Eldana and her group of five found traveling through the Ciroc woods an apt manoeuvre from the amount of attention they would attract if they followed the major roads.
Lord Taboon and his goons would still be in search of Eldana, so would Sinto, and the king of Middle. Plus, the whole of Toas had gone out of hand. If they got themselves embroiled in a skirmish between towns, they would not be able to fulfil their mission before chaos swallowed the entire land.
The first few hours of their journey into the forest was done in silence. Siem and Eldana rode in front. Hermon rode alone a little behind them. D’rmas and Mikko brought up the rear. The hooves of their horses made a shuffling sound across the mat of leaves, and shrubs. The only evidence that the sun had risen was the few streaks of sunlight that pierced through the thick canopy of trees. At one time, they came upon a black jaguar, nestled in the low branches of a curving tree. The magic cloaks Techle had provided them prevented them from unwarranted attacks. So, the jaguar stared at them inconsequentially until they passed under it, away from its sight.
Along the way, Mikko stopped to relieve himself.
“What?” Mikko asked when D’rmas stared at him endlessly. “Is it a crime to take a piss now?”
D’rmas simply looked away.
Mikko walked away from his horse and further left into the company of trees in his search for privacy. “A man has got to do his thing without an audience.” He joked, before walking off.
Hermon took the temporary stop to meet up with his friends. He kicked his horse, and it came up to Eldana and Siem.
“How are you holding up?” he asked.
“Fine,” Eldana replied.
“You?” Siem asked.
“Fine,” Hermon replied. “Our passage through the woods has seen no obstacle or incident since we started.”
Siem turned to see if Mikko was on his way back. He was not. But before she brought her face back, she caught D’rmas with a scowl on his face.
“Speak for yourself,” she told Hermon and pushed her head forward, gesturing towards D’rmas’ position.
“What is wrong with your friend?” Eldana asked Hermon.
“O come on, Eldana, not you too,” Hermon moaned. “He is not my friend. Besides his occupation, his clan, and his name, I don’t know anything else about him.”
Siem chuckled.
“Okay,” Eldana said. “But what is wrong with him?”
“I do not know,” Hermon replied with a little off-handedness. “I guess he is just bored. D’rmas is a man who is in love with the heat of action. I should know. I almost killed him because of that love. The morning has been uneventful so far, no challenge, nothing.”
“I imagine the silence must be depressing for him,” Eldana said.
“Well, he should get himself together,” Siem said. “It will not be long before he gets what he is asking for.”
“And Hermon?” Eldana called.
“Yeah?” He replied.
“That thing you said about not being D’rmas’ friend?”
“Yeah, what about it?” Hermon asked.
“I think you should start thinking about knowing him better,” Eldana advised.
“No, no, no,” Hermon said, shaking his head vehemently.
“What?” Eldana asked with a touch of incredulity. “Why?”
“Because I do not have to,” Hermon replied. “What’s there to gain anyway? His way of life and mine are kingdoms, years apart!”
“Eldana is right, Hermon,” Siem supplied.
Hermon groaned.
“What we are doing is too important to depend only on contracts. It will need loyalty, the kind that stems from friendship and trust. We need to build that among the entire group if we are to succeed. There is only so much just the three of us can do. Mikko’s apprenticeship under Lord Taboon makes him an unusually strong magician, and so is D’rmas. We need their strength!”
“Fine,” Hermon said, rolling his eyes.
Just then they heard the sound of footsteps coming up to them. They turned to find D’rmas walking up to them on his horse. His left hand held the straps of Mikko’s horse, bringing it along with him.
“He’s not yet back,” D’rmas said in a deadpan voice.
The four of them exchanged stares for a time until Eldana broke it.
“How much time do you reckon he has taken?” she asked everyone.
“I would say four hundred and eighty heartbeats,” D’rmas supplied.
“Is that not more than enough time to empty your bladder?” Siem asked, staring at Hermon.
“Why are you looking at me?” Hermon questioned, surprisingly.
“You are a guy,” Siem replied.
“Yes. And so is D’rmas.”
Eldana rolled her eyes and Siem sighed.
“Yes,” D’rmas replied, cutting off the span of silence. “That is more than enough for a man to take a piss, even if his bladder were full to the point of bursting.”
“Could he have run away?” Eldana asked.
“I do not know. Why would he escape?” Siem asked.
“I would not place escaping past Mikko,” D’rmas said. “The level of silence and utter boredom in this place scared him until he almost pissed his pants. He could not help but imagine how scary the real action must be.”
“Thank you, D’rmas,” Siem said. “We appreciate your sarcasm, really.”
He grunted.
“Do any of us still remember the exact path he took into the forest?” Eldana asked. “He might be in danger. Maybe a wild animal has him or something. This forest is not without threat!”
“He still had his cloak on him,” D’rmas said. “That should have protected him from any premeditated attack.”
“What if the attack is not premeditated?” Hermon asked.
“Excuse me?” Eldana replied, incomprehension written plain on her face.
“I am saying that the attack, if this is what it is, could be premeditated on Mikko’s part.” Hermon rephrased.
“Mikko cannot be that stupid,” Siem stated.
“While we sit here on horses debating if he is in danger,” Eldana said, “he could be slipping beyond our salvation.”
They climbed down their horses and turned to the dark woods all around, half-guessing the route that Mikko had taken. Before they ventured, D’rmas whispered a short spell.
