Kismet’s Tale

      After a few bouts of practice the ladies had enough of trying to conjure shields. With sweat sticking to their bodies, they went back home. They passed by the rather eager Aunties who greeted them with a grin on their faces. Natalya couldn’t handle the Aunties yet, but she had enough mind to treat them well enough that they wouldn’t have to complain about her.

Elea went to bathe with Elna while Natalya headed to her room. She found the bathroom, washed herself, and wore a single piece dress after wearing her underwear.

It was then that she noticed a piece of package next to the bed. Lifting the package up to the round glass table next to the drapes. She opened the package, and saw a familiar thing that had not been with her for so long.

She noticed that there was a letter in the package. She picked it. The sender of the letter was Old Fred who had her package delivered with his seal. He pointed out in her letter that it came from Rosa Dolina, the Lady Angelus, and her dearest friend.

“Rosa,” she thought of her dear friend that she had not seen for years. Although there are times where she had wrapped herself in her dearest friend’s arms, she usually would stay away from Rosa, not daring to let her friend get involved with her hell.

She opened the letter that was attached to the package and read it:

Dear Natalya,

I am disappointed. I am thoroughly disappointed that you, not only didn’t inform me, didn’t write to me, and tell me that you were getting married. It was only through speaking to the older gentleman who had received my package that you were married. Had you not promised me that I would be your best woman? Did you forget? I can understand if there are political implications, but I am thoroughly disappointed! How can I not know who your man is? Write me a letter will you? I have sent your beloved, and it came with a ribbon! 

Yours truly,

Rosa Dolina.

“Beloved?” Natalya raised her brow, and opened the package. It was then that she saw the familiar rifle that had been with her for a very long time. She had no time to take this rifle with her ever since she had been busy trying to come up with plans and most of the time she had started to use her imperator’s crest more than her rifle.

“My Ziba,” she held the rifle close to her chest, caressing it like a fragile child. “It has been too long my love.”

Before all of this, her ‘Ziba’ was her partner-in-crime and had been saving her. It was the rifle that she had brought from her shooting club. The rifle that kept her alive during the five years.

It was the one thing that kept her safe in the war. It was the scythe that she reaped lives with.  There were times that she had been able to retrieve her Ziba, but in the end the gap between those times were far and long.

The familiar symbol of the Rosefield Smithery was engraved on the stock of the rifle. This heavily modified rifle that she had won in a tourney and had been with her and yet she would know that this was her rifle 

“That girl,” Natalya said. “She truly had added modifications again?”

Natalya looked down on her sights.  With the scope she estimated that with her current form, she would have no problem shooting down 1500 yards. Not to mention that the barrel, chamber, and forestock of her rifle had been modified. Risa had even added adjustable aperture sights. At her best she could try to shoot down someone, and modify her shot with her spark so the bullet would meet no air resistance.

“Four, no, five thousand yards I should be able to hit someone that far,” she ejected the ten-round magazine. Pulled the bolt, and removed the scope from its sliding ramp before checking the innards of the rifle.

The grip of the rifle was fine and the weight was evenly distributed.  She attached the scope,  inserted the magazine, and flicked the safety mechanism. It was then that she heard the door open.

Mavin walked in while holding on to his coat. His eyes traveled on the rifle that she was holding. “Nice rifle. Is that yours?”

“It’s my partner,” Natalya said. “She’s been with me ever since the war. I love her more than any rifle. There are many rifles in the world, but none are as good as mine.”

Mavin moved next to her. “Can I see it?”

“Sure, don’t drop it. I love you, Mavin, I really do. But even I will get angry  if you get my rifle dented.”

“Whoa,” Mavin acted as if he heard something good, “I didn’t think you’d be fond of such a thing.”

“She’s been with me since I won the tourney fair and square. Throughout the war I had her and never been without her for the years in the field. She might just be a rifle to you, but she was the rifle that almost took out your head.”

Mavin handled the rifle with mastery. He checked the sights, and aimed at the direction of the windows where he stayed in position for almost a minute. He pressed his cheek on the stock of the rifle and hovered his hand on the trigger finger.

“Good rifle, a shame that I couldn’t fire it now.”

“We  have a shooting range, right? Want to test it out?”

“That'll be fine,” Mavin looked outside. “It’s not exactly bright so we should wait tomorrow until then.”

Natalya was rather disappointed, but then again it would be best if they shoot when they could see where they were aiming at. Mavin played around with her rifle before he handed it back.

He then walked next to the closet, placed his coat on the rack, and unrobed himself before walking in to bathe himself. After taking a bath, he wore his casual clothes, and sat on the chair adjacent to her to read a document.

“What’s that?”

“A document.”

“What document is it, exactly?”

He showed the front of the document. “Can you read it?”

Natalya narrowed her eyes. She took a glance at the words penned on it and realized that it was a language she did not understand. It was not the imperial script, not the lingua franca of the continents, and certainly not any of the eastern languages that she had the pleasure to study in some of the visions.

“What language is it?”

Mavin shook his head. That placid and stone-like face of his was enough to make her understand that it was his vow of silence again. It was always that vow of silence that prevented him from speaking of anything.

She didn’t know what that spell was and how it could even affect her. She had to make sure that she doesn’t get caught having a vow of silence as well. Who knows what he would think if he knew that she had one?

“I won’t ask then,” Natalya said. She put her attention back to her rifle, and placed it on the table. Natalya took out the magazines and the rest of the items in the package, laying them out, checking their rounds, and then placing it in the bandolier that came with it.

“I hope you don’t walk around with that.”

“Why not?” Natalya said. “Most of the people here carry around a piece. Even little Elea carries around a belly gun. Have you seen what Elna carries? It’s a six-shooter with .44 ammunition.  She handles it so easily as well. Don’t even get me started on Lady Elma and Lord Derrick’s carry.”

“Where’s your service pistol anyway?”

“You confiscated it, right?”

“Oh, I did. It should be in my luggage. Carry that around instead of a rifle.”

Natalya gave him a stare. “A shame, but I see your point.”

“I don’t really mind it myself. But wouldn’t it be tiring to be wearing a dress and carrying your rifle all the time?”

“You do realize that after you had almost shot me to death five years in the war. I spent two years being a poster girl with a bright red wig and doing shows to keep the boys motivated? My face was in every barracks and if I had been bold enough. I would have pictures of me in a bathing suit and lewd dresses! I had almost beaten to death a fashion designer for daring to tell me to be his model for their lingerie!  I had carried around my rifle while wearing my service dress. I don’t feel awkward at all.”

“Sounds...reasonable enough, I guess,” he did not comment on the lingerie part, to which Natalya was rather disappointed. Her man was rather dull when it comes to women, but good enough to keep up with her conversations. Then again, knowing how many aunties were trying to spoil Elea. Natalya understood that being around middle-aged women who don't hold back in their words.

Natalya’s first days here in the great manor had her pretty surprised when the aunties living on the great manor started talking about their menstruation and how they had started sagging in front of Elea. Elea, who didn’t have a clue of their earthly problems,  was rather curious until Elna told the aunties to watch out what they were saying in front of the little heiress.

When they were alone with Elna they had almost boxed her in and had asked if she was pregnant, whether her hips were wide enough or when she was ovulating. They even recommended herbs and concoctions that could put her into a good mood. The aunties had quite the knowledge and had given her tips. They even offered to teach her how to cook Lazonian recipes.

“I don’t think the aunties will mind.”

Mavin thought of the aunties and grinned. “Yeah, I don’t think they will. It’s your choice, but I do recommend carrying only your pistol with you.”

Natalya regarded him for a moment then shook her head. “I’ll carry my pistol then.”

“It’s your choice.”

“The aunties here might just let me join them in their hunting. I never really killed a demifiend beast before.”

“You should ask them. They are quite good at butchering wooly deers.”

“Oh, I’ve seen a wooly deer once.  My father managed to purchase a three meter wide horn from one of the traders once.  Are they really as tall as those animals with those long trunks?”

“Wooly Deers should be around 3-4 meters tall around here. There is actually a ranch that keeps them. They are the few demifiends that we’ve domesticated alongside the Jorvi boar and the Vaaksi cow.”

“Aren’t they all giants?”

“They are, but they are big enough to keep us well fed. If a cow could feed at least a thousand people with three hundred kilograms of meat. Most of these giants can feed around two to three thousand people and that differs from their sizes. It would be stupid of us not to domesticate these giant-sized animals. Not to mention that we can make an industry with the surplus of meat that we’re getting from them. Derrick said that last year we exported  eight hundred thousand metric tons of meat to Holmia and its neighboring countries. If this continues, Lazon would become the number one exporter of bovine meat  in the known world.”

“That’s...surprising. No wonder the 108th nobles wanted to protest about Lazon’s industries and how they are not sharing enough..”

“You could say that... they want a piece of the meat.”

Natalya grinned. “That was terrible, Mavin Tomas.”

“I know.”

Mavin shrugged and acted as if he didn’t care. Natalya stared at him and poke his cheek.  Mavin took her hand and placed it down on the table, making Natalya  frown.