[h3]Rionach[/h3]
[hr]

The enemy broke, and Rionach took little time in figuring out why.  Even ghastlier in death than he had been in life, the fearsome bandit leader lay in the dirt, which drank the steady flow of blood from his slash and puncture wounds.  Planting the butt of her spear into the ground, Rionach wiped her brow and allowed her ultra-stern battle face to melt into a smile.  It grew only brighter when the young swordswoman offered her a compliment.  Laughing, the highlander replied, “All in a days work!  To be frank, your swordplay was just as impressive.  That speed is something else—fast as a wind and far more deadly.”  She recognized that her allies were grouping up, and trotted over to the spot where they gathered.  In gratitude the unknown girl offered her saviors a respite at her home, and Rionach voiced her acquiescence with gusto.  On a journey this long and fast, any rest sounded like a good time to her.

As luck would have it, though, a more comfortable reprieve lay still beyond her reach for the moment.  Only Prince Jarde seemed to be admitted inside, so everyone else made do with the exterior.  Disappointed, and wondering what business the green-haired girl had with Elibean royalty, Rionach sank down onto the dust with her back to the ger's outer wall.  She allowed her eyes to slip closed, and considered pulling down her headband over them to block out the sun.  After that, given the day's heat, a catnap wouldn't be hard at all.  Before her plans got much underway, however, Rionach found herself accompanied by the crimson-clad blonde, Merilia.  She revealed she had something on her mind, so the highlander listened with a piqued interest.  After she finished, Rionach shrugged.  “Well, thanks, Merilia.  I mean, I could still have malintent.  One fight doesn't mean we really got to know one another, or make someone trustworthy.  That Sordan guy, for instance?”  Her tone dropped so that the man in question would not hear, though she indicated his way with a tilt of her head.  “I trust about as far as I can throw him.  But I'm glad you've realized I've got nothing but the purest, most heroic intentions.  You can count on me to do right by him.”  She offered Merilia a sincere grin, thinking as she did that despite pretty much being this woman's polar opposite, it hadn't taken them long at all to see eye to eye.

A few moments later, the door to the ger opened wide to divulge Jarde, the girl, and someone new.  A pang of confusion struck Rionach.  Just when did this guy get here?  Had he been inside the whole time?  She threw a wondering glance the swordswoman's way.  The stranger got straight to the point, however, and took the liberty of making the introduction the girl had neglected before declaring that the party would have their aid moving through the region.  With the man in question identified the next moment as Mark, Jarde seemed to think everything set for an immediate departure for the next stop in his journey.  With a wince and much reluctance, Rionach got to her feet.  [i]That wasn't much rest at all,[/i] she moaned inwardly, but on the outside a look of determination held firm.  

[center]-=-=-[/center]

A day of footsore travel later, the group strode through the gates of Bulgar.  Though happy to be back in civilization, Rionach wanted nothing more than to find an inn, a passable patch of shade, or perhaps just a roof to pass out on.  Lyn, however, advocated the procurement of additional supplies, with which Rionach could not reasonably disagree.  With wobbly legs and tired eyes, the spearwoman plodded through the market district of the city, looking for food that would neither spoil quickly nor bankrupt her hard case.  “Is this really the pace soldiers make?” she bemoaned to herself as she shuffled about.  “I feel like I'm falling apart.  Nobody should be able to move that fast for that long.”  An alluring scent caught her eye, perking her up just a touch, and she sidled over to a stall selling miniature barrels of food.  Salted pork, carrots, dried apples, honey-oat cakes, cheese and hard tack...this would do.  Just to make sure, she spent a few moments looking over the selection to make sure she knew what to get, and how much.