Welcome to Welles

[Atashi]

As if the piercing icy eyes of the human cook hadn't been enough to scare him half to death, the sudden squeal to his right certainly was. He jumped a little, gasping from the shock. He immediately turned, searching for the source of the squeal. He looked to the right on a somewhat downward angle to see a rather uncomfortable looking two-legged female. "Oh, sorry!" he started, not entirely sure what he'd done wrong. Taking a wild guess, he continued "Didn't mean to - 'step' - on your foot! Ha ha!" He laughed at his poor attempt of a joke, the woman looked like she could use the cheering up after all. Kylar had always laughed at his 'no-leg-jokes' and assumed that all 'legged-people' found them funny too.

It didn't seem as though the woman was in a laughing mood, however. He turned to face forward, feeling a little awkward suddenly. He shifted his tail uncomfortably, looking for a distraction from the situation. Kylar approached with Crimson, he suddenly felt more comfortable talking with the woman. Kylar addressed the woman next to him as 'Lady Elyna' which set his mind to work. The woman sat next to him was a noble? Also, didn't the handless sky-rider mention her name before getting banished from the expedition? Whoever this noble was, her name alone was enough to set off The Warden, who Kylar Identified as 'Ser Malcolm'. "Lady Elyna?" He spoke, sounding surprised. He looked back to the uncomfortable woman "I'm terribly sorry, Ma'am. It won't happen again." he bowed his head, sincerity in his tone. He'd already managed to mess up somehow.

Regardless, Kylar had requested his presence in a training area. "Yes I'll be there." He replied without looking at him, merely extending his voice. He wasn't sure why he had been asked for, Kylar had been distant since he returned from the burning mountains. Even so, he didn't want to disappoint - the only reason he had agreed to go with him. Rising from his tail, he stood up straight - about eight feet tall. "Please excuse me, Lady Elyna." he bowed before following Kylar and Crimson to the training area. He slithered to a two-metre distance from Kylar's right while he talked with Crimson. Kylar gave to her his prized knife, the one he'd heard Kylar speak of many times with great pride. He couldn't believe he'd give it up so easily, even to his wife.

The warden finished his warm-up before talking with Kylar. One small detail of the Wardens arsenal worried him though. He had heard he was a legendary swordsman, that alone was worrying. What he didn't know what that the Warden wielded two swords, the thought was terrifying. Feeling his fear creep up on him once more, he swallowed and re-assured himself 'This is a training session, not a battle to the death.' he exhaled, feeling a little more at ease. Though the bad news didn't pull any punches, he couldn't use his hammer in this fight, he had to use a training sword. He'd made swords in the past, sure. Never had he swung one, however. Thankfully, he could use his shield, which he was quite comfortable with wielding.

Kylar then told the Warden that he'd like to fight alongside Atashi, for which he was thankful. What Kylar asked next bothered him. What was the Lotharro playing at? He barely spoke to Atashi since returning from the Burning mountains, hell, he nearly blocked him out completely then he suddenly wanted to be chumy best friends again? Rage burning in his chest, he merely nodded, keeping his eye on the Warden. Kylar then leaned over to him and explained his plan, as much as he wanted to wallop the Lotharro, he listened to his plan, bottling his anger. if there was one thing he'd learned from his last encounter with the Warden, it was some discipline. Kylar had a good plan to be fair, simple enough but it was probably their best chance for winning, or even surviving. That was reason enough to go with it.

When Kylar gave the word, he immediately moved into position, slithering with his tower shield facing the Warden on his left arm and his practice sword in his right hand. He immediately charged for the Warden's flank upon reaching his position, he aimed to charge through the Warden, an effort to knock him to the floor, should he step out of the way, he'll try and adjust his shield.

[Sintih]

As usual, the warden didn't seem to have a handle on things. People kept coming and going, requiring moments of his time for whatever reasons they thought so important. As Heran remained completely motionless, holding his salute, Sin followed his lead, a little uncomfortable in the position but nothing he couldn't handle. Yet another mass of muscle walked up to the warden, eyeing both Heran and Sin before speaking to the warden. From the look, Sin could tell the man thought them inferior at best. With a build like that, Sin expected nothing less of the man's mental capabilities and his ability to gauge others. Probably one of those front line guys who ran fast, swung hard and considered the victor to be whoever killed the most of the enemy soldiers.

The blond haired warrior's girlfriend joined the conversation and Sin wondered what was wrong with all these people bringing their girlfriends to war as if it was a playground. But Malcolm had enough of a brain to send them away in order to attend to the important business. "We've already acquired our supplies from the quartermaster, Warden. Thank you for those. As for the training, I'm sure my squire would love nothing more than to learn from the best, sir." When Heran finished speaking, Sin couldn't help but look at him from the side, disbelieve on his face. What best? The only thing he could learn from this man was how to pay someone to shine your boots, most likely.

When Heran's eyes met his, Sin's jaw tightened. No choice, hmm? "It would an honor, sir." After that, Heran left Sin with Malcolm to rejoin his own unit. Sin followed after the warden as they walked to the training ground the knights had set up. For some reason, there was always room for those in an Iron Hand camp. Sin positioned himself at the edge of the field as Malcolm called for another knight to spar. Of course, first the great warden had to show off some before they could get embarrassed in front of everyone watching. The spar came to an end after only a few blows before Malcolm approached the blonde haired knight from before. Next to him, a half snake man slithered up, dressed for war.

Sin was pleasantly surprised to see such an exotic non human in the Iron Hand. There weren't enough of them in Sin's opinion. When the warden spoke to both men, Sin wasn't surprised when his words sounded so very much like condescension. Oh, yes, why don't you fight me two on one because one on one wouldn't be anything of a challenge. Sin clicked his tongue as he pulled his shortsword, scabbard and all, from his belt. He tied the sword tightly into the scabbard with the two strips normally used for hanging the sword from his belt. A swish or two later, Sin was satisfied that it wouldn't come loose too quickly during the fight.

When he looked up from his work, Sin saw both man and snake on opposite ends of the warden, charging in. A solid tactic, for sure, but Sin didn't feel like it would help against the Warden. Gripping his scabbard wrapped short sword in his right hand, Sin stepped up towards the fight, observing both men move and the warden defending. Hit or miss, clash or no clash, the moment both attacks were done, Sin stepped into the fight. He crossed the distance between him and the fight quickly, his cloak billowing behind him. Sure, nobody would respect him for doing what he did but then again, Sin couldn't muster up any interest in how these knights thought of him as long as he won in the end.

His strike was easy and direct, aimed straight for the warden's chest while he was busy avoiding or blocking the other two attacks. A quick step in, using some of Doran's footwork to close the gap, and the thrust in the straightest line he could make in that moment. Hit or miss, the moment Sin thought his strike had finished, he pulled back, quickly trying to step back twice, not only getting out of range of the dual longswords but also out of range from the melee that was happening in front of him.

[Faith Augustin]

She didn't really know how Malcolm and Elyna did what they did, in truth. There was so much to organise, so much to sort and yet here it was, running smoothly. Like a military operation, Faith thought with a smile. She had some numbers and supplies to discuss with him, or probably more precisely one of his subordinates. He was busy enough, without her worrying him about how much beef stock they'd need. But, she'd had some ideas, brought some things and it must be said that she was impressed with the meticulous planning which had gone on here. She had everything she'd need, she was sure.

Walking towards one of the supply tents, Faith caught sight of Malcolm, in fact, surrounded by people as was not uncommon in this situation and she raised an eyebrow. That hulking great Lotharro was Kylar, the chap who had taught her the crossbow just a few trials ago. She didn't know any of the others, except, was that Sintih? She looked rather surprised at that but she made sure to give him a smile and a nod of her head. Maybe they would catch up later.

Having collected up the spices which she needed from the supplies, Faith was making her way back when she saw a young woman who had been speaking to Malcolm, it seemed, but who was standing alone and watching whilst the men started to hit each other, all in the name of practice although the young ex-slave had her doubts, in truth. The young woman, who looked to be about her own age, seemed to be not quite sure of herself and was standing on her own, so Faith approached her. "Hello", she spoke in a soft voice, only just above a whisper it seemed. The girl who spoke to Crimson was short, just five foot four, with long black hair and pale skin. Her most striking feature, however, without doubt were her eyes; such a pale blue, they seemed to be grey or silver in colour. She was wrappd up against the cold, but those didn't hide the slave brand on her neck. She smiled a ready smile, though and seemed good natured and friendly.

"My name is Faith. I'm the chef around here. If you're looking for something to do, we can always use some help in preparation." No point to be here on her own, Faith thought. The dark haired woman smiled, waiting to see what Crimson said. If she wanted to help, she was welcome to do so and Faith would tell her where to come and what they were doing.

~~~

When they were eating and Padraig told her that he hadn't put up a tent, Faith's eyebrow shot up and she was trills away from some wonderful and witty comment about how much she'd enjoyed sleeping in the forest last time, but really she'd rather not repeat it, when he said the words, room, bed and warm. She beamed in delight and nodded her head "That sounds lovely. And thoughtful, too. Thank you." The extent of physical contact was when she bumped her knee against his as she thanked him, but it would have to do. As they started to eat, though, she caught sight of Sintih and, as luck would have it, he was walking just near them with some food and looked at her at the same moment. Faith waved and motioned to a space where she and Padraig were sitting "Sintih. I didn't know you were a military type. Won't you join us?" As usual, she had a smile on her face and seemed entirely delighted to see their friend.

[Elyna]

Elyna had been so flustered that she realised, too late, that she had forgotten to apologise. The Ithecal had turned towards her and seemed just as uncomfortable. The words caught in her throat and her cheeks started to burn red. He made a generous attempt at a joke and she stumbled over her own mumbled apology, “I walked into you, I’m so sorry,” they tumbled out in a rush and she resisted the urge to hang her head. She was supposed to be a Captain for the sake of Qylios. Not some shy foot soldier. She wasn’t a green amateur and yet, the sight of the Ithecal had reduced her legs to jelly and stolen the sound from her tongue. Fear did terrible things and the skyrider felt the bite of frustration.

The handsome young man approach before she could make even more of a disaster of the situation and she pressed a cold hand to her heated cheek. Her gaze moved over the man quickly, and after spying the freshly affixed wings on his jacket her smile was quick to return. She’d been right, he was a skyrider. Tall and strong, she found herself wondering if he’d settled on a unit to train and fly with. He was obviously keen to see battle and gain experience, otherwise why would he have left the city and training grounds behind?

“A pleasure,” she gave a quick response, polite as she finally took in the young beauty who stood close beside the skyrider. Curious, she thought but the pair vanished before she could send any enquiries after them. Atashi? She turned to the Ithecal, waving her hands quickly. The lump remained in her throat but it was easier to manage her irrational fear if she kept her gaze on his face, “not at all, Ser, the error was all mine,” she apologised as best she could before he too, seemed to flee from her.

The woman hesitated, rocking on her heels for a moment before she followed the slowly gathering crowd. Malcolm wasn’t the only combatant preparing to train and exercise before night drew too close. The skyrider slipped through the various pools of men and woman as they stretched and drew sparring weapons and sharps as well. Her attention focused, along with many other spectators on the Warden however. It had been too long since they’d sparred together. The woman rolled her shoulders back beneath her leather jacket. The first bought complete and she tilted her head to one side. It wasn’t like Malcolm to wield two weapons and she wondered where his shield was.

The skyrider stepped forward with the Ithecal and made their attack. The woman found herself smirking a little, a tricky move to counter she wondered if Malcolm might have over estimated his defence…but they were both relatively young men…was an Ithecal technically a man? Her mind wandered until a third youth strode forward from beside her. Senses snapped to alert the skyrider didn’t hesitate, her hand snapped out, curled around the thick fabric of the man’s billowed cloak and she yanked it, hard. She wasn’t about to dive in and ‘rescue’ Malcolm. Confident that the Warden could defend himself against a hot-headed pair of youths. But to interrupt broke the code. This was a sparring bought, no one was actually trying to hurt anyone else and the young man whose clothing she’d so mercilessly taken hold of, had been burning with energy.

Her intention was to stay his step, pull him off balance or force him to pause in his attack. Hopefully to give him a chance to re-think his actions. If she was successful in pulling him back, like a puppy, by the scruff of his neck, he’d meet the gaze of a pair of curious brown eyes as she raised a brow in silent question.

[Crimson]

Crimson, taken back by the sudden arms thrown around her, hugged back against her husband. She held tight against him. "It's not a problem, I'm just happy I can be here with you" she said gently in his ear. Although aware of the Warden's presence, she took no notice of it. After all, she came here for Kylar, and this wasn't against any kind of rules as far as she knew. She would have some questions if showing affection was breaking rules, for that fact. She turned respectfully to Malcolm as Kylar did and gave a small curtsy, then walked alongside Kylar to find Atashi. Before she even had time to point him out, Kylar noticed. In Atashi's defense, he was tall, so that made him rather hard to miss.

"Ser Elyna...got it" Crimson said quietly so she didn't disturb anyone and so only Kylar could hear it. She held on to his arm tight and listened as the two conversed. When she caught Elyna's gaze, she gave a small curtsy and bowed. "Pleasure" she said politely, with a warm smile across her face. Then she smiled gently at Atashi, before her and Kylar took off in the other direction for his duel with Malcolm. Malcolm may be good with a sword, very good from what Kylar had said, but she didn't care - she believed Kylar could do it if he tried. Even if he didn't, this was a learning experience - and one day Kylar would be able to best Malcolm in a one on one duel. Until then, she backed up Kylar every step of the way, always believing in him.

When Kylar handed her the weapons, her eyes fell specifically to the dagger. It was his favorite, his prized possession. He'd bought it and come home filled with glee, talking about how he would use it to save countless lives and become the best dagger user in the world. Why would he give her this? She smiled, but her face showed sadness. "Kylar...I can't take this from you. This is something special to you" she said. Then she paused. Was there any point in arguing? Besides, he had a point, she needed it for safety. After a short pause, she spoke again. "I'll look after it, and only use it if I have to. But I doubt I will, with my Lotharro here to keep me safe."

With a warm smile, she watched Kylar enter the duel with some confidence. Whether or not he won didn't matter, he was trying and that made her proud. The pride that swelled in her, however, was interrupted slightly by the sound of a young woman approaching. Crimson smiled as the woman introduced herself. "Crimson, the pleasure is mine" she said with a bright smile. The name Faith sounded familiar, she was certain Kylar had mentioned her. "Thank you so much for the offer, but right now I must watch my husband duel. Kylar, you know him don't you?" she asked curiously.

[Malcolm]

It was a cunning little tactic that even Malcolm could appreciate. The two men circled him, causing the warden to raise his swords, arms outstretched so that one pointed at Kylar, and the other was turned in Atashi’s direction. Of the two, Kylar was the closest, and made his move first. Malcolm was quick to block and swing the second sword at the sergeant in a light counter attack. He hadn't anticipated what came next. As Malcolm twisted away from his successful block against Kylar, he was thrown forward onto his knees by Atashi, straight into the path of Sin’s blade. The point of the blade hissed against the plate armour the warden wore, scratching the shined metal up the length of the breastplate to catch against the small lip just in front of his neck.
Malcolm stared wide-eyed at the blue man, following the length of the blade to the hand that gripped it, and further beyond to find that Elyna had held the squire back just enough to keep the man’s weapon from cutting him a new mouth. The warden maneuvered his longsword to disarm the squire, before he felt Kylar, or had it been Atashi, help him to his feet. Malcolm looked down at the scratch on his armour, and wiped his nose on the back of his sleeve, just one more scratch to add to the many. The knight nodded his thanks to Elyna, and turned about to engage Kylar and Atashi once more, though this time he would not allow them to circle him.
The sparring match caused the warden to work up a sweat, and by the time he was starting to feel worn out, distraction presented itself in the form of Benjamin, returned with the decoded letter no doubt. The captain had a sullen look about him, and Malcolm excused himself, bidding Kylar and Atashi to continue without him. “Good match,” he encouraged, and stepped away to the edge of the field where Benjamin had waited.
Malcolm sheathed his weapons and from a distance, he appeared to slow down, shrinking back away from Benjamin as he shook his head. The captain reached out to the warden and held up the letter, pointing to it before his gaze sought out Murphy’s camp.

“You’re sure?” Malcolm asked as Ben led him towards the edge of the woods.
“Positive,” the captain replied. “These symbols right here, that is your name in the Rakahi language.”
“Then they know I lead our forces.”
“It seems so.”
Benjamin marched into Murphy’s camp and demanded to see the slain scout. “He's over there,” one of Murphy's men pointed. “We cleaned him up just like you asked, ser,” the man directed his reply at Malcolm.
“Where are his belongings?” Benjamin barked.
“Over there, we haven't touched a thing, I swear.”
“We believe you,” Malcolm assured the man, “thank you for doing as I asked.”
The warden walked over to the scouts things and dug through them to find the coin purse just as the note had instructed, stating that there was a ‘gift for Malcolm Krome inside’. With some hesitation, Malcolm pulled the thin leather straps of the coin purse open and looked down at the ‘gift’.
“A finger?” Benjamin looked confused.
Malcolm reached in and lifted the finger from the pouch, turning it about between finger and thumb as he examined the gold ring and small, blue stone embedded within the soft metal. Malcolm lowered his hand and closed his eyes, going to one knee.
“Malcolm?” Benjamin’s brow furrowed.
“Tell the men I won't be joining them for a meal,” he murmured.
“What does it mean?”
The warden put the finger back inside the pouch after taking the ring, and left the camp with both pieces. “It means I'll bloody kill ‘em!” he growled, “that's what it means!”
Benjamin turned to Murphy’s man and asked him to relay the warden’s message that he would not be joining them for a meal, and followed after his friend, headed in the direction of the village.

Note: This is my final post for this thread. I will post it for review on Monday. Cheers to everyone who joined! The next thread will be up by Wednesday hopefully! I won't be here all weekend, and I got some very long days at work ahead of me, so responses and replies will slow right down. My apologies in advance.

[Sintih]

For once, Sin had managed to hold back the victorious, if smug, smile he usually made when things went well. The one time he had the opportunity to get a good hit on one of these useless nobles that held the top positions in most of the Iron Hand, if not the entire Rynmere government. All foiled by someone else's girlfriend. As he held his hand to his throat, coughing for air, Sin quickly went over what had happened.

Sin's sword had stabbed true, traveling straight and passing past the blond haired man. He'd aimed for the broadest part of a man's body, the chest, to get a higher chance of success. That he hadn't expected the snake man to body charge the warden towards him only showed him how much he still lacked. A totally viable tactic that should have been high on his own list considering the snake's size and build. But the end result couldn't have been more satisfying as the tip of the scabbard wrapped around his short sword slid across the Warden's armor covered heart and up towards his neck. It would have been a perfect finishing blow had a certain someone not stepped in at that point.

He wasn't proud of the choking sound that had slipped from his lips as his own cloak pulled back and the strings that kept it in place cut into his own neck and throat. The momentum of his own charge and the strength of whoever had grabbed his cloak combined cut into his ability to breathe in the middle of his attack. His head and upper body had been pulled back and he'd had to step back to prevent surprise death by choking or beheading. In the same moment, his sword had collided with the Warden's quick defense and had been knocked aside, falling with a dull thud on the ground of the training area.

Standing there for a trill or two, three, Sin coughed, trying to get his breath back. "What..." Sin spun around to face whoever had dared to interrupt him. He turned and saw nobody until he looked down more, coming face to face with a pair of strict looking brown eyes. "...do..." Sin's eyes wandered further down, seeing the person in front of him dressed in skyrider armor. A female skyrider. "...you th-..." His eyes moved back up and stopped on the three wings on her uniform. Why was everyone here higher ranked than he was.

Sin hesitated a moment there, cutting his own words short, before he saluted her. "Sir." Standing there with one hand on his throat and the other in the Iron Hand salute, he didn't look very threatening or experienced at all. In the moment itself, Sin hadn't thought much of it but as he quickly scanned around, he could tell that what had just happened had been amusing to most knights watching. The purple squire tabard, placing the young Eidisi in the service of Gawynne, covering his leather armor was clearly visible now that his cloak was partly wrapped around the captain's hand. The coughing had stopped but his breathing still sounded more labored than it should. Facing of with the captain, Sin focused on counting his breathing, waiting for her to explain herself. One, two through the nose, one, two, three, four out through pursed lips. Just like the doctor ordered.

[Kylar]

Kylar found himself knocked flat to the floor, and had it been a real fight he would have been dead or at least wounded. But against someone as skilled as Malcolm, this was a victory. A small smile came out of the side of Kylar's face as Atashi made his move. Just as he'd hoped. Malcolm was knocked down, and for a short moment it was a victory. Until the scrape of metal on metal sent a small shiver down Kylar's spine.
Kylar looked in shock at the man holding the sword. Immediately, Kylar took a step to Malcolm to help him stand. His eyes went to Sintih, then to Crimson who held his crossbow. He stayed beside Malcolm. "Are we to continue, Ser?" he asked quietly, keeping his eye on Sintih, speaking at a volume that only him and Malcolm would hear. Should he get the order, he had a dagger up his sleeve and a crossbow not too far away from him. He'd prefer the crossbow, but he'd also prefer Crimson was safe.
Kylar's eyes then fell to Elyna. He couldn't communicate to her without undermining her or interrupting, so he looked to her with concerned eyes, then glanced back to Sintih to show where his concern lied. The tension spread across him was visible as many thoughts went through his head. Had the man not thought to use a training sword, or did it go deeper than that? Despite the situation, the way the man he'd seen before didn't show him off to be stupid - Kylar would give him that. So forgetting to switch to a blunt blade wasn't a likely scenario.

Before Kylar could ponder any further, Malcolm turned back to him and Atashi to continue the sparring match. Kylar shot one last uncomfortable look to Sintih, before picking up his weapon from where he'd dropped it. He tried to let some of the tension go, but couldn't bring himself to do it. When Malcolm eventually ended the match, Kylar lowered his training sword.
"I'm sorry, Atashi, but for now I must take a break from this training. I'm rather...tired" he said, the discomfort evident. He turned to Crimson and looked to her with worry, then walked over and pulled her in to a hug. "Perhaps you might need this dagger after all. If that man goes anywhere near you, call someone you trust. If I'm not there, call for Atashi, Ser Malcolm, Ser Elyna, Faith - anyone. If nobody comes, you use that dagger. Don't let him hurt you, or by every immortal I will kill him myself."

[Faith Augustin]

This was Kylar's wife? Faith's already genuine and good natured smile widened. "It is a very real pleasure to meet you. Yes, I met your husband previously. He taught me some crossbow technique." She nodded her head. "He seems like a good man. And a lucky one, too. Have you been married long?" Things such as this were totally out of the wheelhouse of the young former slave; Faith was still trying to come to terms with not having to curtsy every time she saw someone, but that there were people who were young and in love and making it work made her more happy than she had words for.

"Well, I'm the chef for the campaign, help is always welcome at any time. Just catch up with me there. If I'm not there, I'll probably be repairing clothes or making new ones." She smiled to the very beautiful woman next to her and Faith's silver eyes were clear and honest, but also showed her amusement as she made a joke. "Military camps can be isolating to the non-military people. We have to stick together." It was a lighthearted jest, but it was true also. This wasn't Faith's first time in a military camp, albeit her last experience was very different indeed, and so she made the offer of companionship should the woman wish it.

Her gaze then turned to the sparring match and when she saw what happened, Faith's eyes widened in shock and amazement. The sparring was happening and then, there was Sintih, of all things attacking Maloclm with a live blade and ...

There was no doubt in Faith's mind that Malcolm could deal with it if it struck. There was no doubt that Elyna would be there, and as she was with a beautiful move which would, later, make Faith smile in delight as she told Padraig what she'd seen. But that didn't matter and the young woman moved as soon as she saw and comprehended what had happened. The military types amongst them knew the military etiquette, no doubting. But Faith was not a soldier and as she realised that Malcolm was being helped up by Kylar and an Ithecal she had not met, Faith took stock of the situation with Lady Elyna and Sintih.

Lady Elyna would deal with that, it was her right and Faith would not even consider stepping in to that. But she moved and picked up the sword which Sintih had used to try and kill Malcolm, as far as she could tell and she stood, to one side, holding it horizontally flat across her hands, obviously not meaning to use it and waiting to see what Lady Elyna wanted done with it. it meant that she was close enough that she could support Lady Elyna if she wished it, but she made sure that she was off to the side and far enough that, so that she did not crowd the situation or make it worse. Strangely, she considered, sometimes having been a slave meant that one knew exactly where to stand to be in something and outside of it at the same moment.

[Elyna]

It appeared that her wild grab at the cloak had done just enough. Her heart was pounding somewhere in the region of her ears. As expected, the young man wheeled to face her and seemed surprised to have to look so far down. Elyna however, was used to looking up at most of the world. Everyone, even Faith was taller than she was and it had always been so. She saw Malcolm’s nod, her eyes meeting his for the briefest moment over the Gawyne Squire’s shoulder. A shadow moved from the corner of her eye and she spotted Faith stepping closer, sword levelled across her palms.

The skyrider had gotten herself involved, and even as the sparring match continued behind the Squire, she felt as though the rest of the spectators were holding their breath. Waiting to see what she’d do next. The young woman let out a lungful of air, if only she knew! He’d asked a question however, and she levelled her gaze with his, “you were about to intervene in a sparring match, without invitation. I thought that I would join you,” she explained, voice light and almost jovial.

The young woman twisted and offered a smile to Faith, collecting the sword from her hands with care, “thank you, Faith” she nodded and turned it in her own grip, presenting it back to the young man before her, hilt first. “It’s a good weapon,” she could feel the balance of it on her palms. Once the Squire had accepted his longsword she beckoned for him to follow, a command more than a question before she made her way out, through the crowds. Grateful that for once her fellow comrades parted before her. It seemed that they recognised her station, as the Squire himself had. She hoped that he would follow, away from the gathered group. She also sent a silent prayer to Pre that her faith in him was not unfounded and he wouldn’t simply take the opportunity to slide the sharp blade between her shoulder blades as she walked.

Away. They needed to be away from the group. The Captain was new to her role, but she’d never been one for public shame; having experienced too much of it herself.