Lost Bloodline 3 - Chapter 11

Chapter 11

“Is what my lead hunter said true?”

The hope in the elder’s tone was tempered with the weight of long years of hard life that hung in his eyes, but Koda nodded to him with confidence.

“That we are here to help your people? Yes. That she,” Koda hiked a thumb over his shoulder as Arthene’s form solidified into her bipedal shape once more before she immediately set about unbraiding her thick hair and fluffing the chocolate strands out, “is what you think? Also yes.”

“And who do you represent?” The chief leaned in closer, some of the stress apparent in his eyes melting away.

Like the others of his tribe, he was dressed in simple hide clothes, though had far more beads and bits of carved bone or stone decorating his clothes than most did. It appeared to Koda that the older the person, the more decorations they accumulated on their clothing.

Koda glanced behind the man to the dozens of watching faces from the young and old of the tribe. He saw hope, fear, despair, and worry in their faces, but they still waited and watched. The young all bore looks of wonder or curiosity, though were being held back by the elders as they waited to see what their elder and chief would say.

“Yes.”

The single word from Koda rang in the air between him and the elder with the finality of a tolling bell. Tears welled up in the older man’s eyes, his faded lynx ears folding out to either side as he let out a long breath.

“Ancestors be praised,” the old man breathed, turning his eyes to the sky. “We had given up hope that she survived. We tried to carry on her traditions, but could not bring ourselves to hide behind worship of the human god. We have long dwelt in these plains, where legends said the last of the goddess chosen tread, but could find no signs of her, and hear no response to our prayers.”

“You need to keep this quiet for as long as you can, elder,” Koda said, stepping closer to the elder.

The observers twitched together, not able to hear what was going on and making judgments based on what they saw. Cyrus calmed them with one hand held out.

“Did the Lady send you to us in our time of need?” asked the still-unnamed elder, turning his watery gaze back to Koda.

“No, she did not. She called out to me in her own time of need and I came to her. Chance and fate aligned to give her a second chance, and the tentative nature of that chance is why I need you to keep this quiet,” Koda repeated, getting a quick nod from the chief.

“I cannot say exactly why, but your words ring true to me. I believe you, when my mind says that it should be impossible.”

“Impossible tasks are my mate’s specialty,” Sienna offered, slipping up to Koda’s side and linking her right arm in his left. Calandra stumped up on his right, remaining silent, while he felt the gentle rush of warm breath from Arthene on the back of his neck, as the larger woman settled into place there.

“Do you have any idea how much weight that puts on me?” Koda said with mock annoyance, which melted as soon as Sienna leaned in to press a kiss to his cheek.

“It’s the truth,” Arthene said simply.

“I agree!”

Samira made herself known, bouncing around on Sienna’s other side to stand between Koda and the elder. The caracal huntress was smiling broadly, her quiver of javelins rattling quietly at the energetic movement until she settled down.

“I’ve spent the last few hours conversing with him, and while they sound like they should be improbable, his words ring true. I think they can help us reclaim the village!”

The elder spared Samira a nod and a stern look that she promptly ignored. Having said her piece, the caracal woman was focused once more on Koda, though he saw her green eyes dart over his shoulder to study Arthene every so often as the larger woman loomed over him.

Deciding that the awkwardness had continued on for long enough, and the day was slipping away from them, Koda gestured towards the pair of bison with his one free hand.

“Those are for your people. Cyrus mentioned that your hunters needed to bring back game, so we claimed what we could easily and hurried here.”

“Why did you not take more of the beasts? It might have slowed you, but only two of them will last less than a week,” the elder asked, but his question was directed at Cyrus.

The cougar beastfolk coughed into one hand, his eyes darting to Arthene before returning to his elder.

“Elder, the herd has not left the watering hole. Our plan was to guide these folk to you and then return to hunt more.”

“How did you take down two of the bison without alerting the herd?” the elder asked incredulously. 

Arthene snorted in amusement, pulling the attention to her.

“Easily,” she said with offhanded pride and Koda could imagine his primal spirit puffing out her generous chest behind him.

At least she put her top back on this time, Koda thought, though he didn’t let that show on his face.

“Regardless, we cleaned the carcasses and bled them before coming here. But the longer we wait, the more chance for the meat to go off.”

Koda’s statement broke the spell again on the elder and he shook his head, making his ears flop a bit before gesturing towards the two carcasses.

“Yes, finish cleaning the kills and prepare the meat! While we do not have enough to feast, none shall go hungry tonight!”

That statement was greeted by a cheer from the villagers, who’d been slowly transitioning from fearful to curious as the seconds ticked by and the newcomers didn’t show themselves to be violent.

A section of the villagers peeled off, followed by most of Cyrus’ hunters, and fell on the twin carcasses with a purpose to process them.

“Come, let us sit somewhere private to discuss the details, Champion,” the elder said, beckoning him to follow. “Bring your warriors. If the Den Mother would grace us with her presence as well, then we might be able to put the time to good use.”

“Sure. I wanted to talk to Samira some more, anyway,” Arthene replied offhandedly, making the caracal woman jump and look up at her with wide and astonished eyes while her tail went wild behind her forming different shapes.

The elder frowned and Koda immediately surmised that he hadn’t intended to include Samira and wasn’t happy to have her distracting the primal spirit. But in the hours they’d talked, he’d gotten comfortable with Samira’s open and honest personality.

“Far be it from me to tell my mate no,” Koda laughed before gesturing for the elder to lead the way. “I’m sure that she will still have something to offer to the conversation.”

“A bit,” Arthene laughed. “But Samira had most of the knowledge I bear on trolls already buried in her stories.”

That statement made the caracal woman puff her modest chest out in pride before she skipped over to fall in just behind Sienna and begin peppering Arthene with questions.

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The elder, whose name was Vysin, led their little group to one of the few grass-huts that sat towards the center of the camp. The short trip from the edge to the rough building was enough to confirm to Koda that these people needed help. They were surviving for now, but it was clear they struggled.

What use was a blacksmith without his forge and anvil? What could a carpenter do without nails and a saw? They clearly had skills, but had been forced to leave behind tools that he knew were critical in the rush to escape the troll attacks.

They remained silent for the most part until they reached the large grass hut and followed Vysin inside. It was a bit cramped, given that the hut was likely not intended to accommodate a dozen people.

“You know what,” Todd said after ducking inside and seeing Hans doing his best to not hook his horns on the bundled grass of the ceiling. “I think our time would be better spent setting up our tents. Aegisclaw knows our capabilities just fine, I don’t think you need us here for this. And anything that does need our opinions, we can discuss it tonight.”

“That sounds good to me, I never was one for planning,” Netta seconded. Hans just grunted in agreement while only Hannah looked pensive about leaving. Given that Koda expected she would eventually inherit the headwoman position from Kris, her grandmother, he wasn’t surprised that Hannah hesitated.

But a moment later, the black-furred cat beastfolk nodded her agreement and half of Koda’s group trooped out the door to find a place to set up their camp.

“Cyrus, would you guide them and ensure they have a place to put their tents? Then return here. In the meantime, I will discuss our situation with the Champion,” Vysin said, his tattered lynx-ears flicking with more energy than they had before.

“Of course, Elder,” Cyrus said with a quick nod before exiting to follow Todd’s group.

With only Koda, Sienna, Calandra, Arthene, Samira, and Vysin in the hut now, there was enough space that Koda could dodge ending up on Arthene’s lap. Not that the big woman tried this time, she was far too interested in her conversation with Samira at the moment as the two of them discussed trolls and the legends Samira knew.

A small fire pit sat in the center of the room, its coals dark and dead in the middle of the afternoon. Given that there weren’t any forests nearby, Koda wasn’t surprised. It wasn’t cold out at the moment, so there was no reason to leave the fire burning.

But Cyrus said winter was coming in, Koda thought with a small grimace. If we are going to help these people, we need to get their village back before those trolls devour all their supplies.

The hut’s simple construction allowed a fair bit of light in besides through the door, so they made themselves comfortable before Vysin started to speak.

“Please forgive me for asking again,” Vysin began, but went silent when Koda held his hand up, palm out to the man.

“My name is Koda Burke, called Aegisclaw by Thera Ivorycrown.” The simple statement and the confidence in Koda’s tone made the elder pale again, but he didn’t interrupt. “As I said outside, luck and fate brought me into contact with my patron and she bet the last of her power on my ability to help her people.”

Sienna squeezed Koda’s thigh from where she sat beside him, and he shared a smile with her.

“Thera grows stronger even now, but you must keep the information quiet. She is not strong enough to walk openly, and I am quite literally her only champion. If I were to die, then so would the chances of her recovery.”

“Then why risk yourself, Champion?” Vysin asked, his bushy eyebrows knitting in concern. “If you are her last chance, why not remain in hiding? Why spread word?”

A thump in Koda’s chest, like a small animal butting against the inside of his ribcage or his heart surging an extra beat, was his body’s response.

“Because it needs to be done,” Koda answered plainly. “I promised Thera I would help her people. My people. Your tribe are of the same line that once followed her. The fact you and your hunters recognize my mate tells me that you have kept the stories alive, even if your hope died.”

“I’m not offended, a lot of time did pass,” Arthene interjected, looking up from her whispered conversation with Samira. “My Lady will accept you once more into her followers if you wish, because of the faith of your forbearers. But my mate calls you kin, so even if she did not, I would offer you my help?”

“Kin?” Vysin asked in a lost tone. Koda simply shrugged and repeated the line that had triggered such a reaction in his soul.

“All creatures should run free beneath the open sky.” As he spoke the statement, Koda felt another thump deep within his soul, and a stirring from the place where his totemic gear lay beside his connection to Thera.

This time, he felt warmth and affection flowing from his goddess. He knew she was listening and approved. “Your freedom was challenged when the trolls came to your land. They are no kin of mine, so I will help you.”

“There are many opponents that will stand against you. It is why we hesitated as we have. Many of our tribe’s hunters are out trying to bring in as much meat as possible before the cold sets in and the herds move further south. Winter is months away, but we have harvests waiting to be brought in as well, so time is short.”

Vysin spoke with a hesitation, like he was still worried that he might dissuade Koda from helping them, but nothing changed in the intense young man or his mates after the declaration.

“Trolls would make good prey for our people though,” Arthene said, again turning from her conversation with Samira. “It will address a problem we ran into before, my mate.”

Koda craned his neck to look back at the grinning Arthene and quirked an eyebrow, so she continued.

“While troll tastes like shit, there is another purpose to hunting them. In the ancient days, to hunt a troll was to clash with a fragment of divinity. Samira’s story about them carrying a drop of blood from their progenitor is true. Oluk Bloodtusk, the troll god, spread a blessing of power and savagery to his people with the will that they would dominate all the worlds one day. Culling their numbers kept that as nothing more than an aspiration, because of a flaw in Oluk’s plan.”

Samira was bouncing in excitement at having the confirmation of her legends and jumped in to add on to Arthene’s statement.

“The legends of troll-slayer’s being gifted with power and strength are true! Oluk intended for the most vicious of his children to rule, and thus they could steal power from each other by fighting and killing. This would weed out the week in his people, and empower the strong. But the blessing isn’t bound to just trolls!”

Samira’s excited bouncing was calmed by a pointed look from Vysin and her ears wilted. It was clear that, while she didn’t respect Cyrus as much, Samira thought differently of the elder. But Arthene didn’t have any problem taking back over, and the large woman picked right back up.

“The reward of power as a troll-slayer would go a long way to making sure our people can keep up. The strength such a feat grants can vary depending on the troll killed, but it is no small amount.”

“Why don’t more people hunt trolls then?” Koda asked, glancing between Arthene and Vysin.

“Most consider it suicidal to attempt to slay a troll. They are incredibly hard to put down and wickedly powerful. Not to mention they prefer the vastly inhospitable areas to live, only foraying into the populated areas when they are driven out by another predator or one of them grows in strength enough to become a chief,” Calandra answered the question for Vysin, and the elder nodded to the dwarven woman.

“Justly so. Our legends speak of driving the trolls up into the mountains when we had heroes amongst us, but when time claimed those heroes, memories faded. We have the stories of tactics to use to drive them off, but for hundreds of years, the only time one would see a troll is if you traveled far into the dangerous reaches of the mountain peaks.”

“So,” Koda interrupted, wanting to drag the conversation back onto topic. “What we have is a small collection of very large and very dangerous opponents. Opponents who’s nature lends them to savage strength that our people can take for themselves if they are able to bring one down?”

“Yes,” Arthene answered succinctly. He didn’t need to look at her to hear the smile in the big woman’s tone.

“And this Oluk isn’t going to try and intercede? The last thing I want to run into is a trollish champion,” Koda asked. The question conjured a vicious enough image that everyone winced except for Arthene, who answered him with ease.

“All of his kin are considered champions to Oluk, it’s how he bestows that fragment of divine strength to them. And the trolls repay him with worship in the form of violence, which restores the strength he spends to empower them.”

“Ah okay, damn,” Koda grumbled, only elaborating when Arthene poked him in the back of the head demandingly. “I was hoping that it might weaken him somehow if we can steal these bits of power. You said fragments of divinity and I hoped that we might be able to take them and give them to Thera.”

A warmth pulsed in his soul, emanating from his connection to the goddess with amusement, love, and pride. For just a moment, Koda swore he saw the flash of silver eyes in the shadows behind Vysin, but then they were gone.

“A noble thing, but impossible. Oluk Bloodtusk wanted to prove that the trolls were the strongest of all species, so his power only passes on through combat. Specifically, single combat. Which is another reason why the mortals don’t hunt trolls more often,” Arthene chuckled. “Even skilled knights are loath to risk their lives on the off-chance they could earn the power of a troll-slayer. Far safer to work in groups and forgo the rank, but keep your head uneaten.”

“That explains so much!” Samira chirped happily, the tone of her voice high and excited enough that it actually made Koda twitch. “The legends speak of driving the trolls off with a group to ensure survival, and being sure to burn the body if one is killed. I assume this is to avoid the other trolls coming back for the corpse?”

“Yes, they are cannibalistic. That is one thing of Oluk’s blessing that is only true for trolls,” Arthene answered easily. “While you,” she poked Samira gently, making the caracal woman jump and eep, “might gain a measure of power for killing a troll in single combat, if one troll kills and eats another, they may gather as much as three measures of power, for example. So never leave the body of a troll where another troll might find it.”

“So it sounds like we have an opportunity to make ourselves a lot stronger here as well as help people. Seems like a win-win to me,” Koda said with a snort and turned his attention back to Vysin who was watching them with bemused eyes.

“You talk about slaying trolls like they are just an afternoon of work… do you really comprehend how dangerous these creatures are?” Vysin asked, his voice thick with worry.

“No more dangerous than the Crooked champions my girls have slain. At the very most they cannot be more dangerous than the two warleaders I’ve killed,” Koda replied easily.

“What?” Vysin asked, his eyes growing even wider.

“I can tell you later, Elder,” Samira cut in. “But if Champion Aegisclaw says they can do it, then trust them! We can do this!”

“We should scout the village first, before committing to anything firmly,” Calandra insisted, speaking up for the first time in a while.

Koda glanced at his smallest mate to find her chewing on the end of one of her three braids in thought, staring at something that he couldn’t see. It was obvious that her tactical mind was running in overdrive, likely going over what she’d been taught about fighting trolls.

“That is fair. Before we get excited about anything, we need more information,” Koda agreed, his words breaking Calandra out of her thoughts and she shot him a soft smile, leaning to one side to bump him with her arm in a gesture of affection.

“I can send some of our hunters to guide you. While we are still missing half of our hunters that are on longer ranging hunts, we won’t let you go into this challenge alone,” Vysin assured and Koda nodded in acceptance.

“Appreciated. Having back-up would be nice and might allow us to test the waters some. Did you have anyone in mind specifically?” Koda asked. But before Vysin could speak up, Arthene did.

“I want Samira with us.”

The elder grimaced but was quick to wipe the expression off his face when he glanced past Koda at the incarnate spirit, clearly remembering exactly who and what Arthene was. So instead, he just nodded in acceptance.

Koda could actually hear Samira bouncing in excitement behind him.