Rays of the rising sun landed on the face of a teenage boy, as they filtered in through the cracks and holes of the dilapidated wood of the barn. The boy groaned as his eyebrows furrowed and his body began to roll around in the pile of hay he was currently using as a make shift bed. One eye cracked open and immediately shut as he rolled over and attempted to shove his head into the hay. It took him a few minutes to realize that he was in fact sticking his head straight into a pile of straw, and not his feather down pillow. The manure like smell sifting through the floor boards, however, was what got him to realize that he was definitely not in his room. His eyes flew open and in a split second the boy jumped up, with arms in the air, standing in what was presumed to be a defensive stance. His heart had leapt into his throat and he held his breath as he tried to remember where he was. He stood there, frozen in place as his brain tried to catch up with his movements.

It was another few minutes for him to realize that he was being an idiot.

His heart eventually sank back into its rightful place in his chest, and the rest of the boy’s body slowly sagged into the hay as he rubbed his eyes. Right. They were in May Weed, where they were supposed to meet this ‘Rudolf VanKirtschein’ guy. The boy yawned loudly, looking around the old barn they had slept in. What time was it?

His dark set of blue eyes glanced over at his companion who was still sleeping soundly, even as the light of the sun lit up her pale face. The boy crawled over to her, and grabbed her small shoulder, shaking her a bit. “Serie…Serie…Serna….Seeerrrrrrnnnnaaaaaaa!!!”

His shaking turned violent until the same dark blue eyes cracked open on his twin sister’s face. “Mmm?” She answered his voice with a mumble, and the boy grinned wide.

“C’mon Serna. It’s time to go. For a second I thought you weren’t going to wake up.” He laughed a bit, but it was tight and forceful. He pulled back from the girl, giving her space as he got to his feet and dusted hay off his clothes and hair. The teenage girl slowly sat up, with strands of hay stuck in her own long navy hair. She rubbed her eyes and winced as the sun hit her face.

“Is it late, Setna?” Her soft voice was lulled with sleep and she stumbled a bit as she stood up.

“No, but better early than late.” Setna answered her as he picked up his blade. He unsheathed it for a moment, staring at the clean metal. He rubbed his thumb over the engraved elvish words and quickly sheathed it into its scabbard with a clacking sound.

“Are you sure it was right of you to take that Set? It was father’s…” Serna looked at him and then the blade as she combed through her hair with her fingers, picking out stray bits of straw.

The boy shrugged as he attached the scabbard to the belt across his waist. “He was going to give it to me for our birthday. I just took it a bit early.”

He gave his sister a cheeky grin and grabbed his silver shield which he attached across his back. Next was his cloak, which he draped over his shoulders, beneath his armor plates. He rolled his shoulders a bit and stretched until a few pops were heard. “Aaahh...that’s more like it. Let’s go, let’s go, let’s go!”

He walked over to the ladder, grabbed the side rails and slid all the way down from the loft to the ground floor of the barn. Serna just stood there for a moment before gently sighing. She rubbed her eyes as she chose to go down the safe way, one rung at a time. When she reached the bottom, Setna was already there, holding the reins to their horse Deetri.

He gave her the same cheeky grin. “Ready? It’s probably best to walk him.”

Setna handed her the reins, and Serna cooed a soft good morning to the black and white horse. She rubbed his muzzle with her free hand, and then gently pulled on the leather reins to lead him forward. Serna followed her brother as they exited the old abandoned barn and headed into the sunlight of the new morning.

It didn’t take them long to find the main road and Setna pulled out a hand drawn map he had made on the back of the original advertisement. “It should just be beyond these hills. The last couple we ran in to said we couldn’t miss it, right? It was supposed to have the giant tree or something…”

He grumbled a bit as he continued walking, turning the map this way and that, obviously unable to read his own handwriting. Serna watched his back as he walked. He had grown quite a bit in the four years she had been away. She hadn’t noticed it until now, and as she continued to follow him, her lips slowly shifted into a frown. This was her last chance to try and convince him to go home.

Yesterday she had brought up their parents, how their mother would be worried about him. He had snapped at her then and would probably snap at her now, but there had to be some way she could convince him. He was going to get himself killed, and it would be her fault. Her small hand tightened its grip on Deetri’s reins and she bit her bottom lip. “Setna…”

The boy sighed in exasperation, knowing exactly what she was going to say and why. “Really Serie? Again?”

He looked back at her in annoyance, and Serna shifted her dark blue eyes away from his face. “But what if…What if the gods become angry at us?”

The teenage boy rolled his eyes. “Oh so now it’s the gods? Well, why don’t we ask them?”

He looked around wildly for his target and after finding the perfect tree he ambled up to the highest branch that could hold his weight. Serna flushed in embarrassment, looking around to make sure no one else was close by to witness the upcoming humiliating display.

“Oh great Gods of Creation and Destruction!” Setna shouted up to the sky, his arms spread wide. “I have taken your precious sacrifice and intend to make sure that she lives into old age! Until she is so old and wrinkly that no one will come visit her because she’s so ugly! If this displeases you, please… smite me where I stand!”

Serna hid her face in Deetri’s side, completely embarrassed, as Setna continued to hold his arms up to the sky.

“EH? EH?” He looked around, completely inviting the gods’ wrath to strike him down, but nothing came.

Instead he jumped down and brushed himself off. “Well then, glad that’s settled, right? Complete rubbish…”

He took the reins from Serna and continued walking, leading Deetri himself. The teenage girl pursed her lips in embarrassment and sadness. She knew he was doing this for her sake. She knew that. But couldn’t he see that she was just trying to help him too? He didn’t have to be so overdramatic… Serna quietly followed after her brother, staring at the ground.

After a good walk, they finally caught sight of May Weed Village. What first caught them by surprise was the giant tree in the center of the small town, which stretched all the way up to the sky above. As they came closer to the village, they realized its trunk was gigantic, and the townspeople had incorporated their homes within the roots of the tree itself. Flowers were growing everywhere, along the road they traveled, across the roots of the tree and even out of the houses along the way.

Setna slowed down until Serna was beside him and he gently took her hand into his. He looked at her and smiled. “This is the start.”

Serna did her best to smile back. “R-Right…”

Setna’s grin grew wider and he looked up at the sky. “We still got time, want to poke around a bit?”

He didn’t give her much of an option as he immediately led her and Deetri into the middle of town. There was a trade bazar going on with different merchants opening up booths to display their products. Setna dragged his sister around until he came across one booth selling fabric, clothing items and boots. Letting go of Serna’s hand, he grabbed a cloak and held it up to the girl’s small frame.

Serna flushed a bit as she hissed at her brother. “Set… We don’t have money…”

The boy’s lips quirked into a sly grin. “Doesn’t mean we can’t make a trade.” He turned his head to the merchant of the booth. “Excuse me?”

He rummaged around a bit, his hands fiddling with his belts. Finally he held up a sheathed dagger. “Any way we can make a trade for a cloak?”

He set the dagger down and the merchant looked at him, then the dagger, then back to him. He lifted the knife and unsheathed it. He held it up to the morning sun, watching the light glimmer off the steel. Setna waited eyes anxious until finally the merchant smiled. “Deal.”

Setna smiled back and grabbed the cloak. He returned to his sister, and wrapped the fabric around her shoulders. “This will keep you warm and protected. I’d get you another dress if I could, but this will have to do.”

Serna felt her eyes water as she held the cloak over her simple white dress, used by all the women of the Syndarean religious sect. The fabric was warm and soft, and the girl pulled it closer around her body. “Thank you…and I’m sorry.”

Setna rubbed her cheeks, squishing them together until Serna made a fish face. “Enough of that. I’m here because I want to be. Now, take this too, it’s my last one.”

The boy held out another sheathed dagger, and Serna took it with cautious hands. She held it tightly, and looked at it with somber eyes. Setna knew what she was thinking and patted her head. “I’m not saying you’ll have to use it. But it’s good to have… Now come on, let’s head to that inn.”

Serna nodded and took the reins of Deetri, leading the horse along as she followed her brother. They walked around aimlessly for a while until they stumbled upon the Flower Gin Inn. They were both surprised they had missed it in the first place, seeing as the sign took up more than half of the front of the building. “Stay here.” Setna mumbled to his sister as he stepped into the inn.

The front room was being used as a bar and a few men were already huddled around their beers, hunched at their tables. Setna probably would have found them a bit more intimidating, if it wasn’t for their mugs of beer that were covered in hand painted flowers.

He approached the counter where a giant man was standing, cleaning old mugs with a cloth. Setna cleared his throat, making his voice deep as he asked. “I’m looking for Rudolf VanKirtschein.”

The bartender raised an eyebrow. “Out back.”

Setna looked confused, his voice becoming boyish again as he answered, “What?”

The bartender pointed to the back door and then continued to ignore him. Setna stared at him for a moment, before cautiously venturing over to the wooden door. He opened it slowly to reveal the back side of the inn where caravans of five or so oxen were hooked up to their own carts. The carts were covered by some type of canvas, keeping their items concealed.

Setna stepped outside, placing a hand on the hilt of his blade as he called out, “Hello?”

A thunderous and deep voice echoed out from one of the carts. “Coming! I’m coming, hold on.”

The teenager swallowed hard, expecting a monster of a man to suddenly appear out of nowhere. Instead, he got the opposite…

Rudolf VanKirtschein barely came up to Setna’s midsection. His white hair was thinning on the top of his head, and his chin was covered by a massive beard that reached all the way down to his potbelly. His stubby arms crossed as he looked up at the teenager with dark squinty eyes. “Why, you’re nothing more than a boy!”

Setna couldn’t help but look down at the man with a slacked jaw, completely awestruck. How could someone actually be that short? Was this a joke? Was this the gods’ way of smiting him? Here and now?

Rudolf walked around the boy, mumbling to himself and poking different spots on Setna’s body. Eventually he reached up and grabbed onto Setna’s face, forcing him down to eye level. They stared at each other in silence, with Setna wondering what in the gods’ names was happening. Finally Rudolf let go, and stood in front of the boy once more. He made his final judgment. “You won’t do. Go back to your mother child.”

The boy was immediately forced out of his thoughts with those words. His eyes widened as he said. “What? Surely you can’t be serious… I’ve traveled all this way… I’ve trained with a sword my entire life, I’m more than capable to do this. Besides my sister—.”

“Sister!?” The short man perked up completely, his dark eyes lighting up. “Why didn’t you say so earlier my boy! Have her come around! Hurry now!”

Setna turned silent, dark eyes looking down at the little man with clear suspicion. “Ok…”

He slowly backed off, a stern gaze on his face as he continued to watch the old man. Finally, he walked around the inn and beckoned for Serna to come around. Once she did, she was immediately accosted by Rudolf who took her hand in his and kissed it. “My, what a lovely lass. Come, come, sit, sit!”

He led her to a barrel where she sat down slowly, and looked at her brother with a mixture of confusion and fright. Rudolf was completely unabashed as he said, “You two strangers are the first to arrive! Tell me lass, what’s your lovely name?”

Rudolf seemed to bat his eyelashes at Serna, who swallowed uncomfortably. “Um…” She looked at her brother again before her gaze roamed back to the old man. “M-My name is Serna Roan…and this is my twin brother… Setna.”

The old man looked from one twin to the other. “How remarkable! A set of twins! Why you have the same eyes, hair and even the same face. Although your face, my dear, is soft and feminine, full of youth! Whereas your brother’s…” Rudolf looked at Setna with squinty eyes. “Is fat.”

Setna had had just about enough of this old lecher as he walked up to him and picked Rudolf up by the collar, rage in his voice. “Listen here! You shriveled up old midget—.”

“Midget!? How dare you! I will have you know that I am a dwarf! The tallest of my family!” Rudolf shouted back and before Serna could even understand what was happening, the two were having a screaming match.

“Lecherous old fat pig!”

“Ignorant dribbling child!”

Serna held her hands up. “P-Please…stop fighting…” Her voice was too soft though, as the two stubborn men continued their insults.

---

“Thank the gods that you arrived Miss Aaerynn! What would we have done without you?”

An elf exited a small May Weed home, holding a bag of gold coins in one hand and brushing herself off with the other. “Oh I know. It was truly the work of the gods that led me here today. It was likely your little girl would have passed on if it weren’t for my medicine.”

The elf turned to watch as a human woman came out of the house sobbing. “We’re blessed this day! Oh thank you miss…thank you!”

The she-elf gave a sickly sweet smile, her voice like wind chimes as she said. “But of course. Thank you for your generous donation to my studies. Give the girl a day or two and she’ll be able to eat some solid foods once more.”

She then turned on her heel, leaving the blubbering woman by herself. Flicking some strands of her blonde hair behind her pointed ear, she opened the small bag and counted the coins inside. “Mmm…not as much as I wanted, but good enough.”

Aaerynn Lightweld turned the corner to where her horse was tied to an old fence post. The brown and white speckled mare gave a stomp of her feet and snorted loudly in disapproval. Aaerynn frowned, as she untied the horse’s reins. “Don’t give me that Baineth. It’s how I afford those apples you like, or would you rather continue eating dead grass?”

The horse flicked her ears back and Aaerynn gave a smirk. “That’s what I thought. Besides it’s their own stupidity… She should have just waited a few days, the little girl would have been fine on her own.”

She began leading the horse to the middle of town. “Ugh the disgusting woman got snot on me.” The elf rubbed viciously at the leather of her tunic, ice blue eyes turning cold. “Sickening...”

Aaerynn looked up at the sky with a disgruntled face. The sun had already reached its highest; if she didn’t hurry she’d be late. She’d have to deal with the revolting stain later on. The elf mounted her horse and urged her on with a pat on her side. “Let’s go Baineth.”

Baineth stamped her hooves before entering into a gallop. “That a girl.” Aaerynn grinned, as they headed for the Flower Gin Inn.

May Weed. It seemed to be quite peaceful area. The people were going at their things, mostly with smiles, some with frowns. It was so appeasing, at least for the elf of the desert. These wooded areas with small communities were so different from the vast lands of the Aavikkanians… There was no constant fight and search for survival. Elrithos was probably exaggerating a little bit now, since these times were better for his kind. The desert elves had finally managed their way back north of the desert, settling into their more promising lands for any kind of agriculture and trades with the kingdoms up north, pass the mountains. Time was given them back their gift of a second chance.

Elrithos had come into the village two days before the time they were asked to arrive. To say he had fallen onto this offer by pure luck, while visiting some friends from the elven forests. One of his friends had received this offer and when it spoke of the other continent, Elrithos knew it was maybe time to see what has happened with their home land and their rivals. And so, with the help of one of the elves, he was brought to this town for the offer. He could not spit on this opportunity to finally have an idea on what was going on over there. The council would also surely be quite happy with this offer, both of wealth and of interest.

That morning of the reunion, he spent it with the company of Lissandra, an elven woman who he had met years ago, before the war had even started with the Dark Emperor. Quite a friendship they had developed, one that distance would never break. Sitting amongst the people of the Flower Gin Inn, at their own table, they were discussing of this departure with light heart.

Elrithos took another swig of the lake water this village collected. He had to say, it was not as good as the oasis in the desert, but not too far. His smile didn’t fade away as he spoke to Liss, his voice quite odd for an elf… Much deeper and not as soothing as those of the Wood elves. “This journey is a calling Lissandra, one that my people have been waiting for a long time.”

The elven lady had this gentle, light expression of joie in her face as the finger ran along the mug covered in flower paintings. The voice of this elf was so much more melodic and soft. “It is a shame to see you go Quicksilver. My village will miss your visits.”

Elrithos shook his head, laying back into his chair. “I will be coming back. I simply won’t be coming back so soon. This journey cannot be any more dangerous than what I have been doing for 200 years.”

“Come back in one piece, friend. It would be a shame to see you go so young.” They both laughed lightly as they drank from their mugs, making a toast to his well-being. It was shortly after that they heard the name of the man who offered the deal, both of the elves turning their heads towards the new arrival. A young man, dressed like a warrior of the road. Elrithos finished his mug and laid it on the table, pulling out a few coins of the kingdom for the meal and expenses for the day. “It is time my dear friend. Good luck with your people.”

Both got up and embraced each other, then came to a solid handshake. “Come back Quicksilver. I want to see you again.” Elrithos simply nodded his head. It was good enough for the elven lady before she said her goodbyes and walked off from the Inn. The Aavikanian him went up to his room that he had paid for the past two nights to gather his supplies and equipment. He started by a change of clothes, putting back a thicker version of the long beige pants and white tunics of his people. He then arranged to put his Aavi Steel chainmail upon himself. It looked harder than it actually is to do. It weighed much less than its common steel counterpart and was slightly more durable and resistant to rust. He packed the rest up, putting the Elven Longblades back onto his belt and his Aavikanian double Scimitar on a leather strap going across his back.

He proceeded back down to the main room and handed back they keys with a greatly thanks to the Inn keeper. It would be the start of a new journey. One he would surely appreciate. He made his way to the back of the Inn, as noted earlier by the bartender. He made it through the door, but stopped right after, looking upon a scene with a slight disappointment. He could see Rudolf, the merchant who asked for them. He didn’t know him personally, but the Inn Keeper had informed him a little on the dwarven man. He was arguing with a young human, the warrior of the road he had seen earlier… He could hear the insults going back and forth, with a lady trying to break it up.

Elrithos approached them slowly, a calm but pleasant expression on his face. He came up to both of them, a few feet away in sign of respect and not wanting to really butt in too much. “Please! Why must you insult one another like this?” His tone was very stern but nothing authority. It was more a demand as someone who simply did not wish to see this. “I would imagine we would have to travel this long journey together, so such behavior would certainly bring nothing but misery.”

Hoping that this has helped in calming the situation down, he bowed lightly towards the three of them, speaking more lightly to present himself. “I am Elrithos Quicksilver. I was hoping that I could join along in this journey to the other continent.” The brown haired Aavikanian straightened himself to come closer and offer a firm handshake to each of them. He simply wished that this fight would just move on and that they could discuss in a more enjoyable way.

____________________________________________________________________________________

A chance to let his creations be known to the world… Vordan simply couldn’t believe he would have a chance to actually do so without the fear of being executed or worse. It wasn’t easy to be one with magical abilities that are looked down upon in most of these kingdoms. In a way, he could understand the fear and misconception of this power. The Dark Emperor had made magic the bane of this existence, like a curse on mortal beings. Simply, he believed that that time was far ago and that they could move on and just control those who wield the magic instead of getting rid of them in any way possible. He could appreciate how the Kingdom of Ellahur went to remove all the mages, even though it was a shameful waste of talent and utility. If only times could change…

The mercenary had been given a ride with some merchants that had been heading for this town of May Weed. A much appreciated gesture of their part, one that he had compensated them with a few coins. It was easy travels to this part of the kingdom… The day he laid his eyes upon the letter, he jumped on the occasion to find this caravan and merchant and move on with a new life! The joys of simply making his magic infused items and sell them for those in need were remarkable. He had never done it before, but he could simply imagine this being so great. A new life, a new way of seeing things. Wonderful.

The wagon had rolled into the town market and Vordan got off, thanking the merchants for the ride. He waved at them for the goodbyes and then went off to find the Inn where he had to meet up with this group. He had made sure to keep his six-shot crossbow hidden in a rolled up sheet of soft fabric hanging from his backpack. Without any tasks or work, it didn’t need to be out in the open for someone to start interrogating him about it. He didn’t know what they did to the mages in these regions, but he would not take the chance to find out.

He made a few stops to a few merchant’s stalls, buying materials that most would never associate together, but were all plans and schematics that were going through the Maker’s head. He would be able to craft new items with the stuff he found around this area… But he wondered if he would ever have the time to do so now. If he would be traveling with people, he wouldn’t be alone for very long. He would see, maybe they won’t mind too much after a while.

Once his supplies and materials were up to par, he searched the town for the Inn, found it within minutes of looking around. What a nice looking place and lovely looking town. He would have enjoyed staying a little, but hey, duty called! With that, he made his way inside, seeing the few men around simply going to their things… He was about to ask to meet this Rudolf guy, but the bartender was quicker on the trigger and answered his question.

“He’s in the back.” Vordan thought he probably looked the part of a mercenary and traveler, so then the man had probably known of his comings that day. Vordan smiled and nodded his head, going towards the back from the front door… He moved along around the building and arrived, didn’t say anything as he approached with a simple smile. There were a few people… Probably at the right place, seeing those around. What surprise awaited him now?

"Ugh". Caelis muttered in the bed. The sound of a rooster crowing in the distance woke him. He was far from a morning person, but ever since he started travelling. Caelis had become a light sleeper. It was dangerous to snore through the night when camped out in the wild, and that was a lesson that he had to learn quickly. Caelis afforded himself the comfort of staying in his bed for a few minutes longer before he finally got up from the bed. He opened his eyes only to just see various blurry blobs. Still he could see the light starting to peek in from the window. Caelis went through the motion of preparing his stuff. When it came time to prepare his sword. He stopped. He took the sheathed blade into his hands, and just held it in silence. Several moments passed until he finally tied the sheath to his belt.

When Caelis finished, he looked at the other bed on the other side of the room. Under the blanket was a small lump. Caelis walked up to the bed, placed his hand on the small lump and shook. "Ehhh" A moan came from under the blanket, but nothing else. Caelis then took a bit more physical action and drew the blanket back, revealing a girl with white hair. She was curled up in a ball much like a cat. The girl without moving said in an irritated tone "Gimme fiv' minutes, ye damned slave driver..." and promptly fell silent again, falling back to her peaceful slumber.

Caelis couldn't help but smile slightly. Faith had grown to replace her accent after travelling with Caelis. He had spent time teaching her how to speak properly, using his upbringing as a noble as a basis. She now talked like a normal girl. When she wanted to, she could talk as if she were some sort of young lady. But, whenever she was very tired or feeling a strong emotion, she would unconsciously revert back to her old form of speech. It was a comedic contrast. A girl having the vocabulary of a old country bumpkin. This was a small delight that Caelis frequently enjoyed.

Caelis said "Come on, Faith. Remember how I said we need to meet some people today? I told you that it's not polite to be late." Faith groaned and slowly sat up. She took a minute to stare blankly at the floor until she finally stood up. Faith lumbered over to the washbasin and splashed her face with the water. She whipped her head back and brightly said "Okay! Let's go." Although Faith was a heavy sleeper, she quickly woke up from her grogginess and therefore was a morning person, the antithesis of Caelis.

Caelis replied "Okay, downstairs for a light breakfast, and then our day really begins." Faith agreed. They picked up their packs, and left the comfort of the bedroom.

---

Caelis found himself picking at some eggs while Faith was taking her time. Alternating between eating and humming some tune that she had in her mind. They were interrupted by the barkeep who came up and said "So, you two are leaving today?" Caelis responded "Yes." "Ahh, that's a shame. You two drew some attention last night. It was a good night for me to be in business. Well, where ever it is that you go. Just know that if you find yourselves back in May Weed, then this inn will be always open to you two." Caelis smiled back and thanked him.

As the barkeep walked away, Faith piped up and said "Where are we going?" Caelis responded "During our break last night, I heard some men talk about a caravan. They're trying to reach Novan City. I was thinking that it would be interesting to go there." Faith replied "Novan City? Isn't that across the ocean?" Caelis nodded. Faith made some sort of noise as if she were thinking about something complex until she finally said "Okay! So, is that why we're travelling with a group this time?" Caelis replied "It's a long journey, so having some help is always nice. Strength in numbers as they say." Faith, content with Caelis' answers, returned to her food and humming. Caelis felt bad. He didn't tell Faith the entire truth, but he knew that Faith would refuse to travel to Novan City if she knew what Caelis was thinking. So, he remained ambiguous about their final destination. After all, he had the better part of a year until he had to tell Faith the truth. Until then, he would try to enjoy every second of their last journey together.

Caelis finished his eggs, and asked Faith, who at this point was just humming, "Should we get this show on the road?" Faith got up from her chair and said "Ready when you are." Caelis got up, left a few coins for the meal, and the two walked out into the morning light. The Village of May Weed was a tranquil little place. Filled with windy roads that were built around and sometimes on top of hills. The people were starting their day, and progressively, life began to emerge. Soon after they began walking, the town was busy with people tending to their homes, field, or whatever job that they had to accomplish. Faith saw people lugging bundles of wood, tilling their fields, washing windows, and weaving cloth. Caelis heard the sound of a hammer bashing metal into place, a saw cutting through a tree, and a blade screeching on a grindstone. Life was busy in May Weed, but simplistic. This village had a unique charm to it.

After a walk through the village, they finally arrived at their destination, the Flower Gin Inn. However, Caelis could hear a commotion coming from the back of the Inn. It sounded like others had arrived before them. Caelis began to walk around the back of the Inn with Faith in tow. Needless to say, they didn't exactly know what type of people they would be travelling with. However, there was one thing for sure. They were a rowdy bunch. This last journey seemed to be quite interesting already.

Strands of fiery red hair whipped with the wind revealing eyes bright as the sky. Tirian brought his toned frame to face the rising sun of May Weed Village, a quaint and seemingly quiet village far north on Furus. What a long and tiring wait it had been for the young heir of two empires. Tirian needed the right moment that would allow him to return home and face the inevitable destiny bound to this soul. Home. A hand suddenly came to the temple of a pained and distraught young man. The thought of that very same day dug into his mind. Emotions of being useless and incapable of protecting even a single person clashed with his stern pride. Every memory sought out to tear down this young man, and yet he stands strong against the elements of reality while continuing to seek his vengeance against a tyrant of the east.
Only a moment of gloom hung overhead as Tirian brought himself to a straight and proper posture. A moment of hesitation passed before the methodical clacking of scabbard pulsed into the air. With grace and motivation the young man walked forward, his destination was an Inn where he would meet Rudolph Van something or another. Names of others hadn't and needn't be important for this journey. He’d grown to be cold and shelled from live, never letting another soul into his life. Tirian found himself to be quiet and unassuming, while keeping to his own mind.

Fifteen, maybe twenty minutes of silence and striding brought Tirian the Flower Gin Inn much later than initially intended. The sun had only just hit high point as the rays of unbearable heat began to slam down unto the young prince's forehead causing beads of sweat to run down his face. Tirian pushed the door open and quickly eyed the room for threats. None. The room had been quite full, all but one seat had been preoccupied with drunken men and women of all races.

“A pint of your finest mead.”

Tirian took the open seat as he placed some coin atop the bar’s counter. Quickly the noise of inaudible chatter came to a sudden and silent stop. There was something odd about this seat and how everyone reacted in unison to a stranger taking it for his own. The bartender placed a glass of mead in front of the red-haired man with visible shaking hands. No more than ten seconds passed before the door to Flower Gin exploded open revealing a mountain of a man. Feet heavier than the world crashed down unto the wooden floors with loud creaking under the stress of this monstrous man. Where should he stop, of course it had been the very same seat Tirian had ‘stolen’.

“Get up before I break you into small portions.”

Lips parted open only to take a swig of the marvelous mead. Tirian paid no mind to the territorial and obviously immature beast. The room remained silent as night as the man grabbed the pint glass and poured the expensive drink over the head over Tirian. Suds dripped down the young prince's cheeks unto the floor. The room had been silent enough to hear the mead dripping to the ground.

“Last chance pipsqueak. Get up or I’ll snap yer bones.”

Tirian wasted no time with his retaliation, quickly bringing his sword’s scabbard into the man’s crotch with enough momentum and force to bring this mountain a few inches into the air. One fluid motion led to the next as Tirian spun into a vicious elbow sending his opponent to the ground without conscious thoughts. Every single person in the bar felt their jaws drop to the ground. Beautiful orbs colored of a bright blue simply passed from man to man until landing back unto the bartender. Slender hands reached for more coin to place on the counter for another drink.

“A second glass if you will.”

And as if nothing had ever happened the prince took what was now his seat remained patient and peaceful. Surely the old dwarf would know his star customer was here and come see an old friend.

“I would imagine we would have to travel this long journey together, so such behavior would certainly bring nothing but misery.”

At the sudden commanding voice, both dwarf and boy immediately shut up. They looked at the new face with wide eyes and Setna’s hands dropped the dwarf to his feet. They glanced at each other, a dark glare of annoyance before taking in the new stranger as he introduced himself to be Elrithos Quicksilver.

As Elrithos extended his hand, Rudolf shook it eagerly. “An Aavikanian! I can smell the desert on you, what an honor it is to have you join me on this journey! Your help will be most necessary as we cross your deserts!”

Setna glared at the back of the dwarf’s head, who was suddenly showing nothing but respect. Really? Perverted old dwarf…

Setna’s dark eyes took in the new stranger and he tilted his head. Elrithos was certainly…different. Setna had never seen a person dressed in such a way before, but as the teenager noticed the man’s weapons he was surprised to see a hand extended toward him as well. Setna looked at it cautiously for a second, before looking up at the man’s grass green eyes. Slowly, the teenager shook the elf’s hand and then let it drop.

Removing himself from the situation, he returned to his sister’s side. Serna gave him a disapproving look and Setna just shrugged it off, looking away stubbornly.

It wasn’t long before another stranger showed up. Both Setna and Serna looked over to the new addition. He was tall, covered in armor and leather and straps. He didn’t look quite as strange as the Elrithos fellow and he came up to everyone with a smile, but Serna found herself slipping her hand into her brother’s.

Just as the tall man showed up, two more followed suit, a man side by side with a small white haired girl. Setna sat up a bit straight upon seeing the small girl, who was incredibly pretty yet strange looking. Her ears were pointed like an elf and she was covered in pretty jewelry and make up. It was hard to tell exactly what she was. Both twins turned silent as their eyes shifted to all the new faces. They had never interacted with this many diverse people. How exactly were they supposed to act?

Setna squeezed his sister’s hand as his shoulders grew tense.

However, Rudolf was again unabashed. His squinty eyes took in the new men with disapproval, but slight regard. He lit up however upon seeing the young elf looking girl, and did not stop himself from making himself acquainted.

“What a lovely young miss!” The old dwarf took her small hands in his rough ones. “I am honored to be a witness to such a pretty face! Come, come introduce yourselves.”
His eyes shifted to the other two men who had shown up as well, his face showed his slight disappointment. “And I suppose I should hear your names as well.”

---

After everyone was introduced, there was a commotion in the bar…

It seemed Elrithos had been able to convince these new comrades to put aside he insults for now. The dwarven man had taken his hand with a firm and agitated fashion. The man proved to be quite joyful of the news of an Aavikanian joining his journey to the old continent. He mentioned going through their deserts, which meant this would be quite a long road to get to the port city for a boat. He could imagine there was none of them around this part of the world that would bring them all the way there. Quicksilver smiled back to the man, responding in a more simple fashion now. “It will be an honor to aid you through the deserts down south. I will be able to contact my brothers and sisters of the desert to make our journey much easier through the sands.”

With that, he then turned to the young man who had picked up the dwarf and presented his hand to him. The response wasn’t as quick and eager as the dwarf. He had seen his eyes wonder to the blades on his belt. He didn’t have your typical broadsword, actually had a great disadvantage in these lands. The steel armors made it very hard for his blades to do much. He had to adjust many years ago, having adapted to these heavier sets of protection. The grip between the two didn’t last very long. The young man didn’t even utter a word, simply walking off to join his sister. This one was more reserved, definitely quite young. Maybe he was an able warrior; it would be something to see…

His next action would have been to see the young woman and shake her hand, but there were new arrivals once more. The first arrival, a human being, quite tall and fit, with multiple pieces of leather, steel, a large backpack… A lot of things. It was hard to say what else he had on him, but he didn’t seem to lack any kind of thing. An impress figure really, Elrithos could see that. Two others followed behind him a few seconds after, but this time, a man and a child. A child? How odd… He highly doubted the merchant would take her on along… until he saw Rudolf going forward with an excited glee to the young lady. Well then, maybe he would be wrong.

The Aavikanian came forth and shook the armored man`s hand, which he took with a firm but casual grip. Elrithos smiled lightly as he did. “Elrithos Quicksilver.” The man nodded as he answered back. “Vordan Dawarum.” They both let go and Elrithos proceeded to give the same kind of approach with the older man that had come with the child, coming forth to give a firm handshake. “Elrithos Quicksilver.” At this moment, he turned towards the Inn, haring the commotion coming from the inside… We, he more or so noticed the instant silence that came from within… That wasn’t very common to get a sudden silence, even if doing a speech or such… What had happened? The tall armored man seemed to be the first one to jump into the situation, going back around the wall with a quick step.

---

The first few of these people was quite a surprise for the mercenary. The most evident one was the small bearded man. It wasn’t common for them to come out of their mountains and underground cities, but it wasn’t unseen either. Their minerals and various stone works were worth quite a lot and had their uses. Coming from a family of stone carvers, he had a good idea on how great the quality of their stone is. He now wondered if he was the man who asked for the men, because the others around…

The second most evident was the elven man who looked like he had come back from the hottest plains of the desert. An Aavikanian, outside of the desert and all the way up north in the forest? This seemed to be nothing more than a dream or a nightmare… It couldn’t possible. He scratched his head and really couldn’t imagine this “crew” being nothing more than a group of odds and ends. The next two… nothing more than children almost. What in the celestial plains were they doing here? Yes, one of the two looked to be a warrior of some sort. A little young, but you never knew. The girl, she seemed to be nothing more than a common girl. They weren’t going to be taking care of kids now, were they?

At that notion, he heard strangers arrive behind him Two others members… One of them being a little elven girl. Were they serious now? Vordan almost seemed confused, scratching his scalp. The man seemed to be in good shape… Although really, this made no sense. He would be nice, and probably will still be, but looking over children is not his game. The dwarven man approached the little girl instantly, talking and everything. Vordan hadn’t notice that disapproving looks from Rudolf nor would it really matter. He sighed lightly, the Aavikanian approaching to greet himself… But his voice, he was definitely not a wood elf. As his hand rose, Vordan met him with his own, smiling lightly.

“Vordan Dawarum” It was a quick handshake, but a good one. As that moment, the dwarven man also asked for their names, in which he elaborated a little more. “I am Vordan Dawarum, mercenary by trade. I come from the mighty Kingdom of Ellahur. I was hoping to tag…” He didn’t finish his sentence, hearing the sudden silence in the Inn… What had happened? Vordan didn’t even wait as he went off back towards the entrance, rolling inside to notice what had happened. He followed all the eyes to the man on the ground and the young man at the bar… What the hell? There seemed to be nothing more than a minor fight… Not a big deal. His question was how the young man got the brute of a man to the ground… See the man holding his crotch area… He approached towards the bar, laying a hand on the shoulder of the young man.

“If you’re going to fight, at least keep it over the belt. That’s some dirty moves you pulled…”

He was being quite serious. He did not even pay attention to the others around, still looking towards the young man. He wondered what the next move would be…

The scene that Caelis and Faith walked into was... interesting to say the least. Caelis could tell that some of the people present were not getting along well already based on the arguing that he heard as he walked to the back of the Inn. However, he was thrown off by what he believed was an older dwarf who quickly made himself a bit too familiar with Faith. Caelis put his hand on Faith's shoulder and pulled her slightly closer to him. He then said "Master Dwarf, I assume that you are the one who owns the caravan. My name is Caelis, and [b]I[/] am Faith's guardian." placing emphasis on the word I. He then continued "I hope you don't mind, but years on the road have made me a bit...wary of people who exhibit such interest in Faith." in an attempt to politely warn Rudolf to not get so close to Faith especially when they had just met and didn't know each other. Caelis was one to not trust anyone unless he spent a lot of time with them.

Faith on the other hand was a bit surprised by the overly eager dwarf, but she soon gathered her composure. After hearing Caelis speak, she scolded at him "Don't be mean to the short, old man. You're the one who told me that everyone should respect their elders'." She then turned back to the Dwarf and said with a smile "Hello, my name is Faith." The Dwarf seemed nice enough. Although he seemed a bit too excited to see Faith, she couldn't sense any ill intent so far. If anything, he seemed to be your typical jolly, old man.

Faith then took the opportunity to look at everyone else who they would be traveling with. The man closest to them was a youngish looking man who wore quite a bit of armor. However, his relative youth did not cover his combat experience. He had the stance of a fighter, and looked very capable of handling himself in a fight. However, the most peculiar thing that Faith noticed about this man was the fact that he was missing a few of his fingers! The sight made Faith shiver slightly. This man had seen a lot in his life already, and had a bit of a rough appearance. But, his eyes gave away the fact that he isn't a sadist who fights for pleasure. No, he had eyes similar to many of the good farms boys that Faith had seen in her travels with Caelis.

The next figure of note was what appeared to be another elf! However, he wasn't a woodland elf that one would somewhat commonly see in the area. Rather, this elf was very tanned compared to most elves, and looked like he had spent time under a strong sun. Thus, it was needless to say that this was a Desert Elf. Faith had never met one although she did hear stories of them, and appeared that the stories were pretty accurate. The desert elf looked very sturdy, which was likely due to the time that he had spent in the merciless desert. In addition, he carried a unique weapon with him. It wasn't like anything that Faith had seen before. Still, the desert elf didn't seem like mean company. Rather, he seemed focused on something. Exactly what? Faith couldn't tell. Still, he looked very capable of taking care of himself as well.

Then, there was what seemed another pair. "Twins!" Faith thought. Today was a great day. This was the first time that she had ever seen twins in her life as well. They looked very similar and they were pretty young, but still older than Faith. One was a boy while the other was a girl. The boy...well. Looked like a boy. He carried himself with all his gear somewhat comfortably, but it was obvious that he had not traveled that much nor had he been in many fights. Faith couldn't help but wonder why he was here. Especially with what appeared to be his sister. Faith then looked at the girl. She was pretty especially with her long hair. Faith was a bit jealous cause she had to keep her hair short and didn't have time to take care of her hair. But, the sister looked frail. Faith wasn't sure if she had ever held a hammer in her life, which confused Faith even more. What were these twins doing here? They looked like kids compared to the two men who were present.

Regardless, the group was interesting, so Faith had little to complain about. She was actually kind of happy that there were other people near her age for once. Faith whispered at Caelis "I think I like this group so far." Then noises came from inside the inn. Caelis could tell that it was some sort of altercation, so he held Faith and said "There's no need to go in. It's not our problem to deal with." After all, there was no need to pick fights unnecessarily. Thus, Caelis and Faith simply remained outside in the back as they watched the armored man leap into action and go into the inn.

Tirian had found himself indulged in silence and peace alike at the bottom of his flowered mug containing small droplets of remaining mead. His fiery red hair remained drenched, dripping alcohol of which held an apple taste to the ground of Flower Gin Inn. Deep down the young man knew his harasser would not attempt another round and if he did the consequences would be swift and deadly. Blue eyes remained parked at the counter of the bar with an uncaring appearance. Tirian had not felt threatened or pressured in the slightest way. Having an entire room gloat over a single act had not been anything new to the exiled prince.

It had been close to this time Tirian took notice of heavy footsteps approaching what seemed to be his direction. Judging by the heavy creaking this person had been wearing some sort of armor, which meant either showboating or experience in battle. In any sense the red-haired man felt his cautions rise to a level that had not been healthy. A hand touched his shoulder. The hand did not portray anger or attack but rather caution. The words came swift and heavy from a tone of voice that had been almost as serious as Tirian’s face.

“If you’re going to fight, at least keep it over the belt. That’s some dirty moves you pulled…”

Cheap. Tirian knew nothing of cheap, only of what had been fair in war. Even from a baby age of five he had been beaten and molded to believe warriors won at any cost and that nothing was cheap. If you’re opponent engaged you in battle, then it would be that persons sole responsibility to expect all reactions. Had it not been for the years spent with his mother, this man would be dead and most likely without a head. Allynn and the elven people of Imladris softened Tirian to a point of quiet solitude. Tirian enforced a strict one strike rule with everyone. Any single person had one warning, and then it would be severe reactions from the tip of his blade.

Tirian did not turn to the man or his hand, instead opted for a warning much more powerful than words or fists alike. Tirian surged a small amount of magic through his bloodstream into his shoulder muscles and eventually out through his pores into the man’s hand. The shock was nothing more than a small zap, not powerful enough to even hurt. It would only cause a mild stinging feeling for a brief moment or two. However, Tirian's shoulder joints would be a bit stiff for a while but the warning should give enough power to get this man off his back for the mean time. Tirian stood to a full proud posture with eyes of a color that could only be matched by the brightest and most beautiful shades of blue towards a certain smell that had instantly aromatized the room. Metallic and somewhat earthy crusted with natural stench of an older being. Tirian moved past Vordan without a second glance turning a smile to the old dwarf he had come to call friend in the past years.

“Rudolf you sure know how to smell a place up! How are you?”

This side, cheerful and unconditional happy had been something only good acquaintances and close friends had the pleasure to see. This was the true nature of Tirian a happy and cheerful person deep below those strict teachings of the past. Tirian knelt over to eye level with the dwarf with a quick embrace, stench or no stench this dwarf deserved a level of respect.

“I hope you still have room on that journey, I’d like to go Thialea. Again…”

The last words had a bit of pain held deep within it. The tone seemed to drop and Tirian found himself quiet once more.

The old dwarf ignored most of what Caelis said, but he smiled wide as Faith gave her his name. “Faith, faith…” He sang, “What a lovely name!”

The sudden silence of the inn put everyone into a state of curiosity and silence, and Rudolf found himself waddling behind Vordan as they entered the inn from the back.
Setna stood for a moment, hearing the sudden commotion but he looked back at Serna and sat down again. As much as he wanted to see what was going on, there was no way he was leaving his sister out here with strangers. He sat by her feet with a slight pout, his chin in his hand.

Serna gently nudged her brother’s shoulder as an apology and went back to observing the newcomers. She wanted to ask them questions. She wanted to know more about the Desert Elf’s culture, and more about the little girl with pointy ears and a beautiful face. However, she kept quiet, more nervous and shy than anything else as they all waited for the return of the old dwarf.

---

As soon as Rudolf saw that head of bright flaming hair, he lit up into a bright grin.

“Rudolf you sure know how to smell a place up! How are you?”

“Tirian, my boy!” The dwarf embraced the young man with a few hearty claps on the back and a jolly laugh. “So good to see you! It’s been awhile!”

“I hope you still have room on that journey, I’d like to go Thialea. Again…”

The dwarf interrupted him before he could say any more. “Of course, of course! I told you you’d always be welcomed on a journey with me. Come along then, come, come.”
Rudolf waved his hand at Vordan as well to follow them and they all left the inn to the back again. The old dwarf looked around the rest of the group with scrutinizing eyes.

“Now let’s see…” He mumbled to himself. “There should be one more….”

Sure enough, as soon as he said that, the back door to the inn opened wide and out came a female elf. Aaerynn Lightweld, squinted, and brushed her light hair away from her pointed ears.

The dwarf rushed her, spouting nonsense. “Oh Miss Aaerynn! Light of my life! Sun of the midday sky!”

He went to reach for her hand and instead felt the cross guard of an elven dagger jut into his jiggly belly. “You touch me with that hand, Rudolf VanKirtschein, and you will lose it.”

The dwarf gave a belly laugh but backed away from the elf with his hands up. Aaerynn grunted in displeasure and her blue eyes took in the crowd. A bunch of human men, a boy that had barely passed puberty, a girl with the same eyes as her brother, a short half elf and a dwarf. Absolutely disgusting.

For a second her eyes flicked toward the Aavikkanian, she tilted her head slightly in respect and then continued to distance herself from the group as Rudolf began ushering them to all sit together.

They sat in a circle, much like little children, except for a few who opted to stand as the old dwarf pulled out a crudely hand drawn map from his vest. He unraveled it and spread it across the grass in front of them. The two continents were drawn out and a trail had been left in red ink. It was easy to see that it was the route they would be taking for this journey.

“Now then.” Rudolf’s voice became booming as he looked at each of the strangers in the eyes. “My name is Rudolf VanKirtschein as some of you may know. My quest involves getting these carts.” He waved his hand at the oxen and then pointed at a dot on the map. “To the Novan City of the next continent. I have enough supplies to support you through this journey, and the city itself will pay you all handsomely upon reaching it safely with these carts intact. Now I think it is best that we introduce ourselves to one another. I ask not for your reasons on joining this journey, I know they are personal and your own. But perhaps enlighten us as to where you come from, or a weapon of choice.”

Rudolf wiggled and sat up right. “I will start. I am Rudolf, and I’m a dwarf of the North Mountains. I’ve always enjoyed being a trade merchant and have now begun making journeys between our two continents.” He finished and smiled and then looked at Aaerynn. “Since you are late miss elf, perhaps you’d like to go first.”

Aaerynn frowned and glared but she closed her eyes and sighed. “My name is Aaerynn Lightweld. I am a wood elf of the woods of Furus. I prefer my bow, but am skilled in the use of daggers.”

“Good, good!” The dwarf smiled and then pointed to the twins. “And the first to show! Come, come, and share your names young ones.”

Setna sat up pin straight as all eyes turned on him and his sister. He glanced at his sister before continuing. “My name is Setna Roan, and this is my twin Serna Roan. We are from…” He paused with uncertainty, glancing at the rest of the faces here.

“We are from Syndarea…” He continued and quickly added. “I prefer sword and shield.”

Serna gently gripped her brother’s cloak as she also added. “I am…I don’t have m-much…experience.” Her dark eyes glanced away but quickly returned with some confidence. “I can cook though…and sew any clothing…” Her words came out more like a whisper and she slowly hid her face against her brother’s shoulder.

The dwarf lit up and nodded. “Well then who’s next?”

No response? The mercenary was quite surprise to not even see him turn around to face him. How disrespectful of his part… But this was the least of his surprises. He could feel something odd tickling his fingers, looked upon the shoulder for what was to come. The sudden jolt made the tall man back away and remove his hand from the patron at the bar. What in the Maker’s name was that? He shook his hand lightly, the numbness setting in. It was so familiar, like when he had tried to make that lightning rod… The backfire was worst, but it resulted in the same type of feeling. His eyes wandered back to the stranger, a suspicious look upon him… How did it happen?

He would receive no answer for now, wouldn’t even have time to question him as he left his seat, still not giving a damn about his presence and walking towards Rudolf. He simply followed him with his gaze, rubbing his hands together to make his skin feel better. At least now, the patrons of the Inn were going back to their things, the scene basically over. A good thing. Most would maybe see Vordan attacking the young man, but no, he had no intentions to do so. He did however wonder upon what has just happened. The dwarf and the young man seemed to know and appreciate each other, which wasn’t a bad thing, but it left to wonder what kind of crowd the dwarf surrounded himself with. They exchanged a few words and then the dwarf motioned Vordan to follow. He did so with an odd look, but came back to the back of the Inn with them.

It didn’t take long for another person to show up just as Rudolf was looking for that someone in his head… And what a sight the new arrival was. A beautiful elven lady, just like old merchant had described in his own way. Yet, this impression of her was short lived as he saw the imminent reaction… Well, she had certainly pulled out that dagger pretty quickly. Vordan was already reaching to his greatsword, a firm grip on the handle. Oddly enough, he seemed to be the ONLY one taking such reaction. The dwarf seemed to not mind the dagger stuck to his gut, laughing to this event. Friends… Again, what kind of crowd did the dwarf attract?

He released the grip on his sword, almost thinking himself stupid for doing such a thing. A quiet sigh came to him as he came to join the circle, dropping his things behind him to be able to sit down comfortably. The map unfolded and the trail was marked. Vordan was impressed with the length of the journey; it would be something of months to get there. That is quite unfortunate, but again, it’s part of the deal, so there was no arguing on that. Ruldof continued to explain the whole ordeal, with the carts being the goods to protect and carry forth to the next continent. Wasn’t that convenient, Vordan knew exactly how to deal with situations of this sort. Easy money and easy new life right there. He stretched a smile at the words, even if he asked to then introduce themselves more thoroughly. Wonderful, the more you know.

The merchant introduce himself as a trader, not a big surprise. Next, the Wood elf described very little of herself, which was a slight disappointment. The fine lady didn’t seem to want to say any more than that. What a shame. So, it quickly moved on to the young twins… Their story should be quite interesting. He listened, initially not too taken by his words. But then, he heard the one thing he wished he didn’t hear. Syndarea. A simple twitch overcame him, a cold shiver going down his spine… His smile had dropped, and noticeably so, he did not seem happy. The scum of the earth that helped the Dark Emperor rise to power; those who helped forbid magic in this world while they still thrived in it. His people had to suffer because of THEIR aid…

When Rudolf asked who would be the next one to speak, Vordan jumped on the occasion. “Well, I was thrilled about this task until this announcement of scumbag children from Syndrea would be traveling with us.” His eyes went straight to the twins, and there was nothing pleasant in his gaze… You could see this hatred in his eyes… He then returned his head to the group. “As before, I am Vordan Dawarum, mercenary from the Kingdom of Ellahur. My preferred weapon is of my own invention. The Six-Bolt Crossbow. First and only of its kind. Otherwise, a greatsword and a few tricks and tools here and there to get the job done.” He kept a cheerful attitude for now, letting the next person the opportunity to speak.

________________________________________________________________

The dwarven merchant had followed Vordan in the Inn, seeming to be slightly concerned of the happenings inside. It would be best to let them settle whatever was happening on the inside. It was probably just some disturbance from a drunken man, nothing more, nothing less. And so, he saw the eagerness of the young man, but he stayed with his sister. It was still odd to see the duo, as they seemed to be so unexperienced is any kind of exploring or even of the outside world. Many people would say the same for Elrithos, but he has seen the world. He was one of the fortunate few that were able to get out of the desert often.

With that, he looked at the small girl, given her a kind smile as he went towards the carts. There was no point to bear his weapons right now, so he detached the scabbards of his blades and also his double scimitar to lean them up against the wheel cart. Already, he seemed a lot less threatening and hoped that he would make people feel a lot more comfortable around him. He didn’t want anyone to think he was but a cold hearted warrior who is here to shed blood and get paid. He had a much greater purpose really, one he would surely share when the opportunity would show itself.

Like the others, he awaited the return of the duo. They arrived with someone else, another somewhat young man. Not like the twins, but young none the less. A new addition and he had that stern expression. He could see the experience in his face, almost the pain of something. He had seen blood and probably had shed a lot of it. It was a little disturbing actually. It was easy to see who had gone through battle and who didn’t. He was particular… His mind was taken off the issue as the dwarf noted that someone was missing. A friend of his? Probably. And at that moment, the door of the Inn opened. A young elf (for what he could tell anyway) presented herself. The dwarf had charged forth, seemingly to greet the woman… The response was quite strange. Elrithos simply seemed surprised that a blade was pulled on someone she clearly knew. Her intentions were told and clear, meaning she wasn’t exactly your friendly kind of person.

The scene passed without anything more, and so, Elrithos sat down at the gathering of people, looking over the map of the journey. Already, after seeing the route in the desert, noticed he was going around the river. There was a faster way, much faster way which he would share after. He seemed thoughtful about it, then lifted his head for the presentations. He listened to the wood elf, slightly amazed now. He had never heard of a wood elf leaving the continent, being people who loved their forests. Why would she want to leave? A simple question he didn’t really need answering to. Next, the twins. When he heard Syndarea, he was also slightly shocked, but he had no hate for them. It was odd to seem them hear after having retreated deep into the forests so that they would be left alone after the war. One of the rare kingdoms that let the magic go around more freely than others.

The next reaction was the one that made his frown… A man from Ellahur and twins from Syndarea. This wasn’t going to be a nice, quiet trip if the man from Ellahur was as most of its nation: Mad against the Syndarean kingdom for their help with the Dark Emperor. Elrithos knew the relationships between kingdoms here and knew which one didn’t get along at all. Although, there was no reason for the disrespect.. It kept going with this new invention of his, which he knew nothing about… A new weapon? Interesting. As he finished, Elrithos took his turn which his oddly deep and thick accent of the desert.

“I am Elrithos Quicksilver. I work as a messenger for the High Council of the Aavikanians and am also a scout and front-line soldier for the military force. My purpose is one I do wish to share, as I might not do the whole trip with you all. I will be seeking the old continent for my ancestors and what has happened to them. But I will aid you in the desert and hopefully cut off a long route around the Great River and just go through…” He then turned his gaze to Vordan.

“Learn to forgive Vordan. I was there when the Dark Emperor took power, fighting with my brothers and sisters of the desert to defend our lands. These two have not down anything to your people. Simply those who preceded them.” He spoke in a very casual, calm tone before coming back to everyone. “I am trained in many forms of combat, from spear wielding, swordsmanship and archery, but the weapons I carry with me are those I have wielded for over 250 years and am best with.”

The old dwarf hadn’t lost his step with the passing months of their last encounter. It hadn’t been long before the perverted dwarf ushered everyone back into the rear of the inn, quickly mumbling about yet another person joining this rag-tag group. No more than the mumbling ceased did a beautiful and obviously irritated elf barge through the inn’s doors, causing Rudolf to run like a child on a candy shopping spree. Tirian watched carefully as Aaerynn took a stance he’d seen before. A stance most elven assassins took before slicing the very lifeblood from their victims. Rudolf found himself backpedaling from the elf, yet still with a smile and attitude unshaken. Tirian took notice in Vordan as he released the grip from that great sword, a good eye this man had to see the movements of an elf.

Rudolf seemed to eye over the group one last time before pulling everyone in a Kindergarten like circle, as if it had been group show and tell. Tirian simply refused to be treated like a toddler and opted to stand his distance from the group. Blue eyes seemed to stare off but his years listened carefully and intently. Not a single word had been dropped from this conversation as the dwarf Rudolf introduced himself to the group. Tirian had known Rudolf for the better part of three years so this introduction didn’t quite matter. Rudolf turned with a cheeky smile to the elf and prompted her to begin the introductions of the group. Aaerynn quickly expeditiously gave the most lackluster
information ever. A child could read these facts off the elf with minimal knowledge of Wood Elfs.

Next had been the twins, a duo of younger persons and Tirian simply eyed over them. Inexperienced was the boy and receded with clear shyness was the girl. And yet he did not judge them, but rather made observations of his own. Tirian had only been twenty-four himself which would more than likely cause most of the group to assume his own ‘inexperience.’ Then the boy Setna spoke and revealed something that shocked even Tirian, Syndareans. The very group that had protected and aided the one person possibly more evil than his own father, The Dark Emperor himself. The girl Serna quickly added with stumbled words that she could cook and sew. What was their motif for joining such a dangerous journey with such inexperience? Only time could tell.

Next to speak had been the very same mercenary who’d confronted Tirian earlier. Blue eyes scanned to the hand he’d placed a small bit of his own magic into and wondered just how his hand was doing now. That look the mercenary held seemed similar. Hatred of the purest form and it was directly aimed towards the twins. His words caused a quick distaste within the mouth of a certain red-haired warrior. Next to speak was an Aavikkanian with a tone much calmer than the obviously upset Vordan. The elf finished with words of a wiser standard and revealed Elrithos had been there with the Dark Emperor.

“It seems like there is a level of distrust here.”

The voice was calm and quiet. His voice was not high but at the same time not low, perfectly in between. Tirian closed the distance between the group and took a spot next to the twins with an obvious look of protection. His eyes passed from Aaerynn to Vordan before settling on Rudolf with a nod.

“Everyone has their reasoning’s I am sure. I’ll make this clear though. One weak link in a chain breaks the fence. Or in other words if one person can’t handle the melting pot we have here then leave. If you can’t put your weapon on the line for the entire group then you’re only hurting it. What happened in the past is exactly that. The past.”

Tirian drew in a quick breath and turned his beautiful eyes towards Elrithos with a nod of respect. Any person who’d fought against the emperor deserved a level of respect that most did not show. Tirian had only heard and read the horrors that had been the Dark War.

“I’ll be the first to show my trust. I am Tirian Pherae. Prince of Durandal. My father is Tyrande Pherae. A very evil man who is controlling most of the eastern continent and is aiming to become the next Dark Emperor. I have a very important goal, one that does not involve any of you. You may think I look young. Maybe you’re thinking I have no experience. I can tell you the gates of hell have a line specific to my name. What I have done in the past isn't important, but what is important is that I am here to make sure everyone survives to the end.”

Tirian threw his arm around Setna with a clear sign of support.

“This journey is important, to all of us. Who are any of us to judge? Every single person here has a cause and strength to offer to the group. So please. Drop the immature bullshit and see towards the future.”

Tirian stood once more and retreated to the distance once more. His words had been said and it was time for the last of the group to speak.

"Very interesting, indeed."

Caelis thought. Faith wasn't wrong about her impression of the people in the group. Many of the people present had some sort of ulterior goal that they obviously felt strongly about. This in itself was not a problem, but it raised a question. Would any of them feel so strongly about their goals that they would be willing to abandon the group in an attempt to achieve their goal? Unfortunately, Caelis had met his fair share of people who would willingly do so at a moment's notice. Thus, he could not bring himself to fully trust any of them... not that he really trusted a lot of people in the first place. Regardless, they all seemed relatively capable, and all Caelis wanted to do was to get to their destination safely. So, for now he would go along.

The group saw two newcomers arrive. Another young man who looked to be around Caelis' age, and a female elf. They both seemed to be familiar with the old Dwarf, so it probably meant that they already proved their mettle. However, it became apparent that the only people who had yet to introduce themselves were Caelis and Faith. So, Caelis took the initiative and said:

"Pleasure to meet everyone. My name is Caelis. I hail from the Kingdom of Attolia. As to my abilities, hand me a weapon and I can handle myself. As of now, I still retain my own sword, and that is it so far. However, I am not a soldier nor a sell-sword as a profession. I suppose the simplest way to describe myself is that I am currently a travelling troubadour, nothing more, nothing less. I must confess that I have no goal in mind other than where the roads lead me, and making sure that Faith, here, is safe." as he patted Faith's shoulder.

Faith then took that as her cue to speak and said:

"Hello everyone! My name is Faith. I'm from a small town called Avon. I can't fight and Caelis doesn't want me to... but! I can sing. I just travel with Caelis and sing, so I don't know much about things like the Dark Emperor and stuff like that..."

Caelis then added "Don't worry about her. I've protected her for 7 years now. But, if at any point during the travel we find ourselves in need of some money or a place to stay. We can solve that issue. We've met quite a lot of people in our travels, so we're bound to meet someone that we know in this journey."

Caelis then closed his eyes, and continued to speak "So, Master Dwarf, now that we've introduced ourselves. Where are we headed towards first?"

The twins could feel the hatred pouring out of Vordan as he made his introduction and stared them down. Setna’s short fuse was lit and he placed his hand on the hilt of his blade. He almost stood up, insults hanging on the tip of his tongue but a small hand held his arm. He glanced back to his sister, whose pained eyes stared up at him. Stop, they urged.

He gave in, his fists tightening as he receded. He should have known better than to just spout off where they were from. He should have known. It had been beaten into him, cut into him, slammed into him. The outsiders hate you. The outsiders will kill you. The outsiders will have no mercy on your families. Setna had been brought up that the Syndarean past had been a glorious one. No decision was wrong. They had been on the glorious side of the war. The Emperor was only trying to bring better equality to all magic users. The outsiders were wrong, yet they had won. Therefore the Syndareans had to live with unjustifiable hatred.

A part of him knew that it was bullshit. But it was how they were raised. It was why they were trained to kill, to fight, and to protect. Hatred was everywhere, and they had to constantly be prepared to fight against it. Rage beat in his chest as Setna looked down to avoid looking at Vordan any longer, afraid he might rip out of his sister’s grip to confront him.

It was ridiculous; he wanted to say something out of the pride of his country. But when he thought about it, wasn’t he the one committing treason? He had stolen away the sacrifice to the God’s Festival, had broken every rule about leaving home, especially with a woman. Setna smiled ruefully, his hands clenching in a white knuckle grip.

Serna on the other hand, knew exactly why the hatred towards them was deserved. Shut away in the nunnery she read all sorts of books that had been written on the war. The stories of the Dark Emperor, the Syndarean’s involvement, the destruction that was caused. Her people tried to glorify themselves, so they wouldn’t die of shame.
She gently rubbed her brother’s shoulder as she looked at Vordan with sad eyes. To see hatred full in the face, gave her a cold feeling in her chest.

Then the Desert Elf spoke and he came to the aid of the twins, reassuring them that they were not to be blamed for their ancestors’ past.

However, it was the red headed warrior who displayed the first act of trust. He came closer and threw an arm around Setna. The boy’s eyes widened slightly as he felt the power and strength in the arm that wrapped around him in a sign of trust. Slowly, Setna found his anger fade away slightly, he calmed down as he began to realize that not everyone was out to get him and his sister. Elrithos and Tirian both showed that they didn’t care where the twins were from.

Serna gave a soft smile at the warrior with a shy nod in thanks. Her eyes remained pained though as she looked down and stuck close to her brother. She wished he would just return home, where he should be. Then they wouldn’t have to go through this, and wouldn’t have to pain people with their existence. Perhaps their people wouldn’t punish her brother too severely. He had tried to save his sister after all, there was honor in that. As for her… she was already living on borrowed time, wasn’t she?

---

Aaerynn wasn’t interested in the little scene that had unfolded in front of her. It was typical really. Humans were humans, caught up in hatred and vengeance. The female elf preferred to distance herself from the group, leaning against one of the carts.

Her light eyes observed the face of Vordan who had shown vile hatred and then immediately shifted into a cheerful attitude. Men like him were the worst, she was sure. And she grunted softly as the Aavikanian and the Tirian fellow put Vordan back into his place. What simpletons.

The wood elf had her respect for the desert fellow, having earned it through his obvious years on this land. But the rest….eh.

Aaerynn dug out the dirt from under her nails as she listened to the last two introduce themselves. Caelis and Faith. Aaerynn’s light eyes fixed themselves on the small half elf girl. A melancholy feeling drifted into her core, filling her gut and attempting to enter her chest. The wood elf swallowed the weariness down. She rapidly looked away from the half elf, willing the old grief to leave her be and not rot her from the inside out.

But those bastardized memories continued to resurface. She could see his face again, his eager questioning about sons and daughters, names and heritage. Aaerynn swallowed the bile that had risen in her throat.

“…Where are we headed towards first?”

The question brought the elf out of her reverie, her eyes focusing back on the task and the old dwarf that huddled around the map.

“Well…” The dwarf had remained resigned throughout the introductions and altercations, but now he spoke with a genial voice. “It will take us quite a few days to get through the North Furus woods. We’ll have to make stops as night hits, for the woods is a dangerous place to travel in the dark. But…”

He pointed to a circle on the map, a small farming village centered on the edge of the woods. “This will be our first official stop, in a village where we’ll restock for supplies before heading into the mountainous range. Any other questions? Otherwise we should get ourselves ready, I’d like to have us start before the sun sleeps for the night.”

The Syndarean’s reaction was one he could have seen a mile away. They deserved to be treated as such, as they brought down the Kingdom of Ellahur with the help of the Dark Emperor in his time of glory. Why would he have any respect for those who are the cause of why he has to hide the fact that he has the magic of the Makers? None. There was nothing that would convince him that any kind of good person could come from a region of traitorous bastards. He thought that nothing could convince him otherwise and it certainly wouldn’t be a bunch of teenage idiots that would convince him. Even to this day, it is said they practice their magic religiously. Was Vordan jealous? Absolutely. He would have given anything to have that freedom to use magic. But he couldn’t.

He would have simply gotten to his feet and walked away to the carts, not wanting to hear the stories of the other people in a sour mood, but ti seemed that he didn’t have the time to do so. The Aavikanian had expressed something he was even surprised to hear. So he had participated in the war… And forgave this kingdom that had attacked their deserts? Unbelievable. What was going through his mind? Was it a lie? Elrithos didn’t seem to be one of lies… Aavikanians in general, by the stories he heard, were not ones to lie very much. So he would forgive them? Well, wasn’t that interesting…

The bashing back did not stop there, as the young red-haired man put his grain of salt in the matter… But his words were not very well taken compared to those of the older, wiser desert elf. Was he really saying that if he didn’t like the group of people gathered, he should leave? How stupid was the young guy? He was in no way possible going to drop down this chance for some Syndarean bastards. He remained fixed on the young man as he told his story… It took a lot for the mercenary to not laugh at this whole ordeal. A Prince? Really? From the other continent? Son of an upcoming Dark Emperor? How ridiculous did his whole story sound…? Simply astounded by the bullshit he was hearing. How did the red-headed warrior have any credibility now? He could talk back, but really, how could he take anything this guy says from now on?

He shook his head with this smile on his face, whispering to himself. “Unbelievable bullshit… Simply unbelievable.” He really didn’t want to hear any more from that guy, having lost any kind of respect or even recognition from his part. He simply waited for the next two to present themselves, ignoring completely his last words. What kind of advice can a delusional young man give to someone? None. The man that had arrived with the child elf had started speaking, and already, he was appreciating the moment a little more. These were simple people, those who had their minds straight. Even the girl was saying things that were much more down to earth than Tirian. And she asked the most important question of the moment. Where was their first stop? Perfect, he wanted to hear this.

Traveling through these woods was dangerous yes, but not if you were well prepared. There was nothing that would cause an inconvenience to the mercenary and so, he rose up to his feet as he grabbed his gear and strap his bag back to his back and went towards the carts. “Alright then, let’s not waste any more time here.”

_____________________________________________________________________________

The tall man didn’t seem to be greatly bothered by the response Elrithos had given to him, which meant he wasn’t a lost soul who would hold a grudge forever. He could have boldly responded back, saying that they were still bastards and didn’t deserve to be anywhere near other civilization, but he didn’t. It seemed to be quite easy for the human race to hold a grudge on those who have wronged you or simply those who one does not like. It was something he still had a hard time to grasp, as human mentality was so different from those of the Aavikanians. Not that they lived a wrong life, absolutely not. But it seems that they had ways of thinking that would come in contradiction with how the deserts had raised the elves. It was always interesting to see the different human cultures. So different and diversified.

The next to put his input was the man in who he had seen war and death in his eyes. He also came to the defense of the young twins, explaining in a way that was, in itself, very true. If you could not spare the blade to the one on your side, you will be creating a certain danger. Although… One needed to put out their anger and frustration to be able to move on. It is not something awful to hate for something that has happened. It is simply that it was in their past, by their ancestry. Times and people have changed and it would do nothing to keep this hatred. This confrontation would come again, and hopefully, time would resolve this feud.

Next came the man’s presentation. Elrithos, oddly, was almost having the same reaction as Vordan, although it was a lot less obvious from his expressions. He looked towards him, curious to hear what his story was… It was a little… Particular. His story seemed too farfetched, but was it a lie? He doubted it, as he did not even hesitate to express himself on it. If the story was true, what was he doing on this continent than? A question that was a lot more important than others realized. Son of a King… An evil king by the sounds of it. A runaway? Quite a strong possibility, be he couldn’t be sure right away. Elrithos would be quite curious to know the extent of his story.

Tirian then added one more comment, one that was not needed in something like this. Yes, it was a good thing to be straight and honest, but speaking in such a way when it was already a tense situation. Elrithos wouldn’t add anymore on top, knowing that the situation was going to slip by anyway. And so, the last two presented themselves more thoroughly. Traveling musicians is what it sounded like. That actually made the elf smile, as it would mean that they would have a little bit of entertainment for the road, which would ease his mind. It was actually something he always sought for when traveling, a musician. They kept his sanity in check by the boredom of the road. A great asset that not many travelers know about. The little one said to have known nothing of the Dark Emperor. Thank the Sun for that. No one her age should know the stories.

With the path now shown and shared with everyone, Elrtihos rose to his feet and went off to gather his weapons. He then turned and put two fingers in his mouth to whistle an odd little chant, almost like birds chirping. It didn’t take long that a white horse showed itself, dragging along riding equipment. This raised a gentle smile on the elven man’s face again as he started putting up the saddle and preparing for the departure.

Tirian could see the disbelief in the man’s eyes across the room, almost laughable in the way he smiled and spoke something underneath his breath. Tirian didn’t quite care what this group thought of him, as long as everyone could band together to ward off the incoming and inevitable dangers the journey would undoubtedly bring. That last request Allynn had called out to her paralyzed son rung so loudly in Tirian’s mind he could just barely heart it. Surviving was the most important thing and without the help of this group, the request would ultimately and utterly fail. The remaining duo spoke with a cheerful attitude that seemed to put the tension within the air to a complete rest. They were traveling musicians and very simple people to say the least.

The obviously steadfast Caelis broke the silence to ask what destination we had been aiming for. Tirian, having known the stout and immensely perverted Rudolf for some time had a general idea and yet he didn’t at the same time. The map seemed old and somewhat rustic that had red scribbled across the aged paper in a defined line. Tirian eyed over the route with a hidden smile, the perverted dwarf sure knew his planning despite the apparent appearances. Tirian took a seat next to the dwarf and scanned the map over once more, this time with eyes fixated on the eastern continent. He could clearly see two words that stood out so much, Imladris and Durandal. The end would place them directly inserted in between the warring empires. Tirian turned to Rudolf this time with a serious look entering those blue eyes of his. There was not a word spoken but Rudolf would surely know what it all meant.

“Musicians, wonderful! I can think of a few tunes I could request. It’s good to meet you both.”

Tirian turned a hearty nod to Caelis and a gentle smile to the half elf Faith. It seemed everyone had been ready to go, packing up and calling for their steads. Tirian took one final glance that directed his eyes to the twins. Syndareans outside of their city seemed a bit odd. The boy had simply read of their isolation and knew nothing more. He could tell, however, there was something more to their story. Something the three of them held in a similar sense. His body moved and Tirian found himself sitting with the young teens. His words came out low and quiet, almost a whisper that only the three encircled could hear.

“Don’t worry too much. You’re safe here. People learn to forgive. Hatred fades away.”

Tirian stood from the twins, not sure why he had spoken the way he did and walked out of the room. Tirian carried only his sword and bow, opting to walk had been his forte since the beginning. What would these people say if they knew Tirian could not ride a horse? Pathetic. A warrior of his caliber and what should be his weakness? Those foul and disturbing creatures known as horses. Tirian shuddered at the thought and quickly moved to his post, next to the doors which would allow the carts to pass through and began to wait.

(This was a source of inspiration for this post, and should serve as a nice accompaniment to this post. So, start playing this first, and then start to read.)

"Hmm?"

Faith thought. She had noticed that, when the others were speaking, Caelis' hand that he had kept on Faith's shoulder had slightly tightened. Normally it wouldn't be noticeable, and if it were any other person, then Faith wouldn't have cared. But, Caelis had near mastery of his hands and fingers from the years he spent playing instruments, so random movements like that almost never occurred. He was thinking about something that resonated deep within him. As the others prepared to start the journey, Faith turned to Caelis and whispered

"What's wrong?"

Caelis responded "Nothing."

Faith wouldn't let this pass. She pouted slightly and gave an angry grunt. Caelis said "Fine. I was just thinking about my home, Attolia. My people... no. Attolia fought against some of the other states that these people come from. Not that I care. It's been more than a decade since I've been there... Anyways, don't worry about it. We're going to start this journey soon. So, get ready."

Caelis then walked off towards the others. In the years that they had spent together, Faith never learned much about Caelis' time in Attolia. If she asked him about Attolia, then he would usually give general answers, and quickly move on to another topic. Faith learned quickly that Attolia wasn't just "nothing" to him, but she didn't dig deeper. That was practically the only thing that Caelis had intentionally been avoiding mentioning a word about. That's why she wanted Caelis to be willing to talk about it out of his own will. Until then she would wait. After all, it didn't really matter in this moment. It wasn't like he was going there. Right now, Caelis was here with her, and that's all that she wanted. That was why she was willing to wait.

Faith walked over to the group where Caelis stood. As she approached him from behind, Faith lifted her left arm and reached...

for his hand. Faith smiled as Caelis turned to look. For a second, Caelis looked confused. Then the edges of his lips slightly curved up. The two stood together, side to side, holding each other hands without saying a word to each other. Faith felt Caelis' hand lose all the tension that it had before. She didn't need words to explain that.

“Don’t worry too much. You’re safe here. People learn to forgive. Hatred fades away.”

As comforting as the words sounded, both twins glanced back at Vordan Dawarum. If anything, he was an example of how hatred doesn’t fade. Two hundred years have passed from the Dark War, and yet its hatred still lingers in many hearts. Setna turned back to watch the red head amble away from the group. His dark blue eyes took in his form. Tirian had claimed that he was many things, and although Setna was grateful for the support, he couldn’t afford to trust anyone yet. Especially with a jackass already expressing hatred towards them. Setna’s hand found his sister’s and he gently tugged her forward.

Serna looked at her brother and then the rest of the group. She squeezed Setna’s hand and looked at the ground. Why were they doing this? They should go back home…something bad was going to happen, she could feel it deep in her gut. No one had escaped the sacrificial rites of the God’s Festival. Whether it was the gods, or their people, something was going to come for them. Something bad. They couldn’t just leave unpunished like this. Serna bit her bottom lip and squeezed her brother’s hand tighter. Setna looked back at her and gave an encouraging smile.

They reached Deetri and Setna helped his sister up onto the horse’s broad back. He then grabbed the reins and led the horse forward.

Rudolf took control of the lead oxen and whooped loudly. “Ready everyone? Let’s head out!”

With a whip and a crack of his reins, the caravan was off…slowly. The oxen moved at their own gait, rumbling forward with their canvas covered carts.

Aaerynn had called Baineth to her and mounted the mare in one fell swoop. However, she lagged behind, distancing herself from the group as she preferred to keep up the rear. Although she was disappointed to see that the caravan barely moved at a trot. She sighed in annoyance and Baineth nickered. “Don’t give me attitude…” Aaerynn mumbled to the mare.

Rudolf hummed to himself as they entered the North Woods. “Tell me young musicians!” He called out to Caelis and Faith. “Have you heard of this chant? You know it must be sung on all travels for protection!”

Without anyone answering him or before anyone could interrupt, Rudolf began to belt out a song, his voice booming and slightly off tune.

“Beware the darkness of the woods
Beware the stench of wolves
Beware the shadows
of these trees
that hide your
enemies!

Be sure your fire’s nice and bright
Be sure your friends are near
Be sure to hold your loved one tight
And never show your fear!”

The last note he held for what seemed like minutes and Setna plugged his ears with his fingers so he wouldn’t have to hear any more of the old dwarf’s belting.

Aaerynn grimaced at the end of the line. Well, at least anyone or anything following them would have surely run off after hearing that.

They traveled for a few more hours until the darkness began to settle in the trees and they were forced to set up camp. Rudolf delegated different chores and it wasn’t long before a nice fire was built and everyone had a comfortable place to sit and settle down.

“Now!” Rudolf gave a bemused face as he set down different cooking utensils. “I always start a new journey with my famous hodge podge dish!”

Aaerynn's lip curled in a grimace at the familiar name of that disgusting dish. She had made herself room on a large tree branch, one of her feet dangling idly off it. She searched through her pack, finding some elven bread. There was no way she was going to taste that poisonous dish ever again. She was lucky to have lived through it the first time.

Rudolf unraveled a pack of all different types of ingredients and rubbed his hands together.

Serna frowned in concern, biting her bottom lip. Setna noticed her paling face and gently nudged her forward. The girl looked back at her brother in uncertainty, and Setna urged her forward once more. “Go on…” He whispered to her, waving her away.

Serna swallowed her nerves and turned back to Rudolf who was busy throwing things into a large cauldron. “Um…Sir VanKirtschein…”

“Rudolf!” He corrected her without looking at her.

“S-Sir Rudolf…surely…um…you don’t intend to cook all of that…at the same time d-do you?” Serna curled into herself a bit with uncertainty, but she couldn’t let him continue to cook like that.

“Of course I am dear! It’s the hodge podge! Tirian, Tirian my boy, tell her how good it is!” Rudolf called out to the red head and Serna looked over in concern.

Tirian had been in thought when the bellowing voice called out to him. That cauldron, he’d known it a bit too well. His eyes grew with a look that spoke louder than any words. Fortunately Serna had blocked the view from the stout dwarf so Tirian could give an honest shake of his head no.

However his voice came out monotone and sarcastic as he said, “Yeah. Great.”

Serna looked back at the dwarf who frowned at the obvious sarcastic response. He turned to his other companion. “Aaerynn?”

“I’m not eating anything you cook dwarf.” Her response was directly to the point and the old dwarf was defeated.

Serna gently put her hands up and looked at her brother. Setna nodded and urged her on, waving at her to get it over with. She swallowed again nervously. “Um…perhaps I can help you…We can make something similar…If you’d like...Th-that is.”

Rudolf went from defeated to completely lit up. “Of course my dear! Of course! Come sit by me! Show me how it is done!”

Serna smiled and relaxed a bit. She undid her cloak and immediately went to work. Setna came closer as he watched his sister grow a confidence he didn’t know she had. She worked diligently, her small hands finely chopping ingredients confidently with a large knife. Her eyes were focused on the task as she removed poisonous bits from mushrooms and told Rudolf how to cook the chicken and keep the broth. She peeled the carrots and potatoes with a skilled hand and Setna observed his sister with a new found amazement.

“Did they teach you that?” He whispered to her as he sat closer, watching as she finely pressed and chopped garlic.

Serna’s gentle blue eyes didn’t look up as she continued her task. “Yes. I had to do something for four years.”

A small smile graced her lips and Setna smiled as well. “Mum would be really proud.” He told her, looking up at her face.

Serna paused for a second as she heard that. Her hand trembled slightly before she returned to slicing. “Yes…I guess she would.”

Setna turned silent, wishing he hadn’t brought it up and watched as Serna began placing ingredients in the right order into the cauldron. Eventually the camp filled up with a delicious aroma that certainly wouldn’t have been caused by the dwarf’s cooking.

Rudolf returned to the girl’s side with a large set of bowls. “What a lovely girl! I don’t believe I’ve ever smelled anything quite as wonderful as this!”

Serna flushed a bit. “It’s just a simple dish. No need for f-flattery.”

She stirred it with a ladle and once it was done she began pouring the stew into the bowls. She helped hand it out with Rudolf, her hands nervous and shaking slightly as she handed a bowl to everyone. She paused in front of Vordan however, and looked away, trying not to look at his face. She didn’t even know if he wanted any, seeing as she was the one that cooked it.

“Um…” She tried to find her words, but slowly just held the bowl out, seeing if he would take it.

Setna tightened up waiting to see and respond to the reaction of the man from Ellahur.

Elrithos had readied his horse slowly, making sure that the creature was comfortable with the equipment that had been put onto him. He strapped her gently and caressed her mane in the process. The Aavikanians paid great respect to their mounts as they were those who would make travels across the desserts an easy thing. Well maintained, well feed, the whole ordeal to keep these animals in the best of their shape. It would the least they could do for the help they unknowingly offered. Tightening the last leather belt, he gave the horse a nice little tap before swinging himself onto its back, looking over at the others to begin their travels.

As soon as the dwarven cracked the whip, Elrithos hit his hell in the horse, guiding her over to the side of the cart. He would be on point soon, but not for the moment. He was used to being the lead in most caravan runs, using his skills in scouting and exploring to get a hint of any kind of danger that would befall them on their route in the woods. With any luck, they would get through these woods without any obstacle or danger. Of course, this wasn’t going to be how they wanted it… It never was.

They went off, a slow but steady pace, to outside of town and on the roads to the forest. The first thing he noticed was quite clear… The atmosphere was less than pleasant. He turned his body towards the back, seeing many of the people not wanting to be around each other. Two of them specifically. Vordan and Aaerynn. It was clear why the human mercenary was so prone to being alone in the back of the cart. He had plainly displayed his hatred for the twin`s origins. The mystery was Aaerynn. The wood elves didn`t seem to be the ones to be so anti-social. Lissandra was living proof of it, as she did not have anything against being within human territories. So why subtract herself so clearly from everyone? It would be a subject of discussion later, when time would come to do so.

His attention then turned towards Rudolf who sang a song he had not heard about. And so he stayed attentive to the words, although the dwarf wasn`t exactly the best singer there was. But he could understand the message within the lyrics, smiling lightly as he brought back his attention to the front of the small caravan.  Truly, this was the reality of the road. One for all. All for one. Everyone needed to help each other if they wanted this journey to go by smoothly. Hopefully, everyone will have caught on to this along the path.

………..

Later that night, they had stopped for the night to set up camp. Perfect. Elrithos got off the road and off his horse. It was a slow process to get everything off of the horses back, but Elritos did not mind, keeping the light smile upon his face. Some people found quite odd for someone who was raised to fight, who had seen the times of the Dark Emperor to be so joyful and simply happy to be there. He understood that life was a gift, that survival granted him the chance to also do what he likes. So really, the fact that he woke up that morning was all he needed. Dropping all the gear to the ground, he let his horse free to graze the grass and walk around as he joined the others to scavenge for wood to make a good fire.

For the most part, everyone had gathered around ‘’near’’ the fire, although again, so people didn`t want to be in the circle in question. It was a sad truth, but hey, he had to expect it to happen again. The wood elf sat in the tree and Vordan was a little bit outside of the group. Those two were the ones that would take a long time to gain their trust. With a quiet sigh, he sat down, having now removed all of his equipment and his chainmail, leaving nothing but his desert clothes without the helmet.

The dwarven man mentioned making some food, with Vordan was quite happy to hear, although it was not quite necessary for him personally. Aavikanian could live a couple of days without eating and still be able to function normally. Many wondered why this was like this, but as the wood elves connected with their forests, the Aavikanians connected with their desert, taking on traits of their region. And so, since food was not in abundance, the people had learned to adapt and use ‘’inner energy’’ to survive much longer. You could say it was a gift from the desert for them taking care of it. But it seemed that some people had very strong opinions on the man`s cooking, which left to wonder how his dish would actually taste like. Elrithos was far from being a picky eater, but you never knew.

He preferred leaving the cooking to others, as he knew what he needed to survive and that’ it. He stayed seated, his hands together, simply looking at the scene unfolds. Serna shyly offered herself to do some cooking after a few opinions had dropped on Rudolf’s cooking. Elrithos laughed lightly, letting them do what they had to do… Vordan him was still writing in his book… It was like that since the beginning of the trip, only taking breaks every so often… What was going through his mind?

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This trip wasn’t going to be a pleasant one, which Vordan could tell. Having exposed his obvious hatred for the twins, he could already feel that people don’t appreciate his way of acting. Big deal. He would express it however he wanted. These people did not know what their kingdom had done to his people. THEY still had their magic. THEY could still go on with their traditions and use their talents as they pleased. The Kingdom of Ellahur had to change everything for the greater good of the continent, so that it never happened again. What a waste…

He had stayed in the back of a cart this whole time, pulling out vials, bags and small jars, writing down a lot of stuff. There seemed to be a lot packed into that backpack, as he would pull out thing after thing, going from lizard tails, crushed leaves, dark oils and a lot of other odd stuff. He knew noe one could really see what he was doing other than Aaerynn, which really didn’t bother him. She was so distant that she probably couldn’t make out anything of what he was doing. Good. It was best that they do not know what he was doing. And even if they did, he would have an excuse for it.

He had stayed in this state of mind for a little while, except for when he heard the chant of the dwarf… One he was too familiar with. He had actually mumbled it to himself as the dwarf went along, keeping his head down in the book as he wrote. It was wisdom in lyrics. One that he followed closely. He remembered a similar song in an old, dead language that he had studied on the road. A simple poetic melody to stay alert in the dark, to embrace light even when all is dark. Ironic really…

…………

They finally came to a stop and Vordan put away everything in his bag for now, getting of and doing as he was ask to set up camp, not going against demands. IT didn’t take long for them to gather up their necessities and make a great camp fire… Vordan him stayed a little out of the circle, having continued to write in his book. It went for a lot of things, from theoretical mixture that would work, notes on what not to do and so on. He wrote all of this in an old language known to Ellahur by very few. It was one of three dead languages that Vordan had learned, as it aided with his magic. A little bit of history, or reading, everything to help him go further in his research… He was so much in his writing that he had ignored what was happening for the food.

It was only when Serna made a sound in front of him that his head rose up and his feather stopped moving… He could smell the wonderful food and the others with the bowls in their hands. Well, was he going to except it? Vordan put his book away in his bag for a moment and got to his feet, looking at her with cold eyes. “Feed someone else with that. I don’t want it.”

He took his stuff and went to a cart to use it as a table. HE took out his book and then a few odd vials and jars, a mixing bowl and a few other things. With a deep breath, he commenced putting everything in a bowl and crushing it together, ignoring everything happening behind him now.

Rudolf smacked his whip with fierce and stern control, ushering forth the carts aplenty. Elrithos had been the first to hit high hell on his horse and quickly take the leading position in front of everyone else. Tirian would soon join the Aavikanian in front with a stoic gaze that looked off into the distance. The pace was awful, mind numbingly slow and yet the red-haired warrior found himself in serenity on the road. Although his face would never show it, Tirian was silently happy. The worries of yesterday had been put silently behind him and the only thing was to move forward while hoping for the best. A long hour passed before blue eyes cast out a gaze to the rest of the group. Aaerynn and Vordan seemed to be in the far rear, the later with his stuck-up nose in a book of sorts. Aaerynn seemed distanced and her attitude to the group was obviously on display.

Rudolf suddenly boomed up with his voice and went into a song Tirian was quite familiar with. Sure, the dwarf had the worst voice in all the lands but the song itself held certain bliss to it. Tirian found himself singing aloud with the dwarf with a much better and skilled voice. The red-haired soldier wasn’t the best either but certainly better than a gruff dwarf! Skills aside, Tirian held that lost note just as long as his dwarven companion finishing with a quick laugh to himself before all that joy faded into distanced gazes and roaming eyes. This forest had potential to be dangerous. Scavenging animals, sirens near the shores, beasts of a mythical descent and it all put Tirian on the highest alert.

Not long was it, before the sun began glowing over the horizon as the massive star began to set in the distance. The orange and crimson hue had been something Tirian found himself loving. Nothing in the word could compare to that constant and consistent beauty. Rudolf handed out the camp’s chore which always had Tirian gathering and preparing the fire, of which he had a certain undeniable skill in doing so. The logs had a slight dampness to them which would prove hard even for Tirian to build this fire. Slowly but surely Tirian built the teepee fire and began striking flint and stone together. After a minute or so Tirian made a single subtle movement with his hand and the fire blazed to life. A small ushering of his own magic to give these logs a gentle boost.

The man took a seat with some distance from the fire and drifted off into thought. Little to his knowledge did he know that the infamous Rudolf Hodge Podge was beginning. Vile and practically poisonous. The strongest stomach could not handle more than a couple spoons of this culinary torture. Tirian snapped out of his day dream at the sound of a booming dwarf calling for support in the disgusting dish. Tirian felt his eyes grew with a distinct look as he shook his head no to the female twin.

“Yeah, Rudolf. It’s great…”

Rudolf tried Aareynn who bluntly broke down that idea and retreated to a nearby tree. What was her play on things? It was obvious this group held one or more people who she just didn’t care for. Tirian shook his head to the thought and continued to observe the group. The twins and Rudolf seemed to bond well while Elrithos happily watched the beautiful Syndarean work. Vordan continued in that book of his. The aroma quickly filled the camp sit and it was scrumptious. Tirian felt his stomach turn over in pure hunger as Serna handed him a bowl filled to the brim.

“Thank you.”

Tirian bowed his head with closed eyes, a sign of respect. No more than had the Syndarean left did Tirian finish the bowl clean. Military life always taught the person who eats the fastest gets the most. Blue eyes followed Serna as she stood scared and shy before Vordan. A strong hand gripped the hilt of his falchion, waiting for an outright attack on the girl. However the man mustered only a childish reply before running away to one of the nearby carts. Tirian stood quickly and took the bowl from Serna with a hearty smile.

“Don’t worry. Vordan is just jealous you have all your fingers intact. I’ll finish his bowl.”

Tirian finished the bowl in one quick swoop, returning the now empty bowl to Serna. Tirian took one last look at the group before moving into the woods almost out of sight of his campsite. Blue orbs took in the opening and found a fallen log. The young man wasted no time and attached a rope on both sides off the log and quickly hoisted it up for a target. Tirian took forty paces backward and strung his bow up. His head bowed and eyes closed for a moment saying a prayer under his breath. Then the man brought his weapon up with an arrow drawn. Tirian waited, and waited for what seemed like an eternity before letting the arrow fly and hit exactly where he’s wanted it to. This routine went on for a solid twenty minutes. A string of inaudible words a drawn arrow and a motionless release into the log.

After only a few hours of walking, the group had set up camp for the night, which the musical duo muttered thanks to God for because the singing of the Dwarf made them cringe slightly. They wouldn't have to suffer from another travelling... "song". Although, they did not mind the lyrics, but the pitch was just all over the place. So, they were thankful for the setting sun even though they hadn't made much progress that day. Then came the second surprise from the Dwarf. A surprise hot pot that consisted of things that anyone could tell do not go well together. They found themselves thanking god again when the Syndarean girl took over the job of cooking. Caelis and Faith thanked the girl for the food and offered their prays before they finally began eating.

Then came the rude refusal from Vordan, and Tirian suddenly swooping up the bowl.

"My god... are we dealing with children?" Caelis muttered. He had a short temper for stupidity and foolishness, and everything that just occurred irritated him. So, he picked up his bowl and began walking over to Vordan while using his sword scabbard as a guide to make sure that he wouldn't trip over anything.

He walked right up to Vordan and said "You of all people should know how important it is for a soldier to eat properly. Would you not accept this food if you were about to go to a battle tomorrow at dawn? Besides, it is tradition for brothers in arms to dine together. We are going to be travelling together for a long time, so it folly to distance yourself like this." He then put his bowl down next to Vordan, and then continued to speak "Now, I am going to go back. There's a spot by the campfire if you decide to join us."

Caelis then heard the sound of an arrow, slicing through the air. He instinctively ducked slightly until he heard the solid thump of the arrow hitting wood. After a few seconds, he understood what was happening. He couldn't help but sake his head and mutter "...waste of arrows...do people now a days no longer know how to just remain calm?" He then turned around and walked back to Faith at the campfire while using his sword once again as a guide.

As that was all happening, Faith could not help but think about the female elf, Aaerynn if she remembered correctly. Faith had noticed that back at the inn, Aaerynn looked at Faith with such a... melancholy and slightly longing look for a short moment until she returned to her stoic form. Then as the group travelled and Aaerynn set herself apart in the rear. Faith couldn't help but feel as if Aaerynn was occasionally taking intentional glances and looks at Faith. Faith hadn't felt that conscious about herself and her blood other than on a few occasions, but for some reason, Aaerynn was making her conscious about herself. Faith was picking at the stew that she was eating, but took a glance at Aaerynn. It was obvious that Aaerynn was aware of this as she turned to look back at Faith in the midst of her taking a glance. Rather than being embarrassed and looking away quickly, Faith just looked at Aaeynn properly and just gave an innocent smile before she stopped looking and diverted her full attention to her food.

After eating, the pair began to look through their bags. As they looked through their stuff, Faith asked "What are we going to preform tonight?" Caelis took a moment to think and replied "Hmm, I don't really have a preference. How about one of your favorites?" Faith brightly responded "Okay!" They then went on to prepare to preform as Caelis tuned his instrument and Faith began to warm up her voice.