Four

“Memory loss?”
“Yes, she’s lost all her memories. She can’t even remember her own name.”
“Are you sure, Alec?”
“One hundred percent. Sorry Jasper, she might never regain her memory.”
I groaned. We were sitting in Dr. Haylen’s tent, discussing the girl over a light but good lunch made by Marianne. As soon as Alec had returned from the river and found the girl awake he ran some checkups on her and found that she’d suffered from memory loss, possibly due from shock. He’d given her a mixture of herbs to help her sleep, and when she was finally unconscious again, he invited me to lunch. Knowing that I might never find out the mystery of the girl left a feeling of emptiness in me, and it was already eating away at my thoughts.
“You sure did take to her didn’t you, Jasper?” he asked studying my face with his clear blue eyes.
I laughed.
“Take to her? Alec, I just want to know why a girl like her was out in the woods getting herself shot in the back.”
“That girl isn’t as frail as you think, Jasper.”
“She’s a girl, it doesn’t make any difference. She shouldn’t have been out there pretending to be a soldier.”
“She’s much stronger than that; when I was checking her today she sat straight and unbothered, even though those wounds in her back should have her cringing in pain. I wouldn’t underestimate her.”
I rolled my eyes.
“So what are we going to do with her when she’s completely recovered?” Marianne asked as she ate. It surprised me to hear her talk. She was usually very quiet and shy.
“That’s up to the captain,” I said shrugging. “I wouldn’t be surprised if he dropped her off at the next town we pass by.”
“Well, we’ll see now, won’t we,” Alec said. He continued eating for a moment and then turned to face me once more.
“Don’t you have evening practice?”
I spilled ale down my tunic as I jumped up from my seat and hurriedly thanked Alec and Marianne for the meal. I’d forgotten all about evening practice.

The following week was uneventful, but it ended with a bit of good news.
The regiment was moving.
The captain had received an order from the general of the Calmarian army, and was moving the regiment to the northwestern border of Calmar and Seran. The two countries were in an uneasy state of peace and some recent raids had made connections very tense. War was expected to break out very soon; we were preparing for an attack.
It would be a two week trip, through mountains and crossing most of the country on foot. I was ecstatic.
The captain informed us that we would be leaving in three day’s time, and that preparations should start right away. Everyone followed his orders without a single complaint. No one wanted to stay at the edge of the woods any longer.
For two days the camp went through all the necessary preparations; gathering provisions, bringing the tents down, storing most of the weaponry, loading the horse carts, and the like. It was busy work, and I had no time to spare a thought for anything else; even the girl was drawn from my thoughts. It wasn’t long before the captain sought me out.

“Greyson.”
I stopped hammering at a broken cart and looked up to see him looking down at me. I stood up and respectfully saluted him.
“Yes, sir?”
“The girl is under your care. You will look after her, protect her, help her, and keep her near you at all times. Understood?”
I stared at him for a moment in disbelief.
“Greyson!”
“Yes sir,” I answered in a subdued tone. “But if I may ask, sir, why me?”
The captain merely looked amused.
“You found her didn’t you? It seems obvious you should take care of her as well. Haylen informed me this morning that she’s completely recovered; starting tomorrow morning she’s your responsibility.”
“Yes sir,” I said miserably. I had a bad feeling about this.

“Why is the camp moving anyway?”
I sighed.
“We’re going to war.”
The girl stared at me.
The camp had left early that morning; we were already far enough away from the forest that we could no longer see it. We were a large procession. At the front rode the captain on his stallion, with the archers behind him, ready to back him up if needed. Behind them were the foot soldiers, chatting animatedly and laughing as the walked. And at the back were the most experienced warriors on horseback. This was where I rode, with the girl riding a white mare next to me.
I had to admit; in the sunlight she was even more stunning than usual. Her blond hair looked white and flew out behind her in the gentle breeze. Her pale skin looked flawless in the light, and the light yellow dress Marianne had given her fitted her perfectly. And Alec had been right. She sat straight and proper, even though those wounds on her back should have her in too much pain to move.
She caught me staring and gave me a hard look with her dark eyes.
“What’s the war for?”
“The kingdom of Seran wants to invade. So we fight back,” I shrugged.
She looked thoughtful for a moment.
“Do I have a name?” she asked in that low tone that fit her better.
“Probably,” I answered.
“What is it?”
“I don’t have any idea. You lost your memory.”
Her eyes went glassy for a minute, and even though she was staring right at me, I knew she wasn’t really looking at me. Then they came back into focus and she spoke.
“What would you call me if you gave me a name?”
I looked at her and thought. What about her did I like? Well, about everything besides the fact that she was cold and that her eyes reminded me of death and despair. As I took her in closely, the sun glinted off the emerald crescent on her neck…
“Emilia.”
“Emilia?” she asked, surprised. “Why?”
I shrugged. “It suits you.”
She looked at me strangely, and then turned to stare straight ahead. It was silent for a moment.
“I like it,” she said. And Emilia turned and gave me a quick smile.
That was the first time I saw Emilia smile.
It made her face light up and her eyes became a different shade of black, a warm color, not one that made me shiver. But as soon as it had come, it was gone, and her eyes were tunnels once again.

That first day was strange for both of us. I was forced to follow her nearly everywhere, exempting baths and such. If she made a mistake, I was the one who got blamed, and when we stopped to rest for the night in an empty field, the captain ordered that she sleep in my tent. It was uncomfortable to know that she was next to me on the ground all night, and I was glad when morning came.
The second day was very silent. It didn’t seem that we could find anything to talk about, and we just stared straight ahead. Emilia didn’t seem to care too much and I found myself wishing I hadn’t found her in the woods at all. She was just so… uncaring!
And it was driving me crazy.

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