After a day's traveling, the woods began to slowly thin out as the group got closer and closer to the mountains. Everyone who could was resting, while the others followed along by walking or horseback. Finally Rudolf raised his arms and the caravan slowed down to a stop within a nice clearing in the woods. The dwarf looked back to his companions and smiled. "I'd say we made enough ground for today! Let's stop for the night."

Once everyone got settled after gathering fire wood or hitching horses up to graze, Setna popped up beside Elrithos. He smiled eagerly, energy practically radiating from him as he asked. "Could we continue where we left off? If you're not busy, I mean."

Elrithos turned to the young boy, having just finished removing the saddle off of his horse. He smiled lightly, seeing the young man so eager to get to the training. Those who wanted to learn would be those who would be ready to face this world and gain new knowledge of it. So, with a gentle pat of his shoulder, he nodded briefly and started walking to a tree. 

[b]“We will continue, but on another subject. You already know how to sword play and defend yourself with a shield… Now to work on how long you can last. Follow me and don’t stop following me until I say so.”[/b]

With that, he winked at him and then started a light jug in the words… Which was a little faster than what most would anticipate. He, like a wood elf, wasn’t really obstructed by roots, bushes or anything. He seemed to find ways around things like nothing.

Setna grinned wide as they started the jog. He loved running, the feel of his muscles stretching, the pounding of his feet on the ground and the burn and race of his heart. A wave of nostalgia hit him as he thought about morning runs with his father. The races they would go through together as the sun came up and cast a halo of lilac light as the rays struck the barrier. As Setna dodged roots and jumped over short bushes he thought of his training back home, the obstacle courses and punishment runs. Setna had always lacked in strength, he was lanky and skinny, his arms looked like they couldn't bear much muscle. But when it came to running, he was always squad leader. That usually meant he was forced to sprint back to the end of the line, physically spur his teammates forward before sprinting back again to help the others. He had loved it. Even the punishment runs right after eating, or the long treks through sand or the early morning runs of winter when the air was so cold it would close your lungs. It was something he was good at, and made up for what he was lacking in physical strength. If he was faster, and if he could endure it longer, he could be just as successful as his comrades who proved stronger yet lacked the stamina. It was a high.

Although his dodging and run through bushes was far more clunky than the graceful Aavikanian, Setna easily caught up to the side of Elrithos. He couldn't help the cheeky grin that spread across his face as he looked at his teacher. "Is this as hard as you want us to go, sir?"

Elrithos looked to his side, seeing that the young man had no hard time keeping it up with the steady pace. Again, he impressed as he was showing a lot of determination and endurance. All that was really missing from the young man was experience and keeping calm in tight situations. A gently smile stayed on his lips as he spoke about keeping this speed, shaking his head.

[b]“Well, I thought it would be enough to put some difficulty on you, but it seems not. Let’s… give you a challenge.”[/b]

He spoke very simply and gave him a quick wink. Right after, he started running. Not full speed, put definitely much faster than their jog. It is then things seemed different. The Aavikkanian was running forth and actually using the trees for ease of movements. You would see him jumping and pus himself off a tree to catch a branch and swing himself over place, running without care through buses, rolling over obstacles. He didn’t have the grace of the Wood Elves, but as they continued, one would see that Elrithos didn’t tire down that much.

Setna laughed as Elrithos sped up into a run. As the boy watched the Desert Elf effortlessly use the environment to his advantage and push ahead, he couldn't help shaking his head. "Now you're just showing off!"

The boy called out to him but grinned as he too pushed forward with a bit of speed. Although he certainly couldn't do as much as the Aavikanian, he could do a little. Being deliberate in his steps, he was able to push off roots and leap forward for more distance, landing straight into a sprint. He was finally beginning to pant and breathe hard, collecting sweat across his face, but he continued smiling. His heart pumped wildly and his blood rushed as he pushed himself to keep up.

Yes, he was showing off just a little, but it would allow him to really see what this young man is truly capable of. It would also allow him to release himself a little, push himself a little. The distance only slowly began to increase between the two. Eventually, Elrithos came to a stop, not too far ahead of Setna. He leaned against a tree and waited with a smile, barely tired or in a sweat. At his arrival, he clapped at him.

[b]“I am impressed Setna. You prove to be better of a warrior than you show… You really only lack in experience and self-control…. Have you considered maybe trying to wield a new set of weapons?”[/b]

Elrithos came forth and offered to start walking back towards the camp.

Setna finally broke through the last few bushes and slowly came to a stop before Elrithos. He was breathing hard, and sweat was dripping down from his forehead. He was grinning though, even as he doubled over to catch his breath. He finally pulled himself up, crossing his arms behind his head as he breathed and beamed with pride that he had impressed his new teacher. At the mention of trying other weapons he shrugged slightly. "I was shown how to use other weapons but I've never been good at them. A sword was always the easiest to use."

The teenager walked side by side with Elrithos as they headed back to camp.

Elrithos considered his words and actually found it quite odd he said that. He wasn’t good with any other weapon? The sword wasn’t the most instinctive weapon one could use, but definitely one that could be learned to use efficiently. It was also one of his preferred weapons, but he knows how to use others, notably the spear and the short bow. So he smiled and looked around.

[b]“I can tell you that some weapons are much easier to use than the sword, although everyone is different. I’ve learned an array of methods of combat, but only so few I can use with great efficiency. Do you know how to fight without a weapon?”[/b]

He asked , still casually strolling along.

Setna rubbed the back of his head at that question and looked away a bit bashfully. "Kind of?" His words lilted with his insecurity. "I've never been the strongest, muscle wise. So my instructors didn't bother with it for me. I mean I know how to throw a punch and dodge. But...I'm better with some sort of weapon."

The Syndarean boy ran a hand through his hair at his words. Really without barrier magic, and without much strength as the others, his training was merely for him to be frontline fodder. His father had gone out of his way to help train him further, but the incident with his sister quickly stunted that. The boy cast a glance to Elrithos before finally voicing his thoughts. "Back home, without magic, boys like me were pretty much trained for the frontlines. I don't think they expected much out of us. If we were fast and proficient enough with sword and shield, that's all that mattered. Stronger kids got more training in order to be a type of anchor, while magic users probably got the most training out of all of us."

Pausing to collect his thoughts, Setna continued. "I mean being on the frontlines is an honor in itself, and heroes and survivors are granted knighthood. Plus we got trained very well with what we were given." The boy didn't want to seem ungrateful for his upbringing, he had obviously impressed Elrithos with it thus far. Setna looked over to Elrithos as he said, "But I want to learn to be more than that. I want to know as much as I can so I can protect what's important to me."

The boy flushed a bit with embarrassment as he said those words. He looked a lot like his sister, as he rubbed the back of his neck and turned his gaze back to the path ahead of them.

-The initial answer was kind of a surprise for the veteran warrior, as hand-to-hand combat was given to every single soldier within the Aavikkanian race. It didn’t matter if you were good or not at it, you needed to know so that if the situation arose, you would be ready for it. Then, the boy actually explained how the whole process of the Syndarean military. Erithos, knew all of this, but didn’t say anything to Setna about it. He was, after, the messenger of the Council. He had learned about how their warriors were trained and such, knew that those unable to use magic and push through sheer strength, were meat shield.

Elrithos nodded to his friend and looked to the sky. [b]“Strength is an advantage, yes. I know how your military works, my friend. I have been to your nation before the war started. Not for long, but I learned enough. But, my people don’t consider such things. We are mostly smaller than your average human being, and yet, even our youngest members are taught that bigger opponents are simply easier.”[/b]

He smiled lightly. [b]“You will become great Setna. I’ll teach you everything I have been taught. And do not worry, I will condense it for human years.”[/b] He laughed lightly before continuing. [b]“When we cross the desert and go through the capital of my people, we will get you a better shield. Yours is too heavy for you to use efficiently I would believe. We will keep your sword as I believe you have a special Battleblade don’t you.”[/b]

Setna grinned as he listened to the Desert Elf. He had forgotten just how old Elrithos was, and that he had been around before the war and when all the separation happened. It was kind of a relief to know someone that knew where he was coming from. The boy smiled more at the mention that he'd definitely be getting more training, but as Elrithos mentioned his blade the boy instinctively put his hand on the hilt. His mind traveled back to the fight with his countrymen and how Vordan had somehow unlocked its potential. Setna still had no idea just how powerful the blade was or what it was capable of. It had gone through Sino's shield like it was nothing, and had even been able to produce a barrier itself. The boy unsheathed his blade to look at it. "That reminds me...perhaps you'd know what these symbols are."

Setna moved closer to the Desert Elf, and flipped the blade over to show the lettering of the enchantment forged into the blade itself. "I don't know what they mean. I thought they were elvish...But this blade was able to cut through a Syndarean barrier and more...It's been in my family for generations, but I don't understand it's power. Vordan seemed to be able to unlock it but..." 

The boy shrugged and looked over to Elrithos to see if he could tell heads or tails of it.

The reflex the young man had as he mentioned his sword caused Elrithos to think there was much more to his blade than Setna cared to share. It looked like a particular style of blade he had seen before, many years ago. He wondered if it could possibly be the ones that were forged with the Dark Ones. It was only when the young man wanted to show him some symbols that Elrithos stopped a moment and showed the symbols on the blade. It was what he thought and he seemed to become a little more, serious.

He looked up to his eyes and sighed. [b]“These blades were created with the Syndarean smith and the Dark Ones magical prowesses. They are a derivation of the elven tongue, yes, but adapted to the Dark Elves. I do not know every detail, but the blades are said to nullify magic and cut through magic like nothing in addition to provide barriers. They were forged during the Dark Emperor’s invasion of the continent as a mean to counter, most notably, the Makers and the Elven mages. Though…”[/b]

Elrithos started walking again, having found his calm and warm attitude again. [b]“… I suggest maybe talking to Vordan for details about the weapon. If he unlocked it, it means he probably knows a lot about it. He seems to have acquired a lot of knowledge in his short time of living… Let’s go eat and we’ll start weapon training.”[/b]

Setna took in the new information and held the blade up to the light to look at it one last time. He thought over the fight again and nodded at the advice to speak to Vordan about it. He finally sheathed it. “I’ll ask him after the weapon training, if he has the time.” The boy answered as he followed behind the Desert elf back towards camp.

There was such a thing as Dark Elves?

--------------

As the caravan had stopped for the night, Aaerynn needed help out of the cart. Rudolf of course immediately jumped on it, teasing her all the way over to where the campfire would be set up. Her muscle spasms had simmered down to a small tremble that shook her body occasionally as if she was cold. The pain was still there and it came in waves. There were moments of reprieve, then it would build up bit by bit until it became so painful she was forced to close her eyes and become completely still in order to bear it. Then it would simmer down and she could focus again. 

She had to be such an idiot for doing this to herself.

Sitting by the fire with Kai curled around her to keep her warm, Aaerynn worked with her hands. She needed something to do so her mind would stop fixating itself on what was going on in her body. Her current project was cleaning off her elven dagger that was covered in dried purple gunk. The color itself had sparked an idea that was taking her mind by force. Her blood and that of the Syndarean had covered the blade and the mixing of the two had procured the bright purple color. Aaerynn had never put much thought in the effect her blood could have on another races’ but it was proving to be interesting. When she had first noticed it that morning, it was too late to try and find the body and see the effects for herself, so she wasn’t exactly sure if the new substance was toxic or not. But the ideas springing in her head had led to an impulse buy of another dagger which she was now using to shave off the dried blood in fragile sheets. 

Aaerynn carefully scratched and peeled off the substance from her dagger and let it fall into a clean vial she had picked out from her bag. After a moment she held up the glass and looked at the purple build up within. The color was still taking her by surprise. What were the implications of it? How could her rot and human blood lead to such a substance? She set the vial down and continued her task. Was it toxic or the opposite? Could it harm or empower? The wood elf pursed her lips as she thought. The best way to go about it would be to ask the twins for a sample of each of their blood. They were perfect controls, one with magic and the other without. Then she could see the reaction herself. 

It was interesting enough to take her mind off her pain at least. 

The wood elf didn’t raise her head until Rudolf set a bowl of stew in front of her. Aaerynn looked up to take in the sight of the smiling dwarf and then looked back at the Syndarean girl who was happily handing out bowls of food. 

“Thank you.” She finally replied to the dwarf who grinned and nodded.

-------------

 Upon the caravan stopping, Serna had immediately gone to work on something for dinner. She worked happily and diligently, especially after seeing Setna go off to train with Elrithos. She couldn’t help thinking that everyone deserved a nice filling meal.

As the stew finished and Serna began administering bowls, her brother and Elrithos broke through the trees and entered the campsite. The young girl happily handed them something to eat which Setna eagerly took with a grin.

Serna just bowed her head and continued to the others. She proceeded to give a bowl to Tirian and Vordan, then decided on letting Rudolf give bowls to the two newcomers. The new girls were pretty and interesting, but the young Syndarean girl felt too shy to approach them just yet. 

Instead she sat beside Tirian and her brother with her own bowl and happily ate.