28: A 'Bumpy' Ride

Starlight reflected off of the crashing waves to the left as Vir and Maiya traveled north on Bumpy’s back. With only the dim stars for illumination, nighttime travel was usually treacherous, but Vir’s excellent nightvision offset some of that risk. And thanks to Prana Vision—which was always active, even while dormant—his eyesight had become even better.

Adventure’s overrated, he thought for the hundredth time as his bones creaked and his skull rattled.

The trip had started out well enough. They’d traveled west from Riyan’s abode to the coastline that ran north-south, bordering the Hansa Sea. Vir sat in front, handling Bumpy’s reins while Maiya sat behind him with her arms wrapped around his stomach for support. They’d even caught the last rays of the setting sun as they’d crested the final grassy hill that led down to the rocky coast.

From there they’d traveled north, keeping the coast visible, but that was when Vir’s plans started going awry. He’d initially thought they could ride Bumpy on the sand of the shore, but that proved too much of a burden for the beast.

Even with two D Grade Lighten Load orbs, Bumpy struggled to plod on the soft sand. At one point, he’d come to a complete stop, refusing to travel any further.

Neither carrots nor hay had convinced the beast, so Vir finally relented, coaxing the stubborn Ash’va over to the harder ground of the hills that bordered the coast.

The problem was that these were not simply rolling hills. Rocks, boulders, and pebbles covered them over, making the going both slow and arduous. Bumpy was never the smoothest-riding Ash’va, but with the terrain they were currently on, the ride was downright torturous.

Vir wasn’t the only one being battered by the ungainly Ash’va.

“I don’t understand how anyone goes on long journeys,” Maiya complained, her teeth rattling both from the jostling and the cold. “I thought the added cushions would help. I honestly did.”

“I think most people take the highways. And most people don’t have Bumpy,” Vir said, wishing for his old Ash’vas back at Brij, though he sympathized with Bumpy’s plight.

After examining the beast, he’d found that one of his hind legs had terrible scars on it. Likely the result of some fierce engagement, long ago. The wound had not healed well, making that leg slightly shorter than the others. It was the reason behind the animal’s ungainly gait.

Vir patted the hardworking animal. “It must hurt you too,” he murmured.

The only silver lining was that the constant jostling took their minds off the biting nighttime chill. Traveling on a night schedule made life easier for Bumpy, but as riders, Vir and Maiya weren’t exerting themselves. Which meant that the offshore breeze nipped at their faces continuously, freezing them to their core, and while their clothes did an adequate job of protecting them, the going was still arduous.

The long hours passed with neither talking much, but Vir knew that wouldn’t last long. Maiya tired of unfamiliar sights far faster than he did, and when she was bored, she talked.

“Vir,” she said. “You remember what Riyan taught us about Hiranyan royalty?”

Here it comes, he thought. With her sitting behind him, she never saw the wry smile that crept onto his face. “I dunno, Maiya. Why don’t you give me a refresher?”

She sighed. “Ugh, I know. It’s tedious. Riyan keeps harping about how knowledge is power and so on and so on.”

“Does that mean he’s okay with you abandoning the obstacle course?” Vir asked. He’d been worrying about that for a while, but figured it was a sensitive topic for her.

“To be honest, I don’t really know. He isn’t forcing me to go, at least. But I dunno if he’s just teaching me other things as a break from training or what. Anyway, he’s been drilling the names of various kings and queens and countries into my head all this time.”

“Oh, yeah?” Vir said, playing along. He wasn’t really interested, but the silence was even more boring than listening to Maiya go on about this stuff. He could really use the distraction from guiding Bumpy for hours.

The beast wasn’t exactly temperamental, but it had its idiosyncrasies that Vir had to constantly watch out for. Guiding the beast for a half hour was one thing, but the effort steadily wore on him as the night progressed.

“Right,” Maiya said, “so our kingdom, Hiranya, is a monarchy. That means there’s a king and a queen, and sometimes the queens have as much power as the kings, but that’s not the case for Hiranya. King Rayid Hiranya’s the current ruler, and he has been for decades. There’s talk about his eventual succession, but apparently that’s a hot topic amongst the Sawai.”

“Why’s that? Are the princes fighting over the throne?”

“Both the princes and the princess, actually. Seems the eldest son, First Prince Sanobar, is in line for the throne. He’s like the perfect prince. He helps his father out and works for the good of the nation. The second prince is somewhat of a scheming snitch. People think he’s gonna do something to Sanobar to snatch the throne from him.”

“Do something… Like, you mean he’s going to have him killed? Isn’t that really bad?”

Maiya nodded, forgetting that Vir couldn’t see her from behind him. “Probably, yeah. That’s if his sister doesn’t do something first. Third Princess Mina’s all Riyan ever talks about. I feel like he’s teaching me her entire history for some reason. He… I dunno,” Maiya said, trailing off.

“Huh?” He said as he guided Bumpy over a hazardous group of rocks. “What, Maiya? What were you gonna say?”

“I feel like he’s obsessed with her, Vir. Like, in an unhealthy way. He doesn’t say it, but I honestly think something happened between them.”

Vir didn’t know why, but a sudden image flashed into his mind, prompting him to sink deep into thought.

“What’s up, Vir?”

“Hmm? Oh, no. Just thinking, is all. You remember the night we cremated Rudvik?”

Maiya tightened her arms around his waist.

“It’s fine, Maiya. Thanks, but I’ve made my peace with it now,” he said, squeezing her hand. “What I meant was that Riyan had said something to me back then. Words that I’ve never forgotten. He said that my wounds would never heal. That time mends all wounds, but that the scars remain forever.”

“I remember that,” Maiya said softly.

“I just felt like he’d spoken from personal experience, is all. I dunno why, but I’m wondering if it had anything to do with what you just said. You think he has some tussle with Hiranyan royalty?”

“Hmm. I dunno. Riyan definitely comes across as a Sawai aristocrat, or maybe ex-Sawai. But even they don’t really have access to the royal family unless they’re super high up. And besides, what would a princess be able to do to that man? It’s Riyan we’re talking about, after all. I can’t imagine anyone wronging him and living. Not even a princess,” she said with a giggle.

Vir had to agree. The thought was ridiculous. But if true, what did it mean for him? What did it mean for Maiya? “Nevermind, then. Actually, I’ve been wondering about this, but is their last name always the name of the kingdom? Or is that just a Hiranyan thing?”

“Yeah, seems to be the convention for every kingdom Riyan’s told me about so far. Well, except for the Altani and the Pagan Order, which I gotta tell you about. They’re so much more—”

“Hang on, Maiya,” Vir said, eying a small brook up ahead that fed into the ocean. “Let’s take a quick break. I dunno if my bum can take much more of this.” Hours of riding over the rock hills that bordered the ocean had left him numb.

Maiya’s face lit up. “Yesss! Thought you’d never stop!”

It was as if their bones had fused together. Every movement was awkward and stiff, and Vir could barely even dismount from the blasted steed.

Maiya immediately threw herself into stretching exercises on the rocky scree while Vir went to feed the Ash’va. For all his gripes with the beast, it was carrying them on their backs. He patted its snout. “Thanks, Bumpy. You’re not perfect, but we still love you, anyway.”

“We do?” Maiya asked from a few paces away.

“We do,” Vir said with a nod. The Ash’va grunted, likely in response to the hay it was being fed and not his words, but it felt nice to pretend otherwise.

Vir was just finishing up undoing Bumpy’s reins to make him more comfortable when he felt a sudden warmth on the small of his back.

He startled, only to feel Maiya behind him.

“Magic Heat?” He asked.

Maiya nodded, leaning against him and pressing the orb against his back. “I feel bad hogging it all this time.”

“Don’t be. I couldn’t hold an orb while handling Bumpy’s reins now, could I? And besides, I can deal with the chill better than you can. She held up a package bundled in a banana tree leaf. “Sandwich?”

Vir began salivating the moment he smelled the delectable spices. Maiya’s cooking had always been good, but it’d grown even more delicious lately thanks to the amount of practice they got. Riyan’s vast array of ingredients certainly didn’t hurt.

“Thanks, Maiya! You’re the best,” he said between bites. “This was exactly what I needed.”

Watching Vir wolf down her sandwich filled Maiya’s chest with a pleasantly warm sensation, and she beamed with pride.

“Anyway, let’s not linger too long,” she said, looking around at their rocky surroundings. “I just wanna get to Saran. To a nice, warm bed.”

“I doubt we’ll make Saran by the end of the day. We’re probably looking at sleeping at least one day in the sun, Maiya.”

She sighed. “I know. It’s fine, I’ll live.”

Vir did some stretches of his own, which did wonders for his blood circulation. His bottom still hurt, but there wasn’t much he could do about that.

“I think I interrupted you before we stopped. What were you talking about?” He said as they mounted Bumpy several minutes later.

Vir had initially dreaded hearing Maiya go on about the various kingdoms, but he was warming up the topic, especially since it might relate to Riyan.

“Hmm, where was I?” She said, tapping her chin.

“I think you were about to talk about the Altani and the Pagan Order.”

“Oh, right! Right, so, the Altani. Riyan was very clear about them. If you ever come across an Altani mage, never ever make them angry, Vir. He’s told me things about them. Scary things.”

“Yeah? Like what?”

“So you know how the Kin’jal Empire’s always saying how they’re the strongest power in the Known World?”

“Right,” Vir lied, “Of course. Everyone knows that.” He had no clue.

“So, it turns out they tried attacking the Altani. This would’ve been a hundred years ago or more.”

“I noticed you said they tried attacking,” Vir commented. “What happened?”

“They failed. Spectacularly. The Kin’jal amassed an army a hundred thousand strong… And they lost in a single day. It’s called Banshi’s Folly. Banshi was apparently the Kin’jal commander at the time.”

“One day!? How does an army that size lose in a single day?” Vir said in shock. He couldn’t even imagine ten thousand people in one place, let alone a hundred thousand. The sheer size bent his mind. A force that large should be unstoppable.

“I know, right? It gets worse. They routed. Kin’jal Balarian warriors routed, can you believe that? They had superior numbers, but the Altani had better technology. Like, way way better. Seems they unveiled a new type of pranic skyship. Fast attack skyships. Even today, they’re said to be the only country in the world who can build and fly something like that.”

“So… they’re fast, I take it?” Vir said.

“Yep. Fast and deadly. Seems they fly even faster than an Acira does. With their magical power, the Altani just bombed the Balarian warriors from above, and the Kin’jals didn’t have a single thing that could stop them. They decimated the Kin’jals in just a few hours, forcing them back.”

Vir listened to her while guiding Bumpy down toward the sand. The terrain had changed, and the ground near the beach had become harder and flatter. It looked like the going would be easier and smoother for the time being.

As he coaxed the Ash’va closer to the shore, he idly wondered if the Altani knew about the affinities he’d discovered. The affinities that seemed like they were a secret to the rest of the world couldn’t possibly be unknown to the most powerful mejai, could they?

“Yeah, so most people consider the Altani to be the most powerful nation in the known world. Seems like they inherited a bunch of Lost Magic from the Age of Gods. Some even say that their capital, Alt Ashani, was actually built by the gods themselves. They say it’s the prettiest city in the world, with half the city floating in midair.”

Vir didn’t need to see Maiya’s face to know that she’d been smitten by that story.

“Maybe you’ll get to visit one day,” he said. It was what she wanted to hear.

“Can you imagine, Vir!? Life in a city like that? I could die happy.”

He’d only mentioned visiting, but of course, her overactive mind had immediately jumped all the way to living there. Vir smiles, hoping his dear friend never lost that enthusiasm of hers.

“What about the Pagan Order? I heard they hunted demons… and maybe also Ashborn?” The Pagan Order worried him a lot more than the Altani.

“Pagan Order’s in the Voidlands, way off to the southwest of the Known World. There’s no prana there. Like, at all. So they can’t use magic for anything. They can’t even heat or cool their food with magic.”

Vir had wondered about that ever since he’d heard of the Voidlands. “It’s not just heating and cooling, right?” he remarked. “They don’t have magic to heal wounds or prevent infections from spreading. I wonder how they’ve manageed until now. And their military must look completely different, too.”

If only they didn’t hunt Ashborn, life in the Voidlands might actually have suited him perfectly.

“Right,” Maiya replied. “The Pagan Order’s ruled by Lord Reth. He’s a fanatical demon hater. Seems the Order’s kinda a thorn in every country’s side. They apparently kidnap people from other countries and bring them back to the Voidlands.”

“People? Or demons?” Vir asked. Truthfully, he had no idea what demons looked like, or even where they came from, but the four armed giant popped into his head. If anything screamed demon, that was it.

“Demons,” Maiya confirmed. “But I’ve never actually seen a demon, so I dunno what they do. Maybe they kidnap ordinary people and claim that they’re demons? Anyway, they say they do it to make sure they’re purged correctly. Sounds like a bad way to go, if you ask me.”

Vir gulped. “And now they’re after Ashborn too…”

“Well, the good news is they’re a small nation. The only reason the others haven’t put an end to them is because they’re so out of the way. Sending in an expedition to wipe them out isn’t worth the cost. At least, that’s what Riyan thinks.”

Whatever it was, Vir made a mental note to stay as far away as humanly possible from those lunatics. He’d be happy if he lived out his entire life without ever seeing them. Having dealt with one cultist already, he had no desire to meet another.

They continued on for the next several hours, chatting about kingdoms and queendoms and princes and princesses. Vir’s eyes glazed over at one point… there were just so many names, he couldn’t possibly hope to remember them all.

Vir wondered exactly why Riyan was spending so much effort teaching Maiya these things. The man was not one to indulge in frivolity. There was no way he’d spent his hours imparting this knowledge unless it would be immediately relevant to her. Vir wondered if whatever ‘favor’ he wanted from Maiya required this knowledge. But he came up blank when trying to imagine what kind of task that entailed.

Their conversation passed the time, and a few hours later, the rays of dawn broke above the sea. Vir would ordinarily stare at the sunrise on end whenever he caught it, but today, all he could think about was sleep. He longed to pitch the tarp and get some shuteye.

But the moment the sun’s rays illuminated dark masts and sinister black sails in the distance, all thoughts of rest vanished.

And when he saw the skulls and crossbones on those black sails, his fear ballooned into full-blown panic.

Bumpy growled as Vir jerked his reins, forcing the beast to a halt.

“Vir? What’s wrong?” Maiya said, looking around. Then she saw it as well. “Oh, no…”

“Pirates,” Vir said, his throat dry and cracked.

And not just one or two. Dozens of them, milling about on the shore. Several dinghies lay beached nearby.

It got worse.

“We’ve been spotted,” he said with a scowl. Who would have guessed that their idyllic bumpy ride would end with a battle for their lives?