The Ride For South: Rest Night

The night was even darker as the trees covered the moonlight, but the campfire blessed them with the needed enlightenment, and the horses were tied to the trees that were around them. They caused no trouble or noise. They were sweethearts.

The locals from the borders of both East and South considered Ayndale Woods to be haunted, from the mist it radiates and the shadows of unexplainable creatures with unexplainable shapes that lurk behind it. The bark of the trees was disturbingly greyish in color, like smoke, and the leaves looked as though they were burned. Every corner had bright and enticing poison ivies that unfortunately claimed the lives of several people, and those who perished roamed the woods for all eternity. 

But no, none of that troubled the nine of them, nor did they care about the place's lore.

"My, my, my. My tongue's a leech for this Berry wine!" Neil exclaimed in satisfaction as he chugged the bottle. 

"Yeah, I don't even like wine, but this is an absolute punch!" Brody joined in.

"East, maybe a burn in the ass, but the drinks are sure cool." Vegas admitted as she rubbed off the split drops from the edges of her lips. 

"Mmmh! This is! This is really good!" Yin stood up violently in excitement.

"Chicken Pie's are great too! They're famous over there. They are my favorite." Erik provided additional information.

"What! It's a shame we didn't try!" Neil and Vegas both shouted at the same time, deeply upset.

"Colt! Come 'ere!" Neil yelled as he searched the area for him and then later found him sitting on top of a giant rock, wiping his longsword.

Upon seeing him, Tara stood up from the circle and walked over to him, breaking tiny twigs and stiff leaves on her way. 

"This is the third time I've seen you wipe your sword. Why do you always do that?"

"It's a part of me." 

"Oh really? What makes it so special?"

"It was a gift for my performance in a tournament I won when I was just eight years old." 

"Oh, that's impressive. What did you fight against weak, stable boys?" Tara mocked him.

"I fought and won against the four strongest knights of the North."

"Oh."

Tara was actually impressed.

"That is impressive." She admitted.

There was a brief silence between them.

"And you? Where did you get your Mage ring?"

"I got it from a witch. I kept having visions of her since I was a kid, and one night I saw her in the middle of a forest, and she gave it to me."

"How did you manage to hide it from your family and other people?" 

"It wasn't that difficult." Tara sighed and walked away.

Colt was confused about her reaction to the question and the answer she gave, so he went back to focus on wiping his longsword.

Then, after a few moments, Colt heard someone approaching, but this time it wasn't the voice of a female.

"Gotta name for him?" 

It was Mathen, with his brisk voice.

"No." Colt replied sharply.

"Well, all great swords have names, right?"

"Not mine. My sword is nowhere near greatness…Yet." 

"Such a shame for a knight with a great reputation."

Colt remained silent.

"Was it Wes Grand who trained you?" 

"I trained myself. But he made me better."

"He was a great man, but I heard he got killed by a wild dog." Mathen was getting on his nerves.

Colt's face dropped in anger.

"So much for someone who gave a knife to a child to execute the orders that were given to him." He snapped back at him, reminding him of the incident that happened back in the North.

Mathen was quiet, so Colt continued. 

"Many great warriors like Wes Grand have fallen to such circumstances, and you have no right to mock someone as great as him, you gold-haired kid." 

"Woah! Calm down, knight. I didn't mean to upset you." Mathen chuckled to himself.

"But I do think it would be nice if we had a duel one day." Mathen added as he brushed his golden hair.

"I would like that too." Colt grinned softly.

"You take good rest, brother. Good night." Mathen said that and walked back to the campfire.

…

The night grew darker as hours passed and the horses were asleep.

"Yin, I'm scared to confront Arega." Erik's voice was shaking, as if he were shivering.

"Erik River! My good buddy! Why do you fear when I'm with you?!" It was dead in the night, but Yin's energy was like that of a baby's.

"It's just that... I… I don't know... I…" 

"Erik! Calm down! No one can hurt you while I'm here!" 

"What will you do if he refuses to join you? By now he would've come to know about the death of Jaquer, what if he's itching to kill you?" 

"He can't kill me, Erik! No mortal can kill me. Ask Mathen yourself."

"I can confirm." Mathen replied sharply, supporting Yin's rigid statement. 

"I know, but I'm just scared for everyone else here. He's a monster. He has no sense of empathy for anyone. He likes to kill people, he likes to have... you know... that... with girls. He likes to drink and eat like shit. He's a complete mess." Erik's voice was fueled with both anger and fear as he sweated and blinked with every word he uttered. 

"He sure sounds scary! He does! But don't you worry, Erik! As long as I'm here, you have nothing to fear! I have promised to protect my people at all times."

It was quiet.

But not for too long.

"Hah! But you still left us to die in the battle with that monster." Lars reminded him with a hint of mockery.

"Haha! Great reminder! Haha! That's... haha!" Yin scratched his head.

"I'll make sure that doesn't happen again." His tone was suddenly serious. 

"Let's doze now so we can sleep and wake up early in the morning." Brody reminded them.

The nine of them scattered to a place of their liking, and they laid their bags to act as pillows and slept. 

Everyone was asleep.

But not Yin and Vegas.

"Yin, do you think we can do this?"

"Do what?!" His voice was loud, and he didn't care if anyone was bothered or not.

"The war." She paused and continued.

"I fear the war." 

"Vegas, I have to win it. I have no other choice. I have to get back to my Mei."

"I know, I know. I'm just scared for you." 

"Haha! Why should you be scared for me? Haha!" 

"I…just… You're my friend. That's why." 

"Haha! Don't worry, I'll be fine."

Vegas stood up from the place and walked away from him, her eyes caging in tears. Her steps trembled and slipped; she was shaking, but she hid it well. She cried in the darkness. She couldn't understand what was happening to her.

Why does she like him?

Why is she scared for him?

Yin Kang.

...

Vegas stopped next to her lookalike horse and rested her head on hers. 

She slept, swallowing every tear that was supposed to run down her face.