Dread Mage

Sonder was on her second tree.

With each swing of the axe, her breath seemed to run out, but Hrygo urged her to go on.

There was no room for breaks.

Sonder complied. She had no other options but to obey everything her newly appointed 'Hersir' commanded.

Hrygo was the most formidable and towering woman Sonder had ever encountered, but her sheer height couldn't have been the only reason for her exceptional strength.

The women in Sonder’s village came in all sizes. The older ones tended to be plumper than the younger ones, but their farming lifestyle endowed them with strength exceeding that of an average woman.

Yet, even the strongest among them couldn't match Hrygo's power.

As Sonder toiled away at her tree, Hrygo was busy felling some of her own.

“We need firewood for cooking," she announced.

Approaching a tree, she gripped her axe single-handedly and, with a swift, powerful stroke, sliced it in half.

Sonder found this amazing, albeit somewhat expected.

Hrygo then kicked a stubborn tree, sending it crashing to the ground with a resounding thud.

She repeated this with two more trees before settling on one of the freshly created stumps to observe Sonder's progress.

“Two more after this one,” Hrygo instructed Sonder, “and then we haul them back.”

Despite her exhaustion, Sonder pressed on.

Her efforts were interrupted by the familiar voice of Vell, his steps rustling the foliage and gravel underfoot.

“How’s progress?” He asked.

“What did the chief want?” Hrygo wanted to know.

“He didn’t ask for a lot. Rather, he asked that something left,” Vell said.

“Presumably, you?” Hrygo probed.

“Indeed, indeed, and somehow I believe that I must comply.”

“Does that mean we have to leave?” Sonder wondered aloud.

“That implies that I must leave,” Vell clarified. “You, on the other hand, can stay and continue your training with Hrygo. What would I do here, meanwhile? Become a habitual smoker? No, I see this as a positive turn of events, for this gives me time to do something I think I must.”

“What?” Sonder asked, visibly perturbed.

“Well, that’s a surprise. By the way, I’ve left a few gifts for you in a trunk at Hrygo’s place, and Hrygo?” Vell addressed her.

“Yes?”

“Feel free to take anything from it for yourself, be it as a gift or payment. Regardless, they’re all of high value. How long do you reckon it’ll take to forge Sonder into someone more… robust?”

“A few months. Perhaps four or five months?” Hrygo speculated.

“I’ll give you six,” he said, embracing Sonder in a parting hug. “See you in six months, my precious blackbird.”