To Catch A Fish
The main highway following the river Amscray is well-travelled; carriages and carts can be often found trundling along its roughly paved surface. A short distance from Yuiria, there was a large metal sign just outside where the thoroughfare began, proclaiming its name as Amscray Way. The locals shortened the name and took to calling it Amway. For obvious reasons, you do not follow the road. Instead, you travel along the river itself on foot – or rather, Lucy’s feet – avoiding as much contact as possible. Passing by numerous small villages, none of which seemed to have more than a few dozen inhabitants, you have Aria ask for directions on your behalf. The villagers had been rather tight-lipped but let slip enough to ensure that you were on the right track. Soon, you are off the beaten path. A mountain range – the river’s source – lies before you, and instead of following the main stem of the river, you find yourself following one of its many tributaries further upstream, and deeper into the foggy, damp lands where the slimes are said to reside.
Three days into your journey, you run out of food.
“I-I’m a growing girl,” mumbles Aria, half-apologetic, half-mortified. You shake the cloth bag. Nothing but crumbs can be heard. Lucy moos.
“It’s not your fault,” you reply. “I only brought three days’ worth of food on purpose.”
“But why?” asks Aria, her eyes wide.
“Bringing any more would be a waste when I could just snap my fingers and be back in Grahferde and have a nice, hot goblin-cooked meal.”
“Oh.” Her stomach rumbles at the thought.
“That, and it’s cheaper to scrounge for your own food. Practically free, in fact.”
“We… aren’t going back for food?”
“Hands out, Aria.” She complies dutifully. You take out a long wooden pole that you had been carving in your free time. There is a string attached to it, and a metal hook dangling at the end. You put the pole in her right hand and the bag of crumbs in her left. “Go get some fish.” You didn’t get much fish in Grahferde, and it would be a nice variation to your usual diet. Seeing Aria’s doubtful face, you add, “It’s part of your training. To capture a fish is to test the prowess of your hands and eyes.”
That seems to have convinced her. Aria marches off to the river, the pole swinging from side to side over her shoulder. You, on the other hand, hop up onto a nearby branch. Pulling your hood deeper over your head – and wincing when you hear it snagging against that damnable halo – you lean back on the wide trunk of the tree.
“Think the little missus will be fine on her own, do you?” says Barbatos.
“I’ll be keeping an ear out, even if I don’t look like it,” you say, your eyes half-closed.
“Well, it is a good time to train on controlling your aura, I say. You have been neglecting the way of the fist for far too long, boy, and you have nothing better to do at the moment, do you?” nags the gauntlet.
You grumble, but he is right: you have nothing better to do. In the distance, you can hear the gurgling flow of the river. You let your magic flow in a pulse matching the river’s beat, channeling it into the force that Barbatos calls an aura. Fully closing your eyes, the flow takes shape in your mind. The rushing of the water. The miniscule, almost undetectable turbulence swirling from its numerous denizens. The scene feels so close that you feel like you could almost reach out and part the water with your bare hands…
There is a loud splash – two loud splashes – and you pick up Aria’s faint cry of surprise. Eyes snapping open, you leap towards the river immediately, hopping from tree to tree as your heavy cloak flaps around you, still keeping your wings concealed. You arrive at the riverbank a scant few seconds later, Lucy trotting along the forest floor as she follows you there. Is it a monster? A slime? Or…
A single look tells you all you need to know about the situation. Aria is standing knee-deep in the water, soaking wet, her boyish clothes plastered to her slim frame. In her hands she clutches the head of a fish that is the size of a large dog. It is still wriggling and fighting for its life. The hook of her fishing pole is entangled in its lip, but there is also an arrow sticking out of its side. At the other end, its tail is held on tightly by a brown-haired young girl of Aria’s age. Her chainmail dress tinkles as she tugs at the fish’s tail.
Aria pulls at the head and shouts, “Let go of my fish, you metal bitch!”
“It’s mine, you… you stupid country floozy!” shouts the girl in return. Behind her, you can see four other youngsters in similar gear: blue livery over chainmail, swords, axes and shields. Five of them in total, three boys and two girls.
“Ah.” These must be the knight trainees that Wisteria spoke of.
Down at the river, Aria seems to have come to the same conclusion. “You five… you are trainees with the kingdom’s knightly order, is that it?”
“That’s right, bumpkin. So this fish is mine! We need it more than you do!”
“We don’t get any rations at all, miss,” explains one of the boys, a tall and lanky one with a perpetually depressed look on his face. “We’re supposed to scavenge what we can get along the way as part of our training.”
“Hah, that’s none of my business now, is it?” snorts Aria haughtily in a way that somehow reminds you of Rin.
“It should be,” complains another of the rookies. “We train and fight to protect the people. We are prepared to lay down our lives to do that, so surely you wouldn't begrudge us a fish?”
“You aren’t prepared to starve to protect the people, I see,” taunts Aria mockingly, keeping her death-grip on the weakening fish.
“You are quite getting on my nerves.” The girl who had been squabbling with Aria grimaces.
“I am, am I? Is that all your knightly training affords you?” Aria giggles. “I bet I could fight circles around you anyday.”
The knight girl’s blue eyes flash angrily. “Do not mock our training!”
With an arrogant grin, Aria drops the head of the fish without warning. The other girl tumbles over, unbalanced by the sudden weight on her hands. She splashes into the river, spluttering. Her teammates shout out in warning and alarm. When she looks up, Aria already has her sword drawn, pointing it at her face. “If this was a real fight, you would already be dead,” says Aria coldly.
The girl’s face knits into a frown, and then she springs into movement in a flash, drawing her own blade and knocking Aria’s sword aside in a single, practiced movement. A surprised Aria retreats, her legs splashing through the water.
“A silly peasant girl thinks she can play with swords,” drawls the girl slowly. “Just because you have a weapon doesn’t mean you know how to use it.”
“Oh yeah? Try me,” retorts Aria, waving her sword around as it traces a silvery arc through the air.
“Eileen, don’t do this!” her friends call out. You get the distinct feeling of an “Oh no, not again!” in their voices.
“Watch me! I’ll win the fish back and show that the pride of the knights is not to be mocked! I am Eileen Mesthall, Knight-Apprentice in the Order of the Azurelion, leader of the 16th Blue Squires! I challenge you to a duel here and now!”
“Aria Heavensell, eldest disciple of the Mercant Fighting Style,” remarks Aria quietly. “I accept your challenge!”
“A duel over fish,” murmurs Barbatos. “Indeed, whosoever possesses strength, possesses dominion over the white piscean flesh of the riverine king. A worthy cause!”
You keep quiet, looking at their wet, dripping figures. Aria is lithe and slim, her soaked clothes outlining every curve she has, and even under the chainmail you can tell that Eileen Mesthall is quite well-developed for her age. The both of them would definitely blossom wonderfully in a few short years. It only serves to remind you that the absolute worst thing about this situation is that no matter how enticing a wet catfight is to you, nothing will happen. You sigh.
Lucy lows and looks up at you with big, brown questioning eyes. ‘What do you want to do?’ seems to be what she is asking.
***
A. You send Lucy over to interrupt the duel. You can always get more fish after the knights have left. There is no need to fight over this particular one.
B. You interrupt the duel yourself, revealing yourself to Aria. Your presence should be enough to get the knights to back off, and you are certain you can handle this diplomatically. They should know where the slimes are and be able to guide you there.
C. You intervene and capture the rookies. They aren’t very useful to you, but you can’t have them traipsing around the forest while you are looking for the slimes. It should be a simple task to defeat them without revealing yourself.
D. You watch over Aria and let her handle it. There is no need for you to step in here, and careful observation could gain you more information. Win or lose, she should be able to learn a lesson here, though you are not yet certain what that lesson is yourself.