Fiction:Fox and Lost Memories

Waking up with no memory of her past, and knowing little of her own identity, a young girl by the name of Sera journeys north across Koldenwelt, her life crossing paths with those of many others.

Fox and Good Deeds
The wind carried the smells of nature and harvest as the wagon rumbled along a cobbled road. A simple enough affair of good materials and sturdy construction, two well-built horses pulled the vehicle and its driver, a tall man in a full-length coat. Twin points of light peaked out from underneath a wide-brimmed hat, and the hands that grasped the reigns were never far from a sword laid across his lap. Though he showed no signs of fatigue he had ridden like this for days, and so thought that his eyes had deceived him when he saw a pair of pale legs sticking out from the undergrowth of the bushes along the path.

Halting the horses, the rider unsheathed his sword and got down from the wagon, slowly approaching the bushes. Looking left and right, he neither saw nor heard anything that betrayed hostile intent, but he could feel life beneath the greenery. Parting the bushes with one hand, his mind took a second to register what he saw before he jerked his head to one side, averting his gaze. Nestled in the bough of thick tree roots was a young girl, peculiar for two reasons: one, she had the ears and tail of a fox; and two, she was naked. Planting his sword in the ground, the man carefully took off his coat and laid it across her body, then gently shook her to no response. Sighing to himself, he carefully gathered her up and carried her back to his wagon. Taking a moment to fit the coat and ensure it wouldn’t slip, he sat her next to him on the wagon’s seat and held her with one arm as he steered with the other.

When darkness fell, the man pulled the wagon to the side of the road to set up camp. As the fire sparked to life, he saw her stir, and slowly put a hand to the hilt of his sword. The girl looked up, her amber eyes meeting his grey. They stayed like that for a moment, before she simply said, “Do you have any alcohol, by chance?” The question struck the man with a tinge of both relief and concern. “I may do,” he replied quietly, “but first, I should ask what you were doing lying naked in a bush.” At this, her head cocked to one side, and she said quite matter-of-factly, “because I used to live here, but now I don’t.” Unsure as to how to go on, he simply handed her a wineskin and stared in open-mouthed surprise as she drained the whole thing in one go.

The next morning they set out, him driving the cart and her wearing a set of borrowed clothes. During the night he had asked her as much as he could, but it quickly became apparent that she had lost a great deal of her memory. She knew her name was Sera, that she once lived in the forest, and that she desired to go north. To this end the man, who identified himself as Bastion, had offered to take her to the next town where he was delivering a load of wheat on the way to a more pressing matter. There, he explained, he would provide coin for someone to take her further, which seemed to satisfy her.

As they closed in on the city gate, Bastion took off his hat and sat it on her head, pulling it down to cover her face. For his own part, he pulled his hair out from under his collar, letting the long, silvery strands fly in the breeze. The sight made Sera smile, jokingly asking, “Were you planning on seducing your way past the gate guards, or are you just trying to impress me?” This prompted a barely contained chuckle, and the curt response, “Actually, the guard captain is expecting me, and my hair is my most noticeable feature. Besides, that hat doesn’t look too bad on you.” Sera simply smiled and wrapped her arms around his. They drew closer to the gate, and as if on cue the man on watch waved, and the gates opened.

The wagon pulled through the market, past all manner of stores and vendors. They were immediately struck by the sound of the marketplace, the clamour of dozens of negotiations and coins changing hands. As they passed by a fruit stall Sera stood up and clasped her hands together in excitement, and out of the corner of his eye Bastion swore he saw something move under her skirt. Putting a hand on her shoulder to get her attention, he flicked her a silver coin and gave her an understanding look. The next leg of the journey was accompanied by the sound of her furiously working her way through a small pile of apples, the sight of which was enough to make her companion laugh.

Past the market came the residential district, the lower of which was home to many people who had been forced to seek refuge in the wake of recent events. Many were sitting either side of the road, begging for food or coin. The whole region carried a heavy air of sadness, enough to prompt Sera to put down the apple she had been eating, and hand the remaining fruit over the side of the wagon. For his own part, Bastion pulled the cloth covering the wagon free, revealing bales of wheat that he offered to the refugees. In mere minutes the pair were being lauded, restoring the smile to Bastion’s face. As Sera waved to the grateful refugees, her skirt once again ruffled strangely, and the hat Bastion had given her fluttered slightly as if something was moving beneath it.

When they cleared the residential district, Sera sat back down and turned to Bastion. “Why were those people living so?” she asked, her expression somewhere between happiness and sadness. “Things are changing in the world, changing for the worse,” he replied, “and it has left some people with little choice other than to rely on the goodwill of others. Sadly, as you can see, goodwill is in short supply.” Sera contemplated this for a moment, before asking, “Then why you, of all people?” Almost without thought, he responded simply with “Someone has to.” This prompted her to hold his arm once more, softly saying, “The world could use more men like you.”

The pair moved on in silence, right until they came back around to the marketplace. There, Bastion found a group of rangers packing for an expedition north. Negotiations had gone well until a figure in a distinctive black cloak got Bastion’s attention and pulled the hat from Sera’s head. Underneath were two furry, pointed ears reminiscent of a fox. The Inquisitor drew a pistol and pointed it at her, stating that he had been searching for her for some time, and declaring her to be an enemy of the State. Looking him in the eye, Bastion introduced himself formally as a Paladin of the Choir, and interposed himself between them. Sera turned and ran out of fright, and as Bastion blocked the Inquisitor from pursuing her, she threw what seemed to be a ball of light at the wall before ‘’running directly up it.’’ A small crowd witnessed the feat, small points of light blossoming where her feet touched the stone. In moments she was over the wall and gone, and the Inquisitor was left to meet the stare of a rather angry Paladin.