Aide Me

Chapter Thirteen - Convince Me

When Emaia woke up in her room the next morning, her body felt sore all over. Every part of her felt black and blue, and her arms were so sore she could barely lift them above her head. These symptoms were her proof that she was making progress.

After Aide had left her to train yesterday, she had kept practicing until sundown. When she returned to the Inn, Hanke and the men were all sitting there, dining.

"Where were you?" Dashel had asked concerned when they had been wondering where she was. "We were beginning to think your father's men had caught you and dragged you home."

"They won't get me that easily," Emaia had laughed. She decided not to tell them she had been practicing her knife skills since she knew it would just lead to a heated discussion. A discussion she was way too exhausted to have. She had eaten her dinner and excused herself afterwards instead. She had slept like a rock.

Emaia now crawled out of her bed and went to the window of her room. They were staying at a small Inn at The Shore named The Oyster. It was right near the beach and was decorated with seashells and colorful glass. The view from her room was right across The Shallow Sea. The sun was already high in the sky and the air felt warm. Emaia stood there for a few moments, just enjoying life. It felt like she had everything she wanted right now.

After another moment or two, she started washing her hair. Lately she had been braiding it instead of tying it up into a bun, like most women did. There wasn't any need to impress, so why bother with anything else?

She washed up, got dressed and packed, then joined the men down at breakfast. They were already wide awake and were discussing travel plans.

"We've decided to head for The Western Coast," Dashel informed her. "We've spread the word in all the big parts of the eastern kingdom so now we'll start targeting the west."

"The people of Daleon are our main targets," Hanke cut in. "Since they lost the recent battle against ye' ex-fiancé, their lives have been significantly harder," He told and took a gulp of his mug. "They'll want to join us, trust me. People with nothing to lose are the best candidates."

"We'll start the trip today," Dashel continued after chewing down his bread. "We cut across the southern lands by Lake Monahoe. It'll be the fastest way. If we leave right after we've eaten and we stay out of trouble, we'll be there within two weeks."

"But Lake Monahoe... that's close to Senwatoss Capital," Emaia frowned worriedly. "Won't the roads be heavily guarded by the King's men?"

"They will," Dashel nodded grimly. "So it will be dangerous. We'll have to stay alert at all times. We don't want to run into the King's men. By now he must've heard of us."

"Indeed he has," Hanke scoffed. "I overheard some men talking about it yesterday. They say he's mad."

"All the more reason to stay alert," Dashel said. "We should pack up and get going. We have a long journey ahead."

~*~

It took them exactly six days to reach Lake Monahoe. Emaia kept practicing her knife skills every day whenever the men were getting trained by Hanke. Aide had also begun teaching her the art of close combat with a knife.

"Arm up, blade down. Never let your opponent out of sight," Aide taught one late afternoon. The men were busy training by the campfire. You could hear Hanke shouting instructions to men who were screwing up.

Emaia eyed up Aide who was holding up his blade, too. They walked around in a slow circle, Emaia imitating Aide's moves.

"Eyes on his upper body," Aide continued. "You wanna watch his hands and try to anticipate his next move."