Li-Hua and Frey’r had traveled south for a day and a half but made little progress. The roughness of the terrain was unfathomable, and even if they kept to the central valley and it was large, they still had to go around rapids and big rocks, pass over fallen trees, and often switch from one side of the river to the other for a better path. And then again: rapids, rocks, river...

At some point, the sour mutual silence was replaced by cooperation. Take care about that obstacle, fasten your belt, please take the wheel for a while, all sort of small talk that occurs in the long hours of monotonous tasks.

The first night, they pushed on, using the lights. Before the second nightfall, a clickety irregular noise made them stop, fearing that if they don’t fix the problem, the vehicle will break on them in the middle of nowhere. The vehicle gauges were written in common tongue but with beauhemian characters, which Li-Hua knew, but they didn’t find anything wrong there. All indicators were in the green, and the fuel was full, which was impressive considering how much they had traveled the previous day.

The user manual, which they found in the gloves compartment, was in beauhemian characters as well. In about an hour or so, they managed to open the hood. Awed by the complexity of the engine, they renounced interfering with it on the spot. When night came, they were broken, tired, and covered in engine oil and soot, a fitting reward for so much vain effort.

“I need a break!” stated Li-Hua. “Let’s sleep.”

“I agree. I’ll take a blanket and sleep outside.”

“Don’t you dare leave me alone! What if a bear eats you? Stay inside!”

“If you wish,” he sighed. But let’s keep this a secret, I don’t want to ruin my reputation.”

“You don’t what?” she gasped with unbelief. “Providence, the barbarian is afraid for his reputation? Thousands of boys would kill themselves just to kiss my hand, and you are afraid of YOUR reputation? What a boar!”

“Well, we barbarians like to maintain our chastity until we enter matrimonial contracts with a matriarch. I don’t know how kissing and suiciding fares for those boys, but for me, staying home, safely, along with a majestic and mature wife sounds much better, thank you. I’ll take the backbench… Oh… I found the problem. This was the noise, buggers!”

He extracted from under the bench his battle-axe. He had forgotten about it there, and it had jumped all-around at the bumps. That was a welcomed distraction from their argument, and sleep came fast, although Li-Hua fumed for a while before succumbing to dreams.

They had slept a few hours when suddenly, noises on the outside woke them up at the same time.

“Doors are closed, and I cannot see inside; the window shields reflect light,” said a voice. “Do you think it’s the Boss?”

“It could be if she escaped from the mess back there. Goodness, I thought she was a goner. Alienor, are you in there?” shouted another voice, and some loud bangs followed in the back door.

“Beauhemians!” whispered Li-Hua. “What should we do?”

“Let’s make a break for it.”

“Even someone on foot can keep pace with us on this terrain. Let’s wait until they leave. They’ll think the vehicle is abandoned.”

“The vehicle looks abandoned,” stated the second voice, reinforcing the girl’s idea. “We cannot drive that through the woods, make camp, and take all you can.”

In less time than Frey’r could even think of getting to the driver seat and start the engine, the beauhemians had raised one side of the vehicle with some jack and pulled out all the three wheels there. In another minute or so, the wheels on the other side were taken too.

“Goodness, the proverb is true,” exclaimed Frey’r, still whispering. “If a beauhemian smiles to you, it means he already did your pockets. What now?”

“You’re asking me? You figure it out! After all, you’re the warrior and stuff!” replied Li-Hua.

“We’ll wait until they leave and continue on foot; what else can we do?”

“Bear, I could cut the doors with the blow torch, said the first voice. To see what’s inside.”

That was the first beauhemian’s voice.

“Good idea, Goat. Go for it.”

“Providence!” exclaimed Li-Hua, panicking, “I cannot be captured by beauhemians; they do bad things to women. Let’s suicide, you kill me first, and then I’ll kill you too.”

Coherence had lost the battle with panic.

Stupid, yet so beautiful! sighed Frey’r inside his mind.

He banged on the door, from the inside, and shouted.

“Hey! We’re coming out. Don’t shoot!”

“Someone’s inside!” shouted the Goat’s voice.

“Come out, slowly, hands up!” ordered the Bear. “Lads, be ready to shoot if it’s a trick.”

“What are you doing!” shouted Li-Hua. “Frey’r, no, don’t! Please!”

He wasn’t listening to her anymore. He tucked the axe in his belt, with one hand, he opened the back door, and with the other, he pulled her outside by her wrist.

“It’s better to be prisoners than dead!” he hissed angrily to her. “Let’s concentrate on surviving, not on some fancy ideas from the novels!”

Around, a dozen or so beauhemians, rifles at the ready, plus the two chiefs they’ve heard, the Goat and the Bear. In the back, lots of beauhemians, all males, setting the camp among the trees. The Bear was huge, an imposing warrior as big as any northerner Allamain or Schiavon; the Goat was smaller, thinner, and very nervous.

“Who are you?” asked the Bear, frowning. “A Norseman and a westerner girl, hmm… you’ve eloped or something?”

“So far and in a red’s army vehicle?” doubted the Goat. “Something is fishy. Maybe it’s a commando of sorts; I’ve told you how I was tricked back in that prison, and by a fellow beauhemian if you believe it! They are on to us, the Royals!”

“Look,” said Frey’r, “we are peaceful hikers abducted by mistake by your mad… sorry, your queen, and escaped at the first occasion…”

“Well, she is a little unhinged,” admitted the Goat.

“Shut up! You know she can hear you at any distance!” hissed back the Bear. “Your Majesty, if you can hear us, it was just a joke; we’re still your loyal subjects,” he shouted into the air.

“You are fools who serve a mad master,” spat Li-Hua disdainfully. “Along with us, she kidnapped Dora Guerrefido’s daughter and two powerful wizards. Guess what, your Queen got her ass kicked and fled, and we’re taking over the red’s army as we speak. We’ve already won, you stupid little pieces of sheep droppings, and I dare you to kill me! You’ll have my father, Secretary Lau, send a hundred thousand Grass Sea riders after your heads!”

Goodness, is she trying to get us killed for real?

As he sighed and put his hand on the axe, prepared to make a last stand, Frey’r noticed the moons. Their bright yellow and blue colors were already vanning at the contact with the impending dawn. In their light, he felt things differently and saw the truth.

Some beauhemians were afraid, as the Goat, they would have fled if they could. Some had revenge in their eyes, but not all were thinking about just killing him and the girl… some options were worse.

Appalled, he shrugged and blinked for a split second.

When his eyelids opened, a bright light blinded him. His years were buzzing, and his head was throbbing with dizziness. A far-away voice was shouting somewhere: mercy, mercy!

He shook his head, trying to overcome the haze inside.

“Mercy, Mercy!” shouted the voice, now nearer.

His eyes adapted to the light; all things around laid in ruin and waste.

A bombardment? Could the City had sent help already? Or it’s our folks with some red’s army machinery?

The sun was up. Bodies laid everywhere, men and horses, in terrible shape, like stomped by a giant. Fallen trees with their bark and wood exploded into pieces, rocks shattered. Not far, the Bear, his eyes starring into nothingness, a deep cut in between them, separating his head into two halves down to his chin.

Goodness!

“Meeeercy! Meeeercy” bleated the voice.

It was the Goat.

His head was on a stump, and Frey’r had his foot on it. In his right hand, the axe was prepared to hit and separate the beauhemian’s head from his body; it felt like he was looking through a stranger's eyes. He gasped and jumped back.

“Thank you, Thank you!” the beauhemian prostrated.

He looked at himself. Around his body had appeared a woven metal armor, made from something like thin filaments. His axe was shinning and humming. As he regained his senses, the armor's filaments disappeared, sucked into the axe’s handle, and the humming and brightness ceased.

What have you done, Ulius?

“You’re back! Thank Goodness!”

Li-Hua jumped from nowhere and kissed him before he had the chance to say anything or to react.

“What happened?” he asked, pushing her away.

“You happened, of course! Suddenly, your stance toughened. You shouted: I’m High Berserker Frey’r of The Two Moons and this beautiful princess is under my protection. I read impure thoughts into your eyes, prepare to meet your judgment. Something like this, maybe Grand, or Prime instead or High Berserker?” she laughed and poked his chest with her finger. “But for sure, you’ve said beautiful and princess. Then the armor appeared, your axe began to shine, and you threw yourself at them. They shoot at you, but to no avail, of course, and at each hit, you destroyed everything in your path: trees, beauhemians, horses, everything. Most ran into the forest, some fight and lost, and some surrendered. Those you’ve spared, they’re back there in the valley, keeping their distances. I’ve had a chat with them, and they promised they’ll obey us, now. The people we’ve met were a scouting force; the woman and kids are a few miles back. After the reds and the other beasts began fighting each other, the beauhemians ran. I've asked a few scouts to go back to the battle site to see if we won or lost. And then we'll see if we go on or turn back. Meanwhile... I'm happy we have some time for us!”

She grabbed his neck with her arms, wanting to kiss him again, only this time he was prepared and caught her by her wrists.

“Hey! Enough! What’s up with you?”

“Oh, yes, you don’t know. Well, It’s exactly how Estella said to me in my Trial, that I have to wait for my true love, a hero who’ll protect me. You’re the one, it’s obvious. My love!”

Again, she tried to kiss him, but this time he replied in kind, pulling her toward him, her breast crushed against his chest, his hands on her waist and neck. Leaving her mouth, he kissed her slowly on her neck, going up, kiss by kiss, until he reached her ear.

“I want to make love to you here and now, wildly. Our kids will be beautiful,” he whispered.

Feeling her crispation, he let her go, pushing her away with gentleness.

“You might consider twice what you wish for, Li-Hua. You’re desirable, indeed, but what will be the price in lives that our nations will pay if we were to frolic in the grass? It is not what the Secretary-General's daughter would do, and it’s not what my people would expect from me either. Let it be, Li-Hua.”

Her cheeks were red with shame. In the next moment, she did something unexpected, she kneeled in front of him, her eyes looking to the earth, took his hand, and kissed it.

“Thank you for your lesson, my protector. I’ve forgotten myself; I promise this will not repeat itself. I’ll humbly wait until the times are proper. Maybe Estella could adopt you as an honorary cousin. In a few months or a year, we could establish a formal engagement as a token of peace between our nations. I’ll see that my father and my nation agree. I’ll make you proud of me!”

He looked at her awed, with his jaws wide opened, unable to think but one word: Help!