47- On the road again

  8/2/5/4353 M.A.C - Ashraman village at the edge of the Great Western Rainforest- Morning

  "Have a bowl, on the house. Always better to travel on a full belly; you never know what could happen."

  Tears of joy formed at the bottom of Emi's large round eyes as she hungrily stared at the food Dipta was setting in front of her.

  Actual cooked food! Now, this really feels like a return to civilization!

  Emi's arms shot out of her plumage as she immediately grabbed for the bowl and brought it to her lips.

  Food, Glorious food!

  The food in Majusculus's village had not been bad, but the tribe's idea of cooking was sprinkling some spices on ingredients and then roasting them over an open flame. The rations they had been provided with had been a clear step down from that, but they'd still been able to tolerate it thanks to their hunger-inducing journey. The last stretch had been a different matter altogether. After dumping most of their freshly made rations to carry Sun Hanukong after the attack, they had all discovered the staple food of free legionnaires: Stale biscuits you could crack a tooth on, chewy dried cuts of lean meat, and wooden jars of vinegar filled with various ingredients pickled to the edge of oblivion.

  "You might want to slow down and have some bread with it, we tend to like our food spicy around here."

  Dipta chuckled as she awaited the reaction the gluttonous bird in front of her was sure to have any second now, but Emi just kept gulping down the stew with undeterred gusto. Arctic followed his big sister's example, dismissing Dipta's warnings as he brought a large spoonful into his mouth. Arctic looked towards Emi in search of validation, but she was still in a world where only her and her food seemed to exist. He then turned to face Dipta and started straightening his back in pride, but then the young monkey's face started shifting. Arctic's fur bristled as he began panting heavily, his large mouth open to its widest.

  "There you go, this will help. I'll get you some dahi to help as well."

  Dipta ripped a chunk of bread and expertly launched it right into Arctic's mouth as she spoke, then retrieved a container filled with a white creamy substance. Arctic took a large spoonful of the dahi, and the effect was immediately noticeable. The look of relief on his face was rather prominent, but his body language was the biggest tell. Arctic's fur smoothed out, and he let himself sink back into the chair as if his muscles were made of jello.

  "Huh? Did something happen?"

  Emi's thoughts resumed as she put her bowl down and slid her tongue along the edges of her beak before looking around.

  "Young lady, it isn't nice to prank your little brother like this. His reaction was funny enough though."

  Emi glanced at Arctic and saw him stare at her with a mixture of admiration and accusation.

  What did I do?

  Emi's thorough practice in energy cycling and meditation were showing their fruits as her focus on the food had made her enter into some sort of a trance state. Now that she was clear-minded again, she saw the empty bowl before her and realized that she had missed some time.

  "I'm impressed; most people can't eat this stew without the help of bread. Many children need milk or dahi on top of that to finish their bowls."

  Arctic's eyebrow twitched at the last sentence, and he pushed the dahi away before dipping a small corner of a large chunk of bread into the stew and putting it in his mouth. Despite his best efforts, his struggle began to show a few seconds later as his lips thinned and his brow furrowed. Upon noticing the other's attention shifting to him, Arctic swallowed, gave them a thumbs up, and repeated the process.

  "Was it supposed to be spicy? It tasted like spice but didn't feel hot at all."

  "I think your mouth is broken Big Sis"

  Arctic slowly formed the words on his chest as he buckled under the heat and reached for the dahi once more. Emi scooted her stool over and patted him on the head affectionately.

  "I think it might just be a bird thing; I could be immune to spicy things since I didn't feel it at all. Still, good job on practicing; you've made a lot of progress. I was worried you might have trouble communicating if we got split up, but you are getting a lot better at shifting your fur into words."

  A wide grin appeared on Arctic's face as he let himself enjoy the head pats and the praise. Emi was happy to dote on him as much as she could now, for she feared how their split from Sun Hanukong would affect their relationship dynamics.

  I'm currently the nice big sister who got him his freedom and is always on his side, but soon, it will be just the two of us...

  Emi wrapped Arctic into a big hug and nuzzled the top of his head.

  When I become his authority figure...

  "Your big brother is still sleeping because of what I gave him; his body needs to focus on healing for now. He should be up in a few hours if you want to speak with him before you leave."

  Emi let Arctic go and straightened her back, a look of resolve in her eyes.

  "I was told it would take most of a day to walk to town, and we've had our share of night encounters already. Since he will be here for a while, we will send some letters to tell him of our progress and how to keep in touch with us. I'll be honest, if we stay for proper emotional goodbyes, I think he might propose to me again..."

  Arctic and Dipta both chuckled at Emi's real reason for not wanting to wait around, but Emi did not find the situation the least bit amusing.

  That wasn't a joke...I don't know how serious he is about me, but I don't want to set him up for another rejection; he doesn't deserve it...

  "Thank you again for caring for him; knowing he is with someone like you lets us leave without worrying."

  ***

  "You should really learn modern imperial Big Sis. Grandpa told me that if you can't read, you will easily be tricked in the Empire."

  "Yeah, you might be right about that. I can read the letters and mostly sound out the words, but I don't get the meaning unless I see them being written. Wanna teach me?"

  Arctic's aura was instantly overtaken with bright colors, settling into shades Emi identified as pride and eagerness.

  "Well, since you really need the help...and we'll have a lot of free time while we travel...I guess I maybe could."

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  Oh wow! I'm getting the tsundere treatment. If he was a puppy, he'd be wagging his tale furiously. Wait, if we need me to practice modern imperial, couldn't I just...

  "Hey, Arctic, I have an idea! When we get to the tabularium, stay in front of me and..."

  ***

  "Yo Ishan, me and Big Sis are on our way out and came to say goodbye."

  The young-looking enumerator named Ishan stared at Arctic, his mouth slightly open and an expression of mild confusion frozen on his face.

  "Wait a minute, you guys can talk?"

  "We spoke yesterday. Why are you all acting shocked?"

  This time, Emi spoke up and answered, barely stifling a giggle.

  "Not you, Emi; I meant Arctic and his kind."

  Arctic put a puzzled expression on his face before opening his mouth and answering.

  "Why wouldn't we be able to speak? We might have a bit of an accent, but we can talk. I thought you met our tribe leader many times?"

  Emi could see Ishan's confusion turn into suspicion and then into annoyance.

  "That old geezer! He's been tricking me this whole time!? My predecessor too? What a devious-"

  Midway through his rant, Ishan saw the barely contained mirth on his audience's faces and started catching on to their little prank.

  "Wait, there is still something I don't get. If you are throwing your voice and speaking for him, why am I not getting the weird language overlap I get when you speak normally? I have no issues understanding you, but I can also clearly tell you are speaking something that sounds like Brihonian. When you speak for your brother though, I just hear Imperial with a bit of an accent."

  Arctic spun around to show Ishan his back and answered him.

  "I write words here and Big Sis reads them out as they are written."

  "That's pretty convenient...Aren't you scared she will mess with you and make you say silly things, though?"

  A sudden wave of realization visibly washed over Arctic as he peered up at Emi with suspicion in his eyes.

  "What? Me? I swear I wouldn't do such an evil thing-"

  It seemed that Arctic believed Emi's words as his glare lessened in intensity, that is until he heard the end of his sister's sentence.

  "-more than a couple times a day. Occasional ridicule is a cheap price to pay in exchange for a voice. I've heard of mermaids taking much worse deals."

  Arctic was too busy contemplating his future trials to question the foreign word, but Ishan seemed intrigued and asked for clarification.

  "Mermaids? They are a sailor's fantasy. Well-endowed and scantily clad, alluring women of the ocean with a fish's tail for legs. Popular tattoo design for men of the sea who get lonely out there."

  The explanation confused Ishan as he tried sketching the being being described to him on a piece of scrap paper. Emi peeked at the enumerator's sketch, and although he seemed to take some creative liberties here and there, she was happy enough with the result to go with it.

  "Yeah, sure. Guess I'd call that a mermaid. Time for us to go if we want to make it before nightfall though; could I ask you for an introduction letter to hand at the tabularium in town?"

  "You are headed to Muchiri right? They have a tabularium too, much bigger than this one in fact, but you don't really need to deal with them unless you decide to settle there and need to update your record or try for a certification. Let me write an introduction letter to the Muchiri Ashram instead; I am well acquainted with one of the disciples of the Head Brahmin."

  Ishan dipped his quill into the ink pot and started quickly writing the letter with smooth and controlled rotations of his wrist. In under a minute, a few paragraphs of beautiful script filled the page, and Ishan blew a bit of sawdust onto it before rolling it up and tying it with a string.

  "Ask for Brahmin Viraj and hand him this."

  "Thanks again for everything! Please keep an eye on our big brother until he leaves. He might be a bit standoffish, but he is actually a good guy."

  "You take care of yourself too. Just follow the main road going out of the village and you should reach Muchiri without an issue."

  The people I've met in this village were all nice, but it is about the same scale as Majusculus's village, just more spread out. Can't wait to get to an actual town!

  ***

  "Hey! Isn't that the famous Spear of the Brown Star?"

  Emi smacked her forehead, but the feathers got in the way of a satisfying smack and added to Emi's frustration.

  "Decanus... Hey guys!"

  Emi gave the cold shoulder to the contubernium's leader before greeting the other legionnaires with a contrasting friendly attitude. Emi was not surprised by their arrival as the flat terrain and relatively straight road had made them visible for the last few minutes, and her Abilities had made her pick up on the noise they were making even before then.

  "I heard you laid an egg!"

  Emi pointedly stared at the legionnaire who had accompanied them to the village alongside the ranger, but she looked away and avoided meeting Emi's eyes.

  "I see you got your legionnaire back. Lost the Rangers?"

  The Decanus slowed his mount and sidled up to Emi.

  "They're gone back to their duties. We're off to the Muchiri HQ to report. You and your little brother can hop on if you want; we don't mind giving you a ride since you made our job easier this time."

  Emi was about to refuse. Something about the Decanus really rubbed her the wrong way, but she could not quite pinpoint what it was, but she then felt a tug on her back feathers. Upon seeing the expectant look in Arctic's eyes, she decided to give in and accept the offer.

  Emi nodded, but instead of hopping behind the Decanus as he seemed to expect, she helped Arctic get on instead.

  "Are there dangerous predators in the skies around here? Something that might go for me?"

  "Uh...nothing I can think of. Even in the Great Forest, not much would come after you up there."

  "I saw some huge eagle-like birds out there though!"

  "Yeah, there are eagles about your size, but the biggest thing I've seen them hunt was half your size or less. They hunt alone and only go in for quick kills they are sure of pulling off. If you want to go off flying, make sure you wear something to differentiate yourself from a wild animal so no one gets an excuse to shoot you down. With how big you are, some farmer or guard might panic and try to take a shot. "

  Did he just call me fat? And Scary? Or at least fear-inducing?

  Emi looked back at the other legionnaires, but they all looked away in varying directions, some with auras filled with awkwardness and pity, others with concealed enjoyment.

  Wait...they all still look like they are expecting this to get worse.

  "Why don't we lend you our contubernium banner? We could hang it around your neck! We ate the supplies you left behind at the damaged shelter, so I'll rent it to you cheaply."

  How is there no shame in his aura? It's like he doesn't question a single of his thoughts and just blurts them out without considering how they make him look or make others feel. If there was malice in it and he did it on purpose, it would be one thing, but is this guy seriously just that oblivious?

  Emi could see the Decanus's aura clearly, and the worst she could see was a speck of something between pity and condescension, but overall, the man appeared to think he was being friendly and helpful.

  "So...you are the kind of man who laughs at his own bad jokes too hard to notice no one found the joke funny? Hey, guys, does your Decanus flirt with obviously uninterested women then mistakenly brags that they were into him? Just a feeling."

  The smile on the Decanus's face became stiff, as if he had been afflicted with sudden onset facial paralysis, as his mind seemed to try and catch up with the evolving situation. Emi noticed the legionnaires whispering behind him and used her Abilities to magnify their words.

  "Heh. Arjun is getting roasted. What did you tell her?"

  "Me? Nothing. She mostly spoke with the ranger and sang. She is not wrong, though; remember that waitress last month?"

  Decanus Arjun's brow furrowed as he heard his subordinates' remarks, but his trial was seemingly not over as the Medicus was next to chime in.

  "No need to look that far back, there was also that shopkeep last decan."

  One of the two women was next to add her sprinkle of salt to the wound.

  "Yeah, he really doesn't take a hint. Took me ages to get across that I wasn't interested."

  "He never tried anything with me, though, not that I'm complaining."

  The other legionnaires seemed to find the scenery very interesting all of a sudden as only the other female legionnaire was meeting her eyes.

  "Yeah...Might have something to do with all these blades you carry. I swear I can count at least nine. Think you are stuck with having to make the first move; not many men have the balls to flirt with you and think they can keep them."

  "Nine? If you want to think that is all I'm carrying, that is fine. So you are saying that on top of having no game, Arjun has no balls?"

  Decanus Arjun pulled on the reins in his right hand, making his riding goat turn around, and stared at his motley crew, a vein on his forehead throbbing so hard it seemed ready to burst.

  "Not sure how, but I think he heard you."

  "Ah...time to run then. Let's split up; he can't follow us all."

  "See you in Muchiri."

  The few legionnaires that had taken part in the attack upon their Decanus's character fled right and left off the road, intent on making their own way to their destination apart from the target of their ridicule. Decanus Arjun, having lost the targets of his ire, turned around to vent his frustrations at his target of opportunity but only found empty space waiting for him. He and Arctic looked up as they heard a voice coming from above.

  "I'll catch up with you later! I want to finally see how flying free feels like!"

  Decanus Arjun looked down at Arctic behind him, but the young monkey just shrugged and patted him on the back before some words appeared on his chest.

  "So...How fast can this goat go?"