Morning came, and the wind had finally died down. Unfortunately, Flora was sick. "She said it should pass quickly. This sort of thing usually happens to Keidran." Trace apologized. "We should just wait for a while, let her get some extra sleep."
And so, they waited.
Barret's joints were sore from sleeping on the ground, but that didn't stop him from being gone before dawn and coming back with two large salmon. After food and coffee, everyone sat around, and waited. Natani finally got bored and asked "Keith, wanna spar? Haven't had a chance to take you down in a month."
Keith rolled his eyes. Then his shoulders and neck. "Since when have you ever 'taken me down'?" he replied with a wry smile. The two took places across the fire, away from the tents. A moment of tense anticipation, and the two flew into blows. Trace and Barret tried to keep track of who was actually winning, but neither one seemed to actually get the upper hand. Natani swung high, and Keith ducked under, following it with a kick to her ankle. In one sudden move, Natani was falling to the ground, and Keith leapt on top of her, leaving both panting.
"Ugh. I'm out of practice, that's all!" Natani protested.
"No one said anything sis." Zen laughed as the two picked themselves up and settled in for another bout. "Once they're done, we should spar."
"Who, me?" Barret was a bit shocked.
"Yeah, why not! Could be fun to see how you fight."
"Oh, no. I haven't sparred in years. The last time was with…" His voice faded and his eyes grew distant. "It's… been a long time."
"Might do you good then." Trace said gently. "Maybe this is how you could remember your brother, by continuing to do what you did together, but with someone else." A heavy thud and Natani was on the ground again. "Though, maybe avoid sparring with Keith. He doesn't seem to know that we AREN'T TRYING TO HURT EACH OTHER!" Keith and Nat glanced over and laughed, before resuming their brawl.
"Maybe… you're right." Barret said confidently. "It's only been six years, how out of practice could I be?" Very. The answer was very out of practice. Zen and Barret 'sparred' a dozen times in about twenty minutes, and Barret never managed to land a blow. Despite Zen moving slower than usual, despite Keith and Natani trying to give him advice from the sidelines, despite Barret being head and shoulders over Zen with longer arms, it was like watching a drunken man try to swat a fly. After being knocked down by Zen one last time Barret finally cried "Enough!"
"Don't get upset. You haven't done anything like that in years." Trace said.
"Yeah, Nat and I spar all the time for no reason other than to stay sharp and keep our skills ready."
"You'll do better next time." Zen said as he plopped down next to the dying fire.
"I hope this isn't a skill I need to ever use."
"Why?" Nat asked, moving to her bag for food.
"I'd rather just avoid being close to anyone who wants to hurt me. I'm a skilled enough archer, and I'm taller than everyone else. I'm able to dead-lift a 100 pound deer, and I'm covered in black and silver scales. No one wants to mess with me once they actually see me. I've been in a few brawls with thieves and drunkards, but normally they aren't expecting to see a six foot nine beast of a man. Normally their shock gives me the chance to throw one good punch, and that's about all I've ever needed to throw."
"True. Realistically, sparing isn't good in actual combat." Zen said. "It's really just a way to stay active and keep your skills sharp."/
"And again, I'd much rather stay away from anyone who wants to try and hurt me. I can always just use my bow to deter anyone from getting too close." Flora opened the tent and wiped her mouth.
"No more fish." She said, holding her stomach. "The little one says so."
"I'll do what I can." Barret smiled. They finished packing the camp, and hit the trails once more. As they walked the wind continued to die down. Eventually, the forest was left with a cold, hollow silence, broken only by their footsteps as they crunched leaves beneath them. They passed by a little stream that moved slowly, icy cold water that was half frozen came down from the mountain. Though the forest offered shelter from the elements, they all knew winter would soon be there, and it would bring cold, snow, ice, and difficult travel.
As the land sloped up, they climbed a rather tall hill that offered them a vantage point just before they stopped for the night. In the distance they saw little lights dotting the landscape, distant camps and even a few small, far off villages. But nestled a short distance from the mountain range was a cluster of lights, their destination: Lyn'Knoll.
They were nearly there.