The Trials Ch. 02

"I am sorry for your loss." Fera said genuinely. Tomand made a vague noise and shrugged. "It's ok. I'm doing what I want to do." Fera nodded, as if it were straightforward. "I haven't seen my parents in fifteen years." Silence fell for a moment. Just then it seemed that Sam was reminded of what she was as he resumed some of his earlier caution.

"Sometimes I wonder if I made the right decision, but it is as you say. Now I have lived with my new family for far longer than my old." This line of discussion inevitably reminded Fera that she had just lost her family for the second time. Having a real conversation with other people seemed to enhance the feeling of loss. She felt the grief well up inside her and began efforts to contain it even as she knew it was futile. Tomand seemed to notice her sudden surge of emotion, even before she made any sound. The added strain of holding it back only it made her sobs more forceful when they came. The men hesitated, wondering if they should do something to console Fera, but she held her head level and continued to walk as she cried. The trio walked on without speaking. Tommand felt a drop fall on his forehead, and looked up curiously at a clear sky as he brushed his hand over his face.

After a time they reached a break in the trees and the slope, which followed a dirt road. It was wide enough for two horse-drawn carts to pass each other comfortably, and appeared to be well-maintained. As they stepped out Fera saw that the only indication of their former path was a post set in mortar by the side of the road, carved with a simple marking. By this time the sun had moved enough to cast the road in shadow, though there was still plenty of light to see by.

The change in scenery seemed to act as a catalyst for conversation to resume. Tomand asked about Ultōrēn. Aside from the Battle-Maidens, they apparently knew very little about her people. Fera gave a condensed description, highlighting the important aspects as she saw them. This mainly consisted of the tactical considerations: Ultoren was a nation on the open plains, centered on the river Gora, which was their main source of water and trade. Relative to the Scutum, they were west and slightly south. Trade was especially important to Ultoren: while they could feed themselves by irrigating near the banks of the Gora, their main relevance was their centrality on the Sheera plains and along the Gora.

To the south was the coastal nation of Manazuru, with their capitol at the mouth of the Gora and lesser settlements extending east up to the start of the Edoron cliffs. To the north was the nation of Ginfaldur, who spanned a large swath of the Iontahc range and exported ores and lumber from the mountains. To the west the Sheera plains widened still further, but much of the additional space was sparsely populated and the important nations still followed the mountains or the coast. Trade along the river was the most common, but just as important were the major roads that crossed the plains from east to west, which brought some of the more exotic goods. Ultoren was surrounded and exposed. The constant need to fight bandits and, less frequently, other nations in order to protect their trade led them to possess a strong military.

Fera thought this was all common knowledge, but Tomand and Sam listened as though she were sharing exotic tales of the Island People or the Thules beyond the Great Desert. "They really must be isolated," she thought to herself. She went on for some time, answering excited questions from the pair, but she eventually managed to turn the tables and ask Tomand to tell her more about the local area. He seemed reluctant to stop learning about the outside world, but he began telling her about Pontham.