Cal sprinted up behind her as she lunged forward and jumped on her, dragging her to the ground, a crossbow bolt whizzing above his head.

“Wait!” he shouted in Gadveran, standing and raising his arms, feeling the strange prickling of a hundred different gazes with a hundred different emotions, swirling with confusion and suspicion, anger, readiness to hurt.

“Wait! I’m not Genosian, see?” He said, baring his teeth and pointing to them, keeping his foot firmly on Ella’s silvery back. She was looking up at him with confusion and more than a little anger, but not enough to throw him off yet. “We don’t need to fight.”

“She’s obviously Genosian.” Said one of the men, pointing at Ella with his crossbow. The gazes were still swirling with suspicion.

“She’s my slave,” Cal gave them a baldfaced lie. “I was kidnapped by the Genosians from Deinos two weeks ago! Those inbred cannibals gave me some kind of trial of manhood against their best warrior, and when I kicked him in the nuts, I got this girl as the prize.”

The man with the crossbow lowered it a bit, and a few of the men chuckled. Cal could feel the hair-trigger intent to kill slacken.

“What is going on?” Ella asked.

“Silence woman, the men are speaking!” Cal said in Genosian. Ella raised a silver eyebrow. He was probably going to pay for that later.

Speaking the cannibal’s tongue didn’t win him any points with the Gadverans, either.

“How come you speak their language?” one of them asked, and Cal felt the level of suspicion rise.

“So many people died in the village…My family…” Cal said, putting as much sorrow into it as he could muster. He was broken up about it, for certain, but he needed to be stage broken up about it, to the point where every single one of them could see the emotion on his face, hear it in his voice, and sympathize. “When I woke up…I was already on my Forming day. It just happened. Helped me survive this long.”

Acting has reached Level 6!

Acting Level 6: Behave exactly as you intend. Convey emotion naturally. 30% correction.

Mentioning his (allegedly) dead family made a thread of sympathy flutter through the gaze of the hundred soldiers. Cal could tangibly feel the shifting mood of the hundred people against his skin, spreading through the crowd.

“What in the nine hells is going on here?” came a booming voice from the back of the camp as a taller, middle aged Gadveran pushed his way through the crowd. He had decorative gold inlay on the shoulders of his shiny, shiny breastplate. He was fat for a Gadveran, obviously the commander of these men, from the way the tension in their gazes spiked up again.

“Who are you?” he asked.

“He’s-“ Fat Commander smacked the man nearest him. Cal wasn’t even sure it was the guy who spoke.

“I asked him the question.” He said, fixing Cal with a hard stare. Something about the expectation and confidence in his gaze made him think he had some kind of lie-detecting Skill.

Karen could do it, after all.

“My name’s Calvin Gadsint, A Malkenrovian refugee from Deinos. I was taken by the Genosians two weeks ago. I won a barbarian duel, this girl here was bonded to me by some strange pagan ritual and refuses to leave my side. I just recently escaped, and have been trekking back.”

All technically true, if incomplete. The secret to outwitting a good lie-detector is to not feel guilty about it, and speak in half-truths.

The man’s gaze was thoughtful and cold, with more than a little suspicion.

“I see. How exactly did you approach us from the southwest after escaping the tribe, as they are just up the mountain?”

“I actually came from that side of the mountain,” Cal said, pointing out the face that housed the Seeker tribe.

“Oh, is there another village of these savages there?” the Captain asked.

“Yes sir.” Cal said. He hadn’t lied yet. He’d come from that side of the mountain, and there was a tribe there. The ones who’d organized the attack, by all accounts. Take that, you fuckers. It was always good to spread the love around.

“And this…Woman…She’s yours?” the Captain asked, glancing down at Ella seething on the ground.

“By right of contest, I suppose,” Cal said with a shrug.

“Prove it.”

“Ummm…” Cal said. “How am I supposed to do that?”

“Disarm her.”

“Ella, I’m gonna let you up, and then you give me Crusher, okay?”

“Why?”

“I’m trying to convince them not to kill us. And I may have led them to believe you belonged to me as a prize from some kind of rite of manhood against a Genosian warrior of your tribe.”

“We don’t have anything like that.” She said.

“They don’t know that, and they’re not gonna bother to check, either.”

“…” she glared at the Gadverans surrounding them.

“Okay.” She gritted out.

Cal picked up his foot and Ella slowly got to her feet. Cal could feel the tension in the gazes directed at them spike, and a few crossbows twitched upward, matching their heightened emotions.

Ella handed him her flail, its business end floating eerily a foot above the ground.

“That took a bit longer than I was expecting.” The captain said, holding out his hand for the weapon.

Damn. Cal wasn’t really expecting anything different, but he’d been hoping the man wouldn’t want to confiscate it. Of course they’re gonna confiscate it. Cal thought, handing him the metal table leg with the woven fiber handle.

“Some kind of artifact, huh?” he asked. “Lucky find.” Ella tensed up with anger as he played with the flail for a moment before putting it in his belt loop, the silver sphere bumping against his thigh.

“Take them to the deserter’s quarters. We’ll sort this out when we get back to Surrak.”

Rough hands grabbed Cal and Ella and hauled them to the other side of the camp, where a wagon with heavy iron cages was waiting for them. In a matter of moments, Cal and Ella had been shoved into two cramped Iron cages, meant for men and women to await trial after running from battle.

“Is this really necessary?” Cal asked the captain as he got himself situated.

“If you’re telling the truth, the other survivors of Deinos will vouch for you, and you’ll be free to go, but in the mean-time, I want to keep an eye on you. Better safe than sorry, as they say.”

His gaze drifted over to Ella, and Cal didn’t have to feel his intentions to read the lust in his gaze. “As for the girl, if she’s actually tame, I suppose you can have her back when we get back to Surrak, with a proper brand and documentation.”

Something tells me Ella wouldn’t go for that. Still, it was a free ride back to Surrak, and all he needed to do was wait. The branding thing, they could find a way to avoid that later.

“Ask them what happened to the Iron Skin tribe.” Ella said, watching the Captain.

His name was Captain Skovos, from what Cal had been able to pick up from the grunts around them.

“What did she say?” Captain Skovos asked, watching the Genosian girl.

“She was saying how impressive and scary you are.” Cal lied. The man wasn’t watching him, anyway. “Personally, I can’t believe Gadvera organized such a large force at the drop of a hat. How’s the punishment against these barbarians going? Manage to put them all in a shallow grave yet?” he asked.

“We thought we had,” Skovos said Idly, his eyes wandering down Ella’s body in a way that made Cal frost over with anger. “found a group of maybe thirty of them at the top of the hill, just outside the village. Big guys, each one a veteran. We thought that was their last stand. Turns out all of them were some kind of summon. When they died, they dissolved into green goo. I lost twelve men to them, and when we managed to take the last one down, the village was already empty, so we burned it.”

Something was odd about Skovos, he seemed to be rocking back and forth on his heels, staring at Ella’s breasts with a dumb grin until he noticed Cal staring at him. The man seemed to snap out of it, and frowned.

“It’s not a civilian’s business.” he said, turning around and tossing out orders.

“Alright you lot, there’s plenty of groups of Grinnin’ Apes along the side of the mountain. If this place here was anything to go by, There’ll be a nice trail straight up to their doorstep. All we need do is find it. Pack up your shit and get ready to move out.”

The men in charge of each squad began wrangling their individual groups, tossing out specific instructions.

“Did you do that with a Skill?” Cal asked. “Make him stupid for a moment?”

Ella shrugged. “I did nothing. What did he say?”

“Chuela held them off long enough for your tribe to run away, then they burned the Yurts down.”

Ella scowled.

“Could’ve been a lot worse.” Cal pointed out. “And I pointed them toward the Seeker tribe.”

“I suppose you did.” She said, leaning back in the cramped cage within arm’s reach, settling her back against the bars. “So what now?”

“They’re gonna take us to Surrak, the remaining people of Deinos will vouch for me, I’ll vouch for you, then you can go home.”

“Through the forest. By myself.” She said, eying him.

“Ummm…” Now that Cal thought about it, he’d rather keep her with him if at all possible. Maybe he could bring her back home, then go back…no, that didn’t work. Keep her in Deinos? No, that didn’t work.

The Guya was making his logic run in circles, like a dog chasing Its tail, refusing to allow him to contemplate being separated.

“I suppose I could stay with you for a while…” she admitted, making Cal’s heart begin slamming in his chest.

“Really?” Life with the sensuous Genosian girl at a relaxed, non life-threatening pace sounded like his idea of heaven. Wake up next to her in his cottage in Deinos, use each other’s bodies shamlessly, go about the day. Do a little fishing, a little woodwork, go home, use each other shamelessly again, go to bed.

Teach her very specific Gadveran phrases and when to say them.

“Of course, and when your recklessness finally gets you killed, I will take you as my Incha Huala.”

Cal frowned as she threw ice water on his lurid fantasies. Bah, we’ll see about that. I’m never reckless.

“Can Genosians eat fish?” Cal asked.

“It’s meat, isn’t it?” she asked.

“Eeexcellent..” Cal said, rubbing his hands together.

Ella watched him with amusement, but her gaze kept returning to the barely visible plume of smoke they could see on the side of the mountain.

****

Six hours later, the army kept tearing their way through the jungle, leaving a massive trail behind them as they angled toward the Seeker tribe, intent on exacting some form of vengeance against the grey-skinned people.

From what Cal could gather by talking to the rank-and-file that would occasionally walk up to him and ask him questions, like ‘what are Genosians like?, did they make you eat anyone?’ and so on, they were mostly new recruits, people who had jumped at the opportunity to avenge themselves on the shark-toothed people.

Which was extremely odd, because he didn’t recognize any of them. If there had been any volunteers from Deinos, he’d expect them to wave and greet Cal with amazement as soon as they recognized him.

“Where are all the volunteers from Deinos?” Cal asked the man walking next to him.

“There’s sixteen companies scouring the mountains for Genosians,” The young man, maybe four years older than Cal, said. “So, in the other companies, probably?”

What kind of luck did I have to get the only one that had no one from Deinos? Cal thought as he leaned back in the cage that was slowly rolling through the forest, near the back of the line, after the soldiers had already tromped down the woods.

Cal found himself somewhat grateful he didn’t know anyone when an obsidian-tipped arrow caught the Gadveran walking beside him in the neck, sending him toppling to the ground, a hint of blood and confusion on his lips.

The jungle came alive with Genosians. Some three hundred Seekers filled the air with arrows that shattered on the Gadveran armor. A few of them found their way into flesh, though, and Gadverans were being picked off here and there as the captain shouted for them to form a line.

The only thing protecting Cal and Ella – Cal glanced over, and saw that the girl was already silver, functionally immune to arrows.

The only thing protecting him, was his low priority as a target, being already in a cage, and dressed like a Genosian.

“Form up, helmets on! Chins low!” Skovos shouted, using their small Gadveran shields to try and ward off the barrage of arrows.

Once there was a respectable line of forty men, they charged toward the Seekers, only to have their targets fall back, and a second line of Seekers begin firing from the other side.

That’s unacceptable. Cal thought. Being caught by the Seeker tribe was a death sentence, so he had to change the equation here. He eyeballed his little oil-filled leaf nestled with the rest of his gear at the other end of the wagon, then the line of archers shooting into the Gadveran’s backs.

Mass splitting.

2/11 Bent remaining.

Dupdomancy has reached Level 11!

Level 11: 121 pounds, 55 minutes.

Cal focused on just the liquid he knew was inside the sac, dropping about a pound of self-igniting goo on the head of each of the hundred or so archers.

A lot of his shots missed their targets, dropping on their shoulders, their fronts, or hitting the ground, but enough Genosian heads caught fire that the entire line was thrown into chaos as faces literally were melted off.

Cal tapped his foot on the bars of the cage, and glanced over at Ella. “When have I ever been reckless?” He asked over the screams of the dying.

With the ambush broken, Skovos’s men drove off the remaining Genosians with minimal casualties.

Despite Gadverans favoring light weight armor and weapons, Genosian’s obsidian arrows were remarkably brittle, and only really worked on raw flesh. A single Gadveran, if they tucked up well and covered their vulnerable spots, could ignore Genosian archers.

It was a good ambush, but the compatibility was bad.

Under Skovos’s instructions, they cleared out the dead men, tossing the Genosians into a pile and burning them, while taking the six dead Gadverans and putting them in another wagon.

Ella watched the difference in treatment between the dead with interest.

“Kid.” Skovos said, once they had broken camp for the day.

“Sir.” Cal said, turning to face the captain.

“You’ve been here a while. Any Idea what that was?”

“What what was?” Cal clarified.

“All the savages catching fire at once. That.”

“Oh, that was probably a man using fire-worm guts.” Cal said.

“What?”

“There’s a worm in this forest whose guts literally burn on contact with air.”

“Damned forsaken place. Nothing here is natural. Is there anything more you can tell me?”

Cal decided to take a risk and tell an outright lie.

“There’s a Fire-Worm tribe that doesn’t get along very well with the Seeker tribe, so I’ve heard. Melting people’s faces off is their signature. They probably capitalized on the Seeker’s distraction to kill some of them without any risk to themselves.”

“Are they hostile?”

“Depends on what you do.” Cal said with a shrug. “I really don’t know much. You couldn’t call me an expert on Genosians after two weeks.”

“Damn.” Skovos’s eyes wandered back towards Ella, and his expression shifted.

Read Expression has reached Level 6!

Read Expression Level 6: Passive bonus to reading expressions. 30% correction.

Don’t you fucking do it….

“Perhaps the girl knows more.” He said with a grotesque smile. Guy was just looking for an excuse. Cal could read his face plain as day.

Skovos barked over his shoulder. “Set up camp for the night, and then deliver this one to my tent for interrogation.”

Well, crap, Cal thought with an inward sigh, his personal icy anger mixing with the possessiveness and outrage from his Guya-tainted mind. Cal wasn’t sure which part of him made the decision, but it didn’t really matter. They were in agreement.

Now I gotta kill Captain Skovos.

Calvin Gadsint

Body:

6

Strength:

6

Kinesthetics:

6

Endurance:

6

Mind:

20

Intuition:

10

Stability:

11

Will:

16

Bent:

2/11

Skills:

Stealth

6

Talking to Girls

5

Acting

6

Read Expressions

6

Sense-Grafting

7

Knife-Work

5

Dupdomancy

11

Hunting

5

Meditation

4

Chained Spirit

2

Calvinian Summoning

1

Fishing

3

Genosian Language

3