The Bloody Peaks were restless.
Jessica first noticed when her combat training was abruptly halted. A warrior had shown up and whispered something to him, and then he suddenly called off the class.
She was grateful for that, as combat training tended to be one humiliation after another for her. Before she took over Elva’s body, Elva wasn’t exactly bullied, but she was strongly disliked. Jessica had incurred the fallout of how the other younger warriors-in-training hated her, but it died down somewhat with her change in personality, which seemed to make them think she was simply not worth it. Of course, that all got worse again when she inherited Iris—something much of the tribe was apparently split on and that passed down to their children.
She sighed as she headed towards the plateau where Iris was kept. She’d usually train with Iris for a while after battle training, usually with her aunt overseeing her. Sometimes her father, Valrok, would be there, and sometimes he would not.
As she crossed a bridge, two adult warriors rushed past her; she had to lean heavily into the rope to avoid them running her over.
“What’s that all about?” she muttered under her breath as she watched them go. She wondered if they were under attack or something?
That worried her.
While declaring to the Amarii that she was from another world stopped their blade and saved her life that one night, she also wondered how much of a target that made her?
From Elva’s memories, she knew the Amarii and the Bloody Peaks Tribe had a generational hatred for each other. Elva wouldn’t have phrased it that way; as far as Jessica could glean, Elva simply knew them as Amarii scum and a people that were to be hated. Apparently, they used to attack the Blood Peaks Tribe regularly until her father came into his power and tamed a dragon, along with the Night Harriers, which were powerful beasts in their own right.
Though even amongst these tribal people, politics were still a thing, and a large portion of the tribe did not look favorably upon Valrok. If it were not for his incredible strength, his dissenters would likely be even more vocal… But Jessica was smart enough—and had heard enough—to be aware of the whispers of discontentment.
And of course… she bore the fallout of it. There was so much pressure to become as legendary as her father and the Wyrmscar Legacy skill that she possessed. It all started with proving she could tame the Hell Hound, Iris.
But I’m not actually Elva. I’m not supposed to be here! she thought bitterly, and not for the first time. I never asked for any of this! I don’t even want to be Iris’s master, but… If I can’t deepen my bond with her, things will end badly for her as well.
That’s why, of all the pressure she was under, most of it came from Valrok himself. He knew that she was key to him retaining his power over the tribe, that the Wyrmscar’s “legacy” (not the skill) would die with her if she couldn’t rise to meet it.
As she crossed another rope bridge that would take her to Iris, she saw the two warriors who had rushed past her earlier speaking to her father.
“Ha!” Valrok cheered, his thick voice echoing over the open air. “This is great news! Ah—Elva! Come, daughter.”
She nervously adjusted her mask as she approached.
Valrok stood with arms folded, standing powerfully as the wind caught the crimson cloak that hung from his shoulders. His armor beneath was streaked with black dust and blood, probably from whatever beast he’d hunted this morning.
The two warriors who had brought the news stood to the side, heads bowed. One of them still looked winded, like he’d sprinted the whole way here.
Jessica swallowed her anxiety as she approached. “Y-Yes, Father?”
The permanent toothy smile of his mask stared back eagerly. “Our scouts found them.”
“Found who?”
“The pups.”
Jessica froze.
“The one we thought lost to the forest had somehow made it back to the other that escaped. A scout party drove them into the caves. They’ve been trapped there since. We shall send reinforcements to fly through the night and flush them out!”
Jessica nodded. She knew that losing those two pups was another big point of contention that only deepened the tribe’s divide that was forming around Valrok. Of course, he had never admitted this as any true failure, but his excitement now spoke to how much it troubled him.
He landed a heavy hand on her shoulder that made her stumble. “The Almighty Above smiles upon us. Not only this, but you acquiring a bond with Iris is surely a sign.”
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A sign of what exactly? Jessica wondered.
He gave her another hard pat on the shoulder, which nearly knocked her off her feet, but she caught herself as he continued to boast. “We will show again why the Wyrmscar name is one of power and honor! Ha! And this lines up perfectly for what I had planned.”
Jessica gulped, already sure that whatever “plan” he was talking about wouldn’t bode well for her. She looked towards Iris’s kennel and spotted her aunt standing beside it, mask on and arms folded as she observed from a distance.
Valrok spun back around, pointing at his daughter. “I had originally intended to wait for your control over Iris to grow, but what better time to show the tribe your worth than with a feast to celebrate both you and the acquisition of the other two pups?
Jessica blinked behind her mask. “Uh… w-what?”
“Go!” he shouted at the other two warriors. “Gather a team and leave before nightfall. I want those pups back under our control before the week's end.”
Both saluted by pounding their chests and then ran back across the bridge.
As Valrok walked towards Iris’s kennel, Jessica followed. “Um… F-Father? What do you mean about showing my—”
“Your bond with Iris had formed,” he continued, talking right over her. “Now is the time to strengthen it further and harden your own spirit. This will not be achieved by running meaningless training drills—BAH! Your growth has been slow because those fools don’t know how to cultivate true greatness! But I know your strength, Elva.” He stopped at the kennel, resting one of his big hands on top of it.
Her aunt cracked her neck, arms remaining folded, but did not bother to chime in yet. Jessica hoped she was just waiting until he calmed down before stepping in to be the voice of reason.
“I-I still don’t understand what you want, Father,” Jessica said cautiously.
“I will take you and Iris to a proper training ground. There, you will learn to survive while relying on nothing but your own abilities and the aid of your Hell Hound. Before the week's end, you shall slay a beast worthy of your first true hunt. Then, I shall return for you, and we will hold a celebration!”
Jessica was glad for the mask, because her mouth fell open in shock. Was he crazy? Well, she already knew that. But the problem wasn’t not being pushed hard enough—she flat out sucked at fighting! Now he wanted to dump her out in the wilderness with basically no experience or survival skills?
She gathered her wits enough to form an argument. “But Father, I-I don’t actually have that kind of control over Iris. She just barely tolerates me! You can’t expect me to—”
“You will do this, Elva, and you will succeed,” he said, giving no room for argument. “While you are on your hunt, I will be on my own elsewhere. I will slay a beast large enough to feed the entire tribe, and when both you and the pups return to the Blood Peaks, there will be a celebration, and all will see how you’ve grown. They will see the continued strength of the Wyrmscar name.”
“B-B-But I-I—” She was lost for how to get out of this. He seemed serious. She looked towards her aunt for help.
As if to make it final, Valrok reached down and undid the latch of Iris’s kennel. “I will prepare the dragon. Meet me below, and we shall leave before nightfall.” With that, he walked off.
Once he was gone, Iris cautiously came forward, sticking her head out of the kennel and looking around.
“I can’t do what he asks,” Jessica tried to explain to her aunt.
“Hmmm… Well, you’re going to have to,” she said.
“No! Can you please talk to him?”
“I already did. He’s serious about this.” She cracked her neck again. “But honestly, you underestimate yourself, Elva.”
“I can’t hunt!”
“And so you will learn.” Her aunt kneeled down, reaching a hand towards Iris. The pup's ears folded back as she looked up at her with a small growl but allowed her to pat her head. “He’s right about one thing. If you succeed, both you and Iris will grow your strength far beyond what you could obtain by the usual training classes. Out there, you will only have each other to rely on, and your bond will likewise grow. It is the fastest way to prove to the tribe what you are and why you were, in fact, worthy of this gift.”
Iris had enough petting and let out a more aggressive growl to let the human know to back off. She obeyed and stood.
“Elva, the tribe is divided.”
“And whose fault is that!?” Jessica shot back.
“Your father’s, of course. He will never admit any of his shortcomings, but his ambitions have led to unnecessary deaths amongst our people more than once. There are those who remember his past deeds, honor him regardless, and have faith in his actions. But there are those who doubt he truly has the good of the tribe in mind. He may have defeated the Amarii once, but he is only one man.”
“And I’m supposed to change that?”
“Yes. Because you have the Wyrmscar Legacy.”
“But why does that matter?”
“Because it is a legendary skill and proof of our blood’s worth to lead this tribe. With your father alone, there is room for doubt. They can think, ‘He just got lucky, and legendary skill or no—what can it really do?’ But if you are seen as someone who can carry on his greatness, those who doubt will not only be silenced but may also be turned to understand what we are.” She put up a hand to silence Jessica’s complaints. “But it is not simply for glory that you must do this. It is for the future of our tribe. If our people are divided, they will be weak. But there are none among us who don’t understand strength—true strength—and it will unite us.”
Jessica understood the logic. She knew how these people were, how they solved everything with violence. Without a clear superior, there would be many among them who would think, “It should be me.” Too much of that, and this entire society would fall apart.
But I’m a girl from Earth whose favorite dinner is chicken nuggets and macaroni and cheese! I… I’m not Elva. I’m not even sure that I should care about the future of the so-called Bloody Peaks Tribe…
“Besides,” her aunt added, nudging Iris with her foot, earning a sharp bark from the pup. She chuckled playfully as she looked down at the pup, who continued to growl. “Hell Hounds have incredible potential. Greater than even dragons. It is not just strength for our people to rally behind, but true power—the kind that no other tribe or nation will dare to challenge.”
Finally, she patted Jessica’s shoulder, much softer than her father would. Though that was only because he clearly didn’t understand his own strength. “Now, come on, call your Hell Hound. Your father waits below.”
As her aunt led the way back to the rope bridge, Jessica looked back at Iris and whistled. “Um… C-Come on… uh, girl.”
Iris turned her head, ears flopping. But when Jessica started to move, she followed.
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