“Just leave me alone!”
Jakob stood in shocked silence as Leila disappeared down the rocky path. He felt numb, as if the world had suddenly been flipped upside down. The girl who had just yelled at him was not the girl he had met in the King’s camp. She couldn’t be the one who had hidden, so quiet and alone, only to smile brightly when he returned with word that they were safe. The Leila he knew would never say such hurtful things only hours after he had risked his own life to save hers.
He heard the Dyrel woman move to stand next to him. Instantly, his body tensed for a fight. Leila knew this woman, so she must have some good qualities, but for a Dyrel to get this far into Huryl lands undetected was too much for him to grasp.
“Come on,” Clothis sighed. “We’d better follow her.”
Jakob sat heavily on a rock, keeping his distance from the Dyrel. “Let her go.”
Clothis paused and turned to face the young man. “Afraid? Or are you like she said? Your chance of getting her power is gone, so you don’t care if she dies?”
Jakob rose to meet her gaze, his eyes hard as the stones around him. “You Dyrel are all alike, pushing your noses where they don’t belong in the name of peace. You always think you’re right and that you know what’s best.”
“Same for you Huryl,” Clothis snapped, “always thinking of yourselves and how to get more power.”
“I don’t care about power!” Jakob exclaimed, leaping to his feet and placing his hand on his sword. “I only care about Leila!”
Clothis snorted in laughter. “You are a coward, then, and a fool if you think she can survive in this world without help.”
The sky cracked and a light misting of rain began to fall. The two enemies stood staring at each other, with only their mutual respect for Leila keeping them from drawing their weapons. There was nothing but silence for a long time as they waited in stalemate for a move to be made.
Suddenly, Clothis ran directly at Jakob. She moved with such speed that the startled soldier had no time to draw his weapon before she was upon him. Her shoulder caught him in the stomach, knocking them both to the ground. Jakob landed hard, exhaling sharply as the air was pressed from his lungs under Clothis’ weight. He felt a rush of air move past his cheek, and saw the arrow that had nearly taken his life clattered to the stone ground.
The arrow was very crude, as if made by an amateur instead of a master fletcher. Clothis was on her feet in a moment, scanning the rocky cliffs for signs of the archer. Jakob rose as well, his sword drawn and his back to Clothis as he, too, searched for the would-be assassin.
He heard a sudden movement to his left and turned in time to see a bear charging towards them with a long hunting dagger in one hand. It took Jakob a second to realize the bear was actually a bearskin, and there was a man wielding the dagger beneath it. The bear-man cried out as he brought his weapon down on Clothis’ unsuspecting head. The Dyrel turned, her eyes wide with fear. In one swift motion, Jakob had move between Clothis and the bear-man to parry the blow.
Metal clanged noisily against metal, echoing through the mountains. The rain still fell steadily as the bear-man and Jakob faced off. The two fought with great skill, one borne from practice, the other from desperation, each managing to wound the other. Jakob, however, was injured from his previous fight, the blood still fresh on his clothes, and the strain of two battles in one day showing on his face. It wasn’t long before the bear-man had him on his knees, the long dagger pressed to his throat. Jakob’s eyes never faltered as he waited for the final thrust.
“Forgive me, Leila,” he whispered. “I’ve failed you again.”
The bear-man’s eyes widened at the whispered apology, the rain gathering in droplets on his thin brown beard. Without warning or explanation, he took a few steps back. The dagger fell to his side, and the turned and fled through the rain down the darkening mountain pass. Clothis hurried over to where Jakob still knelt, his eyes wide and his chest heaving. Blood trickled down his face, diluted by the rain, and his tunic was a mess of rips and tears. Clothis crouched next to him.
“Are you all right?” she asked, her voice betraying some of the awe she felt after watching him fight.
Jakob turned to look at her, blinking slowly. “You saved me. Why?”
Clothis blushed but turned her head quickly to hide it. “Reflex, I guess. Besides, if Leila trusts you, you can’t be all bad. Even for a Huryl.”
Jakob grinned. “Likewise, even for a Dyrel. We should hurry after her before that crazy mountain man finds her.”
Clothis returned the grin and rose, holding out a hand to help him. He refused it, rising unaided, but as he straightened, he tottered unsteadily on his feet and would have fallen if Clothis had not caught him. She scanned the area and saw a pile of fallen rocks had made a sort-of cave where they could both easily fit. She half carried Jakob to the shelter and laid him inside. He was still breathing hard, fresh blood coming from his many wounds, and he stared at her through half-lidded eyes.
“Rest,” Clothis told him. “I’ll scout ahead and find Leila. She’s probably sheltering from the rain under a tree. We can meet her tomorrow, when our anger has had time to cool off.”
Jakob nodded, too exhausted to make a sound. He heard Clothis leave as he closed his eyes and drifted to sleep, dreaming of Leila. He was so soundly asleep that he didn’t stir when Clothis returned and felt his forehead for signs of fever. She felt none, and bandaged his cuts as best she could. Gazing at his peaceful, sleeping face, she wondered how she would tell him that the mountain man that had nearly killed him already had possession of the one he had sworn to protect.
The next morning was bright and sunny, and Jakob awoke to find Clothis already moving about. Neither of them had any food, but the rain of the previous night had left small shallows of fresh water in some of the rocks, and the two drank as much as they could.
“Why are you here, if not for power?” Jakob asked as he sat in the sun and warmed himself. He still hurt from the previous day, but tried not to let it show.
Clothis stared at the rocky landscape for a moment, a smile playing across her lips. “Leila is someone special to the man I love. He entrusted her to me, and I was angry at first. But as I continued to know her, I found her to be brave and honest, and I think I began to respect her for it. It’s not an easy burden the Dyrel have placed on her, yet she agreed to bear it for our sake.”
Jakob shook his head. “I never believed in the Huryl legend of the Warrior, especially not when I saw Leila. I just wanted to set her free, so she could escape.”
“Very noble, for a soldier,” Clothis murmured.
Jakob flushed. “I’m not a soldier. I’m a farmer, from Donstun. My father and I were called upon to fight this war. I had to leave my mother and brothers behind. They’re too little to fight, but too little to farm, too. I just want to go home.”
Clothis said nothing for a moment. “You could now, you know. Your king probably thinks you’re dead.”
Jakob laughed. “Normally, I’d be on the road the Donstun right now, but I’d be abandoning Leila. You’re right. She’s brave and honest, but something more. She beat our greatest warrior without lifting a weapon. She called those rock spirits to save us again. She may not be our warrior, but she’s definitely special. I’d like to be there with her, to the end, when she realizes why she’s in this world and what she has to do. I want to help her and protect her, shield her from as much harm as I can.”
Clothis smiled knowingly and rose to her feet, dusting her tattered clothes off as she did. She stretched her long body in the morning sun and held out her hand to Jakob. He looked up at her with a curious expression on his face, one eye closed against the glare of the rising sun.
“Looks like we’re stuck with each other, then,” she said without moving her hand. “You want to see Leila through to the bitter end, and so do I. Promised Child or not, she’s destined for great things and I want to see her achieve them. What do you say? Can you put up with a Dyrel who always sticks her nose in other peoples’ business?”
Jakob smiled and accepted the outstretched hand. “If you can accept a power-hungry Huryl.”
Clothis hauled the young man to his feet and the two of them set off at a run down the path Leila had taken the night before. As Clothis ran, she felt a new purpose inside her. She would protect Leila as she had sworn to do before her prince, but she would also protect this young man. She felt that within him was something special, too, perhaps something that would stop the violence between their two races.