That decision was difficult, because I did not know to what extent we would have mutually exclusive winning conditions. Was it possible for both the Spiders and the non-Spiders on the team to earn enough points to count as a success?
If so, no problem. I could work with the Spiders to ensure we each had a partial success, and enough points to graduate.
If not, that would largely disqualify any sort of cooperative plan. I was not going to let myself fail for a friend, especially if that would mean sabotaging the majority of the group to do so.
So, I needed to know if a cooperative victory was possible before making any decisions in that regard.
Unfortunately, I had no way of knowing their goals yet, and I also didn’t know the exact details of how we were scored.
That meant I’d need to anticipate how the grading process worked and try to bet around that if I used that strategy.
I judged that strategy to be too much of a risk, at least for the moment.
My second decision to make was whether or not I was going to pretend to be a Spider.
I didn’t know if the Spiders were aware of each other’s identities or not. Similarly, I didn’t know if they were aware that people knew there were traitors in the group.
If they already knew each other, it was unlikely to work. Period.
If the Spiders didn’t know who each other were, and they were also unaware that there were people who knew about them, pretending to be a Spider and luring out the other Spider(s) somehow was potentially a viable strategy.
If they didn’t know each other, but they did know that other people knew about them, it was possible I could still pretend to be an additional “undisclosed” Spider.
For the moment, I considered the risks of that strategy too high for the potential rewards, but it was definitely an option to play that way later on.
We continued walking for a few hours. I chatted with people a bit, but not about anything important.
Desmond Vyers was apparently the leader for the other team, but Kyra was giving all the orders and he didn’t seem to care. I didn’t read too much into that; it wasn’t suspicious on its own.
Since Kyra was taking the role of coordinating the other team, she spent a lot of her time talking to Sera. They decided that we’d just have one person riding in each wagon at a time after realizing just how little room there was for anyone to sit with the boxes.
The first shift was Marissa and Jin. The leaders decided they wanted as many of the ranged combatants as possible outside, just in case they had to deflect magical attacks. It wasn’t a bad call.
The hours pressed on without incident, at least at first.
We stopped for a mid-day meal after several hours of walking. Kathy took care of feeding the horses.
The rest of us strategized.
I found Sera talking to Kyra again. Sera waved me over. “We’re talking about sending Vanniv to scout ahead.”
I considered that. “That’s definitely a way to get us some information. I’d be worried about how visible he’d be if he’s flying, though. If he comes back to you to report, it could give away our location.”
Kyra pointed up, and I followed her gesture. The tree cover was pretty thick. “People don’t usually look up very often. And even if they did, they’re going to have a hard time seeing through that canopy.”
I nodded in agreement. “Fair. Might be wise to have him circle around and land behind us or something, though, then fly low to the ground to get back to us. Just in case.”
“I can do that,” Sera replied. “He’s probably going to be happy just to be able to do anything. It’s been ages since I’ve summoned him for anything other than training.”
“Can he even tell? I mean, does he sense the passage of time when he’s not summoned?” If he could, that implied a degree of consciousness, even in an unsummoned state. That was…strange.
Sera seemed to come to the same conclusion, based on how her face contorted as she considered the answer. “He always sounds like he’s complaining about how long it’s been…but maybe that’s just his personality. I can’t see how he could be keeping track of anything unless he’s summoned.” She shook her head. “Anyway, not important right now. We can worry about the details of summoning theory later.”
“Right.” I was curious, though. “Okay, you summoning him right now?”
“May as well. We’ll probably be in a static location for a while. It shouldn’t take him long to scout the next ten miles or so of the road.”
Kyra nodded. “I concur. Go ahead.”
Sera clasped her hands together. “Vanniv, I summon you.”
The winged man of stone appeared at her side a moment later.
He was notably taller than last time. Meaning, of course, that he was back to being human height.
I admit to having been slightly disappointed. The tiny Vanniv was adorable.
“Ah! Excellent. You’ve finally decided to make use of me.” Vanniv beamed, glancing around. “What have we here? A forest, a few lovely maidens?”
“Fewer maidens than you’d think, karvensi.” Kyra replied. “Unless you’re talking about yourself.”
“Ooh, I like this one. She’s got bite.” Vanniv turned his head to Sera. “Can I keep her?”
Sera folded her arms. “Vanniv, don’t be creepy.”
Vanniv put a hand over his heart. “Creepy? Banish that thought from your mind, dear. I am the epitome of wit and charm. One should not mistake my debonair—”
“Quit it.” She poked a finger into his abdomen. “We’re on a timer here.”
“Aren’t you always?” He glanced around, then took in a deep breath. “Very well. I can appreciate the change of scenery, at least. What is this, Vanway?”
Sera nodded. “Surprised you know that.”
“Unlike some people, I have a broad body of experience. And a broad body in general.” He flexed his wings. And his muscles.
It was strange that his body moved like flesh, even though it seemed to consist of stone-like material. How did that work? Did he have ordinary muscles beneath that hardened skin?
I pondered that briefly while Sera filled him in on his assignment.
“Very well. I shall miss you while I’m away, my Summoner. And you as well, Miss…”
“I’m not telling you my name.” Kyra replied.
“That’s an unusual name to go by. Can I call you ‘Not Telling’ for short?”
“Just go, Vanniv.” Sera waved a hand. “Shoo.”
Vanniv rolled his eyes. “Always spoiling my fun. Very well, I’ll be off.”
He took a running start — which was entirely unnecessary, as far as I could tell — and jumped into the air, his wings beating and taking him into the sky.
With that distraction dealt with, I debated talking to Sera about what I knew. Unfortunately, Kyra was still with her, and Kyra was the single most likely person to be a Spider in my mind.
Kyra was both powerful for her age and had the Shadow attunement, which was the classic skill set for an infiltrator. Moreover, she was making executive decisions for her team in spite of not officially being the team leader.
Perhaps that was just an assertive personality at work, but it was certainly possible she was manipulating things deliberately so that the Spiders would have an advantage.
The fact that Sera was sharing information with her so openly was a concern.
Could Sera be a Spider herself?
It felt unlikely to me. I had a hard time believing any of my friends could have gone this far into the year without telling me something like that.
But Sera had always been ambitious and goal oriented. She had a keen strategic mind, even when we were young. Could someone have discovered her talents before the year started and selected her for the Spider Division?