There was much groaning and moaning next morning. For one thing, keeping watch had really been hard on their sleep schedule. And then of course there had been Kaele's magical nightlight. Khuzan was the first to voice his opinion in that regard. “I have to admit, it was fun to read in those scrolls for a while after sunset, thanks to this piece of Illuminium. But let's put it away for the rest of our trip. Please?” He paused slightly. “I think it attracted more bugs than I'm comfortable sharing my tent with. Especially those mosquitoes weren't fun. I could really do without them.”
He was right. Those little bloodsuckers had done a number on him. He wasn't the only one who had suffered either. Both Kaele and I featured a few bites as well. Only Eld'tide had gotten away without being bitten for some reason. Maybe gorgon blood wasn't tasty or was poisonous? I had no clue. I decided to support Khuzan's suggestion. “True. Let's put the thing away for the rest of the trip. I'm not feeling comfortable having something valuable like this on display either. Never mind that the light could give away our campsite as well, even if it is not terribly bright.”
Kaele sighed. “No need to keep going. I'll put it away in my bag.” She eyed first the net like structure of the piece of magic metal we had found and then her bag. “I might have to bend it a little to make it fit though.” Eld'tide decided to help her with that although Kaele probably would have managed on her own as well, as we found out. The thin pieces of metal bent pretty easy. “The metal really is pretty soft. Soft and light.” She sounded surprised as she put away the precious lump of glowing metal. She seemed deep in thought, probably wondering already what she could make of her find.
I couldn't help but grin. By the time we got back home she probably would have half a dozen ideas or more and not nearly enough of the precious metal to realize any two of them. I almost felt sorry for her. Right now I had more pressing concerns though. I addressed the others. “So, what are the plans for today? Some spell training? Anything else?” They shook their heads one be one as I looked at them. “Well, in that case I would suggest a bath if the creek has calmed down enough and we can make some time.” I pointed downstream. “We passed a little waterfall yesterday. I think that would be a pretty good spot.”
The others nodded once more. They seemed to like the idea. Except maybe for Khuzan. He seemed a bit nervous or uncomfortable. No clue why. He didn't object though, thus it was decided. “Yes! Come on! Let's get packed up and moving!” Obviously I was pretty ecstatic about a chance to finally was off all the sweat, grime and mud of the last few days. Who wouldn't be though? I immediately set out to get ready as well. By the time the others were ready as well the sun had barely crawled halfway across the horizon. I was pretty much bouncing on my feet anyway.
Maybe I had underestimated the distance a little. Maybe it was because we had to detour every once in a while due to fallen trees. Either way it took us a little while to get to the spot I had been thinking of. At least the creek was mostly back to its usual self. The water was nice and clear again. Thankfully there wasn't a whole lot of flotsam on the shores of the small basin the waterfall had washed out of the riverbed. I was especially thankful that none of it were dead bodies of one kind or another. Flooding rivers were known to wash those ashore here or there. That was something I could do without.
Eld'tide separated herself from the rest of the group as we got there. While we inspected the waterfall, the basin and its shoreline she set out to check out the woods surrounding our potential bath. There a strip clear of growth several paces wide all around the basin, covered in sand and gravel. There were a few larger rocks as well. The trees around this clearing weren't terribly tall either. They grew pretty dense though. I liked the spot. The water was clear. I could wash my hair under the waterfall! And there was enough room all around to practice spells and combat. As far as I was concerned the place was near perfect.
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Our ranger friend still seemed a little concerned when she returned though. “The place is probably popular with the local wildlife. There are a few game trails around. Our presence alone should scare most creatures away, but we better stay watchful.” She wasn't the only one worried either. Khuzan nodded in agreement as Eld'tide continued. “It shouldn't be much of a problem when we practice our spells or do combat drills. We should bath in shifts though. Two of us hop in while the other two keep watch.” That might sound overly cautious at a first glance, but she was right. With two people on guard duty they could watch each others back as well in addition to the surrounding area.
“So, who gets to hop in first?” In hindsight I maybe shouldn't have asked. Maybe I should have just hopped in instead. But that would have been mean I guess. Thus we resolved the issue by playing two quick games of rock, scroll and sword. Turns out that Khuzan and my sister would go first. I wistfully watched them hop into the water only to laugh like a madwoman as Kaele ran right back to shore, shivering like a leaf in the wind. Turns out that the water was pretty cold. Our elf friend showed a little more self control. It was pretty obvious though that he was cold as well.
I dropped by backpack on the ground and dug a cloth wrapped bundle from it. After unwrapping it I divided the block of soap inside it into four equal pieces with my knife. “Have some soap if you feel like it.” Then I turned away from the waterfall, to give the two some privacy. Eld'tide followed suit. She took up position on the other side of the basin though. I did some practice swings with my glaive, while I waited for my turn, as well. I probably should have paid a little more attention to our surroundings but I was getting bored. In the end nothing happened and we switched before long.
Eld'tide helped me out of my armor once it was our turn. For a brief moment I had considered hopping in without taking it off first. It had received a few hits during our battle in the mud yesterday and some of it had stuck to the scales. In the end I decided against it though. The water probably wouldn't have hurt the scales, as they were boiled leather. The same wasn't true for the leather onto which they were sewn. At best I would have had to spend the rest of the day in cold and wet armor. That didn't sound very tempting. I would have to clean it properly later.
Once I was out of the scale mail there was no holding me though. I took a running start and jumped into the basin where it was deepest. Right under the waterfall. There were screams from the others as water splashed everywhere, but I was beyond caring. I surfaced again, gasping for breath. The water really was damn cold. I found new respect for Khuzan as I struggled to stay standing under the waterfall. “Gah!” Finally I gave in running back to shore. I was shivering as well now. Quickly I grabbed my piece of soap and started to wash properly. “Cold. Cold. Cold.” The words were barely audible over the chattering of my teeth.
Finally soaped up properly I dove back into the water, avoiding a collision with Eld'tide only at the very last moment. One of her braids slapped me across my backside in retaliation. “Watch where you are going!” I barely even listened, diving back under the waterfall to wash off soap and grime alike. Again I fought a losing battle as I tried to stay under the spray of cold water just a little longer. With a few steps, the water barely slowing me down, I was back out on the gravels of the beach, shaking myself like a wet dog. I had no towel after all and the sun wasn't up far enough to dry me with her rays either.
Still wet and cold I pondered what I should do. I would wait a little longer before putting my armor back on at least. I didn't want to get it wet after all. My gaze sought Khuzan, who had climbed the cliff face of the waterfall, to keep watch from above. It wasn't a terribly high cliff. In reality it barely deserved the name but it probably provided a decent vantage point. He was looking skyward. I followed his gaze wondering what had caught his attention. As I saw it my eyes widened. “Wyvern!” Just as Khuzan and I called out almost at the same time, it made its presence known with a piercing shriek as well.