The next chapter is up! Enjoy :)
They have been in Ottuma Village for a total of about four days now.
At this time, the group of friends have decided it was time to move on. They were packing up their things to head out to see one of the next settlements.
Which according to Connar and Marsia was Karnak, like they had told them a couple days prior.
They told the group it would only be roughly a day and a half ride to get there. That if they leave early morning now, they will get there by tomorrow morning.
The friends made sure to stock up on some more food supplies the day before, so, they had enough to last them.
While Alan and Galen were looking at their maps, Connar looked it over as well and was nice enough to draw out short cuts to Karnak and the other two coastal settlements to the south. That way it would take a shorter amount of time to get to them if they were to just take main roads.
Connar took out a pen and carefully drew a couple lines that led off of the main roads and cut through some of the woods to get to these villages quicker.
He was very familiar with these back roads, in having taken them many times in the past. To the point, he was very thorough while discussing the distance and miles they would have to take up to these shortcut roads that branched off of the main road they would be taking halfway.
"You see, if you were to just stick to the main road, it would really take you around two and a quarter days to get to Karnak. But if you were to take this path right here, you can cut across and it would take about half the time. That way it would only take a day and a half instead.
The path is plenty big enough for horses to get through too. And as I've said, I've taken this road plenty of times in the past when visiting Karnak. I mainly went because they would have some certain foods there that I don't have here. I would go there and bring back a steady supply to sell here at my food stand.
While it is quite safe, there is a wooden dam not too far from this path. Most claim it is old and unstable and they caution others to stay away from it. Already, there is a decent size waterfall spilling over it and it's gradually getting bigger as time goes on, due to the failing structure of this dam.
At some point you may have to cross near it. There is supposedly a pathway on top of this dam for those to cross. But I wouldn't advise it, given the instability of the dam.
Though there is a much sturdier bridge going across a little below the dam, that is the one you would take. There is really no other way across either, except for that bridge. But it is strong enough and big enough to hold a horse and small cart. I have taken it numerous times without any trouble." Connar informed them the day before, as they all consulted over the maps.
It was fairly early in the morning now. The friends all ate a quick breakfast before deciding it was time to go.
Everyone exchanged goodbyes before leaving and the group thanked Connar and Marsia for their hospitality and suggestions on how to navigate this area, via some back roads and paths that weren't listed on the maps.
Marsia exchanged a hug with Noelle.
"Hope you have a good rest of the journey. Take good care of yourself. And just maybe, you'll find yourself wanting to settle here someday. Seeing as you have seen for yourself that it is safe, and you already do have friends here." Marsia told her as she pulled back from the one-armed hug. While her infant son was cradled in her other arm.
"Perhaps. Galen and I have decided to make a decision once we hit all the settlements here and have completed our journey traveling around this district." Noelle told her.
The young woman caught movement out of the corner of her eye. She looked down to see baby Tanner was wide awake and wiggling his arms and legs a little while looking around.
Noelle couldn't help but smile, and lightly run her hand over his little head.
"I can already see, you're going to make a great mother when the time comes, Noelle. Just as Galen will be a good father." Marsia told her.
Noelle's smile widened, "Thanks, Marsia."
"So, just a reminder, this path you say is roughly eight miles down the main road on the right, correct?" Alan asked Connar.
"That is correct. So, if you ride at a gallop, you should be there by noon. Then you turn right onto the dirt path and it's a straight shot towards Karnak Village.
There is only one other dirt road that leads off of it that heads south. It's off to the right of this back road. Don't turn onto it and keep going straight.
Normally, most travelers don't know about these back roads. But many locals know of it and utilize it as a more efficient way of going back and forth between Ottuma and Karnak. We do tend to collaborate with one another, mainly over crops." Connar explained.
"Thanks very much for letting us know, Connar. Especially, if it is a shorter and more efficient way of getting there." Pete says.
"You're welcome. Then after your visit in Karnak just take the main road that leads out of it. As you can see on your maps, I have already marked out more back roads on there with a pen for you that you can take as short cuts down the coastal settlements further down south that lead to both Ronin and Laksa Village. As long as you keep your eyes open, you won't miss these paths." Connar reminded them.
"Thanks, we will keep on the lookout for them." Galen replied.
About five minutes later, the group was off.
They walked over across the village square to where their horses were kept hitched up to a post and started packing their things onto the side saddle bags.
Once they finished, they all mounted their horses and started to head out. They navigated through the village roads to the main road. It took them about ten minutes before they got to the road that led out of the village.
Then they took off.
The group brought their horses to a gallop as they all headed down the wide dirt road. They all made sure within the next couple hours to be on the lookout for this smaller back road that led off of this one and cut through the woods.
Connar had told them that they would reach the dam with the bridge sometime later this afternoon. That was basically the halfway point down this back road.
"Well, at least we know, we will only have to endure one night camping out before we hit the next village, which is nice." Pete said as they all rode side by side.
"Sound like you have gotten pretty spoiled from sleeping on that comfortable couch back at Connar and Marsia's house, Pete." Noelle teased.
The dark-haired man just shrug.
"Maybe. But even you all have to admit, that sleeping in one's dwelling somewhere in a room or in a hut, still beats sleeping out in the woods. Sure, it was fine at first. But after doing it so long, it starts to wear on you a little." Pete says.
"Yeah, I think it's safe to say we can all agree with you there." Alan replied.
"I second that notion." Galen said.
Perhaps being on the run for so long and traversing all throughout the countryside for over a year now, was finally hitting them. As it would for anyone that has been basically on a permanent camping trip. All while being hunted by the chief of security and high council.
Galen and Noelle knew it wasn't only them that wish to settle down somewhere soon. Because when they were talking it over with Alan and Pete on a couple occasions, they have said they would like that too.
Which makes sense. Because journeys cannot last forever. Sometimes it was just better to end them as soon as you can. Especially, in instances like this before someone does eventually get hurt or killed.
They rode for the next two to three hours, making sure to stay on the lookout for this back road.
It wasn't long before they eventually did stumble across this road. The dirt road here was only about half the width of the main road they were on. But this was it and just like Connar said, it was still definitely wide enough to ride horses and carts down it.
The group turned off of the main road and started travelling down it. Though they stopped after a half hour to sit and eat lunch and to use the bathroom.
"Alright guys, so Connar said we will reach this dam with a bridge next to it by sometime later this afternoon to early evening. So, that would put us at another few hours of riding to get to that point. Once we get there and cross it, that's where the supposed halfway point is.
Then we would keep riding until it starts getting dark. Afterwards we will stop for camp then continue on at first light. If we do that, we should be there by no later than mid-morning." Alan explained, remembering everything Connar had told him and the others.
"Sounds good to me." Pete said, between bites of the dried piece of meat in his hand.
"It was nice he even did a crude little drawing of the dam and bridge too over the path we are on, on our maps. It only shows one tiny, short road that leads left off of this road and leads upwards towards the dam where there is a small crossing up there.
Then he put a little 'x' over that little separate road, so we know not to go that way but continue straight to hit that safer bridge that is situated a little below this dam with the waterfall." Noelle added, as she ate a piece of fruit.
"Yes, it was nice he was very thorough both in words and drawing it out for up on both my map and Alan's." Galen says.
"Not to mention, it's much safer this way then staying on the main roads. Odds are Urko doesn't know of these back roads either." Pete stated.
"Careful, Pete. Don't jinx us." Noelle warned.
"Exactly. How many times were you certain of something, only for it to backfire? Think Alan and I have counted at least six times now, since the very beginning of our journey." Galen teased.
"Haha, very funny guys. But how many times do I have to tell you, I'm not a jinx." Pete pointed out.
"Ok, Pete. If you say so." Alan muttered under his breath as he took a swig from his waterskin.
Everyone had amused grins on their faces as they ate. While Pete just gave them the stink eye and rolled his eyes.
Just like all their other meals, they finished within only ten minutes. Then they all went off a little to use the bathroom in the nearby woods that surrounded the path they were on, before mounting their horses.
The group continued on running the horses. They wanted to get to the dam which marks the halfway point to Karnak for them and if they just walk the horses, then they would be getting there a lot later and would like to get there before it starts getting dark.
It had to be four hours now into the ride, since they sat down for lunch earlier.
The group started to look around for the large dam, that was situated on the left side that spilled down into a turbulent river, putting an end to the road they were on and leading them to the bridge that would take them across.
They need to make sure they go the right way too, so they don't accidentally make a slight left onto a small part of the road that would end up taking them up and over the unsafe dam instead.
It wasn't long until they started coming up on the one road on the right side that Connar said led south.
This was a good sign, because it meant the dam was only another mile and a half further down from it. About fifteen more minutes later as they were about to come upon that other side road, the tree line started thinning out gradually on the left and the group started to make out a fairly large structure in the distance about seventy meters high and easily seen over many of the trees.
"Looks like we're almost there. Can see it from here." Noelle says, from her spot in front of Galen on their horse.
They kept on riding through and were just about to pass the side road on the right. Until they all saw something that made their hearts stop.
Urko was riding down this road with at least eight to ten of his men. He was headed in their direction. What's worse, he wasn't far at all, and he quickly spotted them, not a few yards down from his position.
"There they are! After them!" Urko yelled.
"Let's go!" Alan called to his friends.
They all flicked the reins hard, getting their horses to go faster.
The group had a quick scare as Urko, and his men almost collided with them on their horses. The near collision was enough that it made Urko and his men tug back hard on the reins to quickly stop their horses from colliding with theirs.
Afterwards, he and his men gave chase. Pursuing the fugitives down the stretch of road.
"What do we do now, Al!? It's going to be awfully hard trying to ditch them out here!" Pete called out from beside him on his own horse.
"I know, but we still need to try and make it to the dam! So, we keep pushing forward!" Alan told him.
"Even if we do make it there, how do we intend on losing them!?" Galen called out.
Alan looked behind them to see how much distance there was between Urko and his men.
Luckily, they were still a pretty good distance behind them. A plan started formulating in his head. One came to mind, but they would have to be quick about it.
"I have an idea. As we know from what Connar told us, there is a sharp turn around the bend of this road that will take us to the bridge, and a little off to the side of it is the small path that will take us up to the dam.
We may have to stop at the bridge, and quickly dismount. We'll send the horses over the bridge. With luck, the gorilla's will see our horses running ahead and follow. While we will have to take the risk and go over the crossing on the dam. I know it's risky. But it maybe our only chance." Alan hastily explained.
While it seemed to be a pretty decent plan, it was still very risky. Connar warned them at least twice not to chance that crossing on top of the dam. That the dam was old and unstable.
"I can't say I wholly agree with it, but you're right. We may not have much of a choice. In the end, it's better than risked getting shot and killed." Pete said.
"And how is risking falling into that waterfall and into that turbulent river a better solution!? We'd still be dead!" Galen told them.
"Galen, we know there is that risk. But if we don't go through with this, Urko will catch us and kill us!" Noelle called back to him.
The chimp was silent for several moments, going over the outcomes in his mind.
Yes, it was extremely dangerous. He and Noelle had their fair share of falling off bridges when they fell into the Cairn River and nearly drowning, for the same reason that Urko and his men were closing in on them and shooting at them.
They were very lucky to make it out then.
But this time, it was different. This time, you weren't going straight into a river. You were going over a very large and high-up waterfall. That fall alone could kill you, never mind the river it pours into below.
Still, he had to weigh the threats. It was either risk the crossing or be caught and shot by Urko and his men.
"Alright fine! But we all need to stick close together and be extra careful this time while crossing it!" Galen said, with reluctance in his voice.
The group pushed their horse to go a little faster. They wanted to keep pulling further away from Urko and his men. This way they have time to get around the bend and jump off their horses, before sending them across the safer bridge.
At least the horses they were given were very strong and fast. So, they were able to push forward and further away from Urko.
It was another several minutes, before they saw the sharp bend in the road. They headed right for it and started to round it. Once they did, they saw the path started leading up a small hill to where this bridge was.
The group made their way up it and right at the top only a handful of feet away before them was the bridge. It must've stretched a good twenty feet at least across the wide river several meters below it.
The waterfall that spilled out of the dam was several meters off to the left of it.
They all quickly dismounted and found a little time to grab their packs. They heard the sound of galloping starting to round the bend, so they slapped their horses on the rear and sent them running across the sturdy bridge.
Afterwards, they turned left and started heading up the small path to the left that would lead them further up and over the dilapidated dam.
Alan, Pete, Galen, and Noelle broke into a light jog as they went down the short path. It was only about twenty feet down where it turned to go up a pretty steep hill that led up to the top of the dam.
Urko and his men rounded the corner not several seconds later, barely missing them.
His men saw the horses just finish crossing and were back on solid land. The foliage on the other side that hung over the path made it difficult to see if there were still riders on the horses.
Of course, his men assumed they were and started to make their way across.
Urko found himself idling behind the group. He just so happened to be looking around the area when he caught movement to his left from a little higher up. He sharply turned his head and could just make out the fugitives going up the steep hill that led up to the top of the old dam.
He whipped around, facing the bridge once more.
"Wait, you fools! It's a trick! They are still here on this side!" He yelled.
But unfortunately, by then, they were too far away to hear him and had just about finished completely their trek over the large, wooden bridge.
Now, he was the only one there. This didn't stop him though. He growled in frustration and roughly turned his horse to head down the smaller path on the left. He's hoping since he was on a horse still, he'd be able to catch up to them quicker.
Meanwhile the group was still moving up the steep hill to the top.
The roaring of the waterfall started growing louder as they made their way up. They were halfway up when Pete slipped on a loose rock and fell to a knee. Alan and the others went to help him.
At the same time, Pete happened to look behind them and his eyes widened in surprise.
"Dammit! It's Urko! He's right behind us!" He told his friends, pointing behind him.
The other three turned their heads and were shocked to see the gorilla chief was steadily making his way up the steep hill on his horse.
"Run!" Alan said.
The four of them started moving as quickly as they could, trying to get to the top.
Galen sticked very close to Noelle, concerned she could fall and hurt herself in her current condition. He kept a firm hold on her right arm, while Pete stayed with them and grabbed her left arm.
They both started running with her up the hill, only a few paces behind Alan.
Despite being on a horse, Urko's horse would occasionally slip or lose it's footing on some loose rocks or gravel, which slowed it down quite a bit. Urko kept flicking the reins, urging it to press on.
With Urko's Men...
They had just finished crossing the bridge a few minutes back and were pressing forward.
It wasn't until another couple minutes later, one of the men near the end of the group happened to look behind him and didn't see any sign of Urko anywhere. When he saw this, he quickly looked forward and called out to the rest of the troopers.
"Everyone stop! Chief Urko isn't behind us! We need to go back!" He yelled ahead.
The rest of the men came to an abrupt stop on their horses not a few moments later.
"But what about the fugitives? They're getting away." One of the other men said.
"Doesn't matter, the chief isn't here. He could be in trouble. We go back. Now!" He ordered.
Not only that, but the ones heading the group also came back and said, they could not see any riders on the horses they were chasing. Which meant they were tricked, and the fugitives ditched their horses.
None of them had to be told twice, and they turned around and started making their way back to the bridge they had crossed several minutes ago.
Back with Galen & Co...
After several more minutes, they finally made it to the top. Only problem was, Urko was still closing in behind them on his horse.
The group saw what was the crossing, only several feet ahead in front of them. They made their way towards it and paused for a few moments.
It was pretty narrow. It doesn't look like it was big enough or strong enough to hold a horse. Or possibly a group of people for that matter. Many of the planks were sticking up and warped and half the railings on either side were either broken or missing.
To them, it was like Cairn River all over again.
Still, they had no choice. Urko was right behind them. They have to make the attempt to cross. The crossing looked to be around the same length as the bridge a little further down.
We stick close together this time. No one runs ahead." Alan told them.
He never mentioned this to Galen and Noelle. But he and Pete felt incredibly guilty for running ahead across the last dilapidated bridge, leaving Galen and Noelle behind and in turn, Galen fell into the water and Noelle jumped in after him.
Had they not run ahead and were closer, maybe they could've gotten to Galen in time and pull him up. Then they all would've made it safely across that bridge without anyone falling in.
The two men will not make that mistake again. They were all crossing together while sticking close to one another this time.
The group started carefully walking quickly across. As much as they wanted to run, they felt like they couldn't risk it. Like the old bridge that was over Cairn River, the boards on this crossing were quite old and didn't feel very strong.
Not to mention, they were wet and slippery from the mist coming up from the waterfall beneath them.
They were maybe ten feet into the crossing, when Urko made it up and started riding over to the crossing's entrance. This is where he hit another issue. The crossing didn't look wide enough or sturdy enough for a horse.
So, to his dismay, he had to dismount and start walking over himself.
He went to pull out his pistol as he started making his way onto the crossing. Urko then went to take aim with it, hoping to shoot them as they were walking only a couple yards ahead.
But when he tried to take aim and shoot as he walked, his foot hit a slippery spot on one of the floorboards and he slipped. The pistol went off into the air as his arms went up and he fell to a knee.
The group heard the sound of the gun going off and they quickly turned to see Urko not far behind them. He was clumsily making his way over the loose and slippery floorboards as he went.
He was agitated that he couldn't even shoot them from his position because he practically had to use both hands to grip the old railings to keep himself from slipping and sliding on the old wet boards.
When they saw this, the group turned around and kept going.
Though they only made it a few more feet before one of the boards broke and Alan fell down to the ground, his right leg hanging through a jagged hole in the old floorboard.
He tried pulling himself back up but encountered a slight problem.
"I'm stuck!" He barked.
Pete and Galen grabbed an arm and started to try and haul him back up.
At the same time, Alan hissed in pain as the jagged and sharp wood started scraping and scratching along his leg as they tried pulling him out. The material of his pants snagged a bit on the jagged ends, making it a little more difficult to pull him up.
Urko saw this. A sneer came to his face as he sped up his pace on the crossing, while still trying to be careful.
Noelle's eyes widened as she saw him coming in closer.
By the time they were finally able to pull Alan's leg up and out of the jagged hole in the board, Urko now stood before them all with his pistol trained on them.
"It's over. You're not going anywhere now." Urko told them, as he held his gun out in front of him.
A dark smirk appeared on his face and his eyes shifted around the small group.
Until they stopped on Noelle and Galen. The chimp was partially in front of the petite human woman, trying to keep himself in front of her on the small, cramped crossing.
Still, Urko could see just enough of her. This included her pregnant belly that jutted out a little beneath her maternity top. His eyes darkened in disgust and anger.
"So, it is true what those villagers back in Milner said. You courted this human woman and impregnated her. Just when I didn't think you were not right in the head when you chose to be with these humans. Then you went and did this." Urko spat.
The group didn't say anything at first.
Urko cocked his gun, "I guess it doesn't matter much now though. You'll all be dead. And I think I know who to start with."
His beady gaze landed on Noelle as he eyed the abomination growing within her.
The look he was giving her, send a cold chill down her spine, and a wave of terror rolled over her as he slowly shifted his gun to her. Fear was ever present in her gaze, which only made Urko's dark grin return and widen.
"NO!" Galen yelled as he went to place himself completely in front of Noelle.
Alan and Pete tried too as well.
Then it happened, all the weight shifting at once and so quickly in one spot, the boards creaked and groaned in protest. Urko had taken one step closer towards them with his gun still outstretched in his hand before him.
Next thing anyone knew, there was a sharp sound of splintering wood, as the rotted railing beside Urko that he had his right hand on and was slightly leaning on, suddenly gave away.
Urko's face quickly turned to that of surprise as he suddenly found himself going over the side.
The group watched in shock as the gorilla chief let out a surprised yell and went over. When he did, they quickly went over and looked down. That is when they saw Urko grasping onto a jagged piece of wood, jutting out from the crossing a little below the floorboards.
Absolute terror now decorated his face as he struggled to hang onto the wet and weak piece of wood in his grip. His legs flailed a bit beneath him, and he started losing his grip.
Despite everything that just went down, Noelle couldn't bear to watch anymore.
She went down on her hands and knees and reached down her hand towards Urko.
"Give me your hand!" She called down to him.
Noelle was then quickly joined by Alan and Pete on either side of her. Both men were reaching down too for the gorilla chief.
"C'mon, Urko! Reach!" Alan called down to him.
At first, Urko didn't do anything, then he let go of the broken board he was hanging onto and tried to reach up with one hand towards the group.
The three humans tried to stretch their extended arms down as low as they could. But they were still having a bit of a hard time reaching Urko's extended arm.
Then just as Alan's fingertips touched Urko's there was another resounding cracking sound. Next thing anyone knew, the board Urko was hanging onto suddenly snapped.
"AAAAGGGGGHHHHHHHHHH!" Urko screamed as he fell all the way down the large waterfall.
At the same time, his men had just gotten back to the bridge when they heard his screams. They looked up and to their horror, they saw their chief falling down the waterfall.
His screams came to an abrupt stop when his body slammed into the large, jagged rocks at the bottom of the waterfall.
Noelle covered her mouth and quickly turned away. The two men and chimp had grim looks on their face as Urko hit the rocks below. They knew that was it and he was dead.
During this time, Pete's gaze shifted to the bridge below. He spotted Urko's troops near the bridge, probably seeing the whole thing. As bad and shocking as it was, it gave him an idea.
"Guys look." He told his friends and pointed down to the gorilla troops.
They looked down and saw them. Then Pete quickly shifted his gaze back to his friends.
"Alan, take off your vest and Galen, take off your pack." Pete instructed as he shrugged out of his own vest.
"Throw them all over the falls. They see these, they will think we went over too." Pete hastily explained.
Alan and Galen thought it was brilliant. They quickly shrugged off their things and then together, the three of them dropped them down into the waterfall several feet below. For good measure, the group threw down a few loose pieces of wood afterwards, trying to make it look more convincing that they all fell through the old wooden crossing.
Afterwards, they made it the rest of the way over the crossing. Thankfully they were already more than halfway across when this happened. Then they quickly made their way down the steep hill on the other side.
While most of the gorillas down below near the entrance of the bridge were still reeling with shock, at least a couple of them looked up at the falls. They then saw something else rolling through the turbulent waterfall.
"Look!" One of the others called out, alerting the rest of the men.
They all looked up to see Pete and Alan's vests along with Galen's pack tumbling down the waterfall.
"Those are some of the clothes that the fugitives were wearing and one of their packs. They must've fallen off the dam up there too." One of the gorillas said.
The second in command watched as these things along with some broken planks fell to the bottom. It was hard to make out the bodies through the thick white churning water. But that didn't mean that they weren't there in the waterfall.
He then turned back to his men.
At the same time, the group made it down and saw the troopers only about fifteen feet down from them. They ducked down behind a large boulder situated above the troopers.
"I think we can assume that the fugitives are dead. But sadly...so is Chief Urko. Unfortunately, it is impossible to reach his body. We will sadly have to leave it behind. We will head back to our district now. And we will report to the high council about what has occurred." The second in command informed his troops.
"What shall we tell them, Sir?" One of his comrades asked.
"Everything. That we were in pursuit of the fugitives, that we got separated from Chief Urko. He went to pursue them up to the dam. A struggle most likely ensued and Urko went over the falls. But given the poor structure of this dam, the fugitives ended up falling in as well. Now...they are all dead." The lead gorilla trooper explained.
The gorilla guards all exchanged looks. While they were happy the fugitives were finally dead, they were saddened by the loss of their Chief of Security as well.
"We understand, Sir. Shall we start heading back now?" One of the men asked.
The lead gorilla was silent for a moment, before nodding.
"Yes, we will go back now. The sooner we get back to our district, the better. We will have to travel back down the way we came though and cross Cairn River again at its shallow point to get over safely. Let's go." He said.
The lead gorilla then started leading his men back over the sturdy bridge.
Once they made it back over to the other side safely, they set their horses in a gallop and started speeding back down the way they came. It will take several days to make it to what was known as the shallow point in Cairn River then another few days to ride back to Central City.
Either way, they needed to share the news with the high council.
What they didn't know, was that the group was in fact, still alive. The four friends also heard each word that was exchanged and couldn't be happier.
"It worked; they think we're dead." Pete said, with a slight smile.
"Yes, it did." Alan replied.
"Does this mean...we're finally free?" Noelle inquires, with hope in her voice.
She felt a hand on her back, and she shifted her gaze to Galen, who was right next to her.
A warm smile appeared on his face.
"Yes, Butterfly. We are. And as long as we stay in this district, we should be fine." Galen told her.
"Guess this means we can finally stop running and find somewhere suitable to live." Pete surmised.
"I would say so. Now, all we got to do, is figure out where." Alan said.
His gaze then shifted to the others.
"What do you think you two? You have a place in mind that sticks out the most on where you think we can set up permanently?" Alan asks Galen and Noelle.
The pair exchanged a brief look and were silent for a moment. Then they shared a small smile, before shifting their gaze back to their friends.
"Well, we were possibly thinking maybe either Ansel or Ottuma. Unless you two have any other places in mind you think would work out for all of us." Galen implied.
Alan and Pete shared a look and thought it over.
While they all have been to numerous places while here, and most of these places were pleasant, they couldn't help but agree that either of these two places could work for them.
"Either of those settlements sound good. Question is, which one?" Pete questioned.
They all shared looks, trying to think about the best option. Then Galen turned his gaze to Noelle.
"What do you think, Noelle?" He asks her.
She thought about it, then she remembered something. It was something important and she recalls Galen bringing it up a couple times.
"Perhaps, Ansel could be a good choice. It's closest to the Cairn River and the other district. And I don't know if you remember, but one of the apes we made friends with there mentioned how he used to live in that district in Central City.
He could possibly arrange having a messenger that knows the area well send out a letter to your parents, letting them know that you're still alive and tell them where you are. Seeing as I know you told me a couple times you wish you could let your parents know where you are at the current time and that you're alright." Noelle suggested.
Galen was a little surprised by her answer. Though he couldn't help but be happy with it and that she recalls the times he told her how he missed his parents and wanted to somehow let them know where he and his friends were.
"Not a bad suggestion. There could also be a way for them to make it over the river and see you. The maps they gave us did mark an area on the Cairn River called Shallow Point.
One of our other friends here told us it is called that because it's where that river is at its shallowest and weakest, making it easier for those to cross it safely. We also eventually learned, that it was probably the same way Urko was able to make it over with his troops." Pete added.
Galen thought about it, and thought it was a good idea. Though even if his parents for whatever reason couldn't find a way to make it over, at least they would know he was alive and safe.
"Sounds like a good plan to me." Galen said.
"Alright, if that's settled, let's try and make it back to Ansel." Alan says.
The group carefully made their way down to the path below where the bridge was.
Before they were about to head over though, they heard movement behind them and closing in. It was followed by a soft neigh. The four friends quickly turned around and were shocked to see, it was their horses!
Galen and Noelle's horse Lola was at the front of the group, while Alan and Pete's horses trailed behind her.
Upon seeing the group, Lola lightly flicked her head up and down with a snort and walked over to Galen and Noelle. She lightly pressed her long snout into Noelle's front.
This made the young woman chuckle a little.
The rest of the group couldn't believe that their horses actually turned around and came back to them. But nonetheless, they were happy they did. Now, they had their main mode of transportation back. Plus, the rest of their supplies were still tied to the side saddle bags on the horses.
Lola then turned her head and grunted at the other two horses behind her. This made them nod their heads up and down, and one of them pawed at the ground with his front left hoof.
"You came back and made them come with you, didn't you girl?" Noelle inquired with some laughter in her voice.
To everyone's amusement, the mare shook her head up and down in a nodding motion, as if to answer Noelle's question.
Guess Lola really was a very smart horse, more than any of them ever gave her credit for.
"Alright, let's mount up and head back then. Since Ansel is all the way southeast from here, it may take us some time to get there." Alan says.
"We should check the map for the quickest way back from here. Before we were just wandering around this large district. But now, we have a destination in mind. We'll head straight back." Noelle informed them.
"You're right. So, before we do start going, we should pull out the map again and try to see what could be the quickest and best way there." Pete stated.
Alan reached into his pack and pulled out his map, opening it.
He and the others looked over it for the next couple minutes, mapping out the quickest routes there. Before they decided to put it away. Afterwards, they all mounted their horses.
Noelle decided to seat herself behind Galen this time. She then leaned forward and pressed her cheek into the back of his right shoulder with a soft smile.
He reached up and lightly grasped and caressed one of her hands. Before slightly looking over his shoulder at her with a small smile.
"You ready to go home, Butterfly?" He softly asks.
She tightened her hold a little around his waist.
"Yeah." Noelle replied.
With that in mind, the group of friends took off.
They were all in high spirits and very happy. It had felt like a huge weight was lifted off of their shoulders. Once word gets back to the high council about the fugitives 'supposed' demise, it would put them in the clear.
Now, all they had to do, was look ahead and hopefully, to a brighter future.
Until Next Time ;)