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4. A Warrior in Another World
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Lyra pulled herself out of the water to the riverside where the man stood and the beast's body laid. I slowly followed just to see that the danger was truly gone.
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“Um, no. This duck. I… think it's a duck. Protected me.” she said pointing at me.
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“A duck did this? Interesting.” laughed the man “Look Lyrianna, this is why I told you to stay close.”
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“And I said I wanted to bathe. Gavin Eldreblud. I told you not to call me that.” Lyra huffed as she turned to me.
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I cocked my head in confusion. I don’t know what her plan was, but she looked like she was up to something.
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“This duck. I shall take it as a pet.”
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“What?” questioned Gavin.
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“Quack?!” questioned myself.
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“Had he not been here, you wouldn't have made it in time.” she pouted.
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“Had you not demanded to wander on your own, this wouldn't have happened at all.” he argued, “And let's not pretend like you're completely defenseless lady Li-Lyra!”
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“That's besides the point.” she said, kneeling down to my height and reaching her hands out.
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*What should I do? What should I do?! These are the first people I've met in the real world. Erg. Maybe I go with them just for now… I can always just disappear if I need to later. And it's not like I can talk to them. BUT maybe I can at least learn from them.*
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I nodded and waddled slowly into her arms as she began to pet me, “Look, so friendly.” she said happily to Gavin's dismay.
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“Look… whatever, okay? Let's get back. The men want to get home, as do you, I'm sure.”
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“Fine.” said Lyra, clutching me up to her chest and following behind Gavin as he turned to lead the way.
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*She's warm. And… and soft. It's weird being held completely by someone else. But also comforting. It's nice.*
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“I hate these trips.” she said.
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“I know that, but they're necessary. And they're for your father.” explained Gavin.
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“I know. I just,” Lyra looked down at me as she slowly followed behind him, “I want to actually explore the world freely, not just be a messenger in his name. I'm thirty now!”
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“Thirty is still a baby in elf years and you know it.” Gavin snapped back. “What we do, we do for your safety.”
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*Thirty?! She looks like a teenager. But the way they're talking, she must be very important. Some kind of relations delegate maybe? There's still so much to learn about in this world.*
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“Quack.”
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“You too?” Lyra joked.
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Gavin turned back. He looked to be sizing me up and down.
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“What're you gonna name him? If it's to be your pet?”
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“I was thinking Duc. Duck without the ‘k’ but sounds like duke, the position.” suggested Lyra.
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*I never thought about having another name. I've been nameless for some time now.*
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"Quack!” I chirped out of agreement and Lyra smiled.
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“Huh, and uh, Duc? That duck really saved you though? He looks pretty ordinary to me.” he questioned.
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“Yeah, there's something special about him. He can use magic,” said Lyra petting my head once again.
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“Magic? You’ve got to be kidding!” exclaimed Gavin in disbelief.
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I didn’t know what to do without being threatening, so I tried something, hopefully harmless. I felt the air around Lyra and myself and pulled it inward through my nostrils, holding it in my mouth for a second to focus a small amount of mana. Then, I opened my mouth as the air jettisoned forward into Gavin's back, pushing him forward a little, but not enough to make him fall.
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“Quack.” I smirked.
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“What the hell? Well, that's new.” said Gavin in disbelief, “Of course you would wander and find the only magical duck in the world though.”
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“What's that supposed to mean?” Lyra asked pouting.
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“Nothing,” said Gavin with an uneasy smirk as he continued walking, “Just weird luck. Maybe…”
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“You're weird. Are we there yet?” sneered Lyra.
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Gavin looked ahead. It appeared he was looking for a marker to tell his way, “There. That fallen tree on that hillside. The men are camped on the otherside. See. We gave you a little leeway,” Gavin stated, pointing the way.
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“Hmph.” Lyra grunted. “It's just not the same as freely traveling on my own. I just want to see more of the world is all. I don't think that's too much to ask.”
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“I don't think so either. We're both burdened by obligation. However, life can be long for us. I'm sure you'll see plenty.”
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“Did you just call me a burden?”
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“Haha,” Gavin chuckled, hiding his face from Lyra and lead on up the hill.
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“How do you think the meeting went? I didn't ask because, really, I didn't care. But now that we're heading home, I'm afraid of disappointing my father,” asked Lyra, clutching me a little tighter.
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“You did your best. We obviously can't give them as many resources as they want, but you kept it civil and offered alternatives. The best we can do now is wait for their response. Hopefully they'll be understanding.” said Gavin.
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“Hopefully… I didn't like their King. He wanted too much. Nothing was a fair trade. He seemed, greedy.”
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“Well, he has just taken the throne. I'm sure he's learning. You handled him just fine,” doted Gavin.
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“The human kingdoms only ever want our ore for weapons to fuel their wars. We stay out of their conflicts, but they all want things from us. I don’t know how my father juggles it all,” said Lyra shaking with a bit of anxiety.
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We were over the hill and going down now. Trees covered the other side of the hill. It sounded like the men were being loud. Perhaps, throwing a celebration of some sort? However, the ground was shaking as well.
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“You'll learn too Lyra. You'll figure it out too. Just-” Gavin was cut off short as something big came out of the trees towards Lyra and I.
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Instinctively, I formed my defensive egg around the two of us. But it didn't matter. The force inflicted against us sent us barreling towards a tree. My egg shattered and I fell to the ground.
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I glimpsed what looked to be a giant ogre covered in armor, ripping apart the men we were going to meet. Gavin had drawn his blade, ready for a battle and I… I got dizzy. Faded to black
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End Part 4
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Author's Notes #2:
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Initially, I wanted this to be a simple, low stakes, slice of life fantasy, and while I've worked towards that, early on I felt the need for urgency. I wanted Duc to be a likeable character for sure and while just doing duck things and battling monsters could have been my main go to, I always intended for him to get out in the world and pair up with a heroine.
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While the beginning couple of parts hype up Duc and his power, I wanted to make sure you know this isn't one of those “over-powered” main character stories. Duc is fallible, not nearly as all powerful as he is described to be, and I think I really wanted to establish his mortality early on. He can get hurt. He can lose battles. The real question and obstacle was how to make him grow, especially when he has no one to talk to. Well, that's the beauty of the journey and growing in general. Just seeing how it all shakes out.☆
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𓅹𓅹𓅹𓅹𓅭𓅹𓅹𓅹𓅭𓅹𓅹𓅹𓅹
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Duck Fact #2: Ducks communicate vocally, that's how we all know of the quack, of course. But they actually communicate vocally even before they hatch! While in a nest with other eggs, this ability causes a more organized hatching, as they'll communicate to hatch at the same time. Also, ducks that live in a city have different accented and louder “Quacks” than country ducks!
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𓅹𓅹𓅹𓅹𓅭𓅹𓅹𓅹𓅭𓅹𓅹𓅹𓅹
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