It had been three days. Three whole days since Alric came face to face with death, and he was ashamed to say that he flinched. He had to force himself to not take a quick glance at Danny. Alric should’ve known better then to not utilize his every advantage in battle. That is what Pa taught him, and it was only his arrogance and pride that kept him from adapting to his domain and that nearly cost Danny his life.

The soft, melancholic tune that was being gently plucked out behind him dug straight into his tumultuous heart. It had been one day since Danny awoke. His face was still ghastly pale from blood loss, only a temporary splint of nearby branches and strips of Alric’s cloak kept his shoulder in check. Danny hadn’t said a word since he awoke, just startling awake with a shout in the middle of the night, and strumming that tune since.

Alric grit his teeth and focused his mind back onto his training, though he was hesitant to call it that considering he had little idea as to what training as a water elevated entailed. He just knew he had to get stronger. Just had to. So instead he doubled down on the training he did back in Northrend.

Alric knew he was working his body ragged, that it would never be sustainable. However, it kept the dreams at bay when he was too exhausted to even think. Never would he have to hold Danny’s lifeless body in his arms. Alric would ensure it by his own hands that no harm came to those around him.

Notes stopped suddenly, “Hey did you hear that?” Danny called from across the camp.

Alric was scanning his surroundings, weapon at the ready as he checked the brush surrounding the camp. “Where did it come from?” blast it, Alric knew that they’d catch up to them sooner or later, “How many?” he snapped to Danny while cursing his own inattention.

Danny for his part seemed genuinely perplexed with Alric, “No? Nothing like that, just sounded like birdsong though I swear it was familiar somehow…” he trailed off with a whistle trying to convey what he heard.

“Isn’t that what you were just playing?” Alric asked slightly worried for his brother’s mental state. After all, Danny didn’t have to go through training for when he had to take a life like Alric had.

“Huh? Yeah, I guess it is…” Danny trailed off, his only social excursion outside of his head coming to an abrupt end. Alric couldn’t have that happen. Danny needed to get talking and quickly.

Although, talking to Danny also meant that Alric had to stop his training and Alric wasn’t quite sure he was ready for that. A real man always puts his allies first. With a little sigh, Alric reached up and unlatched his feet from the branch he was hanging from before setting himself onto the ground. He needed to approach this slowly like all of those hypothetical beast hunts he had to run in training. It was amusing to remember that time he had to follow the trail of feathers that Talbot had glued onto him for tracking lessons.

“So… wanna talk about whatever in the high court happened?” Alric casually commented with the weight of a boulder. At this point any prey would’ve scurried off.

Danny gave him a blank stare for a moment as Alric settled down near the fire beside him. Rubbing his temple with his one good hand, Danny commented, “What is there to talk about Alric? We were caught unprepared and nearly paid the price. We’ll have to just take care to be more cautious next time…”

“Next time!” Alric exploded, every ounce of anger and self-loathing that was kept under the surface surged into the forefront. “We nearly died Danny! You nearly died, and you want us to charge into that again?”

Alric realized too late that Danny had curled into himself, a cornered animal, wounded and ready to bare its fangs. Finally Danny snapped, launching upright and dropping his lute onto the floor in a tumble. “Oh you think I wanted to charge in there?” Danny barked, “To go and save the damsel in distress like a hero in a story? Because I seem to remember only one of us having their sights set on becoming a blasted legend,” Danny’s volume shifted with his anger, into a subdued hatred at the reality of the situation.

Alric felt the stinging truth of those words, as his world went blurry. Danny must have realized they went a step too far as he slid down the trunk Alric was resting against, all the wind taken out of him. “I’m sorry Alric,” he continued at the barest of whispers, “it’s just… it’s just that I almost died mate. We haven’t even been gone from home for one blasted week and I nearly went to serve the high court. I don’t blame you for that disaster Alric. Lords above, I was about ready to charge in there after I saw her…”

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Danny suddenly sat upright, startling Alric who nearly finished collecting himself, “The kid! Alric, what happened to the kid?”

Alric was confused for a moment before feeling his face pale as he recalled what Danny told him, “I, I don’t know Danny but he had to have been related to Esmerelda somehow for them to look so alike so probably someone from whatever group she was from will come and take care of him. That or Riverfrost’s guards.”

The answer seemed to mollify Danny. Lords above, what was planning to do to help that kid in the condition he was in? Especially after just saying how Alric was the one always charging head first. Alric leaned against the hearty ashen trunk, staring up at the complex weave of branches that almost entirely covered the dimming afternoon sky. He thought of using one of those branches in a project, perhaps as the shaft of a spear or maybe the scabbard to a sword. Pa always said that a fine blade needed an equally fine scabbard.

However, the idea was tainted by the moment, he was a smith without a forge, just coming from ending life in battle. It would just taint the end result somehow to sit mere days after that battle merrily whittling away at wood. It would dishonor and cheapen their deaths and sacrifice.

Looking towards Danny, Alric saw him equally deep in thought, idly turning over that strange clay medallion Esmerelda had presented him. It was even more peculiar in the light, what Alric initially thought was beige triangles circling the edge turned out to be sand kept in place by the glaze. The wave in its center was not engraved with a chisel by some potter during its make, but seemed to be almost printed one with some sort of device after it had already been fired.

“What do you think this is for?” Danny asked having felt Alric’s gaze.

“Well she said it was for a sect right?” Alric gestured towards the tablet, “thing looks too peculiar to be some trinket made on a whim. It seems to be following some sort of design so I’d bet it to be an identity token.”

Danny seemed to consider the idea, building a rebuttal in his mind as he stroked his chin. “I get that it’s from a sect, that much is obvious. The only question is what in the high court is a sect doing along the northern shores? I thought those were abolished years ago, at least supposed to be. We learned in history class they were little better than bandits and often as fanatical as cults,” Danny presented.

Did they actually learn that in history class? Alric was almost always half asleep in those classes from all of his training, but they always seemed to appear in stories so he doubted they were truly gone.

“It could be some sort of hold over from centuries ago, one clever enough to know when to go into hiding and blend in if Esmerelda is any judge,” Danny mused, “Or some new group that sprouted up after the Dragon Isle Massacre.”

“Then how can we be sure who to trust Danny?” Alric asked. That’s when Danny flashed him a look that seemed transplanted from Sis’ face, asking how he just didn’t understand. Which to be fair he didn’t, but they were in the middle of the wilderness with little supplies and Danny recovering. Now he was dropping that any settlement they come across could be filled with people holding a grudge over their dead comrade?

His worry must’ve been given away to Danny as he laughed and chided Alric, “Lords above Alric, think for a moment with that thick head of yours for something besides training. Esmerelda was acting like a regular person, right?” Getting a nod from Alric, Danny continued, “She only changed that up when involved with powerful people or pressed into a corner. So simply stay away from nobles and keep your nose out of everything and we’ll be fine.”

“Besides,” Danny claimed nonchalantly as he went back to playing his lute, “the mayor thought we were impostors anyway.”

Alric had to admit Danny was making a lot of sense at the moment. They did leave Respite with those who knew their involvement dead, so they had nothing to worry about besides paranoia.

Danny stopped the melody he was strumming abruptly, “There! Did you hear it that time? I swear someone is whistling.”

So they definitely had to worry about paranoia.