text: From Mud’s back, Ana could see everything. The column stretched for a quarter league on the narrow, country highway. Soldiers clad in leather and plate formed a moving stream between the tall elms on either bank. Men flowed around one-horse carts like water around stones. Boots crunched on cobblestone and wheels creaked under heavy loads. Ana pitied those who had to walk on the ground. Giants were a much better way to travel. Mud stood as tall as a two story building. Each lumbering step shook the earth below. A quiver of arrows swung from his hip for the massive war-bow he carried in his hand. Ana rode in a basket on Mud’s back, rocking from side to side with the giant’s slow gait. Even in the tightly packed column, soldiers kept a safe distance away from them, not wanting to be squashed underfoot. Yes, giants were a better way to travel. Unfortunately Sir Gadriel wanted her to do more than just travel. The older knight, nominally Ana’s mentor, rode through the sea of men to come alongside her and Mud. He looked up to Ana’s perch and shouted. “Good morning, Ana. Mud.” He nodded to the giant. Mud made no move to reply. “Beautiful weather we’re having, don’t you think?” The morning sky was overcast. Last night’s dew was only just beginning to dry. The column was headed toward a dreary day of marching. “Sure.” Ana shouted back, over the thunderous sound of Mud’s walk. “Reminds me of home.” This climate in no way reminded Ana of the dry, coastal city where she had been raised. Sir Gadriel apparently understood the humor and laughed along. “Quite right child. Now, have you practiced your heartseeking this morning?” Sir Gadriel had an annoying insistence on daily training. Ana had thought retreating to her basket during the journey would help her avoid the bearded knight and his constant demands. Sir Gadriel, however, had no fear of Mud, nor did his horse. Much to Ana’s dismay. “Ana. Don’t think just because we haven’t reached the temple that you can ignore your training. You need to practice your abilities if they are ever going to prove useful.” “Can this wait?” Ana called back. “Do you think the Hotaki will wait for you?” Sir Gadriel asked. “Do you think the Empire will delay until you are ready?” Ana let out a strong exhale. The old knight had a point. “Fine. Let’s get this over with.” Ana leaned forward, bringing her head to Mud’s ear. “The faster we do this, the faster it will be over.” The giant grunted in acknowledgement. Ana felt the deep rumbling sound reverberate in her core. A giant’s grunt could scare most men. Their laughing could deafen entire villages. “Very good. There’s something in the forest.” Sir Gadriel continued, “I won’t tell you which side. Find it.” Ana had grown bored of these listen-and-point drills, but Sir Gadriel insisted they were the best way to learn, even if she had practiced them a thousand times. Ana leaned her head on Mud’s back. She let her hearing broaden to the world around her. She heard Mud’s heart, big and strong, and her own, small but defiant. She heard Sir Gadriel’s next to her, pumping on as ever, and his horse, just as steady. She heard the soldiers before and behind her, the horses hauling carts, and their drivers just above. Their steady, relaxed rhythm gave no indication of danger. Ana tuned those out, as she had learned to do as a child. They would only cloud her true objective. There were more heartbeats around them. Ana listened to the quick, soft fluttering of a bird high above them. She listened to it swoop and dash through the sky, not needing her eyes to follow it. There were more birds in the trees. Ana listened to an entire flock watching patiently in the trees as the column passed below. Down in the bushes, larger, stronger hearts darted in and out of cover. Those would be squirrels and other small animals. “There are many animals in the forest,” Ana called. “Which one do you want?” “Oh, you’ll know,” Sir Gadriel smiled, “You’ll know. Keep looking.” Ana bent down again and concentrated. She heard the soldiers around her and the horses and the birds and the squirrels in the forest. She waited, listening for something else. There. On the right, about 50 feet out. It was soft, delicate, hidden. Too large to be a squirrel or a fox, but smaller than a bear. The heartbeat sounded worried, wary, but curious. “It’s a deer. 50 feet behind the treeline, on the right.” “Very good. Now tell Mud.” Mud had heard and understood every word. Although Mud’s vocal cords denied him the ability to speak the human tongue, his ears did not inhibit his ability to understand it. Sir Gadriel was simply referring to a different kind of tell. Ana placed her hands on Mud’s head. That’s where they said connection would be the strongest. Ana’s hands were only the size of Mud’s ears, but that didn’t matter. Ana reached out and felt the giant’s mind. It felt like a great stream. Deep, powerful, mysterious, and unyielding. Mud was focused on the ground in front of him and the soldiers closest to his feet. Ana found the direction of the heartbeat in Mud’s mind and pressed gently. She felt the giant’s focus, like a large hazy cone, follow her prompting. Ana guided the center of the cone onto the heartbeat and stopped. Mud raised his hand and pointed out into the forest. “UGH.” Sir Gadriel smiled. “Very good. You win again.” The knight reached into his saddle bag, pulled out a rock, and threw it into the forest. About 50 feet from the road, exactly where Mud had been pointing, a deer jumped out from behind a bush and pranced off into the woods. “You should get in the habit of always listening,” Sir Gadriel called up. “Continue your heartseeking. Tell me if you find anything else out of place.” Ana groaned and slumped forward in her basket. They said skill in heartseeking grew with experience. Just listening, even without practicing any of the more advanced techniques, could improve one’s abilities. Ana had not yet developed the stamina to listen for hours on end, like she would one day be required to do. Right now, seeking out heartbeats drained too much of her energy. Listening quietly for a long period or intently for a short period made Ana unfathomably tired. It was easier to practice in the city, where there was always something to hear, something unexpected that Ana discovered only through her abilities. But out here in the country, there was nothing to find, just dumb animals that scurried away. She might as well be deaf. But it wouldn’t always be like that. When she got to the temple, her abilities would grow, as would her responsibilities. Soon the time would come when people would trust her with their lives. She would have to be ready. And it didn’t make her *that* tired. Ana stood up in her basket. Now was as good a time as any. She would listen for as long as she wanted, then rest. Ana closed her eyes and listened to the world around her. The soldiers and the horses on the road. The birds and squirrels in the trees. She tried to pick out individuals, then fade them into the background. The forest was quiet, especially as the column passed, but Ana listened anyway, waiting to pick out anything that approached them. At one point, she thought she heard something in the forest far away. It didn’t feel like a deer, maybe a bear, but it faded out shortly after. Ana kept listening, hoping the sound would return when something in the air caught her attention. It was a heartbeat, far off, very far off, but even at that distance Ana heard its size. It was big, and slowly getting louder. “Sir Gadriel. There’s something in the air. Something big.” “Something in the air?” Sir Gadriel looked up at the overcast sky, his brow furrowed in confusion. The heartbeat grew louder. Ana watched the realization and terror wash over his face. “EVERYONE! GET DOWN!” She heard it first. The deep, rumbling roar. A column of swirling fire dove out the clouds and landed among the vanguard of the column. Heat blasted Ana’s face and the light forced her to squint. A great flapping sound, like enormous fans bellowing in the sky, descended over the terrified pedestrians below. Ana watched an enormous shadow cross over the column and fly off into the distance. When the fire cleared, there was nothing left of the vanguard but a black, smoldering pile of ruins. Then the screaming started. Men panicked. Horses reared on their hind legs and tried to break free. Sir Gadriel shouted out orders, attempting to form a coherent defense and prevent the column from routing. “Soldiers! Assemble the scorpions. Everyone else, stay clear and get to cover.” Mud pulled an arrow from his quiver and notched it in his war-bow. Ana’s eyes refused to blink. The stench of burning flesh wafted over the forest. Drivers struggled to keep their horses under control as the turmoil unfolded below. There was nowhere to run, no way to fight back. They would all die in scorching fire. “Ana! Look at me.” Ana broke from her stupor. She bent over the side of her basket and looked down. Sir Gadriel was looking back up at her. She saw a deep determination in his eyes and only an ounce of fear. “Your training is over. This is real. Focus, or we all die.” In that moment, she didn’t need to think. He was right. Sooner than anyone anticipated, lives had fallen into her hands. These men were counting on her. “Come on, Mud. They need us.” Mud did not grunt. He relaxed, waiting for Ana. Ana listened to the sky. Far off, she heard the heartbeat again. It was turning in a large, slow arc, steadily coming back to the column. Ana reached out to Mud, willing him to follow her. Mud turned, gazing up into the sky. Ana guided his attention to the heartbeat, but the cone was still hazy and unfocused. Mud drew his war-bow, raising it to the clouds. The bow made a cracking sound as the timbers bent under the strain. Ana felt the giant’s aim in his mind. Mud was leading the shot but his point of aim wobbled up and down across the heartbeat’s path. Ana flared her concentration on the heartbeat, willing Mud to focus. “UGH!” The arrow sailed through the air like a bolt of lightning and disappeared into the clouds. Ana heard the cry, a great roar of anger and fury, but the heartbeat stayed its course. It turned to fly directly over the rear of the column as the terrible flapping sound grew louder and louder. In the distance, a wide column of flame descended from the clouds and tore across the earth. The rear guard was caught in its path. Ana watched them disappear into the swirling flames, only to reemerge as charred corpses. They had missed. *She* had missed. And now people were dead. All around her, the men tried desperately to survive. Soldiers were setting up scorpions, drivers were running their carts off the road to make space. Some squads had already assembled their siege weapons and were now scanning the sky, hunting for their impending doom. With such little range, against such great speed, their actions were less than futile. Some threw down their weapons, ripped off their armor, and fled into the forest, hoping to find survival in concealment. The column was trapped, its two routes of escape cut off. They would be massacred. “Ana!” Sir Gadriel called her again. He no longer looked the part of a defiant soldier. Sir Gadriel spoke with the firm care of a father. “Breathe. Do not let the despair of others distract you. Focus. Work as a team.” His eyes had softened. They were more worried, but deep down his determination had not wavered. “You can do this. I know you can.” It was their only hope. Ana closed her eyes and forced her lungs to breathe. Inhale. Exhale. *One more.* Ana leaned forward, resting her head on Mud’s back. Far above her, she heard the heartbeat turning, lining up for another run. It was maneuvering to take them head on, straight down the center of the column. One more pass to incinerate them all. *Breathe*. Ana directed Mud to the heartbeat. He turned and raised his war-bow, drawing another arrow. The timbers creaked with the strain. Ana centered the cone centered over the heartbeat, but it was still unfocused. Mud’s aim wobbled. *Like a river over rock. Like a river over rock, child.* Ana imagined herself breathing, a gentle breeze flowing from her core. She imagined a great stream, turning in the wind, a stillness over a steady current. The cone became smooth. It tightened, converging onto a signal point. Mud’s aim steadied. \**Thwap!\** Mud loosed his arrow. For a moment the entire column stood in silence as the missile streaked into the sky. This time, there was a cry of pain. A dreadful moaning filled the air as the thunderous flapping broke into a pathetic fluttering. The beast cried out as it plunged through the clouds, its reptilian body turning over and over, floundering as it fell. Ana watched as the wounded beast crashed far away in the trees, kicking up dust and shaking the ground. Across the column, men broke out in cheering. It was a joyous, delirious, intoxicating sound. The cries of men who had just been saved, delivered from the jaws of certain death. Men shouted into the sky and pumped their fists in the air. For the first time that day, Ana smiled. She looked over the basket and found Sir Gadriel. There was pride in his eyes. “Well done, child. Mud, follow me. I fear this business is not yet over.” The soldiers made a path for Sir Gadriel and the giant. Where once Ana had seen fear, she now saw hope, wonder, and joy on the faces of those below. The slayers were cheered as they passed. “Look at his bow! It must weigh as much as a house.” “Did you see that! Right into the clouds. I tell you, that was magic.” “She’s a heartseeker. A real heartseeker. We’re saved!” Sir Gadriel rode off the highway and into the forest. Mud followed closely behind. Sir Gadriel displayed expert horsemanship, bounding around trees, jumping over bushes, and ducking under branches. Mud simply pushed aside any trees that were in his way. They set out toward where the beast had fallen. Ana listened to the column’s heartbeats. During the panic, they had been loud and fast, not that she had time to notice. Now, finally, they were beginning to slow. With every second, the men relaxed and their heartbeats grew quieter and softer. Ana continued to listen. Those men were alive because of her. The column grew quieter as Mud tread further into the trees. In its place, the sound of another heartbeat grew louder. When Ana had first heard it this morning, the heartbeat had been proud, defiant, almost to the point of arrogance. It was that of a beast who could not be touched, could not be defeated, could not be brought low. A beast that would crush and burn anything in its path. Now, that beat battling to stay alive. Ana heard the muscle waver, struggling to force blood through a crippled body. The beat was shaky, broken, desperate. Ana could almost sense its pain, its fear. Sir Gadriel found the trail first. The beast had crashed through the treetops before it hit the ground, leaving a large gash in the foliage. It had slid across the forest floor, knocking over trees and clearing a trail, before finally coming to a stop. Sir Gadriel and the giant walked into the artificial clearing and turned to face what had made it. It was then, standing in her basket, watching over Mud’s shoulder, that Ana finally saw it. The dragon’s skin was covered in thick scales. Its long tail hung lifelessly over rocks and branches. The beast lay on its side, supported by a bed of upturned grass and dirt. Mud’s arrow was stuck in the dragon’s chest. Red blood trickled down the exposed shaft and fletching. The thin, skin-like flesh of the beast’s wing had been pierced by the tip of the arrow, pinning it in place. Not that it would move much anyway. The long, thin bones which supported the delicate membrane were broken in multiple places. The wing was bent in on itself at an angle that was painful just to look at. The other wing, on the other side, was not visible, however Ana could not imagine how so much weight could not have crushed it. Mud lumbered toward the felled beast as its eyes turned to watch them. They were filled with nothing but hate and spite. Mud walked up to a nearby tree and closed his massive hands around it. He pulled and tore it out of the ground, snapping the roots one by one. The beast cried out. Its once defiant cry was racked in pain. The roar broke into a pitiful moan. Mud lifted the tree, trunk down, above the dragon’s head. Ana ducked down and shut her eyes tight. Mud slammed the tree into the ground. The dragon’s skull split open with a wet snap. A moment later, the heart stopped, and all was quiet. Mud tossed the tree away and turned back to Sir Gadriel. “Thank you, to both of you. That was excellent shooting.” Mud grunted. “Ana. Are you alright?” Ana pushed herself up in her basket. She noticed that her legs were shaking. Her fists had closed tight on the edge of the basket. Her palms were sweaty. “I think you may be in shock. It’s not every day that you kill a dragon. Mud, let her down for me.” The basket lurched as Mud lowered himself onto one knee. Sir Gadriel rode up behind him, bringing himself face to face with Ana. “You did well today, aye?” Ana took a deep breath. Inhale. Exhale. “Aye. Thank you.” She felt the beginning of a smile, but the image of blackened corpses crossed her mind. The smile died. “I’m sorry I didn’t get it on the first try.” “That’s alright, young one. No one could expect so much from you and these men knew the dangers. Focus on what you still have. There are men who will go home to see their families, because of you. Don’t forget that.” Ana nodded. She wouldn’t forget. Sir Gadriel kicked his spurs and rode around in front of Mud. He peered into the forest, as if looking for someone. “If they’ve sent a dragon, they know where we are. They are likely tracking us, even now.” Sir Gadriel turned to face Mud. “The column can no longer protect us. The events of today have proven that much. We will be safer if we travel alone.” Sir Gadriel turned his horse, facing the direction they had been traveling on the road. “I left instructions with Sir Morkan, in the event we did not return. Now, follow me.” Sir Gadriel kicked his horse into a gallop and set off into the woods. Mud stood up and followed after him. They disappeared into the safety of the forest. Mud’s feet pounded against the forest floor. Stray branches whipped against his skin. Now that the excitement had ended, a great feeling of exhaustion swept over Ana’s body. She felt tired, more tired than she had ever felt in her life. She collapsed in her basket, sensing the fast approach of sleep. Ana let her eyelids droop down as the giant’s swaying rocked her to sleep. She was not the young woman she had been just this morning. Ana of Castriem, heartseeker, dragonslayer.