xviii.
Will washed his face with cold water trying to get the sleep out of his eyes. After three cups of cold coffee and countlessly pulling his hair to keep himself awake, he still felt his lids heavy with sleep and wondered if he could go another day like this. He had arrived early two mornings ago and after making some looking around the village discovered some fishermen had spotted a couple of unfamiliar ships in the next port. Losing no time, he had galloped to Gillmount where he had arrived just in time to see some boats unloading what seemed to be heavy wooden boxes and taking them down the road leaving to the caves in the beach. He had thought about following to see what was inside though saw more ships arrive at the time and decided to watch first what was going on in the harbors before going into the caves and investigating. As it was, after almost 48 hours with virtually no sleep there was no sign of another ship coming though he didn't feel awake enough to sneak into the caves.
"A warm meal and some rest would be gladly welcomed, don't you think?" Will asked Tug as they waited in the shadow of the trees looking down at the sea below.
The horse snorted. Stop being such a whiner. You asked for it, in any case.
"Well, Mr. I'm-the-most-amazing-Ranger-horse-in-this-world, unlike horses, we humans do need sleep from time to time."
Whiner.
"Perhaps you should stay here while I find some nice place to take a nap then."
And who's the Ranger here?
Will made no reply to that. He slumped against the tree once again and fixed his eyes on the horizon already planning on making a small camp where he could get a cold meal—he didn't want to risk being seen by the locals or foreign fishermen—and take a short power nap to regain his energy. Once night fell, he would sneak to the caves and figure out what was going on; even if it had nothing to do with Mazoniria, the way the men unloading looked around for anyone following told him it was nothing legal that they were smuggling here.
"I believe we'll be saying good bye early tomorrow." Halt said that night as they set up the camp. Gilan looked up from where he was building the fire smiling somewhat sadly at the prospect of parting from the group.
Next to him Maiah seemed to get a little quieter though made no direct acknowledgement of it. She had known it wouldn't be long before the group had to divide yet once again though over the last few days she had grown used to Gilan's company and although she wasn't scared of Halt and knew the older Ranger was just as fond of her, she still couldn't help a small moan when she pictured the final section of her trip with only him for company after being stripped of most of the fun and excitement young Rangers carried with them. They would see him again, she reminded herself, going back to skinning the hares they had hunted for the stew that night.
For once, the three travelers allowed the conversation that emerged over dinnertime to lead away from business and instead kept it simple, mostly consisting of anecdotes from the Rangers. Having nothing to compare to their experiences as her only memories were those that had to do with Prowessa, Maiah listened avidly without really participating in the speaking outside of gasps, laughing, or small encouraging words. She could see they both enjoyed recounting their experiences, tripping over each other's words eager to share the next memory; and took especial pride when Maiah's reaction was one of admiration—especially the younger teller.
However, their socializing was short lived as they needed to recharge their energy for the long ride the next day and after experiencing the blazing sun a few days ago they had changed their traveling plans to allow for a short break when the heat of the day became too much for the horses so that they had to leave camp earlier and settle for the night closer to twilight. Tonight would be their last night sleeping outdoors since Halt and Maiah were a day's ride from Ingersul and it wouldn't be wise for Gilan to stay out on his own if he could help it and the next town was only a little over eight hours away.
Once the fire died down to hot embers, they took their posts doing watch with Gilan serving first, Maiah second, and Halt the rest of the night and until dawn. Thus, the Ranger went to sit by the bottom of a tree at the edge of their camp, with his back against the bark so that it wasn't uncovered and soon melted into the shadows. Above his head, he felt the slight vibrations running down the length of the tree as Nox settled for the night. He wouldn't need to keep a close watch as there was little risk of something happening; however, like Halt had said, these were war times and one had to be careful, not to mention getting back in shape.
Maiah turned her back to the fire so that the dim light the embers still provided wouldn't shine on her face. She pulled the cloak around her trying to find a comfortable position among the countless pebbles that seemed to be gathered at just her spot—Halt seemed to have no trouble in going to sleep and soon became just another rock in the forest. She, however, tossed and turned so many times trying to find comfort she began wondering if it really was the spot she was lying on or if it had to do with more psychological worries. She began thinking about Will; brave, fearless Will who had been the first person to ever speak to her in a civilized manner that did not involve screams and orders. Was he safe? She knew if he came face to face with the invaders and they realized he wasn't just a farm boy they would lose no time in getting rid of him. Naturally, he had perhaps gotten the hardest assignment as it was the most probable port of entry given Mazoniria lay to the west. At the same time, she realized there was a reason why Halt had trusted him and even though she had noticed the Ranger's concern for his old apprentice, she could feel the certainty and sense of security he had on him.
As she turned yet one more time she caught a slight glimpse of the shadow by the tree. She couldn't really see him, just feel his presence—something a stranger wouldn't since he wouldn't know—and that was enough to settle her anxiousness if only a little. She watched his silhouette until she was able to see his still, blurry form sitting quietly and watching over them. The fire had died down to the soft, dim glow of dying embers though they still provided her with some warmth which she was grateful for now that the chilly wind had settled for the night.
She later tried to convince herself it had only been a second of insanity caused by her own tiredness and lack of sleep, but as she watched his silent shape she wished she was closer to him. Before any other thought could get to her she adverted her eyes and found a sudden interest in the dancing thread on the hem of her cowl; nevertheless, she felt her cheeks flare up and at that moment wanted to crawl away unseen even when she knew no one was really watching her anyways. She wasn't sure what had happened when her stomach gave a violent lurch like if it had been stretched downwards into a bottomless pit; much like that time she had been riding a small mining cart and it had traveled up the hill and down in a matter of seconds, almost like if she had left half her insides above her. She disliked the uncertainty of it all even when a small part of her enjoyed the feeling as it brought fear and excitement mixed together. Her whole life she had kept her emotions to a single aspect, either she was angry or sad or excited or anxious. From time to time there was the inexplicable sense of fear and frustration—especially when Prowessa had sent her into peril ahead of herself like bait—though for the most part her feelings were simple and easy to understand and explain. However, ever since she had arrived she realized humans could actually feel more than one thing at a time even if they managed to hide it like Rangers did. She still wasn't used to this whole all-flavor-rainbow-colored mush she often found herself in though as she thought back on it she became aware of the fact most of the times there was one thing that made her feel out of control and squished in the inside.
What a fool. Somehow, even now that Prowessa was dead and buried, anytime she reprimanded herself Maiah heard her late mentor's sarcastic and derogatory tone speaking to her. Just like a few weeks ago she reminded herself her main business here was saving this amazing country from Alia's clutches and not socializing and making new friends. She was glad for the friendship that had been extended by most people whom she had met; however, she had to drill into her head she shouldn't become one of those prickly thorns that are swept up in the fields attaching themselves to people's clothes as they walk by and become bothersome for the rest of the way; nor could she interfere with things that would happen naturally if she wasn't there. She had learned to keep out of people's way the hard way back home and had no plans of experiencing the painful pointing fingers and spiteful words that had humiliated her and made her shrink away from them a second time. She had to leave things alone as they were and try her best to push any ideas that got to her head aside.