Steven stretched a bit. They’d done a lot of walking today, but not much else. That said, the previous day’s burden still weighed on them, and it would be a little while before it was lifted. It would be alright, though. Their unit was strong, and they had mostly gotten over their ordeal the night before, courtesy of the fog. Thoughts of danger were far away right now. Right now, what most of the recruits were thinking of was dinner. As Steven chewed his dinner, he didn’t think about much. He was fairly tired and couldn’t think of a lot. These past few days had been fairly hectic, and he suspected that the days to come would be even more so. Before they came here, he had heard that Luminous knight outposts under construction had been attacked by bandits, and if the mage boy’s power was any indication, it boded more attacks to come. Furthermore, it was evident that the boy wasn’t extremely bright, and it was likely that he was being told what to do. That there was a bigger person behind him. Steven finished his dinner quickly and made for the sleeping tents. It was nice to have bunk beds for a change, instead of bedrolls only supported by the hard floor. It was a shame that it was so warm. Steven put away his things in a personal locker, but he didn’t have that much to put away anyway. His armour, his bow and his quiver. He’d keep his knives by his side, just in case. Steven quickly changed into a brown tunic and pants. Despite being in a noble family, he disliked the thick, eye catching cloth worn by so many noblemen. It was paramount to self-torture to wear those in this kind of heat, which was only amplified by the body temperature of the other recruits in the tent. Changing done, Steven lay back onto his bed, wondering whether or not to sleep. The other people around him were still chatting, or getting ready to sleep. Steven’s bed was on the bottom, and Drakul was above him. Steven yawned, tired, and decided to try and sleep. Closing his eyes, he tried to find comfort in the bed. The cloying heat sapped at his strength and his sweat stuck to the mattress. It was so warm that Alicia took her clothes off, which didn’t seem to bother her. It bothered the other recruits quite a bit, however, and the temperature increased even more. It wasn’t much use. Sighing, Steven decided to get some fresh air. He sat up, strapped his knives to his belt and walked out of the tent. As he stepped out of the tent, a starry night sky greeted his eyes. Looking around, Steven found the nearby hill which he sat on earlier in the morning. Steven climbed the hill slowly, savouring the night air. As he walked to the top of the hill, a fresh night breeze swept through. Steven turned around and looked up at the picturesque night sky and fell backwards, laying on the springy grass, arms outstretched. He took a deep breath and let it out all at once, his worries and troubles going with it into the infinite void of the night sky. [i]If only days could be as peaceful as this…[/i] Steven thought. He closed his eyes for a minute, thinking of nothing as the moon rose above the horizon. He woke up some time later, glowing in the light of the moon which was somewhere above him. Steven sat up groggily, rubbing his sleepy eyes. How long had he slept for? He got to his feet and made his way down the hill, back to his tent and his bed. It was much cooler now, and Steven lay down. Within a few minutes, he was asleep again. ------------------------------- [b]The next day[/b] Steven’s eyes opened slowly and he sat up slowly to check his surroundings. Most of the trainees were still awake now, and it was around sunrise. Steven yawned, rested and refreshed. He got up and went out to grab some breakfast. After that, it was time for a briefing, which would take place in their sleeping tent (which apparently doubled as their base of operations or something). As he entered the tent for the briefing, he saw that the table and boards he’d seen yesterday were set up and would likely be central for the briefing. He stood with the other recruits, listening to their new orders. Their squad was now team Aegis, and they had a new mission: To investigate a cave with well-armed mercenaries guarding it. It struck Steven as a little odd. After all, theoretically, this was something the shadows could do, and would likely be a lot safer as a result. Considering that the mercenaries were apparently well armed, and they were only trainees… Well, they would likely be fine. They probably wouldn’t get a mission they couldn’t handle. At least, Steven assumed that. That said, if things went wrong again… The briefing was over, so Steven went back and grabbed his gear, putting it on. They would leave soon. It was a good thing that he’d restocked on arrows, but he should be prepared for anything.