A Test Of Worth 1 (Ch.13)

~A true leader has the confidence to stand alone, the courage to make tough decisions and the compassion to listen to the needs of others. He does not set out to be a leader but becomes one by the equality of his actions and the integrity of his intent.~

-Unknown

The forest grew thicker the farther we went in, trees becoming more tightly packed together, branches unevenly spread out and blocking the way, the eerie silence surrounded us completely, leaving each of us on edge. The gnarled roots of the gigantic trees dipped into and out of the ground, twisted branches reaching down as if attempting to grasp any intruders, the trees were ancient and timeless as they disappeared into the sky, rough with age yet their roughness had been worn down by the soft greenness of moss, that had slowly made them home, eventually we had to dismount our beasts and continue on foot, our beasts would follow of course but it would be much easier without us on their backs.

The wet soil squelched beneath my boots as we trudged slowly through the forest, carefully avoiding crunching on dirt, snapping twigs or tripping over roots , we constantly had to duck low hanging branches. The trees blocked out most of the moonlight, leaving us to rely on only the little light that was able to seep through and our senses. Looking around as far as my sight would permit, I had to admit the forest was beautiful...a kind of haunting beauty that screamed of danger, the danger being in the fact that excluding the trees, such a beautiful and fertile place was completely and utterly devoid of life. A forest of death indeed.

"But General, you've never been here before, how is it that you know the actual location of the surma tribe in this thick forest?" Lox asked in puzzlement and I chuckled softly at his words.

"I don't..." I replied casually, keeping my focus on the forest around me as I led the way.

"You mean...?" He trailed off in confusion and Ryuu grunted in annoyance, pushing aside a branch in his way, he rarely spoke but he had his moments too, especially moments like this where my life was possibly at risk, he tended to be on edge.

"She means she doesn't know the location, no one knows the location of the Surma tribe, not even the natives in the neighborhood villages, how the fuck would she know? Now will you shut it?" He snapped in annoyance and Lox grumbled at his tone but remained quiet.

"Unlike what you may believe, this General is not all knowing, I honestly have no idea where I'm leading you to...in situations like this, I just trust my instincts and they're currently strongly suggesting to take this path. In any case, the Surma tribe has serious issues with trespassing... we're currently doing just that so eventually even if we can't find them, they'll come for us, in fact, I wouldn't be surprised if we're being watched even now, I've been getting that feeling right from the moment the sun went down, I believe that should be when we crossed into Surma territory." I replied in a quiet whisper, the forest was so unusually quiet it somehow felt sacrilegious to speak too loudly.

We continued forward, taking slow and careful steps even as Reo grunted his dissatisfaction, I rolled my eyes at his impatience, he was never one to be cautious and would probably have preferred we charged forward blindly and slaughtered anyone who stood in our way, it was not surprising, for a beast like Reo, caution was something foreign and uncomfortable, it was understandable, he wasn't the one facing an all powerful level 10 blue winged tiger king, whoever was confronting him would be the one needing caution.

Honestly, coming in with the Generals and their beasts was more to the benefit of the Surma people than it was to me, this way I wouldn't have to let Reo loose on them, that was now the plan B, a raging Reo favoured just one language...kill them all, the Surma people should actually be grateful to me. I grinned in amusement at my thoughts.

After walking for a while, my ears caught a soft sound, I paused, lifting a hand to signal for my men to stop, I shut my eyes and focused my hearing to discern the direction and cause of the sound.

"Armuke, what is it?" Ryuu asked, a hand on his sword hilt, I frowned as my eyes fluttered open.

"Sounds like a slight flapping of clothing in the wind, we should find whatever it is if we go a little further." I replied with a shrug, as I continued forward, moving towards the source of the sound.

"General, I see it." Falco said, moving past me. Falco was known for his outstanding night vision, it wasn't surprising he'd sight it first.

"It's a torn piece of Frida's outer robe!" He exclaimed as the rest of us moved closer, Erik who worked closer to her than the rest of us inspected it and confirmed that it really belonged to his fellow General.

"Just this little piece... and you heard the sound of it from such a distance?" Falco asked in awe and I shrugged in response.

"I don't ask how you manage to see so well in the dark." I replied and he chuckled, nodding in agreement.

"There seems to be a trail, can you track it down?" I asked him and he nodded, going down on a knee and observing the evidence of struggle, there seemed to be claw marks on the bark of the tree, seemingly belonging to Frida's beast and then barely visible foot prints.

"I wonder how they subdued 8 beasts, they definitely don't seem to be that ordinary, we should exercise caution." Bjorn commented, I hummed in agreement, following after Falco, we moved quietly through the forest till we came to a point where the path was completely blocked by the large trunks of trees, there was no way to continue forward but the tracks seemed to lead in the direction of the trees.

"Perhaps they are false tracks to lead us to a dead end?" Aquila suggested and I frowned.

"Why would they do that? Like the General said, they are hostile to trespassers, they'd sooner attack us than spend time misleading us." Svend replied, looking around, I pondered for a bit, leaning down beside a puzzled Falco to inspect the tracks.

"They're not false tracks, I would know if they were, they're genuine....I'm certain it leads this way though...." He trailed off in a puzzled voice, I examined the tracks, coming to the same conclusion as Falco, I rose to my feet and moved back.

"Enough with the silly games, I understand my mistake and I'm here to take responsibility for it, I know you're there and I've known since you started following us, we've come this far don't you think it's about time you showed yourself?" I asked in a cold tone, my warriors looked at me in shock, their eyes widening in understanding as all hands moved to their weapons.

A terrifyingly haunting laugh boomed through the forest and I felt a cold chill run down my spine, if death itself could laugh... I wouldn't be surprised if it sounded exactly like that.

"You impress me young female, what is your name and what platoon do you command?" The voice sounded again after it's laughter died down, his address was purposefully degrading and I frowned slightly.

"This General's name matters not, and the noble warriors this General commands are not a platoon but an elite army." I replied, my tone cold and hard, the voice laughed boisterously.

"Amusing but prideful young one you are... this Lord dislikes proud people." The voice said and I chuckled softly.

"Pride without the skills needed to back it is indeed hateful..." I answered with a shrug, the voice chuckled.

"You seem confident in your skills... overly confident in fact, one like you is all bluff and no real action, a coward who hides behind his soldiers." The voice mocked and I let out an amused laugh.

"Coward? Says the brave Lord hiding behind the trees, so bravely away from sight, perhaps he is too brave to confront this young General and her warriors like a man... one like you is all bluff and no real action, this General finds it degrading to exchange anymore words with you, if you shall not lead the way to your dwelling, tell your leader to come speak with me himself, I shall not be bothered to waste my words till then." I replied, dismissing him with a nonchalant wave of my hand, I was certain he could see us despite the fact that we couldn't see him.

"Quite rude for one trespassing our lands, don't you think?" The voice asked again and I scoffed turning my face away from where it originated.

"My leader is listening above you, state your business!" The voice now took on a serious note, seeing I was no longer interested in his idle chatter, my gaze moved up and I instantly caught sight of the raven perched quietly on the branch above us, understanding dawned, this leader he spoke of was an animage, one who could form a spirit connection with their beasts, in such a way that they could communicate through it, seeing and hearing through it.

"I will require an audience with him...in person." I replied firmly, the voice scoffed in response.

"Your insolence is appalling, making requests of us after trespassing into our land? You are quite daring!" The voice exclaimed, obviously offended, I was about letting out a scoff but stopped myself, I was indeed the one in the wrong.

"I understand my wrong doing, I do not deny it and I'm willing to accept any other punishment but that which involves sacrificing my warriors... that is one I can never agree to, I cannot turn a blind eye, the life of every last one of my warriors is valuable to me, let me see your leader and receive my punishment as their General, but my men must not be harmed." I replied, taking a more humble approach as I refrained from referring to myself with my title.

"A General who values the life of his soldiers over his own life? I find that hard to believe. You might fool your soldiers with your flowery words but you cannot fool me, What is the real reason you came here?, Our Diamond?, Our secret techniques? Which attracted you?" He asked, implying that I was using my men's lives as an excuse to seek material things from them, rage bubbled up within me at his words.

"How dare you address our General with such contempt, I will have your head!" Bjorn growled out, eyes moving sharply around, trying to locate the position of the man from the Surma tribe. Ryuu who was equally agitated made to draw his sword but I stopped him, shaking my head slightly before I swiftly pulled out a throwing dagger from my belt and hurled it in the direction of the voice, a pained shout was heard and then a thud indicating he fell off a tree, I raised my hand, stopping my warriors from going to locate the fallen man.

"You!... you dare attack me?!" The voice growled out furiously and this time I let out the scoff, loud and clear.

"There is nothing I do not dare do...it seems you do not appreciate my gentle approach, I can tolerate a lot of things but the lives of my men are a thousand times more valuable than your God's forsaken treasures... insinuating that they could be sacrificed for such trivialities... you are the one who's daring, you are lucky I did not kill you, did you reckon you could actually conceal your location from me?... I do not need to see you, my hearing is sufficient to pin point your exact location, I only accord you respect as I know I am the one in the wrong... don't push me young Lord, it will not end well." I replied in a deadly tone, the voice did not reply for a while, obviously shocked at my words.

"If you wish to speak with my father, you must continue on from here alone...do you dare?" The voice sounded again after a while, I didn't reply, motioning for my warriors to stay behind as I moved towards the trees, a glare from me silenced their protest, I turned to Reo, stroking his fur soothingly.

"I shall return soon, wait here for me okay?" I asked softly, he growled lowly obviously not approving but I knew he'd do as I requested, turning away from him, I faced the blocked path, not really surprised when the trees began moving positions on their own, I always suspected something like this was the reason no one could find their location...they could somehow bend the forest to their will, of the people capable of wielding this kind of magic, I only knew of the forest tribe, I passed Leif a meaningful look before moving through the slight opening that had been created.