Realm of Monsters

Chapter 762: The Iron Lena

Though more humble than any of the caravans Titania had ever traveled with, the Iron Lena moved at a steady, quick pace. Of course, Titania had only traveled in a single caravan before and that was only a few days ago. But she prided herself in knowing what a good caravan was. Her mother was a merchant queen and commanded over a hundred caravans, her reach extending across the entire realm. Lady Lydira was known to even do trade outside of the Aurous Realm. Their house personally controlled a chrome gate and employed a prime archmage to operate it.

Yet for all the wealth Titania had seen brought by the caravans to her home, none of it compared to the Iron Lena’s greatest attribute. Lena had let her sit at the box seat of one of the wagons.

“This is amazing!” Titania threw her arms up and yelled. The wind swept through her robes and brushed her skin with a cold chill as the sun’s warmth radiated down upon them.

“Sit down before you fall off,” Noct scolded her.

Titania giggled and enjoyed the breeze for a little longer before sitting back down next to Noct. Nibbles pulled their wagon with a strength that no other horse in the caravan could match. If it wasn’t for Noct pulling back her reins every so often, Nibbles would have pulled on ahead way past the rest of the caravan. Even still, Nibbles led the group of wagons without breaking a sweat.

“She’s incredible.” Titania stared at the draft horse in admiration.

“You still can’t pet her,” Noct said.

“But you petted her!”

“That was different.”

“How hard can it be?”

“She bites people, kid. What do you think?”

“What if I use my shield?” Titania patted the shield resting next to her. Despite its weight, she dragged the disc of steel around everywhere she went.

“Don’t get any ideas,” Noct said.

“I’m not, I’m not…” Titania said in a poor attempt at a lie.

Noct gave her a dry look. “If you behave, I’ll let you help me feed her later.”

“Really!?” She practically jumped in her seat.

“Yes. Now stop moving around so much, you’ll fall off.”

“Pfft. No, I won’t.” Titania leaned on the edge and showcased her balance with a smirk. “I couldn’t leave my house much, so I learned how to climb really well.”

“Is that so?”

“Yeah. See?” She stood on the edge with one foot in the air. “I can do this all day—ah!?” A bump on the road knocked her off balance and she fell off the wagon. She screamed and tried to catch on to something but missed.

Noct suddenly appeared from above and snatched her arm, “I’ve got you.”

Titania stared at the massive wagon wheel rolling blindingly fast next to her face. “Don’t let go!”

Noct tossed her up. She yelled in panic and landed on her chair with a painful smack. She turned to see Noct’s foot holding onto the ledge of the box seat while the rest of his body dangled off the side.

“Noct!” she cried out with worry.

“Calm down.” He pulled himself up by just the leverage of his foot. “You’re not the only one who can balance,” he winked.

She broke out in a giggle and tackled him in a hug.

He winced, his wounds still bothering him, but said nothing and patted her back. “Now sit still until we stop, okay?”

“Mm,” she nodded, her face still buried in his chest.

“You’re not as nimble as you think.”

The little girl looked up with a frown. “There was a bump on the road, it’s not my fault!”

Noct disagreed, it was entirely her fault. Though she wasn’t wrong. The terrain was starting to change. The dunes were giving way to dry rockbeds covered in thin layers of sand. They were on the road to Olduun now.

“Can you teach me how to do that trick with your foot?” Titania asked.

“No.”

“Aw, but come on.~”

“No.”

~~~

The caravan didn’t stop until the sun had set for the evening. Lena had given out the order early that morning. She wanted to make as much space between them and the midnight sun incident. For where tragedy struck, slavers and bandits were always eager to prey on the survivors. The caravan’s pace suited Noct just fine. The faster he could reach Olduun, the better.

The people of the Iron Lena kept to themselves, or rather, they kept away from Noct and Titania. As night fell on the merchants and their families all huddled around their campfires and left the two of them alone. The wagon Noct had driven was one of several that belonged to Lena. This wagon in particular was full of general supplies for the caravan, including some dry wood.

Noct grabbed a couple of logs and tossed them in a hole he had dug. He piled sand around the hole to function as a wind barrier.

“I brought back food!” Titania carried two clay bowls full of stew. “This one's for you.” She handed him the more full of the two.

“Thanks, kid.”

“Wait, it’s still hot!”

He gulped down a mouthful of the stew and scrunched his face in disgust. “Who made this?”

“The cook. He said it was his specialty.” Titania blew on her stew and took a tentative sip. “Oh. It has bria leaves in it.” She sat down and took another sip. “I like it.”

“And here I thought the only thing you liked were sweets.”

“I love sweets, that’s different. Bria leaves are really salty, but that’s what makes them so good.”

Noct put the bowl aside. “Too salty for my taste.”

One of Titania’s tutors had once told her that bria bushes only grew deep in the desert. The sand tribes would collect the leaves and sell them to merchants in the outer regions.

“I thought your people loved bria leaves,” Titania said.

“You don’t have to love everything your people do.”

“Right…” She was reminded once more of his moniker. Tribe Slayer. What had happened to have driven him to kill his entire tribe? Were the stories even true? The thought of Noct killing so many in cold blood twisted Titania’s stomach in a knot.

“Are you cold?” Noct asked.

“Huh? Uh, y-yeah, a little,” she mumbled.

“Give me a moment.” Noct leaned over the fire pit and hovered his hands above the logs.

Titania watched intently, eager to see more elemental magic at work.

Noct inhaled deeply and closed his eyes. A couple of sparks emerged at his fingertips but nothing more. He furrowed his brow and tried again. This time a small flame flickered to life but it was quickly smothered by the wind. “Dammit,” he cursed under his breath.

Titania couldn’t help the small curl tugging at the edge of her lips. There was something comforting about seeing even Noct struggle.

“Let me.” She channeled orange mana and conjured a ball of flame above her hand. She willed it to sink into the logs. The flame quickly ate at the dry logs and the fire took hold.

“I thought you couldn’t control your orange magic,” Noct said.

She chuckled. “I thought I had mastered flame magic, at least some of the adept spells. I could conjure flames like this with no trouble.” Her expression darkened and she rubbed her bandaged hand. “But when we were in the slavers camp and the guard tried to attack me… I felt so scared. I couldn’t cast anything. My spell backfired.”

“And burned your arm,” Noct guessed.

“Yeah,” she mumbled with a nod.

“Emotional control is important when it comes to casting chromatic spells. Without control of your emotions, you risk your spellweaves falling apart or worse. Flame magic in particular is quite volatile.”

“Is that what happened to you?” Titania knew elemental fire magic and chromatic flame magic were fundamentally different, but she wondered if they operated on similar principles.

“No. This,” he clenched his fist, “is because of my injuries. Once I recover, I’ll be fine.”

“Does it hurt?” Titania recalled the various wounds she had seen across his body.

“Yes.”

“I’m sorry.”

“It isn’t your fault.” He pulled out a small jar of ointment he had bought at the village and gestured for her to come closer.

She scooted next to him and lifted her arm. He carefully removed the bandages, grabbed his waterskin, and cleaned the burns.

“It’s cold,” she winced.

“Good, that means you still have feeling.” He dipped his fingers into the ointment and spread the clear gel over her hand and forearm.

“Ow, that stings!” Titania tried to pull away, but he held her arm firmly.

“Stay still.”

She swallowed back a cry and nodded tearfully.

“We’ll get you to a healer once we reach a larger town. Until then, the ointment will keep it from getting infected.” He finished and wrapped a new set of bandages over her arm. “All done. You were very strong.”

“Really?” Her pained expression melted away into an eager grin.

“Yeah.” He flicked her nose, “Now finish your food.”

She grabbed her bowl and wolfed down her meal. When she finished, Noct offered her his stew, which she happily took. As she ate, Lena came by, holding a bundle in her arms.

“Hope I’m not interrupting,” Lena said.

“You are,” Noct said, sharpening one of his daggers on a whetstone.

Lena curled her lips wryly, “I just thought I might bring you two a couple of blankets for the night. It can get pretty cold, even with a fire.”

“Thank you!” Titania said with a mouthful.

“Chew your food and swallow, then speak,” Noct said.

Titania swallowed and nodded with a playful salute, “Yes, sir.” Then she went back to eating.

“Mind if I sit?” Lena asked.

Noct inclined his head.

“Thanks.” Lena sat next to him in the sand. “You were great out there today, by the way. I’ve never seen Nibbles so cooperative before.”

Noct shrugged. “She’s a good horse.”

“I have to ask, have you trained horses before?” Lena said.

“No.”

“Then you’re a natural,” Lena whistled.

“Speak what’s on your mind,” Noct said.

Lena wrinkled her brow and laughed awkwardly. “What?”

“You have something you want to say. So say it.”

Lena sighed. “I was talking with some of the other merchants in the caravan. They were curious about you. When I mentioned your name, some of them were shocked. They told me of a desert legend about a rulus without any tattoos. A Tribe Slayer.”

Titania stiffened at the woman’s words and stopped eating. Slowly, she reached for her shield, ready for a fight. Noct noticed Titania’s actions and gave a subtle shake of his head.

“Did you come all the way over here to talk about rumors?” Noct asked.

“The rulus are deadly warriors. And to have one that bested an entire tribe…” Lena looked him in the eyes. “I just want to know if I’m bringing my caravan into danger by having you travel with us.”

“...The Realm of Sand is full of dangers, but you will find no threat from me,” Noct said.

Lena released a long breath and relaxed her tense muscles. “That’s good to know.” She stood up and turned to leave.

“You’re not going to ask me why I’m here?” Noct asked.

“Your past is your own. Many people in this caravan have come from difficult pasts. I’m not one to dwell on it. That being said, the others can be a little more fearful than me. I suggest you keep your distance from them in the meantime. But make no mistake, so long as you can keep Nibbles dragging that wagon around, you are welcome to stay with us.”

“...Thank you,” Noct said.

“Have a good night,” Lena smirked and walked off back to the others.

“~She likes you~” Titania teased.

“Eat your food,” Noct said.

~~~

The next morning, the caravan set off towards a crossroad where many paths along the desert met. The sand gave way to redstone. Wind and water had carved deep, wide grooves into the ground, leaving vast stretches of bedrock hills across the horizon.

“We’re here,” Noct said as the wagons stopped at the base of one such hill.

Titania stuck her head out as far as she could and searched for the oasis. “Are you sure? I don’t see any water.”

“You won’t find any large pools of water here.” Noct grabbed her by the waist and helped her down the wagon.

“Then how is this an oasis?” Titania frowned.

“Excellent question.” Lena walked up to their wagon, bucket in hand.

“You have a habit of interrupting, don’t you?” Noct said, though there was no edge to his voice.

“I’ll keep that in mind,” Lena winked, then turned to Titania. “Hey, wanna see something cool?”

“Yes, please.” Titania ran after Lena. Noct trailed after them.

“Over here.” Lena waved them over and crouched down. A boulder-sized hole had been ripped from the bedrock. Below, clear water rushed through an unseen path.

“Whoa, what is that?” Titania leaned forward, but Noct caught her and pulled her back.

“Don’t get too close. You don’t want to fall in,” Noct warned.

“He’s right,” Lena said. “Underground rivers run through this land. We can gather water from holes like this, but if you fall in, there’s no telling where the channel will take you. You’ll drown long before you see the sky again.”

“Good to know,” Titania swallowed.

“Shit.” Lena scowled.

“What is it?” Noct followed her gaze and spotted another group riding into the oasis. Except they traveled with no wagons nor horses. Every one of them rode a camel, a beast most suitable for the deep desert. Unlike the merchants of the caravan, the strangers wore no robes from head-to-toe, for they needed no protection from the sun. They were elemental creatures native to the Aurous Realm. Their arms were bare, exposing intricate tattoos that ran down their necks all the way down to their fingertips.

“Rulus warriors. What are they doing all the way out here?” Lena whispered.

“Their tribe must have sent them out here for trade or a hunt…” Noct said.

“What do we do?” Titania gave Noct a worried look.

“Both of you, go hide in your wagon. I’ll deal with the rulus,” Lena said.

“If things get dangerous, you’ll need my help,” Noct said.

“No.” Lena shook her head vehemently. “No matter what happens, Noct, you keep yourself hidden. The last thing we need is for the sand tribes to know we’re harboring the Tribe Slayer.”