Cedric was feeling pretty good as he ran across wide-open plains. He had been chosen along with four others to perform a mission, to prove that they had earned their abilities. Over the course of the last week, he had been training every day and was deemed to be one of the best among the new recruits. With a week’s worth of the elixir, he had grown significantly faster and stronger, though he still fell short of those he was with. Furthermore, he had started doing some work with others near the end of the week. It had given them a good understanding of one another’s strengths.

Of the four with him, three of them had more raw strength than him. One was the large girl, who was wielding a hammer that might as well have been a giant block of metal. She had introduced herself as Brigid, and he was surprised by how poised her voice was. It reminded him of elders from back home. She was fairly durable as well. The ax wielder he had seen training had also joined them. He was called Thor and had two large axes strapped to his back. Another was the arrogant man who had talked back to the general. He was still very arrogant, but he had been very respectful in his introductions. His name was Steven. The final person was the girl he had stood next to in the line. She seemed even smaller than he remembered, though he might have been the one to grow taller. Her name was Sam.

There wasn’t a firm wall separating the two territories, but he had noticed the shift in temperature as they made the run. It was noticeably colder as he moved west, though it was by no means uncomfortable. It was well into the hot season, and at this distance, it was still warm. If they ran west for dozens of days the weather might get a bit cooler, though he didn’t know for sure. Little was known of the far west.

From forest to forest, they had used the trees to hide their passage, although with their speed he doubted that anybody would be able to catch them. Still, he followed the instructions of their leader. Cedric had expected the strongest of them to be chosen as the leader, but it was the man with the axes. Apparently, he had experience in leading warriors, and he also knew how to travel between the borders.

Cedric hadn’t realized what those connections meant until Steven had called the man a dirty smuggler. His previous job didn’t seem to matter to the knights nor to the rest of them, so Steven could do nothing but accept Thor as their temporary leader. Cedric was just glad that someone knew what they were doing. All of them had been taught what they needed to do over the last week, but he still didn’t get most of it. He was a bit slow as those things went, though that was mostly due to how difficult it was for him to focus on another person.

They had passed the border with little problem, but they did need to sneak past a group of scouts. Although Brigid had merely wanted to bowl over them, but Thor had insisted that doing so would cause them to miss the caravan. That was the real objective of the mission, so they avoided the scouts. All five of them had the speed, strength, and endurance to cover distance quickly. A normal person would take days to travel the distance they had already.

Cedric was a little jealous of the weather, the cool air felt much better than the humid heat back home. The cool air and the somewhat slow pace made it so that he didn’t even sweat. They had to match their speed with the slowest of them, though even that was faster than a mount's sprint. Each of the five of them was the best at something among those who had taken the elixir. Cedric was the most durable and had the most endurance of the group. The girls were the best in terms of physical abilities, Brigid having the most strength, and Sam being the fastest. Thor had the best senses and Steven was the smartest. That didn’t mean that any of them were weak, they were all far better than a normal person in almost everything.

Cedric didn’t feel much smarter, but it was obvious that he had been learning things faster. He had become far more comfortable with his sword, and sir L had told him of how quick his growth was. That just showed Cedric how important the elixir was. Before getting it he had been entirely incapable. Too stupid to learn things, and his body stopped him from doing proper work. That was behind him now, and he instead focused on the road in front of him.

Cobblestone was laid on the grass, and Thor held his hands up to stop them. It seemed like they had arrived. The road cut through a forest, and he could see the trees in the distance. The land so far had seemed almost patterned in how often it switched between grassland and forest. The grass was surprisingly short given the wilderness so far, but it had made it significantly easier to dodge scouts.

Thor glanced up for a moment before turning to face the rest of the group.

“We have arrived a bit too early. The plan had been to arrive at nightfall, and the caravan won’t be coming until sunrise.”

Cedric looked at the sky and guessed that would mean that they still had half a day to lounge around. Well, not lounge but prepare for the caravan.

Stolen story; please report.

“You ran us like dogs, only to have us do nothing for most of the day!”

The retort came from Steven, as he had done several times on the trip. The two of them had several small disagreements along the journey, mostly with Steven claiming that it would be better to wait for sundown, and Thor explaining that it wouldn’t matter. Those arguments never got anywhere, and he expected the same here.

As they started bickering, the whole group moved toward the forest. They were planning on using the trees for cover. Walking on the road felt familiar, as the jagged cobblestones reminded him of the mountain. At the edge of the forest, they got off the road and headed into the trees. It was a bit warmer in the forest and he wondered what could be causing that. Thor called everyone over once they were a way into the forest.

The grass was taller here and a few flowers sprouted from the ground. The trees themselves were thicker than the ones back home, and they were topped with hundreds of small leaves. Honestly, they were perfect for hiding in, and Thor agreed. Their plan was a simple one. They would sit on the treetops and wait for the caravans to come through. They would follow up by throwing rocks at the chanters, then rushing in. Strangely, one of the things that everyone trained in was throwing objects. Apparently, it was one of the best methods to fight chanters, as they wouldn’t be expecting a person to throw their weapon with the speed of an arrow. Everyone would run down the chanters even if they got hit by the rocks. Thor made sure that everyone understood what was at stake and would confirm the deaths of each of the chanters.

With how simple the plan was, even Cedric had managed to follow him for the entire discussion. Afterward, they broke up, and only Thor and Steven kept watch on the road. It was unnecessary as they were well beyond what normal people could see. Only someone looking for them would have any chance, and they would know long before the group got close. Thor’s senses were good enough to accomplish that.

Cedric looked for a comfortable tree and slunk down to the floor. He kept the tree to his back, using it to get comfortable. A nap should do him some good and it would make time pass quickly.

“Hey, you want to test who’s stronger?”

Cedric's eyes snapped open, meeting the steady blue eyes of Brigid. Her eyes were like his now, and the colors were made more vivid. They hadn’t been allowed to fight one another back at the training grounds, but no one was there to watch them. Although, he knew he wouldn’t be able to win in a straight fight. He had another idea though.

“Let’s take turns hitting one another. It will be a test between your strength and my toughness.”

She grinned at him, and her chiseled jaw made it seem predatory. Cedric got up, getting ready for a fight. At first, Cedric had jumped at the chance to be a fighter and make something of his life, but he had realized some nasty truths while here. He was not afraid of getting hit and that had let him succeed where others would fail. Enduring years of repetitive injuries and beatings had left him unafraid of a person’s fist or a drawn weapon. Plus, his more resilient body made even the harshest wounds into nothing more than an ache in a few seconds.

Filled with confidence, he got up and nodded towards Brigid. He spoke while bracing himself for the incoming strike.

“You can attack first.”

She didn’t hesitate in the slightest, slamming her fist into his torso. Her fist moved fast, faster than he could’ve managed. He was amazed at how her hand was twice as thick as his own, and almost a finger’s length bigger. The strike had been solid and perfectly in the center of his chest. The fist slammed into his body, and he was sent slamming through several trees as a resounding impact sounded inside his skull. The first tree he crashed into had exploded when his back collided with it, breaking like glass, sending splinters flying around. It sounded like he had been hit by thunder, but the force felt like someone had stuffed him with a boulder.

Although, it was nothing he couldn’t manage, and he rose quickly, using his hands to prop himself up. In fact, he could already feel the pain lessening. He was certain that the strike must have broken some ribs, but by the time he rose to his feet, he felt completely fine. Taking in a deep breath, he started coughing violently and spat as he felt something enter his throat. A mixture of blood and flesh splattered against the ground.

By this time Brigid had arrived, and she looked at the puddle for a second, before flinching.

“Sorry… I thought you could take it.”

An apology was rare for Cedric, and he had no idea how to respond to one. The only thing he could think to do was ease her worries. Waving his hand in a dismissive motion he spoke, glad that he had cleared out his throat already.

“It’s fine. Honestly looks worse than it is, I’m good as new already.”

He tried giving her a reassuring smile, and she seemed relieved. However, the relief only lasted for a moment, and he could see her jaw visibly clench.

“I can admit you’re tough but let’s see if you got the strength to back it up.”

Despite her words, Cedric caught her eyes drifting back to the viscera he had left on the ground. He knew that the others didn’t take to pain as easily as he did. Holding back wasn’t such a big deal, and he didn’t really want to ruin his chance at making some friends. She wouldn’t be seriously hurt by his fist, but the problem was figuring out how much power would be believable.

“What are you guys doing!? You do realize what it means to go undiscovered.”

Sam was yelling in an angry whisper as Steven and Thor ran up to see what was happening. Cedric withered under her glare and couldn’t help but feel like a child. He was the youngest of the group, though only two years younger than Sam and Brigid. She didn’t look anywhere near done, and the other two seemed like they were grasping the situation as well. He glanced at Brigid, and she seemed to know what was coming. When he saw her eyes move towards him, he saw the look of resignation on her face. Sighing, he braced himself to receive a lecture.