On the Move

The sun hung high overhead as all of the Nareth began their long walk, spread out among the treeline and the edge of the lake. Everyone, including the pups, was carrying their own belongings and a share of the group’s. Their autumn campsite lay on the far side of the lake, high up the river toward the mountain range that held their winter caves.

“Are these bugs really as bad as the rumours say?” Kaer asked, falling in next to Elian. “You’ve seen them, haven’t you?”

“Yeah, I have. And, yeah, they’re pretty bad.”

Seen them? If only that was all… He readjusted the shoulder straps on his heavy backpack, then noticed the sceptical look on Kaer’s face.

“A pack of black bearlings, or spitting snakes… or dragons…” Kaer ticked them off on long fingers ending with thick, almost black nails. “Those would be hard to fight off, especially for humans, but insects…?”

“Well, they’re big, their skin deflects most weapons unless you hit them just right… A few wouldn’t be a problem, but they’re many. And they can appear anywhere, with little to no warning.”

“Still, they’re bugs,” the Lykar gave him a long look.

“I’ve seen a fully grown bear run from Humming Wasps…” The flying bugs might be smaller than his little finger, a pretty bright orange, and make a soothing sound with their shimmering wings, but no creature, no matter how strong, wanted to end up on the wrong side of their stingers.

“You make a fair point.” Sharp canines glistened in a grin, then his face grew more serious. “I hope the humans here can tell us more about the ones in Kharu forest.”

“They probably can. Humans tend to keep track of one another, and they're usually quick to spread warnings. Hopefully any news has travelled this far.”

“We need a way to make the humans listen.” His tail betrayed his emotions, even though his face was calm. “Our people are suffering from the false accusations. Humans, despite their weakness, are quick to anger and violence, and while we’d never strike first, we will defend ourselves.”

“As you should. I’m sure we’ll find a way to make them see the truth.” The thought of a resurrection of the human-Lykar wars was sickening and terrifying, but he knew Kaer’s reasoning was valid. If the settlers could convince the military that the Lykar tribe was a threat --  which, unfortunately, might not be that hard -- then things could get really bad, really fast.

The bugs were the real threat. If, and that was a big 'if', they truly had spread this far. But as Kaia had pointed out, there were many creatures in the deep woods that would consider a farm and its inhabitants as an easy meal.

“I hope you’re right.” Kaer shifted the bag of supplies he carried to his other shoulder, making sure it didn't interfere with his swords. He looked to the sturdy hunting knife at Elian’s belt. “Is that the only weapon you’re carrying? The humans I’ve seen before were usually heavily armed.”

“I see it more as a hunting tool than a weapon.”

“A human hunting with a knife?” The corners of Kaer's mouth twitched, as did his ears and tail, and Elian chuckled.

“You’re right. I mainly hunt with traps… human reflexes and all that…” They both smiled wryly.

“So, does that mean you’ve not been trained in weapons? Surely you must have learned the basics as a pup?”

“No, humans don’t learn weaponry until their teens.” Unless they’re a weapon themselves. But even then they only practice magic. “And I was much younger than that when Roahr offered me a home here.”

As far as he knew, Roahr was the only one who knew the details of just why he needed a new home, and he was happy to keep it that way. It’d break his heart to see fear in the pups’ eyes whenever they looked at him.

“Strange customs,” Kaer said diplomatically, clearly holding back more questions about humans and their military traditions. “But here, surely…”

“It was quickly decided that my skills were in a different area. With more interactions between our races – for better or worse,” Kaer nodded in agreement at the ‘worse’, “everyone learning the human language was more important than having another hunter or swordsman.”

“It makes sense. You’re the first human I’ve ever heard speak Lykar.”

“Me too. I’ve heard of a few humans learning the language of the dwarves, but all their tradesmen speak human, so I guess most never felt the need to.”

“What’re you talking about?” Myan came running up, squeezing herself between the two men. Before they had a chance to answer, she looked up at Kaer. “Your sister said she’ll show me how to use a bow. Isn’t that awesome?!”

“Me too!” Lyco joined them at a more reasonable pace, beaming as much as Myan.

“You’re lucky. Kaia is the best shot I’ve ever met, and I’m not only saying that because she’s my sister.”

“Yay!” Both pups cheered, waving over to where Kaia was walking next to Roahr and Ryn. Lyco, on the other hand, suddenly jumped in front of Kaer. Eyes fixed on the handles peeking over the warrior’s shoulders, he pleaded:

“Kaer-uncle… could you teach me to use swords too? Please.” He managed to let out a long string of "please please please" before Kaer smiled and ruffled his hair.

“Sure. I’ll show you and the other pups some of the basics.”

The pups cheered again and dashed off to tell the others, completely ignoring the “But, we’ll be starting with stick-swords.” Kaer shouted after them.

“I must admit I’ve never seen them so enthusiastic about my classes,” Elian smiled, shaking his head. “But I understand.”

Myan and Lyco had caught up to Kaia and were bouncing around her with their other friends. Clearly starstruck.

“I should go and make plans with my sister then. I have a feeling they’ll be very disappointed if we don’t have something for them as soon as we stop for the evening.”

“You’re not wrong.”

As soon as Kaer headed over to Kaia’s group, Rhaen took his place, curious about what Elian had learned about the guests. His eyes more often than not drifted toward the siblings, especially Kaia

*

With a grunt and a contented sigh, Elian sank down onto soft moss, leaning his aching back against a tree. They’d walked throughout the day, making good progress, and had set up night camp in a large glade. The sun set a couple of hours ago, and both moons were high in the sky, occasionally hidden by drifting clouds. Sighing again, Elian took a sip of his tea, watching the center of the camp where most were gathered around the fires. The main one had been used for cooking, and a pot of steaming tea sat at its edge, with a group of Lykar talking quietly, sipping their cups.

Laughter and pieces of stories drifted his way from the largest fire, where most of the tribe were gathered. A couple of the pups and the elderly, tired from the long walk, were already resting close to its gentle warmth. Elian, however, would be fine where he was, as soon as he rolled out his bedroll. The ground was soft here, and hopefully his aches would soften before tomorrow’s equally long walk. He took another sip of tea and closed his eyes.

“The pups speak highly of you,” a soft voice said, and he opened his eyes to find Kaia sitting next to him, a steaming cup in her hand. She really knew how to move soundlessly; he hadn’t heard her approach.

“They’re a good gang,” he said. “Lots of energy, lots of heart.”

“True.”

“They seem to have taken a great liking to you and your brother as well.” He laughed, looking over at Myan, who was walking between the fires, still swinging the stick she'd used for sword practice. She spotted them and promptly headed their way.

“New faces are always exciting,” Kaia said just as the pup joined them, stifling a yawn.

It seemed even Myan was running out of stamina, curling up between them. Finally putting her stick down, she produced a wooden comb from one of her pockets and started combing her hair, then tried to braid it to one side, making a mess of it.

“Oof, this is so hard,” she complained, looking up at Kaia. “I wanted to do the same as yours.”

“Like this?” Kaia held up the end of the long, thick braid that spilled over her shoulder down to her waist.

“My hair isn’t long enough, but I thought…” Myan pouted, undoing her failed attempt.

“Come here and give me the comb. I’ll show you.” Kaia held out a hand, and a moment later she had Myan in her lap. While she began untangling the happily sighing pup's hair, she gave Elian a curious look.

“I was wondering… You’re the only one choosing to sit in the shadows. Don’t humans find fires comforting?”

“I… um...” Mouth opening and closing, he wasn’t sure how to answer. Sitting far from the fires had become second nature, not even a conscious choice. Fortunately, Myan came to his rescue.

“He’s just not enjoying the heat so much. And he likes to watch the sky and the stars. And think of long, long, long words and classes for us…” Her ears drooped for a second, then they perked back up and she laughed. “He’s probably heard all our stories already anyway.”

“Um… yes. That’s it. More or less,” Elian mumbled, looking into Kaia’s eyes. She was clearly not convinced there wasn’t more to it, but Myan was already on to the next subject, chatting away as Kaia gently combed the pup’s hair and began braiding it with nimble fingers.

They finished their tea in comfortable silence, listening to the sounds of the camp and the wind in the leaves above. It was a perfect evening, making it so easy to forget why they were changing camps early.

It was only after the camp had quieted and everybody was snuggled down on their bedrolls or pelts that he noticed it. 

Tonight there were four guards on night duty, not one.