“I’d like to say I’m sorry that our traveling situation doesn’t suit you,” Kaitlyn said as she checked the front cinch of the saddle making sure it hadn’t loosened on the ride over, “but honestly, I’m not sorry at all.” With that she gracefully mounted her bay. “Like you, I wish this journey to be over quickly. Think of your horse as an end to a means. Hmm?” One hand resting loosely on her thigh, the other confidently holding the reigns, Kaitlyn barely had to kick the horse to get Roan to start walking. Wendell obediently lead Thea’s mount behind them. 

The stallion and Kaitlyn had been together for almost two years. Roan had been a gift her father gave her when she’d become a Knight-Corporal. The two of them had developed a trusting and understanding relationship overtime. Roan, being a sensitive sort of beast, picked up on Kaitlyn’s mood. The Templar’s irritation shown in the way her horse carried its ears and switched its ebony tail, making the skiddish appaloosa Thea was riding a little more nervous than usual.

The sounds of the camp faded as the trio headed deeper into the woods. Light trickled through the dappled green canopy overhead. Looking up through the leaves, Kaitlyn managed to locate the sun. From its angle she’d guess it was already well into mid-morning. She was irritated at the amount of time Thea had wasted saying her good-byes. If the mage had been a better rider, she would have sped up the pace but the last thing she wanted was the woman to fall and break her neck, at least on her watch.

They traveled on in uncomfortable silence for what felt like hours. Around them birds sung out and flittered around in trees, oblivious of the unhappy travelers below. A few times Kaitlyn made them halt. She told Thea it was to allow her to take a break and stretch her legs, but Wendell always disappeared into the surrounding woods. One time he returned with a black Darkspawn arrowhead. The owner was nowhere to be seen and, the Templar hoped, long gone. They’d just started riding again after one of these breaks when the mage spoke out.

[i]”You might be confident you can handle a few stragglers on the road, but until we are out of this forest we are in danger of encountering their scouting parties…. I shall not be responsible for any harm to your person if that happens."[/i]

Kaitlyn almost breathed in the water she’d been drinking from her skin. Blue liquid trickled out from one side of her lips as she tried to control her coughing enough to allow her to finish her drink. Rubbing the back of her hand against her mouth, she fought to calm her lungs long enough to speak. Unfortunately, Wendell beat her to it.

“That seems reasonable enough,” the Tranquil said, logical as usual. “Provided you don’t use your magic against us.”

“No!” Kaitlyn finally managed to snap, glaring over her shoulder at them. “We can’t let her…”

Wendell shook he head. “While I admit it is dangerous, the dark spawn are more of a threat.”

“Then an abomination leaking out of the Fade? Then an accidental tear in the Veil?”

“Thea, I’m sure, has been practicing magic with the elves for a while. She must have managed some control in that time. You can easily deal with an abomination. As for a tear in the Veil, the odds of…” but he didn’t finish. Kaitlyn halted her horse exasperated to hear the rest of Wendell’s argument. That’s when she noticed why he had stopped speaking. 

The woods around them had gone completely silent.