Pathfinder

“You sure you don’t need a horse?” Kenneth asked.

Billy hadn’t seen such reluctance from Alejandro. He kept his distance from the horses, his face pale as he turned his attention toward the young man.

“Uh, I’ll pass on your offer,” the wanderer responded. “How’ve you been, kiddo?”

“Fine, sir,” he answered.

“No need to be so formal.”

They set out toward the town’s northern-western entrance, guided by Kenneth who glanced off over the incline. When they emerged over the hill, they saw the river wrapping around the city with the encampments yards from the city borders. Guardsmen kept the migrants at bay with blockades and much heavier security since the festival drew near. Kenneth halted, seeing Alejandro look toward the increasing presence.

“You’d think they’d be housed by now,” he contested.

“Well,” Kenneth responded. “It’s not something I can do much about.”

He couldn’t hide his disgust at her treatment of the outsiders. Billy wanted to speak on the matter, but felt it was out of his depth to do so. Kenneth shifted his hat to block off sunlight while admiring the rolling fields, hoping to end the conversation.

“I like this route,” the old guard uttered. “Not much happens on this side. The view during a snowy winter day is something else.”

What a poorly timed statement, Alejandro thought.

“We’d always come down here with mom during the warmer seasons,” Billy reminisced.

Alejandro gazed toward the northern waterfall with another path leading into a wooded area.

“How far do you patrol?” he asked, prompting the old guard to look over.

“We keep along the perimeters. We—Don’t get much fuss from subhumans or other travelers, but we try not to push our luck.”

“Push our luck?”

“We keep patrols out along the perimeter in pairs. Everyone else is stationed along the closed-off roads.”

“That sounds like a predictable pattern there. No change-up?”

“Who’s going to be watching for a hundred years?”

The wanderer accepted his response without pushback. The Gardenian Guard clung to the old ways of operating, but makeshift swords, lances, and horses set them back to a time before the 1900s. The wanderer assumed ammunition was scarce, like every other settlement. They admired the scenery a little longer before heading back. The wanderer thought about how to carry on the old guard’s request; A strange pick, considering he wasn’t a skilled fighter.

“So, patrolling, well—” the wanderer spoke. “That won’t get us anywhere. I think it’s worth looking beyond just the usual routes.”

“Dad, he’s right,” his son agreed.

“Billy,” The old guard responded after clearing his throat. “This isn’t some adventure.”

“Kenny,” he interrupted. “He held his own in the Hollows. A walk around the park wouldn’t be an issue.”

The father grimaced before nodding his approval. Billy patiently awaited his reply, catching his father’s reluctance when he turned toward him. The only way he’d grow accustomed to the world is if he partook in it. Another drawn-out sigh escaped his barely parted lips.

“Fine,” he agreed. “But be back before nightfall, you hear.”

“Hell, yes!” his son raised his fist in the air.

“Yeah, but no horses,” the wanderer said. “We’ll go on foot.”

*******

Billy and Alejandro walked toward the rumbling waterfall. The dead forest’s pine scent mixed into the freshwater’s scent, creating a pleasant concoction. He looked over his shoulder, redirecting toward the camps. The endless plains spanned toward the foreseeable south.

“This area has a lot of scenic angles,” the wanderer noted.“But, what are you fighting these days, besides the subhumans—And vampires the other day?”

“Eh, well,” he thought. “Not much happens in Gardenia.”

Alejandro nodded, brushing past him to continue on. The deep river widened further along the dirt path, making it hard to cross. The wanderer didn’t know where to begin with training Billy since he proved to be a well-rounded guardsman. Billy was absorbed by the serene forest, rarely having explored beyond the safety of the city. He turned toward Alejandro, finding an uneasy side glance.

“Is everything okay, sir?” he asked.

“It looks like you’ve never traveled beyond the city,” the wanderer replied. “And stop calling me, sir; It’s unnecessary.”

“I—Um, sorry. It’s a habit.”

“Your mother?”

“Yes, s—Al. She always told me I should always be respectful to my superiors.”

“Ah, well… I’m not your superior or anyone above you. You’re not a boy scout.”

“A boy scout?”

That’s right, he wouldn’t know what that is.

“It’s tough out there, kid,” he continued as he pressed forward.

Soon they arrived at a clearing with a small pond the river passed through. Along its shores were a few rotted cabins with rusted vehicles cluttering the path out. The wanderer stood by the shallow shore, taking the haunting imagery.

Billy remembered Enne’s violent impulses and how her attitude changed on the whim, taking satisfaction with the gore. But no matter how violent, her objectives still aligned with the safety of the town.

“About Enne,” he stuttered. “Her powers… She’s really strong. But her smile that day.”

“There aren’t such things as saints out here. The world beyond the city is selfish and misguided. People would screw each other for a quick buck.”

“Then—Why do you help us?”

“I think there’s something worth preserving here,” he responded, cracking a smile.

A disturbance in the pond caught their attention. The wanderer slipped away toward the trees while Billy’s eyes were glued to the bubbling surface. Alejandro looked around the tree, keeping out of sight witnessing Billy panicking as he stumbled backward.

Sometimes the best training is one where you figure it out, he thought.

“A—Al, what is that?” he shouted.

A scaley, dark green serpent arose from the deceitful water. He never imagined a monster living so close to the city. It measured around 30 feet and was as thick as a doorway. Its gaping mouth revealed rows of sharp teeth with a bellowing hiss. He desperately looked for Alejandro as he moved away.

“Oh, crap!”

So, he could be a little potty mouth, after all.

The wanderer grinned while keeping a close eye on the situation. Billy’s trembling hand raised his sword against the serpent as it arched its slender body. He evaded its slow lunge, jabbing it with the tip of his sword. With its massive size, it could juice him effortlessly, but it was too slow to catch the nimble, frightened young man. Alejandro smiled at the youngster’s persistence. His footing was graceful, his stance had purpose, and his eyes focused upon the massive creature

What does Kenny want me to do again?

Billy lodged the sword into its head after a well-timed sidestep. However, it barely pierced its skull as he tried to pull out the unbudging blade. Soon, it slammed him away toward the brushes. The young man sat up, drawing his pistol, firing a shot at its head.

Eh, should I just jump in? That peashooter ain’t going to do much. Let me lend him a hand.

Alejandro focused his energy, sending mana to his pistol. A faint glow encompassed his weapon with bullets firing electrical charges, violently sending electricity throughout its body. Billy looked at his gun in awe after it withdraw toward the shore. The wanderer stroked his beard, observing the would-be guard sloppily parry. He emerged from behind the tree, seeing the serpent gain ground again.

“Al, c’mon,” he shouted.

The wanderer shot over a powerful energy ball into the side of the snake’s head before it could sink its teeth into him. The young guard fell onto the ground, watching the snake thrash in pain while the energy melted its brain away; It wasn’t long before it fell limp.

*******

“You did good,” the wanderer complimented.

“W—What was that about?” Billy raised his voice.

“Survival…I wanted to see how you could handle a weak creature.”

“A weak creature? That thing could have eaten me!”

“And so could lesser vampires and subhumans.”

“Come on, that’s different! That’s a huge snake or whatever.”

“It’s known as a River Dragon, and they’re usually found in ponds like this.”

The wanderer walked over to the river dragon’s corpse, seeing most of its brain reduced to boiling liquid. It continuously burned through the skull, releasing a strange acidic odor. The young man stood next to him, amazed by the power he used to take down the monster. Alejandro looked at him through the side of his eye with a smirk.

“Can you teach me that?” Billy asked.

“Uh, that would be no easy feat,” the wanderer answered. “You have a better chance by asking En.”

“Aren’t you supposed to be like a wise man or something?”

Alejandro rolled his eyes before walking away. Billy glimpsed a small group of people arrived from the other end of the pond. They came armed with bolt-action rifles and weathered clothing, signifying their nomadic lifestyle. One of them spotted the wanderer, walking past the cover of the serpentine corpse before Billy rushed to pull him away. With one person firing off, the rest followed in panicked gunfire. Alejandro grumbled at the sudden turn of events while feeling the monster absorb the barrage of bullets.

“Shit,” he muttered.

“Why now?” Billy said.

“Did you get a count?”

“I—It looked like a small group.”

“Halt,” he shouted over.

The wanderer got up with his hands raised after they stopped shooting. He walked toward the small band of scavengers, his hands frozen in place as he acknowledged their positions. Their ripped clothing matched their disheveled appearance. They aimed their hunting rifles at him, some rattled by the likes of him. Billy looked over the serpent’s body, worried about his safety as they proceeded toward him. The young man couldn’t fathom the impulsive nature of his plan, but he watched, uncertain of what to do.

“You’re smart to do that,” The scrawny gap-toothed scavenger said.

“And the other?” The heavyset leader with tribal tattoos asked, keeping his eyes on the slain serpent.

“You can leave him out of it,” he answered.

His amber eyes gazed into the leader’s, drawing his ire. He smelled the leader’s foul breath as he stood inches from him, leading to the wanderer’s smile. The leader winced, unsettled, as he looked around. Without them realizing it, he laced mana into the water with the slight movements of his fingers.

“And what would we do with a haggard piece of shit like you?” The scrawny scavenger prodded.

“He’s a wanderer,” the leader said. “But ain’t gonna be any use to us. The boy over there, however—"

“I don’t advise you to do that,” Alejandro suggested calmly.

“Yeah, and what are you going to do about it?”

The slow-crackling crystallization from the pond’s edge caught their attention. Everyone looked at the unassuming pond forming beautiful crystal clusters pointed toward them. Alejandro looked ahead as the leader met the wanderer’s toothy smile.

“Watch—"

An ice crystal crushed in the side of his head as ice barraged the scavengers. Alejandro took a few steps back to avoid getting hit. The clunky crystal shards dismembered body parts from the unsuspecting group. Soon, the frantic cries of the scavengers fell silent. Alejandro looked on coldly as blood puddled underneath the scattered bodies. Once it was over, Billy emerged from behind the serpent. He avoided looking at the mutilated bodies as the wanderer approached him.

“You got all of them?” Billy asked.

“Yeah, I did,” he answered.

“And we’re leaving the bodies there?”

“We can let the river dragons handle the rest. Those scavengers were in a bigger group.”

“So, what now?”

“We can’t lead them back, so we’ll use this wooded area for cover.”

Billy looked past the bodies, seeing more people in the distance. The young man scrambled to hide with the wanderer, taking refuge behind their respective tree. Alejandro wondered how he planned to quell a larger force. Billy checked his gun to see if it was still functioning as footsteps came closer. Alejandro’s drawn-out sigh formed wispy air.

This was not a part of the curriculum.



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