“You did very well for your first time,” Nym told her fondly, taking the weapon back from her and checking the bowstring in a habitual way. “You didn’t quit though you were tired and in pain, I could see your determination. We can continue tomorrow if you’d like.”
“Yes,” Lana said immediately. “I would like that.” She smiled at the elf woman and Nym smiled back. She could feel a friendship budding between them and it exhilarated her. She’d never had a friend before.
They returned to camp to find Clay busy cutting up some fruits and vegetables. Lana joined him and took the dagger from his hands, relieving him of the task. Grinning, he sat back to watch her work. She was determined to make herself useful rather than a hindrance. She sliced up the apples and peppers and portioned them out onto large green leaves from some plant that Clay said came from the lands in the north. The leaves were broad and sturdy and served well as plates to eat from.
The group ate mostly in silence, each of them lost in their own thoughts. Lana had kept the dagger and was peering at it as she ate, turning it this way and that.
“What is this made of?” she asked Clay, holding it out to him. “I have never seen metal that is such a strange color.”
He took the dagger from her and held it up in front of his face, checking the sharpness of the edge.
“It’s bone, not metal. We don’t work with metal if we can help it. When an animal dies in our lands, we use what we can of its body and let the rest naturally decompose. Most elves don’t even wear metal and instead use carved wooden or bone implements,” he responded then turned to Nym. “May I?” he asked, gesturing to her quiver. She nodded, giving him permission.
Pulling out an arrow, he passed it to Lana. She had been using the arrows earlier but hadn’t taken a very good look at them. Now she saw that the arrowhead was also made from the same material as his dagger. She tested the tip with her finger and immediately pulled her hand away, sucking at the small bead of blood that had blossomed there. It was sharp!
Clay took the arrow from her and gave it back to Nym. Then he took out his money pouch and pulled out a silver coin, rolling it across the back of his fingers.
“The process of mining for ore and then heating it to transform it into an object is frowned upon by the elves. The land is meant to be the way it is and manipulation is an abomination. When we travel, we must use coin to survive in the human lands but we don’t have to like it.” He stuck the coin back in his pouch and put it away.
“But how do you pay for things in Eva?” Lana asked, curious about this land she would soon be visiting. This time it was Nym who responded.
“We don’t,” she said. “There is no currency in Eva. We trade goods for goods or give freely. No one in Eva knows poverty or greed. The land provides.” She said that last part as if reciting a commonly used phrase and Clay nodded at her.
“The land provides,” he agreed.
Feeling full, Lana spread out her bedroll and used her cloak as a pillow. She had learned so much today and her mind was swimming with all of the new information. Nym offered to take first watch and Clay said he would be second. Lana tried to offer to take third watch but Nym just chuckled and told her that once she could hit the target during practice, perhaps she’d let her protect the camp for a spell but not until then.
Clay had moved his bedroll next to Lana’s to keep up the pretense that they were in love. In moments, he was fast asleep. Lana laid there for a time, watching his face in the moonlight. He had gone from kidnapper to rescuer and she still wasn’t sure what to make of him.
Sleep was a long time coming that night but eventually exhaustion overtook her, sending her to a deep and dreamless slumber.
* * *
Clay woke suddenly, unsure of what had roused him. He kept himself still and stretched his senses out. He could feel Lana nearby, sleeping, and another presence standing over him. His eyes shot open and he was up in a flash, ready to fight. Lana shifted in her sleep but didn’t wake. Then he relaxed. It was Nym, come to get him for his watch. She had stiffened at his sudden movements but didn’t appear afraid. When he relaxed his stance, she relaxed as well.
“Half the night has passed, it’s your turn,” she told him quietly and, without further comment, walked over to her bedroll and laid down. Clay took a moment to collect himself then went to sit, facing away from the camp and waited for the sun to rise.
Nym was proving to be a useful ally. He couldn’t sense any ill will from her so he had begun to trust her more. Not enough to tell her about his mission or Lana’s identity but enough to allow her to watch over them at night. Something about her felt kindred to him and it wasn’t simply their mutual heritage.
She had been kind to Lana as well, teaching her how to shoot and telling her the old elven story about the First War. He remembered the first time he’d heard it when he was just a child. The story was an old legend and every elf knew it by heart. The fact that the war ended in a stalemate meant that the prophecy of the humans destroying the land was still somewhere in the future and this had always frustrated him. Eventually, something would have to be done about the human
