The Consano had been on the move for three days. While several of the company had horses available, this was not the case for all. Their progress had suffered as a result. Sarah had scarcely spoken a word to any of her companions. Those whom she had not met that day at the Kevil’s Arms remained strangers to be observed from a distance.
There was the light haired man who stood a bit shorter than the rest of the men. What he lacked in height he made up for in noise. Whether he was singing, laughing at his own jokes, or attempting to impress another member of the Consano, the rogue never shut-up. One or two of the soldiers had attempted to assist him, but the young man never seemed to appreciate that he may be in any actual danger. Sarah wondered if he would continue to smile when their comrades began to die off.
The hooded man that had given Sarah a curious chill the day he arrived turned out to be a mage. Or at least, that’s what some of the soldiers had whispered amongst each other when camp was made. The young healer regarded him with a suspicious eye whenever he rode in front of her. Though the man was not especially imposing at first glance, there was an air about him that made Sarah uneasy, and his contentment to rarely speak only intensified this feeling. She wondered what this mage was capable of, and whether he would use his abilities nobly when the time came. Since they had been paired in the same squad, she assumed the answer would come sooner rather than later.
While the mage was somewhat eerie, the commissioner of the Consano was downright offensive. Sarah knew him as Orwen, and everything from his gaudy clothes to his demanding tone irritated Sarah. These things would not have phased her had it not been for the stories he told, no, bragged about, involving what seemed like countless innocent slaves. And always, there was a shadow of a smile when he spoke, as though contemplating his own cruelty brought him some deep inner peace.
How Sir Chester could freely accept that vile trader and yet hold her in suspicion was beyond Sarah’s understanding. The young healer thought back to the night when she had arrived at The Kevil’s Arms. The knight, who had seemed cordial enough at first, ultimately left Sarah feeling as though she had been interrogated rather than interviewed. It was the revelation of her Dawnish origin that had seemed to plant doubt in his mind. Sarah was proud of her heritage and in many ways felt that the Kingdom of Dawn was superior to it’s northern neighbor. At the very least, her people had not propagated a bloody war for the sake of a king’s vanity. If anyone should be put on trial for their citizenship, Sarah was certain it was not her.
The morning of their departure had brought sudden calls to attention which had struck Sarah as a bit awkward. No doubt, when they had left The Kevil’s Arms, Sarah had felt a bit like a child playing “soldier” as they filed out of the city. At this point however, the marching had lost all manner of novelty and now the young healer felt much like a head of cattle, lumbering along in the herd. She imagined that she also smelled much like a cow, as there had been little opportunity for washing in the past three days. It was for this reason that when the Consano finally halted it’s march along the muddy road on the third evening, that Sarah resolved to ensure a dip in the nearby river. It would be freezing, but no chill could be worse than sleeping another night covered in grime.
It amazed Sarah how quickly the Consano could collectively set-up and break camp every day. In less than an hour the tents were pitched, horses were grazed, and fires were burning. If there were to be any amusement before dark, it must come in the short bouts between eating and sleeping. After Sarah raised her tent, she stuffed inside her bedroll all the personal letters which she had received from her Cavil’s father. Then she heaved her heavy pack over one shoulder and sought out Sir Chester. Though he did not trust her, the healer considered him among the least likely to rummage through her supplies and take something for himself.
Afterward, Sarah spotted the exotic assassin and also the female mercenary near a fire. The dark-skinned woman was examining a knife under the last bit of daylight that was quickly slipping away. Over the past few days the healer had observed the assassin pulling knives from what seemed like thin air, much like a magician who pulled coins from his sleeves to amuse children. Always she did so as though she were unaware of what her fingers were doing, and before Sarah could make out any details of the blade, it would disappear back into the killer’s robes. It appeared to be a mindless habit, and the ease at which the foreign woman performed it made Sarah wonder at what other abilities she possessed with such blades.
Sarah had not yet met the mercenary, who was now squatted down to the ground and rummaging through a pack. Unlike many of the others who traveled in their company, she had heard no rumors about this traveler, unless of course you counted the perverted remarks some men made to one another whenever she rode in front of them. Sarah studied her agreeable manner and decided to make the first move.
“
We have not met,” She began in a soft tone, stopping in front of the pack that the sell sword was searching “
As two of the few ladies in this company, I believe we should remedy this.”
Sarah’s words were friendlier than she felt. Had she not deemed it necessary to avoid bathing alone, she likely would have made no move to introduce herself. She was tired, and betraying sleep for the monotony of small talk felt wrong.
The past few nights had been rather energetic on Gwenyfar`s end, everyone was split up into different squads, but by the end of the first night marching east to Minorhold, most everyone fell into a slipshod order. She wasn`t used to the military life,but it did seem oddly familiar, and at times rather cozy for the close comfort of the security provided. Alas, she did not let her senses lure her into any false notions as she much as she would have liked to. The past three days alone had been rather hectic for some new recruits and had begun to create a sense of unease in her mind at least, it bothered her not, but only to the point to wonder how reckless this mission would come to be, or even dangerous. Gweynfar had surveilled the group since they left, and noted several people of key interest.
She took a particular note of the dark skinned woman, who seemed of an exotic origin she could not place; also of several men. Sir Chester seemed to be an alright fellow, but there were two other she had not met, one of them was a hooded man, one that every time she looked in his direction, gave her chills, like that of an entity touching her very soul, one that filled her with restlessness and anxiety. The other was a bastard of a man, for she had heard his name before on her travels, Orwen. And he, was certainly a bothersome fellow. She knew him to be one of the richest slavers, and one to be feared for his ruthless attitude. It became obvious to her the disturbed mind he held after the few remarks he had made about his few prized women slaves.
On the third night, after a hard days ride, the group again made for camp, and this time not so far from a river, just a mile or so up the road. It had rained earlier in the day and now that dusk had settled, the clouds seemed more ominous than when the group had departed earlier. She had her mind on other things as she rummaged through her buckled knapsack, looking for a whetstone to give her blade a good rub, when a young blonde woman approached her. Her words startled Gwenyfar, causing her to jolt. She looked up at the woman and listened to her as she spoke, all the while studying her face. She had strong features, one that reminded her of statued woman. The thing that drew her attention the most to this woman was the colour of her eyes, the colour of amber stone, like a low smouldering flame.
Finally she let a smile grace her captivated face,rising upto her feet and extending her hand, she replied in a polite manner, "
Hello, no I don`t think we have. I`m Gwenyfar if you haven`t heard already. I would have introduced myself earlier, yet time did not allow me to. What is your name?"
Sarah was surprised at Gwenyfar’s pleasant manners. When she shook the mercenary’s hands, she wondered if all killers had such calloused skin. Though she was not delicate, Gwen had a lovely face and toned figure. Sarah imagined that her martial skills were at least occasionally used in self-defense when she received unwanted attention.
“
My name is Sarah,” She began while looking Gwen in the eye, “
I am our company’s healer. The only one I’m afraid.”
Gwen took the woman`s hand into her own as she grasped it firmly, and noted the lightness of her hands, meaning they were delicate and small, "
Sarah, it is my pleasure. I`m glad then that you have joined our company, if any of us were to fall, at least we would have you. Tell me then, would you care to join me if we took a gander down to the river to wash up? I suppose we could invite the other lady as well, though I do believe I haven`t caught her name..."
Here Gwen looked about the encampment looking for the olive-skinned woman, "
I know a good wash would make me sleep better tonight too." She finally spotted her, mindlessly flicking a knife in and out of her hand, disappearing into her sleeve only to bring it out again. In hopes of gaining her attention, Gwenyfar looked right at her, and waved her hand, in an attempt to draw her over to them.
Quietly she added, "
I`m certain I smell like my horses ass, as much as I love him, I particularly don`t favour the smell." With that, she allowed herself a grin that disappeared within moments.
Sarah chuckled courteously at the other woman’s joke, “
Unfortunately, I can say no better of myself. A bath would suit me well if we can manage to return before the sun leaves us.” The young healer glanced toward the sky and imagined they had just over an hour left of shine. Daylight was a precious commodity anywhere, but here in the North, it was in constant short supply. She was releived that others seemed just as eager take a bit of risk in exchange for the sanity that clean skin brought.
Nearby, Sarah also sought to gain the assassin's attention,“Y
es, I had the pleasure of meeting her on recruitment day.” Sarah was silent a moment as she remembered the dark woman’s flirtatious manner with the nervous young priest. She also remembered how she had brushed off the woman's attempt at buying her dinner. Had she not been so exhautsed at the time, Sarah might have felt embarrassed at her own obvious behavior. “
I daresay, she is rather exotic isn’t she?” Sarah quietly asked Gwen, attempting to gather someone else’s impression.
"
I`ve yet to speak with her more, but yes... she is rather exotic. Did you happen to catch where she comes from?" The oppurtunity was lost as the foreign woman looked up and headed over.
Karen was bored... For a while now actually. Those long continues days of nothing but traveling were getting to her. Normally she was fine with such monotonous passing of the days, but considering she didn't even have much chance to chat with people since they departed was too much. From boredom, she began pulling in and out her knives from their hiding places. For a while she didn't even realize that she was doing it. Once she realized it though, she began doing it for fun and practice.
Now she was just checking out her knives before the sun vanished over the horizon. She needed to make sure the blades were in perfect condition otherwise they may not fly properly or even break on impact and not take down her target. Considering the enemies they were going to be facing, unless she pierced the skull those creatures weren't going to fall down. Thus she had to keep her weapons in perfect condition and extremely sharp.
As she was inspecting the blade of one of the last knives, she noticed one of the women in the expedition waving at her. It was that woman who she met while they were preparing the horses. She didn't get much chance to talk with her back then. It seemed that Sarah and that woman... what was her name... ahh yeah... Gwenyfar. It was what she heard from some of the other members of the Consano in the brief moments when they talked. Smiling cause of the situation that was present, Karen quickly rose from her place and walked over to the other two women.
"
Greetings, my name is Karen. Nice to meet you again, we met briefly when were were setting off, but not since." She said when she approached and reached a hand for a handshake with Gwenyfar. "
So what can I do for you two?" The olive-skinned woman asked.
Gwen studied the woman as she moved over towards them, introducing herself as Karen. When she queried what she could do for them, Gwenyfar looked to Sarah and replied, shaking Karen`s as she did so, "
Gwenyfar. It`s a pleasure. Sarah and I were going to head down to the river for a quick dip to wash up. Do you want to come with us? We`ll lose light the longer we wait." She offered the woman the same complacement smile that she gave Sarah.
"
There is no way I will refuse an invitation such as this one, now is there?" The assassin said with a happy voice and smiled. She herself was beginning to feel the stench that was starting to come out from here. One rule she had was to keep good hygiene and she had already ignored it longer than she was willing to because there was no suitable chance till now.
"
Let's go then, just a moment to get a thing from my bag..." Karen replied and with a quick dash she went to her luggage where she took a small wrapped object. It was her soap...
"
Alright, I'm ready to go now." She said once she quickly dashed back to Sarah and Gwen.
Sarah eyed the soap longingly. It would have been a luxury in the river, but on the operating table, it was a necessity. For this reason Sarah had left her own soap behind, buried in her pack with the rest of her tools. The cleansing of sand would have to suffice.
“
Let us hurry, we haven’t much time.” Sarah prodded the other two. Without waiting, she pushed ahead, out of the encampment. For legs so short, the young healer took long and swift strides so as the other women must nearly jog to keep up. As the icy wind blew, Sarah tucked her thin hands deep into the pockets of her brown wool dress.
The river was ahead of them, and one could hear it babbling beyond the line of trees which they passed under. The smell of pine wafted richly as they stepped over a damp carpet of needles. The water itself was narrow and rocky. Sarah doubted it was deep enough to pass over her head.
"
Best not to take chances." She thought. The blond woman walked several paces up stream to what was sure to be a shallow area.
With no time for shyness, she began to strip off her many layers. First her cloak, her long knife, then the wool dress, finally the white cotton shift. Though she had not been particularly warm before hand, the dusk air brought goose bumps over Sarah’s pale skin. Dark blue bruising along her inner thighs made her seem even more fragile. “
And even more useless,” she thought bitterly. Sarah finished her disrobement by discreetly unstrapping her thigh halter which carried the small knife she saved for compromising situations. This she tucked underneath her leather undergarments.
After tucking her belongings in front of a boulder, where she could keep an eye on them, Sarah all but ran to the water, eager to be clothed again. She knew what to expect. To call the water frigid would not do it justice. Luckily, the young woman had long since forgotten the comfort of bath houses. It seemed to her, she might never know such opulence again. Before stepping in, she made certain her companions were still in sight.
Karen raised an eyebrow as they approached the river.
"
This is gona be quite chilly, it's going to be a bad idea to directly head off to the camp after getting out of the water." The exotic woman said as she quickly broke some branches from nearby trees. She saw Sarah already entering the river so the assassin hastened with her actions. She quickly piled up the wooden sticks and began to form a small campfire.
"
It's going to be a good idea to have a fire like this to at least dry our hairs before returning to the camp no?" She asked the other women.
After setting up the fire she felt the warmth on her skin, but bath came first. The olive-skinned woman quickly began to strip too, removing the number of knives she kept on her self in the process and piled them on the ground next to her cloak. Afterwards she took her soap and a piece of what appeared to be kind of a sponge and headed to the river not to far from Sarah.
After rubbing the soap onto the sponge for a while, she turned towards the other two people with her.
"
Any of you want to use the soap?" She asked with a smile, there was no need to keep it for herself. She already soaped the sponge so she didn't need it at the moment.
Gwenyfar had followed Sarah, who happened to be a spritely creature as her pace was long, causing her to jog just to keep up. She kept a good pace with Sarah as they passed through a pine thicket that lead the trio of woman to the river`s edge. It seemed rather rocky until the women followed Sarah to a shallower side of the ride. Her eyes did not mean to linger, but she did sneak peeks at the other women as they undressed, nervous that they were watching her. She did note that Karen carried an almost unfathomable amount of knives on her person. And that Sarah had strange bruising on the innermost part of her thighs. The cold air didn`t help at all, so when Karen had built the fire,she knew it would be of a great service to them after.
"
Yes, I think that`ll be just fine, thank you Karen. We could suffer from the cold and fall sick if our hair was still damp." She mumbled the last part more to herself again; an unbeknownst habit to her.
She paid heed only to her body after, and undressed quickly. The hardest part was unlacing her leather jerkin, along with her trousers, shin guards and bracers. She sighed with a breath of relief and stepped into the water, goosebumps sprouted up as she eased into the water causing her to shiver. Gwenyfar had removed everything except for her lower undergarments, she placed one hand across her buxom chest and began to splash water upon herself. She watched as the water erased the layers of dirt that had become caked on in the short few days they had travelled.
When Karen offered her soap, Gwenyfar bit her lip and looked to Sarah and then nodded at Karen, "
Aye, if you don`t mind, I would love a bit of soap. It`s a luxury we`ll all miss in the days to come, I`m certain. Do you make it yourself?"
If there was anything Gwenyfar was particularly good at it was making small talk. She learned the trait from the merchants she bargained with in her earlier years with her father. She reached out to take the soap from her with an open palm, suggesting that she meant for no trickery; it had been many years at that since she had been in company of more than one woman at a time, and especially when bathing.
Sarah had thanked Karen for her generous offer of soap but immediately declined. She was not about to start indebting herself to these or any other member of the Consano. In her experience, it was always better to be owed something, than it was to owe something back.
Bending down, Sarah scooped up a handful of river sand and began exfoliating her extremities with the black dust. She moved quickly, shivering like mad as she scrubbed. When the grime was sufficiently removed, the young woman pulled out the leather tie which held her long hair in place. Golden waves spilled out of the braid and Sarah combed through them ferociously with her fingers.
Nearby, Gwen and Karen seemed to be enjoying some small talk. Each woman had a pleasing figure. The assassin’s body was particularly feminine what with soft, ample curves which complimented her athletic limbs. She had started a fire nearby and Sarah wished she had placed her clothes nearby the heat. A few short minutes passed and it was time for the worst and finale part, washing her hair.
The young healer took a few breaths, plucking up the nerve to dip herself backwards below the icy stream. When she emerged, it would be an all out dash to get dry and warm.
One..two...three...Instead of plunging to the ground, scrubbing with some stones, and hoisting herself back up again, Sarah’s left leg had slipped down into a divet under the water. Losing her balance, the healer’s entire body submerged into a sneakily deep portion of the river.
Though the water was cold enough to stop a man’ heart, it was sheer panic that gripped Sarah’s as she struggled to gain footing. Too short to reach the bottom, the woman sputtered on water, gasping for air which did not come.
Karen was just happy to give Gwen the soap. It was only natural to help each other, especially when it came to things such as keeping yourself clean. It is how she was raised after all, public baths were a common thing down to the south where things such as water supplies were limited thus baths were usually near water sources thus they were made public.
"
Ahh yes I made it myself. I made it specially with some herbs and milk, that way it's very good for one's skin. It's a family recipe, I found that the soaps here in the north thend to be too rough and bad for the skin." The assassin said with a amused smile. Such small talk so typical for normal women wasn't often thing for her. It was kind of refreshing to do so. As she handed Gwen the bar of soap, she didn't miss the chance to get a good look at the woman's figure. She was beautiful too.
"
You will sense it's effects once you try it."
Gwenyfar nodded agreeably with Karen, "
Yes, that is the most unfortunate thing here, most folk here just throw things together in a vat and call it soap. I find goat's milk to be very beneficial to the skin, especially mixed with lavender, mint and rosemary." Here, she brought the soap to her nose and gave it a sniff,and found the aroma to be very appeasing. As she soaped herself up, Gwenyfar watched Sarah's gold locks spill asunder over her backside. She admired blonde hair for its radiance, yet she also admired Karen's black hair for its sheen and darkness. It reminded her of a raven's feather, even with a bluish tint to it. But that may as well have been cast from the firelight.
Karen sighed at Sarah's refusal to her gesture. The assassin made a puzzled expression of what to do. The healer appeared to be kind of distant and the olive-skinned woman wondered if that was going to be fine for the future. Well in the end of the day it wasn't her right to meddle with how the woman felt... at least for now that is. If it was going to prove to be a problem for the future, the assassin was going to have to convice Sarah to be friendlier somehow, but she really had no idea how to do that.
As she was in her thoughts, she used the time to wash herself properly from all the dirt with the sponge and as she finally completely submerge in the water for a moment to wash her hair too, she noticed what was going with Sarah.
Karen was by no way unable to swim. In fact she was great swimmer as forced to learn and hone that skill. Thus she quickly with quick move she threw the sponge near the campfire and quickly moved in Sarah's direction, she seemed to have stepped on hidden deep part of the river. It happened all the time and it was often deadly. As she reached the healer a few moments later, she right away reached with her right hand and grabbed Sarah from behind and under the armpits, using her left hand to pull herself and the healer back into the surface.
Gwenyfar unpinned her braid that she had wound about her head three days ago and let it fall across her shoulders, mahogany tresses shining red like blood in the firelight. She dipped beneath the surface and with one hand, erased the remaining traces of dirt and grime that had accumulated. When she surfaced, bar of soap still in one hand, Gwenyfar immediately took notice of Sarah slipping under and with Karen racing over to her.
"
Seriously..." Karen said as she was pulling the weaker girl to the shore. Considering they were going to be fighting zombies one of them almost died by drowning tonight...
Sarah spent a moment sputtering on the water which had nearly reached her lungs. She rolled onto her stomach pulling herself to her knees as she fought to get the last few drops out. Karen was standing over the young healer, concern, and a hint of condescension covered her dark features. Sarah was silent for a moment as she caught her breath. On the bright side, between the adrenaline coursing through her blood and the heat rising on her cheeks, she was no longer cold.
"
Thank..." Sarah coughed, "
Thank you." She managed.
If Sarah had felt useless before, she felt like an absolute burden now. "
I'm sorry."
With a sense of urgency, Gwenyfar hauled herself to the waters edge, as she saw Karen hoist Sarah out of the water and onto the shoreline.
She clutched the soap in one hand, other hand across her chest and stood shaking in the wind as she looked down at Sarah, "
Are you okay?" Worry crossed her face as surveyed their companion. She turned to Karen and offered her soap back to her.
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