Champion

Chapter 10

While he was away Laurena thought about her fears, and her reaction to his touch. He had saved her. He was the new Champion of Eros, chosen of her god. She was certain he would not harm her. He wasn't like those others. So why couldn't she stand to be near him?

By the time he got back to her, she was shivering from the cold. Pulling the fleece from where he had stowed it, he unzipped the front and tried to drape it over her shoulders.

"You can wear this for now; it should help with the chill."

Before he could get it on her though, she stepped quickly away from him, shuddering fearfully at his attempt to get close to her. Not seeming offended, David raised his hands placatingly.

"It's okay. Here, I'm sure you can put in on yourself," he said, holding the fleece out to her.

Nodding her head in thanks, she took it from him and inspected the garment. She wondered what kind of animal fur it was made from. She noticed it had sleeves, and slid the strange coat on happily. The ends of the sleeves had an unusual type of material that stretched, like the light on her head, but it wasn't uncomfortable. As she puzzled over the unfamiliar coat, he slowly reached toward her waist.

"I'm just going to zip the jacket closed. It will keep you warmer."

She took a breath and clamped down on her fear, allowing him to reach down and grasp the separated front of the garment. Holding the two sides together he grasped something and pulled it up, joining the two sides together with what appeared to be small teeth. Surprised at this, she failed to notice how close his hand was to her breasts until after he had stepped away from her.

"Just a short walk now and then we should be in a safe place to rest for the night."

*** Savior? Right. Where do you get your meds, and what's their refund policy? ***

102235MAR13 DW

Mountains, Somewhere in the Southern Hemisphere, Maybe?

After nearly half an hour walking along the narrow goat trail, they arrived at a shallow draw in the mountainside. David motioned for her to wait while he walked up the draw a short way, looking for level ground and a safe way to get the horse to it. In a stroke of great fortune, he found a small cave hidden in the draw, with a narrow path leading up to it that would be difficult for the horse, but not impossible.

Returning to her he pointed out the path, and helped her guide the horse along it. It seemed to take forever to convince the poor horse to walk the short distance. Finally arriving at the cave, he powered off his NODs, flipping them up and out of his way. Next he switched on his Surefire white LED helmet light. He knew it would be visible for some distance, but the mouth of the cave opened to the opposite wall of the draw. As long as he didn't use it outside the cave they would remain hidden.

It was a shallow cave, no more than twenty feet deep, ten feet wide, and sloping from eight feet tall in the front to barely four feet near the back. But it was enough for the night. Dropping his rucksack next to the wall, he pulled out an MRE and the two bottles of water. He also grabbed his wet-weather jacket, woobie, and sleep system. Removing his helmet and setting it on top of his ruck so that the light would still illuminate his workspace, he set the Mk 48 aside and removed his IOTV, placing it next to his ruck and groaning with relief to be free of its weight. Without its added layer of protection, the moisture in his combat shirt reacted to the chill air, causing him to begin shivering rapidly. He quickly donned his wet-weather top. It was barely more than a waterproof windbreaker, but its plasticized material trapped his body heat easily. If he started to get too cold he could always throw his IOTV back on.

Now that his immediate needs had been addressed, he put his helmet back on and turned to help Laurena with her horse. She had already begun to remove the saddle bags, and was carefully unbuckling the saddle. He moved over to help her. The saddle was lighter than he expected, but given her size he figured it had to be for her to be able to put it on and take it off every day. Helping her tend the horse was relaxing; he had not been able to work with horses since his mother sold the farm a few years ago.

"What's his name?" David asked Laurena as he helped her feed and brush the horse.

"His name is Meadowgrass. He's been a good horse, for the most part, these last weeks. I hope the temple will let me keep him when my travels are finished," Laurena explained.

Figuring now was as good a time as any to figure out where he was, David began to question her.

"Where are we right now?"

"We are near the Snow Gap Pass. It cuts through the southern Abatinus Mountains."

"I'm sorry, but I'm not familiar with that name," David stated. He figured he needed to start broader and then work down, "What country is this?"

"This is Erosius. The Abatinus Mountains bisect the land. To the east is the coastal city of Sanctuary Port; the capital of our lands. To the north east is the forest kingdom of Hiefesgaden, and to the far east is the Sterilis Desert. To the west lies the nearest town, Wolfsvale. It's a crossroads town at the edge of the Dracian Forest. The Dracian Forest is to the northwest, and to the south west is the road to the city of Lexia on the southern coast. To the far west is the port city of Calavius. It was where I was heading before I met you," she explained to him as they worked.

He had no idea what she was talking about. He had never heard of any of these places she was describing, and as he focused on her speech, he noticed she had a very peculiar accent. It wasn't quite Italian or Greek, but had similarities to both. Her accent was sexy as hell, and her sweet voice made it even more so. Adding to the power of her seductive voice she had a body and face that could stop traffic, and he hadn't seen a woman in six months. He was struggling hard to remain a gentleman.

Deciding to try a different approach, he started with common ground. "You speak English fluently, and without a British accent. Did you study in us?"

Looking at him questioningly she responded, "I have never heard of English, British, or us. You and I are speaking Aeolian."

Both of them now thoroughly confused, David focused on Meadowgrass until he could decide on a new line of inquiry. Once her horse was tended to, and covered with a blanket for the night, he offered Laurena the MRE that he had removed from his rucksack.

"What is it?" she asked hesitantly.

"It's called an MRE, which stands for Meal Ready to Eat. They don't taste great, but just one has enough calories and essential nutrients to get a soldier through a tough day."

Unimpressed by its appearance, and less impressed by his description, she tried to think of a polite way to refuse.

"What will you eat?"

"I'm used to skipping meals, I'll be fine," he lied. He was hungry as hell, but he doubted she had any food with her that she could eat uncooked. There was no way he was letting her start a fire.

"I have plenty of food in my bags. Please allow me to share it with you, in gratitude for saving me from...them." She hoped he would accept her offer; the 'M-R-E' looked dreadful. She had no idea what it was made from, but it gave off no smell. It couldn't possibly taste that good if he was willing to give it away and go hungry, rather than eat it.

Shaking his head sadly he replied, "I'm very sorry, but without knowing who is out there I can't let you build a fire to cook with. This doesn't need a fire."

Realizing his intent, she smiled at him. "Most of my food doesn't require a fire. I have never been a very good cook, so my travel foods always require very little preparation. Please, share what I have. You can save your 'MRE' for the morning."

Realizing he didn't have the energy to fight this battle, he agreed. He hoped what she had would taste good. 'Southwest Beef and Black Beans' may have been his favorite MRE, but it was still an MRE.

Laurena crouched over her bags, and pulled out her waterskin, bowl, and a mixed bag of dried meat and vegetables. Pouring a measure of the mixture into the bowl she added water until it was half full, then focused her will on it. Chanting softly she pushed her magic into it, warming the water quickly and soaking the meat and vegetable mixture. It was not a very complex spell, but it taxed the limit of her control. She had spent little time during her magical studies practicing thermal change. Once the spell was complete, she reached into her bag for a spoon, handing it and the now steaming bowl of soup to David. As she pulled a second bowl from her bag to prepare her own meal, she checked to see if he liked his.

David was amazed. She had been crouched with her body blocking his view of her bag, so he didn't she what she did; but in less than two minutes she had handed him a steaming bowl of amazing smelling soup. He had to find out what she used to heat the water. The chemical heaters in MREs took forever, and the small Sterno camp stoves he had while camping in the States would have taken at least five minutes to heat up this much water. Blowing carefully on the bowl, he gingerly ate his first spoonful of soup. It was wonderful! He was reallyglad she had talked him out of the MRE.

"Laurena this is great, thank you."

Smiling at his words, and the expression of enjoyment on his face, Laurena was pleased that he had agreed to her meal. If he was that easily impressed with such simple fare, that 'MRE' must be truly ghastly. Finishing the preparations of her own meal, she exerted more of her will to heat her soup's temperature to where she liked it. Sitting down to eat on a rock that was a comfortable distance from David, she wondered how to discuss her assignment with him.

Did he know that she was now his guide? Did he already know what was at the Field of Woe, and just didn't know where it was? He seemed rather determined to understand where they were right now, but he didn't seem to know anything of the places she had described. His confusion, strange accent, odd manner of dress, and unique devices suggested he was from somewhere far away. She knew little of other lands, but she had heard many stories from ship's captains that attended services in the Great Temple. They spoke of far off lands to the west, where people with darker skin lived. She had hoped it was possible to meet some of these unusual people during her visit to Calavius.

Uncertain if it was polite to ask, but deciding she had to start somewhere she turned to him and inquired, "What is it like to be a Champion?"