Interlude - A Little Fox Girl's Travel Log (2)

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Olga noticed that Arma now had a pretty hairpin in the shape of grapes. Arma noticed that Olga had a new brooch in the shape of elius flowers. The little fox girl grinned and the young fox woman crossed her arms and scrunched her face up.

"Did you tell Sir Lyon that I liked elius flowers?"

"Nope."

"That sounds like a lie."

"I told Miss Fairy!"

Olga sighed and began rubbing the bridge of her nose. "I figured. If we didn't know each other before this, I'd be suspicious about all this meddling between two different kingdoms."

Arma blinked. She didn't understand any of that.

"Oh, never mind." Olga scooped up her sister and sat the younger girl on her lap. "You really should be more careful about what you say. Don't trust other people so easily, Arma. Even if they tell you you're friends, you can't just so easily give away your family's secrets like that."

"… but then Sir Lyon wouldn't be buying you things you like and telling you you look pretty with them!"

Olga's orange ears flicked. "… I am so conflicted right now."

Arma's grin widened. This was fun!

Shipping was fun too. "I'm on a boat!"

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They were on the boat crossing the Great Gao River. It was a larger barge than the usual, because while they couldn't bring the carriages along, they had to bring along the cavalry horses. This also meant that it was a slower barge than the usual.

"No sails, huh," Mister Clown noticed. It turned out that enough people traveled in between the banks of the great river that every boat would have someone with Wind or Water magic. Instead of pushing air against the sails, they directed wind magic to the waters on the back of the boat. "That makes a lot more sense… instead of trying to overcome the weight of the boat, it's like some ad hoc water jet."

But it was slow. Usually it took two hours to cross the Great River, now they were moving at a little more than a walking pace. Maybe three hours.

Mister Clown could magic them to move faster with stronger Wind magic, but that would scare the horses.

"Wait, what if we knocked out the horses…?"

"Playa, stop," Miss Elze huffed.

/"Yes, animal abuse is not cool, Player. Not cool at all."/

"Char liked horses anyway, of course I wouldn't do it." Them Mister Clown staggered over to the side of the barge. He took deep breaths and tried to force down vomiting.

"Are you… are you seasick? Seriously? With this gentle river?" Elze asked with an arched eyebrow.

/"It is possible not to get carsick but more easily seasick."/

Everyone stared out to the glassy surface of the Great River Gao. If it was the ocean, there would be waves, but the river shone flat and mirrorlike under the afternoon sun.

Mister Clown looked up and said in a soft voice "For the longest time, ever since I was a child, I had this eerie feeling that I would die by drowning. I know that statistically flight was the safest way to travel, but the more I travel the greater the risk of exploding over the ocean."

/"Your preferred national airline last had a crash in 1987 and has never had a crash with a Boeing or Airbus widebody. There's a greater risk from bombings and hijackings than mechanical or piloting failure. But while hunches can be valid, we can't really allow such fears to rule our lives. Given how you were preparing for a world tour I suppose you decided to just test your irrational beliefs?"/

"I am not -blorgh…!" Mister Clown almost lost the fight against his gut and clung to the boat's side. He magicked up some shards of ice and began to suck on them.

/"Yes you are certainly Blorgh."/

"Mister Zah…" said Miss Linze. "Come here, lie down and put your head on my lap."

"…"

"… It will help?"

Miss Elze gasped "Linze… do… do you know what you're saying?"

Miss Linze sniffed. "Trust me, I'm a healer."

So Mister Clown got a lap pillow and Miss Linze massaged his head with cool fingers to relieve the dizziness. Miss Fairy also decided to lie down on Mister Clown's chest and spread her arms and legs out in a languid sprawl. Miss Elze looked so jealous, she wanted to be pampered too but she just couldn't say it.

Ah! What a nice and sunny afternoon, but still cool from the river breeze. What perfect time to take a nap!

Miss Yumina and Miss Yae sat primly to the side, playing a game of black and white stones.

"How nice…" Olga murmured. Not to be beat, Arma decided to lie down with her head on her sister's lap too, and relaxed watching the sky full of billowy clouds and her sister's face. These young people were all so comfortable with each other, they must have been team-mates for so long. Olga envied that sense of intimacy.

It just so happened that Lyon Blitz was also staring, envying the how such young commoners could act so freely, so affectionate. Their eyes glanced away, and met, and then they both quickly turned away from each other with faces burning in sudden thrill.

Garm, the guard-captain of the Mismede contingent, frowned minutely. He disapproved of such nonsense and thought Olga could do better than some human. Their lovestruck ways were profoundly irritating to behold for single persons.

Arma giggled again.

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And then they offloaded into Langley, the opposite town on the banks of the Great River. Apart from the greater number of demi-humans in town, it didn't look much different to Canaan. They had been traveling for so long, Olga asked if they would rather spend the night in town and set off inland tomorrow.

Everyone looked towards Arma. Then Mister Clown said that they were probably a couple of days ahead of schedule anyway since horses usually aren't able to travel at night. So they stayed the night in an inn.

"Now that we have a wall we can use to hang a projection screen and a room to soundproof – it's about time we watched something new! Let me introduce you all to a world of glamorous wonder! Let's enter the world… of The Movies!"

/"Basically, he's feeling too lazy to keep memorizing lines and acting out making funny little voices."/

Miss Yumina raised her hand. "So, does this mean I can stop-?"

"Your video learning will intensify."

"Aww."

"Tonight we are going to watch 'The Princess Bride'."

Miss Yumina made a little 'Eeek!' sound and blushed. "Sir Zah, that is…"

"Trust me, you'll love it."

Miss Yumina twiddled her fingers and nodded slowly. "I… I will trust you."

/"Good choice, Player!"/

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Arma stared wide-eyed at the screen. So a movie was just a play that didn't need actors. It was captured sound and images. She giggled and squirmed in her seat. With everyone inside the room it was fairly cramped: the guards had to stand in the back, while Sir Zah and his team sitting in the middle and on the bed, while Arma and Olga sat on the floor with the best view of the screen.

Even the guards looked interested in the story instead of just the spectacle of it. Miss Yae narrowed her eyes at the flashy sword-fighting, then couldn't help but to give an amused snort at "You seem a decent fellow. I hate to kill you," and "You seem a decent fellow. I hate to die."

And then she sucked in her breath and made an atypical girlish giggle at the repeated "My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die."

The man on the screen hissed "Stop saying that!"

"MY NAME IS INIGO MONTOYA. YOU KILLED. MY FATHER. PREPARE. TO DIE."

Miss Yumina at first didn't seem to like the movie, but then she looked interested at seeing Buttercup just keep failing at things?

- Buttercup: You mock my pain!

- Man in Black: Life is pain, Highness. Anyone who says differently is selling something.

But then by the end of it, she slumped back onto the bed and breathed "That was… remarkable. A remarkable tale indeed.

"True love… huh? That's powerful. If you treat true love as garbage… become the queen of slime, the queen of filth, the queen of putrescence. Rubbish. Filth. Slime... oh that was good." She chuckled lightly and closed her eyes. "Dangerous thoughts for a princess to have."

Miss Elze made little punching motions when the giant Fezzik was onscreen and fighting. Miss Linze was silent through it all, her stare very intense. But that couldn't last. Eventually even she had to laugh and applaud as everyone ended up half-dead but victorious at the end, true love having won against the odds.

If this was a movie, then Arma wanted to see more of them!

"Get out of my way, Linze."

"I'm sorry sis, I can't do that."

"This is much better than chickens. He could have spread this around and make more money instead. So many better ideas than fooling around with chickens! I'm going to be forever known as that lady in the chicken party! Get out of my way so I can strangle him!"

"Nuuu."

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Morning came and with it, they prepared to set forth. The group grandly bought more foodstuffs before settling to the new pair of carriages for the second leg of their journey. The guards from Mismede and Belfast began poking at each other with sticks.

"You should beware. I am not left-handed," Captain Garm hissed at them to stop.

"What a coincidence, none of us are left-handed either!"

Arma giggled at them she stepped into the carriage.

"I should send a letter ahead to the Beast-King," said Olga after inspecting the preparations. Unlike Belfast, Mismede didn't use messenger pigeons. They had birdfolk couriers.

"Milady! May… may I accompany you? Just to be safe, who knows what may happen out there."

Olga gave a small smile and nodded, turning away. "As you wish."

Sir Lyon beamed and followed after her.

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"Who was your favorite character?" Arma asked the others.

"Westley!" Miss Linze said immediately.

"I think Lady Buttercup had a strength of her own, as well," said Miss Yumina. "I rather enjoyed seeing her illusions broken and sacrificing her happiness for love, but the 'movie' reminded us that love goes both ways. That the one you saved of course would not rest but to seek your freedom and happiness as well. Sacrifices mean something, and if you love someone you should not want them to sacrifice for you!"

Miss Linze nodded eagerly. "They deserved each other!"

Miss Elze sniffed. "I liked Fezzik. Go ahead and call me a dumb musclehead, I don't care."

"Fezzik-san was a large man who possessed much kindness and wisdom, it is no disgrace," Miss Yae replied. She put her fists over her chest and said "Inigo-san avenged his father well. He was a great swordsman and he lived well."

"He was a thug for hire," Miss Elze objected.

"But in the end he found honor."

"That's fair." Miss Elze nodded and turned towards Mister Clown. "You probably like the evil Prince don't you, you villain?"

"I like Vizzini and exploiting the classic blunders."

Miss Elze snorted and crossed her arms. "That… that's so appropriate for you."

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The carriages trundled along the road. They had three carriages now, but somewhat smaller than the ones they previously used. The roads were rougher, and the surrounding foliage was thick and overgrown, more like a jungle than forests. In the distance, one could hear all sorts of screeching and howls. There were a lot more monster beasts in the uncontrolled forests of Mismede than in Belfast, but ironically because the beasts had more easy prey nearby they didn't bother the settlements as much. Going out alone into the dark woods was almost considered suicide however.

To Arma, the sounds of completely unhindered native life were comforting ones. Belfast with its tamed wilds had thinner scents, less active wildlife, and like humans themselves, seemed to have a mediocre level of variety. She was almost home. Just a little longer now.

At their steady pace, they would reach the village of Eld at just before sundown. Lunch and the afternoon passed in more idle conversation. They were looking forward to another movie at any place Mister Clown could throw up a white sheet over a wide solid wall.

And then as the sky darkened, "Eld village is near. We should be there soon," Captain Garm informed the group in the middle carriage.

Arma's ears flicked. Mister Clown looked up sharply.

"Something's wrong…" he muttered. He rapped on the carriage door and ordered the driver to stop. The horse riders gathered around in a protective formation around the carriages and unsheated their weapons. "Monika, threat radar?"

/"Nothing on the scopes, Player. What are you sensing?"/

He stepped off the carriage and looked around. Arma peered out the window.

The sky was orange. The shadows were deepening under the trees. But… something… it wasn't something that they could see.

"Ah!" shouted one of the Mismede guards, the one with rabbit ears. "It's the sound!"

"Laim! What is it?"

"The sounds of the beasts… they went loud for moment like in panic, then quieting down. And… and now they're stopped entirely!" Like they were afraid.

All the beastkin suddenly looked up at the sky, hearing the flapping of great wings.

Something huge swooped past over them, the size and speed of whatever it was blew a gust of wind that shook the treetops and tugged at their loose clothing.

"What was that?" Miss Elze asked. She could only see a dark silhouette passing by.

But the beastkin who could see in the dark managed to get a clear look.

Captain Garm shouted "DRAGON!"

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