The sound of violent thrashing woke Kari; she looked around as the banging continued and felt the walls shake. She wasn't sure if the sudden noise came from inside her room or outside, so she dove off the far side of the bed and cowered. Everything was dark except the faint flow of a few embers in the fireplace. She sat still and monitored the room; she realized the sound was coming from the hallway. A voice from outside her door boomed, and that was when she realized she had no idea how long she had been asleep and that Jeplin had not returned. The violence outside her door became louder, and she ran over to make sure the door was still locked. Once she confirmed she was still safe, she leaned over and looked through the crack in the door frame.

Two men were standing in the middle of the hall, illuminated by sporadic torches on the walls. She observed them silently. They stood still for a moment; the only noise she heard was the sound of their heavy breathing. That's when she noticed two more men in the corridor. They were leaning against the wall from the side she peered from. One man was terse and smoking a large pipe, and the other was covered in blood and dirt. One of the men gestured with his hand, and the other two men lunged at each other. Kari jumped back, startled by their pure aggression and disregard for everything around them.

The sparing seemed like it was between friends, spurred by ale and boredom. After a few moments of lashing around, they disappeared into the neighboring hall.

Karis's attention was drawn back to Jeplin's whereabouts. She grabbed her cloak from the chair and carefully and slowly unlocked her door. She did not see anything, and she slipped into the shadows.

Her cloak was black and blended in with the walls and stairs charred ashy nature, the reason why she chose to dawn it for that mission.

She stayed unnoticed as she looked for her companion. She kept her back against the wall and slowly moved with the shadows. As she progressed, bits of wood from the wall clung to her cloak, the feeble and useless bits that were no longer useful.

Kari made it to the stairwell and remembered that the bar was right under the stairs, so she only needed to descend a few steps to see who was sitting there. The room was still as dark as when she walked through it earlier; the only notable difference was the increase in people occupying tables. A dozen men were sitting and lumbering around the dining area. She scanned the room and found Jeplin seated behind the bar, talking to a man covered in mud.

It was a common theme and the obvious standard there. She looked at the man's face. The wet mud glistened a bit under the scarce light. It was clear the mud was fresh and placed intentionally to hide his identity. The clumps made him look inhuman, successfully.

Despite the insane rumble of clatter from the men still attacking each other in a neighboring hallway, she was able to hear snippets of his voice.

It sounded familiar, though the stretches of quiet were not long enough to figure out who it reminded her of. She was satisfied that Jeplin was fine, and as gingerly as before, she returned to the room.

Kari locked the door behind her and sat on the hearth so she could stoke the fire, which was struggling to produce warmth. It only took a few dedicated moments of prodding until the flames grew again. She grabbed some food and ate while she watched the blaze.

The large flames created haunting shadows on the walls. It was the first time she paid attention to the walls; they were ancient and looked like they could be destroyed with a single jarring motion. The walls were also covered in grime, dirt was etched into each surface, and it was clear water had long ago forsaken the room. The windowsill was the only place touched by water recently where small divots made by rain drops decorated the corners of the frame.

Sheets of heavy rain fell that night, and hundreds of droplets peppered the window pane. Between the sound of the rain and the warmth of the fire, sleep overtook her.

The sun rose quickly the next day, and they saw the bright sky peek into the stable as they reunited with their horse. They just finished breakfast and were about to continue their journey.

Several rays assaulted her eyes which signaled the coming of warmth. She looked up at the roof and shielded her eyes with the shadow of one of the beams. Two large wooden beams slanted and met at the top of the roof, but because of time or poor craftsmanship, several cracks allowed a giant ray of sun to stream down on them. Tiny particles were suspended in its wake as if time was standing still, like a feather that floated on the surface of a pool of water.

Jeplin held the scraps from their breakfast in his cupped hands and fed them to the horse. She watched it eat nimbly, and when the horse was done, he aggressively drank from the dingy water trough.

They left the stable and were immediately slowed by a blast of cold air. Karis's breath was taken from her for a moment as

the wind's icy, destructive fingers grabbed her throat.

The nip in the air dissipated after a few days passed, and the sun started to appear more. One pleasant day, when the air brought an extraordinary soothing hint of warmth, Jeplin took advantage of the lake they were riding past and stopped the horse at the bank of the water.

Kari was surprised by the deviation but was too grateful to question Jeplins actions. She was travel and wind-worn and barely had the energy to get off the horse. Jeplin helped her off the horse, and she walked straight to the water. Jeplin pulled the packs off the horse and set everything under a tree that covered the area with a decent shadow.

Kari took off her mud-caked boots and long brown stockings. She felt so much happier once the grass touched her skin. She dipped her foot into the water, which was much more refreshing than she could have imagined.

Her peace was disturbed by the sound of aggressive clanging. She looked at Jeplin and realized the sound was caused when he dropped all his weapons on the ground together. He was slowly unequipping himself. He continued to untie all of the thick, stiff leather armor tied to his body. When he took everything but his shit and pants off, he exhaled.

Kari thought he looked like he would have collapsed if he had not removed his gear when he had. He walked over to her, and she shyly looked away.

The river glistened under the unrelenting but friendly sun; nothing could have been more welcoming after days and days of strain and cold air. Jeplin waded into the water, and his wet white shirt clung to his muscular chest. He dove under the water, and when he returned to the surface, his and Karis's eyes met.

"Is it cold?" she asked.

"A bit," he said.

He turned away and pulled off his shirt. His chest was very white, and his muscles wrapped his body elegantly.

She pulled her body into the water and sank to immerse herself fully.

The cool hands of the waves caressed her face gently. She stayed still to hold the feeling in her memory, then touched the ground again and propelled herself back into the sun-drenched air.

Jeplin watched her as she climbed back onto the bank. He admired her long brown hair and vibrant blue eyes. She sat down and looked at him, and they locked eyes again. Her cheeks turned pink, and she looked down.

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Jeplin dove under the water and swam for a bit. She closed her eyes and enjoyed the warm sun on her cool, wet skin. Her eyes were still closed when Jeplin swam back to the shore and pulled himself out of the water. He knelt on the ground equidistant between her and the tree and started a fire.

Kari opened her eyes.

"The water was nice," she said

Jeplin spoke without looking up; yes, I enjoyed it too."

Kari couldn't figure out why it was so hard to talk to Jeplin; every conversation and every time she spoke felt hard and strained. He was never mean, but it was a struggle nonetheless.

Her body was tired. No matter how much time she had to rest, the traveling still took its toll on her similarly. She hoped their final destination was close. The wind whistled and swirled around the blades of grass, which in turn tickled her as she fell asleep.

Kari woke up to the sound of Jeplin shuffling through some scrolls. The sun was high in the sky, but she couldn't tell if it was the same day or the next. She sat up and watched him for a moment.

"What are you reading?" she asked.

He looked at her. "Oh, these are scrolls I picked up in the tavern." He said, then paused for a moment, unsure whether or not to tell her the truth.

"Your father sent them to me. I was supposed to pick them up while I was at your estate, but as you know, things were a bit chaotic when I arrived."

She was caught off guard by the mention of her father. She had tried to avoid the topic of her family to stave off the possibility of bad news but couldn't help but smile; she was glad to hear at least one of them survived. She thought about asking follow-up questions, but a bird squawked loudly and interrupted her. Jeplin stood up quickly. With one swift motion, he gracefully and effortlessly, almost as if he were floating, made his way up the tree.

"There are a lot of birds," he commented suspiciously as he jumped down. "We should leave."

The continuing good weather made traveling more enjoyable, though sometimes a warm endeavor. They mostly traveled at night for the cooler temperature and the cover. When they did move during the day, they tried to make quick jumps into any water they came across to soothe the pain of the almost desert climate.

The terrain was uneven; some spots were flat and barren, and others were covered with plateaux and large rock formations. Despite the differences, all the hues were in a similar tanish vein. Jeplin stopped the horse at the edge of a cliff and looked down. They sat silently. He observed every crevice like a hawk hunting for prey. Kari noticed a smattering of little huts that dotted the dry, light brown grass below them.

Everything was a shade of tan or brown, but there were signs that the land had once been lush and green. The sand was minimal, and dead stumps were scattered everywhere. Jeplin hit the horse with his heel, and they continued.

The wind was still; therefore, the grass was motionless, erect, and unwelcoming. When they reached the huts, Jeplin jumped off the horse and raised his hand, a gesture that told Kari to stay where she was. A few seconds later, he entered a hut and returned with food and random items.

The hut was small, the roof on the unit was made of thatch, and the walls were made of clay. The clay had crumbled a bit, and fresh clumps littered the ground. The fact that the clay had not changed shape drastically or melted spoke to the frequency of the rain. Kari looked at the sky; it was uncomfortably vibrant, with dark clumps of clouds that approached from the eastern horizon. She was not fond of excessively dark weather, but she didn't only love sunshine; she appreciated a very calm, gray, rainy day, too. Jeplin exited another hut with a new bag in his hand. He walked back to the horse, took the bags, and set them near the entrance of the biggest hut. Kari climbed off the horse and walked over to the hut; on the ground inside, there were two small rectangular-shaped clumps of straw covered by old, worn blankets. Between the beds, which were on opposing sides, was a terracotta lid. She kneeled and picked it up. To her surprise, underneath was a hole filled with food. She took out two apples. She bit into one and gave the other to the horse.

While she stood under the unhindered sky, she felt the air shift. The silent, still wind started to swirl; she turned around and noticed the impending storm clouds were closer. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath; she could smell the moisture in the air. When the horse finished the apple, he made a noise that drew Jeplin's attention. He poked his head out of one house and waved the horse off. The horse excitedly tossed his head, and his mane fluttered as he ran off deeper into the valley.

Jeplin sat in front of the hut's front door, where the roof hung over the front a bit. He gestured for her to join him, and he started a fire. She didn't mind sitting on the dry, dusty ground; in fact, she sometimes preferred it to grass.

Jeplin pulled out some uncooked food and then stopped.

"Do you know how to cook over a fire?" he asked her.

She shook her head. "No, I'm sorry."

"Oh.. no, it's not a problem. I'm going to show you."

That evening, he taught her how to cook various foods over a bonfire; shockingly, he talked a good bit, which he had not done in front of her before.

The night came swiftly along with dropping temperatures. It shocked Kari when she learned the desert was frigid at night. She fell asleep by the fire, and Jeplin stayed awake beside her for a bit longer. He spent most of that time staring at the flames, but occasionally, he looked over at Karis's face. She was still and pale, and her face looked like it was carved out of marble. He contemplated lifting her up and carrying her to the straw bed, but he wasn't sure if she was more comfortable where she was. When the fire died down, and he finally decided to go to bed, he stood up, scooped her into his arms effortlessly, carried her into the hut, placed her on a pile of hay, and covered her with several blankets.

The sun did not break away from the clouds the next morning. Kari woke to the delicate pitter-patter of raindrops bouncing off the roof. She ate breakfast and then ventured outside. The air was still cold. She wrapped the cloak around her tightly as she knelt down by the remnants of the fire they had enjoyed the night before.

Jeplin awoke and walked outside to join her.

"The weather seems to be getting worse." He commented.

Kari looked up at the sky; she noticed it was getting darker.

"It looks like it has not rained here in a while."

"Yes, it is good in a wider sense, but it makes traveling harder for us."

"Oh." She said, realizing she had not considered how rain would affect their riding.

"Does that mean we have to stay here?" She asked, not sure what answer she wanted to hear.

"No," Jeplin said, "No matter the weather, we must continue."

She nodded.

They gathered their bags, and as they did, the sky released a waterfall of rain onto them. They quickly ran out of the hut as the mud roof melted. The horse was running to them as they escaped the mess. Jeplin spurred the horse as fast as he could, almost as though he was trying to try and outrun the storm. Lightning whipped across the atmosphere, a haunting white color that somehow was able to reach every corner of the sky with its bright, blinding flash. The thunder that followed shook the ground and pushed the horse to gallop faster.

Kari was concerned, but Jeplin was stoic and fearless; as they raced forward, his black cape whipped in the wind, trailing far behind him. His neck was the only thing that kept it from flying off into the storm.

Suddenly, a loud horn echoed from the direction they were heading. Jeplin was ready. He placed his hand on the hilt of his sword and drew it a few seconds later. Kari looked up at him. Her blue eyes were even more vibrant against the darkness. Jeplin did not notice, and he spurred the horse to run faster.

Through the dark curtain of rain, she saw a string of men on white horses holding out their swords. Jeplin took his cloak and whipped it around, and covered Kari completely.

Don't move and close your eyes, he whispered as he stopped the horse.

She obeyed. She could hear the men shouting in a language she did not understand.

Jeplin yelled back. A man responded; it sounded like he was taunting him.

She shuddered as she felt and heard Jeplin's sword hit another. The clang of metal echoed, hauntingly matching the thunder. Jeplin pulled the horse with his left hand and swung with his right. He danced effortlessly around all of them. She looked down again and saw man after man hit the ground. She could not believe what she was seeing.

The horse swung around, which caused her to grip the horse's neck tightly. Without Jeplin's arms around her, she slipped a bit, and the cloak flung around her. She heard a rumble followed by a bright light. By the time her vision had been restored, they stood in the middle of the field, surrounded by dozens of dead bodies. He covered her eyes with his hand, and they rode off