Chapter 5 — Ranger

After lunch Jarrel suggested that they check the farms for animals that had been left behind.

Ria agreed. Though the rain had provided water for the ones roaming around, if there were animals tied up or caged without food and water, that would be too mean.

“Why don’t you bring a bowl of soup, just in case,” Jarrel suggested.

It was a good idea.

The first farm was the Dolmen’s farm, and she knew they had plow horses for working the fields, but there was nothing more than a family of cats in the barn, and cats would likely be just fine without her help. So, she settled for just tidying up a bit and closing the farmhouse’s doors and windows.

The second farm was a different situation.

As Ria approached the Marten’s farm, she noticed a large gray dog with jowls and floppy ears lying down inside the chicken-wire fence that went around the farm. He looked really depressed, and his eyes followed her and Jarrel as they approached the gate. Ria wasn’t really sure the dog was a he, but she’d feel sorry for a girl dog with a face like that.

Considering the bowl of soup in her hands, Ria voiced her suspicion, “You knew, didn’t you?”

Jarrel shook his head. “No, but I suspected that it was a possibility. His name is Ranger, and he’s a stubborn sort of dog who takes his job of guarding the chickens from foxes a bit too seriously. Now if only a few of the chickens evaded capture… ah look! There’s one over there! And another! Haha, that means we’ll be able to have eggs from time to time if we’re lucky.”

Ria saw the chickens that Jarrel pointed out and a chicken coop near the back fence.

“Eggs would be good,” Ria agreed. If she had eggs, then she could make cookies and cakes.

Ranger didn’t even get up when they let themselves inside the gate. In fact, he sulkily turned his head to look the other way when Jarrel called him over.

Ria snickered a little, but the dog just looked so sad that she went right over and sat down next to him. She rubbed the top of his head and was rewarded by an annoyed ear twitch and a snorted sigh.

“Aw, don’t be like that, Ranger. I brought you something to eat,” Ria coaxed and placed the soup down near his broad jowly muzzle.

Ranger pretended to not be interested for a while, but his nose leather was clearly flaring as he sniffed. Eventually, he grudgingly got up and started on the soup.

Having gotten Ranger to eat, Ria followed Jarrel to the barn.

“Good job,” Jarrel said and patted her on the shoulder approvingly.

“I have to feed him everyday now, don’t I?” Ria sighed.

Jarrel chuckled. “Yep. Especially if you don’t want the foxes to eat the chickens.”

Ugh. Ria was already worrying about having enough food to get through the winter, and now she had to provide food for both Jarrel and a large dog? She could only hope that Jarrel hunted and trapped more food than he ate.

Inside the barn, they found a dairy cow, but Ria’s hopes for milk and butter were crushed when she realized just how past her prime this old cow was. The cow greeted them with a friendly enough moo, but there was no milk to be had here.

“Ah, that’s Old Bess. Guess she probably didn’t want to leave the barn.” Jarrel briefly looked around and shrugged. "The rain water refilled her trough, and there's plenty of grass in the field, so there’s probably nothing that we need to do for her."

Which was good, because Ria didn’t know a thing about taking care of cows.

The investigation of the chicken coop confirmed that there were three hens and a rooster left, which would become more if they left a few of the eggs to hatch. That the chickens could fend for themselves was another thing to be happy about.

The third farm was Darla and Jed’s place. They were a young couple that farmed vegetable crops and raised longhaired rabbits. The thread made from the rabbit fur was really high quality, and Ria’s mother would buy as much as she could whenever they spun enough of the stuff to make it worthwhile.

Apparently, the soldiers or whoever they were weren’t interested in the rabbits, because there were several dozen of them tottering around here and there within the vegetable field that had been set aside for them and fenced with chicken-wire. There was a hutch not unlike a chicken coop to provide them with shelter and a small pool of water next to it.

“Hmm… this gives us an easy source of meat if our supplies get low. The fur is useful too,” Ria said.

“If the hawks and cats don’t eat them first,” Jarrel pointed out.

That was worrying. “Should we let them out?”

“Nah, let’s leave it for a while and see how they do.”

The vegetable crops in the other field would likely prove useful as well.

Ria was happy to see that Darla’s spinning wheel was left intact. Even if weaving fabric was a time consuming pain, the spinning wheel could make yarn for knitting winter clothes and thread for her to use when repurposing existing fabric found around the village.

The large number of crows and vultures on the roof of the final farm’s barn left Ria with enough dread about what would be inside that she decided to take care of the farmhouse while Jarrel checked the barn.

When she came out, Jarrel was already waiting for her, and he shook his head.

“An old horse, a cow, and a dog. The family probably killed them so they wouldn’t suffer. The meat is spoiled, so it’s a waste,” He reported then waved in the direction of the crows and vultures. “Want me to shoot a few birds?”

Ria shook her head. “I don’t think bird meat will keep long enough to be useful, and we already have enough food for a while. I’d rather work on things that we can store for the winter.”

Jarrel gave her a crooked smile and started walking back toward her house. “Planning to stick out the winter, huh? You know, bandits and monsters might be a bit much for me to fight off. Shouldn’t we at least consider heading to a town?”

“I don’t know. Maybe it’s silly, but I’ve just got a bad feeling about what happened with all of the villagers being forced to relocate. If people were allowed to refuse and some had stayed, then I might feel different about it. Instead, everyone was taken. I’m worried that if someone finds out that we’re from this village, that we’ll be arrested for escaping,” Ria explained.

Jarrel looked down at her and raised an eyebrow. “Hmm, that might be a bit… paranoid, you know.”

“I know,” Ria admitted. “But…”

“But that might actually be the case if the king or another noble with control over this area ordered the peasantry to be used for forced labor. With such an order, the lack of notice might be intended to prevent riots and desertion,” Jarrel allowed. “Though in that case wouldn’t we be arrested if we’re found here anyway?”

“Yes, but would they bother searching an already empty village?” Ria pointed out.

Jarrel snorted. “Probably not, but the soldiers might patrol just to look for bandits, or if they see smoke.”

“It is a risk." Ria nodded her agreement. “I was also thinking about fleeing south. I do have some money, but crossing the border and living in a different country… what if someone takes my money and puts me in an orphanage, or worse…”

“To Crysellia?” Jarrel asked, and after Ria nodded, he continued, “Well, that’s not a bad idea since they mostly speak the same language as us, but it’s a good thing you didn’t go by yourself. Whether risking the border checkpoint or passing through the highland wilderness and crossing illegally, either way is dangerous.”

“Ugh. I was thinking to hide whenever soldiers came and try joining a passing caravan or sneaking past by going around the checkpoint.”

Jarrel gave a smirk and a thumbs up. “If I come with you, it’s probably doable. Joining a merchant caravan is probably the safest way through the border checkpoint, and caravans are usually interested in hiring a hunter to help kill bandits and to provide fresh meat for meals. The problem is knowing when a caravan is coming through.”

Ria nodded. It certainly sounded like a good plan.

“Also, if I train you up some, crossing the highlands is doable,” Jarrel said and gave Ria a wink.

“Really?”

“Sure. The terrain is its own kind of danger, but as long as we make it through before winter, I can get us to safety. The bigger risk in the wilderness is if we encounter the wrong kind of monster, we’ll probably die,” Jarrel said with a toothy grin.

Ria gulped. Monsters and dying was definitely not good. But soldiers and dying or worse wasn’t good either.

Jarrel gave her another smirk. “I bet you can’t guess the most important reason why going to Crysellia is a good plan.”

This time Ria was completely lost, so she just humored him. “What?”

“I’m Crysellian.”

Ria was stunned.

“Hahaha! You had no idea, huh?” Jarrel ruffled her hair good-naturedly.

”That’s why you knew about the caravans,” Ria realized.

Jarrel nodded. “Yup. I was traveling with a caravan when I met Rella, and Rella was the reason I settled down here.”

Rella was Danny’s mom. Ria knew that much and had heard that she died a few years after Danny was born.

But running away just didn’t sit right with Ria. Didn’t Jarrel want to rescue his son?

Was it because he felt responsible for her?

“Um… shouldn’t we try to rescue our families?” Ria asked timidly.

Jarrel stopped and gazed at Ria with a sad expression. “No. I’m sorry, Ria. For commoners like us, there really isn’t much that we can do in these kinds of situations other than pray to the gods and trust in our family members to survive.”

Ria had expected that to be the case, but she hated it. How can someone just go on with their lives and not do everything they can to save their loved ones?

Bending down to her eye-level, Jarrel gripped Ria’s shoulders and made a serious expression. “Waiting here for some news is probably the best we can do for now. If you are wrong, and everyone is safe at the new village or town or whatever, using the army to move this many people will be big news, and we will hear about it. In that case, we can just go to wherever they are, no problem.”

Ria nodded.

“If you are right… then becoming traitors and dying at the hands of the army, will probably make the situation worse for our families. Nobles often punish the families of traitors. Your mother told you to hide in the basement because she wanted you to live. If the king or someone has ordered the forced service of so many villages, then that is also big news and eventually we will hear about it. In that case, we’ll head for Crysellia, okay?”

Ria shook her head in defiance. “No! It’s not okay! It’ll never be okay! But I’m not a child. I know the world isn’t fair and that there’s nothing I can do to help them, but…” Pushing Jarrel’s hands off her shoulders, she turned away and breathed out, “It just sucks.”

“It does,” Jarrel agreed.