Introductions and mistakes

Much to Ash’s shock, the Valkyrie did not immediately kill everyone in the room. To the contrary, once the girl had cleaned herself sufficiently, she did nothing but stand still and stare directly at Ash, as if expecting something. What that was, Ash couldn’t begin to guess. An apology? Definitely. Ash on her knees, begging for mercy? Quite possibly. The Valkyrie’s icy eyes bored into Ash, but betrayed no hint of the other girl’s intentions.

What did Ash know about Valkyries? Little that wasn’t common knowledge. They were the protectors of the world, heirs of the First Flowers, women who were chosen to wield to extraordinary power on behalf of all people. They answered to no one nation and no evil could stand before them. Every girl dreamed of becoming one. There were five orders, each with their own colors and roles.

And that was the sum total of what Ash could remember about the most famous people in the world. The finer details rarely came up in a life spent on the far fringes of civilization. Until this moment, it had never occurred to Ash that she might encounter one of these exalted heroes. From the few glimpses Ash had gotten, the girl’s armor was a shade of deep, blood red. That probably meant something. Ash had no idea what. But there was definitely no chance of a Valkyrie taking kindly to being kidnapped.

What was clear, however improbably, was that the Valkyrie was waiting for her would-be captor to act first. That gave Ash something resembling an opening, and she would not miss the chance to take it.

“Right, I clearly owe you an apology for my man’s actions,” Ash said, clapping her hands together to break the silent tension. She dared to take a single step towards the Valkyrie. “But that shouldn’t make things weird between us, right? I promise you, this has all been one big misunderstanding, Miss…”

Ash extended an open hand and let her voice trail off pointedly. Ash could only hope the other girl would take the hint, and not do whatever she had done to Carvus to her. As if to prove the point, Carvus let out a particularly loud groan from the ceiling.

“It’s over, thief,” the Valkyrie spat. “Your tricks won’t work anymore. Now hand it over.”

Ash blinked. She certainly had not considered…whatever this was as an option. For an absurd moment, she wondered if she had actually missed something. But no one in her gang, let alone Carvus, could be wrapped up in any business that involved a Valkyrie. They were common thieves, not storybook bandits. And yet, the Valkyrie was staring right at her, unwavering. She was, somehow, completely serious.

“I, um, look, we all seem to be a little confused here. I don’t know what those idiots did, but I haven’t tried to ‘trick’ anyone, nor do I have anything of yours.” Behind the Valkyrie, Carvus’s cronies nodded vigorously in support.

“That’s not what your thugs said. I asked them if they had seen the keystone, and they agreed to show me. Instead, they grabbed me and brought me here. It’s obvious you’re trying to conceal it.”

“No, it really isn’t,” Ash said. She had hoped this conversation would have made more sense by now, and it appeared unlikely that arguing the point with this Valkyrie would be anything but circular. But then, Ash realized there was a far more fundamental issue. She pointed up at Carvus, who was still making unpleasant noises. “Did you say you asked that guy where this stone of yours was?”

“Of course. I asked anyone who I thought might know something,” the Valkyrie said, as if this was perfectly rational. “Your man was the first to respond.”

The fear that had gripped Ash when she first learned this girl’s identity was premised on the idea that this Valkyrie fit the popular image, that she was a bold, uncompromising adventurer privy to all the world’s secrets. Now, though, another idea crept into Ash’s mind, one that drained away all the fear and tension and replaced it with something approaching comedy.

“Are you telling me you walked around the streets of Mearn asking people if they had seen something valuable?” Ash asked, still unwilling to accept the obvious.

“Of course. I am a Valkyrie. It is only natural to expect people to help me.”

The Free City of Mearn-Ash’s one and only home-was many things: a picturesque town bracketed by Lake Mearn to the west and the Shere Woods to the east, conveniently placed between larger powers to prosper from the lumber trade, a melting pot of passing travelers, and filled to the brim with people looking to profit less than legally from those things. It was common knowledge that even locals should keep a hand by their purse at all times. Or rather, it should have been common knowledge.

There were many things that Ash could have said next. She could have been tactful, understanding, apologetic, or any combination thereof. Instead, the first words out of her mouth were:

“Wow, you really aren’t from around here, are you?”

“And what does that have to do-”

“I mean, I see what the problem is, here,” Ash said, nipping the Valkyrie’s offended outrage in the bud. Then, she took a risk, gambling on the premise that the other girl really was as lost as she seemed. Ash walked up alongside the Valkyrie and draped one arm over her shoulder, leaning in close as if they were nothing more than good friends. “I may not know much about Valkyrie business, but I do know this city. You have to be careful where you go and who you talk to. Did you really think the idiot you’ve got magically pinned to the ceiling would have this keystone of yours?”

“He did claim to ‘have what I was looking for,’” the Valkyrie insisted. She still put forward a confident tone, but understanding began to show through the cracks in the form of a light flush of embarrassment. Up close, Ash could not deny that it looked more than a little cute.

“Let’s just say you learned something new.” Ash said. She took the fact that she wasn’t currently getting bounced off the walls by invisible magic to be a sign things were going well. “Now, what did you say your name was, again?”

“Tienne nol’Kairen,” the Valkyrie said, hesitantly.

Ash resisted the urge to point out that this was the single most aristocratic-sounding name she had ever heard. As far as Ash was concerned, this all but confirmed the ‘wayward rich girl’ theory.

“Well then, Tienne nol’Kairen, let’s start over. I’m Ash. I’ll show you the way back to the more civilized parts of town, you can look for your ‘keystone’ somewhere safer, and we can pretend we never met each other. Sound good?”

To cap it all off, Ash put on the biggest, friendliest smile she had. When Tienne didn’t immediately reject her or send her to join Carvus, Ash decided to push her luck. She turned towards the door, guiding Tienne by the shoulder. To her great surprise, the Valkyrie let it happen.

Ash was not going to question Tienne’s decision, so long as it got her and her Valkyrie business as far away from Ash’s hideout as possible. So, the young thief strode right for the exit, intending to be out and gone before anyone could reconsider.

They made it to the threshold before Ash realized there was one other thing she should ask.

“Would you mind letting my man down? I’m sure he’s very sorry.”

Tienne blinked in surprise, as if she too had forgotten the man. With a sigh, she closed her eyes.

“These Words are ended.”

Tienne spoke, but her voice sounded as if it came from somewhere else entirely, all around but nowhere in particular. The words hung in the air for a second longer than they should have. At the same time, a dusting of little burnt-orange specks floated out from Tienne’s cloak. They floated up and around the Valkyrie for a few moments, but she did not react to them.

Behind them, Carvus flopped down onto the floor.