The first few days of their journey passed with nothing of note. Taln had told the boy to keep his weapon hidden for the time being, so it remained in its box. They hitched a ride with a farmer running his wagon back home, after selling his wares in the city. From here, they would have to go on foot. Taln didn't seem to be able to keep much coin, so a pair of horses were out of the question.
As the farmer stopped at the crossroads, Taln and Siv gathered their meager belongings and packed them up. They bid goodbye to the amiable farmer, and set down the eastern road. The farmer went further south, towards more civilized lands.
They were still relatively close to the major northern settlements, so the road was well maintained cobblestone. Siv walked behind the large man. It was about midday, so they had a ways to go before stopping to camp.
Looking around at his surroundings, there was rolling hills all around. In the distance, a massive forest of rich green trees stretched as far as the eye could see. "Wow." Siv said out loud. "That is one big forest." Taln glanced back at him, grunting.
"T'syr's Forest. Been around since the elves, where its original name, Wode of Tessyr, came from."
"Who's Tessyr?" Siv said. Taln seemed in oddly good spirits. Siv was lucky most times to get the taciturn man to respond, let alone expound on something he'd said.
"The Silent Queen, first ruler of the elves."
"Why was she silent?" Siv inquired.
"Don't know, boy. Didn't think it'd do much good to ask her." Siv looked at him suspiciously. Had he just made a joke?
Taln's face betrayed nothing. He may well have been chiseled from stone.
"So where are we going?" Siv said.
"The Glades." Taln replied. He seemed to have clammed up again.
"What is that? Where is it? Why are we going?" Taln shot him a dubious side eye.
"It's deep in T'syr's Forest. The Forest is widely untamed, and only has a strip of safe passage stretching through the thinnest part of it. It's all the monarchy can do to keep even that area free of beasts. Even there, taking the shortest route is near 8 miles as the crow flies." Taln said.
"Why don't they just burn it down?" Taln let out a snort.
"Boy, maybe you should join the Keepers of T'syr. I'm sure they would love such an enlightened mind amongst them." Siv kicked a rock on the path. "Regardless, you'd need the flame of God to put a dent in T'syr's Forest."
"You never said what's in there that we're going to. Are the glades on the other side?"
"No, the glades are many miles off the path. We're going there so you can kill me." There was a moment of silence. He continued, "There are many ways to gain strength. Among Marked, and Covenants to a lesser degree, one method can be split into roughly five stages. This is the most common, and relatively easiest, way. All of the stages, to a degree, have to do with the type and density of power of Profane or Consecrated tissue you consume." Siv's head spun. This was a world he had never even heard of. The Marked had always been some far off myth.
"So there's something in the Glades you want me to eat?" Siv inquired.
"Yes. The beast you first choose to consume will have the most impact on how your path and power will develop. After that, it's diminishing returns on the strength you will get, with some exceptions." Taln cleared his throat. "Few people in this age will journey to the Glades. It has grown even more wild over the years. Even I am not quite sure what we will meet when we go there. It's been too long."
They walked for a bit longer, then Taln spoke unbidden. "The creature I hope to find there is Eiranhal, Bearer of the Hollow Crown. One of the great stags, with no kingdom of his own."
The name seemed to carry weight. Siv felt his heart beat a bit faster. The massive trees were closer now, looming over the world. "Is it ok to kill something like that? He sounds important."
"Few know of him, now. The Forest Keepers, damned elves, would never let me kill him. That is why we will not tell them the purpose of our journey." Taln said gravely. Siv swallowed. This seemed a little out of his purview. Consuming a beast that was half a god itself? It was a good thing God was dead, because Siv did not think he would have looked upon him favorably.
...
A few hours later, the sun had retreated behind the trees, which were growing ever larger as the two approached. They were going to set camp right outside the forest boundary. As they drew closer, Siv felt a suffocating silence emanating from the ancient place.
Taln seemed troubled, looking at the forest with a frown furrowing his brow. After pausing a moment, Taln set his pack down. "We'll stop here." The boundary was still a good hundred feet away.
Siv had no tent, so he just placed his bedroll on a particularly soft place. At this point, he had a few different clothing items, having gone shopping with Quentin. Taln set up a small fire, and was heating some of the salted meat to make a stew. He seemed to be adept at cooking, which surprised Siv. Taln didn't seem the type.
"Where'd you learn to cook?" Siv asked.
Taln stirred the meat more. "I've had my share of shit food, kid. If I've got the opportunity to eat something slightly less shit, then I'm taking it."
Siv breathed in the wondrous scent. They had not walked particularly fast today, but he was still weary from the journey. A side effect of his healing factor seemed to be an enhanced constitution; he did not tire as easily, and recovered marvelously quick. The past few weeks with sufficient nutrition had done wonders for his body. His hair had grown thicker, skin had a slight glow to it, and his slit throat was completely healed, not even leaving a scar.
It was odd, though. It seemed older scars from before his Marking were much slower to heal, though they were fading.
"So, when I eat this deer thing, what's gonna happen?" Siv asked.
"It'll hurt like hell, probably. Eiranhal holds much of the minor Aspect of Silence, which as I understand it, will give you the power to suppress. You won't get all his power just from eating his flesh, though. Aspects cannot be contained in flesh. The power will mainly come from the fact that Eiranhal has borne this Aspect for millenia, all the while imbuing him with its power. Which has caused him to become nearly a god himself."
"So... you want me to suppress your healing, then kill you?" Siv asked.
"Yep. Though Eiranhal himself couldn't kill me, so there isn't a chance in hell you'll be able to, even after consuming him." He paused thoughtfully. "Though, I was much stronger then. Maybe he'd manage it now." His voice implied he didn't think it was likely.
Siv felt a chill go down his spine. Just who was Taln, to have fought a beast like Eiranhal before? And live?
"Why is the forest so... quiet?" Siv asked. Ever since they had set up camp, there had been total silence from the forest. It was as if the wind itself was reluctant to even stir the leaves.
Taln poured in some broth he had brought. "I don't know." Silence settled over their camp. Siv's skin wouldn't stop crawling.
"Hey old man?" Taln glared daggers at him. "Can I take my hooks out now?" he asked. The prospect was exciting- he still had yet to try the wicked weapons. Taln shrugged.
Taking it as a yes, Siv eagerly set the box in front of him and removed the lid. The hooks were there, curved barbs along the gleaming edges. He reverantly grabbed the chains , lifting them out of the box. Taln was watching him. Unsure exactly how to proceed, Siv slowly wrapped the links around his forearms. The hooks were connected by a single chain, and that dangled in front of Siv's chest.
The hooks dangled heavily. Both forearms were wrapped. Siv, not sure where to start, swung his right arm in a wide arc. The hook whipped outward, rapidly gaining momentum. It darted out, then started coming back around, straight toward his face. He yelped, ducking the blade. As he did, the other was still dangling from his other hand. He snagged it in his trousers, barbs gaining deep purchase. He awkwardly untwisted it, cursing. His new pants were already ruined.
He cast a glance at Taln, who was watching stone faced. "Keep going."
Siv whipped both arms this time, releasing some of the chain from his forearms to let them have a little more range. They spun out-- far too wide. One lost its momentum and dug in a nearby log, and the other yanked tight and whipped back at him, slicing open his shoulder. He growled, throwing his arm back forward. The blade landed in the dirt near it's companion.
His knuckles were red and welted from the scraping of the chains. "Damn it." Siv muttered, licking the blood off one knuckle.
"Very graceful." Taln said dryly.
Siv leveled his gaze at the man. "You could've told me how to use it."
Taln shrugged. "You didn't ask." Siv looked at him for a moment.
Sighing, he said: "How do I use it?"
Taln rose now, having put the rest of the ingredients in the stew. "Watch."
He took the weapon from Siv, and efficiently wrapped only one of his forearms in the chain, holding the other side just below where the hook was attached. Suddenly he twisted, and the hook whipped forward- almost faster than Siv could see- and landed squarely in the log Siv had hit earlier. With another smooth motion, Taln with a simple pull, sent the log flying towards himself.
Without a single wasted movement, as the log flew towards him, Taln sidestepped and let the log free itself of the hook with it's momentum. It flew a dozen meters before skidding across the ground.
"A hook and chain does not obey strength alone." Taln said. "They are blades of motion. They must be an extension of you. You must understand that every little movement your body makes will determine the arc of the blades. Otherwise, they will eat you alive."
He removed the chains as he talked, then handed them to Siv. "Try again. Think about how your body moving will change how the blades fly."
Siv copied Taln's previous stance and method of wrapping. Breathing deeply, he envisioned his muscles, extending his mental diagram to include the chains. They were not a weapon. They were him, just as much as his arms were.
They were not weapons for stabbing, slashing, or fancy technique. They were rippers, destroyers. They were for rending flesh in the most efficient and brutal way possible.
Slowly bring his arm up, he half turned and in the same motion released the blade as his arm extended. The chains slithered past, and the next moment, Siv grabbed the chain and pulled downward. The hook responded in kind. It buried itself in the ground, a couple meters from where Siv stood.
A smile lit up his face. He had actually managed to do it without mutilating himself. He looked at Taln, who nodded.
Filled with newfound confidence, Siv gave a tug on the chain. The hook pulled from the ground and flew back at him. Yelping, Siv once again tried to duck the blade. It was coming from lower down this time, however, and Siv ducked directly into it. It scored deep into his shoulder, barbs ripping his flesh as the hook came past. Luckily, it did not embed itself in his flesh, instead conserving its momentum and going past his shoulder.
Siv groaned, holding his bloodied shoulder.
Taln, who was focused back on the stew, was liberally spicing it with the little spice satchel he kept with him. "Stew is ready."