[b]"I'm sure you miss your family, and cannot feel anything but resentment towards my comrades. But you mustn't let Ronan get to you: do not lose control. I would tell you stories of things done on impulse which would no doubt chill your bones... worse than what you did to him today. It never goes well... and make no mistake, you are here in this camp because Ronan likes you."[/b] Gort began speaking in his characteristic, sagely mumble as he finished gutting and skinning the deer, throwing the hide on to a nearby pile of furs for cleaning and tanning, and the butchered meat onto another pile for preserving. He took a moment to wash the blood from his hands, then stood beside Alianor and stared at the same indistinct spot in the middle-distance she was seemingly contemplating. [b]"Everyone in this camp is here because Ronan likes us, or sees us as useful. He is a dangerous man, and you would do well to remember that. He may seem jovial, childish even, but he has intelligence and anger to spare. He, and many of the founders of this group, were not always simple thugs - they were soldiers, and they knew their trade well. Even so, be thankful that you see the man he is and not the man he was... [i]many of us hide darker things than we wish to speak of, in the wrinkles of our face.[/i]"[/b]

Gort sniffed, putting a hand to his forehead and pressing for a moment, willing a sudden wave of pain that came over him to cease. After a few seconds it did, and he once more looked to the now leather-clad woman. Circumstance changes people, he thought- whether that be war or captivity. Alianor was already starting to bear the marks of this change, in the bold action she undertook earlier.

[b]"You want to escape, go home, and I understand that. But in truth there will be no ransom settlement. Ronan has never kidnapped someone for ransom before... you pose a danger now that you've seen this place. Probably, you wouldn't be able to lead anyone back, but that is uncertain. What is certain, is that you will walk out out of those gates a friend, or you will never leave his sight again."[/b] Gort nodded, placing a hand on Alianor's shoulder comfortingly. [b]"But Ronan is right- this is not something that should crush you. You have potential, though it is constrained by your upbringing. You have strength, more than you know, and a look at you confirms your intellect. Take this world, the forest cut off from all civilisation... take the lessons it gives you, and change the world you belong to for the better."[/b]

Gort waited a minute or so, then departed silently to attend to other matters. Ronan, at this time, could be seen on the other side of the camp - correcting the fighting posture of one of his bandits, who was training. A bandage around the man's bare torso implied he had a stomach injury of some kind, but Ronan didn't seem all too bothered by this. He pushed the man, forcing him to stand straight and firm, not permitting the pain of his injury to compromise the training. Ronan looked over in Alianor's direction, and gave her a warm smile. He wondered idly what she must be thinking. But there were other things he needed to do: Alianor's next test needed setting up.