Traveling through the Zeremel Forest along the Orsholon/Lawcrane Road can be a peaceful, serene experience. The sound of birds singing, the wind through the trees, and the rays of sun that peeked through the canopy high above felt like you were walking through Nature’s cathedral.

Not this day. Courtenay was in rare form.

“Does this forest never end?”

“I have to pee.”

Courtenay hadn’t stopped talking since they entered forest. Beivalur was beginning to wonder if she ever took a breath.

“By all the gods, when are we gonna stop to set-up camp?”

Of all people, Beivalur was the most calm, most gentle of the group. So it alarmed all of them when…

“DO NOT BLASPHEME, NIGHTGLADE!” His voice had the tone of someone who had lost all patience and Courtenay had crossed a line. They all looked first at him, then Agnese and Ninette looked at Courtenay. Agnese smirked, the closest any of them had seen to a smile on his face.

Courtenay was startled by the outburst as well. She fell silent for the first time in hours. But not for long.

“Sorry, no offense meant. I just think we need to get settled in before it gets too dark. I mean, we need to set-up camp, get a fire going, all of that stuff.”

“We’ll stop when we reach the edge of the forest, and not before. If you don’t like it, turn your arse around and head back to Orsholon.”. The smirk on Agnese’s’s face had turned to a snarl.

There’s an old saying: If you find you’ve dug yourself into a hole, the best thing to do is to put down the shovel. Apparently, Courtenay had never heard the old saying.

“Well who died and made you the boss?” she quipped.

Almost as quick as she finished her taunt, Agnese had the point of his sword under her chin. “No one, yet. Volunteering?”

Courtenay’s eyes got huge. Her “No” was almost a whisper. The glare in Agnese’s eyes was enough to tell her she shouldn’t push him any further. He continued to glare at her, his eyes like stiletto blades. It seemed to last forever. Finally, he lowered his blade and sheathed it. “I thought not. We’ll continue to the edge of the forest.” He turned around and began to walk.

As he did, Courtenay mocked a salute. He snapped his head towards her, hand on the hilt of his blade. She brushed the hair from her face and lowered her head. Agnese turned his head back to look ahead. The smirk was back.

Beivalur shook his head. “Nightglade, my apologies for my outburst. But you should learn to hold your tongue lest someone else makes sure you lose it.”

The next hour of travel was back to the peace and quiet of the forest, the only sounds breaking the atmosphere being the footsteps of the party. At one point, they were passed by another party headed to Orsholon City. Simple nods were given and the forest returned to its peaceful quietude.

As the suns began to go down, they could see the forest beginning to thin. In short order, they had reached the eastern edge of the Zeremel Forest Forest. In a small area north of the road, the trees formed a semi-circular wind-block that would keep them protected from the chill winds that were still coming down from the mountains. After the suns fell below the horizon, the winds could get very cold and make for, at best, an uncomfortable night. But the trees would keep the winds from their camp and let them have a night of rest.

The light was fading quickly as they set-up camp. Courtenay pulled a small, glowing gem from her waist pouch, and with a few words, her hand began to glow. She touched a rock near the center of the encampment site, and the rock became a glowing source of light.

Ninette had wandered off a little further into the forest to retrieve wood for a fire, while Beivalur formed a ring of stone near Courtenay Nightglade’s glowing rock. The ring would contain the fire. Agnese scouted the surrounding area to make sure there were no surprises. The forest, since it was protected by The Kingdom, was relatively safe, but there was no sense in being careless.

By the time the suns had left the sky, the fire was roaring and the glow of the “light rock” illuminated the camp. As they unpacked their bedrolls and looked for comfortable spots, it was inevitable that Courtenay would try to strike up a conversation with the least likely to speak.

“So, Ninette, where ya from?”

The quiet one answered “Nowhere you would know.”

“Really? Try me! I’m pretty good at geography!”

Ninette shook their head.

“Ok… well, why are you headed to Lawcrane?”

Again, Ninette answered with a polite, if short, “Personal Business”.

“What kind?” asked Courtenay.

“Personal.”

Beivalur let out a long, hearty laugh. “Nightglade, you certainly have a gift for missing the obvious. Our friend here has no desire to talk about their personal matters.

Ninette nodded slightly toward Beivalur. “Thank you.”

Agnese spoke up. “I’ll take the second watch. I’ll let the chatty one have the first watch.” He walked to where the light faded and laid down on his mat next to a tree, sword in its sheath lain propped up, ready to be drawn. The light would keep away most of the more curious night denizens of the forest, and he would be in a perfect position to challenge any that approached. As he lay back and closed his eyes, he could hear Courtenay and Beivalur talking. Ninette rose, bid the other two a good evening and retreated to their bedroll.

“Well then, big man, what’s your story?” Courtenay obviously did not want to spend her watch by herself.

He laughed. “What would you like to know? I reserve the right not to answer.”

Courtenay laughed as well. “Fair enough… You’re a from a Goliath clan aren’t you? What brought you down from the heights? And your name doesn’t sound all fierce like most Goliaths I’ve heard of.”

“My nickname, the one you usually hear a Goliaths referred to, is Feverbreaker. Beivalur Feverbreaker Godthiraskime. I was much better at the healing arts that I was a fighter, at least by Goliath standards. To remain, I had to show my value to the tribe. So I healed warriors who were injured. Since the Cataclysm, the only real fights are those between Goliaths. No tribe wants to take on an army they cannot defeat. They won’t tell you that, but it’s the reality.

My skill at healing had its limits. I knew that I could be better and more useful to my tribe if I could improve my skills, so I convinced our tribal leader to let me go to school in Orsholon City. He had previously dealt with King Roigos II of Orsholon and found him to be a fair man. I wouldn’t say they are friendly, but I think they share a care for their people. In any case, I studied healing arts and have now found I need to refine my skills by traveling and helping when I can. I understand that Lawcrane has need of healers in the rougher parts of the city. I believe I can go there and help heal. And what about you, Nightglade?”

“Little old me?” asked Courtenay, affecting an obviously made up modesty. “My folks never thought I’d amount to much. We lived in Orsholon City – they still do. But I met this guy who was working in the academies in the western part of the city and he got me interested in the magic arts. I kinda schmoozed my way into one of the schools and found out that I really have a knack for it. I know most folks have some ability, but to really put it to use got me thinking I might do something and show my folks they were wrong. Probably sounds silly to a guy like you.”

“Not at all”. Beivalur knew what she felt. “I often felt less than worthy of my tribe. My father died a warrior not long after I was born. My mother frowned on my interest in learning and the healing arts until I was able to show how it helped the tribe. But I still want to go back and show them that there is value in knowledge.”

“Well, maybe you and I are more alike than we would have thought, big guy!”

“HA! Maybe so, Nightglade, maybe so!” Beivalur laughed. They continued to chat into the night and heard the rustling of Agnese rising for his watch.

“Have a good rest, Oatspell?” asked Beivalur.

“Not with you two chattering away like monkeys. Go get some rest, we’ll break camp when the suns rise.”

As Courtenay and Beivalur lay down for their sleep, Agnese stood guard. He had performed this duty many, many times. Tonight would be an easy one.

At one point, however, he saw a dark shadow passing overhead out of the corner of his eye. Or so he thought. But as he turned to look, it was gone. Not a sound, nothing to see. Maybe he didn’t get enough rest, thanks to those two chatterboxes.

He put it out of his mind. It was likely a bird or an insect that flew close to his head. Nothing to be concerned about. Still…

Agnese continued to stand watch. As the first light of the suns rose across the plains to the east, he woke the rest of his party and they began to break camp. It was at least five days to Tremer, where they could resupply and get a good night’s rest. And some ale.