The carver in red set aside the claw he was working on and started digging through his pack. To my surprise, the bowl and spoon he withdrew were also made of the amazing gray metal. Looking around, I saw that the others each had their own set.
After a word from Martin, the giant reached into his oversized bag. Surprisingly, he pulled out a second, much smaller pack. Unlike the extremely plain and utilitarian pack the giant carried, this bag was covered in little rune-like designs and patterns.
Rummaging through the smaller bag, he retrieved a very ornate bowl and spoon. He glared at it disdainfully, as though it insulted his sensibilities. Muttering something I probably didn’t want to have translated, he passed the offending implements to me.
Unlike the surly giant, I found the bowl absolutely beautiful. It was made of a dark blue clay that was amazingly smooth and shiny. Golden designs were worked flawlessly into the surface of the dish, looking like a flattened representation of a spell’s mana forms. The spoon was similarly ornate, with elegantly braided metal for a handle.
As I was admiring the artwork I had been handed, the others helped themselves to soup from the pot. I was hesitant to claim some for myself until Salvador waved me over and gestured encouragingly towards the pot.
The food was like nothing I had ever tasted before. Unfamiliar spices mixed with unusual ingredients to form one of the most delicious things I had eaten in a very long time. To my regret, I was down to the last dregs of my soup seemingly in moments.
My disappointment must have been evident on my face because someone poured another ladle of soup into my bowl. Looking up, I found the red bearded cook looking at me with an amused smirk on his face. He said something that sounded like a joke, but without knowing the words I couldn’t tell.
Though I couldn’t appreciate the man’s humor, the same could not be said about his cooking. I was so engrossed in the wonderful soup, that I didn’t see everyone drawing their weapons at first. I nearly dropped my bowl when I finally noticed.
For a brief and horrible moment, I thought that I was about to be attacked by those who I had hoped would be my new friends. Fortunately, everyone was looking towards the side of the camp instead of at me. My relief was short lived as I followed their gazes to the thing lurking just past the edge of the fire’s light.
It looked vaguely like a leopard, if leopards had six legs, a set of curved horns on their heads, and stood twice as tall as a man. The creature was sniffing around the clearing. To the evident confusion of the warriors, it was seemingly oblivious to our presence. Moving slowly, I pointed at one of the sigils of concealment I had drawn earlier.
Martin regarded me with a look that still lacked understanding. It would have been much simpler if we could just talk to each other, but I could still try to convey what was going on. Pointing at the sigil again, then at the monster, I covered my eyes with my hand.
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Liam, the slender rune carver let out a quiet exclamation before conferring with the others with excited whispers. Though everyone continued to watch the roaming monster, there was much less tension in their stances.
Scooping out another portion of the soup, I sat back down. I wasn’t about to let the looming threat from the predator stop me from finishing my meal. It hadn’t noticed us and it wasn't much bigger than the monsters from earlier that day. Even if the monster attacked, the warriors would be able to handle it.
Even though I wasn't standing with my spear in hand, I wasn’t going to let the monster get between me and the best food I had encountered in recent memory. The mostly formed spell I had ready would have made sure of that.
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INTERLUDE 6: A Chef’s Perspective
Rob watched the large cat thing warily. Despite walking only a few meters from the edge of the camp, the beast remained as clueless as a noble’s favored son. It was either just plain stupid, or there was some new magic afoot.
According to Liam, the strange squiggles that tiny slip of a girl painted on the trees were to thank. Rob never could wrap his head around magic symbols or what not, but he was pretty sure they were usually carved into things.
Everyone kept their weapons at the ready, just in case. Everyone, that was, besides the slender wild woman.
Robert didn’t know what to make of the lass. Between her strange symbols, the unusual spells she used in the fight, and the ridiculous scenes from her codex, the girl was obviously a very powerful magician. If she claimed that the squiggles would blind monsters, he was inclined to believe her.
As the giant cat slunk off into the night, everyone lowered their weapons and slowly returned to their seats. Walking back to the pot, Rob watched the dark-skinned lass tear into her food with unprecedented gusto. He couldn’t imagine what the poor thing must have been eating before if she was treating soup made from travel rations and a handful of spices like something fit for an emperor.
“Ah, finally we have our proof.” He started jokingly. “My cooking is clearly fantastic, and you all just have terrible taste.”
“Oh yeah? If you are such an excellent cook, why does half the meat you get your hands on end up as charred bits of leather?” Matt retorted as he once more started carving.
“It’s called ‘well done’. Some people quite like it that way.” Robert defended himself.
“I’m sorry to tell you this my friend, but you may have overstepped ‘well done’ and wandered into the domain of ‘completely finished’. Sadly, this is a realm where few chefs dare to tread.” Salvador commented in a jokingly consolatory tone.
“Bah, my talents are wasted on all of you. If that is truly how you feel, then you can just fork over your share to the new gal.” Rob glanced over at the scrawny young woman scraping up the last drops of soup from her bowl. “She could probably use it more than any of you lot anyway.”
“Alright, cut down on the chatter. We don’t want to draw the attention of anything else lurking out in the night. I don’t know how effective these markings are, but I don’t want to have to put them to the test. Robert, you have first watch tonight.” Martin instructed.
“Sure thing boss. Needed to scour the pot anyway.”
“Also, can someone help Kyo set up Norbert’s old tent? She probably hasn’t… What is she doing?” Martin trailed off.
In a surprisingly short period of time, the strange girl turned a pile of leaves and sticks into something resembling a tent. It didn’t look particularly comfortable to Rob, but the wild lass looked content with it.
“I guess she can take care of herself tonight. Tomorrow, I want the extra tent set up with the others. Hopefully, our new friend considers it to be an improvement.”