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.