons. It would be far less awkward if she knew what was expected of her when interacting with The General or his soldiers, or even other City officials. She had fallen into a semi-formal way of addressing The Treasurer after spending so much time researching with him, but it would be better if she at least knew the proper way. With her village destroyed, she was here in Klain for an indefinite amount of time.
Victoria continued her chatter on the way back to the Shermans' house. Finn stopped once to buy her a candy from a shop, which delighted the little girl. They held hands and walked together, when suddenly as they rounded a corner, Victoria jumped behind Finn's skirts and hid there.
"Oh! What's wrong, Victoria?" Finn twisted to get a better view of the child who was now behind her.
"The new kids." Victoria whispered. Finn looked across the small square they had entered and saw three boys talking quietly together. Victoria recognized one of them from the orphanage, but the other two must have been adopted before she volunteered there. She was glad to see that another had apparently gotten a home, but the boy did not return her smile.
He glared at her with a vicious irritation that unnerved her deeply. With another whisper to the two other boys, the three split up and went their separate ways.